The newest Artisans video explores the detailed production and set design that creates the world of Game of Thrones. Production designer Deborah Riley takes us behind the scenes of season 5, giving us a look at this year’s new settings including Dorne and Daznak’s Pit
One thing I was especially glad to catch a glimpse of was Doran Martell’s chair:
Sue the Fury: As usual, the production design is outstanding. Going to real settings like the Alcazar give the show an extra special something.
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DROGON
Deborah Riley was a really great hire. She launched very well when Gemma Jackson left after S3.
From what I’ve seen from set pics and from what I could see from that video, Myrcella’s costumes are easily the most odd. And by odd I don’t mean ugly, but more that she looks like she belongs on another show. I’m guessing they’re trying to make her costumes be a Cersei + Martell hybrid because thats the only way they make sense
Thankfully, the blatantly English “Marauder” sign in the Long Bridge set was changed with CGI for the show (in the trailer it’s got some sort of glyphs on it, certainly not our Latin alphabet.) I’m happy we’ll at last get Valyrian glyphs. The “Kill the masters” graffiti in Season 4, which was not only in the Latin alphabet but in the English language, was cringe-worthy. Sadly, that particular graffiti is back in Season 5; it could be seen alongside a dead Son of the Harpy in the first trailer. Anyway, at least we’ll get Valyrian glyphs.
Yes I’m a nerd.
Oh, and there’s someone in Dorne I don’t recognize. A person in pink and gold, with a Snake-decorated rapier. Maybe it’s Trystane?
Also, the video gives us a good look at the concept art for the season which we had previously glimpsed in “A Day in the Life.” I can spot how the CGI-enhanced Daznak’s Pit will look like from the inside and the outside (we’ll see the big-ass warriors statues), the House of Black and White, Arya’s room, some sort of village in the coast, a manse, a boat among ruins, and the slave auction fighting pit. There are a couple of pieces specifically obscured to avoid spoilers, too.
The other stuff is great as well. The statues at the House of Black and White (The Weeping Lady of Lys, the The Lion of Night of Yi Ti), the set for the Long Bridge of Volantis, the filming in Seville…
Hodor’s Bastard,
Yeah, Deborah Riley’s exceptionally talented. She’s done an excellent job of both honoring the style that Gemma Jackson established in the first three seasons and bringing something new to the table. It sounds like it was a thrill for her to be able to work in the Alcazar and the Plaza de Toros and use that established architecture as the framework for her own designs. This was certainly a tantalizing glimpse of what she was able to accomplish – I can’t wait to see the fully realized set.
I’m straining my eyes trying to get a closer look at all of the concept art that Deborah Riley has arrayed across her wall (we got a brief glimpse of those pictures in “A Day in the Life”, but this is a longer shot). I see:
-Arya sitting in a sparse room inside the House of Black and White
-Something involving a dragon and several people staring up at it. Could be Daznak’s, could be the dragon pit.
-The smaller gladiatorial training arena that Dany and Hizdahr go to inspect.
-A boat sailing past some ancient ruins (I remember that one from “A Day in the Life”). I think it’s very likely the Sorrows.
-Dany’s private chambers in the Great Pyramid
-Wide shots of what look like the Water Gardens and Sunspear.
I’m only confident in about half of that. Maybe someone else will have better luck?
I was wondering about that as well. I initially thought it was Trystane, but I just went back and saw photos of his costume – it’s more yellow, in the style of Oberyn’s. I’m afraid that I’m at a loss as to who’s carrying it – but the rapier itself certainly looks damn cool.
Jared,
I can’t spot the one involving a dragon…
Luka Nieto,
Top row, middle picture at the 0:16 mark in the video. I freely admit that I’m far from certain – I just saw something with a long and curved in that picture and I thought it looked like it might be a dragon’s neck (it appears to be indoors, somewhere with high walls). It could very easily be something else entirely – and actually, upon closer inspection, it appears to be fixed to the wall. Maybe it’s some kind of statue?
As I said, I’m open to any and all suggestions.
Jared,
That’s Arya at the House of Black and White, isn’t it? You can see the deity statues and everything. And, well, Arya too, I believe.
Jared,
I’m thinking maybe Trystane has a casual and formal outfit? His orange suit was very simple, similar to what they dress Jaime in when Hotah is escorting him. Maybe the pink and gold is his more formal attire? The pink could be a shoutout to Myrcella, since that what she seems to wear. And we know from descriptions of the Dorne scenes that he carries a sword, so the snake rapier would fit him.
Jared,
Pretty sure the curved figure in that is a horse statue.
Luka Nieto,
Yeah, I think that you’re right! She’s standing at the lower-right part of the frame. I thought that there were other “people” in the scene initially, but actually they’re probably the full-size versions of the statues that we see later at 0:28-0:30. Thanks for the help!
breakfastfestival,
Yeah, that’s it. I really need to invest in a screen that allows for better contrast. So potentially something related to the Dothraki then. The Great Stallion would be represented in the HOBAW, after all.
Jared,
Her attitude is very infectious and appreciated! I am absolutely intrigued to view the interior of the HoB&W, perhaps more than any other interior set this year.
She needs to put close-up pics of her sketches online when it is prudent to do so!
Except for some design issues I had with the stolen Carcosa lair for BR 🙂 in S4ep10, I have been thrilled by her vision. Also, even though many hate the sept scene in S4ep3, the set design was superb.
Gah! I’ve worked on some interesting projects but THIS! I’d give a kidney to have been involved in the set production of GoT. Any one of them! I’ve tried to find crew calls but nothing, I guess the team is already complete.
