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Streaming service fatigue is a genuine affliction. In the era of 24/7 content, we have the stalwarts (Netflix, Hulu, and Prime Video), the notable media dynasties (HBO Max, Disney+, Apple TV+, and Paramount+), and a number of fringe services (Discovery+, ESPN+, Crackle, Tubi, Pluto TV) and sports-centric offerings (NFL RedZone and NBA League Pass) competing for relevance. In terms of overall popularity and market awareness, Netflix is still the undisputed king of the industry (both anecdotally and via Google Trends data), with Disney+, Hulu, and HBO Max gaining in popularity and prestige. As the dust continues to settle after the great streaming boom of 2019-2020 (HBO Max, Disney+, Apple TV+, and Peacock all launched during that timeframe), one of the most overlooked streaming services has low-key become an essential purchase for fans of sports, reality television, comedy, and quality content: Peacock Premium.
In late December of 2021, I was reviewing my year in streaming when I had a Cher Horowitz-esque “Oh my God… I love Josh!” epiphany in regards to NBC’s relatively nascent streaming service. Peacock produced a slew of critically-acclaimed comedies in 2021 that mostly flew under-the-radar. Meredith Scardino’s hysterical musical series Girls5Eva and the incredibly charming sitcom Rutherford Falls will aptly fill the 30 Rock/Parks and Recreation voids in your schedule. Mike O’Brien’s delightfully deranged (but recently canceled) A.P. Bio evoked memories of NewsRadio and Community. The second season of Tracey Wigfield’s Saved by the Bell revival continued to feature some of the absolute best joke writing on TV, and the MacGruber sequel series generated a borderline unreasonable amount of laughs. And while I’m primarily interested in Peacock’s comedy lineup, I was blown away by the Joshua Jackson-led crime drama Dr. Death.
In the ’90s, NBC heavily promoted its popular “Must See TV” slogan. But over the past year, Peacock has artfully crafted its own brand of Must Stream TV. Peacock’s original comedies, impressive collection of legacy content (SNL, The Office, Parks and Rec, Cheers, Frasier, just to name a few), next-day streaming options, and growing commitment to live sports (the 2022 Winter Olympics will be streaming on Peacock) and reality TV have all combined to enhance the service’s value and reputation. Along with all the aforementioned content, one of the primary reasons Peacock elevated its game in 2021 was its acquisition of the WWE Network.
If you previously subscribed to the WWE Network, NBC’s deal with World Wrestling Entertainment made Peacock, financially speaking, a no-brainer. Full disclosure, I subscribe to Peacock’s $49.99/year Premium plan (with ads). I previously paid $9.99/month for the WWE Network, so as a pro-wrestling fan the transition to Peacock saved me about $70/year while still providing me access to every WWE pay-per-view.
Signing up for yet another streaming service in 2022 is a textbook “mileage may vary” situation. There are an overwhelming amount of options and subscribing to all of them is more expensive than cable. But over the past year, Peacock has gone from “ugh, another streaming service” to a diamond in the rough. NBC’s cord-cutting alternative is not only comparatively affordable ($4.99/month or $49.99/year for the Premium Plan), but it’s still under-appreciated in relation to its peers.
Google Trends isn’t perfect, but it helps illustrate where Peacock stands as it enters 2022.
Does Google Trends realize that Peacock recently added the Arnold Schwarzenegger comedy classic Kindergarten Cop to its library?! If it gets any better than a night of Office reruns followed by the zany hijinks of an overly muscular undercover cop surreptitiously trying to pass as a kindergarten teacher in order to catch a dangerous criminal, well friend, I don’t wanna know about it.
You may not have the emotional or financial bandwidth to add yet another streaming service to your collection, but if you do, we highly suggest taking another look at Peacock. Its unique combination of sports, comedy, reality television, and live TV, has made NBC’s underrated streaming service an indispensable part of the cord-cutting landscape.
