Netflix, et al are ruining the way we watch TV

Maximus
Maximus Posts: 12,256 Member
in Chit-Chat
Remember when we, as a nation, would gather around the TV to watch something together? The final episode of MASH. Who shot JR??? The last episode of LOST (which sucked, btw)

But now with Netflix and others streaming original (and awesome) content, how much longer will it be before those days are gone? Now that everyone can watch on their own schedule, the anticipation of sharing big moments in a series are gone.

Discuss.

Thank you,

Management
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Replies

  • SGM_Adonis
    SGM_Adonis Posts: 1,565 Member
    I HATE having to wait through the first 3-5 minutes of every show I'm watching in succession. Don't they know I just watched the previous episode?

    That's enough suspense for me.
  • IronSmasher
    IronSmasher Posts: 3,908 Member
    The nation has terrible taste.
  • wolverine66
    wolverine66 Posts: 3,779 Member
    no. it isn't ruining it.
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  • MinnieInMaine
    MinnieInMaine Posts: 6,400 Member
    This may make me sound old but the VCR started it.
  • AwesomeGuy37
    AwesomeGuy37 Posts: 436 Member
    I don't even own a TV. I had the "privilege" of watching one in a hospital stay last year. I can't believe the number of commercials I had to watch. NO NO NO.. Netflix is a godsend.
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  • ddixon503
    ddixon503 Posts: 119 Member
    As soon as regular TV stop shoveling reality shows and rehashing lawyer/police/fireman dramas at me, I'll stop watching Netflix.
  • tyrsnbdr
    tyrsnbdr Posts: 234 Member
    If it wasn't for sports, I would watch all my shows on Netflix.
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  • spade117
    spade117 Posts: 2,466 Member

    Now, someone could be finished with the entire 2nd season of House of Cards while others may just be starting. They can't talk about it because it may spoil it for someone.

    I don't care about other people, so I can talk if I want to.
  • spade117
    spade117 Posts: 2,466 Member
    If it wasn't for sports, I would watch all my shows on Netflix.

    And this.
  • beernpizza2
    beernpizza2 Posts: 553 Member
    This may make me sound old but the VCR started it.

    But you still had to wait to for the show to air. You weren't ahead of everyone. You were probably behind.

    Now, someone could be finished with the entire 2nd season of House of Cards while others may just be starting. They can't talk about it because it may spoil it for someone.

    Did someone spoil the House of Cards for you? Is this what's really going on?
  • KinzieElise
    KinzieElise Posts: 584 Member
    I don't think Netflix and other streaming sites ruined the way we watch TV and interact with others about TV, I think it just changed it. Sure, you've got to worry about spoilers but if you're watching a show as it comes out you still get that feeling of sharing big moments, even if you watched it a day or so later. You still anticipate big moments and you still talk about them and anticipate the next big moment.

    Besides, you have to go back quite a few years to get to "everyone was watching together" because we've had so many channels to watch and choose from that so few people are actually going to watch the same thing at the same time and then immediately talk about it. So really, you should be blaming cable.
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  • beernpizza2
    beernpizza2 Posts: 553 Member
    I'm going to watch the very last episode tonight and tell you all about it!
  • sillygoosie
    sillygoosie Posts: 1,109 Member
    Whatever. I haven't seen a commercial in months and it is glorious.
  • dshalbert
    dshalbert Posts: 677 Member
    I love Netflix and also see your point. I love House of Cards and now I also have the option to get into Scandal, yes I'm really late on that one, but I now have options. And I like options better than trying to figure out what the networks are doing, jumping all over the place with their prgramming and having to try and figure out when the next episode is coming on in a series or is this a re-run? That how I lost it with Revenge.

    I do miss talking about the latest episode by the water cooler, but this beats missing it all together. Also given this winter and all of this snow, staying home and having a Netflix marathon is fun.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    Meh...I've been DVRing my shows now for years. I can't remember the last time I watched live television other than a sporting event...and even then, I usually DVR a good portion of it so I can fast forward through commercials and just watch the game.

