Do you check out reviews before reading/watching something or go with your gut?

[Kujaku]

Lately I kind of gave up on reading reviews before reading or watching something. I usually check the ratings, but that's about it (with a few tiny exceptions). I stumbled upon one too many spoilers before and I can't express how much I dislike that for me. I recently found out, while talking about it with a few friends, that some prefer knowing beforehand what's going to happen, so which one is it for you? Read reviews before or not? And why? 

For me it is not because I like the surprise. If I know what's going to happen I'm not able to enjoy it. 

Edited December 21, 2020 by Kujaku

[Meitantei]

I don't like reading reviews cause some contain spoilers and that would spoil the fun. Furthermore, each and everyone one of us is different meaning that we don't like the same things. I prefer to watch or read something and decide for myself whether i like it or not. Reading a review beforehand would make me biased.

[Demonic_Cultivator]

I don't care for reviews because they're just opinions of random people I don't know. I'd rather make my own opinions on something first.

[Lexiou]

It depends. 

Since I am a person who prefers to have serotonin release in a Limbo of wholesome and fluff, I usually have the book / movie / manga undergo through a level filtration series. But I usually count the "spoilers / recommendation" as the last option. You may never know – what they're commenting  / spoiling to you are only the good parts.

Example, in manga – i.e. BL – I usually have it:

1. Art style → 2. Synopsis → 3. Sample pages →  4. Table of Contents → 5. Comments, Reviews, Rating → 6. Rationalize gathered data.

If it turns out okay, I'll have it queued, and leave it at least 3 days to reset at least / all of the data I've gathered in my mind, so that I can enjoy reading it the next 3 days / week.

 

Watching / Reading something without goal is fine, disregard the "comments / reviews / spoilers". But if you're someone like me, who is in need of serotonin everyday to survive... Yeah.. I'd rather not take the risk of angst.

[jacobsenia]

I very, very, very seldom check reviews.

They tend to be wordy, and I hate reading long blocks of text.

For Manga, I mainly just read the summary and see if it sounds interesting. From there, I'll check the art style. I think I can count on one hand the number of manga I have read with an art style I didn't think looked attractive.

For shows, I'll read the summary and see if it's finished or not. I usually like to see if a show is finished before I start it so I can binge it and not have to commit. I think I only don't do this for shows by GMMTV since they upload them on YT pretty quickly. SOTUS S is one of my favorite series, for example, but I watched it as it came out. I have to really like the idea of a series for it to work, though. For example, I never finished watching Theory of Love because I couldn't commit to waiting each week for episodes.

9 times out of 10, as long as it sounds cool, I'm in. I just want content, no matter how happy or sad it might be.

[sarah3161]

I do both, usually checking before to see the plot in general and art attract me to read/watch. But sometimes I just go with my gut feeling 

[Marjorie Haukea Williams]

gut feeling, reviews are always sus imo or a little.

[AobaxClear]

I do gut which I believe includes what the title is or the trailer is like.

[fan_yaoi]

when it comes to manga i do look at the art style alot...

if it is a movie/serie i have no idea so i listen to what other people say that i know like the same stuff as i do... aaannddd cuz im lazy to check myself HAhahaha