The Netflix reality seriesLove Is Blindhas been a hit since its first season, which was released in January 2020. Seasons 1 and 2 were equally dramatic and also released 9 episodes all at once and then, one week later, shared the tenth and final episode which featured the weddings.
Season 3, however, has done something differently, with only a few episodes being released at a time. The first four episodes dropped on Wednesday October 19th, with three more coming on Wednesday October 26th. Two more will come out on Wednesday November 2nd before fans can watch the exciting finale on November 9th. This seems like a happy medium between a binge and weekly release model. Should Netflix adopt this idea for other TV shows?
RELATED:Game Rant’s Ultimate Netflix Guide
Ever since 2011 when Netflix split the company into DVD and streaming, and 2012 when the service began making original programming, the words “Netflix” and “binge-watching” have gone together perfectly. It’s hard to imagine watching a show weekly on the streaming service since that isn’t what fans are used to. But withLove Is Blindseason 3 finding a happy medium between watching all of the episodes quickly and having one episode coming out weekly, that begs the question of whether this model will be adopted for other shows. WillNetflix get rid of its binge model?
Netflix’s Q3 shareholder letter explained that the streaming service wants to continue its regular model of releasing every episode of a TV show all at once. The letter reads, “It’s hard to imagine, for example, how a Korean title like ‘Squid Game’ would have become a mega hit globally without the momentum that came from people being able to binge it. We believe the ability for our members to immerse themselves in a story from start to finish increases their enjoyment but also their likelihood to tell their friends, which then means more people watch, join and stay with Netflix," asVarietyreported.
ReleasingLove Is Blindthis way creates a lot of fun anticipation and buzz around the series. While the show has been part of the pop culture conversation since day one, and fans love discussing the series on social media and Reddit, this release model allows fans to quickly get through the episodes and then chat with each other. At times,Love Is Blindis one of thefunniest Netflix reality showssince the cast members are fascinating and often say what they’re thinking. Releasing episodes like this makes it easy to fully lean into the new season and the journey that the couples are going on.
It would be a great idea if Netflix began releasing other TV shows like this. While there’s a lot of happiness to be found in binge-watching, it’s not always possible to watch an entire season of TV in a day or two, which is what’s often required to not be spoiled online.The Midnight Clubhas Mike Flanagan trademarksand while it’s superior TV, it’s tough to watch ten episodes in a short period of time when they’re all almost an hour long.
Besides the logical fact that it can be tough to fit that much TV into a short amount of time, when a show is released all at once, the buzz for it can also die down quickly. This makes it hard fornew Netflix TV showsto gain enough traction as they leave the conversation fast. With several shows only being around for one season and then getting cancelled, that seems like an important thing to consider.
Season 5 ofStranger Thingswill be shorteras season 4 has some super long episodes, and that brings up the question of how the final episodes will be released. The season 4 model was a smart one as the first seven episodes came out in May 2022, with the final two releasing on July 1st. HBO Max followed a similar release model asLove Is Blindseason 3 with itsalmost flawlessPretty Little Liarsreboot. The streaming service released the first three episodes on July 28th, then two more the following week, and so on.
This kind of model allows viewers to feel nostalgic for the old days of watching TV weekly while giving people what they want, which is the chance to watch several episodes in a single evening or weekend afternoon. This truly seems like the best of both worlds and it would be great if Netflix did this with future TV shows. The model works particularly well for reality and horror/thriller, as it’s easy to fans to be on the edge of their seats and wait excitedly for the next episode, but sweet dramas or hilarious shows could benefit, too.
