After a few tough decisions we asked you to make in the past weeks, we now have an arguably easier challenge. This week you can vote for your favourite CGI element or scene from season two. Think carefully, cast your vote in the poll after the break, and then comment away with fellow readers.
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139 Comments
Wildfire for me. Flawless.
CarneQuote Reply
Had to be between Wildfire and Dragonfire for me, but I went with Wildfire in the end.
AndrewQuote Reply
Wildfire for sure. Third?
UdiQuote Reply
I really had to go with Wildfire on this one. All of them were great… but.. yeah… this was the easiest poll for me yet.
Becky WilsonQuote Reply
Oh mY God !!!! It has to be the wildfire explosion ..
Coltaine777Quote Reply
Wildfire, but the White Walkers are a very close second.
Alex DubrovskyQuote Reply
Wildfire, by far
2a/2b were the White Walker and throne room
LordStarkingtonQuote Reply
I went with the Shadow Baby – the fingers curling around Melissandre’s legs are creepy and nightmarish.
PepperQuote Reply
Hey! I was finally able to click the vote button!
The Young WolfQuote Reply
Easy pick: wildfire
WinterdarkQuote Reply
I really loved the snow-in-the-throneroom scene, but I had to go with wildfire too.
KatieQuote Reply
Damn. Too hard to decide.
surfKrakenQuote Reply
Shadow baby for me as well.
sbj2k1Quote Reply
Birth of the shadow baby! Those hands arounds Carice’s ankles, wow!
ReroQuote Reply
Lots of good choices but I went with wildfire. Shadow baby was a close 2nd.
lovesduncanQuote Reply
Wildfire, easily.
Shadowbaby is a close second.
LexQuote Reply
Wildfire
SeVvQuote Reply
Pigshit.
Kharn9Quote Reply
there should be exactly one nomination in this category
MATTHEWQuote Reply
Went with dragons, but actually what I have in mind is not the House of the Undying scene, but all the ones with Drogon on Dany’s shoulder and when he’s learning to char his meat as Dany and Doreah are watching. It was too cute, as well as so naturally integrated with the rest of the scene that I don’t feel so much that he’s CGI.
MoonCoffeeQuote Reply
That wildfire explosion was pretty perfect.
Got to throw some love to the white walkers and snowy throne room too for the understated effect of the season. Three fabulous choices. But I have to go with my first instinct, and wildfire. It totally lived up to the terrifying tales of its power from the book, if done slightly differently but no less intensely than I’d anticipated.
ZackQuote Reply
Very few moments made me so absolutely terrified than seeing the white walkers march towards the Fist of The First Men. Granted, not ALL of then are CGI (the one that stares Sam down is a puppet, I think), but a good deal of them were, and the crew’s ability to portray that whole “oh crap” moment is truly fascinating!
SergQuote Reply
shadow baby without question
DBQuote Reply
Went with the redo of Bush’s head. Flawless.
RygarQuote Reply
Best scene with CGI or best CGI in a scene? Not great CGI, but I really loved the scene where Robb confronted Jaime in episode 1. The wildfire was pretty perfect but not really one of my favorite aspects of that episode (which is not saying much, because it was all so great).
darrylzeroQuote Reply
I had to go with the shadow baby. They outdid ten-fold what I had in my head while I was reading that scene, and that is so very hard to do – compete with the imagination. Plus it was the first big “holy shit WTF?!” moment of the season and I still cackle when I remember the online reaction while it was playing out on screen.
H, aka VeeQuote Reply
Wildfire!
Igor VelosoQuote Reply
Voted wildfire for pure impact. Shadow baby was probably the most technically impressive and the throne room was a wonderful example of effectively subtle effects, but how do ou not vote for the explosion?
AlanQuote Reply
Not a puppet, an actor (Ross Mullen) in prosthetics .
MormegilQuote Reply
Shadowbaby was the most excitingly gross and “innovative” in a way, as it could have gone all kinds of ways.
But Wildfire HAD to be like this, and it delivered exactly what everybody was expecting while still surprising fans with a blast.
