HBO's Game of Thrones

[Mister Ski]

Thing is they were designing this to be the same good beats evil. I don't mind them doing things a bit differently but like I said when you make the show appear going in one direction then do something else was shocking. If I had read the books I wouldn't have been but I hadn't so I was.

I also just don't think they've made the rest of the characters interesting enough yet to really make care yet. This season felt like they bult of Ned so much and having him die in season 1 was shocking.

Where do you get that from? Do you think you may have leapt to that conclusion? The books were no different in terms of shock. I didn't see Ned's death coming either when reading the books.

In terms of characters, keep in mind that they have a finite amount of time to spend on characters so not all of them get developed at the same time. Ned's death creates a void that will be filled by other character development - some you have yet to meet. Besides, all the development into Ned's character makes his death that much more shocking. It would not have the same impact if a lesser developed character died.

 

[DinoDB1975]

Dammit, I just realized that Ned Stark will never have the talk with Jon Snow about his mother. Too bad.

 

[Mister Ski]

Dammit, I just realized that Ned Stark will never have the talk with Jon Snow about his mother. Too bad.

Yup.

That story is not over yet though.

 

[molokoplus]

Yup.

That story is not over yet though.

That's true, but I think snow may be told about his mother by someone else possibly.

This show is so amazing, always ending with something completely unexpected.

 

[DinoDB1975]

Ned's death creates a void that will be filled by other character development - some you have yet to meet.

Yep. I have a feeling that we haven't seen the last of Renly Barantheon. And I think Stanis Stark will play a large role.

Yup.

That story is not over yet though.

I thought as much.

 

[Michael Crawford]

Yea, that's going to be very interesting - but it's not something that happens any time soon.

Mister Ski said it very well. You need to see things play out in context.

I'm also not quite so sure why everyone thinks they built up Ned so much. I didn't see it on the show any more than in the book - he's a main character, but not any more so than 4 or 5 other people. And people assumed too much - Sean Bean is the most famous actor on the show, he's the noble middle aged white guy, so he must be the most important character. He's not, just as Jaime isn't the most important on the Lannister side. I think if you were taking Ned to be the 'hero' of the entire show, you were reading into it far too much through the colored lens of experience.

 

[Michael Crawford]

Yep. I have a feeling that we haven't seen the last of Renly Barantheon. And I think Stanis Stark will play a large role.



I thought as much.

You mean Stannis Baratheon, and yes, he's immensely important...eventually.

 

[DinoDB1975]

You mean Stannis Baratheon, and yes, he's immensely important...eventually.

Yes, that's what I meant. Thank you for the correction.

Slightly off tangent, but Fellowship was on cable this weekend as well. Sean Bean looked so much younger as Boromir. Hard to believe that's it's been ten years already.

 

[The Josh]

Yea, that's going to be very interesting - but it's not something that happens any time soon.

Mister Ski said it very well. You need to see things play out in context.

I'm also not quite so sure why everyone thinks they built up Ned so much. I didn't see it on the show any more than in the book - he's a main character, but not any more so than 4 or 5 other people. And people assumed too much - Sean Bean is the most famous actor on the show, he's the noble middle aged white guy, so he must be the most important character. He's not, just as Jaime isn't the most important on the Lannister side. I think if you were taking Ned to be the 'hero' of the entire show, you were reading into it far too much through the colored lens of experience.

Sorry they built up Ned quite a bit. How they angled it was very much making him out to be one of the most important characters in this series. I think you're seeing it through the lens of someone who has read the books and knew it was coming so it didn't feel different. I can tell you from someone who hadn't read the books with the fact they made Sean Bean feel important through the way the story was shown and how they sold the show through ads. They played up that experience of people like me who expected he would be guy #1 of the show.

 

[Mister Ski]

Yea, that's going to be very interesting - but it's not something that happens any time soon.

Mister Ski said it very well. You need to see things play out in context.

I'm also not quite so sure why everyone thinks they built up Ned so much. I didn't see it on the show any more than in the book - he's a main character, but not any more so than 4 or 5 other people. And people assumed too much - Sean Bean is the most famous actor on the show, he's the noble middle aged white guy, so he must be the most important character. He's not, just as Jaime isn't the most important on the Lannister side. I think if you were taking Ned to be the 'hero' of the entire show, you were reading into it far too much through the colored lens of experience.

I think people might be confusing Sean Bean the actor with Eddard Stark the character. Or they might be considering them to be one in the same?