It’s got to be one of the best researched and executed imaginary worlds ever…And now they have a “real” budget, I expect absolute wonders in S5.
Look at those concept art drawings for the final versions of the (huge) Daznak Pit, the HoBaW, the Sorrows, etc.
All of it looks incredible!
Doran’s wheelchair is pure win
Oh, no, not another one… First the SS, then Areo and now Trystane!?!?! Is anyone else bothered by the fact that every character in Dorne seems to be sporting the Viper motif, or am I the only one?
What’s next, Doran wearing Viper boots and using a Viper wheelchair? Granted, the chair looks nice, I hope it does not have some snake details visible…
Patchface,
I’m not bothered by the consistent Viper motif. Like the direwolf, kraken, lion, and dragon, it’s their particular animal metaphor. I think the Moorish architectural design of Dorne is going to have a much more long-standing effect on the viewer than the slithery details on a dagger grip, but it is a cool, consistent detail I respect.
Areo’s background is a book-only detail, imho.
Patchface,
I don’t really see the problem with them shifting the snake motif from a personal thing of Oberyn’s to an overall Martell family thing. Dorne is a country with lots of snakes. They like to put snakes all over their stuff. Any symbolism that can tie related characters together visually for viewers is a good thing. Same reason I don’t mind the leather armor that was discussed in the last thread. Visual continuity with Oberyn is more important than adhering to a degree of climactic realism that no one but the most hardcore would even notice.
aurane waters,
I guess they can let their imaginations run wild on a fantasy show. I have come across more incongruous things on TV shows than Myrcella’s costume (though if you naturally think it looks odd it is not for me to tell you what your instincts should be). I watched “Castle” for the first time in ages yesterday and there was a character who was supposed to be a Scotland Yard inspector who had a really pronounced Australian accent (I looked up the actor on Google – his name is Brett Tucker and he IS Australian – mind you he he’s nice-looking so one can cut a bit of slack if not taking the show too seriously). I decided to chuckle at the incongruous accent in the end.
Awesome!
@Afeastfordances and Hodor’s Bastard,
Thanks for the input! I guess you are both right, I’ll stop complaining! I think I am having a bad week, I’m a bit crankier than usual…
Looks like HBO wants more than 7 seasons of GOT.
http://www.ew.com/article/2015/03/11/game-thrones-end
I’m convinced Geekfurious is a follower of R’hollor. This is exactly what he predicted. Looks like we might get season split over 2 years with more episodes at the very least.
Turncloak,
we might get season 7* split over 2 years with more episodes at the very least.
Turncloak,
That’s the same as having 8 seasons. It won’t happen.
Patchface,
Haha, no worries. You’re allowed to be pricklier than me. Just giving my take on it.
Turncloak,
HBO had already basically implied that. Doesn’t mean they’ll ignore D & D.
Didn’t D&D already sign up to FOX to write and direct Dirty White boys?
I agree that’s the most likely scenario, plus one additional season of
Dunk & Egg would be my bet (different producers for D&E though…)
Turncloak,
The big revelation from that article is that D&D have final say on how many episodes they need to finish the story. It sounds like by their quotes, that they have a very strong idea of how many more episodes they need and I think the “we don’t need another 10 hours” is about as strong of a confirmation of no 8th season as you can get at this point.
The split 7th season seems to be what we’re all heading for and it’s what many of us have been predicting for a while now. This is the agreed upon model for the end of many popular cable shows and it allows them to wring another “sort of” season out of the show without having to start from scratch with everyone’s contracts.
The movie stuff still seems farfetched to me as HBO’s not keen on it and it’s doubtful D&D really want that either.
Wrong. Contractually speaking, it’s still 7 seasons. So HBO won’t have to renegotiate contracts
Jesterr223456,
Actually, the Sopranos was the first cable drama to do the “split-season” finale. So HBO could have had some involvement with David Chase doing that
It’s also not another 10 hours the way an 8th season would be. Most likely a split 7th season would be more like 2 sets of 7 episodes, so 14 total instead of the 10 you’d normally have.
Turncloak,
Sex and the City did the same thing with their final season on HBO as well. Long before AMC started doing it with their shows.
King Tommen,
Yup there’s HBO precendence for doing it. Just have to see if D&D are on board for another year of production
Turncloak,
Yes, but I can’t imagine when D & D talked about 7 seasons they meant that. Also, didn’t they speak about the show being a 70 hour movie?
FreyPie,
Yeah, they did. They don’t seem to every have much of a break while working on GOT. I guess they’ll do it when the show ends.
Luka Nieto,
I don’t think it requires being a “nerd” to expect visual details to not grind against the fourth wall, or whatever the TV term for that is… I just finished re-watching Season 4 and I can confirm that the “kill the masters” graffiti still makes me grind my teeth.
If it’s back in season 5, I’m just going to have to pretend that Selmy is running around doing it because he is secretly way into pranks. Or Grey Worm is practicing his letters or something.
It seems like the EW article gives people on both sides of this debate fodder. I’m firmly in the 7 seasons camp. It doesn’t matter if George thinks Feast and Dance needed three seasons and the show needs to keep running until everyone is sick of it. D&D know the endgame. If D&D think it’ll be best served in 7 seasons then that means they should end strong with 7 seasons. At worst we’ll have to suffer the split final season. I appreciate Lomabardo’s comments about the movie as well. He’s finally gone on record saying what so many people don’t seem to understand: HBO isn’t going to screw over their subscribers by making them pay to see the ending of a show they’ve been paying to watch for seven years.
