The night I stopped judging shows by their first 10 minutes (and why I almost missed Dark)

I used to give every new series exactly one episode to hook me, like if it didn't grab me by the first commercial break I'd bail. That changed about two years ago when a buddy kept nagging me about Dark on Netflix and I kept saying 'it's too slow in German.' He finally got me to watch three episodes in one sitting after promising it all came together, and man was he right that show is a puzzle box that goes places you don't expect. Now I give any hyped show at least three episodes before I decide, which is how I got through the weird first hour of Severance and ended up loving it. Anyone else have a show that took a few episodes to click but became a favorite?

2 comments

2 Comments

willow11425d ago

Three episodes is my rule too after the same thing happened with The Leftovers. That show's first couple episodes are all over the place and I almost bailed twice but by episode four I was all in. The trick is to watch with someone who's already seen it so they can push you through the slow parts. Also helps to look up a spoiler-free review that says things pick up around a certain episode, gives you a light at the end of the tunnel.

jesse99425d ago

Yeah I get that. The Leftovers is a rough one to start, first couple episodes are just weird and depressing. I stuck with it because a buddy kept texting me to push through. That payoff around episode four is real though. So yeah, three episodes is a solid cutoff for me too.