It’s been a little
while since I saw the fifth series of Game of Thrones, but I’ve got
to say that the sixth was the televisual equivalent of fitting like a
glove.
At this stage, and
certainly by the end of the series, the TV show is ahead of the
books, so if you’re waiting for the books then I’d advise you
stop watching either at the end of the fourth or fifth series (the
fifth is ahead of the books in at least one significant place but
behind in many others). That said, there is some divergence between
the media, so…
Naturally, there will
be spoilers galore for the first five series. I shall keep spoilers
of the sixth to the barest minimum reasonably possible. So if you
want zero spoilers at all, stop reading now.
***
The three main prongs
of the story are the ongoing power struggle in King’s Landing, the
battle to rule the North, and Daenerys’ arc (which I shall not
spoil but shall say is significantly better than the last few seasons
of Meereen hum-drummery).
The High Sparrow’s
storyline, the tale of insidious fanaticism, of the seemingly kind
being amongst the most brutal (the benevolent dictatorship of
stamping on your face, but only because it’s good for you) is
absolutely fantastic.
The last two episodes,
as is so often the case, were great, both wrapping up some storylines
and promising future delights in others. The CGI remains very good
but they aren’t over-egging it, using real actors, horses and
practical effects well instead of simply relying on pixel magic all
the time (and going for tiling of real images rather than making
pretend ones where possible).
The general quality of
acting is, as always, excellent. Jonathan Pryce as the High Sparrow
deserves a special nod for his portrayal of the smiling, kind
fanatic.
The story has one or
two twists and turns that are predictable (one in particular is so
lacking in surprise it did make me wonder how the unfortunate chap
involved didn’t see it coming) but there’s a good share of
cunning twists and fiendish plans. There’s a relatively strong
focus on the three main plots I mentioned above.
Bran returns after an
absence in the fifth series, and there are rather dramatic doings. He
is not the only character to return (and I am not referring to he
whom you might think I am referring to).
Downsides on the TV
show itself are minimal. Dorne was a dog that didn’t bark,
featuring but not nearly as heavily as I anticipated.
That said, keeping all
the plates spinning with a show that has so many different threads is
a difficult thing and, by and large, the showrunners have done a
great job.
Weirdly, the
case/packaging have changed a lot from the first five series, being
significantly slimmer. I have mixed feelings as I don’t have that
much room, but format changes within a series irk me.
As always, some
commentaries are better than others. Sophie Turner and Kit Harrington
(Sansa and Jon) were entertaining, and I enjoyed the quartet of chaps
(particularly Dolorous Ed’s actor, Ben Crompton).
Whilst not a fan, as a
rule, of behind the scenes stuff, the half hour (ish) look at the
Paint Hall over 24 hours was quite fun because we get to see the cast
and crew in their natural habitat. There’s also a behind the scenes
look at a battle. Shan’t give details to avoid spoilers, but it was
also pretty interesting.
By this stage, you
pretty much know if you want to keep watching Game of Thrones or not.
There are no clangers or woeful reasons not to watch, the general
excellence is maintained, and if one or two plot twists are
telegraphed, there are plenty more great moments to enjoy.
Thaddeus
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