The last word on Highlander spoilers. Really.

[sholio]

EDIT: I wanted to add this edit at the top to make sure people read it -- I really am loving the explosion of gleeful, squeeful joy that's been happening in my comments lately, and the absolute last thing I want to do is dump a bucket of cold water on it! *hugs everyone* I just ... need to figure out a way that we can still have that without having some of my fun squashed too. Hence this post!

So. Spoilers.

naye made a wonderful post on spoilers some months back, which I am just going to point you to, because her take on spoilers is very similar to mine!

Basically -- I know you guys are having a lot of fun talking with each other in the comments to my posts, okay? I've always enjoyed seeing people having their own conversations in my comments and I really, really don't want to spoil your fun! But I don't want to have my fun spoiled either. I know that you all have seen the whole series, and want to talk about it! I really can't wait 'til I've seen the whole series and can talk about it too. But I'm not there yet.

And one thing that naye points out in her post is that, because she and I are such dyed-in-the-wool spoilerphobes, maybe we're a little out of step with the rest of fandom as to what constitutes spoilers for us? It's not just "Jim Bob dies in episode 3!" Everyone has been very, very good about avoiding spoilers of that nature, and I really do thank you for it! :) But it's also subtler stuff, mood-spoiler stuff.

Perhaps most of fandom doesn't even think of these things as spoilers. But these are the kind of comments I've been getting that I would really appreciate it if you guys would try your hardest to avoid:

- "You'll have a completely different take on this scene/that character when you've seen the rest of the season!"
- "There's so much about this character/arc that you don't know yet!"
- "If you loved that part, you're going to absolutely love season [x] or episode [x] or character [x]!"
- "Have you seen [event x] yet?"
- "Don't worry, [dead/missing/gone-forever guest star x] comes back!"
- "Here's a link! Don't look at it until you've seen the whole series!"
- "The next episode with [character x] is [episode x]!"
- "Hey, you guys remember [cryptic fannish term for something I haven't seen yet]?"

I know you all mean well, I really do, and I really don't care if you talk about any of this stuff anywhere else on the whole Internet! Just, please, not in my comments. I know, believe me, that some characters, tropes and arcs are extremely difficult to talk about without hinting at stuff that I haven't seen yet. If you can't, then please don't talk about them until I've seen more of that character, arc or trope.

I also don't want to scare off any new people -- and I love that so many new people have shown up to talk about the series with me. I don't want to come across as That Scary Spoilerphobe Lady when you don't know me yet! XD I'm so sorry to be a hardass about this! But rest assured, at the rate I'm going, it's only going to be a couple of weeks 'til I finish the series, or at least get past most of the big spoilers that I don't want to know about. And then you can talk about whatever you want, and I'll be very happy to talk about it with you. :D

Just for the record, behind-the-scenes stuff for episodes I've already seen does NOT constitute spoilers as far as I'm concerned. I've been loving all those little anecdotes from the DVD extras, and your stories about how you got into Highlander, and your squee about the characters, and happy fannish chatter about the episodes I've already seen. I really do enjoy it VERY MUCH! Just, please, PLEASE try not to let things slip about future events and character developments, even general stuff. I enjoy them so much more if they're completely unexpected, or at the very least unconfirmed, in the case of things I'm anticipating already.

This entry is also posted at http://friendshipper.dreamwidth.org/321811.html with comments.

Comments

[trobadora]

I'm sorry if I said anything you didn't want to know. :(

[sholio]

*hugs you bunches* I'm really not trying to single out anyone specific, and I'm not upset at any specific person! Really truly! I just woke up this morning to a faceful of (maybe) spoilers and it made me grouchy.

I'm so glad you (and so many others!) are currently in a full-on flush of fannish love for the show. :D I want to encourage that! The absolute LAST thing I want to do is dump a bucket of cold water on the gleeful squee that's been going on in the last few entries. I'm just having to walk a really fine line right now because my mood is SO touchy when I'm at the stage where I am on a show like this. I can't wait 'til I've seen the next couple of seasons, can get rid of my moratorium on spoilers and talk about the whole thing! I'm just ... not there yet. :(

[saphirablue]

Yeah, that's one reason why I stopped commenting your posts - I discovered that I couldn't say something without hinting for things :( and I'm sorry for the hints I made. :( And since I'm a Spoilerphobe too (most of times) I get what being (unintentional) being spoiled means to you (and I've should have known better). But, I'm reading every post and you have no idea how happy it makes me that somebody (you) discovers the *squee* of Highlander and its characters and that they make me remember this awesome show. :)

[pegasus-north.livejournal.com]

I completely agree with you here: I discovered that I couldn't say something without hinting for things

I really am loving the fact that i'm getting all caught up in friendshippers's excitement, (& rediscovering the series along with her) but it's virtually impossible to comment without inadvertently letting something slip. (I can't tell you how many times i've erased a part of a post, or stopped myself from writing something, when i realize that she hasn't seen episode___ yet.)