Restore The DayQuote Reply
I went with Shadow baby, because I want it to win the silver.
DavidQuote Reply
The Shadow Vagina is the most futuristic shit I have ever seen on television
Ser Lyonel the Laughing StormQuote Reply
Shadow baby for the win. I hope the people voting for dragon fire are referring to the scene where the meat is charred because the dragon fire scene in the house of the undying just looked cheesy.
OliveQuote Reply
Shadowbaby for me. The look of that creature could’ve been a huge miss if it had been handled wrong. It was horror-like and the hands clutching around Mel’s ankles was perfect.
While the wildfire was awesome, it was just that: fire. Nothing Hollywood hasn’t ever done before. Big explosions are every CGI artist’s breakfast on a slow day… This one just happened to be green. But shadow creatures made in that quality and with such complexity; that wins my vote.
Red PriestessQuote Reply
I may be the only one who thinks this, but for me the snowed in throne room. It was amazing. That scene blew me away. Also, it’s kind of odd that both the throne room and the dragons were in the same sequence. And I’ve gotta say, why aren’t the direwolves in here?
EPRQuote Reply
I went with the wildfire explosion.
I would have went with the white walker scene but from what I learned from threads on this site that was mostly just awesome costume design with a little CGI.
The wildfire explosion made everyone in my living room just say “Wow!”…
ArthurQuote Reply
Went with the shadow baby on this one. The wildfire was great, and was a close second.
Pastor_of_MuppetsQuote Reply
I guess I like the simple things. While the wildfire explosion was mind blowing, I got shivers seeing the snowed in throne room. So even though the wildfire was probably a more exceptional technological feat and had that “OH MY GOD” moment, the throne room was just…beautiful. It was incredibly sad and peaceful, and it helped that Emilia Clarke was there. Being so used to seeing her against a desert and sun backdrop, it was weird to see her surrounded by snow. Winter has truly come.
ElizabethQuote Reply
I loved the wildfire explosion, but the birth scene was by far one of the big high points of the season for me… as many already said, the hands wrapped around Mel’s ankles..!
Shadow baby’s fo sho gunna win that silver!!! Booyaah
The InstrumentalistQuote Reply
Although some scenes were fantastic, I loved the snow in the throne room, or was that hinting at Snow in the throne room?
Oh n what was that dany reached for at the throne? A whitish sword handle?
AshQuote Reply
The final “white walker” scene was definitely a great finale, and frightening even, at least the beginning of it, but I was slightly annoyed by one minor aspect:
Whenever there’s a quick glimpse over a large mass, in one angle and just for a few moments, it’s so clearly fake and doesn’t really convince — there was a similar thing when the camera quickly swung over the walls of Qarth and we saw a massive Oasis port city, etc., and then quickly nothing else again of the sort. While these glimpses are definitely quite artistic and very welcome among fans, myself included! — so I’d of course rather have them than not have them at all — but personally, I appreciate the scenes where the CGI has some direct function and actually convinces.
For the “white walker” finale, for instance, I had the feeling throughout that if the camera suddenly swung sideways we’d see that none of these guys are zombies (as we only saw a few at the very beginning) — maybe better would have been one more shot of a CGI or non-CGI zombie half-way in the scene, or something else of the sort, to remind the viewer that this is suppose to be an undead army and not a crowd of extras who were just brought over for this one scene on a bus from Reykjavik.
Wildfire and CGI ships, etc: Very convincing, we saw enough real things (men in boats — Stannis at the helm, wood burning, different angles, etc.) to make the scenes seamless, very real and touchable, and to give the viewer the feeling that if the camera suddenly swung in a different direction, as mentioned earlier, we’d see pretty similar stuff — so it’s real, it convinces.
None of the other scenes had quite the same effect (the magi even forgot his favorite doubling and reappearance trick when confronted with the little dragons! — I agree with whoever said that this scene was a bit cheezy :-/ ), but, admittedly, and despite my critique, I actually liked them all.
Sir GallahadQuote Reply
Throne room. Looked completely natural to me – and I am well familiar with what real snow looks like!
