Even as a kid, I never bought Oz as a particularly plausible reality.

It's not particularly plausible (the economy makes no sense!); but it's infinitely preferable to Dustbowl era Depression Kansas in black and white.

Unless all the people you love are there.

I'm sorry you guys felt betrayed by it, but there are generations of people who have loved the movie since childhood, so I think it's probably okay to say to that you're the exception rather than the rule.

Also my earlier point, which was that, at least in this case, based on decades of love for the movie, you can write a cliched trope like "it was all a dream" and make it work if you have the skill.

Jacob's Ladder uses the "it was all a dream" thing pretty effectively, I think.

I think I still have not seen TWoO all the way through. Huh.

I'm with le nubian on twists in general - when they make everything that came before make more sense and everything clicks into place, I love them; when they just show up out of the blue for the sake of being surprising, I hate them.

All categories of twist have been used badly in lazy stories. Extensively.

And there's obviously also "it's a cookbook!"

For a kid, after we are so thoroughly traumatized by flying monkeys, I think we welcome a revelation that none of the shit was real.

I am still traumatized that I don't have my own flying monkeys.

The guys that write the screenwriting blogs that I read(mostly the Bitter Screenwriter, who I think can't use his name because he still reads scripts for a studio) says, although he list several movies where dreams have been used effectively, overall, he wouldn't suggest that, because it allows writers to fool with introducing twists that they don't have to commit to, because it's not real life.

I am still traumatized that I don't have my own flying monkeys.

what would you do with flying monkeys? Are we safe?

I'm with le nubian on twists in general - when they make everything that came before make more sense and everything clicks into place, I love them; when they just show up out of the blue for the sake of being surprising, I hate them.

Ding ding ding! Which is to say, yes, I think that's the most important aspect of whether or not a twist works.

I believe that thinking many devices, and the "it's a dream" one in particular are inherently flawed is more of an indication that you shouldn't write one, Hec, than that no one should write one. Fine--you can't make one work. That's great. You know what to not write. I'd hate to drop that limitation on every gifted writer just because of you, though--the whole point of me reading is to get things that are beyond my ability to construct.

I believe that thinking many devices, and the "it's a dream" one in particular are inherently flawed is more of an indication that you shouldn't write one, Hec, than that no one should write one.

Naw, nobody should write them. They suck.

what would you do with flying monkeys? Are we safe?

YOU people are safe. But I do have a list of other people.