Pandora’s Box. By Peter Biskind. William Morrow; 400 pages; $32.50. Allen Lane; £25 You Are What You Watch. By Walt Hickey. Workman; 240 pages; $30 and £25 “Shh, it’s ok,” whispers Frank Underwood , as he strokes an injured dog just hit by a car. As the dog whimpers, he soothes it—then, after looking the viewer directly in the eye, wrings its neck. Not so long ago this scene, which launched Netflix’s “House of Cards” in 2013, would have been unshowable on American television.
Six months of strikes by writers and actors have halted production this year. Even before that, studios were preparing to cut back, as investors began to demand evidence of profits rather than just subscriber growth. In America more than 2,000 original series were released last year . This will probably be the high-water mark, believes John Landgraf, chairman of the FX cable network. The upcoming season As the quantity of new shows falls, some believe the quality is diminishing, too.