Let's say you're watching Star Wars Episode VIII next year, and 15 minutes into the movie, the theater manager rushes in. "Sorry, but a small animal has gotten trapped in the projector and ruined our only copy of the film. To make it up to you, let me tell you what happens at the end: Luke confronts Snoke, gets his other hand chopped off, and yet another Death Star gets destroyed. No refunds! Have a safe drive home!"



"We'll have ushers humming the end credits theme in the lobby for the next five minutes."

Continue Reading Below Advertisement

You'd probably be at least mildly annoyed by that, since simply finding out what happens is not the point of a story. It's about the journey!

Fans seem to have forgotten this.

Everyone can remember the first time a big story twist in a movie or show almost made them shit their pants. Depending on your age, it might be finding out Bruce Willis was dead the whole time in The Sixth Sense, or that Darth Vader was Luke's father, or that Dorothy's trip to Oz was nothing but the result of a mescaline trip she was having. Those moments hit you like a barbed wire bat to the face precisely because of how carefully they were set up -- all the red herrings, the performances, the suspense, the music cues at the key moment.

Continue Reading Below Advertisement

Now imagine you'd learned about Luke's parentage by reading a snippet of leaked script on a movie blog. That's how it happens these days. We've perfected the art of obsessive analysis to the point where no twist can remain a secret for long. The sad irony is that those who claim to be the victims of excessive spoiling -- the megafans -- are more often than not the ones doing the spoiling.

Lucasfilm

There's too much artistic work involved here to treat it like a damn Maury reveal.

Continue Reading Below Advertisement

For example, there's the fans' obsessive, frame-by-frame spoilage of Game Of Thrones.

In preparation for Season Six, HBO released a trailer for Game Of Thrones full of brief, out-of-context moments meant to get you hyped without truly delivering any relevant information. Near the end, there is a flash of everyone's favorite sex-wizard/squire Podrick Payne getting grabbed in a chokehold. Holy shit! This fan-favorite character who never wronged anyone is gonna die!

HBO

Continue Reading Below Advertisement

Or that's what fans thought, until someone noticed that you could see the assailant's ear for a about three frames. For fans on Reddit, it was as easy as matching that ear to the ears of every single cast member until they determined it was Podrick's pal Bronn.