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Favourite Twists in Various Media

Feb 26, 2015#1

ThatNickGuy

Twists kind of get a bad rap these days, don't they? I think M. Night Shyamalan is to blame there, where he made a series of films with "twist" endings. Mind you, those first two twists - Sixth Sense and Unbreakable - were great twists.

Still, I love a good twist ending that's delivered well. What are some of yours? This can include movies, TV shows, games, books, etc.

And because we're basically going to be discussing endings here, it's probably best to spoiler your choices. Here's the format I'll use. Whatever format you use, please use spoilers.

Fallen (1998)

I think this is a really under-appreciated and maybe somewhat forgotten 90s film with Denzel Washington. I loved the premise of a body-jumping fallen angel going around killing people. And it introduced me to the Rolling Stone's Time is On My Side. But this is one of those movies where the bad guy manages to snatch victory out of the hands of the hero. That bit at the end where he says, "Oh, you forgot something. I said this was the story of how I almost died." When I watched this as a younger lad, I said aloud to the screen, "Son of a bitch!"

The Outer Limits - Quality of Mercy (1995)

A POW is held captive in an alien prison. He meets a girl along the way who gives him hope, even while she's being tortured and seemingly slowly transformed into one of the alien enemies.

Except right at the end, when he gives her important information where a last ditch effort by Earth has their remaining armada hidden. She gets up and knocks on the door to be let out. Then says, "You were wrong. They weren't changing me into an alien. They were changing me back."

Again, this blew my goddamn mind when I was young.

The Sixth Sense (1999)

Haven't seen this in a long time, but I remember not seeing the ending coming at all when I saw this in theater. It's one of the few movies where there are hints all over the place, but they're very subtle.

Spectacular Spider-Man - Final Curtain (2010)

When they revealed in the first season that Harry Osborn was the Green Goblin and that Norman was completely innocent, I thought it was a great twist. Harry had been the Goblin before in the comics, so it wasn't a major departure from the mythos. And it tied things back to the high school setting.

But then, during the finale, it's revealed that Harry might not be the Goblin. And there was enough evidence presented that it couldn't be Norman. So during this whole episode, I was literally on the edge of my seat screaming, "Who!? Who could it be?!"

And it was Norman Osborn all along. Through smoke and mirrors, they managed to successfully bring back the mystery of the Green Goblin from the original Lee/Ditko comic run.

Tales from the Darkside - Lover's Vow (1990)

Just your typical story of boy meets girl...after boy was rescued from a mugging by a gargoyle and promises never to tell anyone. The "YOU PROMISED ME!" line absolutely breaks me every time.

Feb 26, 2015#2

Hailey Knight

I approve of this format. Title first, then spoil the content.

Bioshock

My first indication that something was wrong was when my wife decided to try out playing the beginning of the game (she didn't get far) and I heard Atlas say "Would you kindly pick up that shortwave radio?" I'd heard him say those first three words so many times, but only then did something key to me as a bit off. I was in Hephaestus in my game already, and soon came the room of photos, the Suchong data entries, and then at last Andrew Ryan, and by that point Atals was saying "would you kindly" enough that alarms were going off. Ryan's revelation was huge and that moment was so powerful.
And then it turns out, Atlas was a fabrication. From the clues to Ryan to the character-breaking laughter over the radio--the game never again gets as good as this moment, but goddamn, what a moment.

Feb 26, 2015#3

Ravenpoe

Knights of the Old Republic

I had been going mostly light side up until that point, but upon learning I was Darth Mother-fucking Revan, you better believe I was embracing the dark side. Those damn Jedi brainwashed me!

Feb 26, 2015#4

ThatNickGuy

Zero Esc said:
I approve of this format. Title first, then spoil the content.

Bioshock

My first indication that something was wrong was when my wife decided to try out playing the beginning of the game (she didn't get far) and I heard Atlas say "Would you kindly pick up that shortwave radio?" I'd heard him say those first three words so many times, but only then did something key to me as a bit off. I was in Hephaestus in my game already, and soon came the room of photos, the Suchong data entries, and then at last Andrew Ryan, and by that point Atals was saying "would you kindly" enough that alarms were going off. Ryan's revelation was huge and that moment was so powerful.
And then it turns out, Atlas was a fabrication. From the clues to Ryan to the character-breaking laughter over the radio--the game never again gets as good as this moment, but goddamn, what a moment.

