firstworldproblems

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Spoiler Alert: To Tell Or Not To Tell?
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mariamariamaria
11/12/09

In reply to Spoiler Alert: To Tell Or Not To Tell?
True story: I avoided reading ANYTHING about the Sixth Sense for years because I wanted to be surprised (don't ask me why I waited years; clearly I procrastinate). Fast forward years of srupulous avoidance and the punchline of a JOKE ruined all of my hard not-reading-no-looking. SIGH.
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Edited by mariamariamaria at 11/12/09 4:50 AM mariamariamaria was starred mariamariamaria was unstarred

Vivien Smith-Smythe-Smith
11/12/09

In reply to Spoiler Alert: To Tell Or Not To Tell?
Eh, spoilers don't lessen the experience any for me, I don't think. And anyway, in the end we all die, so it's a pretty trivial thing to have beef with! #spoilers
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jenrobe
11/11/09

In reply to Spoiler Alert: To Tell Or Not To Tell?
On my way to see Baz Luhrmann's Rome + Juliet in 1994 -

Me: I wonder if they're going to modernise the death scene?
Friend: Yeah, do you think it'll be gangstery? Doesn't she stab herself?
Friend 2: WHAT? THEY DIE?

I also know someone who was told off for "ruining" the surprise Japanese attack in Pearl Harbour. #spoilers
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Biku
11/12/09

@jenrobe: In this, as in many things, Penny Arcade says it best. There should be a statute of limitations on spoilers. #spoilers
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jenrobe
11/12/09

@Biku: God I love those guys. #spoilers
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iloveastone
11/11/09

In reply to Spoiler Alert: To Tell Or Not To Tell?
I still remember the time one of my friends was livid that we ruined the end of Selena for her. #spoilers
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la.donna.pietra
11/11/09

In reply to Spoiler Alert: To Tell Or Not To Tell?
A few months ago, I was telling a coworker about Rome, because I thought she'd really like it. I gave her a very very general overview (Roman soldiers do stuff in ancient Rome. Also, nekkidness and gore). She wanted to know exactly which period of Roman history, and I mentioned that the first season started with the triumph over Gaul and ended with Julius Caesar's assassination. Another co-worker overheard me and started complaining that I'd spoiled it.

General rule: if it happened more than 2000 years ago and is in every Western history book on the planet, it's not a spoiler. #spoilers
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Ms Meghan
11/11/09

In reply to Spoiler Alert: To Tell Or Not To Tell?
I think spoilers suck, my brother ruined Final Fantasy VII for me back in the day and I have yet to fully forgive him. *sigh* Also it kind of gave me the mentality of never spoiling anything for anyone.

China Mieville (the uber hot sci-fi author) has a similar stance, basically don't say anything until you give a spoiler warning. Saying a movie has "a great plot twist" spoils it, even if it doesn't say what the twist is, you go in expecting it.

Just because something is public, doesn't mean everyone can experience it at the same time, i.e. with a book or a movie or whatever. Spoiler warnings make everyone happy, and I don't think it's an unreasonable request AT ALL.
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Edited by Ms Meghan at 11/11/09 6:54 PM Ms Meghan was starred Ms Meghan was unstarred

camera_obscura
11/11/09

@Ms Meghan: I have a cat named cloud, because he is from the SPCA and I do not know much about his past.... #spoilers
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Ms Meghan
11/11/09

@camera_obscura: That's adorable!! #spoilers
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GoldenRatioφ (aka -girl11)
11/11/09

In reply to Spoiler Alert: To Tell Or Not To Tell?
I haven't gotten to watch most of this season of Mad Men yet. I'm really good at avoiding even the titles to Jezebel Mad Men posts, but I got a major spoiler that I wasn't expecting yesterday in the Dirt Bag - it was a quote from a January Jones interview. The Dirt Bag stuff is hard to avoid, and won't obviously contain spoilers. I just don't think it would have been that hard to say "Possible Mad Men Spoiler" before posting the quote. Obviously you guys are posting tons of material fairly quickly, and it wouldn't occur to you with all the Mad Men love on this site that someone wouldn't know the major plot lines, but it's easier to avoid some stuff than other stuff. #spoilers
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BytheSea
11/11/09

In reply to Spoiler Alert: To Tell Or Not To Tell?
In answer to you inderect question: Yes, Jezebel, it pisses us off when you don't put spoilers behind the cut. Yes, many of your readers don't watch Mad Men or Project Runway the day, week, or month it comes out. We are busy people and we watch things online on the weekend. #spoilers
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cocobanal
11/11/09

In reply to Spoiler Alert: To Tell Or Not To Tell?
I dunno, I'm getting kind of tired of having no one to discuss "Lost" with because everyone's waiting until the season is over to watch it on DVD. Most people I know are, anyway. Thank FSM for Television Without Pity. #spoilers
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Wit is periodically disensouled
11/11/09

In reply to Spoiler Alert: To Tell Or Not To Tell?
Once upon a time, there was a gentleman behind me in line to purchase tickets to see The Sixth Sense, who felt the need to exclaim: "So he'was dead all along?!"

