My wife is funny. When the elderly woman started yelling at Robin Wright in the cemetary, my wife started yelling in an old lady voice “Boo! Boo! Bow to her! Bow to the queen of filth! The queen of garbage!.”
Pay It Forward
Well, I really enjoyed the original series, so I’m glad to hear this one is getting decent reviews. I am looking forward to watching this.
I’m really loving this.
Thanks for the reccomendation.
I had the same issue – couldn’t find an option to add it to my streaming queue so I could watch it on TV. I did the same thing – started then stopped. At that point, I was able to add it to my queue.
And I just finished the final episode and can’t wait to see where it’s going from here. Anyone know when the second season will be coming out?
As for Kevin Spacey, I’ve never been a big fan of his, but he’s absolutely perfect in this role. Even though it becomes more and more clear that he is evil to the core, he still manages to convey a certain moral ambiguity, as does Robin Wright. Are Netflix shows eligible for the Emmy?
I didn’t think of that but I love it! Your wife is a gem. You should keep her.
If we’re going to use spoilers; I think it’s important to indicate up to which episode you are spoiling. I’d like to click on that spoiler but I can’t as I’ve only watched upto episode four.
I’m not faulting Frylock, as it’s a brave new world out there.
I am not a fan of Spacey at all but really like this so far.
The stilted deliveries are very reminiscent Mamet’s films (of course Spacey was in Glengarry Glenross.) The underhandedness is also similar.
Good point! It was episode 3.
Very very tiny minor spoiler, if it even counts as a spoiler at all. I was just being careful.
So Spacey does the break-the-fourth-wall asides like the British original, but does he say “you might think that, but I couldn’t possibly comment.”? 
(I don’t have cable.:p)
At least once that I remember, possibly more.
nm
You might very well think that. I couldn’t possibly comment. 
I’ve only watched the first episode, and so far Kevin Spacey doesn’t seem nearly as sleazy as Ian Richardson. Plenty of time, though. Plenty of time.
When you can conceive of how it will make any significant amount of money for Netflix, let me know.
I am neither an economics nor industry simpleton, but I cannot figure out how Netflix did other than just piss away ~$115M.
I went searching for articles about that last night. It seems like the idea is that it is a combination of attracting new customers, retaining customers who might have left otherwise, and establishing the brand in a way that lays a foundation for future profits on future endeavors.
Do you think the Sopranos or Sex and the City made any money for HBO? It’s a pretty similar revenue model - most of their offerings are licensed movies (although netflicks has tons of televisions series), yet they offer original programming to entice people to buy subscriptions.
I happen to love Netflix even without House of Cards, but in the past I’ve only ever paid for HBO and Showtime just to get their original programming.
Note also (this is my own thinking, not something from one of the articles I found) that though they’re offering the show on Netflix for subscribers, they can also later offer it on DVD, or sell it to other venues, and in that way make money off of non-subscribers as well.
Both of you have sketched around what is likely the truth, but it seems to me that Netflix spent a bazillion dollars (nearly $10M per episode)… and then all but gave it away on YouTube. Posting all the eps so that they can be watched in a week or two, if not less time, brings nothing and no one new to the service. I think a good number will use up a 30-day trial on it, from which some might stay on, but as long as it’s on streaming it will have minimal disc sales, so the entire value is being given away for something between zero (existing customers and 30-day wonders) and seven bucks (one month of streaming).
If they’d released it over, say, two or three months, forcing new subscribers to get in the habit of staying subscribed… maybe. But this makes no sense at all given the cost of the product vs. the way it’s being all but given away to its entire audience. ETA: I guess they are counting on all the collateral value, not necessarily direct value. Still seems weird and I’m glad I sold my NF stock when I did.
ETA: It really does remind me of the early Jack in the Box ad where the accountant tells Jack he’s losing money on every burger at the sale price, and Jack says he’ll make it up in volume.
Much as I’m enjoying the series and like Netflix, I would rather they spent the money addressing their most serious problem – availability of titles for streaming. How many great movies and series that are already in the can could they have acquired streaming rights to? I dunno, but I suspect a shitload – certainly many many more hours of programming than paying for original material.
I binged through the entire series in one day, and thought it was brilliant throughout. I have no idea how Netflix is going to monetize it, but they’re contractually bound to do a second season and I can’t wait to see it.