I think it’s done differently in different cases but they actually would probably shoot both halves of the season (14 episodes) together and only air them with a gap. Because of the GoT production schedule, this would necessitate a delay in the start of the 7th season to accommodate the extra few episodes but then they could have the 2nd half air, say 6-8 months later instead of waiting for the normal year between seasons.
Turncloak,
HBO isn’t stupid. Game of Thrones is the premium cable series juggernaut!
However, instead of trying to prolong GoT they should start working on a spinoff series.
That way they would keep their amazing GoT production team together, keep their huge GoT fanbase watching and keep their unequalled Epic series standing rolling.
They don’t need D&D to help with this, unless D&D choose to of course. But they would definitely need producers who have a knowledge and passion for the Westeros world equal to D&D and great writing and oversite skills to keep such an enormous and complex show running smoothly.
It would be a win/win for everyone!
When you create a successful monster like GoT, you build upon it, not dismantle it after 7 seasons.
Turncloak,
Sue, this article deserves it’s one thread.
I remember the days D&D praying, hoping, dreaming that HBO will let then finish this saga.
Now HBO are hoping D&D keep going!
Wow… That’s pretty amazing.
Their is such a thirst out their for adult fantasy and HBO’s GoT is the best drink around!
This show is like the fountain of youth for me, when I watch it I feel all giddy and goosebumpie like a child opening up Xmas gifts!
I feel like if HBO wanted to do more seasons, the time to have that conversation was last year. The producers already met with GRRM last year to get details on how the story ends and decided on how to break it down based on the goal of seven seasons. So much is already being cut and streamlined for this season by combining two books (which I think is a smart move), so adding a bunch of new filler in later wouldn’t make sense to me.
Well, they completely dismantled the Sopranos, and that was their biggest ever show. Obviously GOT is bigger, but I don’t think it’s unlikely that we’ll get nothing more.
In the scenario where HBO commission’s a GoT spinoff, which is not the craziest thing in the world, Robert’s Rebellion seems like the only real option as it contains enough of original cast to hook the audience and it has a (unlike the Dunk and Egg novellas) compelling cinematic story to tell.
Logistically, you would have to bring back a number of the actors (unless you really wanted to try and re-cast some for a younger look).
You wouldn’t need any of the Stark kids, Dany or anyone in Essos, Melisandre, Brienne, Theon, Yara, the Baratheon/Lannister kids, Ramsay, Dorne, or the entire NW.
You’d need Ned, Robert, Stannis, Renly, Davos, Catelyn, Lysa, LF, Cersei, Tywin, Jaime, Walder, Barristan, Hound, Mountain, Varys, Pycelle, Balon maybe Blackfish and Thoros.
And you can have brand new cast members of Rhaegar, Arys, Elia Martell, Brandon, Rickard, Lyanna, Jon Arryn, Hoster, Arthur Dayne/other KG and Howland Reed. This will create the differentiation of a different series.
New showrunners and crew but it would be a guaranteed cash cow for HBO.
Turncloak,
I think this excerpt sums up my feelings on the matter:
“We want to go out on our absolute highest note,” Weiss says. “We don’t want people to finally see the end and say, ‘Thank god that’s over.’” Adds Benioff: “We know basically how many hours are left in this story. We don’t want to add 10 hours to that. It’s about finding that sweet spot so it works for us and for HBO and, most of all, it works for the audience .”
The wheelchair is stunning.
Harma Dogememe,
Luka Nieto,
“Kill the Masters” I did a double take on that one is was so ridiculously bad….
In that article, Lombardo, Benioff and Weiss all speak more openly about their thought process regarding the eventual end of the series than they usually do. But ultimately, it’s the same story that we already knew. What is made unequivocally clear is that while Benioff and Weiss are willing to have discussions with HBO about extending the series, it will ultimately be their decision to end Game of Thrones. They’ll do so when they reach the end of the story that they want to tell, and when that time comes, HBO will respect that decision. They won’t simply hire new showrunners to try and keep the show going without regard for its creative pedigree.
Until we have some strong (i.e. stronger than this) confirmation that another plan is being seriously discussed, I’m going to assume that Game of Thrones will have seven seasons, each comprised of 10 hour-long episodes that will air exclusively on HBO. I think that’s a safe bet, given what Benioff and Weiss have said in the past. I wouldn’t consider a “split and extended seventh season aired over two years” option to be likely at this point, but I do think that it’s possible, and perhaps the most viable compromise that both parties might be willing to entertain. I think eight seasons is extremely unlikely (renegotiating with all of the actors again would be a nightmare). The movie is almost certainly a pipe dream – no one except Martin seems all that enthusiastic about it. I could see the final episodes being packaged together and simulcast in select theaters, but HBO would still get to air it on their channel. Furthermore, those final installments would probably still be designed and structured as TV episodes – not dramatically re-envisioned to prioritize the big screen over the small.
Turncloak,
The split is something the author suggests all by himself, with no quote from the HBO executive or the showrunners. Only one thing is said for certain on the topic, and it’s said by those who ultimate will get to decide, D&D: “We know basically how many hours are left in this story. We don’t want to add 10 hours to that.” If anything, it crushes the possibility of an eighth season, or an extended seventh (I do hope for the latter… but I don’t expect it.)
Turncloak,
It’s still 10 hours more of story. Which is what D&D said they don’t want. I mean, they could have, say, a 14 episode split-season. That’d be great and it would probably not fuck up their plans for the pace of the story.
Luka Nieto,
The pics for the Sand Snakes on the wiki are still the old ones btw. I expected the DD to do it in the meantime but he seems to have been more focused on other things.
Doran’s wheelchair is cool.