Bouncing right off of that with another one:

Bioshock Infinite

Through the whole game, you're given hints of alternate worlds. The double talk by the twins. That quartet singing a much more modern song than the game's setting. Then Elizabeth and her portal ability starts showing up. The whole time, you're trying to save her from this madman Comstock...

...only to find out that YOU are Comstock. Or will become him. Or you did in an alternate universe. And the only way to break the cycle was to finally let go and allow Elizabeth to wipe you from existence in order to prevent it all from happening at all.

I remember my jaw was perpetually on the floor during the ENTIRE ending sequence as more and more was revealed. Most especially the moment with Elizabeth's finger. I let out a very audible gasp, covered my mouth, and pointed at the screen at that moment because that's when all the puzzle pieces fell into place in my head.

Feb 26, 2015#5

mikerc

Quite possibly my favourite twist in any media:

Soul Reaver 2

Raziel is the Reaver. That was the point I decided it didn't matter how bad the gameplay got I would keep buying games in this series purely for the story.

Well unless they decide to crap all over the lore of the games purely so they could make a shitty MMO. But that would never happen right? Right?

Feb 26, 2015#6

Hailey Knight

ThatNickGuy said:
Bouncing right off of that with another one:

Bioshock Infinite

Through the whole game, you're given hints of alternate worlds. The double talk by the twins. That quartet singing a much more modern song than the game's setting. Then Elizabeth and her portal ability starts showing up. The whole time, you're trying to save her from this madman Comstock...

...only to find out that YOU are Comstock. Or will become him. Or you did in an alternate universe. And the only way to break the cycle was to finally let go and allow Elizabeth to wipe you from existence in order to prevent it all from happening at all.

I remember my jaw was perpetually on the floor during the ENTIRE ending sequence as more and more was revealed. Most especially the moment with Elizabeth's finger. I let out a very audible gasp, covered my mouth, and pointed at the screen at that moment because that's when all the puzzle pieces fell into place in my head.

The bit with the finger, as everything slows down and you see the portal narrowing, and then it hits. It's crazy. The ending also does what more twists should do--when you go back through the story, instead of making things confusing, the twist explains a lot.

That emotional final scene is why I need to ignore the Burial at Sea DLC. Everything's woven tight at the end, and then that DLC comes along to add stupid dangling plot threads to both games that didn't exist in either game. It's like Ken Levine went "well, these were TOO well written. Better fuck 'em up."

Also, ditto to Sixth Sense. I remember being in the theater and hearing my dad go "Ho-ly shit" under his breath. We didn't see it coming.[DOUBLEPOST=1425009478,1425009433][/DOUBLEPOST]

mroosc1979 said:
Quite possibly my favourite twist in any media:

Soul Reaver 2

Raziel is the Reaver. That was the point I decided it didn't matter how bad the gameplay got I would keep buying games in this series purely for the story.

Well unless they decide to crap all over the lore of the games purely so they could make a shitty MMO. But that would never happen right? Right?

Whoa, I totally forgot about that one until you mentioning it here. Yeah, that was a mindfuck, especially when

Raziel looks down at his hand at the end. Still there.

Feb 26, 2015#7

Charlie Don't Surf

These types of threads are kind of. I don't want to say useless, but impossible to navigate if you haven't seen everything. Just listing the title for anything is an inherent spoiler

Feb 26, 2015#8

ThatNickGuy

Charlie Don't Surf said:
These types of threads are kind of. I don't want to say useless, but impossible to navigate if you haven't seen everything. Just listing the title for anything is an inherent spoiler

Hardly. It's "Spoiler: Something surprising happens during this story." Something surprising happens in a lot of stories. Most stories have a twist of some sort that throws a wrench into the works of everything established. Some - if not most - times you see them coming a mile away. The good ones, like the ones we've discussed so far, you don't see coming at all.

It's not spoiling a damn thing. That's the point of the spoiler tags.

Feb 26, 2015#9

Hailey Knight

ThatNickGuy said:
Some - if not most - times you see them coming a mile away. The good ones, like the ones we've discussed so far, you don't see coming at all.

That's what he means. By seeing the titles in the thread, you then know that movie/book/game has a twist where you might otherwise not have known or been expecting one.

Feb 26, 2015#10

ThatNickGuy

Zero Esc said:
That's what he means. By seeing the titles in the thread, you then know that movie/book/game has a twist where you might otherwise not have known or been expecting one.

