Netflix has burned me with shorter seasons twice.
Each My Life With The Walter Boys Season 2 and Heartstopper Season 3 had a restricted variety of episodes that premiered after a protracted hiatus.
The seasons had been over rapidly, which was disappointing sufficient, however each exhibits tried to cram an excessive amount of into their quick seasons, leaving some plotlines hanging and giving the exhibits a rushed feeling.
Why Streamers Normally Have Solely 8 – 10 Episodes Per Season
Streaming has modified the best way we devour TV.
Fairly than the customary 22-episode seasons like on broadcast, most streaming collection have solely 8-10 episodes, for a wide range of causes.
For one factor, streamers rely extra on subscriptions than promoting {dollars}, so it’s cost-prohibitive to supply lengthy seasons.
The shorter seasons additionally unencumber expertise to work on different tasks in between commitments to the present, permitting actors to tackle a wider vary of roles throughout their careers.
That is enticing to prime expertise, who might not wish to be tied down to at least one present for a whole yr like they might be in the event that they had been filming 22 episodes for broadcast TV.
And naturally, in idea, shorter seasons additionally imply tighter tales, with extra focus, much less fluff, and extra flexibility to experiment as an alternative of the standard method each week.
When it really works, that’s nice. However sophisticated tales typically want extra time than they’re given.
My Life With The Walter Boys Season 2 was an hour-long present, kind of (most episodes ran 45 – 49 minutes), so it had rather less than 10 hours to inform a number of tales.
MLWTB Plots:
- Jackie’s continued relationship dilemma
- Jackie re-adjusting to life in Silver Falls and attempting to determine the place she belongs with out shedding her recollections of her late dad and mom
- Will and George (and later Richard) attempting to avoid wasting the ranch however not getting alongside
- Jackie operating for sophistication president and later establishing the faculty honest
- Cole struggling to get into school
- Rivalry between Cole and Dylan over Cole’s incapability to play and Dylan’s rejection of his teaching
- Alex’s dedication to make a profession in rodeo
- Parker’s harm as a result of Jackie left her
- Jackie studying to drive
- Jordan taking part in on the soccer staff this yr
This listing is just not complete and doesn’t embrace one-off tales, equivalent to the youngsters attending the Fall Formal.
It’s difficult to condense all that into simply ten hours of TV, so it’s unsurprising that some features fell by means of the cracks, contributing to a rushed feeling.
It’s particularly disappointing, although, that My Life with the Walter Boys wasn’t capable of focus extra on Jackie’s grief and worry that she was shedding herself or her recollections of her dad and mom now that she was settling in at Silver Springs.
There have been just a few small hints, however not sufficient to make a coherent story, ensuing within the massive scenes about it after Halloween feeling like they got here out of nowhere.
OK, so Perhaps MLWTWB Didn’t Want TOO Many Further Episodes
If My Life With The Walter Boys had 15 or 20 episodes, it’s true sufficient that it may need been more durable to give you concepts for every episode relatively than together with filler materials.
Nevertheless, it might have additionally given the emotional core of the collection more room to breathe. It isn’t simply in regards to the love triangle, regardless that that’s an enormous a part of this present’s engine — that’s a part of a much bigger dialog about who Jackie is and the place she matches now that she’s an orphan.
Equally, we solely actually noticed Jackie’s Latina tradition when she and Richard memorialized her dad and mom.
In the course of the Halloween celebration, she was upset that somebody was sporting a dressing up that belonged to her tradition, however this side of her life wasn’t explored earlier than or after, so it once more appeared prefer it got here out of nowhere.
These are essential elements of Jackie’s story that deserve full exploration, however we didn’t get that probability as a result of the season was so quick.
Equally, her driving classes disappeared, then reappeared.
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Not all of those arcs had been all that essential (though Parker’s anger over Jackie’s departure after which her disappearing for the remainder of the season was annoying).
Nevertheless, even the larger arcs had some lacking plot factors due to the quick season.
I’m undecided why Jackie modified her thoughts about going to boarding college in Vermont, and the collection wasted an excessive amount of time on Alex’s anger throughout its quick season for the triangle to be as satisfying as they needed it to be.
Heartstopper Had Even Much less Time Due to Its Half-Hour Format
Heartstopper Season 3 was so extremely rushed that I’m glad the collection will wrap up with a film as an alternative of one other 10 episodes, once more demonstrating that the quick season format doesn’t work for each story or present.
The third season had certainly one of Heartstopper‘s most essential storylines: Charlie’s admission that he had an consuming dysfunction, the time he spent in a clinic getting assist, and his issue adjusting to life at house after his launch.
There was no actual strategy to inform that story in 4 hours’ value of TV and additionally do justice to Isaac’s asexuality, Elle’s battle to be an artist after experiencing transphobia, points between Darcy and Tara, and the older youngsters making ready to go to college.
In some methods, the season was good, however in others, it was rushed, with many tales falling by means of the cracks or not receiving the in-depth remedy they deserved.
Sadly, the Format Isn’t Altering Anytime Quickly
The Format is what it’s for streamers and received’t change any time quickly, however that’s a disgrace.
The great thing about streamed TV exhibits is that there’s extra freedom to inform tales that wouldn’t essentially air on broadcast TV.
Exhibits on streamers can tackle social points like racism or violence extra completely whereas nonetheless telling entertaining tales.
However when the writers don’t have any selection however to pack two or three seasons’ value of fabric into one quick season, it’s a colossal fail — even when the exhibits do nice work with the restricted time they’ve.
What do you suppose? Are exhibits like My Life with the Walter Boys too quick or simply proper?
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My Life with the Walter Boys Season 2 premiered on Netflix on August 28, 2025. The streamer renewed it for a ultimate season.
The ultimate Heartstopper film will premiere on Netflix in 2026.
Watch My Life with the Walter Boys On-line
Watch Heartstopper On-line
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The submit Too Brief to Shine: My Life with the Walter Boys & Heartstopper Show Why Streaming Wants Longer Seasons appeared first on TV Fanatic.