winter is coming

I've always felt a little uncomfortable around things that were a little too medieval and tried to keep a distance, maybe because I thought it was childish (once I was in the woods role playing some war, and I hated it the entire time (and I was teased because of my name, which could have been the name of a bard)), but lately I've been embracing it completely. Game of Thrones, my new favorite TV-show, has blown me away and off my feet. the producer has called it "the Sopranos in Middle-Earth", which is an okay description for those who haven't yet seen it.

Catelyn and Ned Stark in the forest

it takes place in another world, where the two largest cities are run by two families; the Lannisters and the Stark family. lord Eddard "Ned" Stark is a father of four sons (Robb, Bran, Rickon and his bastard son Jon Snow) and two daughters (Sansa and Arya), and with his wife, Catelyn, he rules Winterfell, the most northern city before the Wall.

the Stark children receive each their direwolf puppy

south of Winterfell, in King's Landing, the Lannisters rule with King Robert and Queen Cersei in front. the queen has two brothers; Jaime (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) and Tyrion (Peter Dinklage). the Lannisters have a thing for power. the king and queen have a son, Joffrey, who also is completely out of his mind with power.

King's Landing

over the Narrow Sea lives the Dothraki tribe, who are ruled by Khal Drogo. the previous king in King's Landing, overthrown by King Rob, had two children, Viserys and Daenerys "Dany" Targaryen, who are now trying to gather an army to win back the throne, which is rightfully theirs. Viserys is an awful brother to his sister, Dany.

Viserys and Daenerys Targaryen

then there is the Wall. it has been put up to protect the rest of the realm from dangers from the North, which include a horror called Whitewalkers. in the Realm winter and summer are not as in reality; summer can last years and years (some of the Stark children have only experienced summer), but so can winter... oh no! and and and...

oh man, I can't stop myself! there's just so much drama and tension, and so many people that are important, that it's almost impossible to pass on without revealing the whole story. I think half of these characters have become my new heroes. there are so many awesome characters. the pictures are amazingly beautiful all the time, and there's nothing that could've been done better. total perfection. it's not often that I want to watch a series again and again, but whenever there is an episode on my TV, I stop and watch.

I was going to post a map of the Realm, but it's too big, so this intro will do

the show is based on a series of fantasy books by George R. R. Martin, A Song of Ice and Fire. if I wasn't so hooked on the show, I'd start reading all the books immediately, but I don't want to spoil the show, and season 2 is in April 2012, so I just have to wait. it's weird, wanting to see it before I read it and not the other way around, but that's just what Game of Thrones does to me.

do yourself a favor and start watching today.

WINTER IS COMING.