Where are the Game of Throne fans?

pakalolo

pakalolo

Toolbag v1.1 (candidate)
Staff member
lwien said:
Paka, I got a question. Why are you watching GoT?
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I watch it for the pageantry, the production values, and the performances by Peter Dinklage and Maisie Williams.

Mr. Gweilo 420 said:
I'm also interested in what Paka considers good writing to be? Breaking bad for sure but what else?
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If you mean TV writing, then Deadwood wins hands down. Breaking Bad was good but had quite a few jarring inconsistencies itself. I really don't watch that much TV drama.

If you mean novels, then I've been reading fantasy since I was a child. I read fantasy novels when they were still considered a lesser class of book and most book stores (remember book stores?) carried perhaps half a dozen mixed in with the SF books. For good fantasy writing I refer you to E.R. Eddison (The Worm Ouroboros), Marion Zimmer Bradley (The Mists of Avalon), Ursula K. LeGuin (Earthsea trilogy), Terry Pratchett (Discworld series), Sheri S. Tepper (True Game series), T.H White (Sword in the Stone series), and Roger Zelazny (Amber series). That's far from a complete list gathered from looking quickly at my bookshelves. Of course these have some flaws but I would rank any of this material well ahead of anything written by G.R.R. Martin.

Gray Area said:
Lol, you trollin' us? ;) Tut tut.

I too am now curious to know what you consider good writing..?

And have you read the books out of curiosity? Or is it the writing style, rather than the outrageous storyline, that you don't like?

Ta :tup:
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I refuse to read the books because I have read enough GRRM to know that I couldn't stomach them. He's just not a good writer in my opinion. His plots don't impress me and his writing style is, well, awful. I give the showrunners a lot of credit because I get the impression that they are covering up a lot of bad writing.

This is just my opinion. I know lots of people disagree with me. As someone who has been reading fantasy novels for well over 50 years and who read them when most people were ashamed to admit it (pre-Tolkien), I think I have a good perspective from which to criticize.
 
Mr. Gweilo 420

Mr. Gweilo 420

Dude
Now I really see where you are coming from now @pakalolo. I meant writing of any kind. For me all of this fantasy business is something new. I used to be a literary snob but as I've gotten older I tend to read things I swore I would never read. Anyway I can see now from your perspective as a reader why you may not enjoy the writing of GOT. For me it is kind of the opposite. I find myself being drawn into a genre that I would never have imagined possible :)
 
Mr. Gweilo 420,
Enchantre

Enchantre

Oil Painter
In my opinion, GRRM writes really good scenes. He develops great characters. His pomp, pageantry, and locales are all fabulous.

He really sucks at storyline development. all these great scenes are just great scenes. His characters are so well developed, that he's killing them off to make room for new ones.

It's like a daytime soap opera.
 
Enchantre,
Mr. Gweilo 420

Mr. Gweilo 420

Dude
I'm making my way through the first book at the moment. So far so good.

I don't know what it is but I just really love GOT. Can't wait for Season 5. Also can't wait for the Breaking Bad spin-off, "Better Call Saul". If it is half as good as Breaking Bad it will be awesome.
 
t-dub

t-dub

Vapor Sloth
Mr. Gweilo 420 said:
I don't know what it is but I just really love GOT. Can't wait for Season 5. Also can't wait for the Breaking Bad spin-off, "Better Call Saul". If it is half as good as Breaking Bad it will be awesome.
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I am going to need an Rx for "Better Call Saul" . . . ;)

saul.jpg
 
Vapour Clown

Vapour Clown

Hey Hey
Mr. Gweilo 420 said:
I'm making my way through the first book at the moment. So far so good.

I don't know what it is but I just really love GOT. Can't wait for Season 5. Also can't wait for the Breaking Bad spin-off, "Better Call Saul". If it is half as good as Breaking Bad it will be awesome.
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The first two books were really good, lots of political intrigue and a linear writing style. The third is okay, but tends to drag it's heels a bit.

The fourth and fifth were real struggles to get through. I like a long-ass book, but these ones just seemed to get nowhere. I think it was maybe that they were such a detachment from the other books(sorry, trying not to spoil).

The TV series is in my opinion, far more engaging with the fly on the wall perspective and faster pacing, plus it's larger than life actors. Though the Daenerys storyline still leaves me cold.

If you like good contemporary Fantasy fiction, The Gentleman Bastards from Scott Lynch and The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss are amongst some of the best continuing series I've ever read.

A perfect TV series is The Shield. It's hands down, the best television that I've watched.
 
Deadshort480

Deadshort480

We're here to fuck shit up.
Vapour Clown said:
The first two books were really good, lots of political intrigue and a linear writing style. The third is okay, but tends to drag it's heels a bit.

The fourth and fifth were real struggles to get through. I like a long-ass book, but these ones just seemed to get nowhere. I think it was maybe that they were such a detachment from the other books(sorry, trying not to spoil).

The TV series is in my opinion, far more engaging with the fly on the wall perspective and faster pacing, plus it's larger than life actors. Though the Daenerys storyline still leaves me cold.

If you like good contemporary Fantasy fiction, The Gentleman Bastards from Scott Lynch and The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss are amongst some of the best continuing series I've ever read.

A perfect TV series is The Shield. It's hands down, the best television that I've watched.
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The third book is actually my favorite! So much happens and it's the bridge between the main stories of the first two books and the main stories in Feast and Dance. I do agree that the current last two books are definitely tougher reads, especially the last one.
 
syrupy

syrupy

Authorized Buyer
After being fairly certain I am the last person to miss GoT, I snuck the Season 1 disc into Netflix.

I feel like a schmuck, for not being impressed. Everyone looked so styled and clean. Where is the grime, the festering boils? Oh well I'll give it a shot, and I did like albino chick. Even Lena Heady didn't excite me like she usually does. Is this show going to pick up later?
 
grokit

grokit

well-worn member
Yes it picks up, plenty of boobies and beheadings to come. There's also a good share of grime on the way, not sure about the boils (you may have to provide your own). Maybe your expectations were askew...
 
Mr. Gweilo 420

Mr. Gweilo 420

Dude
I just got through the first book. I enjoyed it. It is a very easy read and I did find I was able to understand more of the back stories, family connections, etc. I'm onto the second one now. I'm off to Thailand for 2 weeks on Saturday so should get through the next couple pretty soon. Also read an interesting theory about exactly whose bastard John Snow really is :)
 
vapomancer

vapomancer

Well-Known Member
Mr. Gweilo 420 said:
I just got through the first book. I enjoyed it. It is a very easy read and I did find I was able to understand more of the back stories, family connections, etc. I'm onto the second one now. I'm off to Thailand for 2 weeks on Saturday so should get through the next couple pretty soon. Also read an interesting theory about exactly whose bastard John Snow really is :)
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i found the index in the back , with all of the families listed , helped enormously the first time i read the series . have reread the whole bunch several times , waiting for a new one ...
hope you like the series as much as i do , i am very jealous of your having the rest in front of you . and don't worry , they are different enough from the hbo series that you will still have many major surprises in store .
 
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