TV or Film? If someone were to ask me this question a few years ago, my answer would have definitely have been film. But over the past few years, I have picked up an obsessive binge-watching habit that has changed my answer.
Below are 5 reasons why I prefer TV shows over films:
1. Shorter – When watching a TV show you are committing to shorter intervals of content, this is very helpful when you have a short attention span. If you stop after an episode the break is not as abrupt as pausing a film. And it feels like a short film every week.
2. Long form storytelling – There are multiple storylines to engage with due to the long form storytelling allowing you to see character development growth over a long period of time and thus a better emotional experience. Read my post Top 10 TV Characters to see which character arcs I have enjoyed the most.
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Pretty Little Liars – ‘Shadow Play’ © Freeform
3. Creative risks – In regards to content production, TV producers can take risks as opposed to film which often needs to cater to a worldwide market and be fit into a genre. On a TV show if they try something new in an episode and it goes badly they can always go back to the original style. One that comes to mind is Pretty Little Liars episode ‘Shadow Play’ (pictured above) which was filmed in Old Hollywood Film Noir style and received poor ratings (although I quite enjoyed the episode).
4. Trial run– Look at it this way, when you watch a pilot episode you either enjoy it or you don’t. If you aren’t hooked then you have spent less time watching an episode than you would have watching a bad film. But if you do enjoy it you have plenty of content to engage with.
5. Multi-tasking – Even when you’re busy, you can have an episode on in the background to stay entertained. Usually, when I am writing out my lecture notes I have a comedy show on as they don’t require that much attention. Just as I’m typing up this post I’m watching an episode of Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.
I do appreciate and enjoy films, but I am the type of person who likes to delve deep and be heavily invested in the content I engage with and TV shows satisfy that need. What’s your view?
tvscape.wordpress.com 
Interesting post! I never really considered the third point about creative risks
Thank you! One pet peeve of mine on TV shows is when they dedicate an entire episode to an alternate universe where things would go differently for the characters if one moment were changed. But then I am reassured that it will return to the normal format will resume in the next episode.
love the post, but I gotta challenge number 4- wouldn’t you have to be much more committed to a TV storyline if you keep coming back for more episodes?
Thank you, I should probably have worded it better. I meant with a TV show pilot you can test out whether you engage with the plot whereas with film you don’t really have that luxury.
i do have a very short attention span so tv shows that last 20 minutes are my favorites p.s. the currently watching feature on the sidebar is awesome
Ooh I have a post about my favourite 20 minute shows coming up soon. I’m glad you like it I thought it was a useful feature to have.
You make a good argument for TV but personally nothing can beat the experience of cinema and the emotion it evokes so for that reason I would pick film
Thank you, I love the whole cinema experience! With TV I could argue that you can watch it in the comfort of your own home but nowadays with Netflix you can watch both films and TV shows wherever you please so I thought I would leave that point out.
I love TV because there’s always more content than in films. However the longevity means TV shows can really mess up, so I love film and TV equally.
Interesting point, it’s true some TV shows run for too long and end up ruining character storylines because they don’t know what to do with them.
Great question! I love really bonding with characters in TV Shows but at the same time they can be huge time investments, so I honestly couldn’t pick!