Spoiler warnings? Nah. Show ruined? (shrug) Your fault.
TL;DR:
Avoid @spnaturalconfessions and please help spread the word by signal boosting!
So this lovely exchange happened today, after I got smacked in the face with a gargantuan, full-frontal spoiler with a picture but no cut, warning or anything.
I’m still speechless so I’ll write my thoughts down.
Here’s a larger view of the response:
There’s obviously a lot to unpack here, so bear with me.
I was first active in online fandom when The X-Files was on. The original series. That was in the days when Geocities hosted your site, every fan fic had a three-paragraph disclaimer and social media consisted of mailing lists and the Usenet.
Spoiler warnings were a thing then. English isn’t my first language and there were no online dictionaries but I quickly learned their purpose. I’ve since been active in a number of fandoms, on various platforms, and spoiler warnings have. Always. Existed. They’ve been the cornerstone of fandom courtesy for decades. Yet somehow these people view themselves as excempt.
Some fans don’t mind spoilers, some avoid them, but most people/bloggers I’ve met over the years (spoiler alert: hundreds) like to be aware they’re about to exposed to one.
Personally, I’m a working mother of two children under four. My four hobbies are cosplay, writing, Supernatural and gaming. Between the job, the girls, the house and the husband I get to focus on 1, possibly 2 of those at a time. Currently that’s cosplay and a bit of writing, meaning about 2 weeks pass in between me finding or making time to catch up on SPN. With that background, you can see why I’m the spoiler-avoiding sort.
But let’s start looking at that response in more detail.
continuing to be on tumblr 2 weeks after the episode airs - after the season is already on netflix even - is going to result in spoilers.
Are these people even aware of
… the fact that Netflix isn’t the same in every country?
… the myriad of possible reasons (*) why people may be behind even if they have the latest episodes available? ( * none of which they should be punished for)
As long as I’ve been watching SPN it’s never been on Netflix in my market (Ireland). Unless I want to risk prosecution, malware or credit card fraud from dodgy streaming sites, there’s one source for me to catch the current season on: Channel 4 (UK) lists episode 21 as the latest (aired 24 May). The last episode I got to watch was 19 (but I get it, that’s entirely my fault).
Also, it’s two weeks. Eleven days, in fact, according to the (not spoiler-free!) Wiki, since apparently the season final aired on 19 May on The CW.
That’s these people’s cut-off point? After which it’s your fault if you’re not caught up and catch one of their spoilers on your dash? See, I run 4 blogs on this site, follow just over 200 (one less now, obviously); have admined fandom groups of anywhere between 600 and 1000 members. Let me tell you something:
Spoiler warnings are in place for months. If not by formal, then by self-imposed rule. On personal blogs, in groups and in other communities. And “confessions” blogs are community platforms. Beyond confessions they answer questions or extend them to their follower base, help signal boost fandom events and generally carry integrity within the community. I’ve never seen any “confessions” blog (or any reasonably large blog, for that matter) post a spoiler without a cut (usually preceded by a warning) or tags.
And honestly, I had no clue the season was finished in North America. Why not, you ask?
Because I’d been avoiding spoilers.
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