HBO‘s Game Of Thrones has been setting the internet a buzz, establishing itself as a challenging and enthralling medieval fantasy drama with it’s own tantalising mythos that boldly redefines the genre. Based on George R.R. Martin‘s books ‘A Song of Ice and Fire’, the series has attracted a loyal following and as the first season draws to a close, fans are wondering what the final episode may hold after the shocking events of last week.
It was a moment that caught many viewers by surprise, literally pulling out the rug from under audiences with a devastating twist (spoiler alert) that saw the departure of the charismatic character of Ned Stark, played by Sean Bean. While fans of the books would’ve been aware that the character’s fate was sealed, many saw it as a risky move so early on. However producers have promised that this will push the stories into new territory and up the ante considerably.
Producers David Benioff and D.B. Weiss spoke with EW and explained the story twist.
DAVID BENIOFF:
…It’s a tough thing to build up a character and make somebody as memorable and impressive as Ned and then get rid of him. But at the same time it leads to a story that is so much more suspenseful because you truly have no idea what is going to happen and who is going to survive.
D.B. WEISS:
…The idea is this show gets its hooks into people enough so you’re going to want to know what happens to Tyrion and Arya. So even though we lose key characters, we’re still invested in a lot of characters so you’ll want to know what happens next.
However, it’s not completely the last we’ve seen of Ned Stark, TV guide reports that…
…In the finale, two of his children will see him in a way you’d probably expect of television; a third, though, will have a shocking run-in with dear old Dad.
InsideTV spoke with Sean Bean, who gave his view on his character’s demise:
I thought it was a very courageous move for a television company. I know HBO has a track record of bold moves but I thought this is pretty incredible if they can pull this off. I love the character, that he’s a principled man who tries to hold things together. This is a journey that he makes where ultimately his loyalty causes his downfall.
When asked if knowing Ned Stark’s fate changed his portrayal:
I knew I had to get quite a lot in before I got my head chopped off. I think you just play what’s on the page — he’s a good man trying to do his best in the middle of this corruption, he’s a fish out of water, he’s used to being up North in Winterfell where people are pretty straight and pragmatic, and he comes down to a place where people are playing games and backstabbing.
As for fan’s reaction to the loss of the beloved character:
Ah, sorry about that! Tell them to blame George R.R. Martin.
The season 1 finale of Game of Thrones “Fire and Blood”airs Sunday June 19, 2011 on HBO.
Check out a preview here:
As for season 2, production begins July 25th with indoor scenes shooting in Belfast, and exterior scenes shot around Northern Ireland. Locations such as Malta are used for the fictional eastern continent. The next season is based on the second book of ‘A Song of Ice and Fire’, ‘A Clash of Kings‘ that includes dragons and more battles.
The LA Times asked writers/producers Benioff and Weiss what changes or compromises would be made to bring the scope of this lavish story to TV.
DAVID BENIOFF:
We used to say when we pitched it to HBO, if we get to that point when we have to make those decisions it’s a great problem to have because it means we got a second season. Now that we’re actually here, it doesn’t seem like such a great problem — it’s a terrifying problem, and we are daily trying to figure it out. We want to get in as many dire wolves and dragons and massive naval armadas. So it’s about where and how to do it and how much to show….
As for the major characters who are part of the story though are not featured much in Book 2:
D.B. WEISS:
In the book there are a couple of characters who have more of an offscreen role and come back in Book 3. But in the case of, say, Robb Stark — played by Richard Madden — he has more of an offscreen presence in the book, but Richard did such a fabulous job once his character came to the fore, he so commanded the screen that we realized there’s no way to talk about this guy and not have him in the show. So there are people offscreen in the book who we are going to write onscreen in the show to make sure people who viewers have fallen in love with are still there in the second season.
DAVID BENIOFF:
In the case of Jaime Lannister, he’s got one scene in the second book, but he’s such an important character we want to see more of him. There’s fluidity in that certain scenes from the third book find their way into the second season just as certain scenes from the second book find their way into the end of the first season. We wanted to make sure those characters stayed in the audience’s mind and didn’t disappear for a whole year.
Heres’ the teaser trailer for Game of Thrones Season 2.
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