Game of Thrones

[LostDoggy]

Re: Game of Thrones

Love the show, although I have slackened off on the last 3 weeks( started watching Torchwood from the start and am Hooked, don't know why GOT is far better) but when Sons of Anarchy starts the new season, mmmmmmmmm all I watch. Unless Steph from Sons of Guns shows up again

[comrade]

Re: Game of Thrones

We've settled into a great Monday night routine; first up is Mad Men, followed by GoT.

Best description I've heard is "Sopranos set in Middle Earth".

[LostDoggy]

Re: Game of Thrones

EasternWest, everything you say is true. It's incredibly well made, the casting is great etc. but I guess there's only so much negativity I can be bothered with on-screen.

Maybe it's the line of work I'm in.. you know, for most people this stuff is 'medieval fantasy', but come hang out in Sudan or the Congo sometime and you'll find out very quickly that life-and-death political powerplays involving rape, incest, murder, torture, sadistic leaders etc. are very much current day occurences. You know those Sudanese and Ugandan kids running around Dandenong that everyone thinks are in gangs? They've just escaped the real-world equivalent of the Wall, where some of the torture and honour killings are as bloody (if not worse -- do you know how long it REALLY takes to kill a man with your bare hands?) as anything you've seen the Dothraki do.

I don't know.. I feel the same way about a lot of HBO stuff. I know it's realistic and it's how things work, but I know how things work. Sometimes I just need a break from all that violence and rubbish. Also, if I want to read about infanticide and genocide I'll just read the Bible haha.

ps. I'm as big a nerd as anyone on this board -- definitely know about the opening credits etc. Also agree that George isn't anyone's bitch, but as a 'consumer' (well, not really, but you get my point), I then get a choice of following it at his pace and accepting it, or deciding that it's not worth the emotional and time commitment, which I think I'm doing. The thing is, well done or not, I'm not sure that the entire project is really worth it (sacrilege, I know) -- it's all well and good him putting as much detail as he likes into his books, but if originality and wonder is in short supply (a controversial opinion, I'll admit, but I just feel that nothing is particularly original to anyone who's followed literary fantasy since the 1950s -- and I'm not alone in thinking this, I'm a member of the Science Fiction Writers Association of America and it's a quietly held opinion among the respected members of the association, and not because of professional jealousy I can assure you -- most of the guys I'm talking about are household names anyway), then I think it's a bit of a nerd wankfest.

I think it's great that George got the thing made on TV (hey, it's his homefield more so than novels are), and that lots of people love it and it's hitting all the right notes for the masses, but I guess at my age and literary background I need a bit more from my storytellers. Maybe I'm asking too much, but I'm not saying don't watch it.. we were asked our opinion and I just gave mine. If you like it, by all means please keep watching it. We need more well made shows, not less.

[EasternWest]

Re: Game of Thrones

Nice one Lantern!

I never thought about the perspective you're coming from being different to mine and therefore influencing your opinion.

No problem with any of what you said either. We're just coming at it from different places.

I think one thing we can both agree on, looking at George, is that the longer it takes for him to finish it, the closer it comes to remaining unfinished .

Cheers.

[JohnGentStand]

Re: Game of Thrones

loved the books , love the show
Long live the Imp !!!

[LostDoggy]

Re: Game of Thrones

Love Tyrion, but am intrigued by Princess Daenerys

Agree. She is something else. Is it just me or in the scene at the end of season 1, not quite sure where I should be looking - At the "hatched" spectacles or the other spectacles she has on offer

[comrade]

Re: Game of Thrones

The Daenerys plot has been boring in season 2 and she's been portrayed as a bit a whinge, rather than the fiery tribal queen of season 1.

That being said, apparently things heat up (get it?) when she gets to the House of the Undead.

I'm hoping it happens this week.

[angelopetraglia]

Re: Game of Thrones

I have been a massive fan of the books for a long time. The only frustrating thing is the amount of time between each book. Over 5 years in some instances!

I have recently watched season 1 and are about to begin season 2. They did a great job with the TV series. It really captures the spirit of the books.

[SonofScray]

Re: Game of Thrones

Blackwater is suitably epic.

[Before I Die]

Re: Game of Thrones

Blackwater is suitably epic.

This !

No longer Dinner with the Lannisters. Apparently George himself wrote this episode and action with a touch of gore was the order of the day.

[comrade]

Re: Game of Thrones

I liked the explosions.

[EasternWest]

Re: Game of Thrones

Blackwater is suitably epic.

Seven hells that was a great episode. Your description is suitably apt.

[SonofScray]

Re: Game of Thrones

New ep tomorrow will cheer me up. Should have finished reading the series by the time season 3 airs.

[Twodogs]

Re: Game of Thrones

I'm a bit of a dork when it comes to medieval history and those suits of armour look to me like they are from the 15th century. When's GOT set?


Anyway if you guys liked this then you might like The Pillars Of The Earth;

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1453159/

It's set in the late 12th century in England against the backdrop of the civil war between King Stephen and the Empress Matilda and their battle for the throne. I recommend it and it's pretty easy to find on the usual P2P sites.

[LostDoggy]

Re: Game of Thrones

Forgive me if I'm completely off, but even though GOT has a medieval-esque setting, I think I read sometime in the distant past that it's supposed to have a science-fictional background: ie. it is not on Earth per se, but is actually human civilisation going through its own evolution in a different time (possibly the far future, actually) and location, which is supposed to explain the weather patterns being on a such different timeframe from Earth's, the dragons etc.