Before streaming services started creating only eight episodes per season, there was once a time where the world waited every week for a new episode that contained about 22 to 25 episodes per season.
When cable television was still the norm, every show would run from fall with about 11 episodes, take a break in the winter and return in the spring to finish the season with the rest of the 11 episodes.
However, nowadays we only get eight to ten episodes if we’re even lucky.
Why is that? How did television move from coming out with a new season every year to getting a new season every few years?
We have to go back to 2007.
In 2007, many hit television shows were releasing new episodes; however, they had to release less than the usual amount because of the writer’s strike. The strike lasted about 100 days, from November 2007 to February 2008. With this strike, several shows such as “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Lost,” and “Desperate Housewives” released very few episodes.
Once the strike was over, having fewer episodes per season became the new norm gradually.
Then came the rise of streaming services taking over all our lives, especially during the pandemic. Studios saw it as unnecessary to have 22 episodes, due to the fact many people did not want “filler” episodes anymore.
The general public was wanting storylines that filled the whole season, almost like a movie. With many entertainment studios figuring out this concept, they started only writing between eight to ten episodes per season.
Studios thought only having about 10 episodes per season would make the show more digestible, because many audience members can easily binge watch less episodes than compared to a 22 to 25 episode season.
Due to the pandemic, everyone’s attention span has gone down, with this thought in mind, we can understand why eight episodes are so common. However, why can’t some new and upcoming shows bring back 22 episodes again?
Whenever a new show comes out, everyone agrees they either get lost from the plot, it was poorly written, or they rushed through everything.
With studios knowing this, why can’t we have our 22 episodes back?
It’s because of attention spans, that’s the real reason why. Many great shows such as “Friends,” “Modern Family,” “Gossip Girl,” and so much more had filler episodes. With our attention spans going down studios decided to cut filler episodes.
These filler episodes were seen as no longer important anymore; however, filler episodes actually bring audiences more closer together with the characters. Watching a filler episode, the audience gets to understand more about the characters.
With a show like “Stranger Things,” one can’t really get to know the characters a whole lot, especially since Netflix only produced 10 episodes per season.
If there were filler episodes, there would be more of a bond for different characters. The audience could also see the characters in different settings outside the original story arc for the season.
A more newer show that would benefit from having 22 episodes is “Adults,” this show has a lot of Gen Z humor; however, it lacks filler episodes.
The show is great on its own with just eight episodes per season, but it would be better if they had more time and character development for each season. By adding filler episodes to the show it would become an even greater success.
Overall, eight episodes are great to binge watch, but an even better way to binge watch a show is to include 22 episodes. Do you prefer longer seasons or the eight-episode format? Let us know by tagging @HerCampusSJSU!