Are Good TV Shows better than Movies?

I think movies tend to be more developed that TV series. Yes series are longer so you have more content, but it's quantity over quality. They don't spend as much time working on it before releasing it. They write shows as they make them, and their schedule limits the extent at which they can develop the final product. Movies also tend to have way better acting and deeper more complex plots. Then there is also the problem of what is allowed to air on TV. Film subject matter can be as brutal as the director/writer desires and banned in most countries.

I'm pretty much the same way, though a great series can hold my attention every bit as long as a good film. I don't watch much actual television other than news, I buy series because I'm not a fan for waiting around a whole week to find out whatever.


I drink quite a bit, too. Every night tbo, and I'll watch a movie as I'm getting ready for bed. Other than sex, a smoke or a bloody steak, 3 stiff drinks and good movie is very difficult to beat imo. I mentioned great television as akin to good movies, with the series Hannibal in mind. I don't mean to turn my post into a discussion about Hannibal, it's just a reference point.

It's funny that you mention Hannibal, because that is one tv series that I do actually pay full attention to. At least the first time I watch the episode.

from what i've seen of hannibal (one s2 ep), it's got better photography than most films

There are good movies and good TV shows, bad movies and bad TV shows.

Though I think that overall I like both equally, given the thing that I list at number 1 in my favorites film list is a TV show edited into a movie. Movies have higher quality direction and writing per minute while TV shows allow for greater depth of plot and character. One main problem of TV shows it's their tendency to become episodic and lose it's potential depth. Stuff like Family Guy and Two and Half Men is extremely mediocre but there are great TV shows even in English.

Today the output of TV is superior to cinema given it's a newer medium that's attracting more talent in both sides of the Atlantic. In Brazil, most talent is focused on TV shows, though our soup operas tend to run a bit overlong and exhaust themselves in their hundreds of repetitive episodes. But in historical terms, cinema still has more masterpieces. In terms of animation though, most great animation consist of TV shows of 12-26 episodes that air at late night (while there are many great animated films (most by Miyazaki), there are about 10 times more hours of great anime series than movies).

One thing I will mention is that I think it's harder for a TV series to be successful - generally you need the standard to be high for many episodes and several series, whereas a film is only a couple of hours long. A TV show needs to be sustainable, if that makes sense, for a decent length of time.