Pop Culture Archives - Page 55 of 59

Wednesday

27

May 2015

0

COMMENTS

Interviews of Ice and Fire: Aziz of History of Westeros Podcast

Written by Ian Thomas Malone, Posted in Blog, Game of Thrones, IOIAF, Pop Culture

I am honored to welcome Aziz of the History of Westeros podcast to the site. The History of Westeros is one of the most in depth ASOIAF resources available; creating episodes that piece together the series’ confusing timeline along with commentary on the houses, theories, reviews of Game of Thrones, and just about anything else imaginable. Aziz is also a contributor for the recently released Tower of the Hand anthology A Hymn for Spring.

The History of Westeros Podcast features some of the most in depth discussions on ASOIAF. Can you tell us a little bit about the research that goes into each episode?

One of the most important things we do is take our time. We don’t rush to record anything. It’s easy to miss details, and we all know that. What’s not so obvious is that having a fresh perspective on a topic can really change your mind on a few things. There’s no way to have a “fresh perspective” if you work on the same topic steadily for several weeks.

So we are typically researching at least 5, often as many as 10 topics at once. This way every topic stays relatively fresh in our minds, which keeps us open minded with regards to new ideas.

As for research itself, we scour every book and all the Q&A records (SSM’s) for references to whatever the topic is. Then we do the same for references to subtopics, all the while looking for good quotes. We dump everything we can find into a document, then start organizing it and figuring out the best order for everything to be in. Having things flow nicely is important when dealing with a large topic.

But it all starts with knowing where to begin, which comes from already knowing the material well before beginning any project. That of course, means reading the books many times.

Your website says you became a fan of ASOIAF back in 2000. What made you decide to start a podcast?

Technically, I didn’t start it. Our friend Steve Mangiameli did, and I first met him through a mutual friend. She told me he wanted to do a “History of Westeros” podcast call in show, and suggested I participate for fun. I did, and it was great. He invited me to be his co-host soon after and I got swept up in all the possibilities. So it was a bit of an accident, you could say.

Your podcasts use plenty of analysis found in the novellas, which many fans tend to overlook. Which one is your favorite?

Probably “The Hedge Knight” because we see so many different ancestors to so many major families, including so many Targaryens.

As someone who’s been involved in the ASOIAF world for fifteen years, can you tell us a little about how you’ve seen the fandom evolve with the TV show and later installments in the series?

Definitely. It’s incredible how well versed the fandom is in the material in general. Back when I was new to it all, even some of the most now-widely-accepted theories were a tough sell, and discussions would be rife with mistakes. There was no wiki nor e-books either, so it was hard to settle such things or even look things up. Now there are people who volunteer huge amounts of time track cross referencing every little detail amongst two canons (ASOIAF & HBO).

I’m constantly impressed by the devotion and intelligence of the fandom. I actually appreciate how long the books have taken to come out, (a recent realization) because without it, this amazing situation would not exist. The experience of living through the wait, of making friends, of podcasting… none of it would be here if the books came out quickly.

Did the release of The World of Ice and Fire cause you to want to go back and change any of your past episodes?

We’ve actually taken quite a few down, though partly it was due to our earliest episodes having some audio problems. We avoided quite a few topics for about a year and a half in advance of The World of Ice and Fire’s release, because we knew we we’d risk treading ground that was likely to shift.

Episodes of your podcast frequently focus on a specific house. Which house(s) would you like to see more of in Game of Thrones?

Some of the houses that are faves of mine and of many readers are barely represented or not represented at all. Dayne & Manderly come to mind. Velaryon as well, because of their Valyrian heritage. But none of those are likely. As far as something that might actually happen, I’ll say Greyjoy.

One of my favorite episodes of THOW was when you covered the Arianne TWOW chapter (still not sure how you managed to talk for two hours about that). As someone who’s been a fan for a long time, what do you think of GRRM’s decision to release so many sample chapters over a long period of time?

It’s a great idea and a smart decision. It renews interest for many fans and gives us all something new to break up the long wait. TWoW will probably have around 80 chapters, so even if we see 8 or so of them, it’s only 10% of the book, and it’s a 10% chosen for being on the side of set up and exposition, rather than major events and plot points.

What’s the craziest story you can tell about recording the History of Westeros?

If we’re talking about the actual recording process, we have 5 cats that don’t get locked up while we’re on camera… They have video-bombed us many times, enough so that we have had many requests to talk more about them or even do a video specifically on them. We also once lost a recording to Ironborn raiders.

Was the Mad King truly mad?
I’d say there’s little doubt. He was so paranoid that his fingernails were as long, or longer, than his fingers. A sane man would at least cut his nails on his own. He believed the wildfire planted around King’s Landing, when lit, would transform him into a dragon. Even if the stories are exaggerated (possible, since many/most accounts of Aerys are tainted by being written under Baratheon reign), I trust Barristan’s and Ned’s judgement on the matter, and they both seem pretty clear on it.

Generic question, but who is your favorite character in the books. Is the same true for the show?

Davos in the books, because we know he’s really as honest and loyal as he acts, since we’ve seen inside his head.

Tyrion in the show. Davos is featured too little, and we don’t get that same sense of knowing him. Peter Dinklage’s acting wins the day in this medium.

What are your thoughts on season five so far and the changes from the books?

I have a very high threshold of tolerance for the changes. That’s how I set my expectations from the beginning, and I credit that as a major factor in my enjoyment of the show. I embrace the differences as much as I can, though I can’t help but be critical from time to time. That said, we’ve just now scratched the surface on real changes. Even late in season 5, most characters have not caught up with their book arcs, though many are extremely close, and of course a few have gone in a completely different direction. Season 6 is where we’ll see the biggest divergences, and that will likely be surpassed by season 7.

