While there have been network TV shows that are able to tackle ambitious sci-fi plots, they can run into structural issues and limitations due to the nature of their schedules. Some high-concept premises need momentum to keep their story forging ahead, which is often better suited to a streaming platform that will release multi-episode batches, or an entire season at once. While weekly broadcasts were once able to sustain a high-concept show like La Brea, the modern disconnect has become clear in the past several years as shows like the three-season NBC series have struggled to hold viewer attention week-to-week.
La Brea, which ran from 2021 through 2024, features a sci-fi story that works well throughout the series’ run. Following the survivors of a natural disaster, the characters at the center of La Brea are left behind after a sinkhole opens in the middle of Los Angeles, at the site of the La Brea tar pits. The series ventures from a disaster show into full sci-fi territory when it becomes clear that the sinkholes appearing all over the US are actually spacetime portals, all leading back to 10,000 BC. With primeval creatures roaming free, La Brea expands its mythology throughout.
While La Brea came to a close in 2024 after 3 seasons, the show will be hitting Netflix this May, which could breathe new life into the series. With the ability to binge-watch, a whole new audience could see the NBC series function as it was meant to originally.
La Brea Is Better Suited For Binge-Watching On Streaming
Although La Brea’s original run on NBC left some viewers struggling to keep up with the intense plots, the show hitting Netflix could give it the attention it deserves. La Brea’s premise, which hinges on a complete suspension of disbelief, demands a higher level of attention than most viewers are able to give for an hour each week. Pulling viewers into a pre-historic world takes dedication, and as the show unfolded through different timelines and interconnected character arcs, many likely struggled to keep up with La Brea’s twists and turns on a weekly schedule.
The intensive type of storytelling La Brea does is better suited for binge-watching, with viewers having the ability to move through multiple episodes in one sitting. Rather than the story expanding over the course of months with viewers struggling to remember key details, Netflix’s La Brea drop will allow viewers to engage with the story quickly, keeping those necessary details in mind as they continue to watch.
La Brea’s mystery is easier to work through within the scope of a binge, and the drama it builds is more palatable in a larger dose. Viewers won’t have to wait for resolutions for weeks or months watching in a different setting, which will allow La Brea to reframe itself as a more cohesive narrative than it felt like on a weekly schedule.
Netflix Can Give La Brea The Attention The Sci-Fi Show Deserves
As La Brea continued on NBC, it was clear that the show’s styles were blending in a way that was more confusing to viewers than cohesive. A sci-fi story, a mystery, and a pre-historic show all at once, La Brea struggled to define itself in the more rigid ways that network shows have to in order to sell themselves to casual viewers. Rather than be stuck in one genre, however, La Brea’s full scope will be easier to understand on Netflix.
As a genre show, La Brea is a sci-fi/fantasy series that has elements of mystery. On a platform like Netflix, where viewers can binge through all three seasons in quick succession, this matters less than in a network setting, where more rides on how a show is categorized. Netflix’s global audience is likely to be a benefit for La Brea, as well, exposing the show to a larger audience.
La Brea’s arrival on Netflix this May is likely to bring the show to a wider audience, showing off its strengths in a whole new way.
- Release Date
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2021 – 2024-00-00
- Directors
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Adam Davidson, Cherie Nowlan, Thor Freudenthal, David Barrett, Ron Underwood, Greg McLean, Nick Gomez, Rose Troche, Christine Moore, Tara Miele
