GAME OF THRONES + Season 3

[S. Earl]

I think you have a great point. Does Martin have a big role in the scripting of the show? I don't know the answer but assumed he did since they're obviously committed to sticking to all of the MAJOR points of the books.

He is scripting episode 9 (named Blackwater) but I don't think he is showrunning or anything. I'm fairly certain they consult him often though, considering that besides the fact he wrote the books, he also worked on TV for decades and knows a thing or to.

I like the fact that Benioff and Weiss said they are adapting the Matin's A Song Of Ice and Fire, not adapting a book a season per se. Meaning when they make changes such as showing what is inferred, move scenes around so they make more sense timeline wise (Critical if they make it to the events of Feast/Dance) or bring characters to the front or background of certain scenes from the book, that they are doing it in the best interest of telling the story at large in this medium and not trying to cram the event of X amount of pages into 10 hours at expense of a good viewing experience.

[the other mike]

At this stage I'd have to go for Robb as the best candidate and of course Joffrey as the worst.
I'm very interested in hearing you think would be worse than that little sh*t!

while it goes without saying i think jeoffrey is a little shit and horrible human being, he isn't the worst because he has tyrion and the rest of the council to balance him out. ideally, given time, i'm sure tyrion and company would know how to control him. hell, once tywin arrives at king's landing, that's all she wrote. and tywin knows that a prosperous kingdom is a happy and peaceful kingdom.

i would nominate renly as the worst choice to be king. yes, he's a decent and likable guy, but he doesn't have the kingly oomph. he's backed by the moneyed families like the tyrells, and seems like a puppet for big business. (where as the lannisters already ARE rich and don't need to make deals). it feels like if renly were king, he'd be well loved the first few months, then the tyrells and their friends would start lobbying for more lands, more taxes.

(since its been a while since i read the books, i'm going purely by the show)

-mike

[Dotanuki]

I'm diggin' the second season...not yet reading A Clash Of Kings; I may get to it at some point...I enjoyed reading Book 1 while watching the first season, doing a little adaptation shootout/comparison. For my money I think Martin's stories work better on TV than the page...

and now for something completely different:
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/HinxmFrPXkQ&rel=1" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/v/HinxmFrPXkQ&rel=1</a>!

[SilverBulletKY]

Best episode of the season.  For those of us that haven't read the books regarding the end of last night's episode.  What the ????????????

[Doug!]

Best episode of the season.  For those of us that haven't read the books regarding the end of last night's episode.  What the ????????????

It really can't be explained without massive spoilers.  Melissandre is not what she seems and that thing will play a big part in next weeks episode.

[Wood]

Thought this episode was by far the best of the season, so much goodness from start to finish.

[S. Earl]

A man liked that episode.

A man will probably like the next one even more based upon the preview.

A man looks forward to The Ghost of Harrenhall.

[the other mike]

holy FUCK that was GREAT.

love ALL the tyrion and bron bits. so damn quotable.

"there's no cure for being a cunt."

"a naked man has few secrets, a flayed man has none."

also, did they re-cast gregor clegane (the mountain)? he's still tall as fuck, but he's not wearing his distinctive armor.

EVERY scene was solid. and what an ENDING.


-mike

[S. Earl]

The Mountain was recast, other guy had to decide between season 2 or being in the hobbit. They cast the guy that played the white walker in the pilot. Not as bulky as I picture, but he's got the proper height.

[Brady]

Harrenhal looked awesome. I'm really loving season 2, it feels just slightly slicker and more polished than season 1. I didn't even mind that they skipped the battle again, I thought it was done really well (compared to Tyrion conveniently getting knocked out in S1, which bugged me a little)

I like that they're conveying how crazy and out of control the war has gotten too. Everything is escalating, and it's making life for the smallfolk a misery, and to them it doesn't really matter if it's the "good guys" or the "bad guys", because they get screwed either way.

[Wood]

Shadowbirth!

[Kenney]

Regarding that last scene....


WHAT THE SHIT!!!!!!!!

This is going to be the longest week of my life!

[Kenney]

Harrenhal looked awesome. I'm really loving season 2, it feels just slightly slicker and more polished than season 1.

