Poll: Game of Thrones : Read the Books, Should I watch the Show?

[Zealous]

If you've read the books already, then sure, give the show a watch.

It'll be disappointing like every other adaptation, but in my opinion it's a pretty good translation compared to some of the atrocities out there. Of course your mileage may vary, but generally if you're looking for a decent adaptation of a book series you enjoyed GoT is a good one.

Oh and the nudity. Jesus, the nudity. I mean this is an HBO series so it's expected but it's all pointless. Nine times out of ten an actress will get her tits out for no reason and then just stand there half nude for the rest of the scene.

 

[gunny1993]

Yes because the show is better than the books, which are as far as i'm concerned are badly written, especially books 4 and 5.

Good character work, bad character development and plot cohesion. (Seriously this man doesn't know how to keep multiple plots paced so they don't get terrible out of synch and just complicate things)

 

[bartholen_v1legacy]

I'd say yes, but temper your expectations. If you're expecting the grandiosity of Martin's prose to be translated to the screen in all its glory, you'll be disappointed. It's fairly obvious the TV budget sets constraints on the show, but within those limits the show is sublimely executed.

Characters can also be very different, for better or worse. You mentioned your disappointment with Tyrion, which I understand, but IMO the show makes up for it in other characters like Shae, Daenerys and Arya. But overall the show is leagues above anything that is on television right now. If you can, try to watch it as a tv show on its own, and not as an adaptation.

And here comes the usual barrage of praise for the show

- Brilliant acting, especially the child actors
- Brilliant casting, especially Varys and Littlefinger. The dialogues they have together have been the show's high points to me
- Doesn't feel watered down: all the sex and violence is in there in all its grisly glory
- Production values and the visual design are incredible
- The dialogue is the best on TV right now

 

[CloudAtlas]

The Game of Thrones show is imho much better than the books.

For example, GRR Martin loves to introduce hundreds of utterly unimportant characters, many with pretty interchangeable inconsistent weird-English-"fantasy"-mixtures for names, and going on for pages about who is related to whom and who is whose bannerman and how all their banners look like etc etc, none of which really matters and can't be remembered by anybody anyway. GRR Martin even manages to write a whole book of 1000 pages(Feast for Crows) where pretty much nothing happens, and in his other books too oftentimes the plot isn't moving anywhere for dozens or even hundreds of pages as well. This guy knows no restraint really, he has no sense for economy.

The show, on the other hand has to cut all the fat, and is better for it. I also don't think Martin's writing is generally something to write home about. It's not bad and it's probably pretty good for a fantasy book, but compared to like non-pop literature, it's not that awesome. So not much is lost here in the show either.

 

[DementedSheep]

I watched the show first, and reading the books pads out the time inbetween the seasons.

But they aren't that different, chances are, if you like one, you will like the other, and in some cases, the show is very accurate in its depiction of characters (Sean Bean was an excellent choice for Ned Stark).

The one thing I will say though, is that everyone is a lot younger in the books than they seem in the TV show, so its a bit weird seeing Rob as a 20-something, whereas in the books he is like, 16.

Yeah but in the books Daenerys is 13 and her chapters have a lot of sex in it. There is not way in hell they would allow that on a TV show.
I also think Arya is way too badass for a 9 year old.

So I'm kinda glad they aged everyone up.

 

[Sigmund Av Volsung]

I watched the show first, and reading the books pads out the time inbetween the seasons.

But they aren't that different, chances are, if you like one, you will like the other, and in some cases, the show is very accurate in its depiction of characters (Sean Bean was an excellent choice for Ned Stark).

The one thing I will say though, is that everyone is a lot younger in the books than they seem in the TV show, so its a bit weird seeing Rob as a 20-something, whereas in the books he is like, 16.

Yeah but in the books Daenerys is 13 and her chapters have a lot of sex in it. There is not way in hell they would allow that on a TV show.
I also think Arya is way too badass for a 9 year old.

So I'm kinda glad they aged everyone up.

Same, its just that once you read the books its a bit hard to try and re-imagine the characters again in their younger forms.

 

[GonzoGamer]

Yes, at least the first season. Even if you're a purist, you'll dig the first season. They do change things a little after that and sometimes it's actually for a good reason: like Maisey (Arya) and Charles (Tywin) having scenes together, that was worth the slight change in story.

