my preferred watching system is a hybrid system, watch 2-3 episodes a day, giving you plenty of time to think about the episodes, allowing me to appreciate it more than if I'm binging, but still, no long waiting times. You still need to wait until the show is practically completed. So there's that disadvantage, but I just enjoy it more if I limit myself to a certain amount of episodes.
Amazon did that with The Legend of Vox Machina. It was a pretty neat format. Also, outside of the first episode, I recommend the series. It's worth watching.
Having the option to binge is always nice these days. I remember when Haruhi season 2 was originally released and everyone was having a great time all around until the dawning of the endless eight. Oh the pain...
He didn't bring it up with Steins;Gate, but the show's first half in infamously slow and I remember nothing besides the funnier stuff. Then the second half suddenly picks up, and I remember a lot more and am paying attention. I'm glad I binged that, so I feel REALLY sorry for those who had to go through it and Endless Eight on a weekly schedule!
@@ianrandolph6436 Preach it. Those are eight of the finest episodes of television ever produced. The sheer guts it must have taken to go ahead with that gag are unimaginable.
I usually watch shows in chunks of a few episodes per day, leaves time to digest but also means you don't need to leave it at an unsatisfying midpoint (cliffhangers are not counted under this since they're usually quite engaging). Usually that lines up quite well with arcs or sub-arcs and breaks your memory of the show into chunks rather than either breadcrumbs or one big blob.
Yeah I don't have the attention span to organize this and I'm usually too afraid of spoilers to do it but this is the best way for me. Currently loving watching 2-3 episodes of Ousama Ranking at a time but also being able to sit and process the insane amount of stuff that happens as well as theorize and discuss it with my friend. Watching it all in one go never seems satisfying to me, I've actually just binged almost 4 whole seasons of Lucifer in a week and a half and I like it but I haven't had it in my life long enough to grow really attached to it.
@@mrcheesemunch While I haven't finished Lucifer's final season yet, I understand what you mean. I for one watched Lucifer mostly watched the show a couple or so episode at a time as the show can feel a bit bloated which is even more evident when bingeing, so for some shows its best to let it sink in. Not always but sometimes.
@@GenerationZ313 Yeah definitely, I'm very glad it went to Netflix. 20 episode season TV shows where every single episode amounts to a single sentence worth of character development and basically nothing else would be tiresome to watch weekly.
I have the exact same issue, but with manga, having to wait every week or a month for a manga chapter only for it to end on a cliffhanger is absolutely soul crushing
That's why I read like 200ish mangas all at the same time. Every day new chapters come out so there's always something to be excited about. There's too much good manga out there it's ruining my life. I'm unemployed and I can't even beat Bloodborne, not because it's too hard but I'm too busy catching up with manga and I can't get a job until I beat Bloodborne because I said so.
@@sparklesparklesparkle6318 I cant beat bloodbourne either haha, download some job finding apps and it will make it easier. i recommend jora local if they have that in your country but good luck. btw u got any manga recommendations?
For me, it depends on the anime. When I watched Steins Gate I wasn't able to watch more than 2 episodes together. It was better for me to let each episode sink in for a while before watching more. On the other hand, something like One Piece or Gintama would be like "yeah, give me 10 episodes in one go".
@@watchforever1724 Yeah, and it is really good to rewatch. So it's not too bad if you forget a couple of things, because you WILL miss some details on your first binge-watching.
Binge-watching is long known for its effects on actually comprehending and memorizing the content. Especially with how 'mundane' many (SoL) anime can be it's highly likely you'll forget that you actually watched some shows - not even talk about what happened in them. I find myself binging myself a lot too - but I actually don't really like the consequences of it. Unfortunately there's not much way around it if you want to catch up on over a decade of anime releases you haven't seen yet... ^^
surely if anything you remember more about an anime if you watch an episode each week? thats actually why i prefer to watch it weekly, by binging i can barely recall anything about the anime just a few weeks later
One show I almost forgot watching was Vivy I was watching it dubbed, and was mistakenly marked a completed at 11 episodes, so I totally didn't expect the plot twist at the end. But then in the end what I remembered the show for was how weightless was the ending after I got more invested into a more recently watched SoL isekai that wasn't even particularly good.
@@ProtagonistOfficial it depends which show because every show wouldn’t work as weekly and usually doesn’t work as binge watching I felt like Jojo should be a weekly watch
That has happened to me a lot. That's why I usually limit myself to watch an episode per day or every other day, unless the cliffhanger is so unfair that I break the rule for a couple of episodes. And sometimes when a series has a high level of quality or detail, I take a long break (usually a week or so) before I resume watching it again, because I feel like I'm wasting all the efforts that have gone into each episode, and I must stop and spend some time thinking about them
My systems consists of watching a single episode of a finished show once every two days, at least. That way, the cliffhangers matter, and I never feel the need to skip OPs and EDs. Of course, it takes way longer to finish a single show, but at the same time they grow much more on you, because it becomes part of a portion of your everyday life. So, it'd take the weekly method for trending shows. Manga, on the other hand, I binge. Edit: Hope you find a way that'd be perfectly confortable to you! What matters is to enjoy :)
@@sparklesparklesparkle6318 it has actually been quite a while since the last time I read a whole Manga, but last one I did was Boku ha Mari no Naka, from Oshimi Shuzo. Also Pumpkin Knight, for pure guilty pleasure lol Spirit Circle sounds interesting though
@@waltworks8389 I've read a loooooot of manga this year and it is my favourite. If you enjoyed Sleepy Princess in Demon Castle you'll really like 'Tis Time For Torture Princess. It's like the same thing but also kinda different. I read Call Of The Night because Mother's Basement told me to and that was a really good time. I'm on the lookout for more manga like Aku no Hana, the story isn't perfect, but what makes it so great is very little dialogue and panels with visuals that you understand what is going on the moment you see the frame, so you're able to speedread through Aku no Hana really fast and it seems to be designed for it. I like material that has you cruising through panels over spending a minute or two reading tiny paragraphs on each page. There isn't that much of it out there tho. Ill check out Boku ha Mari no Naka and Pumpkin Knight that sounds fun. Also give the manga for Akebi no Sailor Fuku a try if you haven't it's incredible art and so wholesome.
@@sparklesparklesparkle6318 hahah Awesome! Thanks for the recommendations! And yes, that's what I like the most about some Mangas... Exposition through visuals. Junjo Ito is also great in that regard. I think my easiest recommendation would be Oyasumi Punpun, although it has a lot of text, it's still very simbolic and even disturbing
@@waltworks8389 I read Oyasumi Punpun a couple months after I read Dead Dead Demons Dededede Destruction (same author). Dededede is way better. Oyasumi Punpun was good tho.
One of my favourite parts of watching anime as it airs is theory-crafting with my friends. This isn't really an option for series that we binge, and imo is alot less impactful to me in the long run. It's not that I mean I remember more of the series or that I wish I did, but that it left a much larger emotional impact because of that discourse with the people close to me. The most recent excellent case for this was "So I'm A Spider, So What?", which had so much intrigue and mystery in it, that the theory-crafting was very animated.
when anime wasnt that mainstream, watching seasonals weekly wasnt as a thing as it is now, and binging was the way we watched most stuff and there wasnt an issue with that. now with meme culture at its peak, it's different. i believe we end up not talking about a lot of shows that we binge not because we forget them, but because we keep getting new material from the weekly shows and end up talking more about that. however, i do believe some shows are better binged, because a week in between makes u forget some details or gets out of the atmosphere. for instance, i see so much love for sonny boy and the new boogiepop, and i was barely able to understand whats going on because i was losing a lot of details and connections between the eps due to that week interval. also, there are good shows that get overshadowed by shows with bigger hype. for instance, ive been watching snk, yaiba and platinum end this season. i rush to watch the first two because of the (well deserved imo) hype they have, and then im like ''oh i have to watch platinum end too, huh?''. it almost feels like a chore to start it, but i really enjoy the show when i watch it. and it's a pity :/
That largely depends on what you do after watching an episode. Do you talk about it with others or think it over in your head? If you just watch it and then wait until the next episode with no further engagement you're going to be more likely to forget details because repetition is a key part of memorization. It's really a type of meditation. The more deeply you think about something the more deeply ingrained it is into your memory. This actually ties into what you said in your first paragraph. If all you have to watch is one show at a time, even if you're bingeing you're still more likely to remember it if it isn't blending in with everything else you're bingeing, because you can take more time to savor that one show. The main point of this conundrum is: The more things blend together the less appreciated each one is.
the moment it was announced that stone ocean was gonna be released this way my heart sunk, because i knew that was gonna happen. it made me way less invested in the show because i knew the sense of community and weekly excitement that was prevelent with previous parts was just not gonna be there. it's especially upsetting that it happened to stone ocean of all jojos, seeing as it has been one of the less popular parts for so long (due to many people skimming it just to get to SBR faster.... which is exactly the fate that the binge model is now repeating), and now that it was finally its time to shine, that time was just taken away. there are definitely shows where i don't mind the binge format and would also binge them myself, but with jojo - ESPECIALLY with stone ocean, i honestly think it completely killed the show.
My problem with seasons of shows being released all at once is how much easier is it for them to fly under the radar. Would as many people have watched Invincible if it had just been dropped all at once one day instead of over a couple of months? I wouldn't have. Because I don't have my hear to the ground keeping up with everything coming out, so I probably wouldn't have heard about it.
I suppose Amazon's strategy of releasing 3 episodes and then releasing the show weekly paid off as viewers could decide if they wanted to keep watching or not kind of like being given a free trial of sorts and letting you decide whether you want to stick around and see more or leave the show as is.
@@GenerationZ313 Amazon did the same with the Peacemaker show, and that was great as well. So this method it does feel like a good compromise. On the other hand, is anyone talking much about Hit Monkey? I mean, I understand. John Cena vs animated monkey deadpool... but still. The latter doesn't seem to receive even a fraction of the exposure Invincible had. And I don't think the existing fanbase for Invincible is entirely the reason.
@@DocteurNS actually HBO Max made Peacemaker. Unfortunately HBO Max is locked behind an add-on for Crave here in Canada. I may have shelled out $20 CAD to watch the final season of Game of thrones but I'm not doing it again.
I tend to binge watch shows, since it's hard for me to watch shows weekly. If I forget or don't feel like watching it one week, I tend to do it next week, and the next thing I know I missed like two seasons worth of content. This is why I usually watch a whole after it's finished, as I know how long it is, and now how much commit I am putting it in the show.
I much prefer watching content weekly mostly because I like to see what other people thought of the episode, and while you can still do that with bingeing, more often than not I just move on to the next episode instead of reading what people have to say. Another reason is because of spoilers; outside of anime I watch a lot of elimination shows and if you're not watching them as they air you're 100% gonna get something spoiled. Another thing is I tend to associate media I consume with whats currently going on in my life. Thinking of Golden Time takes me back to the Thursday evenings when I would get back from drama club and watch anime while cozied up in my bed, but when I think of something like The Promised Neverland S1 which I binged over the course of 2-3, I don't really have those same memories (even though I enjoyed the show a lot). Then there's also this weird sense of FOMO and nostalgia, where if I don't watch something as it airs I feel as though my experience was cheapened compared to people who did. I didn't watch S2 and S3 of AoT as they aired and it makes me feel like I missed out on all the hype the fans had when watching at the time. It doesn't make me like the anime any less, but I do feel like I would've enjoyed it more watching weekly.
I especially relate to the association of anime with daily life. I remember every single anime I used to watch after coming home from school. Sad that after the virus took over I don't remember the shows I watched cuz not much would go on in daily life anymore. Other than that don't really relate to anything else especially reading people's thoughts on the show because the anime community that exists online honestly sucks and more than a few times people have ruined my experience of watching anime. So I just stay away from any kind of comments section or forums.
Sometimes when I really love a show, participating in the week-to-week discussions about it is an experience I really love. E.g., all the online speculations during OddTaxi. Obvs not possible unless watching week too week. And even without those discussions, having a week too ponder on my own about what might happen next is something I enjoy. (My theories on Good Cliffhangers vs Bad Cliffhangers being too much for this one lil TH-cam comment.)
I'm glad that I'm not the only one who feels this way. I've brought it up other times on public forums and have mostly been told that it doesn't matter. My biggest issue (and this is more with the modern method as has been called in the video) is that what can be talked about when. I remember when Netflix first became big and trying to talk about a show with someone. We try comparing where we are in the show, and that alone was difficult. Episode numbers were off the table, because who remember what happens in which episode anymore? With the traditional weekly model, you can say "I'm two episodes behind" and that tells the person a lot. When someone watches everything in one or two blocks, it all runs together. The discussions basically boil down to just agree that the show is good with no real discussion of it. No one wants to spoil what will happen for the other. By the time everyone is caught up, the people who finished earlier barely remember what happened. I've been wanting to do a bit of a "book club" for shows, but everyone my age is too busy to take the time. I thought it'd be nice to watch one or two episodes a week and actually talk to people about it. I also generally dislike cliff hangers, but there is a point to be made that they are intended to keep the show in your mind. They are intended to have you thinking about the show, and that is a lot of what binging loses. People stop thinking about what they are watching. I still binge shows. I am just generally putting television into the bucket of long form film/movies. That's what they have been generally moving towards anyway. I've been reading a lot more. Instead of having anime fill the void it used to, I've got light novels. The translation scene for light novels has grown a lot. There are a bunch of anime shows that never took off that were light novels. I get to read some of them. Some haven't gotten translations, but I will celebrate if they ever make it. I'm really not sure where to end this. Like the video, it's pretty much a short rant and expression of mild frustration. I'm really happy that other people notice that the binge model is not as great as many seem to think or pretend it is.
I think with some shows there's just an aspect of engagement, regardless of how you watch. Like, I think Magia Record aired the same season as both Furuba and Wonder Egg Priority, and I watched all those shows weekly, but I don't remember much of Magia Record because I barely engaged with the fandom, while I tweeted regularly about WEP and Froob (and also watched quite a few Furuba reactions).
I really loved the Jojo's fridays and the episode threads on Reddit with a whole lot of people giving their thoughts. When inevitably they release the rest of the episodes i will no doubt have to watch the old episodes again because i dont really remember it.
