Winter is coming.

I am most definitely a "comic book/Star Wars" leaning type of geek. I have some love for Lord of the Rings -- but for the most part, fantasy / sword and sorcery / Dungeons & Dragons (with the exception of heavy metal lyrics) really do not float my nerdyacht.

That may have all changed.

I recently finished up watching the season one blu-ray set of HBO's Game of Thrones series. Based on George R. R. Martin's A Song of Fire and Ice book series, the show simply kicks all sorts of ...ice.

You can find more about the content and about the show from the regular source and a review of the blu-ray set here. My quest here is to show you why you should give up your prejudices and give the show (and let's not forget the books) a try.

Here's some reasons why:

1. Do you like HBO?
Have you ever seen/loved/obsessed over any of the following: The Sopranos, Six Feet Under, Deadwood, Rome, Band of Brothers, The Pacific, The Wire?  If you answered yes to any of the previous shows -- you will appreciate the mature themes and adult-oriented action and drama of Game of Thrones.

2. Like R-rated films?
Mature themes? Um...heck yeah. Violence, sex, nudity, horror, incest, political assassinations, the list goes on. It's all in there -- and done artfully well.

3. Do you like your "high-brow with your low-brow"?
Want to satisfy your yen for the baser things along with intellectually stimulating content? You'll get plenty of both and often at the same time. This show isn't a "guilty pleasure", but it hits all the B-movie tropes of the genre along with thought provoking commentary on the nature of honor, the importance of family,  and the consequences of ambition.

4. Do you like anime/manga? 
Fans of anime series like The Twelve Kingdoms, Fushigi Yugi, and other sprawling shows have already dipped their toes in what it is like to be in Westeros. Tons of characters, nations, and allegiances are much easier to follow with an engaging story and a pace that never gets bogged down in the nerdy details (though you can delve deeper if you choose to).

5. Are you a fan of great acting and production value? 
With actors like Sean Bean and Lena Headey (already famous for their nerd-nip roles in Lord of the Rings and Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, respectively) and Emmy-winner Peter Dinklage-- the cast is absolutely superb. With top notch CGI and practical effects--not to mention one of the most intriguing credit sequences ever-- the show is full of screen magic.

So, with Season Two fast approaching (April 1) -- I'm already itching to call my local cable provider to sign up for HBO again (long cancelled for me after Tony Soprano and Journey faded to black a few years ago).

Grab your sword. War is coming.



*Images copyright of their respective owners. Dothraki will dispatch you otherwise.*