A few years ago, I wrote an essay breaking down the conventional geek wisdom that Battlestar Galactica is a great show. As is the wont of any writer with half an ego and a spicy piece freshly in hand, I passed it around to some friends.
In so doing, I forwarded it to an e-mail list of pop culture writers and enthusiasts that I've known for many years. I figured that there would likely be some people up for a passionate defense of BSG, which would kick off a zesty debate.
That didn't happen. Instead, a fellow that I was on friendly terms with to date went absolutely ballistic because he felt I had "spoiled" the final few seasons of Battlestar Gallactica for him in the midst of my analysis of the series as a whole. Keep in mind that the story was published on January 11, 2011 and the BSG series finale had aired nearly two full years earlier.
Ever since, the notion of spoilers and spoiler alerts in the online age has been on my mind. In publishing a television site that includes more than 2,000 reviews to date (and counting!), I had to make the calculation early on that more or less every story would include a "spoiler" of some sort. And unless we were to run a real estate-chewing SPOILER ALERT at the top of each and every one, there would need to be a general assumption, a general understanding with our readers, that TV reviews would, well, review major plot points, story arcs, character moments, reveals, and so forth (i.e. "spoilers") therein. And it's therefore worth noting that in running more than 2,000 reviews, we've only come across this issue a miniscule number of times.
I suppose that gets to the heart of what bothers me about people who complain about spoiler alerts: they tend to make up the rules for what constitutes a "bad" spoiler – or something they've learned that they would have preferred to not learn (or wait to learn until some Date To Be Decided Later, I suppose?) – as they go along.
So if I say that Friends' Ross and Rachel had a comically tumultuous relationship, perhaps that's fine, but if I include the fact that by the series conclusion in 2004 that they, wait for it… wind up together, that could be cause for great outrage and condemnation in some corners if it wasn't fronted by a, "Stop reading right here if you haven't…" of some sort. And if a recent review of Fringe by dynamite TV Geek Army contributor Mark Curran happens to mention plot points from the 2005 film Serenity, readers are going to have to expect pop culture references from all manner of sources (spoiler alert: a comment fuming about just this prompted me to write this piece).
I'm not immune to being spoiled from time to time myself, for what it's worth. For example, I'm both a huge fan of the New York Giants and someone who hates commercials, so I often time shift when watching games. This can get me into trouble if I'm anywhere near a computer, of course, as scores are updated in real time – and I'll actually avoid my phone during these situations to avoid a revealing text messages from friends. During this year's Super Bowl, in fact, even though I watched the game on a several minute delay as I ran around my house cleaning and doing chores (spoiler alert: I've got a touch of ADD at times), I was tortured by hearing screams and cheers up and down my block: was it in support of the Giants, or the Patriots, a touchdown, an interception?
But my point is that I know I'm taking some "risk" in situations where I'm attempting to shield myself from information that I don't want to know (yet). And I think sports holds an exceptional example of how silly this whole spoiler business is because who in their right mind would expect to see a "spoiler alert" on any news or sports website webs-wide the second after the Super Bowl (or insert any sporting event here) concludes?
Television show reviews must be looked at in the same light. To be perfectly specific: after a show has aired in major U.S. time zones, it must be open to review and interpretation without the "fear" of getting the (gender neutral) panties of a few cantankerous souls in a collective bunch. The big and obvious caveat is for critics who obtain screeners and are therefore able to watch episodes ahead of their scheduled airdate, so a big difference there.
It's 2012, and time for everyone to get on the same page in terms of the etiquette of television show reviews and spoilers. In essence it boils down to: unless it's a preview published before the airdate, let's kick spoiler alerts to the curb. Who's with me?
And by the way, hope this isn't too big of a shocker to anyone but I felt the need to spread the word that the Union won the Civil War.