Maybe it's just in my head, but I feel like the dialog has been much sharper this season. Maybe that's because characters with slick tongues are getting more focus this season, compared to the more blunt Ned, but I'm finding myself transfixed by the exchanges I'm seeing.

[Wood]

Maybe it's just in my head, but I feel like the dialog has been much sharper this season. Maybe that's because characters with slick tongues are getting more focus this season, compared to the more blunt Ned, but I'm finding myself transfixed by the exchanges I'm seeing.

This last episode was the first written by a new member of the writing team, and I thought it was the tightest we've seen in a long while. Pretty much every scene felt both important and sharply dialoged.

[Kenney]

Well I hope this person writes more, cause they knocked it out of the park. Wood, I'm still reading the first book, but I noticed a lot of the dialog from season 1 was lifted wholesale from the actual prose to great effect. Is that not true of season 2? I know the plot is diverging more from the books in season 2, so I would assume the dialog would have to do the same. Maybe that's giving the writers more wiggle room.

[Wood]

Well I hope this person writes more, cause they knocked it out of the park. Wood, I'm still reading the first book, but I noticed a lot of the dialog from season 1 was lifted wholesale from the actual prose to great effect. Is that not true of season 2? I know the plot is diverging more from the books in season 2, so I would assume the dialog would have to do the same. Maybe that's giving the writers more wiggle room.

There's a great site called Westeros.org that has analysis of the books and the show. They analyze the show by episode, and then have a segment that compares the books to the show if you're interested.

But to your question, it seems that a good chunk of the dialog is lifted, but this year there is more change. And they're also adding entirely new scenes a lot more this year. I haven't done a scene by scene analysis, but I would say it's running 20%-25% new scenes, 20-25% verbatim, and the rest being tweaked and condensed components from the book.

[Kenney]

Cool. Thanks for the info, and the site. I will definitely check it out after I've finished reading the books.

It will be interesting when I get to book 3 (which I've heard is many people's favorites), as that will be the first stuff I read that won't be informed by complementary episodes of the television show. I can't wait!

[Greg Leclair (greg1ca)]

There's a great site called Westeros.org that has analysis of the books and the show. They analyze the show by episode, and then have a segment that compares the books to the show if you're interested.

But to your question, it seems that a good chunk of the dialog is lifted, but this year there is more change. And they're also adding entirely new scenes a lot more this year. I haven't done a scene by scene analysis, but I would say it's running 20%-25% new scenes, 20-25% verbatim, and the rest being tweaked and condensed components from the book.

Thanks for the site info Wood.

I am very impressed with the way they are adapting the books for TV. As you say, you can see more differences in season 2 and IMO they are for the better. There are far too many characters in the books to cover in 10 hours of tv. And let's face it, some characters are more interesting than others. For instance, I like the extra screen time Littlefinger (played by the amazing Aidan Gillen) is getting compared to his literary counterpart.

On a totally unrelated note, I am amazed how much more evil Joffrey is on TV. The actor playign him is doing a wonderful job. I want to choke him myself.

[S. Earl]

Towerofthehand.com is a great site as well. I believe it started as a part of Westeros and became it's own thing. They have a drop down when you log in where you state how many books or seasons you've seen, and it wipes away all spoilerific articles that could ruin anything for you.

[Felt Martin]

I loved it of course but I do have a couple of nitpicks.

The scene with Joffrey, Roz and the other girl was a little too much for me.
Ok, we know he is an irredeemable little sh*t. We don't have to keep hammering it home. His nature is displayed often enough in the course of the story through believable reactions to events. This was forced for me.

And the end.....(just to make absolutely sure - this is a spoiler for NEXT week's episode! You can't be too careful!)

...has spoiled the drama of what happens next week for me. The scene with Renly and Catelyn won't have the shame shock value after seeing that. I know it's just a selfish personal opinion but I'm precious about these stories!
I can see that the scene worked really well for viewers who didn't know what was coming but it's at the expense of what happens next week I think.

I'm still loving it though. The ambition in this programme is unparalleled. So many story strands, so many characters - and no dumbing down. Hats off!