I am maybe one of seven people to never watch “Game of Thrones.” I know, scandalous. The reason being is that by the time I got HBO for myself, the show was really messing with people. Shocking character deaths, plot twists, just too much excitement.
My plan was to just not pay attention to the show and then binge watch it once it finished. But how do you stay oblivious to the biggest show since “Friends” and “The Sopranos” combined? You don’t. So I know all of the things; I just haven’t watched any of the things. Red Wedding? Heard about it. Jon Snow dying and being resurrected? Was given the rundown. Daenerys burning King’s Landing to the ground and the madness of her ending? I don’t want to talk about it. Without watching it, I learned a fair amount. I had to, for pop culture references sake.
On top of the plot lines, I also heard about the controversies, the main one being the depiction of women and the amount of gratuitous nudity. I have found that when female storylines border or become exploitative, I have immense issues sticking with the content. With that being a huge part of the show, I thought it would be better to be in the right headspace to watch it.
So now, I am actually diving in and seeing what all the fuss was about. I will be watching “Game of Thrones” a decade and global pandemic later. I wonder if I will still be shocked seeing some of the major plot points in the context of the show. I wonder if the characters I liked on paper will be the characters I enjoy the most. And more importantly, will I turn how angry I get at the way female characters are portrayed and the excessive female nudity into a drinking game? Only time will tell.
What I do know is that this will definitely be a ride. My reviews will consist of my summation of each episode, the takeaways I have and some out-of-context quotes from my notes. I am not promising to like it or get it. I am honestly prepared for this to feel like a chore. But I can’t really talk critically about one of the biggest shows in television history unless I take the time to see the dang thing.
So, join me as I experience “Game of Thrones” for the first time. Winter is coming. (Did I use that correctly??)
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Featured image credit: HBO
Morgan Roberts (she/her) was by films and television. She spent many nights watching “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” or whatever the family rented from Blockbluster. Morgan is particularly interested in cinematography, supporting female filmmakers and “Fleabag.” Outside of a deep love of film, Morgan is passionate about mental health advocacy, gender equality and true crime podcasts. Morgan also contributes to In Their Own League.