Exactly two weeks away from the seminal first episode of Game of Thrones, HBO allowed its viewing audience a sneak peek into the fantastic first fourteen minutes of episode one, titled appropriately enough, “Winter Is Coming.” Folks in the EST got to see it just a bit before folks in other parts of the country (and the world), but thanks to HBO’s Making Game of Thrones site, we snagged it up soon after.
In it, we see our beloved story, lovingly crafted and beautifully wrought, with—
Oh, bugger the words. Here:
Fire And Blood: Only the hardest of hard-line ASoIaF fans could possibly find fault in some of the changes that were made. I hold the novels as a separate entity, however, and other people find that harder to do. In the case of added scenes that weren’t in the book, I see those as pieces of a “director’s cut” of GRRM’s work; scenes that could have happened but simply weren’t seen by any of the PoV’s we were given.
This is brilliant stuff. I can’t freaking wait for the rest.
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514 Comments
so good!
JamieQuote Reply
I was skeptical of The Others but damn it if I’m not convinced, badass!
NolanQuote Reply
Awesome. The little girl wilding was absolutely chilling.
Avalanche3319Quote Reply
Literally slavering. Oh. My. Gosh. Bugger the words, indeed.
I love the instant sense of family we get from the Starks. And I love how Will died bravely. And I felt a physical sucking feeling as it ended and I crashed back down and realized we are facing the longest two weeks ever!
InkasrainQuote Reply
unbelievably amazing…..the whole time i was thinking *just let me get a little longer*
gendry’s hammerQuote Reply
Too short, need more. You can’t just sample TV crack and not NEED more.
Sucks to be Will :( Disturbingly good stuff.
Franny BeeQuote Reply
It felt so short. When it finally faded to black, I honestly almost said “Wait, that’s it??”
Amazing!
DaveBQuote Reply
So upset that the other 47 minutes are 2 weeks away.
Chills went down my spine when Eddard said, “Winter is Coming”.
TrollsbaneQuote Reply
It was so great. I actually got shivers watching it! Me and my brother have 5-6 friends from work who we got into the series. We are planning on a premiere night get together to watch it at our house.
RerQuote Reply
That was fourteen minutes? It felt like fourteen seconds!
Hard to believe that was almost a quarter of the first episode. The only thing harder than the three years of waiting for this series to be made will be the weeks in between each episode!
VellaenQuote Reply
I need more. Like right now. The time flew by. Oh man! Already jonesing for more.
Steve the PirateQuote Reply
I checked my watch before the beheading and it was already 12 min in, that didn’t feel like fifteen minutes.
Holy hell that little girl was creepy as shit-all.
seanathinQuote Reply
Amazing. I don’t mind the changes, I think the prologue was effective. My wife (non-reader) audibly gasped when the “white walker” rose up in the background.
ChristianQuote Reply
Somebody needs to youtube this, my computer doesn’t not like HBO’s flash player… :(
ChrisQuote Reply
You could see the heart tree in the Godswood behind Winterfell! I loved Arya with the bow and arrow. It was all amazing and I’m bound to have it memorized by the time the premiere airs in two weeks. Well done, HBO!
Merret FreyQuote Reply
So anxious to hear everyone’s thoughts on the Others? I thought they were actually pretty badass. This version of the prologue was definitely more action-packed. But why didn’t they kill Will?
And isn’t the Stark intro scene the best thing ever? It sets up all of the characters so effectively while giving us a glimpse of the Starks before everything goes to hell.
Winter Is ComingQuote Reply
I am one of those few people who understands that TV, Books, and Movies are different mediums in witch to enjoy taking different looks at the same thing. I plan on enjoying the show as “The Show” and the books as “The Books”.
With that said my first impression……LOVED IT!!!
SQUEEEEEEE!!!!
Kristen WeaverQuote Reply
I was finally able to show 4 friends what I’ve been yammering about for the past 2 years. Each one of them is now thoroughly interested in the show, they can’t wait for the first episode to come out.
Jim McLooneQuote Reply
I must say it was pretty compelling. Little girl was creepy. Loved the Winterfel scenes. I can see it again at 9pm.
A long two weeks ahead.
AStB
OldGranQuote Reply
That was so short! How can the first episode contain anything if it’s only four times longer?
I prefer the book version of the prologue to the changes they made, but if they had filmed the prologue as is, that would have been a mistake. I suppose it might have been more frightening to someone who wasn’t clapping along in spasms of glee at finally seeing fifteen minutes of uninterrupted, consecutive footage.
CarrQuote Reply
Someone please post you tube link when it comes up? Thanks
GrinbombQuote Reply
Looks amazing.
Can’t wait to buy the Blu-Ray for Season 1.
DarkenmalQuote Reply
Amazing! Amazingly amazing! Consider this fanboy totally impressed!!!
Lord Ned’s HeadQuote Reply
In a word: Amazing.
They did such a good job with the material. The settings, costumes, all beautiful.
What struck me the most … for me, the Prologue, as played out on screen, was by far creepier than I imagined it in the book. I’ve read the series twice, and I was *still* caught up by the ‘creep factor’.
Great job, HBO !
RahBurQuote Reply
Thank God for DirecTv on the West Coast. Loved this
William GatleyQuote Reply
okay. i hate to ask but can somebody youtube this asap? the hbo site won’t allow real downloader to download the clip and my current internet connection is way way too slow to watch it streaming. it has to reload every 4 seconds and that is no way to watch this thing.
pretty please. i’ll be your best friend (or if that doesn’t sound appealing i promise not to be your best friend … you know, either way is good for me.)
Who Is Jacopo Belbo?Quote Reply
Test
HeyQuote Reply
Epic! Wow that prologue was a lot more ‘horror-film’ than I really expected, but it was really well-done. I also liked how the Stark scenes focused so much on Bran — since, well, you know, he is going to be important at the end of the episode.
Waiting for more sucks!
DanteQuote Reply
Amazing! Totally amazing! Color this fan boy impressed!!!
Lord Ned’s HeadQuote Reply
Man this was great! Especially the Starks which is by far the most important, IMO. I was fine with the changes to the Others, although I would have liked to see a little more of the fight between Waymar Royce and the Other. Overall, DEFINITELY an A.
PSYCHED!
Brian BaldingerQuote Reply
The one thing that really struck me as different from what I imagined is that I expected the Others to be more ethereal, and as “white walkers,” I always pictured them as, you know, white. And I thought we would get through the direwolf scene in 15 minutes. Silly me.
SMUWillDQuote Reply
Aaaargh. My connection isn’t good enough for streaming. I hate watching TV on the actual TV — I turned it on to give them the ratings, but I like watching stuff on my computer. I need a youtube version or a torrent asap :(
RoseQuote Reply
Holy shit that was awesome, when the White Walker rose up suddenly from the snow I got chills. So much awesomeness.
GrimtuesdayQuote Reply
So does everyone agree with me (or am I crazy) that they edited out whatever the ending is to the prologue? The fact that it fades with Will seemingly still in peril and the cut to him fleeing knights of Winterfell makes me think they cut out the segue between those scenes to keep it a surprise, or just to keep the preview tight and thrilling.
I expect the final cut we see in two weeks to have a bit more on the tail end of the prologue to explain how Will manages to flee the walkers.
A Polite NoiseQuote Reply
Same here. :(
NousWandererQuote Reply
OMGZORS!!!111!! Moar nao pleaz.
Convivial EddQuote Reply
A Polite Noise,
That’s where the titles go.
Steve CQuote Reply
That made my year.
AJQuote Reply
A Polite Noise,
That or the title sequence goes there. That is something that Winter could answer.
seanathinQuote Reply
It doesn’t, at least not in the screeners I have. I was definitely left wondering how Will escaped….
Winter Is ComingQuote Reply
Thoughts:
Ned’s “Winter is coming” line was awesome!
The family interacction from Ned’s doting on the kids, his strong but cautious conversation with Bran, Jon and Robbs comforting handling of heir little brther, Arya’s boredom in sewing class and jublance at the archery range, to Catelyn’ icy glare at Jon all were perfect. Great kudos to D&D. This is better than I could have possibly expected.
The Other scene while different, was very well done and totally in the spirit of the books. My one big concern though is how did Will get over the wall? In the novels I always assumed he was caught by the Night’s Watch and sent to Eddard for beheading. I suppose if he had gear he could have climbed the wall. He was a good climber. But in his state I don’ know if he could have made it. Another question now that i think of it. What’s with the ritualistic placement of the bodies? I tried to think of a symbol it might represent but couldn’t think of any.
The only disappointment I had was that we missed the opening credits. I was rreally hoping for a themesong. Other than that I have no qualms whatsoever.
Lord Ned’s HeadQuote Reply
Omg Gared! That was awesome! I cannot wait two more weeks!!!! I like the fast pace of it as well :D
I wasn’t so sure about the Others, but now that I have seen it, I think its amazing! Little girl was creeeeeepy!
Tre SvatekQuote Reply
Oh this is awful!! So, so so unfair! Like seeing a delicious fresh cooked lemoncake, smelling the delicious lemoncake, yet being told you need to wait two weeks to eat it. how awful.
The White Walkers are amazingly scary! I am assuming they didn’t kill Will because they wanted him to run south and ‘bring the message’? That was the feeling I got from the very arrogant stance of the White Walker who sliced off the other guy’s head so dramatically, then threw it at Will’s feet, and just looked at him. It was like a challenge, like they wanted to send the message to those ‘hiding’ behind the Wall. and wow, the wilding girl when she was reanimated was creepy. The stuff of nightmares. No preview for my daughter, unfortunately. Definitely too much scary stuff.
The only thing that worries me now is that someone just tuning in might think they are going to see White Walkers and zombie-like action every week, when really you aren’t going to see them at all for a few more years.. D’oh!
And from my POV, I’ve watched too much behind the scenes shots, I knew probably 13 of the 15 minutes already. It just wasn’t enough! But beautifully done, very professional, all the actors are spot-on, it felt very very real.
purplejillyQuote Reply
Must… resist… for 14… more… days!
LexQuote Reply
I’m trying to be fair in my assessment, but it’s hard. Interesting that a lot of the leaked pilot script was changed.
Alright, I found one misgiving: no footballing of a severed head by Theon.
Fire And BloodQuote Reply
The only thing that bothered me in the prologue were the dismemberd bodys.
In the books the dead wildlings just stand up and walk away but in this version it’s not really clear what happens.
Other than that it looks amazing.
LukiQuote Reply
Who Is Jacopo Belbo?,
Have you tried pausing the video and waiting for it to cache? When my connection is being lame I’ll often load up a video, pause it, bugger off for a cuppa and come back to see it fully loaded and ready to watch uninterrupted.
GaRQuote Reply
Winter, did you get to see a title sequence? If so, without giving away anything, do you think we’ll like it?
Lord Ned’s HeadQuote Reply
I like the preview. But I think that the white walkers appereance could have been a little bit more … I think subtle is the word :D But on the other side … it’s a good start, yeah.
GotiQuote Reply
I liked the music! It wasn’t distracting at all, unlike in some of the more recent previews we’ve seen. Much more subtle, helping to pull us along with each scene. As it should be.
Fire And BloodQuote Reply
The prologue was PERFECT. I set myself up to be slightly disappointed because for some reason I was sure they wouldn’t feature the wights at all, but then I saw the girl… Creppy as shit and in a visual medium I’d say it’s just as effective as Waymar coming back as one. The Others were fucking awesome although they’re a little not white for “white” walkers.
NickQuote Reply
I approve, so jazzed
thotkQuote Reply
For those having problems with HBO’s Flash Player, right click, go to Settings and then to the local storage (third) tab. Adjust this to your comfort-zone to allow the videos to buffer more… which means it can load more the video rather than rebuffering every 2 seconds. :D
HMZQuote Reply
Winter Is Coming,
The Others were amazing. In the books, they’re described as having voices that sound like cracking ice. This is one of those details that reads very well on paper, but can just turn silly when translated. Not so here. That’s exactly what they sounded like, and it was chilling. Incredible.
youandwhosearmyQuote Reply
While watching this, I was constantly saying in my head: “don’t end, don’t end. Don’t ever end”
And then it did. And now I have to wait two weeks.
JoohnsonQuote Reply
Loved it!
Loved it!
Loved it!
I couldn’t ask for anything more. The scene where they ride up to Winterfell, and it says “Winterfell” on the bottom left hand corner of the screen just made me smile soooo wide.
Also…..
That was the BEST TRAILER YET at the end. They could skip all the beheading stuff and the prologue and kinda show you the rest of the places and characters that are in the show. It was the perfect icing on the cake, to whet the appetite.
The DarkStarQuote Reply
GaR,
the hbo player doesn’t seem to work like that or my connection is totally slow or something. you can’t really tell on the hbo player how much is loaded (vs watched) like you can on youtube (the loaded is light red and when you watch it turns dark red).
i paused it for like 10 minutes and came back and it played for about 30 seconds and then it needed to cache/load again and now it plays about 5 seconds at a time. it is sooooooooooo damn frustrating. i’d rather just download it with real downloader and watch it uninterrupted.
but unfortunately i need it on youtube (or a torrent) to do that. grrrrrrrr, want to share nerdgasmic joy with others …. pooop!
Who Is Jacopo Belbo?Quote Reply
Please tell me I’m not the only one trying not to watch this…
I need a support group! :)
LexQuote Reply
I always seem to put all this effort into a dying thread right before a new one is posted. Blast! My timing is the worst, I swear.
Anyway. The Castle Winterfell scenes were my favorite. The casting of the Stark kids, Jon/Robb/Bran/Arya etc. Loved their believable familial chemistry.
Not crazy about the Others (would have preferred an approach more able to display their supposed intelligence than the frenzy we were given). Though I can live with it, and the other flaws, considering everything you got right.
Thanks, HBO, for giving this huge epic a shot.
ZackQuote Reply
Am i the only one who found the whole thing odd? I love the books, but it’s an odd way to preview the show: really you see none of the political intrigue and such that will appeal to the non-typical-fantasy watcher.
I’m not sure how you could have previewed that; I suspect the only way to do that would be by skipping scenes here and there. But that would’ve been more effective.
garik16Quote Reply
my question about the others is are people going to confuse them with the wights. In the books they look so different you do not confuse them but…
Jason WQuote Reply
Give in Lex, you know you want to.
GrimtuesdayQuote Reply
Lex,
You are ALL ALONE. Cave, grasshopper!
:-D
InkasrainQuote Reply
I agree about the credits. Severely disappointing I didn’t get to see them. That was the whole reason I watched that preview!
Eric JonesQuote Reply
Lex,
I’m with you! But I’ll probably cave by tomorrow afternoon…
ariQuote Reply
Also notice that you can hear the Others speaking around the three Night’s Watch long before they actually show up. They’re clearly watching them from the beginning.
youandwhosearmyQuote Reply
DARN!! cant make the website of MGOT to work here at work.
waiting for someone to upload a youtube vid. you have my thanks in advance!!!!
CroccifixioQuote Reply
Hey what is Gared picking up before Waymar gets killed? Is it a rag or is it a ragged piece of flesh?
ECUdanQuote Reply
Hmm, I dunno. I’m literally left without thought. WTH did I just watch, it was kinda like GOT.
NicoleQuote Reply
Lord Ned’s Head, yeah, the title sequence is pretty cool. It shows a map of Westeros, flying from King’s Landing to Winterfell to the Wall and then over to the Dothraki Sea. The map is all in like a blocky sort of 3D. Think Minecraft. And the title theme music is really awesome and epic.
Btw, a few people were asking and the credits go like this:
Sean Bean
Mark Addy
Nikolaj Coster-Waldau
Michelle Fairley
Lena Headey
Emilia Clarke
Iain Glen
Aidan Gillen
Haryy Lloyd, Kit Harington
Sophie Turner, Maisie Williams
Isaac Hempstead-Wright, Richard Madden, Jack Gleeson
and Peter Dinklage
Winter Is ComingQuote Reply
I think this is much more attention grabbing, than people politically scheming. Probably why George opened up with it as well. The prologue lets you know, this is not your typical fantasy, people are going to die.
The DarkStarQuote Reply
Damn, fifteen minutes never seemed so short
Fedja PejovicQuote Reply
ECUdan,
I got entrails myself.
Lord Ned’s HeadQuote Reply
Lord Ned’s Head,
If you notice, the symbol made by the Others in the snow is the same as the O in the series logo. My guess it is a territorial mark or a message, like the “Others are coming, bitch”, run to mum.
Anyway, that is the fastest 14 minutes ever put on screen, at least to me. Now have to wait 2 weeks for the remaining 77 percent.
I guess the Walkers let Will go so he could tell everyone, We’re Here!
TysnowQuote Reply
that wasn’t a way to preview the show. it was the first 15 minutes of the show.
Lex,
lex, you know you can’t last 14 days. Just give in now ;)
Elena AmiciQuote Reply
That was never 14 minutes! :D Ha … passed by so quickly, I was thouroughly transported to Westeros. Great!
Now I should go back to sleep, let’s see if I even can.
Hear Me RoarQuote Reply
ummmm…..
…..
…..
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
RocksteadyQuote Reply
I don’t think I’ve ever been so simultaneously terrified and excited to watch a tv show. That said, I was pleasantly surprised. I still can’t say I completely understand the changes made to the prologue. I rather like how it is in the book, but overall it did set the right tone for the most part. Still not sure about the others/white walkers or the dismembered bodies, but I’ll get over it.
I did however totally enjoy the Stark intro scene, especially the Arya part! And yes, Ned’s “winter is coming” line was chilling and perfect.
I was going to try and resist watching this, but ultimately I knew I wouldn’t be able to. The two week wait now is going to be brutal.
Jen SnowQuote Reply
what kind of order is this? o.O
i missed theon kicking the head
Elena AmiciQuote Reply
Just gotta say, I pointed that out weeks ago. No one really commented, though.
LexQuote Reply
I must completely ditto…
My observations! Love the Walker’s weaponry, beautiful, also nice blow Ned ICE looks sweet
The prologe was actually pretty scary I was impressed the only thing I miss from this is thewhite’s sword shattering the steel blade, but all really awesome and I’m now on the edge of my seat waiting for the season to begin
thotkQuote Reply
garik16,
I’m worried it will be odd to people who haven’t read the book, because like I said we see the White Walkers now, and then they’re gone for the rest of the season. It may not give an accurate portrayal of the future eps, ya know. if i hadn’t read the books I’d think this was going to be a zombie apocaplyse show..
purplejillyQuote Reply
Tysnow,
Good catch, but as to the reason, it would be wierd to place them like that and then just remove them. White Walkers, Zombies, or whatever lese, those body parts aren’t getting up and walking away by themesleves.
Also, thinking about the white walkers, I too thought the name was odd at first in relation to their appearance, but thinking about it, perhaps their name refers to the fact that they come when the cold does. As in “we walk when the world is white”. Buy it?
Lord Ned’s HeadQuote Reply
I think it’s 50/50 whether I’ll give in…tonight!
LexQuote Reply
Couldn’t help but smile seeing the story I’ve read over and over up on the screen in GLORIOUS HD. My God did that look good.
Not disappointed with any changes at all, I’ll enjoy the show for what it is. And what it is looks soooooo good so far. Like many others here, I can’t believe that was 14 minutes.
*Edited to add* Chills when I heard “Winter is Coming”? Most definitely.
MikeQuote Reply
I wish this worked, but it doesn’t. I’ve always had trouble with HBO’s flash player. It’s not my connection or my specs, either; I can play high resolution Vimeo and YT links just fine. :(
I’d be very thankful to anyone who gets this up on YouTube.
NousWandererQuote Reply
The white walkers were awesome! I don’t really care that they didn’t look much like they are described. The prologue was really creepy and gory – like a good horrormovie.
The rest was really good, but i’ve sort of seen it already what with all the previews. I REALLY wanted to see just a little bit more. And ofcourse, the intro.
sjweningsQuote Reply
You are my hero! Worked like a charm, and the preview was amazing!
Dave NeumannQuote Reply
A bit sad that we didn’t get Theon kicking the head (one of the things that gives a bit of early character to him, since he’s very minor in book 1), but something tells me they’ve added more to Theon’s story so that we get to see his character. I can also see why they cut it, though.
Nigel BradleyQuote Reply
I hope I’m not the only one who finds it funny (although probably not intentional) that the first thing we get to watch in the show is a gate :)
Awesome stuff.
burthQuote Reply
I liked it and am excited about the show i only have one strange complaint, why did only Santa and Catlyn have auburn hair? shouldn’t Bran also? this seems like a small detail but it bugs me because it to me is one of the big things about the arya jon bond that they look much more like starks than tully’s and a large part of it is the hair, this is not a huge point it is just seemingly an easy thing to keep to the books storyline. am i the only one who was surprised/annoyed a little by this?
DeadAngelQuote Reply
Amazing!
Loved the ominous tone beyond the Wall. I was initially afraid the Others would be quite CGI heavy after the first glimpse we got some weeks ago, but my fears are gone. I really liked the little girl Other, which reminded me of the Walking Dead pilot intro scene. The prologue could have turned out quite cheesy but they did quite a good job avoiding that pitfall overall; the only cheesy aspect was the guy standing there as he got beheaded by the Other.
The Winterfell scene was great as well. I loved how it gave us glimpses of all the entire Stark family while clearly being focused on Bran. His first POV revolves around the beheading being a part of him growing up, and this is illustrated quite effectively in a short amount of time. From Catelyn’s motherly concern to his older brothers helping him with the process.
And oh! Arya had no lines yet had one of the best scenes in the preview! Hilarious
More Rice CooksQuote Reply
OK, I’ll admit it, I squealed like a little girl as soon as we got the first shot. I don’t know how I’m going to handle the next two weeks. I must watch this at least once a day until the premiere!
Anyway, overall D&D have done a tremendous job (so far!) of translating my favorite series onto the small screen. If the show continues as is, we’ll be in for a real treat every week. Some thoughts:
The Others: Since I never had a clear impression of them in my head from the novels I welcomed the look we get here. They’re like slimmed-down, agile yetis with swords. And they’re SMART. Putting the corpses into some kind of symbolic shape, chasing Gared and Will and then letting Will live to “take the message” as someone earlier suggested. I think they’ve clearly been shown to be a real threat and it’s vital that they are shown to be such a threat as early as this. Well done!
The Stark Family Intro: I loved getting a non-book intro scene. We learn something about each of the family members without them even having to speak. The familial connection is established extremely well and I can’t wait to see more. Great acting so far
The Beheading: I do miss Theon kicking the head, but overall this was filmed very well. Loved the blood spurting out of Will’s neck (I’m sick, I know).
And then it ended! Way too fast, I need more STAT! I wanted my direwolves scene and the arrival of the royal family and Dany and Viserys’ intro and Tyrion in bed with Ros. In my head that was all included in the 15 minutes we were going to see but I’m not disappointed in the least with all the great footage we got tonight. Thanks again HBO!! :)
onionmeisterQuote Reply
Is there some definitive source that the “blue eyed creatures” are actually supposed to be The Others, or are they just the byproducts of them? Wights? Blue-eyed reanimated corpses = wights? No?
BrianQuote Reply
This.
The DarkStarQuote Reply
Rave review from the LaTimes:
Edit: hmm it wasn’t appearing so I’ll type it out.
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/sns-rt-review-us-televisiotre7322u3-20110403,0,4725405.story
SteveQuote Reply
My mind has been blow and I’m craving for more. Does that make me sound like a drug addict? haha Absolutely loved the Stark family scene and walking through the tunnel in Wall at the very beginning and just the entire prologue was absolutely amazing!! need… more…….
Siana P.Quote Reply
purplejilly,
I don’t think you have to worry. The prologue is designed to do two things. One, it grabs you. It draws you into the overall world and leaves you chilled and wanting more. Its the fisherman setting the hook. What follows is the struggle to reel the fish in. At times, you reel hard. At other times you have to let out a little line.
The other reason for the prologue is to let readers (viewers) know that there is more to Westeros than meets the eye. In fact, it might be more disturbing to some viewrs if there were no magical elements at first and then they just start showing up later. The historical drama crowd might feel jipped and get turned off if they don’t know about it right away. One of the things I loved about ASoIaF the first time I read it was that I kept asking myself “where’s the magic”. Knowing about it while waiting for it, makes the use of it much more effective.