Ser Barristan’s death in the show has made me reconsider my thoughts that he’ll survive the Battle of Fire. Has anything that’s happened in the show caused you to reconsider your opinions?

The biggest to date, and expect there will be more, is the scene where the baby is carried far to the north by a White Walker, and given to what we’re told is Night’s King. When we did our episode on Night’s King, it was impossible not to at least consider how this could relate to the books. Ultimately, it needs to be treated separately, but undoubtedly there will be some parallels.

Can you tell us a little about your contribution to A Hymn for Spring?

In terms of the project, it was great to be part of a group who have all done similar projects before. Marc Kleinheinz made the process simple, all we had to do was write our essay and spread the word through our show. The essay itself, on the subject of Harrenhal and its curse, was a lot of fun to write and research. We tried to capture the feel of our show, which is to be perceptive, funny and thorough. We combined meta-analysis of what a “curse” is and what it means to Westerosi of all levels with historical analysis woven in.

A Hymn For Spring can be purchased here

Monday

25

May 2015

0

COMMENTS

Game of Thrones Season 5 Recap: Episode 7

Written by Ian Thomas Malone, Posted in Blog, Game of Thrones, Pop Culture

This recap features analysis from a devoted book fan. Spoilers will largely be kept to comparisons between the show and the books within the episodes themselves, but if you hate spoilers you should probably not read these articles. I encourage you to subscribe so you never miss a recap. Thank you for reading.

This episode felt like a premiere for the rest of the series in many ways. Maybe that’s because it featured an usually high number of storylines. Maybe it’s because Aemon died or Sansa appears to be a different person. Maybe it’s because Tyrion finally met Daenerys. With three episodes left, the direction is still unclear for many of the characters, though some plotlines are starting to shape up.

The stakes in King’s Landing are much higher than they are in the books. In A Feast for Crows, Cersei is arrested for using members of the Kingsguard to give false testimony against Margaery for infidelity, keeping in mind that Tommen is still just a boy who likes to play with kittens. Here, the Faith Militant has arrested Cersei, Margaery, and Loras on legitimate charges (for Westeros in Loras’ case).

It remains to be seen how the Sparrow will navigate the incest charges without removing Tommen as king, which I don’t think is likely. There isn’t really a replacement for the Iron Thrones, which is why characters like Kevan Lannister openly admit that they believe the rumors to be true in the later books. It’s sort of a dead plotline that won’t move forward until Dany sails across the Narrow Sea.

The scenes with the Sparrow and Lady Olenna appear to exist solely because of the talent of the actors involved. I’m sure most people at HBO are giddy to have Jonathan Pryce share the screen with Diana Rigg, but something was missing from their interaction, which has been a recurring theme for the portrayal of the Tyrells as a whole.

The Tyrells are the most powerful house in Westeros. They have the largest army and the most money (especially in the show) and yet Cersei has repeatedly had her way with Mace. Lady Olenna is formidable, but not as outright dominant as she should be. It’s worth noting that in the books, the Faith releases Margaery into the custody of Randyll Tarly when he brings a big army to King’s Landing. Showing the Queen of Thorns rotting in a dungeon makes for better television, but it’s fairly illogical.

Let’s shift gears to Stannis and Shireen. Will he sacrifice her? Unlikely, though it is possible. I still think more will happen between Melisandre and Jon Snow this season, though as of now that’s looking to be pretty impossible.

Fun Easter Egg time. Davos reports that the Stormcrows, a sellsword company that Stannis had supposedly hired, had abandoned him. In the books, Daario Naharis is head on the Stormcrows, while the Second Sons are a different company initially working for Dany but later switch sides. Tyrion and Jorah also join the Second Sons after they escape from slavery.

I’m a little indifferent about Aemon’s death, though I loved that D&D kept the “Egg, I dream that I was old” line. In the books, his death served a bigger purpose (and his body appears to as well). Here it looked like someone decided that it was time for him to die and rushed it along. I don’t think Oldtown is completely off the table for Sam and Gilly, but it doesn’t seem likely as of now. I’m sad that we didn’t get to see a Stannis/Aemon scene. I will miss Maester Aemon.

I thought it was a little odd that Ser Alliser told Sam he was low on friends. It seems as though Ser Alliser flip flops on being a semi decent bloke with every appearance. I will always love him after his speech in “The Watchers on the Wall.”

Sansa mocking Ramsey was fun to watch and made for good television, but it also highlighted the problems with the North as a whole. Seeing Sansa stand up for herself is great, but foolish from her perspective. She should be plotting. She should have tons of people besides that old woman who want to plot with her. I get that the show can’t really do a Northern conspiracy, but we should be allowed to see someone pissed off about the Red Wedding and the Boltons.

Dorne remains a mess. We still don’t have a good reason for the quest and were treated to some unnecessary exposition between Bronn and the Sand Snakes. We didn’t get enough Dr. Bashir. I’ll briefly mention Littlefinger here in the paragraph dedicated to senseless nonsense that I no longer care about. Moving on.

I actually loved how Jorah and Tyrion ended up finding their way to Dany. It condensed an unnecessarily long journey in the books and Dany and Tyrion might be the perfect remedy for an otherwise lackluster season. I still don’t know why Jorah has greyscale (I plan to bring that up every recap until we have an answer).

Episode nine is typically the “grandest” episode of the season. That’s where we had the battles of Blackwater and Castle Black. While there are two Northern battles that seem like great fits, the episode description suggests that it will likely be Essos heavy, potentially with the fighting pit scenes.

