To binge or not to
binge, this is the question. I started
this 500 word writing challenge knowing Netflix would be starting season two of
their hit show Daredevil. What I guess I
didn’t realize was how hard it was going to be for me to stop watching television
in order to write my 500 words each day.
As of right now, I
only have three episodes left to watch and with enough time left before I have
to go to work, it is really eating me up inside to sit here and write. Perhaps it’s not helping I’ve got the television
on, and the screen is primed and ready to start the next episode as soon as I
finish with my writing.
My wife isn’t a
huge Netflix fan because she doesn’t really like to watch TV as much as I
do. One thing I have always loved is
stories, and now with the advent of streaming television, we don’t have to wait
a week to see what happens next in the story.
It’s called binge watching, and while I agree it probably isn’t the best
thing for us as a society to spend our time on, I do enjoy it from time to
time.
What I really like
about watching episode after episode is it almost feels as if it is in real
time. I guess this is because I don’t
have to wait a week between episodes to see what is going to be revealed. And especially now with some of the more well
written shows intentionally placing things in each episode revealing hidden
treasures about the characters and situations they are faced with. It’s to the point now that you cannot miss an
episode, or you are out of the loop.
I guess binge
watching for me has brought story telling to a new level. It’s like watching a movie in little parts,
but unlike a movie lasting a couple of hours, this is like a super director’s
cut which lasts ten to twenty hours. It
has made watching TV fun again. When I say
fun again, I mean I’m being entertained by something other than reality
television; which I feel had its time and place, now it’s just drama for the
sake of drama. The newness of it has
worn off for me; I just want to be entertained.
I can get enough drama in my own life, I don’t need to watch somebody
else’s.
It probably doesn’t
help the fact how I was a comic book nerd growing up and into my twenties. In fact I still have a lot of my comics from
back in the day. Daredevil was a disaster
on the big screen; Ben Affleck making it a joke in the super hero movie genre,
and don’t get me started about him playing Batman now. Daredevil was one of those conflicted super
heroes I read back when I was reading comics, and Netflix has created a version
of it which is very close to what I remember the comics being.
Marvel Comics has
become a juggernaut in the entertainment industry, and for me it is like manna
from Heaven. All the comics I used to
read are now either in movie form or are on television. And I am so excited Netflix has joined the
ranks of those who see the potential for super hero shows and want to help
Marvel tell these stories.
As for me, I will
continue binge watching despite the looks I get from my bride as I’m watching
the various shows. If you haven’t check
into Netflix, perhaps you should.
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