Also, I don’t think its too much of a worry since its only about the first ten minutes or so. Viewers will get another 50 minutes to watch the rest of the storylines unfold and get an idea of the show from them.
Lord Ned’s HeadQuote Reply
Yeah, they’re the white walkers/others, Ran confirmed it the first time we got a look at them.
GrimtuesdayQuote Reply
Don’t like the visual design of the Others, and the score was pretty bad, but otherwise I’m pleased. This preview definitely misrepresents the show to non-fans, though. They’ll probably think it’s Lord of the Rings with a horror edge.
KeatonQuote Reply
Lex,
My computer can’t compare to my TV as far as quality goes, so I’m treating this like another trailer.
I liked everything I saw.
Prologue spoilers:
I too always expected the White Walkers to be white, so that they’re hard to distinguish from the snow. That said, this version was sufficiently creepy. In fact, their dark forms might blend with trees. Makes me want to watch again to see if perhaps there are some hidden White Walkers in some of the earlier shots.
Who knows, maybe they’re like arctic foxes and turn white when winter comes…
paulgudeQuote Reply
Just as I wrote in the other thread, I’m very pleased. The prologue was creepy, very creepy, and I’m not sure I noticed every single detail – especially the White Walker-Wight distinction, I think I had trouble telling them apart. But the rest was amazing, the performances were incredibly good and I simply can’t wait for the actual first episode.
Fabrizio MarcucciQuote Reply
Yeah, it sets up his personality well. It’s a shame they took it out. Maybe they couldn’t do it without it coming out comical.
KGQuote Reply
Wow
No way was that 14 mins ;) was totally expecting to get as as far as the Direwolf scene.
The prologue was a lot longer than I was expecting and the Introduction to the Starks was fantastic.
I was thinking the archery scene was going to be after the beheading but before the King arrives but of course it works much better before everything kicks off.
Need sleep now, will watch again in the morning.
MormegilQuote Reply
It ended far too soon! I can’t wait for the premiere!
Lauren Box HitchcockQuote Reply
WHA–
DID YOU–
That–!
THAT WAS AWESOOOOME! :)
So. Excited.
kerningQuote Reply
sjwenings,
While I would have loved to see more, what we gt really connected the dots for me. Some of the previously show clips seemed a little cliche and maybe a little (pardon the pun) stark. Now that we get to see the characters interacting a bit, it all comes to gether for me at least. Example: Ned’s Winter is coming line could be viewed as cheesy if that was all we got. But in the entirety of the scene it was spot on.
Lord Ned’s HeadQuote Reply
Wights are the blue-eyed reanimated corpses (zombies), White-walkers or The Others are the masters, the ones with powers, but also with blue eyes, they are the unknown and forgotten danger.
The fourteen were short, great and amazing!
IkertzekeQuote Reply
Elena Amici,
The cast is by contractual order:
Sean Bean is considered “the lead.” He appears first.
The other leads are in alpha order, from Addy to Headey.
The “regulars” begin (in alpha order) with Clarke and flow through Williams.
The guest stars/re-occuring folks are Hempstead-Wright (assuming IHW is listed by “H” not “W” in his last name), Madden and Gleeson.
“And Peter Dinklage” is a contractual “top” billing that avoids the before/after Bean by providing Dinklage’s name special visual notice—I assume, WiC, it was on the screen by itself.
Welcome to Hollywood.
DH87Quote Reply
This was beautiful to look at. I can’t wait until we start moving through what we all know is a very intriguing story. I don’t think I will have any problem compartmentalizing the show from the books. This preview has left me so excited for the rest of the season!
JasonQuote Reply
DeadAngel,
i guess they just picked up the best actors.
BTW, I think Kit Harrington is reaally good. he is the one i had doubts about, but i changed my mind now (expecially b/c he is the actor with most lines in the preview and now i have a clear idea about his acting)
Elena AmiciQuote Reply
Brian,
I haven’t heard from any official source, but having read the books and just watched the preview, I’d say:
The little girl with blue eyes is a wight, big dark thing with sword is a white walker. They seem pretty distinct to me.
paulgudeQuote Reply
Not sold on the walkers. They looked far too supernatural. It’s very hard for me to imagine anybody escaping from them. The looked more like creatures from horror movies.
And why did they leave Will alive? They don’t really care about “spreading the words” do they?
Sigh I know I would always like the book more and any change will keep me on edge. But I like the prologue apart from the details for The Others. It gave the same goosebumps I had when I read it for the first time.
I think I’ll pass the judgement later after 2-3 episodes.
JDQuote Reply
Will definitely didn’t escape, he was let go, to inspire fear most likely. they obviously like to invoke it or they wouldn’t have thrown the head at him just to watch him squirm.
I also believe a large part of the White Walker name, is associated with their ties to the winter/snow. More so than just their color.
feyrbandQuote Reply
Absolutely incredible! I can’t wait another two weeks!
David CQuote Reply
I thought it was too ‘zombies’ at first, but then I realized that viewers would /take note/ of those THINGS, and tune in again to see what happens to all those ‘people’. Then they quickly see that these people have NO IDEA how much danger they are in. They’re too busy trying to /destroy/ each other! So now there’s epic political intrigue combined with human drama and an impending, supernatural dread… hooked!
That’s how I read aGoT anyways :)
Franny BeeQuote Reply
Lex,
Then you get the credit and a kiss from the cute blue eyed Wight girlie.
TysnowQuote Reply
Loved it. I only found two issues:
The prologue ends in a way that will have viewers that HAVE NOT read the books questions “HOW THE HELL did that guy escape that creepy creatures wrath when everyone else was killed?”. Not even a scene of climbing up a tree to hide and escape or anything. Just sitting in the snow, seeing the Other then end scene.
They skipped the part where Theon kicks the head. Always enjoyed that part, set up his character pretty quickly in one sentence.
wolfheartQuote Reply
The scene with the Starks felt like a “deleted scene” from the novel. Considering what’s to come, it felt so nice to have more time with the Starks. I’ve always bemoaned how little time we had with them together!
I’ll also echo that the time went by so quickly – I thought we had 5 minutes left at least when it went to black!
AzurecobaltQuote Reply
That was so short! yet my rational part can’t imagine how they will cram all the other scenes there need to be in the 1st episode in just 45 minutes.
I don’t know yet if they did a good adaptadion but I’m confident that they did a great TV series. This was so fast-paced and action-packed and so immensely immersive… huuuh.
As for the nitpicking ;) side, there were things that made no sense, such as Will not leading his horse far away from the camp, if there were the Wildlings, he wouldn’t have lived as his horse whinned twice. Again, why the Other spared Will? Maybe it was intended as to keep us more interested in this race but it was confusing.
And the prologue scene felt a bit rushed as it was cut from a lot more material. Nevertheless, it was creepy as hell. And the way the preview ended… just chilling. Also, great Winterfell music theme & looks! (didn’t even pay any attention to the roofs ;)). And the first ‘Winter is coming’ line was sooooo gooood. Excellent show.
Black LionQuote Reply
If I have to give an early 14-minute only “best acting” nod, it’s Sean Bean. The first time we hear “Winter is coming” … and the look he gave Catelyn … it just sent a chill down my spine.
Michelle Fairley is a close second though. And there are more than a few close thirds.
Hell, I even liked Gared. And who likes Gared?
Fire And BloodQuote Reply
If I watch it 4 times, does that count as a full episode?
DaveBQuote Reply
paulgude,
Yeah, I agree. It all happened so fast the first time I watched it. Going back again, the last one definitely has the “ice sword” of the Others.
BrianQuote Reply
As far as Theon not kicking the head, I like the change. Yes, Theon kicking the head is totally in characters, but there are other characters around and I just cannot believe that Ned, who has his young son watching and holds the solemnity of “he who passes the sentence should swing the sword” so close to his heart, would abide his ward being so flippant about the execution.
We might not lose a chance to seesoem of Theon’s characters, but indirectly we get a much better view of Eddard with the omission.
Lord Ned’s HeadQuote Reply
There are no words!!
I can’t wait. SO AWESOME :)
kerningQuote Reply
I’m fairly amazed by the positive repsonses. I found it…lacking, disappointing, the special effects were cheesy, more changed than I would have thought and only 14 minutes in….
Hoping my opinion of it rises significantly with the remaining 45 minutes or so :)
RobQuote Reply
Meant to add to the cast listing:
Leads may change from year to year.
Guests can be promoted to regulars; regulars to leads, etc.
The categories of the players translate into screen time, money, or both.
All “leads” have the same screen time, and time they are on screen together counts for both players.
The seniority gives you a good sense of how much we will see each player, alone or together, over the course of the season (in minutes).
Anybody can be fired.
Spoiler tags are not visible so I’ll say no more.
DH87Quote Reply
Awesome 15 minutes that didn’t feel near as long.
I’ve been looking forward to this series in the same slightly deranged way that I looked forward to the Lord of the Rings films. It was a thrilling wait. But now it’s time for the real thing! :)
Herr FickQuote Reply
So I just watched this preview with 5 other people. Only myself and one other have read any of the books. Everyone was impressed by the look and the quality of the production… but not a single one of the non-readers was in any way hooked or even overly intrigued. They all felt it was more confusing than interesting. This preview really only offered us fans anything of value.
Obviously the ENTIRE first episode is going to explain who “those guys in black furry cloaks” are and all the other character groups in greater (any) detail… but I just hope I can convince the confused folks to give it a second chance.
Matt OQuote Reply
I think they probably omitted Theon’s head-kicking to counter any accusation of the violence being gratuitous.
JohnQuote Reply
My concern with Will is not that he escaped. Its how the hell did he get over the Wall?
Lord Ned’s HeadQuote Reply
He has ears! It’s all ruined!
InkasrainQuote Reply
Brian,
I get the impression that the creatures actually attacking were White Walkers, while our only glimpse of a wight was the little girl, but both share the blue eyes.
Steven SwansonQuote Reply
About to watch for the second time. So glad I recorded Mildred Pierce and got it on the DVR!
HollyoakQuote Reply
…Me. >.<
Gared is awesome, so aware of everything, trusting of his instincts and his experience, and yet fully in control when provoked.
ZackQuote Reply
Okay, overall, I loved it!
The scene in the forest made me jump. The sound effects were wonderful there, very creepy. Will did a nice job, Gared was terrific, and the white walker coming up from behind Gared scared me. Little girl very creepy!
I did think the body parts and severed heads looked a bit fake. And I’m not sure I liked leaving Will at the mercy of the WW on his knees, then we see him being chased by the Stark guards – my thought was also, “So how did he get away?” Seemed sort of disjointed. Loved the bits of them all going down in the cage and through the tunnels of the Wall – the Wall looks great! Beautifully filmed!
Really wish we’d gotten the credits…sigh!
The Starks family scene was lovely. Liked the camraderie of the boys, though I wish Robb had had a line or two more – surely we will see more of him in coming scenes. I just loved the gritty look to the interiors, in the girls’ sewing room,out in the yard, etc. I think the costume and setting folks nailed the Winterfell look BEAUTIFULLY. I think I will love Catelyn, and I think they’ve set her up to be better balanced than in the books. Lots of love toward Ned, and concern for her kids, but that look between she and Jon – perfect set up.
I liked the execution scene, though not sure why Will got so many lines like asking them to report back to his family, etc. Part of me thinks just seeing him gibbering like a frightened idiot would have worked as well. Overall a suitably grave scene, and not excessively gory for a beheading (though I’m sorry they cut Theon’s kick – that’s a good set-up to his character…).
The above are all very minor nitpicks – overall, I so so so so loved the sneak peek. At the end, I actually squeaked in excitement for all that is to come! But like many, I’m thinking, “Ten hours? How will they ever manage it all in ten hours!?” and so so so looking forward to seeing the whole first episode and subsequent ones!!!! I think everyone involved did a marvelous job and I am very very happy with how it looks onscreen. It is indeed a cut above most tv work. Kudos to the cinematographer and the writing staff. The “additional scenes” were seamless and could have come from the book, set up the characters succinctly and well.
My only small concern is the same one I had when READING the book. I am not a big fantasy fan, and after reading the prologue, I turned to my husband and said, “I don’t think this is my kind of book.” He said, “Give it another fifty pages. The prologue is NOT a very good representation of the main thrust of the story, it is actually very minor. Give it another few scenes and you’ll be hooked!” And I think that’s true. If I’d JUST seen the opening scene, I might think it was a horror flick type show and tune out. You really need to see the family (and some of the politics) to get the feel for it, so I think showing the snippet reel before and after the preview was important. Did everyone watching see those? They did not include them on the HBO website, but hearing Tywin talking about the importance of family, seeing Varys and Daenerys saying “You will not have my child!” all gave the viewer the sense that there was a LOT more going on past that spooky intro.
I’d give the preview an A – very little to quibble with. The show looks like it is going to be absolutely beautiful. I hope they can snag a large audience!
persephone88Quote Reply
Brian,
I can’t wait to see it on my TV. Between my dark screen (old computer) and some lag issues (slow internet) the effect is somewhat diminished.
paulgudeQuote Reply
Lord Ned’s Hand,
Isn’t that a question for GRRM, not the show? How does Gared get south of the Wall?
Lord BonesQuote Reply
Matt O,
I think that while the extra Stark scene doesn’t really establish much of who is whom to the new viewer, it does show the family in general as a loving close group of people. Instead of Eddard, Catelyn, Robb, Jon, Bran, Rickon, Sansa and Arya, we get the Lord, his wife, the short-haired older son, the greasy, curly-haired older son, the younger brother, the little brother, the older sister, and the younger tomboy sister. Aside from Sansa and Rickon, who aren’t really focused on much at all, I think its pretty easy to see that they are a family.
The other stuff like the who are the Night’s Watch will get filled in soon enough. I kind of like the ambiguity at this point. In the novel we knew the trio were of something called the Night’s Watch, but we don’t really learn much about them until we see Benjen at the feast.
Lord Ned’s HeadQuote Reply
That´s easy, he went back to castle black totally zombie:
-I saw the white walkers, I saw the white walkers, I saw the white walkers, I saw the white walkers, I saw the white walkers, I saw the white walkers, I saw the white walkers, I saw the white walkers.
In the morning, he escaped.
EASY!
IkertzekeQuote Reply
While I don’t mind the rewriting of the prologue so much and thought it was ok, it would have been better if they had included
-The others’ chill as a forewarning
-The sword shattering (although probably FX heavy)
-The “omg my friend is a wight” moment
I’m also not sure about the severed limbs disappearing and the letting will go part. I think it would have been better if he had found gared or royce standing there with their back turned and run up to them only to find out they’re a wight, then cut off their hand and run or something. The whole “come at me bro” feel of the last scene is just a little unsubtle and sort of spoils the atmosphere.
But I’m not D&D, so whatever
VellyrQuote Reply
I think one thing that will be a huge help is that Camelot is a huge steaming pile of shit. Terrible and terrible. GoT’s 14 minutes so far have like a whole seasons worth from that shit. Hahahahaha How in gods name is Starz in business making shows still. GoT for lyfe gangsta
hihihiQuote Reply
I wondered that, too, but I suppose he went back through the gate in the wall (perhaps with the horses), then just kept on going south. Someone at the Night’s Watch must have known that he was still alive and didn’t die or get carried off by the Others.
RhoswenQuote Reply
Lord Bones,
Though its not mentioned in the novel, I’ve always assumed Gared was apprehended by a ranging on the other side of the Wall and then sent to Winterfell for execution. Seeing Will get ridden down by Stark bannermen made me wonder how he got there.
Lord Ned’s HeadQuote Reply
I missed Theon kicking poor Will’s head like other did, but even in the books, I wondered why Ned allowed him to do that. Watching Ned ignore Theon’s actions onscreen might have implied more about Ned than the cranial-soccer/football does about Theon, and it might just not have been worth the time to invest in a rebuke or what have you when there are still major characters that need to be introduced ahead of the Greyjoy seaslug.
(Maybe I’m fanwanking a bit too much here, but I was so thrilled by the Stark family-ness of this excerpt that I bloody well refuse to let anything get me down about it!)
InkasrainQuote Reply
I want this series to smash all sub/viewing records and do a clean sweep of the awards.
That should get us to season 3 at least.
Once we get to season 3, you know we going all the way baby ;)
Thank you David and Dan and Co
AlcibiadesQuote Reply
But when Royce’s ranging party is mentioned later in the novel they describe the Night’s Watch getting Gared’s head from Winterfell (I think in Mormont’s conversation with Tyrion), and that’s all they know about what happened, so he must have made it south of the wall on his own. But he was a cagey old bastard, I’m sure he had his ways.
Steven SwansonQuote Reply
reading everyone’s reaction is soo great … I knew that there would be fellow fans who could equate what I feel into words a lotter better than I could …. the only words that come to mind right now is those famous words from Oliver Twist, “Please sir, may I have some more!”
Marilyn BonesQuote Reply
Pause it at 7:30
Wight is beheading, Other is viewable in the background? I think?
Or did the one in the background have blue eyes as well just after that?
CZQuote Reply
…
…
…
I guess I just jizzled my pants
DekarQuote Reply
Lord Ned’s Head,
I see no reason for the Watch to send their deserters to Winterfell for justice. Presumably they have axes on the Wall.
That aside, in the book Gared was executed at the village where he was caught.
GaRQuote Reply
You know, I always assumed that as well, but thinking about it now–if the Night’s Watch caught him, would they have sent him to Winterfell for execution, given that the NW is not supposed to be tied to any lord and pretty much runs its own show? I know they are in the North, and Ned is Lord of the North, but it seems like they would have issued their own punishment had they caught him. Purely speculating, here, however–it’s been awhile since I read the book.
BethQuote Reply
Anyone else notice they fixed Ned’s speech? He actually says “of house Stark” instead of “house stork”
Avalanche3319Quote Reply
….no. No. NO! It can’t stop there! Dammit! Bugger it all, I’ve been letting it buffer for the past hour in anticipation, and it’s just…over.
Crap crap crap. It’s going to be a loooooong two weeks.
ThomasQuote Reply
Beth,
That and they’re about 1000 miles apart.
NickQuote Reply
WHYYYYY?
Only a few minutes longer, and we would have gotten to the wolf pups!!!
WHYYYYY?!?!?!
Michael JarantillaQuote Reply
My sister (non-reader, who will watch the whole series with me) did the same thing, it scared the s**t out of her!
MetalgoddessAMBQuote Reply
Okay, even watching that off the MGoT’s site with my dodgy connection and the skipping video, THAT WAS F*CKING AWESOME.
A seriously quality program. There are not words.
Steve Hugh WestenraQuote Reply
Shortest fourteen minutes EVAR — followed by the longest two weeks.
I enjoyed all I saw. While I agree the acting was fine all around and Sean Bean, Michelle Fairley and Kit Harrington were strong – I think the “winner” goes to Maisie-Williams as Arya.
After all: she completely established her character without speaking a single word.
The girl’s got talent to burn.
Steel_WindQuote Reply
Lex, I was with you but cracked quickly. Did watch the first hour of The Killing first (which is excellent BTW), but then my resolve crumbled.
As for the prologue itself: loved it. I agree it could have used an extra 30 seconds to show how Will escaped, but still. As Stanley Kubrick taught us all some time ago, creepy little girls are key to the scariest movie scenes. The producers learned that lesson well.
And I agree that the scene at Winterfell was wonderful. They did a great deal of storytelling with very little dialogue.
Maxwell JamesQuote Reply
The Others are not white enough,
Gared has ears,
the changes are weird,
Theon doesn’t kick the h-…
Ah, who cares? :) It looked fracking amazing and I want the rest of it ASAP!
The music was great, the atmosphere of the prologue was chilling and who doesn’t like cute dismembered and zombified little girls?
Final verdict – perfect. Now how do I fast forward time to April 17th?
Alexander DubrovskyQuote Reply
Note: they changed the Prologue very subtly in the online version vs. the broadcast version.
Online, Will sees the wight girl with the blue eyes and runs. As broadcast, he is already on his knees with Gared’s head before him — he *then* sees the wight girl and we see him whimper and it fades to black.
That was the only change and it’s no biggie. Still — not quite the same in terms of editing. I attribute this to the fact that they weren’t *quite* finished with all this yet. They are still playing with it in the editing room.
Steel_WindQuote Reply
Lord Ned’s Head,
LNH… saying all that still doesn’t change that the preview is not gripping and the entire prologue bit is simply confusing for folks who haven’t read the books. And nobody cares if the Starks look like a caring family… that entire segment just isn’t exciting or enticing in any way.
I’d bet that HBO releases something a little more exciting, alluring and less confusing.
Persephone88′s description of her reaction when she first read the prologue is EXACTLY the reaction that my co-viewers had to this preview – a slightly distrusting “meh, I dunno…” and my reaction to them was very much like her husbands… “Give the entire first episode a chance, it will impress you”
Matt OQuote Reply
i could see this, or one of the other many abandoned castles along the wall he could’ve found a way through. or there’s the caves. you have wildlings and direwolves both coming south, will/gared can too.
feyrbandQuote Reply
To all wondering how Gared/Will got south of the Wall:
The same way as Osha, Stiv and other wildlings get there, so probably through the sea near Shadow Tower or Eastwatch-by-the-Sea or just using some facilities of now unmanned NW’s castles. I always got the feeling that the Wall is intended to magically keep Others at bay and wildlings were just secondary goal, so it wouldn’t be impossible to get south of it being one of the human race.
Black LionQuote Reply
I loved Arya! She was the best part of this to me.
Just loved the whole dang thing – big, giant props to D&D!!!
EdQuote Reply
I am not sure why anyone is all that put off by Will getting away like that and being caught by Stark guardsmen.
Think about it, in the book Gared gets away and somehow gets past the wall. Same thing happens in the preview, only the characters are switched. So anyone confused about this would have to be confused at the book too. One way or the other the dude gets away even though he could/should have been killed.
As to the other oft repeated issue thus far, they are Nightswatchmen, they know the way and they know the area, of course they could find a way past if need be. This too happened in the book, why are people so confounded?
ECUdanQuote Reply
Have mercy guys, youtube please :(((((((.
TastesLikeTheSeaQuote Reply
I do have one minor gripe…. the sort of thing that is generally followed by similar “issues” which sometimes snowball into a larger mass of stink…
Where is the Night Watch’s breath? Seriously, even leaving out the intense freezing that is supposed to precede the white walkers… it’s supposed to be FRICKING COLD above the wall… and yet we don’t even see their breath. Pretty weak continuity point to cheap out on… hopefully they fix it considering the amount of time this series is going to spend in “winter”.
Matt OQuote Reply
Yeah, its a long as treck on foot from the Wall to Winterfell. A lot of time had to have passed. Also a lot of time to look for places to hide instead of in the open hilly fields near winterfell, knowing his life would be forfeit. Bad scripting.
Being caught by his brothers on a ranging trying to escape would have sufficed. Oh hell having Will being run down by men on horse while he was on horse would have worked even better.
WolfheartQuote Reply
Steel_Wind,
I think you’re confused. I don’t remember the TV version being any different from the Internet version. Do you have the TV version recorded?
SergioCQHQuote Reply
OMG this is so amazing! Guys, this is really happening! A dream come true! What is amazing about this 15 minute preview is that even though I knew what was going to happen, having read the books, I still felt like this was completely new!
People will love it.
Mattia ZarulliQuote Reply
I don’t consider myself a purist, but I hated the changes to the Others. Hacking their victims up and arranging them in a pattern? Beheading Gared and tossing it at Will, and then letting him flee? It all just seems out of character for the Others… but maybe that’s just me since we really don’t know THAT much about the Others even through 4 books.
Those complaints aside, I loved the rest of it and can’t wait for the 17th! Everything about the Starks’ scene felt PERFECT.
MikeFromBraavosQuote Reply
The first five minutes I watched before it crashed were good, but I want the rest…
Zafri MollonQuote Reply
Another thing – the butchered wildlings scene looks a Cannibal Corpse album cover. :)
Alexander DubrovskyQuote Reply
seriously. going on two hours and no youtube yet?