Crazy how GOT the most successful show on Hbo is going to have at least ten hours less of episodes than Sopranos 86 and True Blood 80. I think its really just D&D dont trust their writing abilities to create original content to fill more than two whole seasons. They had to add scenes to season one because they didn’t have enough content and they were very worried about that. The only way they could extend the show is if GRRM decides to slow down on writing his books and starts writing two or three episodes a season. If I was GRRM id dedicate myself to aiding in the creation of the show it will clearly finish before the books and it is guaranteed to finish unlike the books why not make it as good as possible. I also think Roberts Rebellion would make better movies than a tv show. Maybe a miniseries 6 episodes a season with 3 seasons. The entire thing is just pure action and high budget battles.
Greenjones,
I’m aware, I replied to you. Honestly, I like the current pictures better. Except perhaps Tyene’s, the others give us a better look at the characters. If these were at a higher resolution at least, I’d change them, but they have a pretty shitty quality.
Also, I believe usually we only upload pictures from HBO, and credit them appropriately. I don’t think we can upload pictures from EW and use them as the picture of a character, especially with the logo there —and cropping it is a shitty thing to do, anyway.
That’s because the Sopranos was only semi-serialised, and there was no endgame that the show was building towards. The latter point applies to True Blood as well.
Luka Nieto,
It’s probably doing too much parsing of a quote but D&D saying that “we know basically how many hours are left in this story. We don’t want to add 10 hours to that” indicates to me that they have some leeway on adding a few episodes to the 70 framework. “Basically” means something different than “definitely” and while they know they don’t want another full season, they probably are open-minded about having more time, budget and screentime to tell the final season story.
I still think this is what ends up happening. D&D will most likely have to be assured about the logistics of the production, but at the end of the day this is the solution that placates the most parties.
Anyone else having trouble viewing the slideshow of new pictures on the EW website?
King Tommen,
I agree. I do think D&D’s quote crushes the possibility of another whole season (or another 10 hours added into the seventh season), but we might just get a few more hours in the end, who knows.
Yup that makes more sense
Hodor’s Bastard,
RE: Bloodraven’s lair being a disappointment. I just watched the commentary for that episode yesterday, and I came away convinced more than ever that Alex Graves was overworked with 4 episodes. He said that they didn’t have any money left when they got to the point of designing Bloodraven’s cave, so that is what we got. I am really hoping they update the set and have a re-do on the makeup/prosthetics on Bloodraven himself in s6.
Yivo,
No not 70 hours. They’ve always been on record of telling an “80” hour story
Turncloak,
I believe the quote was 70 or 80 hours, and that was back before season 3 aired. Their plans for the future of the series clearly changed after their weeklong meeting with GRRM before writing the scripts for season 4.
Turncloak,
That was years ago. They’ve been saying ’70 hours’ for a good while now. We all should’ve gotten the message by now 😉
Also, as others have pointed out, there’s the fact that over the last couple years, once they learnt what was to come, they’ve been planning out the future of the whole series. They’re outlining season six now, with GRRM’s help. They’re not gonna suddenly change their whole plan and fuck up the pace they were going for.
So according to the show every person in Dorne is obsessed with snakes. Taking away anything that makes Oberyn unique that doesn’t have to do with his sexuality. And they even amplified his sexuality in the show. D and D really don’t understand some things and they are racist.
That would indeed be a win-win situation for all, including viewers! As you said, someone closely associated with GoT, but not David and Dan, could take over as Exec. Producers. Pre- or post-series settings would both be great! I think among the average show watchers – not just the dedicated book readers – good stories based on this world would be quite attractive, especially soon after GoT ends.
If Martin wanted to, he could be very closely involved with future projects.
Most likely S7 episode runtimes will be longer. An additional 10 minutes here and there can add up to at least an extra episode. So even if there’s 10 eps the longer times make it more like 11 or 12 eps.
It definitely is. Loved seeing all those concept art and production sketches. Being able to create visuals and scenes in the mind and make them into reality, that’s talent.
Greg,
Ignoring your “racist” accusation which is insane, when reading the World of Ice and Fire book (co-authored by Martin), snakes do come up time and time again when looking at the history of Dorne. It is definitely not a characteristic that is unique to Oberyn.
King Tommen,
Personally, I think it’d be more interesting to do something like the Dance of the Dragons as a series. You wouldn’t have to worry about recasting younger characters there.
Greg,
Look at what you just wrote… I’m pretty sure you’re smarter than that.
Greg,
I think an ignore or block feature is just what this site needs. This guy is the perfect example as to why.
Flora Linden,
Adding more time onto episodes would be meaningless if the desire is to extend the series’ run, which is what’s being debated.
Entertainment Weekly loves their clickbait, don’t they?
There’s nothing in that article that is news. David & Dan are still getting the final say, which means we’re getting 7 Seasons. Period.
True on the casting but the Dance with Dragons story doesn’t really lend itself to a TV series (it’s essentially about a guy who has a bunch of dragons and decides to go over and obliterate another continent) and it would lean very heavily on special effects as opposed to human storytelling.
Robert’s Rebellion has action but it also has tons of political intrigue, family dynamics, changing loyalties, love stories, revenge, multiple locations all anchored by characters the audience already likes and understands which is sort of the point of a spin-off. It’s Game of Thrones without the fantasy element really.
A Dance with Dragons would be neat but it feels more like a self-contained flashback episode as opposed to the thing you would build an entire series on.
Nice. I like Dorne.
And I definitely can’t say I’m bothered with the Vipers/snakes. In most cases, they won’t be visible in the show. It’s only when you have a good look at some of the props that you can notice snake symbols.
