Did I really watch a drama if I viewed it on a higher speed than was intended?
I am fascinated by the question “What percentage of Chinese viewers watch C-dramas on a faster speed than normal?” as, after over two decades of watching Chinese dramas, I am recently finding myself running some overly-long, dialogue-heavy scenes in some dramas on 1.25 speed just to get through them.
When I first began doing that, I felt slightly guilty as, if I am saying I have “watched a drama”, did I really watch it when I did not view some scenes at the speed the director and actors intended?
But, finally, I came to the conclusion that, yep, I most definitely watched a 40-episode drama if I watched under 1 percent of its entire length on 1.25 speed, and the rest on normal.
Especially as, if the screenwriter/screenwriting committee had hired better editors to start with, I wouldn’t have had to watch the series on a faster speed, now would I?
RELATED: What is the completion rate for C-dramas by Chinese viewers? Probably much lower than you think
I felt even less guilty when, out of curiosity, I did some research to find out if watching C-dramas on a faster speed than is intended is prevalent in China, and realized the majority of Chinese drama fans watch every drama on 1.25, 1.5 x speed or, in many cases, even higher.
Because, oooooooh boy, it appears the Chinese have even less patience than I have.
What percentage of Chinese viewers watch C-dramas on a faster speed than normal?
Based on official data released in March 2026 by the National Radio and Television Administration (NRTA), approximately 58.63% of Chinese viewers use the fast-forward or speed-up function when watching TV series.
And they are not watching their dramas at 1.25 speed like I mainly do, but at full double speed (ie: using the 2x speed setting), or sometimes even faster, just to get through each episode.
As you can see then, the Chinese are taking their faster speed viewing to much more of an extreme than me or, I would venture a guess, most other non-Chinese viewers.
Why are Chinese viewers choosing to speed up their viewing?
So why are Chinese drama viewers so invested in watching dramas at lightning speed? Here are some of the reasons cited in a recent study:
Primary Reasons for Speed-Watching
1. To Save Time & “De-water” Plots — Viewers want to efficiently consume content and skip what they perceive as slow or padded sections. Over half of viewers cite “saving time to quickly understand the plot” as their main reason for this.
2. Uninteresting or Dragging Content — Long, slow-paced plots with repetitive scenes or slow dialogue are major drivers. 46.29% of viewers find parts of many shows they watch “uninteresting or dragging.”
3. Actors’ Speech is Too Slow — A specific, and common, point of frustration that pushes viewers to increase the playback speed. 45.71% of viewers cited actors’ “speech being too slow” as a reason for using the fast forward feature on streaming services.
The “Note-Watering” Problem in Chinese Dramas
A very common complaint among viewers is the prevalence of “note-watering” (zhù shu). This is industry slang for the practice of artificially lengthening a drama’s runtime to increase profit from advertising, often at the expense of quality.
You will have seen this in Chinese dramas in the form of:
Excessive Length: Dramas that are stretched to 50, 60, 70 or even more episodes when the core story could be told in far fewer. Chinese authorities did put a stop to that for several years, but the ban on more than 40 episodes per drama has, sadly, recently been rescinded.
Repetitive Content: Having characters repeat the same information in slightly different ways, using extensive flashbacks to scenes that just happened, or lingering on reaction shots for too long. Flashbacks are definitely where I have hit the 1.25 x button as, why do I need a flashback to something I only watched half an hour ago?
Slow Pacing: A general narrative drag, where plot points that could be resolved in minutes are stretched out over several episodes.
Slow Dialogue: Actors deliberately speaking at a slow pace, which viewers then compensate for by speeding up .
Because of these “note-watering” practices, many viewers see speed-watching not as a preference, but as a necessary tool. It’s a way for them to take control of their viewing experience, essentially “de-watering” the show themselves to get to the core part of the plot.
I must point out, though, it isn’t just with Chinese dramas either, though, as this article comments on, as Chinese viewers watch many foreign shows on fast forward as well.
The Influence of a Fast-Paced Lifestyle
Beyond the content itself, modern life playing a huge role in drama-watching habits is another reason Chinese viewers watch C-dramas on faster speeds.
After all, with intense work hours in China and an “information explosion,” people feel a constant sense of time scarcity. This feeling of being in a hurry doesn’t stop when they want to relax either. Instead, leisure activities, like watching a show, are approached with a similar desire for efficiency.
The goal then becomes to consume the information of the plot as quickly as possible, making speed-watching a natural adaptation to a fast-paced world.
The Rise of “Satisfying” Short-Form Content
Finally, another major trend as to why the Chinese are watching standard-sized dramas at such high speeds is the explosive popularity of micro-dramas. These are ultra-short, vertically shot series, often with episodes lasting just one to five minutes.
Now, frankly, I have watched a couple of these, thought the quality was appallingly low, and moved back to the standard dramas I have watched for decades and love.
But, especially for teens and 20-somethings, these micro shows are designed from the ground up for instant gratification.
That’s because they have a narrative structure that:
- Opens with immediate conflict or suspense.
- Moves rapidly through high-energy scenes like face slaps, revenge, and plot twists.
- Focuses on emotional highs, and avoids any slow or contemplative scenes .
Their pacing is often compared to a video game, where the protagonist (and the viewer) experience a rapid series of challenges and rewards. This type of content is popular viewing on commutes to and from work, as they can be consumed in 2-5 minute bites.
This format has also found a massive audience in China, perfectly catering to the shortened attention spans and fragmented viewing time of modern life. The success of this “all killer, no filler” format is a strong indicator that there is a huge demand for faster-paced, denser storytelling, which many viewers try to simulate by speeding up traditional, longer dramas.
However, I will add, new data is showing these micro-dramas are already beginning to lose some of the popularity they had as the pendulum swings the other way and Chinese viewers begin to thirst for a story with more substance, featuring actors who can act.
But, yep, if you are worrying about “not actually watching a drama” because you are watching some scenes on 1.25 speed like I was, don’t even think about it ever again as, apparently, Chinese viewers patience is even worse than ours.
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