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Related: Culture Forums, Support ForumsI have to have a break from Trump: Let's talk Game of Thrones!
So, I've never had ongoing access to HBO and have had to watch hit or miss with others or stream on a laptop via a paid service. But, even so, this show has been so well produced that I just finished watching for the third time through. It would be incredible on a enormous tv screen or in the theater, but even on a small tv or laptop, I found it mesmerizing. Having never read the books, re-watching a total of three times finally has me knowing all the characters/relationships...LOL
I CAN NOT wait until April and might just have to extend a subscription (short term) to HBO for that.
Eliot Rosewater
(31,121 posts)almost everything.
Should I watch it, I dont really like superhero stuff which I know this isnt. But do like sy fy.
hlthe2b
(102,357 posts)This is of the fantasy genre, yes, BUT it is more historical drama, given the Medieval period (with mythic flourishes) than what you might consider fantasy dramas. The production values, the scenery, the acting (and boy has there been an incredible cast over 7 seasons) is really beyond what you'd expect for most movies, much less a tv serial (and that includes HBO).
Yes, it was hard to keep all the characters straight the first time through, having never read the books, but the acting is so good that I just sort of kept watching and it made sense eventually.
Love this show. Started watching it after I saw that it got some Emmy awards during the first season. Binge-watched season 1 and have been hooked ever since. I will be very disappointed when it's over, but glad they're not going to try to make it go on forever because that tends to ruin shows. Looking forward to April.
Floyd R. Turbo
(26,584 posts)hlthe2b
(102,357 posts)Not too expensive and you can cancel after you've watched it.
Floyd R. Turbo
(26,584 posts)yellowdogintexas
(22,270 posts)Amazon account. You can also piggy back it on your Hulu account.
HBONow is the link
You can watch it via whatever streaming device you have.
Also you can subscribe directly using ROKU
We cancelled cable long time ago and waited to re-subscribe to HBO when season 7 began.
FarPoint
(12,437 posts)Time to rewatch Season one thru Seven and look at all the foreshadowing.
PoiBoy
(1,542 posts)Ron Obvious
(6,261 posts)One of the things I liked about the books is that all characters are well-developed, have credible motivations and behave accordingly, leading to conflicts. There are no "dark lords" behaving evilly just for the sake of being the villain.
When you rewatch the first few series, this is reflected. In contrast, in the last two television series, the characters are moved around like meatpuppets and placed where they're needed to be in order to advance the plot. The difference between series 1 and the last two is absolutely striking.
Dave Starsky
(5,914 posts)The quality of the series stops at Storm of Swords. The following books are excruciating, useless nonsense. The writer didn't know where he was going, and he carries you with him on his long, aimless journey.
I am thankful to the the TV producers for bringing the whole enormous tale to a conclusion.
Ron Obvious
(6,261 posts)Rather, he had far too much material. He needed a good editor to reign him in and prevent him from continually adding new characters and storylines, many of which weren't particularly interesting to begin with. I agree that at this point, he has far too many balls in the air for him to ever resolve all the storylines in a satisfactory manner.
I'd say it's 50/50 as to whether books 6&7 will ever even see the light of day at this point. I'd probably have to re-read all 5 books if I ever want to read them, and I'm not sure I have the time or inclination.
Dave Starsky
(5,914 posts)And he had no editor to tell him when to knock it off.
The last two "Song Of Ice And Fire" books are complete garbage. He might as well not even finish writing the series, at this point. The TV how producers are finishing the story for him, and he seems to be quite happy with that.
mr_lebowski
(33,643 posts)If you have a smart tv, roku, a laptop, Playstation, etc ... you can watch on bigger screen (can always plug your lappie into your TV) with such a subscription. It's like $14/month I think, no contract.
And yeah ... GOT RULES. The last season was amazing ... it was friggin' the GRRRRL POWER season, finally! Definitely improvement over Season 6 overall.
Literally the only part of the whole series I didn't like much was the seemingly interminable story of Arya and her training. Oh, and the time Reek spent with Ramsey, one-on-one ... in the beginning ... I can't STAND that shit.
Sad that the FANTASTIC Diana Riggs tenure on the show seems to have come to a close, she's probably my favorite guest on it. Max Von Sydow was also awesome, as always.
