House Targaryen feature from HBO. Link from Youtube.
Leather pantsing incoming, people. Viserys is soooooo pretty, he is not really evil! That big nasty Robert stole his kingdom from him!
Not the scene I would have opened the trailer with, I don’t think it establishes Viserys’ character at all and Daenerys barely speaks at all.
We see the producer writers yet again sharing their vision. Family and the depths you will sink to as a means to protect them are things I think sum up this series. It is good to see that the producers yet again have hit the nail on the head.
Captain McAwesome Beard tells us once more about how the seven kingdoms used to actually be seven kingdoms. There is a dragon with three heads, and the children have been exiled.
In the past the Targaryen dynasty conquered Westeros with the aid of dragons. But now there are no dragons left and the last two Targaryens are banished from the seven kingdoms.
There are brief comments from the people playing Viserys (the fantastic Harry Lloyd) and Daenerys (Emilia Clarke) on the nature of their banishment.
Daenerys seems to get only a little screen time. I don’t really have much to say about the actress, she is pretty enough and seems to be a good enough actress to portray both the vulnerability and the confidence the Daenerys shows throughout the series. The problem is that Daenerys is not a particularly compelling character when weighed up against others in the series, and I hope that the actress isn’t wasted on this necessary but limiting role.
Briefly mentioned is Illyrio Mopatis, the merchant prince played by Roger Allam. He is not focused on much but I feel I need to mention the casting issues here. Firstly the man is described as being quite smart, and instead we have a scruffy beard. He is also described as being so fat he needs three strong men to help him stand. This man does not look as though he needs one strong man to help him stand. I am not suggesting that Roger Allam needed a McDonalds diet for six months but a pillow up the shirt might have been appropriate!
Illyiro segways nicely into Khal Drogo who is portrayed wonderfully by Jason Momoa (soon to be known to all due to his Conan the Barbarian remake). Mr. Momoa looks awesome as Drogo, portraying the savagery of the character well, but also the tenderness that he possesses. As well as aging Daenerys up they seemed to have aged Drogo down, bringing them closer together in age and making their marriage and inevitable sex scenes more filmable. Daenerys’ feelings about the Dothraki are explained well also. At first they are bestial monsters and so alien to her, but soon se becomes knowledgeable and appreciative of their ways.
Harry Lloyd explains now some of his motivations behind Viserys and now I worry. In the books Viserys is pathetic and evil. Because the story is shown through Daenerys’ eyes, he at first seems quite intimidating; this begins to fall away as she becomes less scared of him. It is a wonderful piece of writing, but I am not sure how well it will translate to the screen.
Not only that, but Harry Lloyd is a good looking young fella. Just like it happened to Draco Malfoy in the Harry Potter series, fan girls are going to line up to make excuses for his terrible behaviour. He really is one of the few characters in the books who is irredeemably evil, if a little pathetic and ineffective. If this doesn’t come across as powerfully as it needs to then Viserys might just end up as a terrified little boy that these fan girls feel they need to take care of.
All in all the Targaryens look pretty cool. The white hair looks ridiculous, but to be honest, I can’t see a way that it would look good. At the minute they look like elves from Lord of the Rings, and it suitable indicates their magical heritage. I think my concerns about Viserys will prove to be founded; people seem to have a hard time accepting pretty male villains. I feel that the performances that Mr. Lloyd will bring will more than make up for it in the long run (anyone who doubts his ability to play a creepy monster, watch the Dr. Who episode “Family of Blood”). Emilia Clarke looks as though she will be a delight to watch and I can already feel a man crush developing on Jason Momoa.
I feel that the Daenerys chapters sometimes yank me away from the plot in the seven kingdoms when I am reading the books, but the scenery and people make it seem as though I will be looking forward to them here. Long live the Dragons, may they reign supreme!
