Nobody told me Netflix was so great.

[blinkpen]

Holy crap guys, I can watch dozens of TV shows and movies for 10 bucks a month? That's what it freaking costs to see a movie in a theater once. It's like Hulu on steroids and I can watch it on any big-ass TV in my house.

I'm totally going to be watching the first two seasons of 30 Rock and Star Trek this month.

[smacketh]

Yes and while the Instant could use some more expanding on, what's there is usually a good mix between tv shows and classic movies.

[blinkpen]

Yeah, I couldn't Instant Queue the movie I wanted to watch in the first place, but the plethora of options beyond that are more than satisfactory. Working in tandem with the whole "sending you discs" system should keep me well-stocked in entertainment.

[Elfir]

I've been working my way through The Office streaming on the XBox 360 the past few days and I've got a dvd each of Kanon and Lucky Star for my anime fix. Netflix is a beautiful, beautiful thing.

[smacketh]

If you see something on Instant, keep in mind that the catalog is always rotating. TV shows seem to stay on longer, but movies get cycled about every month or two. But, it does work great with the regular dvd in the mail service. I had to opt out of Blu Ray though, I think they're charging $2 extra per month for it now.

[Sarcasmorator]

We just figured this out, too. Just finished watching Season 3 of Heroes and have seen quite a few movies, and we don't even start getting charged until this weekend!

[Balrog]

You might find this thread of use.

[Vaeran]

Originally Posted by smacketh

If you see something on Instant, keep in mind that the catalog is always rotating. TV shows seem to stay on longer, but movies get cycled about every month or two.

Aw, I was under the impression that the Instant catalog was always expanding, not just rotating. But it's not something that I take great advantage of anyway, as if I'm going to sit down and watch something lengthy I usually prefer to do that on screen larger than my monitor and from a position more comfortable than my computer chair.

But yeah, Netflix is awesome.

[Josh_AnimeBum]

My brother gave me for a free month, and now thanks to Netflix, Hulu, and the DVI->HDMI cable I got a week ago I'm probably just going to ditch my cable TV service altogether.

Although I wish there was an option to turn on subtitles since I often watch stuff late at night and don't want to have the volume up too loud. I also added the Star Trek BDs to my regular queue since I want to watch it with the original effects, but I've been enjoying the old school Doctor Who and Red Dwarf episodes they have available instantly.

In short, Netflix most definitely rocks.

[shivam]

since all i watch on tv is the food network, sports and news, netflix is of no use to me.

[Calorie Mate]

Netflix is the best thing. I was worried about running out of space on my shelf 6 months ago, but it still isn't a problem since I don't pay for much these days unless it's REALLY good.

Originally Posted by shivam

since all i watch on tv is the food network, sports and news, netflix is of no use to me.

You should seriously consider using it to give stuff a try that's otherwise too expensive on DVDs. The Girlfriend and I are almost done with Battlestar and a ton of HBO shows because of this.

[shivam]

yeah, i just don't have the time. the wife watches a lot of two day shows like So You Think You Can Dance and idol and the like, and i tend to get home late from work, and i really dont have the patience to watch a long drama.

[Patrick]

I'm on season 4 of the Wire, and I also watched Rome. Breaking Bad is up next. Hooray for Netflix!

[Adrenaline]

Ever since I realized I have unlimited access to my family's Netflix live streaming I haven't left my room very much.

[Calorie Mate]

Originally Posted by shivam

yeah, i just don't have the time. the wife watches a lot of two day shows like So You Think You Can Dance and idol and the like, and i tend to get home late from work, and i really dont have the patience to watch a long drama.

Makes sense. The Girlfriend likes that crap too, but she also likes legitimately good shows so we'll usually watch those together.

Originally Posted by patrick

I'm on season 4 of the Wire, and I also watched Rome. Breaking Bad is up next. Hooray for Netflix!

The Wire is one of those rare exceptions where we Netflixed the whole, then loved it so much we bought it when we saw it cheap anyway. Classied up our DVD shelf a bit.

