Stream Theory

Jackson and Thomas are self-quarantined, after a short discussion about how crazy things are, they jump right into the news for the month. Thomas wants to apologize for his cough.

The big story is just that basically everything is being delayed. There will still be plenty of content for consumers, but Jackson and Thomas have concerns about the economic impact on below-the-line production crew. Theatrical content is being pushed onto streaming platforms, both Thomas and Jackson wonder if this trend will continue.

Moving on from the global pandemic, the guys discuss this interview on The Watch with AMC president Sarah Barnett. It’s a great interview that you should definitely check out, Thomas wonders if AMC will be able to maintain their approach to TV as things move more and more online.

The main content discussion this week is about the new FX on HULU series DEVS, and AMC’s Better Call Saul. They keep it spoiler free.

Recommendations:

Jackson: Better Things on FX/HULU

Thomas: Chernobyl on HBO

Links:

Coronavirus delays lot of TV production

Interview with Alex Garland

Jackson’s Better Call Saul Video for The Ringer

Thomas’s video on DEVS

This month the guys are shilling hard for Netflix, the discussion kicks off focusing on Netflix’s performance at The Oscars, and how they’re booming despite the launch of Disney+. Thomas gets to tell-all about his time as a Nielsen household, he’s been waiting for this moment. His rant is really just a long-winded explanation of Nielsen ratings and why they’re… flawed, as an intro to talking about the new Nielsen report on streaming watch time.

…also Redbox has free live TV now?

This month’s content discussion is about Netflix’s new reality show The Circle. Thomas got more into it than Jackson did, but both agree the contestants were very excited.

Recommendations:

Thomas: American Factory

Jackson: Ozark

Links:

• Netflix sees subscriber bump despite Disney+ launch

• Nielsen Streaming Report

• Netflix Dominates watch time (on TVs at least)

• Redbox Free Live TV

• Jackson’s Better Call Saul Video

• Thomas’ Marriage Story Video

This month’s discussion starts with some Oscar talk, Netflix has more nominations than any other studio, but Thomas has a lot of Oscar opinions in general. The conversation shifts to the way Streaming Services are introducing bonus content, like Netflix’s timeline/map website for The Witcher, this (of course) leads into another discussion about weekly vs binge release of shows.

HBO Max announces that it will have an new interface that will be… “swipey.”

The final news item is about Apple TV+ (Max? Pro? iTV?) officially confirms they’ve hired former HBO CEO. In other words: “The Gang Gets Serious about TV.”

The content discussion for this month is Servant on Apple TV+. The guys seem to like this one.

Links:

• Netflix has more Oscar Nominations than any studio

• The Witcher Bonus Timeline & Map

• HBO Max will have a new “Swipey” interface

• Apple Hires Former HBO CEO

Monthly Recommendation:
Thomas - High Maintenance
Jackson - Mr. Robot

This month’s episode kicks off with a discussion of Netflix dominating the Golden Globe nominations. Netflix films seem to be generating a lot of buzz this year. An update on the Disney+ vs. Netflix battle (it doesn’t look like Netflix users are fleeing for Disney+) spirals into more talk about The Mandalorian. Jackson and Thomas ultimately decide the awards probably mean more to Netflix right now than they do to Disney.

This episode’s content discussion is Marriage Story. Thomas liked the movie but feels conflicted about Noah Baumbach, Jackson has no director related baggage and liked it a lot. Thomas has watched The Irishman a lot and has plenty of thoughts. He ends up musing about why people have a hard time watching a 3 hour movie when they don’t have a problem watching a season of Stranger Things in a day. Jackson has a theory about why.

To wrap things up Jackson recommends The Expanse (Amazon Video), and Thomas recommends Magic for Humans (Netflix).

After opening tangents about name spelling and Jeremy Strong, Jackson and Thomas dive straight into the Disney+ launch (4:27), the main topic for the episode. HBO Max has a release date and price (15:09), AppleTV+ launches with a whisper, and the Discovery Channel CFO wants to create a “female-skewing” streaming service.

The content discussion is The Mandalorian (32:50). Both have a lot of feelings about the show and their review turns into a bit of a therapy session. Jackson has a hot take about puppet suits, Thomas likes it but doesn’t think it feels like the big deal it was supposed to be.

A new recommendations segment is introduced (50:22).

Links:

HBO Max Launch Date and Price

Discovery CFO Wants to Make “Female-Skewing” Streaming Service

Jackson and Thomas start out talking about NBC Universal’s new streaming service Peacock, before detouring to talk about Apple TV+ pricing. Thomas is skeptical of Apple’s ability to produce television.

Jackson isn’t skeptical about our main topic, The Peacock, but both agree that the Summer Olympics might be the thing that actually gets them to sign up.

Finally El Camino is discussed. If you don’t want spoilers for El Camino skip from 32:33 to 40:00

Jackson thinks El Camino’s release on Netflix says a lot about how important Netflix was to Breaking Bad’s success,. Both have somewhat mixed feelings about El Camino as a film. Thomas is very interested in how the line between TV and movies continues to blur.

Jackson and Thomas introduce what the podcast will be about. Jackson is disappointed about the CBS - Viacom merger.

This month’s main topic is Disney+. Both agree Disney+ is priced to make a splash and that they’ll definitely sign up, even though they’re not the target demographic. Disney isn’t going to let people binge shows, even though polls say people want to. Somehow they end up doing a mini-review of Westworld.

Thomas uses a spreadsheet to figure out the ratio of high to low quality shows on Hulu, HBO, Netflix, and Amazon Prime.

Finally Mindhunter season 2 is discussed and whether it’s better to binge the season or take your time.

Show Notes:

• CBS + Viacom Merger

• Disney+/ESPN+/Hulu Bundle

• IGN Twitter Poll on Binge vs Weekly Consumption

• Hulu has the most “high quality” shows.

• Thomas’ video on Mindhunter

Jackson’s YouTube Channel / / Thomas’ YouTube Channel