"Spoiler Alert!” You see it everywhere these days, blogs, forums, videos, even memes. Wherever media is discussed, be it movies, books, or tv shows, it’s universal geek etiquette to shield new viewers from certain plot twists or events least they “ruin the surprise”. But how important is this element of the unknown? And can this practice in fact hinder full discussion of media, and even limit the creativity of writers and directors?
There are two forms this spoiler sensitivity can take, the first being in a public, semi-professional setting, such as a blog post or YouTube video. Written spoilers are usually whited out by formatting, or put under a separate link with a warning. Videos meanwhile will warn, usually in both voice and text, that spoilers are going to be said, and will include an onscreen link to skip forward past them. These methods are usually effective to help people avoid information if they want to, while still making it possible for the poster to publicly discuss their opinions with others who already have seen or read the subject. However, by presenting just some of their opinions, without the context of the full plot, a discussion may not whole reflect a person’s experience with a film.
The second form is on the personal level, in private conversations between friends or family members who share an interest. In a conversation, there’s no way of hiding spoilers. So if one person involved doesn't want to hear them, the conversation is effectively shut down, unless one gets very skilled at dancing around important plot points, which we all do. But again, it shifts the conversation toward more aesthetic or trivial points, rather than the central plot of the story. A person discussing the realism of Game of Throne’s CGI may simply be trying to avoid mentioning the “shocking” surprise death in the episode to someone yet to watch it. But their friend will hear this as them really valuing the special effects most of all, to the point of discussing them over all else.
The problem with hiding spoilers is that it simultaneously reduces the importance of the vital, defining parts of a story, and places too much importance on them as shock value. Remember, if something wasn’t important, it wouldn't be a spoiler. So when the majority of discussions of a film or book cater to the spoiler-free crowd, there’s no option but to focus on extraneous details, which are taken out of the context of the plot. This leads to literally thousands of reviews and discussions wherein the central elements of a story, the heart and soul of the plot, are nowhere to be found (unless they’ve been sanctioned to a carefully guarded ‘spoiler section’)
This leads to two more problems, the first being that strong plot line and stories aren’t able to be discussed, which devalues them and discourages writers from aiming for that. Meanwhile bad plots are also under-discussed, allowing them to get away with weak writing and eventually leading to a crippling of creativity in plot based media. In place of these disappearing complex stories, the love of secrecy in fandoms will encourage more and more writers to rely on shock value. Killing a character off or adding an extraneous conflict unexpectedly just so that early watchers will feel let in on an exciting secret, and by their tittering silence prompt others to go see what the buzz is about. But surprise twists don't make for timeless or re-watchable films and shows.
Only when fans let go of this universal gag order, and realize it’s possible to enjoy a narrative without being blind to it. Then we will be able to openly discuss and analyze media for the heart of its plot, and thereby appreciate the deeper meaning and art in its writing. This will encourage writers to strive for deeper, more meaningful stories, and leave behind tactics like cliff hangers and shock deaths. By discarding the idea of ‘spoilers’ we can foster a greater appreciation for the essence of the shows we love, and maybe save a few fictional lives in the process.
