No one is saying fuck you for having a life, but your requirements of new shows “achieving brilliance” within the first 3 episodes or else you bail on the show is definitely a sentiment that puts restraints on the people working hard to tell a story that is different, new, or complex. If you can decide whether a show is worth your time in 3 episodes or less, that’s great for you, but there are plenty of people out there willing to give a story time to develop, since most of the greats don’t become great immediately. If you care about stories and how they’re told, you’re missing out on a lot of good ones if you can’t delay your gratification.

This mentality is why tv series start off great and then crash and burn. I would rather stick with a mediocre first half of a series that builds up to something that pays off for your time investment than a show that starts off great but jumps the shark well before the end.

But I guess our collective attention spans are so diminished that if something doesn’t grab hold immediately, we run back to our phones and social media for that sweet serotonin.