So many great characters and storylines, can't wait for Season 8, even if it'll be bittersweet.
hlthe2b
(102,357 posts)I hope she did...
Some of the exceptional guest cast were badly underutilized, though... Remember when the wonderful Ian McShane (e.g., "DEADWOOD" ) was on just long enough to bring "the Hound" back from his predicted demise? Sheesh, what a waste.
And yes, Ramsey's sadism went on far too long.
mr_lebowski
(33,643 posts)Ian McShane definitely on too little, agreed.
AFA Ramsey and that whole thing went, I found it distinctly more disturbing than the handful of rapes portrayed in the series. Obviously these were also disturbing, but they were not played NEARLY as gratuitously. They were thankfully brief, and not excessively graphic. Not saying it was as subtle as, say, the way they did it on Downton Abbey, but they weren't THAT much worse.
It may be because I'm male, but I find Torture to be absolutely AS egregious as ANYTHING any human being can do to one another. And it was played out to almost fetish-like level in GoT ... And they only 'got away with it' as a show because the victim was male. Had that been a female character? Holy smokes, the world would've LOST THEIR MINDS.
It's really my only major gripe with how far they pushed boundaries on the show.
If I re-watched, which I've not yet (as a whole, only certain episodes) ... those are the only scenes (along with Arya's boring training) I'd fast-forward, put it like that.
hlthe2b
(102,357 posts)He was one really sick character and though the actor played him "well" it was just too dark and horrific to want to watch again.
mr_lebowski
(33,643 posts)But there's enough of him being his evil self throughout the rest of the series that I don't need to see his 'brilliance' in those particular scenes ... ever again ...
To be fair, though ... they do effectively serve the story-telling purpose of showing you VERY clearly ... just how utterly depraved and wicked the character is/was.
yellowdogintexas
(22,270 posts)You couldn't find a more drastic contrast in character than this character vs Ramsey. He is amazing
exboyfil
(17,865 posts)Join HBO when the show begins. Drop it when it ends. Also watch the seasons of Westworld which I missed. Occasionally pick up a few movies I would have had to pay Redbox to rent.
Arkansas Granny
(31,528 posts)Thyla
(791 posts)and went from there.
Although we will always by the blu rays we will have the pleasure of watching it in the glorious HBO.es buffering app. GoT is the reason we subscribe to it mainly, it's been a long wait.
It's going to be interesting to see how Martin handles the Winds of Winter book release, there isn't much info on that yet and either it will be released somewhere before of just after series 8 finishes or more likely it's not finished yet.
If it came out before the series I'd have to read it first so I imagine he has a deal in place so it comes after.
kydo
(2,679 posts)I love this show. April can't happen fast enough.
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hlthe2b
(102,357 posts)Gwendoline Christie: Youre going to need therapy after Game of Thrones season 8
NO spoilers, though...
https://winteriscoming.net/2018/12/12/gwendoline-christie-youre-going-to-need-therapy-after-game-of-thrones-season-8/
&c=sc&w=850&h=560
I think its going to make me incredibly emotional. Were all emotional about the fact that this is the end, and this is the end of something incredibly significant for all of us, and its been a truly incredible thing to be a part of.
yellowdogintexas
(22,270 posts)daughter brought book one into our house. We have had many long and detailed family discussions about them. Book 3 came out right after we finished book 2 then came the long wait for 4 & 5.
I will read again but will not begin until I get the advance order alert from Amazon.
This time I am going to read 4 & 5 as integrated books. There are two versions of "chapter rearrangement" by fan groups in which you read a couple chapters from 4, then to to 5 for the next sequential event, then back to 4. I have two kindles and all 5 books on Kindle so it will be fairly easy to do - plus we have the actual books.
I think getting all the chapters organized like that will be very helpful Re reads are great because you get lots of nuances which make other events make much more sense
Efilroft Sul
(3,581 posts)Here is the sequential chapter order for the integrated books:
http://boiledleather.com/post/25902554148/a-new-readerfriendly-combined-reading-order-for-a
This makes everything so much better. Those who thought the quality dropped in books four and five will be in for a pleasant surprise, because they're not reading half the characters in one book, and half in the other. The gang's all here, and it's a fun read.
Waiting for more than seven years since book five, however, has not been fun.