Does it bother anyone else that the TV version of Game of Thrones is coming to an end before the next to last book in the series is even completed?
The final season of GOT starts this coming Sunday night.
I don’t mean to change the focus of the thread, but no one seems to be biting at it anyway. 
Personally I don’t see what the big deal about Game of Thrones is. I don’t get HBO, but there was a free preview weekend recently and I got to watch an episode. I didn’t see one single likeable character, so I lost interest before that episode was even over. The foul language also contributed to putting me off.
I have very few friends who are into this series. But my friends and I are probably older than the target demographic, so that’s not surprising.
I watched an episode years ago and, like Advocatus, didn’t like any of the characters at all. I need characters who interest me, and none did. Maybe if I dumped days of my life into watching a few seasons, I might come across someone who interested me, but there are other shows I like, so that didn’t seem like a good use of time.
The graphic violence, sexuality and language are ‘edgy’, but those aspects of a show play absolutely no part in my judgement of a show.
I’ve noticed a lot of shows on even network are trying to be “edgy”, or at least as far as they can get away with. I like for at least one character to be someone I can relate to in some way, to understand what he’s going through. Characters who lie and cheat and murder I don’t have much sympathy for, so I don’t get interested in what they do. The episode I watched just moved from one character to another, and since I had no idea what they were talking about, I couldn’t really get interested in it. I suppose that, like a soap opera, if I just sat there and watched it for a week or so I’d start to understand what was going on, but I guess I don’t have the patience for soap-opera style shows. If it doesn’t catch my interest within the first fifteen minutes, I’m looking for something else.
Style seems to have replaced content in both movies and television. I have no movies or television series in my top 10 that push any limits on style, but rather have ones that touch me emotionally. Not that you couldn’t make a show with graphic violence, course language and with lots of sexual content, that also had a great set of characters that I can relate to. Maybe it’s been made and I haven’t watched it yet [feel free to suggest shows you think are worth watching.]
Create a station that has ‘Northern Exposure’, ‘M.A.S.H.’, and ‘The Nature of Things’ (it’s a Canadian thing) on repeat, and I might watch television again. I have not watched anything but Netflix and YouTube for about 4 years now, so there may be shows I would like on the networks, but until I finish watching the good stuff on those other platforms, I don’t see myself caring if there is all that much.
I read the books (that have been published, so far), and watched the TV series. I binge re-watched the entire 8 seasons before watching the 1st episode of the final season. Needless to say, the violence and sexual content, are not a put-off for me. Tho I tend to fast forward thru sex scenes if they’re tool long. Sex scenes are a bit boring to me, at my age. And I don’t even notice “bad” language. Is there any? If so, it’s just all language to me. The tuffest thing about watching the series, for me, was that there are so many characters, and some of the ones you take a liking to, can be suddenly killed off. And the ones you hate, tend to be around for a good while. My favorite character in the books was Arya, Ned Stark’s youngest daughter. Thankfully, she is still alive into the beginning of the last TV season.
The TV series started 8 yrs ago, so it can be interesting to see some of the characters actually age. An interesting note, is that, in real life, the actress playing the Dragon Queen (perhaps the most main character) survived 2 different brain hemorrhages. They did not seem to effect her performance.
TimB, the sex, violence, language or other non-PG aspects of a show are not a turn-off or a turn-on- they are irrelevant (unless they’re over the top and distracting). They just seem to be used more heavily when there is less substance to the show, so I tend to write-off shows that are further on that end of the spectrum. This naturally means I miss out on some good ones, but I also don’t waste time with the ones I’m right about.
Maybe if I seriously injure myself and am bedridden for a few months, I might check out Game of Thrones (after a few other series).
How long did it take to watch all 8 seasons?
Hopefully by the time u become bedridden, the 9th season will be complete as well. Then it will be well over 70 hours to watch. Considering that you will need sleep for recuperating from your injury or illness, u should probably not do more than 8 shows a day. But you might do more anyway, once u get hooked. So let’s guess it would take you a week or so. I think I watched the first 8 seasons within less than 5 days, but I am probably an outlier in binging. I only do it on relatively rare occasions. Tho, being retired, I could probably do so more often.
