Overload
Last week I overloaded on True Blood. By that I mean in the space of a week I watched all 24 episodes comprising Seasons 2 and 3. Previously I had caught random episodes here and there but it wasn't until half way through the 3rd season that I really started watching it. As a result there was some back story I could see I was missing in various character interactions. While Netflix doesn't stream it, the main reason the first season wasn't included in my binge, RCN's HBO On Demand did have the aforementioned episodes.
In thinking about recent articles I've read about television's cultural impact and study habits, I have to think that cramming in a series like I did takes away from it. Part of the joy and frustration of watching a show unfold weekly is that you have that week to contemplate what just happened and think about what's coming next. When instead all you need to do is hit next episode, that reflection time is lost.
I don't know if that means that I've lost something or if that will just mean I'd get more out of rewatching the series, something I don't frequently do. As a counterexample I spent this past Saturday rewatching all of the Matrix (1 or 3 depending on who you ask) and the Animatrix. If I hadn't already seen these movies countless times before, I don't think I would have walked away from that experience with as much appreciation as I do having seen them as they were slowly released. Hard to retroactively perform such an experiment on myself. In thinking about that I suspect it plays on the notion of delayed gratification and anticipation. Alas at this point I've strayed too far into matters I know nothing about. Suffice to say True Blood is an awesome series and at some point I'll need to get around to watching Season 1.