Game of Thrones Season 1 So Far

HBO's most epic and ambitious show yet

Had I started this blog earlier, I would have reviewed all 10 episodes of Game of Thrones, but as the season 1 finale "Fire and Blood", aired tonight, I will meld my review of the finale with an overview of the whole season. I was honestly not aware of George R. R. Martin's work until I saw some previews for the show, and decided to watch without reading the source material. Though I am about 200 pages in to the first book now, the one that gives the show its title, I must say, that this show did an excellent job of drawing me in nonetheless. The grand scope of the land of Westeros, as well as how every plot point in the series has been closely related, has made for terrific and engaging television. From the happenings to King's Landing to the movements of the Dothraki people, every moment was connected and executed extremely well. The Starks and the Lannisters eventually became the main focus, and towards the end of the season, they appear headed for all out war. I assume that people reading this review are familiar with the series, and will do my review of the season finale as such.

SPOILERS AHEAD

As of the end of the 9th episode (the best episode thus far, "Baelor") Eddard "Ned" Stark (the infinitely entertaining Sean Bean) had been beheaded in a shocking twist of cruelty by the newly crowned king Joffrey Baratheon (Jack Gleeson) and his mother Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey) in front of his own daughters Sansa (Sophie Turner) and Arya (Maisie Williams), while Ned's son Robb (Richard Madden) and wife Catelyn (Michelle Fairley), with Cersei's brother/lover (cringe) Jaime (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) captured, prepared to pit the armies of the Starks from the North against the armies of the Lannisters, led by Cersei's father Tywin (Charles Dance) and his dwarf son Tyrion (brilliantly acted by Peter Dinklage). Meanwhile, Daenerys Targaryen attempts to save her Dothraki husband Khal Drogo (Jason Momoa) from certain death through forbidden black magic, against the wishes of Ser Jorah Mormont (Iain Glen). As such, the final episode had quite a many plots to resolve. Up until "Fire and Blood", the season's final episode, I would give the season a mean score of about 4.75/5.