    Now with the prevalence of Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, etc we've just dumped out satellite altogether and just stream. It is the way of the future.
  • AmykinsCatfood
    AmykinsCatfood Posts: 599 Member
    ...I regularly have people over to watch shows on Netflix. Am I just weird? Edit: Also, British netflix released episodes of Breaking Bad as they aired so I didn't miss talking about it to anyone. Just need an unblocker.
  • tyrsnbdr
    tyrsnbdr Posts: 234 Member
    Yahoo runs ads (I mean articles) on cable companies trying to get back customers. I have yet to see these changes.

    http://homes.yahoo.com/news/Winning-back-cord-cutters-225436831.html
  • wolverine66
    wolverine66 Posts: 3,779 Member
    no. it isn't ruining it.

    Yes it is.

    Nope.

    Those "Event" episodes were rare anyway. You pull 2 80's references none from the 90's and 1 from this decade.

    But people still watch TV "together." Just look at this board. You have a thread for The Walking Dead, we have had threads for Breaking Bad,, Sons of Anarchy and justified (etc, etc). There is something special about keeping up with these series as they happen and have the ability to discuss each episode.

    Yes, anyone can go zip through the season when it's released in 6 months so people are catching up that way but it's usually to do just that - catch up - so they can talk about it with their friends week to week.
  • Serenitytoo
    Serenitytoo Posts: 449 Member
    We have weekly potlucks for walking dead with several friends. So there are some things we watch as they happen, but it is a rareity now. I love my PVR. I can sit down and watch my shows when it is convenient for me... not when the network says I have to watch it. Netflix allows me to sometimes catch up on shows I missed the first time round. Although I am in Canada so our netflix doesn't have near the same number of choices as those of you in the US.
  • thephilm1
    thephilm1 Posts: 4 Member
    Ruining? Quite the opposite.
    I can cook dinner, and enjoy that with my family, and on our own time we can watch whatever we want.
    We don't have to watch commercials. We can watch whatever show we want on our schedule, and no longer be stuck at home waiting for a show to come on.
    We can have marathons if we want... having group gatherings to watch a season (or a finale) at any time.
    No spoilers for other shows.
    No need to actually having to be home if I wanted to watch a show.

    Anyways, doesn't this free up our time to spend time with people without the computer, phone, or TV being on? So that we don't have to worry about "missing" our show? Go outside while it's still light out and be together, not huddled around a TV?

    I for one, and excited to think of the good ol' days in ten years looking back, and realizing it wasn't about a tv show, but was about what we did together as friends and family.
  • workout_ninja
    workout_ninja Posts: 524 Member
    Everyone I know gathered round the TV to watch the Christmas Special of Doctor Who
  • suncluster
    suncluster Posts: 539 Member
    I grew up in a house that was a slave to TV. It was always on. Yes, we gathered around it to watch different shows, including Star Trek during dinner. This time is not what family memories should be about. I rather focus on the time we spent together talking with the tv off.

    I still watch tv and I love my netflix subscription. . I even invite friends over to watch certain shows. But ultimately I invite friends over for the social interaction not the tv itself. The tv is just the catalyst
  • nickowastaken
    nickowastaken Posts: 751 Member
    TV sucks.

    The end.
  • dbmata
    dbmata Posts: 12,950 Member
    and Comcast is ruining the way we internet.

    So it is, so it shall be. The toobz cannot be controlled!
  • krist3ng
    krist3ng Posts: 259 Member
    Netflix is helping TV shows, in a way. I read somewhere that Breaking Bad's viewership skyrocketed when Netflix added the show, because people were binge-watching and then caught up for new seasons, which they watched live. Netflix gives an entry point for new viewers. As for its original programming, well, that's a different animal.

    There's still watercooler-talk about niche, acclaimed shows like Mad Men and Community (and Walking Dead, etc). And thanks to Netflix, I was able to catch up on some shows, like Arrow and Supernatural (and BB, back in the day) and become a regular, commercial-fast-forwarding cable watcher.
  • ARDuBaie
    ARDuBaie Posts: 378 Member
    I like Netflix because you don't have to put up with commercials. Plan and simple. Way too many commercials are shown during television shows.

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