[aerio]

I'm nearly 40, which is irrelevant except as to say that I fully remember "the time of ads", and I couldn't disagree more.

I don't think adblocking is a petty form of theft, I think it's prudent, as ads are often security risks - not to mention don't include proper privacy settings but still try to track you against your will. Which is illegal in my part (EU) of the world. I'll try to support in other ways if I think your content is worth it and you provide secondary ways to pay.

I don't see the nostalgia aspect either. Shows were only "designed for it" in such a way that they frequently take breaks from the plot to show ads,. I challenge you to point to any single show where frequent ad breaks actually made the show better.

If you feel like Netflix shows "drag out", that sounds like an attention span issue. The same episode is either much shorter without 30-40% more time being spent on ads, or it's the same air time and just has more actual episode.

[muzani]

Futurama is one examples. Ads usually kick in on a cliffhanger or to emphasize a punchline. This was a popular narrative technique back in the day. It might be why sitcoms worked fine for decades but never really carried over to the VOD era.

Not ads, but the best example of a dramatic interruption are the first two seasons of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, where the hero is screwed and then it cuts out into the Roundabout song. This is a lot less dramatic when you can just binge watch things and don't have to wait a week for the next.

Whereas Netflix shows tend to fill it with fluff, things like side drama, background stories, and redundant plot elements. I know I can skip the ad, but I don't really know if I can skip story details. I end up watching something like Squid Game on 2x speed.