When it comes to the lenght of Game of Thrones. So far it seems set very strongly for 7 seasons. And I respect that (would I possibly like more, if it stays good? Definitely. But there’s no guarantee it’d stay that good).
But I’m not entirely convinced DnD know that exactly 70 hours will do. I find it likely that only when producing thE 6th season and more importantly when preparing the 7th they’ll know how much time they need. And that’s when it’s certainly possible they’d find a couple more episodes useful (I wouldn’t say likely, but certainly possible).
So I wouldn’t rule out a somewhat prolonged 7th season yet (whether it’s separated in halves or not I dare not guess) of 12, perhaps 14 eps.
That ‘s just speculation by the author of this article.
It all depends on D&D. HBO explicitly says that it will be as much seasons as they want.
And they want 7.
Tyrion Pimpslap,
Yeah, Simonetti’s depiction of BR spoiled me rotten. I was hoping for a mind-blowingly eerie moment as Bran & Co stumble into the CotF and BR…something disturbing yet extremely cognizant…a source of unique (possibly bastardized) weirwood power of the old gods. There didn’t even need to be much light, just one eye, stringy platinum hair, bony, branchlike arms and fingers, and a hint of a body within the trunk and root system. His voice should almost have been emanating from within their minds too as they approached; he really didn’t need to move his mouth, just whisper in their heads.
🙁 I guess I hold BR and the CotF on a pedestal that the showrunners don’t. Fuck their damn fatigue! That could have been the moment of the ages! Oh well, I’ll live with it.
Loved it. The set design never ceases to amaze me, and that concept art of Hobaw looks extremely amazing.
Luka Nieto,
Actually it isn’t, unfortunately. When you pointed it out on the comment section from the trailer I asked David about it: http://dedalvs.tumblr.com/post/110582658560/david-im-not-sure-if-you-could-talk-about-it-but
So apparently it is just upside down.
I agree. In order for the show to be good they have to know right now as they’re writing season 6 how many episodes are left after that. So many characters and plots that needs to be considered for the pacing.
King Tommen,
I would love an extended season(12-13-14 episodes), but I would hate split season.
It does not matter if it is a formal season 7, we would actually get two shorter season with 7 episodes.
That would be bed for the pace. I hated that in Breaking Bad.
Sean C.,
But that’s just it – I don’t think the series will be extended or split. D & D seem to want an ending in ten episodes. (My original opinion years ago was the show would take 8 seasons and one theatrical movie, but that’s not going to happen.)
So, the standard ten S7 episodes will be longer to finish the story. When that extra time is added together, it equals an additional episode or two. It’d be like getting 11 – 12 episodes in actuality. And if the series grand finale runs two hours, you’d have another extra episode right there.
Longer runtimes can make up for extending or splitting a season.
And after that decision, BB became super-hyped, the audience came in droves, it dominated the awards for 2 years, and we got perhaps the best reviewed episode in television history with Ozymandias.
I think 7 seasons for GoT is just fine (as Jared noted above) but it’s hard to use the S5/S6 split of BB as criticism for a final season split. That move was pure brilliance.
The trailer don’t even have 800K views and it’s their best ever, how is that possible? They posted it 24h after Apple don’t tell me everyone saw it in the first few hours…..Last year the unimpressive Cities in Dust trailer had 3M views day one wtf this is nonsense
Woah, the EW issue spoils some big book-only things.
Anyway. I love the Tyrion/Varys dialogue revealed there. D&D are not ignoring Tyrion’s dark turn in ADWD. Calling himself a drunken dwarf, reminding Varys that he killed his lover and his own father…
Split seasons suck. I don’t care if it ended up working for Breaking Bad, awards/ratings wise. It still stucks. Thankfully, I watched that show after it was already over, so it didn’t effect me. But the current split final season of Mad Men is ridiculous. We got 7 measly episodes last year, that made it feel like it was barely worth getting invested in.
I dearly hope that D&D don’t go that route.
I admire creators who know when to end (i.e. Breaking Bad).
Seven seasons, 70 hours – finish strong!
Hodor’s Bastard,
Splitting S5/S6 looks like a brilliant move in retrospect because of the power of the S6 episodes (all of which were incredible). This is possibly a minority opinion but I think that the early parts of S5 slowed the momentum of BB coming out of S4, Gus Fring and “Face Off.”
Overall, splitting seasons depends upon the execution of the story itself. I didn’t like it in The Sopranos. We shall see how Mad Men fares with its split final season. I love that show (and will miss it) but I tend to think that it should have wrapped up last year.
I liked the content of BB S5 episodes, but I hated waiting.
For me, the split season with BB was not a good idea. It is my personal opinion, of course.
When they split the season, they have in mind the awards and ratings, and not the interest of the story
Luka Nieto,
James Hibbard already spoiled
Hodor’s Bastard,
I’ll be the lone wolf and say that I did not like the first half of the split season 5, and outside of ‘Ozymandias’ and a couple of the other episodes, didn’t really like the second half either. I enjoyed the first 4 seasons much more.
Tyrion Pimpslap,
I forgot about that. Oh, and the EW issue also includes some of Ellaria’s dialogue with Doran, taken directly from the books, except it was between Obara and Hotah, speaking about Doran:
Ellaria in Season 5: “Everywhere women tear their hair and men cry out in rage, the same question on every tongue: What will Doran do? What will the prince do to avenge his murdered brother?”
Do you have a link?
