Making Sense of HBO's Game of Thrones

Aside from my beloved vampires (True Blood, The Vampire Diaries, and sometimes even Twilight), mythical creatures are not exactly my cup of tea. I much prefer the gritty 'reality' (OK, maybe not exactly reality) that can be found in the crime world. In fact, for me, being forced to sit through movies and books like The Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter, is right next to gouging my eyes out and putting pointy sticks under my fingernails. Either way, I do love a good HBO drama, as you all know and so it was inevitable that I'd at least give Game of Thrones a chance.

Based on the A Song of Ice and Fire series of novels by author George R. R. Martin, it would be easy to write the story off as confusing and messy, with so many characters and storylines happening at once (kind of like a good old fashioned Soap Opera). But, really what it is, is an intricately-woven fantasy, with enough tragically flawed and power-hungry characters to keep viewers glued to the screen for seasons to come - if only to try and figure out who's who and what's going on.

I haven't read the novels the show is based on, so I'm coming at this from a purely television angle. There are various different worlds, with people and creatures that are unknown and dangerous. Within these worlds are a number of families involved in a struggle for power and the kingdom, with lots of intrigue, deceit and of course, sex. Because, well, it wouldn't be HBO without that. It's probably better at this point to wait to read the books, so you don't know what to expect from the plot and have nothing to compare it to. Although, only two episodes in and I'm already itching to check out the wikipedia page for some spoilers.

Watch the first episode and check out this awesome infograph to help you figure out who's who in the world of Game of Thrones.


Via: Screen Rant