Just a heads up, but for GoT, you also need to have a tolerance for the most severe “man’s inhumanity to man” themes. And u should be prepared to feel intense hatred for certain characters and some satisfaction when/if those ever meet their demise.
Wow! Maybe I’m the only GoT watcher on the Forum, but if anyone ever does watch the series from the beginning, i think that the episode that showed earlier tonight is probably the best single episode of ANY TV SERIES EVER. There are 2 or 3 episodes left, but I doubt that one of them will outdo the episode that I saw tonight.
" i think that the episode that showed earlier tonight is probably the best single episode of ANY TV SERIES EVER. "Although I never watched the show you're talking about, there are episodes of Northern Exposure and M*A*S*H that, decades after I first watched them, still give me chills when I think about them. There is some alchemy in those two series that, for some reason, really touches me.
Hopefully GoT is the same for you.
I heard that certain episodes of “Mad Men” are like that for some, also. Idk, I didn’t see that series.
Nnam, I think TV series will continue on - capitalism will see to that.
edit
I think something like $700 million has been spent on producing the 8 seasons of GOT.
In the latest episode, a Starbuck’s cup was seen on a table in front of the Dragon Queen. The producers said it was a mistake. The actress had ordered an herbal tea and apparently no one noticed when they shot the scene. It was only very briefly visible, but not much gets by that many avid fans.
So Starbucks gets over a quarter $million of free advertising.
One more episode. It will be done a day from now. I am just glad that my favorite character from way back, reading the books, became Arya. And she has made it to the final episode. I don’t know if she has technically been playing the game of thrones. At least she has not been playing it for herself to take the throne. I doubt that she will take the throne because “that is not who she is”.
Not many candidates left to take the throne. But u know what they say. “When you play the Game of Thrones, you win or you die.”
Yup.
There’s a lot of adolescent angst online, with some dills actually starting a petition to have the last season reshot.
Yair, a lot of sudden character thinning, with even Daenerys Stormborn finally pushing the envelope a bit too far. Plus of course, being Jon Snow’s aunt kinda of disqualifies her from co ruling with him. So she has to go. I hope her dragon barbeques and eats her.
If I had my druthers, I’d druther Tyrion Lannister on the Iron throne . Tyrion is so imperfect, but essentially a moral man. I’ve never really liked Jon Snow all that much; too much the predicable hero.
The two untidy characters seem to be Arya and Brien. Sir Lady Brien has shown her soft side, and Arya has become a murderous little psycho. A nasty piece of work, imo. I think she will become dead–also Bran/the Three Eyed Raven is left kind of dangling there.
Characters I miss the most: Holdor, and Ygritte .
I love Arya. Brienne and Bran are still in Winterfell, I think. Yeah, I wonder tho if there is any role left for Bran. I think Brienne will eventually hook up with the red headed wilding, Giantsbane, tho maybe not until the last of the books is written.
I also would be very surprised if Danerys survives this final episode. I am inclined to predict Jon Snow will not take the throne, but only because that is the most obvious outcome. G.R.R. Martin likes to make surprises. But Tyrion, a Lannister? I suppose it would be tenable if he wedded Sansa again. So maybe.
Arya might well be done for. I am just happy that she lasted this long.
There is also the bastard son of Baratheon, who is now a new Lord, still alive somewhere. I guess we can’t rule him out.
Sansa on the Iron Throne?
I know; Sansa on the Iron throne, with Arya as her Hand. Actually, Arya would make formidable hand no matter who is in charge. Not all that many choices left for monarch.
I don’t suppose the seven kingdoms could become an independent federation, with a titular head only? Then the Baratheon bastard could be king.
Arya would be more fit for Kingsguard than Hand, tho that would mean primarily guarding King Tyrion rather than Queen Sansa.
Well so much for conjecture. Time to go see what actually happens.