Hey guys, first post Ever. I just tried to analyse the Way the show forshadows characters and locations that appear in later season, to see if we could try and predict which of our beloved book-characters we’ll get to See in the show in future seasons. There actually seem to be a somewhat pattern, which admiddedly is a weird one. Look at this if you will: – stannis heavily mentioned in the second Half of season 1. Introduced in ep 1 of season 2. – Balon Greyjoy talked about ocationally during season 1. Shown in ep2 of season 2. – Quarth mentioned once or twice in passing in season 1. Introduced in ep4 of season 2. – The Brotherhood heavily mentioned throughout season 2 as a thorn in the eye of the Lannisters. Showed up in ep 2 of season 3. – House Tully and their seat Riverrun mentioned throughout season 1. Both shown in ep3 of season 3. – Mance Rayder namedropped in season 1 and heavily mentioned throughout season 2, practically almost presented in the last episode. Introduced in ep1 of season 3. – Selyse mentioned in passing a few times in season 2 as Stannis’ wife. Introduced in ep 5 of season 3, With name. – Ramsay mentioned (though not by name) and being an actual presence in season 2 Without being seen. Shown throughout season 3 but not reavealed to be him before ep10. – The Slavers of Slavers Bay mentioned by Rakkaro in season 1 and alluded to by Jorah in season 2. Introduced in ep1 of season 3 as new antagonists in a longspanding storyline. – Mace Tyrell mentioned in passing by Loras in season 1 and Davos in season 2, talked about by Olenna throughout season 3, though never by his actual name. Showed up in ep 2 of season 4. – The Thenns were mentioned by Mance along With other tribes in season 3, but were singled out by Ygritte, when she talks about sex. They were introduced in the first episode of season 4 as a clear force to be reckoned with and remained antagonists in that storyline throughout the season. – The Iron Bank had a sort of presence from the beginning via the crowns debt but were specifically mentioned by name and as a concern by Tyrion in season 3. They were shown in ep6 of season 4. – Moat Cailin mentioned by Renly in season 2 as a strategic point. Was later the center of a minor subplot in season 4 and was shown in ep8. – The children of the forest mentioned once by Maester Luwin in season 2. They were Introduced in ep10 of season 4. – Fat Walda mentioned and talked about once towards the end of season 3. Shown in ep2 of season 4. – The three-eyed-raven heavily forshadowed from season 1 througout the Series until his actual introduction in ep10 of season 4. – Mereen, namedropped in season 2 and 3, mainly in relation to products and phrases and mostly in passing. Finally introduced in ep3 of season 4. – Moles Town namedropped in season 1 by Lord Commander Mormont as the place where brothers go to get laid. Introduced and shown to be just that in season 4, first in ep 3. – Doran Martell mentioned twice by name and talked about in season 4. Will show up in season 5. – The Sand Snakes mentioned once by Oberyn midway through season 4. Will show up in season 5. – Lollys Stokeworth mentioned once in a conversation between Bron and Tyrion as brons bride-to-be. Will show up in season 5. – The actions of The Sons of The Harpy mentioned by Dany in season 4, though they are not themselves mentioned. They Will show up in season 5. – Volantis briefly namedropped in season one, mentioned and talked about throughout season 2 with Talisas presence, namedropped in seasons 3 and 4. We will finally see Volantis in season 5. – Bowen Marsh mentioned Once in season 1, by Maester Aemon. We Will see him in season 5. SO!!!! Based on this it seems that they both use heavy forshadowing in the season before or two seasons before they plan to introduce something. If it was mentioned all the Way back in season 1, they might just throw it in Without further forshadowing. Based on this my biggest ‘somewhat safe bets’ would be: – The Golden Company. Not specifically mentioned before season 4, but there it Was namedropped twice in two different storylines. It is similiar to what they did With the Iron bank, but season 5 is probably too early, based on casting, but I’m pretty sure they’ll show up at some point. – The Umbers. Technically would not be an introduktion, since we already had the greatjon. But they mentioned and talked about in season 3 and a somewhat big character is heading to last hearth. – Randyl Tarley. Mentioned a lot by Sam and also namedropped by Davos back in season 2. Such a big presence in sams arc, that i feel we Will See him. LET ME HEAR WHAT YOU GUYS THINK??? Any forshadowing i missed?
Yes , when you split a story you lose a true climax.
The first half always have unnatural and artificial climax.
Deathly Hallows part 1, Hobbit, Hunger games, Breaking Bad, Mad Man…
The only exception is A Storm of Swords, because of the red wedding.
Neverunderstooddamphairhateeasilyoneofthemostcomplexcharactersinbookshischapterssomeofthemostatmosphericandwellwritten,
I agree, especially about the Golden Company. I don’t think they’ll have the same role as in the books, but Stannis might hire them. Who knows.
King Tommen,
I mean the Rhaenyra vs. Aegon civil war. There’s a lot of family politics in that.
mariamb,
mau,
To tell you the truth, I was bothered by the realtime delay as well…I was commenting more from the business perspective. I should have stated that.
The Sopranos delay was fitfully unnerving…
But, as House Ray stated above, I think the GoT story should be told in 70 episodes, false summits and all, then consider another series. Please leave something for the books to explore uninitiated and untainted! Please!
I am 100% sure we will have spin-off(s).
This is a vast and rich world that GRRM created.
There is no logical reason for breaking this wheel.
“HBO is not going to stop the wheel, HBO is going to continue the wheel! “
Hodor’s Bastard,
I agree with you and House Ray. 70 episodes and onto another series!
