HBO adaptation of Game of Thrones - will this be just for nerds? (NO SPOILERS PLEASE)

those pictures look pretty rad. i usually like this kind of stuff better when there are actors and, like, vistas, so that's another reason i'm looking forward to the adaptation, although the books were def A Cut Above.

― difficult listening hour, Thursday, 24 March 2011 23:45 (2 years ago) Permalink

"robert"

― difficult listening hour, Thursday, 24 March 2011 23:45 (2 years ago) Permalink

nah theon.

― difficult listening hour, Thursday, 24 March 2011 23:45 (2 years ago) Permalink

I've mostly gotten off the endless/knotted/OTT/hyperinvolved fantasy saga train by now for a variety of reasons -- changed foci of interest in life, etc. -- but I think I'll be good with this to watch as it stands. If anything I think I'm glad that it's been adapted rather than trying to imagine dealing with the whole series; if it delivers as good drama that's all I need, really. I have absolutely no doubt that if I was twenty years younger I would long since have memorized all the books backwards and forwards -- but I grew up when I did and I got, well, Dragonlance.

(My dream extended adaptation wouldn't actually be a fantasy series but would be a hell of a blast -- Dorothy Dunnett's Lymond/Niccolo cycles, set in Renaissance/16th century Europe; if you want hyperinvolved plotting across decades and shades of grey characterization, you want to read these ASAP. And she completed it all before she passed so no regrets a la Jordan.)

― Ned Raggett, Thursday, 24 March 2011 23:47 (2 years ago) Permalink

yeah i'd say Martin is 90% likely to pull a Jordan at this point given his age/health and how slowly he's written the 5th book of supposedly 7 or 8

― ciderpress, Thursday, 24 March 2011 23:50 (2 years ago) Permalink

I'm less convinced than everyone else that GRRM's gonna die before finishing. There's only 2 more books and he's only 62. Does he have any known health issues aside from the obesity?

― ℳℴℯ　❤＼(◕‿◕✿ (Princess TamTam), Thursday, 24 March 2011 23:54 (2 years ago) Permalink

Not sure people are totally convinced he's gonna pop his clogs, it's more of a fatalist thing after what happened with RJ

― Number None, Thursday, 24 March 2011 23:56 (2 years ago) Permalink

xpost -- I suspect the only reason everyone's all thinking it might happen now is that people joked about it in re: Jordan for years and then he actually DID die and now people are all "MARTIN WE ARE PARANOID ABOUT YOU AND YOUR HEALTH ARGH"

(Or what Number None just said.)

― Ned Raggett, Thursday, 24 March 2011 23:57 (2 years ago) Permalink

Don't thing i could stomach another writer finishing these ala WOT though

― Number None, Thursday, 24 March 2011 23:58 (2 years ago) Permalink

A Song of Ice and Fire's epic conclusion, by Nicholas Sparks.

― Ned Raggett, Thursday, 24 March 2011 23:59 (2 years ago) Permalink

;_;

― VegemiteGrrl, Thursday, 24 March 2011 23:59 (2 years ago) Permalink

i think he can definitely write 2 more books if he sticks to his guns, i'm more worried about him stretching the story out into more than 7 books. he's already done this once, it was originally gonna be 6 books and then A Feast for Crows was sandwiched in later, and it seems like each time he gives a new character a voice, even if they were in the storyline already, it just increases the scope of the whole thing.

― ciderpress, Friday, 25 March 2011 00:00 (2 years ago) Permalink

i think i'll feel better about it if some of the separated characters' plotlines start to merge again in the next book, there was just so much fracturing of the plot by the end of book 3 and none of that's been resolved yet iirc

― ciderpress, Friday, 25 March 2011 00:04 (2 years ago) Permalink

Must be kind of cool to have hundreds of thousands of people actively willing you to remain alive though. Maybe that's why he doesn't want to finish?

― Number None, Friday, 25 March 2011 00:07 (2 years ago) Permalink

where was this filmed? i want to guess the winterfell area is scotland but i have no basis for that

― ciderpress, Friday, 25 March 2011 00:23 (2 years ago) Permalink

maybe i'm just mentally linking The Wall with Hadrian's Wall or something

― ciderpress, Friday, 25 March 2011 00:24 (2 years ago) Permalink

ireland, scotland and malta iirc

― ℳℴℯ　❤＼(◕‿◕✿ (Princess TamTam), Friday, 25 March 2011 00:26 (2 years ago) Permalink

I thought some was in Morocco too but I might be wrong.

