The Game Revealed: Go behind the scenes of Episodes 605 and 606
By Dan Selcke
HBO continues to release segments in its five-part docuseries about Game of Thrones Season 6: “The Game Revealed.” Each segment will deal with two episodes of the series. This latest one tackles “The Door” and “Blood of My Blood,” the two episodes directed by Jack Bender. Check it out:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5vi4bCyhto0
This installment spends more time on the climatic scene at the end of “The Door” than it does on anything else, which seems appropriate considering how much attention the scene has gotten since it aired last week. I liked learning how the production accomplished the bit where the White Walkers walked up to the Three-Eyed Raven’s cave while the Children of the Forest lobbed nature grenades at them, particularly the bit where little light panels on the ground stood in for the explosions. Movie magic!
Some of this footage has turned up in earlier behind-the-scenes videos, but there were a couple of sections that were completely new. I was intrigued by showrunner David Benioff’s assertion that each of the images in Bran’s vision from “Blood of My Blood” was “very carefully chosen.” And bless them for going to the trouble of hiring an actor and filming material involving the Mad King just for a few split seconds of footage. It was worth it to hear him scream “Burn them all!”
We also got some insight into Dany’s big moment at the end of “Blood of My Blood.” It’s always fun to see what the set piece scenes look like before the special effects are added in—Emilia Clarke’s dramatic speeches are all the more impressive when you realize they’re delivered from the back of a big green mechanical bull—but the most interesting thing was what Bender said about it: “At the end of the scene, you should be somewhat roused by her, and a little horrified. She’s not Hitler at Nuremberg, but she’s got the power.” Considering the buzz about Daenerys maybe becoming an antagonist by the end of the series, that could be telling.