The TVING snafu with "Returned Kids" – accidentally dropping the finale two episodes early – is more than just a technical blip. This ongoing crisis underscores a key dilemma in the industry’s streaming expansion. Even more recently, I’ve seen these same challenges crop up in the unregulated Wild West of blockchain technology. This case isn’t meant to shame TVING. Rather, it continues to be a cautionary tale from which to examine a bigger, more ominous pattern.
Speed Before Quality Always Backfires
Think about it. After all, streaming services are already in the middle of a desperate arms race for content. They need to feed the beast constantly. The treadmill to pump out new shows, new movies, new seasons — it’s huge. This creates a “move fast and break things” mentality. It is the manifestation of the Silicon Valley culture that has wrought this devastating destruction already in other industries like housing, healthcare, and education. All of this creates a chilling effect where the focus moves from thoughtful curation, detailed editing, and strong quality assurance practices. Rather, it’s becomes a race to the bottom. This competition values quantity of expression over quality of expression and, as we learn with “Returned Kids,” really just competently expressed ideas.
The result? A wave of mediocre work-for-hire content and sometimes epic flops like this one. We’re not discussing here a little unsharpness or continuity lapse. We’re not kidding when we say we’re recommending you release the climax before the second act!
Is Human Oversight Now Obsolete?
The “meta-matching problem” that TVING claimed as the reason? That's corporate-speak for "someone didn't double-check." In the golden age of television, several layers of human supervision — including the executive head of the agency giving the money away, Mr. A script supervisor. An editor. A network executive. Now? It seems like algorithms and automated systems are more and more making the decisions.
This feels eerily similar to the dawn of cryptocurrency days. We were all so focused on decentralization and removing intermediaries that we lost sight of the importance of regulation and oversight. The predictable result was rampant fraud, scams, heart-wrenching losses for everyday Americans. In both instances, the push for efficiency and disruption moved too fast for some common sense protections. Are we approaching a day of reckoning in the realm of streaming? Perhaps it is the constant deluge of uninvited spam that is pushing us in that direction.
Streaming's Algorithm Isn't Always Right
It's easy to blame TVING's technical error, but it highlights how many streaming platforms are now driven by algorithms. These algorithms should have an enormous influence on what we see, what gets promoted, and, in the end, what actually gets made. The key to the algorithm is not curating good content, but rather just finding whatever will keep us watching longest.
This can lead to some bizarre results. For example, the public controversy surrounding "Returned Kids" is multifaceted: Dex's acting is being critiqued, Lee Na-eun's casting is controversial due to her past, and the death of Song Young-kyu adds a somber note. Welcome to the edge, baby. These elements, coupled with the drama’s shady underbelly themes of abandonment and retribution make for a very high-stakes thrill ride. Yet, are these elements that we should be focusing on even being properly factored in by content recommendation algorithms? Or instead, are they just promoting their shows according to very shallow metrics such as watch time and completion rate?
This isn't just about entertainment. It’s about access, about culture, about the stories that define and inform our perception of the world. When moving algorithms into the positions of gatekeepers, we lose nuance, depth, and critical thought that human curation cannot replace. In the end, it’s the consumer who pays the price.
Here's the truth: We, as viewers, need to demand better. To do that, we need to reject the incessant wave of throwaway content and insist on quality over quantity. It’s an opportunity to uplift creators who will choose a focus on artistry and storytelling first, and worry about algorithms and data second.
We do pay a premium for these streaming services. In the end. Guys, isn’t it about time we start insisting on that premium experience, without the risk of accidental spoilers?