― ENBB, Friday, 25 March 2011 00:28 (2 years ago) Permalink

I wish I had HBO now. That ice wall looks nice. I cannot even remember half of what I read tho. ;_

― I expected big laughs from "Corky Romano" (brownie), Friday, 25 March 2011 00:30 (2 years ago) Permalink

part of the reason im pysched for the series is that it makes rereading at least one of the books unnecessary

― http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e13/Lendo80/fbgm.gif (Lamp), Friday, 25 March 2011 05:17 (2 years ago) Permalink

Every time I read about 'Sansa' my brain automatically starts chanting 'Sansabelt! Sansabelt! Sansabelt!'

― VegemiteGrrl, Saturday, 26 March 2011 06:18 (2 years ago) Permalink

I started re-reading this, and I have to say I am worried that the show will sort of overwrite my own visualization of the various locations, kind of like Lord of the Rings did, despite my best efforts to resist it. May skip the show.

― rockapads, Saturday, 26 March 2011 06:20 (2 years ago) Permalink

LOTR overwrote the visualisations from the Bakshi film for me, so an improvement.

― Inevitable stupid samba mix (chap), Saturday, 26 March 2011 14:04 (2 years ago) Permalink

really dig the king's landing/winterfell contrast in those first two pictures. one of my favorite things in these books is (extremely minor spoiler) how homesick sansa gets for winterfell, and how defensive she is about the way it looks--low and grey and, um, stark, in a way she didn't know she loved when she was there, and didn't know was so much like her, cuz she thought she was all king's-landing-glam.

― difficult listening hour, Saturday, 26 March 2011 15:56 (2 years ago) Permalink

yeah my own visualization of winterfell wasn't quite as cloud-city-ish but i really love how it looks there anyway

― ciderpress, Saturday, 26 March 2011 17:54 (2 years ago) Permalink

i like how both castles have architectural styles that aren't just plucked straight from the medieval europe cliche of a castle

― ciderpress, Saturday, 26 March 2011 17:57 (2 years ago) Permalink

On first impressions, I don't thing it's stark enough? The interiors could win me over but in a general way, isn't constructing round buildings a lot more work and finesse-y than square ones? Doesn't seem in keeping, all the extra labor and attention just to result in some inconveniently round rooms.

― go peddle your bullshit somewhere else sister (Laurel), Saturday, 26 March 2011 17:57 (2 years ago) Permalink

I agree with that. I definitely didn't picture it to be some kind of architectural marvel. it's supposed to be ancient.

― rockapads, Saturday, 26 March 2011 18:55 (2 years ago) Permalink

it's been awhile since i've read these i'm pretty sure bran the builder (i swear i had to look him up!) was famous for his building.

― dynamicinterface, Saturday, 26 March 2011 21:24 (2 years ago) Permalink

There's nothing particularly fancy about a rounded castle tower, and when they're built that way it's for a reason - they protect against siege weapons differently than a square building would. It's not exactly how I pictured Winterfell either, but it's a valid design decision that doesn't contradict anything we know about the Starks (and yeah, Brandon the Builder gets mentioned a lot... there's supposed to be a great architectural tradition in the North, eg. the Wall)

― ℳℴℯ　❤＼(◕‿◕✿ (Princess TamTam), Sunday, 27 March 2011 04:22 (2 years ago) Permalink

u r the biggest shithead

― ENBB, Sunday, 27 March 2011 05:25 (2 years ago) Permalink

also can I just:

"NERRRRRRRD"

― VegemiteGrrl, Sunday, 27 March 2011 05:54 (2 years ago) Permalink

tbh this series is probably third only to LOTR and harry potter for fans geeking out over minute details

― ciderpress, Sunday, 27 March 2011 06:26 (2 years ago) Permalink

(eep shithead comment on wrong thread btw)

― ENBB, Sunday, 27 March 2011 13:23 (2 years ago) Permalink

That's a relief!

― ℳℴℯ　❤＼(◕‿◕✿ (Princess TamTam), Sunday, 27 March 2011 14:38 (2 years ago) Permalink

lol lol

― Godspeed HOOS! Black Steendriver (BIG HOOS aka the steendriver), Sunday, 27 March 2011 18:10 (2 years ago) Permalink

tamtam i find it ridiculous that you have read these for some reason

that is some ugly composited architecture, the wall one has two horizons ffs

― thomp, Sunday, 27 March 2011 18:45 (2 years ago) Permalink

My "nerd" comment 100% meant for tamtam...I kid bc I love

― VegemiteGrrl, Sunday, 27 March 2011 20:07 (2 years ago) Permalink

haha thom, as i was composing that post i imagined you coming along and registering disgust with me

― ℳℴℯ　❤＼(◕‿◕✿ (Princess TamTam), Monday, 28 March 2011 03:22 (2 years ago) Permalink

First 15 mins
http://www.hbo.com/#/game-of-thrones/about/video/exclusive-preview.html/eNrjcmbO0CzLTEnNd8xLzKksyUx2zs8rSa0oUc-PSYEJBSSmp-ol5qYy5zMXsjGyMXIyMrJJJ5aW5BfkJFbalhSVpgIAXbkXOA==

― Number None, Monday, 4 April 2011 02:30 (2 years ago) Permalink

that is some ugly composited architecture, the wall one has two horizons ffs

Okay, I keep looking but I'm not seeing these two horizons at all.

