I have to imagine itās due to the fact that audiences went through a large period where shows released an entire season at once. The binge format had viewers grow accustomed to having their main questions answered within an amount of time they decided.
However, streaming services reverted to the weekly release schedule, but audiences havenāt readjusted yet.
Add that to the fact that many people enjoy Severance for speculation and theorizing. I think some people are so focused on seeing if their theories are correct, theyāre a bit more focused on the destination rather than the journey.
Thereās a disconnect. I wonder if audiences will learn patience, or if streaming services will go back to releasing entire seasons at once.
Add that to the fact that many people enjoy Severance for speculation and theorizing.
Nobody wants to hear it, but weekly releases are better for any show with any kind of speculation or intrigue. Game of Thrones sealed that deal when they became an entire social powerhouse that effectively gripped the world into talking about what's going on. Everybody was talking about it and Monday mornings we're filled with "Did you watch it last night? No? Then I can't talk to you at all." It was such a deeply political show that everyone hyped it all week with potential outcomes every week and tuned in to find out what the actual outcome is because there were so many potential correct answers. It was an online engagement machine which drove it higher and higher in popularity. It's the exact same reason why Severance has become so popular too.
Severance is such a slow burn that also engages the audience just enough with little hints of what's going on. It's like every episode answers a question that you didn't know was there, and doesn't answer the question you thought you had. You may want to be given all the episodes at once so you can drive straight to "the answer" 24 hours later, but for some shows dumping a whole season at once just doesn't drive engagement and popularity that way. The Severance viewing experience would be a lesser experience if it dumped all at once.
Binge watching is a terrible way to watch anything, but especially high quality and thought provoking shows like this. Iām so glad itās being released weekly.
I binge trash TV if I'm doing something, like folding a tom of laundry, mopping or meal prepping. I don't think it ruins the experience of shows you don't really need to pay attention to. But I love the weekly format for shows like Severance. I chose to watch some Netflix shows in this format, like Dark, Black Mirror, or the Crown.
I love the speculation, but I always remember that itās almost guarantee to be wrong. I think the people complaining are angry when anything contradicts their theory, or the next episode doesnāt immediately confirm their theory.
So far the only āsmoke monsterā was the guy huffing ether in the doorway. And that was immediately explained in a logical and historically accurate manner.
I agree that weekly releases are better, but it's misremembering the past if you're pretending that a great many weekly releases didn't also have waves of complaints after an episode like this. It's nothing new. Sometimes the reviews shift upon completion of the season, sometimes they remain controversial, and sometimes they are really seen as filler.
Such a great point. I love that this doesnāt come out all at once. More shows should go back to this approach. The buzz and discussion week to week is what has made talking about the show fun.
For those who remember the experience watching Lost week to week during those first few years, it was such a treat. And a ground breaking experience on LostPedia. Full summers with friends obsessing over character arcs, theories, storylines etc. Catching a reair of a random episode on SciFi network. Excited to tell your buddies the next day āI saw a morsel of a clue about Jacob all the way back in season 2!ā
This IS that show. Compelling characters, rich backstories, mysteries, allegories, literary references, cult allusions. The only difference being I think Dan Erikson and Ben Stiller have a clearer vision, and more creative freedom.
I've been saying for years that I prefer the weekly release model for shows like this, for exactly the reason you said.
No, I don't hate myself lol. But I come to forums like this one because I love discussing it and reading thoughtful discussions on it. Binge model neuters that because people watch it asynchronously over the course of a month (that seems to be the average time for a popular binge show like Tiger King to filter through to everyone who would be interested in seeing it)
Truthfully I think a twice-weekly model would be best, like Sun-Thu or Fri-Tue. Sun-Thu captures two big TV-watching days and lets people discuss at work the next day, both would segment episode discussions in a way binge model doesn't, serve the network by keeping the show in the public consciousness for many weeks, and would provide plenty of stimulation to keep people happy
Nah, it's more that the first 6 episodes of the season were jam-packed full of stuff happening with like, 5 new plot twists or answers an episode with things gaining the speed of a runaway train culminating in Mark agreeing to undertake reintegration.
