After going through my own human experiment, I have concurred that binge watching is A WASTE OF TIME.
Here is my explanation.
Last Wednesday, I decided to Netflix three seasons of a hit show, The 100. I've heard about this show through the whispers of Tumblr and decided to give it a try. Harmless, right? Wrong. As a first time binger, I did not know what I was getting myself into. I was so unprepared. A few minutes before I pressed play, I even researched the process of binge watching for a little. But I thought that it would be a rather easy process. So I just pressed play willingly. Already two episodes in, and I was hooked! Hooked, I tell you! The show is amazing, intense, raw and dark. But, that was when I hit my first hurdle.
Apparently I had plans that day (that I didn't know about). Binge watching 101: Make sure your weekend is clear. Well, that is impossible. I'm on winter break! I want to hang out with friends, go into the city, visit museums. I can't just cancel everything for a COUPLE of days. There's drawback number one. My lifestyle does not allow a day of straight t.v. I will not allow it; it can be brainwashing.
During the time of the binge watching adventure, I got my friend hooked onto the show with me. But because her schedule is much more docile than mine, she went WAY ahead of me. Making me frustrated and defeated. But also determined to finish. And because of the intensity and jaw-dropping plot of the show, going through two seasons was doable. But as I reached the third season, I was already tired. Mentally mostly. Thankfully for my obsessive nature, I memorized the characters' names and episode plots. But my heart and mind can only take so much in a day. But because of the binge watching nature, I was forced to push on.
Here comes drawback number two. The reason why I like the weekly schedule of a broadcasted series, is because the show allows us a week to grieve our broken hearts or to mend our exploded minds. The week break gives us a chance to take a breath. Binge watching does not allow that. Unless you break the flow and lose momentum.
My friend and I are at season three right now, and promised ourselves to watch two episodes a day, UNLESS we come across a cliffhanger. Let's see how far we will uphold that promise. Another drawback was the fact that I am emotionally spent in this series. However, am I a part of the fandom? I mean, they traveled along with the series for the most part. They followed the journeys of the actors and their characters. This journey dragged for years. And I managed to go through 50% of that journey in less than a week. Now with another obsession of mine, Teen Wolf, I followed that show for 5 years. And I had the satisfaction of seeing these characters grow up in a timely manner. Not with binge watching.
Binge watching takes out all of the fun from watching a series. It takes out all of the fun from being in a fandom. In other words, don't do it.