I forget things when I'm watching a show weekly, like literally I'll start a new episode and have forgotten that the last one ended on a cliffhanger. I remember what I binged far better. I think it ultimately depends on the type of show. Binging an episode show like Sailor Moon SuperS will put a lot of the emphasis on what's repetitive about it. But something more serialized when each doesn't feel like a complete story but a piece of something, then I will likely just forget about it while waiting for the next part.
I will say this, watching demon slayer season 2 and AOT every Sunday for the past few weeks was something I genuinely loved and will cherish for a long time, the hype those shows gave me and the community was amazing, I definetly will say you can watch week to week the big shows and binge some other shows that maybe you don’t feel like keeping up to week with, that’s how I do it and it’s very very rewarding
I don't binge shows anymore. Weekly airings have gotten their shine back plus watching 7ish different shows over the week helps alleviate the cliffhangers. Also it allows me to rewatch an episode with joy.
I really relate to the 'not wanting to drop a show after you've already started it' thing. For some reason I find it borderline impossible to not finish a show once I've started it, even if I absolutely HATE it. That's how I ended up suffering through all 12 episodes of Green Green... and all the miscellaneous OVA type stuff...
I'm with you about cliff hangers, in fact if I'm watching a series that is all available I'll look for non spoiler reviews of the last ep so I can see if I want to bother with investing the time to watch it, although I don't mind spoilers as I can watch my favourite Anime over and over again anyway. The only anime episode I can really remember in detail is my dress up darling, episode 2 funnily enough.
Never actually understood the appeal of new shows getting released all at once. It simply kills any of the hype that would be happening a lot more if it were released weekly. After watching Stone Ocean, I expected to not have any interesting discussions happening but there aren't even memes I've come across, Jojo thrives on memes. Now look at AoT, every week is so much eventful for the rest of the week, new theories, new discussions, new memes, it's basically the perfect formula to keep a series relevant. And same way I have no idea why people even consider defending binge watching model. Half of your viewing experience is talking with people every week that watched the episode same time as you. It means you didn't waste your time, and got all out of it. Plus you got something to look forward to for a few months without needing to sit through all of it.
@@janisir4529 In nearly every market in the world yes this is true. Anime it's different. Almost everything that gets hype and praise deserves it. however I don't think products like the covid vaccine deserve all the hype and priase it is getting.
@@sparklesparklesparkle6318 I have no idea how you went from anime to covid vaccine... But no, I totally meant anime. I have like 200 completed entries on MAL, and I'm basically constantly dumpster diving already, even though 200 is not a lot...
@@janisir4529 here if there is anything on my list you haven't seen then watch these. The only qualifier for this list is the anime was interesting enough for me to watch from beginning to end. If I didn't finish the anime it means it got boring and isn't worth going on the list: Konosuba (dub), Re:Zero, The Time I was Reincarnated As A Slime, Akudama Drive, Sleepy Princess in Demon Castle, Made In Abyss, Little Witch Acadamia, MOB Psycho 100, Appare-Ranman, Girls Last Tour, Kime No Na Wa (Your name), Redline, Soul Eater, Cowboy Bebop, Attack On Titan, One Punch Man, Akira, Megalobox, Burn The Witch, Promised Neverland (Season 1), Space Dandy, INUYASHIKI: Last Hero, Parasyte: The Maxim, A Silent Voice, Samaurai Champloo, Jujutsu Kaisen, Dr. Stone, Neon Genesis Evangelion, FLCL, ERASED, (Love, Chunibyo & Other Delusions (season 1)), Toradora, Is It Wrong to Try and Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?, Puella Magi Madoka Magica, Deca-Dence, WataMote, Beastars, My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!, Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid, Dorohedoro, DARLING in the FRANXX, Shirobako, BNA (Brand New Animal), Wonder Egg Priority, Mushoku Tensei, Helpful Fox Senkosan, Sk8 The Infinity, (So Im A Spider, So What?), Violet Evergarden, Yokohama Cafe (OVA), Dragon Half, Super Cub, I've Been Killing Slimes For 300 Years And Maxed Out My Level , Tokyo Revegers, Vivi Flourites Eye Song, ODDTAXI, To Your Eternity, Osamake, Koikimo, Those Snow White Notes, Nagatoro, Shadows House, Higehiro, Full Dive RPG, Mysterious Girlfriend X, The Devil Is A Part Timer, Shiki, Only the Idaten Dieties Know Peace, Takt Op. Destiny, Ousama Ranking, Shiroi Suna no Aquatope, Ousama Ranking, Remake Our Life, My Dress Up Darling, Akebi-Chan No Sailor Fuku, Kimi Ni Tokode, Words Bubble Up Like Sodapop, Kaiju no Kodomo, Blood: The Last Vampire, Rascal Does Not Dream Of Bunnygirl Senpai, Kemono Friends, Read Or Die OVA, Oreimo, Haganai
I wrote this comment during the ad-read and it's funny we both used the studying analogy. I can't binge stuff anymore. It leaves my mind so quickly, kinda like cramming for an exam vs studying consistently over time. I don't watch things as they release unless I'm doing it with a friend/ someone I can discuss it with. I typically wait for things to release completely and then watch a few eps at a time
I can’t do binging cuz by that time I feel like I haven’t cared and left it alone for so long; “why bother starting and going back” enters my mind. I also get watching weekly or not is the same amount of time at the end of the day but seeing the total number is daunting in my mind when you’re starting a binge. In terms of more current stuff how Stone Ocean is modeled I do think forgetting stuff and leaving it behind happens.
I've had at least one occasion where I ended up binging an entire series completely by accident. If I recall rightly, I was playing around in Transport Fever and wanted something on in the background, so I set up my phone on its stand next to my computer and put on an episode of New Game. Next thing I knew, over 3 hours had passed and I was on the last episode. It certainly helped that I freaking love New Game, and that Transport Fever is one of those games where it takes a deceptively long time to do basically anything.
I think there are show that fit the weekly model way better than binging. They basically live from that hype over every episode. My preferred method is binging but with some shows i want to keep up weekly just to discuss with everyone. The better remembering in the long run is just a bonus side effect for me (when i binged a show that i really liked I'm gonna watch it again sometime anyways so yea) but when i binge a show i definitely enjoy the show itself more because the overall story has a greater impact on me. probably because I'm more emotional invested. So if i have a feeling I'm gonna be more invested in a story when I binge it I'm gonna binge it if not I watch it weekly.
I'm glad you understand why I love the weekly seasonal model ^_^ I like to ruminate over each episode weekly, but when I come across a show that's fully released that I end up liking, I have to ACTIVELY stop myself from watching the entire thing. Most of the time I'm only able to stop after 6 episodes 😅 I remember having that problem with all of my favorites: Eureka 7, Noragami, World god only knows, Gargantia...all of them binged and scarcely remembered. (I've already rewatched all 4 of them once, lol)
I always have more fun when I binge a show but it also makes it harder to remember some details of it and it also makes the community discussion for the show dry down faster since people will hardly talk about small details when they can talk about a more memorable event immediately, sadly that also makes the general discussion of the shown be shorter but even with all of that said I still consider the binge model superior since it immerses me in the story more and avoids having any particular feeling for the story fade out, giving the show a greater emotional impact, and at the end of the day the main reason I (and many others) experience stories is for the emotional impact, that's why I think the benefits of biting out ways it's flaws (at least for the consumers)
Hey, Tristan! I am sure you know how Netflix handled animes like "Blue Period" or "Komi-san can't communicate". I do agree with you that I find myself retaining less and less if I choose to binge-watch. For me, the bottom line is that there is no winning; you will always have trade-offs. Why not shift to watching one episode per week, like trying really hard, and see how you feel about that. I will watch that rant too! Haha
@@sparklesparklesparkle6318 I would have to take your word for it, mate. I watched the anime, I did not realize at the beginning I would like it this much. Haven’t read the manga, though!
@@navidahmed1 You really should the art in it is really high quality. Some of the best art in the game. You really should put Tachiyomi on your phone, download the mangakakalot, mangadex, and mangabox extensions, and then start reading manga on your phone in your free time. It's the closest you can get to smoking crack without actually getting addicted to drugs!
Personally I'm a fan of the weekly model, though I do binge older shows I either missed or didn't have time for otherwise. Both have their up- and downsides, of course, but I rather enjoy the weekly interactions with the community, seeing and understanding the memes without fear of spoilers - especially with original shows that have no source material to spoil you. Hell, I also use that as an indicator for whether I've found a hidden gem, because if nobody is talking about it weekly, and it's a good show, that's a pretty good conclusion. Are cliffhangers annoying? Sure, especially in some shows (looking at you, Arifureta). But I also watch plenty of anime that don't really have any cliffhangers due to their episodic approach to storytelling, so in those cases it's not something I consider to be an issue. I already have difficulties remembering stuff, if I binge a show at best I can remember how I felt about it, with nothing to back up that feeling if someone starts asking questions. So watching weekly helps with that, too.
I feel extremely similar, ever since episode 19 of Attack on Titan I have absolutely refused to watch a show unless it's completely out the way that episode ended drove me CRAZY I NEEDED to know what happened next. However that said I only really watch one episode of Anime a day there's only been like 2 or 2 times since 2013 where I've thought: "hold up... we're at least starting the next episode to see what happened" It's tough watching you and Gigguk mentioning these awesome shows and thinking "ok I need to remember this show in 3-4 months" because I only watch shows once they are completely out and dubbed. that's why I kind of chucked at your Netflix jail video... "lol waiting until the entire season is out and dubbed what a nightmare." But if it means I never have to experience another week like the week after episode 19 so be it. It really sucks when a new season of my Hero Acadamia (25 epsidodes) comes out... "wait I'm going to need to wait 6 months to watch this?"
I believe this is tied to the fact that a lot of the currently airing shows are adaptations of ongoing source material, which means that there's no guarantee of a sequel anytime soon, that and the gap between each season/cour of a specific show can also affect the muscle memory associated with it. This doesn't even begin to mention big franchise movies that just get lost in the midst of seasonal anime discourse, specially given their ways of being accessed are even smaller by comparison. (eg: the heaven's feel movies)
I have been binging mostly, i also have the same problem with cliffhangers and i am very easily addicted even if there isn't any cliffhangers i want to be able to watch more when i want to and not have to wait 12 weeks or more before i am able to finish it. Not to say that i have not watched weekly, i still do for some shows that are more slice of life/comedy that won't have anything extreme happening and i usually don't really care that much about what will happen since each episode is like its own OVA for me but that kind of depends on the anime. It has been over 10 years since i started watching anime, at first i watched everything weekly but as i matured i realized how much better it is to just have the option to watch everything at once and i don't really use social media much nowdays so i won't be spoiled. The issue is that i am not able to discuss the show as it releases, i sometimes want to communicate with people more about the anime i enjoy. There are obviously demerits, i also have harder time remembering shows i binge compared to ones i watch weekly but i still don't want my experience to be ruined by cliffhangers, if i really enjoyed a show i can watch it again in a few years, binging helps with that since you won't be able to remember as much.
I tend to drop a show for a few weeks at a time, and then binge those episodes in a couple of hours. Repeat every month or so. My problem with watching weekly is that I sometimes forget what happened in the last episode, so if it finished in a cliffhanger or in the middle of a scene, starting the new one in medias res can be kind of confusing
Like many people have mentioned I use a hybrid method dependent on the type of show that I am watching. When a show has a slow reveal or some kind of mystery that they are working through, such as with shows like Another or Vivy, then I find it more enjoyable to watch week to week. It allows me time to process the episode and the information presented. Maybe even going back and re-watching that week's episode or even previous ones to see if there was something that I missed. While there are cliff hangers they add to the enjoyment rather than detract from it. Shows that are more dramatic or focusing on relationships such as Fruits Basket or Horimiya I prefer to binge them. With these shows I find the cliff hangers drive me to distraction. These shows are about the developing relationship and having the show just end in the middle of a significant moment in that development drives me up the wall. The classic "But I'm pregnant..." Duh duh duuuuuuunnnnnn "Tune in next week" will make me drop a show faster than even the most janky animation. Slice of life or low stakes shows it really depends on the time I have available to watch. Nichijo and Daily Lives of Highschool Boys I watch weekly because I had the time. Monthly Girls Nozaki-kun and Haven't you heard I'm Sakamoto I binged. Gintama I watched mostly week to week but there were times I would skip it and then catch up. I'm doing that this season with In the Land of Leadale. I don't think there is a one size fits all way of watching. I think that, presuming you have the option, you have to make that decision based on how you yourself feel that you will get the most out of the show.
For me it's easier to commit to binging 12 eps than to come back every week. Not sure why but I'll find a show and binge it all the way through even if its not as great over finishing a show I've already started watching weekly but stopped while it was airing.
I’ve taken the approach of watching weekly just because it allows me to manage my time better, like almost ever season there’s two or three shows I would watch that range from 12-24 episodes long…..if I where to binge them that is 6-12 hours I would have to set aside vs the 20min to an hour I can set aside each day to watch multiple shows
I take it a step further .... I refuse to watch any anime that isn't fully finished yet, including shows that have their source material (manga, novel) still ongoing. So I am basically several years behind on what's currently popular ... and I don't really care. Do I remember everything I watch? No, but I really cherish the experience I had with my shows and the level of emotional investment to a story and characters isn't possible for me using weekly format. I lose memories just as well using weekly format because I stop caring about the show as much ..
Not bad. I got burned a lot with read the manga endings.. But I don't particularly care what's popular, the collective taste of anime fans isv kind of bad. There are some popular shows I like, but at this point people liking something is a red flag
it depends on the show. Some anime like vivy are better weekly because having the show spread out helps feel the actual length. Blue period is like a year and ahalf long so being forced to slowly watch it over 3 months helped in feeling just how long the main character was practicing art.
The ending had absolutely no weight, I started watching the show with 11 episodes out, because it was wrongly marked as completed, and having to wait 2 weeks for practically no content ruined any satisfaction I may have had.
@@janisir4529 I thought the ending was alright. I mentally convinced myself that he wouldn't get in so personally I was a big fan of the ending. He was pretty crafty during both parts of the exam. Although afair number of people didn't really like the ending so I guess it's not for everyone.
@@wylinder8402 I guess? But the issue isn't that it was weak, but that by the time I watched it, I judged it in the mindset of "oooh, Vivy ending is here, let's watch the new slime 300 episode instead". The latter I rated 6/10 btw.
