A Game of Thrones

[RikuStark]

Originally Posted by 1BellaLestrange

I just watched the first episode of the series the other day and thought it was really well done. I am not sure if I am continue watching though, the gore didn't make me feel too good,

That's no reason to give up on the show Bella!

I have to admit there is a lot of gore, but it's easy to block out without taking away anything from the storyline.

[Zeelee]

Definitely give it a chance Bella! Once you get past the gore you'll be sucked in by the storylines.

Lord Godric, love your avatar - made me smile thinking about that bit in the show.

[Alucinor99]

Originally Posted by Zeelee

New trailer is up.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOzXs...layer_embedded

Excitement is Coming!!!

Sorry, lied - Excitement is Here!!

Can't wait.

[Alucinor99]

Originally Posted by MerryLore

Natalie Dormer? Wasn't she Anne Boleyn in The Tudors?? I'll give her a chance, but it seems to be an odd choice.

From the first season, the only casting I didn't particularly like was Richard Madden / Robb. He somehow seemed too placid and wooden. I didn't feel any real emotion when he said goodbye to Jon Snow when they parted ways.

I love Natalie Dormer(I've also seen a few other things of hers as well).Everyone in my family loved her in the Tudor's. My family also all love Game of Thrones so we're all just really happy lol.

As for Margaery

Spoiler: show

I can see the problem with her age and even though my first reaction was to be thrilled when ND was cast, I also was a bit skeptical. But actually Natalie can do young and coy, and whilst being seductive as well. With Renly it will be fine as I think Natalie and Genthin are around the same age anyway. The actor who plays Joffrey is actually in his late teens, he looks a bit young. But they haven't actually said how old Joffrey is in the show. They can easily say he's 15/16 by the third season - I imagine they will tell us how old he is on his upcoming name day which will be in season 2. Then they can easily say Tommen is 12/13. I don't know how old the kid playing Tommen is, but we've barely see him and he barely does anything anyways. If the actor isn't old enough looking they can always re cast him later so Tommen looks more young adolescent/early teens than 8. Since Natalie looks older than Margaery it will make the gap look about equal to the book. I think people should be imagining Margaery with a boy that age, not 8. The girl who plays Myrcella is actually 14, and in a spoiler picture from filming in Croatia, she looked pretty tall, so older than book Myrcella. So when we see Myrcella again in later seasons, she'll be a teenager, like Sansa is so there's no reason to assume Tommen won't be older as well. I think it won't weird as people think. The Borgias last season had a 30 year old actress(playing a woman early twenties or so, and looked it rather easily. Natalie can pass for younger as well) marry a boy played by an actual adolescent. It looked a bit weird, extremely weird for modern standards but 'kind of workable' for 15th century standards.

Also

Spoiler: show

Finn Jones is around 23 or so I think(plays Loras Tyrell, Knight of Flowers). I think he looks a bit young though. I actually thought the wig they used last year aged him a bit, but this season they are using his natural hair which IMO makes him look younger. So I'm wondering if they will simply have Loras be the younger brother of Margaery with Margaery being the third eldest(well if they even have all the Tyrell siblings, Garlan probably isn't necessary but we'll see). Finn Jones did an interview recently for 'Cast of Thrones' and he said Marg would be a bit 'dangerous', that's probably not all of Marg will be though - Finn didn't say much about her. But it does definitely say that they are playing her less ambiguously and a player in her own right. I wouldn't mind that since they are expanding Margaery's role anyway. I can envision a scene where they have big sister Margaery comforting Loras after Renly death or something like that. I think it would work. Since we don't see any of the other Tyrell's this season, Margaery might have to be head schemer of the clan so her being the older sister would work for that. That's one problem I have though with showing us Renly's camp and scenes. It's going to look odd without Mace Tyrell. Why would he be absent during all of this? Even if Margaery is aged up - which she of course is - a daughter of a great house wouldn't be able to do everything on her own like that. Perhaps they will just allude to Mace off screen, like when Loras and Margaery meet with LittleFinger to align with Joffrey/The Lannisters - they will leave it open, saying they will have to discuss it with their father.

