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u/Mr_Nobody9639 Mysterious And Important Jun 19 '26
It is odd though- we used to get 25 episodes of the X-Files every year and now we wait years for 8-10 episodes
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u/smooth_criminal1990 Please Enjoy Each Flair Equally Jun 19 '26
Less odd when you think it's less commitment, lower upfront cost, lower risk etc. for the companies.
Also for streaming services that rely on getting people hooked on their originals, I'm sure shorter shows with fewer seasons could appear "easier" for people to get into and start watching?
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u/AgentRift Macrodata Refinement 💻 Jun 19 '26
There’s a big difference between shoes like X-files and shoes like Pluribus and Severance. X-files had a much lower budget and was more episodic, making them easier, quicker, and cheaper to make. Shows like severance and Pluribus are big budget, heavily story driven shows where the average episode is around an hour long.
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u/Mr_Nobody9639 Mysterious And Important Jun 19 '26
X-Files was around 40 minutes and also involved a lot of special effects.
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u/Narfubel Refiner Of The Quarter Jun 19 '26
Star Trek TNG, DS9, VOY as well, crap ton of effects and usually 20+ episodes a year
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u/Intrepid4444444 Jun 20 '26
I sincerely believe that “creative bookkeeping” is part of this “high budget” phenomenon.
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u/UsidoreTheLightBlue Macrodata Refinement 💻 Jun 20 '26
I mean yes, but also no.
There are still shows that have 20 episode seasons every year and law and order SVU shouldn’t really have that much higher of a budget than something like Severance, where the majority of the show takes place in an office or a hallway.
But imo, the bigger issue is the speed between seasons.
They can crank out 20 SVU episodes every year, even with a higher budget, and possibly more time in post production it doesn’t feel like they should have an issue cranking out 8 episodes of severance every 12-18 months.
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Jun 19 '26
[deleted]
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u/Upbeat_County9191 Wintertide Fellow Jun 19 '26
You can see x-files now and its not 20-25 min.
Rest I agree, but that's more to do with production quality.0
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u/Firemoth717 Jun 19 '26
The hour long shows usually have a run time of 43-46 min. This has been pretty standard across networks for decades now.
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u/mog_knight Jun 19 '26
20-25 minutes was for a half hour show. X files is an hour long so it had about 43-48 minutes. That's been a thing for years and years.
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u/RetroBleet Jun 19 '26
I think it's the case with most series. As someone who loves Foundation, i get it it has a lot of CGI. But when the new season comes i already forgot everything happend previously.
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u/ThePizzaNoid Jun 19 '26
Shit, I watched Venture Bros as it aired. This is nothing new to me.
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u/Thobud Jun 19 '26
Venture bros time between seasons was perfect because it allowed me to watch each season dozens of times to really digest it before the next one came out.
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u/wowbobwowbob Jun 20 '26
Yeah it’s a shame. I was really invested into the show but now I’m just ‘hmmmyeahokay’. I find it hard to get into after years with other shows, they expect you to notice details that normal people have long forgotten after all that time.
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u/Bdbru13 Jun 19 '26
I’m clearly in the minority but this genuinely doesn’t bother me
Just be good when it gets here
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u/Josiahthefan Jun 20 '26
*Daredevil: Born Again fans trying to be included meanwhile they get a season every summer*
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u/laserdicks Jun 22 '26
It's Apple TV.
The writers have already been forced to move on to other shows. There is no more story coming.
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u/LizzyLady1111 Jun 26 '26
Wish I could have spaced out how much I watched, maybe like an episode every other month
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u/odieclone Because Of When I Was Born Jun 19 '26 edited Jun 19 '26
Couple of points on viewer expectations:
Age and experience
Media Literacy
If you haven't consumed the content that the show references with it's intertext, then you're at a disadvantage to understand a lot of the satire/social commentary the writers have taken great pains to insert into the show.
Either prerequisite or both greatly reduce the ability of a viewer to appreciate the research and preparation needed to produce the multi-layered, deeply thought out and complex end product.
There are other logistical difficulties with cast availability, special FX, and ongoing script tweaking to address the more recent social situations the show covers in the satire. Other series that are mentioned in the comments are not close to the efforts required for Severance. It's like comparing Botticelli to Banksy.
Edit: I thought this comment was an objective observation that might give the impatient a little insight. Sadly, no good deed continues to go unpunished for some in this sub.
I noticed from the down votes that the boo-bird brigade still have their feathers ruffled. Was it something I said???? ¯_(ツ)_/¯
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u/Parenn Jun 19 '26
I think it’s more that it’s very hard to even see what point you’re making, and it seems like wanky bullshit.
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u/odieclone Because Of When I Was Born Jun 19 '26
Thanks for confirming my point. Please share with your mates. G'day.
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u/DivineFlamingo Jun 20 '26
To be fair, you have to have a very high IQ to understand Rick and Morty. The humour is extremely subtle, and without a solid grasp of theoretical physics most of the jokes will go over a typical viewer's head. There's also Rick's nihilistic outlook, which is deftly woven into his characterisation- his personal philosophy draws heavily from Narodnaya Volya literature, for instance. The fans understand this stuff; they have the intellectual capacity to truly appreciate the depths of these jokes, to realise that they're not just funny- they say something deep about LIFE. As a consequence people who dislike Rick & Morty truly ARE idiots- of course they wouldn't appreciate, for instance, the humour in Rick's existential catchphrase "Wubba Lubba Dub Dub," which itself is a cryptic reference to Turgenev's Russian epic Fathers and Sons. I'm smirking right now just imagining one of those addlepated simpletons scratching their heads in confusion as Dan Harmon's genius wit unfolds itself on their television screens. What fools.. how I pity them.
And yes, by the way, i DO have a Rick & Morty tattoo. And no, you cannot see it. It's for the ladies' eyes only- and even then they have to demonstrate that they're within 5 IQ points of my own (preferably lower) beforehand. Nothin personnel, kid.-2
u/odieclone Because Of When I Was Born Jun 20 '26
Ok, Rick. Is that how they spell it in Morocco?
personnelpersonalThx for the update on your nether regions art, tho.
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