Last Hearth
Member
The show is not the books, it's not going to be as good as the books. But it's still a great show. If you can enjoy it as a good TV show, you'll like it, if you keep expecting a re-enactment of the books, you'll be disappointed.
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Game of Thrones - Season 2 - George RR Martin's Song of Ice and Fire - Sundays on HBO
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No, I don't mean stiff in the sense of doing a nice job in playing a rigid character. I mean stiff in the usual negative connotation its used in with when talking about acting.
PhoenixDark
Banned
Why do people do this in this thread, jesus
Gamer @ Heart
Member
That happens a bit to early to be where you said.
While I don't find slavish adapting ever necessary, the prologue sets up everything up so easily and well, that it just seemed silly to deviate from it. Having Cressen drink first also made NO SENSE and lacked the punch it should have had for this sacrifice? the showrunners intended for. Also, I'm not sure how comfortable I am with
My second biggest gripe: WHERE WAS THE FLORENT PEEN?!
Aside from that though, it's always exciting to see a show strive to improve and actually accomplish doing so in its second year. There's a confidence pulsating throughout now that's lending itself wonderfully to the scope and general quality. (regardless of how dumb that Littlefinger scene was, Lena Heady did a tremendous job and is finally convincing me as Cersei) Kudos in particular to Alan Taylor's direction and the episode's editing - everything flowed gracefully and fast.
The bastard slaughter while hard to stomach, (just hearing about the characters refer to the baby bit upset me enough in the book!) was probably the first bit of original scripting/direction that has really impressed me. Sequencing to each murder and capping off with Gendry and Arya was stunning.
the depiction of Mellisandre in that scene. She's an incredibly complex character and it's shown as early as it is in her pitying her dying attacker.
My second biggest gripe: WHERE WAS THE FLORENT PEEN?!
Aside from that though, it's always exciting to see a show strive to improve and actually accomplish doing so in its second year. There's a confidence pulsating throughout now that's lending itself wonderfully to the scope and general quality. (regardless of how dumb that Littlefinger scene was, Lena Heady did a tremendous job and is finally convincing me as Cersei) Kudos in particular to Alan Taylor's direction and the episode's editing - everything flowed gracefully and fast.
The bastard slaughter while hard to stomach, (just hearing about the characters refer to the baby bit upset me enough in the book!) was probably the first bit of original scripting/direction that has really impressed me. Sequencing to each murder and capping off with Gendry and Arya was stunning.
Having him drink first made complete sense. He was willing to give his life to assassinate her and prevent her from poisoning Stannis' mind further. As to your second point, I saw nothing even remotely resembling pity in her face. I saw pleasure.
EDIT: misinterpreted what you meant. You're saying that she showed pity in the book, not in the episode. My bad.
Possibly bc I'm new to the damn forum, excuse me. I'll stick to this book/season. My bad.
now that you mention it you're right, I forgot its not very long after we meet Brienne.
Just for future reference, if you've read all 5 books there is free discussion in this thread with unmarked spoilers for the entire series.
Also, while in this TV show thread, try to mark spoilers with what book they're from if possible. Example:
(Clash of Kings)
Davos is awesome
There are guidelines about this in the OP. Welcome to the forum, btw.
I understood what the writers were going for but it just fell flat without the proper illustration of Cressen's ties to the Baratheons and his very loyal love for them. There's no weight to his actions or death in the episode because he's barely even a character and because of that, the lengths to which he is willing to go to stop her, do not seem terribly justified or affecting - at least, in my opinion of course.
PhoenixDark
Banned
I don't mean to be an ass, but the OP has clear rules. We as book readers should want to ensure as many people as possible avoid spoilers, especially those that have nothing to do with ACOK
This is an unforgiving world, Junior. You play the game of reading the OP or you die.
Oh episode 2, you've evaded me all day, I finally found you!
Supermanisdead
Member
Canada doesn't get HBO Go lol :'(
shadowsdarknes
Member
A lot of fans of the books in here are placing the blame on the wrong people. Complaints on the writing quality is perplexing. I read every book and make well informed contributions in the spoiler thread. I'm as die hard a fan as anyone. Yet I still think the show is some of the best television in recent memory. Blame HBO for constraining GoT to 10 episode seasons. The writers are doing the best they can fitting in the important scenes. Thus far the show is delivering amazing entertainment to fans and new viewers. My favorite apart about the show is filling in back story for my friends. They greatly appreciate it. It's what makes the show so enjoyable for me. Give it a shot.
My post may sound like nerd rage but my main issue for not liking the show is that I simply don't feel the writers are up to the task. Apart from the changes they (sometimes inexplicably) make, they mainly just have a very poor sense of narrative and flow. They adapt the main points (checklist-style, as I said, and this mostly includes the dialogues), and inbetween they will stick a made-up 8-minute scene with two secondary characters that drags on for eternity, breaking up all flow. And this, with time being at a premium! There was really no need to have Pycelle doing exercises while talking to a whore in the last episode of the last season (if I recall correctly which one it was), for example, with so much else that needed to be focused on.
I'm sure I'm not the only one that feels this way, anyhow. With regards to my "grandiose conclusions," there's people here claiming this is already the best TV show of the century!! What makes that any more acceptable than what I'm saying? GAF is always like this with something when it comes out, and will later do a 180. I hardly recall any criticism of The Dark Knight when it came out, and now it's like the complete opposite. I think in hindsight people here will probably end up admitting GOT wasn't all that good. Maybe it'll improve, but this episode seemed like more of the same to me, and what I saw last season just wasn't very compelling even as a standalone product.