Greg,
Bye troll.
mau,
That article was on the front page of their website within seconds of the finale airing, and many book readers who were fans of the Lady Stoneheart character were lathering themselves up into a rage because they were expecting LS and then they didn’t get her. Naturally, they didn’t take it well – and even more Unsullied got spoiled on who LS was as a result. I didn’t care all that much at the time because I actually agreed with Hibberd’s overall position – I never liked Lady Stoneheart as a character in the novels and I believe it was probably a good decision to exclude her from the show. But even I thought that EW could have handled that business a bit more gracefully.
Luka Nieto,
Propably yes. Definately not exeactly as the books but maybe With stannis or hired by Doran. They already established selswords and companies. GC Will be presented as THE company, i Think, viewers Will Think whoever has Them Will have good chances
Jared,
I also hope that she won’t be part of the show. But I wonder what will GRRM do with this character in the books,
Yeah I think that’s the point though, they have to try and portray visually that she is somewhat half Dornish in her outlook now
And it obviously feeds into the narrative that Cersei is “losing her” to the Dornish similar to how she is “losing Tommen” to Margaery. I’ve noticed a Tommen costume that is black with gold trimmings and not the usual Lannister red
In a sense it is no different from the fact they are Robert Baratheon children in theory but they dressed more Lannister than Baratheon before
Looks like you’ve confused Dance of the Dragons (aka the Targaryen civil war between brother and sister, which actually did include a bunch of dragons on both sides) with Aegon’s Conquest – but Aegon’s Conquest wasn’t about a guy who has a bunch of dragons and decides to obliterate another continent, either – it’s about a guy and two gals who have a dragon each and decide to conquer the continent (at whose outskirts (i.e. on an island) their family has been living for the last couple of centuries since the country of their ancestors has been obliterated), obliterating a few kings and their forces, but preserving pretty much everything else on that continent (including laws and religions) and everyone who agreed to bend the knee and accept their rule.
Neverunderstooddamphairhateeasilyoneofthemostcomplexcharactersinbookshischapterssomeofthemostatmosphericandwellwritten,
Maybe they will be Varys’s gift for Dany. They and Jon Conningtn will then appear in S6.
Neverunderstooddamphairhateeasilyoneofthemostcomplexcharactersinbookshischapterssomeofthemostatmosphericandwellwritten,
In the new trailer, Stannis is looking at a table with figurines representing troops. There’s ships, his own soldiers, Bolton crosses representing their outposts or troops… and swords piercing a golden coin. That to me screams at least “sell-sword” (a sword, a coin), and maybe even the Golden Company.
mau,
If Griff appears without Young Griff, book readers are gonna be pissed. I don’t think they’ll do that, to be honest.
Tyrion Pimpslap,
Thanks for the compliment!
They don’t care about that. They are doing what is in the best interest of the story, not some book purists.
They cut LSH, Arianna Martell, Wyman Manderly and Victarion Greyjoy and these characters have a lot of fans.
Jon C. is an interesting character with an interesting motivation. Another Targaryen is unnecessary plot twist. but only Jon C. , why not?
They didn’t mention GC without reason. They will appear, I believe, and they will need to have a leader.
Neverunderstooddamphairhateeasilyoneofthemostcomplexcharactersinbookshischapterssomeofthemostatmosphericandwellwritten,
Dude – welcome to the site, but break up that text with paragraphs or bullets … no one wants to read one huge non-stop block of text like that … it’s basic typography …
Luka Nieto,
Wow! Did not know about the chesspieces. Checked it now. Amazing, but weird, considering that I think cogman went out of his way to state that what Stannis’ bought, was NOT the Golden Company. I dont know if they dismissed that it was another company, which makes sense, but I’ve been taking that what stannis shows up with at the foot of the wall is his own 4000 men. But that chesspiece, could simbolize selswords in general, but also simply be the Golden Companies ‘sigil’ reminishant to Second Sons having broken swords on their banners in the show. Though I have a hard time imagining why they would change it from the Golden Skulls from the books. That would be so cool.
mau,
You’re on the right track, although I would probably be asking the question “Why?” instead of “Why not?”
Jared
It’s nowhere near high enough resolution to be sure, but with my psychic powers (also known as Photoshop) as far as I can work out there are 4 or 5 statues and 1 (probably) real person.
Left: Certainly looks like a rearing horse; head at the top of the frame, arched neck almost touching left side of it, front legs both out. The light coloured stripe definitely makes the lower bit look like a dragon tho’, I can see where you got that from.
2nd from left: Looks like the person in the chair from 0:28 with their right side closest to us. There’s something immediately next to it but I can’t tell what it is. It could be the person on the right at 0.28 but might be something else entirely, or this could be one large statue rather than two smaller ones.
Big gap in the middle followed by 3rd from right: best guess is the figure with the bowl from 0.28 with their left side to us, or possibly something small on top of a tall plinth.
2nd from right: person with right arm in the air. Might be holding something long like a sword above their head, but that could be part of the wall behind them.
Far right: looks about a close to us as the horse on the left and seems like a real person rather than made of pale coloured stone (marble?) like the others. No way of telling who it is tho’.
I only have internet access at work at the moment and I’m about to leave, but if there are any other bits you’d like me to have a crack at, just reply to this and I’ll give it a try tomorrow :O) (Mind you, I wasn’t that helpful but happy to give it a go)
red viper
I suggest, you simply
red viper,
I suggest you simply scroll on then. Thats the way I post.
Neverunderstooddamphairhateeasilyoneofthemostcomplexcharactersinbookshischapterssomeofthemostatmosphericandwellwritten,
Welcome and thanks for starting the foreshadowing conversation 🙂
Neverunderstooddamphairhateeasilyoneofthemostcomplexcharactersinbookshischapterssomeofthemostatmosphericandwellwritten,
I don’t think Stannis hired the Company in Season 4, or at least he didn’t use it (those men were the 4000 men he has said he had, all dressed in Baratheon colors and uniform.) But I think he will now.
