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House of Cards (First 2 seasons at least), Stranger Things, Orange is the New Black, Marco Polo, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Dear White People, Bojack Horseman,

House of Cards (First 2 seasons at least), Stranger Things, Orange is the New Black, Marco Polo, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Dear White People, Bojack Horseman, and to a lesser extent some of the Marvel shows (Jessica Jones, Daredevil, Luke Cage, Punisher), not to mention how much amazing standup comedy Netflix puts out. Sure, there's a lot of junk, but Netflix is succeeding in becoming HBO faster than HBO is becoming Netflix.

throwawaymath 8y ago
I'll give you the standup comedy selection because I agree it's really quite good. I also like Stranger Things but can't comment on the others. But I actively dislike the Marvel content on Netflix. I find its characters one-dimensional and its plot unmotivated. Some of this is probably the transition from comic books to TV, but on the other hand I love almost everything from the cinematic universe. I think the biggest problem is that the Marvel cinematic universe seems to have better acting, better writing, superior interconnectedness overall and stakes that are well calibrated to its cast of heroes. In contrast, I find most of the characters' hyperfocus on specific neighborhoods in Marvel's Netflix shows to be frankly ridiculous and annoying. I also find myself wishing the main characters would just kill the villains a few episodes into each series. It boggles my mind how much waffling and angst goes on. As a followup to your last comment though, my point had nothing to do with HBO becoming Netflix. I don't even think HBO should try to become Netflix at all. I would prefer for HBO to remain the curated content space that it is, precisely because I'm concerned with the quality of content. Strictly speaking, the ratio of quality content to junk on HBO is far, far higher than Netflix's. It's not really about HBO or Netflix being more successful in becoming the other, it's about quality. Regardless of whether or not HBO is close to becoming Netflix, Netflix is so far from becoming HBO I don't even think they could recognize an interstate map outlining the route.
- siidooloo 8y ago
  HBO and Netflix both produce a couple of dozen shows a year. HBO seems like it has a better hit ratio because you have to go back every week to get an update on the one or two current shows you enjoy. HBO has a better presentation for appearing prestige.
  - throwawaymath 8y ago
    No, I disagree strongly. I don't binge Netflix and I still feel the same way.
    - siidooloo 8y ago
      Do you watch 24 different HBO shows a year, or do you watch 4 or 5?
      - throwawaymath 8y ago
        Four or five, but I don't really follow what you mean. I sit through maybe 10 pilots on Netflix that don't motivate me to watch the entire season. The last time I tried and failed to get into an HBO show was with Succession (in my opinion that show is exceptionally bad). Before that I can't recall. But on Amazon I churned off of literally everything, and on Netflix it takes me at least five duds (that are apparently a strong match for me) to find something I'll commit to. The only thing I think Netflix has really nailed is comedy, and that's because their selection of comedy is actually diverse and comprehensive. Conversely, a lot of their selection for traditional drama is formulaic.
adjkant 8y ago
To add to this, Sense8, Queer Eye and A Series of Unfortunate Events. Just shows how far deep the solid content goes. I'm still a fan of HBO and I don't think the transition makes sense, but Netflix absolutely has a lot of good stuff of similar quality. I think the transition is a bad move because if they go the other way, the production of junk may result in a net loss of top content which is what makes them good, regardless of how little/much junk they produce.
erik_seaberg 8y ago
Marco Polo was great but got cancelled over costs, so that's not the kind of thing we're going to see more of.
Nimitz14 8y ago
I don't think any of those shows are on the same level as the top tier HBO ones. The only show that I think reaches it is Breaking Bad (AMC). I actually think the best netflix ever did was with Bloodline (S1 only). House of Cards, while fun to watch, was quite one dimensional. And HBO deserves a lot of credit for supporting The Wire like it did (despite low viewer counts), and continuing to do so, more recently with Show Me A Hero. Shows that will not be popular for the general market but are good shows with a story worth telling. Quoting The Economist: And second, because as drama “Show Me a Hero” excels. Younger viewers may find this hard to believe, but once upon a time American studios made films for adults, with nary a dinosaur, superhero or hunger game in sight. Directors such as Elia Kazan, Sidney Lumet and Spike Lee dealt with serious moral questions, and made urban realism riveting. Messrs Simon and Zorzi are their successors, but their work is richer, more sophisticated—and better.