This might have been the best episode of the season. It’s hard to say. Some things are moving in a clear direction. Others feel like filler. I’m hoping Jon’s wildling visit will be more than just busywork and now that he’s armed with an obsidian dagger, I think it likely will be.

Monday

18

May 2015

1

COMMENTS

Game of Thrones Season 5 Recap: Episode 6

Written by Ian Thomas Malone, Posted in Blog, Game of Thrones, Pop Culture

Should we begin with the implausible or the underwhelming? Or the fact that Littlefinger, King Tommen, and Lady Olenna are walking around with too few guards, considering King’s Landing has been taken over by the Faith Militant. Perhaps I’m being nitpicky, but it sort of undermines Littlefinger’s whole credibility when he can be pushed around by Lancel Lannister.

Littlefinger’s plan is ridiculous and it’s hard to see where his infatuation with Sansa Stark fits into all of this. He wants the Vale and the North (he also has the Riverlands though Harrenhal, but that’s something the show apparently doesn’t care about). What then? Cersei was correct in saying that he isn’t a military commander.

Not to mention he brokered the alliance between the Tyrells and the Lannisters. He’s got his hand in so many different things that the show can’t even keep track of them all. Which should make his endgame more interesting, but it doesn’t. It’s implausible to the point where it’s hard to care.

I’ll give Olenna Tyrell the benefit of the doubt, but she should have brought enough forces to put the Faith Militant out of the equation. That trial was ridiculous. Show Loras is often criticized (George R.R. Martin’s editor called him a “gay cartoon”) and rightfully so. He’s terrible.

The show has a weird way of handling characters with features outside the typical Westerosi norm that the books never prioritize. In the books, Loras is gay, but it’s not a big deal and it’s certainly not a plot point. Varys and Grey Worm are eunuchs, but the books don’t go on and on about their lack of manhood. Even Tyrion being a dwarf seems to be excessively mentioned in the show (though he’s better looking in the show and doesn’t waddle so). Martin doesn’t exploit his characters. D&D do.

Arya’s stuff is weird, but that’s okay. I assume she’ll be sent out as Cat of the Canals into Braavos, where she’ll probably run into Mace Tyrell and Ser Meryn. She becomes blind for two chapters in the books. I’m not sure they’ll do that here and that’s also okay.

I like the Jorah/Tyrion progression. In the books, they get captured on a boat, along with Penny, one of the dwarves from Joffrey’s wedding. I loved seeing Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, whose performance as Simon Adebsi in Oz is usually overlooked on those “top TV villains” lists. I don’t know why Jorah has greyscale. Doesn’t make any sense.

Nor does Jaime’s quest to Dorne. None whatsoever. What a terrible plotline. Also, how did Ser Stumpy hold his own against the Sand Snakes when he struggled with those random people two episodes ago? Utterly ridiculous.

What was their plan? Walk in, take Myrcella with Trystan right in front of her, and then walk out? If Jaime and Bronn had both died right there, I don’t think I would have cared. Which is a shame.

I’m not sure I’d call the wedding in Winterfell ridiculous, but it was anti-climatic. There was not a single voice of Northern opposition, especially to Theon giving Sansa away which was a tremendous insult to just about everyone there except for Ramsey. They didn’t include a single line from a single Northerner attending the wedding. Where was Brienne? Why is she is Winterfell if not to stop this nonsense?

I was surprised that the show opted for a tame version of Ramsey’s wedding night. In the books, he has a far more disturbing encounter with fake Arya, who’s really Jeyne Poole. Poole had been presumably kept in a brothel by Littlefinger after Ned was arrested back in AGOT and was beaten and abused by Ramsey and probably other people beforehand. Let’s hope the same doesn’t happen to Sansa.

This season has been weird. All the Northern plotlines have been rushed and it’s hard to care about many of the others. The show seems hell bent on blowing through AFFC and ADWD, but the direction seems unclear and illogical in many areas. I’ve heard hype about a “Red Wedding”esque twist and can honestly say I have no idea what that will be.

Two fun things to announce. Aziz of the History of Westeros Podcast will be stopping by for the next Interview of Ice and Fire. Also, Five More College Dialogues was released today! Hope you enjoy them both.

Wednesday

13

May 2015

1

COMMENTS

Interviews of Ice and Fire: Jeff Hartline aka BryndenBFish

Written by Ian Thomas Malone, Posted in Blog, Game of Thrones, IOIAF, Pop Culture

I am honored to welcome Jeff Hartline, known throughout the A Song of Ice and Fire community as BryndenBFish, to the site. Jeff is one of the most decorated ASOIAF commentators who serves as a moderator for the asoiaf subreddit and is one of the masterminds behind the Wars and Politics of Ice and Fire blog. Jeff is also one of the contributors for the recently released Tower of the Hand anthology A Hymn for Spring.

When did you first start reading the ASOIAF books?

I first started reading the books in June 2012. I just finished Season 2 of Game of Thrones, and I had to know what was going to happen to Samwell. They wouldn’t kill Sam, right? I finished reading in October 2012, and I think embarked on an immediate re-read.

How did you get involved with the ASOIAF community?

Well, once I finished reading, I had dinner with my brother (another bookreader), and he told me about this great community on reddit called /r/asoiaf to discuss everything about the books. I immediately got an account on reddit and joined the community. The 1^st post I remember reading on reddit was a fan-recount from The World of Ice and Fire on Aegon’s Conquest. I was hooked!

What was the first theory/in depth essay you ever worked on?

The 1^st one was an essay series called The Complete Analysis of Robb Stark as a Military Commander on reddit. In a series that had war as a prominent feature in many character and plot arcs, there was a disproportionate lack of analysis and exploration of the topic.

