With the rise of streaming services, many people are finding binge-watching superior to traditional cable TV. (Image Courtesy of Aesthetic Blasphemy)
This piece is from the CU Independent’s opinion section. Any opinions or views do not represent the CU Independent.
Television used to have a very strict schedule that made audiences sit in front of their TV to tune into their favorite show at a very specific time in the day. Some shows would air at 6 p.m., while others that were less popular wouldn’t air until 11 p.m. If you weren’t able to watch at the time or even on the day that the show was airing, you either had to record it or you simply missed an entire episode. Also, you were restricted to watch only shows you had recorded in the past or were on live with limited ability to watch entire seasons. Today, streaming platforms have solved a lot of the pain points of traditional cable TV. Now, entire seasons are released at once, and binge-watching has become the dominant way audiences experience television.
Some argue that real-time viewing gives you suspense and shared cultural moments, and while that is very true, there are a lot more pros to binge-watching on streaming services. Binge-watching offers a more immersive, flexible, and emotionally satisfying way to watch stories, as we can get consumed in a world for several hours. And the test of time has shown that binge-watching is not just a trend that will die out in a couple of years. Instead, it is a reflection of how modern audiences want to engage with a new style of entertainment. One of the biggest advantages of binge-watching is the ability to continuously watch a show without any interruption. Weekly TV viewing forces audiences to pause a story just as suspension is building, which can weaken the emotional momentum when you come back to the story a week later. Binge-watching allows viewers to stay engaged for hours at a time, which makes the storylines and character development much easier to follow. People no longer need to remember what happened in the previous episode. When viewers binge-watch, they experience the story as a continuous narrative which is how it is intended to be watched rather than separate episodes.
Real-time television requires audiences to organize their schedules around a show and be in front of their TV if they want to watch it live. Binge-watching reverses this dependency on a set schedule, as you can conveniently watch whenever and wherever you want. This flexibility better fits into modern lifestyles that are shaped by school, work and social commitments, as you can’t always be home to watch something. And, instead of waiting a whole week to watch the next episode of a TV show, audiences can now watch at their own pace. This idea transforms television from a once-controlled experience into a now personalized and flexible experience.
Many modern series have very complicated plots and subtle character development. Weekly viewing increases the risk of forgetting what happened in the last episode, which ultimately makes the stories harder to follow. Binge-watching allows viewers to keep the storylines fresh in their minds without depending on memory recall and contributes to a stronger appreciation for complex storytelling. Shows that involve mysteries or cliffhangers benefit greatly from this format because, instead of relying on weekly recaps or googling what happened, viewers can immediately continue watching and seamlessly piece the story together themselves. Cliffhangers are what keep audiences returning week after week to real-time television. While suspense and the buildup to the following week can be exciting, it can also become exhausting and boring to wait, especially with viewers who have increasingly short attention spans. Binge-watching eliminates the unnecessary waiting time and allows viewers to jump into the next episode after a cliffhanger. Rather than spending days risking spoilers online because you missed the last episode on tv, viewers can control their own viewing habits. This makes the viewing experience more satisfying as you can escape into a different TV world for hours on end.
Many critics argue that binge-watching decreases shared cultural moments. However, binge-watching reshaped them into a new form. Instead of the whole world watching something at the exact same time, conversations can now take place over a longer period of time. When something major happens in a certain episode, it is not over in a day; instead, it can last a lifetime. Social media and online forums allow fans to engage with the content whenever they are ready. Even if the show once aired 30 years ago, thanks to subscription services. This creates multiple waves of cultural participation rather than a single fixed moment. People can join in discussions without the fear that they missed something, and can experience shows in a way that fits their schedules and interests.
Binge-watching represents a shift towards continued narratives and emotional connection. While real-time television once dominated the entire entertainment viewing experience, it no longer aligns with the way people live or how new stories are being told. Older shows, such as “Friends,” used to be much more individualized as you could jump into a random episode and still be able to understand what was going on. Today, this is simply not the case.
Contact CU Independent Writer Emily Eigenbrode at emily.eigenbrode@colorado.edu