When they cast Sean Bean as Eddard, it was a good choice for the character and a good role for the actor. Sean Bean is a movie actor though, not a tv actor and he went into this knowing that it was a limited commitment and know he is free to pursue movie opportunities again.

 

[The Josh]

You've gotta follow the book for the most part and be fair to it. Much like PJ has done with LOTR and will The Hobbit so that the true feeling of the information comes through. So I don't blame them for following the material at all. I do like this series but right now I'm on a week by week with this show.

 

[Mister Ski]

Sorry they built up Ned quite a bit. How they angled it was very much making him out to be one of the most important characters in this series. I think you're seeing it through the lens of someone who has read the books and knew it was coming so it didn't feel different. I can tell you from someone who hadn't read the books with the fact they made Sean Bean feel important through the way the story was shown and how they sold the show through ads. They played up that experience of people like me who expected he would be guy #1 of the show.

Exactly! Great marketing to showcase a movie actor in your new tv series. Like I said previously though, you don't see Ned's death coming in the books either because he is one of the main POVs (chapters) in the first book.

 

[The Josh]

When they cast Sean Bean as Eddard, it was a good choice for the character and a good role for the actor. Sean Bean is a movie actor though, not a tv actor and he went into this knowing that it was a limited commitment and know he is free to pursue movie opportunities again.

He's going to be starting in a TV series for ABC with Ashley Judd. So maybe he's making a bit of a switch.

 

[Mister Ski]

He's going to be starting in a TV series for ABC with Ashley Judd. So maybe he's making a bit of a switch.

Really? Oh no Sean!

Maybe they can bring back Ned as a ghost.

Ashley Judd has been box office cancer. TV is her only option.

Editted: Just checked IMDB. Looks like it is a tv movie, not series. Whew!

 

[The Josh]

Exactly! Great marketing to showcase a movie actor in your new tv series. Like I said previously though, you don't see Ned's death coming in the books either because he is one of the main POVs (chapters) in the first book.

Its great marketing but something that could backfire for the large majority I would say of viewers who haven't read the books.

 

[The Josh]

Really? Oh no Sean!

Maybe they can bring back Ned as a ghost.

Ashley Judd has been box office cancer. TV is her only option.

Well, to be fair he was a series actor in Britain before getting big over here.

Nah, leave him dead.

 

[Mister Ski]

Its great marketing but something that could backfire for the large majority I would say of viewers who haven't read the books.

Quite possibly. I think they are hoping viewers get hooked into the other characters and stick with it.

 

[The Josh]

Right now the two series I was looking forward to Camelot and GOT have both disappointed me a bit with things. I'm sure I'll keep watching both but just not super pleased with things in either show.

 

[wofford29]

Like I said earlier. People who've read the books are seeing this series as something completely different as the rest of the world is watching it. You are supplementing knowledge of a story told to a certain point with what's unfolding on screen. The majority of viewers aren't and it's been structured almost exclusively as a house vs. house storyline and non readers are expecting revenge that will never happen. I also keep seeing that things I said may or may not be true but I've still not been told what I said in my spoiler tag that isn't true or doesn't happen and I honestly would like to know. Book readers also keep talking about characters and their importance and characters that we haven't even met yet. Again, this is a TV show and the characters are being presented as is. There is a very defined group that you root for and a group that you want to die. These characters that you book readers keep mentioning as important have not been developed this season or supposedly not even met yet. Problem is, this is a tv show, ratings matter. If you want people to care for Robb you can't spend 8 episodes developing Ned, kill him off and leave two shows to try and squeeze Robb in and expect people to get excited about a season 2.

Spoiler

By the end of this season there will literally be no vengeance for anyone, and you can't simply just count who's dead from each family because there is more than just death as wrong being done to these people and the two dead Lannisters one is done by a Lannister and the other no one is sure of, hardly a wrong righted. It will have been an entire season 1 where the Baratheons and the Starks are steam rolled by despicable characters. Asking people to come back for season 2 is wanting people to be a glutton for punishment.

 

[Something Sexy]

Sorry they built up Ned quite a bit. How they angled it was very much making him out to be one of the most important characters in this series. I think you're seeing it through the lens of someone who has read the books and knew it was coming so it didn't feel different. I can tell you from someone who hadn't read the books with the fact they made Sean Bean feel important through the way the story was shown and how they sold the show through ads. They played up that experience of people like me who expected he would be guy #1 of the show.

Exactly how I feel and a bunch of other people who watch the show and never read the books.