Thoughts on Game of Thrones
Well... I did it. I bought the first 4 books in the A Song of Ice and Fire series. The one thing you can count on me to compulsively buy are books. I don't know what it is, but it is the one sort of medium that I absolutely love building a collection of above all other things. I probably wouldn't have caved this time around if Amazon wasn't offering the packaged set for $20. I'm sorry but this weak-willed girl cannot refuse a book bargain. And so I bought it. And now I have to wonder if it's exactly worth it.
I've been watching the show, and I am definitely enjoying it. My opinion on the show's execution so far is really high. It's grand, epic, beautifully shot, and wonderfully acted. Even if I had absolutely no investment in the story, I would still praise it for these things because I am incredibly excited about fantasy being depicted this well on the silver screen. Because let's face it, there just isn't enough fantasy tv like this, let alone of this great quality. Or movies for that matter! Here's the thing though. I'm not really in love with it. At least not yet. It's entertaining when I'm watching, but I'm never dying for the next episode. Case in point: I've had the download link for episode 7 lying around since it leaked last week, and I've had no problem waiting to watch it this weekend. Once I'm watching, sure, I'm invested, but when it's off, I can move on with my life. I almost feel like my lack of shipping anything in this show at this point is limiting my fannish interest. Honestly I wouldn't be surprised.
I really don't watch HBO shows so the closest I've come to as mature television is The Pillars of the Earth. I've been known to gasp and peer through my hands at the screen during the truly gory parts. I'm also really not used to all this nudity and sex in my shows. I understand the importance of the violence and the sex/nudity scenes in the story, but I'll admit to valuing the latter less in my narratives. I also find those scenes to be the more problematic between the two because of the nature of the sexual relationship at times. I know the entire point is that they're depicting the debased society at all levels, but I just react more strongly about that issue than some others. To a certain degree I think these representations also just tie in to the overall oppressed status of women in this world. Robert in particular just enrages me at times because of his constant referral to the whores in his life. I also wish that Tyrion, for all his apparent wisdom, would refer to a woman in a way that recognizes her merits rather than only apparently interacting with women when they are just whores to him.
And yet there are some very interesting female characters I want to know more about! I am IN LOVE with this desire of Arya's. She named her sword Needle and she wants to be a KNIGHT of all things. Be still my heart. I love her assured and strong rejection of her expected future. Dany also is a fascinating character, and I am so, so, so relieved her manipulative and abusive (in more ways than one) brother is out of her life permanently. (Apparently some people actually mourn this? Sorry NO SYMPATHY here.) And I know she is going to become a fierce leader, and I'm so very excited to see it happen.
On the whole lack of good and evil in the story, I welcome it because I'm always for a story where there doesn't need to be an "ultimate evil" to create conflict. The way I see it is that depicting a force or character as primarily evil in all their intentions just lessens the character complexities and relationships you can reach in a narrative. I believe most people are neither entirely good or evil, and I like to see people swayed by their own interests - protecting the ones and things they care for and hindering those against those interests. It's just for me fantasy is always about the characters. I love to see them fleshed out and acting as if they were real people. And in real life I just don't often see the walking embodiment of the reluctant, but entirely morally good hero and the amoral world-hating villain. Just saying.
That's not to say though that I think Martin's characters, at least as they come off on the screen, are being depicted as totally morally gray. I do think some characters are just obviously assigned the role of amoral antagonist at this point with only a couple showing depth (Cersei being one of them). Of course this might be a hasty judgment because I hear that who you judge to be doing right varies from reader to reader of the books. I find that fascinating and is partially why I want to read the books to see if I can be swayed from my partiality to the Stark family. Of course I see a coming personal deliberation between that family and Dany, but I expect it will become even more complicated than that.
So... thinking on it, I am very interested to see where some characters are headed and how all the families will come into greater conflict. I'm guessing we'll get a stake in each family and be put to the test in our own judgment as each will be acting in their own interest. Fascinating stuff. Above all else for now it's the political intrigue and the emerging overarching story I guess that's keeping me invested. That and some potential character arcs that I really hope happen.
I also really hope this interest carries over to when I actually have the books in hand and that I enjoy Martin's writing style. I've noticed that some adult fantasy epics tend to be really heavy and tedious and a trial to drag myself through. I am excited to say though that when I was browsing through the book, looking at scenes that I've already watched, that it seems pretty dialogue heavy with less intense descriptions. So hopefully these books are relatively fast paced. Otherwise I do not know how I'll get through them. To be honest, I'm not sure I'm going to be able to. At least not this summer. I am tragically a very slowww reader.
