TV/Film: Game Of Thrones

[Donal2018]

[Possible Spoilers for those who have not seen the previous 7 seasons of Game of Thrones]

I was wondering if anyone is going to be watching Game Of Thrones on Sunday? No Spoilers for the 8th Season, of course, but I discuss aspects of the previous 7 seasons in this post.

I am a big fan of GoT,  but I do not have HBO. I am thinking of subscribing to their online service just to watch the final six episodes, which starts on Sunday and runs for the next several weeks into May.

Previously I have just binge watched the show on DVDs from my local library, but I am anxious to see the new shows as soon as they premiere, given that this is the final season. I am a big fan.

Anyway, I thought I would just post this to see if there are any fans of the show here on TC. I imagine that there would be a number of fans here.

If you are a fan, what are some of your favorite things from the show? I love the Many Faced God and the Faceless Men sub-plot with Arya. Any political intrigue aspects are also the most fun.

I have grown to like the Cersei character despite her being cast more as a villain. I like that she defeats her enemies to become Queen despite the odds. I liked her revenge against the High Sparrow and the Faith Militant, who I saw as falsely sanctimonious, not honestly religious.

I also like the journey that Brienne of Taarth has been on throughout the series. I guess for some reason I like a lot of the female characters. I like strong female characters.

So, I will probably get an HBO Now account and stream the show on Sunday.

[Donal2018]

[Possible Spoilers for those who have not seen the previous 7 seasons of Game of Thrones]

I was wondering if anyone is going to be watching Game Of Thrones on Sunday? No Spoilers for the 8th Season, of course, but I discuss aspects of the previous 7 seasons in this post.

I am a big fan of GoT,  but I do not have HBO. I am thinking of subscribing to their online service just to watch the final six episodes, which starts on Sunday and runs for the next several weeks into May.

I just saw that there is an old Game of Thrones thread that was last posted to in 2015 here in this Music. Television, and Film Forum. I figure that it is alright to post a new thread here in 2019 about the final season rather than resurrecting an old thread.

[SunflowerP]

I just saw that there is an old Game of Thrones thread that was last posted to in 2015 here in this Music. Television, and Film Forum. I figure that it is alright to post a new thread here in 2019 about the final season rather than resurrecting an old thread.

With a date gap that large, your choice makes perfect sense.

Sunflower

[Donal2018]

I just saw that there is an old Game of Thrones thread that was last posted to in 2015 here in this Music. Television, and Film Forum. I figure that it is alright to post a new thread here in 2019 about the final season rather than resurrecting an old thread.

I would also note that I read all of the books before I started watching the show.

I saw in the prior thread that some people were fans, some not as much. You might criticize the show for excessive violence, gratuitous sex, etc. There is also a tendency for Martin to throw curveballs with his plots, which seem to incorporate randomness into his events and stories.

Some people think it is not well-plotted, but I sort of like the randomness and adult content. Reality is more random, and I weary of pat fantasy stories where the good guys wear white and always triumph over bad guys in black. The moral ambiguity and randomness appeals to me.

I like seeing characters who might seem to be villainous exhibiting redeemable qualities. For example, Jaime Lannister tried to kill Bran in the first episode, but ended up behaving honorably with Brienne of Taarth and formed a bond with her based upon honor. Cersei is ruthless, but she loves her children. And so on.

[Sefiru]

While I haven't read the books or watched the show, and don't plan to (on which more below) I do enjoy fanfics and analyses of the series.

Reality is more random,

I disagree with the idea that realism is a goal of storytelling. Realism can be a tool to, say, give substance to the setting or make characters relatable, but being 'realistic' isn't the point of telling a story.

I weary of pat fantasy stories where the good guys wear white and always triumph over bad guys in black.

*Considers bookshelf* I don't think those are that common anymore, if they ever were. (OK, I have a preference for Protagonist-vs-nature or Protagonist-vs-society plots, rather than protagonist-vs-antagonist.)

You know what I'm weary of? All those writers who seem to have heard 'characters should have flaws' as 'characters should be mean'. I'm faced with cartloads of protagonists who are assholes, when I'd much rather read about one who is timid, or socially inept, or irresponsible.

My main issue with canon Game of Thrones (and this is a wider trend in popular culture) is that it shoves everything too far to the 'black' end of morality, to the point of actually being less realistic (compared to the slice of reality I inhabit myself, anyway). Where's my escapist optimism, damnit?