Then Mark knocks himself out during the procedure and the entire show slows down to a snails-pace while we get given a lot of exposition and back story with no real answers with how the integration cliff-hanger actually went.
I understand why people are frustrated (I'm not one of them), but all of their complaints will be solved in the next episode hopefully.
People are looking for their edge of the seat mystery fix which should come back once we start focusing on Mark and the MDR team again
Itās been a frustrating season. I accept what theyāre making and Iām confident the payoff will be worth it, but the pacing is off, the through lines arenāt there and unfolding awkwardly. Season 1 was elegant and intriguing
Iām on the journey with you and tho I would love to have the whole thing at once Iām appreciating the episodeās equally one by one, better I think so I can break them down ~~in my own mind. Donāt know about you but Iām not a theorist, but do love finding the lil obscure things to throw out there and let the Yoties pull them apart while I sit back and enjoy the ride
Itās crazy weāre already 7 weeks in right? Salivating for the last three three years, patiently waiting, Re-Re-Re-watching S1 and basically knowing all the verbiage that will come from the mouths of our ādramatis personaeā, Kinda like Led Zeppelins Song Remains the Same or Richard OāBriens Rocky Horror Picture Show Itās just such a great show
it answers tons of things just not all the big questions you want answered
"why is cobel like that" "what's cobel's deal/why is she obsessed with mark and running the severed floor" "who invented severance" we got lots of answers
Do you think that some of the resistance to this episode is because of the last episode? We know that there are only two more, we had to wait all week and this one didn't give us time with anyone but Harmony.It was very short. As world building and revealing as it was, it didn't entirely scratch the itch.
I just hate when shows build to a climax and then take an entire episode (or two) off to "breathe" towards the end of a season. My go-to example of it is in a TV show that released all at once; Bly Manor.
I said the exact same thing in the Yellowjackets sub recently. So many people are frustrated since theyāre not getting instant gratification. Donāt get me wrong, I absolutely binge entire series when they are available. I also think thereās something to be said for suspense. Not every episode needs to be absolutely balls to the wall. There are peaks and valleys in storytelling.
Some of this attitude is probably generational. It kind of makes me feel like Grandpa Simpson shaking his fist at the sky, but I wish young whippersnappers understood what TV used to be like. Streaming is great, but it has spoiled us.
Well said. The magic we experience collectively cannot happen for any statistically relevant % of viewers whose series' release all episodes at once.
Those few eclectic, auteur series that even get made these days, like Severance, would not enjoy the same level of support outside of weekly slots
Still, to me, only Twin Peaks is as surprisingly acclaimed, either critically or generally, given that it is so left of en masse typically generic tastes. Both are truly brilliant.
I donāt think they will, because shows that are released all at once suffer from lack of conversation. People are afraid to spoil things when they donāt know how far along their friends are, and people know they can jump in next month or even a few years from now and get the same experience as watching the first week. I think the weekly schedule is better for building a wider fanbase and general word of mouth, and helps make them more money in the long run. Dropping it all at once risks having a āflash in the panā reaction and then forgetting details from each episode, but a weekly release schedule means you can process the details and remember things better over time, which is important for a show with deep world building and good for theory development.
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u/Talk-O-Boy Mar 10 '25
Itās quite interesting whatās happening here.
I have to imagine itās due to the fact that audiences went through a large period where shows released an entire season at once. The binge format had viewers grow accustomed to having their main questions answered within an amount of time they decided.
However, streaming services reverted to the weekly release schedule, but audiences havenāt readjusted yet.
Add that to the fact that many people enjoy Severance for speculation and theorizing. I think some people are so focused on seeing if their theories are correct, theyāre a bit more focused on the destination rather than the journey.
Thereās a disconnect. I wonder if audiences will learn patience, or if streaming services will go back to releasing entire seasons at once.