18 months have passed since the global phenomenon known as ‘Game of Thrones’ (GOT) launched its final episode and pissed fans off worldwide, but if you guys can look back a few years before all that and remember; GOT was not just a TV show by that point, it had become mainstream culture. And with the recent drop of ‘The Boys’ and the way they dropped the web-series, it looks like Amazon Prime is attempting to bring that culture back. Again.
Before ‘Game of Thrones’ left a bad taste in our mouths with that final season, people forgot that GOT was SO globally watched that if the series came out during a class or work, you wouldn’t be able to go on any social media platform for fear of spoilers. Heck, you would avoid your best mates who could spoil the next episode for you (be it intentionally or on purpose). Remember that feeling? When was the last time a TV show made you and the whole world around you go nuts whenever it dropped a new episode?
Saying that the second season of Amazon Prime Video’s ‘The Boys’ is good, is criminally underrating the show. The 2020 season was just as action packed as the 2019 season and it was brilliantly shot, directed and executed. But the primary difference between the two seasons was that Amazon Prime dropped the entire first season at one go but it dropped the second season in a staggered manner.
When this happened, we were suddenly reminded of the time when GOT used to drop one episode at a time. The memes that were coming out, the spoilers, the fan theories for the next episode, the intense online and offline discussions were all becoming quite familiar.
At a time when binge-culture has started taking root, companies like Disney+ and Amazon Prime Video are being conscious of the social and mental issues this type of binge culture brings and they are releasing their hit shows (‘The Mandalorian’ and ‘The Boys’ respectively) one episode at a time. There are of course drawbacks to anything, but this type of staggered release will be good for the long run, and it can reignite passion among viewers like ‘Game of Thrones’ did years later after ‘Friends’ dropped their season finale.
Watch both seasons of ‘The Boys’ on Amazon Prime Video. Watch the first season and the ongoing second season of ‘The Mandalorian’ on Disney+ Hotstar.