Best practices for posting single episode vs binge watch/entire season?
December 31, 2024 11:00 AM - Subscribe
I'm never sure what's the best thing to do when posting shows, especially if it's not a show that will get huge amount of commentary like it's GoT every week. What does everyone else think we should do in those situations?
Per my ranting over here, I don't post show posts as much as I have in the past, because it can be frustrating. It seems like if you post individual posts per show, someone wants a group thread for them all, or if you post a group thread for the entire binge-watched season, someone wishes you'd posted individual episodes. (I won't even get into spoiler issues.)
If a entire season is dropped at once, it seems like you can't do individual episodes because everyone binge watches them, so you have to do one thread. But then you can't really post in the thread when you've only seen episode 1 and everyone else is through episode 12. You also can't really do show-to-show analysis.
It seems to work better to post individual episode threads for series that air one show a week. But then sometimes the show discussion peters out, and then you think, "Maybe it SHOULD have been just one giant thread?" because it seems like you can't just keep posting individual episodes once people lose interest in that. I finally just put an "episodes 4-12" thread in Shrinking, which might be the best thing, I don't know.
What do people think would be the best practices for show posts?
Per my ranting over here, I don't post show posts as much as I have in the past, because it can be frustrating. It seems like if you post individual posts per show, someone wants a group thread for them all, or if you post a group thread for the entire binge-watched season, someone wishes you'd posted individual episodes. (I won't even get into spoiler issues.)
If a entire season is dropped at once, it seems like you can't do individual episodes because everyone binge watches them, so you have to do one thread. But then you can't really post in the thread when you've only seen episode 1 and everyone else is through episode 12. You also can't really do show-to-show analysis.
It seems to work better to post individual episode threads for series that air one show a week. But then sometimes the show discussion peters out, and then you think, "Maybe it SHOULD have been just one giant thread?" because it seems like you can't just keep posting individual episodes once people lose interest in that. I finally just put an "episodes 4-12" thread in Shrinking, which might be the best thing, I don't know.
What do people think would be the best practices for show posts?
I don't always know what will get more responses or not, though!
Really, what would be the best is having some kind of tiered drop downs for "discussion for episode 1 here" (then hides spoilers or whatever), "discussion for episode 2," and keep it all in the same thread, but that's not going to happen, so.
posted by jenfullmoon at 8:50 AM on January 3
Really, what would be the best is having some kind of tiered drop downs for "discussion for episode 1 here" (then hides spoilers or whatever), "discussion for episode 2," and keep it all in the same thread, but that's not going to happen, so.
posted by jenfullmoon at 8:50 AM on January 3
Why not? They're rebuilding the site as we speak. That would be an awesome feature.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 9:09 AM on January 3
posted by DirtyOldTown at 9:09 AM on January 3
I agree if the show is a one episode a week drop format, then per episode is the way to go. At worse, at the end of the season, maybe drop a full season post to pick everything up, though that's usually what the last episode of the season ends up being.
For binge shows, I think depending on the popularity is the key factor. It may be, as sloppy as it sounds, that start off with an episode one post, see how the vibe is, ask people responding if they want to continue going episode by episode or just go full season. Kind of put your toe in the water and check the temperature kind of thing.
posted by Atreides at 9:09 AM on January 3 [2 favorites]
For binge shows, I think depending on the popularity is the key factor. It may be, as sloppy as it sounds, that start off with an episode one post, see how the vibe is, ask people responding if they want to continue going episode by episode or just go full season. Kind of put your toe in the water and check the temperature kind of thing.
posted by Atreides at 9:09 AM on January 3 [2 favorites]
I wish there was a way that new series posts could begin as a single episode post but include a poll on whether they should stay episode-by-episode or collapse into a season post, with the post being modified after if necessary.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 10:05 AM on January 3 [3 favorites]
posted by DirtyOldTown at 10:05 AM on January 3 [3 favorites]
Same, DOT - I mean no offense to trig, but if the original Ludwig S1E1 post converted to a full season post, it would've been nice? And if you wait too long, everybody who finished it off, however late, will have already moved on and their takes have grown cold.