I binge watched Ginga eiyuu densetsu and after several years it remains one of my favourites. I think a good show will generally speaking capture the audience regardless of how it is consumed, the thing that is most affected with binging vs weekly is the social aspect. For some people the social aspect is the show, therefore cutting out the social aspect for them is like depriving them the show they want to consume. The thing that you said about not waiting to watch a show because no one is talking about it definitely alludes to this kind of mindset. For me socials don't factor in at all on my watching habits so I honestly don't really have a preference between binging and watching weekly nor do I feel like it really affects how I view a show (I guess to some degree binging might be better for remembering details in the short term).
My favorite shows are always the ones that can make me feel satisfied from the viewing of just one episode, shows that have enough interesting content in them that, even if there is a cliffhanger at the end, there is enough in that particular episode to be able to identify it as different and special from the episodes surrounding it. When a show gets to the end and I have to ask "is that it?", it's usually because that episode didn't actually do a whole lot. It's often treated as a part of a much larger whole, where a bunch of episodes together create the story, but an individual episode on it's own doesn't accomplish much to make it special as a single-episode experience. I got this feeling all the time while watching My Hero Academia, which is why (before I kind of fell off it) I stopped watching it from week to week and waited to binge it later... cause individual episodes had nothing to offer, the fun was all in what a bunch of episodes together offered. A show that can give each individual episode a reason to be it's own episode, and a reason for it to be enjoyed or remembered on it's own, is a sign of a great show imo. One that actually fits the format of a released-weekly TV show, rather than essentially being a movie split up into many parts.
I agree that with binging you may not remember the show in its entirety but that is not necessarily a bad thing. For example , there are two shows (Gosick and Little Busters) that I binged several years ago. I remember loving both of them but do not remember many of the major plot points of either, so now I feel like I can re-experience two shows I know I will like almost completely fresh many years later.
I'd love to do the one-episode-per-day thing but I've noticed I often just... Don't end up doing that. I tend to get either a couple of episodes in or near the midway point of a show before forgetting it for several months because I want something new. On the other end of the spectrum I also have some shows I've intentionally stopped watching just before the final one or two episodes because I just don't want them to end :"D
I think that for me It depends on the series that I want to watch for example : Aggretsuko is a series whose first season I watched in one day becase It was very light but a series like Full Metal Alchemist is full of interesting characters and concepts,so I prefered watching 2 episodes daily in order to assimilate most of details and enjoing it more.
This is something I've thought about before in the context that certain shows (in my opinion) really benefited from updating week to week. I remember Episode 18 of Kill la Kill because of the cliffhanger and knowing I had to wait a whole week to know what happened next. I remember the hype SAO had when it was still in Aincrad and we were watching it weekly because we had no idea how things would pan out. On the other hand, I think some series lose their steam in a week to week basis. I remember blasting through 110 chapters the Dr. Stone manga and having a great time, only for it to turn into a slog waiting for the weekly updates. It felt the same with Re: Zero season 2 for me. I guess which model works best depends, which isn't a great answer but might also be the truth
GR : You will have time to absorb and remember specific details about the episodes released on a weekly basis. *Me who doesn't remember what I saw last week and need a full recap just to watch the newer episode* : "Yeah...what he said!"
The way I typically tackle the binge method is to take it a few episodes at a time with some break days where I don't watch it at all in-between. Usually, I would stick with 3-4 episodes in a day, take a break for 2-3 days or even a week (sometimes longer), then come back to it. It definitely improved my enjoyment and memory of the show despite missing the point in time where ppl are talking about it. However, I've been watching shows with friends to remedy that since we're all talking about it between those set times where we watch the show together. It's kind of simulating the weekly model, but still knocking it out in a shorter amount of time. Hope this helps!
14:33- Well, we have a good example already; Komi Can’t Communicate. That was aired weekly, it had the fandom’s interest, just before the finale they announced Season 2 & after that released the Dub.
I've always preferred watching weekly over binge watching, because like you said, watching slower helps the series be more memorable! I watch western cartoons all the time so I was so used to the week-to-week style and the unique hype it brings, even when I started watching anime I would deliberately watch one or two episodes of it a day, even if it was a series that had finished airing. Giving some pace between episodes helps you remember them, and also helps give you something to look forward too. I love the idea of being able to always be hyped by new awesome content, giving myself an episode to watch each day after my usual daily work is done before bed. That pace makes anime and TV very comforting to me, and it's tough to see this style going away because it's impossible to avoid spoilers when a "binge format" series is released.
You’re probably the only person I know that I can totally relate with this. Especially since I would effortlessly watch 6 episodes in one sitting for years. Recently, I decided to lower it to 3-4 after realizing it felt as if I was rushing through it versus steadily digesting it to enjoy it a bit more. Since then, I much prefer this style after finishing Cyberpunk: Edgerunner last week.
I’ve always preferred the weekly method. Yeah the cliffhangers exist but they just get me excited to see it the following week. I did kind of think that having more than one episode a week would be a better option but legends of Vox Machinca kind of taught me that it’s not really better. Basically it’s now just over and it ended so quickly. When I should’ve gotten 8 more weeks with it
i've personally found that a good in between for the memory holing and cliff hanger line is watching one episode of a given show a day, maybe two. It still drip feeds the data to your brain so it seals in better, but if it's a cliff hanger you only have to wait 18-24 hours before you resolve it, and I sorta wish that release model was more well known, because I can see Netflix doing something like a daily release of a season to build momentum. If they ever got the idea in their head...
Kind of funny that you brought up the memory thing. Especially becouse you are worried people will remember less, which absolutely doesn't line up with what I noticed through watching reaction videos xD From my experience, reaction chanels that watch things weekly, tend to, more often than not, forget A LOT of things. Where as channels who binge (via pre-recording), rewatch or simply having less than 7 days inbetween episodes, emember way more of the important information. Of course, that's only my experience of what I noticed xD
I watch most of my anime weekly because that's what's available at the time; but I do prefer bingeing. With weekly, I end up forgetting plot and names by next week. ("Takun not coming." Who's Takun?! 😀) Just yesterday, it was a few minutes into an isekai till I figured out which it was. With bingeing, I can understand over arcing plots, and remember character names and development.
My background is book blogging and if I'm dealing with a new series that has a bunch of episodes, I use what I call the editors method. When you send a book to an editor and they want to read part of it, first you have to convince them with the first five pages, and then with the first three chapters. I treat an episode as the 5 pages. If I'm enjoying myself I'll keep going to three episodes. If I'm still enjoying myself I will finish the season, barring any kind of massive screw up that does not work for me. I never force myself to finish an anime. That is not beneficial. Something I would love to see people organize is a watch along for a season or series (depending on the size of the overall anime) where people agree to watch X number of episodes a week and get together to discuss the show. There are many people who miss fantastic shows during their initial run and who then potentially have trouble finding others to share the joy of that show with. Kinda like a book club, but for anime.
I noticed the same thing with this part of JoJo being released the way it was, like it's less memorable. Although that could be just that this JoJo part doesn't seem to have as strong a start as some of the other parts. I think one other thing that does help though is to watch the show at first in Japanese to get one experience and then when you start forgetting things before the next batch comes out, you watch the English dub to get you caught up again and possibly get a new experience to compare to. That helped me anyway.
I think binging or not depends on the show. I have shows that I want to binge and others that I want to watch weekly. The weekly shows are usually the shows that I LOVED and want to think about and ponder. The binge shows are ordinary shows that I know I won't love as much but still enjoy. Also, I'm not the type of person who can binge 13 episodes in one sitting because my brain couldn't handle that much information in one go. So usually I only watch 2 - 3 episodes in one sitting
I have been doing both since 2018-ish with Megalobox and Hinamatsuri. I got crunchyroll premium specifically for those shows and have had it since, and every season there’s at least one thing I’m watching weekly. I’ve noticed that binging shows is more rewarding in the moment, and I do fall in love with the stories and characters, I just can’t… REMEMBER it as well. Like, I binged Bungo Stray Dogs- I adore this show so so much. But if I were to write out the plot it would be loose, messy, all over the place. But something I watched weekly, like 86 or BNHA or even BORUTO (yeah, Naruto franchise has its grip on me tight) I can explain it much more fluidly. But with that comes the frustration of waiting every week and hiding from the internet because of spoilers until you get home and can watch it. …It also gives me something to look forward to during the week, though, too. I find myself binge-watching shows as a REWATCH now rather than a first sit through. I watched Tokyo Revengers weekly and now I’m rewatching it in large chunks, same with JJK. Plus, some shows are just A++ when binging. I think Death Note is a great one to sit down and thoroughly enjoy because the previous episode is clear in your mind as the story progresses. Edit: I wrote this during the sponsor at the beginning, but I’m glad some of the experiences and pros/cons seem to be common. I have the same experience with Demon Slayer haha
Stone ocean going out weekly saddened me. I wanted to talk about everyone about how badass weather report is, but people were only focusing on the ending fight, not on all the other cool stuff he did, like a frigging cloud space suit
I see your point of binging making a show forgettable. However I tend to forget to watch when watching weekly, even if I love the show. So I prefer to wait until I can binge or watch it in chunks.
It will always depend on the type of show for me, if I need a break to compute what I watch then I do so, but it's easier for me because I don't need to stay up to date on anything really as I'm not the most active in discussions for anime.
For me, it depends. I could binge quite a few shows, and do if It's one that I need to catch up on. However, there are several shows that binging would be a case of overdosing. From last year I could easily say that the most of the shows I was watching were really helping me with keeping a calm mind, as I dealt with more family trauma. (Family trauma is something I can safely say does not get better the more you deal with it.) A small dose of healing anime like Isekai Shokudou goes a long way, while Odd Taxi needs breathing space for piecing the mystery together.
I don't have an issue with binging in general. I got into anime in 2018, so I had a huge back log of anime I missed over the past 3-4 decades. I broke a leg at work just months after getting into anime so I had 8-9 weeks off, and I couldn't walk. So I binged all the great. I went through dozens of episodes a day. But now that I've caught up and have found what I like and don't like, I like to watch an episode or two a day. I have a full time job, plenty of home maintenance projects and chores, as well as a backlog of video games. So till 7pm it's all work and home stuff, and then 1 hour of games, 30-45m of anime, and another 30 minutes of reading. Sleep 9p-5a. Very healthy time management and consistency gets a lot done!
I don't really stream much, just watch the occasional BD/DVD. I definately feel like I remember more fondly those shows I had to watch 1 a week or in chunks of 3-5 episodes per DVD. I tend to watch BD in 2-3 sittings over a few days, and it definately doesn't have the same impact. There's something fun about a single episode and then thinking about what might happen, where it might go. The latest JoJo will undoubtably suffer from this.
It’s a combination thing. E.g. I watched Code Geass at an episode a day. Far more memorable than any other method of watching I’ve done. Weekly has worked really well for Demon Slayer: Entertainment District. It’s only 11 episodes, and really leans on its cliffhangers. Being so short, and so intense, it managed to stay engaging over a weekly schedule. (…though I doubt it will hold up well to a bingewatch.) Ranking of Kings has also been fairly good on the weekly, though I suspect it’ll hold up to bingeing a lot better. The mystery has time to sink in on a weekly model, but it’s got so much attention to detail that I expect that would be enough to carry it in a binge model. JoJo part 6 suffers from a different pacing, as well as the binge model. It’s been paced much like Stardust Crusaders, and I couldn’t tell you half of the monster of the weeks from that. Golden Wind started off at this pace but when Diavolo entered the mix, it sped up amazingly. Diamond is Unbreakable did the opposite. It was so slow that the new enemies had time to be memorable, since there was often a near-filler episode in there.
that's why we remember older shows better. they stick to our minds! and that's why I still watch shows sporadically. better enjoyment!! I wait for the season to end then watch one episode at a time 🤣and I love the cliffhangers 😅 because they made me think about the episode for the whole week, even rewatched to try to make predictions. that excitement, anticipation is what really made any show worth it tbh
I guess it would depend on what is more important to you, the series itself or all the peripheral content surrounding the series (the hype, content, general discussions ect.) If it's the series then undoubtedly the best way is to binge, even if you forget things over time you can just watch it again (you'll surely remember if you liked it or not) But if the surrounding content, discussions ect. are more important, just as important or even just important enough then go for the weekly format, you'll just have to accept that you'll have to work around their schedule.
I have been following a few series weekly every season since 2014 and I don't regret it. I get a lot of time to mull over each episode's quality, too, and I think cliffhangers are to be enjoyed. I think this way is better cause I properly assess the quality of each episode and think if a series was actually enjoyable or not. Not saying that I end up with a better judgement than someone who binges, but I'm much more likely to pick up other points of view and less likely to regret my rating of the series later.
That's what I have about binging the most, people watch it and then instantly disappears from everyone's minds. Personally I only watch weekly if I either dont care too much about it, like One Piece or SnK, or if I know it's a show that doesnt give too much clliffhangers or it's more chill, else it's a binge for me. Still not a full binge tho, like 3 or so at a time, but still.
I've always watched (and read) everything as it came out exactly because I want to be caught up. "If it's out and I want to experience it, why would I wait for some arbitrary reason?". It's the whole reason I started reading manga too anyway, because I remembered that a good chunk more of the story is already available there. I don't like cliffhangers either, but I never felt they were so awful that it'd be worth giving up being caught up for the,. Plus the creators of an anime take into account that it comes out weekly, so it's kinda "designed" for it, which might matter sometimes. It's also so much easier to watch one episode a week, instead of having to find time for all of the episodes or risking having to stop at a place you don't want to because of time, or procrastinating other stuff because you don't want to stop watching.
