TIL my friend's 2-hour anime recap rule changed how I watch everything

I was chatting with my buddy Dan last Thursday night about the new season drops. He told me he never starts a show until a week after it finishes airing, then he watches 2 episodes a day max. At first I laughed, said that's way too slow. But he explained he got burned out binging 12 episodes in one sitting and forgot half the plot by episode 8. That hit different because I did the exact same thing with that big mecha series last spring. I couldn't tell you what happened in episodes 5 through 9 without checking a wiki. Now I'm trying his method with the current mystery anime, and I actually remember character names week to week. Has anyone else slowed down their watch pace on purpose, or am I just becoming an old man about this?

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craig.max12d ago

The slower pace changes the social aspect too. When you binge, the show is over before you can talk about it with anyone. Spreading it out means you get to speculate between episodes, share theories with friends who are also watching, and build the hype together. Dan figured out that watching anime is half about the show itself and half about the weeks of conversation around it. I've started doing the same with a few shows we both follow and it feels less like a chore and more like a shared hobby again.