KGQuote Reply
No direwolves? Weren’t they CGI’d in after being shot elsewhere so they’d look bigger in relation to the humans? A woman’s mind keeps going back to the scene where Bran was warging visibly for the first time. At first, we saw the godswood scenery from a lower viewpoint, then the pond in the godswood, approached the pond and looking closer saw the reflection of …Summer! Was that cgi or a real wolf? Whatever it was, that stayed with me, had to watch it over a few times it was so cool.
The shadow assassin was certainly bad-ass, creepy, scary, and yet realistic looking. That surpassed my expectations. Wildfire, well as an action movie fan I’ve seen lots of explosions. That there was such a quality setup and execution was certainly unusual for a TV show, but it still was pretty much well-used technology with a few tweaks. So a woman thinks the shadow assassin may get her vote, but will think on it more before deciding.
Mrs. H’gharQuote Reply
Mrs. H’ghar,
if I understand it correctly what you´re asking that was a subjective camera, don´t know how you say it in English. A type of camera that replaces the eyes of a character. So, you see what that person / animal (in this case) sees. It´s not cgi. But I have to see it again to be sure.
I went with shadow baby but the throne room was great too. Wildfire, I don´t care.
andreaQuote Reply
What? The Wildfire was a CGI? I thought they blew up a ship full of Mountain Dew…
fresQuote Reply
I actually jumped out of my chair and started shouting in glee and horror during the Wildfire explosion. I think most here will agree. It was epic!
Gabriel David RossQuote Reply
I think all the fire scenes were good, but CGI fire always looks like CGI fire to me honestly. Just soemthing a bit “off”….
After seeing the White Walker figures on display, I think the scene in the finale actually took away from how cool the White Walkers look so I cannot vote for that scene.
The House of Undying throne rroom scene was great, but it did leave me wantinghonestly. The VFX were awesome, but the HotU itself was such a let down I am biased against the scene. I can admit it.
I loved the Shadowborn scene!
To me that birth was intense and BETTER than how I magined it and that is always a nice surprise.
So definitely the shadowbaby birth!
darquemodeQuote Reply
I went with Wildfire CGI because everyone was expecting something extraordinary and the CGI production pulled it off and then some! No matter how jaded the audience was regarding filmed action sequences (and we are a very jaded bunch), GoT Wildfire CGI for TV pulled us up out of our seats for a WOW moment (one of the best Tweets described it as Weaponized Mountain Dew and I still get a laugh over that).
Compare this to the HotU CGI sequence, which is unfair because the expectations were so over the moon that HotU was never going to meet the audiences expectations and didn’t. All the time, money and planning poured into the Wildfire CGI paid off, but the same did not apply to HotU due to audience expectations.
My runner-up is a tie between assassin baby (yes, very creepy) and the much underrated HotU sequence especially the Throne Room. I know everyone concentrated on the Snow on the Throne but I was struck by the massive destruction of the vaulted ceiling (something horrific happened here). In defense of the HotU sequence, already much debated, it was the first time in either the book or TV series I got a sense of Dany as a Targaryen: one part brilliance and one part madness.
VivaQuote Reply
Voted for the white walkers, that hole scene was so creepy and left me speechless. the white walkers could have been easly made wrong. That is the reason George never descriped them in detail. From the dead horse till the walking zombies it was great.
I liked the other scenes, too, of course, this poll was was the hardest for me. The wildfire was grest, but nothing excactly new. The Dragons were grest before they spied fire, they had real expressions on their faces, so cute.
The shadowbaby was not bad, but it was to much cgi, for me, it did not look real enough, don’t now how to desribe it.
The throne room looked great, loved the scene, but I think the cgi was most likely the easiest, moving creatures are harder I think.
AbendsternQuote Reply
Wildfire! Definitely wildfire!
Some people though that the snow was actually ashes.
CeciQuote Reply
I went with the throne room. My Jaw was on the floor with the beauty and cinematography of it. Looked better than anything I’ve seen on any screen.
