2. Broader generic features
and categorization:
Fantasy genre (traditional elements such as
magic, mythical creatures, swords, medieval
costumes ,makeup, production design)
Breaks preconceptions: character driven series,
elements of political drama
No good vs. evil in Game of Thrones characters
have heroic qualities whilst being flawed
Eg: Jaime‟s monologue
3. Audience, seriality &
scheduling:
Adult audience
(nudity, language,
sex, violence)
Part of a current
HBO tradition is a
tendency to show a
“frank portrayal of
death as the natural
conclusion to life.”
(Shimanovsky 2006,
p28).
Narrative
progression is
ruthless - Hollywood
endings are done
4. Episodic depth and fast pace, must watch in
sequence, detail informed by George R.R.
Martin‟s books.
Game of Thrones is yet another example of the
current trend of “Arc TV” – shows where sitting
down to a single episode out of context is not
likely to reward a viewer. “Tidy endings to every
episode and static characters are out. Long arcs
of character and plot development filmed in big-
ticket productions are in.” (Wilson 2013, p110)
5. The opening scene of this episode introduces
key elements that are used throughout: fire,
justice and faith.
This episode is a good example of questioning
moral integrity and the point of having upstanding
morals (Jon breaks his vows, is conflicted, but
ultimately he did want to give in to temptation).
7. Jaime Lannister
As the seriesprogresses, audience perception changes as
his past is revealed and with that his unwavering loyalty and
a desire to be a better person.
Nikolaj Coster-Waldau: “…he‟s not a bad guy in my world.
I‟m not saying he‟s a good guy. He‟s just a human being.
He‟s a human being who‟s put in a world where choices can
have extreme consequences, where he has been forced to
deal with life and death, and that‟s made him who he is.”
A man of honor
Reveals why he killed the King & became the “Kingslayer”
“Jaime, my name‟s Jaime.”
„coming clean‟ – literally and metaphorically
8. Mise-en-scene
Silence except for water lapping in bathtub
Dirty vs. Clean Brienne, blood on his hands,
tainted.
Jamie left of frame, Brienne, right of frame –
enhances the division between the two.
Stillness – characters, camera.
Camera tracks forward gradually between cuts.
POV of both characters.
Brienne‟s body language
9. Fire in every shot, “wild fire” story
“Burn them all he said. Burn them in their
homes, burn them in their beds.”
Water, reflection represents dichotomy of Jaime
“A song of ice and fire” – binary opposites as a
theme, cannot exist without the other.
Juxtaposition between later scene between Jon
Snow and Ygritte.
10. References
Atkinson, Andrew 2012, „When you walk through the
garden: HBO and the cross pressures of post-secular
humanism‟, Journal of Religion and Popular Culture,
University of Toronto Press, pp. 393.
Shimanovsky, Michael 2006, „Who let the Grim Reaper
get his hands on the remote control? The politics of
violence, death, and dying on HBO‟, Journal of
Evolutionary Psychology, no. 28, pp. 28.
Wilson, H.W. 2013, „Television‟s New Golden Age‟,
Wilson Quarterly, vol. 37 issue 1, pp. 110-111.
Isabella Wren, Matilda Gledhill, Jess Porter & Tegan Lyon.