I wonder if he is aware how close to death he himself came that day. #spoilers
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detector.inspector
11/11/09

@Wit is periodically disensouled: Like in that episode of The Simpson's where Homer loudly exclaims,
"So Darth Vader is Luke's FATHER?!" #spoilers
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meritxell: an erotic life promoted this comment detector.inspector was starred

betty.black
11/11/09

@Wit is periodically disensouled: that movie sort of spoiled itself for me though. At some point, I murmured out loud, "so everything that's the color red is something a ghost's interacting with?"

And after that, the purple/yellow complimentary color dichotomy ruined Unbreakable by 20 minutes in.

(I similarly wrecked a lot of Twilight Zone episodes for my sister by guessing plot points out loud.) #spoilers
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Wit is periodically disensouled promoted this comment betty.black was starred betty.black was unstarred

Wit is periodically disensouled
11/11/09

@betty.black: It might have for me too - I usually see through twists as well. But in this case I felt robbed of the opportunity to see if it could've fooled me or not. Isn't that part of the fun?

@detector.inspector: Pretty much :) #spoilers
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betty.black
11/11/09

@Wit is periodically disensouled: it's absolutely the fun!! And yours definitely shouldn't have been spoiled. Dude was an ass for pulling that in a situation where dozens of people were waiting to find out for themselves. #spoilers
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gherkinfiend
11/11/09

In reply to Spoiler Alert: To Tell Or Not To Tell?
I don't particularly mind TV spoilers (which are myriad since I'm in the UK and read a lot of US sites), but it really pisses me off when people give spoilers in Amazon reviews of books.

I like crime fiction. Telling me who dunnit really does take the fun out of it... #spoilers
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A Small Turnip
11/11/09

@gherkinfiend: I think I'd like to write a murder mystery with Amazon book spoiling being the eventual (and justifiable) motive. It makes me homicidal just thinking about those jerks. #spoilers
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girlscoutcookie is back from hiatus
11/11/09

In reply to Spoiler Alert: To Tell Or Not To Tell?
I love spoilers. I can't do things like watch live sports because I get all tense and nervous. I like being emotionally prepared for what's going to happen and, like someone else said, seeing the leadup and the cause and effect of the facts that I know. I don't like not knowing what's going to happen in any aspect, really-- I'm a big planner and scheduler and as-far-in-advance-as-possible-er, and I find being spoiled for a movie or show really... comforting. I'm comfortable being unspoiled for novels, though, and I can't really figure out why I feel differently about that than other stuff. #spoilers
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rah29
11/12/09

@girlscoutcookie is back from hiatus: I'm the same! I hate surprises in real life and I'm the same with TV. Especially for shows that are more about the journey than about the end result (I think that's why I like How I Met Your Mother so much... aside from the big premise, the narrator quite often says what's going to happen sometime in the future, without explaining how). I admit there are a few times I've regretted spoilers, but usually I like them. I live in the UK and can't see Mad Men until a day after it airs in the US, but I don't think my enjoyment is any different when I know what's going to happen thanks to the Jez recaps. If anything, it's better, because I'm not so damn nervous all the time! #spoilers
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Vivelafat says Sweep the leg, Johnny.
11/11/09

In reply to Spoiler Alert: To Tell Or Not To Tell?
There is a difference between spoilers and SPOILERS.
Knowing that Betty and Don split isn't the same as knowing Verbal Kint is Kaiser Soze.
As someone who is extremely gifted at prediction (it's a gift and a curse), movies rarely surprise me. It is awesome when one does and I will cut a bitch for ruining it for me. #spoilers
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Vivelafat says Sweep the leg, Johnny.
11/11/09

@Vivelafat says Sweep the leg, Johnny.: Also, I fucking love that movie so much it's unreal. I should have known something was up when I found out the lawyers name was "Kobayashi". Capt. Kirk would have figured it out. #spoilers
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keldo
11/11/09

@Vivelafat says Sweep the leg, Johnny.: My son shares your talent - he susses out the whole movie in 5 minutes. The one movie that blindsided him was The Usual Suspects. He loved it.

I see nothing coming.... #spoilers
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Diadorina
11/11/09

@Vivelafat says Sweep the leg, Johnny.: " The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he did not exist. And like that... he is gone. "
I love that movie. And I didn't see it coming, in any way. #spoilers
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Vivelafat says Sweep the leg, Johnny. promoted this comment Diadorina was starred Diadorina was unstarred

Vivelafat says Sweep the leg, Johnny.
11/11/09

@keldo: Same here. I have been known to predict an entire film, including the identity of the secret bad guy, after viewing the movie trailer. #spoilers
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Vivelafat says Sweep the leg, Johnny.
11/11/09

@Diadorina: neither did I. It was fucking beautiful. #spoilers
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whynotshesaid
11/11/09

In reply to Spoiler Alert: To Tell Or Not To Tell?
I'm trying to get caught up on S3 of Mad Men so I am dealing with this right now. The way I see it, once the episodes aired, the onus was on me to avoid spoiling the show for myself. That means no comment threads, no recaps, no stories on CNN, no nothing. That is my responsibility, not anyone else's.

It's unfortunate when something is spoiled before I have a chance to see it, but...well, I'll just refer to the tag #firstworldproblem for my ultimate opinion on the matter. #spoilers
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Zombie Ms. Skittles
11/11/09

In reply to Spoiler Alert: To Tell Or Not To Tell?
I'm still pissy that the results of the '08 election were spoiled for me. I mean, hello! Some of us have to be at work at 5 am and can't stay up late to watch live coverage!

Assholes. #spoilers
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