Sorry, lots to say.

As for Robb. I love Richard Madden in the role. I was pretty indifferent to Robb in the books. You like him because he's a Stark and what he represents but he's not very dynamic. That's the advantage of the television series IMO, it can add so much to the lesser characters and non POV characters in the book, which makes for a different experience from the books in a good way I think.

[Lord Godric]

I agree with you about both of your main points regarding Robb and Margaery, Alucinor. I always liked Robb in the books, but the television show added so much more to his character that wasn't there (probably because he was one of the two Starks who didn't have a POV chapter) and I look forward to his 'expanded' storyline in this season because it definitely has the great potential to come across well on the small screen. Richard Madden is very good as Robb, so it should be exciting.

As for Natalie Dormer and Margaery, everyone has been aged up in this show. Not just the younger actors but even Ned and Robert's generation.

Spoiler: show

so having Margaery play a young twenty-something to Joffrey's late teens will still have that same effect. The only real difference will be in the age difference that should be there between Renly and Margaery, but that is one of little significance in the books so it really shouldn't matter.

Natalie Dormer is the perfect actress, IMO, to play both the sweet and innocence of Margaery but also that plotting and game-playing character. So I look forward to seeing her.

[Lord Godric]

A new trailer for season two has just been released exclusively on HBOGO, and, as expected, it looks fantastic! Last season was great, but it really was full of exposition to introduce everyone to the world. With that out of the way the real action will begin this season, and I can't wait.

Some quick comments about the video that contain book spoilers:

Spoiler: show

- Robb's storyline looks to be increased a lot, which I had heard, but I am very excited to see bits of it. It should be interesting, and all the more heart-breaking, to actually see him fall in love with Jeyne.
- Speaking of heart-breaking, I really am starting to like show!Renly. It's gonna hurt when he's killed.
-Bran is shown wandering the woods with Hodor and Osha, which confuses me slightly. I think this must take place before the sack of Winterfell as there is no Rickon with them it seems, but it is possible it occurs after. I've become very worried about how they're going to execute that storyline after learning they never cast Reek/Ramsey or the Reed siblings. I'm hoping that they're just holding it until Season 3, and really hope they haven't been cut entirely because as painful as that storyline is all those parts, the Reeds and the Ramseys, are crucial to Bran and Rickon's later story.

I can't wait to get a weekly dosage of Westeros again!

[alwaysme]

New season starts in April right?

[Lord Godric]

Yes, April 1.

ETA: The first two episodes will be named "The North Remembers" and "Nightlands." "The North Remembers" certainly is an interesting choice for a title as it is a piece of dialogue from the latest book, A Dance With Dragons, and is very significant.

[RikuStark]

New trailer:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UV3Rf...f4FUAAAAAAADAA

[Lord Godric]

Game of Thrones season 2 starts a week from Sunday! Can't wait!

HBO has released a 22 minute video called "Game of Thrones: You Win or You Die" and it not only catches viewers up on the first season, but offers nice analysis from the actors and producers and also gives glimpses of season 2. It's a great watch.

[flimseycauldron]

Originally Posted by Alucinor99

As for Robb. I love Richard Madden in the role. I was pretty indifferent to Robb in the books. You like him because he's a Stark and what he represents but he's not very dynamic. That's the advantage of the television series IMO, it can add so much to the lesser characters and non POV characters in the book, which makes for a different experience from the books in a good way I think.

Well I just got finished watching GOT on DVD and I have to say that HBO did an outstanding job casting Robb. He was one of my least favorite Starks in the books. Maybe it was lack of POV in the books but he just seemed so brash. I always wondered why Jon had such an affinity for Robb in the books. Show!Robb is perfect and I'm rereading GOT with his portrayal in mind now.