During the heyday of Ross and Rachel, a friend of mine had to miss a piviotal episode but she had it recorded on her VCR. (Yes, it was that long ago.) When she went to work the next day she begged everyone NOT to tell her what had happened. Sure enough, a wisenheimer told her - and she punched him HARD in the arm.
Me: "You punched a guy?"
Friend: "Yes! He ruined the episode for me!"
It amazed me how she felt that punching someone was a correct, and possibly even measured response to the horror of learning in advance that two people kissed.
I'm the opposite. When the "Sixth Sense" came out I told my group of friends that I refused to watch the movie until I found out the ending. They told me, and I happily watched the movie without being anxious. (Spoiler! Bruce Willis is dead.)
To me, knowing the end of a movie or book actually frees me up to enjoy storyline more. Although, it doesn't negate the impact of events. I've seen the movie "Stand by Me" at least 20 times, but when Richard Dreyfuss narrates the ending and says that Chris was killed trying to break up a fight in a fast food restaurant - I break down sobbing. Every single time.
Many thanks for the support EB. And I absolutely agree on the status of spoilers. Once something is published/airs/goes live (otherwise released for mass consumption) then it's no longer a spoiler - nevermind details from a movie from almost a decade ago.
I frequent the forums on reddit related to Community and Fringe on a weekly basis to engage in episode discussions - everyone there not only assumes that everyone else is up-to-date on what's being aired, but they don't censor themselves when discussing other shows/movies/books because those details are necessary to make comparisons, and to illustrate similarities/differences.
I'm surprised there aren't more cries of outrage over having Game of Thrones ruined by those who have read the books. I know what's going to happen, and so do millions of others: the events that await Season Two have been public since the nineties, but people will still cry "spoiler" when others talk about the book series. Even by the conclusion of Season 2, there will be more of the story that exists in book form than created by HBO, but it's still considered a spoiler to discuss what happens next. It's ridiculous that I have to censor myself around people who don't read, but then they shouldn't be punished for not reading. (Or maybe they should.) :)
I agree with you 100%, Eric. But I can't co-sign on Marks thoughts on GoT spoilers. I am a huge fan of the show, but I've never read the books. For those of you who have read the books, please keep in mind that the "fantasy genre" isn't for everyone and HBO has done a great job of making the show accessible to viewers who otherwise wouldn't go near this kind of story. Fans of the genre should be thrilled that people who previously poo-pooed it as "stuff for nerds" are digging the show, and if you spoil it for us "non-readers" you risk alienating us.
Launie, your story reminds me of when I spoiled some of the major plot events of Return of the Jedi for my sister when I was a little kid! (This must be why I keep grabbing for Star Wars for anecdotes here.)
And thanks Mark / Lucas. I do think the book / TV series with GoT presents a unique challenge. Personally I would handle it by trying to be respectful of the TV viewers who may have not read the series. I suppose I'd wager that reading the several thousand pages already in print (with more to come -- I've spent many months digging through them, and am just getting fully "caught up") is a significant endeavor so would try to keep events from later books out of the spectrum of discussing the current second season.
"Once something is published/airs/goes live (otherwise released for mass consumption) then it's no longer a spoiler - nevermind details from a movie from almost a decade ago."
I completely disagree with this. There are now lots of ways to watch a show - the live broadcast, DVR, streaming, torrents and of course DVD. Why should only the people who watch it when it is first airing get to really feel the surprise while the rest of us get spoiled?
I hate spoilers. I also tend to watch shows well after they air. I like to wait until a season (or sometimes an entire series) is over so I can watch it marathon style. I'm also smart enough to avoid pretty much all discussions of the show online so that nothing will get spoiled, but that's only because so many people spoil everything without warning.
I do get that it is hard to talk about a show in any sort of serious way without spoiling something. To me I think it really depends on the type of thing you are writing.
