This epic series is set in a fantasy world like no other I can think of. It has the look of medieval Europe with rival families manoeuvring to take the Iron Throne on which the Kings of Westeros sit. As the series begins Robert Baratheon is the king and he invites this friend Ned Stark to be his Hand, most trusted advisor. This leads to Ned, his wife and daughters; Sansa and Arya, moving to the capital... it isn't long before they are caught up in court intrigue. Robert's wife is involved with her own brother; it is learnt that the children of the last slain king are still alive... and there are rumours that the dead are returning to life north of the wall in the far north, where Ned's illegitimate son Jon is stationed. They are expected to attack next winter!
As the series progresses rival families fight each other, form and break alliances. Other characters work for personal advancement knowing that if the move to soon or side with the wrong people their lives will soon be over. The villains are truly villainous; the heroes aren't as clear cut as one might expect. The cast of major characters is huge and events in the first season shockingly show that even those set up as lead characters can be killed off. There are fantasy elements; most notably three dragons belonging to Daenerys Targaryen; the White Walkers (the Army of the Dead); and magic of Melisandre, the Red Woman but for the most part things are gritty and real. Often that means brutal violence, quite a bit of nudity and lots of swearing... this of course means that the series won't be for everybody; however if you don't turn off in disgust in the opening few episodes you'll probably want to watch it all and love it. The cast does a phenomenal job; this includes many established actors as well as up and coming stars and people for whom this was their first acting job such as young actresses Sophie Turner and Maisie Williams who play Sansa and Arya Stark who's characters develop across many seasons in ways one wouldn't imagine when it started. There is also a stellar performance from Peter Dinklage who plays dwarf Tyrion Lannister; a character that dominates just about every scene he is in despite his diminutive size. Others who must be mentioned are Sean Bean, Emilia Clarke, Kit Harrington, Lena Headey, Aiden Gillen, Charles Dance and Jack Gleeson... to be honest I could go on listing almost everybody in it! The special effects are fantastic; one could almost believe that dragons are real after watching this. The world in which the series is set is filmed in a wide range of countries giving it a very real feel... gone are the days when a major US series set in numerous locations will be filmed entirely in Southern California or the Pacific North West! Overall I can only say 'Watch this' as I loved it from start to finish.
As the series progresses rival families fight each other, form and break alliances. Other characters work for personal advancement knowing that if the move to soon or side with the wrong people their lives will soon be over. The villains are truly villainous; the heroes aren't as clear cut as one might expect. The cast of major characters is huge and events in the first season shockingly show that even those set up as lead characters can be killed off. There are fantasy elements; most notably three dragons belonging to Daenerys Targaryen; the White Walkers (the Army of the Dead); and magic of Melisandre, the Red Woman but for the most part things are gritty and real. Often that means brutal violence, quite a bit of nudity and lots of swearing... this of course means that the series won't be for everybody; however if you don't turn off in disgust in the opening few episodes you'll probably want to watch it all and love it. The cast does a phenomenal job; this includes many established actors as well as up and coming stars and people for whom this was their first acting job such as young actresses Sophie Turner and Maisie Williams who play Sansa and Arya Stark who's characters develop across many seasons in ways one wouldn't imagine when it started. There is also a stellar performance from Peter Dinklage who plays dwarf Tyrion Lannister; a character that dominates just about every scene he is in despite his diminutive size. Others who must be mentioned are Sean Bean, Emilia Clarke, Kit Harrington, Lena Headey, Aiden Gillen, Charles Dance and Jack Gleeson... to be honest I could go on listing almost everybody in it! The special effects are fantastic; one could almost believe that dragons are real after watching this. The world in which the series is set is filmed in a wide range of countries giving it a very real feel... gone are the days when a major US series set in numerous locations will be filmed entirely in Southern California or the Pacific North West! Overall I can only say 'Watch this' as I loved it from start to finish.