― 'what are you, the Hymen Protection League of America?' (jon /via/ chi 2.0), Monday, 4 April 2011 02:39 (2 years ago) Permalink

Already watched much of those 15 minutes through teasers, but still nice to see. Especially inside Winterfell. Was hoping to get the show's title sequence, though.

― abcfsk, Monday, 4 April 2011 09:24 (2 years ago) Permalink

looked great...looking fwd to the start of this.

― Packie Bonner (Local Garda), Monday, 4 April 2011 09:45 (2 years ago) Permalink

Productions values are satisfyingly high anyway

― Number None, Monday, 4 April 2011 10:08 (2 years ago) Permalink

From the mid-season tv thread:

Not going to the Game of Thrones thread(s), but as someone who's never read the books, should I try to get in on the miniseries?

― Leeeter van den Hoogenband (Leee), Saturday, April 16, 2011 11:16 AM Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

YES

― VegemiteGrrl, Saturday, April 16, 2011 11:19 AM Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

Not going to the Game of Thrones thread(s), but as someone who's never read the books, should I try to get in on the miniseries?

― Leeeter van den Hoogenband (Leee), Saturday, April 16, 2011 6:16 PM (1 hour ago) Bookmark

The thread for the series is spoiler-free I believe.

― Gukbe, Saturday, April 16, 2011 1:03 PM Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

i tried reading the book a couple years ago but i hated the writing and never got more than 40 pages in. that said, reviews for the show have been stellar so far and i'm really excited for it.

― Mordy, Saturday, April 16, 2011 1:12 PM Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

stellar? NYT and slate both hated it

― ban drake (the rapper) (max), Saturday, April 16, 2011 1:26 PM Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

Both those reviewers seemed to have chips on their shoulders

― Number None, Saturday, April 16, 2011 1:31 PM Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

and the Slate review is basically unreadable

― Number None, Saturday, April 16, 2011 1:33 PM Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

Yeah, I was reading something someplace that compared it favorably to a D&D The Wire (possibly on Wired.com?).

― Leeeter van den Hoogenband (Leee), Saturday, April 16, 2011 1:33 PM Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

From the NYT review:

While I do not doubt that there are women in the world who read books like Mr. Martin’s, I can honestly say that I have never met a single woman who has stood up in indignation at her book club and refused to read the latest from Lorrie Moore unless everyone agreed to “The Hobbit” first.

In other words, I don't think Ginia Bellafante is predisposed to this sort of fare.

― reggaeton for the painfully alone (polyphonic), Saturday, April 16, 2011 1:36 PM Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ilana-teitelbaum/game-of-thrones-hbo_b_850014.html

― reggaeton for the painfully alone (polyphonic), Saturday, April 16, 2011 1:41 PM Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

― Leeeter van den Hoogenband (Leee), Saturday, 16 April 2011 20:46 (2 years ago) Permalink

Heather Havrilesky from NYT doesn't dislike it but has some interesting thoughts.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/17/magazine/mag-17Riff-t.html

Sepinwall loved it, VanDerWerff really liked it, but they have the advantage of 6 episodes.

― Gukbe, Saturday, 16 April 2011 20:49 (2 years ago) Permalink

Oh, and should we throw down some ground rules if people are going to be discussing this week-by-week? i.e. if you've read the books don't discuss anything further than where we are, but discussion of any differences in the TV show and the books from what we've seen is fine.

― Gukbe, Saturday, 16 April 2011 20:51 (2 years ago) Permalink

obv i know but we don't want another Doctor Who thread on our hands.

― Gukbe, Saturday, 16 April 2011 20:51 (2 years ago) Permalink

and to breakdown VanDerWerff's thoughts from his podcasts:

He has larger issues with HBO moving away from episodic television, and those issues manifest themselves in GoT. He wasn't too enthused when he'd watch one episode, but when he'd watch two in a row he'd really be into it. Also aside from the nudity of one character, he finds a lot of it to be somewhat gratuitous.

Also, Myles McNutt has a series of posts in the lead-up:

A Televisual Love Letter

A Question of Taste

On Winter's Doorstep

― Gukbe, Saturday, 16 April 2011 21:02 (2 years ago) Permalink

and Zoller Seitz has weighed in on the reviews:

Slate, NYT to fantasy buffs: Grow Up

― Gukbe, Saturday, 16 April 2011 21:17 (2 years ago) Permalink