Also, Breaking Bad is great. It took 4 or 5 episodes (of the first season's 7 or so) to hook me, but it's good stuff. Season 2 gets really good.

[shivam]

Originally Posted by Calorie Mate

Makes sense. The Girlfriend likes that crap too, but she also likes legitimately good shows so we'll usually watch those together.

I like those shows too. Very little committment necessary, and i can watch them without feeling guilty about forgetting the story. fuck so-called 'good' shows that force me to do homework to watch.

[Calorie Mate]

I suddenly realized you remind me a lot of another good friend of mine. Seriously, my mind is blown by the comparison, I can't believe I never noticed.


Anyway, I love good, involving stories. Doesn't matter if it's a video game or a tv show or what. But I can understand. Sometimes there's nothign better than watching Ace of Cakes.

[shivam]

don't get me wrong, i love shit like 24 and other serials, but as i've grown older my desire to be tied to a show for that long a duration has really lessened. I used to watch 500 ep animes without blinking, and now anything over 13 better be the best fucking show ever for me to care.

[Adrenaline]

Have you seen The Wire? It fits that description.

[cortbassist89]

Netflix is seriously the best thing ever.

Anyone who rents via anything else is one silly silly billy.

[Maigo]

I... I clicked on this thread, re-activated our long-canceled Netflix account, talked to the wife about canceling cable TV service completely (she agreed), and immediately started streaming stuff for my 4 year old.

[Patrick]

Originally Posted by Calorie Mate

The Wire is one of those rare exceptions where we Netflixed the whole, then loved it so much we bought it when we saw it cheap anyway. Classied up our DVD shelf a bit.

Originally Posted by Adrenaline

Have you seen The Wire? It fits that description.

Yes and yes! I'm planning on buying it if I can find it on the cheap, and it is definitely the best show I've ever seen. I don't think this really spoils anything, but: I love that by season 4 they've done away with the idea of a main character. They've branched out into politics and now the education system, and a lot of it isn't even related to police work anymore. it feels like reading an excellent book that continues forever and keeps getting better.

[cortbassist89]

I've decided once I do move out, I'm not getting cable as it is wholly unnecessary. The internet (legally too!) yields most shows I watch anyway, then add Netflix, and wtf do I need cable for?

[Adrenaline]

Because if every young person uses the Internet and Netflix, and every old person watches regular TV, then what shows live and die depends mostly on old people.

[cortbassist89]

I trust old people.

Kind of.

I trust them so very much more than anyone I know my age.

[ringworm]

Originally Posted by cortbassist89

I trust old people.

Kind of.

I trust them so very much more than anyone I know my age.

On television shows? They're the people that make terrible fucking CBS shows the highest rated on TV.

Old people have terrible taste in entertainment.

[cortbassist89]

So THEY'RE the ones watching NCIS and keeping CSI on the air?

...

MY GOD

[Calorie Mate]

Originally Posted by Adrenaline

Because if every young person uses the Internet and Netflix, and every old person watches regular TV, then what shows live and die depends mostly on old people.

Which is a retarded system, since you'd think that Netflix usage and online streaming would be an infinitely more accurate / useful statistic to track.

And as much as I love Netflix, I do love TiVo's ability to give me anything also. Ah, technology.

[blinkpen]

That's a good point about the watching actual TV thing. I probably would never have gotten into 30 Rock if I hadn't accidentally seen pieces of it while waiting for The Office to start (back when their showtimes were reversed). You've gotta have at least some of the hip young cats watching actual television so that, if nothing else, word of mouth gets a chance to spread around and keep the show on the air and guarantee a dvd release so it can even be on Netflix to begin with.

[Grignr]

Originally Posted by ringworm

On television shows? They're the people that make terrible fucking CBS shows the highest rated on TV.

Old people have terrible taste in entertainment.

Actually, shows supported by advertising (the main networks) want young people demographics, since they're the audience that advertisers believe can be influenced by ads. Old people have fossilized their preferences and make poor ad audiences.

If they can't draw the ad revenue, the networks make crappy reality tv/late night shows, because they're cheap.

I don't know what model supports HBO making cool shows, but it must be working.