At Last, I Yield: I’m Reading Game of Thrones
For years now I’ve been pushing this off. In an effort to enjoy my favorite currently airing show, Game of Thrones, I’ve so far avoided the source material completely. I really have wanted to stay in the dark about what happens next on the show, because I love being surprised as the plot takes dramatically different turns than anything you’re expecting. George RR Martin loves killing off major characters so much you’d think a protagonist ran over his dog in his youth.
But no more. I’ve flipped a switch and am giving in to the dark side. Or the light side, I’m not really sure which.
This has been a tough decision. Not only do I do this for a living, but one of my greatest joys in life is being truly surprised by the media I watch, play and write about. I’m hesitant to “read ahead” so to speak, and lose that possibility forever for the show.
Eventually, however, I’ve come to realize that it’s even less fun to be constant hiding from spoilers. I can shield myself 99.99% of the time, but as a media writer on the internet, I’ve found I just can’t escape the assholes who will not keep their mouths shut about what’s to come. In season one, a rogue commenter hear ruined the major death of that year, and now more recently, someone else has indeed spoiled another major upcoming death. I deleted the comments as quickly as I can so you all were spared, but how do I know if comments are spoilers unless I read them? And that’s how I always get caught.
My reaction to people who post spoilers.
I’m not going to launch into another rage about these kinds of assholes. I’ll just say there’s a special circle in hell for them. But I have to face reality that spoiler trolls exist, and as long as I have to moderate comments for this site and others, I won’t be able to escape them.
It’s more than just about knowing what’s to come though. I’m also a writer. I’ve written a book, and I hope to write a bunch more that will someday be turned into a series by HBO (hah). It’s incredibly likely that from how highly these books are recommended, there’s much I canlearn from George RR Martin.
After finishing the first book, the original Game of Thrones, I’ve found that to be exceedingly true. Martin is truly a master at both wordsmithing and world building, and I’m in awe of his abilities. I generally find fantasy a bit dusty and hard to follow (yes, even the original classic fantasy series, Lord of the Rings), but that isn’t the case with Martin. He’s detailed, but not maddeningly complex. He’s thorough, but not tiresome. He’s simply a great writer, and this is a hell of a story he’s told.
I think it does help that I’ve seen the show, however. I can imagine it would be much easier to get lost if you couldn’t mentally match up a face to a name like you can if you’ve say, watched the entire series twice over already. And as the first book follows the first season very closely, you really don’t miss anything at all in the text. Rather you’re simply provided with more detail and extra character development the show simply could not fit in.
(story spoilers from season one follow)
Now that I’m reading the books, I’m curious to see what’s actually different. I’ve been hearing people say “Oh they did THIS in the book and it was so much better!” for years now, so I’m wondering what all the fuss was about.
In book one, there’s very little about the grand plot that’s different than the show which is far different than say, The Walking Dead for example. That graphic novel barely resembles the show at all at this point, and other than sweeping plot points, it’s a completely different work. That’s not the case here, at least for book one. In truth, in nearly every scene I could see the corresponding scene from the show. I guess that sort of negates the point of imagination, but it was kind of cool, actually.
The books reinforce how well cast the show is.
The biggest change from the books across all the characters is that the kid/teenaged ones are much, much younger in the books than they are in the show. When it all begins, Robb Stark is 15, Jon Snow is 14, I believe. Daenerys Targaryen is 13, Bran is I think seven. Joffrey and Sansa are close to 11-12 So really, all the kids are anywhere from 5-8 years younger than their counterparts on the show.
I understand both sides here. Martin wanted their ages to reflect the realities of the time. Girls were wed in their early teens, boys were wielding swords and slaying foes if need be before they were truly “men.”
But that just would have looked silly and/or creepy onscreen. You can’t have Jon Snow and Robb look like they’ve been pulled from Degrassi High. You can’t have a 13 year old girl getting raped by Khal Drogo. It just wouldn’t have worked, and I don’t think it’s a problem at all that HBO made that sort of change for the adaptation.