So, I wrote an analytical evaluation of Robb Stark as a military commander exploring each of the battles and phases of the War of the Five Kings. Ended up coming to the conclusion that Robb Stark was an excellent tactical commander, but a failure at the strategic level. Since then, I’ve revised my original thesis some, but I still look back on those essays with a lot of fondness.

Looking back, I think the most important thing about writing on the military side of the series was its comfort level for me. Sometimes, people think they have to write about certain topics, because it’s what people are interested in. But in reality, writing about something you’re interested in will make for more compelling writing.

So, advice to folks writing/analyzing ASOIAF, start in your comfort-zone and move your way out.

Though the show, The World of Ice and Fire, and the novellas offer new ideas, there hasn’t been a new book in four years, yet the community seems as vibrant as ever. What do you think keeps people engaged with the series?

A Song of Ice and Fire is a fun read by itself, but it becomes an incredibly engaging and engrossing read when you get past the easy plotlines and start looking into the individual character arcs and deeper meanings of the story. When you embrace the meta, you start feeling rewarded for reading. It becomes a fun experience to discover deeper meanings, hidden truths and Lord knows that every ASOIAF fan loves the foreshadowing (but only on re-read)

As one of the moderators on the ASOIAF subreddit, what’s the craziest thing you’ve seen happen during a heated discussion?

To be honest, nothing really crazy. I’ve seen plenty of essay length responses to things, and I… may have done that once or twice.

Your bio mentions that you are a veteran. Has serving in the Army impacted your approach to ASOIAF?

It certainly helps with understanding the military campaigns and some of the battle tactics used. But there’s something more. Though my experiences with war are nowhere near the experiences of many fellow veterans, I also don’t have to imagine what the carnage of a battlefield looks like.

It’s funny to me – when I first read ASOIAF, I thought that GRRM had to have a military background in order to write his military/battle scenes the way he did. When I found out that he was a conscientious objector to the Vietnam War, it made me re-evaluate the story as having a strong anti-war component to an already gritty low fantasy epic.

In the ASOIAF community, particularly asinine theories are commonly referred to as “tinfoil.” What’s the craziest theory that you think might actually be true?

There’s plenty of crazy theories out there. Of all the theories out there, I think there are probably 3 theories that I hold to that could be construed as tinfoil. They are:

I think that Brienne of Tarth was raised from the dead by Lady Stoneheart at the end of A Feast for Crows
I think that Varys is a secret Targaryen
I believe that Euron Greyjoy is following the Iron Fleet to Meereen and will seize a dragon out from under Victarion in The Winds of Winter.

I assume you’ve read the books more than once. Which book do you think benefits the most from a second read?

A Dance with Dragons for a surety. When I first read A Dance with Dragons, I was disappointed. Sure, we got our Big 3 characters (Tyrion, Daenerys, Jon Snow), but the plot was disappointing. Where were the battles? Where were the kickass moments from A Storm of Swords?

But after several re-reads, I came to realize what Martin was doing with A Dance with Dragons. He was showing the consequences of the wars and the badassery. And that puts a pretty amazing spin on the book. Instead of chafing against Dany’s quest for peace in Meereen, I began to understand what was going on. Daenerys was walking the hard road of peace just as Jon was.

Unfortunately for them (but fortunately for those who want ASOIAF to move back to the bloodletting of the 1^st 3 books), both Daenerys and Jon turn against peace at the end of their arcs in A Dance with Dragons. So, we’ll see a return to bloody form come The Winds of Winter.

Much has been written about the (pun intended) stark deviations from the books this season. Have you been pleased with season five thus far?

Season 5 has been a disappointment so far. In an attempt to move the plot along, they’ve taken 2 books and tried to adapt it into 1 season. This has major consequences. Major storylines and characters have hit the cutting room floor. And other major storylines have been dramatically shortened. In contrast, the show spent 2 seasons going through A Storm of Swords (and early scenes from A Feast for Crows & A Dance with Dragons).

Jon’s election as Lord Commander suffered the most from this. In the books, the plot tension ratchets up with Jon considering Stannis’ offer to become Jon Stark and the Lord of Winterfell. Meanwhile, Samwell conspires to get Jon elected as Lord Commander. These two plotlines work in parallel until the very end when Jon is elected as the Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch. It’s great writing and keeps your gaze fixed to the page.

In the show, it was over and done with in 15 minutes. It was a disappointment. But I have hope that Season 5 will improve as the season progresses.

Generic question, but who is your favorite character(s) in the books? Is the same true for the show?

In the books: Jaime Lannister by a country mile. I love the ambiguity, and I think GRRM accomplished something akin to a literary triumph with Jaime Lannister. We think he’s an asshole and a murderer in the 1^st 2 books. And like many of you, I groaned when I saw that the 1^st chapter of A Storm of Swords after the Prologue was JAIME. But as I read, I became more and more engrossed. I loved Jaime’s fall, the ironic loss of his sword hand and the revelations about the Mad King. I saw a superhuman humanized. By the time of A Feast for Crows, Jaime was firmly my favorite character in the series. I loved his turn against Cersei, and I loved his alternating guilt and desire to become Goldenhands the Just.

I won’t lie though. I’m fearful of what will happen to Jaime in The Winds of Winter.

In the show: Eddard Stark: Sean Bean did a wonderful job portraying Ned. I can’t picture Ned when I re-read the books without seeing Boromir’s visage giving grim looks.

Which character from the books would you like to see in the show that isn’t already?

I miss Jon Connington. I don’t think that we’ll see JonCon, but in A Dance with Dragons, he’s an amazing and tragic character. (I won’t spoil it for your non-book reader fans). I also miss Arianne & Quentyn too.

