How Hard is it to Say, Spoiler Alert?!

I don’t want to say Watchmen was ruined for me, but my enjoyment was hindered due to someone spoiling a major/minor part of the graphic novel. I understand the comic came out in 1986 – 1987 and the movie came out in March of 2009. So, in the Spoiler’s defense maybe I should have read the comic or seen the movie by now. Apparently I am one of few who haven’t seen the movie. I must have been preoccupied with Avatar, The Blind Side, Star Trek, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Up in the Air, and Zombieland. (All are movies that came out in 2009). So again, in the Spoiler’s defense and to not sound totally biased, maybe I should have seen the movie by now. However, I didn’t see the movie. When I told people I was reading Watchmen for class their excitement for me was almost suffocating. I couldn’t wait to read and try and figure everything out without any prior knowledge. When people tried to spoil it for me, they gave me enough of a warning where I could tell them ‘no, I don’t want anything to be spoiled for me.’ Sadly, one day there was just no time.

 Spoiler Alert! ( Was that so hard? )

What was spoiled for me was the fact that, ‘The End is Neigh” guy, Walter Joseph Kovacs, is Rorschach. Now some people might think this is/was obvious, but to a first time reader with no knowledge of the movie or the comic I was so enveloped in the narrative that I had no idea the two were the same. I’m not sure I would have figured it out before it was said in the text. It didn’t even matter though, because someone spoiled this for me and didn’t even give me the chance. The person just blurted it out. There was no warning, no spoiler alert. I am sure most people know what a spoiler alert is, thus I got this definition from Urban Dictionary for humors sake.

 

1. A spoiler alert is where someone gives away the main plot or turning point in a movie, book, show, etc.
2. Something that someone uses to really piss people off.

 

I’m sure they didn’t mean to piss me off, but it really did. After this I lost all ambition to read the graphic novel. My excitement was gone and even after I reached the chapter where Rorschach’s identify was revealed I couldn’t get over that initial disappointment of not being able to figure it out for myself. Some people don’t mind spoilers, and in fact they even enjoy them. I however, found it disappointing and disheartening.  It ruined an experience for me.