Past the children, I didn’t really see that many physical dissimilarities between what I read in the book and the actors cast in the roles. Only just a few. Renly Baratheon is described as being a spitting image of Robert in his fitter, stronger glory days, with handsomeness on par with Jaime Lannister, but on the show he’s something of a little twerp. Tyrion is constantly described as being the ugliest man on the planet with mismatching eyes and a horrible little face. Peter Dinklage is of course a handsome dude, and I think it’s safe to say it’s impossible to imagine anyone else in the role.
The book adds extra scenes yes, and I’ll get to those in a second, but I was also surprised to see what it left out. Theon Grejoy is barely a character at all in the entire first book with only a handful of lines. His whorish counterpart Ros doesn’t even exist. Also, the subplot with Loras Tyrell and Renly being secret gay lovers wasn’t mentioned or even hinted at. All of this may change in later books, but it was odd to see them missing here.
No chest shaving so far.
The additional content found in the book is a great deal of backstory about the houses and the time before the current conflict. You learn much more about the Andals, the Children of the Forest, the First Men and more. It’s great to get all that history, as there simply isn’t the time to fit it all in on the show in a non-awkward fashion. We get glimpses of it, but you truly do need to read the books to understand the full history and scope of Westeros.
There are some scenes with Catelyn, the Eyrie and later Riverrun that appear to have been lost in translation, but it’s not a huge deal. The biggest cut comes in the form of Tywin Lannister’s battle with Robb Stark’s men with Tyrion fighting on the front lines. In the book, he’s in the thick of the action, killing Northmen and acquiring battle wounds. In the show? He’s knocked unconscious and we see exactly none of the battle in question. This was obviously done for budgetary reasons, but it is a shame nonetheless.
It’s a great show, and it’s a great book series, I’m not surprised to learn. I wonder if I’ll share fans’ discontent as the show starts to stray a bit more from the books, but it hasn’t wandered enough yet to cause concern from my perspective.
Perhaps I’ll write a new entry for each subsequent book where such things can be discussed. I’ve started Clash of Kings, but when I get to Storm of Swords, that will be a different matter entirely once I eclipse the actual show. I imagine it will affect my reviews quite a bit. No more guessing what happens next, but don’t worry, I won’t spoil anything for you.
In the end, I think reading the books first is probably the way to go. Would I have enjoyed the Harry Potter series any more had I watched all the films before reading the series? I think not, and reading those books are some of the best literature-related memories I have. Perhaps the same will be true for Game of Thrones.
Danarys story in book two is way different then in the show but I wont spoil it for you. I actually think the show depicted it better.
No spoilers, promise.
A quick warning: be careful looking up images for GoT on Google to use in your posts. I was browsing them once and someone had taken a completely innocent pic of a major character with a shocking spoiler typed in big white lettering like a meme generator.
No, the spoiler has not come to pass yet in the tv series. So be careful out there.
Avoiding spoilers on the internet is like trying to swim without getting wet. I’ll admit however that I enjoyed reading your reviews as it gives me a glimpse into what the non-book readers think (a rare thing these days).
I read all the books after watching season two, because the thought of waiting a year to find out what happens next killed me. Then I realized the world waited 6 years between the fourth and fifth book.
Glad to see you’ve finally come over to the dark side! And trust me, it doesn’t diminish the show in any way. To be honest, it just builds anticipation, like introducing your favorite movie to a friend waiting to see if they’ll like it as much as you. I am so pumped for the reaction once this season really gains some narrative traction!
I would add a counterpoint to your praise of Martin’s writing, by the later books so many characters have been introduced, so many houses and so many cities/castles it becomes increasingly difficult to stay on top of who’s who and where the hell they are. It really frustrates me when I need to keep scouring the map at the front of the book to follow the plot (I’m looking at you LotR, and worse still: Wheel of Time)
@i_like_icecream
As to all the families, characters, etc… Yes.
Which is why I have felt, since the beginning, that the introduction sequence with the map is really quite clever. It reminds us of the geography and how much of a role that plays in the story and in shaping the characters. That visualization has helped me sort out what family belongs where and thus keep them organized in my mind.
I read the books between seasons 1 and 2, and while “the books were better” is just about true of anything, I really enjoy some of the added scenes they came up with to serve as exposition. You see characters interact that may not have in the books, and most of those scenes are fantastic.