[Donal2018]

While I haven't read the books or watched the show, and don't plan to (on which more below) I do enjoy fanfics and analyses of the series.

I disagree with the idea that realism is a goal of storytelling. Realism can be a tool to, say, give substance to the setting or make characters relatable, but being 'realistic' isn't the point of telling a story.

*Considers bookshelf* I don't think those are that common anymore, if they ever were. (OK, I have a preference for Protagonist-vs-nature or Protagonist-vs-society plots, rather than protagonist-vs-antagonist.)

You know what I'm weary of? All those writers who seem to have heard 'characters should have flaws' as 'characters should be mean'. I'm faced with cartloads of protagonists who are assholes, when I'd much rather read about one who is timid, or socially inept, or irresponsible.

My main issue with canon Game of Thrones (and this is a wider trend in popular culture) is that it shoves everything too far to the 'black' end of morality, to the point of actually being less realistic (compared to the slice of reality I inhabit myself, anyway). Where's my escapist optimism, damnit?

Personally, I like variety. Sometimes I like dark stuff, sometimes lighter, more uplifting stuff.

I do think that there are a number of sympathetic characters in GoT. Few people are innocent (maybe Princess Shireen, a minor character). Not all the characters are assholes.

I look for escapism and optimism in some cases of fiction, but also like some conflict and adult content. I think that there might be a "Game Of Thrones" effect, where people throw in violence, sex, and moral ambiguity in their stories.

Anyway, I do not read much fiction lately. More into non-fiction. Last fantasy stuff that I read was "The Lies Of Locke Lamora" by Scott Lynch and Joe Abercrombie's "First Law" series.

You might not like those books much as they are similar in style to "Game Of Thrones". Abercrombie's work has been called "Kurosawa meets Tolkein". I thought that they were pretty good though.

[Altair]

Personally, I like variety. Sometimes I like dark stuff, sometimes lighter, more uplifting stuff.

So...now that the series has wrapped up: Thoughts?

[NOTE: There will be SPOILERS!]

I'm also interested in takes on the various religions: the Seven, the Lord of Light, the Drowned God...

I'll post my own thoughts when I have more time.

[Donal2018]

So...now that the series has wrapped up: Thoughts?

[NOTE: There will be SPOILERS!]

I'm also interested in takes on the various religions: the Seven, the Lord of Light, the Drowned God...

I'll post my own thoughts when I have more time.

Yeah, I would like to get back to this topic when I have more time. SPOILERS! I did not like the ending of Daenarys' story. I did feel that where most of the Starks ended up made some sense. Anyway, maybe more discussion at some later point on this Thread.

[Donal2018]

Yeah, I would like to get back to this topic when I have more time. SPOILERS! I did not like the ending of Daenarys' story. I did feel that where most of the Starks ended up made some sense. Anyway, maybe more discussion at some later point on this Thread.

SPOILERS--

So I did not like how Daenarys ended up AT ALL. Maybe George RR Martin will explain it better in his books, but Daenarys' behavior in the last season makes no sense to me. She had spent all her life helping the oppressed, freeing the slaves, protecting the innocent, punishing the wrong-doers, the slave masters, etc.

Then at the end of the show she murders thousands of innocents with her dragon during the attack on King's Landing. There is no apparent justification for this in the TV show. If she had gone mad or had some other reason, it was not shown on the show. As I said, maybe George RR Martin will explain it better in his books. If Daenarys was in her right mind, she would not have attacked the innocents, but would have gone right after Cersei in the Red Keep.

That said, if Daenarys had done that, she would have been justified in becoming Queen, and Jon Snow would not have had any reason to kill her. Snow killing Daenarys made no sense either. If she had really gone mad and intended to wage more war against innocents, it might make some sense for Jon Snow to stop her. But none of that was made too clear in the show, in my opinion.

As far as the Starks go, the places that they ended up made sense more or less. I can see Bran as King given how the show ended. Sansa deserves to be Queen in the North. It makes sense for Arya to sail West to go on an adventure. It even makes a certain amount of poetic sense for Jon Snow to return to the North and go Beyond the Wall. King North of the Wall?

All of that was acceptable to me, but the ending with Daenarys really ruined the end of the show for me. I am grateful for having enjoyed the show for many years, just disappointed with how it ended.