Game of Thrones: Season Finale Went up in Flames!

The magnificent Game of Thrones has ended its first season, after 10 one hour episodes that passed at the speed of light. Not since The Sopranos and Six Feet Under left HBO forever have I felt such a gaping void. At least those two series were well established when they started to kill off major characters (Chris-toe-fuh anybody...my beloved Nate Fisher on 6 Feet?). Not so with the riveting, nail biting, insomnia inducing Game of Thrones. They wiped out the level headed (and now be-headed) leader Ned Stark as well as the hunky Khal Drogo, leader of the horse tribe. The latter met his untimely end at the hand of his lovely "Moon and Stars" mate, Daenerys (above) who merci-killed him with a pillow after he became a brain dead Zombie from the evil ministrations of a tribal witch. The smirking wicked witch got her comeuppance (yay) in the last five minutes of the last night's program...tied to the Khal's blazing funeral pyre just before Daenery's walked herself into the flames. I thought that was the end of our fair haired Khallisa, I really did. Although I quite expected the Dragon Eggs to hatch, I never dreamed that the Dragon Queen would rise Phoenix-like from the ashes. And with three of the cutest CGI baby dragons perched all over her naked, soot stained body. I defy any series on television to have a more astonishing ending. A billion times better than the cop-out on AMC's The Killing. I faithfully watched every episode of that rain-drenched, dreary, depressing crime show only to find out that they weren't going to solve the crime until NEXT season. Not cute. And it really pissed off a lot of folks online, I saw some scorching comments about it on Entertainment Weekly.com.

And now, because I'm already feeling sad Game of Thrones withdrawal symptoms and will probably need some sort of support group to make it a whole year until Season Two...I shall list my top five favorite characters. This is not an easy compilation. There are dozens of great characters in this series.

Tyrion Lannister: He's handsome, he's witty, he's quite the ladies man. Nobody cares that he's a dwarf except for his mean old Dad, and even the Lannister patriarch admitted in last night's episode that Tyrion is one smart cookie. He's been appointed the "Hand" of Kings Landing, and he doesn't look too thrilled with the news. It will probably involve reduced wine consumption. I sense an Emmy nomination for Peter Dinklage with this role!

Arya Stark: From the very first episode, Arya was established as one of the bravest warriors. She won't back down, she'll take no prisoners, and she's all of 11 years old and probably 70 pounds soaking wet. She has already killed one fat bratty pervert and she almost killed another in the season finale. When last seen, Arya was headed "north" disguised as a boy, after witnessing her beloved father's brutal demise.

Jon Snow: He's got a chip on his shoulder because he's a "bastard" and doesn't share the Stark family name. Darkly handsome in a sullen sort of way, he seems like the kind of loyal chap who you'd always want on your side in any big brawl. Frankly, if he teamed with his young half-sister Arya, they'd be a formidable force. But he's stuck defending the "wall", in a perpetual frozen purgatory. I think they need cable television at the "wall", man that's a boring job.

Daenerys and her Dragons: She can eat a raw horse heart without throwing up. She is a natural born leader. She looks like a Christmas Tree angel, but does not tremble before the fiercest enemy. And of course now she is a mom to triplet Dragon babies. Please, please let her get to ride them when they grow bigger!

Jaime Lannister: Yeah, he's a bad guy. He's bad to the bone, no doubt about it. But he's not nearly as evil as his sister-wife (not in the Mormon Way) Cersei and he's Mother Theresa compared to his pointy headed psychopath son Joffrey. How long before Sansa Stark takes an ice pick to her creepy betrothed? I'm sorry that I'm fascinated by Jaime. He looks like a young Denis Leary, especially before he gets his face bashed in by a brick wielding Lady Stark. Why on earth wouldn't she send his head home on a pike? Guess we'll have to wait until next season to find out. I think Bran Stark didn't die so that we don't have to completely hate Jaime. There may be redemption in store for this Lannister.

Things to do while waiting a whole year for the next season:

• Read the Song of Fire and Ice books on which GOT was based (George R.R. Martin)



• Watch all the repeats over and over on HBO On Demand



• Build a baby dragon sculpture out of Play-doh on the kitchen table



• See if there are any Game of Thrones discussion groups to join in Silicon Valley so I can hang with those folks who are equally bereft now that it's over. Puh-leez, with all the nerds in this area, there must be a meet up group, or possibly even a theme restaurant by now.
  

