good god the two at the end were twin siblings? I was going to say I missed on what was exactly so bad about them being caught but I didn't know it was that bad

anyhow I like the midget character, it seems like a good moment for midgets everywhere to have a serious character in television as opposed to the minime sellout making them look like retards

also that well barbarian totally reminded me of the barbarian character in diablo 2, and thankfully there were plenty of titties in the first ep including the white haired princess, I'm curious where her character goes in the future as she was probably the most antagonized char so far and seems like she is going to rebel eventually

4/18/2011 2:13:47 PM

it's interesting to see peoples' opinions on the show after the premiere. Especially the ignorant ones:

Quote :

"This will be like Snakes On a Plane. Big Internet hype but the rest of the real world won’t care and you’ll see very low ratings. When much of the viewers realize the show is just people wearing fur and swords standing around talking the ratings will fall even more."

I understand that not everyone will like the show for sure, but it seems like the majority of blogs and reviews that have been negative or slightly negative seem to be based on preconceived notions. IOW, The reviewers have some innate aversion to anything the least bit fantasy related.

[Edited on April 18, 2011 at 2:33 PM. Reason : .]

4/18/2011 2:31:14 PM

Quote :

"rbrthwrd All American 1847 Posts user info edit post how old is the actress who plays sansa stark, because she is very pretty and her character is like 4/18/2011 12:46:20 PM AndyMac All American 23174 Posts user info edit post She's 15"

the rest of my post got cut off, i was going to say she looked much older.

after looking at an interview online though she definitely looks her age, she looked much older in the dinner feast scene though.

4/18/2011 2:49:11 PM

I just had some random thoughts.

I don't think that they did a good job of really showing how much the dire wolf pups mean to the Stark children. They sort of showed them, and then you saw Bran's two other times for a couple of seconds. In the books there is a much stronger bond than that. Every single of of the kids becomes enthralled with their companion from the start and the wolves even start to mirror their owner in demeanor. I just think there should have been a scene in the episode where all of them received their pup and it was really driven home that an immediate bond was formed.

I think Rickon is much too big. He is as tall as Bran. I always pictured a 5 year old running around the yard of Winterfell.

The bed chamber scene where Ned and Cat get the message from her sister. Cat says that it's not like her sister to write such an accusing letter for anyone to intercept the bird and read. In the books the letter is written in code. It's a code that Cat and her sister alone invented for themselves when they were children. Had anyone else intercepted the bird they would not have been able to read it.


The last two are more of the fun fact sort for non book readers:

Viserys and Danerys are the odd ones in their lineage, in that they do not have sex with one another. The Targaryens have a bloodline full of siblings providing the offspring to continue the house lineage. This doesn't justify Viserys feeling up Dany, but it's not abnormal in their family.

Also, when Danerys gets into the tub after Viserys leaves the room, the water is clearly steaming and a maid comments as she is descending that the water is too hot to sit in. Dany isn't phased by the temperature. In the book it says that the Targaryens are said do have dragon's fire running through their veins, and as a result can withstand heat on their bodies to a much greater extent than would otherwise be comfortable/possible.

4/18/2011 3:05:24 PM

i agree, i would've liked to have seen a scene where the stark children receive their wolves and name them.

SHAGGYDOG!

4/18/2011 3:12:00 PM

And they were supposed to find them in the snow. Symbolism yo!

4/18/2011 3:21:09 PM

Yeah there's not always Snow in Northern Ireland (where a lot of it was filmed).

4/18/2011 3:25:23 PM

they have fake snow
the scene at the beginning was fake snow

4/18/2011 3:32:38 PM

Quote :

"This doesn't justify Viserys feeling up Dany, but it's not abnormal in their family. "

book:

Quote :

"His fingers brushed lightly over her budding breasts and tightened on a nipple. "You will not fail me tonight. If you do, it will be hard for you."

Quote :

"Her brother smiled. "Good." He touched her hair, almost with affection. "

(yay free Google Books search)

So yeah the book was more making sure she was adequate whereas the show seemed like he was fondling her.

-also the whole wedding scene at the end was off. From the beginning of the wedding (in the book) Dany was very OK with the process and during the whole consummation scene Martin made a point to show that Khal Drogo respected Dany. He was made out to be a beast striping her down during the show.

