Saved by Keely Adler
"Taste Hierarchies Like These Stink"
The earlier era of prestige TV was predicated on shows with meta-narratives to be puzzled out, and which merited deep analyses read the day after watching. Here, there is nothing to figure out; as prestige passes its peak, we’re moving into the ambient era, which succumbs to, rather than competes with, your phone.
Kyle Chayka • “Emily in Paris” and the Rise of Ambient TV
Keely Adler added
Because the aesthetic strengths that make sophisticated TV programs superior to their peers do not translate over time. Looking backward, no one would care how good the acting was or how nuanced the plots were. Nobody would really care about the music or the lighting or the mood. These are artful, subjective qualities that matter in the present.
Chuck Klosterman • But What If We're Wrong?: Thinking About the Present As If It Were the Past
"There has never been more TV to watch. At any given time, you can stream shows old and new from platforms as wide-ranging as Netflix, HBO Max, Hulu, Peacock, and Amazon Prime, or you can indulge in a more niche service like Shudder (for horror fans) or Acorn (for British programming). If you find yourself paralyzed by the sheer wealth of content, ... See more
James Stevens added
But I know this matters. I know there is something critical here we’re underestimating, and it has to do with television’s ability to make the present tense exist forever, in a way no other medium ever has. It’s not disposable, even if we want it to be.
Chuck Klosterman • But What If We're Wrong?: Thinking About the Present As If It Were the Past
The advent of streaming, and cord-cutting, allowed viewers a more intentional relationship to TV, at least in theory. When Netflix and other platforms began dumping entire seasons of shows at once, binging became a byword for paying deep attention, as viewers gave themselves over to intricate drama or quirky comedy. But now we’re learning to stream... See more
Kyle Chayka • “Emily in Paris” and the Rise of Ambient TV
Keely Adler added
Severnace is grappling with many of the same questions swirling around contemporary work and labor as those other shows, but it’s pursuing them in a way that’s at once thrilling and haunting.
Anne Helen Petersen • The Feast of Severance
Keely Adler added