[sholio]

I really appreciate the effort! :) I am so much in love with this series -- and it delights me so much that there are still so many people who love it after all these years!

[sholio]

*hugs* Don't worry about it! I truly don't remember who said what, and I'm not singling out anyone. And soon I will be able to talk about the whole series without worrying about spoilers! :) I'm just so delighted to have found something that gives me such delight, and to have so many people who want to talk about it with me, even so many years since it went off the air.

[sheron]

Yes, I completely understand! There's nothing unusual about your request. You have a right to enjoy the show, damnit. I really really want you to go into it unspoiled as I had years ago because it's SO much more fun that way.

:D

[sholio]

*hugs* Everyone is being very understanding! Don't worry, soon I will have seen the whole thing and then we can squee about it ALL! :D

[ithildyn.livejournal.com]

I have a friend that I first met way back when Highlander was first on the air, and she's a huge spoilerphobe. she won't even watch the 'next week on [insert show here]'. So you seem normal to me [g]

[sholio]

Hee! Thank you! At least I have company in my spoilerphobic ways. *g* (And yeah, I'm that way about previews, too!)

i can't spoil you, but i'd love if you would spoil me!

[palmaceae.livejournal.com]

I know I mentioned awhile ago about my interest in watching Highlander, and I've actually gotten started! I watched the first episode and attempted to watch Road Not Taken (1x03)... but it's really not my thing. However, I know that shows have a tendency to get better once they're gotten over a bumpy first season or first couple of episodes (*cough Sanctuary cough*), so I was wondering since you have the series fresh in your mind if you could rec me a list of episodes or a place to start so I can get into the groove without torturing myself too badly?

Re: i can't spoil you, but i'd love if you would spoil me!

[sholio]

Everyone was great about helping me get past the first few episodes of Sanctuary *g*, so let me see if I can help you now! :) Because this show really does get fantastic later on, but it's a very slow build.

You could try what apparently some people have had great luck with, and watch the Methos episodes, kind of like I got into Sanctuary on the All Tesla All The Time plan, and went back and caught up on the earlier episodes later. *g* The best way to do that would probably be to look up Peter Wingfield on IMDB and watch all his eps, because he doesn't show up 'til season 3 and I can't help you much since all I've seen so far have been about 4-5 eps with him so far. Thus far however, the ones I've seen that have had him in them are Methos and Finale from season three, and Chivalry and Timeless from season four. I know there are more beyond that, though; I just haven't got there yet.

If you don't want to skip that much, I think the series starts hitting a better caliber of episodes in the middle of season one, gets very strong for a while, sags badly in the middle of season two, then starts really hitting its stride towards the end of season two and just keeps getting better from there. In season one, I'm pretty sure that the place where I ended up getting hooked was "Band of Brothers" (1x13), which is followed by a string of pretty solid episodes that deal with different aspects of immortality in the form of various one-shot characters (and it all takes place in Paris, which is lovely to watch!). If "Band of Brothers" doesn't grab you, or if you start lagging in the Paris eps, you can skip ahead all the way to "Nowhere to Run" near the end of the season (1x21) and start watching from that point. "Nowhere to Run" is a very strong action episode, followed by a string of excellent episodes (well, excellent by season 1 & 2 standards, anyway *g*). And if you ever watched Buffy, it has Anthony Head in it! :D

If you don't mind getting massively spoiled for future events and you just want to sample a few random episodes from later seasons to see if the show is going to become your cup of tea, I would suggest "Nowhere to Run" in season one for action; 1x22 and 2x01 (the season one finale and second season premiere) for a whole bunch of critical world-building stuff as well as introducing the series' other major character; 3x12 "They Also Serve" and 3x16 "Methos" for good character eps from season 3; 4x05 "Double Eagle" for humor (the show has some really fantastic funny episodes); and 4x10 "Chivalry" and 4x11 "Timeless" for great season four character eps. Uh, I seem to be suggesting all the Methos episodes anyway, aren't I? But they're good! *g*

Hopefully this isn't too confusing? And hopefully it helps? Let me know if you have questions! I'm delighted to spread the love. :)

Re: i can't spoil you, but i'd love if you would spoil me!

[palmaceae.livejournal.com]

thanks so much for the info, I'm going to definitely take advantage of your knowledge and get started!

[flingslass.livejournal.com]

You know you can PM me if I say anything to spoil for you. I don't mind spoilers as you know but that doesn't mean everyone is the same.

[pat-t.livejournal.com]

Yeah *shakes fist in air*. Tell um.

(sorry, couldn't resist)

Gotca. No more links and/or *it will work out or you will be happy*.

[pat-t.livejournal.com]

Thought I would take a look today to see if you had posted about any more episodes. I hope us giving spoilers, albeit unintentionally, did not put you off sharing your squee. I'm sure everyone will be super-duper careful from now on.