Game of Thrones fans here?

[ChicosBailBonds]

For you G.O.T. fans

http://quartermaester.info/

[chapman]

Looks like they're now doing things not in the books at all and some things not even revealed in the books yet.  I'm down. 

And at least Ser Pounce is now in the show.

[NotBuzzWilliams]

How about that episode, huh?

[ChicosBailBonds]

How about that episode, huh?

my eyes, my eyes

[Henry Sugar]

[AZWarrior]

What is the MU Scoop over / under on how many years George Martin Has left.  He does kind of look like a coronary arrest on legs, after all.

And here's a fun fact:  George Martin does not tweet.  Reason being is that he has already killed off all 140 characters.   

[MU82]

What is the MU Scoop over / under on how many years George Martin Has left.  He does kind of look like a coronary arrest on legs, after all.

Hmmm ... placing bets on how long people have to live? That's tempting karma big-time, no?

[chapman]

It seems most would like him to exercise more...getting a good workout in by typing copiously on his DOS computer.  Is a little scary though; they always post a minute-long segment with GRRM explaining something after each episode, and by the end of the minute he's always out of breath.  And one need only read a few pages to know how much he likes his food.

[Henry Sugar]

I don't actually care that much if he finishes the books or not. Sure, reading them is enjoyable, but at this point I'm more interested in knowing how the story ends. The TV show will do a fine (and arguably tighter) job of doing that.

[jesmu84]

I don't actually care that much if he finishes the books or not. Sure, reading them is enjoyable, but at this point I'm more interested in knowing how the story ends. The TV show will do a fine (and arguably tighter) job of doing that.

The show will likely be deviating from the plotlines that Martin has.

[Henry Sugar]

The show will likely be deviating from the plotlines that Martin has.

It's not like the overall plot will be significantly different, however

[ChicosBailBonds]

I had the pleasure of meeting George R. R. Martin and his wife last night.  Very cool....hope he can finish his masterpiece.

[muwarrior69]

I liked the latest episode. Next week will see what happens to Arya.

[brewcity77]

Decent start, as usual mostly setup. Really looking forward to the story at the Wall this season, and how they handle Tyrion's journey.

[mu03eng]

I think I watched maybe 30 minutes of GoT in my life.  I think it was the last season ender with the Hound dude getting sorta killed by a kid....anyway...

I don't really care about the show obviously, but I'm fascinated right now by the books vs tv power struggle.  For several years it seemed like everyone was concerned that the books wouldn't be finished in time to finish the show, and this was a problem.  However, as a disinterest person, it seems that has shifted.  It seems like now most* people actually think the tv show will do a better job of ending the story line.  Essentially, there are a lot of things hinted at in the books and the showrunners have decided that's going to be canon and move forward as such regardless of what Martin writes.

*(like the 7 people I've talked to and TV writers I've read)

I'm fascinated by the power struggle between the show creators and the author.  Prior to this year I felt like Martin had the power as people viewed his books as the absolute truth of what was going on and they couldn't move on with out him.  I suspect he maybe dragged his feet because they were at his mercy.  However as the show has tweaked and altered story lines and characters the audience has built up a trust that the show creators "get it" and they've been decoupled from Martin's power.  I had a friend who's a major fanboy and read the books before watching the show and he said 95% of the time the show improved things when they made changes from the books.

Does there come a point where Martin gets hamstrung by what the tv show presents versus the previous paradigm?  Is this a totally stupid line of discussion?

[ChicosBailBonds]

Decent start, as usual mostly setup. Really looking forward to the story at the Wall this season, and how they handle Tyrion's journey.

I have the first 3 episodes on disc (distribution affiliate partners get these, I'm still on their list) from HBO.  I watched episode one last week, plan on watching 2 and 3 in the next two days.  From what I have heard from HBO, there will be a strong kicker in these next two episodes.  Promise not to spoil.  Thought episode 1 was ok.

[CreightonWarrior]

For those who don't binge watch previous season the weeks, days, hours leading up to the season premiere episodes like last night are necessary because of everything going on. Needs to re-establish characters and start rebuilding on them. Only thing that stinks is its 10% of the season. Oh well...its necessary.

Who else has the first four episodes on their laptop?

[ChicosBailBonds]

For those who don't binge watch previous season the weeks, days, hours leading up to the season premiere episodes like last night are necessary because of everything going on. Needs to re-establish characters and start rebuilding on them. Only thing that stinks is its 10% of the season. Oh well...its necessary.

Who else has the first four episodes on their laptop?

