Netflix, TVing, Wavve, YouTube Premium, and Watcha. These are but a few names of media streaming services that supply Koreans today with an endless flood of video content. And as if this weren’t enough, Disney+ made its belated appearance to this already-overcrowded pool, hoping also to take full advantage of us media-indulged people. But I, an eager adopter of whatever would keep me entertained without having to leave my bed for the rest of the winter, did not hesitate much before signing up.

One reason why I could be so quick to register was its fair price compared to other similar services. Disney+ allows four simultaneous viewers per account for 9,900 KRW per month or 99,000 KRW per year. Considering the unlikeliness of four simultaneous views of four users, I became part of a group of five to split the yearly subscription and paid only 19,800 KRW to last me for a whole year. Meanwhile, Netflix, its biggest competitor in the market, offers four screens at 17,000 KRW per month.

In my first week, I surfed happily through the seemingly endless list of films I had been meaning to watch for a long time now. The vast variety of categories and production companies involved were enough to leave me at awe of the magical kingdom of capitalism Disney has built. Classic Disney films that are worth re-watching, Marvel Studios films I’ve missed at the cinemas, and National Geographic documentaries I couldn’t watch without a television kept me busy for a while.

In particular, the amount of Disney, Pixar, and Marvel content was obviously incomparable to any other streaming services. Marvel Universe films are lined up in chronological order, encouraging a marathon, and films with popular characters recurring in several films — like Olaf from Frozen — are clustered into a collection for fans to discover. And the strongest flytrap for Marvel fans worldwide are the Disney+ originals, which are exclusive to subscribers, that add details to their understanding of the Marvel Universe. For example, Loki’s own side story while the Avengers were fighting to save the world from Thanos was revealed only through Loki.

However, an issue with this system is that it requires a loyal and specific fanbase to the content they provide. Though I enjoy keeping up with the Marvel Universe through their most popular films, I wasn’t interested enough to sit through all the original series. And while re-watching films I’ve loved in the past or those I never had the opportunity to get by in my childhood were surely enjoyable, the limited genre in the world of children’s films soon became tedious. So, once I was through with the list of movies I had been meaning to watch, I was lost in the sea of entertainment after only two weeks of sailing in it, instead of being able to jump from one cluster of content to the next.

A big reason behind this issue is the fact that Disney+’s main forte lies in the number of films it holds, meaning it offers smaller numbers of series compared to other streaming services — but Disney+ originals are just not popular enough. One reason why Netflix users cannot unsubscribe from the service despite experiencing periods of boredom are the intermittent Netflix original hits that stand at the center of all media attention once released. The first seasons of Bridgerton and Squid Game were the biggest newer hits, while shows like Stranger Things and Money Heist have a solid and loyal fan base that awaits their successive seasons whether it takes months or years. On the other hand, not too many Disney+ originals have received comparable attention. And since the amount of time one can spend on binge-watching a series greatly exceeds that spent on a few films, by the third week, I found myself browsing mostly through Netflix, coming back to Disney+ only on weekend evenings when I really felt like rewarding myself with a movie night at the end of the week.

So, while hogging exclusive Pixar, Marvel and Disney content is definitely an advantage for Disney+, it is unfortunately the only advantage that distinguishes itself from other similar streaming services. It could be that Disney+ Korea offers much less varied content compared to what is offered in the US, but this also applies to most other international streaming services. In short, Disney+ Korea is definitely worth the 1,650 KRW per month — it is great for movie nights and occasional marathons — but it’s also hard to say that it’s worth anything more than that.