Entry tags:
Game of Thrones 1.06 A Golden Crown
For the record, Dreamwidth's rich-text interface in general is shit. I'd finished typing my review for this episode, was curious whether my cut-tag was busted, switched from HTML to rich text to see, and it ate everything after the busted tag and erased over it in the draft -- that is, destroyed my entire review. It's only because this is A Song of Ice and Fire, my second fandom one true love (after Discworld), that I am bothering to retype the goddamn thing. Let's see if I can even remember. The rest of you be warned, though: don't even touch that rich text button, all of your work will be lost now, like tears in rain.
- This point in the storyline was when I realized I really was loving the first book back in 2003ish when I read it for the first time. I think a little earlier, when Jaime attacked Ned and killed Jory, was when I realized I was emotionally invested in Ned Stark -- but the harrowing Tyrion-at-the-Eyrie chapters were what sold me for once and for all on the storyline and I never looked back. It's gratifying to see they translate so well to screen, or so I thought: probably not with the same weight and suspense they had in the books, as in the books you didn't have the privilege of knowing Peter Dinklage was playing Tyrion and there's no way they could kill him off now (or, "knowing," I should say), nor that if they put that much emphasis on Bronn he had to be important (he could've, but he could've well not, it's a lot less predictable on the page than it is on the screen).
- I had a bunch of separate bullet points about things, but no longer having a rat's ass to bequeath: character sympathy is getting kind of busted by this point in the storyline, I must say. For one, Viserys's death was far too pathetic and sad and not gratifying and vindicating; I blame this on too many Viserys scenes and not enough Dany scenes. And Viserys is a better actor than glassy-eyed Dany, to be frank, which is a baffling casting decision. They're really robbing Dany of character development this season and the way she's being played is sort of detached and creepy, if anything, which... no, that's not a good thing at all, given she is Daenerys goddamn Stormborn. Likewise, I think the Cat-hating problem that fandom has already is only going to get worse given how shafted she is of humanizing points in this season so far -- Cat is a POV character in A Game of Thrones, which means she shouldn't have gotten fewer humanizing points than Cersei Lannister, who for one is meant to be a lot more hot-tempered and snarly than Lena Headey is playing her, and for two is nothing resembling a POV character in book 1.
- Speaking of Cersei, I'm a little concerned about where they're going with her in general. Where's her vitriolic hatred of Tyrion? Cersei irrationally, paranoidly, vehemently loathes her brother Tyrion -- this should've come up by now, lest people get any stupid Lannister-powaaar-family ideas into their heads, which I am pretty sure they already are. Tyrion at this point should be looking like literally the only Lannister with redeeming value. The over-the-topness of Robert's nastiness is making Cersei too sympathetic also (and Ned less sympathetic), given it's not clear in the show why Ned and Robert were ever friends (Robert is the world's most abusive friend apparently). Her flabbergasting lies were only barely hinted at just now with her claiming that Ned attacked Jaime, and even then I wonder if a lot of people didn't get the impression that was what Jaime told her -- which is a problem when you can't tell if an action comes from Jaime or Cersei. Overall this is coming off less Cersei Lannister and more Glamorous Seductive Queen Role For Lena Headey.
- Beric Dondarrion!
- I dunno how everyone on this show is reading Jorah Mormont's mind here. He's not staring at Dany that creeper-ly. Like, I am pretty sure he makes the same faces at both Dany and Viserys at this point.
- I guess Drogo got slightly better treated this time, and Jason Momoa gave him some good resigned I-have-to-do-this grim faces at Dany, but that's just in comparison to how horrifically they've offscreened him for this entire season. He's in fact a more major character in A Game of Thrones than Viserys Targaryen, but you couldn't tell from the way they've sidelined him here. It irritates me that they'd waste so many Jason Momoa opportunities to be cool on unnecessary long scenes and anvilicious Mark Addy frothing at Sean Bean "have we mentioned Robert's not really the greatest friend to Ned" let's-just-hammer-that-point-in. Overall the end of Dany's storyline for this book is going to come out of nowhere emphasis-wise and emotionally for a lot of viewers, I feel.
- "Rhaego. I named him after my two favorite pasta sauces, Prego and Ragu." -![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
relia on Daenerys Targaryen's baby naming
- Who is this Renly, anyway? This weird, emotional, idealistic sort of Renly? I think Edmure Tully has taken Renly's place for this season. Damn, Edmure, I don't think Renly's going to be happy what you've been doing with Loras.
- The Robb/Theon is strong in this one. Really, though, it is -- the show in general is, underscoring their relationship a lot harder than it is in the book, which is good for making them both come off likeable, as is Theon's grey-goose-feather rescue of Bran here. I hope you send Tyrion a thank-you note, Bran. Just saying. A Stark apparently does not always pay his debts.
- As usual, Petyr comes from the far-off land of Useful and Pragmatic. You've probably never heard of it.