Who Is Jacopo Belbo?Quote Reply
I have to admit that this is indeed a proplem…
Somebody has to came up with a resolution for that, because I have to go to sleep and know I can`t! :-D
AbyssQuote Reply
Same here. An almost visceral reaction when he says those words. In spite of little things which we can’t help but notice, as fans, the whole feel of the thing is wonderful.
Yes, little changes are going to be noticable to us, such as Will vs. Gared as the deserter and the rest. However, remember that if we hope for this series to be a success, then it will be many who have not read the books who will be drawn into this story. The prologue serves the purpose of setting the scene as somewhere not here, sometime not historical. Nothing particularly otherworldly happens in the first season aside from the prologue until the very end of season one. For that reason, I think the opening scenes are vitally important to set the stage so that people don’t get wrapped up in thinking it is all just a costume drama. We want people to be drawn in and hooked. And then, perhaps, they’ll be encouraged to go read the books and discover a new depth which the series can’t really show.
LangkardQuote Reply
14 minutes have never passed so quickly, more like 1.4 minutes
good to see i was quick to judge on the white walkers, i actually love them and am sad we won’t see more of them…
FishQuote Reply
I posted my response to this on my livejournal. I apologize for any… interesting language choices, I wasn’t in a coherent frame of mind while I wrote this. I wrote it while watching the video, after all…
http://millymeggy.livejournal.com/1178.html
Katrina BrooksQuote Reply
For those having difficulty watching it, try turning off your firewalls. After I did that, it played through completely with no trouble. Don’t forget to turn the firewall back on afterwards. :)
LangkardQuote Reply
Breath works differently in Westeros, it’s part of the fantasy.
I’m really glad I wasn’t paying attention to the visibility of breath while watching….
Steven SwansonQuote Reply
Lord Bones,
Maybe the Other spirited him over the wall some way – or since we saw them ride through that gate in the bottom of the Wall as the scene started, Will ran back to the Wall and just went through that Gate, came out on the south side and kept going.
In a perfect world, there should have been something there to tie or show Will getting away, because it’s a bit disconcerting that Will is sitting there on his knees, terrified of the Other that just tossed his brother’s head at him, and then Will is what, hundreds of miles away, dashing across Stark fields, with 15 Stark guards chasing him down? Like how would people even know that there was a ‘deserter’ in the area? the other two are dead, if anyone had found the two dead ones over on the other side, they assume the third one ‘got away’ instead of is also dead somewhere else?
And does anyone really care so much about a Night’s Watch deserter that they are going to send a squadron of men out to look for this deserter? But this is nit picking on my part that d0es no good, lol. It just was a strange transition, from cowering before the Other to running from the Stark Guards across the wheat fields.
In a perfect world, it needed something a bit more to transition it.
I’m glad they took out Theon kicking the head – I think it would have looked too comical, and would have broken the serious vibe of the scene. You’ve got Ned being all serious with bran about how if you pass the sentence, you must have the courage and dignity to swing the sword, and then if Theon was footballing the head it just would have been awful.
purplejillyQuote Reply
*nod*
If they had changed it to Will escaping on horseback through the haunted wood toward the wall, after being near killed by an Other, instead of kneeling in the snow staring at a Other. It would have been a far better ending to the prologue. It would have subtly explained how he survived and then escaped the watch to head south,. And even possibly even still with a horse, to be captured by Stark Men on horse.
WolfheartQuote Reply
I saw the preview and I gotta say.. it needs more cowbell. I gotta have more cowbell.
DaveyQuote Reply
purplejilly,
I think someone would have noticed if he’d gone back through the gate at Castle Black…
GaRQuote Reply
Abyss,
Steven Swanson,
:-D Ok, I guess I can go with that. Maybe it´s not perfect but the show will be (yah, that´s right, perfection lays in the beauty of the blemish) and that´s why can sleep now, thanks Steven. ;-)
AbyssQuote Reply
I’ll say this here but I don’t know why. I’m sure it won’t change things.
Books are not movies.
They are completely different mediums.
I remember the first time I saw Fellowship of the Ring. It seemed like Frodo was off on his quest within fifteen minutes of the film. WTF? I thought, but after calming down, and just rolling with it, I realized that changes had to be made. A series or movie just can’t fit everything in. It HAS to be condensed and keep forward momentum going. Let’s just all try to remember that. I always saw the Others like the Black Riders/Nazgul from Tolkien, but, well, white, more like ghosts. So in GoT they look like the Predator or some kind of weird black He-Man shapes. It’s okay with me. What matters is that the viewer finds them creepy. That’s what the book does. You have to get the tone and feeling across and that is what is most important. Not whether Theon kicks a decapitated head…
Sorry, I could go on but I will spare everyone from boredom.
HollyoakQuote Reply
The Others/Wight were definitely creepy enough, even though nothing like I had imagined them. It seems they are giving the WW’s some motivation/behavior that I do not remember from the books – perhaps the writers are privy to some information about the Others that we are not?
All in all, my final reaction: too f*kng short! Gimme moar!
JWestfallQuote Reply
Two weeks is way too long to wait for this. The preview was amazing!
LaurenQuote Reply
It was perfect.
What I liked most is that if you wrote a summary of each scene, it’s identical to a summary of the books.
“Three black brothers are out stalking wildlings when they learn to their surprise the wildlings are dead. The insolent commander doesn’t put full faith in the report of the POV character, so they go to investigate and are attacked and slaughtened by the Others.”
Identical summary … but the actual specific events are pretty much completely different. I just reread the prologue the other day. Things play out almost entirely differently in this version … and I liked it that way! That’s what I think an adaptation should be.
Identical summary with all the major beats being hit, but all the details have been juggled around. If I wanted to see something identical to the books, I’d read the books. Words are a better medium in my opinion, anyway. What I WANT from the series is this different version and fresh vision looking at it from different eyes and a different perspective. That’s what I want out of the series. Something faithful, but not identical. Something that captures the full spirit of ASOIAF, but gives me something completely new at the same time.
I’ve never been more optimistic.
RoseQuote Reply
RE Will/Gared getting south of the wall: In the books it is stated that they catch wildlings who’ve made it south of the wall. The wall is not perfectly impregnable. There are mountain passes and rivers around it to the west and a sea to the east. If wildings can foil the wall on a small scale, then a seasoned ranger or a talented woodsman could conceivably escape the notice of the depleted NW.
RE White Walkers aren’t white: I’m not so sure they aren’t white. If you frame-by-frame Gared’s beheading (funny that even when Gared doesn’t get beheaded…he still gets beheaded. :) ) You can see several figures in the background backlit by the snow. They appear to have a light tint to their skin/armor, and I’m pretty sure they are white walkers as they appear to be noseless. (Almost look like Predators, actually.) Also the WW that kills Ser Royce is out of focus and intentionally shadowed. If you frame-by-frame the closeup of his face, it has some white reflective tones. Though I’m not sure what the point of this debate is a we won’t see the WW’s again until the Fist of the First Men. It won’t even be resolved then as that battle is entirely at night.
Personal story time! My wife HATES sci-fi/fantasy/horror genres and has been putting up with my GoT obsession with a barely concealed annoyance. While watching the preview, she was creeped out by the prologue but still interested. During Arya’s scene, she said, “She looks like she wants to stab her sister with that needle. That is her sister, right?” I damn near shat myself. After the preview was over, she shocked me even more by picking up the book from the coffee table and beginning to read the prologue. Is it a bad sign that I’ve been begging her for years to read it to no avail, and it only took 15 seconds of Maise Williams screentime to get her to begin reading?
zep243Quote Reply
I want more!
The RabbitQuote Reply
Can’t view it, wants registration.
please youtube
edit: hm, nvm, they fixed it apparently
ablaaaQuote Reply
I’ve managed to watch this once, in bits and pieces, due to HBO’s absolutely crap video player. Is it really so hard to code something that buffers the whole object in one go?
Anyway, my reaction is extremely positive. The introductions to each volume of the series are always the hardest parts for me to tolerate, and I’ve had to convince more than one person that GoT picks up after the intro beyond the wall. HBO took what was, honestly, an incredibly dull and dry bit of writing and turned it into something suspenseful and engaging, without compromising the feel. It was slow and foreboding and coldly beautiful and, well, stark.
Speaking of which, the new Stark intro accomplishes something really important–it allows us to meet Ned on more casual, human terms than we do in the book. Introducing him via the execution and from Bran’s perspective makes him a bit of a demigod, an impersonal being made entirely of honor and duty and grim sayings. I took a long time to warm up to Ned in the book, which was not cool when I knew he was supposed to be a sympathetic protagonist. To see him interact first with his household is a welcome change for me. And the way Bean plays him is just magnificent. When Ser Rodrik tells him about the guards bringing in a deserter, and this awful weight settles on his shoulders, I wanted to cry.
I can’t wait for a YouTube version or torrent so I can watch this many, many more times.
saellysQuote Reply
I think HBO made a tactical error in showing this as a stand-alone preview. It’s great fanservice, but a lot of new watchers are going to judge whether or not to watch the show on the strength of that clip. And while the clip was strong, it hardly leaves the people desperate for more. The strength of the pilot is that, for a VERY backstory- and character-intensive show, it does a lot of the tedious slogging of setting things up, then ends with a huge bang (we all know the scene that ends the pilot…) which will want to make people come back next week – at which point, the background work will mostly be done with and we can get caught up in the story. But this is a lot of background, with no big payoff. And the entire White Walkers sequence, while cool, wasn’t particularly special. It was capable, but not fantastic, horror movie fare.
Bottom line: The pilot itself will end with a scene that will want to make people come back for a second helping. This preview did not do that. It’s always best to end a first-look at something with a scene that will leave people desperate for a second look. So while this preview was great for building fan-buzz, it might hurt viewership in the long run.
Strong BelwasQuote Reply
I only watched the prologue, didn’t like that one too much. The Other kinda looked like a “predator”
I’m not gonna watch the rest, I’ll wait for the first episode.
SteveQuote Reply
I have no complaints. :)
The things people are pointing out as things that bothered them, I didn’t even notice.
As everyone else has said, it went by way too fast.
I’m not worried at all about not being able to enjoy the show as much because of changes from the books. This looks like it’s going to be great on its own merit, and I’m going to love it. Thank you, D&D, for all your hard work. Based on this, I’d say it absolutely paid off. Lovely, lovely stuff.
KangaQuote Reply
That was sweeeet!! Need more GoT!!
Pitch perfect. really. wow. They really nailed it.
I didn’t think the prologue + beheading would take so long. Kind of disappointed we haven’t seen the opening titles.
Amir MishaliQuote Reply
This preview had me at “Do the dead frighten you?” Love hearing lines from the book delivered by good actors. The new Waymar Royce was great but wouldn’t it have been awesome if they managed to get the original Royce. Then people tuning in would be like, ‘look, there’s King Arthur… wait, they just killed King Arthur in the first five minutes!’
Love the little details, such as Gared’s reaction to Royce. You can get all that back story from the book with just a simple ‘Hurumf!’ Also the way Will dropped down to spy on the Wildling camp, just like a cautious poacher/ranger would do. Of course black is probably the worst camouflage in snow.
The main difference between this and Camelot is that all the characters feel real, unlike Camelot where all the characters feel like caricatures.
mcguffin1899Quote Reply
ugghhh… the others and the wights look the same. people are gonna get confused. what’s up with little girls and horror these days? such a cheap tactic to freak people out.
robQuote Reply
well the horses all took off, but you’d also have to explain how he was able to outrun then when it’s pretty clear they’re too badass to let them get away unless they intend it.
feyrbandQuote Reply
I cannot wait. This is going to be so great! I can only imagine how bad its going to be once the actual season starts and the cliff hangers keep hitting us. Even though we all know whats going to happen its so hard not to get wrapped up in it. I’m hooked already.
Brett MogilskiQuote Reply
i agree with you about the little girls (thanks, the ring, i hated that movie and still can’t get away from it) but i think the Other’s are the grey mummy/ghoulish looking ones,.then the little girl for instance, was a wight.
feyrbandQuote Reply
Two weeks is too long! This preview has whet my appetite and I can’t wait!
Wyatt DornQuote Reply
Now that it’s had time to sink in properly and I can assess it a little better, I think I have to admit you’re right.
Don’t get me wrong, I quite enjoyed it, and the time just flew by. I’ve read and adore the books. I was thrilled to see it happen–it’s finally real!
But yeah–I can see your point. There’s no particular hook when the preview ends, it just ends with that scene. The first bit is atmospheric and spooky, and I almost wonder if it would have been better to end when he’s down on his knees, confronted by the Other.
Maybe that would have been a better ending, but I prefer to have seen all that Stark intro stuff too!
kerningQuote Reply
This preview left me very disheartened. I don’t want to point out specifically what’s wrong, but suddenly a lot of the excitement, that I had about the series before seeing this preview, was lost.
I see that the general response is overwhelmingly positive, though, so don’t let a single opinion ruin your euphoria. I hope you enjoy the series. : )
ablaaaQuote Reply
I loved it. The prologue was creepy and frightening. The Stark family intro was fantastic. And Ned saying “Winter is coming”? Yeah, there were chills. I need it to be April 17th. Hurry up!
MichelleQuote Reply
Like what was said before, the Wights and Others don’t look alike. The girl was a Wight. The 2 (or the same one) you saw killing Gered and Waymar was an Other.
Very bright blue eyes with no nose ones = Other
Not bright blue eyes (someone/thing an Other has killed) = Wight
Wiki:
The Others appear as tall, gaunt humanoids with chalk white skin and eyes of blue so deep it burns like fire. They wear reflective armor that shifts in color with every step, and wield thin crystal swords that seem to give off a bluish hue. They ride corpses of dead animals.
They have only been seen at night, and seem to bring unnatural cold with them. Objects struck by their swords can become so cold that they shatter. The Others move with a silent, fluid grace, exhibiting a mastery of swordsmanship. They speak a language other than the Common Tongue of Westeros with voices that sound like cracking ice.
Creatures killed by the Others reanimate as undead zombies called wights. The bodies of wights are freezing cold and their eyes glow blue. Wights will attack any living creature around them with surprising strength, and with a certain amount of intelligence and memories of their previous life (as indicated by an assassination attempt of the Lord Commander of the Night Watch). They feel no pain and will continue to fight regardless of injury. Though they can be stopped by total dismemberment, their limbs will continue to move if detached from their bodies. They are highly flammable and will be quickly consumed if set aflame. The Others hold some form of power over wights and can gather them together to attack their enemies en masse. While it is unknown whether wights can cross the Wall on their own, corpses brought through the Wall can still reanimate as wights and even enter castles of the Wall.
It’s very possible that the Others do have the chalky white skin. We only saw them in the shadows. We saw the eyes of blue so deep that they burn like fire, and the crystal sword. Also, I’m sure the photo will be popping up soon, but frame by frame captures a very good picture of them that shows them to no be entirely “human”.
And we saw the Wight (the previously dead girl) with blue eyes and still using her former body.
TrollsbaneQuote Reply
Oh dear!
Who are the three that walk through a beautifully atmospheric tunnel?
No sense of a knight opposed to a common ranger?
No sense of identity.
With the Starks-15 mins and no sense of identity other than parents and children and Bean’s recitation of his titles.
Would I know who Jon is as opposed to Theon?
I am speaking from the point of view of someone new as opposed to a reader already immersed in the books.
Hopefully the next 45 mins provides that.
It would be interesting to know down the line why so many changes/omissions. Nice Stark family scene but lost as to who is who which undermines character determination.
DavidQuote Reply
100% agree.
The DarkStarQuote Reply
EXTREMELY disturbed by the lack of awesome Hodor action. GIMME MY HODOR!!!
Ben WatsonQuote Reply
Nope, pretty sure the audience will go through the entire 10 episode season not knowing the difference between Jon and Theon.
Ben WatsonQuote Reply
I suspect that most non-readers who aren’t exceptionally excited already didn’t even know about the preview, so I doubt it has too much effect either way on who will watch the full thing. But I did refrain from promoting it to my non-reader friends just because I wanted their first take to be the whole show. For readers I don’t think it as big a deal as we already know the main story lines anyway. We are probably much more critical than the non-readers of the details, but also more likely to watch the full thing regardless.
Over all, I liked it though I do agree that Will’s unexplained escape was a bit disappointing/confusing. They still did a good job overall in covering all that material in 15 minutes. As for how Will was caught, I took it as a Stark patrol happening upon him while he is clearly wearing his night’s watch garb, rather than an organized man hunt. As far as wights vs others, the only wight I clearly saw was the girl.
On a side note I also enjoyed the premiere of The Killing on AMC.
TCQuote Reply
I don’t. It wasn’t just the preview, it was an epic trailer at the end of it that showed all the characters, backstabbing, plotting, warring, Ned whom we met facing Jaime, only now it MEANT something to the viewer. Watching one without the other would be incomplete. If the uncut footage held attention, the trailer at the end was equal to “the things i do for love”. The preview was the bait, the trailer was the hook.
The DarkStarQuote Reply
Yeah, unfortunately that after stuff wasn’t in the online version. But most people who aren’t already fans will be watching the HBO version via it being on HBO or via HBO on demand, which should have that part. The end of the internet version does sort of end suddenly and without a lot of fanfare due to that trailer being cut off.
Ben WatsonQuote Reply
How did Will escape? Coldhands saved him
How did he get through the Wall? Coldhands showed him the Black Gate obviously
chumpQuote Reply
So Not only did I get to watch the trailer, but I also convinced my roommate we needed HBO! No longer have to mooch off my family’s satelite!!
Phoenix_TornQuote Reply
Does anybody know where I can watch this preview besides the HBO homepage?
For some reason the HBO page wont load and I keep getting stuck 3 minutes in.
Please help! I’m dying to see it!
Thanks!
LordRavenQuote Reply
Well, ablaaa, since this is your first post ever on the site, I am forced to deduce that either:
You truly hated it (Your post doesn’t feel that way though.)
You are just trolling (Likely)
You are a disgruntled and worried Camelot fan (Most likely)
KGQuote Reply
Youtube Links! There aren’t my uploads, but I happened across them while searching.
Part 1 (Prologue)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-mFewQP1j8
Part 2 (Will is captured, Stark intro, beheading)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=achLvS0AIEg
bruceletQuote Reply
AARRGHHHHHHH!!!!
Am I the only one who cannot get HBO videos to stream nicely? I get constant buffering every few seconds, when I usually have no problems with other video sites.
It is hard to appreciate the content when it pauses so frequently.
LarsQuote Reply
Impressions after the re-watch:
Actually I like very much the new prologue.
A lots of action, very effective.
The wight girls looks more creepy than Ser Waymar would ever do on screen.
I like the translation of the characters from the books onto the screen: Ser Waymar s arrogance, Gared s experiance (I have not even notice that he has ears !), Will s spirit.
Liked the music theme while we are transferd to Winterfell.
Winterfell courtyard is a pure joy!
Isaac is fantastic while showing his frustration with bow, I can almost feel the pressure of being watched by my parents while doing something important as a kid.
And Maisie..yes!
That show will rock! At least for me..
Who will wait another two weeks..?
The RabbitQuote Reply
chump,
That is an interesting hypothesis.
P.S. there are some mid quality versions on You Tube
Prologue
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-mFewQP1j8
Part2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=achLvS0AIEg
Edit: Opps slow poster me, Bruce beat me to the links
Rory PhillipsQuote Reply
brucelet,
thanks!!!
LordRavenQuote Reply
purplejilly,
The Others don’t show up again in the first book, but the wights do. I’m thinking it’ll be somewhere around episode 7 that we’ll have some late-night Castle Black zombie action, followed by Ser Alliser being sent off with a severed twitching hand in a jar.
mummerQuote Reply
I finally got to see it all the way through…. Looks great!
My only nitpick is that the sounds mixing sounded a bit off… Like it was way overpowered compared to the background noise. Sean Bean in particular sounded like he was carrying a personal loudspeaker. A very small nit, of course. And the audio mix for this clip might not have been final.
LarsQuote Reply
I understand what you’re saying—this was never intended as a stand alone chunk of action from a story-telling perspective and I’d share your concern if it weren’t for the stellar reviews beginning to cascade from all of the respected media critics around the country. Anyone who decides to pass on the first episode based on this preview will have ample opportunity to sample the episode later in the week (not so good for “ratings” in the Neilson sense, as we’ve discussed repeatedly) if their friends, blogs, and blog commenters are all saying, “Can you believe that ending?” “Wasn’t that sex scene hot?” “It was so much better than Camelot,” etc. That will bring some folks back, at least to try the whole episode once through. Then if they aren’t sucked in, they may still come back later in the season and try again when they hear what happens as the season progresses, catch up and stay with it.
DH87Quote Reply
I loved the preview, 14 minutes just flew by! Can’t wait to see the whole episode on April 17th!
winterqueenQuote Reply
Bah I refuse to believe that was 15 minutes, despite what the clocks say. Truly, what an amazing job they’ve done. I was actually afraid I wouldn’t be able to get into the show with all the obsessive preview watching and over-analyzing of everything, but I’d be lying if I didn’t say I just sat that there with a stupid grin on my face the entire time. I gasped when it ended, gasped… that’s not a normal thing for me when I watch tv lol.
Anyway, I just wanted to add a few things other than emotional gushing. I thought the footage wasn’t just enjoyable, it was enthralling. The one person I know who watched this footage and hasn’t read the books agreed. He was previously undecided on whether he would watch but that, I am happy to report, is no longer the case.
And I do think people are playing the role of the devil’s advocate a bit too strong. If people are coming into this with no prior knowledge, they got a hell of a ride. Common sense dictates that you are not going to get all the character information in a quarter of the episode, it takes time to build and grow each one. What you do want to impart to the masses with something like this is that they will, in fact, be entertained. That 15 minute preview wasn’t just interesting or intriguing, it was thrilling. You don’t often get ‘thrilling’ on television.
Also, on the issue of how Will got over/under/around the wall, I’d say people are over thinking it. My thought was that he returned to the wall, whoever is set to watch triggered whatever mechanism it is that opens it and allowed him back in. Since the Night’s Watch is so sparsely populated, I doubt they would have a greeting party waiting for his return especially when it would be so unexpected. Once he was through, he bolted. Now this whole theory could be thrown out the window if there’s some encampment at the other end, but for now I’m sticking with it. Excellent work btw, HBO.
GuyDeLusignanQuote Reply
It’s a voice-over. On my setup ($1K headphone amp and Sennheisher HD650s) you can hear the change in microphone noise floor and pitch changes in the voice from the speech that set it apart from the rest of the dialogue of the scene.
I doubt it will bother anyone even if they notice (besides, glad they fixed it)
Jordan HealeyQuote Reply
Wow!!! Words cannot express how awesome that was. I’m glad I was watching this alone, and nobody saw me act like a lunatic haha. First off, I yelped very loudly when Will came face-to-face with the girl Other. Not expecting that, very scary stuff. Then, as each character showed up, I said their names in awe with a huge grin on my face like I was seeing long-lost family members. Must have had chills for fourteen minutes straight. Arya and Bran are my favorites so far, I think they will steal the show.
The whole preview was so amazing, I literally forgot where I was, maybe I was in Westeros? Very cruel that we have to wait 2 weeks for the rest! Must go watch again right now.
melissaQuote Reply
Decided I’m gonna wait. Still have trailer burnout from a couple weeks ago. Glad to hear the positive reactions, though.
LexQuote Reply
rob,
People are supposed to be confused, just like the people in the story. There’s a scary unknown threat looming in the north that nobody has seen for thousands of years. That’s all you need to know.
When the wights appear later, maybe viewers will think that’s the real threat. Then when the Fist of the First Men scene happens much later, it’ll be that much more shocking. I’m kinda liking this ambiguity.
Steven SwansonQuote Reply
brucelet,
thanks!!
LordRavenQuote Reply
Only a fellow metalhead would get that reference! ;)
MetalgoddessAMBQuote Reply
Lex,
I respect your self control Lex, you’re stronger than I am. But after reading all these posts analyzing and dissecting the 15 minutes don’t you kind of feel like you’ve spoiled it for yourself anyway?
