Saturday, March 03, 2012

You Have Fooled Me for the Last Time, Netflix

Oh Netflix, why do you insist on tricking me into watching stupidity on film? I have watched movies featuring flesh eating babies, cracked out unicorns and playboy bunny ninjas. I've endured movies made in someone's backyard or by groups of religious zealots. All of these based on your recommendations. I have even resigned myself to the fact that you will not give up on trying to get me to watch Highlander, no matter how many times I tell you I'm not interested. But this time [I'm shaking my fist in the air]...this time you have crossed the line!


You suggested a new sitcom, got me to watch it, got me hooked on it then pulled the rug out from under me!
The first two seasons were great, a bit canned at times but I can live with that. Season three started off the same way but quickly got very confusing. Secondary story lines and characters started jumping in and out of episodes. This wasn't a case of a continuity challenged staff, you know all of a sudden a character has a law degree or the mystery cousin from Montana shows up unexpectedly; this was full on chaos.

After watching the daughter in the show be engaged-married-different actress-back to engaged-original actress, I decided to do a bit of digging...my first tip that something was amiss should have been the fact that season three consisted of 33 episodes. Now, I'm not in the industry but I watch a lot of TV. Seasons are either 13 or 22 episodes long, give or take an episode or two. I cannot fathom what sort of bizarro world has a 33 week television season. So, I dug a bit deeper...and there was the answer, staring me in the face on IMDB. The show had been canceled after season two!

 Apparently, the crew had been extremely over confident in the success of their show and pre shot seasons three and four. Really? Who does that? That would be like me sending out invitations for a gallery show before I've secured a location or even created the pieces. Anyway, obviously these incredibly smart and savvy Hollywood types (why isn't there a way to type sarcasm?) were so sure of the future they wasted dubious amounts of time and money. [I must breath...I'm starting to sound like Dr Em]

What does one do with two pre-shot, never to be aired seasons? Well, you could go the way of many popular, canceled too soon TV shows and release the completed seasons on exclusive DVD sets or you could be truly genius, like these folks. Dump all the pre-taped episodes on the doorstep of Netflix in a giant unorganized heap then runaway.

Staring at a mound of film reels, the people at Netflix had several choices and like so many times before (their "Movies Like This" algorithm) chose the easiest path. Tossed the entire heap online for the unwarned viewers to sort out.

Netflix, I can forgive you for that godawful I am half werewolf, half vampire but ALL man movie you conned me into watching....I mean I did enjoy Interview with a Vampire....so I guess I can kinda see the correlation. But to encourage me to watch a jumbled mess of a show is just unforgivable...at least warn me that what I am about to view has not been vetted to ensure quality or sense.

I am by nature a forgiving and positive person but be warned Netflix. You are on a very short leash right now...this new alien assassins movie better be awesome.

Princess WeeWee

3 comments:

  1. Ahhhhh, you really are my sister. Welcome to the dark side WeeWee, it just gets better from here. I have a well-researched list of who I'm going to take down one day and how. It starts small with that bitch Sally who cut in line at the drinking fountain in first grade and goes all the way to North Dakota. Yes, the entire state made the list. We'll throw Netflix somewhere in the middle.

    Dr. Em

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  2. Hey, remember when you guys gave me T-VO for a present? I asked it to tape one little show and when I came back two days later it told me, very proudly I might add, "look how many shows I taped for you! Hundreds! You're going to love every one! That stupid show that got me started? I hid it. OK fine if you REALLY want to watch it go ahead." T-VO retaliated by picking some obscure character in the show I wanted to watch and finding another couple hundred shows it was convinced I'd like better. At first it was irritating but one day I was afraid of it. I gave it away. Maybe my age is showing but I don't worry about vampires, robots are the ever helpful threat to the universe.

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  3. Don't be afraid of robots! They are our friends! Or will be one day....

    Em I don't want to blow up Netflix...I would just like them to take a bit more care before placing jumbled series up on the site. Or at least give me a heads up before I start watching. I'd also like them to stop forcing Highlander on me.

    I do not agree with your violent and hostile attitude...most of the time...North Dakota, you will get yours! [scowling]

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