Summary
Although streaming has made watching TV more convenient than ever before, there are still plenty of annoying streaming trends that people have had enough of.Streaming has changed the way people watch TV. There’s now a wider variety of shows which are available on demand on multiple devices, but streaming hasn’t been all good news. Most shows conform to a few infuriating trends.
There’s a reason why the most popular shows on streaming platforms are old network shows, and this is partly because of a few irritating problems with the kinds of shows being made for streaming platforms today. Compared to older shows, streaming shows have fewer episodes, longer breaks between seasons, and a serialized structure. This means that although streaming was supposed to make watching TV more convenient, it sometimes has the opposite effect.
7 Reasons Why Old Network Shows Are Still So Successful On Streaming
All of the most popular shows on streaming platforms were made for TV networks years ago, and there are a few key reasons for this surprising trend.
10Eight Episode Seasons
Streaming platforms have cut out “filler” episodes, but many fans love filler
Streaming platforms don’t typically produce shows with very many episodes per season in the same way that traditional broadcast networks do.Even the most popular shows tend to stick to 10 episodes or fewer per season.Stranger Thingsseason 5is set for another eight episodes. The longest seasons of the show have only consisted of nine episodes, and most other streaming hits are the same.
Despite its popularity and cultural impact, the entirety ofStranger Thingsis equivalent to under two seasons of older shows likeFriendsorGrey’s Anatomy.
Older shows remain the most popular shows on streaming platforms. There are a few key reasons for this, including nostalgia and the reliable formula of procedurals and sitcoms, but the sheer number of episodes is also important. Despite its popularity and cultural impact, the entirety ofStranger Thingsis equivalent to under two seasons of older shows likeFriendsorGrey’s Anatomy.
9Long Waits Between Seasons
Some shows produce two seasons in the same time that they could use to produce four or five
With some exceptions, the traditional model of TV dictated that shows would produce a new season every year, and that the episodes would air in the same weekly time slot at roughly the same time of year. Streaming platforms have completely ignored this rule, and fans are growing frustrated by long waits between seasons of their favorite shows.It can often be hard to find any news about when a show might return.
IfInvinciblehad been made a few years ago by a cable network, it’s possible that it would have produced four whole seasons by now.
After an explosive first season in 2021, fans of Amazon’s animated superhero showInvinciblehad to wait until 2024 for more episodes. IfInvinciblehad been made a few years ago by a cable network, it’s possible that it would have produced three whole seasons in this time. The trade-off is that the show has enough time to ensure that it maintains a high quality, even if the wait can feel endless. Fortunately,Invincibleseason 3should come much sooner.
8Surprise Cancelations
Fans are seeing their favorite shows canceled before their stories reach a natural conclusion
Surprising premature TV cancelations have always been a problem, but streaming has made this problem much worse. Now,more and more shows are being canceled with loose ends and cliffhangers, leaving fans frustrated.Hulu canceledThe Greatjust as the show seemed primed for a brilliant fourth season, and there are a lot of plot threads which will now be left hanging.
Shows are being given less time if they don’t have the viewing numbers to justify their expenditure for the network.
This isn’t just a problem with streaming platforms. Network shows are also being canceled more readily. The common factor is that shows are being given less time if they don’t have the viewing numbers to justify their expenditure for the network. Streaming platforms and cable networks are both using data to drive these decisions more than they used to. The upshot is that some fans may not give a new show a chance if there’s a possibility that it will just be canceled without concluding its story.
7Serialized Storytelling Rather Than Episodic Shows
Streaming platforms have fewer shows that audiences can jump in and out of
As well as having fewer episodes per season, more and more shows on streaming platforms are using serialized storytelling rather than episodic structures. With plot lines continuing throughout an entire season, fans can no longer jump in and out of a show at will. Older shows likeSeinfeldorHousecan be enjoyed without too much context, and this is part of the reason why they remain so popular.
With plot lines continuing throughout an entire season, fans can no longer jump in and out of a show at will.
Rewatching streaming shows means starting from the first episode, while other shows can be just as enjoyable by picking a random episode. Of course, serialized TV is nothing new. Some of the best shows of all time, likeBreaking Bad, LostandGame of Thrones,use serialized narratives, but the proportion of such shows is now higher than ever.Episodic TV may soon be a thing of the past.
6Dialogue That’s Hard To Understand
Many people resort to using subtitles, even if their hearing is perfectly fine
One of the most common complaints about streaming platforms is the quality of the audio. Comedies mostly escape unscathed, but many drama shows are difficult to hear, even for people with perfect hearing. Many people now use subtitles for shows that shouldn’t really require them, just so that they can understand the dialogue. This is true of movies on streaming platforms too.
