[TV] Winter HAS COME! - A Game of Thrones

Dei

Dei

I haven't watched it yet, but all the reviews so far seem to complain the most about
Dany and Drogo's wedding being way more savage and harsh than in the books, including more of a rape consummation than a gentle one. Which is pretty irritating to me really. Will have to actually watch it to be sure.
 
Frank

Frank

That scene starts out almost exactly the same as it does in the book, it just gets cut off.

Also, is that the dude from Stargate Atlantis? He got real performance enhancement huge for Conan.
 
Terrik

Terrik

My personal opinion of the episode is mixed. Some of the acting falls a little flat and I felt some of the scenes lacked...something. I'm not sure. Color? Feeling? I've read through all the books a number of times and it could just be another case of the TV/Movie not being as good as the book. A lot of the musical score also seemed somewhat generic.

I mean, I generally liked it, and its nice to see the books translated into film but I wasn't particularly blown away. Regardless I've give the second episode a go and see how that runs.
 
J

Joe Johnson

I've heard that episode 5 is where the series really starts to pick up the pace. I'm enjoying it so far, so I'll definitely give it a whole season. I've certainly sat through much worse.
 
SpecialKO

SpecialKO

They have a crap-ton of set up to do before shit really starts getting crazy. In a way, the whole first season will be setup.
 
@Li3n

@Li3n

Why is it that whenever i see an american made show that tries to be mature by including nudeness and sex it always comes of as juvenile... is it just because they feel the need to have the camera linger on asses and tits to rub it in the puritans faces, because in the end it just feels more like fan-service, and it would work just as well if they just treated it as background to the actual scene.


Otherwise the show itself was good, while the story (storytelling?) always needs at least half a season (and in the case of an actual show wide story arc even 1-2 seasons - B5 took a season to start going) to make a real judgement on.
 
Dave

Dave

Staff member
I think, @Li3n, that you have really hit upon what bothered me about it. It was heavily "HBO'd" up like we'd be bored if there weren't boobs everywhere. Like the scene where Tyrion is given a bunch of whores. In the book? I don't remember it. Really the only scenes that should have had any nudity were the Dothraki wedding (and that was non-sexual for the most part), when the queen was getting it on (& they didn't show anything there) and the last scene with Drogo - and they made that one uncomfortable for no reason.

I liked the show well enough but they did a lot of exposition, a lot of unnecessary sex and they left out some things that I feel could have been kept in. Like Theon Greyjoy's kicking of the head to show what kind of dude he is, etc.

They took some weighty material and turned it into "True Blood".
 
@Li3n

@Li3n

What happened with True Blood is what i was thinking of actually... most people associate it with all the sex and little else because they went too fan-service-y with it. Except when it's about the gay guy... who's popular enough not to get killed like in the books... something to think about HBO.
 
Dave

Dave

Staff member
You know who summed up my feelings fairly decently? Tim Buckley.

You know, after watching the second episode of Game of Thrones last night (and loving every minute of it), it really sunk in that there is no way for me to watch the series obectively. To separate it and judge it on its own merits, apart from the book.

The series looks to be moving along at a breakneck pace... and I can't really fault it for that, because the books are so very complex and detailed, and there are so many characters and different threads to follow, and they only have ten or eleven episodes. However, I've read each of the existing books at least six times thus far (and in a few weeks I will start reading them a seventh to prepare for A Dance with Dragons this summer), and I think my brain fills in all of the backstory and details that may not necessarily be shown on screen.

My fiancee has been watching the show with me, and I find myself wondering "how is this coming across to her?". Does half of this even make sense yet? When the characters mention the Eyrie, or Rhaegar and Lyanna, I immediately know these people and places and what they're referring to.

For instance, I know who Rickon is, even though he really hasn't had a part in the show so far. I think he was in one scene, for a brief moment, and not even identified. Did people who haven't read the books even realize there was another Stark child until that scene in Bran's bedchamber? Theon Greyjoy has been in a number of scenes... have they even called him by name yet? Is that weird for people, to just have this guy there, with no explanation of who he is?

I feel like the dire wolves have been almost cast aside in the first two episodes... Ghost and Grey Wind and ShaggyDog haven't even been seen since they were found. The show totally glossed over the part the wolves played in Bran's recovery... suddenly Summer was there to rescue Bran, sure. But where had he been before then?

