Who's in the mood for some 'Game of Thrones'?
HBO launches a behind-the-scenes site for the fantasy series
A new image from HBO's "Game of Thrones."
In the lead-up to the "True Blood" finale, HBO aired clips of a bunch of its upcoming shows. Most of those are set to debut very soon, like "Boardwalk Empire," but one won't be premiering until sometime in 2011: "Game of Thrones," the lavish adaptation of George R.R. Martin's fantasy novels. We saw two clips, and HBO also unveiled a new making-of website. For those who didn't have their HBO tonight, I'll have the two clips after the jump, along with a thought or three about "Game of Thrones" and how I may approach it.
Despite the best efforts of Mo Ryan, James Poniewozik and various other geeky friends, critic or otherwise, to get me to crack open the Martin books, I haven't yet been able to find the time. (Or, in some cases, the space in my carry-on luggage. Those puppies are large.) I had hoped to at least sample the first book before the series started, but now I'm starting to wonder if I might be better off just leaving the books aside and watching and reviewing the show as a show, and not an adaptation. Obviously, every adaptation has to be judged on its own merits to an extent; faithfulness to the source material doesn't matter if the work isn't entertaining, right? If I skip the books, I imagine I'll be missing out on a lot of nuance, but if the show doesn't work without my ability to fill in the blanks, then something's gone wrong, because HBO isn't just making this for fans of the books.
But we still have some time (and probably one or two more road trips/flights/etc. in which I can do some hardcore reading) before I have to decide. In the meantime, the clips:
The first clip, "Raven":
The second clip, a behind-the-scenes look:
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Login or create a HitFix account Login SignupKicker of Elves
September 12, 2010 at 11:33PM EST Reply to CommentI hope this doesn't end up being another True Blood. It sure looks like it, though. HBO has completely lost its game.
VN I don't understand how you can even make that comparison after watching that. HBO has not lost its game - this looks like an epic adaptation of a brilliant book series. Something only HBO could pull off.
September 12, 2010 at 11:38PM ESTme me me The books are completely different than True Blood in just about every way possible. You will see when the series comes out. That statement is just completely off base.
September 13, 2010 at 7:57PM ESTThere is no way George Martin would be involved in any way if they were making this into a cheesy pseudo soap.
webdiva @me me -- Yeah, that's what everybody thought about FlashForward and Robert J. Sawyer's involvement (it turned out ABC merely paid for him as window dressing, then stripped the storyline of anything and everything that made it interesting, larding on a completely irrelevant and unnecessary conspiracy in a sad attempt to capture Lost viewers; I hope Sawyer made a bundle and laughed all the way to the bank, because the result was just plain embarrassing).
September 23, 2010 at 5:27PM ESTalynch
September 12, 2010 at 11:38PM EST Reply to CommentDon't bother. The worst thing you can do leading up to an adaptation is read the book. It doesn't ensure that you'll dislike it, but it does drastically increase the probability of such an outcome.
September 12, 2010 at 11:39PM EST Reply to CommentI'm a HUGE fan of the books, and I could not be more excited for this series.
Chris
September 12, 2010 at 11:42PM EST Reply to CommentI don't trust the adaptations. Starz was doing great with Pillars of the Earth until the last episode where they totally changed the ending of the book. Such a disappointment after watching the rest of the series.
VN
September 12, 2010 at 11:42PM EST Reply to CommentAs someone that is a huge fan of the books -- and also someone that relies on your objective reviews to help point me in the right direction of what show I should watch next, I strongly urge you to NOT read the books.
This is a completely selfish request - I am sure you would immensely enjoy the books - but I would prefer your opinion on the TV show that hasn't been tainted by the books. The majority of people that watch this show will have no background from the books, so I think you would connect with your readers and see what they are seeing. Otherwise, you might struggle with the proper point of view you should be taking when watching it.
Ben Seconded. I'm a crazy-obsessed fan of the books, and I'd be really fascinated to hear your thoughts, getting the story fresh. The plot unfolds so beautifully, and that's a part of the show-watching experience you'd miss! Also, it's a point of some concern for fans: "how will this play for the uninitiated?" I want to get that viewpoint from someone I trust.
September 16, 2010 at 2:35PM ESTOmagus
September 12, 2010 at 11:51PM EST Reply to CommentI'm a HUGE fan of the books and have been eating up every bit of info for the HBO series that has come out over the past couple of years. From what I understand, some of the details from the book series will be minimized in the show for time but you probably won't be able to notice it if you haven't read the books.
chuchundra
September 13, 2010 at 12:13AM EST Reply to CommentWell, I wouldn't advise anyone to begin reading the books now. Martin has so far written four books in a supposedly seven book series. The last book came out in 2005 and we fans have been waiting for the still uncompleted fifth volume for going on five years now. Given the increasing time between books, this may well be a story that never gets an ending.
