Binging vs Weekly Episodes

With streaming services dominating the market over the past several years, one of the main selling points was being able to access whole series at once and not having to tune in at the same time every week to finish a series. However, it seems more and more platforms are releasing new episodes either weekly or in separate parts: most notably Stranger Things (2016) and Bridgerton (2020) where their most recent seasons were separated by a month gap, and even with Disney’s Percy Jackson and Amazon’s Fallout in opting for a weekly release schedule.

Weekly releases aim to try and build hype and anticipation for the show, with viewer engagement expected to rise. Whilst this is definitely true, as seen in Season 5 of Stranger Things, it could also be argued that it is merely a way for streaming services to make sure viewers pay for another month of their subscription. The pauses between episodes allow viewers time to process the content of the episode, rather than watching eight episodes back-to-back and being left with a vague blur of what actually happened. People can then share theories about future episodes and talk about the show over a longer period of time. The possibility of spoilers is greatly decreased as it is assumed that people will watch specific episodes at a similar time.

When all episodes of a show are released at once, the majority of people interested in it will watch them as quickly as possible, often leading to a rapid decline in discussion and hardly any speculation online or in person. With all episodes being available at any time after their initial screening, it takes away the argument of flexibility. The only real benefit I can think of is the instant gratification watchers may gain from this bingeability.

Like the old saying goes, ‘good things come to those who wait’. I think this stands true in television and I would much rather wait to find out the conclusion of a well-thought-out cliff hanger and have time to come up with my own ideas of what happens next. After all, can you really call it a cliff hanger if the suspense only lasts the ten seconds it takes to put the next episode on?