Why does every thriller have to drag out the villain reveal for 8 episodes

I just finished a new show on Prime and the killer was obvious from episode 2, but they kept feeding red herrings until the finale. I counted 6 fake clues about the neighbor, the boss, even the dog walker. It felt like they stretched 3 episodes of story into 10 just to hit a binge quota. Has anyone else quit a series halfway because the pacing was slower than a traffic jam on I-95?

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garcia.tyler3d ago

Honestly I gotta push back on this. That "binge quota" thing is exactly why shows feel rushed these days. When a killer is revealed by episode 2, people complain the show is predictable. When a show takes its time, people complain it's dragging. You can't win. And those "fake clues" you counted? They're not filler, they're the point. Real life is full of wrong turns and dead ends. If every show just handed you the answer in episode 3, there'd be nothing to chew on during the week. Plus, that slow burn makes the payoff hit way harder. I watched a crime drama last month where the reveal came at episode 9, and honestly the neighbor backstory from episode 4 made me rewatch the whole thing with new eyes. That's not wasted time, that's craft.