Funny you say that, because that was what I wrote in the first draft! Kevin Spacey's personal issues definitely brought down the stature of that show, but it was incredibly important for a burgeoning Netflix. I think Stranger Things has taken the crown—52 billion minutes watched in 2022 and that doesn't even include merchandise sales...
So then how do you define "flagship"? Netflix was arguably the only streaming service producing original content that drew in subscribers for a while before Stranger Things was released (i.e. House of Cards, Black Mirror, Orange is the New Black).
I'm defining it as most important or driving the most subscriptions. When that initial slate rolled out in 2013-14, Netflix still had a lot of licensed material. There's an argument to be had that The Office was the most important piece of IP on Netflix, until Stranger Things eclipsed it. Flagship shows can change over time and don't necessarily have to be the first thing they produced. HBO has had The Sopranos, The Wire, Game of Thrones...there's also not one definition, but I think 4 out of 5 people would say Stranger Things when asked to name the "biggest" Netflix original.
I always thought of House of Cards as being Netflix's flagship show!
Funny you say that, because that was what I wrote in the first draft! Kevin Spacey's personal issues definitely brought down the stature of that show, but it was incredibly important for a burgeoning Netflix. I think Stranger Things has taken the crown—52 billion minutes watched in 2022 and that doesn't even include merchandise sales...
So then how do you define "flagship"? Netflix was arguably the only streaming service producing original content that drew in subscribers for a while before Stranger Things was released (i.e. House of Cards, Black Mirror, Orange is the New Black).
I'm defining it as most important or driving the most subscriptions. When that initial slate rolled out in 2013-14, Netflix still had a lot of licensed material. There's an argument to be had that The Office was the most important piece of IP on Netflix, until Stranger Things eclipsed it. Flagship shows can change over time and don't necessarily have to be the first thing they produced. HBO has had The Sopranos, The Wire, Game of Thrones...there's also not one definition, but I think 4 out of 5 people would say Stranger Things when asked to name the "biggest" Netflix original.