It's a tricky problem.
My other (semi-related) comment is that if you do decide to do weekly posting, please try and keep up with the releases? If you fall behind or lose interest, let the other commentators know so they can substitute for you? Nothing worse than having a take on the latest episode and that post not opening until a week later. And maybe that leans towards full season posts from an overhead perspective?
I tend to lean towards full season posts for binge drops and individual posts for weekly schedules for what it's worth. But I'll plug my way through creating posts for the dead back half of a season just for completionism and then just make the subsequent seasons an all-season post just for awareness? But binge dropped shows are hard to break up into episodic threads - "wait, did the protagonist do the thing in episode 3 or episode 4? I watched 4 episodes last night" is a problem.
posted by Kyol at 6:48 AM on January 7 [1 favorite]
It's a tricky problem.
My other (semi-related) comment is that if you do decide to do weekly posting, please try and keep up with the releases? If you fall behind or lose interest, let the other commentators know so they can substitute for you? Nothing worse than having a take on the latest episode and that post not opening until a week later. And maybe that leans towards full season posts from an overhead perspective?
I tend to lean towards full season posts for binge drops and individual posts for weekly schedules for what it's worth. But I'll plug my way through creating posts for the dead back half of a season just for completionism and then just make the subsequent seasons an all-season post just for awareness? But binge dropped shows are hard to break up into episodic threads - "wait, did the protagonist do the thing in episode 3 or episode 4? I watched 4 episodes last night" is a problem.
posted by Kyol at 6:48 AM on January 7 [1 favorite]
I strongly prefer per-episode posts -- as a reader and commenter of FanFare, it annoys the heck out of me when all I can find for a show I'm currently in the middle of is a full-season post which I can't yet read because spoilers. Some shows just never get enough traction to justify them, though; nothing sadder than a run of zero-comment posts late in a show's run.
I'd also note though that per-episode posts for binge drops are rough on the FanFare front page -- suddenly a whole row of zero-comment posts. I wonder if throttling posting -- either voluntarily by the poster, or automatically by the site-- to "only one episode per show per day" would help here? It'd prevent the front page from being swamped by one show; and I wonder also if this would lead to more/better conversations in the mid-season posts as they go up, rather than it being mostly the premier and finale posts that get all the comments.
posted by We had a deal, Kyle at 5:21 PM on January 16 [1 favorite]
I'd also note though that per-episode posts for binge drops are rough on the FanFare front page -- suddenly a whole row of zero-comment posts. I wonder if throttling posting -- either voluntarily by the poster, or automatically by the site-- to "only one episode per show per day" would help here? It'd prevent the front page from being swamped by one show; and I wonder also if this would lead to more/better conversations in the mid-season posts as they go up, rather than it being mostly the premier and finale posts that get all the comments.
posted by We had a deal, Kyle at 5:21 PM on January 16 [1 favorite]
This debate, right here, is why I started this thread. Hell if I know what to do. Both options kinda suck.
I don't think one can or should call dibs on who posts an episode, though. If I end up not watching Shrinking for a few weeks and someone wants to post, go right ahead!
posted by jenfullmoon at 7:53 PM on January 16 [1 favorite]
I don't think one can or should call dibs on who posts an episode, though. If I end up not watching Shrinking for a few weeks and someone wants to post, go right ahead!
posted by jenfullmoon at 7:53 PM on January 16 [1 favorite]
So, I found out that this exists.
Further spoiling discussions?
posted by jenfullmoon at 11:06 AM on January 21
Maybe if we just used this tag on things, that would work to cover some situations?
Further spoiling discussions?
posted by jenfullmoon at 11:06 AM on January 21
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HOWEVER, when you do episode-by-episode posts for a show that does not get a lot of traction, scattering the comments across many threads makes it feel even slower than it is.
So my guideline has become "Is this the kind of show that would get lots of response?" If it is, episode-by-episode makes sense. If not, I go with season posts, so at least the handful of replies are all in one place.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 9:14 AM on January 2 [2 favorites]