I'm hoping they bury the sons of bitches that leaked it.  When we are given advance copies, each one is watermarked with our personal names on the actual footage and the disc.  There are also some trace numbers, so they know exactly who got what.  Much of it is to scare the hell out of you to make sure you don't put it out on the internet.  My hope is that whomever leaked the first 4 is crushed.

[chapman]

Watched the premiere using HBO Now.  Ordered through Apple (will switch when Amazon gets it ~July), watched on a Windows laptop.  No issues at all - well done, HBO. 

I had a friend who's a major fanboy and read the books before watching the show and he said 95% of the time the show improved things when they made changes from the books.

Does there come a point where Martin gets hamstrung by what the tv show presents versus the previous paradigm?  Is this a totally stupid line of discussion?

When factoring what would be practical for the show versus books, I'd say it's about evenly divided between an improvement, worse, or the same either way.   Some things are logical and well done - they combine characters from books into one show character very well without missing anything.  Others suck - they have completely botched the Stannis character, one of the fan favorites from the books.  This season should have more changes - Sansa seems to be on a path far more interesting than the books; Jaime on one that will cause them to forgo one of my favorite scenes in all the books. 

The books won't lose their value.  There are a ton of theories, hidden messages, and other things that unfold/will unfold in the books; even though the show has been pitched as believing people are smart and can follow it compared to most dumbed-down programming, it's still a drop in the water of the books.

[Skatastrophy]

I don't actually care that much if he finishes the books or not. Sure, reading them is enjoyable, but at this point I'm more interested in knowing how the story ends. The TV show will do a fine (and arguably tighter) job of doing that.

I've been reading A Song of Ice and Fire for 15 years. He'd better finish the freaking books!

It was bad enough with Robert Jordan died without finishing the Wheel of Time series! Gah!

[Hards Alumni]

Watched the premiere using HBO Now.  Ordered through Apple (will switch when Amazon gets it ~July), watched on a Windows laptop.  No issues at all - well done, HBO. 


When factoring what would be practical for the show versus books, I'd say it's about evenly divided between an improvement, worse, or the same either way.   Some things are logical and well done - they combine characters from books into one show character very well without missing anything.  Others suck - they have completely botched the Stannis character, one of the fan favorites from the books.  This season should have more changes - Sansa seems to be on a path far more interesting than the books; Jaime on one that will cause them to forgo one of my favorite scenes in all the books. 

The books won't lose their value.  There are a ton of theories, hidden messages, and other things that unfold/will unfold in the books; even though the show has been pitched as believing people are smart and can follow it compared to most dumbed-down programming, it's still a drop in the water of the books.

absolutely.  I think the previous quote of 95% of the time they improved is an overstatement.  Having read the books, you notice so many more nuances, character development, more characters, and a lot of foreshadowing. 

The books will always be canon to me, with the show being an abridged version (Readers Digest version).

[mu03eng]

absolutely.  I think the previous quote of 95% of the time they improved is an overstatement.  Having read the books, you notice so many more nuances, character development, more characters, and a lot of foreshadowing. 

The books will always be canon to me, with the show being an abridged version (Readers Digest version).

So what happens if the show has to move on without the books because they aren't done in time.  Does that ruin the books or ruin the show or neither?  Does that put Martin in a box or will it be ok with the show goes a completely different direction than the books to wrap it up?

Side note, how many books are there out now and how many left to finish the series?

[mu-rara]

I've been reading A Song of Ice and Fire for 15 years. He'd better finish the freaking books!

It was bad enough with Robert Jordan died without finishing the Wheel of Time series! Gah!

and Vince Flynn too.

[chapman]

So what happens if the show has to move on without the books because they aren't done in time.  Does that ruin the books or ruin the show or neither?  Does that put Martin in a box or will it be ok with the show goes a completely different direction than the books to wrap it up?

Side note, how many books are there out now and how many left to finish the series?

Martin's provided the high-level to Benioff/Weiss to move forward with the series; it might go in a different direction, but will end up in a somewhat similar place.  Don't think it'll affect Martin too much; in hindsight the overwriting he did might work in his favor since there are so many more arcs that the show won't even touch. 

Five books out now, two more expected.  This season will finish the books out now, and create new storylines and possibly go a little into the Winds of Winter (optimistically expected Spring 2016).

[brandx]

absolutely.  I think the previous quote of 95% of the time they improved is an overstatement.  Having read the books, you notice so many more nuances, character development, more characters, and a lot of foreshadowing. 

The books will always be canon to me, with the show being an abridged version (Readers Digest version).

I think that is pretty normal. I've never seen a movie/show that captures an entire book.