A Mad Men length hiatus...

So there I was, blogging away through the fall, and something crazy happened: I got involved in other things! No more time to dissect my favorite tv shows? No movies to see and skip around the holidays? No (gasp!!) award show commentary?! Alas, my plate was sadly full of life and I slacked off. Now however, as we go into spring, we have an exciting season of Summer Blockbuster Movies to look forward to, season and series finales of beloved tv shows, one of the strongest New York theater seasons in years, and the geek in me is bright eyed and bushy tailed.
As it happens, a major event in the pop culture world is this weekend. Game of Thrones, the major undertaking of George RR Martin's series of books, premieres on HBO this Sunday at 9. I will admit, I had never even heard of the series until the casting began for the tv show, and only recently read the first book, upon which the first season will (presumably) be based. (In going forth, I will just speak to Book one of the series, which is actually titled Game of Thrones). Having read the first book, watched the 15 minute sneak peek and sought out several trailers, I can tell you I am excited. I am not a hardcore fantasy buff, but I love fantasy done well. Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, and The Chronicles of Narnia all have special places on my bookshelves and have been read and reread several times. I have been mostly pleased with the movie adaptations of each of the aforementioned series, and especially with LOTR.  Game of Thrones, on the surface, most resembles Tolkien's trilogy in that it is less focused on magic, and more focused on the people of a far away, or alternate, or forgotten realm. They have big differences though, and in those differences are where the decision to make Game of Thrones into a television show and not a movie was a wise one.  To wit,

• There is no grand quest in Thrones. There are several wars, skirmishes and missions, but there is no carrying One Ring into Mordor. There are people making their way in the world, doing what they believe is best for their families, and often dealing with the harsh realities of their situations. 
• There are no inherently good or inherently evil people in this series. There are people who do evil things, but when reading LOTR you knew right away that Sauron was evil incarnate. Game of Thrones just doesn't have that. There are characters you will love, characters you will hate, and many who, like in life, will fall somewhere in between. This is the greatest strength of the story, and what brings you into the world more than any sword fight ever could. 
• Sex! HBO is playing this up quite a bit (this is the network of True Blood after all) but it really is a little shocking when reading a fantasy book to find that there are sex scenes, and sex scenes done well! No overly flowery language, no ridiculous descriptions of women opening like flowers (the worst sex scene offense in any book in my opinion) and even humor surrounding the situations! 
• People die. Not like "Gandalf fights the Balrog and we think he is dead but isn't really" die. Actually die. Tragically, shockingly, brutally die. I will not say more for fear of ruining things for people, but be forewarned. Anything can happen. This is the LOST of fantasy novels in that respect.
• It is unfinished. This is the biggest difference, and one that could well cause the biggest problem, for directors, actors and mostly for fans. There has been a long gap between Books 4 and 5 (coming in July) but Martin has said there are to be 7 in the series. Can we wait that long? Can the series? Will we have a satisfying ending?

I have no idea how the legions of Martin zealots will like the series, or how people who have never heard of the books with jump into the show with no previous knowledge, but I am somewhere in the middle. I have read Book 1, and am eager to read the rest, but don't have the ire towards Martin that many waiting fans have. I may be in the best position, with knowledge but no expectations. No matter what else, we are sure to get lush scenery, an excellent cast and plenty of wit. Also, sex. Don't forget the sex, because after all, this isn't tv, it's HBO.

Game of Thrones