That being said, I'm very excited to see this coming to HBO. The premium channels have generally avoided genre content in their original programming, but maybe the overwhelming success of True Blood has turned their heads a bit.
Meg
September 13, 2010 at 12:17AM EST Reply to CommentThis is going to be HUGE among my circle of friends, all of whom are completely normal people who do not frequent Renfaire's (okay maybe one or two). We are rabid for this show to air!!
I would also like to read credible reviews from someone who hasn't read the books. And perhaps later on you could read them for more nuanced reviews. Kinda similar to the "veteran's edition" like you did with the Wire.
Col Bat Guano
September 13, 2010 at 12:19AM EST Reply to CommentIt would be great if instead of visiting the set, George R.R. Martin could finish the next book.
Tom Hilton Neil Gaiman said it best: George R. R. Martin is not your bitch.
September 13, 2010 at 1:49PM EST(And I say that as one who has been waiting DwD as eagerly as any other fan.)
kyle he is not MY bitch. i'll say that.
September 13, 2010 at 8:23PM ESTchuchundra Eh, I'm not Neil Gaiman's bitch either, so I'll feel free to say what I like on the subject, thank you very much. I'm going to send him hate mail or put dog poop in his mailbox or anything, but I feel free to express my disappointment at his poor work ethic. He's got some of my money in his pocket and his unfinished fiction is taking up space in my brain, so I feel well justified in doing so.
September 13, 2010 at 11:02PM ESTIt's clear to me, from reading GRRM's blog on and off, that the man has become a world-class procrastinator. I mean, it's been nearly five years from when the last book hit the stores. The next book still isn't done and he always seems to find an excuse to fly off somewhere every other month or so. In between his vacations he wastes time cooking up puzzles on his blog about which actor will play Castle Guards #2 and #3 on the HBO show, writing long missives for nonsense like Suvudu cage matches and other crap too numerous to mention.
The funny thing is that he's so in love with the upcoming show on HBO, but if it's really successful it could be his undoing. If the show really gets rolling, there's going to be more and more pressure to finish the story and if he doesn't HBO will finish it for him.
Col Bat Guano I never said he was my bitch, but as an author writing a multi-volume series, he might want to consider the people who got him to the point where HBO is making the show: his fans.
September 14, 2010 at 12:23AM ESTnic919 The problem with authors that procrastinate this much is that the expectations for the long awaited are so high that the actual book can usually never live up to them. I purchased the four books and started the first one, but then learning of the years it is taking just for book five, I just stopped. With the mini series coming out, I will probably just wait for it and then maybe get back to reading the books.
September 14, 2010 at 5:54PM ESTHwat
September 13, 2010 at 12:30AM EST Reply to CommentIn the mood? Not really, but since everybody raves about it, I suppose i should give it a chance.
erik
September 13, 2010 at 3:26AM EST Reply to CommentDon't read the books. There was quite a fun blog about a guy doing his first read-through of the series. It got popular very fast because series veterans loved watching a new guy go through all the same plot twists that had shocked them, oh, 14 years ago. I'd like to see the same thing happen here.
briancaffrey
September 13, 2010 at 6:53AM EST Reply to CommentWhile I can understand avoiding the books to keep a clean slate (and I imagine you will hear comparisons enough betwixt show and tomes by the time it does air!), I would say if you ever changed your mind that reading them by Kindle or some other e-reader will be the best bet (I'll certainly be getting any further installments in that fashion, to save my back if nothing else!)
Max Criden
September 13, 2010 at 7:30AM EST Reply to CommentHi Alan,
Which other shows did they tease? Thanks!
Max Criden
September 13, 2010 at 7:30AM EST Reply to CommentHi Alan,
Which other shows did they tease? Thanks!
Matthew
September 13, 2010 at 7:41AM EST Reply to CommentHonestly, i dont think you miss that much by not reading the books first. They are addicting, but they read already like screenplays anyway.
Marj
September 13, 2010 at 7:51AM EST Reply to CommentAlan. You might try listening to the books--or one--on Audible. No weight to your luggage; you can multitask and they are brilliantly narrated/read.
jen
September 13, 2010 at 10:30AM EST Reply to CommentVery, very excited for this show. All the characters in the books are whole people. No one is completely black or white, good or evil. If they get that ambivalence right, this will be a fantastic series.
Andrew
September 13, 2010 at 4:23PM EST Reply to CommentPerhaps you should hold off on reading the series until after you review the first screeners you get from HBO. It'd be interesting to see your perspective how the show fares as a show on its own in setting up the world and establishing the characters without having the understanding of the world and characters from the books, especially given how many of your colleagues in the TV critical world are already fans of the books.
