It doesn’t matter whether you love books or prefer the movie, or even the television series. You might be an avid reader, a film buff, a blogger or a reviewer, but at some point you probably have to deal with the issue of spoilers.
With the new series of Game of Thrones back on our screens, we have the perfect example of spoiler culture.
After each episode airs, my blog and Twitter feeds are full of articles providing opinions and reviews. Sure I can bypass them until I’ve had chance to watch the show, but what happens when a headline or a featured image reveals a massive plot twist? You can’t avoid that, it’s in your face as soon as you open your browser. That’s what spoiled the Red Wedding for me. Sob.
Admittedly, now that I’ve read the original books, the series spoilers aren’t such an issue, but there are plenty of people who only follow the story on television.
The problem with watching a massively popular, cult show like Game of Thrones, or recently True Detective, is that everyone wants to talk about it and thanks to social media they often do that even as the show is on screen. For the online media, it’s a guaranteed way to gain those all-important page views.
So unless you watch the latest episode as it airs, you’re forced to avoid spoilers. It’s not enough to resist the urge to look up the show’s hashtag on Twitter, or read your favourite blogger’s review, you need to avoid the internet altogether. You also have to be careful who you speak to at work, as my hubby found out at the expense of this week’s big plot twist.
It’s even more frustrating to live in the UK, where even the most popular shows usually air at least a day or two behind America. The launch of the new series of Game of Thrones was big enough to merit a simulcast, so we Brits could watch the show as it was screened in the US, if we wanted to stay up until 2am to do so.
As a blogger, I sometimes review books and it can be hard to give an overview of the plot without giving away all the twists. Recently I’ve read a few books that have highlighted this issue, where I’ve been desperate to discuss the shock moments in a story, but have had to settle for doing so obliquely online. Even then I worry about giving too much away.
When a book is hugely popular, especially if it’s part of a series, people can’t wait to talk about it. The recent release of Allegiant was a good example of a book that received a lot of spoilers online because the ending so polarised opinion.
It can be hard to find a balance when it comes to reviewing something and sharing our thoughts, without giving away the ending. We want to express our enjoyment, discuss our ideas and pick over that twist no one saw coming, but we don’t always have someone else to do that with.
Perhaps we need a universal system for spoiler etiquette?
What moments have been ruined for you thanks to spoilers? Or are you guilty of leaking a major plot point?
Nicola says
I guess there’s a kind of spoiler in here for Game of Thrones and Carlito’s Way….so read on at your peril.
I think it’s such a shame when people aren’t allowed to experience these stories for themselves. I am so glad that I read the Game of Thrones books before Series 3 so I had read about the Red Wedding before watching the show. That chapter is unbelievably good in the way it tortures you as a reader. You have this terrible sense of dread, but you still keep believing it will be okay and the gut wrenching twists back and forth are almost unbearable.
The television show was never going to able to replicate that and went for shock over the slow agonising horror you felt as a reader. And now anyone who reads the books after having seen the show will never have that experience and that is such a shame because it was a tremendous example of the genius of a great storyteller.
Having said that. every time I watch Carlito’s Way I still think he’s going to get on the train at the end, so maybe some stories are just so good that they make you forget that you already know what’s coming.
Amy Lord says
I agree about reading the books over the TV show. I watched series 1-3 of Game of Thrones before reading the novels, so when I did get to them, I wasn’t too keen as I already knew what all the plot twists were. But now I’ve read on, I enjoyed the later books so much more and there are enough changes on the show that it feels like its own story. Thanks for commenting!
Beth @plasticrosaries says
I often thwart my own joy by seeking out spoilers, I try to stop myself but sometimes when something is so good there’s a compulsion to find out what happens next and not being patient enough to just wait until you get there. There will always be someone who got there first! I really need to learn some patience!
Amy Lord says
I can relate to that Beth, I have done that myself a few times! My husband refuses to look up even the slightest bit of info so he goes mad at me!
Joséphine @ Dudette Reads says
Spoilers are the bane of my Internet existence. That’s why I carefully curate whom I follow on Twitter especially. So even though movie trailers for The Fault in Our Stars and If I Stay were released recently, I have no clue what’s going on. I want to read the books first before concerning myself with the movie releases. As for Allegiant, I’ve managed to avoid spoilers so far. But doing so definitely has been an art in itself.
Personally, I think it’s fine if people post spoilers on their blogs because they can clearly mark their posts as spoilers. And half the fun sometimes comes from analysing major plot moments. On Twitter and Facebook though, I’m not so cool with people posting spoilers. They’re out in the open, just waiting to ambush everyone. It’s not fair. If I want spoilers, I’ll look for them. Better to put in that effort than to be plagued with details I can’t unsee. So yeah, unless Twitter and Facebook implement a spoiler tag of some sort, I say spoilers have no place in tweets and Facebook statuses.
Amy Lord says
You make some really great points Josephine and I totally agree! It’s easy to stumble over a spoiler on Facebook or Twitter when you really aren’t expecting it and it can be hard to avoid them altogether, especially for a book where you might not read it for several months. That can also be an issue when a lot of bloggers get advance copies and get into the discussion on Twitter, as not everyone can read something early. Thanks for the comment!
Jess says
“It’s even more frustrating to live in the UK, where even the most popular shows usually air at least a day or two behind America.”
A day or 2 is fine, considering time zones. In fact, I would go as far to say it’s generous. It’s only when the wait for us in the UK is weeks, or even months, or maybe even a whole year, or not at all, is when it becomes a problem, and one of the main reasons why piracy is an issue.