Any other Game of Thrones Mega-Fans out there, please let me know. We have to support each other...the long winter is coming!

A Little More Flaming Nose Love for HBO's "Game of Thrones"

There's nothing like sitting down to a mini marathon of a series to either clinch the deal or make you turn it off forever.  I resolved to watch the first two episodes of HBO's fantastical new series Game of Thrones to see if I could swallow this new outing or if it was just too elvish for me.  Those of you who love the genre -- and probably those of you who hate it -- know what I'm talking about.  There's a point where these imaginary worlds can get just too involved and a mite off-putting -- what Jane here accurately termed "beards and bathrobes" as in video games in the same genre -- and I feared I'd be shaking my head more than nodding approvingly.

I'm pleased to report that so far I think my instincts were off; Game of Thrones is plenty exciting, not too weirdly complicated to make you throw your hands up and toss it back, and has a bit of something for everyone.  You might be bored by one storyline and set of characters, but there are so many swirling allegiances that somebody's bound to come along who pushes your particular buttons.  I've found a few of my own.

In addition to Sean Bean in the lead -- we've written about him before -- I'd put Nicolaj Coster-Waldau and Lena Headey as an ambitious brother-and-sister romantic team in the forefront.  Treacherous and good-looking, both of these two dynamic forces from the House of Lannister (see, this is where it gets a little too much, all these Houses of this and that, so I won't even mention that stuff anymore...boring!) are dynamic and watchable.  Definitely dangerous and with a big dose of creepy, too, with that incest thing.  And the woman is wife of the King, so how do you like that!  Takes balls!

Young Jack Gleeson as the sloe-eyed Prince Joffrey, is a right little shit, son to the incestuous Queen described above, and always captures the attention.  He's a snotty royal, a spoiled brat who likes to taunt the peasants and then lie about it.  We're already hoping for a comeuppance, and we're only up to Episode 3!



Peter Dinklage, of course, as the dwarf brother of the treacherous incestuous Lannister duo.  Sometimes in a generation a beyond-amazing small-stature actor is born -- I offer up the unforgettable and brilliant Michael Dunn as Dinklage's acting equal in that category -- and Dinklage dominates every scene he's in and you can't wait for the next one.  Absolutely riveting, amusing, attractive, and he's mesmerizing enough to make intelligence cool again. 

How about the near-albino brother and sister Targaryens, children of the previous murdered king?  Intriguing, also kind of a whiff of incest-y interest on the part of the brother to the sister, who has been married off to a perfectly divine barbarian warrior leader named Khal Drogo.  Jane accurately termed him a "Klingon" and he's wonderful, played by Jason Momoa who is going to be the next Conan in the movies.  Ultra-masculine and sexy, he's obviously going to be falling for his pale missus in a big way -- she introduces him to the modified missionary position, a step up from the doggy-style evidently customary in their world -- and much ado will undoubtedly come from that whole alliance.  Also, Drogo seems to have at least three as-yet-quiescent dragon eggs incubating in his tent, and I sure hope that they get a little to close to the campfire and start cracking open sometime soon...should I put money on that? 

Here's the preview for tonight's episode:



I have to admit I'm really looking forward to tonight's episode.  This is the word from somebody who hasn't read the books, doesn't want to read the books, but I'm glad they spawned a so-far terrific new TV series!  The book series, btw, is by George R.R. Martin, who in addition to the incredible success of the sequence of novels that spawned Game of Thrones, has been a prominent science fiction and fantasy writer for decades, including penning a bunch of episodes of the memorable series Beauty and the Beast back in the 1980s.  Gotta love that!

Check out HBO's Game of Thrones website for more coats-of-arms and background information than you can shake a broadsword at!  Game of Thrones new episodes premiere Sundays at 9pm on HBO.

Also, there's a three-episode marathon of all episode so far coming up this Wednesday, May 4th beginning at 8pm.  It's a great way to get up to speed in one evening, or of course you can get the latest episodes On Demand.  Enjoy!

Game of Thrones: Save Me a Seat!