In fact I have to say that I was pretty on board with all the casting except Cersei and Littlefinger. I went in expecting to hate the actor who played Jaime but was pleasantly surprised (the same with Jon) Peter Dinklage was spot on of course. I went back and forth about Dany but ultimately think she can grow into her role next season. My biggest shock was the girl who plays Sansa. Sansa must be one of the most reviled characters in the story but the way in which the actress played her I actually found myself being ever so slightly sympathetic.

I don't want to wait for Season 2 to come out on DVD. What are the odds of myhusband springing for HBO?!?!?

[jordmundt6]

This feels like a completely losing hand of crown contenders. Renly is weak, Stannis has a god complex, Joffrey's a demonic idiot, and Tywin is terrifying (but, strangely, not in the villainous sense).

The rule on this series must be "The Good die young, but Wretches live forever!"

Spoiler: show

Of the six Stark children, perhaps five still live. Of the five still breathing, one is dying of stab wounds in the north, one is disappeared, one is crippled, and one was blinded (temporarily). The healthiest is Sansa! Yikes! And Baelish, may all the gods (Old, New, and heretical) roast him in ALL the abysses, is still alive, pulling strings and quietly consolidating power.

Argh!

[Lord Godric]

Originally Posted by flimseycauldron

Well I just got finished watching GOT on DVD and I have to say that HBO did an outstanding job casting Robb. He was one of my least favorite Starks in the books. Maybe it was lack of POV in the books but he just seemed so brash. I always wondered why Jon had such an affinity for Robb in the books. Show!Robb is perfect and I'm rereading GOT with his portrayal in mind now.

I always like book!Robb but I do think that Richard Madden really brought the role to life in a way that never happened in the books. They are changing his storyline for the show slightly and instead of him just disappearing we will now follow him throughout the entire season so I am definitely looking forward to Robb's role this season.

In fact I have to say that I was pretty on board with all the casting except Cersei and Littlefinger.

I like Aiden Gillan as Littlefinger, but I still do not like Lena Headey as Cersei. Perhaps it is what the writers decided to do with Cersei but it definitely seems like Headey does not understand Cersei. I hated when Cersei came to Catelyn and told her how distraught she was when she lost her and Robert's child, because in the books Cersei purposely aborted any child that she and Robert conceived. Also in interviews with Headey she just says things about the character that are not true whatsoever, and that's probably because she refuses to read the books so she creates her own motivations for Cersei, but they aren't the same motivations that Martin gave Cersei in the books. So it has created this really weird character that I just do not like yet. Maybe Headey will eventually come into the role, but so far she's the weak link for me.

My biggest shock was the girl who plays Sansa. Sansa must be one of the most reviled characters in the story but the way in which the actress played her I actually found myself being ever so slightly sympathetic.

Oh god, not me. I think with season 2 I will feel sorry for her because what happens to her is really terrible. The show kinda ripped out the whole "Sansa was the one who ratted Ned out to Cersei" bit because they didn't want her to be as controversial as she was in the books, but she still was a spoiled brat especially in her scenes with Septa Mordane. But I think I will definitely feel sorry for her in season 2.

[flimseycauldron]

Originally Posted by Lord Godric

Perhaps it is what the writers decided to do with Cersei but it definitely seems like Headey does not understand Cersei. I hated when Cersei came to Catelyn and told her how distraught she was when she lost her and Robert's child, because in the books Cersei purposely aborted any child that she and Robert conceived. Also in interviews with Headey she just says things about the character that are not true whatsoever, and that's probably because she refuses to read the books so she creates her own motivations for Cersei, but they aren't the same motivations that Martin gave Cersei in the books. So it has created this really weird character that I just do not like yet. Maybe Headey will eventually come into the role, but so far she's the weak link for me.

I remember you mentioning something like that earlier, that she hadn't read the books. (It's like Gambon not reading Harry Potter! Blaspheme!) i'm in the midst of a reread of the series but when you compare Cersei in the later books to the Cersei in the show I begin to wonder if they are trying to blend the two. By the later books Cersei loses Joffrey, she practically runs the kingdom into the ground, and for all intents and purposes loses Jaime as well. She is a much more fragile charcter later in the series than in the beginning. It may be the writers are trying to incorporate that into this version of Cersei just in case the show ends before the books do? I simply think that this actress is too wooden.

