Hi you. Welcome to today’s controversial blog post.

Fun¹ fact: I used to have an excel spreadsheet of all the shows I was currently watching, along with the date of when the next episode of each would air in the US so I could watch it the day after. That was while I was in school, but I started to be more consistent with that list in undergrad.

Having that list, or well having my shows, always gave me something to look forward to. TV shows, to me, were what I imagined drugs, sex or alcohol to be to others. MY DRUG. MY SEX. MY ALCOHOL. ALL OF IT COMBINED. My favorite way to escape. Exhausting day at work? Aw yes, Thursday is my thriller/mystery/horror day, that will calm my nerves.² Exams are stressing me out? Let’s chill on Tuesday aka comedy day.

I genuinely looked forward to every day. If I got too busy during the week, I’d catch up with my shows on the weekends. That was part of my daily routine. That’s how obsessed I was. I don’t want to sound lame but I was low-key proud to be the go-to person for all the friends who needed TV recommendations. Unfortunately, nobody asks me shit anymore. These days I’m too stressed depressed to keep that habit up. Also, most shows I enjoyed back then aren’t on air anyway. These days I’ll rather pick a show I fancy and watch it in three days straight without breathing.

The weird thing is, I never do that with movies. I don’t get the same thrill with movies.

I’m gonna stop beating around the bush and just say it. TV shows are way better than movies.

There, I said it. I mean, I still love and enjoy watching films. There are so many I’d gladly sit down to and watch, some I’d watch over and over again. Still, I don’t have the same relationship with them as I have with TV shows.

Why? Because I believe TV shows are like my soulmates. They are the embodiment of a stable, non-toxic, loving, healthy relationship. They make me tingle inside. While movies are strictly flings to me. No-strings-attached, short-term dopamine rushes. No emotional investment. Bye.

In an attempt to convince you and bring you over to the right side, I have come up with a list of five reasons as to why TV shows are better than movies. If you don’t agree with me, that’s fantastic. You can try to change my mind then. I’m open to that. But honestly, I doubt it’ll happen. You know what, let’s just enjoy my list, ok. Drum rolls please. Ready or not, here it comes.

1. My emotional investment is 234545 higher with a TV show than a movie.

It doesn’t matter if I binge a series or watch a few episodes spread out throughout weeks or months, each time I find a show I enjoy, I get SO into it, there’s no way to predict or stop how deep my emotions will go. I will cry, laugh, feel pain and anger with a TV protagonist and their storyline. With a movie character, l will barely twitch an eye. In the past, I have felt things for fictional characters I never knew I could feel. Breaking Bad fucked me up so bad. But in a good way. By the end, I even had a collection of used tissues on my floor. I was shaken for days. I couldn’t let go. I didn’t want to let go. Not an episode of This is Us goes by without me shedding a tear. Who remembers the mass shooter episode in Grey’s Anatomy? I was a wreck. What about the fates of beloved characters? Orange is the New Black’s Poussey? Money Heist’s Nairobi? Maybe there is something wrong with me for feeling so deeply for fictionalized people and their stories. Maybe I have issues. Or maybe,

2. Character growth and development are easier to achieve with a TV show than a movie.

To be fair, TV shows also destroy or reverse a character’s growth just as easily. Looking at you, How I Met Your Mother. Can you believe what they have done to Karev in Grey’s Anatomy?! Wtf, Shonda? But damn, I do enjoy the ride regardless. Have you seen Steve’s development in Stranger Things? Isn’t that a beautiful thing to witness? There’s no way you could put someone like Walter White in a 90 minute movie and pull of his journey in a convincing way, you just couldn’t.

3. A TV show can give me comfort in ways a movie is unable to do.

Doesn’t matter if it’s a show with ten episodes or 5 seasons and 20 episodes each, I can cuddle into my bed or couch, settle down with snacks, and just enjoy the fucking ride. Holy shit, I don’t know how best to describe it other than it feeling like being teleported to another world. For example, I have always found comfort in watching the disastrous lives of the protagonists in Shameless. I have a similar mug that the characters have in scenes that take place in their kitchen. This is why I loved catching up on the show in the early mornings especially, so I could just drink my coffee along with them. Eventually, the Gallaghers felt so much like family to me that I decided to base my BA thesis around that topic. Pathetic or cute? YOU TELL ME. It seems like I feel particularly weird levels of comfort with shows that I have followed for years. I remember shedding a tear once The Big Bang Theory ended, not because it was such a groundbreaking, touching show, but simply because it had been around for so long. It had been a part of my watching routine for years. This is why I know I will cry a fucking river as soon as Grey’s Anatomy ends when I am roughly 80 years old. That show has been a part of my routine since the beginning. I don’t care how cheesy this sounds but that show has been pulling at my heartstrings ever since, which is why I don’t care how bad it has become over the years. I just don’t.

4. A TV show is way more satisfying to my eye than a movie.

Listen. I watch with my eyes.³ Some TV shows are capable of providing me with visuals for days, weeks, months, or longer. I do appreciate nice cinematography in movies too, but with shows I receive that extra portion of aesthetical pleasure. And it feels so good knowing that I can get that for a prolonged time. I mean, have you seen Twin Peaks? Season 1 of Riverdale? I was drooling. Oh my God, Stranger Things? Breaking Bad? Also drooling. Who remembers Pushing Daisies? DROOLING.

5. TV shows have better soundtracks than movies.

If I had to take a guess, 70% of my Spotify is filled with songs I have discovered through TV shows. I blame The OC for my penchant for television soundtracks. That show is full of musical gems. Every time I listen to a song that was once featured on the show, it instantly takes me back. Sometimes I am even able to visualize the exact scene.

Countdown’s “Dice” always reminds me of this:

How can something like this not make you feel things, man? How I Met Your Mother enabled me to discover so many wonderful songs too, a gift I will be eternally grateful for. How to Get Away With Murder is another show I shazaam’d the shit out of. Sometimes, the music in Grey’s Anatomy isn’t too shabby, either. All I am saying is, next time you watch a show, just open your ears. Not just to the dialogues, but to what you can hear in the background. You’ll be amazed at what you can find.

 

Disclaimer: I am fully aware that this was a completely biased article. I know I only choose to see the things I like to see. I can’t help it that I have a soft spot for TV, just deal with it. Or how about YOU write a blog post stating the opposite of mine and then you hmu with a link to read it?

 

¹ or pathetic, depends on how you look at it.

² Years ago, I once worked at Toys’r’Us over Christmas season. Go figure.

³ lol bitch we all do.