I totally understand this. I don't like binging media nowadays because I definitely forget a lot of details. Also a big reason why I pretty much only watch new weekly anime instead of catching up on some classics. Because IT IS a daunting task to watch like 26 Episodes of a Series and I have to consciously stop myself from binging it to enjoy it fully and memorize its greatness for a long time. Because if I don't, I forget so many amazing details that make the show great. Sadly it does also make me stop shows that I do enjoy, and I can't quite figure out how to deal with that yet. I started Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann a looong time ago, and only watched 6 Episodes, even tho I enjoyed them a lot and I loved for example Kill la Kill too (after starting it 3 times). Or Cowboy Bebop I recently started around the time the live action adaption got a release date. I watched 9 Episodes, LOVED IT, but then didn't continue, cause there is still so many episodes to watch. Well with Gurren Lagann I also know a big spoiler later on that kinda ruins it for me, but I'm very unsure about what exactly happens in Bebop later. And a more recent example, Blue Period. Was extremely excited for it, as an artist that would love to get into art school, I watched 3 Episodes, enjoyed them so much, but am scared of rushing through them too quickly and ending it before I'm ready for it to end. Sure I could read the manga but thats a commitment in itself. Lmao I'm not sure where I'm going with this, but yea the whole "Binging has multiple negative things to it" really hinders me from watching anything non-weekly :/
Even way back before online streaming took over as mainstream I always preferred to watch completed series in doses of anywhere from 2-6 episodes. Wait for BDs was my motto. Couldn't care that much for weekly discussion especially since most media have an OG source that kinda spoils the fun. I cannot imagine watching Jojo weekly. Shows like that keep on you on the edge is not something I wanna turn on the TV on for half an hour only to be kept teething for the next episode again next week. I can do that for slice of life shows.
Ever since Disney+ and to a degree Prime Video and HBO Max have been releasing their episodes of a specific series weekly it has reignited the weekly vs binged debate from several people especially the ones who have been openly critical with Netflix lately on how they continue to binged drop a show (anime or a popular Live-Action series such as Stranger Things) over releasing one episode a week. For a while, only Patriot Act and the British Baking Competition show were the only Netflix series to be released weakly up until we had the anime series _Blue Period_ and _Komi Can't Communicate_ respectively being released weekly, even though the episodes were released 1-2 weeks after their Japanese airings when compared to Funimation and Crunchyroll who releases their episodes (sub only) of their anime series simultaneously at the same time they air in Japan.
I have seen it written before that "bingeing" TV series means that people don't remember shoes as well, it's just a quick thing and then you move on. Personally, moreso than when I was in high school and undergrad, I don't have a lot of time to watch shows (anime or otherwise) outside of nightly family tv viewing. I also don't have much interest in discussing it with others. So I just watch an episode at a time, when I have time, just for my own enjoyment. It took me about a year (maybe a bit more) to watch all of FMA Brotherhood (and I skipped a few early episodes where I already knew what happened from being familiar with the story). Because it took me so long, with big gaps between episodes, I don't remember it all that well, other than that I watched it and a few bits and pieces here and there. I think watching weekly, or some other frequent, regular pattern, is better for remembering. Too far apart over a long period of time, you can forget a lot.
I used to me more of a binger when I was new to watching anime online. As I became more familiar with it and payed attention to what was coming out and when, I started watching weekly more. You made a lot of valid points here, and it should be noted that research has shown that the way we do things with modern technology is changing how our brains are wired, and I am sure regularly binging is doing the same. There are positives and negatives to this, I'm sure. I do think overall, watching weekly is better for retention. Though people with more patience who wait, don't have to deal with cliffhangers, and that in itself is rewarding.
I agree, I can only remember so much, so I need to spread out the knowledge I absorb over a longer period of time. That said, binging is nice though for getting instant gratification… I have hardly any self control I guess 😔
At the beginning of an anime season, I look over the new shows that interest me and decide which ones to watch weekly and which ones to binge. For this season, I am watching My Dress-Up Darling, Akebi's Sailor Uniform, and Sabikui Bisco weekly, and I am planning on binging Demon Slayer and Teasing Master Takagi-san. Those in the binge category are there because I need to binge to catch up, so I might as well wait. Netflix release schedule for Komi actually forced me into the binge model, because of their choice to not simulcast. I found it super annoying for MAL to tell me a new episode was out, just not for me, because Netflix.
New anime I watch currently, but I always watch the previous episode before the current episode to smooth out any cliff hangers and cement my knowledge about the episodes. If a series is already out I binge, but after binging I read episode summaries to re-enforce what I binged and pick up on things I missed.
I would recommend you to experiment with daily watching, as compromise between both models. You still have time to process stuff in chunks, but you don't have to wait a whole week for the next crumb. It still gives you something new to think and discuss every day.
I used to exclusively binge anime back when I first started watching and wasn’t hip on all the seasonal shows. I was watching mostly old shows that were complete so I could tear through them. Now I never binge for a number of reasons. A lot of shows now, even content on streaming services is released on a weekly basis and with me be always online nowadays I have to watch stuff immediately in order to avoid spoilers. I also don’t have as much free time now that I’m in grad school so I find shows being released weekly more manageable. I wish I could binge stuff but I simply can’t anymore. Maybe once I’m done with school I can get back on the binge train.
What you laid out in this video described my main issues with the way Netflix releases anime (so, the binge model) pretty well (or series in general): - Less continuous community engagement. It'll be talked about a lot for week, and then it kinda disappears off the radar. - Less continuous engagement with the anime itself. Time to digest what happened and all that, theorizing etc happens way less with binging. This is especially a big part of it for me. Weekly watching allows me to think about what happened more, allowing you to be more engaged to the anime. - Memorability. - Time commitment. 13 episodes is a lot. Yeah you can chunk it up yourself, but that's pretty hard when the next thing is right in front of you. Some other things that I prefer about weekly watching: - You always have something to look forward to for at least 12 weeks, instead of having to look for the next thing. So often you hear about Netflix 'Man, there's nothing to watch', even though Netflix has a shitload of content. - Similar to time commitment: Time management. 20-30 minute chunks is much easier to manage. Really, in my opinion, the only thing that is 'beneficial' about binging is that cliffhangers don't matter. I can't really think of any other benefits, and even this benefit is debatable. Having to wait for the cliffhanger to be resolved is actually more cathartic in my opinion, because you've been thinking and talking about it for a week, discussing what on earth could happen next etc.
1. I don't forget what happened since last week. Obviously I'll do a lot of other things in a week, and those will utterly destroy any impact a new episode may have. The ending of Vivy was utterly weightless, because I watched it when only 11 episodes were out, but the show was wrongly marked completed...
I am someone who usually do the weekly/seasonal thing but I understand somethings you can’t help binge watch or read cause I am so charmed I can’t stop myself from catching up.
I have been thinking about this lately-- not so much the Watch Styles, but more like how shows-- even GREAT shows-- seem to be forgotten so easily. I notice it doesn't just happen with anime either, it happens in the western cartoon and live action scenes too (though I primarily watch anime as it's my favorite thing). As for how this will effect otaku-fandom/the weebsphere, it's kind of a double edged sword. On the one hand, the really awful shows might stir up some controversy but will inevitably be forgotten about. But on the other hand, new IP's (especially anime original projects) might not have a chance to establish roots in the fandom because they keep being uprooted and replaced by the Next Cool and Shiny Thing. Part of me likes to think "Well, the phenomenal gems and memorable stories will stick with us", but I've been in the fandom long enough to see shows that have had a personal impact on me just fall to the wayside by the collective memory. (T___T Steam Detectives was so good!) I think at that point it's up to us fans to talk about the shows that meant a lot to us. Or even just the shows we wished got remembered in some capacity.
I think for the "you forget what happened 2 months later" part has a lot to do with us getting older too. When you watched 10 anime, there's little odds that the 11th is gonna be similar to the rest, but once you passed a few hundred, things start to get confusing, especially for shows that aren't 9/10 and above. Lately, I've been watching a lot of magical girls anime, and I can't remember much from most of them, lol. Unless they do something really different (think Magical Girl Raising Project), it's all going straight into the "forgotten anime" drawer :P That, and the fact that there's no way in hell I could remember any of the names, even while watching an anime, lol. And with many of them having big casts, *it's just way too much information for someone to remember!* The thing about "how long are those series gonna be relevant" is also subjective, if you watch an isekai now and it's your 20th or maybe 50th, again, unless it's a really different one or a masterpiece, you won't remember much about it, but if someone who never watched an isekai before watches it, they're gonna remember it much better, because for them it was a new experience. Hell, I remember my first kill on some tough bosses in World of Warcraft, but how could I remember the 5th kill or 22nd kill? And the whole "fomo" part is so weak, what makes you think someone would commit to watching an anime over the course of 4 months vs doing it in one or two sittings once it's complete?... unless you're a reviewer or something, or the show is EXTREMELY popular (Attack on Titan level), I don't think many would get fomo. But hey, maybe someone will comment and prove me wrong /shrug. AND one more *HUGE* point is that waiting for a show to end means that you now have viewer ratings. Remember Fena: Pirate Princess? That show started out so good, but it turned to absolute shit later on. You wouldn't have known that watching it week by week, but if you waited for it to end, you then knew that maybe it wasn't a "must watch", you know? Hell, I knew that The Promised Neverland season 2 was a pile of dogshit going in, and I was going to skip it because of the ratings .. but I ended up watching it with my brother, and now we both regret it :D Ok, and now the biggest isue: if you watch weekly anime, there are only 2 options: 1) You ONLY watch airing anime. 2) You watch airing anime + older stuff on the sides. Now this leaves us with some pretty big problems. For the 1st point, it means you're never gonna watch any older anime, and that's simply a crime. For the 2nd point, that means you're watching more shows and things will naturally get confusing (unless you have like the memory of a genius), because you're now watching 5+ airing anime one episode at a time and then 5+ more at the same rate or binge watching the older ones. Any way you do it, it's still a mess.
I just started binging Titan to get current 😅 that show's politics are so intricate and deep I really feel like I have to pay attention and will lose track if I wait to long between episodes. That happened to me in attempting to watch the final season weekly. I just got lost af right away since I didn't do a refresh lol. But I watched Jujutsu Kaisen week to week and had a great experience. Idk, both good for meeeeee
1 a day right before I leave for work and 1 episode of a different show on my lunch break. If I'm watching a show with friends 2 hours sessions. If I'm extremely hyped for a new I'll watch it week to week And if I have a good chunk of down time I try to find binge worthyshows to fill in those times. Jojo's as a binge this year was not nearly as fun as one a week.
Can definitely relate on the JoJo front, although I'd argue that in its example it's been given the worst of all worlds. With previous parts I loved watching the anime on a week to week basis and discussing it with friends and those online, and then binge watch it and previous parts once they were done. With Stone Ocean's anime however I currently have no will to start it, since it's neither releasing week to week, nor is it finished so I can't bring myself to binge watch it. I understand that this probably isn't everybody's experience, but I know I'm not alone in feeling like this. Honestly the closest thing I can compare it to is a monthly manga fittingly enough, except instead of it taking a month to get 1/100th of a story, we're likely going to be waiting 6 months for each 1/3 of the story, which to me seems like it will decrease the self life of Stone Ocean in the public consciousness. I hope I'm wrong, but we will have to see how things play out.
It's debatable on the information retention part. With some shows I've indeed taken advantage of the week between episodes to think more of stuff and thus remember more details, but with others I just missed relatively important details because they'd only been committed to short-term memory so I forgot them by the time they became relevant again.
Interesting, I've talked with my friends recently about how I noticed that when it comes to a lot of the shows I only remember a general overview of them and whether I liked them or not, I thought that this happens because I simply watched too much anime and maybe the shows weren't that good or It's just been a while since I watched them but now that I think about it I binge watched most of the the shows that I don't remember a lot of details of... Great video thanks 👍
I watch at most 8 episodes a day - and always from at least 2 different anime. 5/3, 4/4, 4/3/1, watching it in chunks lets me fit it nicely within my schedule (I have two separated chunks of free time) and not using it all for the same anime lets me remember them better. I'm currently learning Japanese so usually the first slot is for immersion material and the second/third is for stuff I want to watch but that is too advanced right now to watch raw (makes for good rewatch immersion material later though).
I definitely think weekly is best, it keeps people orbiting the show who really wanna keep up with it and discuss happy, while the people who like to binge can set it aside for a month or two, then catch up of their own volition. I love weekly, I honestly don't mind cliffhangers, it kjeeps me so excited, and slowly pushing towards that end goal. Like imagine if right now AoT was all out, all the way to finale, how much less build up and anticipation there'd have been, so much less buzz and discussion and excitement.
I much prefer the weekly release over the Netflix binge all at once. I quite like having weekly discussions where we (my friends and communities) digest and speculate on everything. It holds a sense of anticipation over a longer period than the one and done after a couple weeks I get from a lot of Netflix style releases. Each new release becomes like an event we all come back and gather for a fair couple of months
Can't do weekly anymore. With kids and a busy life, I end up missing an episode or 2 and just drop a show. If I binge it, it'll be done in a week or so, and I can form my thoughts on it. I get a show can be less memorable, but I'm more likely to finish it and actually remember something.
That studying metaphor is why watching seasonal anime can be a chore. I dont like to jump on new shows immediately unless there's one I know I'm gonna be hooked on for its entire run, so some shows I wait until they've finished so I can gauge my interest (see also: Wonder Egg). I dont necessarily have a problem on that note, but I can see why others do.
my preferred watching system is a hybrid system, watch 2-3 episodes a day, giving you plenty of time to think about the episodes, allowing me to appreciate it more than if I'm binging, but still, no long waiting times. You still need to wait until the show is practically completed. So there's that disadvantage, but I just enjoy it more if I limit myself to a certain amount of episodes.
Yeah I’m like that too
Your method is indeed the best.
Yes i mainly do that for the last 3 epsiodes
Amazon did that with The Legend of Vox Machina. It was a pretty neat format. Also, outside of the first episode, I recommend the series. It's worth watching.
I am like this too and it's very helpful because my schedule can be over the place
Having the option to binge is always nice these days. I remember when Haruhi season 2 was originally released and everyone was having a great time all around until the dawning of the endless eight. Oh the pain...
I watched it TWICE.
He didn't bring it up with Steins;Gate, but the show's first half in infamously slow and I remember nothing besides the funnier stuff. Then the second half suddenly picks up, and I remember a lot more and am paying attention. I'm glad I binged that, so I feel REALLY sorry for those who had to go through it and Endless Eight on a weekly schedule!
@@ianrandolph6436 Preach it. Those are eight of the finest episodes of television ever produced. The sheer guts it must have taken to go ahead with that gag are unimaginable.