Avalanche3319Quote Reply
I loved everything but The Others. I tried to convince myself after the first watch that it must have been a wight but after the second viewing realized there were at least three running around and they wore the same bracers,boots,battle skirt armor.
hodorsaidhodorQuote Reply
The preview has gone up on the HBOcanada site and it has the “Coming on Game of Thrones” outro bit attached. http://www.hbocanada.com/gameofthrones/sneakpeek.php
Phoenix_TornQuote Reply
I’ve skimmed. All I know is there’s a creepy girl, and a Stark family moment. :)
LexQuote Reply
Ooh, very nice. I may be completely wrong, but the outro there to me has a few snippets of unseen footage!
Can’t get over Bran and Arya–such skill and subtlety! Loved that Arya has had no dialog yet, but you can get a good sense of her already. Focus on her face when Sansa’s stitches are being admired–her glower is priceless. :)
kerningQuote Reply
Ran’s impressions are up if anyone hasn’t seen them yet
http://www.westeros.org/GoT/Features/Entry/4985/
Jordan HealeyQuote Reply
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8qNso8-Hxs
I think this is the new trailer they showed after the preview. I did not upload this, kudos to the original uploader.
IggyQuote Reply
I want to create my own personal test group that aren’t book readers, sit them down for 15 minutes and then get reactions.
Many of the disliked details don’t matter at all to non-readers. This was clearly meant for HBO users to keep them watching in two weeks and also as a secondary measure, to stir things up on the interwebs.
IMHO, it worked. I think Bran translated very well as a sympathetic young boy and Arya did the same as a sympathetic young girl. I think new viewers will find them a draw and that will deliver spoilerish rewards later in the first episode.
I believe what we have seen and its length give us a really good idea of pacing for the remaining 45 minutes. How glorious that we don’t need to endure commercial breaks!
I want to also point out that Sean Bean can act his head off! He will actually be the draw for many as the most recognizable face in the crowd of actors and he was excellent. I don’t know that his name alone sells the show, but his name and seeing him command a screen as he did will do so for some.
Excellent casting, start to finish.
Finally, there are some details I would have done differently, but then this isn’t MY show. I look forward to having a Man Cave party at my house in two Sundays and for the nine following that. I will enjoy THAT show rather than worry that it isn’t MY show. Still, those with criticisms and sticking points have perfectly valid opinions IMHO, I am just not going to let the details deter me from the deep pleasure of watching this series each week.
Larry D CurtisQuote Reply
Maybe the term “White Walker” started out as “Wight Walker,” indicating “those things that turn dead people into wights wherever they walk.” Then, over the centuries, people mushed “wight” into “white” because of the ice and snow association.
This is all reaching, mind you, no less so than my obsessing over Syrio’s haircut.
paulgudeQuote Reply
still have to read everyones comments but personally I loved it…
coltaine777Quote Reply
My bad, It’s a month old, sorry. :(
Here is another youtube version of the preview:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRZJpX4AdAM
IggyQuote Reply
Youtube link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRZJpX4AdAM
RichardQuote Reply
If I were a new viewer I’d be confused by the dismembered body parts. Obviously some kind of strange thing, but why were they removed? They didn’t turn into zombies, get up and walk away, right?
As a fan I’d have liked to have a bit more dialogue between Bran and Ned after the beheading, but that’s not terribly important for the success of the show.
The good stuff:
The prologue’s start was very suspenseful and creepy.
Acting.
Subtle music.
Great stuff:
Arya’s behaviour when sewing (the way she looked around when she heard exciting sounds from the outside).
The first shot south of the Wall. When those riders came over the ridge and we heard some music I got goosebumps.
“Winter is coming”
Johan SporreQuote Reply
Loved it! Almost cried when they showed winterfell. Cant wait 2 weeks. NEED IT NOW!
Jim FischerQuote Reply
I didn’t know if I should watch this but since George told us to do so, I did.
It looks fantastic and, as others have said, felt incredibly short. I was actually very surprised when it ended after the execution but when I got back to Earth I of course realized that the prologue and Stark scenes takes quite a while to run through. The worrying thing is that I’ll wonder where time went after every episode, although that’s of course a good thing when it comes to the quality.
My only negative question after this, that can transition through readers and non-readers alike, is why do they call them the white walkers? I didn’t see anything that really supported that name.
Tywin's BastardQuote Reply
Amazing!
Thought the white walker looked badass from a distance, even though he is pure evil. And Gared was beheaded after all! Awesome! Poor Gared though.
Aaaaaaaand I lovedeverythinggivememore!
John EngedalQuote Reply
Because they come with snow/winter?
Oi!Quote Reply
Couldn’t believe it was over so quickly. Can’t wait for more. Loved the setup of the Wall; definitely handled wonderfully. I don’t know that I loved the whole encounter, but the sword was impressive, and they got it done and moved on with the show. Which is good, because there really isn’t all that much to this part of the story yet.
Jonathan LeardQuote Reply
They screwed the pooch on Others. It was bad, bad, bad, horrible.
Its not really clear are there Others or the massacred Wildings just got reassembled.
There is no “cold” arising with them and generally they have nothing to do with white Walkers as we know them.
What we saw was black and it run and chased the men through the forest with sounds like a pack of predators.
Letting Will go was absolutely ridiculous.
HiverQuote Reply
Tywin's Bastard,
They’re avoiding the term Others due to the show Lost, I assume.
BubbaQuote Reply
I’m haven’t read the books and I really liked it. Now I’m kind of annoyed by the fact that I did watch though, since I have to wait 2 weeks for the conclusion. Anyways, I thought the prologue was very effective, definitely drew you in. Really like all the characters they introduced too. It definitely felt more like a movie than a fantasy tv-show (there has never been a good one). Definitely left me wanting more…
johnQuote Reply
Hiver,
Sit in the fridge while you are watching and you ll have cold…;)
The_Rabbit01Quote Reply
Sadly, there’s nowhere a hd (720p) copy to be found :(
AnvilQuote Reply
wow, HBO did really really well! I agree that this didn’t feel like 15 minutes.
Am I the only one who thinks that the OTHER acted a lot like PREDATOR? I was waiting for his scream when he killed Gared lol.
The whole atmosphere is just awesome. It’s way more intense than reading it to me.
Markus EckerQuote Reply
Hollyoak,
Agreed completely. Let’s face it – if those who have negative comments about this were judging it on any criteria other than faithfulness to the books (or more precisely, their own mental images of what is described in the books), they’d be awarding it top marks. This was brilliant – the tone, the production values, the mature approach to the storytelling (no stupid voiceover/opening crawl like they usually resort to in adaptations of dense fantasy/sf novels), all top notch. The actors were all great too – loved Ser Waymar in particular for some reason. Honestly, people saying they didn’t like it because it dropped some irrelevant detail from the novel or changed it into something more effective in a visual medium aren’t being very fair, I don’t think.
I don’t understand why people are getting so hung up on the disappearing body parts or Will’s being spared either. I don’t think you can really say anything is out of character for the Others, because four novels in I still don’t think we know ANYTHING about the character and/or motivations of the Others. All I got from this is that they are scary, brutal, incomprehensible things, which I think is the intention. How did Will get over the wall? Same way Gared did in the novel, however that was. Why did the White Walkers let him live? Who knows? They’re White Walkers – they presumably have their own reasons, although I think the people who saw it as letting him go in order to spread terror among his fellow humans are probably on the right track. Too bad Ned didn’t listen! ;D
But yes, I was really pleased with this. To me, it was proof that ASOIAF is getting the adaptation it deserves. Sure, it’s not going to be able to cover every little detail in the books, but we’ve already seen the subtle ways the writers are able to include a lot of that information in non-verbal ways, so the sense of density and depth remains intact. I look forward to the rest of the series! :)
A Bear_A BearQuote Reply
So, is it Djawadi´s music or not?
MacejkoQuote Reply
Bubba,
Yes, the name ‘the Others’ have too many connotations but my point is that if I saw the dark creatures from the prologue I wouldn’t really be inclined to call them ‘white walkers’. In the novel there’s also reports of fishermen spotting white walkers in the distance on the beach. Not that it’s necessarily important to the show as it might not get mentioned but as they looked in the prologue you’d probably think it was a wildling if you saw it at great distance.
It’s certainly not a big deal though. I’m just curious how the thought went when they designed them.
Tywin's BastardQuote Reply
Having watched the preview once more, I am sort of glad that they aged up Ned and Cat and the rest. Something about the lines in Sean Bean’s face (and Michele Fairley’s) bespeaks the hard life of living in the North. I don’t even mind them aging up Robb and Jon. Even if Robb looks 20s, he’s still a young man who is forced to prematurely assume his father’s role, and can still go through so much of the uncertainty and inner turmoil that Robb does in the books. I think there is a real strength to the casting of the Starks and northmen so far!
persephone88Quote Reply
Not in the books. In the books it is clear that the Others (=White Walkers) have white armor made out of some kind of ice, and generally have an “icy” look.
No idea why they chose to change the Others for the series, they look and act completly different then in the books. Apart from the glowing eyes they have nothing in common with the originals. Others and wights also look pretty much the same, casual viewers will have trouble keeping them apart.
Generally I was pretty disappointed with the prologue. The rest was very good, however.
morbiczerQuote Reply
Since i am right now reading GOT for a hundreth time, when Royce, Jared and Will rode out off the Wall my first impulse was – Fast forward, i just read that, why am I looking at it AGAIN. only them I realised that in fact it was simply such a well done recreation of my own mind’s pictures what made it look so familiar!!
And that’s great proof for how well they adapted it, I believe.
and even though I read it all a hundred times and sometimes feel a little queesy, this time they had me gag twice, look away a lot and get real goosebumps from the Ned/Cat interaction
Whoooaaaaaa
JennyQuote Reply
This
ThorrgalQuote Reply
I caved as soon as I got out of bed this morning – so much for self-control!
The only bad thing for me was the shortness (I wanted the direwolves!) and, sorry to say, the Walkers/Others/whatever they are doing with them. They didn’t really work for me. In the book I was much more affected by their power, but in this they just seemed a bit meh. Still, it is a minor quibble, especially considering how little we will see them.
The rest was AWESOME! I had tears in my eyes when the word ‘Winterfell’ came up on screen (however will I cope when it gets destroyed?) . I was pleasantly surprised by Michelle as Catelyn, she looked very pretty and maternal and not at all the psycho-bitch I hate her for being. Like many, the genuine delight for me was seeing Arya, I am so excited about seeing her arc, it will be a rollercoaster! It was nice to see the Starks as a family, not a bad word to say about any of them.
dimensionallyTQuote Reply
Oi!,
that’s what I thought – to me the term ‘white walker’ evokes that they come in the time of snow and ice and cold, ‘when the white winds blow’. Not necessarily that they are coloured white.
GythaQuote Reply
The other thought that occurs to me is that the family resemblances between the actors playing the Stark family are kind of freaky – very good casting. I mean, they all look convincingly related to each other. And speaking of family resemblances – Alfie Allen and his sister/dad, they’ve definitely got a strong one there! :D
A Bear_A BearQuote Reply
I agree! First thing I thought of, holy shit there are Predators beyond the wall, Westeros is fucked!
And I loved the sound design, the crackling of the ice(voices?)was PERFECT!
John EngedalQuote Reply
What can i say when I’m speechless? Everything was so wonderful, just like it should be. I was jumping on my chair ’till I crashed down (bruises are coming!). NEED MORE!
Arya StarkQuote Reply
I actually liked the others. Were they different than how I pictured them reading the books? Yeah, but even reading the books I thought they had a “Predator” (as in the Ahnold movie) quality to them and I think that’s kind of what they acheived. They left them hidden enough for when they do show back up in all their glory there can be some tweaking to the design such as adding more armor or whatever. I also like the inclusion of the wilding girl wight. Good stuff.
dizzy_34Quote Reply
Stubbornly not watching… I want to see the first ep as a whole, but I don’t know if my will is strong enough! Actually wanted to ask whether this last post (280 comments already) broke the site. I haven’t been able to get in all morning.
Blackfish BluesQuote Reply
I thought it was freaking amazing. Non readers will be enthralled and hooked for shizzle and that was their main goal imo (and not to satiate the nitpicking from us fanboys).
TastesLikeTheSeaQuote Reply
A 720p version would be the DIREWOLF’S BOLLOCKS
GythaQuote Reply
Pregnant friend is now mad at me for making her see ‘dead-girl impaled on tree’. It wasn’t /specifically/ in the books, so, um… whoops :s
Hubby said the Others make Reavers look like toy poodles, lol. He also expressed the hope that Bran would turn around and ‘accidentally’ put an arrow through Catelyn XD Ah, if wishes were horses….
Franny BeeQuote Reply
The prologue scenes freaked me out, which they also did in the book, and I was alternating between hyperactive fangirl squees and too-freaked-out-to-watch throughout. Those scenes were very evocative thanks to the fantastic use of sound and the chilling feeling of ‘something being out there’.
And the Starks! Great way to introduce their respective characters. There really is a family chemistry between all of them, I think, which helps build their scenes tremendously. I was particularly convinced by the portrayals of Jon and Arya, so I’m really excited to see their respective story arcs right now.
This is exactly how I have always seen it in my mind. Everything fits together for me here. Maybe I am an easily satisfied viewer/fan in that regard, but I honestly did not expect it to be THIS good. Wow. Love it love it love it.
E MQuote Reply
It taken me about 10 minutes to realise that the Winterfell scene isn’t in the book…
Totally perfect, awesomeness. I don’t know what I’m going to do till april 17th.
After seeing this, If the series continues the path of this preview… I’m 100% sure about a second season.
Sanjur0Quote Reply
The fastest 14 minutes of my life. The second viewing was better. It looks great! I like the changes in the prologue. A tv-series is not a book, and what I saw was realistic, a rough world, and no sentimental drama. It felt the same as the book. The capture of Will was fast, but I guess the title sequence is here, so we got a real break from the haunting and creepy beginning. The Stark introduction was very nice, and I like the fact we first see the characters and we later will know who they are and what their names are. The beheading scene was also good, although I hope the conversation between Ned and Bran will be a little longer. I wonder if there was anything left from the original pilot episode in this preview.
PAMQuote Reply
A Bear_A Bear,
I think one of the most basic rules to the storytelling is not to force the audience to wonder “how did that happen?” unless it is a result of some great scheming. For example, “How did exactly LF fuck Ned” is a good question to pose for a while but “why Gared and Royce in one scene have swords drawn out and later they are sheathed” is not so. It requires the viewer to create a retracting self-retelling “oh, they must’ve sheathed it while we were following Will” but at the same time you would like their 100% attention drawn to what is happening NOW. So, from that perspective the Will – Other encounter scene was just confusing. They could e.g. include a scene of the Other turning his back on Will and then we would know for sure he was spared. In the preview I expected for a moment that Will would also be killed. And then we see him running and healthy. Hm.
Disappearing body parts is another thing that inserted some inconsistency into the narrative. Imagine you saw the scene Will saw. Then you return, everything is clean. And you get the command go look where they went. Don’t you even argue for a second they could not possibly walk with severed limbs? For Will it’s an a-okay, nothing weird, better get looking where they went. I thought just the dead not-severed dead bodies lying in a circle would be a better approach, but maybe it wasn’t creepy enough. I’m positive they had their reasons.
Macejko,
As it was presented to a large audience, I’d bet it is a complete original score. Still I’m not 100% sure.
Black LionQuote Reply
LOL!!!!! if only…
EdQuote Reply
https://www.youtube.com/user/GameofThrones#p/u/0/JQykXOukM2Q
And so your bottom was supported! (I don’t know if its cut or anything… Being on youtube and all… Can’t check because I am at work)
Julian BudkeQuote Reply
Just wanted to let German GOT fans know that apparrently you will get to see it….a station called ‘TNT’ is broadcasting it over there…at least according to an article in Variety I just read online…I’ve seen more than a few comments from German fans complaining about it not being shown…I felt bad for you…
coltaine777Quote Reply
Someone uploaded the preview here: http://www.fileserve.com/file/rccGeF5
They claim that it is a rip straight from the HBO site. I have not checked this, so i can’t guarantee it.
IggyQuote Reply
Why are some people hung up on how Wil got over the wall, but never brought that up when Gared did the same fucking thing? (eye roll)
Nit-picking A-holes…
EdQuote Reply
How can fourteen minutes seem so short, yet at the same time thirteen days appear so long…
Tar KidhoQuote Reply
Looks awesome, in short everything I hoped for in a general sense and nothing I feared. Others could have been better, just being white instead of black even though that wouldn’t have carried the same impression. Judging from this they have changed details but kept the major characters, relationships, plot and general “feeling” of the show the same, which is what matters most. But god damn I wanted to see Wolves!
Harry HoggQuote Reply
I’m trying very hard to be composed as I write this, but the fangirl in me just wants to start typing everything in caps with exclamation points everywhere and “awesome” used to modify every noun and so on. I watched the preview with my sister, who is a sort-of ASOIAF fan (didn’t read series, but very interested in the show). I was actually clasping her hand as it started. She looked at me kind of weirdly and was like, “Do we have to stay like this?” (I then realized to let go XD).
Prologue – They did such a great job with making this really spooky and creepy. I actually think it was scarier in the show than in the book! In the book I’m pretty sure the wildlings’ bodies are just laying around; in the show they’re all massacred and…arranged, in what looked like a symbol or sign (reminded me of something you’d see in Silent Hill). In the book, the Others just come out and surround and fight Weymar, out in the open. In the show, they (s/he, it?) appear(s) much more surreptitious: They’re stealthy guerillas, and this is their forest, and they will kill you if they want to. Weymar didn’t even have a chance. Their movements and design actually reminded me of Predator and his chameleon armor. And the fact that the Other threw Gared’s head right at Will’s knees? Sick. I always got the sense from the Prologue that the Others enjoyed messing with Weymar, and even though we don’t get to see that, I think the same arrogance/lack of mercy is displayed in the toss of Gared’s head.
I too wondered how Will got away. We’ve just seen the Other(s) (I still can’t tell if it was just one) completely dominate two grown men. Will is on his knees…we can’t possible expect him to escape. But how much do we really know of the Others and their motives? Do they just kill any human north of the Wall? Do they have reasons for killing? This is just a thought, but could Will’s survival possibly foreshadow something we’ve yet to get in the series that D&D might be privy to- something about the Others’ motivations or modus operandi?
Winterfell- I expected the prologue to cut right into the beheading scene, but I’m really glad it didn’t. Those scenes we got in domestic Winterfell very much established the Starks. We’ve seen that Bran is just starting to take on the process of growing up, under the guidance of Jon and Robb, who tease him but love him, much as we’d expect older brothers to act. We’ve seen how Sansa is great at needlework, and also very happy to be praised for being so ladylike. And without a single word, we just know exactly who Arya is. Her distracted glances over her shoulder as she hears the bustle in the yard, and her mopey and disinterested stitches show so much about her character. Further, we’ve already really gotten to Ned’s core, and to the core of the story, when we see him tell Catelyn that Bran must begin growing up because winter is coming. First, this show the type of parent Ned is- someone who wants to teach his children about life firsthand so they are not shielded from reality. Second, we get to the heart of the series: Winter is coming, and everyone must prepare.
Beheading - I felt like I had seen this so many times already in previews, so it wasn’t quite as exciting as the other bits. But the actual cut/blood was new. The part with Will asking Ned to send word to his family and Ned agreeing felt very true to Ned’s character. I don’t mind that we didn’t seen Theon kick the head; even though it says a lot about Theon, I’m sure we’ll see his personality come through in other scenes. I also loved seeing the brothers’ interaction, especially when Robb gently places his hand on Bran’s shoulder.
Overall, I was just ecstatic. The production quality is so high. The acting is incredible. Maisie and Isaac in particular really blew me away. Maisie didn’t have a single line yet she is so completely Arya. And Isaac’s subtleties, especially the look on his face when he’s watching the beheading, are way beyond his years. The preview for the full premiere left me on the edge of my seat in anticipation; can’t wait to see more of the Starks (direwolves!!), Dany/Viserys, and the Baratheon-Lannister retinue! After seeing the first fifteen minutes, I have no doubt in my mind this is going to be the best thing on TV!
LinaQuote Reply
Lurker, first time poster! I’ve read the first 3 books and deliberately waited to put off reading FoC until the next book comes out, only because I didn’t want to be left hanging. I’m re-reading the series now and will try to time it for DoD coming out.
Also you will all be proud – so far up to yesterday I’ve been able to keep tellling myself “Wait for the dvd, wait for the dvd”. I already know this show is something I would want to own, so why pay to see the broadcast versions – merely to be on the same page with the rest of the fans??? But yesterday afternoon, mere hours before the preview, I broke down and subbed to HBO. And I am so glad I did!
My reaction: loved every second of the 14 minutes! My only complaints was that we didn’t get any opening credits. I had forgotten about Theon’s head-kicking.
My wife’s reaction: She thought it was a bit gory. (hee hee, she hasn’t seen anything yet!) She will check out the rest of the first episode. She is a non-reader and lo, a non-fantasy fan (yes, I know, WTH did I marry her for? ;-) ). So I guess it’s a good sign that she is willing to give it another 45 more minutes.
Love this website, thanks for allowing a fan of the books to get so immersed into every aspect of the production, and love hearing everyone’s thoughts!
DavidQuote Reply
My thoughts on the prologue:
I wasn’t a fan of the changes to the Others (or should I say, the White Walkers) when we first saw them in the full trailer. But after seeing them in action, I thought they were pretty badass. They definitely came across as powerful and frightening, which is the idea, I think. I would have liked to see them more alien or wraith-like, but that is just my personal preference. Perhaps that route would have required too much expensive CGI. Ultimately, I am fine with their look.
As to the other changes to the prologue, I liked them. This version is slightly more action-packed than the book’s more subdued approach. I think action-packed works better for the screen. It helps start the series off with a bang. Plus seeing one of them behead Gared and toss the head at Will was just too cool.
The production values, of course, are fantastic. No fake-snow-gate from me. As was hoped, it all looked pretty fantastic in the final cut.
I was really bummed when we found out that Jamie Campbell Bower couldn’t return as Waymar, as I thought he was perfect. But I think Ostlere did a very good job (is it just me, or does he look exactly like a young Matt Damon?). Arrogant and cocky.
And to the folks complaining that we never learned that Royce is a knight while Gared and Will are just common rangers, please stop. These are the sorts of details you lose when adapting something for screen. The TV show will never give the kind of depth and backstory to the characters that a novel can. If this annoys you, stop watching the show now, because I guarantee you you will NOT enjoy it.
The first thing that popped into my head as the prologue faded to black though, how did Will escape the White Walkers? The only explanation is they let him live, so he would tell of their coming. A change from the books, certainly. I wonder if it was just a change David & Dan decided to make because they thought having the Other throw Gared’s head at Will was cool, or if they know something we don’t know about the Others? Something that will be revealed in future books? These are the sorts of questions that, as a fan of the books, I am really looking forward to discussing once the show is on air.
More thoughts later…
Winter Is ComingQuote Reply
Hahahahaha for you! There’s always Camelot….. PPffffftttttt!!! LOL
EdQuote Reply
Not just you, I had the same problem, which is a good sign, right? Lordie only knows what will happen after each episode!
dimensionallyTQuote Reply
About the white walker issue…
maybe it’s time for me to reread the books for the 3rd time but did we see the real white walkers here? I dont think so, I think we saw a dead resurrected wildling wildling infected by the white walkers. Can that be correct?
erwinQuote Reply
what a nonreader would get out of this is several things. One there’s obviously allot of quality here, from the visuals to the acting and the overall tone of the show are all very good it seems. But really the story arcs that really hook you come a little later in the story. Those moments were you go, I really think I’ll enjoy this story. So while I did love the 14 min, I was left feeling like, man I thought we would at least see the direwolf scene. What we did see though I loved. I don’t know if anyone has said this yet but I wonder if they were intending the body parts being laid out in a design to be a kind of ritual or something, that the White Walker did in order to reanimate the corpses. I think that actually would add an interesting element to the White Walkers. I don’t really have much of an opinion about the white walkers as far as how they look, but I will say I think that whole scene just really worked. So it didn’t seem like they were doing anything wrong in my opinion.