But if you do want to dig into the books (which I've enjoyed tremendously) and you have an iPhone, Blackberry, Android phone or Kindle, I'd definitely recommend buying the Kindle version of the books. They're engaging yet light enough to make for great travel reading, but the books themselves can be too big to be easy to carry around. Reading them electronically solves the space problem. Timewise, they can become a big timesuck, but I think that's just because they're pulpy enough to be quick reads, but deep enough to feel rewarding.
Jessamyn
September 13, 2010 at 8:51PM EST Reply to CommentI haven't read these, and my personal rule for any adaptation in which I haven't already read the book is, Movie First, Book After. The book always has nuances that the screen has to delete for reasons of time - or inability to express people's thoughts in the subtle way that books can do. Films have their own advantages, but although I have more than once read books and then been disappointed (or frustrated) by the film, I don't think I've ever seen a film and then been disappointed by the book.
Sareeta
September 13, 2010 at 9:50PM EST Reply to CommentIt was the news of a possible GoT TV series on HBO that got me to read GoT. I became instantly hooked and have read all the books. While I loved the books, I wonder if that will spoil the TV experience.
Few book/TV adaptations have impressed me. The ones that did not impress (Pillars of the Earth, Flash Forward) made the mistake of cutting/editing too much from the original story (Flash Forward) or somehow taking very good characters and turning them into grating ones. But more importantly bad acting, direction from the production crew, and strange pacing of the story killed these adaptations for me.
I hear HBO is following the books very closely. On one hand, this is good because I don't see -why- anything crucial to the plot needs to be changed from the books.
On the other hand, will there be anything new for people who have read the books? I sure hope so. There are plenty of ways they can bring a fresh, exciting story to both veterans of A Song of Ice and Fire as well as viewers who never read the books. For example, they could show events from different viewpoints or even adding events that weren't in the books or were only touched on briefly (back story).
Anyway, if you want to review it without any bias, I'd say don't read the book. However, if you want to read a phenomenal story, definitely read the book.
JWIII
September 13, 2010 at 11:53PM EST Reply to CommentWhile I would recommend reading the books because they're amazing, I'd rather read your reviews if you didn't read the book.
mike
September 14, 2010 at 1:00AM EST Reply to CommentHOLY CRAP
There has never been more perfect casting than Peter Dinklage. I've been a huge fan of his since The Station Agent but if he can hold down a fair accent through this it will let him do stuff I never imagined roles written for him would allow. That has seriously made me more excited for this series than anything I have seen previously.
As for reading the books, Alan I would like to join the chorus of voices saying hold off, at least until after the first season. That should help you look at the show as it's own beast. Additionally they are fairly ponderous and very concerned with being Epic with a capital E. While they are very good they do often have page long litanies of family names, deeds, holdings, relationships, etc etc etc and honestly being able to attach that to something visual might help you enjoy it. It fits fare more into the Illiad-esque TOME OF GREAT AND MIGHTY MEN DOING GREAT AND MIGHTY THINGS school of fantasy than the more kinetic and personal story style of more Odyssey-esque works of Robin Hobb (my personal favorite fantasy author).
There's a lot of good reasons to hold off on reading the books (which are entirely worthwhile, don't get me wrong) and the only reason I can think of to read them first is so that you don't have to wait week by week to know happens to John Snow.
christy2
September 14, 2010 at 1:38AM EST Reply to CommentI am hoping for an amazing series, but recognize that such an epic story must be heavily edited for the purposes of making a TV series. I like going to books afterwards, myself, for a more enriching experience.
BTW, should you choose to read the books, buy a paperback and tear it into manageable sections. Then you'll want to go out and buy it in Hardback to keep it with you always.
Adam
September 15, 2010 at 12:34PM EST Reply to CommentI'm a huge fan of these books and have followed the production of this series since the rights were options way back when. HBO certainly has impressed me with how much work they have put into the adaptation thus far.
I would echo most other people here when I say you should probably not read the series if you want an unbiased view of adaptation.
webdiva
September 23, 2010 at 5:33PM EST Reply to CommentAs this is fantasy and I generally avoid that in favor of plain-old drama and hard sci-fi, I won't be watching. But as counterpoint to what Alan said above, it's also true that a deliberate departure from the plots of original books as source material (as with Alan Ball's take on True Blood) doesn't matter if the resulting work isn't entertaining -- and as many have noted on a different thread, the most recent season of True Blood clearly wasn't as entertaining as the previous two. So yes, a filmed version of Game Of Thrones will have to stand up on its own -- but if it departs from the original plot and fails to deliver, that creative departure won't have been worth it. They'll have been better off sticking to the original, in that case.