Month: November 2025

Who’s been streaming this rich docudrama? 
We’re seeing an audience composed mostly of men (61%) and those 30+ (80%), a viewership profile similar to many other male-heavy dramas–both fictional and non–about American history (Turn: Washington’s Spies, The Good Lord Bird, Deadwood, Gaslit). In contrast, US historical series with more prominent female characters (The First Lady, The Gilded Age) tend to lean more toward women, while war epics (Band of Brothers, The Pacific, Masters of the Air) are even more prominently favored by men.

How important is the historical aspect of the story? 
Not as important as expected. Similar shows ripped from the annals of history tend to have key ratings drivers explicitly related to their real-world connection: Based on Historical Events (142, Band of Brothers); Based on a True Story (131; The First Lady), American History (117, Boardwalk Empire). Instead, Death by Lightning’s main pull is its in-world tension, from the political Power Struggles (145) as Garfield clinches the presidency, to the myriad challenges to his Leadership (127), to the Murder Violence (132)-driven Tragic Event (136) at the series’ core. Audiences are tuning in to see the swirling political and psychological drama that unfolds, and to watch both Garfield and his unhinged assassin pursue Power (136) and Social Status (136).

What type of viewing experience are audiences lining up for? 
A rough Emotional Roller Coaster (125). The show follows the ups and downs of both President Garfield as he pursues idealistic aims–civil rights, anti-corruption, education–and his soon-to-be murderer Charles J. Guiteau as he fails in his attempts to join Garfield’s inner circle. A frustrated office-seeker believing himself entitled to power, Guiteau’s mental state deteriorates as he’s denied access to the president, flashing through a host of wildly-swinging emotions: Terror (136), Contempt (136), Remorse (133), Rage (131), Loathing (127), Admiration (124), and even Optimism (124). Viewers are leaning in to witness the chaotic and ultimately combustible emotional link between the two.

Does Death by Lightning also offer international appeal? 
Absolutely, though the key drivers are a bit different. As in America, Garfield’s impending assassination (Tragic Event) is a crucial ratings propeller for global audiences, particularly pulling in the UK (133), South Korea (148), and Japan (135). However, Garfield’s Political Life–his policies, his career, and the broader trends of the era–carries notably more weight abroad than it does in the US, perhaps because viewers are more curious about a government that’s not their own. Australia (133), Brazil (121), Canada (127), New Zealand (157), and Mexico (139) are especially interested in the latter driver.

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Who’s tuning in for this twisted new thriller? 
We’re seeing an audience that leans toward men (56%) and is heavily aged 35+ (77%), placing the show squarely in the Apple TV sweet spot for the genre. The streamer boasts a number of similarly high-concept, dark-edged, sci-fi-tinged shows–including Severance, Hello Tomorrow!, Dark Matter, Silo, Invasion, and Foundation–and these series attract a very similar viewership profile.

What is Pluribus’ biggest selling point? 
Its tone. The show’s top three viewership drivers highlight its dark, irreverent sense of Twisted Humor (135), the sharp barbs it aims at modern social trends (conformity, toxic positivity, the lure of A.I.) (Social Satire, 131), and the deep reservoir of deep Cynicism (128) embodied by its prickly protagonist Carol. This wry, subversive tone hooks viewers and drives engagement, setting up an effective contrast with the overwhelmingly upbeat goodwill emanating from the rest of Carol’s world.

Why else are viewers tuning in? 
To follow Carol’s emotional journey. As the lone unhappy, misanthropic Fish Out of Water (123) within a vast sea of positivity, she sets off on a Road Trip Adventure (124) to gauge the extent of the bliss-causing pandemic and look for ways to reverse its effects. With her emotional outbursts seemingly the last weapon against the world’s unceasingly joyful hive mind, audiences are leaning in for her deep Emotional Turmoil (121), which swings wildly between feelings like Annoyance (126), Amazement (123), Optimism (122), Contempt (122), Anger (114), and Remorse (114).

