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The hit HBO series Game of Thrones draws to a close tonight. The series has received general praise and a decent cohort of followers, so much so that a second season has already been commissioned. And though the series has conveyed very well the political intrigue, character depth and the surprising number of antiheroes – basically the good guys don’t get much going their way – they cannot compare with the sheer majesty of the book series. A Game of Thrones is 8 in the Sunday Times Book Chart and long should it stay there.
What, you may ask, is present in the books that is not in the series? Simply put, character depth. Although characters, most notably The Imp Tyrion, are far more intriguing than your typical vanilla fare, in the books, rather than crammed into an hour, we have space to see character’s deliberations. We more properly understand Arya’s frustration, being pigeonholed into a role she has no care for, and we realise with Jon Snow that the world of the Night Watch is far from the tales of glory that he had imagined. As with the TV series, delving deeply into the mentality of Tyrion is a delight; his awkwardness with his family counteracted with his wit, and the way he tries to buy friendship and love, to disastrous consequences.
Just as we see the characters in greater depth, the world of Westeros is better illuminated. George RR Martin pores over the world’s history, customs traditions, never shoehorning in too much information, but so much so that it can at times feel overwhelming – so there are glossaries at the back in case there are some characters you have forgotten. Obviously where the TV series excels is showing things that previously could only have been imagined but even so condensing a 1000 page book means that lots of anecdotes, information and sub-plots have to be ignored. In the book you visit them at your leisure, and rather than padding out they add to the feast.
It’s important for people to realise the dire state of fantasy literature before Martin. J.R.R. Tolkein had made it popular but in his wake had only been a series of imitators, such as Terry Brooks and Robert Jordan, whose works both started off with some merit but soon fell victim to cliché. Martin’s work revolutionised the genre, part The Sopranos and part I, Claudius, allowing characters who are much more multi-dimensional – in particular female characters who were better than medieval housewives. For once literature was ahead of television, as only in the last 5 years have long series with balanced characters such as The Wire become more than a niche market. A Game of Thrones on the silver screen should whet your appetite - the books will provide the banquet.
See the final episode of Game of Thrones tonight 9pm Sky Atlantic.
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