So far, with the exception of Bioshock Infinite, most of the stuff discussed is around ten years old or more. And I don't see what the big deal is. It's not like anyone's blatantly ruining the twist. It'd be like saying, "Dude, you gotta see The Usual Suspects! It's got a great twist!" That doesn't ruin anything. It's still a great movie.

Feb 26, 2015#11

Hailey Knight

ThatNickGuy said:
So far, with the exception of Bioshock Infinite, most of the stuff discussed is around ten years old or more.

The way it's set up, this is more fair than the rest of the internet. I love how news articles can't discuss casting rumors for Game of Thrones without spoiling a pivotal moment from the previous night's episode in the first paragraph, or how Tumblr needs gifsets for the endings of movies that were released the same weekend the gifs are posted. I had Gone Girl thoroughly spoiled for me before I even realized what I was reading was about that movie.

That said, a 10-year rule might not be a bad idea?

Feb 26, 2015#12

evilmike

DS9 -- In the Pale Moonlight

Feb 26, 2015#13

Charlie Don't Surf

I've made / participated in this exact thread probably 2-3 times over on the internet. I'm not saying it's a bad idea/you're a bad person and attacking it. I was just kind of ruminating on how it's hard to have some of these conversations- like best downer ending, best lead character death, or something

Feb 27, 2015#14

Bowielee

mroosc1979 said:
Quite possibly my favourite twist in any media:

Soul Reaver 2

Raziel is the Reaver. That was the point I decided it didn't matter how bad the gameplay got I would keep buying games in this series purely for the story.

Well unless they decide to crap all over the lore of the games purely so they could make a shitty MMO. But that would never happen right? Right?

Man, FUCK Nosgoth.

Feb 27, 2015#15

PatrThom

Um, it's "media."

There, I said it.

--Patrick

Feb 27, 2015#16

tegid

Not if you mean people who talk to spirits!

Feb 27, 2015#17

bhamv3

Not sure if this counts as a twist, but...

Mass Effect

Basically, all of Virmire was a series of gut punches, with potentially having to kill Wrex, and leaving either Ashley or Kaidan to die. But the revelation that Sovereign is not a Reaper ship, and is an actual Reaper, changes the scope of the battle entirely. The Reapers are no longer ghosts from the past, and Shepard is not up against your everyday alien species. No, he's up against an army of Eldritch Abominations from space, each one several kilometers in size, and they are coming.

In a similar vein, though I haven't played the game myself, I've read the plot outline to Dead Space 3

Sorry Isaac, the Brethren Moons are already attacking Earth.

Oh, and I spoiled Spec Ops: The Line for myself, but I still appreciated the twist.

Sorry, Walker, Konrad's been dead all this time. Everything that's happened, every horror you've witnessed, every atrocity you've committed and justified by saying it's for the greater good, because you need to get to Konrad? Turns out it's all on you, man.

Feb 27, 2015#18

Hailey Knight

bhamv3 said:
Not sure if this counts as a twist, but...

Mass Effect

Basically, all of Virmire was a series of gut punches, with potentially having to kill Wrex, and leaving either Ashley or Kaidan to die. But the revelation that Sovereign is not a Reaper ship, and is an actual Reaper, changes the scope of the battle entirely. The Reapers are no longer ghosts from the past, and Shepard is not up against your everyday alien species. No, he's up against an army of Eldritch Abominations from space, each one several kilometers in size, and they are coming.

she*

Feb 27, 2015#19

fade

Agree on original Bioshock. That one hit me out of nowhere, because I had no reason to expect a twist at all. Bioshock Infinite was destined for a twist (which is kind of what Charlie's getting at), so I was on alert, and I had most of the twist correct because I expected one. As for Bioshock, I always felt like the big reveal was a nod/homage to The Usual Suspects (1995). I did not see that one coming either.

Feb 27, 2015#20

Fun Size

Dammit you guys, I'm trying to lurk here, but the ball has been dropped.

Feb 27, 2015#21

Covar

Feb 27, 2015#22

GasBandit

Came here to say The Usual Suspects, see Fade already said it. But he didn't go into detail.

The revelation that

Verbal Kint was Kaizer Soze all along, and had made up the character's backstory just by looking at crap around the office

was the first big unseen twist that actually made me (and the friends I was watching it with in my living room) stand up and yell "WHAT? OH MY GAWD.. WHAT?"

Feb 27, 2015#23

@Li3n

No one mentioned that

Finkle is Einhorn, Einhorn is Finkle

yet?

For shame guys, for shame...