With that said, I'm looking forward to continue watching with episode 7 tonight or tomorrow. And I really, really hope that I didn't just waste $20 so this boxset can sit next to my copy of Jordan's The Eye of the World. Which for various reasons I've decided I'm never going to read. I should probably sell it off, shouldn't I?
I've been watching the show, and I am definitely enjoying it. My opinion on the show's execution so far is really high. It's grand, epic, beautifully shot, and wonderfully acted. Even if I had absolutely no investment in the story, I would still praise it for these things because I am incredibly excited about fantasy being depicted this well on the silver screen. Because let's face it, there just isn't enough fantasy tv like this, let alone of this great quality. Or movies for that matter! Here's the thing though. I'm not really in love with it. At least not yet. It's entertaining when I'm watching, but I'm never dying for the next episode. Case in point: I've had the download link for episode 7 lying around since it leaked last week, and I've had no problem waiting to watch it this weekend. Once I'm watching, sure, I'm invested, but when it's off, I can move on with my life. I almost feel like my lack of shipping anything in this show at this point is limiting my fannish interest. Honestly I wouldn't be surprised.
I really don't watch HBO shows so the closest I've come to as mature television is The Pillars of the Earth. I've been known to gasp and peer through my hands at the screen during the truly gory parts. I'm also really not used to all this nudity and sex in my shows. I understand the importance of the violence and the sex/nudity scenes in the story, but I'll admit to valuing the latter less in my narratives. I also find those scenes to be the more problematic between the two because of the nature of the sexual relationship at times. I know the entire point is that they're depicting the debased society at all levels, but I just react more strongly about that issue than some others. To a certain degree I think these representations also just tie in to the overall oppressed status of women in this world. Robert in particular just enrages me at times because of his constant referral to the whores in his life. I also wish that Tyrion, for all his apparent wisdom, would refer to a woman in a way that recognizes her merits rather than only apparently interacting with women when they are just whores to him.
And yet there are some very interesting female characters I want to know more about! I am IN LOVE with this desire of Arya's. She named her sword Needle and she wants to be a KNIGHT of all things. Be still my heart. I love her assured and strong rejection of her expected future. Dany also is a fascinating character, and I am so, so, so relieved her manipulative and abusive (in more ways than one) brother is out of her life permanently. (Apparently some people actually mourn this? Sorry NO SYMPATHY here.) And I know she is going to become a fierce leader, and I'm so very excited to see it happen.
On the whole lack of good and evil in the story, I welcome it because I'm always for a story where there doesn't need to be an "ultimate evil" to create conflict. The way I see it is that depicting a force or character as primarily evil in all their intentions just lessens the character complexities and relationships you can reach in a narrative. I believe most people are neither entirely good or evil, and I like to see people swayed by their own interests - protecting the ones and things they care for and hindering those against those interests. It's just for me fantasy is always about the characters. I love to see them fleshed out and acting as if they were real people. And in real life I just don't often see the walking embodiment of the reluctant, but entirely morally good hero and the amoral world-hating villain. Just saying.
That's not to say though that I think Martin's characters, at least as they come off on the screen, are being depicted as totally morally gray. I do think some characters are just obviously assigned the role of amoral antagonist at this point with only a couple showing depth (Cersei being one of them). Of course this might be a hasty judgment because I hear that who you judge to be doing right varies from reader to reader of the books. I find that fascinating and is partially why I want to read the books to see if I can be swayed from my partiality to the Stark family. Of course I see a coming personal deliberation between that family and Dany, but I expect it will become even more complicated than that.
So... thinking on it, I am very interested to see where some characters are headed and how all the families will come into greater conflict. I'm guessing we'll get a stake in each family and be put to the test in our own judgment as each will be acting in their own interest. Fascinating stuff. Above all else for now it's the political intrigue and the emerging overarching story I guess that's keeping me invested. That and some potential character arcs that I really hope happen.
I also really hope this interest carries over to when I actually have the books in hand and that I enjoy Martin's writing style. I've noticed that some adult fantasy epics tend to be really heavy and tedious and a trial to drag myself through. I am excited to say though that when I was browsing through the book, looking at scenes that I've already watched, that it seems pretty dialogue heavy with less intense descriptions. So hopefully these books are relatively fast paced. Otherwise I do not know how I'll get through them. To be honest, I'm not sure I'm going to be able to. At least not this summer. I am tragically a very slowww reader.
With that said, I'm looking forward to continue watching with episode 7 tonight or tomorrow. And I really, really hope that I didn't just waste $20 so this boxset can sit next to my copy of Jordan's The Eye of the World. Which for various reasons I've decided I'm never going to read. I should probably sell it off, shouldn't I?