There is something comforting about partaking in a work of fiction that has been spoiled.
I’ve purchased many trade paperbacks (i.e. big comic collections) in my time. A lot of the time I will flip through them before I really read them. I usually regret this as it spoils the story. At least I assume it does. With comics it is also fairly easy to find out what has been going on in them by reading the internet. It takes several months of the comic coming out regularly before there is enough that can be compiled together for a book.
But this weekend I purchased a book I don’t know the conclusion of. I’ve been fairly good at not peeking ahead. But it is by an author not known for being nice to his characters.
And I dread reading it.
I know it will be a good story, but the fact that I know bad things will happen, is making me uncomfortable reading it. It doesn’t help that in the first couple of pages, the hero lists the bad things that happen because he didn’t get out of the game.
The equivalent is Joss Whedon, and his predilection for killing your favourite characters.
Compare and contrast with Star Trek. There you know there will always be a happy ending and nothing will change. That is very comforting. It may not be the best, but you don’t always want tragedy in your life.