@@lucinae8512agreed
@@lucinae8512yeah steins picked up when after episode 13 or 14 to me
I usually watch shows in chunks of a few episodes per day, leaves time to digest but also means you don't need to leave it at an unsatisfying midpoint (cliffhangers are not counted under this since they're usually quite engaging). Usually that lines up quite well with arcs or sub-arcs and breaks your memory of the show into chunks rather than either breadcrumbs or one big blob.
Yeah I don't have the attention span to organize this and I'm usually too afraid of spoilers to do it but this is the best way for me. Currently loving watching 2-3 episodes of Ousama Ranking at a time but also being able to sit and process the insane amount of stuff that happens as well as theorize and discuss it with my friend.
Watching it all in one go never seems satisfying to me, I've actually just binged almost 4 whole seasons of Lucifer in a week and a half and I like it but I haven't had it in my life long enough to grow really attached to it.
@@mrcheesemunch While I haven't finished Lucifer's final season yet, I understand what you mean. I for one watched Lucifer mostly watched the show a couple or so episode at a time as the show can feel a bit bloated which is even more evident when bingeing, so for some shows its best to let it sink in. Not always but sometimes.
@@GenerationZ313 Yeah definitely, I'm very glad it went to Netflix. 20 episode season TV shows where every single episode amounts to a single sentence worth of character development and basically nothing else would be tiresome to watch weekly.
@@mrcheesemunch I felt the third season was the most bloated and when it transitioned to Netflix we didn't have to deal with as much filler.
@@mrcheesemunch I sorta watch ranking of kings weekly
I have the exact same issue, but with manga, having to wait every week or a month for a manga chapter only for it to end on a cliffhanger is absolutely soul crushing
It’s worse when they delay the next chapter for a holiday so your month of waiting becomes two months
That's why I read like 200ish mangas all at the same time. Every day new chapters come out so there's always something to be excited about. There's too much good manga out there it's ruining my life. I'm unemployed and I can't even beat Bloodborne, not because it's too hard but I'm too busy catching up with manga and I can't get a job until I beat Bloodborne because I said so.
@@sparklesparklesparkle6318 I cant beat bloodbourne either haha, download some job finding apps and it will make it easier. i recommend jora local if they have that in your country but good luck. btw u got any manga recommendations?
It depends
For me, it depends on the anime. When I watched Steins Gate I wasn't able to watch more than 2 episodes together. It was better for me to let each episode sink in for a while before watching more.
On the other hand, something like One Piece or Gintama would be like "yeah, give me 10 episodes in one go".
Bingewatching one piece is better in my opinion than watching weekly
Gintama I agree with you also Rest In Peace to the anime /franchise
@@watchforever1724 Yeah, and it is really good to rewatch. So it's not too bad if you forget a couple of things, because you WILL miss some details on your first binge-watching.
@@juansek208 it’s depends your forgot some of the dialogue of what characters are saying but seeing a lot of action from characters
That's how I had to approach Magical Girl Raising Project. Two episodes was my limit, some were more like half an episode at a time.
Binge-watching is long known for its effects on actually comprehending and memorizing the content. Especially with how 'mundane' many (SoL) anime can be it's highly likely you'll forget that you actually watched some shows - not even talk about what happened in them.
I find myself binging myself a lot too - but I actually don't really like the consequences of it. Unfortunately there's not much way around it if you want to catch up on over a decade of anime releases you haven't seen yet... ^^
surely if anything you remember more about an anime if you watch an episode each week? thats actually why i prefer to watch it weekly, by binging i can barely recall anything about the anime just a few weeks later
Just watch multiple shows at the same time, one episode at a time. (ie. create your own anime season, lol)
One show I almost forgot watching was Vivy
I was watching it dubbed, and was mistakenly marked a completed at 11 episodes, so I totally didn't expect the plot twist at the end.
But then in the end what I remembered the show for was how weightless was the ending after I got more invested into a more recently watched SoL isekai that wasn't even particularly good.
Actually I think I memorize most by binging than watching a bunch of shit weekly. But i discuss with friends not the internet
@@ProtagonistOfficial it depends which show because every show wouldn’t work as weekly and usually doesn’t work as binge watching I felt like Jojo should be a weekly watch
One episode definitely isn't enough, but about 2-3 episodes (40-60 min) is a good binge for me
Agreed
That has happened to me a lot. That's why I usually limit myself to watch an episode per day or every other day, unless the cliffhanger is so unfair that I break the rule for a couple of episodes. And sometimes when a series has a high level of quality or detail, I take a long break (usually a week or so) before I resume watching it again, because I feel like I'm wasting all the efforts that have gone into each episode, and I must stop and spend some time thinking about them
My systems consists of watching a single episode of a finished show once every two days, at least. That way, the cliffhangers matter, and I never feel the need to skip OPs and EDs. Of course, it takes way longer to finish a single show, but at the same time they grow much more on you, because it becomes part of a portion of your everyday life. So, it'd take the weekly method for trending shows. Manga, on the other hand, I binge.
Edit: Hope you find a way that'd be perfectly confortable to you! What matters is to enjoy :)
mangas awesome what are you reading right now? Have you read Spirit Circle?
@@sparklesparklesparkle6318 it has actually been quite a while since the last time I read a whole Manga, but last one I did was Boku ha Mari no Naka, from Oshimi Shuzo. Also Pumpkin Knight, for pure guilty pleasure lol
Spirit Circle sounds interesting though
@@waltworks8389 I've read a loooooot of manga this year and it is my favourite. If you enjoyed Sleepy Princess in Demon Castle you'll really like 'Tis Time For Torture Princess. It's like the same thing but also kinda different.
I read Call Of The Night because Mother's Basement told me to and that was a really good time. I'm on the lookout for more manga like Aku no Hana, the story isn't perfect, but what makes it so great is very little dialogue and panels with visuals that you understand what is going on the moment you see the frame, so you're able to speedread through Aku no Hana really fast and it seems to be designed for it.
I like material that has you cruising through panels over spending a minute or two reading tiny paragraphs on each page.
There isn't that much of it out there tho. Ill check out Boku ha Mari no Naka and Pumpkin Knight that sounds fun.
Also give the manga for Akebi no Sailor Fuku a try if you haven't it's incredible art and so wholesome.
@@sparklesparklesparkle6318 hahah Awesome! Thanks for the recommendations! And yes, that's what I like the most about some Mangas... Exposition through visuals. Junjo Ito is also great in that regard. I think my easiest recommendation would be Oyasumi Punpun, although it has a lot of text, it's still very simbolic and even disturbing
@@waltworks8389 I read Oyasumi Punpun a couple months after I read Dead Dead Demons Dededede Destruction (same author). Dededede is way better. Oyasumi Punpun was good tho.
One of my favourite parts of watching anime as it airs is theory-crafting with my friends. This isn't really an option for series that we binge, and imo is alot less impactful to me in the long run.
It's not that I mean I remember more of the series or that I wish I did, but that it left a much larger emotional impact because of that discourse with the people close to me.
The most recent excellent case for this was "So I'm A Spider, So What?", which had so much intrigue and mystery in it, that the theory-crafting was very animated.
when anime wasnt that mainstream, watching seasonals weekly wasnt as a thing as it is now, and binging was the way we watched most stuff and there wasnt an issue with that. now with meme culture at its peak, it's different. i believe we end up not talking about a lot of shows that we binge not because we forget them, but because we keep getting new material from the weekly shows and end up talking more about that.
however, i do believe some shows are better binged, because a week in between makes u forget some details or gets out of the atmosphere. for instance, i see so much love for sonny boy and the new boogiepop, and i was barely able to understand whats going on because i was losing a lot of details and connections between the eps due to that week interval. also, there are good shows that get overshadowed by shows with bigger hype. for instance, ive been watching snk, yaiba and platinum end this season. i rush to watch the first two because of the (well deserved imo) hype they have, and then im like ''oh i have to watch platinum end too, huh?''. it almost feels like a chore to start it, but i really enjoy the show when i watch it. and it's a pity :/
That largely depends on what you do after watching an episode. Do you talk about it with others or think it over in your head? If you just watch it and then wait until the next episode with no further engagement you're going to be more likely to forget details because repetition is a key part of memorization. It's really a type of meditation. The more deeply you think about something the more deeply ingrained it is into your memory. This actually ties into what you said in your first paragraph. If all you have to watch is one show at a time, even if you're bingeing you're still more likely to remember it if it isn't blending in with everything else you're bingeing, because you can take more time to savor that one show. The main point of this conundrum is: The more things blend together the less appreciated each one is.
You forgot platinum end ?
the moment it was announced that stone ocean was gonna be released this way my heart sunk, because i knew that was gonna happen. it made me way less invested in the show because i knew the sense of community and weekly excitement that was prevelent with previous parts was just not gonna be there. it's especially upsetting that it happened to stone ocean of all jojos, seeing as it has been one of the less popular parts for so long (due to many people skimming it just to get to SBR faster.... which is exactly the fate that the binge model is now repeating), and now that it was finally its time to shine, that time was just taken away. there are definitely shows where i don't mind the binge format and would also binge them myself, but with jojo - ESPECIALLY with stone ocean, i honestly think it completely killed the show.
My problem with seasons of shows being released all at once is how much easier is it for them to fly under the radar.
Would as many people have watched Invincible if it had just been dropped all at once one day instead of over a couple of months?
I wouldn't have. Because I don't have my hear to the ground keeping up with everything coming out, so I probably wouldn't have heard about it.
I suppose Amazon's strategy of releasing 3 episodes and then releasing the show weekly paid off as viewers could decide if they wanted to keep watching or not kind of like being given a free trial of sorts and letting you decide whether you want to stick around and see more or leave the show as is.
@@GenerationZ313 Amazon did the same with the Peacemaker show, and that was great as well. So this method it does feel like a good compromise.
On the other hand, is anyone talking much about Hit Monkey?
I mean, I understand. John Cena vs animated monkey deadpool... but still. The latter doesn't seem to receive even a fraction of the exposure Invincible had. And I don't think the existing fanbase for Invincible is entirely the reason.
@@DocteurNS actually HBO Max made Peacemaker. Unfortunately HBO Max is locked behind an add-on for Crave here in Canada. I may have shelled out $20 CAD to watch the final season of Game of thrones but I'm not doing it again.
@@GenerationZ313 Ah, yes, you're right. My bad.
But it's good then, I think, if more services adopted this release strategy.
Really ?I don’t have an issue with it especially since the concept of invicible isn’t hard to experience whether you watch it weekly or binge it
I tend to binge watch shows, since it's hard for me to watch shows weekly. If I forget or don't feel like watching it one week, I tend to do it next week, and the next thing I know I missed like two seasons worth of content. This is why I usually watch a whole after it's finished, as I know how long it is, and now how much commit I am putting it in the show.
I much prefer watching content weekly mostly because I like to see what other people thought of the episode, and while you can still do that with bingeing, more often than not I just move on to the next episode instead of reading what people have to say. Another reason is because of spoilers; outside of anime I watch a lot of elimination shows and if you're not watching them as they air you're 100% gonna get something spoiled.
Another thing is I tend to associate media I consume with whats currently going on in my life. Thinking of Golden Time takes me back to the Thursday evenings when I would get back from drama club and watch anime while cozied up in my bed, but when I think of something like The Promised Neverland S1 which I binged over the course of 2-3, I don't really have those same memories (even though I enjoyed the show a lot). Then there's also this weird sense of FOMO and nostalgia, where if I don't watch something as it airs I feel as though my experience was cheapened compared to people who did. I didn't watch S2 and S3 of AoT as they aired and it makes me feel like I missed out on all the hype the fans had when watching at the time. It doesn't make me like the anime any less, but I do feel like I would've enjoyed it more watching weekly.
I especially relate to the association of anime with daily life. I remember every single anime I used to watch after coming home from school. Sad that after the virus took over I don't remember the shows I watched cuz not much would go on in daily life anymore.
Other than that don't really relate to anything else especially reading people's thoughts on the show because the anime community that exists online honestly sucks and more than a few times people have ruined my experience of watching anime. So I just stay away from any kind of comments section or forums.
@@merlinsbeard778 agreed
Sometimes when I really love a show, participating in the week-to-week discussions about it is an experience I really love. E.g., all the online speculations during OddTaxi. Obvs not possible unless watching week too week.
And even without those discussions, having a week too ponder on my own about what might happen next is something I enjoy. (My theories on Good Cliffhangers vs Bad Cliffhangers being too much for this one lil TH-cam comment.)
I'm glad that I'm not the only one who feels this way. I've brought it up other times on public forums and have mostly been told that it doesn't matter.
My biggest issue (and this is more with the modern method as has been called in the video) is that what can be talked about when. I remember when Netflix first became big and trying to talk about a show with someone. We try comparing where we are in the show, and that alone was difficult.
Episode numbers were off the table, because who remember what happens in which episode anymore? With the traditional weekly model, you can say "I'm two episodes behind" and that tells the person a lot. When someone watches everything in one or two blocks, it all runs together.
The discussions basically boil down to just agree that the show is good with no real discussion of it. No one wants to spoil what will happen for the other. By the time everyone is caught up, the people who finished earlier barely remember what happened.
I've been wanting to do a bit of a "book club" for shows, but everyone my age is too busy to take the time. I thought it'd be nice to watch one or two episodes a week and actually talk to people about it.
I also generally dislike cliff hangers, but there is a point to be made that they are intended to keep the show in your mind. They are intended to have you thinking about the show, and that is a lot of what binging loses. People stop thinking about what they are watching.
I still binge shows. I am just generally putting television into the bucket of long form film/movies. That's what they have been generally moving towards anyway. I've been reading a lot more. Instead of having anime fill the void it used to, I've got light novels.
The translation scene for light novels has grown a lot. There are a bunch of anime shows that never took off that were light novels. I get to read some of them. Some haven't gotten translations, but I will celebrate if they ever make it.
I'm really not sure where to end this. Like the video, it's pretty much a short rant and expression of mild frustration. I'm really happy that other people notice that the binge model is not as great as many seem to think or pretend it is.
I think with some shows there's just an aspect of engagement, regardless of how you watch. Like, I think Magia Record aired the same season as both Furuba and Wonder Egg Priority, and I watched all those shows weekly, but I don't remember much of Magia Record because I barely engaged with the fandom, while I tweeted regularly about WEP and Froob (and also watched quite a few Furuba reactions).