Luke likelyQuote Reply
Thoroughly enjoyed the preview. I really didn’t have that much of a problem with the White Walkers. They were frightening, that was enough for me; I don’t think glowing white guys would give off the sense of menace that these shadowy figures did. The ice cracking sounds they made were certainly true to the books, and added a lot to their scariness. I could easily tell the difference between the walkers and the wight girl, especially since she was obviously the dead girl we’d seen earlier. Her eyes, while still an unnatural blue, didn’t glow the way the white walkers’ eyes did, and the walkers never seemed like undead humans.
The bodies–I got the sense that there was some sort of significance to the pattern. Heads on top and bottom; torsos in the middle with hands above and below; legs on the outside. Is it a message? A spell? A work of art?
Gared’s hat had ear flaps. That amused me.
LOVE Arya. She’s perfect!
The head-kicking thing in the book always distracted me from the somber mood of watching an execution with Bran. Yes, it gave you a good view into Theon, but I think they made the right decision cutting it. I felt terrible for Will, who seems like a good guy overcome by horror. His whispered “Forgive me” was heartrending. I think the walkers deliberately let him go; possibly they like fear, or they have motivations that are completely, well, Other. And the Wall wasn’t meant to be impervious to humans.
Speaking of the Wall, I particularly liked the long tunnel in the beginning, with the torches receding into the distance. Creepy stuff.
My only complaint is that it wasn’t Waymar as the wight. I think that might have had more impact than the dead girl. Granted, the girl made me want to jump out of my skin–but we were at least somewhat familiar with Waymar, and I did miss the sort of “Stupid Waymar, he got what was coming” and “Oh, crap, that’s not Waymar anymore!” emotional impact from the book. I can’t remember if he was one of the “dead bodies” brought back into Castle Black, but maybe he’ll make a reappearance in the show then? Oh, well. The preview was great, and I’m really looking forward to the seventeenth!
TheanoQuote Reply
thank you very much for those who put up or found youtube versions.
there are just some things that don’t make sense:
1. why would the Others dismember their kills so they couldn’t then become Wights in their service? i thought in the books that the Wildlings looked like they had just died where they were with no visible injuries (killed by the Others cold touch) and were then raised by the Others to become Wights. the whole dismemberment and placed in a pattern but then suddenly gone thing really makes no sense and is really the sort of needless change (change for the sake of just being more gory and not condensing or illuminating the story for the medium) that actually makes the story less intelligible.
2. why are the others not White? they are the White-Walkers afterall? even in the TV show that is their name? so why are they black? and they don’t at all fit in to their surroundings and they are now hard to distinguish from the Wights.
3. how did Gared escape? i don’t care that they changed who lived and who got beheaded, that change is immateriel. what i do care about is that the Others just “let him go” is the only conclusion you can draw from the way the scene played out. are we to assume then that the Black Walkers want the people of Westeros to know they are coming (why else let him go)? it really doesn’t make any sense. they could have just show Gared seeing the slaughter of the other two from a distance since he had already wandered off to “search” around … then there would be a perfect explanation for his escape and desertion.
4. no head kicking by Theon seems small but it gives us an insight into his personality with just a few second glance. I am surprised they left this out since the TV medium is well suited for small gestures that help people understand the nature of a character.
5. flat roofs on winterfell castle is just plain stupid. in a place where it snows that much there is simply no way that they would design buildings in such a way. i think this stands out as a glaring oversight and is really something that disappoints me. for a team that is supposed to be so concerned with attention to detail this is a pretty big lack of that attention to detail.
the good stuff:
1. Snowgate seems to have been a bit overblown. to me at least the snow looked okay, not perfect but decent. but then i don’t live in a place where it snows regularly.
2. the whole thing looks very realistic and visceral. the costumes and the wall and winterfell (aside from the roofs) all looked amazing
3. even some of the minor role acting seemed good. Waymar was a nice bit of flippance and poor Gared just looked like the perfect scoundrel black brother. and Arya managed to steal the scene without a line!
4. the music seemd to add a real texture to the preview and set a nice atmosphere in each scene without being overpowering.
Who Is Jacopo Belbo?Quote Reply
Rather than me being angry at the people that are disappointed and arguing, I now only feel bad for them. They have waited like all of us with bated breath, speculating on the show and how it will come across. I have no complaints. I see books and movies as completely different mediums.
I can tell you, those who have not read the books (and they are the ones HBO really needs) are not debating on how, as they would probably put it: “the skinny guy who got his head chopped off made it away from those monster dudes.”
They don’t even know what the Wall is yet, unless they looked at all the behind the scenes features.
I have no doubt it will all come together. So for those of you who are disappointed, I hope you can put aside the books and enjoy it for what it will be. There will be more changes/deviations from the book. As long as David and Dan and the directors capture the spirit of GRRM’s books, I, for one, am ecstatic.
HollyoakQuote Reply
chump,
I don’t think “Coldhands” has been created yet, if he is who we suspect he is..
purplejillyQuote Reply
KG,
What the…
1) I’m a frequent poster here
2) I’m not trolling. Why is it so hard to accept that some people are not overwhelmed by what they saw?
3) I couldn’t care less about Camelot
ablaaaQuote Reply
I was really underwhelmed by the prologue, one of the most awesome chapters in the book. What stood out in the book was how Waymar redempted (?) himself in the eyes of Will when he was fighting the Other, in that instant Waymar became a man of the NW. And just when Will started to respect Waymar, the Others butcher him and Will gets killed by the man he just started to respect. The fact that some people think this prologue is better than the book is beyond me. When reading I was scared shitless, while watching I was kindof meh. The tossing of the head was kind of lame too.
I won’t be bothered by it though, I enjoyed the rest and I assume I will enjoy the whole season.
KnurkQuote Reply
Ed,
I’ve stated my reasons why I felt Gared making it over the wall ( or being captured outside of it and sent back the WF for execution) was a different situation from Will making it over. But regardless of who made it over in the books, this nit-picking asshole is more concerned with how other people view the first ten minutes of the show I want to see run for seven seasons.
The sci-fi/fantasy crowd is very nit-picky when it comes to plot holes. Regardless if GRRm wrote the scene the same way or not, intuitive people are going to see that incredible shot of the Wall in the first scene and then wonder how the guy got back across it. Listening to Will talk before the beheading, I think its safe to assume he never made it back to Castle Black at all because he basically says so. He tells Ned that he should have gone back.
New scenes like the opening Stark scene are changes that I am looking forward to. Changed scenes like the way they altered the prologue are changes that I understand and am prepared to deal with. Minor editing gaffs like the above-mentioned magically sheathed swords are something I can easily overlook. But if I see a gaping plothole like how they heck a guy is able to get past an 800 foot wall of ice by himself with no explanation I am going to A. wonder how it happened and B. out of concern for the show bring the point up to either hope that someone can give me an answer that I’ve overlooked or possibly even bring to light the fact that viewers won’t be sleeping enough to miss something like that so they don’t do it in the future.
Wether GRRM included a similar plot hole in his books is irrelevant. To me the mistake is the only glaring error in an otherwise fantastic opening. Its hardly nit-picking, but if you feel it makes me an asshole to bring it up, than you are entitled to your opinion.
I’d still love an answer by the way. Saying the NW “have their ways” doesn’t cut it in my book. If NW members new a secret way over the Wall Mance Raider could invade en masse any time he wished.
Lord Ned's HeadQuote Reply
erwin,
Nope, 100% White Walkers. You can see the difference between them and the little girl wight.
KnurkQuote Reply
Ed,
Because on the screen, it was jarring to see him go from mortal danger to running across a meadow a long ways away.
purplejillyQuote Reply
I don’t think it is better, just different.
While the whole Waymar arc, as it were, was great in the book, it is just not realistic to believe it would be carried over into the TV series. They only have a few minutes to spend on this prologue. Not enough time to flesh out a whole backstory for Waymar, Will and Gared. They developed them just enough to get the point across and then used action to punch it up and heighten the excitement level. And, for me at least, it works.
Winter Is ComingQuote Reply
Mance Rayder did know a secret way over (or through) the Wall. He was at the Winterfell feast, remember?
It’s easy enough for one man to make it through the Wall undetected. It would be nigh impossible for a whole host of wildlings to do so, however.
You know you’re my boy LNH (go Birds!), but I think this “gate” is pretty silly.
Winter Is ComingQuote Reply
Hmm, never really thought about the Others letting Will go just so he could tell people about them. At first this idea seems counterintuitive, as I would expect the Others would want to launch a surprise attack, but I guess they know they can’t just storm the Wall. Maybe they want to draw the Night’s Watch out in smaller groups so they can deplete their numbers? Maybe they just want to spread fear around Westeros? I wonder how much the Others actually know about what happens south of the Wall – do they think the dragons are all dead and that the Targaryens have been exiled?
The fact that we’re even thinking about this is another pro for changes between book and show. Now we get to think about why they changed certain things, what those changes could mean, and so on.
I agree, as that detail isn’t relevant to the story. And for fans who may hold that detail close at heart, you can infer it from the costumes and styling of the characters! So the details are there, but they’re not wasting precious time expanding on them.
LinaQuote Reply
This. I really can’t imagine how painstaking it must be for them with their emotional investments. I was really glad I could easily distance myself from the books and enjoy the preview as a TV series. And thus my nitpicks are solely of technical nature, not of the “faithfulness” nature. To anyone disappointed by the Others’ look: is it really crucial to them whether they are white? For me their ice-swords are much more distinctive.
Almost totally OT: while watching the preview, a certain similarity between the scenes struck me both screencaps are of scenes related in some ways to death : http://img593.imageshack.us/img593/5752/similarity.jpg
Black LionQuote Reply
Also I want to add that the beginning of the prologue was such a good little piece of work on its own, good acting, good casting, decent special effects, that I would watch a movie just based on that alone. A story about a small group of men from an ancient order serving at some big ice wall, having to fight and defeat those predator-like White Walkers. Where the O symbol they arrange body parts into turns out to be the logo of some large corporation that tested drugs on them without their knowledge, and turned them into these blue eyed cold zombie killers. Watch as the Nights Watchmen get picked off one by one, and struggle to defeat the White Walkers. It was a really, really cool piece of work.
purplejillyQuote Reply
It’s funny that our first post-production ‘Gate’ is “Wall-Gate”.. heh
purplejillyQuote Reply
He reminded me of a young Mark Wahlberg, both in looks and the manner he talked.
Tywin’s BastardQuote Reply
See now that’s a decent point Winter! I’d forgotten about Mance making it through. Although I can assume that since he was a NW the magicl Alice in Wonderland door might have workedfor him. If so I don’t think Will new about it, but at leats its plausible. Btw, no one on my end is looking for a gate (unless it get you through the Wall;). Its just somehting I wondered while watching. I’m guessing oters might notice it too and just saying it might be nice to explain it at some point so folks aren’t scrathing their heads.
Lord Ned’s HeadQuote Reply
I´d watch that.
John EngedalQuote Reply
Lord Ned's Head,
The thing about the wall is definitely a shortcoming in the plot but there are ways to get behind the wall for Will.
1. He could have went back to Castle Black by night and sneak through without anybody seeing him. Don´t forget he was a poacher.
2. He could have climb the wall like Jon and Igitte did.
3. He could have stolen a boat/raft and went around the wall on it.
AbyssQuote Reply
Personally, I LOVED the prologue. It showed me that these white walkers are not simple-minded beasts, but have actual intelligence behind everything they do. I immediately got the feeling that they were tracking the members of the night’s watch from the moment they passed through the wall. In my mind, they decided to scare the crap out of who they saw as the “weakest” by staging a ritualistic scene with dead bodies to inspire fear. Then they went on to kill the other 2 braver souls and serve as another scare for their “intended messenger of impending doom” and let him go to sound the alarm.
John Winslow ColeQuote Reply
I can’t wait to watch again. I recorded it last night so I can see it in somewhat glorious 720 p HD. (Still have to upgrade to 1080.)
I only watched twice last night because I didn’t want to burn out on it and I was also busy scanning these boards for fellow House Gatewatch Knights’ reactions!
Winter, if you read this, thanks for all you do, and can you one day tell us how you came up with the idea for the site, and did you ever expect it to become such a huge part of the fandom community.
Thanks for supporting the bottom.
(Uh, I forgot the Latin.)
HollyoakQuote Reply
What is all this non-sense of the only way to across the Wall is over it?? Couldn’t Will have just gone back the way he came and kept going? There’s more than one gate too. As well as other ways. How did Bran get across the wall??
BrianQuote Reply
Winter Is Coming,
I think it felt pretty obvious that the Matt Damon look-alike (and I said the same thing to hubby, I felt he was a Matt Damon look-alike too) was dressed better, and spoke with a lot more arrogrance and power than the other two, and was obviously in charge – so I think it WAS spelled out that he was higher status of the group, it was just more subtle than the books.
purplejillyQuote Reply
Couldn’t Will just have gone back through the same gate he used to leave the Wall for the ranging? I don’t understand why anyone thinks he wouldn’t be able to make it over/through the Wall…am I missing something?
LinaQuote Reply
True, but when he spoke to Eddard, he spoke regretfully of not returning to Castle Black to warn them (“I know I should have….)
ZackQuote Reply
Well, second or third time I take a break from lurking here, the last time having been before even the filming of the pilot started.
The only major principle gripe I have with the adaptation are the changes in armor and clothing just for the sake of being different. I can deal with it by itself, but the idea of rabid TV fans coming down in hordes on art (both fan and official) actually approximating George’s vision reminds me unpleasantly of my teenage days when I actually bothered to be active in (mostly anime/manga) fandoms and obnoxious, ignorant viewers of US dub butcherings frequently crossed my path whenever I ventured outside my (now dead) “home boards”. Anyway, I’ve accepted it and count the more horror-y look of the Others as just another example and it was filmed amazingly, so I’m fine with that.
Now with that short rant out of my system, my actual points of minor criticism while watching were:
“Oh, enough already with the slowly rising portcullis! It’s only 14 minutes; we don’t have time for that!” (repeat x2)
(In the tunnel:) “The ice looks fine, but oddly the wood looks kind of fake.”
“Huh?! Is the tunnel straight? If so, major point of boo.”
“The (ant)arctic glacier-like Wall is way more impressive than Genesis’s greyish one, but the latter is probably more realistic and neither fits my vision, which pretty much is somewhere in between, so I’m not sure which take I prefer…”
“Sad-face @ Waymar not fighting the Others.”
“How the hell did Will cross the Wall!?”
“I like Theon, but I dislike that he doesn’t come across as unlikable (yet) at all.”
“I hoped we would get to the dire wolf pups.” *pouty face*
And while I fully understand why they don’t call the Others such and it’s no deal-breaker for me by any breadth of imagination, I do not like it. Others shows an unfamiliarity with them that White Walkers lacks, which is why the latter should only be used by those that actually have had (frequent) contact with them. Plus, White Walkers doesn’t roll off the tongue as well as a curse word, so I’m afraid they won’t be used as such, which would be another blow to the atmosphere.
That said, all in all I loved it, especially the scene in Winterfell.
P.S.: I guess the body parts are supposed to look like one of the old Westerosi runes and/or a symbol Melisandre would recognize.
twincastQuote Reply
this is very true, and I do think they get the point across that he is from nobler birth than Will and Gared. I just think they missed the chance to get a really cool swordfight in the prologue between Waymar and the Other while more Others are sneaking up to him. In my eyes that would have been way better than the silly chase that we now see, and that would have satisfied the need of action in the prologue.
KnurkQuote Reply
anyone have a doctor that can steal me some drugs… i wanna induce a coma for 2 weeks and dream about this…. greenlight seasons 2-7830893 already!!!
Tree-FaceQuote Reply
Lina,
Because that would lead him straight back to Castle Black, and the watchers on the wall would see him from atop The Wall, they would sound the horn, and some of his black brothers would probably be waiting to hear why he´s the only one returning. This would probably have led to his survival, but he was too scared to stay at the wall, so he got over/through the wall somewhere else:)
John EngedalQuote Reply
The second white walker in the background of waymar’s beheading is shirtless and looks like it has pale white skin….
whitewalkersarewhiteQuote Reply
I think that an actual swordfight would have upped the cheese factor of the whole prologue 20x. As it stands now, the viewer just has visual image of horror lurking in the shadows beyond the wall. If you put in an actual hand-to-hand swordfight with more airtime on these white walkers, the whole thing becomes much less about an eerie, unknown presence and more about fighting silly Yeti monsters.
John Winslow ColeQuote Reply
You’re welcome. :)
I’ve talked before about the origins of the site, most recently in our podcast. Basically I just thought there should be a site like this that follows the production of the show and there wasn’t, so I made one. I never thought it would grow as big as it has. But I’m glad that it did!
Winter Is ComingQuote Reply
Brian,
Yes, I think we see in a later book that there are certain hidden gates in places that open if you can say the Night’s Watch Oath.
and who’s to say Will didn’t run back to Castle Black, freaking out, and then escape the next evening? There are many ways he could have gotten over the wall – I think the jarring part was it was just too quick a transition, from on his knees in front of the White Walker to running through the Stark grasslands. They just didn’t have enough time to show the transition. It would have eased it a bit if they had shown him going back to the Night’s Watch, hysterical, no one believing him, and then him deserting the next day or something. I think it Maybe Book 1 needed to be chopped into two seasons. seriously. D’oh!
purplejillyQuote Reply
I know that everything I can possible think of to say right now has been said already, but there’s no way I can keep silent after this AMAZING preview, not knowing when I’ll be able to see the rest of it really hurts! Nonetheless this show is going to be awesome, it is known!
LiesieQuote Reply
I actually like the interpretation that the Walkers let Will escape. It would illustrate a kind of horribly diabolical sentience that I assumed the Other’s have, but that we don’t necessarily see firsthand in the books.
And this may be unlikely (since Not Matt Damon is, I’m assuming, only in the premier), but I kind of hope the wight Jon ends up battling is Royce. That would pack a great visual punch and bring things back around to the prologue very nicely.
InkasrainQuote Reply
John Engedal,
He could have come back at night, with most of the keep in bed. He would be let through and probably be left to stable the horses and report to the Lord Commander (I highly doubt they had people babysitting rangers when they were at Castle Black and there’s no reason to distrust a ranger coming back). When he got past the people working the gate he could have ridden off when they began keeping watch on the other side of the wall again. That’s a fairly simple explanation.
Tywin’s BastardQuote Reply
Winter Is Coming,
I was actually disappointed with the Others. The opening scene in the book, with Will cringing in the tree wanting to cry out a warning to his comrades but too afraid of being discovered himself was very visceral. I understand the logistics of filming up the tree would have been…difficult at best, so I don’t mind that they had to change that, per se. But the running through the trees bit and then killing Gareth but not Will… I dunno, it seemed kinda trite.
The rest was really, really great, though.
SlyQuote Reply
Zack,
That´s a very interessting piont for me because I am not a native speaker, so maybe I got someting rong there… Let me try to explain how I understand this.
Will says: ” I should have gone back to the wall and warn them but… I saw what I saw…”
The importent word is “and” here as I see it.
It is possible that Will went back to Castle Black ( like in 1.) but don´t warn his brothers. He was just rushing through in fear and insanity.
Or it happend this way.
Tywin’s Bastard,
AbyssQuote Reply
Tywin’s Bastard,
Very true! I didn´t even think, this happens sometimes :)
John EngedalQuote Reply
FYI I updated the YouTube link above to go to HBO’s official upload, with a resolution of up 720p. Beheadings in hi-def!
Winter Is ComingQuote Reply
Actully People who have seen nothing but the 14 minutes won’t even know that Will had to have got back over the wall to be captured in the vicinity of Winterfell.
As far as they know Winterfell is on the same side of the Wall as Will was.
As to how he got over/under/around the Wall a line later on about the NW kwing secret ways through the wall will solve that Nitpick.
Has GRRM ever been asked specifically how Garad did it?
I do think we should have seen the White walker turn away and leave Will alive to show that they did do it on purpose and not that Will managed to evade them when we have just seen them despatch Waymar and Garad so easily.
MormegilQuote Reply
Winter Is Coming,
I seem to remember someone in the books saying almost exactly this, although I can’t remember if it was the Old Bear, Rayder or someone else.
DaweiQuote Reply
whitewalkersarewhite,
You can see it better on the HBO version but around the 7:30 mark the second walker in the trees definitely looks to have pale skin.
JackQuote Reply
well Jon and the wildlings have also climbed over the wall in ASoS without much problems, so I don’t regard this as a plot hole.
I guess it can be done with a few people, but an army doing this would catch the NW’s attention.
cleganeQuote Reply
Regarding the change in the prologue: Did they perhaps choose to not have Weymar ressurect so that they can save him for later and use him as one of the wights at castle black?
Ingemar SvenssonQuote Reply
One line that might point to the WWs letting Will go in order to have him warn people, was during Will’s final words to Ned. He started out saying he knows he broke his oath, and eventually says something like, “People need to know”. I think it was before he asked Ned to let his parents know he wasn’t a coward. I realize that’s making a big jump from one line of dialog, but it seems like Will intended to warn people.
Another subtle bit of dialog that tickled me was when Jon told Bran that father (not your) was watching, paused, looked up, and then finished “and your mother”.
MikeQuote Reply
Possibly but surely that scene works better when we know the Wights were part of Benjens ranging, otherwise the whole of Benjens party disapears without a trace. As long as we get a clear look at the 2 rangers in Benjens party before they leave so that they are recognisible when they return as the UNDEAD.
MormegilQuote Reply
Yeah, I thought that was a great bit of dialogue showing right from the start that Jon is only a half brother.
MormegilQuote Reply
Some people beat me to it, but I still don’t see why Will couldn’t have just gone through the gate, been received by the Night’s Watch, and then escaped in the middle of the night or at some later time. Just a thought, and just one of the many possible scenarios that could have led to him ending up near Winterfell. I don’t care how he got through/over/under/around the Wall. It doesn’t matter. What matters is that he risked his head because he was too afraid to stay.
Look, we can’t get everything, and the method by which Will got past the Wall is irrelevant. How would you feel if HBO told you, “Okay, we’ll show you Will’s Wall escape, but then we’re going to cut the direwolf puppies, or we’re going to cut Arya getting Needle, or we’re going to cut the assassin in Bran’s bedchamber” ? You’d probably complain how they’re leaving out critical scenes that are so much more important than anything explaining how Will escaped. See the point?
LinaQuote Reply
“Without much problems?” Did we read the same book? Maybe you’re misremembering how dangerous and time-consuming that was. Didn’t they have tens of wildlings try to climb it, many of whom fell to their deaths as pieces of ice came off the Wall? It’s not a task to be undertaken without serious preparation.
But if that was his meaning, why not leave the “gone back to the Wall” part out of that, and use a phrasing like “I should have warned my brothers”?
ZackQuote Reply
Totally agree. And it shows how damn smart the creators are. There will be PLENTY of opportunities for sword fights. To have one with the WW would have upped the cheese factor, and people would see them as less than magical/monstrous…just another garden variety monster with a sword. They did it the way I would have done it to.
Um, if I were involved with the show. LOL.
HollyoakQuote Reply
Loved it :) Overall brilliant and I’m really looking forward to the show.
Prologue- we saw more of the ‘white walkers’ (I will refer to them as such from now on since the show does) than I expected, thought they’d remain a little more hidden and unknown. Still suitably mysterious and threatening. Wasn’t keen on the change with the wildlings’ bodies, as it seemed strange- it’s in the interest of the White Walkers to create Wights, which can fight for them is it not? Dismembering the bodies would seem to waste potential ‘recruits’. And it means they were cleared away rather than walking off- so the symbol was purely to draw the humans in?
I’m sure there’s a reason for this change, and for clearly letting Will go to send a message south (I got that impression very clearly), likely something that hasn’t been revealed in the books yet. But mostly I thought the bodies weren’t quite convincing, not enough blood on the snow maybe? Gared’s head was done well though.
