Pro The Novel Argument When talking about binge watching, its best applied when talking about serialized television. There are plenty of shows out there whose storylines, plot, development, and execution can be viewed as novelistic. David Simons The Wire is a great example. Simon often argues when viewers say that nothing happens in the first few episodes that if you read Moby Dick the first few chapters have the same nothing happened aspect. After all, you wouldnt read a chapter of a novel one-per-week style; you would read the whole book in the closest time frame that your schedule allows. Simon and Mad Mens Matthew Weiner have argued that episodes shouldnt be reviewed individually because the viewer doesnt know the pay-offs in the big picture. Its hard to say that nothing happens if you dont understand how the whole picture should be viewed.
Con The Water Cooler Effect Each spring when Game of Thrones comes back on the air, I have a shared experience with millions of people each Sunday night. When Monday morning rolls around there are countless fans discussing and theorizing based off the shared experience we all had the night before. Shows built around suspense and mystery, like Homeland or Orphan Black, have an extra thrill because the week in between episodes causes us to spend hours thinking, discussing, blogging, and frequenting message boards until we know what is really in store. When watching The Sopranos or The Wire on DVD, it was hard to share my excitement when something amazing happened, because most people aren't caught up in those worlds at the same time.