Originally Posted by Lord Godric

Oh god, not me. I think with season 2 I will feel sorry for her because what happens to her is really terrible. The show kinda ripped out the whole "Sansa was the one who ratted Ned out to Cersei" bit because they didn't want her to be as controversial as she was in the books, but she still was a spoiled brat especially in her scenes with Septa Mordane. But I think I will definitely feel sorry for her in season 2.

The scene where she begs Ned to stay when he wants to send the girls back to Winterfell made me want to scream. Her direwolf is dead, the butcher's son is dead, Nymeria is vanished, Arya hates her, and Joffrey has been shown to be a bully and she STILL has visions of Queenship. I literally wanted to throw something at the TV. (Which is a mark of a good actress, btw) I started feeling sorry for her when she contemplated pushing Joffrey off the walkway after he made her look at the Septa's and her father's head. You could tell she was losing it.

Originally Posted by jordmundt6

Tywin is terrifying (but, strangely, not in the villainous sense).

Tywin has always been a sort of puzzle to me, to be frank. Perhaps rereading the whole series will clarify a few things..

[Lord Godric]

Originally Posted by flimseycauldron

I remember you mentioning something like that earlier, that she hadn't read the books. (It's like Gambon not reading Harry Potter! Blaspheme!) i'm in the midst of a reread of the series but when you compare Cersei in the later books to the Cersei in the show I begin to wonder if they are trying to blend the two. By the later books Cersei loses Joffrey, she practically runs the kingdom into the ground, and for all intents and purposes loses Jaime as well. She is a much more fragile charcter later in the series than in the beginning. It may be the writers are trying to incorporate that into this version of Cersei just in case the show ends before the books do?

Yeah, it's possible. It also could be that they're doing what they did with Sansa and are trying to make Cersei into a more gray character than just being complete black. Although Martin is marvelous at crafting these not-good-yet-not-evil characters, I think most people would say Cersei is one of the more pure evil characters and the writers and producers could be trying to make her more gray. I'm not one to usually have little quibbles over adaptations, but this one bugs me a lot.

I simply think that this actress is too wooden.

I agree. I always pictured Cersei to wear her emotions on her sleeve, especially with Robert or Tyrion or Jaime and I didn't see that with Headey.

[Moriath]

Please, make an effort to keep book spoilers out of this thread or post them behind spoiler tags. Game of Thrones seems to stick very closely to the books and it's simply not fair to spoil fans of the show like that!

[flimseycauldron]

Sorry! I keep assuming everyone has read through.

[jordmundt6]

LH has shown herself to be an interesting actress in other roles, but I can't tell if the rewrite for the show is just vastly different from the book version of Ceresi or the actress just tragically misunderstands her character or both. I remember hearing her describe Ceresi in one of those aerly behind-the-scenes featurettes and wondering what she thought she was talking about.

Her best scenes were probably her confrontation with Robert about how long hate can hold a thing (the realms) together (what I called her Breathless Mahoney scene last year) and her confrontation with Ned by the fountain.

At this early point, I think the guy playing Littlefinger is doing an excellent job. I'm reduced to holding out faint hope that Stoneheart rips him in half (serve him right if he ended up with a decomposing husk anyway) or Arya wreaks horrific vengeance on him (neither of which seems likely in either continuum).

Peter Dinklage seems like he's been excellent casting for the Imp's humor and insight, but the book's physical description of him makes him seem like a diminutive Quasi Modo or a male version of the hag on Princess Bride, not well-spoken handsome man who just happens to be quite short. PD's performance has warmed me to the change, but it is rather startling.

[Moriath]

Spoiler: show

So I'm wholly underwhelmed by Melisandre who has the sex appeal and charisma of a dead fish. If Stannis of all people comes across as more interesting we have a problem. Do not like that casting choice AT ALL. But Davos is love!

