Five reasons why Game of Thrones fans will love Westworld

Both shows explore the hazy boundaries between good and evil

Game of Thrones features a rich roster of characters who have done terrible things — the Hound, Cersei, Daenerys — but with whom we still sympathize to varying degrees. That’s because, in Westeros, the line between good and bad, and right and wrong, isn’t always clear. So it on that show, so it is on this one.

Example: In Game of Thrones, Jaime Lannister starts out the series as a villain best known for pushing a child out a window in an attempt to kill him. Now, after we learned more about what drives him, he’s a popular character, even though the good he’s done hasn’t blotted out the bad. In Westworld, we meet a character named the Man in Black (Ed Harris) as he does unspeakable things to hosts in the park. He’s a villain, right down to his black hat. But over the course of the first season, we see how he got to where it is, and even though he’s a long way from being sympathetic, we understand him more than we did at first, and are compelled to see more.

Knotty questions of morality are the bread and butter of both Game of Thrones and Westworld. Take a bite.