 

[Silvanus]

I've read the books, and love them, and think the show is brilliant too. It loses some nuance, but the portrayals and the drama is just great.

So, I say watch it. GRRM is quite involved, after all, so the differences can't be that terrible to him.

 

[Spiridion]

I would vote yes. While there are changes, I found most to be understandable and acceptable in the context of production/budget constraints. There are even some character changes that I really liked (Tywin) as I thought they added more nuance to characters that may have been more one-note in the books.

It's not perfect, I hated nearly all of Daenerys' arc in the second season and Jon Snow has been similarly disappointing. But overall I'm still really enjoying the show.

 

[Robot Number V]

I started reading the books before there WAS a show, and I say go for it. It's not as good as the books, but it's damn close. Also, the cast is brilliant. If you read the books after watching the show, you'll probably have a hard time picturing the characters as anything other then their TV counterparts.

There are some changes, but I'm fairly sure that Martin himself has had a hand in many of them, and they're usually for the best.

 

[gorfias]

Unless you are a purist who cannot stand changes in adaptations

I've seen the show so far and listened to one book on tape.

Of course a book can fit in so much more. And I'm enjoying so much of the differences. But, this unusually, has improvements over the book.

Example: In the book, The mother of dragons hits off immediately with Drago. In the show, he is a barbarian. He more or less rapes her on their wedding night. She figures, if she is going to do this, she is going to do it right and learns the ways of love with a hand maid. She then completely rocks Drago's world. You can believe this barbarian has never known a real love and tenderness. You can believe when he calls her his moon, his is absolutely over his head enamored of her in a way you just have to accept in the book.

Interesting in the book: In the show, our modern sensibilities tell us John Snow has really screwed up. In the book, he is pursuing real honor and meaning for his life. It is not quite the f' up to take the black as it is in the show.

Good compare:

 

[TheIronRuler]

This is somewhat unrelated, but I've started reading the online A song of ice and fire wiki, and I'm both delighted and horrified when I accidentally jump ahead in the plot with the character summary - and then later when I do reach that part in the book I enjoy it even more since I was so looking forward to reading about it. Shouldn't I be getting the opposite feeling when I spoil my own book ending?

 

[Gashad]

Voted yes,

While the tv series is not as good as the book and a few of the changes felt unnecessary, ultimately it is a very good series-well worth watching.

 

[Beliyal]

I'd definitely recommend watching and agree with pretty much everything that has been said. A lot of my friends who read the books years ago love the show. I first watched the first season and then I started reading the books and I read them all so far.

There are definitely changes, but I do believe that most of the changes are due to the constrictions regarding the budget and the amount of actors, sets and time they have available. They do try their best to keep things from the books, but a change here and there is necessary for the pacing and the overall wrap-up of the story. Someone already mentioned that they didn't really put a lot of information about the events from the past (as I first watched the show and then read the books, it took me two rewatches of the entire season and help from friends who read the books to understand Robert's rebellion and all that jazz), but I understand that it is difficult to just insert dozens of minutes of dialogue where someone is simply explaining history to someone else. And I don't think flashbacks would really be good either, it would be difficult to make it work.

Some changes already made the more hardcore fans angry (like the House of the Undying or changing Robb's wife), but there's a pretty obvious reason for those changes and, as I said, it's mostly due to the budget. Including the book version of the House of the Undying would require a lot more CGI and actors, so we got a watered down version. It doesn't really bother me, I read the books and I know what it meant there. It would sure be amazing if we saw it, but I kinda doubted we will because it's just too much stuff (and mostly cryptic stuff that would be too confusing, on top of being expensive). As for Robb, it falls into pretty much the same category; introducing Jeyne from the Crag would require a whole new part of the story with lots of actors and sets, so they just cut it and turned the character into someone who doesn't require portrayal of an entire new region just for Robb to meet her. I like Talisa from the show, and unlike the book, it made sense for Robb to betray Frey for her; in the book, his betrayal was much stranger. We don't see how Robb and Jeyne met and what happened exactly, Jeyne has only a few lines and there is honestly no proof that Robb would fall for her so much and risk his loyalties; the whole setup is just somewhat flimsy in my opinion. The show's version was much more natural and believable.

All in all, the show is very well done in my opinion and I would recommend watching it, regardless of whether someone read the books or not.