In terms of who might show up… I suppose I’d like to see Lady Stoneheart or Randyll Tarly in future seasons.

Tell us a little about A Hymn For Spring. What can we expect to see out of your contribution and the anthology as a whole.

A Hymn for Spring is an anthology book of A Song of Ice and Fire essays from various luminaries from the Tower of the Hand website. The essays in there range from character analysis on characters like Barristan, location analysis on Harrenhal, military analysis on Robert’s Rebellion, economic analysis on the schemes of Littlefinger and various other interests in the series. It comes in at over 200 pages. So, if you’re looking for some fascinating analysis on A Song of Ice and Fire, this is your ticket.

My contribution was an essay on Stannis Baratheon entitled Iron Bends. In the essay, I take a contrarian view to the common perspective of Stannis Baratheon as an inflexible justice robot. As I read through A Song of Ice and Fire, I came to find that Stannis bends all the damn time. (Though no one recognizes it as such). So, I invite your readers to read my essay with an open mind and if you disagree, let me know. I love a good discussion as Ian will tell you!

Thanks so much for having me!

A Hymn for Spring can be purchased here

Monday

11

May 2015

0

COMMENTS

Game of Thrones Season 5 Recap: Episode 5

Written by Ian Thomas Malone, Posted in Blog, Game of Thrones, Pop Culture

This was a weird episode. We’re at the halfway point in the season and it’s mostly clear where the plotlines are going, at least the ones in this episode (which does leave big question marks on KL and Dorne). Problem is this that there isn’t a ton of logic behind any of the stories in this episode besides Mereen, I suppose.

I had actually forgotten about Jon and the wildlings when I wrote last week’s recap. Given their limited screen time this season, I’m not going to beat myself up over it. I suppose Jon going north is better than Jon going south, but why Stannis would lend his ships to Jon and a bunch of wildlings with seemingly no compensation is beyond me.

The politics of The Wall make up some of the best chapters in A Dance with Dragons. You have Jon struggling to lead the Night’s Watch, Stannis and his men who don’t actually all leave and know that the Watch owes them for saving the Wall, and the wildlings who aren’t being held captive at all. There’s a ton of great stuff with Northern campaigning and even a marriage alliance.

None of that’s really here. The Watch looks even weaker than it does in the books and yet Jon apparently appears to be able to broker beneficial deals with Stannis. It’s also worth noting that Melisandre, Selyse, and Shireen all stay at the Wall, along with plenty of men.

Stannis also doesn’t have the upper hand against the Boltons in the books. The show has mentioned that he does numerous times. One might think that this would be pointing to an upset and problems for the One True King, but with Brienne and an anti-Bolton Winterfell faction brewing, that’s hard to see.

I’m surprised to see that the Samwell/Gilly/maybe Maester Aemon Oldtown storyline appears to be a go. In A Feast for Crows, the three depart toward the beginning of the book. It seemed like a big storyline for the show to give to fairly insignificant characters, especially when characters like Davos had their storylines scrapped. I don’t think that Aemon will go though. He’s probably not long for this world.

I loved the Stannis/Samwell scene. Randyll Tarly is one of the biggest badasses in Westeros and the real military leader of the Reach. He’s barely in the books so I don’t fault the show for not having him in it, but he’s great. Given how pathetic Mace Tyrell looks in the show, it’s nice to see that the show didn’t take the same approach.

Just quickly to get it out of the way, who is sending ravens to the Wall updating them on Dany’s progress in Mereen? Doesn’t make any sense.

Let’s play a game with the Winterfell storyline called “what doesn’t make sense”. Ready, set, go.

Littlefinger leaving Sansa with no guards doesn’t make sense.

Roose allowing Reek, who sleeps in the dog kennel, to serve his food doesn’t make sense.

Roose allowing Ramsay to parade Reek around in front of Sansa doesn’t make sense.

Roose allowing Ramsay to let Reek give Sansa away doesn’t make sense. In the books, he does it so the Northern bannermen will accept fake Arya (Jeyne Poole) as real since he grew up with her, but that’s not really contested at all.

The lack of Frey troops given Fat Walda’s pregnancy doesn’t make sense. I know I said this last week, but what are they doing?

Sansa being allowed to roam the castle free as a bird doesn’t make sense.

I hate Myranda and am sure at some point, she’ll do something that doesn’t make sense. For now, she’s just creepy.

Brienne being allowed to creep up on Winterfell undetected doesn’t make sense. Don’t the Boltons know everyone hates them?

They do. They know Stannis is coming. So what’s the plan?

It’ll be interesting to see how the show approaches the wedding. There have been rumors that Greatjon Umber, who’s been absent from the show since season one, will return. The Boltons would have to be pretty stupid to think that having a bunch of Northern men in Winterfell when Stannis is on his way is a good idea.

I was surprised to see the Stone men storyline kept. In the books, that happens when Tyrion is traveling with Jon Connington and (f)Aegon. Jon Con is also the one who gets infected with greyscale. More action is usually a good thing.

Except when it leads to Ser Barristan’s death. Ugh. Jorah’s infection makes Ser Grandfather’s death extra puzzling. He will be missed, though moreso by book fans.

I’ve generally hated the Grey Worm/Missandei “romance,” but I liked it here. Ser Barristan and Grey Worm always had a strong respect for each other in the books and it was nice to see him mourn the loss of the old knight. Dany’s supporting cast are often treated like props who only interact with her and it was good to see that that’s not always the case.

Show Hizdahr is far less interesting than book Hizdahr. I guess that’s not too surprising. Seeing Dany force the marriage on him and not the other way around was weird. Not sure where that storyline is going.