- ETA: OOPS IT HAS BEEN RIGHTLY POINTED OUT TO ME I MISSED ONE IMPORTANT THING: "not today." Syrio. Syrio. Syrio, you badass motherfucker, where were you when I was a kid.
Game of Thrones is a beautiful demonstration of how much emotional weight translated from page to screen depends on how good the actors are. Not usually to its credit. But not always not to its credit, either.
- This point in the storyline was when I realized I really was loving the first book back in 2003ish when I read it for the first time. I think a little earlier, when Jaime attacked Ned and killed Jory, was when I realized I was emotionally invested in Ned Stark -- but the harrowing Tyrion-at-the-Eyrie chapters were what sold me for once and for all on the storyline and I never looked back. It's gratifying to see they translate so well to screen, or so I thought: probably not with the same weight and suspense they had in the books, as in the books you didn't have the privilege of knowing Peter Dinklage was playing Tyrion and there's no way they could kill him off now (or, "knowing," I should say), nor that if they put that much emphasis on Bronn he had to be important (he could've, but he could've well not, it's a lot less predictable on the page than it is on the screen).
- I had a bunch of separate bullet points about things, but no longer having a rat's ass to bequeath: character sympathy is getting kind of busted by this point in the storyline, I must say. For one, Viserys's death was far too pathetic and sad and not gratifying and vindicating; I blame this on too many Viserys scenes and not enough Dany scenes. And Viserys is a better actor than glassy-eyed Dany, to be frank, which is a baffling casting decision. They're really robbing Dany of character development this season and the way she's being played is sort of detached and creepy, if anything, which... no, that's not a good thing at all, given she is Daenerys goddamn Stormborn. Likewise, I think the Cat-hating problem that fandom has already is only going to get worse given how shafted she is of humanizing points in this season so far -- Cat is a POV character in A Game of Thrones, which means she shouldn't have gotten fewer humanizing points than Cersei Lannister, who for one is meant to be a lot more hot-tempered and snarly than Lena Headey is playing her, and for two is nothing resembling a POV character in book 1.
- Speaking of Cersei, I'm a little concerned about where they're going with her in general. Where's her vitriolic hatred of Tyrion? Cersei irrationally, paranoidly, vehemently loathes her brother Tyrion -- this should've come up by now, lest people get any stupid Lannister-powaaar-family ideas into their heads, which I am pretty sure they already are. Tyrion at this point should be looking like literally the only Lannister with redeeming value. The over-the-topness of Robert's nastiness is making Cersei too sympathetic also (and Ned less sympathetic), given it's not clear in the show why Ned and Robert were ever friends (Robert is the world's most abusive friend apparently). Her flabbergasting lies were only barely hinted at just now with her claiming that Ned attacked Jaime, and even then I wonder if a lot of people didn't get the impression that was what Jaime told her -- which is a problem when you can't tell if an action comes from Jaime or Cersei. Overall this is coming off less Cersei Lannister and more Glamorous Seductive Queen Role For Lena Headey.
- Beric Dondarrion!
- I dunno how everyone on this show is reading Jorah Mormont's mind here. He's not staring at Dany that creeper-ly. Like, I am pretty sure he makes the same faces at both Dany and Viserys at this point.
- I guess Drogo got slightly better treated this time, and Jason Momoa gave him some good resigned I-have-to-do-this grim faces at Dany, but that's just in comparison to how horrifically they've offscreened him for this entire season. He's in fact a more major character in A Game of Thrones than Viserys Targaryen, but you couldn't tell from the way they've sidelined him here. It irritates me that they'd waste so many Jason Momoa opportunities to be cool on unnecessary long scenes and anvilicious Mark Addy frothing at Sean Bean "have we mentioned Robert's not really the greatest friend to Ned" let's-just-hammer-that-point-in. Overall the end of Dany's storyline for this book is going to come out of nowhere emphasis-wise and emotionally for a lot of viewers, I feel.
- "Rhaego. I named him after my two favorite pasta sauces, Prego and Ragu." -
relia on Daenerys Targaryen's baby naming- Who is this Renly, anyway? This weird, emotional, idealistic sort of Renly? I think Edmure Tully has taken Renly's place for this season. Damn, Edmure, I don't think Renly's going to be happy what you've been doing with Loras.
- The Robb/Theon is strong in this one. Really, though, it is -- the show in general is, underscoring their relationship a lot harder than it is in the book, which is good for making them both come off likeable, as is Theon's grey-goose-feather rescue of Bran here. I hope you send Tyrion a thank-you note, Bran. Just saying. A Stark apparently does not always pay his debts.
- As usual, Petyr comes from the far-off land of Useful and Pragmatic. You've probably never heard of it.
- ETA: OOPS IT HAS BEEN RIGHTLY POINTED OUT TO ME I MISSED ONE IMPORTANT THING: "not today." Syrio. Syrio. Syrio, you badass motherfucker, where were you when I was a kid.
Game of Thrones is a beautiful demonstration of how much emotional weight translated from page to screen depends on how good the actors are. Not usually to its credit. But not always not to its credit, either.