I also found something a bit off about the little girl. Her face looked almost plastic. I presume this is deliberate?
Having said that, it was nice and atmospheric. Ser Waymar was spot on perfect. He came over as really needing a broken nose. I wonder if he was cast from the pool of backup choices for Theon? :p Interesting that, since we didn’t see him die (and the aftermath of that) people may expect him to return. Maybe he will, as a Wight? H
It made sense that Will escaped and faced Ned’s justice, since we followed him from the start, we sympathise with him a little more than we might with the other two, so that’s a change I liked. But the audience aren’t aware at this point how far it is- and maybe a long time has passed. I found it interesting that he comes across as brave- he ran to get word to everyone, knowing he’d die, rather than just out of blind terror (though I imagine plenty of that too)- though not brave enough to stay at the Wall. Of course Ned will follow the law and do his duty anyway- and someone claiming they broke the law because they saw White Walkers is probably seen about the same way as someone on earth saying ‘aliens made me do it’. Bran’s reaction was just right, subtle but very telling- great acting there.
Loved everything about the Winterfell scene- well, almost everything. Sean Bean gets Ned just right, completely believe it’s him. The children all come across as they should- but one thing sticks out, when did Arya learn archery? Or was it just a fluke? It’s not that big of a deal, but it makes it less notable later on when Ned arranges for her to train with Syrio if she’s been allowed to learn how to use weapons before. And if it was just a lucky shot from a girl who perhaps has a natural skill, but no training, why isn’t Catelyn screaming about how she could have hit Bran?
Note that the above isn’t a big deal to me and in no way detracts from the brilliance of Arya’s intro. It just surprised me that Catelyn was backing off from the idea of executing the deserter (which seemed odd to me- but maybe that’s deliberate, to provide a contrast to Lady Stoneheart) rather than worrying over Bran/telling Arya off. Presumably Arya will be punished later.
Minor points- wish we’d seen Theon kick the head but I’m not that worried by it. And Ser Rodrick is perfect.
However Will got south of the Wall, it wasn’t via Castle Black, since he commented he should have gone back there, implying he came through another way. I’m sure there are plenty of tunnels. I do wonder about him getting so far south without a horse though.
ShinyteapotQuote Reply
Re: Will-gate
Quote from Mance Rayder in ASOS:
“The wall can stop an Army, but not a man alone. I took a lute and a bag of silver, scaled the ice near Long Barrow …”
CrannogmanQuote Reply
Wow, to be perfectly honest: all this concern over how Will escaped the Others and made all the way to the outskirts of Winterfell on foot is kinda absurd. Fill in the blanks between cuts yourself, thats how cinema works.
Frankly, it Will is that big a deal, it should be equally disconcerting about how exactly Arya not only escaped her sewing lesson but also made it allthe way down to the practice grounds and, being only a child, nabbed a bow and arrow without one grown up being alarmed.
Srsly guys? Srsly. ;-)
PaulQuote Reply
… and where did Mrs. Cain come from?
Come on guys.
The First Fourteen is up On Demand and so is the Direwolves Scene.
Mike ChairQuote Reply
So Belgium (Telenet (Prime?)) and Germany (TNT Serie) have struck deals with HBO, Italy, Russia and Japan are in negotiatons. Will the Netherlands be the very last country in the world to get GoT? I wouldn’t be surprised…
KnurkQuote Reply
new footage?
erwinQuote Reply
My thoughts on the Stark intro/beheading:
I absolutely loved the new intro we got to the Starks. One of those “deleted scenes” from the book. It establishes all the Starks quickly and effectively. Ned, the duty-bound and honorable husband and lord. Catelyn, the loving mother (or not so loving in Jon’s case). Robb, the eldest son. Jon, the bastard. Sansa, the little lady. Arya, the tomboy. And little Rickon. Just a fantastic piece of writing. To the person who complained the Stark characters have no “sense of identity” after watching this, you are crazy. This perfectly sets up the different identities of the Stark family. Plus we got our first “Winter Is Coming”!
The beheading, as others have said, was less exciting, only because we had seen so much of it already. I didn’t even remember about Theon kicking the head in the book, so that change didn’t bother me. Plenty of time to set up Theon as a douche in later scenes (which they do). The beheading is about the Starks. And rightly focuses on Ned and Bran’s interaction, as well as Bran’s interaction with his brothers.
Overall, these two scenes do the necessary job of setting up the Starks and establishing the North as a cold, hard place. Can’t wait until you guys get to see more!
Winter Is ComingQuote Reply
I liked that they didn’t explicitly get into Waymar nobility/heritage, he simply reaked of arrogance the entire time and the way in which the other 2 ranger’s respond to Waymar (and his relative youth & also that he leads them through the tunnel) I think, that these signs give off plenty of clues that this young guy is the boss of this group and not because of his experiance (lines like “I never seen nothing like this, or never seen wilding do something like this” both give off the fact that Waymar has seen less)
anyway woah I loved it I’ll likely watch it a few times a day till premiere fantasizing about what else is to come. As to the head kicking, I think that the way this shot was set-up was not highly conducive to Theon’s antics and without any build-up to his character might have been a bit too, well ya know, arbitrary. His womanizing jerkery will have to act as set-up and if we get to Season 2 we will get plenty of opportunity to see Theon at his…um, best.
thotkQuote Reply
If even The Wall could not stop the making of a Gate, than what possibly could? :-)
Tar KidhoQuote Reply
Yes, that’s an issue but then again how does he get to the north of Westeros at all without going back to the Wall?
Tywin’s BastardQuote Reply
I love your unintentional pun – or was it indeed intentional?!! I Sean Bean looked extremely commanding and lordly and there was a nice dynamic between the kids and the sense that something was not quite right between Catelyn and Jon.
As far as how the deserter got to the other side of the Wall, that’s never really explained in the books either. I like the idea that the Others are sending a message by letting Will go when they could have killed him as well (although I’m not sure why they’re trying to warn the humans. I thought their chief weapons were surprise and fear – and ruthless efficiency … sorry, also ice swords!) Or they had enough severed limbs for one of their collages, and decided they needed no others.
Regina ThorneQuote Reply
When Royce, Garred, and Will started riding out, my wife (who hasn’t read the books) asked, “Who are these guys?” I replied, “No questions now. I’ll explain everything in about 14 minutes.”
Brother WolfQuote Reply
This. I definitely got the sense that both Robb and Jon were thinking back to the first time Ned brought them to witness the King’s justice. And the way each responded differently to Bran was also really well done. Jon, as in the book, giving advice before the beheading– he’s more comfortable with words and open acknowledgment of how difficult this is, while Robb just lends a comforting clasp of Bran’s shoulder afterwards, not discussing feelings, but clearly sad that his little brother has to grow up.
Or that’s how I saw it, anyway.
(Also, Rickon is adorable! He’s much older than in the books, obviously, but I have no problem believing that this is a kid who would name his new puppy “Shaggydog.”)
InkasrainQuote Reply
Forgive me if I’m being deliberately obtuse, but it seems like the argument over the White Walkers’ appearances (or is it ‘appearance’? how many did we really encounter?) is completely useless for one major reason: after watching the prologue, I have absolutely no idea what they look like. They were constantly silhouetted in darkness! I was only able to clearly make out the icy sword/blade which was used to visibly decapitate Gared. Is there some type of special cut I’m missing? What’s the point of having an ‘appearance-gate’ when the production went out of its way to ensure that the walker/walkers was/were cleverly cloaked in darkness and mystery in almost every frame?
NousWandererQuote Reply
Mormegil,
In regards to the viewer not knowing where Winterfell is in relation to the Wall, that would have been answered in the opening credits — which I wish they would have shown in the preview, because it would give the viewer a good idea of the settings.
Mag the MightyQuote Reply
Not really. I didn’t notice either The First Fourteen or The Direwolves Scene up On Demand as of last night. There also may be some other stuff they added today to their On Demand listings. The Direwolves Scene was up on HBOGO.com and still is. The First Fourteen is not yet up on HBOGO.com.
Mike ChairQuote Reply
Winter Is Coming,
Just a small comment concerning everybody: off late, I’ve noticed that more and more spoilers are written without tagging them as such (e.g.: the fact that Theon turns out to be a ‘douche’, as you write in your above comment). Either we get rid of the ‘spoiler’ tags alltogether and warn people about spoilers throughout the comments section, or you might want to bring it to people’s attention again that spoilers should be tagged. Of course we are all excited about Winter being just around the corner, but especially at this time there will be an influx of non-readers for whom it would be sad if their viewing experience literally gets spoiled!
Tar KidhoQuote Reply
George doesn’t tell us how Will escapes either. The prologue ends with Ser Waymar royce standing over Will: “Will closed his eyes to pray. Long elegant hands brushed his cheek, then tightened around his throat. They were gloved in the finest moleskin and sticky with blood, yet the touch was icy cold.”
In the next page or so, he’s tied up and a Winterfell captive. You can’t expect more from the series than you do of the novel.
GraveyQuote Reply
I don´t know. Could be that he was just not in the constitution for proper phrasing. – No seriously , he was to face his own death in the next minute, give the quy a rest! ;-)
Besides, there are many other possibilitys how Will could have pass the wall. ;-)
AbyssQuote Reply
IMHO the white walkers are not white for the same reason why the kingsguard’s coats arent’t. Problem with the computer graphic (white looks greenish)
Elena AmiciQuote Reply
OT
As a Hungarian I was really happy when I saw two great articles about the show on the two major HUngarian news sites in the recent days, and both of them have new photos! One is a summary of the show and the filming process with a picture gallery of 16 pics from which I guess nr. 4, 7, 11, 12, 13, 14 are new.
The second one is an interview with D&D with Q&As that I’ve not seen before, but they say no “big news”. 3 new photos from the set mainly of Benoioff are added.
Few parts which are worthy of me suffering with the translation:
Q: Has the presence of the writer on the sets influenced you?
A(B): He inspired us, because he was satisfied with everything when he first walked around the sets, and all he said was: “I have to give you a kiss, guys!”
Q: Will it be continued?
A(B): Thre is no official word yet, but we really hope for a second season pick-up, so we are constantly (?) preparing its draft, we are ready to carry on.
Okay, that’s enough, I hate translating! Anyone interested please use Google Translate. :) Although this news snippet feels like a few drops of water in a swiftly filling cup, I thought I would share.
BTW a lot of posters are popping up here as well, and TV bloggers are writing about the show constantly (there goes a word from my passive vocabulary to the active :)) so I hope this will be a much appriciated show here as well even though it doesn’t have a huge built-in fanbase…
Supporting the magyar bottoms
vajlégyQuote Reply
What I missed in the prologue was a reference to the terrible cold that comes with the white walkers. It adds a bit of tension to the scene. what bothered me a little was Will’s reaction when he saw the wildlings were all gone. If you see some bodies all cut to bits and pieces and a few moments later they’re gone, just saying “they were here!” as if you just mislaid your carkeys or something, seems like an odd reaction. At least to me.
It’s also a shame Theon’s soccer skills were left out because, as mentioned before, it says a lot about him. Also Jon’s reaction gives you a clear idea of how he feels about Theon. I’m guessing that was sacrificed due to the timelimit for the episode and there will be plenty of opportunity further on to establish those things.
Great photography though. The acting was good so far and until now it feels like a good depiction of Martin’s world. Costumes are great too.
durandalQuote Reply
NousWanderer,
There’s no special cut, but there is a really quick flash of one of the Others in which you can see its face. There is a screencap of it floating around somewhere. It was discussed pretty heavily in a post here maybe a few weeks ago. You might be able to locate it more easily in westeros.org’s screencaps gallery. Sorry I don’t have the exact link, and I don’t remember exactly which trailer it debuted in or I’d link you to the WiC post.
LinaQuote Reply
Regarding the “ritualistic” position of the dismembered bodies, I’m with WiC: I think it’s among those “future developments” D&D asked Martin about when they started the project. In other words, maybe we’ll know more about this whole matter already in Book 5.
And yes, the only explanation I get about Will’s escape is some sort of “we’re coming” , of course.
The only thing I really miss from the book is Royce trying to fight the WV: of course it’s totally irrelevant for the TV Show, but I really liked how Martin described that fight as some sort of “Rite of Passage” into adulthood for Ser Waymar.
Luca CorradiniQuote Reply
Quite a bit was added to HBO On Demand today (some of these have been available other ways already, I think). I just watched the Direwolves scene, behind the scenes on Dothraki language, exterior sets, and Other Houses (Tully, Arryn, Frey, Greyjoy, Tyrell). Great stuff, especially enjoyed the Dothraki video…was great to see some more video from across the Narrow Sea.
AlyssaQuote Reply
Will didn’t escape in the books, he’s killed by Waymer the Wight.
Garad is the one who ends up south of the wall and AFAWK he only survives because he is some distance away from the killing and is on horseback.
MormegilQuote Reply
I’d vote for abandoning the spoiler tag. It is going to become difficult to remember what has been divulged via teasers, promos, etc., and media blogs with casting news, etc., and what hasn’t. In my limited experience, folks who come to sites like this are prepared to be spoiled. Leave the spoiler warnings to the general media sites, where casual viewers of everything—broadcast to premium cable— graze through short clips and postings on fifty shows a day.
DH87Quote Reply
Although no name is given to the deserter in the book, I’m pretty sure it’s Gared (the frostbitten ear(s) figured prominently in his initial description and in the description of the deserter). I think we are to assume wight-Royce kills Will in the book.
As for the escape, we don’t know if Gared, who’d been left behind to tend the horses, ever actually sees the Others, or if he just hears, assumes, and flees. He never gives any kind of “I saw the white walkers” type speech in the book (I don’t think he says anything, actually).
Brother WolfQuote Reply
I’m going to mark myself in the disappointed column for the opening interpretation of the Prologue chapter
1) By showing us The Wall, it makes it appear that the Others are very very close by. The impression I had from the books is that the Others hadn’t reached The Wall yet. The dialogue for establishing that this was a scouting party was plain in the book, and all that was necessary. It also lets us build our anticipation for The Wall through Jon’s talk of it, so that it seems magnificent at first and evokes a sense of wonder, where as these characters treated it as the everyday.
2) It was waaaaaay creepier without the gore. In the book the bodies are all in one piece and appear to be mysteriously asleep. There’s also some indication that once wounded, the creatures don’t heal, so I’m left wondering both who moved the body parts and why AND where all the blood on the snow went.
3) Crappiest tactics for “scouting” ever. Will should not have been riding his horse, but should have been on foot. He took his horse almost exactly up to the camp site. If the Wildlings hadn’t had a run in with the Others, the Wildlings would have killed him. Horses aren’t that silent unless you purposely muffle their hooves by wrapping them in cloth.
4) “They’ll want to know how the wildlings died.” Ummmmm… I’m all for forensic science and all, but since that doesn’t exist in this setting and there’s no indication any of these characters are scientifically inclined, I think dismembered is pretty darn good explanation of how they died. This line would only work if they’d kept the original “looks asleep” set up, as then its quite weird and you’d want to examine their cook fires for poison or check their throats for strangulation.
5) Disappointed not to see Ser Wilmar Royce get his fight with his shattering sword
6) Disappointed not to have Gerard mention “fire” as necessary, since later on we find out that it’s important and would also set up Gerard as an “old hand” and Royce “as inexperienced” in just two lines.
I’m okay on the Will living as opposed to Gerard, though I don’t see any particular reason for the change.
I liked the scenes at Winterfell to set up the family before the King arrives.
I am, however, a bit concerned at the “pacing” of the lines. The execution scene in particular the dialogue seemed to be too fast, except for Bean. The rapid fire quickness of it seemed out of place given the occasion.
world_dancerQuote Reply
Man, I love this site but it is exhausting to read the comments sometimes.
I know it’s been stated but come on. Gared escaped and made it south of the Wall in the books. Mance made it south of the wall. Osha and company made it south of the wall. This all within the span of a year(?) or so. Obviously there are ways to do so. Plus, Will is stated as one of the better trackers, climbers, sneakers, etc, so it doesn’t seem like much of a reach that he knows how and is able to get over/under/through the wall.
ChrisQuote Reply
Having read Elio’s write up at Westeros on the first 6 episodes, if the only things that are missing are what he says then I’m going to love this series. Those things that he says that aren’t there were pretty much the thing I thought would get lost in the translation of book to screen anyways.
dizzy_34Quote Reply
Hi to all! Over all I liked the prologue, for what its worth. Just wanted to comment that there’s a part missing of the video online after the beheading scene where there is a mixing of scenes with new dialogue that set up what is to come:
Cersei commenting “What if John Arryn had told someone/anyone” and Jamie answering “if he told the king both our heads would be skewered in the city gates by now”.
Also there is a scene I haven’t seen before where Vyseries is holding a sword against Dany in a sort of hut with Drogo and other dothraki present. wonder this takes place.
Anyways, the waiting will be excruciating.
TusuriQuote Reply
I don’t understand why people are wondering how will got past the wall. Tons of ways, but the easiest would just be to go back to Castle Black normally, it’s not like he did anything wrong until he ‘deserted.’ He could have gone back and gave his story, then the first night back snuck away south. Or any other number of ways but that would make the most sense.
I also don’t understand why some think the walkers and wights are too similar. They look absolutely nothing alike. Wights look like blue-eyed zombies- dead people. White walkers on this show look in no way human at all. I am not crazy about how they made them look..”Predator like.”
Don’t know how Will escaped based on what was on film. Why would the Others just release him so that there is warning? Why would they want to let anyone warn of their coming? Also don’t like how they chopped up the bodies and then why they disappeared. I don’t really care to be honest but it just creates unneeded questions for a TV show so don’t get why they’d do that.
Overall though I really liked it. Certainly after 14 minutes non-readers wouldn’t know much of what was going on but you’re not supposed to yet..just as in the pilot of any TV show you won’t know what’s happening yet, only that it’s some interesting TV.
Zibby McGooQuote Reply
Here’s my experience…
1. Opening sequence was nice but the action was awkward. I was secretly wishing a Jack Hughman Wolverine was going to show up and do some somersaults.
2. Finally seeing the actors in character felt nostalgic. I smiled. I have never followed production of a movie before. Then I saw Sean Bean and I stopped smiling. That man belongs in a zoo!
3. Everything exceeded my ultra-low expectations–barely.
What I would like to see: More power struggles! More intrigue! More nudity!
Cruella Bunny BunsQuote Reply
Just wanted to add my praise and (minor) nit-pickings to the conversation.
First off, I was extremely excited to see the first 14 of what (I hope) will be 7 seasons of epicness! None of that excitement has diminished at all after last night. I’m one of the ones that added HBO to my line-up last month in anticipation of this month. However, when I saw the screenshot of the “white walker” in the trailer, I had hoped that wasn’t the final version of them.
My vision of them, from reading the books, had always been slow moving and methodical, white/translucent like ice/glass, and more elegant and alien-like; less bestial and dark/orc-like. I envisioned them as quietly appearing out of the fog and stalking forward, and not running around and growling. That being said I can understand that cgi wise, it would be a lot harder (more expensive) to create a white walker from the book, especially in future scenes (ie. The Fist).
I totally understand why things need to be changed in book to screen translation. My gripe about The Others is something I can live with. The rest of the preview of the Starks was great. I am still excited, and can’t wait until 4/17.
DunktheLunkQuote Reply
Awesome! They totally nailed it. The opening sequence was much creepier than I remember it from the book.
I loved the interaction between the Starks and feel like they did an excellent job of conveying several key relationships in one scene. Well done guys!
jdp13Quote Reply
the issue isn’t really with how he got south of the wall, the issue is how did he not get slaughtered by the Black Walker that was 5 inches away from him that had just slayed Sir Waymar with one blow and beheaded Gared in two seconds.
it simply raises more questions than it needs to. all that they changed was uncessary and didn’t serve to streamline or improve the story it just made it more of a jumbled mess for the sake of gore and cheesy head throwing. will was already away from the group, he could have simply “seen from afar” what happened to the other two and booked it out of there and gotten away. how he gets south of the wall and is caught in winterfell is utterly superfluous. that it is will and not gared is superfluous. what is important is that the changes they made don’t improve the story they just make it make less sense. it’s jibing with the books isn’t really the issue except in (like many of the changes in The Two Towers and Return of the King) the author who wrote the books has the best plot and continuity already worked out, don’t come along with your TV hackish hands and think you can do better by adding some sh!te that doesn’t even make sense.
the same thing is true about the way the wildlings are killed. if they dismembered there is no need to go back and look as somebody stated. how they died is pretty apparent, they were chopped the f**k into little pieces. now if they died as they should have, frozen to death in place as if time stopped then there is a reason to question Will’s assessment that they are even dead and go back to make sure. it also makes more sense from a staging standpoint. Will basically just climbed right up next to their camp, blundering the whole way. that is not how a “scout” scouts. he scouts like GRRM wrote … he sneaks up from a long distance and observes them for hours and sees they aren’t moving and gets creeped out and assumes they are dead and comes back and says so. then when his snot nose boss doesn’t believe him it makes sense and when they are gone when they get back to check the reaction of confusion and more subtle creeped out ness make sense. as opposed to seeing fully dismembered bodies and gore strewn everywhere and having it gone when you get back. that elicits a “holy SH!T” reaction.
i am not at all saying it wasn’t an enjoyable 14 minutes but there are some serious flaws in the logic of what they have changed. like all TV hacks they have taken the “there has to be some changes” and overapplied it where none were needed or made the utterly wrong changes and changed things that are bad, not because they “aren’t exactly like the book” but because the changes make things utterly incoherent.
if you are going to change something, change something that A. makes something shorter but still gets the same message across or B. makes things clearer and easier to understand. what you don’t do is change things that make it harder to understand or that don’t make sense even in the self contained context of the TV show (or film like in many of the LotR changes). a book like GRRMs is internally consistent because he spends YEARS making sure it is that way so the least you can do as an adapter is not make the kind of changes that make your TV show less internally consistent simply because you are lazy or incompetent or not paying attention to detail or just want to change something for wow/gore/sex/bang factor.
Who Is Jacopo Belbo?Quote Reply
Gared is questioned by Eddard but we don’t know what’s said because Bran can’t remember afterwards because he’s so nervous for the beheading.
Tywin’s BastardQuote Reply
You already know my thoughts on the preview, but if you don’t I’ll sum them up in one word: Squeeeee!
Now, about the credits order. It’s a bit odd that they would initially state that Alfie Allen, Rory McCann and of late Jason Momoa would be considered “regulars” and yet they don’t appear in the credits. Odder still that Aidan Gillen is there already considering that I don’t think he appears in the pilot. Does he?
Strangest of all is how they bill the younger characters: Harry Lloyd and Kit Harington should be credited singly rather than together, either that or Emilia Clarke should be credited with the younger characters as well considering she’s supposed to be a teen.
Josh ParkerQuote Reply
That was fantastic! I hope these next two weeks go by quickly!!
AdrienneQuote Reply
Lina,
I’ve seen the image that people are talking about – and caught the brief flash of a face in the preview – but is that really worth getting up in arms about? I don’t think so. Not only is it a motion-blurred still, but we now see that the walker is barely lit. What’s more: the face gets a FRACTION of a second of screen time. This means that colors are muted–that details that are already lost on account of the motion are further hidden by the palette of a frozen forest with a thick canopy at dusk. Aside from the silhouette, I’m not sure anyone in their right mind can say what the walkers will truly look like in their eventual “serious” on-screen reveal seasons from now. If anything, my first instinct was that the production purposefully kept the walkers mysterious so that their future appearance can be finalized at a later date without creating any conflicts in the narrative. I suppose I’m just shocked that people are walking away from the preview griping about something which my every “production instinct” told me was being cleverly handled and left intentionally ambiguous.
NousWandererQuote Reply
Here’s my experience on the preview.
1. Opening sequence was atmospheric but otherwise generic. I was secretly hoping Jack Hughman as Wolverine was going to jump out of the bushes and drop one-liners.
2. Finally seeing the Stark actors in character felt nostalgic. That made me smile. I have never followed production of a movie before. Then I saw Sean Bean and I stopped smiling. That man belongs in a zoo!