The DarkStarQuote Reply
Yeah Wildfire me. my jaw dropped when it happened. Amazing
HedgeWizardQuote Reply
I went with the wildfire. For me it literally felt like I was there to witness it. (Watched the Blackwater episode in a dark room, and the light of the explosion made it all green) It was an amazing feel.
LexyvilQuote Reply
wildfire along with the hound’s expression after it… then shadow baby and then the snow covered throne room
Carolina HQuote Reply
So that scene might have been an actual camera on a real wolf/dog, like National Geographic’s “Crittercam” that they stick on whales, penguins, large birds, etc. to see what they do? That’s cool too, but I guess not CGI. A woman thanks you for your reply and will probably go with the shadow assassin too since it was the most surprising to me. Loved all of it though, tough choice!
Mrs. H’gharQuote Reply
Mrs. H’ghar,
I don’t know for sure how they did it, and it’s been forever since i’ve seen the scene so I don’t know if the wolf we saw was CGI or a real wolf, but here’s how i’m fairly sure they did the scene. They ran a camera through the godswood using either one of the robot camera arms, or just a regular camera man, and ended with it looking down into the pool. They then match-moved the camera in a 3d program, and put either a CG wolf into the shot with the pool part and messed with it to make it look like a reflection, or took an actual wolf on greenscreen, and again, made it look like a reflection. I doubt they’d have gone through the trouble of trying to put (and then hide) a camera on a real animal for that shot. I could be wrong, though, but if I was the VFX supervisor, that’s how I would have done it.
AndrewQuote Reply
Rygar,
Hehe… that should be in some other category like “most awkward messup in the show”…
UdiQuote Reply
Wildfire, followed by dragon fire.
PepiQuote Reply
I went with the Throne Room scene as it looked the most real.
Loved the wildfire, but it wasn’t how it should have been IMO, & the rest was all too computerised for me.
TheFlayedLadyQuote Reply
QFT. This is exactly what I wanted to say too. I’ve been wondering how are they going to pull of the shadow birthing scene since S1, and it was constantly on my mind in S2. It was exquisite when it could have been cheesy as hell. The wildfire explosion was amazing (as were the sound effects), but at the end of the day, it’s nothing we haven’t seen before.
MachaQuote Reply
Ofc it is, or have you ever seen a dragon, a whitewalker or a shadowbaby in real life? if yes, tell hbo, so they can save some money with cgi!
TheFlayedLady,
PonzoQuote Reply
White walker-army. It looked real enough, and that in itself, on TV, is pretty impressive!
It gets some additional points for great design, and not doing the WWs purely with CGI, and just the fact that they went all out with a scene where I and most others didn’t expect more than blue eyes glowing in a snow storm – if we even got the scene, that is…
If I could cast one more vote (and add a category) I’d vote for the dragons in general. The firebreathing scene was suitably epic, but the ones where Dany tried to feed them – both where she fails, and where she suceeds, was impressively lifelike – movie quality stuff!
sjweningsQuote Reply
Grey Wind walking around and entering the cage where Jaime sits, chained. Massive epic scene.
BalerionQuote Reply
Surprisingly to myself, I’ve chosen shadow baby, because it’s something new plus it’s great combination of CGI with very intimate scene and greatly played emotions.
GrzebykKQuote Reply
Wildfire, whitewalkers, shadow they all were amaizing, but ruined throneroom was a piece of art. What a warning to all sides of war. What an atmosphere of decaying and final peace..
KidQuote Reply
Ponzo,
I ride a dragon to work, I have a big garden full of rabbits & orphans, these are his favourite foods. His name is Terry.
Zombies daily ruin my trips to Asda, but I have a spear & good put downs that keep them at bay. And a dragon, so although he doesn’t really care for decaying flesh, he helps me out when I need milk or ice-cream.
Is it my fault that HBO can’t find the real deal?
I also have a Unicorn, which I offered to them for the up-coming scenes of Skagos, but they said they would rather strap a horn to a horses head. Oh well….
I look at films from the 70′s & 80′s with basic computerised images & they look better than some of the more recent stuff that’s on TV/Films now. That’s all I meant.