I started reading the books after watching the first two seasons and I honestly enjoyed both. However, by the beginning of book 4, I feel like I’m reading a completely different series. I’ve really despised where Martin took the series, and I’m fairly sure I’ll avoid any of the TV series that continues after the events the complete book 3. I think I_like_ice cream feels the same way up there. The best thing about the show is being able to put faces to names to sort them all out, and by book 4, there’s just too many freaking people and too much going on in a thousand different directions.
You’ve chosen wisely. Do you really want to wait 5 years or so to find out what happens in a story that is mostly out there for everyone to consume and can you really call yourself a fan in the first place if you do that? Also, come on, man; it’s what, $20 a month for HBO? Spread that out over the next 5 years or so (assuming a few books are cut into two seasons as the producers have claimed) that’s a lot of money on top of the time. Having spent a total of about $40 buying the entire book series (including the pricey hardcover for “A Dance With Dragons”) which is filled with far more details and epicness than the series is able to convey, I am less rabid to see the show and can patiently wait for the DVD’s, consume them at leisure, and judge the show on it’s merits separately while being able to compare to the source material, making me a better fan and financially keeping a roof over my head.
Also, this article is just about the first book right? I don’t think Renly was even in the first book/season, much less any love scenes with Loras. The second book definitely implied there may be a thing there, but largely relied on the reader to fill in the blanks. Also, raging about spoilers actually encourages some folks to post them to spite you so I’d tone that down a tad or at least request a warning without raging as much. Trolls feed on virtual tears. You know that.
Game of Thrones was first published in 1996. Is the fate of Ned Stark still a spoiler?
I’m glad you mentioned the characters ages. The age difference for the children, nearly ruined the show for me. I kept yelling “she’s only twelve years old!” every time Sansa appeared on screen.
I read all of the published books in the months before the show first aired on HBO. I have a feeling the show is going to get worse as the scope of the story (and the girth of the dragons) increases in size. Hopefully not.
Regarding Renly and Loras: there are very few texts in all the books that hint at their relationship. The eagle-eyed can find them, or you can use Google.
@Tenacious EJ
I completely agree. Book 3 is my favorite while book 4 and 5 put me to sleep.
Really? I could have sworn there were lines of dialogue from other people referring to Renly and Loras. Oh well.
I also do remember that there were a lot more Bran dreams in the first book, and they imply some pretty crazy stuff.
It’s true that book 4 is a chore to get through, but I actually enjoyed most of 5.
Without spoiling anything, it seems that the show is already pulling bits from books 4 and 5 to make a more cohesive, chronological narrative. I think that is a fantastic thing to do. It should make it much more enjoyable than if they followed the books, based on the way they’re laid out after book 3.
Overall, I love how they have been adapting everything. My only real complaint was the handling of Catelyn releasing Jaime, and her motivations for doing so in the book vs. show.
I think book 4 would have been far better received if books 4 and 5 were separated chronologically instead of geographically. This isn’t a spoiler, but for those that don’t know, the original book 4 ended up being way too big so they decided to split it between characters/location, so both books take place at the same time and many of your favorite characters/plots aren’t even in the 4th book. When the show gets that far they will have to combine books 4 and 5 and then divide that up into a few seasons. If book 3 is worth 2 seasons, how many would those 2 monstrous volumes be? 3 or 4? The child actors will all be in their early-mid 20s by the time the series comes to an end.
I avoided The Song o’ Ice and Fire for years because of a concurrent series: The Wheel of Time. Robert Jordan had badly lost the thread with entire novels not containing the ostensible main characters. The idea of tackling another series of doorstoppers with no end in sight was not an appealing thought.
Big mistake.
Once the HBO series got its hook in, I started on the novels and found the experience a revelation. The convoluted plotting unraveled more easily with the novels playing like companion pieces or extended cuts. They beautifully fleshed out back story and history. Now I read the novels at the end of their respective season. No spoilers and a more cogent experience.
And for folks who want it more loyal to the books: The novels are in POV. Imagine 10 hours of first person narration. Even Morgan Freeman couldn’t pull that off.
I actually prefer how they handle Tyrion and battles in the show. I found the descriptions of his deeds in battle to be a little far-fetched, the idea that he’s some great warrior as well. Him getting knocked out on the way to battle (as he’s never been in one and has no idea what he’s doing) to be much more fitting.
