Rosebud was still his sled.

[scarfman]

In recent weeks I've actually backed off my previously adamant position on what constitutes a spoiler and what doesn't. I'll still express my opinions on individual cases, but I've come to realize that a spoiler, like an obscenity, is determined by the standards of the community.

Comments

[angryricecooker.livejournal.com]

One element of the spoiler debate that I've never really heard mentioned is that an oversensitivity to spoilers can damage the commercial potential of a film/book/etc. When people are afraid of giving away the endings to things, they are less likely to talk about them, and therefore generate less buzz. I've heard it said (although I can't give any kind of citation to make this a stronger argument) that the film Witness for the Prosecution was relatively unsuccessful in part because the film took the unusual precaution of having a narrator ask that the audience not reveal the ending to their friends. So the people who saw the movie didn't go to their friends and say "You HAVE to see this movie, the ending is great." So less people saw the movie. Compare that to say, The Sixth Sense, whose twist was widely spoiled quickly, but generated buzz because of it and was successful. I can think of at least one film (À la folie... pas du tout) that I loved but I can't really recommend to anyone because even revealing the genre of the film will spoil it. It wouldn't be too hard to draw a line from the close kept secrecy of Serenity to it's box office disappointment. After all, would it honestly have made you less likely to see it if you knew *Insert Spoiler Here*? If anything, I think it would make some people more likely to see it--they'd absolutely have to know how.

[athelind.livejournal.com]

I STILL won't talk about the ends of The Sixth Sense or Unbreakable around anyone who hasn't seen them.

[prettydragoon.livejournal.com]

Ulysses comes home and kills all Penelope's suitors.

In my opinion, it's not what happens in the end that matters. It's how it happens and how you get there. And that you have to see for yourself. I'm sure there may be exceptions; there usually are exceptions to everything.

[misterbill.livejournal.com]

I think that what is generating all this fuss is the super sensitivity to spoilers in the Doctor Who fan community in America. American fans for the most part won't get to watch it on TV until a year or more has past (bit torrents don't count) since it shows on BBC 1. They want to watch with the same sense of aw and have the same surprises as their British counterparts do. So they want everything all hushed up until they get their fix. I think that their efforts to stay unspoiled go overboard when they try to squelch any news at all about upcoming seasons and episodes from being passed. These legitimate news stories are what generates buzz and gets the casual fans wanting to tune in. Stopping the discussion of teasers, casting changes, and other news about the show does more harm than good. Hard core fans like this who will watch simply because it is Doctor Who make up only small fraction of the total viewership.

I still say that teasers aren't spoilers and casting news is still news not a spoiler.