What are you talking about?Originally Posted by Evil Agent
What are you talking about?
Just that in the early stages GRRM and others hoped for 12 episodes but they had to settle with 10. They're still not cutting out anything vital.
I have to agree that the prologue could be lifted more or less straight out of the book and still worked wonders, but at the same time I can't be bothered too much because what the hell if HBO didn't make this happen, it would never happen. Those fourteen minutes felt like two minutes, so I was pretty excited throughout...the only thing that really annoys me is the look of Winterfell and the lack of wintery feeling (though I understand why they chose to make snow more exclusive to the Wall - to make the distinction between different locales). Wonder why there wasn't a "The Wall" text in the beginning (we got a "Winterfell")
Beware possible Spoilers below:
Overall, I thought it was awesome. I noticed most of the changes and for the most part could understand why they had to be done for TV. I don't know where they are going with The Others though. The way they showed the wildings was understandable, it was more intense than showing an empty camp. The Others blade looked right but I thought they were supposed to be white, with shimmery(my word) armor.
Is it okay for this to be my new favourite show evah even though I've only seen the first 15 mins of it?
Yeah, the lack of snow at Winterfell bothered me at first. But, like you said, it's clearly done with the aim of making every location very unique and instantly identifiable to viewers... and to be honest, the Irish landscape around Winterfell is breathtakingly gorgeous. I guess I can live without the snow.
That looked awesome. I will have to get HBO again, because I can't wait for DVD.
HBO has so many quality shows right now, it's definitely worth it if you can afford it. Game of Thrones will be followed by True Blood (campy but fun), then the new season of Curb Your Enthusiasm (best comedy ever!), then Boardwalk Empire again in the fall. Non stop high quality stuff.
I think the changes to the prologue were probably made due to time constraints. TV programs generally have to follow a format and I have a feeling that lifting the prologue directly from the novel wouldn't have fitted well with the time constraints of the medium. I think there is a slight shift in tone towards the end of the prologue -- it is more of a savage horror sequence than the book, which is more creepy and subdued -- but the more I reflect on it, the less I mind, particularly considering the rest of the 15 minute preview was almost pitch perfect. Also noteworthy is the fact that my wife, who has never read the books and is not a fantasy reader, found the prologue quite chilling. In fact, she found the whole 15 minute preview very dark. I'm a bit dismayed at this, because I'm hoping to get her hooked on the show so she will watch it with me.
The departures from the prologue didn't bother me so much; I still thought those scenes were pretty effective. What I didn't like was the scene with Bran practicing his archery; that seemed very kitsch, especially this part where Arya shoots her arrow. I can understand why they didn't want to leap from the prologue straight into the execution scene without establishing the characters a little bit first, but that scene was pretty cringe-worthy and I think that could have come up with a more creative transition. Having got that negative out of the way, I have to say this is looking pretty good and I am excited. I'm expecting there to be some departures from the books I don't like, but I'm hoping the good will outweigh the bad.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
Bookmarks