TheFlayedLadyQuote Reply
I had to go with my dragons ,but snowed Throne room was a lil masterpiece ..:)
IsmarQuote Reply
went with a shadowbaby (with dragons/throne room close 2nd) mostly because I was so pleasantly surprised how well it was done.
explosion was cool and but that’s it, it’s just an explosion ;p
jkbQuote Reply
Wildfire no doubt, why even vote? :D
What is Dead may….Quote Reply
I voted for the White Walkers, but since that was mostly costuming I should have voted for the throne room.
The wildfire explosion was cool, but it was just an explosion. Great TV, but not that memorable as CGI.
ElaineQuote Reply
I am not convinced that was snow it looked like ash to me.
Anyway I went with the wildfire explosion but the walkers were just as cool.
Al SwearengenQuote Reply
the shadow baby wasnt CGI, it was a real person in a costume
meadQuote Reply
White walkers for me if it didnt look the part then it would’ve been a fairly disappointing ending to what was a great 2nd series.
Philip HobbsQuote Reply
We have a split decision in our house – boyfriend – Wildfire; me – Shadowbaby. I got to pick last time, so this time it’s “Wildfire”.
Speaking of Shadowbaby, when many fans on this site mentioned James Purefoy for the role of Mance Rayder, I looked him up and found the coolest movie which reminds me a little of GoT. The movie is called “Solomon Kane” and stars James Purefoy (as Solomon), Max van Sydow (as Solomon’s father), the late Pete Postlethwaite, Rachel Wood, Ian Whyte (as the Devil’s Reaper aka GoT Season 1′s White Walker and Season 2′s Gregor Clegane), Mackenzie Crook (as Father Michael aka GoT’s Orell), and Rory McCann (as McNess aka GoT’s Sandor Clegane). The movie opens with a battle scene which looks a miniature version of Blackwater (North African style, but without wildfire). A little later, at 6:24, the Papa of all Shadowbabies, called the Devil’s Reaper, comes alive; at 32:59, the making of a Zombie; and at 1:25:06 final scene in what looks like the throne room. Good movie and James is awesome – what a perfect Mance Rayder he would be.
Tereeza777Quote Reply
Tereeza777….have u seen ironclad? purefoy’s pretty badass in that too.
Philip HobbsQuote Reply
mead,
The poll says “The birth of the shadow assassin” not “Killing of Renly by shadow assassin”.
abyssQuote Reply
Seems a lot of people vote wildfire because of the scene itself, not because of the CGI. A bit of a pity if you ask me!
Red PriestessQuote Reply
Sorry – I forgot to put the link to the movie – type in “Solomon Kane 2009 DVD – YouTube” and click on the one with 6 Chinese characters in front of the words “Solomon Kane”. That one has the entire movie.
Tereeza777Quote Reply
SNOWED IN THRONE ROOM!!!
JoeQuote Reply
Wildfire, for sure. That was insane. Just exceeded my expectations – especially that slow motion shot where Davos gets blown away and the ship rips apart. Should be part of the Geneva convention that wildfire must only be used at night, though.
JamesQuote Reply
Tereeza777,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dHCMt0kfF8Y
watch this if u liked solomon kane and james purefoy!!
Philip HobbsQuote Reply
Philip Hobbs,
Philip – thank you! – will watch it later
Tereeza777Quote Reply
The killing of Renly blew. Sorry for the harsh words but it was really shot/edited awfully.
But all of the scenes nominated here were beautifully done,
MATTHEWQuote Reply
Nightmarish? I think it would be a dream for most mothers if the baby helped to get out instead of the mother doing all the painful pushing-work!
ReroQuote Reply
FOTFM!
Throne Room was nicely done, too, but the cold blue eyed guys really crowned it all.
Baldyr BlüetoothQuote Reply
I went with the wildfire scene. That whole episode was just flawless, and that scene had me going “Wow, just wow!” even after the episode was over.
David The GreyQuote Reply
Wildfire scene for sure. Seriously, that was an EPIC moment
RaychieQuote Reply
If you have a good Subwoofer, the Wildfire Explosion got to be the Choice!
axxoQuote Reply
Most Hollywood movies would die to have such spectacle!