I envy you, I won’t be able to read the books until I forget almost everything about the show, which given how much I love it and how big it is, may be never. When I watch a movie (or in this case a show) of a book it completely ruins my perception of the authors imagery and characterisation which in turn destroys the reading experience completely for me.
Glad to hear you took the plunge. I got put on to Game of Thrones after I read his ‘Tuf Voyaging’ book which was a good sci-fi story. I finished reading book 4 JUST before the show premiered. I’m really looking forward to your thoughts on the changes in Dany’s storyline from book 2. Although I heard the showrunners will be incorporating it later.
Congrats on the decision!
I began reading the series by the time the show was announced. I remember seeing Sean Bean in the iron throne and the teasers looked awesome, so I looked them up and bought the first book around two weeks before the show began. I couldnt put them down. Around the middle of GoT i ordered Clash and then followed up buying Storm and Feast at the same time. Clash is my favourite because its basically Tyrion’s book and its followed by Feast because it gives you many other POVs which were very interesting. With Dance I was a bit turned off because I really dont like Daenarys and Jon that much although they both shaped up well by the second half of Storm.
Anyway, I am courious by nature and to even self damaging acts, I knew the basic plot line of all the series up to dance by the time I began reading GoT, sometimes I really mess up and wished I hadnt read anything, but the world created by Martin is so goddamn interesting and vast, I just get lost on the ASOIAF wiki for hours just reading, I know more sigils and house words than have appeared in the show or books, what I enjoy is execution, and so far, although some changes are a bit iffy (no butterbumps? fuck you) so far the show is beyond expectations. Hell last season’s Blackwater episode might just be the most glorious hour ever produced in television history.
Enjoy.
“a rogue commenter hear ruined the major death of that year” …
“there’s much I canlearn from George RR Martin.” …
Much indeed, but sadly, proof reading is something you’ll just have to work hard at and learn for yourself. Spelling on the other hand may be improved dramatically.
I picked the books up after season 2 finished and now I have been having withdrawal symptoms for the past 4-5 months since I finished Dance. I picked up the DVD’s of season 1 and 2 to re-watch in anticipation of season 3 and I noticed how odd the show seemed when you didn’t have the characters inner thoughts and feelings, don’t get me wrong I still love the show and they do a good job at bringing the world to life.
It dose seem that with some of the scenes which were omitted from the show, due to time constraints I suppose, which added so much to the back story and gave you a better understanding of the characters.
One of the things I think which really gets played about with in the books more than the show is the identity of Jon’s mother, there are several scenes which give different ideas and have allowed several theories to spawn.
Also the change from a chain to a broach/pin for the hand of the king to wear will be interesting later on when it plays a role.
I’m really looking forward to the progression on Season 3 but not to the next wait when I have neither a new book or new episode to keep me going.
Glad to hear you’re reading them now. I only hope you don’t catch up too fast though… I enjoy reading your GoT episode reviews from the fresh/ untainted eyes of a viewer not a reader. Having been a reader of the series for over a decade… (yeah……. ) it’s interesting to see how much information people grasp in the show who have yet to read the books.
4 and 5 were not as good as the first 3 – just too much talking, and travelling, and travelling, and more travelling.
To answer another poster’s question above, I don’t think books 4 and 5 can even be filmed without severe deviations from the books. The audience is going to be bored to tears listening to characters’ pouting, wandering, and taking notice of turtles in a river.
One thing the tv show got right was adding a few (or several) years of ages to the characters. It was borderline creepy how young many of the characters are supposed to be in the books.
As a fiction writer you really owe it to yourself (your career at least) to read the best in the genre so you can size yourself up and challenge yourself to meet and exceed that level of quality. Spoilers be damned!
Woo woo!
Be prepared to enjoy the show even more, I say! 🙂
For any book readers who are in withdrawal, I recommend reading the Tales of Dunk & Egg, three prequel novellas set during the Targaryen dynasty.
“Promise me, Ned,”… that drove me nuts for a while! 🙂
yep…Paul, I’ve been waiting two years for this, but now that you’ve finally read at least the first book, tell me your thoughts…
who do you think Jon Snow’s parents really are?