WhenSuits, theUSAlegal proceduralstarringGabriel MachtandPatrick J. Adams, made its way toNetflixthis past June, no one thought twice about it. The streaming giant had added plenty of similar shows over the years (The Blacklist,Manifest, andBlue Bloods, to name a few, the latter of which has since moved to Prime Video), andSuitsdidn’t feel any different. However,whether it be something in the zeitgeist or peak summer boredom, the response to the fast-paced show has been far greater than expected. In the week of June 26 - July 2, the show toppled Netflix’s previous viewing time record for an acquired series. WhereManifest, the Netflix hit whoseseries finale aired earlier this year, previously held the record with 2.49 billion minutes,Suitsclocked in with a full3.14 billion minutes of watch timein a single week. It’s a significant jump, one which must have sent executives scrambling (in the same way reporters have been) to try to understand the cause of the show’s sudden popularity – especially given that it ended its run in 2019.
Theability to stream (and binge) TVhas led to smaller, more curated seasons of television, and though some excellent shows have been created as a result, it seems viewers are starting to miss the long-form seasons of network TV’s past. WhileSuits' success might partly be attributed to a certain now-royal cast member (Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex, starred on the show from 2011-2017), we see it more as support for the return of the older model of television storytelling, which featured longer seasons that were significantly cheaper to make.Suits9 seasons had on average 16 episodes each, and the show ended its run with a whopping 134 episodes. This meant more time for character development, sweeping plots, and –– more than anything –– more time spent with these characters in our homes. It seemsSuits’success is merely helping identify a larger trend: studios bringing back long-form TV.
On the run from a drug deal gone bad, brilliant college dropout Mike Ross finds himself working with Harvey Specter, one of New York City’s best lawyers.
Short-Form TV Has Its Perks
As the television landscape has changed over the past decade, the incentive for shorter seasons has certainly been made clear. With a shorter commitment for cast and crew, TV shows have been able to cast stars of far greater success than they used to, and as a result, drive viewers to see them in action.Matthew McConaugheyinTrue Detective,Nicole KidmanandReese WitherspooninBig Little Lies,evenHarrison FordinShrinking–– it’s safe to say that all ofthese actors were much more likely to take on a 10-episode project, which would take a few months to shoot, than they would a 120 episode one.
The switch to streaming alsoreleased production companies from the pressures of syndication: in order for a show to be available for reruns on cable networks, they would need to pass the 100-episode mark. Streaming services like Netflix, Hulu, and HBO license content regardless of the episode count, and somost studios opted to release many shorter shows as opposed to fewer, longer ones. Audiences quickly shifted to the new normal –– with advances in technology and the rise of social media, attention spans have gotten increasingly shorter, and quicker, digestible content was exactly what viewers were looking for. But now, perhaps, nostalgia has taken over. While there are clear benefits to short-form content, there are drawbacks as well.
‘Suits’ Is a Surprise Hit on Netflix Again, But Its Writers Are Barely Seeing Residuals
Spoiler alert: You cannot buy a good suit with it.
Longer Shows Have Their Own Benefits, Too
While shorter seasons of TV are inherently more binge-able, there is something lost when a story is told in 10 hours instead of in 20 (or 40, or 80). There is lessroom for character developmentand overarching plot points, the moments that help ground the characters, stories, and universes in which these stories take place. InThe Summer I Turned Pretty, the teen romance streaming on Prime Video, there are simply too many plotlines to juggle within a 10-episode season. The result is a show that feels disconnected,one where the main characters have gotten lost among a sea of minor ones.
Season 2 ofThe Sex Lives of College Girlsfaced a similar problem, where many of their most dramatic plotlines felt like they came out of nowhere: there wasn’t enough time to lay down the foundations for the choices each character made. WhenHow I Met Your Fatherwas given an extended 22-episode order for its second season,creatorsIsaac AptakerandElizabeth Bergertold TV Linethat they were happy for the “chance to let [their] mystery breathe," and that they would use the opportunity to add in storylines that they “couldn’t do [for Season 1] because [they] didn’t have enough space for them.” In longer-form television,not every scene needs to further the plot – in fact, not even every episode does. With more room to play, characters get richer and stories become fuller. And with more time spent watching them, our connections to the shows only grow.
In its nine years on air,Suitshad slow-burn romances, breakups, and makeups. Coworkers made alliances and enemies, quit their high-stakes New York City law firm and came crawling back, had incredible wins and quite a few losses. The primary couple on the show, Mike (Patrick J. Adams) and Rachel (Markle), only got together at the end of the second season, a full 28 tension-filled episodes after the characters were introduced. The show has plenty of characters but devotes enough time to truly get to know them – fromLouis Litt’s(Rick Hoffman) affinity for mud baths to Donna Paulsen’s (Sarah Rafferty) fiery loyalty, we learn enough about the characters to truly center them within theSuitsworld. This isn’t to say that every decision the show made was well-thought-out: as is nearly impossible to avoid with shows of this length, there arequite a few plotlines that don’t really work. While neither format is perfect,it is impossible to ignore the strengths present in long-form series, which have certainly been less popular since short-form TV became the norm. Will the renewed popularity ofSuitspave the way for more series with 16-20 episode seasons? It seems time will tell.
Suitsis currently available to stream on Netflix in the U.S.
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