What will be important as the show goes into Season 2? 
The wider world. With Season 1 introducing a World Turned Upside Down (125) and an unchecked Outbreak (126) of collective bliss, the show leaves plenty of room for future seasons to ramp up the story engine and explore the broader implications. The central tension ahead: Is Carol resisting forced happiness or proving misery loves company? Audiences are poised to return to see how the show grapples with this and other questions

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What does I Love LA have in common with other shows in this genre? 
Its examination of young adulthood. Like its predecessors, I Love LA explores what it’s like to be a self assured-yet-bewildered 20-something struggling to gain purchase in a challenging city, and it focuses on similar coming-of-age storylines around Friendship Conflicts (125), Overcoming Adversity (110), and Bettering Oneself (123). Protagonist Maia and her crew are reminiscent of the lead characters in shows like Insecure, The Bold Type, Adults, and Girls–the Millennial standardbearer for this subgenre–where their Friendships (111), breakdowns (Emotions Running High, 113), and working life struggles create a series of relatable (if heightened) scenarios for viewers of all ages.

What’s making I Love LA stand out? 
Its sharp, offbeat sense of humor. Where I Love LA sets itself apart is its tone, which is much more broadly comedic than most other entrants in this subgenre. The show also dives directly into a very modern phenomenon–the world of social media influencers–as it follows Maia’s attempts to become a talent manager for a wildly impulsive childhood friend who found online success. The Awkward Misadventures (160) and Awkward & Funny Moments (140) of Maia and her friends, along with the show’s wonderful sense of Cultural Diversity (132), place it more on par with the recent Gen Z-based Adults than earlier generations’ iterations of this storyline, which often depended instead on tension, drama, and rocky relationships. The comedic elements that make the show feel so unique are also its top viewership drivers and propel all four of its key components: ratings, bingeability, longevity, and social buzz.

Could such a US-specific show find success internationally? 
Definitely. Though humor is largely cultural, the hilarious Awkward Misadventures at the center of I Love LA do carry global possibility, with the driver showing an “outstanding” level of potential in markets as varied as the UK (160), Brazil (143), and South Korea (159). Though the show is inextricably tied to Los Angeles in name and setting, viewers everywhere can still identify with its universal themes of coming-of-age goofiness and social media-based madness.

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Who’s been adding this new dramedy to their queue? 
We’re seeing an audience that is gender balanced (52% men), and is mostly aged 35+ (74%). This profile is more male and older than other teen coming-of-age stories that wrestle with identity and transformation (e.g., Love Victor, Sex Education, Atypical, Heartstopper, 13 Reasons Why, It’s a Sin, Euphoria), which tend to skew much more toward women (59-77%) and often to those under 35.

Why have so many viewers been tuning in? 
For the best friend bond at its center. Boots focuses on sensitive teen Cameron (Fish Out of Water, 138) and his military-minded best friend Ray, who jointly decide to enlist in the Marines after high school graduation. Shipped off to the grueling world of boot camp, the pair join the newest batch of motley recruits and quickly learn that it’s sink or swim among the uber-disciplined world of basic training and its physical and mental gauntlets. Using humor to survive the harshness (Buddy Comedy, 145), the pair overcome challenges both to their friendship and their senses of self as their seemingly brutal experiences mold them into the men they will ultimately become (Coming of Age, 160). Audiences are watching for the show’s thoughtful, nuanced portrayal of Male Friendship (130) and how it morphs as boys grow up.

What’s making this series so bingeworthy? 
Cameron’s unique POV. Cameron is gay, and Boots takes place three years before the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy, when being outed within your unit meant immediate discharge and abject disgrace. Though he knew the risks, he still enlisted hoping the Marines would offer a new direction for his life, but as he survives each new day of boot camp, he realizes just how hard it is to conceal such an essential piece of his identity from the men that surround him every second of every day. Cameron’s role as an LGBTQIA+ Protagonist (142) deepens and enriches his story and makes audiences lean forward to see how things will ultimately turn out for this conflicted young man.

What will help push Boots to a second season? 
The setting. The show’s 1990s (128) time period and military milieu–both on and off the battlefield (Military Operation,122)–offer a rich vein to be mined for future seasons’ storytelling and could easily incorporate new storylines for Cameron, Ray, and the rest of their unit. Additionally, unlike with Boots, military-related themes tend to be paired with action-forward drivers like Battle Action, Criminal Investigation, and Espionage; the fact that Boots’ Marine component is instead paired with a touching coming-of-age story will continue to make this show stand out as unique.

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