Shows that are harder to hear can be much less immersive, especially if people find the experience of reading subtitles to be too distracting.
In some cases, the problem isn’t necessarily the show itself, but the way that the streaming app sets up the visuals and audio. It can often be fixed by changing the settings on a show, but this doesn’t always help. Shows that are harder to hear can be much less immersive, especially if people find the experience of reading subtitles to be too distracting.This can be enough to make audiences give up on a show.
5Recycled Concepts
The streaming era has created more spinoffs and reboots than before
In the highly competitive streaming era,new TV shows have to be able to grab people’s attention quickly. This has led to more and more shows relying on pre-existing IPs. There are now more adaptations, spinoffs and sequel shows than ever before, with proportionally fewer original concepts. This reflects one of the most common complaints lobbied against the movie industry in the 21st century, that there’s a lack of original ideas.
2024 has already seen shows likeRipley, The GentlemenandMr. & Mrs. Smithrepackaging old ideas into a new format, even when it isn’t necessary.
2024 has already seen shows likeRipley, The GentlemenandMr. & Mrs. Smithrepackaging old ideas into a new format, even when it isn’t necessary.Mr. & Mrs. Smithdoesn’t relate to the moviestarring Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie in any way that matters, but it still attracted fans of the movie. It could easily have been given a different name and packaged as an original spy thriller, but this might have affected its chances of success.
4Episodes Fluctuating In Length
Audiences can no longer expect a consistent viewing experience
Because streaming shows don’t have to make room for traditional commercial breaks, they have much more freedom with the structure and length of their episodes.Without having to squeeze every episode into a one-hour time slot, shows can let their stories play out more organically.For example, Netflix’sRipleyhas episodes ranging between 45 minutes and an hour and 15 minutes.
If people want to watch one episode of a show per day, for example, it’s better for each episode to take up the same amount of time.
While this gives writers and showrunners more license to experiment, it isn’t always better for audiences. Many people prefer shows which provide a more consistent viewing experience. If people want to watch one episode of a show per day, for example, it’s better for each episode to take up the same amount of time. Shows with variable episode lengths aren’t as much of an issue for binge-watching, so this may be another reason why streaming platforms have no problem with them.
3Seasons Being Split In Half
Streaming shows may be slowly moving back toward weekly episodes
Streaming platforms changed the normal model of TV show releases.Rather than releasing one episode per week, streaming shows usually release entire seasons at once. This has contributed to binge-watching culture, and people have come to expect this. In recent years, however, more and more shows have been splitting their seasons into two parts. For example, fans have waited over two years forBridgertonseason 3, and they must now wait another month for part 2.
Having already given viewers a taste of unrestricted access to shows, starting to drip feed them at this point definitely seems like a step backwards.
It makes sense why streaming platforms might gradually shift back toward the traditional method of releasing shows incrementally. This usually gives a show time to build up a larger fan base over the course of a few weeks, and it also means that the show remains relevant for longer. However, having already given viewers a taste of unrestricted access to shows, starting to drip feed them at this point definitely seems like a step backwards in terms of viewer convenience.
2Spoilers Everywhere
Streaming shows usually release all of their episodes at once, so people watch at different speeds
One unfortunate effect of having every episode of a show released simultaneously is that fans might find it harder to avoid spoilers. Shows which air one episode a week tend to be better at cranking up the drama. Not only this, but they create a collective experience for fans who are all on the same page waiting for the next episode. When a show drops an entire season at once, different people watch at different paces, meaning that some people finish a show while others are just getting started.
When a show drops an entire season at once, different people watch at different paces, meaning that some people finish a show while others are just getting started.
Unless someone watches an entire season the day that it’s released, there’s always a chance they’ll stumble upon some spoilers from someone who binged it immediately. This could either be through friends or social media.The overarching problem is that the collective cultural experience of TV is evaporating.Only a few shows still facilitate the phenomenon of everyone watching at the same time and talking about them together.
1No Physical Media
Fans subscribe to their favorite shows, rather than owning them
Thanks to streaming platforms, audiences have access to hundreds of TV shows whenever they want them, and this has caused the market for DVDs and Blu-rays to plummet. Since the market is less valuable, many streaming shows no longer make their way onto any form of physical media. The biggest streaming shows can still be found on DVD, but smaller shows aren’t guaranteed a physical release.
