These days, when it comes to television, or what counts as television, it's hard to complain. There are so many options, some might argue too many options, for shows to watch across the many streaming services and networks. We can't use the "there's nothing on" excuse everyone used 25-plus years ago because there's something new on all the time.
Lucky was one of the probably hundreds of new streaming shows that premiered this summer. The Apple TV crime thriller based on the book by Marissa Stapley comes from executive producer Reese Witherspoon and stars Anya Taylor-Joy. From that alone, the series was primed for success, but there's one thing that could have made the series even better, but Apple TV missed the mark.
Unlike other popular streaming services, Apple TV has remained mostly devoted to weekly episode releases, apart from a few earlier binge-drops like Dickinson, Mythic Quest, and other first seasons. Often, Apple will debut a new series with two or three episodes at premiere, then revert to a weekly release pattern. Lucky adhered to that same format, and it could be to its detriment.
Lucky should have been released all at once
The same way that a binge release doesn't work for every show, a weekly release also doesn't work for every show. In the modern era of television, shows are being created, written, and produced with binge-watching in mind. It's changing the way that we tell and watch episodic stories in ways that we will have to examine sometime soon, but sometimes, the binge model just works.
Once Lucky released half of its season, it was apparent that the series could have excelled even more if Apple TV had released all seven of its episodes at once. The end of each episode propels us into the next episode in a way that makes you want to immediately continue watching. But these aren't traditional cliffhangers. It's like if you paused a movie before the climax and waited a week to finish.
Lucky's momentum hasn't been completely ruined by its weekly releases, but since the show is most likely a limited series and the first season will be its only season, a binge drop would have only helped the momentum. It's an unfortunate truth that a lot of people lose track of shows if they are released weekly. Again, there's a lot on all the time. Too many options means out of sight, out of mind.
The fourth episode of Lucky brought the show's biggest twists yet and rather than being able to continue the story, viewers are forced to wait another week to find out what happens next. And then two more weeks after that until the whole series reaches its conclusion. Sure, that's what television is and has always been, but at the end of the day, this is original streaming television.
Listen, this hurts me in particular to admit. I have long been a champion of weekly releases, even in the streaming era, because 1. it's the traditional way to watch television and 2. it allows the viewer to remain unencumbered by multiple binge releases. Imagine if every streaming service made every show a binge release. That would be stressful for the consumer.
With weekly releases, you can choose your own adventure. You can either keep up each week or let episodes pile up on your watch list and binge when you're ready. But in Lucky's case, Apple TV dropped the ball on experimenting with a different release method, and if there was a show to kick off that experiment with, this was the one.
After all, what's the downside? It becomes even more popular through word of mouth as those who finished the complete season recommend it to their friends and family? That's the goal of binge-watching, one that Netflix has mastered. Just look at fellow mysterious crime drama I Will Find You. It's become one of the most popular Netflix shows of all time after only five weeks.
It goes without saying that Apple TV is obviously doing something right. The streamer has its fair share of hit series that fans love and are winning big awards. But to continue to be a key player in this space is to evolve and try new things. It's been years since Apple TV did a significant binge drop, and after becoming invested in Lucky, it's clear that not changing course was a huge mistake.
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