Ever since the rise of the Internet we have all lived in constant fear of all of our favorite movies, books, TV shows and every other media being spoiled by some jerk who just wants to be the first to ruin everything for everyone else… or maybe he’s just an idiot. It doesn’t matter… once the spoilers are known the text is already ruined. Or is it? And is this really a new thing? Is it all JJ Abrams’s fault? Hannah, Wayne and Mav are joined by Joe Darowski of The Protagonist Podcast to discuss the concept of spoilers in modern media. Are they important, where did they come from, and do they really matter?
SPOILERS for… well, everything!
Citations and Links:
- This episode’s Call for Comments
- Frasier: A Cultural History by Joe Darowski
- JJ Abrams Mystery Boxes TEDtalk
- Thank you to Maximilian’s thoughtForm Music for our theme
- Listen to Joe Darowski on The Protagonist Podcast and follow him on Twitter: @jdarowski
- Follow Hannah on Twitter: @hannahleerogers
- Follow Mav on Twitter: @chrismaverick
- Follow Mav’s Personal Blog: http://chrismaverick.com
- Follow Wayne’s Personal Blog: http://wayne-wise.com
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Y’know, I had kind of forgotten about asking a question during the live show, and so when you said I’d been on the show before, I had a moment of genuine confusion.
The conversation about Citizen Kane made me think of another film that was spoiled for me pretty much since birth, Soylent Green. Since it doesn’t have the grand acclaim that Citizen Kane has, I’ve never bothered to watch Soylent Green because, well, I already know what Soylent Green is. It just kind of sounds like a movie that wouldn’t be good if you already know the line that everyone knows, and no one has ever told me “OMG you need to see Soylent Green!”
That’s another good example! And actually, I really like Soylent Green! It certainly feels dated to watch. But it’s still a good movie.