Narcos

Anyone watching the first season of Netflix’s Narcos had to wonder how far Season 1 would get into the story of Pablo Escobar without brushing up against his inevitable end, and it looks like Season 2 isn’t backing away from that date with destiny. Not only does the new season have a 2016 premiere, but our first teaser promises that Escobar has an expiration date.

Streaming markets are still evolving, between features available, tiered subscriptions, pricing and more, and Netflix, granddaddy of them all, will soon up their prices without a majority of customers realizing. Say goodbye to those grandfathered into the Standard Netflix subscription, as you’ll be forking over an additional $2.00 each month without realizing.

Pop culture has long made use of gang drama in prison storytelling, though Netflix Narcos producer José Padilha aims to explore its American origins. The prior Robocop director has partnered with The Messenger scribe Alessandro Camon for new Showtime event series The Brand, tracing the rise of prison gangs, especially the Aryan Brotherhood.

Netflix has made no secret of how secret they keep any sort of “ratings” data for their original programming, a constant source of frustration to networks still under the Nielsen model, itself no longer a valid measurement of a given show’s audience. Now, NBC claims to have gotten a bit of payback, utilizing some unique approaches to measure Netflix’s overall viewers, and suggesting it on par with broadcast.

The 2016 Golden Globes have been nothing if not consistent with surprises, and following all the unexpected Mozart in the Jungle love, the Best TV Drama went far more reasonably. USA breakout Mr. Robot is your new winner for 2016's Best TV drama, and deservedly so.

Netflix’s Colombian drug trade drama Narcos proved a slow-but-steady hit, recently garnering itself a Golden Globe nomination for Pablo Escobar portrayer Wagner Moura, but behind-the-scenes has proven a bit shaky. Following the loss of one showrunner, the second has now stepped down in advance of Season 2.

You’ve likely heard the term “Peak TV” floating around of late, expressing the exhaustive amount of must-see series floating around on every platform these days, and Netflix in particular. They’re certainly not going to make it any easier for you either, as Netflix plans 31 original series premieres in 2016, up from this year’s 16.

Anyone who partook of Netflix’s drug-trafficking drama Narcos this past weekend knows how deeply into the world of Columbia’s cocaine trade and Pablo Escobar’s history ten episodes could go, but there’s plenty more to go around. Netflix has officially ordered a second season, albeit with a bit of creative change at the top.

In the summer of 2013, my wife and I watched the first season of Orange Is the New Black in seven days. In the summer of 2014, we watched the second season of Orange Is the New Black in eight days. This summer, we watched the third season of Orange Is the New Black.

Netflix hasn’t had very much luck launching original dramas since its initial breakout successes, though a little excess might just put José Padilha’s Narcos over the top. Money flies in every direction for the series based on the legendary Pablo Escobar’s drug empire, as Pedro Pascal proves himself ever the Casanova.