HBO Game of Thrones

[emason]

And dbell, yeah, your fear worries me too. GRRM is already so damn old. And he takes ages to write.

So damn old? Watch it, sister, 62 is not old. Some of us here are even older.

As for taking ages to write, Martin is not the only one. Janny Wurts is another one; her books, starting with Curse of the Mistwraith, about Lysaer and his half-brother Arithon, take forever between installments. I finally gave up on the series when Wurts had the protagonists drink a longevity potion and I realized the main characters were going to live for another five hundred years. I am going to be dead and in my grave before Wurst brings any semblance of plot resolution to her series.

[Impromptu]

I read the books a couple years ago (in 10 days - I was on vacation, and that's about all I did was read), and loved them, however, my friend didn't warn me that the series was not finished before she loaned them to me. I thought book 4 was the end. Ack.

I was much pleased with the HBO version - in fact I ordered HBO just to watch this series. I've never had HBO before now.

[Hedwig]

So damn old? Watch it, sister, 62 is not old. Some of us here are even older.

.

It must be kind of and at the same time for GRRM that he is asked quite regularly whether he thinks he can finish the series in his lifetime. It is nice to be cherished that much but having people remind you constantly that you are already past middle age must be a bit disconcerting as well...
But if I think about how long it took him from book 1 to book 2 and then much much later from book 4 to book 5, I don't want to extrapolate how long we must wait for the next book...then he would need to be at least a hundred....

[emason]

It must be kind of and at the same time for GRRM that he is asked quite regularly whether he thinks he can finish the series in his lifetime. It is nice to be cherished that much but having people remind you constantly that you are already past middle age must be a bit disconcerting as well...

Saying someone is past middle age is one thing; saying someone is 'so damn old' is another. I'm 64 going on 65 and don't feel 'so damn old' in the slightest. My grandmother, who died at 96, was old. OK, rant over, back to the books and TV series.

I am currently sitting around waiting for Time Warner Cable to show up and fix my cable box so I can actually watch this thing. If they don't show up soon, I'll have to go back to rereading the first book to get my fix. One thing that startles me is how King's Landing looks; I picture Winterfell as a frozen northern Scotland and King's Landing as a more faux London; I didn't expect KL to look so hot and Mediterranean. Was I not paying attention to something in the books that I should have?

[Hedwig]

Saying someone is past middle age is one thing; saying someone is 'so damn old' is another. I'm 64 going on 65 and don't feel 'so damn old' in the slightest. My grandmother, who died at 96, was old. OK, rant over, back to the books and TV series.

Oh, I am sorry, I wasn't aware that I offended you and I didn't want that at all!

The "so damn old" part for me was only in relation to the books and how long it takes for him to write it and not because I think he is past his prime or anything (as one can see every time he actually WRITES something).

I am sorry that it came across as thinking that 62 is "so damn old" in general because that wasn't what I meant AT ALL!!

[emason]

Oh, I am sorry, I wasn't aware that I offended you and I didn't want that at all!

The "so damn old" part for me was only in relation to the books and how long it takes for him to write it and not because I think he is past his prime or anything (as one can see every time he actually WRITES something).

I am sorry that it came across as thinking that 62 is "so damn old" in general because that wasn't what I meant AT ALL!!

OK, no harm, no foul as we say. Case closed.

[Hedwig]

good.

[emason]

Ratings numbers are out and as expected, HBO renews for second season.

[Allen]

Ratings numbers are out and as expected, HBO renews for second season.

I'm not surprise at all. My facebook feed has be covered up with people talking about this show.

[ioana]

One thing that startles me is how King's Landing looks; I picture Winterfell as a frozen northern Scotland and King's Landing as a more faux London; I didn't expect KL to look so hot and Mediterranean. Was I not paying attention to something in the books that I should have?

I didn't expect King's Landing to be as warm, either but looking at the Westeros map again, it makes sense there would be significant climate differences. I guess Riverun/Eyrie would be closer to London and KL is ...Adriatic coast? I've forgotten how many weeks it took Baratheon and his court to get from Kings Landing to Winterfell, but I never paid much attention to that since they had huge carriages and boatloads of attendants. Hence, wouldn't have been traveling very fast anyway.

[Satellitegirl]

I think the queen, was it?, said that it took a month. I could be remembering wrong though.

