"Game of Thrones" - HBO Series Coming in 2011

[wurwolf]

I'll pass.

[TeamRAD]

No offense, but why was that brilliant?

I'm easily impressed. 

[wurwolf]

I'll pass.

It's gonna be the final frontier of TV nudity.

And I'm sure if anyone will boldly venture forth, it will be HBO.

[wurwolf]

WTF? Seriously. This show is twelve kinds of jacked up.

[Kete]

WTF? Seriously. This show is twelve kinds of jacked up.

I haven't seen yesterday's episode.  Now I'm intrigued.  Are you talking about a plot point or another Littlefinger exposition?

[wurwolf]

WTF? Seriously. This show is twelve kinds of jacked up.

I haven't seen yesterday's episode.  Now I'm intrigued.  Are you talking about a plot point or another Littlefinger exposition?

I'm talking about... shit. I can't say it. Just watch yesterday's episode.

Seriously, what the hell is wrong with this show.

[Jinto]

WTF? Seriously. This show is twelve kinds of jacked up.

I haven't seen yesterday's episode.  Now I'm intrigued.  Are you talking about a plot point or another Littlefinger exposition?

I'm talking about... shit. I can't say it. Just watch yesterday's episode.

Seriously, what the hell is wrong with this show.

I'll tell you what's "wrong" with it. It keeps defying your expectations. It gives meaning back to the phrase "plot twist", where so many other shows and movies have watered it down to mean, at most "well gee, person A was NOT person B's long lost sibling, but in fact person C's offspring! <exaggerated gasps of feigned surprise>". (... yawn ...)

The books are like this too. You start thinking you know what's going to happen next, and then the story tells you, in no uncertain terms, "no, you don't".

And this is GOOD. 

It's also the reason why people who have read the books or watched the show already, find it difficult to talk about the story (in either medium) without spoiling something. Even seemingly innocuous factoids can clue someone in earlier than they should be to future events, thus ruining some of the suspense.

Imagine mentioning something seemingly trivial, like Gandalf"s new look (all white) in LotR after he returns to someone who's only watched the first movie. You've given away two facts: a) he returns, so therefore he's not dead (a common cliche in stories), and b) something has changed about him, and according to cliche this means he's most likely "powered up". So since now the person you told knows he's not the same as he was before, you've ruined the "surprise" at not only seeing him again, but seeing the changes. This may be a very minor thing in LotR with all it's predictability, but now think of doing something similar with GoT. Not so easy to avoid spoiling is it?

[Kete]

It's also the reason why people who have read the books or watched the show already, find it difficult to talk about the story (in either medium) without spoiling something. Even seemingly innocuous factoids can clue someone in earlier than they should be to future events, thus ruining some of the suspense.

My wife is 1 book ahead of me right now.  She'll just mention a person's name, and I'll get after her about spoilers.  If you say a name, I know that they're not dead!!

[Jinto]

It's also the reason why people who have read the books or watched the show already, find it difficult to talk about the story (in either medium) without spoiling something. Even seemingly innocuous factoids can clue someone in earlier than they should be to future events, thus ruining some of the suspense.

My wife is 1 book ahead of me right now.  She'll just mention a person's name, and I'll get after her about spoilers.  If you say a name, I know that they're not dead!!

Which isn't usually a problem in most cliche stories where you expect that, but with GoT, well.... 

[wurwolf]

WTF? Seriously. This show is twelve kinds of jacked up.

I haven't seen yesterday's episode.  Now I'm intrigued.  Are you talking about a plot point or another Littlefinger exposition?

I'm talking about... shit. I can't say it. Just watch yesterday's episode.

Seriously, what the hell is wrong with this show.

I'll tell you what's "wrong" with it. It keeps defying your expectations. It gives meaning back to the phrase "plot twist", where so many other shows and movies have watered it down to mean, at most "well gee, person A was NOT person B's long lost sibling, but in fact person C's offspring! <exaggerated gasps of feigned surprise>". (... yawn ...)

The books are like this too. You start thinking you know what's going to happen next, and then the story tells you, in no uncertain terms, "no, you don't".

And this is GOOD. 

It's also the reason why people who have read the books or watched the show already, find it difficult to talk about the story (in either medium) without spoiling something. Even seemingly innocuous factoids can clue someone in earlier than they should be to future events, thus ruining some of the suspense.

Imagine mentioning something seemingly trivial, like Gandalf"s new look (all white) in LotR after he returns to someone who's only watched the first movie. You've given away two facts: a) he returns, so therefore he's not dead (a common cliche in stories), and b) something has changed about him, and according to cliche this means he's most likely "powered up". So since now the person you told knows he's not the same as he was before, you've ruined the "surprise" at not only seeing him again, but seeing the changes. This may be a very minor thing in LotR with all it's predictability, but now think of doing something similar with GoT. Not so easy to avoid spoiling is it?

This is what I meant, but with less smugness and pomposity.

[D.B. Barnes]

Oh no you didn't Thrones!!!



My appetite for fictional revenge knows no bounds.

[Jinto]

This is what I meant, but with less smugness and pomposity.

Clarifying exposition in the future may decrease the likelihood of misinterpretation of (apparently) rhetorical questions being perceived as eliciting postulating elucidation.

   


and now for something completely different. randomness, because I feel like being silly:

"A bannister always frames its steps!"

[dignan]

I AM NOT HAPPY.

[Ortega]

I liked seeing Tyrion being forced into battle, even though he had no business on the field in the first place.  I also like the scene with Brom in the tent with T's new "girl".


I DID NOT WANT the last scene.  In one hand, it takes balls to do that.  On the other, it makes me a sad panda.

[wurwolf]

I AM NOT HAPPY.

Except not with a happy face. More like this: 

Can we talk about it yet? Has everyone seen it? I'm going to talk about it.

I can't believe they killed off Ned. Up until the very end I was sure he was going to get out of it. I appreciate that as a storyteller GRRM is willing to do anything and everything to any of his characters, but still -- Ned was the main character! What the fuck!

It took a minute for it to sink in when it happened. I sat there and watched it like, Okay, big sword, executioner... alright, so who's the one to save him at the last minute? And then the blade swung and everything went fuzzy (nicely done on that, by the way) and it still took a moment to sink in. I said to APGIL, "Okay, they cut off Ned's head." But then a few seconds later I was like, OMG THEY CUT OFF NED'S HEAD!

I feel so bad for Arya and Sansa. Not only are they trapped there, but they witnessed their father's execution. I can't imagine how Sansa is going to marry Joffrey now. I can't imagine how Arya isn't going to try to run that little shit through with Needle.

The whole thing with the Dothraki has been highly interesting as well. That tent sounds crazy and if Drogo manages to live through it I can only imagine he's going to be zombie Drogo. I have no idea why Jorah would carry Dany into that monster tent to give birth. I thought giving birth in a hospital was bad...

I wish there was a little more in the budget to show things like the monster tent, or the battle between the Starks and the Lannisters. All we saw was Tyrion waking up and everyone telling him the battle was over. I am not much for battle scenes but that all felt really half-assed to me.

I am tired of Jon Snow. Go cry about it, emo kid. I wonder if he'll ever find out about his mother.