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Some Thoughts on A Game of Thrones


 

Now that some time has passed since I saw the ending, I can reflect on the HBO series Game of Thrones. And, just so you know, there will be spoilers here (for the show; not the books, since we don’t know for sure how the books will end). There were some great moments in the final season. The battle with the ice king was spectacular. But I do have to say that the final season left me disappointed. It was unsatisfying for the relationship I felt with a number of the characters, including Tyrion and Jon Snow. But what bothered me the most was the Endings for Cersei and Danny.

Cersei had been a formidable opponent throughout the series. She was evil and cunning, and as much as we all hated her, you had to admit, she knew how to get things done. I have to say that Cersei in the show is maybe more cunning than she is in the books. But even in the books she always has a plan or scheme, and a drive to get what she wants. It doesn’t always work because she is not as smart as she thinks she is, but she always has a plan. That is why it seems rather odd that Cersei sits in her tower and watches the opposing army entering her city nearly unopposed. She watches Danny’s dragon burning down half the city. She just stands there watching without a backup plan. Someone has to suggest to her that it is time to leave. You think? With a dragon coming for her and chaos in the streets, one would think she would have at least figured that out for herself. And then as she is scurrying away, the building collapses on her and kills her. A most unsatisfactory ending for a major villain.

Then there is Danny. Daenerys Targaryen, who we have been rooting for the entire series, watches as Cersei kills her friend Missadei. That event is apparently enough to turn Danny into a monster. We go from rooting for her to hating her. It is almost anticlimactic when Jon Snow kills her. Will George R.R. Martin do this in the book? (The final book will be called A Dream of Spring.)  I doubt it. He might have Danny turn bad, but if he does, I would venture to bet that he would draw it out as a long slow descent into darkness. It would be a descent that we would witness every step of the way. In other words, if George does have Danny turn evil, it will make sense. Unlike in the series where it is: you killed my friend, now I am EVIL!  Of course, we don’t know if George is going to do that. The show has taken such liberties with the books that we really can’t rely on them to predict what will be in the books. Actually, the first season of the series followed the books closely. The second season followed reasonably well, and then with each successive season, the series diverged more and more from the books. Some of that is to be expected. The screen has different pacing requirements than a book. Also, there are budgetary constraints. But some of the changes from book to series are inexplicable to me (why have Melisandre kill Stannis’s daughter?)

Don’t get me wrong, I liked the series overall. My wife and I would look forward to each episode. It was the series that caused me to go out and read the books. The last two episodes were disappointing, but still, for a show that ran for eight seasons, that is a pretty good track record.


(My science fiction novel Star Liner, is now available in paperback or as an e-book through Amazon and other online sources).

Star Liner

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