BOOM GOES THE WILDFIRE!
Omar BrownQuote Reply
lol as I was going down the list I was like, yeah I’ll vote for that one, no this one, then that one…. then I saw wildfire, yeah, wildfire. :)
John-Michael LelievreQuote Reply
My favorite scene of the entire SERIES is: “Mattos – GET DOWN!!” >>> Davos goes flying as the ship disintegrates, followed by the wide angle shot of the explosion. Possibly the most intense scene I’ve ever seen on television. So, obviously, I voted for wildfire explosion :) And yes, with a nice subwoofer and surround sound system, it’s all the better!
iRavenQuote Reply
I’d also like to add that (IMO, of course) the most *flawless* CGI was probably the shot of the dragon on the balcony ledge burning/eating the meat, but I stand by wildfire explosion as my favorite.
iRavenQuote Reply
Wildfire.
Best CGI of season two.
Best CGI of the series.
Best CGI ever on TV.
Mike ChairQuote Reply
The wildfire scene was just amazing in an otherwise brilliant hour of television that was Episode 9 “Blackwater”…at the hands of Neil Marshall, whom I hope we’ll get to see at some point return to the shores of “Game Of Thrones”!
But, hard as it was, I decided to go with the White Walkers and their army marching on the Fist Of The First Men. It was just soo otherworldly, especially in the context of a series of novels and TV show, which are grounded in reality and where the characters themselves dismiss magic, the fantastic and the supernatural as old wives tales. The Others are used to frighten children, or as part on an insult, like “The Others take him!” (repeated quite often in the books), but never in a sense they might be real, just like us talking about the boogeyman or any other number of supernatural beings…well imagine if they all turned out to exist, and for us to actually have to confront them…I think that what made that scene even more palpable was Sam’s face when he realizes that all those nightmarish things he read about in maester Amon’s books are real and do exist and that now they are descending upon the world of men. Then it was the face of the White Walker on the horse, the utter lack of anything human about it, the lack of any pitty, feelings, just the look of utter contempt and pure unadulterated hatred and evil…to capture that it just mindboggling.
Then of course the implications of that whole scene, knowing now and seeing how being petty, greedy, self-centered and just plain ignorant, won’t help anyone weather the storm that’s coming…and to finally understand the full meaning behind the Stark words: Winter Is Coming”.
Excellent!
loco73Quote Reply
The shadow assassin – a deliciously horrific climax to that creepy sequence with Davos and Melissandre. It was particularly effective for me as a non-reader. “By the pricking of my thumbs….”
3eyesQuote Reply
The wildfire explosion is up there with the Adama maneuver from BSG as the best CGI ever on TV.
Very happy with the CGI overall this season. I think they nailed it. Would like to see more Direwolves next season, however.
johnQuote Reply
I agree ,I was also thinking if that was snow or ashes …but it looked much more like ashes…anyways it was really spectacular .
Btw. I’m suprised that so may voted for Wildfire ,it was just an explosion ,it looked pretty spectacular ,but it would be my last choice .
However that’s just my opinion .
IsmarQuote Reply
Wildfire.
OT: in today’s comics section
http://www.foxtrot.com/comics/2012-07-15-19c47f09.gif
GPQuote Reply
I thought the wildfire explosion was, far and away the best CGI this season and would be super surprised if it didn’t win. I know I’m in the minority in this, but I thought the white walkers looked uber cheesey( velveeta-ey?) and I really wish they would have left more to the imagination. Kinda like the Jaws theory of what your mind sees being way scarier than putting the monster in your face. I actually giggled when the showed the close up of the one white walker and I really don’t think that was the desired outcome of that scene. It was a let down from the rest of the season finale, which I otherwise really enjoyed. I know the dragon fire could have looked better as well, but that has already been discussed at length while the white walkers were widely approved of.
