The Argento Family Takes Over Streaming
The world of streaming has been buzzing for the past two weeks with the arrival of the complete collection of Married with Children on Netflix. All 211 episodes of the popular sitcom, which premiered on Telefe on April 12, 2005, are now available in the red “N” catalog, and predictably, this novelty immediately climbed to the top of the Top 10 series that the platform itself includes in a very prominent place on its home page.
Despite Netflix’s refusal to share home consumption data of their contents, the popularity of Married with Children is undeniable. The Argentinean sitcom may have started off slow, but it began to soar in the audience ratings thanks to its first repetitions. A social phenomenon arose beyond television, whereby people celebrated the humorous antics of the Argento family, which mirrored certain stereotyped behaviors of the Argentinean society.
Streaming works ideally to deepen and extend a late-audience phenomenon like that of Married with Children even further in time. It gives viewers the option of accessing the entire official series history at once, allowing them to tailor their viewing plan to their liking. This contrasts with Telefe’s chaotic programming strategy, where Married with Children was used as a patch to cover gaps and fill in prime-time spots.
Netflix’s astute catalog division of Married with Children into five “seasons” of different lengths is an incentive for viewers to build marathons. By following the original assembly that Telefe used in 2005, viewers would lose interest. The production of such classic series is proof of the public’s interest in rediscovering the complete seasons of vintage foreign series such as Los Locos Addams, Gilligan’s Island, Bewitched, Super Agent 86, My Fair Genie, Combat, The Saint, Thief Without Destiny, and others to watch them à la carte, without advertising and without depending on fixed schedules.
Married with Children stands out, as it is now available both on streaming and in a recent theatrical version that ran for 95 performances over two months (from January to March) at the Gran Rex, where almost 195,000 people attended. The show’s success continues with a string of performances scheduled for Córdoba, with almost all shows sold out, despite Luisana Lopilato not participating.
In conclusion, Married with Children has continued to generate a phenomenon in its various forms of production and distribution over time, making it a topic of conversation for a long time, beyond streaming.
