First of all, I want to say that I’m starting something new on my blog to add more personality to it. I’m going to try to write more personal blog posts and share my opinions on different topics. This time, it’s all about physical media.

Physical media includes VHS tapes, DVDs, CDs, magazines, and books. But my favorite types of physical media are DVDs and CDs.

Streaming versus Physical Media

When I was growing up, we still had VHS tapes and later moved on to DVDs. I loved going to the store and renting a DVD for the holidays. It was something we did every single year. Everyone could pick one or two movies, and then we would watch them together. I loved it. It was exciting.

Then, eventually, illegal downloads became a thing, and slowly streaming became more popular. These days, streaming is huge. When it was still up-and-coming, I was pretty excited because I thought it meant having easier access to a lot of movies and music. I mean, I’m even listening to Spotify right now while writing this (without a subscription).

But over the last couple of years, I have become more critical of streaming services. First of all, there are so many platforms, and it can feel overwhelming. If you want a subscription to all of them, you have to pay a lot of money every single month. I have only had Netflix, for the record, but even with Netflix, I have my issues.

When you want to watch a certain movie, it’s possible that it isn’t available on the platform at that moment. They can also remove certain titles whenever they want. You are paying to use the platform, but you don’t actually own anything.

The other day, I read the news about Sony and their decision to stop producing physical media. Everything will become digital, and they also removed a lot of movie titles. I even heard that, even though you paid for a certain movie, it could be removed and become unavailable. Paying for something digitally basically means that you still don’t own it.

With physical media, it’s completely different because you pay for it and then own it for the rest of your life. They can’t take it away from you. That is why physical media is top-tier. And that is why I started my physical media collection, which includes DVDs and CDs.

Physical Media is Fun

Remember when I said that I loved going to the store and finding a DVD to watch? Well, I get that same feeling again from buying and owning DVDs. Streaming movies was cool at first, but now it doesn’t excite me anymore. Physical media is more fun because you can actually hold it, look at it, and it’s so much fun to add more items to your collection.

I love going to thrift stores and finding something special. The other day, I went to a thrift store and found a lot of amazing DVDs that I love. (You can watch my physical media haul down below.) Sure, sometimes you don’t find anything at all, but when you do find something, it feels amazing.

Plus, if I want to listen to music right now, I just have to turn on my CD player, and that’s it. I don’t have to use my phone or laptop to play music anymore, which is great since I’m trying to reduce my screen time. And there are so many reasons to go back to physical media.

How do you feel about physical media? Or do you still prefer streaming services?

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I was born in the ’90s, which means I grew up with VHS tapes and later DVDs and CDs. But as I got older, Netflix suddenly appeared, and not long after that, many other streaming services followed.

Now there are so many streaming platforms to choose from, and honestly, it can feel overwhelming. Even when it comes to music, there are multiple streaming services available.

But while we’re living in this streaming era, I’ve decided I’ve had enough. Today, I’m going to explain why I’m going back to physical media—and I know I’m not the only one. You can find countless videos on TikTok, YouTube, and even discussions on Reddit where people say they’re making the same choice.

Why I Am Going Back To Physical Media

1. Nostalgia
   I grew up in the ’90s, and I loved having a VHS collection of my favorite Disney movies. It was amazing. I remember inviting my friends over to watch movies together. I also remember how much I enjoyed going to stores and browsing through movies and CDs. Most of those stores have disappeared, which makes me sad. I think we only have one or two places left where you can buy vinyl records and CDs. But back in the day, there were so many stores where you could find new DVDs and CDs. I really miss that era. So yes, part of the reason I want to go back to physical media is nostalgia.
   
2. You pay, but you don’t own anything
   When you have a subscription to a streaming service, you pay a monthly fee to get access to a large library of movies, TV shows, or music. That sounds great. But the reality is that even though you pay every single month, you don’t actually own anything. If Spotify or Netflix were to disappear tomorrow, you would be left with nothing. With physical media, on the other hand, you buy something once and own it for the rest of your life. And honestly, I prefer owning the movies and music that I truly love.
   
3. Your favorite movies aren’t always available
   This has happened to me so many times. Imagine it’s a Friday or Saturday night, and you’re planning a movie night. You want to watch your favorite movie, so you open Netflix—only to find out that it’s not available. That’s the downside of streaming. Movies come and go all the time. With physical media, you don’t have this problem. If you own your favorite movie, you can watch it whenever you want. You don’t have to wait for it to become available again on Netflix (or any other streaming service).
   
   Plus, let’s be honest—it’s kind of cool to have your own movie or music collection. Back in the day, I would go to my friends’ houses and look through their music or movie collections. It says a lot about who you are and what you like. It’s just fun.

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Title: Man vs Baby
Actors: Rowan Atkinson
Director: David Kerr
Writers: Rowan Atkinson, William Davies
Genre: Comedy
My Rating:

Man vs Baby

Trevor Bingley is back! He now lives alone in the middle of nowhere. He desperately needs money because he just lost his job after seven months and wants to pay for his daughter’s tuition. When the Housesitters company calls him with a new house-sitting job, he remembers that the last time didn’t go very well (Man vs Bee). But when he hears how much money he’s going to make, he’s in.

The only problem? He just found a baby and he has to take him with him.

Review

I was so excited when I saw the trailer when it was announced. I loved Man vs Baby, it was absolutely hilarious. And now Rowan Atkinson is back, but this time it’s just him and a baby he suddenly finds. To be honest, I thought it was going to be a movie. I think I was searching for new Christmas movies when this popped up. But it turned out to be a series with four episodes of around 30 minutes each, so technically it could have been a movie.

I grew up watching Mr Bean. I loved rewatching those episodes over and over again. According to Google, there are only 15 episodes of Mr Bean. Back then, I really thought there were way more. I loved the humor, and Man vs Baby has that same kind of humor. The only difference is that Rowan Atkinson’s character actually speaks in this series. Mr Bean rarely spoke. But he still has the same facial expressions, which work perfectly for this show.

Trevor Bingley has to house-sit a beautiful penthouse apartment. This apartment is pure luxury, and everything in it is expensive, so you can already imagine what could go wrong. One scene that made me laugh out loud was in the last episode, when he’s shopping for Christmas dinner.

I also loved that this series has some really beautiful moments. Even though everything keeps going wrong, Trevor Bingley has a good heart. By the end, he helps several people he’s just met, and I thought that was a lovely message to include. It felt perfect for the holiday season.

The only problem I had was that it was way too short. I definitely wanted more. I need this kind of silly humor sometimes. It’s nice to just laugh and not think about anything for a while. This series was perfect for taking my mind off things. I think it’s the perfect holiday watch, especially if you grew up watching Mr Bean.

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