Advance Review: From the opening moments of HBO's new series, Game of Thrones, involving the ill-fated Waymar Royce search party, most fans of the George Martin "A Song of Fire and Ice" series of books can tell that this would be a faithful, sturdy adaptation. We are indeed going to be led through the frozen hell-zone of the Northern Territory of Westeros and we are going to go head to head with the supernatural "Others" that inhabit that land. As with any book adaptation, fans will worry and wonder as to what will be left out and what will be kept in, but the premiere episode, "Winter is Coming," not only effortlessly takes us along, faithfully, through the book, but it also manages to capture the majestically morbid spirit of Martin's pages and turn them into thrilling television.
With very little action, compared to other parts of the book/series that are on the way, this first episode brings us into the haunted land of Westeros - a realm that still stings with the bitter memories of a rebellion that took place 17 years earlier which saw Robert Baratheon (Mark Addy) overthrow the "Mad King" Aerys Targaryen. In the present day, Ned Stark (the infinitely watchable Sean Bean), Lord of Winterfell, beheads a deserter of the Night's Watch, who claims to have seen mythical monsters during his patrol beyond the great Ice Wall, in front of his sons; including young 10-year-old Bran (Isaac Hempstead-Wright) who is witnessing an execution for the first time. Ned is warm, but grim. He loves his family but knows he mustn't shelter them from the cruelties of the world, especially the threat of a dark, decades-long harsh winter that seems to be forming in the North.
Stark is a whispering warrior. A retired gunfighter, if you will. He remains far north of the other six Kingdoms as a way to both protect his loved ones and to separate himself from the corrupt madness that usually accompanies power. But when King Robert, his oldest friend, treks all the way up to Ned's castle to ask him to take the top advisor position of the "King's Hand," Ned knows he has no choice but to accept the role. And even the fact that Ned and Robert still maintain a fraternal, friendly bond based on the fact that Robert once loved Ned's sister with all his heart, doesn't make the proposed position any more glamorous.
Thrones is part Western, part horror film, and part film noir. Once Ned's wife, the unbreakable Lady Catelyn (Michelle Fairley), discovers a dire secret regarding the previous King's Hand, the series becomes a scintillating mystery.
Check out IGN's video review of the first episode below:
Emilia Clarke as Daenerys Targaryen.
But "Winter is Coming" is, mostly, a grand introduction. It deftly brings us into all the main characters' lives just enough to show us the basics. Curious Bran. Tomboy Arya (Maisie Williams). Proper Sansa (Sophie Turner). Ned's conflicted bastard son, Jon Snow (Kit Harington). Everyone is different and unique, and yet not a stock character riddled with cliches. They breathe with vital realism, none of them being abjectly "TV pretty." They feel like they belong in this world, and the world itself crackles with tangibility; despite the opening sequence involving savage snow ghouls. In fact, just knowing that this world does contain hidden horrors peppers this show, which tends to be all about the humans, with an extraordinary flavor that other fantasy fare just doesn't have. Tales of mystical monsters are just stories meant to scare children - as far as everyone knows. These things remain just out of reach. Everyone is far more concerned about all the atrocities committed by man on a daily basis than with boogeymen that may or may not exist. "A madman sees what he sees," Ned says to Bran, after Bran inquires about the White Walkers and whether or not the man his father executed was telling the truth.
Because the chapters in Martin's book take place from specific characters points of view, there are added scenes in this series, between people who never spoke in the book, in order to texturize the proceedings. Namely, you'll see more scenes involving the Lannisters – Queen Cersei's (Lena Headey) family – as they tend to remain in the background in some of the earlier parts of the book series. You'll see scenes between Cersei and Cat and Ned and Cersei's twin-brother Jaime that allow the viewer to identify them as ruthless antagonists right off the bat. Well, especially the "Kingslayer," Jaime (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau), who wanders around the dank grounds of Winterfell like a brash prig. I also like that you do get a sense, very briefly, of sympathy for Cersei, as she's bound to sit in her regal position and watch her boorish Robert drink and whore right in front of her. Not that she loves him, but one of the great things about Thrones is that, for the most part, everyone's had a miserable life. And so the cruelty they impose on others isn't born in a vacuum. It's just an unbreakable cycle.
And speaking of sad women forced to sit and watch men do rotten, barbaric things, newcomer Emilia Clarke dazzles as Daenerys Targaryen, one of the Mad King's only surviving heirs and subservient sister to her laughably callous and evil brother Viserys (Harry Lloyd). It might seem a bit jarring to simultaneously follow characters on different continents, but it's the initial, tragic tale of Daenerys and all the pain she has to endure as her brother sells her into bridal slavery that allows us to have an "in" to a much more cartoonish realm. Daenerys, somewhat blank at times, might seem like an easy role, but it's actually one of the trickier ones to pull off on this series. Her motivations change from scenes to seen as more and more metaphorical s*** gets heaped upon her and Clarke handles the challenge with just the appropriate amount of grace.
And, of course, Peter Dinklage is expectedly great as Cersei and Jaime's younger brother Tyrion. He doesn't have much to do in this episode aside from being a silver-tongued letch, but fear not, greater things lie ahead for "The Imp." And this captivating series.
Also, pay close attention to the spectacular opening credit sequence (backed by an infectious score) to see the landscape change for each episode, to represent the new areas of Westeros gradually seen on the show.
Game of Thrones premieres Sunday, April 17th, on HBO at 9pm.
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