Netflix is the best and the worst thing available for college students. It is great to decompress by sitting down and binge watching a new TV show. However, Netflix makes college students less productive.
Who doesn’t love Netflix? Really though. Netflix has tons of great movies and addicting TV shows. “House of Cards,” “Orange is the New Black,” and “Gotham” are a few of the great TV shows on Netflix. For movies, one may ask? "Gladiator," "Silence of the Lambs," and "American Psycho" are amazing movies you just can’t skip out on.
For some, and me included, Netflix is a way to escape and to relax. Spending hours reading Medieval Spanish poems can really wear the brain out and I just need to sit there and escape from rigorous school work. Although, watching “Narcos” is a small reminder of all the Spanish work I need to catch up on. It’s amazing to sit there and decompress to Family Guy’s horrible jokes.
Netflix isn’t just for college kids. Every time I go home, I get to observe my family’s nightly routine. My dad sits there and watches “Narcos” or “House of Cards,” while my mom and my little sister sit there and watch some Disney movie. That is how they end their day, every single day.
Also, Netflix has become the new “date” or couple hangout activity. We’ve all heard the corny, but serious pickup line, “Netflix and chill?” And if you say you’ve never heard of it, or if you’ve never tried a similar version of that pickup line, then I call b.s. It’s a great time sitting there with that special person watching a romantic movie, like "Titanic," or choosing to watch the awkwardly comedic "Fargo" for date night.
All that being said, Netflix can be the death of college students.
Yes, Netflix is an amazing source for downtime and relaxation. However, Netflix can also be a huge distraction. HUGE distraction. A few times, I tried to turn on “Futurama” while I do homework so I can stay happy and laughing while spending all night writing a Spanish paper. Guess how that went? I ended up staying up all night and having to reread my paper because I was just all over the place. It’s just not good.
And yes, Netflix nights with that special person are incredibly nice and should definitely happen. The problem lies in that those nights sometimes replace actual dates of going out in the world and doing something extraordinary. The dates don’t have to be expensive dinners or something extravagant. Netflix should not replace taking a walk or trips to Sweet Frog. That’s the problem. Netflix and memorable moments with that special someone are not synonymous.
All in all, if used responsible and in moderation, Netflix is absolutely amazing. Similar to what Uncle Ben tells Peter Parker in "Spiderman," “With great power comes great responsibility.”