 

[BloatedGuppy]

Example: In the book, The mother of dragons hits off immediately with Drago. In the show, he is a barbarian. He more or less rapes her on their wedding night. She figures, if she is going to do this, she is going to do it right and learns the ways of love with a hand maid. She then completely rocks Drago's world. You can believe this barbarian has never known a real love and tenderness. You can believe when he calls her his moon, his is absolutely over his head enamored of her in a way you just have to accept in the book.

Interesting in the book: In the show, our modern sensibilities tell us John Snow has really screwed up. In the book, he is pursuing real honor and meaning for his life. It is not quite the f' up to take the black as it is in the show.

Dany is terrified of Drogo when she first meets him in the book, and almost overcome with despair at the prospect of marrying him. The only real deviation between show and book is that she "ends up liking it" during sex the first night in the book, despite the fact it's more or less rape, and this is because George R.R. Martin is, at heart, a pervy old coot. They most certainly don't "hit it off immediately" though.

Jon is almost instantly dismayed upon arriving at Castle Black. Actually, even a bit earlier than that, when he first meets some of the criminals who will become his brothers at the Wall. He's sullen and aggressive with the other boys at the Wall, and it isn't until Donal Noye pins his ears back that he starts putting in any effort at all to belong. And after that he STILL tries ditching. Jon's arc doesn't see him truly settled with the Watch until book 2 at the earliest.

So...yeah. Dany/Drogo don't hit it off immediately. And taking the Black more or less is a huge fuck up in the book. It's one of the direst punishments they can hoist upon you. Ned is initially horrified when Jon expresses an interest in it.

 

[gorfias]

The only real deviation between show and book is that she "ends up liking it" during sex the first night in the book

That's what I'm writing about. It seemed fake to me and the show far more powerful. In the book, she learns from a maid as well. But in the show, it is imperative she learn because on the show, that first night blew chunks!

taking the Black more or less is a huge fuck up in the book. It's one of the direst punishments they can hoist upon you. Ned is initially horrified when Jon expresses an interest in it.

Interesting. I don't recall that. I know it sounds harsh, but I think it is described as offering solid ground to someone caught mid-leap. There's just no question in the show, he has so screwed up. I didn't get that impression from the book at all.

Did you watch the comicbook girl clip I posted? I thought it a hoot. Especially how different Tyrion is between book and show.

 

[BloatedGuppy]

Did you watch the comicbook girl clip I posted? I thought it a hoot. Especially how different Tyrion is between book and show.

Haven't yet. Will check it out in a bit if work remains slow.

Tyrion is hugely changed in the show. He's certainly more telegenic, although I think his character has been robbed of some depth. I'm a bit worried he'll be getting a "hero edit" and lose much of his ethical greyness forging forward. We'll see.

 

[gorfias]

Did you watch the comicbook girl clip I posted? I thought it a hoot. Especially how different Tyrion is between book and show.

Haven't yet. Will check it out in a bit if work remains slow.

Tyrion is hugely changed in the show. He's certainly more telegenic, although I think his character has been robbed of some depth. I'm a bit worried he'll be getting a "hero edit" and lose much of his ethical greyness forging forward. We'll see.

I'm listening to this on my cell phone audible.com for my long round trip work commute and elliptical workouts. The reader takes on Tyrion's voice making him sound a bit silly rather than droll. The words are largely the same as you hear in the show but the different inflection makes his points sound a little different and more complex. He has stated in the book, foolish sounding has he does, that what he love is justice.

This is somewhat unrelated, but I've started reading the online A song of ice and fire wiki, and I'm both delighted and horrified when I accidentally jump ahead in the plot with the character summary - and then later when I do reach that part in the book I enjoy it even more since I was so looking forward to reading about it. Shouldn't I be getting the opposite feeling when I spoil my own book ending?

I find the book can confuse me. If I know the story's arc, I get to enjoy things as they unfold. I may even miss a bit but still know where I am.

Course, the Red Wedding would have had all the more impact upon me had I not known it was coming.

 

[Elementary - Dear Watson]

I'd watch it just because it's visually quite awesome! Seeing the cities that you have read about through the books is refreshing, and seeing the characters is good too.... the casting is mostly damn good... with only a couple of characters that I didn't intsntly recognise!

Also... it's so much easier to hate Joffery when you are looking at his twattish face right on!