'Stranger Things' Season 4: Fans Complain About Netflix's Binge Model
Are you team ongoing or team all-at-once?
'Stranger Things ' season 4 volume 1, consisting of seven episodes, was released on Netflix in one day: on May 27, practically tying fans to their screens for the next couple of days. It is rarely possible to stop watching something you are really invested in; which is why a lot of people binged the entire volume 1 right after it dropped.
But other people have lives to live, with school and work – or, say, the need to sleep sometimes – clearly interfering with the possibility to just watch seven hours of 'Stranger Things' all at once.
This is not the only reason why some fans are complaining about the binge model. Volume 1 was actually exciting and dramatic to watch, so many people would have preferred to enjoy it in anticipation, not being able to immediately stream the next episode right after the previous one finished off with a dramatic cliffhanger.
"I would have LOVED to have had this season stretched out over 7 weeks," one of the fans argued on YouTube.
Another thing is how episodes are mixed into one thing instead of each one being appreciated for what it is. The spoiler ethic also does not help a lot: you may have finished the entire thing and you're dying to discuss your top moments, but other people might still be on episode 2.
Basically, some people argue, the binge model might actually be damaging to marketing and social buzz.
And this is not only about 'Stranger Things'.
Naturally, other fans rose up to defend the binge model – and they got a point as well.
One of the fans on YouTube argued that binging is "way more fun and immersive", especially when the show is good and you simply don't want to stretch it.
"When an album drops no one says I wish they premiered one song weekly," they said.
To be fair, Netflix has went with something in between the binge model and the weekly schedule by splitting season 4 of 'Stranger Things' into two parts and leaving the two massive final episodes for July 1. This way, fans can still anticipate, but also dive into everything all at once as soon as it is released.