I really loved the Jojo's fridays and the episode threads on Reddit with a whole lot of people giving their thoughts. When inevitably they release the rest of the episodes i will no doubt have to watch the old episodes again because i dont really remember it.
Really?
I forget things when I'm watching a show weekly, like literally I'll start a new episode and have forgotten that the last one ended on a cliffhanger. I remember what I binged far better.
I think it ultimately depends on the type of show. Binging an episode show like Sailor Moon SuperS will put a lot of the emphasis on what's repetitive about it. But something more serialized when each doesn't feel like a complete story but a piece of something, then I will likely just forget about it while waiting for the next part.
I will say this, watching demon slayer season 2 and AOT every Sunday for the past few weeks was something I genuinely loved and will cherish for a long time, the hype those shows gave me and the community was amazing, I definetly will say you can watch week to week the big shows and binge some other shows that maybe you don’t feel like keeping up to week with, that’s how I do it and it’s very very rewarding
I don't binge shows anymore. Weekly airings have gotten their shine back plus watching 7ish different shows over the week helps alleviate the cliffhangers. Also it allows me to rewatch an episode with joy.
I really relate to the 'not wanting to drop a show after you've already started it' thing. For some reason I find it borderline impossible to not finish a show once I've started it, even if I absolutely HATE it. That's how I ended up suffering through all 12 episodes of Green Green... and all the miscellaneous OVA type stuff...
I'm with you about cliff hangers, in fact if I'm watching a series that is all available I'll look for non spoiler reviews of the last ep so I can see if I want to bother with investing the time to watch it, although I don't mind spoilers as I can watch my favourite Anime over and over again anyway. The only anime episode I can really remember in detail is my dress up darling, episode 2 funnily enough.
Never actually understood the appeal of new shows getting released all at once. It simply kills any of the hype that would be happening a lot more if it were released weekly. After watching Stone Ocean, I expected to not have any interesting discussions happening but there aren't even memes I've come across, Jojo thrives on memes. Now look at AoT, every week is so much eventful for the rest of the week, new theories, new discussions, new memes, it's basically the perfect formula to keep a series relevant. And same way I have no idea why people even consider defending binge watching model. Half of your viewing experience is talking with people every week that watched the episode same time as you. It means you didn't waste your time, and got all out of it. Plus you got something to look forward to for a few months without needing to sit through all of it.
Ye, well, hype deserves to die. What's hyped and what's worth watching rarely align...
@@janisir4529 In nearly every market in the world yes this is true. Anime it's different. Almost everything that gets hype and praise deserves it. however I don't think products like the covid vaccine deserve all the hype and priase it is getting.
@@sparklesparklesparkle6318 I have no idea how you went from anime to covid vaccine...
But no, I totally meant anime. I have like 200 completed entries on MAL, and I'm basically constantly dumpster diving already, even though 200 is not a lot...
@@janisir4529 here if there is anything on my list you haven't seen then watch these. The only qualifier for this list is the anime was interesting enough for me to watch from beginning to end. If I didn't finish the anime it means it got boring and isn't worth going on the list:
Konosuba (dub), Re:Zero, The Time I was Reincarnated As A Slime, Akudama Drive, Sleepy Princess in Demon Castle, Made In Abyss, Little Witch Acadamia, MOB Psycho 100, Appare-Ranman, Girls Last Tour, Kime No Na Wa (Your name), Redline, Soul Eater, Cowboy Bebop, Attack On Titan, One Punch Man, Akira, Megalobox, Burn The Witch, Promised Neverland (Season 1), Space Dandy, INUYASHIKI: Last Hero, Parasyte: The Maxim, A Silent Voice, Samaurai Champloo, Jujutsu Kaisen, Dr. Stone, Neon Genesis Evangelion, FLCL, ERASED, (Love, Chunibyo & Other Delusions (season 1)), Toradora, Is It Wrong to Try and Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?, Puella Magi Madoka Magica, Deca-Dence, WataMote, Beastars, My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!, Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid, Dorohedoro, DARLING in the FRANXX, Shirobako, BNA (Brand New Animal), Wonder Egg Priority, Mushoku Tensei, Helpful Fox Senkosan, Sk8 The Infinity, (So Im A Spider, So What?), Violet Evergarden, Yokohama Cafe (OVA), Dragon Half, Super Cub, I've Been Killing Slimes For 300 Years And Maxed Out My Level , Tokyo Revegers, Vivi Flourites Eye Song, ODDTAXI, To Your Eternity, Osamake, Koikimo, Those Snow White Notes, Nagatoro, Shadows House, Higehiro, Full Dive RPG, Mysterious Girlfriend X, The Devil Is A Part Timer, Shiki, Only the Idaten Dieties Know Peace, Takt Op. Destiny, Ousama Ranking, Shiroi Suna no Aquatope, Ousama Ranking, Remake Our Life, My Dress Up Darling, Akebi-Chan No Sailor Fuku, Kimi Ni Tokode, Words Bubble Up Like Sodapop, Kaiju no Kodomo, Blood: The Last Vampire, Rascal Does Not Dream Of Bunnygirl Senpai, Kemono Friends, Read Or Die OVA, Oreimo, Haganai
If you're gonna release everything at once, why bother making it a series?
I wrote this comment during the ad-read and it's funny we both used the studying analogy.
I can't binge stuff anymore. It leaves my mind so quickly, kinda like cramming for an exam vs studying consistently over time. I don't watch things as they release unless I'm doing it with a friend/ someone I can discuss it with. I typically wait for things to release completely and then watch a few eps at a time
I can’t do binging cuz by that time I feel like I haven’t cared and left it alone for so long; “why bother starting and going back” enters my mind. I also get watching weekly or not is the same amount of time at the end of the day but seeing the total number is daunting in my mind when you’re starting a binge.
In terms of more current stuff how Stone Ocean is modeled I do think forgetting stuff and leaving it behind happens.
I've had at least one occasion where I ended up binging an entire series completely by accident. If I recall rightly, I was playing around in Transport Fever and wanted something on in the background, so I set up my phone on its stand next to my computer and put on an episode of New Game. Next thing I knew, over 3 hours had passed and I was on the last episode. It certainly helped that I freaking love New Game, and that Transport Fever is one of those games where it takes a deceptively long time to do basically anything.
I watched all 24 episodes in a day when I bought the blu ray set back in 2020.. Love it!
I think there are show that fit the weekly model way better than binging. They basically live from that hype over every episode. My preferred method is binging but with some shows i want to keep up weekly just to discuss with everyone. The better remembering in the long run is just a bonus side effect for me (when i binged a show that i really liked I'm gonna watch it again sometime anyways so yea) but when i binge a show i definitely enjoy the show itself more because the overall story has a greater impact on me. probably because I'm more emotional invested.
So if i have a feeling I'm gonna be more invested in a story when I binge it I'm gonna binge it if not I watch it weekly.
I'm glad you understand why I love the weekly seasonal model ^_^
I like to ruminate over each episode weekly, but when I come across a show that's fully released that I end up liking, I have to ACTIVELY stop myself from watching the entire thing. Most of the time I'm only able to stop after 6 episodes 😅
I remember having that problem with all of my favorites: Eureka 7, Noragami, World god only knows, Gargantia...all of them binged and scarcely remembered. (I've already rewatched all 4 of them once, lol)
I always have more fun when I binge a show but it also makes it harder to remember some details of it and it also makes the community discussion for the show dry down faster since people will hardly talk about small details when they can talk about a more memorable event immediately, sadly that also makes the general discussion of the shown be shorter
but even with all of that said I still consider the binge model superior since it immerses me in the story more and avoids having any particular feeling for the story fade out, giving the show a greater emotional impact, and at the end of the day the main reason I (and many others) experience stories is for the emotional impact, that's why I think the benefits of biting out ways it's flaws (at least for the consumers)
Hey, Tristan! I am sure you know how Netflix handled animes like "Blue Period" or "Komi-san can't communicate". I do agree with you that I find myself retaining less and less if I choose to binge-watch. For me, the bottom line is that there is no winning; you will always have trade-offs. Why not shift to watching one episode per week, like trying really hard, and see how you feel about that. I will watch that rant too! Haha
The manga for Blue Period is so much better than the show.
@@sparklesparklesparkle6318 I would have to take your word for it, mate. I watched the anime, I did not realize at the beginning I would like it this much. Haven’t read the manga, though!
@@navidahmed1 You really should the art in it is really high quality. Some of the best art in the game. You really should put Tachiyomi on your phone, download the mangakakalot, mangadex, and mangabox extensions, and then start reading manga on your phone in your free time. It's the closest you can get to smoking crack without actually getting addicted to drugs!
Personally I'm a fan of the weekly model, though I do binge older shows I either missed or didn't have time for otherwise.
Both have their up- and downsides, of course, but I rather enjoy the weekly interactions with the community, seeing and understanding the memes without fear of spoilers - especially with original shows that have no source material to spoil you. Hell, I also use that as an indicator for whether I've found a hidden gem, because if nobody is talking about it weekly, and it's a good show, that's a pretty good conclusion.
Are cliffhangers annoying? Sure, especially in some shows (looking at you, Arifureta). But I also watch plenty of anime that don't really have any cliffhangers due to their episodic approach to storytelling, so in those cases it's not something I consider to be an issue.
I already have difficulties remembering stuff, if I binge a show at best I can remember how I felt about it, with nothing to back up that feeling if someone starts asking questions. So watching weekly helps with that, too.
I feel extremely similar, ever since episode 19 of Attack on Titan I have absolutely refused to watch a show unless it's completely out the way that episode ended drove me CRAZY I NEEDED to know what happened next.
However that said I only really watch one episode of Anime a day there's only been like 2 or 2 times since 2013 where I've thought:
"hold up... we're at least starting the next episode to see what happened"
It's tough watching you and Gigguk mentioning these awesome shows and thinking "ok I need to remember this show in 3-4 months" because I only watch shows once they are completely out and dubbed.
that's why I kind of chucked at your Netflix jail video... "lol waiting until the entire season is out and dubbed what a nightmare."
But if it means I never have to experience another week like the week after episode 19 so be it.
It really sucks when a new season of my Hero Acadamia (25 epsidodes) comes out... "wait I'm going to need to wait 6 months to watch this?"
Really?
I believe this is tied to the fact that a lot of the currently airing shows are adaptations of ongoing source material, which means that there's no guarantee of a sequel anytime soon, that and the gap between each season/cour of a specific show can also affect the muscle memory associated with it.
This doesn't even begin to mention big franchise movies that just get lost in the midst of seasonal anime discourse, specially given their ways of being accessed are even smaller by comparison. (eg: the heaven's feel movies)
I have been binging mostly, i also have the same problem with cliffhangers and i am very easily addicted even if there isn't any cliffhangers i want to be able to watch more when i want to and not have to wait 12 weeks or more before i am able to finish it.
Not to say that i have not watched weekly, i still do for some shows that are more slice of life/comedy that won't have anything extreme happening and i usually don't really care that much about what will happen since each episode is like its own OVA for me but that kind of depends on the anime.
It has been over 10 years since i started watching anime, at first i watched everything weekly but as i matured i realized how much better it is to just have the option to watch everything at once and i don't really use social media much nowdays so i won't be spoiled. The issue is that i am not able to discuss the show as it releases, i sometimes want to communicate with people more about the anime i enjoy.
There are obviously demerits, i also have harder time remembering shows i binge compared to ones i watch weekly but i still don't want my experience to be ruined by cliffhangers, if i really enjoyed a show i can watch it again in a few years, binging helps with that since you won't be able to remember as much.
I tend to drop a show for a few weeks at a time, and then binge those episodes in a couple of hours. Repeat every month or so.
My problem with watching weekly is that I sometimes forget what happened in the last episode, so if it finished in a cliffhanger or in the middle of a scene, starting the new one in medias res can be kind of confusing
Like many people have mentioned I use a hybrid method dependent on the type of show that I am watching. When a show has a slow reveal or some kind of mystery that they are working through, such as with shows like Another or Vivy, then I find it more enjoyable to watch week to week. It allows me time to process the episode and the information presented. Maybe even going back and re-watching that week's episode or even previous ones to see if there was something that I missed. While there are cliff hangers they add to the enjoyment rather than detract from it.
Shows that are more dramatic or focusing on relationships such as Fruits Basket or Horimiya I prefer to binge them. With these shows I find the cliff hangers drive me to distraction. These shows are about the developing relationship and having the show just end in the middle of a significant moment in that development drives me up the wall. The classic "But I'm pregnant..." Duh duh duuuuuuunnnnnn "Tune in next week" will make me drop a show faster than even the most janky animation.
Slice of life or low stakes shows it really depends on the time I have available to watch. Nichijo and Daily Lives of Highschool Boys I watch weekly because I had the time. Monthly Girls Nozaki-kun and Haven't you heard I'm Sakamoto I binged. Gintama I watched mostly week to week but there were times I would skip it and then catch up. I'm doing that this season with In the Land of Leadale.
I don't think there is a one size fits all way of watching. I think that, presuming you have the option, you have to make that decision based on how you yourself feel that you will get the most out of the show.
For me it's easier to commit to binging 12 eps than to come back every week. Not sure why but I'll find a show and binge it all the way through even if its not as great over finishing a show I've already started watching weekly but stopped while it was airing.
I’ve taken the approach of watching weekly just because it allows me to manage my time better, like almost ever season there’s two or three shows I would watch that range from 12-24 episodes long…..if I where to binge them that is 6-12 hours I would have to set aside vs the 20min to an hour I can set aside each day to watch multiple shows
Nice schedule management 👍
I take it a step further .... I refuse to watch any anime that isn't fully finished yet, including shows that have their source material (manga, novel) still ongoing. So I am basically several years behind on what's currently popular ... and I don't really care. Do I remember everything I watch? No, but I really cherish the experience I had with my shows and the level of emotional investment to a story and characters isn't possible for me using weekly format. I lose memories just as well using weekly format because I stop caring about the show as much ..
Not bad. I got burned a lot with read the manga endings.. But I don't particularly care what's popular, the collective taste of anime fans isv kind of bad. There are some popular shows I like, but at this point people liking something is a red flag
it depends on the show. Some anime like vivy are better weekly because having the show spread out helps feel the actual length. Blue period is like a year and ahalf long so being forced to slowly watch it over 3 months helped in feeling just how long the main character was practicing art.