JillQuote Reply
but that’s the thing, it’s supposed to be best CGI not ‘omg that was so cool i just shat my pants’. i mean wtf, a subwoofer?
don’t get me wrong, it was an awesome scene but it was just your standard holywood fire explosion with green filter added really. nothing really exciting CGI-wise.
jkbQuote Reply
Shadobaby, white walkers, and dragonfyre all looked cheesy and fake, IMO
It was between wildfire and the throne room, and I went with the latter for the haunting emotional impact.
QueenofthornsQuote Reply
Ceci,
I thought that the throne room was destroyed by dragonfire and the stuff falling was ash.
S.R.Quote Reply
Wildfire followed by White Walkers, wildfire will win by landslide.
Aegon the ConquerorQuote Reply
When I watched the birth of shadowbaby my jaw almoust broke through the floor like an anvil… My vote for the shadow assassin…
bonQuote Reply
My thoughts exactly. Blackwater was an amazing episode but I feel some of the wildfire arguements here aren’t related to CGI as much as the emotional impact of an episode/story.
Red PriestessQuote Reply
My thoughts exactly. Blackwater was an amazing episode but I feel some of the wildfire arguements here aren’t related to CGI as much as the emotional impact of an episode or story.
Red PriestessQuote Reply
That’s my favourite too!
EleanorQuote Reply
White walkers because that image still excites me when I picture it in my mind. The wildfire was very good, too.
DreamlifeQuote Reply
For all the wildfire supporters:
It was an EPIC, EPIC moment, but as far as CGI is concerned, it was just a multi-greened blob on the screen. I would imagine it was much easier to look realistic than the movements of the dragon or the shadow baby. Or the completely immersive atmosphere of the throne room.
Don’t mix up, ‘CRAZY AWESOME MOMENT THAT ALSO INVOLVES CGI’, with, ‘best CGI of season 2′.
The DarkStarQuote Reply
Shadow Baby was terrifying. Also reminded me of Hexus from Fern Gully lol!!
ZhoraQuote Reply
I would have voted for that one too…………,,
NicNicQuote Reply
What about Drogon charring meat in 2×05? That was done so realistically, it was amazing. Wildfire sets the standard for TV but pales in comparison to the best movies, the throne room sequence was hauntingly beautiful (which I voted for) but still not groundbreaking, Drogon’s sequence in 2×05 was the best CGI dragon ever.
Jonathan LoescheQuote Reply
My first reaction was the wildfire explosion because it was stunning, but coming at it as a VFX artist, I have to go for the birth of the shadowy baby. There were at least six different particle simulations in that and fluids are so difficult to get right especially on a tv budget. Really, truly impressive. If not for the shadow baby I would have gone with the dragons because they’re pretty damn flawless. The textures, the models, the animation, the integration, the only reason I didn’t vote for them was because I didn’t like the dragon fire as much and we’d already seen them in season 1. And the white walkers were mostly special effects make up so…
SDGMQuote Reply
Shadow baby. The rest were great as well, but this shadow baby scene was so unexpected. I thought they’d portray it differently, not actually shoot the scene seemingly between her legs with the smoky shadow pouring out of her.
Grey Wind scene was pretty good too.
SinslashQuote Reply
I went for the dragonfire (though shadow birth was excellent too). Not for the fire itself, which was ok but nothing special, but as a way of marking the brilliance of the dragons throughout the series. The way they move is wonderfully natural and if dragons are to lizards as bats are to mice, they look absolutely perfect.
ShinyteapotQuote Reply
That’s one way to look at it, and certainly valid. That said, the point of effects is not to be technically demanding, it’s to assist in the telling of the story and help convey the proper emotions, etc.
Everything in that wildfire scene was perfect, including the effect, making the impact so tremendous. If you’re voting on technical difficulty, sure, if you’re voting on the impact that effect on the viewer, I can see where wildfire would outrank demon shadow baby.
AlanQuote Reply
Wildfire easily……literally watched the scene about 10 times due to excessive coolness. Sub Woofer had the house shaking. White Walkers would be next on the list.
SnakeQuote Reply
Agreed.
The dragon scene in 2 x 10 was the cheesiest CGI all season, whereas the one in 2×5 was not at all cheesy, done tastefully, and actually adorable!
queenofthornsQuote Reply
Went with the throne room, because that was the one that touched not only my eyes, but my heart as well.
blackbird7309Quote Reply
This is a race for second because I can’t see anything but wildfire winning.