That’s it for this week. I didn’t love this episode, but it set some things up. I can’t stop thinking about the Melisandre/Jon dynamic and that I doubt it’ll be addressed this season given logistics. Maybe I know nothing…

Tuesday

5

May 2015

0

COMMENTS

Reign Is A (Mostly) Fun Costume Soap Opera

Written by Ian Thomas Malone, Posted in Pop Culture

Since I’ve been doing a lot of articles on costume/period dramas, I thought it prudent to feature the only one currently airing on network TV. Reign is best described as a guilty pleasure that’s the offspring of a one night stand between Gossip Girl and The Tudors. Despite not being much of a success with ratings or critics, The CW picked it up for a third season despite possessing what’s probably the deepest roster in the network’s history. Perhaps some executives couldn’t get enough of the “historical” telling of Mary, Queen of Scots’ time in France.

Reign’s premise is fairly simple. It tells a story (I hesitate to use the word “the” given the historical inaccuracies) of the relationship between Francis II of France and Mary, Queen of Scots. If the writers know any of the actual history beyond what can be read on Wikipedia, it doesn’t show. In fact, if the writers’ training consists of anything other than watching old episodes of Melrose Place and The O.C., that doesn’t really show either.

Despite this, there’s something oddly endearing about the show. The plots are stupid, but Reign rarely tries to hide this fact. This is a soap opera that knows exactly what it is. Beautiful people scheme in a beautiful castle. That’s Reign in a nutshell.

Reign is carried by the talent of its two lead actresses. Adelaide Kane and Megan Follows dance circles around the rest of the cast as Mary, Queen of Scots and Catherine de’ Medici. Tory Regbo plays a rather spineless King Francis and Torrance Combs has had very little to do since season one as Francis’ bastard brother Bash. Queen Mary’s ladies maids/ladies in waiting all occupy various degrees of odiousness.

Which is why I enjoy it. We’re in the era of costume/period dramas. Reign has its place in the circle of life as the only one regularly airing on network TV. Being on The CW means that it’s going to be more soap operatic than it would be if it aired on the other networks, assuming it wasn’t intended to be a comedy like Galavant, but that’s okay too. We don’t really need network rip-offs of Game of Thrones, Outlander, and Vikings that can’t have excessive violence or nudity because of the FCC.

Granted, Reign’s status as a guilty pleasure show has been called into question with a pretty subpar second season. I blame that on the episode count. Twenty-two episodes a season is tough for most shows, let alone a costume drama. The plot has moved at a glacier pace since the death of King Henry, often recycling stories every three episodes or so. Quality has never been Reign’s strong suit, but even the melodrama has suffered with so little progression.

It’s hard to see Reign lasting very long past season three. History told us that already given the brevity of Francis and Mary’s marriage, but I’m not sure how relevant that is to this show. The CW’s line-up is pretty stacked, leaving little room for an expensive show with sagging ratings.

From the show’s third episode, which features sparring match between King Henry and Bash played to Bastille’s hit “Pompeii,” you could tell exactly what Reign was going to be. Popcorn fluff. Better that than most of what’s currently on network TV. You could certainly make the case that The CW is delivering what its audience wants better than NBC or ABC (Fox has Empire and CBS has all its procedurals so I’ll give them passes).

Reign is (usually) fun. That’s all it needs to be. One should not look to The CW for a history lesson. There are these things called books, which are good for that kind of stuff.

Wednesday

29

April 2015

4

COMMENTS

Universal Orlando Must Close Twister… Ride It Out

Written by Ian Thomas Malone, Posted in Blog, Pop Culture

I visited Universal Studios Orlando back in February for the first time. Like many, my main motive was to see the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, though I was mostly just tagging along with my sister, who had a water polo tournament (I had also just finished writing a manuscript and needed some time off before promotion for A Trip Down Reality Lane begun). Being a pop culture nut, I was able to appreciate almost all of the attractions.

There was one that I didn’t particularly appreciate and it wasn’t because I hadn’t seen the movie the ride was based off. I didn’t appreciate it because it was terrible. Given the irrelevance of the source film, I suspect many feel the same way.

I am of course, talking about Twister. The blockbuster starring Bill Paxton and Helen Hunt was the second highest grossing film of 1996. It’s not too surprising that an attraction would be based off something that successful. If there was ever a ride that looked like it shouldn’t have survived the 90s, it’s Twister… Ride It Out.

Using the word “ride” is somewhat ridiculous given the nature of the attraction. It’s hardly a ride at all. The attraction consists of a brief introductory video from Paxton and Hunt informing the audience that tornados are dangerous followed by a tornado simulation that looks like the set of a Sharknado movie. Unfortunately, it doesn’t come with the laughs that Sharknado delivers.

I’m not sure what’s supposed to be thrilling about a few gushes of wind, some simulated rain, and a soaring cow with visible wires, but that’s Twister… Ride It Out for you. The only real value the introductory video has is to show children what picture quality looked like before HD as I suspect the video is still played on an old VHS tape. 90s hipsters might appreciate the ride’s retro feel, but I can’t imagine who else would.

The problem with Twister… Ride It Out is that the film carries next to no nostalgic value and Paxton and Hunt haven’t been A-List talent for about 10 years. Rides/Attractions based off of other 90s hits like T2 3-D: Battle Across Time, Revenge of the Mummy, The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man, The Incredible Hulk Roller Coaster (both the Spider-Man and Hulk rides are based off the 90s cartoons) have either nostalgic or entertainment value to keep them relevant in the year 2015. What does Twister have?

Twister… Ride It Out is easily the park’s worst attraction. The only thing it attracts is people looking for something to do. The list of better things to do than waste your time on this boring relic can be summed out with two words. Anything else.