Luka Nieto,
Neverunderstooddamphairhateeasilyoneofthemostcomplexcharactersinbookshischapterssomeofthemostatmosphericandwellwritten,
A bit snappy perhaps, sorry about that, but your comment was negatively loaded and I hate that in discussions, since generally there is no reason for it whatsoever. Unfortunately I took your bate and fell right into it, which is extremely embarassing. To ellaborate, I wrote it on my phone and it came out in a huge block.
I do not know why, but they did not mention CG for no reason. When they wrote S4, they had the outline of the entire story.
Maybe a lot of Unsullied and Second sons will die during the battle for Meereen in S6, and Dany will need a new forces.
In the book, it will be Ironborns, but in the show she will have GC maybe?
Maybe that’s why they go to Volantis. Without GC why is Varys going to Volantis after all?
Because the trailer was released by different accounts. I can’t remember where I saw it but it was not an HBO account or Game Of Thrones.
There were three different accounts.
mau,
To take a ship to Meereen, of course.
mau,
I never thought about the possibilty of JC apearing without YG. But yeah as Niko Nieto says, it looks like the GC will show up and they will need a leader. And John Connington is, in my opinion, ten times more interesting than homeless harry strictland. Actually, its not really something I believe, but The Summer Isles has actually also been mentioned quite a lot and we even got 3 characters from there (grey worm, xaro xoan daxos and areo hotah). Perhaps the GC wont really be westorosi, but will be lead by Black Balaq with his green feathercloak and massive bow. I’d like that 🙂
mau,
I agree that the GC are strong candidates to appear at some point in the next few seasons.
Maybe the GC will initially appear to be aligned with Dorne?
Annara Snow,
Quite correct, I confused the two stories. Neither of them IMO (although nice parts of the Westeros world building and history) lend themselves to a TV series adaptation. Not like Robert’s Rebellion anyways.
That’s the story that has everything in terms of drama. And you can offset the costs of having to bring back known cast members by having a significantly decreased effects budget on account of not having to deal with the magic/dragons that exist in most of the other historical periods of this universe.
Aegon’s conquest and the Dance with Dragon work better as self-contained flashbacks or simply stories within a more complex series. They can’t hold an entire show on their own.
Neverunderstooddamphairhateeasilyoneofthemostcomplexcharactersinbookshischapterssomeofthemostatmosphericandwellwritten,
I very much doubt that the
On a different note,
Jared,
Patchface,
I couldn’t tell you actually but i feel like it Was in the description of areos character when they made the casting calls or something like that. Maybe it just seems like something the show would do for simplifikation, but i Think i read it somewhere. By the Way i wrote in my very long first post that i espected GC for s6, not s5. On another note, does anyone Think Cleon The Butcher Will appear. He Was name dropped in s4. Could be a crasters keep Kinda Thing, where we quickly See the negative effects of danys rule. Some less known but great character actor taking on the last free king of astapor. We would probably need someone to go there though.
Lulu’s Mum,
You were great! Your eyes and your Photoshop skills are much appreciated. No need to stress them any more unless you truly want to. Thanks for your help! 🙂
Luka Nieto,
Harma Dogememe,
The mental image of Selmy writing prank grafitti reminds me of “People called Romanes, they go to the house”. But at least that was done in latin.
Neverunderstooddamphairhateeasilyoneofthemostcomplexcharactersinbookshischapterssomeofthemostatmosphericandwellwritten,
I don’t think JC or YG will ever appear, or at least not one without the other… the exception would maybe be some other already-established but no longer essential character taking on the JC role. I doubt that will happen either though. I feel like YG is one of the big pieces we have to accept may never find its way to television. I don’t care that much about not seeing them, but it does sort of spoil the as-yet-unwritten books to get this sense of “oh, okay, I guess they must not be very important in the big picture.”
Now, people are going to hate this badly, but I would like to see the Golden Company used as a vehicle for
to show up in Essos… (or for him to show up in the North should Stannis buy their services.) I know that’s very non-book, and people are pretty in love with their book-based theories about him, but let’s be honest… we’re way beyond the Season 1 read-along style of show-making, and these are the sorts of unexpected shake-ups that keep favorite characters relevant and in the thick of things.
Why would I even put forth such a zany notion? Well, you have
And I haven’t seen a whole lot of meaningless/throwaway dialogue between major characters so far in this show… is it unreasonable to think that could have been foreshadowing?
Am I the only one who noticed that the fighting scene in Meereen takes place in Episode number 9, so i guess that special scene won’t be happening in the finale
Davi,
At 02:09, the clapperboard, as usual, marks the episode number. It reads like episode ’50’ to me —that is, 5×10. Where do you get 5×09 from? Maybe it spans two episodes? That’d be weird.
Luka Nieto,
It says 509. http://postimg.org/image/5nsctrftn/
We’ve known Daznak’s was in 509 for months already, of course.
Greenjones,
Oooh, that makes more sense. Thanks! I can barely see the ‘9’.
What about the Walk? Do we know if it’s 9 or 10? What exactly do we know will happen in the last 3 episodes, and what in each of them? Hardhome is 8, I remember that much.
Unfortunately, I doubt we’ll get another 1h+ finale, considering the main reason that happened in season 4 is that we we were contained to a single locale in episode 9. What do you think?
Really hoping he makes an appearance and actually becomes important to the world of Westeros by the end of this series.
Thrones Season 6 Characters Name List