[Allen]

I didn't expect King's Landing to be as warm, either but looking at the Westeros map again, it makes sense there would be significant climate differences. I guess Riverun/Eyrie would be closer to London and KL is ...Adriatic coast? I've forgotten how many weeks it took Baratheon and his court to get from Kings Landing to Winterfell, but I never paid much attention to that since they had huge carriages and boatloads of attendants. Hence, wouldn't have been traveling very fast anyway.

I think it's certainly plausible to make that connection.The shape of the map is more like South America.

[Hedwig]

One thing that startles me is how King's Landing looks; I picture Winterfell as a frozen northern Scotland and King's Landing as a more faux London; I didn't expect KL to look so hot and Mediterranean. Was I not paying attention to something in the books that I should have?

When Robert tries to persuade Ned to come to Kings Landing with him he tells him how hot it is in King's Landing and that girls forget all their modesty in the heat and run around half naked. So it does seem as if KL has a sort of Mediterranean climate.

[znachki]

My only nitpick is that they did not show Drogo waiting until Dani said Yes- as it is important for their future relationship and the arc of the story. Otherwise, perfect.

But, the scene ended before anything "happened" so who knows. There may be more that we haven't seen yet. Just a guess.

Love the way everybody is cast, but particularly Lannisters.

Well, apparently Peter Dinklage was pretty much everyones (including Martin's) only choice for Tyrion, and Nicolaj Coster-Waldau as Jamie? Total yum. If you have access to HULU take a look at the short-lived series New Amsterdam - I think it was pretty good - and he's the star.

In 1642, John Amsterdam (Nikolaj Coster Waldau), then a Dutch soldier in the colony of New Amsterdam - later to become New York - stepped in front of a sword to save the life of a Native American girl during a massacre of her tribe. The girl in turn rescued Amsterdam, weaving an ancient spell that conferred immortality upon him. Amsterdam will not age until he finds his one true love. But Amsterdam has found this to be a mixed blessing. Over the course of three centuries, he has experienced endless adventure and honed his many talents. But everyone Amsterdam meets must leave him in time. Lovers and children die while he remains young. As the exhilaration of eternal life has given way to emotional isolation, Amsterdam discovers that the blessing has become a curse.

Unfortunately it's not out on DVD, so this is the only way to see it. Maybe a rise in interest will bring a release.

[emason]

When Robert tries to persuade Ned to come to Kings Landing with him he tells him how hot it is in King's Landing and that girls forget all their modesty in the heat and run around half naked. So it does seem as if KL has a sort of Mediterranean climate.

Somehow I just did not pick up on this, but then again, these books are so densely packed with plot and info. Anyhow, that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it.

My cable TV is now restored so I am off to watch Episode 1.

[Hedwig]

A sort of synopsis and explanations for AGoT from Sky Atlantic

http://skyatlantic.sky.com/game-of-thrones/thronecast

[sweetsparky]

A Game of Thrones thread!

And I just read that HBO has confirmed a second season

I was very pleased with the first episode of this TV adaptation. I think they really got the story and, considering all the characters introduction they had to do, the rhythm of the episode was quite good.

There were lot of well done moments but one that really surprised me was the crypt scene when King Robert was remembering Lyanna, Mark Addy really sold it.

[Hedwig]

A Game of Thrones thread!

And I just read that HBO has confirmed a second season

I was very pleased with the first episode of this TV adaptation. I think they really got the story and, considering all the characters introduction they had to do, the rhythm of the episode was quite good.

There were lot of well done moments but one that really surprised me was the crypt scene when King Robert was remembering Lyanna, Mark Addy really sold it.

Whee, another fan of the books!! You know about the book 5 announcement I guess? A Dance with Dragons will be out in July.

[sweetsparky]

Whee, another fan of the books!! You know about the book 5 announcement I guess? A Dance with Dragons will be out in July.

I´ve it preordered for my kindle I basically Wheeee loudly when the date of publication was announced

To be honest I was expecting the book to be published close to the series TV start. It was perfect timing and the end of a long waiting (even if in my case it has been just slightly more than three years since I discovered the books.)

2011 is being a great year for ASOIAF fans

[rfisher]

I guess I need to pick up the first volume so I can know what's happening on the program each week. Stopping at the bookstore on the way home.