Twister… Ride It Out is a dated embarrassment to an otherwise excellent park. The attraction offers nothing to anyone besides scientists and middle-aged men who once had crushes on Helen Hunt. It should be closed immediately, even if there’s nothing to take its place. Preventing park goers from wasting their time is far more important.

Saturday

25

April 2015

2

COMMENTS

Season 3 of Vikings Raises the Bar, Struggles With Its High Ambitions

Written by Ian Thomas Malone, Posted in Blog, Pop Culture

Ten episodes is not a particularly long length for a season, though it’s fairly common for costume/period dramas. Vikings handled this quite well with a relatively small cast and fairly linear plotlines over its first two seasons. Throwing that out the window, or perhaps over the side of the long ship, was a risk. One that paid off handsomely in season three.

This season of the History Channel’s flagship (no pun intended) drama featured two massive storylines. Starting in Wessex, Ragnar and co. had a bunch of exciting battles before returning home to Kattegat. After King Ecbert betrayed the Vikings, we naturally would expect Ragnar to sail back for vengeance. For a show that’s been fairly predictable, it was surprising to see that this was not what happened.

Taking on a Paris campaign with only four episodes left in the season was no easy task, especially when the show was rapidly shedding old characters and introducing new ones into the fray. It might not have been surprising to see this fail as badly as the first siege on Paris, especially when the show continued to feature the Wessex characters, who no longer seemed to factor in at all.

Maybe it did to some people. The season finale did leave a stronger feeling of “that’s it” than the previous two. Part of this is only natural as cliffhanger endings are an easy way to cap off a short season.

While it’s clear that the Paris and Wessex storylines are not complete, the brevity in which Paris was handled has made me question whether or not it should have been held off until season four. Doing so would have allowed for proper closure on the Wessex storyline and also would have given Ragnar enough time to deal with Floki for killing Athelstan. I originally suspected that Athelstan’s death was forced because of the actor’s commitments to other projects (George Blagden will play a main role in the upcoming series Versailles), though interviews with creator Michael Hirst suggest that it was in fact a creative decision.

The trouble with prolonging the Paris storyline is that it would have prevented the show’s most ambitious action sequence. “To The Gates!,” was the most impressive television battle since Game of Thrones’ “The Watchers on the Wall,” and even gave the HBO powerhouse a run for its money. It’s hard to reasonably advocate against such an achievement.

The simple solution to the abrupt ending would have been to increase the episode count by one or two episodes, which would have prevented this season from feeling rather incomplete. I wrote an article a couple weeks ago suggesting that The Walking Dead alter its episode count for this very reason. I cannot reasonably suggest that as viable when it comes to Vikings.

The difference between the two is that Vikings isn’t one of the most popular shows on television and the History Channel, even with the support of foreign networks, is likely spending all it can on Vikings. The production quality this season greatly improved. If more episodes were financially feasible, we’d likely get them. It’s not fair to criticize Vikings for circumstances that are out of its control.

Season three of Vikings ended with plenty of loose ends. While it’s annoying that we have to wait a year for resolution, that doesn’t change the fact that this was an outstanding season. Choosing to focus on the shortcomings ignores the fact that this show is doing amazing things with limited resources. It has a stellar cast, top-notch production quality, and arguably the best action sequences on TV. Few shows are perfect and that’s okay. Unless you’re Floki.

Thursday

23

April 2015

0

COMMENTS

Should HBO Skip Screener Copies for Season Six of Game of Thrones?

Written by Ian Thomas Malone, Posted in Blog, Game of Thrones, Pop Culture

It took HBO about two weeks to respond to the pirates who leaked the screener copies of the first four episodes of season 5 of Game of Thrones. Given the ratings records set by the premiere, it’s hard to accurately assess the damage. The warnings sent out suggest that HBO isn’t particularly interested in a bunch of lawsuits which would likely lead to nowhere anyway. It’s hard to imagine that HBO is particularly pleased with the leak though, which makes me wonder how HBO will handle the release of season six.

Networks generally send out screener copies of the first four episodes of new seasons to publications as a way of generating buzz. Since most shows aren’t a worldwide phenomenon, piracy tends not to be too big of a problem. With a show like Game of Thrones, a leak was practically inevitable.

HBO has been pretty proactive in its efforts to combat piracy. The recently launched HBO NOW offers HBO without a cable subscription for a flat rate of 15 dollars a months (currently only available on Apple Devices). This was also likely done as an effort to try to get millennials and others who have gotten rid of cable, but use their parents’/friends’ HBO GO to pay. HBO NOW hasn’t been around long enough to determine whether or not the service has been a success, but the idea is fundamentally sound.

While the presence of HBO NOW might help cut down on piracy in general, it wouldn’t have prevented the leak. The screener copies had content that no one could see legally for weeks after the premiere. The only way to prevent the screener copies from leaking is to stop sending them out entirely.

The benefits to this are pretty easy to see, but the risks are a little more complicated. One might argue that a show like Game of Thrones doesn’t need to get a stamp of approval from The New York Times or Entertainment Weekly and there’s something to that. Problem is that buzz has value that’s hard to quantify. The mass exposure from hundreds of publications does play a part in the success of the show.

Many of those features would still exist without the screeners, but it’s not hard to imagine a reduction if they weren’t sent out ay all. It’s harder to write about something when you don’t know the specifics. Those publications might turn their attention, and cover stories, toward other shows instead. Game of Thrones’ massive popularity makes that harder to fathom, but it’s still a risk that HBO would need to take into consideration.

