New study declares Game of Thrones to be the most binge-able TV show ever

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If you’ve ever trucked through an entire season (or several) of Game of Thrones in one sitting, then give yourself a pat on the back. A recent study has declared Game of Thrones the most binge-able TV show “of all time.”

The study, conducted through OnePoll.com and incorporating the feedback of 2,000 adults, found that Game of Thrones is the #1 series that folks enjoy watching in long stretches.

The other TV shows that made the top 5 list were: Breaking Bad, Downtown Abbey, The Walking Dead and Sopranos.

The study didn’t delve into what makes a show “binge-able,” whether it’s serialized storylines, cliffhangers, exceptionally attractive cast members or a combination thereof. However, the study did touch on the ways in which binging and other new TV watching practices  have impacted the way people consume media. For example, the research found that one in five say they watch more TV shows now than they did five years ago.

“We’ve seen over the last few years that there has been a radical change in how people watch TV and their favorite programs,” said Steve Mitchell, Head of TV Product Management at Samsung UK, who commissioned the study. “Whether through box sets or streaming, we all have an opportunity to watch whatever content we want at a time that’s convenient for us. Television can be powerful and thought provoking medium and with our QLED technology, which offers unrivaled color, deep blacks and bold contrast levels – viewers are able to immerse themselves even more with the most life-like picture to date.”

14 Comments

  1. Hodor!

    Surely most of the Watchers would have guessed as much anyway; we of all people know how utterly captivating this show is. The study result is validating, ). Given the result, what do you think makes it so addictively watchable? “The study didn’t delve into what makes a show “binge-able,” whether it’s serialized storylines, cliffhangers, exceptionally attractive cast members or a combination therein.” For me, it’s “a combination therein.” But GoT, especially for book readers who followed POVs and know the characters and their motivations much more intimately, has a vast and varied cast of mesmerising characters who make us care deeply about them and their fates, positively or negatively. Do you binge on GoT? What makes it ‘binge-able?’

  2. This “research” seems pretty useless to me because they don’t tell WHY it’s so binge-able. They simply sum up a list of most binge watched shows according to a survey.
    The result of the research should be called something like “top binge watched tv shows” or something, but now they just make it sound more interesting than it is.

  3. Interesting article, as much as I love Game of Thrones and eagerly anticipate the next episode I don’t think I could do more than 2-3 different episodes in a day. This is largely because there is so much to take in and simply binge watching means you can miss set-up for story or little snippets of information which become key.

  4. I remember 5 years ago seeing a picture of ‘Boromir’ on the internet. I found that strange because Lord of The Rings had long ended by then. Then I saw it was from another show named Game of Thrones. I searched for a trailer, but I found the first episode. I ended watching almost 20 hours and 2 seasons later.

  5. That’s actually sort of what attracted me to the show Chilli, I saw Sean Bean in the trailer and it reminded me of Lord of the Rings so I thought I’d check it out.

  6. For me it’s several things. The characters, their rich history, the music, the look of the whole thing, the gorgeous cast members . It grabbed me from the very first minute I was transported to the wall and hasn’t let go, in fact it’s stronger now than ever. There was an article in our paper this week which said that more people are interested in who inherits the Iron Throne than who is the next heir to the English throne, me included. I doubt there will be anything like this again, it’s an enigma.

  7. Jon Snowed,
    In relation to that… I have two friend couples that have just recently finally decided to watch the series. Both sets are burning through – one couple is through three seasons, the other through two. Last night I was telling them, along with some others that have watched all of it, that I think a person should really watch every episode more than once, especially if it’s being binged and the books haven’t been read. One of those that binged the entire series did actually watch it all again after she’d finished and was surprised at how much she’d missed the first time. Of course this suggestion I have is coming from a person that watches the new episodes several times during the week while the seasons are airing. 😛

  8. Clob,

    Clob,

    I’m the same Clob, I usually watch each episode 2-3 times the week it airs as you can miss so much the first viewing, especially those when I wake up at 2am to watch in live from the US (usually a big episode).

    I then also have all the box sets and usually watch the entire series in the build up to a new one.

  9. This show has done the best job of any of the modern series of telling a coherent story each season. I think that’s a big part of what makes it so “bingable”: it takes 3-4 episodes to figure out what the story is going to be each year, and then you want to watch the next 6-7 to see how that story wraps: and then you want to watch the next story!

    A lot of other series tell 2-3 stories per season. Alternatively, there is an overarching story for the year, but that’s done in 4-5 “arc” episodes with the remaining episodes being largely stand-alone. Those are fine, but it also means that there is not quite the “I gotta watch one more!” aspect that GoT creates. Babylon 5 could have done this: but that was 20 years ago, and binging was not possible.

  10. Carole H,

    Well Carole, I said I had watched the full series on Sky Atlantic before Christmas (for the Nth time) and said I wasn’t going to bother with yet another repeat over the Christmas period showing 3 episodes a night. However, I lost my will power and been binge watching it yet again! Thank the old gods and the new its now half way through S6 (Ep5 when Dany burns down the House of the Dosh Khaleen and now with only 12 more episodes to go to the end of S7…. Geezzz – I need a break from GoT 😀

    I’ve reach saturation point re binging watching and can recall many lines from the show now before the actors even say them! Probably not as many as TEN BEARS though, who I reckon has copies of all the scripts – hehe 😛

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