The ending had absolutely no weight, I started watching the show with 11 episodes out, because it was wrongly marked as completed, and having to wait 2 weeks for practically no content ruined any satisfaction I may have had.
@@janisir4529 I thought the ending was alright. I mentally convinced myself that he wouldn't get in so personally I was a big fan of the ending. He was pretty crafty during both parts of the exam. Although afair number of people didn't really like the ending so I guess it's not for everyone.
@@wylinder8402 I meant Vivy.
@@janisir4529 lol, as much as I liked vivy I can agree the ending is the weakest part
@@wylinder8402 I guess? But the issue isn't that it was weak, but that by the time I watched it, I judged it in the mindset of "oooh, Vivy ending is here, let's watch the new slime 300 episode instead".
The latter I rated 6/10 btw.
I do prefer to binge, in the end if you're good at not getting spoiled, and remembering stuff you're set
I binge watched Ginga eiyuu densetsu and after several years it remains one of my favourites. I think a good show will generally speaking capture the audience regardless of how it is consumed, the thing that is most affected with binging vs weekly is the social aspect. For some people the social aspect is the show, therefore cutting out the social aspect for them is like depriving them the show they want to consume. The thing that you said about not waiting to watch a show because no one is talking about it definitely alludes to this kind of mindset. For me socials don't factor in at all on my watching habits so I honestly don't really have a preference between binging and watching weekly nor do I feel like it really affects how I view a show (I guess to some degree binging might be better for remembering details in the short term).
My favorite shows are always the ones that can make me feel satisfied from the viewing of just one episode, shows that have enough interesting content in them that, even if there is a cliffhanger at the end, there is enough in that particular episode to be able to identify it as different and special from the episodes surrounding it.
When a show gets to the end and I have to ask "is that it?", it's usually because that episode didn't actually do a whole lot. It's often treated as a part of a much larger whole, where a bunch of episodes together create the story, but an individual episode on it's own doesn't accomplish much to make it special as a single-episode experience.
I got this feeling all the time while watching My Hero Academia, which is why (before I kind of fell off it) I stopped watching it from week to week and waited to binge it later... cause individual episodes had nothing to offer, the fun was all in what a bunch of episodes together offered.
A show that can give each individual episode a reason to be it's own episode, and a reason for it to be enjoyed or remembered on it's own, is a sign of a great show imo. One that actually fits the format of a released-weekly TV show, rather than essentially being a movie split up into many parts.
I agree that with binging you may not remember the show in its entirety but that is not necessarily a bad thing. For example , there are two shows (Gosick and Little Busters) that I binged several years ago. I remember loving both of them but do not remember many of the major plot points of either, so now I feel like I can re-experience two shows I know I will like almost completely fresh many years later.
I'd love to do the one-episode-per-day thing but I've noticed I often just... Don't end up doing that. I tend to get either a couple of episodes in or near the midway point of a show before forgetting it for several months because I want something new.
On the other end of the spectrum I also have some shows I've intentionally stopped watching just before the final one or two episodes because I just don't want them to end :"D
I think that for me It depends on the series that I want to watch for example : Aggretsuko is a series whose first season I watched in one day becase It was very light but a series like Full Metal Alchemist is full of interesting characters and concepts,so I prefered watching 2 episodes daily in order to assimilate most of details and enjoing it more.
This is something I've thought about before in the context that certain shows (in my opinion) really benefited from updating week to week. I remember Episode 18 of Kill la Kill because of the cliffhanger and knowing I had to wait a whole week to know what happened next. I remember the hype SAO had when it was still in Aincrad and we were watching it weekly because we had no idea how things would pan out. On the other hand, I think some series lose their steam in a week to week basis. I remember blasting through 110 chapters the Dr. Stone manga and having a great time, only for it to turn into a slog waiting for the weekly updates. It felt the same with Re: Zero season 2 for me.
I guess which model works best depends, which isn't a great answer but might also be the truth
GR : You will have time to absorb and remember specific details about the episodes released on a weekly basis.
*Me who doesn't remember what I saw last week and need a full recap just to watch the newer episode* : "Yeah...what he said!"
The way I typically tackle the binge method is to take it a few episodes at a time with some break days where I don't watch it at all in-between. Usually, I would stick with 3-4 episodes in a day, take a break for 2-3 days or even a week (sometimes longer), then come back to it. It definitely improved my enjoyment and memory of the show despite missing the point in time where ppl are talking about it. However, I've been watching shows with friends to remedy that since we're all talking about it between those set times where we watch the show together. It's kind of simulating the weekly model, but still knocking it out in a shorter amount of time. Hope this helps!
14:33- Well, we have a good example already; Komi Can’t Communicate.
That was aired weekly, it had the fandom’s interest, just before the finale they announced Season 2 & after that released the Dub.
I binged it all at once the day the dub started
Sorta watched it every week but it’s better to binge watch
I do have the same problem with LN especially with ascendance of a bookworm 2 days of reading 2 months of sadness
I've always preferred watching weekly over binge watching, because like you said, watching slower helps the series be more memorable! I watch western cartoons all the time so I was so used to the week-to-week style and the unique hype it brings, even when I started watching anime I would deliberately watch one or two episodes of it a day, even if it was a series that had finished airing. Giving some pace between episodes helps you remember them, and also helps give you something to look forward too. I love the idea of being able to always be hyped by new awesome content, giving myself an episode to watch each day after my usual daily work is done before bed. That pace makes anime and TV very comforting to me, and it's tough to see this style going away because it's impossible to avoid spoilers when a "binge format" series is released.
Agreed
You’re probably the only person I know that I can totally relate with this. Especially since I would effortlessly watch 6 episodes in one sitting for years. Recently, I decided to lower it to 3-4 after realizing it felt as if I was rushing through it versus steadily digesting it to enjoy it a bit more. Since then, I much prefer this style after finishing Cyberpunk: Edgerunner last week.
I’ve always preferred the weekly method. Yeah the cliffhangers exist but they just get me excited to see it the following week. I did kind of think that having more than one episode a week would be a better option but legends of Vox Machinca kind of taught me that it’s not really better. Basically it’s now just over and it ended so quickly. When I should’ve gotten 8 more weeks with it
i've personally found that a good in between for the memory holing and cliff hanger line is watching one episode of a given show a day, maybe two. It still drip feeds the data to your brain so it seals in better, but if it's a cliff hanger you only have to wait 18-24 hours before you resolve it, and I sorta wish that release model was more well known, because I can see Netflix doing something like a daily release of a season to build momentum. If they ever got the idea in their head...
Kind of funny that you brought up the memory thing. Especially becouse you are worried people will remember less, which absolutely doesn't line up with what I noticed through watching reaction videos xD From my experience, reaction chanels that watch things weekly, tend to, more often than not, forget A LOT of things. Where as channels who binge (via pre-recording), rewatch or simply having less than 7 days inbetween episodes, emember way more of the important information.
Of course, that's only my experience of what I noticed xD
I think he meant the memorability of the anime a while after having watched it, not while watching
I watch most of my anime weekly because that's what's available at the time; but I do prefer bingeing. With weekly, I end up forgetting plot and names by next week. ("Takun not coming." Who's Takun?! 😀) Just yesterday, it was a few minutes into an isekai till I figured out which it was. With bingeing, I can understand over arcing plots, and remember character names and development.
My background is book blogging and if I'm dealing with a new series that has a bunch of episodes, I use what I call the editors method. When you send a book to an editor and they want to read part of it, first you have to convince them with the first five pages, and then with the first three chapters. I treat an episode as the 5 pages. If I'm enjoying myself I'll keep going to three episodes. If I'm still enjoying myself I will finish the season, barring any kind of massive screw up that does not work for me. I never force myself to finish an anime. That is not beneficial.
Something I would love to see people organize is a watch along for a season or series (depending on the size of the overall anime) where people agree to watch X number of episodes a week and get together to discuss the show. There are many people who miss fantastic shows during their initial run and who then potentially have trouble finding others to share the joy of that show with. Kinda like a book club, but for anime.
I noticed the same thing with this part of JoJo being released the way it was, like it's less memorable. Although that could be just that this JoJo part doesn't seem to have as strong a start as some of the other parts. I think one other thing that does help though is to watch the show at first in Japanese to get one experience and then when you start forgetting things before the next batch comes out, you watch the English dub to get you caught up again and possibly get a new experience to compare to. That helped me anyway.
I think binging or not depends on the show. I have shows that I want to binge and others that I want to watch weekly. The weekly shows are usually the shows that I LOVED and want to think about and ponder. The binge shows are ordinary shows that I know I won't love as much but still enjoy. Also, I'm not the type of person who can binge 13 episodes in one sitting because my brain couldn't handle that much information in one go. So usually I only watch 2 - 3 episodes in one sitting
I have been doing both since 2018-ish with Megalobox and Hinamatsuri. I got crunchyroll premium specifically for those shows and have had it since, and every season there’s at least one thing I’m watching weekly. I’ve noticed that binging shows is more rewarding in the moment, and I do fall in love with the stories and characters, I just can’t… REMEMBER it as well.
Like, I binged Bungo Stray Dogs- I adore this show so so much. But if I were to write out the plot it would be loose, messy, all over the place. But something I watched weekly, like 86 or BNHA or even BORUTO (yeah, Naruto franchise has its grip on me tight) I can explain it much more fluidly. But with that comes the frustration of waiting every week and hiding from the internet because of spoilers until you get home and can watch it. …It also gives me something to look forward to during the week, though, too.
I find myself binge-watching shows as a REWATCH now rather than a first sit through. I watched Tokyo Revengers weekly and now I’m rewatching it in large chunks, same with JJK.
Plus, some shows are just A++ when binging. I think Death Note is a great one to sit down and thoroughly enjoy because the previous episode is clear in your mind as the story progresses.
Edit: I wrote this during the sponsor at the beginning, but I’m glad some of the experiences and pros/cons seem to be common. I have the same experience with Demon Slayer haha
Stone ocean going out weekly saddened me. I wanted to talk about everyone about how badass weather report is, but people were only focusing on the ending fight, not on all the other cool stuff he did, like a frigging cloud space suit
I see your point of binging making a show forgettable. However I tend to forget to watch when watching weekly, even if I love the show. So I prefer to wait until I can binge or watch it in chunks.
It will always depend on the type of show for me, if I need a break to compute what I watch then I do so, but it's easier for me because I don't need to stay up to date on anything really as I'm not the most active in discussions for anime.
When you support someone from start then you see him on this stage.... Really feeling proud of u bro 🔥🔥🔥💜💜
For me, it depends. I could binge quite a few shows, and do if It's one that I need to catch up on. However, there are several shows that binging would be a case of overdosing. From last year I could easily say that the most of the shows I was watching were really helping me with keeping a calm mind, as I dealt with more family trauma. (Family trauma is something I can safely say does not get better the more you deal with it.) A small dose of healing anime like Isekai Shokudou goes a long way, while Odd Taxi needs breathing space for piecing the mystery together.
that sucks sorry that that sucks. hope things get better
I don't have an issue with binging in general. I got into anime in 2018, so I had a huge back log of anime I missed over the past 3-4 decades. I broke a leg at work just months after getting into anime so I had 8-9 weeks off, and I couldn't walk. So I binged all the great. I went through dozens of episodes a day. But now that I've caught up and have found what I like and don't like, I like to watch an episode or two a day. I have a full time job, plenty of home maintenance projects and chores, as well as a backlog of video games.
So till 7pm it's all work and home stuff, and then 1 hour of games, 30-45m of anime, and another 30 minutes of reading. Sleep 9p-5a. Very healthy time management and consistency gets a lot done!
I don't really stream much, just watch the occasional BD/DVD. I definately feel like I remember more fondly those shows I had to watch 1 a week or in chunks of 3-5 episodes per DVD. I tend to watch BD in 2-3 sittings over a few days, and it definately doesn't have the same impact. There's something fun about a single episode and then thinking about what might happen, where it might go. The latest JoJo will undoubtably suffer from this.
It’s a combination thing. E.g. I watched Code Geass at an episode a day. Far more memorable than any other method of watching I’ve done.
Weekly has worked really well for Demon Slayer: Entertainment District. It’s only 11 episodes, and really leans on its cliffhangers. Being so short, and so intense, it managed to stay engaging over a weekly schedule. (…though I doubt it will hold up well to a bingewatch.)
Ranking of Kings has also been fairly good on the weekly, though I suspect it’ll hold up to bingeing a lot better. The mystery has time to sink in on a weekly model, but it’s got so much attention to detail that I expect that would be enough to carry it in a binge model.
JoJo part 6 suffers from a different pacing, as well as the binge model. It’s been paced much like Stardust Crusaders, and I couldn’t tell you half of the monster of the weeks from that. Golden Wind started off at this pace but when Diavolo entered the mix, it sped up amazingly. Diamond is Unbreakable did the opposite. It was so slow that the new enemies had time to be memorable, since there was often a near-filler episode in there.
that's why we remember older shows better. they stick to our minds! and that's why I still watch shows sporadically. better enjoyment!! I wait for the season to end then watch one episode at a time 🤣and I love the cliffhangers 😅 because they made me think about the episode for the whole week, even rewatched to try to make predictions. that excitement, anticipation is what really made any show worth it tbh
I guess it would depend on what is more important to you, the series itself or all the peripheral content surrounding the series (the hype, content, general discussions ect.)
If it's the series then undoubtedly the best way is to binge, even if you forget things over time you can just watch it again (you'll surely remember if you liked it or not)
But if the surrounding content, discussions ect. are more important, just as important or even just important enough then go for the weekly format, you'll just have to accept that you'll have to work around their schedule.
I have been following a few series weekly every season since 2014 and I don't regret it.
I get a lot of time to mull over each episode's quality, too, and I think cliffhangers are to be enjoyed.
I think this way is better cause I properly assess the quality of each episode and think if a series was actually enjoyable or not. Not saying that I end up with a better judgement than someone who binges, but I'm much more likely to pick up other points of view and less likely to regret my rating of the series later.
That's what I have about binging the most, people watch it and then instantly disappears from everyone's minds.
Personally I only watch weekly if I either dont care too much about it, like One Piece or SnK, or if I know it's a show that doesnt give too much clliffhangers or it's more chill, else it's a binge for me. Still not a full binge tho, like 3 or so at a time, but still.
