Just.. One.. More.. Episode..

After Stevie's lecture today I will address binge watching, since it was the topic of the day and all...

I didn't really understand the binge watching craze when it came about. My friends were always talking about watching things on Netflix and blah blah blah; I didn't really care. At the time, Netflix was popular, but the shows I was into at the time weren't on there. I would watch the occasional movie with a friend on their Netflix account, but I never had my own (and I still don't).

I used to watch TV shows online in a completely legal, law-abiding manner, so I never needed a Netflix account. I could always get whatever show I wanted for free on my laptop. I'll admit I did binge watch shows then (Doctor Who and Community are two that I recall), but sometimes I was forced to stop quite often because the site I was using was missing an episode and I would have to scour the internet for a completely legal, and in no way pirated, alternative for the episode I was missing.

My roommate, Matt, wanted to watch House of Cards with me once, but his Xbox live account was expired, so he logged into his Netflix on my account on my Xbox. Ever since about this time last year I have had it, and to be honest, I have frequently binge watched shows on numerous occasions. I fell right into the trap like the villains in Scooby Doo. House of Cards, Scrubs, Breaking Bad, Arrested Development, That 70's Show, Bob's Burgers, and so on.

It is so much easier to sit and watch a show all at once when Netflix just continues to play them without fail. I never have to look for an episode; it's always right there waiting for me. I find myself being annoyed when it asks me if I am still watching after 3 episodes in a row. Even Netflix is telling me that I've watched enough at one time. "Yes, Netflix, I am still watching. Stop judging me and just play the next episode, alright?"

I have fallen into the mainstream and instead of fighting the rapids, I jumped on the steam boat and rolled on down the river with my friends, watching ridiculous amounts of TV at once. Can you blame me, though? Binge watching is awesome! It's every episode of a whole show all at once. There's no waiting. The answer to every question, every mystery, every cliffhanger, right there just begging to be watched.

It may not be the most healthy or productive thing I could be doing with my time, but at least I'm not doing cocaine or boosting cars, right? Though I should probably be studying... Well just one more won't hurt... One more and I'll start my homework, I promise.