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During the pandemic, I finally bought a television.
Maybe you did too.
I ended up rarely turning on the TV.
I feared the TV.
Its called Pluto TV, and its the best streaming service youre not using.
(Unless you are, in which case, lets start some sort of fan club.)
Its, quite simply, the most frictionless experience in streaming today a no-commitment affair.
Thats the part that feels like it comes with a catch.
Its ad-supported, but commercials only add to the verisimilitude of the cable-adjacent experience.
And I, for one,welcomethose ad breaks during mySurvivor: Cook Islandsmarathons.
But reader, this content is anything but.
And because its owned by ViacomCBS, the bench of content runs deep.
Could you seek out any one of these shows individually on another streaming service?
But theres a joy to happening upon them mid-episode and riding them out.
To actively search for and hit play on season two ofANTMis a chore.
But to just happen across it?
There are plenty of comforting obscurities that lend themselves to background viewing, too.
Theres an entire channel dedicated just toTiny House Nation.
Another only has shows about wedding cakes and wedding dresses.
Do you know how many reality shows are made about backcountry fishing?
More than youd think.
(IsThe Queens Gambitactually any good, or is it just new and expensive?)
Pluto TV, on the other hand, has an entire channel devoted toNaruto.
Theres zero pressure to keep up with a constant rollout of new prestige series; Plutos just vibes.
( If music videos dont speak to your own personal MTV nostalgia, theres also an entireJersey Shorechannel).
Why more streamers dont have window-in-window we dont know.
There arent DVR or pause functions, but this just adds to the pre-TiVo nostalgia.
Why would a streaming service named after the cutest planet provide a platform for such malice?
Why would the warm nostalgic tide pool that is Pluto TV harsh our streaming experience like this?
How come, ViacomCBS?
I worry about the future of Pluto TV.