Which brings us back to the damage. If Game of Thrones sets ratings records, are the leaks really a problem? Would 10 million people have watched the premiere instead of 8? There’s no way of knowing, but it does stand to reason that the number would be higher. How much that matters is up to HBO.

The solution that I would consider if I were head of HBO would be to reduce the number of episodes included in the screener copies. Four might be the standard, but cable shows also generally have thirteen episodes a season. The screener copies account for 40% of the whole season. Cutting that down to two would reduce the potential damage while also appeasing the big publications.

One option I would not consider is a switch to a Netflix delivery style, mostly for reasons I covered in my recent article on House of Cards. For a show of Game of Thrones’ magnitude, dropping all the episodes in one fell swoop isn’t a great way to get proper bang for your buck. That would actually exacerbate the spoiler problem as people would know the ending right from day one.

Piracy will always be a problem for massively popular shows. HBO could reduce its subscription fees to a dollar a month and this would still be the case. There are some possible ways to cut back on the damage though which HBO should consider as the show goes on and the stakes are raised. When the final season rolls around and the death count starts to skyrocket, HBO isn’t going to want people knowing who lives and who dies weeks in advance.

Sunday

19

April 2015

0

COMMENTS

Game of Thrones Season 5 Recap: Episode 2

Written by Ian Thomas Malone, Posted in Blog, Game of Thrones, Pop Culture

While I’ve generally been completely fine with the deviations from the books, this episode featured two that I thought were mistakes. Since the beginning, Jon and Cersei have been two of the show’s favorite characters. This generally means that deviations will work to these characters’ benefit as much of what needs to be cut from the books will come at the expensive of a different character.

Which made the ten seconds the show gave to the election for Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch puzzling. This is a big deal in the books and it should be a big deal in the show as well. Yet for whatever reason, the show gave it just about as much time as Brienne’s dinner with Podrick.

Naturally the election is far more complex in the books. It’s worth noting that Lord Janos Slynt, not Ser Alliser Thorne, was the bad guy candidate in the books. It was also heavily implied that Jon would have been executed if Slynt were elected.

The show did allow Samwell to play a part in the election, though it stripped him of his elaborate plan inspired by Maester Aemon. In the books, Samwell convinces Denys Mallister, commander of the Shadow Tower, and Cottor Pyke, commander of Eastwatch-by-the-Sea, to drop out of the race and support Jon because neither alone would have the backings to beat Slynt. This House of Cards style manipulation was reduced to a simple heartfelt speech in the show.

Samwell has never been a favorite of mine and the scheme would’ve been too elaborate for the show to pull off. The only problem with the election itself was that I don’t really think a convincing argument was made for picking Jon over Ser Alliser. Janos Slynt probably should have still be the candidate as he’s not an experienced Brother who didn’t play a pivotal role in the defense of Castle Black.

The more important problem was the neglect of Stannis’ offer to legitimize Jon. This is also a big deal. Jon could avenge his father, brothers, sister(s), and fulfill a lifelong desire to truly become a Stark with one word. He doesn’t and ultimately, we know why, but the show decides to scoot right by this without giving it the proper attention it deserves.

Honor is a big theme in Game of Thrones. Characters like Ned and Robb pay heavy prices for choosing honorable decisions. Cersei and Littlefinger get ahead by ignoring it. It shouldn’t be surprising that Jon chose to stay true to his vows, but we missed out on the grappling that should have occurred. This would have been a great opportunity to have another heart to heart with Maester Aemon about duty and family.

The pacing of the Wall storyline kind of explains this. The election happened in A Storm of Swords and I don’t think lingering much longer would have been a good idea and other storylines even at the Wall are well into A Dance with Dragons. Problem was that it was really only mentioned in passing last episode. The seed for this could have been planted last episode, possibly instead of burning Mance, which didn’t need to happen this early.

The other deviation in this episode that really bugged me was with Cersei and Kevan. In the books, Cersei offers Kevan the position of Hand of the King, which he says he will only accept if Cersei also makes him Regent and goes back to Casterly Rock. This offer also happened in a private conversation rather than during a Small Council Session. There is no “Master of War” in the books and its presence in the show is strange, but not particularly important.

It goes against the Lannister commitment to family to have Kevan call out his niece in front of the Lord of a rival House, though the show has made no effort to make Mace Tyrell look like any threat at all. Kevan isn’t a character that the show, or the books for that matter, have paid much attention to, but he is a Lannister and Lannister’s don’t pull that kind of nonsense. As the person Tywin trusted most, he should have known better. The seeds for Cersei’s fall have been planted, but in a weird way.

The Daenerys stuff is pretty straight forward, though sort of boring. I like the Sons of the Harpy plotline as a war with Yunkai would be difficult to pull off in the show given Dany’s resources and allotted screen time. In the books, Dany has a relatively large force behind her, but the show has reduced this significantly to merely her Unsullied, the Second Sons, and Ser Grandfather.

I liked the rest of the episode. It’s pretty clear (and disturbing) what Littlefinger is planning to do with Sansa. Brienne is following her because she has nothing else to do. Roose and Ramsay are having fun in Winterfell with Reek being Reek.

At first, I disliked having Jaqen H’ghar take the place of the Kindly Man in the House of Black and White, but it makes sense. That storyline is weird and having a familiar face around makes it (sort of) less weird. He and Arya are great together too.

It was nice to see Bronn, who isn’t shown in the books after his departure prior to Tyrion’s trial (though we hear about plenty of amusing Bronn antics). Jaime’s plan seems farfetched, but he and Bronn have great chemistry. The Dorne stuff isn’t an interesting as I’d hoped, but that was true of them at this point in the books as well.

That’s it for this week. If you enjoyed this recap, I encourage you to check out my other GOT/ASOIAF related articles.

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