I've never paid for live television, and Sling TV wasn't changing my mind. The $20-a-month app that streams live TV on the internet just didn't have anything that interested me. But then, a bombshell: AMC is coming to Sling TV too. The Walking Dead. Mad Men. Better Call Saul. I could watch them when my friends do.
It's not like I'm not watching those shows, mind you. I'm completely caught up with Walking Dead and I'll probably watch the second half of the Better Call Saul series premiere later this evening. But I wouldn't exactly say I get those programs legally. Or soon enough to be part of the conversation. Many of my friends and relatives and Twitter followers watch 'em live and share in the social experience. Not only do I miss out on that, my wife and I need to keep a sharp eye out for nasty spoilers. (Who died from a walker bite? Oh, shit.)
When we were watching Glee a couple years back (go ahead, make fun), she had to watch it live, and we tried our best to make our feeble antenna catch a Fox over-the-air signal. It was a nightmare that often ended in brightly colored bands of digital noise ripping across Sue Sylvester's hilarious fits of rage. With The Walking Dead and Game of Thrones, at least, we were smart enough to pirate right away.
But we don't want to be pirates. We're happy to pay. (As long as we're not paying for some ridiculous cable service, anyways.) We pay for Netflix, Hulu Plus, and Amazon Prime, and that means we binge on our favorite TV shows days, weeks, or months late. It's fun... but it's not quite the same. But now, for the first time in memory, there's a sensible way to pay for shows we'd actually sit down to watch at a scheduled time of day.
The cherry on top? BBC America is also included in the Sling TV deal. Which could mean that when Doctor Who, Sherlock, Broadchurch, and Orphan Black have new episodes, we'll be following right along. (We've been on a bit of a Brit TV binge as of late.) BBC World News, IFC, and SundanceTV sound like nice additions too. It looks like only standard AMC is included in the basic $20-a-month Sling TV package, though.
I don't know for sure if we'll actually enjoy the live TV experience. It's been so long since I've actually tried. But I'm definitely going to give it a go now that someone's giving me a reasonable amount of what I actually want from TV for a reasonable price.
I just hope AMC and BBC America arrive on Sling TV soon. The press release doesn't say when. I'd really like to watch Saul Goodman scam some crooks on my own dime for a change.