As the youngest person in the office, I have subjected myself to the self-imposed burden of needing to be on top of all trends. Push notifications for the TMZ app? Check. Scrolling through Twitter for an indefinite amount of time? Check. Drinking turmeric and CBD water? Check and check! While I often succeed thanks to my phone addiction, there are many times I just don’t know what is going on — unable to partake in the conversations amongst coworkers about the latest Netflix drop or true-crime podcast. But the topic that is now brought up at an alarming rate is “Game of Thrones.” The show, which has managed to infiltrate every single dinner party I have gone to, causes politeness to go out the window, for it is your fault that you do not watch — and everyone talks about the show for roughly 45 minutes at a time.
Courtesy will not be extended to those who chose a life of social isolation.
As I scroll through the countless watch parties on my feed, I feel a sense of seclusion, as though I am the lone survivor of a plague that wiped out everyone near me. (I am told by my editor this is a very GOT statement).
I have managed to piece together that the show has something to do with a red wedding, dragons, incest, and someone named Arya having sex for the first time. Every week, I contemplate what would happen if I took some time off work to binge-watch. According to bingeclock.com, (a concerning website if you ask me), it would take two days, 20 hours and 15 minutes to watch every episode. “Game of Thrones” also ranks as the number one most popular binged watch on their site.
I asked a friend (my best friend’s boyfriend’s roommate, to be exact) — who is more passionate about this subject — his thoughts on the matter, to which he responded with a think piece:
“The obvious is that you feel excluded, ousted out of some club that you were a part of already (your friend circle). Since you can’t relate to one thing, you’re excluded from parties and cast aside in the group chats and aren’t laughing along with the memes.
I think social media has made watching these shows great but has also ruined it altogether. We need an instant analysis, a joke, theory and the next drinking game. I don’t even care for the show, but now I feel like I need to see it — similar to the new “Avengers” movie. If you didn’t go at midnight then tough luck, look at my snap of the opening credits, while you lie in bed discrediting everything you have accomplished or done that day.
I decided to binge the series, so I could have a piece of this proverbial pie … and then here I am watching recaps of the first two seasons I’ve already seen and downloading season three… only to realize I don’t even like pie.
So, at what cost do we continue to put ourselves through something we don’t enjoy just so we can feel included? I was scrolling through my Instagram story and Twitter timeline and people are just posting things to let everyone know that they were there at that moment, whether they liked it or not, whether it was good or not … I don’t think this is some huge cultural moment for our times (I think we have too many moments now to have anything really matter). So for my fellow non-watchers, if you don’t enjoy it, it’s okay, just catch the next moment in this world of fleeting moments — or don’t. Because remember they are for you … I don’t know when the shift of enjoying and completing your own experience had to come with announcing and letting others know they’re not in on it.”
Clearly, I am not the only one who does not enjoy feeling left out from this cultural zeitgeist, and I am anxiously counting down the days until the series’ finale. Only 21 more days left until I get my friends back. That is until the prequel series begins. Curse you, HBO!!!!!
We only recommend products we have independently researched, tested, and loved. If you purchase a product found through our links, Sunday Edit may earn an affiliate commission.