Craster, on the other hand, is fantastic. I love how he's not creepy on the outside but sleazy as hell on the inside. They emphasised the absence of the boys a little too early, in my view, but then it's TV and everything needs to be a little more IN YOUR FACE. Craster got some lovely lines - his comments on Jon's prettiness cracked me up. Also LOL at the Skins reunion in this show.

Loved the Littlefinger vs. Cersei scene. Oh Cersei, when will you learn that bullying people does not true power make? Especially not bullying powerful people who fund your son's extravagances. What was wrong with Joffrey though? Insulting his mother like that and then threatening her? This seemed a little off. His evil was lovely in the Name Day scene though. That's the insanity one wants to see in a king on Aerys' throne.

Cersei's scenes with Tyrion were fantastic as well. Tyrion really enjoyed this, didn't he? And understandably so.

Dany's parts were bleak and I dread what is to come. More bleakness. Meh. This story line needs to be sped up. The dragons are still cute though.

Rob and Grey Wind!!!! ♥ FLAILITYFLAIL! I loved everything about their scenes and I hope that this story line draws out like whoa. Robb also metaphorically *****-slapped that Lannister cousin like a pro. I am proud of him and I'm not wholly-headless Ned. Jaime needs some love though. I adore his snarktastic self, even if he's dirty and nearly wetting himself at the sight of Grey Wind.

And can I just say how much I love this show for doing THE THING THAT IS JUST NOT DONE on TV and kill a baby? That's the taboo that's never broken and they just nonchalantly walked all over it. Respect!

Can't wait for next week. I'm glad this show is back!

[Lord Godric]

Spoiler: show

This episode started off slow for me, but once it got to the Robb/Jaime scene it was good ol' Game of Thrones.

I don't think it can be overstated how great Peter Dinklage is as Tyrion. He really nailed not only his introduction at Joffrey's nameday tourney, but the scene with Tyrion and Cersei was brilliantly acted. I am looking forward to seeing him during this season so much, as this is really his season to shine.

I was pleasantly surprised to see Grey Wind looking so large! And also pleasantly surprised at how Bran's wolf dream was handled. I was worried, with the limitation of the dreams last year, that they might try to cut them out somehow, but it worked brilliantly. They are setting Robb up as this independent character much earlier than they did in the books, he actually lost his temper with Catelyn already which was surprising. I'm looking forward to his expanded arc this season as well.

I, too, liked the Littlefinger/Cersei scene. I heard a lot of people didn't like it because they didn't think that Littlefinger would ever be so bold like that to Cersei's face and think it was out of character, which in a way it was, but that scene wasn't about Littlefinger. It was about Cersei. And speaking of Cersei, we were just talking about how wooden she was last year, and I find I am liking her already. The Cersei who screams and does dramatic things like make guards come within an inch of slicing someone's throat is much closer to Book!Cersei than the quiet and reserved Cersei we saw last season.

I also was happy that we got to see the slaughter of the *******s on screen as it was something that was off page in the books. What I do not like, however, is that it was Joffrey who gave the command. The writers/producers seem to be whitewashing Cersei a little bit too much.

Now for the things that I was not that keen about:

Sophie Turner still just doesn't pull off Sansa for me. Her "you cannnnn't" at the Dontos scene felt terribly forced and I think she is worst of the child actors on the show. Compare her to the others who play the Stark children, and you see how bad her acting really is.

I was not sold on Melisandre yet, but I am thinking they are holding back on revealing what her character is really like. I'm not bothered that she's not ethnic looking or stunningly beautiful as long as the acting is great. Which I am not yet sure about.

I am greatly excited to have the show back. And was very happy to hear that the show got nearly 4 million viewers during it's first screening and and an additional 2.3 during it's second. Those numbers are so much better than anything we saw last year. I'm hoping they announce the renewal of Season 3 very soon.

ETA:

Spoiler: show

I also was very excited by the "In the Weeks to Come..." trailer. Little things like seeing scenes from the Battle of the Blackwater and Rattleshirt and Ygritte really got me excited for the season.