3. Everything exceeded my ultra-low expectations–barely.
What I would like to see:
1. More power struggles.
2. More intrigue.
3. More warring families.
4. More age-appropriate nudity.
sarah haQuote Reply
If people are getting hung up on what gate Gared got through to escape, would that be gategate?
AzurecobaltQuote Reply
=\ Reading this, I know you will never be happy with this series… and that makes me feel bad for you.
Ben WatsonQuote Reply
Wow, you have been quite busy commentig while I was at work, so I skipped like a third of the entries.
Anyone still having problems downloading files from makinggameofthrones.com should try out Stream Transport (for Windows), works great for me! And VLC media player plays files even if they happen to have a wrong extension (MGoT uses .mp4 files). It’s worth a try even if you already downloaded the youtube-versions, since the MGoT videos are really great quality.
My thoughts about the first 14: way too short, too many open questions left by the prologue, too much stuff we already saw in the other trailers, but overall very, very nice. All the details were pointed out by other geeks before, so I won’t repeat them.
Congratulations to all the cast & crew, this is going to be a hell of a ride!
DunkeltrollQuote Reply
Did anyone else paid attention to the sounds in the white walkers chase scene? Those sounded to me like ice cracking or crystal shattering, just like GRRM described the Others’ speech in the books.
Those who wonder how Will got to the other side of the Wall, ask GRRM how Gared did the same in the book.
Alexander DubrovskyQuote Reply
I loved the prologues in the books , but really, I never expected them to be dealt with in much detail in the series.
As has been mentioned .. How did the ranger get south of the wall ? has been left a mystery in the book, too… But we may find out yet. I think it may be tied up with other questions, such as, Who is Cold hands ? Where’s Benjen ? and If it doesn’t seem likely that The Others would want to warn the wall , who would ?
The answers are seasons away. In the books , the mystery is still unanswered , though a few possible answers have been revealed . It hasn’t put me off the books , and I doubt it will put viewers off the series. It will just sit there , a puzzle in the back of the mind..waiting to become an AHA ! moment.
obsidianQuote Reply
That’s not true at all. Truly effective previews – for great examples look no further than those provided by Breaking Bad, The Walking Dead and now The Killing – are able to provide crystal clear details and a polarizing vision of the show. You know the situation, you get a hard initial feel for the characters and you either become intrigued or turned off.
This HBO preview really achieved none of those things. It was vague, generic (specifically the night watch scene) and only exciting to those of us who’ve got a vested interest as readers and have been waiting for this show for ages.
This preview is weak in some pretty essential areas and I GUARANTEE that HBO releases another one within a week that is aimed at exciting – instead of confusing – the non series reading audience.
Matt OQuote Reply
You guys, if you sync up Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon right when the Preview starts and then do 1,2,3 bong hits, the music fits perfectly. It’s brilliant. And also, I think I saw that gaffer who hanged himself on the set–watch for the man hanging from a noose in the trees in the opening scene right between 1:34 and 1:39–I found that to be IMMENSELY creepy.
Mucho inconvenience!Quote Reply
In my head i always separated the White Walkers and the Others. Do we actually see an Other in this clip? We see a shadow behind Royce and the kill. Then we see the reanimated wights. I guess the thing that beheads Gared is an Other, but i don’t see the shimmering armor/etc.
No really matter though. It looks fricking awesome. loved it.
DougQuote Reply
It would have been funny if Will had answered Waymar emphatically with “They were chopped into little pieces, THAT’S how they died!”
Also, Will is far too eager to go off searching the woods by himself, looking for Wildling pieces, when Gared tells him to go find out ‘where they went’. I think this pinpoints a bit of what’s wrong for me – Will knows more about White Walkers, and believes in them, whereas Waymar does not. Will should have been showing more terror, more insistence to get the heck out of there, and less willingness to listen to Mr. Fancy Cloak who bullies him in to going back. A little more terror, and resistence on Will’s part, both when first telling Waymar, and when they scout out what’s happened, would have helped with why he’s running helter-skelter over a wheat field a few minutes later.
And again, I nit-pick because I can, this is the fun of sites like this. I like to discuss and pinpoint the things that seem off. It doesn’t mean I don’t like the show, or am disappointed in it, or won’t watch it or buy lots of GoT stuff. I love it so far. But I also enjoy going over it with a fine tooth comb, and sharing my opinions. And that’s all it is, my opinions, and again, in the long run, I love it.
purplejillyQuote Reply
Alright, I don´t know why we´re discussing how Will made it back past the wall, it is a bit silly, sure, but hey, this is House Gatewatch.
Anyone, please correct me if I´m wrong, but if i recall correctly(and I really should since I reread GOT like a week ago), isn´t the only reason why Benjen and company are sent beyond the wall, to look for Waymar Royce? If that´s the case, that means Will(or Gared) must have found another way to cross the wall right? Because if he had gone back to Castle Black, surely someone would have asked him what happened to Ser Waymar Royce? And he would have to tell them, unless he lied and said Waymar disappeared of course, which would mean they would still have reason to send Benjen after a lordlings son, but I don´t know, I´m sorry for continuing this discussion, have at me! :P
ASTB
John EngedalQuote Reply
So, wanted to post some more thought early, but the server was being upgraded.
I’m very glad they did not show the opening title sequence, really something to save for the premiere.
Watched the 14 mins twice, first in the middle of the night, then in the morning.
Loved the cracking ice sounds. Prologue great for sucking in The Walking Dead fans. They maybe won’t get what they expect, but after one episode they’ll be hooked anyway, hehe.
Great Stark scenes, gotta love Arya. Enough said.
No more watching of this video for me, saving it for the real deal in two weeks!
Hear Me RoarQuote Reply
But it’s not a “preview” the way that a trailer is a preview for a movie – this was actually, literally, the first fifteen minutes of the first episode. I’m thinking back to watching the first fifteen minutes of “The Borgias” which I also saw last night, and … I guess there was a lot of exposition about the Pope dying and Rodrigo Borgia being Spanish and not generally liked. And the rest of the hour and forty minutes was excellent. As for “The Killing” are you actually talking about a preview (i.e. a short clip of things that will happen on the show) or the premiere episodes which aired last night? Clearly, a full episode will have a different impact than a section of one.
I’m also thinking of the first fifteen minutes of “Rome”, which I loved eventually, but which contained a whole lot of maps, exposition and frankly sort of cheesy montages of people fighting, as well as a whole lot of names that might not be all that familiar to people who didn’t know much more than the broad outlines of Julius Caesar’s history. And yet the remainder of the episode was just fine.
To me the thing that was a ‘preview’ was came at the end of the fifteen minutes, which DID show lots of different characters and hooked me in.
Nevertheless, just to address your point about the fifteen minutes, at least ten of them were spent beyond the Wall, and I for one, found that sequence incredibly creepy and terrifying despite knowing exactly what was going to happen to the three men!
Lastly, it seems the show has been the rave reviews the show has been garnering from people who’ve never read the books, but actually saw the entire episode, so whatever the first fifteen minutes do, they certainly seem to be doing something right with the remaining 47.
Regina ThorneQuote Reply
Who Is Jacopo Belbo?,
But why is it inherently bad that they made the Others somewhat of an enigma? Why is it bad that new viewers ask themselves why Will and why the White Walkers don’t just kill everything? The only negative I can see there is that it’s a change from the book.
I don’t see why it’s so strange that Ser Waymar wanted to go and look at the dead wildlings either. He’s the arrogant leader so it’s perfectly fine that he wants to see everything himself before making a decision to go back. Will could have been made out to be a better scout but that would have taken longer time and the only point of the prologue is to show that there’s something wicked beyond the Wall, even though people south of it don’t think so. The characters in the prologue are pretty irrelevant in themselves.
Tywin’s BastardQuote Reply
Mucho inconvenience!,
what? is this a joke? did someone really hang themselves on the set? (it’s not the first anymore, so I am not sure if this is a joke)
purplejillyQuote Reply
I really enjoyed all fourteen mins,and was over the moon and as proud as punch to see myself in the opening Winterfell scene(8.32) when the Starks are introduced to the world for the first time.(team Stark all the way!) All the commenters who are disappointed in this or that need to realise that the show is not the books come to life but an adaptation. Its like a person who has read the books retelling the story to someone who hasn`t,there will be slight differences,bits ommited bits slightly changed etc.Just enjoy it for what it is and as a reader bask in the knowledge that you know the whole truth of it.
Two FeathersQuote Reply
youandwhosearmy,
I agree on this – the cracking ice voices were very cool! I didn’t know what that sound was, at first…
purplejillyQuote Reply
Azurecobalt,
I think we’ve entered the larger realm of “GOT adaption”-gate.
I agree that consistency-wise the others sequence is pretty messed up. Unfortunately, it’s the beginning of the episode, and also the most memorable part of the preview people saw. Fortunately, after watching the rest of episode 1 I don’t think it matters so much. Also, LOTR had a huge audience even though it too had some inconsistencies, so most people will probably skip by without a clue.
I for one loved the preview. I had chills the entire time. I didn’t notice the inconsistencies on my first viewing (I tend to not notice things like that.) My family, none of whom read the book, seemed to enjoy it as well. It did leave them with a taste of wanting more. Maybe not
Those 15 minutes were a lot more fun than the 2 hours I watched of the killing. Fun > consistency.
Anyway, if you look a few levels above, and don’t use a high powered microscope, the whole thing was very close to the book. Details are patchy, but the meaning is there, so far. This is a far cry from adaptations which have the characters taking door B instead of door A, or having parts of the mythology just be flat out wrong.
Anyway, I’m glad we’ve entered the stage of critique where we are actually analyzing the story instead of what color someones hair or eyes are. I’m sure that will still go on, but we can also have slightly more meaty discussions :)
salukQuote Reply
“How did Will get to Winterfell???”
“Why didn’t Catlyn yell at Arya for shooting so close to Bran???”
“‘Theon didn’t kick the head!”
“How does Arya know how to shoot a bow???”
“The Wights / Walkers are all wrong?!!!!”
Great jumpi’n Jory on a popsicle stick people, lighten up!! If you’re up in arms about a 14-minute preview, don’t even bother watching the series. Seriously. Just go… do whatever it is you do.
There’s gonna be TONS of stuff that will be different from the books (in spirit as well as fact) and if you can’t handle the fact that a TV series will be different than the books, then this may not be for you.
I myself and gonna love chillin out watching every episode (numerous times) and not stress over insignificant details.
EdQuote Reply
The hanged man is a reference to an urban legend about the Wizard of Oz movie. Actually, the entire post is a reference to “Dark Side of the Rainbow” :
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_side_of_the_rainbow
;)
DomQuote Reply
Watched this last night in Hi-def. All I can say is “Wow! That wasn’t a preview so much as it was a lap-dance!”
Dale RippkeQuote Reply
for some weird reason I thought we could have a decent discussion and review of the first 14, but obviously some do not know the difference between having an opinion and making an argument. Sure, there were some things I didn’t like either but there is no need to talk about that in great detail because that’s like arguing about ice cream. Still, having an opinion is fine and for sure expressing it as well, but calling people incompetent and lazy makes me wonder about the competency of some of the commentors here. Some have totally legitimate points and are making an effort to express them which is great, others are just pissed because they did not get Vanilla ice cream.
I, for my part, give the production team the benefit of a doubt simply because D&D have a direct line to GRRM. I can imagine that one of the very first questions that came up was how/why Gared escaped the Others and I can also imagine that GRRM had a very good reason for that. So, please, come to grips with the idea that D&D know more about the world than we do and they may have actually very good reasons for doing what they are doing. They are professionals who do this stuff for a living. Of course criticizing them is totally fine but then you should explain why you disagree which requires a bit more than just saying “me no like… you incompetent, lazy”. Sure, and I like Vanilla more than Cocoa.
marzmanQuote Reply
Well said!
EdQuote Reply
Simply not true – I’ve shown it to 6 non-readers thus far, and they found the preview to be both an appetite whetter and exciting. None of them found anything odd about Will escaping and ending up at Winterfell (although that is probably due to them being unaware of the distances involved).
On the subject of the escape, we don’t know the intent behind the Others / White Walkers from the books. Their movements always seem eratic, and not overly organised (other than the attack on the Fist in SoS). It seems to me that they could have attacked the wall and Castle Black at any time and broken through to the South.
There seems to be some sort of logic to them, but one that has never been obvious, maybe they are being controlled (therefore hint of ritual with the layout of the body parts), maybe they can only do certain bidding, maybe they are tied to location etc. etc. etc.
Will’s escape is primarily a plot tool – it links the prologue with Winterfell and the main story.
The big pluses from my friends were – overall tone, sound quality, the creepy girl, the acting.
The big negative: the ‘oh they’ve gone’ cliche when returning to the body parts.
MartinQuote Reply
This probably was a joke but I’ve seen it posted that they’ve actually put together a White Walker language, probably a bit harder to learn than Klingon or Dothraki I would think.
Other/White Walker kills Waymer
Two Others chase Garad through the forest.
Will sees the young girl Wight (only wight we see)
Other kills* Garad while the 2nd one stands in the background.
*Love the fact that Garad still gets beheaded even though Will stole his plotline.
MormegilQuote Reply
If you have to complain about small mundane details then you should probably get out of the house more. That shit was ridunkulously cool. Cant wait
DurwoodQuote Reply
I think letting Will go makes sense. They can’t break through the Wall yet, but letting Will go could be a ploy to lure out a more sizable force of Night’s Watch, and the Others’ attack on them was devastating in the books. Weakening the Night’s Watch is obviously their aim (hence the attempt on the Lord Commander Mormont’s life).
StarkgirlQuote Reply
Two Feathers,
I’m not sure if I remember correctly- were you in the scene with Bran practicing archery? That’s awesome! It must have been so fun to be on set! :D
On an unrelated note…I keep seeing people comment about how the wildlings being dismembered negates Weymar’s desire to know “how they died.” But, it doesn’t really. If you take a really literal semantic approach to the question, then I guess “how they died” means the method used to end their life – i.e. hacked to pieces. However, if you just approach the line more colloquially, you could see “how they died” to mean the circumstances leading up to their death – who killed them/when/why/etc. I think it’s perfectly acceptable to assume that’s what Weymar was going after.
And I am really glad they did the dismemberment/creepy cult symbol arrangement of body parts. It was really eerie. And I think strong imagery/atmospheres like that are a good tool to attract non-genre fans.
LinaQuote Reply
My apologies I forgot to spoiler my last post. :( I hope someone can add that.
StarkgirlQuote Reply
Been away for only 12 hours, and 300 plus comments since I left at 100 haha.
Something that dawned on my while at worked. Something I couldn’t quite place, after watching the first 15 minutes.
Ive forgiven the Theon kicking the head after the beheading. As someone else explained in the context of TV without the full scene, POV inner thouhts of Bran, and the full dialogue from the book. Theon kicking the head would look bad on Neds Character without retort to Theon for his disrespect.
The odd quick cut from Will on his knees before a Other to him running away from Stark men on horse somewhere south of the wall, still has me think it was a bad script choice. They should have stuck with the book and kept Gared or Will with the horses. As Gared in the prologue stayed with the horses. And we either assume or we find out he came across the scene was frightened and left the Nights watch out of fear. Later being captured and beheaded for the reasons we know.
After my second viewing I felt pity on Will with his little speech.
Eddard does make a comments to Bran about “Our way is the older way. The blood of the First Men still flows in the veins of the Starks, and we hold to the belief that the man who passes the sentence should swing the sword. IF you wourld take a mans life, you owe it to him to look in to his eyes and hear his last words. ”
“A rule who hides behind paid executioners soons forgets what death is”.
Those two comments spoke volumes about the Starks and the North. I truly wish they kept those in.
Beyond the book to tv adaptation. The first 15 was really good. As for editing. I felt the execution scene was cut to short. I was hoping for just an extra second or two after the beheading to allow the gravity of the duty done to be really visually hard hitting. And we definitely get the first 15 minutes at a break neck speed. My fiance and I responded “That was 15 minutes..wow’ felt like 5″. We absolutely loved the anticipation of the opening scene with the wall gate going up. Great suspense.
I didn’t really mind the interpretation of the Other that ive seen so far. As we wont see more of them till season three *prays* But what little screen caps or pauses on the creatues look ok and creepy. Maybe not as white as their title is given in the series. But oh well.
I also noticed the change over from the pilot to the final cut the use of the direwolf head instead of the full body like in the pilot in the execution scene. I feel this was a good change esthetically as from a distance the full direwolf sigil does look dog like.
Still wish we had gotten the direwolf running across an ice white field. Se la vie.
WolfheartQuote Reply
Ha! Great point. I think Gared’s way out here was easier, though; much less running and anticipation before the end.
InkasrainQuote Reply
PuristGate.
HollyoakQuote Reply
This Willgate brings back some question I had while reading the book. It seems to me how Gared crossed the Wall remains unexplained.
Gared was terrified and exausted. He would have tried to find the Castle Black so that a sentinel on the Wall could spot him and open the gate for him. It’s much easier and faster than climbing up the Wall, and he must have wanted to be the other side of the Wall as soon as possible. Not to mention that he needed fire, food, and other human beings. In a Tyrion chapter, however, Mormont says he couldn’t believe Gared’s desertion until Winterfell sended him his head. So, the Lord Commander has never talked to him or seen how frightened he was… which means Gared never made it back to Castle Black.
hnQuote Reply
Well said, sir, well said! Few of us will be 100% happy with everything (I’m not) but 90% happy is still freaking AWESOME! Forget the details and enjoy the ride.
15 minutes of screen-time, I fear for the episodes. Maybe each one will have to have multiple posts…meep!
dimensionallyTQuote Reply
Starkgirl,
That’s actually a pretty good explanation!
salukQuote Reply
Good Lord that Televisionary Critic review was…sumptuous. What a great read.
He is literally showering praise of the highest order on the first six episodes. Amazing stuff. Like nothing on television before, he raves.
I can’t wait to see all of the first episode.
*Runs away to see the 15-minute preview again*
HollyoakQuote Reply
This never gets explained in the books. He had the horses, so he could have made it easily back to the Wall, but there is no reasonable explanation how he made it over the Wall. He can’t have climbed it, especially in his deranged state, and although we know that there are other ways to cross the Wall, it wouldn’t make much sense if he knew about those.
morbiczerQuote Reply
Anybody get the feeling that putting the prologue out like this, is like a ploy to gauge opinion, perhaps with a view to making the odd tweak here and there?
Khal NicQuote Reply
Hollyoak,
This!! Yes, Indeed.
On another topic, now I am wondering if Coldhands is not BenJen, but maybe some sort of traitorous White Walker? Like a turncoat spy White Walker? A White Walker who has come to sympathize with the humans? And so he takes Will along and shows him the secret gate, the same way he saves Sam and Gilly in the future, and takes them to the secret gate?
purplejillyQuote Reply
I had not heard that line of Will’s the first time clearly. Did he really really say “people need to know?” I’ll have to watch it for the 4th time.
Ive gotten used to it all now except the question as to how Will escaped the other, or if the Other let him go. Thats it. Hopefully it was in his last words before Ned. Goes to check.
WolfheartQuote Reply
I loved the preview BUT:
Blah blah blah blah
Blah blah blah blah
Blah blah blah blah Blah blah blah
blah Blah blah blah blah
LOL… Obviously the people who have posted like this are not going to like the series.
Relax and enjoy the damn show!
*(It was AWSOME CAKES!!!)
Matt C. DerQuote Reply
Love it definitely didn’t feel like 14 minutes (which gets me worried because one episode a week will never be enough O_O)
I would have liked a bit more icy touch to the other but truly I’m fine with it, buggered me a bit that if the wildlings were gone like in the book there was no blood either, looks weird on tv.
But loved all the work, new scenes and old (won’t say that I would not mind seeing the first pilot has bonus on blu ray hehe)
SA_AvengerQuote Reply
Two Feathers,
“On an unrelated note…I keep seeing people comment about how the wildlings being dismembered negates Weymar’s desire to know “how they died.”But, it doesn’t really.If you take a really literal semantic approach to the question, then I guess “how they died” means the method used to end their life – i.e. hacked to pieces.However, if you just approach the line more colloquially, you could see “how they died” to mean the circumstances leading up to their death – who killed them/when/why/etc.I think it’s perfectly acceptable to assume that’s what Weymar was going after. ”
Agreed. Also, it is readily apparent that Royce doesn’t think much of Will, and that he doesn’t really believe Will’s report: “How close did you get?” The line about wanting to see how they died is at least partially a pretext for going to see for himself. This is reflected in his smug “It seems your dead men have moved camp” upon arriving.
Sam DeGreeQuote Reply
Matt O,
What do you think ALL of these house videos etc. have been. HBO may choose to release another preview clip (I doubt it) it seems to me that those who wish to learn more about the show have a wealth of stuff to choose from and several of the earlier previews like “Welcome to Westeros” or Invitation whatnot, give you a better “crystal clear” image of whats happening.
THis clip was just total uchee mama!
thotkQuote Reply
I just noticed in the Stark introduction scene that Robb’s hair has a different color than Jon’s. Jon’s hair is black, while Robb’s hair has a subtle red tint. (The Tully influence)
I never noticed it in publicity shots, but it is a good detail.
LarsQuote Reply
OMG! I was so totally engrossed I thought about 5 minutes had gone by! It was all so believable – costumes and the snow and the sounds of the forest etc. The “cracking ice” sound of the white walker was really well done!
Can’t wait!
silverjaimeQuote Reply
Alright, as far as Wall-gate is concerned, it stands to reason that seasoned rangers like Gared/Will would know alternate means of getting through the Wall in case they ran into trouble and needed to get back (say they were being pursued) but were nowhere near Castle Black i.e. other gateways accessible only to members of the Night’s Watch. Gared/Will simply took one of these other gateways.
There, do I get a no-prize?
Steven SwansonQuote Reply
I showed the video to a non-fantasy reader, and he thought it looked great! I also asked him if he was confused on how Will escaped. He responded: “The guy that was executed? No… Should I care how he escaped? I figured he just did. He’s dead, right? Is he an important character or something?” I think that’s going to be the response of 95% of the viewing audience. The other 5% are probably on this board already. ;-)
ErinQuote Reply
Am I the only one who saw the “other” white walkers in the background while Gared gets his head chopped off? It definitely seemed like there was more than one when I watched it (I’ve only watched it once) and one appeared to be more “white or icy” looking where he was standing. I dunno, maybe I’m misremembering, I watched it late last night and haven’t seen it since. Will watch again when I get home (though HBO took it down?) and check.
Either way, I loved the preview, I’m glad I can separate TV from the Books and I feel bad for those of you who can’t. It will be an awesomely entertaining show and I will be excitedly watching every episode :)
NakmalQuote Reply
Yeah I am just behind bran and his bros. adjusting a saddle on the fence…..You know it was fun,especially being a fan of the books and a Stark fan aswell. I hope the other scenes I did are as good.I was also an Umber bannerman and a Stonecrow! Really can`t wait for season two to be greenlit,hopefully I will get some more cool parts.
Two FeathersQuote Reply
I just checked too, it’s definitely there. “I saw what I saw. I saw the white walkers” Then they cut away from him, but you hear him say “People need to know.”
MikeQuote Reply
Ok some info from one reader and two non-readers:
It is amazing. Each of those 3 persons I showed the preview to was grabbed and enthralled by the pace and narrative. Notably, the non-readers did not give a sh!t about our whiny “changes!” stuff and enjoyed it as well as me and my gf (the aforementioned reader). For us all the only major confusion was the non-conclusive prologue scene which generated a common WTF? moment. Other than that, for each of us the time flew with the speed of light and we simply want MOAR. Sidenote: I also regarded GRRM’s prologue as the most boring part of the book, together with early Dany and later Bran. Yet HBO’s prologue is brilliant.
Black LionQuote Reply
Gared was on the wall for something like 50 years. I bet he knew a way through.
DaweiQuote Reply
Cruella Bunny Buns,
sarah ha,
Have you two met?
