Banana Scoop

I’ve been going on and on about the book vs. the series this week.  And I’m actually rather glad that I was able to compare them hand in hand.  It would be unfair to say the book is everything [even if it is the source material] because the TV series sometimes relays things that simply went way over my head.  Hindsight bias tells me that ‘well duh, there’s the reference to _____’, but I’ll be honest, if I didn’t see it in the TV series first, I might’ve never known it was true.  I just simply can’t wait to watch this season and be astounded what I forgot to read between the lines.  Below are a couple of moments that the TV series taught me something the book didn’t.  Obvious spoilers from season/book 1.

Renly is Gay

Not really is it ever mentioned that Renly is gay especially to Loras Tyrell, Knight of the Flowers.  There are mentions of that he dresses exceptionally here and there, but in all honesty, if I never knew he was gay before, that small sentence or two would’ve gone right over my head.

The Dueling Banter Between Littlefinger and the Spider

One of the more interesting scenes are when Petyr Baelish, aka Littlefinger, and Varys the Spider talk about their own motives.  Neither are narratives in the book, and you never actually see these fiery conversations full of blackmail, spite, and oddly respect.  Each takes jabs at each other, questioning their true motives, and it’s nice to see how devilish these characters truly are, when the book didn’t drive in this point as much.

Grand Maester Pycelle’s Morning Routine

All we ever get from Maester Pycelle in the books is his groaning and complaining that he’s old.  And in the last episode of season 1, Roz the Whore gives us yet even more insight on non-narrative characters.  I was looking for moments in the book where Pycelle is caught off guard for his youthful nature, yet, all I found was another whining Maester.

What Happened to the Dragons – Doreah + Viserys

Dragon mythlore is spread all around the book.  Tyrion Lannister talks about it when he’s reading, Daenerys talks about it with her eggs, etc.  The series rather compiled all the mythlore revealed in book one into this very interesting 10-15 minutes where Viserys and his whore, Doreah, talk about dragons.  Interesting meaning, she was naked in a tub with him.  This didn’t happen explicitly in the book.  I would’ve remembered

Tywin Lannister on Legacy

I thought Tywin Lannister was one of the most badass and memorable characters in the show.  His pure manliess and aura kinda reminds me of a Ernest Hemingway/Ron Swanson deal, which is probably why I liked him so much.  There wasn’t much of him in the book, besides his occasional conversation with Tyrion.  In the TV series however, his speech about legacy was very piercing, definitely one of the more memorable monologues that applies to not just the Lannisters but to all Houses of Westeros and their ultimate goals.

Who Ayra Saw in the Dungeon

I didn’t know who this was the first time I saw the series, and I didn’t know the second time.  It was only after reading the book did I actually care to find out.  The book did a fairly bad job of explaining who it was, because it only gave a physical description, and not a title or name drop.  I’m sure if I searched back into Daenerys book section, I would’ve put the pieces together that it was Illyrio, but it was only after watching the series a third time and truly paying attention to who he was and the context of what they were talking about.

Bronn is Hilarious and Osha is Awesome

Something that is so unfortunate in the series is that these two minor characters did not get the generous screen time they got in the TV series as in the books.  The books develop these characters well, but if I didn’t already have their actor counterparts in mind, I wouldn’t of been able to see them as I do now.  The book makes references to Tyrion and Bronn making jokes, but it’s the actual jokes [Give me 10 men, some climbing rope, and I’ll impregnate the bitch] that make me like them even more.  And Osha is far more interesting in the television series than in the book.  She’s much wittier than she gives off [reasoning Theon’s lack of lordship] and is better demonstrated better in the television series than the book.