If I wasn't terribly excited by the buzz for HBO's Game of Thrones before it debuted last Sunday, blame promotions like the one in this picture. It evoked for me the same feeling of dread I used to experience when my son was younger and demanding a new video game that would lighten my wallet by $60.00. What was the Game of Thrones, I wondered? Was it a video game (no thanks)...a beards and bathrobe epic?....Vikings?....Swords and suits of armor? Lisa had a post for Game last week, and even that platinum endorsement didn't make me want to rush to the premier.

Now that I've finally gotten around to watching the first episode On Demand, I still don't know what it is. And frankly, I don't care. Because Game of Thrones has all the essential elements to become the latest Flaming Nose obsession.

How could you not love a series that features a handsome dwarf (Peter Dinklage), a vicious white haired prince (Harry Lloyd) and his luminous twin sister (Emilia Clark), plus a pack of baby wolf cubs. Oh and there's a giant half naked Klingon (for lack of a better term) played by Hawaiian hunk Jason Momoa. As if that wasn't enough, there are liberal helpings of the trademark HBO gore (buckets of beheadings) and TV-MA nudity. It's not for the faint of heart or for anyone under...ummmm let's say 20 years of age.

I'm not the biggest fan of medieval fantasies, but this one has superb acting, writing and enough plot twists and cliff hangers to make you pass the DVR button and watch it in real time. That's what I plan to do, especially after the first episode ending which had me gasping out loud. I'm also transfixed by the stark, gorgeous background scenery. Game of Thrones is shot mostly in Northern Ireland and Scotland, so if Celtic looking fantasies are your cup of tea, you are going to want to drink quite a bit of this new HBO treat. And there will be plenty of it, as HBO has already renewed a second season. Based on the best selling book series (A Song of Fire and Ice) it's certain to attract print fans as well as new people like me.

Did I mention there might be dragons? Yes, dragons. Last week's episode featured dragon eggs as a wedding present and they were really pretty. Just plug it all directly into the pleasure center of my brain.

Yummy! Bruce Campbell vs. Sean Bean -- Choose Your Champion!

It's the kind of choice conjured up only in cult media heaven -- the witty and wonderful Bruce Campbell, as Sam Axe in USA's hit series Burn Notice, starring in the original TVM Burn Notice: The Fall of Sam Axe which premieres tonight, or Sean Bean (Lord of the Rings' heroic Boromir, or as the dashing Richard Sharpe in a series of great TV productions) on deck in HBO's fantasy adventure series Game of Thrones also beginning tonight.

Oh boy! We're talking a pair of terrific mature hunks -- in fact, it's Sean Bean's 52nd birthday today, and our boy Bruce is turning 53 this June -- who are still tearing it up onscreen and projecting a grown-up appeal that's guaranteed to set hearts a'flutter. This is a demographic shift we similarly mature viewers can get behind. Forget the callow youths of Twilight -- give us some slightly world-weary heroes to cheer on! Nothing, but nothing, is more appealing than a sense of well-earned competency, and both Campbell and Bean have oodles.

Here's a preview of HBO's Game of Thrones (from author George R.R. Martin's popular novels), also starring the wonderful Peter Dinklage (30 Rock, The Station Agent) among a cast of some known -- the intriguing Nicolaj Coster-Waldau (Fox's New Amsterdam series from a few years ago) -- and many unknown but looking perfectly-cast actors and actresses.

Here are two trailers for Burn Notice: The Fall of Sam Axe; the first one is shorter, punchier and funnier, and the second is more of a traditional action/adventure cut, but both highlight the always-entertaining show biz veteran Bruce Campbell at his self-deferential best.

You can learn more about Bruce, his character Sam Axe, and the rest of the talented gang from the witty and exciting Burn Notice at USA's website here. Fans of 1980's TV will remember the talented Sharon Gless from the groundbreaking Cagney & Lacey female buddy cop show; though she plays Jeffrey Donovan's mom in BN, she's lost none of her spunk and is gorgeous, btw. Burn Notice is one of USA's collection of pitch-perfect light action adventure series, among them White Collar, Psych, Royal Pains and In Plain Sight. The closest thing I can compare USA's output to is Aaron Spelling at the top of his game, Spelling being a producer who really knew how to deliver attractive casts doing exciting things.

For all things Game of Thrones -- and it's complicated doings indeed -- check out HBO's official series website here.