Steven SwansonQuote Reply
Nakmal,
there are at least 2 other walkers that can be seen in the background and they do look much paler/whiter
whitewalkersarewhiteQuote Reply
this is the best month in the history of evar!
XIVQuote Reply
Yep, there’s one standing directly behind poor Gared, and it clearly is much paler than the “main” Other – my opinion is that the “main” one is simply in shadows all the time (to add mistery? to allow for redesign when they’ll appear again?), and that’s the only reason it looks dark.
DomQuote Reply
So many comments! I can only imagine what it’s going to be like the night of the 17th.
Anyway, I am all about positivity, so here is what I LOVED about the 14-minute preview:
1) BRAN! I feel like they’re setting him up in this first episode to be the “thread” that ties the family together — you already get such a great sense of the family dynamic through his interactions with Jon and Robb (LOVE LOVE LOVE the little clasp on the back that Robb gives Bran after the execution, AND Jon’s advice to him not to turn away). Isaac is a fantastic actor. The ending of the first episode is going to be MAD poignant/sad/shocking. I’m predicting right now that I cry.
2) ARYA. No explanation needed. I actually started to tear up a little bit in the introductory scene (Arya is hands-down my favorite character). Maisie Williams is perfect, perfect, perfect.
3) The Prologue Scene. My heart was pounding the entire time — SCARY STUFF. Gory, foreboding, and supernatural. (Also, I had no problem identifying Royce as the “noble” and Will as the “commoner” — their accents were WILDLY different, Royce being all Oxfordian English and Will sounding all Cockney. I’m an American, so forgive me, but accents can be a definite marker of class in Britain, right?)
By the way…I’m also really enjoying Mildred Pierce! HBO FTW.
Carrie MeathrellQuote Reply
Incredible preview, I finally start to comprehend this is actually happening!
tommitQuote Reply
Can anybody hear what Will is saying just before his head will be cut off? It’s around 2 minutes before the ending. It sounds like: “Forgive me lord.”
*looking for gates*
KnurkQuote Reply
Steven Swanson,
Unfortunately, yes. 1. jokes are not funny 2. wears a rabbit fur coat. You get the picture. Stay away from Cruella, he/she/it/they’s a bad egg.
sarah haQuote Reply
Oh, also, my boyfriend has been making SO MUCH FUN of me for being obsessed with this show, but after the preview, he immediately downloaded the AGOT audio book (he actually signed up for Audible.com in order to get it on the cheap, since it’s like $55 to download it onto the iPhone otherwise?). (He’s a huge HUGE sci-fi fantasy nerd, though — think Buffy, Star Trek, Heinlein, Weis/Hickman, Bujold, so I think he’s just being skeptical about GOT to annoy me.)
Now all I have to do is finish the Bujold’s Vorkosigan series as a favor to him.
(Anybody else think that Miles Vorkosigan is Tyrion’s spiritual brother???? Has anybody asked GRRM if he’s read much Bujold?)
Carrie MeathrellQuote Reply
It does sound like “Forgive me lord” – but he may be saying it to Eddard, as in “forgive me for diserting and not convincing you about the Others’ threat” instead of it being a prayer of sorts.
Or, he is a follower of Rh’llor (less likely, I think)
DomQuote Reply
Everyone think of your favorite 10 little details from song of ice and fire.
Now accept that only about 2 will make it into this show. The series is thousands of pages; the show has 10 hour seasons. Your darlings will die.
I’ve gotten past that, and I love the way they captured the tone; the visuals; the mood.
winter is coming.
JohnJangoQuote Reply
I’m almost sure there are at least 2 other white walkers behind the one who killed Gared, one to the left and one to the right of him.
Another small detail from the preview – it looks like Arya is sewing the letters of the alphabet in her sewing scene. Looks like the first row has A to F and the second has G to L … :)
Alexander DubrovskyQuote Reply
I had serious doubts, but the moment Royce said “Do the dead frighten you?” I was hooked. They did it, I can’t believe they actually did it.
The only thing that I still don’t understand is why is there no snow in Winterfell? It seems like a pretty big omission. Did they give a reason why? Budget concerns maybe?
All nitpicking aside I’m incredibly impressed and cannot wait until the 17th.
ZychotousQuote Reply
Dom,
yes, thought of that. I still can’t hear the words clearly so I consider this gate only open by an inch.
KnurkQuote Reply
Everything I hoped for. I could watch that 14 mins over and over, but I’ll restrain myself just now. I was mildly interested to see if Theon would drop goal that head, but hey, who cares. That scene is all bout Ned and Bran anyway and he has plenty of time to show his true colours yet.
The Others were savage. Are we going to get to hear them called Others or is it the White Walkers now for better or worse? I liked how the entire scene of slaughtered Wildlings just upped and vanished. Can the Others animate severed body parts? I have visions of severed legs hopping off in to the brush, entrails snaking their way through the snow in search of warm flesh. T’would have been awesome. I’m not really bothered by how the Others looked, since they did not appear ridiculous (as could have happened) and the voices were just perfect.
Glad to see that Weymar Royce remains a douche.
SnarkQuote Reply
Mucho inconvenience!,
Funny Funny Funny. Sorry I didn’t get there first. My two worries were the fact that none mentioned how COLD it was before the others came and I was rather confused a little like others said about the white walkers, I thought they were suppose to have shimmering armor and these creatures were more of a Shadow.. But all in all a good opening scene.
Nick HaakQuote Reply
I finally got the monitor on my laptop calibrated correctly, and I have to say that there’s some interesting stuff going on with the WW’s coloring.
The “main” one has lighter skin than its armor, and the one in the back seems lighter still. I also think I see a third, as some have mentioned.
Anyone else who’s a fan of Carnivale get the same vibe off the WWs as the man with the tree tattoo?
paulgudeQuote Reply
Wow it was really really good! I love the atmosphere and the music was mixed well!
Nice foley sounds and great ambiance.
I thought it had nice production values too.! Glad to see it is an adult show.
Fantastic Job over all!
StrangeCatQuote Reply
it’s stated in the books that although you hack of chunks of the body of a wight, those chunks can move and act independently. So it could be possible those limbs crawled away and took the head on spikes with hem, that would be a very funny scene to watch actually.
KnurkQuote Reply
purplejilly,
As to your reply to Hollyoak…No matter who Coldhands is ( and I, too am hoping he’s a transformed Benjen ), still, who would have transformed him ? Is he the only one of his kind ? Where is Bran going ? And have the children of the forest really all died out ? Or are there remnants still wanting to form alliances with those who carry the blood if the first men ? Curiouser and curiouser….
obsidianQuote Reply
Before the show comes out, we should think about either migrating to a forum(hboforum.com) is very user friendly, or if winter or someone can expand the site to host one as well that would be great. But threaded organized topics would be a god send, and we are a friction army of posters whose numbers are going to swell after the show airs. ((and loading 400 post pages on my phone blows)
The DarkstarQuote Reply
That was awesome.
Plenty of things I would have done differently, but overall it’s shaping up to be as good as anything else on TV.
Lots of criticism here, some valid, some less so.
Will getting over the wall isn’t even a thing. He’s an excellent climber and an experienced ranger. If Mance can do it, Will sure can.
Matt C. Der,
You make no sense. The words “I loved the preview” can be taken at face value, you know. A person can love a thing without that love being unconditional.
::edit::
The preview reminds me of Mass Effect 2. I hated a lot of things about that game, but it was still the best thing I played last year, and one of the best games of its type I’ve ever played.
GaRQuote Reply
For your perusing “pleasure” guys.
Others or Whitewalkers in all their loincloth glory.
http://imgur.com/0Gg1e
http://imgur.com/YyPtJ
http://imgur.com/TYPFz
http://imgur.com/E5xVL
http://imgur.com/E5xVL
Yup, it seems HBO really didnt have the budget.
-edit- links hey
The Smiling KnightQuote Reply
I’m just going to chime in that I absolutely loved it. I’m so very excited for the 17th.
theamberkeyQuote Reply
Who Is Jacopo Belbo?,
Funny, when I freeze frame the Walkers they appear to have a blueish, icy look to their skin. Maybe its my video card.
I caught the symbol the body parts made right off the bat, the O in the GoT logo has the same symbol, so obviously it is some ritual that is also a territory mark and message. We’re back!, this is our land now, so run bitches.
TysnowQuote Reply
The Darkstar,
I agree, since this is a website dedicated to the series, WiC and crew might considering creating subtopic discussion threads.
Cast, locations, houses, costumes, Arya discussion, Jon Discussion an so forth. Spoiler free would help because so many posters, not just trolls put in spoilers and that isn’t fair to newbies, who should enjoy the show fresh.
TysnowQuote Reply
i think they did a fantastic job and i’m mostly impressed with Michelle Fairly, the look she gives Jon and the way her nostrils flare is amazing and her eyes are really intense.
Two weeks to go, i can’t wait.
Mirri MazQuote Reply
Everything is saturated in blue so there is no way to tell really.
I enhanced a few screenshots in which you and everyone else can see that the Whitewalkers are actually naked and only have loincloths, rugged loincloths i might add, and some sort of lether boots and vambraces.
http://imgur.com/0Gg1e
http://imgur.com/YyPtJ
http://imgur.com/TYPFz
http://imgur.com/E5xVL
http://imgur.com/E5xVL
The Smiling KnightQuote Reply
The Darkstar,
Agreed. A forum would be ideal.
GaRQuote Reply
(Off topic) Yuck. ME2 does not even rank on a top 10 games of that type. ME1 felt somewhat original, ME2 took that and squashed it with cliche after cliche, breif encounter after breif encounter, with no cohesion to any of it. I felt like I was playing a collection of 20 DLC packs. I doubt I will even buy ME3. Even if the reviews are good, because the reviews for ME2 were out of this world.
But your analogy made sense regardless :)
I don’t know if this has been officially stated, but I’m pretty certain that they made huge efforts to simplify each region to make it easy for the unfamiliar to keep track of them. Castle black and beyond the wall is snowy; winterfell is cold but not snowy; inn at crossroads is more traditional medieval; king’s landing is malta; eyrie is mountains; pentos is the orient; etc. It’s a little simplistic but it’ll do.
Also they can make it more obvious when the winter starts coming and those places are covered in snow!
salukQuote Reply
Awesome preview. I really love the look of the wildlings—they’re like a cross between inbred hillbillies and prehistoric humans. The girl was scary enough when she was impaled. Seeing her reanimated was even creepier. And the wight walker was very scary indeed. Can’t wait to see Jon’s showdown with these guys! Also I really loved the introduction of the Starks.
I didn’t think much of Will the first time around. Seeing him and what he goes through, I really feel bad for the guy and really wish he had just gone back to the Wall and reported what he saw. Yeesh, they really didn’t hold back on the gore when he gets beheaded :(
As much as I love the preview, I can’t help but wonder…am I the only one struggling with the accents? I’m American and generally don’t have trouble with accents, but some of the pronunciations are really different… I’m familiar enough with the source material to make out what they’re talking about, but I really hope I don’t have the resort to watching with closed captioning.
sareetaQuote Reply
That was absolutely brilliant, it looked beautiful.
I am so glad I am not one of you poor people who are hoping for an exact match to the book, it will be so nice to enjoy this series for years to come.
FromChaosQuote Reply
saluk,
You kind of prove my point there.
GaRQuote Reply
Wait, if I don’t subscribe to HBO, will there be any way for me to see it?
JohnQuote Reply
Really enjoyed the changes they made to the family/Winterfell scenes, it was a perfect choice for TV.
Absolutely hated what they did with the prologue. Why have the Wildlings cut up in a ritualistic fashion? I don’t see how they got up and walked away as Wights. Also I don’t see the motivation for the Other (who looked really cool) to not just slaughter Will. I thought they were pure evil machines. We need something black and white to lean on in a world where morality is completely gray everywhere else.
RyanQuote Reply
At first I thought it was a sacrifice scene, with the bodies, children. But no, so I wondered how they are making an army of wights if they hack them all to pieces and arrange them for some reason.
George probably labored for a month to get his first fifteen minutes right, to hook people for the entire series, and I don’t know why they w0uld want to change his perfection that much. I still skip pages to go to the wall because of it. I hope this hooks the masses like they want.
Like has been said before you have to take this as something new, so you don’t over compare to awesome, and disappoint yourself. I will still watch every week and be excited about it. This won’t be the first series (too bad) to not make it’s own story.
daev3Quote Reply
Does anyone know if the information for how many people watched the fifteen minute preview is out? If that is a big number, that would be a good indicator that the premiere will be a great success.
JimQuote Reply
Dom,
Oh gosh, I should know this – I love the wizard of oz.. Luz…
I do have to say I felt very sorry for Will, and I wanted to holler at the TV – dont chop off his head! he’s telling the truth!!! But I knew Ned had to do it.
purplejillyQuote Reply
John,
Either you need to subscribe to HBO to watch the series or you need to wait for the DVDs. I don’t know if episodes will be up on Itunes.
sareetaQuote Reply
Ed,
Booya! You tell ‘em, big guy!
KGQuote Reply
I thought it was absolutely fantastic. Honestly they did such a fantastic job bringing the essence of the whole series to life that I was too absorbed in it all to even notice if there had been tiny omissions here and there like Gared instead of Will being killed, Theon kicking the head etc. Honestly, who cares? It’s a tv series, it is impossible to fit in all that detail in 10 hours worth of show. What is more important is to capture the essence, and they have done that brilliantly from what I have seen form 15 minutes.
And as to how Will escaped… who cares? Just make an educated guess, and honestly, is it really that important in the grand scheme of things?
DaanishQuote Reply
Shinyteapot,
maybe she looked plastic ‘cuz it was cold and she was frozen over.
the arrangement of bodies could have been a sacrifice to the Others.
Rob NixQuote Reply
I think they failed in making the Others or White Walkers seem as something other than human. The whole point of the prologue was to show that they’re totally supernatural. That this shit wasn’t playin’ around. In the show, it was hard to differ between the wights and the White Walkers. A little lame. They just looked like dudes in rags. IMO, it needs to be clear they’re supernatural creatures, and not zombies either.
(Also, what’s up with little girls in every horror thing now? Seems like such a cheap and cliche tactic to garner scares.)
Rob NixQuote Reply
Rob Nix,
You’ll probably never see that girl again. It was a simple device to let viewers know, “hey, that dead girl who got a dead face close-up is walking around again, only with blue glowing contacts and frightening music.” It worked for me. My brain was like.. “ohhh, I get it… The undead.”
That said, I have no idea why a Na’vi (from Avatar) was chasing those guys through the forest. Or was it Predator? Too dark and mysterious to really know.
Fat Sword of DoomQuote Reply
Fat Sword of Doom,
I getcha’ but ever since the Ring scary little girls are everywhere in horror. Watch the Dawn of the Dead remake. Basically the same thing as the opening to GoT. Little girl zombie with glowing blue eyes.
Rob NixQuote Reply
Arrgh! I’m cracking… going over to my friend’s house to watch the preview now.
I lasted about 24 hours, not bad! :D
LexQuote Reply
The Darkstar,
Yes, a forum would be ideal. It’s difficult to wade through 200+ posts, especially when the topic at hand gets fragmented. hboforum.com seems a bit… quiet at the moment, though. Perhaps it will pick up a bunch of non-readers after the show airs? It seems that about 99.97% of the people that post here are readers (as is expected, ‘course)
Lex,
Ain’t peer pressure a b*tch?
JWestfallQuote Reply
Again,
White walkers screenshots enhanced so that you can actually see them:
http://imgur.com/TYPFz
http://imgur.com/E5xVL
No armor at all, only loincloth, lether boots and vambraces on arms.
The Smiling KnightQuote Reply
I’m tempted to start avoiding these comments sections. The posts are still great and I check the site regularly, but it seems the comments are going to become increasingly focused on nitpicks as the series starts and progresses. I have no interest in defending the series against those who will not be happy with it no matter what. Honestly? I don’t care if some of the sigils are wrong or the type of horse used is wrong for a given task. I don’t want my pleasure in the series to be diminished by analyzing every detail to see how it measures up to the novels. The nerdrage over 14 minutes of content is enough to make me start avoiding these discussions.
ChryseeQuote Reply
Chrysee,
I am of the exact same mind. I think after the series begins I’m going to avoid discussions of the episodes. I’ll still check the site for news and updates etc, but as far as the discussion of the show I don’t think I’ll bother. I dont want my enjoyment of the series to be diluted by the constant complaining and nitpicking over every detail.
Avalanche3319Quote Reply
Also, for everyone wanting a forum you guys have heard of westeros.org right?
Avalanche3319Quote Reply
Okay, I know I’m late to the party but…
THAT…WAS…AWESOME.
1. Sean Bean RULES.
2. The prologue was really atmospheric and eerie… I was scared.
3. The scenery at the execution was so gorgeous.
Lastly, I’m also getting sick of the nitpicking. I will probably post general impressions after each episode, and skim a few comments, but I seriously think the nitpicking is getting out of hand. The ‘gates’ have been funny at times, but if this is going to happen each week… sheesh. But I figured all along that this would happen (probably because I remember a similar situation with LOTR, and those purists annoyed the hell out of me).
I think we’re at a point where you either accept it for what it is, or you’re not going to enjoy it.
LexQuote Reply
sareeta,
As to no subscription watching and iTunes, see our updated FAQ: http://winter-is-coming.net/features/faq/
Usually on iTunes, but not before the DVD’s are out. So no way of just buying episodes of Game of Thrones to see it right away.
Hear Me RoarQuote Reply
Lex,
Glad you cracked Lex, I was with you on holding back but likewise caved and very glad I did – put any niggles/fears to rest, great to see so much footage, but was too busy having a serious mental discombobulation at seeing it all come to life to really take it all in (looking at the detail and style, cinematography, score etc etc. was overload)
So much so it’s almost like I’ll be seeing it for the first time in a couple of weeks (think my brain rejected the utter awesomeness transplant)
Still, fear of them getting it wrong now gone, only to be replaced by fear of them not seeing it through to the end – honestly, some folk in this fandom could go properly militant, we’re the Firefly generation, and won’t take another hit like that lightly! :-)
Lord WillumQuote Reply
Lord Willum,
I did crack… but I had a hell of a time trying to get the preview to actually play! My friend’s internet was down, so I searched out a torrent of the scene and downloaded that… but then my laptop wouldn’t connect properly to his TV (we tried for about 40 minutes, but no audio). We were about to give up, but then I walked to the corner store, bought a blank DVD, came back, burned a disc, and popped it in his DVD player. Success!
As for nitpicking, I do think it’s ridiculous… but there was one thing that made me sad: cutting out one of my favourite all time Eddard Stark quotes, “If you would take a man’s life, you owe it to him to look into his eyes and hear his final words. And if you can not do that, then perhaps the man does not deserve to die. [...] A ruler who hides behind paid executioners soon forgets what death is.”
I understand why they had to cut it, but man… that’s SUCH a good line! The brief line they kept (“the man who passes the sentence should swing the sword”) was so brief I almost missed it, as they went back to talking about the White Walkers.
LexQuote Reply
In the third book,when arya meets the outlaws she wishes she could learn to shoot a bow i think! So i got a little suprised when she like “look at me Im robin hood”. But thats not important really xD Its finally summer and im just waiting for the winter to come!
MortosivaxQuote Reply
I’m not even convinced that’s Martin’s plan for the novels, let alone television. But I am anxiously anticipating the next book where we hopefully get to explore their motivations a bit.
Two weeks to go…
I’m still waiting for the inevitable first poor review from a professional critic, to see if it’s a newcomer or a fan of the books. Negative reviews often sell me on a show more than the positive ones. Hopefully he makes well-reasoned points, anyway.
ZackQuote Reply
Yes! I caught that, too. I adore Vorkosigan and like Tyrion. But Miles is a much nicer guy. But the quick wit that both have is a huge draw for me….mebbe ’cause I’m NOT quick and witty…;o)
mimiQuote Reply
It is sometimes hard to manage so many different discussion threads in one post, a forum broken up into good subgroups might make that easier. However, I’d rather hang around WiC than the HBO one. It’s not for any elitist reason…I just like posting with you guys.
Question: How many of you post at Westeros? I registered but never really got into posting because I always come here.
LinaQuote Reply
I check here first – it’s faster. Then go to Westeros for in depth detail…..VERY in depth!!……………and intense………
mimiQuote Reply
I’m not sure what the chronology of the two series is (dunno whether Miles or Tyrion came first) but I have always thought that Miles was Tyrion with a better-adjusted family and Ivan was Jaime without the Kingslaying. Apparently there’s no Cersei equivalent in Bujold’s universe, though!
Regina ThorneQuote Reply
I’ve been afraid that it’d be hard to hear what they say, but so far in trailers and in the preview it’s been fine for me. Some dialects but most of them talk quite clearly.
Forums:
I’d be satisfied with one post per episode, but to change the comment layout to a clear threaded/nestled structure. If everyone knows how to use such a structure the eventual subdiscussions are very easy to follow.
Johan SporreQuote Reply
Is there a way to do it that would bring attention to minimized threads via bolding or something if there are new posts since one’s last visit? I don’t know if that’s possible if we’re keeping each episode to its own post.
ZackQuote Reply
A trusted insider source told me that White Walker is Jack Hughman.
DaveyQuote Reply
It did seem really short, not at all like 14 minutes.
The snow looked fake to me, like it was sprayed on the trees (which it probably was). Also would have liked to see it snowing harder with that muffled sound you get in a blizzard, that’s how I pictured it in the books. Kind of like those creepy outdoor scenes in The Shining. And I wanted the beheading and discovery of the direwolf pups to take place in the snow.
Overall it looks pretty good, but I just didn’t get a complete sense of it in such a short time.
Nigel TufnelQuote Reply
I noticed something Jon said that I don’t remember from the book. At the Winterfell archery range, he tells Bran “Father is watching, and your mother.” A subtle hint that Jon is a bastard, although that word is never in these early scenes.
Also, why does everyone have cloaks that drag all over the ground? Wouldn’t it be better to cut them up a few inches to clear the ground? Especially in a castle which surely has mud and horse poop all over the place.
OK one more nitpick I had never thought of before: why does the Night’s Watch wear black? Wouldn’t white be more appropriate for their environment. They’re always out ranging but it’s pretty hard to sneak up on anyone with that contrast.
Nigel TufnelQuote Reply
That entire archery-practice scene, and all the dialogue in it, is new. Not in the books.
LexQuote Reply
CAN’T WAIT! Squeeeeeeee!
“And I wanted the beheading and discovery of the direwolf pups to take place in the snow.”
They find them on the way back. In the preview they had not left the execution scene yet.
Robin IrelandQuote Reply
That’d depend on the system used and how much the web admin would want to/be able to customize it. But yes, there’s nothing inherently in such a structure that would forbid it.
Johan SporreQuote Reply
I think if it were followed by a disapproving glare from Ned, it would work well.
Nigel TufnelQuote Reply
How did Will get over The Wall indeed… considering that the wight who was formerly known as Set Waymar Royce rose up from the snow and strangled him. It was Gared who fled south, the old experienced ranger. HBO jacked it all up.
DanaQuote Reply
Because black looks way cooler d’oh!
Amir MishaliQuote Reply
Im not gonna lie, this entire preview gave me more hope then I ever had about this series. For those of you who said it needed to have more about politics and such, I disagree. It gives me more hope that it was this way, based on the fact that it took the direct prologue from the book, and used it as the preview for the show. Now, I know as well as anyone it won’t be the same, but at the same time, this book series is badass enough to allow a little leeway. Here’s to hoping they don’t butcher it like legend of the seeker was.
Winter is comingQuote Reply
Dana,
And the TV show is better for it.
HBO did move around some of the minor characters and alter the plot a bit in this preview. But with the limited time of TV show, they tell the story much quicker and more succulently then the book does. Whereas the novel has many pages to give the reader a sense of the coming dread from beyond the wall the HBO version does it in a fraction of the time. Its the the price you pay of adapting a book for film or the small screen, you have to be able to let go of some of the minor plot details in order to have the true nature of a story be told.
Tom Bombadil is one of my favorite characters in literature but its clear why Peter Jackson left him out…
So looking forward to this series. Is it Sunday yet?…
danQuote Reply