Haha. No worries. I thought you might have meant that but wasn't 100% sure. I kinda thought his voice/accent didn't quite match the upper class hardcase he is. Acting skills is not something I'm good at picking. You have to be really bad actor for me to notice.
Steelyuhas
Member
Definitely spoiler tag and label any episodes that you watch before they actually air on HBO.
I largely agree here.
I think we would see a lot better flow and less story jumping with a few more episodes.
With a few extra episodes it would afford the show the abillity to really give each story almost an entire dedicated episode or at least several highly focused episodes which would go a long way to alleviating that jumpy rush feeling some people think is going on.
So, question for those that have read the books and may know: Who ordered the killing of the bastards. I guess it wasn't as big a deal in the books as it was in the show, so the few threads I've read in other places people say they think it was Cercei, but I haven't seen much definite. My wife and I were pretty much entirely sure it was Joffrey's doing, though.
For people who haven't read the book it was a very good way to express some things that they may have missed while setting up the idea that even Pycelle is playing the game. It was very effective for what it wanted to do. You say it's unnecessary but others would call it a stroke of genius. It was very clever really.
I know I don't post in this thread much, but as a fan of the book I love the extras they're adding into the story. Being as this isn't a book, but a TV show, it has to be directed and edited and shot as a TV show. A TV show where they don't show the names for the characters every time someone talks about them, where they have to give vague contextual clues about who's doing what at certain times. A show like this can become very expositiory and the writers so far are doing a brilliant job of moving the story along while making sure everyone keeps up and it stays interesting and not a bunch of nameless people talking all the time.
Steelyuhas
Member
Cersei's doing, at least in the books.
I still interpreted it that way in the show as well. Lots of talk about her children not being Robert's, cumulating in Joffrey confronting her about the "rumors" and asking about her bastards in part drove her to have the gold cloaks go on a bastard killing spree.
Buckethead
Banned
Another thing about E01...
Why was Littlefinger's accent so fucking weird?
Sounded like a bee stung his tongue.
Why was Littlefinger's accent so fucking weird?
Sounded like a bee stung his tongue.
pr0cs
Member
rather than doing a pickup they likely just dubbed his voice in, perhaps some audio issues with that scene/shot.
Agreed. That was a really nice touch. I thought about it first when the child comes out to clean up the mess that The Hound made in the opening scene.
That kind of bums me out, actually. It seemed like a much more brazen fuck you toward Cersei by Joffrey. We thought of it as kind of slapping back for that slap in the face and saying he not only believed the rumors, but he was going to do something about it.
Buckethead
Banned
Well I know about ADR but the accent just seemed... off.
Harry Potter
Banned
bengraven
Member
Damn! Carice van Houten is hot. She should play J.K. Rowling if a biopic ever comes
Also love this scene
Just as much as this one
It's a great callback to that second scene.
First: whiny prince slapped by his uncle, cries and runs away to his mother.
Second: whiny king slapped by his own mother, threatens to kill her and scares her.
And yes, Carice is really hot. I think people are just upset that she has a few age lines, which to the 15-30 year old age group means "she's old". Sad. Also, I don't know why anyone is complaining about the accent. The point of her character is that she's from far across the sea and is likely one of the few of her kind in Westeros. She should have a different accent.
So I guess HBO is trying to recruit people to HBO GO.... yet they haven't made it available in Canada. Fucking cruel.
Could create an interesting problem for this thread if they continue to do this all season.
Could create an interesting problem for this thread if they continue to do this all season.
Agreed. Maybe for some it just strikes them as 'Oh, she's from the Netherlands then...' rather than some strange place. Not too easy to invent accents, though, without sounding ridiculous.
Supermanisdead
Member
Not surprised the Targaryen pizza looks the least appealing.
Harry Potter
Banned
Stark sounds pretty gross to me: Ham & mushrooms with BBQ sauce outline.
I noticed that as well. I haven't been keeping up with the news so I immediately feared they had replaced the actor, thank god it was just a brief moment of weirdness.
bengraven
Member
Exactly. Like the Dothraki Arabian accent.
Maybe all the people from Asshai speak Dutch. You never know.
She is very hot. I did picture her as more "exotic" but it doesn't really bother me. Her hair could be better. It does detract from her appearance.
Lactose_Intolerant
Member
Pyke is pretty cool looking, in the opening and in the show.
bengraven
Member
her eyes do it for me. I don't care what the rest of her looks like (despite her awesome lips and some nice breasts) but to play Mel she needs eyes that can pierce your soul and seduce you and frighten you all at the same time.
She does that perfectly so in my eyes she's a perfect Mel.
It does not show up for me. Cox, Xbox360.
Lactose_Intolerant
Member
oh lord, more sexposition in episode 2. +
Littlefinger is a peeper.
Speaking of Gendry...
Does anybody else think that Edric Storm will be cut from the show and Gendry will be used in place of him instead at Dragonstone for Season 3?
It wouldnt be hard to split him with Arya and send him to Dragonstone for any number of reasons. He doesnt NEED to meet up with The Brotherhood right away, or at all really. Plus, he could meet up with the Brothers later for the scene with Brienne at the inn.
It wouldnt be hard to split him with Arya and send him to Dragonstone for any number of reasons. He doesnt NEED to meet up with The Brotherhood right away, or at all really. Plus, he could meet up with the Brothers later for the scene with Brienne at the inn.
I find that very creepy to be honest.
Yeah, I just got spoiled big time in the last few pages.
I remember during the fall there being reports about the actor playing him being unable to continue with the show due to other obligations.
The actor quit due to scheduling conflicts. So they killed his character off and brought in Kovarro as a replacement character.
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