[Edited on April 18, 2011 at 3:46 PM. Reason : s]

4/18/2011 3:39:27 PM

^^

4/18/2011 3:54:15 PM

I didnt get the feeling he was fondling her, but evaluating her for the barbarian guy.

4/18/2011 4:37:53 PM

^
same

4/18/2011 4:50:52 PM

agreed, and I wonder if that barbarian guy will turn out to be a smart, important character or just some brute, I haven't read the books obviously but I thought he looked cool



[Edited on April 18, 2011 at 5:28 PM. Reason : k]

4/18/2011 5:23:55 PM

Quote :

"good god the two at the end were twin siblings? I was going to say I missed on what was exactly so bad about them being caught but I didn't know it was that bad"

Also keep in mind that she's the queen, he's a member of the most elite knights on the continent, and they are the heirs to the wealthiest house of all (Lannisters). It's kind of a big deal.

4/18/2011 5:48:28 PM

Also, haven't seen this mentioned before, but the intro credits sequence is fucking awesome.

I can't recommend enough reading through the guide to the history and the families on HBO.com if you haven't read the books. It's spoiler free (except for one small thing that I noticed which will probably happen in ep. 2) and gives you a better idea of the world in which the story takes place.

4/18/2011 6:26:00 PM

^absolutely. I loved the intro. I heard that the plan is for it to be expanded and changed over the course of the show as elements of the show change (ie new kingdoms focused on etc.).

4/18/2011 6:39:45 PM

It's the first time they have ever showed any of the free cities on a map AFAIK.

4/18/2011 6:42:50 PM

Quote :

"anyhow I like the midget character, it seems like a good moment for midgets everywhere to have a serious character in television as opposed to the minime sellout making them look like retards"

Check out the rest of Peter Dinklage's filmography. I don't know of any TV he's done aside from this and 30 Rock, but he's had some really great performances over the years. Dunno if you've seen Win Win (it's in theaters now), but the director's first film, The Station Agent, starred Peter Dinklage and it was really good.

4/18/2011 6:42:59 PM

^^ Pretty much. They do also have it on the HBO Viewers' guide as well but it's kind of one in the same.

^agreed. Dinklage is a very solid actor. I was extremely excited back when he got cast.

4/18/2011 6:54:13 PM

The guy playing Tyrion...Dinklage...is probably the best actor on the show. You'll realize after a while that Tyrion deserves the best actor as well.

As far as the intro goes. The show the sun 3 times. If you look at the bands around the sun it changes. The first one shows a Dragon (the Targaryens), the next one shows a Wolf, Lion, and Stag (Stark, Lannister, and Baratheon) all taking down the Dragon (Targaryen), and the last time they show the sun there is a giant Stag (Baratheon) and all the other house animals/symbols bowing to it. It's basically a quick history lesson for Westeros of late!

4/18/2011 6:57:38 PM

Just realized I can be Robert Baratheon for Halloween this year. Finally, a topical costume for the fat, bearded drunk!

4/18/2011 7:06:15 PM

Quote :

"I can't recommend enough reading through the guide to the history and the families on HBO.com if you haven't read the books."

Agreed.

I knew nothing at all before i read up on the guide. I followed along pretty easily through the first episode.

Definitely was surprised when the one dude pushed the little kid out the window.

4/18/2011 7:12:35 PM

I've read nothing about the series before watching the premiere and I thought it was pretty obvious he was going to push the kid to his death the minute they show him being spotted.

4/18/2011 8:05:09 PM

idk if it's been said, but the house sigils next to the actors names in the opening credits is a really cool touch.

4/18/2011 8:06:20 PM

How did you guys feel about all the doggy style????

- I wouldn't call that a spectacular episode, but it may be hard to judge as a book reader. Maybe if you were seeing it for the first time it would have been more impressive??
- I don't think Mamoa is manly enough -- too much of a pretty boy and too small.
- The dothroki didn't seem particularly fearsome or savage. The Romans is Spartacus would have made better dothroki
- I kind of feel sorry for Dany actress because this is her big break, and she is going to be a soft core porn star. GRRM is a huge fucking pervert. I think his comments about looking forward to all the Dany sex scenes got the first Dany actress to quit.
- I think all the chicks in the show except for Cersei are a notch or 2 less attractive than I thought them to be.
- Winterfell looked like a shit hole.
- Even Kings Landing was not that impressive. The palace they showed across the ocean was more what I had in mind.
- The characters I think who were well cast were the tomboy daughter, the bastard, the dwarf, and Cersei, the little bitch blonde-haired brother of Dany. I didn't care for the others.