John WQuote Reply
Throne room for me. Its haunting and amazingly creepy to see danny in the place she desires above all, and have stand in ruins, like an old , useless barn.
I still voted for wildfire though. Why? Cause the impact of that particular cgi was better than falling ash/snow
I dont know. Wish i couldve choosen both .
LctlQuote Reply
This is easy? I chose wildfire, but I wanted an “all of the above” option.
OldGranQuote Reply
I voted Wildfire for #1. The Wildfire scene was the most ambitious use of cgi, its blending of real fire with cgi fire was very effective. It takes a good artisit to make something terrible look beautiful, and that was accomplished. I would vote for the shadow assasin for #2, it surpassed my own interpretation of the scene from the novel and was artfully grotesque.
Sean SnowQuote Reply
Sir Gallahad,
I agree with your post. Drogon and bros. vs. Warlock was not well done. I loved the White Walker on the horse but that was actually an actor with only his eyes and the mist done CGI and the zombies were really disappointing to me. Shadow baby, Throne room and Wildfire were pure awesomeness though.
UdiQuote Reply
so tough for me, wildfire was just epic but I just had to go with shadow baby, just thought that was creepy as hell and amazing! someone said it right in an earlier post, it was “nightmarish”
serumQuote Reply
I went with The Others. I could almost hear Samwell wet himself. But he took another step.
AmsterpaulQuote Reply
Did anyone see the San Diego fireworks fail? They accidently set them all off at once. Kind of reminds me of the Wildfire explosion, only not green.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ndVhgq1yHdA
Warning: very loud, check your volume b4 you click link.
HexonxQuote Reply
my initial thought was the Rob and Grey Wind scene where Rob is talking to a captured Jamie … but then I choose the White Walkers scene
Marilyn BonesQuote Reply
I singled this quote out but it it representative of a few others (sorry, jkb). I voted for Wildfire because, you’re right, it’s just an explosion and they may not be technically difficult and we have all seen them a million times and the audience responds with a collective yawn, but, for whatever reason, this one made me go “Whoa.” And in this jaded life, “Whoa” is damn good.
AssuntaQuote Reply
What with the look of Harrenhall in episode 7 or Renly’s Camp in episode 3 or Red Keep in episodes 8 and 9 or Robb’s Camp in episode 1 and 7? They look marvelous…
bonQuote Reply
Wildfire #1 by far.
2nd best was the Shadow Baby
DanielQuote Reply
Serg,
Nope, it’s an actor wearing a looooot of makeup (see his interview at ComicCon London) :-)
http://youtu.be/avAWlqfd_J8
ispahan75Quote Reply
Wildfire! But I’m not sure the white walkers should count since I at least consider them a triumph of non-CGI special effects. At least partially.
NoxAeturnusQuote Reply
The wildfire was great, but for CGI, I think it has to be Greywind while Robb is talking to Jamine Lannister. The direwolves and their connections to the Starks is the one thing I miss about the series vs the books. While Robb is holding in his anger, you see Greywind becoming more and more intense, and when he snaps at Jamie Lannisters face-that was a great moment.
LovesparQuote Reply
I went with the white walkers, that creeped me out. This choice was harder than it was made out to be though, everything looked amazing.
valQuote Reply
Don’t know if this has been posted, but in this interview GRRM states that they are still casting the role of Mance and hints at other casting bits.
eetreborQuote Reply
Interesting interview, thanks. Surprised Mance is yet to be cast, but I guess if they are unconcerned by Kit’s ankle break then the filming in Iceland must be a little way off.
I’m not sure why he would be so coy about Strong Belwas, but I’m guessing he’s in. Who knows, maybe he’s taking the part himself :-)
RossQuote Reply
Alex Dubrovsky,
Thank you! I totally agree, def the wildfire for first tho!
KatherineQuote Reply
It’s not a “Shadow Assassin” it’s “Shadow Baby”!!! :D
What is Dead may….Quote Reply