Posts Tagged: George R.R. Martin

Review

(Not a) Review | Early thoughts on A DANCE WITH DRAGONS by George R.R. Martin

By Aidan Moher July 25th, 2011

A DANCE WITH DRAGONS by George R.R. MartinYarr! Some mild spoilers for A Dance with Dragons and some egregious spoilers for the entirety of A Song of Ice and Fire appear in this article!

Well, well. Where to even begin? Having read several handfuls of reviews for A Dance with Dragons around the ‘net, it seems impossible to begin a commentary on the novel without referencing the infamous Wait™ and the fan vitriol (and endless passion) associated with Martin’s ever-growing audience. Of course, I’ve gone on record now and then to mentioned that I don’t really give a damn about waiting for a novel, this one or otherwise; there were plenty of wonderful stories to keep me occupied between A Feast for Crows and A Dance with Dragons, because, well… I enjoy many authors (new and well-established) alongside Mr. Martin — something I’m sure he would appreciate.

I’m now about 300 pages in. (I’m a slow reader, remember?) Bombs have been dropped (or eggs, mayhap?), ground has be re-tread (hello, Jon Snow!) and Tyrion has drank (drunk? drinked?) a lion’s share of wine. Besides one or two ‘twists’ (and one ‘fuck yeah!’ beheading), the pace of the narrative has been glacially slow, but enjoyable and engrossing all the same. The concise, labyrinthine storytelling of A Game of Thrones is now gone completely, replaced instead by a huge, sprawling behemoth of storytelling. Instead of having each chapter of the novel moving an overall novel-spanning narrative arc towards its conclusion (adding elements or perspectives only available to the viewpoint character), we now have three disparate stories running in parallel. Two of the major storylines, Dany and Tyrion, appear to be on a collision course (and, as the earlier novels would indicate, I expect that all the little connecting threads will appear retroactively once I look back on the completed novel), but Jon Snow’s chapters seem entirely self-contained (though, I suppose it could be argued that they were as such even as early as A Game of Thrones); and Bran Stark’s chapters, few-and-far-between (much to my chagrin) as they are, are even more disconnected from the rest of the narrative.
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Feature Article

Guest Post | “The Three Wedding Nights of Daenerys Targaryen” by Daniel Abraham

By Daniel Abraham May 13th, 2011

The Dragon's Path by Daniel AbrahamSo like everyone else on the planet, I’m watching HBO’s Game of Thrones. Unlike most people, I’m not bitorrenting a pirated copy. I’m going over to a friend’s house. How’s that for old school?

It’s a different experience for me than for most folks, though, because I’m also in the middle of adapting Game of Thrones to a visual medium. I’m writing the comic book scripts for Bantam and Dynamite. The license they bought was for the original book, not the HBO show, so I haven’t spoken to anyone in Holywood about the decisions they made, what to cut what to keep in. I’m on my own for that, and seeing the decisions they made has been fascinating. (What about Bran’s dreams? Where’s the three-eyed crow?)

One thing that struck me particularly, though, is the wedding night of Daenerys Targaryen. It’s a wildly problematic scene in a number of ways, and the problems and solutions about how to deal with it pretty much run the gamut.

In the original book, Daenerys is a thirteen-year-old girl given by her brother to a foreign warlord. It’s a political marriage meant to cement an alliance in preparation for war, and as such, boy howdy, does it have a lot of historical precedent. We’ve seen Dany as a victim and a child, lost and powerless, through the whole book. We’ve seen the wedding – which is violent and strange and frightening. Then the time comes, and Dany is taken off from her family and the people she knows with a huge, strong man who has the acknowledged right to have sex with her whether she wants it or not.
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Feature Article

Guest Post | Michael J. Sullivan on GAME OF THRONES, GRRM and the NYT

By Michael J. Sullivan May 10th, 2011

Theft of Swords by Michael J. SullivanHello,

My name is Michael J. Sullivan and I’m the author of the Riyria Revelations. This series has been picked up by Orbit Books for a fall release and I’ll be back after Aidan’s honeymoon to tell you more about that. In the meantime, he asked if I would do a guest blog so that you all have something to read so you don’t go into withdrawls. I have a morning ritual that involves coffee and reading articles on my ipad. The day after the George R.R. Martin A Song of Ice and Fire debuted on HBO, I read a few reviews that really got my blood boiling. I wrote a blog boast entitled “Song of Bias and Prejudice”, but since I’m still a relatively new, and unknown author I don’t think many people saw it. In any case I think it is appopriate for the audience so I though I’d take this opportunity to share. I hope you enjoy. Here goes…

When I was in eighth grade I was caught with a copy of Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring in shop class, by another kid. This “kid” who I will refer to as “Richard,” because that was his name, had been my best friend in sixth grade. Richard had just moved to the area that year and didn’t know anyone, and I adopted him when he was shunned by everyone else. After settling in however, Richard traded me for a better, cooler, best friend the following year. One of the ways he endeared himself to his new circle was by using what he knew, from our best-friend-years, to belittle and humiliate me, which always plays well to a group of twelve-year-olds trying to establish themselves as superior to anything. So when he found me reading a book, his eyes lit up with new potential.
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Art

Wonderful, Stylized Maps of GRRM’s ‘A Song of Ice and Fire’

By Aidan Moher October 20th, 2010
Wonderful Stylized Maps of GRRM's 'A Song of Ice and Fire' from J.E. Fullerton Wonderful Stylized Maps of GRRM's 'A Song of Ice and Fire' from J.E. Fullerton Wonderful Stylized Maps of GRRM's 'A Song of Ice and Fire' from J.E. Fullerton

From artist J.E. Fullerton, we’ve got a collection of wonderful, classically-styled maps of various regions and cities from George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire. I love all of the little Where’s Waldoesque easter eggs hidden throughout, creating a fun game for fans of the series. It’s also great to see the maps realized in a way that could represent what a decorative map in that world might resemble (like a Westeros version of the Beyeux Tapestry or old maps from the 1500s), albeit in a more cartoony fashion.

Nice high resolution versions of the images I posted are available in his DeviantArt Gallery, along with 15 more maps on his gallery, including The Vale, Old Town, Beyond the Wall and The Stormlands.

News

Full Cast list + Photos for HBO and GRRM’s A Game of Thrones

By Aidan Moher October 20th, 2009

Well, it’s done. All the major roles in the HBO adaptation of George R.R. Martin’s A Game of Thrones have been cast. Thanks to The Live Feed, we’ve got a handy look at portraits of the cast members, including ros, a character created specifically for the show. (Why they have to create new characters, when the series has dozens already is not something I going to waste brain cells trying to figure out, alas.)

The Full cast for HBO and GRRM's A GAME OF THRONES.

Not included in that handy cast list is the newly cast Jason Momoa, who’s set to play Drogo.

Jason Mamoa, cast at Drogo in HBO's A Game of Thrones

My reaction? Squeee!