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Game of Thrones!

ZPowers

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It is kind of corny, but I do like the more visceral depictions in fantasy. I wished I lived in "simpler times". Places where you can make your way in the world just "adventuring", not without dealing with "paperwork" and other modern bullshit. Places where you could solved disputes by chopping off heads. We all live in a cage really. There aren't many options to get your kicks, like people in fantasy novels do.

There's a charm to it, but in the end I'll take some arduous paperwork and the internet over a steady stream of rape, disease, monarchy and torture.
 

KDude

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There's a charm to it, but in the end I'll take some arduous paperwork and the internet over a steady stream of rape, disease, monarchy and torture.

How about post-apocalypse? No monarchies (exactly) in the Road Warrior. Plenty of rape, disease, and torture though.
 

ZPowers

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Good episode yesterday, but I'm sad that they cut most of Hot Pie's best moments.
 

Nicodemus

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What do you dislike about it? I'd give it a higher rating than that.
Everything that I disliked about the first season. In addition to that they now make silly and, to my understanding, unnecessary changes. What bothers me most, however, is how they ruin great scenes with insufficient money, actors, and sense.
 

ZPowers

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Everything that I disliked about the first season. In addition to that they now make silly and, to my understanding, unnecessary changes. What bothers me most, however, is how they ruin great scenes with insufficient money, actors, and sense.

Might I ask which changes, scenes or actors in particular irk you?
 

Patches

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So far, I've felt most of the changes were well done. And I'm usually one of those obnoxious people who can't stand to watch a movie or tv show after I've read a book. The vast majority of them seem necessary to either convey something that would have been conveyed via inner monologue, or to cut superfluous scenes for length.

In this most recent episode, the only thing I didn't like was how they chose to do the scene shift between Tyrion's conversation with Pycell/Varys/Littlefinger. It felt like a sitcom.
 

Nicodemus

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Might I ask which changes, scenes or actors in particular irk you?
That is really hard to say. I think there has not been a single scene that I would consider perfect, so the dislike varies but is never entirely absent. One of the scenes from the last episode that was particularly bad was the one in which Catelyn approaches Renley at his tournament thing. It is bad because the actors look just like actors speaking lines in a small and shabby TV set: no atmosphere, no meaning, no importance. Now, much of that is due to the budget; but a team of good filmmakers could have made a much better scene with the resources available.

None of the changes bother me that much, yet they seem unnecessary. I imagine the writers had a reason for it, but was it really unavoidable, for instance, to show us already just how shrewd Margaery actually is? It gives Cersei's actions in the future a very different flavor. Was it necessary to show us what kind of person Littlefinger really is in the first season?

The list of actors that annoy me is long. One that irks me in particular is Aidan Gillen. He seems to be incapable of delivering a line without false haughtiness. The German dubbing I saw on TV actually improved his performance! I think I made a list somewhere of the actors I liked; most of the others annoy me to some degree.
 
F

figsfiggyfigs

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Nicodemus, stop being such a little bitch about the show. You just wish you were in it. :}
Deutsch hipster.
 
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Dali

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They dropped the ball.

Or maybe it's because I read the books during the intervening period between the two seasons and everything has felt like an anticlimax since.

Or perhaps it's a mix of the two.

Meh.
 

Tiltyred

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Daenerys!

That is all.

Still all I want, and there's not enough of it. She's the character that interests me the most, and everything else is just stuff I have to wade through to find out what she's been up to.
 

kelric

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They dropped the ball.

Or maybe it's because I read the books during the intervening period between the two seasons and everything has felt like an anticlimax since.

Well, I've not seen season 2, but season one was pretty darned good for a conversion of a big, complex book to TV (I've been reading the books since book 2 came out). But the old cliche about the book being better is really true -- especially if you're "spoiled" by the book, and know what's happening in the show. Anticlimax is a good way to put it -- but if you go into it looking at it as more of a new view of an old friend, it can still be pretty fun.
 
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Dali

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Well, I've not seen season 2, but season one was pretty darned good for a conversion of a big, complex book to TV (I've been reading the books since book 2 came out). But the old cliche about the book being better is really true -- especially if you're "spoiled" by the book, and know what's happening in the show. Anticlimax is a good way to put it -- but if you go into it looking at it as more of a new view of an old friend, it can still be pretty fun.

Season one was fantastically done; I'm pretty certain I'd have enjoyed it even if I had encountered the books before the TV series. I might have also enjoyed season two, though to a lesser degree, had I not gone looking for the books after the season 1 finale.

As it is, I've watched two episodes of season two and, having read the books and seen the numerous discrepancies (in tone, even), I really don't feel like going on.
 

StephMC

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Well, I've not seen season 2, but season one was pretty darned good for a conversion of a big, complex book to TV (I've been reading the books since book 2 came out). But the old cliche about the book being better is really true -- especially if you're "spoiled" by the book, and know what's happening in the show. Anticlimax is a good way to put it -- but if you go into it looking at it as more of a new view of an old friend, it can still be pretty fun.

I agree. The books do spoil you, even when it is well done. My only critique of season 1 was they couldn't fit in everything-- for instance, I'm not sure all the TV-only-watchers caught the full depth of the relationship between Daenerys and Drogo. But, I can't be too hard on them... they had limited time and resources, etc. After watching the episode tonight with a friend who hasn't read the books yet, I realized they haven't really gone into much detail of Lord of Light religion. It's hard to catch what they miss when I haven't read in a while. I bet that can be kinda confusing for non-book readers too. But still... they're doing a good job, considering how complex the book is. I liked how they interpreted the scene of Davos and Melisandre breaking to Storm's End. I bet that could have been something that could be lost in the shuffle... in terms of importance/symbolism, etc., etc.
 

DiscoBiscuit

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I'm a huge Game of Thrones fan, loved the books, and am greatly enjoying the show, but I have to say when it comes to HBO original series', I'm way more excited about The Newsroom by Aaron Sorkin.

Here is the trailer (I'll bet you love it):

[YOUTUBE="wC8ovJYAU3U"]The Newsroom[/YOUTUBE]
 

ZPowers

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I'm a huge Game of Thrones fan, loved the books, and am greatly enjoying the show, but I have to say when it comes to HBO original series', I'm way more excited about The Newsroom by Aaron Sorkin.

Here is the trailer (I'll bet you love it):
It depends how Sorkin-y that show is. He can get a little indulgent.

Much more psyched about Veep (premiered last night) from the creator of In the Loop and The Thick of It, two of the funniest comedies I've ever seen.
 

DiscoBiscuit

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It depends how Sorkin-y that show is. He can get a little indulgent.

I'll certainly give you that.

Sorkin definitely has a penchant for indulgence, but the issue addressed in the show, the role of news media in the national political conversation, and the extent to which news anchors only cover "approved stories" and keep their personal convictions out of the equation I find very provocative.

The instant, Jeff Daniels lit into that audience member asking about American exceptionalism, I was hooked.

It's exactly that kind of honest conversation that we as a country need to have, and that would help to alleviate some of the problems endemic to our political system.

If more anchors had the balls to discuss the real issues, and cut through all the other BS, I would have far more trust in our ability to move past our current political intransigence.

EDIT - Veep did seem pretty funny from what I saw of it. (I just find that the issues that the Newsroom will hopefully deal with, are important beyond merely being entertaining. And this is one of the first times I've seen it dealt with in a medium that gets out to millions)
 
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