The Dire Wolves are such a core part of the stories of the Stark children, and I worry that's being lost on people as the show moves along hitting all the major plot points with incredibly accuracy, but at the same time possibly missing a lot of the deeper, important details.

I understand that you'll never get all of the details from a book captured on screen. However how are people going to understand the connection the Starks have with their direwolves, a major plot point, if they aren't shown more? How are they expected to mourn for Lady and realize what an impact that was not only on the children but the other dire wolves, when she was in one scene prior to her end.

Ultimately I think my concern for how the show is viewed by "outsiders" correlates to my concern for the show's longevity (I know it's been renewed for a second season already, but two seasons is still not the seven or eight seasons the entire series will need). Let's face it, the majority of the viewers of this show are going to be people who have never read the books before, and probably won't bother even if they enjoy the show.

So far Game of Thrones on HBO is like a dream come true for ASOIAF fans, but if the series can't capture and hold people's attention in and of itself, we may not get to see the entire run.
So out of curiosity, if you've been watching, and have not read the books (shame on you), how do you find it so far? Do you feel lost at all? Having any trouble figuring out who different characters are, or why they're around? I'm interested to know how much (if any) of the grandeur of the books is poking through in the tv series for people unfamiliar with the world.
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Frank

Frank

I've answered any non spoilerish questions my friends who I've watched it with have had about things not overtly explained. They really don't have many and everyone is enjoying it.
 
Dieb

Dieb

I've read the books, myself. But so far, the way "Game of Thrones" kinda throws you into an incredibly complex world and expects you to keep up seems fairly typical for an HBO show. "The Wire", for example, did pretty much the same thing. And the Wire is rightly regarded as one of the best dramas of all time. Unfortuantly, it never had much of an audience, but it got 5 seasons. And it didn't have the built in fanbase that Game of Thrones has.
 
@Li3n

@Li3n

I have not read the book exactly because of teh show, and so far it looks fine to me... of course i did read a little about the book on wikipedia when someone recommended them to me and i read about the War of the Roses and the Borgias a long time ago, and that kinda helps put thing in perspective somewhat.
 
Hailey Knight

Hailey Knight

Dieb said:
I've read the books, myself. But so far, the way "Game of Thrones" kinda throws you into an incredibly complex world and expects you to keep up seems fairly typical for an HBO show. "The Wire", for example, did pretty much the same thing. And the Wire is rightly regarded as one of the best dramas of all time. Unfortuantly, it never had much of an audience, but it got 5 seasons. And it didn't have the built in fanbase that Game of Thrones has.
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Stories are better when they're not being overly explained to the audience, so that seems like a good route to go.

I'm avoiding this because I want to read the book first, and I'm not starting the books until the series is finished, so... might be a few years.
 
Dei

Dei

I usually buy ebooks now, but I need to buy the hardcover edition of Dance just so I can carry it around and bludgeon assholes with it.
 
Dave

Dave

Staff member
So what did everyone think about the unnecessary lesbian scene in tonight's episode? I mean, I like a good lesbian scene as much as the next guy, but it seemed forced and just a reason for Cameron from Ferris Beuller to give exposition. The scene was 10 minutes long!

Why, HBO? Why?
 
Frank

Frank

As much as I thought it was pretty overboard, it did do a good job of giving some insight into how Littlefinger thinks.
 
Terrik

Terrik

I dunno. Its just how I thought the whole Renly/Loras thing was overdone. A lot of the sex in this series is overblown (yes, I say that even having read the series five times over) in favor of a lot of other cool stuff they could have added instead. Instead of watching loras suck a dong, why couldn't I have seen more of the vale and the gates that make it so hard to breach, or why not show me more of Sansa's interactions with the Hound, or hell, how about show the damned direwolves once in a while. I almost forgot they even existed. The whole deal with Bran in the forest was screaming for one of the wolves to show up again, but nope. Less "edgy" sex and more emphasis on the story or at least little details that would flesh out the characters more would make me happy.

Disclaimer: I am, still, however, overall satisfied with the series and do enjoy watching it.

Also, I love how they did Syrio Forel.
 
Covar

Covar

So I watched the first episode the other day. There were elements I really liked (a lot of the casting) and changes that bothered me, like aging up the kids, and there being no snow in Winterfell.

I think I'm going to wait until I'm done with the book for a while, so I don't rage unnecessarily at every little change they make.
 
Frank

Frank

The children being older is a change I was fine with, I've even read somewhere that Martin regrets having them start so young.
 
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