Ah, spoilers. It’s a tricky subject, especially when you’re keen to discuss the latest shock twist, plot development, or stand-out scene from your favourite show/movie/game. No one wants to have something spoilt for them - it sucks, I know - but how do you know when it’s ok to talk about something?
We’ve listened to your feelings on the subject and know that spoilers are a big deal for you. While we know some of you can’t wait to head straight online after watching Game of Thrones to talk about what’s happened, others don’t think it’s fair to even allude to the plot until the whole season is finished! We could go back and forth about whether we should wait a week, a year, or never to talk about spoilers on GR (and in fact we have), but the fact of the matter is, we love entertainment and want to talk about it because we know you love it too. So, how do we do that without ruining it for the people who haven’t seen it yet?
Well, in the case of Westworld season 2 - which pretty much lives or dies on spoilers - we’ve decided to be really upfront about how and when we’ll be covering the show on GR. That way, you can join in the discussion if you’re watching week to week and are up-to-date, and you can avoid us like the plague if you’re not. Only joking, please don’t avoid us. If you’re not up-to-date on Westworld you can still visit GR as we’ll always make sure there’s no spoilers on the homepage, in headlines, or on our social feeds, but there are a few things you probably want to avoid clicking on until you’ve seen the episode, and they’re outlined below.
Most of our coverage of the show will appear on the site on Mondays - starting this Monday April 23 - after each episode airs on HBO on Sundays at 9pm ET, and we hope you enjoy it, but more than that, we hope you don’t have it spoilt for you! Keep reading for our handy guide to avoiding Westworld season 2 spoilers on GR.
1. Episode reviews
We’ll be doing weekly reviews of Westworld season 2 so we can talk about how good (or bad) each episode is. While we always strive to keep our reviews as spoiler-free as possible, it’s actually incredibly hard to give a critical opinion on something without talking about what happens. (Honestly, I’ve tried and it’s almost impossible!) We’ll steer clear of including any major surprise spoilers, but you should expect to see mild to mid-tier plot details in our weekly reviews and I’d recommend not reading them before you’ve seen the episode if you want to go in completely fresh. You can always come back after you’ve seen the episode to check out our verdict.
What: Review
When: Mondays
Spoiler rating: Mid-tier - nothing too major, but we will be discussing some plot points.
2. Question features
As well as our reviews, we’ll also be doing weekly question features where we take one major question we have after watching the latest episode and try and answer it. If you’re familiar with our questions we have after watching features then you’ll know what I’m talking about, but rather than going through a number of questions we have after each episode, we’re going to be dealing with just one. Needless to say, this feature will include major spoilers as it will be dealing with specific plot points from each episode, which are likely to impact the rest of the show, so you definitely shouldn’t read them until after you’ve watch the appropriate episode.
What: Feature
When: Mondays
Spoiler rating: Major - we’ll be talking about specific plot points from each episode which are integral to the whole season.
3. Discussion videos
To accompany our question features we’re also going to be doing a weekly discussion video, which acts as a companion to the written feature. We’ll be talking about the big question we have after watching the latest episode and discussing everything from fan theories to rumours as we try and answer it. Same as above basically.
What: Video
When: Mondays
Spoiler rating: Major - this is no holds barred spoiler territory.
4. Reaction articles
What’s the first thing you do after watching a new show? Head over to Twitter and post your verdict, of course. We love your reactions which is why we often do news articles collating the best from Twitter (check out the one we did for The Walking Dead season 8 finale), but these articles can sometimes include spoilers because we need to give context to your reactions. While we avoid them where possible and never go into details, if you want to play it safe, it’s maybe best to avoid these articles until you’re completely up-to-date.
What: News article
When: Mondays
Spoiler rating: Mid-tier - some mild spoilers for context.
5. Recap
With a show like Westworld it’s important to keep up to date with what’s going on, which is why we’ve also decided to do a weekly recap feature. So much happens in these episodes that it can be hard to keep up and with the show airing weekly you might want a refresher before watching each episode just to remind yourself of what happened last episode. It goes without saying that these recaps will have major spoilers, and if I need to explain why… well, I can’t help you.
What: Feature
When: Mondays
Spoiler rating: Major - this is literally what’s happened in each episode.
Hopefully, this makes everything super clear so you know what we have planned and what to avoid if you’re not up-to-date on Westworld. Maybe you’ve even seen something you like and can’t wait to start discussing the return of one the best shows in recent years? Either way, we’ll see you Sunday for the return of Westworld!
Westworld season 2 airs Sundays on HBO (available via Dish and Sling TV) at 9pm in the US, and a day later on Sky Atlantic and Now TV in the UK.
