Amazing Stories shows the flaws with episodic anthology series

The Ringer

The problem is that episodic anthologies "turns every episode into a pilot," says Alison Herman of Steven Spielberg's Apple TV+ series. "What the episodic anthology ultimately does is makes TV less like TV. That can pay dividends, gaining flexibility and scope; it can also present insurmountable challenges, losing more fully developed characters and extended plot. More than a century of feature film proves it’s not impossible to craft detailed portraits or tell satisfying stories in 90 minutes or less, but episodic anthologies still have to deliver the volume that can make TV a heavier lift than a movie, spinning multiple yarns instead of concentrating its resources on just one. It sacrifices many of TV’s perks while retaining its inherent difficulty."