HBO's Game of Thrones

[lazserus]

I have been keeping up with this series since it first aired, and I am truly at awe. This series has shown that television can rise beyond the epic proportions of film. The production value of this show is superb, and the series has jump started a few careers in the cast.

It is difficult to produce film from literature, as we are all too familiar with the likes of comic book movies and movies based on novels. Lord of the Rings was fantastic, yet many fans of the novels complained that too many changes were made. What these fans fail to realize is that literature does not pass to film seamlessly. The Lord of the Rings novels were so in depth that if we saw it on the big screen, each movie would be 14 hours long. Filmmakers have to make tough decisions regarding what to change, what to leave out, etc., but what makes a good final product is their ability to do so while still paying homage to the original works.

As a television series, Game of Thrones can better achieve this goal because it isn't as limited as movies. Sure, there are issues with run-time per episode, but because it is a television series, the story can pan out and be just as expansive as the literature.

In this thread I would like to discuss the Game of Thrones series as if it stood on its own. DO NOT DISCUSS THE BOOKS IN THIS THREAD! I will create a thread specifically for the book series in the Literature forum. In that thread we can discuss the differences between the literature and the show.

I have plenty remarks about Game of Thrones, but I would like to start off by letting you guys offer your input. I'd love to see what all of you think.

[Stabby Joe]

The first question I want to know is how many people here have actually read the books?

I have yet to and as a result am extremely cautious since many site like to (and rightfully) discuss plot details comparatively IE spoiler rich. So of course I agree, it's good to create a thread for those.

As for myself, there's far too much to say at this exact point in time put I can guarantee I have plenty of high praise.

[sweetvelocity]

I have the first book I think. I have not read it yet.

[lazserus]

I have the first two books and I'm about 50 pages into the first. So, basically the show has provided me with spoilers for my reading. If HBO waits until next summer before airing the second season, I am sure I will by then have read all four books.