Feb 27, 2015#24

sixpackshaker

GasBandit said:
Came here to say The Usual Suspects, see Fade already said it. But he didn't go into detail.

The revelation that

Verbal Kint was Kaizer Soze all along, and had made up the character's backstory just by looking at crap around the office

was the first big unseen twist that actually made me (and the friends I was watching it with in my living room) stand up and yell "WHAT? OH MY GAWD.. WHAT?"

It was done before in

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hiding_Out

Feb 27, 2015#25

Bowielee

@Li3n said:
No one mentioned that

Finkle is Einhorn, Einhorn is Finkle

yet?

For shame guys, for shame...

Falstad is dead!

Feb 27, 2015#26

GasBandit

It's made out of PEOPLE!

Or...

It's a cookbook! IT'S A COOKBOOK!

Feb 27, 2015#27

Hailey Knight

I can't look at lien's because it didn't have a title, therefore I don't know if I've seen it or not. Stick to the format for ease of use and conversation.

I'll probably keep coming to this thread until I see something I wish I hadn't. Until then, how's about a classic?

The Planet of the Apes (original)

I saw this when I was 9, so I had no forewarning of the twist. I just remember gawking up at the little TV screen--I knew something was screwy, but I didn't think it was future Earth all along.

Feb 28, 2015#28

Yoshimickster

Wreck-It Ralph

When King Candy was revealed to be Turbo. Whether you saw it coming or not, the REVEAL where he kept shifting from his true form to his Kind Candy disguise, combined with the musical score and his own legit creepyness made it a great twist. And the fact that he dark digivolved into a giant candy cybug was AWESOME!

Feb 28, 2015#29

ThatNickGuy

Yoshimickster said:
Wreck-It Ralph

When King Candy was revealed to be Turbo. Whether you saw it coming or not, the REVEAL where he kept shifting from his true form to his Kind Candy disguise, combined with the musical score and his own legit creepyness made it a great twist. And the fact that he dark digivolved into a giant candy cybug was AWESOME!

Heh heh heh. Digivolved. Nice. :thumbsup:

Feb 28, 2015#30

Hailey Knight

Yoshimickster said:
Wreck-It Ralph

When King Candy was revealed to be Turbo. Whether you saw it coming or not, the REVEAL where he kept shifting from his true form to his Kind Candy disguise, combined with the musical score and his own legit creepyness made it a great twist. And the fact that he dark digivolved into a giant candy cybug was AWESOME!

I didn't see it coming, and it was a great "oh shit" moment.

Feb 28, 2015#31

Yoshimickster

Zero Esc said:
I didn't see it coming, and it was a great "oh shit" moment.

For me as well, but even if I did know the impact would not be lost.

I just hope the sequel will hold up, I know Tron is gonna be in it but I'm not sure if that's gonna be enough.

Feb 28, 2015#32

Hailey Knight

Yoshimickster said:
For me as well, but even if I did know the impact would not be lost.

I just hope the sequel will hold up, I know Tron is gonna be in it but I'm not sure if that's gonna be enough.

Ugh, a sequel? Can't they just leave it alone?

Feb 28, 2015#33

Yoshimickster

Its a successful kids movie, of course they can't, its goes against their genetic code. Let's just hope for the best but be prepared for the worst, way of the media enthusiast.

Feb 28, 2015#34

Covar

Mar 1, 2015#35

blotsfan

Star Wars

The handmaiden is actually the queen.

Mar 1, 2015#36

Hailey Knight

blotsfan said:
Star Wars

The handmaiden is actually the queen.

Also Star Wars

The queen did not feel like the sand of Tatooine.

Mar 1, 2015#37

Ravenpoe

Zero Esc said:
Also Star Wars

The queen did not feel like the sand of Tatooine.

Speaking of Star Wars, how could I forget that Darth Vader is

actually a whiny emo teen.

Mar 3, 2015#38

General Specific

Ok, all joking aside, how can anyone not list Star Wars' biggest twist?

That Jar Jar is the one that suggests giving emergency powers to Palpatine, clearing the way for him to become Emperor. Jar Jar is integral to the plot and cannot be removed!

Mar 3, 2015#39

@Li3n

General Specific said:
Ok, all joking aside, how can anyone not list Star Wars' biggest twist?

That Jar Jar is the one that suggests giving emergency powers to Palpatine, clearing the way for him to become Emperor. Jar Jar is integral to the plot and cannot be removed!

You mean Darth Acist?

C'mon, you know the new trilogy will end with him as the real villain all along...

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