I think watching something that’s been “spoiled” is sort of like listening to a “live recording.” If it’s good, it’s good, and if you like it you’ll listen to it again and again… but no matter how hard it tries, it can’t capture the raw excitement and undercurrent of shared experience of being *at a concert*. (going to a concert of music you don’t particularly like is akin to something that is all surprise and no substance – you’ll probably have a good time at the show, because you’ll be caught up in the hysteria… but you wouldn’t buy the live cd)

So, to recap, watching Lost after having read spoilers is like listening to Exit… Stage Left. Watching Dallas knowing who shot J.R. is like listening to Frampton Comes Alive.

Just kidding, I’ve never listened to Frampton Comes Alive. I’m sure it’s brilliant… (also, I couldn’t think of a better example – I checked, and apparently people like Brittany Spears are smart enough not to release live albums)

Oh, you meant Lost spoilers… sorry.

::relaxes:: Sorry…

Ahem…

I’d have to say my feelings on spoilers tend to vary from item to item. I’m much more willing to get spoiled for things I have never seen or read that are being discussed by friends/family that have seen or read them versus things I myself am into; but, at the same time, if friends/family are discussing something I am also enjoying in a way that could spoil me, I’m usually okay with it, too. Obviously, this comes from a desire to be “in” on it because I’m a social person, so my conformity is more outward than inward based. BUT. Because spoilers have the potential to do just that, “spoil,” as Kevin said, I still think it is a matter of respect and courtesy to ask whomever is involved in the discussion if they have been exposed to whatever is about to be mentioned and, if not, would they mind being spoiled a little (or a lot, depending on what’s being talked about, obviously). Even if I don’t, I know some people DO get extremely upset if they’re even slightly spoiled. My friends and I would say, “Spoiler alert, the Comedian dies!” a lot as the _Watchmen_ movie was nearing release, but the first time one of us said it, another actually did get angry until he was reminded that the Comedian dies IN THE DAMN TRAILER and in like every synopsis out there of both the book and movie. Why did he get upset? He hadn’t read the book yet. While people like him are rather extreme, I take this into consideration whenever I think I may be about to spoil something. And I appreciate that same courtesy from others.

That being said, I’m about to spoil _The Dark Knight_ here, in case anyone has, for some ungodly reason, not seen it yet.

Being the nerdgirl I am, I just have to bring up _The Dark Knight_. The two “villains” are, of course, The Joker and Two-Face. Having a pretty good knowledge of the core bits of Batman canon/mythology, I knew basic origin stories for both, so I went into the movie looking forward to seeing how Nolan would go about them. I went in anticipating some sort of vat of ooze for one to fall in, and a mobster with acid for the other. After the Joker takes his mask off to reveal his makeup in the opening, I thought, “Okay, flashbacks or exposition, maybe?” And when Harvey says, “I suggest you buy American,” I thought, “Uh, he’s not seriously going to have TWO mobster-on-stand scenes, is he?” (amidst my thoughts of how utterly badass the moment was, of course). So I was EXTREMELY curious and it drew me in like a moth to a flame. I wasn’t expecting to be surprised at all, so imagine my surprise at *being* surprised- the Joker didn’t even *get* an “origin” and Dent became Two-Face in a way very, very different than any I had ever heard of before. It was exciting, a great feeling, and the irrelevance of what I had *thought* was pre-knowledge and thus somewhat spoileriffic, was tossed out the window- and in a way I was more than satisfied with. THAT is good storytelling.

::end pointless rant::

For example, people around the world tuned in to Dallas way back when because of all the hype around discovering “Who shot J.R.?!?” – however, I doubt many people, now that it’s no longer a question, bother to go back and watch the show again. Contrariwise, knowing that Maggie shot Mr. Burns does not make the Simpsons spoof ANY less re-watchable. (actually, I’m talking out my ass… I’ve never watched Dallas; it might be some quality television… )

Lost doesn’t live or die on the strength of its surprises. It’s well-crafted drama that’s as fascinating to watch the tenth time as the first time. I respect spoiler-free requests, but people should ask themselves: if spoilers are really going to make-or-break your enjoyment of a show… maybe it’s not a show worth spending your time watching.

There’s a difference between “spoilers” and “knowledge” — I steer clear of the former, but try to get as much as I can of the latter. Spoilers only do one thing, and one thing only: they ruin the element of surprise. After all, it’s in the very NAME of the term: they “spoil” the story for you.

Knowledge, on the other hand, is integral to Lost. If you’ve seen Season 5… it’s really interesting to re-watch Season 2, for example, and see what you didn’t pay much attention to the first time around that you now see in an entirely new light. And as we discussed in last week’s comments, there’s plenty of backstory that they haven’t included in the episodes (the mobisodes, ARGs, etc.) that, if you’re a fan, make it worth the effort to seek them out. That knowledge expands the universe of the series.

For the people who care about reading as many spoilers as they can, the only question I have is: why do you bother watching the show?