The 10 minute rule that got me through slow burn shows

I used to drop shows after two episodes if nothing big happened. Then I started letting each episode run for exactly 10 minutes before deciding. If nothing grabbed me by that point, I moved on. It saved me from quitting stuff like Dark or The Leftovers too early, which both needed a few episodes to click. Problem is, I still sit through some boring scenes hoping the payoff comes. Has anyone else found a better cutoff time for deciding if a show is worth your time?

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finley9399h ago

Tried six episodes of Dark before it clicked. That was the sweet spot for me. Ten minutes is way too short for slow burn shows like The Leftovers or Breaking Bad. Three episodes is my hard rule now, gets past the setup without wasting too much time if it sucks.