Netflix's Solution For Opening Credits Getting In The Way Of Your Bingewatching
Don't have time for a minute or two of opening credits while devouring a show on Netflix? Then hit the newly added skip intro button. You can now more easily – although it was easy in the first place – skip past some (pretty terrific) opening credits sequences on Netflix. Let's take a closer look at Netflix's new skip intro option.
Netflix has been testing this new feature for over a month now. Only recently did more people catch on when the "skip intro" button appeared on the critically reviled Iron Fist. The option is in the bottom right corner of the screen, above the time mark.
"Skip intro" doesn't appear until after the first episode of a Netflix series, so at least Netflix's users will watch the opening credits sequence (hopefully) at least once, unless of course, they choose to skip over it themselves. As for when there's a cold opening, like when House of Cards' Frank Underwood (Kevin Spacey) breaks the fourth wall to tell audiences what he loves or despises about the world, the skip intro button intro won't appear until the actual credits begin.
The new Netflix feature doesn't appear in any apps, only when you're watching a series on your browser. You can skip intros for shows not produced by Netflix as well. If for some reason you don't have the desire to watch the falling man for the 100th time in Mad Men, then you can skip past it, even when you start episode one. While that feels like it'd take away a little something from the show, however people want to watch something is up to them.
The Upside and the Downside
A part of the Netflix experience is binge-watching. By quickly skipping the intro, it will allows viewers to barrel through episodes at a slightly faster rate, especially if they aren't jumping past the opening credits already. They were probably already well-aware of how to do that before Netflix installed the skip intro scene, but on the upside, perhaps it'll give them a chance not to skip ahead too far.
Considering how pivotal they can feel to the overall experience of an episode, this news comes as a bit of a shame. When an opening credits sequence is truly good, it can ease viewers into a new episode, or raise their excitement going into one. They can set the mood while also giving credit where credit is due, explaining who actually made the show you're about to watch.
At the end of the day, the people who tend to ignore the opening title credits will continue to do so, while the viewers who don't will likely keep watching the opening credits. There's no harm in a skip intro button. It's just a very minor disappointment Netflix, a company collaborating with some great talent, worked on a feature allowing customers to skip past the names of the people who actually made these show.