I just realized I was skipping intros for 3 seasons of a show

I was watching The Americans and kept wondering why the character decisions felt off. Then I found a reddit thread talking about the cold open scenes that explain the spy tradecraft. I had been skipping them every single episode because I thought they were just flashbacks or filler. Now I have to go back and rewatch like 35 episodes to catch what I missed. Has anyone else ruined a show for themselves this way?

3 comments

3 Comments

simon_carr17d ago

Sit down and think about how many times we all skip stuff we shouldn't. @robinp89 makes a decent point that a show should work without cold opens, but real life is full of cold opens too. Ever walked into a room and missed the first half of a conversation? Then you're nodding along to something dumb because you have no context. Or you skip reading the instructions on a new gadget and spend an hour trying to figure out why it's broken. It's the same thing. You think you're saving time but really you're just signing up for more work later.

robinp8917d ago

Not really. Cold opens are usually just atmosphere or mood setting. The show should work without them or it's not well made. You probably didn't miss anything that changes the plot.

nancy_king2917d ago

@robinp89 you're right that good shows stand on their own but cold opens hook you in like a good sales pitch.