Reading the reviews, it seems that they would have been better served sticking to one location per episode and developing that story for these first few episodes. They didn't really allow time for the setting and the culture of each location to marinate.


[Edited on April 18, 2011 at 8:35 PM. Reason : .]

4/18/2011 8:22:20 PM

Quote :

"- I don't think Mamoa is manly enough -- too much of a pretty boy and too small. - The dothroki didn't seem particularly fearsome or savage. The Romans is Spartacus would have made better dothroki"

The Romans in Spartacus? I don't understand what you mean, Dothraki are like a cross between mongols and native americans, how could they be anything like Romans.

Quote :

"- I kind of feel sorry for Dany actress because this is her big break, and she is going to be a soft core porn star. GRRM is a huge fucking pervert. I think his comments about looking forward to all the Dany sex scenes got the first Dany actress to quit."

I mean I'm looking forward to them also, what's the big deal?

4/18/2011 9:36:08 PM

Taking what I meant too literally -- the way the Romans were portrayed in Spartacus did a much better job of conveying violence, debauchery, and filthiness. The dothraki seemed pretty generic and tame in comparison.



Maybe its because they are rushing or maybe because they tried to do too many shocking things altogether, so I just became desensitized to it all.

[Edited on April 18, 2011 at 10:09 PM. Reason : .]

4/18/2011 10:06:40 PM

You don't really see that much Dothraki brutality until they attack that town.


I've never really liked them all that much anyway in the books. They have some resemblances to mongols but other than horse archery they aren't that similar. Mongols wore excellent armor, conquered lands, and were masters of siege warfare. Dothraki wear no armor, just loot and pillage lands, and know nothing about siege warfare.

[Edited on April 18, 2011 at 10:15 PM. Reason : ]

4/18/2011 10:12:04 PM

Quote :

"Also, haven't seen this mentioned before, but the intro credits sequence is fucking awesome."

fuck yes. Might say it's the best intro of a show I've ever seen

Speaking as someone who hasn't read the book, I thought the episode was pretty good. I was a little worried about keeping up with houses/locations/characters from what I've read in general reviews but I didn't think it was bad at all.

4/18/2011 10:13:56 PM

^^Well, that means they did a bad job of introducing that part of the story (And jesus christ, who gives a flying fuck about their hardware. Just make them badasses).

I'll settle on a B- or C+ for the first episode. They tried to put too much in the first episode and failed. Either make the first episode longer or take some stuff out. Better to introduce viewers to fewer, high quality products rather than to a lot of ho-hum products.

I wouldn't expect anyone to care too much about any of the characters that were portrayed, yet. Maybe the dwarf

[Edited on April 18, 2011 at 10:17 PM. Reason : .]

4/18/2011 10:16:22 PM

did you read the same books i did? the dothraki are not just savages, there is more too them than that. i hope that they don't portray them just as ruthless warriors, because the book also describes another side of them.

4/18/2011 10:24:44 PM

The book introduced a slurry of character in the same way. ASOIF is known for having such a large amount of characters that matter. HBO is providing people with family trees and other ways to wrap your head around it.

They did wonderfully with what they had. As an avid reader as well, and having just reread A Game of Thrones, I give the episode an A-mother fucking-plus.

4/18/2011 10:26:41 PM

^^ No that's really all there is. Their entire culture is based on stealing culture from other civilizations, and I mean not copying it but literally stealing it (looting cities and dragging monuments back to their one city).

But at this point in the books they haven't shown their brutality so I think the show did a pretty good job.

4/18/2011 10:31:08 PM

hodor?

4/18/2011 10:31:29 PM

never read or heard of the books, but i saw this show the other night and enjoyed it. my only complaint was the horse dude's eyeliner, completely against the apparent ultra-manly image they were going for.

4/18/2011 10:35:17 PM

i thought khal drogo looked like a genie

4/18/2011 10:45:24 PM

Finally got around to watching this.

Mostly:

Quote :

"They did wonderfully with what they had. As an avid reader as well, and having just reread A Game of Thrones, I give the episode an A-mother fucking-plus."

LOVED Dinklage as Tyrion. What we saw of him is exactly how I pictured him. The intro credit sequence is awesome.

