All men must die

"Game of Thrones" is a fantasy series aired on HBO, based on George R. R. Martin's fantasy novels "A Song of Ice and Fire". The plot is set in the fictitious lands of Westeros and Essos, where a power struggle for the Iron Throne rages between different noble houses after the murder of the old king. This DVD contains the episodes of the third season, and is notable for the episode "The Rains of Castamere", in which several of the main characters are brutally slain, disregarding every conventional idea about how TV should be made. But then, we've seen it before...in "Lost".

I admit that I'm not an engaged super-fan of "Game of Thrones", but like most people, I nevertheless find myself watching every episode. Why? No idea, really. As I said in my review of Season Two, this is simply a remake of the European Early Middle Ages, with some Roman and "Oriental" spices thrown in. In contrast to most fantasy, Martin's story has very little supernatural flavour, and the whole plot feels just as meaningless as medieval history. We're talking blood feuds, civil wars, arranged marriages, orgies, strange new religions frequently even worse than the old ones... Europe around AD 600?

Ironically, it could be the incredibly complex plot (or rather parallel plots) which makes the trick. That, and the colourful characters, makes it difficult not to find *something* of interest. A bit like a Swedish smorgasbord, I suppose? And yes, many viewers love the nudity or pretend to abhor the violence...

Personally, I found the unapologetic, politically incorrect Orientalism of the Daenerys Targaryen subplot a real guilty pleasure. A blond, Nordic valkyrie liberating Black slaves and challenging effeminate and vile "Semites"... I'm surprised nobody started a culture war over this? Instead, people pretended to be upset when mad king Joffrey turned out to be a homophobe. LOL! Oh, and yes, the strange new religion of the Red Priestess is really an allegory for Christianity, not Zoroastrianism. But please don't tell anyone, because that could *really* start something...

I will probably watch the fourth season of "Game of Thrones", whenever Swedish public service TV sees fit to show it. Next year?

;-(