Financial Times: Economic and Industrial Temporalities in Netflix’s Arrested Development

Abstract

Arrested Development occupies an important place in twenty-first-century American television culture, both because of its peculiar positioning as a "before" and "after" snapshot of the housing crisis, and because its experimental revival (Netflix's first) occasioned a similar set of obstacles to those that plagued the original series. As a representation of and an instance of the financialization of domestic space, this series about the failures of a wealthy family itself courts failure as a complex and innovative television narrative.

Netflix's Strategies, Innovations, and Challenges in Shaping the Future of Television Media

“…One of the strategies of Netflix is that it has implement global expansion through a series of tactics and actions. Lobato and Lotz [2] show that firstly Netflix produces original content in different countries and regions to cater to the tastes and cultures of the local viewers, collaborating with local producers, directors, and actors to produce TV series, films, and documentaries that are tailored to the local market. Secondly, to cater to global audiences, Netflix provides multi-language support and subtitle options so that viewers can watch content in their own familiar languages.…”

“…There was a lot of debate about the television release. Leyda [9] pointed out that the complicated, non-linear plot structure used in Netflix's Arrested Development revival left fans perplexed and unable to follow the show while they watched it. In contrast, other Netflix programs have a mechanism that suggests the next episode be played automatically.…”

Cobra Kai Never Dies! Generational seriality and revived legacies of The Karate Kid

“…On the most basic level, it is one product among Netflix's staggering portfolio of original output: in 2019, the platform's annual content volume reached 371 releases (Bridge, 2019). Although the show is not a reboot per se—as it derives from works existing in the medium of film, and not television — it can be situated next to a string of derivative programs such as Dallas (2012–2014), Twinpeaks: The Return (2017), Star Trek: Discovery (2017–present), Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life (2016), and the rejuvenated, tenth season of The X Files (2016) (Adalian, 2015; Leyda, 2018: p. 349).…”

“…Julia Leyda (2018: p. 352) suggests that all forms of “media continuations,” whether it is a revival or a spin‐off, “share certain common dynamics, particularly regarding the management of expectations.” It is no coincidence that Netflix, as Kathleen Loock (2018a: p. 305) poignantly observes, “emerged as the driving force of the revival trend.” The rapid rise of streamers and the consequent upsurge of scripted programming are important factors behind these high‐profile resurrections. The number of scripted series in the United States has grown from approximately 409 in 2015 to a total of 532 in the following 4 years (Koblin, 2020).…”

Critical Interpretations of Global-Local Co-Productions in Subscription Video-on-Demand Platforms: A Case Study of Netflix’s YG Future Strategy Office

“…Considering these conglomerates already have both exclusive distribution rights of a variety of successful television series and films and the capacity to produce original series in collaboration with subsidiary studios, their entries threaten OTT service providers. In response, Netflix and Amazon began to produce in-house original content and employed various interface devices to allow audiences to binge-watch their content (Leyda 2018). Netflix notably has invested in the production of numerous television series, s from the political drama House of Cards (2013) and a comedy series Orange Is the New Black (2013) to the fantasy series The Witcher (2019) and teen drama Blood Water (2020), which are streamed on the platform exclusively under the distribution title N series, previously known as Netflix Original Series.…”