I don't really have anything bad to say about this episode. The scene between Drogo and Dany -- it seemed to me they tried to show him as actually caring for and respecting Dany, but she really was terrified the first time they slept together, so I don't have too much of an issue with that portrayal.

4/18/2011 11:56:44 PM

I forgot to mention that I was disappointed with the portrayal of the Maester's Chain in the show. I did not picture it as a long necklace type item hanging down to the hips. I always imagined a true Collar or choker like chain. The chain is supposed to be binding in order to remind the Maester that they serve the kingdom.

4/19/2011 7:50:22 AM

Interesting. Their portrayal was pretty much how I pictured it. However, I don't think they explicitly described it one way or the other in the books as far as how it hung around the neck so I could see either interpretation.

After watching the first episode a second time I still think it was a very good opening episode. Still not crazy about some aspects of the Dothraki wedding and bedding section but it was nothing horrible. Casting was definitely really solid all around. Sure not everyone looks exactly like you picture them in the books from the physical description. But, when it comes down to casting, I'd almost always go with a solid actor who is close enough to the description than whoever looks exactly like the description. Example being Maisie Williams for Arya. Basically a perfect cast in my eyes. I heard some people complain about her not looking unattractive/lusterless enough and being too cute. And sure, that may be true when compared to the letter of the description, but she embodies the character and personality perfectly.

I would say my main disagreements with casting are the same they were last year when casting was going down: Catelyn and Dany. However, both of those roles are filled by "2nd choice" actresses as the first actresses dropped out. Both of their original casts were very good imo.

I watched this with 5 people. 3 of us are fans of the books and the other 2 had not read them. Everyone really enjoyed it (especially the 3 of us who have read the books) and the 2 non readers definitely plan to keep watching with us as they thought it was awesome.

[Edited on April 19, 2011 at 8:12 AM. Reason : .]

4/19/2011 7:53:26 AM

The first bit is Ned's first meeting with Pycelle

Quote :

"His Maester's Collar was no simple metal choker such as Luwin wore, but two dozen heavy chains wounder together into a ponderous metal necklace that covered him from throat to breast."

So it seems like the Chain is supposed to be a choker, and if you need to forge more chains some of them will inevitably be wider than your throat, but still snug against the previous chain.

4/19/2011 8:25:31 AM

gotcha. Yeah I guess I breezed over that or just got the wrong image in my head and kind of stuck with it.

4/19/2011 8:51:14 AM

Quote :

"How did you guys feel about all the doggy style????"

Funny, my wife said the same thing essentially. "Is that the only way they fuck in Westeros?"

Quote :

"- I kind of feel sorry for Dany actress because this is her big break, and she is going to be a soft core porn star. GRRM is a huge fucking pervert. I think his comments about looking forward to all the Dany sex scenes got the first Dany actress to quit."

There is truth here.

Khal Drogo would have been perfect with no eyeshadow.

4/19/2011 9:26:21 AM

Renewed for second season

http://insidetv.ew.com/2011/04/19/game-of-thrones-renewed/

4/19/2011 11:25:57 AM

Quote :

"Funny, my wife said the same thing essentially. "Is that the only way they fuck in Westeros?""

its the way they traditionally do it in westeros, yes

4/19/2011 11:28:30 AM

Sansa Stark, Mmmm:

4/19/2011 12:42:01 PM

so is this the type of book that is hard to put down once you start it?

4/19/2011 7:16:18 PM

Very.

4/19/2011 7:45:59 PM

I feel like they exaggerated the hardcore scenes from what I remember in the books... or maybe its just that almost all of the 'light character development' between them was cut?

The show is coming across much more avant-garde than I remember the books being. But then again, that may be exactly what HBO signed up for...


dinklage ftw

4/19/2011 9:31:37 PM

What are some examples of the show being avant garde?

4/19/2011 9:33:46 PM

Just watched the first episode. Having never even heard of this story until a friend of mine suggested I watch this I wasn't sure what to expect. I do like medieval series/movies but not really into the medieval fantasy shows. After the first 5 minutes I realized it was medieval fantasy but decided to give the rest of the show a watch.

I thought I had all the family relationships/enemies figured out till the end. I thought. DAMN, the kings knight is banging the queen, aint that some shit. THEN you people tell me they are brother/sister. RUHROH.


Did see some nice bewbs so far. So that has my attention at least for one more episode.

4/19/2011 9:36:07 PM