I've always watched (and read) everything as it came out exactly because I want to be caught up. "If it's out and I want to experience it, why would I wait for some arbitrary reason?". It's the whole reason I started reading manga too anyway, because I remembered that a good chunk more of the story is already available there.
I don't like cliffhangers either, but I never felt they were so awful that it'd be worth giving up being caught up for the,. Plus the creators of an anime take into account that it comes out weekly, so it's kinda "designed" for it, which might matter sometimes. It's also so much easier to watch one episode a week, instead of having to find time for all of the episodes or risking having to stop at a place you don't want to because of time, or procrastinating other stuff because you don't want to stop watching.
I totally understand this. I don't like binging media nowadays because I definitely forget a lot of details. Also a big reason why I pretty much only watch new weekly anime instead of catching up on some classics. Because IT IS a daunting task to watch like 26 Episodes of a Series and I have to consciously stop myself from binging it to enjoy it fully and memorize its greatness for a long time. Because if I don't, I forget so many amazing details that make the show great.
Sadly it does also make me stop shows that I do enjoy, and I can't quite figure out how to deal with that yet. I started Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann a looong time ago, and only watched 6 Episodes, even tho I enjoyed them a lot and I loved for example Kill la Kill too (after starting it 3 times).
Or Cowboy Bebop I recently started around the time the live action adaption got a release date. I watched 9 Episodes, LOVED IT, but then didn't continue, cause there is still so many episodes to watch.
Well with Gurren Lagann I also know a big spoiler later on that kinda ruins it for me, but I'm very unsure about what exactly happens in Bebop later.
And a more recent example, Blue Period. Was extremely excited for it, as an artist that would love to get into art school, I watched 3 Episodes, enjoyed them so much, but am scared of rushing through them too quickly and ending it before I'm ready for it to end. Sure I could read the manga but thats a commitment in itself.
Lmao I'm not sure where I'm going with this, but yea the whole "Binging has multiple negative things to it" really hinders me from watching anything non-weekly :/
Even way back before online streaming took over as mainstream I always preferred to watch completed series in doses of anywhere from 2-6 episodes. Wait for BDs was my motto. Couldn't care that much for weekly discussion especially since most media have an OG source that kinda spoils the fun.
I cannot imagine watching Jojo weekly. Shows like that keep on you on the edge is not something I wanna turn on the TV on for half an hour only to be kept teething for the next episode again next week. I can do that for slice of life shows.
Ever since Disney+ and to a degree Prime Video and HBO Max have been releasing their episodes of a specific series weekly it has reignited the weekly vs binged debate from several people especially the ones who have been openly critical with Netflix lately on how they continue to binged drop a show (anime or a popular Live-Action series such as Stranger Things) over releasing one episode a week.
For a while, only Patriot Act and the British Baking Competition show were the only Netflix series to be released weakly up until we had the anime series _Blue Period_ and _Komi Can't Communicate_ respectively being released weekly, even though the episodes were released 1-2 weeks after their Japanese airings when compared to Funimation and Crunchyroll who releases their episodes (sub only) of their anime series simultaneously at the same time they air in Japan.
I have seen it written before that "bingeing" TV series means that people don't remember shoes as well, it's just a quick thing and then you move on.
Personally, moreso than when I was in high school and undergrad, I don't have a lot of time to watch shows (anime or otherwise) outside of nightly family tv viewing. I also don't have much interest in discussing it with others. So I just watch an episode at a time, when I have time, just for my own enjoyment. It took me about a year (maybe a bit more) to watch all of FMA Brotherhood (and I skipped a few early episodes where I already knew what happened from being familiar with the story). Because it took me so long, with big gaps between episodes, I don't remember it all that well, other than that I watched it and a few bits and pieces here and there. I think watching weekly, or some other frequent, regular pattern, is better for remembering. Too far apart over a long period of time, you can forget a lot.
I used to me more of a binger when I was new to watching anime online. As I became more familiar with it and payed attention to what was coming out and when, I started watching weekly more. You made a lot of valid points here, and it should be noted that research has shown that the way we do things with modern technology is changing how our brains are wired, and I am sure regularly binging is doing the same. There are positives and negatives to this, I'm sure. I do think overall, watching weekly is better for retention. Though people with more patience who wait, don't have to deal with cliffhangers, and that in itself is rewarding.
I agree, I can only remember so much, so I need to spread out the knowledge I absorb over a longer period of time. That said, binging is nice though for getting instant gratification… I have hardly any self control I guess 😔
At the beginning of an anime season, I look over the new shows that interest me and decide which ones to watch weekly and which ones to binge. For this season, I am watching My Dress-Up Darling, Akebi's Sailor Uniform, and Sabikui Bisco weekly, and I am planning on binging Demon Slayer and Teasing Master Takagi-san. Those in the binge category are there because I need to binge to catch up, so I might as well wait.
Netflix release schedule for Komi actually forced me into the binge model, because of their choice to not simulcast. I found it super annoying for MAL to tell me a new episode was out, just not for me, because Netflix.
New anime I watch currently, but I always watch the previous episode before the current episode to smooth out any cliff hangers and cement my knowledge about the episodes.
If a series is already out I binge, but after binging I read episode summaries to re-enforce what I binged and pick up on things I missed.
I would recommend you to experiment with daily watching, as compromise between both models.
You still have time to process stuff in chunks, but you don't have to wait a whole week for the next crumb. It still gives you something new to think and discuss every day.
I used to exclusively binge anime back when I first started watching and wasn’t hip on all the seasonal shows. I was watching mostly old shows that were complete so I could tear through them. Now I never binge for a number of reasons. A lot of shows now, even content on streaming services is released on a weekly basis and with me be always online nowadays I have to watch stuff immediately in order to avoid spoilers. I also don’t have as much free time now that I’m in grad school so I find shows being released weekly more manageable. I wish I could binge stuff but I simply can’t anymore. Maybe once I’m done with school I can get back on the binge train.
What you laid out in this video described my main issues with the way Netflix releases anime (so, the binge model) pretty well (or series in general):
- Less continuous community engagement. It'll be talked about a lot for week, and then it kinda disappears off the radar.
- Less continuous engagement with the anime itself. Time to digest what happened and all that, theorizing etc happens way less with binging. This is especially a big part of it for me. Weekly watching allows me to think about what happened more, allowing you to be more engaged to the anime.
- Memorability.
- Time commitment. 13 episodes is a lot. Yeah you can chunk it up yourself, but that's pretty hard when the next thing is right in front of you.
Some other things that I prefer about weekly watching:
- You always have something to look forward to for at least 12 weeks, instead of having to look for the next thing. So often you hear about Netflix 'Man, there's nothing to watch', even though Netflix has a shitload of content.
- Similar to time commitment: Time management. 20-30 minute chunks is much easier to manage.
Really, in my opinion, the only thing that is 'beneficial' about binging is that cliffhangers don't matter. I can't really think of any other benefits, and even this benefit is debatable. Having to wait for the cliffhanger to be resolved is actually more cathartic in my opinion, because you've been thinking and talking about it for a week, discussing what on earth could happen next etc.
1. I don't forget what happened since last week.
Obviously I'll do a lot of other things in a week, and those will utterly destroy any impact a new episode may have.
The ending of Vivy was utterly weightless, because I watched it when only 11 episodes were out, but the show was wrongly marked completed...
I am someone who usually do the weekly/seasonal thing but I understand somethings you can’t help binge watch or read cause I am so charmed I can’t stop myself from catching up.
I have been thinking about this lately-- not so much the Watch Styles, but more like how shows-- even GREAT shows-- seem to be forgotten so easily. I notice it doesn't just happen with anime either, it happens in the western cartoon and live action scenes too (though I primarily watch anime as it's my favorite thing).
As for how this will effect otaku-fandom/the weebsphere, it's kind of a double edged sword. On the one hand, the really awful shows might stir up some controversy but will inevitably be forgotten about. But on the other hand, new IP's (especially anime original projects) might not have a chance to establish roots in the fandom because they keep being uprooted and replaced by the Next Cool and Shiny Thing.
Part of me likes to think "Well, the phenomenal gems and memorable stories will stick with us", but I've been in the fandom long enough to see shows that have had a personal impact on me just fall to the wayside by the collective memory. (T___T Steam Detectives was so good!) I think at that point it's up to us fans to talk about the shows that meant a lot to us. Or even just the shows we wished got remembered in some capacity.
I think for the "you forget what happened 2 months later" part has a lot to do with us getting older too. When you watched 10 anime, there's little odds that the 11th is gonna be similar to the rest, but once you passed a few hundred, things start to get confusing, especially for shows that aren't 9/10 and above.
Lately, I've been watching a lot of magical girls anime, and I can't remember much from most of them, lol. Unless they do something really different (think Magical Girl Raising Project), it's all going straight into the "forgotten anime" drawer :P That, and the fact that there's no way in hell I could remember any of the names, even while watching an anime, lol. And with many of them having big casts, *it's just way too much information for someone to remember!*
The thing about "how long are those series gonna be relevant" is also subjective, if you watch an isekai now and it's your 20th or maybe 50th, again, unless it's a really different one or a masterpiece, you won't remember much about it, but if someone who never watched an isekai before watches it, they're gonna remember it much better, because for them it was a new experience. Hell, I remember my first kill on some tough bosses in World of Warcraft, but how could I remember the 5th kill or 22nd kill?
And the whole "fomo" part is so weak, what makes you think someone would commit to watching an anime over the course of 4 months vs doing it in one or two sittings once it's complete?... unless you're a reviewer or something, or the show is EXTREMELY popular (Attack on Titan level), I don't think many would get fomo. But hey, maybe someone will comment and prove me wrong /shrug.
AND one more *HUGE* point is that waiting for a show to end means that you now have viewer ratings. Remember Fena: Pirate Princess? That show started out so good, but it turned to absolute shit later on. You wouldn't have known that watching it week by week, but if you waited for it to end, you then knew that maybe it wasn't a "must watch", you know? Hell, I knew that The Promised Neverland season 2 was a pile of dogshit going in, and I was going to skip it because of the ratings .. but I ended up watching it with my brother, and now we both regret it :D
Ok, and now the biggest isue: if you watch weekly anime, there are only 2 options:
1) You ONLY watch airing anime.
2) You watch airing anime + older stuff on the sides.
Now this leaves us with some pretty big problems.
For the 1st point, it means you're never gonna watch any older anime, and that's simply a crime.
For the 2nd point, that means you're watching more shows and things will naturally get confusing (unless you have like the memory of a genius), because you're now watching 5+ airing anime one episode at a time and then 5+ more at the same rate or binge watching the older ones. Any way you do it, it's still a mess.
I just started binging Titan to get current 😅 that show's politics are so intricate and deep I really feel like I have to pay attention and will lose track if I wait to long between episodes. That happened to me in attempting to watch the final season weekly. I just got lost af right away since I didn't do a refresh lol. But I watched Jujutsu Kaisen week to week and had a great experience. Idk, both good for meeeeee
1 a day right before I leave for work and 1 episode of a different show on my lunch break. If I'm watching a show with friends 2 hours sessions. If I'm extremely hyped for a new I'll watch it week to week And if I have a good chunk of down time I try to find binge worthyshows to fill in those times. Jojo's as a binge this year was not nearly as fun as one a week.
Can definitely relate on the JoJo front, although I'd argue that in its example it's been given the worst of all worlds. With previous parts I loved watching the anime on a week to week basis and discussing it with friends and those online, and then binge watch it and previous parts once they were done. With Stone Ocean's anime however I currently have no will to start it, since it's neither releasing week to week, nor is it finished so I can't bring myself to binge watch it. I understand that this probably isn't everybody's experience, but I know I'm not alone in feeling like this.
Honestly the closest thing I can compare it to is a monthly manga fittingly enough, except instead of it taking a month to get 1/100th of a story, we're likely going to be waiting 6 months for each 1/3 of the story, which to me seems like it will decrease the self life of Stone Ocean in the public consciousness. I hope I'm wrong, but we will have to see how things play out.
It's debatable on the information retention part. With some shows I've indeed taken advantage of the week between episodes to think more of stuff and thus remember more details, but with others I just missed relatively important details because they'd only been committed to short-term memory so I forgot them by the time they became relevant again.
Interesting, I've talked with my friends recently about how I noticed that when it comes to a lot of the shows I only remember a general overview of them and whether I liked them or not, I thought that this happens because I simply watched too much anime and maybe the shows weren't that good or It's just been a while since I watched them but now that I think about it I binge watched most of the the shows that I don't remember a lot of details of...
Great video thanks 👍
I watch at most 8 episodes a day - and always from at least 2 different anime. 5/3, 4/4, 4/3/1, watching it in chunks lets me fit it nicely within my schedule (I have two separated chunks of free time) and not using it all for the same anime lets me remember them better.
I'm currently learning Japanese so usually the first slot is for immersion material and the second/third is for stuff I want to watch but that is too advanced right now to watch raw (makes for good rewatch immersion material later though).
I definitely think weekly is best, it keeps people orbiting the show who really wanna keep up with it and discuss happy, while the people who like to binge can set it aside for a month or two, then catch up of their own volition.
I love weekly, I honestly don't mind cliffhangers, it kjeeps me so excited, and slowly pushing towards that end goal. Like imagine if right now AoT was all out, all the way to finale, how much less build up and anticipation there'd have been, so much less buzz and discussion and excitement.
I much prefer the weekly release over the Netflix binge all at once. I quite like having weekly discussions where we (my friends and communities) digest and speculate on everything. It holds a sense of anticipation over a longer period than the one and done after a couple weeks I get from a lot of Netflix style releases. Each new release becomes like an event we all come back and gather for a fair couple of months
Can't do weekly anymore. With kids and a busy life, I end up missing an episode or 2 and just drop a show.
If I binge it, it'll be done in a week or so, and I can form my thoughts on it.
I get a show can be less memorable, but I'm more likely to finish it and actually remember something.
That studying metaphor is why watching seasonal anime can be a chore. I dont like to jump on new shows immediately unless there's one I know I'm gonna be hooked on for its entire run, so some shows I wait until they've finished so I can gauge my interest (see also: Wonder Egg). I dont necessarily have a problem on that note, but I can see why others do.