Hit 250 episodes of sitcoms in 30 days and realized I had a problem

Last month I was off work for 2 weeks and just fell into a hole watching old sitcoms on streaming. I started counting one night when I couldn't sleep and realized I had watched 250 episodes across like 8 different shows. That's like 10 seasons worth in a month. My girlfriend pointed out I was quoting more lines from Friends than actually talking to her. It hit me that I wasn't even enjoying it anymore, just had it on in the background while I scrolled my phone. Has anyone else tracked how many episodes they burn through in a binge and been surprised by the numbers?

2 comments

2 Comments

cora_scott7716d ago

Here is a different angle: maybe the problem is not the amount you watched but that you treated these shows like background noise instead of actually watching them. When you have the TV on just to fill the silence while you scroll, you are not getting any real enjoyment out of it. You are just feeding a habit where your brain gets used to constant noise. Try turning off the phone and actually sitting through a single episode with your full attention. If you still do not like it after that, then you know the show has lost its spark for you.

avery_lopez16d ago

Building on what @cora_scott77 said, the background noise thing is real and it changes how your brain processes the show. Like, if you always have The Office or Friends on while cooking or scrolling, you start associating it with a comfortable hum instead of the actual jokes or story. Then when you sit down to watch it for real, it feels flat because your brain trained itself to ignore it. For me, I realized I'd watched all of Grey's Anatomy like three times but couldn't tell you a single plot from season 12 onward. Once I forced myself to watch one episode with my phone in another room, I finally got why people loved or hated certain characters. So yeah, that's worth a shot before you decide the show is dead.