Game of Thrones User Reviews

I like fantasy worlds and the world of Game of Thrones is no different. I was excited when I first heard about the series as I had only just read the book and I thought it would make a good TV show. Why the world works as a TV show is that the fantasy elements are very subtle and not always at the forefront of the story, in fact it feels more like a medieval set story that has more in common with Rome than Lord of the Rings.

The story of season 1 follows Eddard Stark and his family as they become embroiled in plots and intrigue surrounding the court of the king, Robert Baratheon. After the death of the kings hand, the king travels north to recruit Ned stark as his new hand takes him back to the capital in the south and run the kingdom for him. But Ned soon learns that at court nothing is what it seems and everyone has their own agenda.

The best aspect of the show is the overall story. I will not go into details here but after the premise is set up and the viewer is introduced to the characters they are simply there for the ride as the plot twists and turns it's way to the end. The plot strongly follows that of the book but deviates where necessary to better adapt it for the screen. The characters are so well realised you can easily forget you are watching fictional people. Each has a role to play in the story with some coming across better than others but everyone fits perfectly into the world.

The world is superbly realised and is quite frankly better than the one I had created in my mind. The look of all the different locations help to convey the sense of distance between the locations around the world. While I never quite got the sense of cold I was expecting from the northern locations everything else is perfect. I especially liked the look and design of the wall and it's sets at castle black and beyond. The locations all help to allow the actors to improve their performances by seeing and better understanding where the characters are meant to be.

While speaking of the performances, it must be mentioned that they are some of the strongest in a TV show for several years. Sean Bean deserves a lot of credit for is work as Ned stark, he is not as good as he is in Sharpe, but they are very different roles. Here he is much older and a more thoughtful character that is trying to piece together all of the various characters aims and goals without getting lost in them. He is a strong lead and works well with all of the other characters he interacts with, especially Aidan Gillen as Petyr Baelish. Bean gets the right sense of gravitas and quality of leadership, and is perfect with the careful and considered acts he takes making him a superb main focus of the show.

The other standout in the series so far is Peter Dinklage as Tyrion Lannister. Tyrion is a fan favorite in the book and the same can be said here. Dinklage is superbly cast and nails the clever nature of the character and his sharp wit. He is probably the easiest character to like and is both charming and charismatic, and the scenes in the penultimate episode where you find out about his past is brilliantly acted and some of the best in the whole season. With each scene he shows you something new about the character and I especially liked his interaction with the other members of his family showing how well he works with the other actors.

The rest of the supporting cast members are great for the most part. With so many children actors there is a lot of scope for the acting to go wrong and them to become annoying but luckily out of all of them there is only one that is not so good, and then prince joffrey has very little screen time. The most impressive remaining cast members are Aidan Gillen as Petyr Baelish, Charles Dance as Tywin Lannister, Emilia Clarke as Daenerys Targaryen and Iain Glen as Sir Jorah Mormont. These were my favorite characters to see and each time they were on screen they were electric to watch.

With such a strong first season it can be difficult to find problems with it but there are some. By biggest is the casting of Lena Headey as Cersei Lannister. This could he because I had read the book before seeing he show and she just did not fit with what I had in my mind but she does not come across as strong as she should be. My other issue I had is that after ten episodes I still felt that some parts of the story were rushed and could have been better fleshed out.

In conclusion game of thrones is one of the strongest shows I have seen in many years and if you are a fan of well written, and intricately plotted TV then even if you do not like fantasy you should still check this out as you would be hard pressed to find a program of better quality.