HBO: Game of Thrones

[Vee]

Winter Is Coming has some episode descriptions for the final three episodes of Season 4, which will air in June after Memorial Day. Not spoilerific per se, but I am tagging them just in case people don't want to see them.

I've always loved Neil Marshall's films, particularly The Descent, so I look forward to his return directing Episode 9. (He also did Dog Soldiers, with Liam Cunningham.)

Edited May 15, 2014 by Vee

[DRW50]

I won't give any spoilers, but

I still have "Rains of Castamere" waiting to watch. I just haven't been able to face it

Edited May 15, 2014 by DRW50

[ThePrinceOfSunspear]

Is this season just 10 like the last? I thought I read somewhere that the next or future seasons would be 12 episodes? It doesn't matter to me either way but just curious. I suppose for consistency's sake they should keep it at 10....

The finale will be awesome....depending on what decisions they make regarding several important scenes. I hope they pack them all in as it should be but I won't be surprised if they spread them out randomly. They've already shown their incompetence with the rape scene in the church.

Excited for Littlefinger and Sansa next week....Lysa is too funny..

[DRW50]

It's still 10. In the interview Cogman and the sycophant hosts were talking about how it had to be 10, you can't do any more than that, because so much is already packed into those 10.

I don't mind 10 episodes, although I have to laugh when I see people who insist that 10 is STILL too many because there is still "filler." Idiots like this who turn shows into purity contests do not seem to realize that even if a show has only a few episodes a season, there will be filler. Any show will always have filler. The last Sherlock season had tons and tons of filler and that was only 3 90-minute episodes.

[Khan]

Here's a question for all you GoT fans:

Believe it or not, I am considering picking up this series from the beginning. As a rule, though, I tend to stay away from movies, books and TV series that deal with the occult (i.e., vampires, werewolves, witches, demonic and devilish beings and the like). Especially since I "found the Lort" and joined the Catholic church seven years ago, I try to be very careful about what I allow into my spirit.

Does GoT dabble in that stuff at all? Is it akin to, say, the "Buffy"-verse (which I did watch, pre-born again)? Or is it more like a J.R.R. Tolkien or C.S. Lewis fantasy novel?

One more thing: yes, it's true, I am a born again Christian. I realize that might be a shock to those who are familiar with my general behavior on these boards. What can I say? God's still working on me? *shrug

Edited May 15, 2014 by Khan

[ThePrinceOfSunspear]

It sorta does....I'm sure DRW50 will explain it better but there is a lot of religious themes to the show or at least in certain storylines. And there is portion of the series that deals with bringing people back to life....

How far they dive into in the show is anyones guess. They've touched on the "bringing people back from the dead" aspect for a while now.

Honestly I wasn't sure if you were being serious or not but overall you seem sincere so that makes it hard for me to say yes or no.

[Khan]

No, I'm being sincere. I realize it might be difficult to tell coming from me, though, lol.

Thanks for the answer.

[YRBB]

I was about to register my surprise.

Uumm, if you're strict about the inclusion of any of the things you listed, then this show is not for you.

Although, for a fantasy series, elements such as witches, ambiguous Gods, etc., are quite limited and introduced slowly and sparingly. But your definition of that may be different than mine.

In any case, I can think of a couple of things based on the list you gave which would indicate you're probably better off staying away, although I would advise you just watch and decide as you go.

PS. Does that mean no Harry Potter? I am having difficulty figuring out what is OK and what is not.

Edited May 15, 2014 by YRBB

[Khan]

Oh, I stayed away from the "Harry Potter" series for reasons that had nothing to do with religion, lol. Years and years ago, when the first book was out and I wasn't involved with "the Church," I picked it up and was so bored that I didn't get past the second or third chapter. I think I might have seen the first movie, though.

Don't wish to hijack the thread any more than I have, so I'll just say thanks for the heads-up and bow out gracefully.

Edited May 15, 2014 by Khan

[DRW50]

Well, it's something that is tough for me to describe without giving spoilers away, but I will try:

There are supernatural creatures in the show. Some good, some bad. The show starts out very straightforward, with just hints of beings that are of another world (things like winter zombies - no, not Bucky Barnes - and direwolves who have special and spiritual ties to their owners). In the second season, the supernatural world opens up, due to certain events. You get dragons, warlocks and witches, men who change their face and have wish-granting powers, etc.

There are multiple religions on the show.

Most of the characters believe in The Seven, which is the maiden, the mother, the stranger (death), the warrior, and some others I"m blanking on. They build huge septs (houses of worship) for The Seven.

Some characters believe in the Storm Gods, who rule the oceans and use their powers of lightning and waves and thunder to create vengeance upon the land. People who believe in this believe that when you die, you will live beneath the oceans and fight giant creatures like sea dragons and what have you.

Some believe in the Old Gods, a religion mostly descended from their ancestors who lived in the forest and communicated with trees.

The one religion that believes in one true god is the Lord of Light. He is a fire god, as his believers believe fire is purity and clarity. People who worship this god worship him in different ways. Some of them believe in sacrifices and that non-believers must be burned alive as sacrifices. Others don't have a lot of interest in burning people alive, and worship him more for reasons of holiness and justice. Fire is life in this religion, and fire unleashes a host of supernatural abilities - precognition, resurrection from the dead, birthing of what amounts to shadow assassins that carry out your orders, etc.

[Khan]

Wow. It all sounds like pretty powerful stuff...but I think I'll take YRBB's advice and steer clear.

But thanks, Carl! Much appreciated!

[DRW50]

Thanks for asking. I can see where some would steer clear (some of my friends quit watching Supernatural once they introduced angels).

[Khan]

"Supernatural" is a perfect example of the kind of occult-ish entertainment I steer clear from.

Edited May 16, 2014 by Khan

[Juliajms]

It's really more like Lord of the Rings, imo. You could just watch and then stop if the material is offensive.

[DRW50]

Trying to remember some of the things that were said in Cogman's interview...

- the Craster's Keep scenes as written and filmed were more extreme than what was shown in the episode

- he wasn't expecting the show to actually film the scenes with Stannis and Davos on the boat, going under the statue, etc. and was thrilled that they did

- in the trial scenes, he wrote more of Tyrion attacking Tywin over his childhood, but was glad that was trimmed

- when asked about recasting roles, he said they just do it, it's not a big deal. He said that UK audiences accept this better than American audiences, because UK audiences are more used to it (I'm not too sure about that...)

- he refused to answer question about characters from the books they won't bring into the show, but finally just gave up and said Tommen's other cats won't be appearing

- he had a very hard time writing for Dany last season, as her story was about her pure mission and purpose, and he couldn't connect to it. Now that her story is more complicated, he has an easier time writing for her

- he agreed with the hosts going on and on about how villains like Locke and that Burn Gorman character are brought in to be killed off to balance out the deaths of popular heroic characters