Wondering why student can barely hold their heads up as they walk into school in the wee hours of the morning?

Forget senioritis; Netflix is the new craze that is plaguing the lives of high school students.

Netflix, with its ability to instantly stream T.V. shows and movies with titles that range from classics to the latest episode of ‘How I met your Mother,’ can easily become an addiction. It allows viewers to spend countless hours catching up on programs as they spend their nights (or days) watching movie after movie or show after school.  According to USA Today,  Netflix viewers watched more than 1 billion hours of video in June of 2012. I can only imagine that number has been increasing since then.

What’s the problem with having instant access to your favorite shows and movies? Binge-watching.

Through my research, I found that in order to be a binge watcher you must watch at least four episodes or two hours of the show. Locally, a large number of students have discovered (or “re-discovered) the phenomenon of ‘Friday Nights Lights,’ a show that aired on television from 2006-2010 that is based around a high school football team in a rural Texas town. Viewers like myself and senior Matt Hamilton have already experienced this the greatness of ‘Friday Night Lights’ (sometimes referred to as FNL), but I’ve noticed a large number of my classmates getting caught up in the show for the first time.

“I’m fully addicted to FNL, I finished all five seasons in a matter of two weeks,” said senior Mike Angeline.

‘Friday Night Lights’ is not the only show that students are devoting hours to watching online though.

“I am a huge fan of ‘It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia,’ ‘Breaking Bad’ and ‘The Walking Dead,’” said senior Chris Huster, who, when asked if he regarded himself as a binge-watcher, responded “Absolutely.”

He is not alone.

According to junior Giana Mortellite, she can watch up to three hours of retty Little Liars’ a day.

The plus side? These shows have become a great part of peoples lives. Netflix provides a great way to catch up on old or new T.V. shows, classic movies, or perhaps just to keep yourself busy while hibernating from the cold winter months.