throwawaymath 8y ago

I'll give you the standup comedy selection because I agree it's really quite good. I also like Stranger Things but can't comment on the others. But I actively dislike the Marvel content on Netflix. I find its characters one-dimensional and its plot unmotivated. Some of this is probably the transition from comic books to TV, but on the other hand I love almost everything from the cinematic universe. I think the biggest problem is that the Marvel cinematic universe seems to have better acting, better writing, superior interconnectedness overall and stakes that are well calibrated to its cast of heroes. In contrast, I find most of the characters' hyperfocus on specific neighborhoods in Marvel's Netflix shows to be frankly ridiculous and annoying. I also find myself wishing the main characters would just kill the villains a few episodes into each series. It boggles my mind how much waffling and angst goes on. As a followup to your last comment though, my point had nothing to do with HBO becoming Netflix. I don't even think HBO should try to become Netflix at all. I would prefer for HBO to remain the curated content space that it is, precisely because I'm concerned with the quality of content. Strictly speaking, the ratio of quality content to junk on HBO is far, far higher than Netflix's. It's not really about HBO or Netflix being more successful in becoming the other, it's about quality. Regardless of whether or not HBO is close to becoming Netflix, Netflix is so far from becoming HBO I don't even think they could recognize an interstate map outlining the route.

siidooloo 8y ago
HBO and Netflix both produce a couple of dozen shows a year. HBO seems like it has a better hit ratio because you have to go back every week to get an update on the one or two current shows you enjoy. HBO has a better presentation for appearing prestige.
- throwawaymath 8y ago
  No, I disagree strongly. I don't binge Netflix and I still feel the same way.
  - siidooloo 8y ago
    Do you watch 24 different HBO shows a year, or do you watch 4 or 5?
    - throwawaymath 8y ago
      Four or five, but I don't really follow what you mean. I sit through maybe 10 pilots on Netflix that don't motivate me to watch the entire season. The last time I tried and failed to get into an HBO show was with Succession (in my opinion that show is exceptionally bad). Before that I can't recall. But on Amazon I churned off of literally everything, and on Netflix it takes me at least five duds (that are apparently a strong match for me) to find something I'll commit to. The only thing I think Netflix has really nailed is comedy, and that's because their selection of comedy is actually diverse and comprehensive. Conversely, a lot of their selection for traditional drama is formulaic.

adjkant 8y ago

To add to this, Sense8, Queer Eye and A Series of Unfortunate Events. Just shows how far deep the solid content goes. I'm still a fan of HBO and I don't think the transition makes sense, but Netflix absolutely has a lot of good stuff of similar quality. I think the transition is a bad move because if they go the other way, the production of junk may result in a net loss of top content which is what makes them good, regardless of how little/much junk they produce.

erik_seaberg 8y ago

Marco Polo was great but got cancelled over costs, so that's not the kind of thing we're going to see more of.

Nimitz14 8y ago

I don't think any of those shows are on the same level as the top tier HBO ones. The only show that I think reaches it is Breaking Bad (AMC). I actually think the best netflix ever did was with Bloodline (S1 only). House of Cards, while fun to watch, was quite one dimensional. And HBO deserves a lot of credit for supporting The Wire like it did (despite low viewer counts), and continuing to do so, more recently with Show Me A Hero. Shows that will not be popular for the general market but are good shows with a story worth telling. Quoting The Economist: And second, because as drama “Show Me a Hero” excels. Younger viewers may find this hard to believe, but once upon a time American studios made films for adults, with nary a dinosaur, superhero or hunger game in sight. Directors such as Elia Kazan, Sidney Lumet and Spike Lee dealt with serious moral questions, and made urban realism riveting. Messrs Simon and Zorzi are their successors, but their work is richer, more sophisticated—and better.