If you are writing an episode review then of course there are going to be spoilers. It would be hard to write about last nights Mad Men without discussing the plot details. But if you are reviewing a recently released on DVD season then I think it is fair to say most people don't want you to spoil anything. If you are doing a thorough essay on an entire series then I'd say it would be expected that you are going to spoil. Eric's Battlestar discussion is a good example of that. I started to read it before I had seen the entire series and then stopped because I knew he was going to have to do some spoilers.
Etc.
Eric's sports analogy is good. You shouldn't turn to the sports page not expecting to see last night's scores, but you probably aren't going to expect them to be found in the TV guide either.
Mat, I think you make a great example of someone who wisely is aware of the "dangers" of spoilers lurking on the web and tread lightly where info may be lurking that you wish to not know yet.
But let's take the sports analogy one step further. You whole heartedly agree that it's silly to not expect to be spoiled by a game the day after. But isn't your use of a DVD box set review akin to The 2012 New York Giants: A Season in Review, or some such?
I get that context and format is important, but to me there's very little difference between an episodic review and a season box set review. To me it's nearly impossible to talk about either (episode versus season + DVD extras, etc.) without "spoiling" or without offering up milquetoast blather.
Look at Roger Ebert. He's written thousands of reviews without giving away big spoilers. He's a great writer too. He's able to discuss the movie with intelligence and meaning without ruining the ending. But he's also written essays and books where he gives a thorough analysis of a film that does contain spoilers. You can bet he knows the difference between when to spoil and when not to.
If you are writing a review of a season's DVD I see know reason why you need to get into all the intricate plot details or spoil the finale. There is lots of stuff to talk about from the acting to the writing and the fact that it does have lots of twists and turns and maybe a surprise at the end without specifically stating what those things are.
Reviewing a single episode would be very difficult to talk about without giving away the plot. Its too small. Presumably anyone reading an episode review is familiar with the overall show so they don't need background information. Whereas reviewing a season on DVD your audience may have not seen the film but be looking to see if its worth investing in. Does that make sense?
For me its really about the audience. Is the reader someone who is trying to decide whether or not they should watch the show, or are they likely to be diehards wanting more details? That's not always easy to know. There are no hard guidelines for any of this so its always going to be a play it by ear kind of thing.
Mainly I take issue with the idea that because it has aired then we should feel free to throw spoilers willy nilly, reader be damned. That's a sure way to piss people off and lose some potential audience. A little caution can go a long ways.
I should mention that I won't ruin Game of Thrones for non-readers. I understand the precariousness of such a situation and yes, caution goes over much better than spilling details without precedent. I suppose my sarcasm was lost, but people really shouldn't be punished for not having the interest or time to get into thousands of pages of historical/political/fantasy - I always try to be sensitive towards the split audience.
It's ironic, because in all of the points being made, none really capture the scenario that sparked this bout of controversy. In lieu of spoiling a major moment from the season finale of Fringe, I drew a comparison that spoiled a moment from a movie 7 years old. No, you don't expect to see NFL scores in the TV Guide, but is it safe, when reviewing sci-fi (for example) to refer and compare to other sci-fi? Would I have been safer not referring Serenity, but putting X-Files in its place? Personally, I just don't see a drastic difference between detailing one or the other...
Sweet Mary Mother of Peanut Butter, Eric! Can women vote now, as well? Because that would be atrocious. Well put, Love.
No matter how careful you are, it's virtually impossible to use any Social Media device or walk into any shop these days without there being some sort of 'Spoiler' evidence on display.
Clicking on any online newspaper will automatically display a page full of spoiler headers, and even if you don't click to read them, the strapline is often enough to reveal what you (probably) didn't want to know.
A whole industry has evolved around Spoilers, and if people didn't want them I guess they wouldn't be so popular, but I - for one - yearn for those long-gone days when we tuned in; desperately excited at the culmination of an exciting storyline on one of our favourite Soaps/TV dramas as the truth was about to be revealed ... or was that just me?
Truth! There are many sorts of spoilers! A very entertaining read indeed, thank you sir!