If you have been living under a rock since 2011, you probably haven't heard of HBO's award-winning series "Game of Thrones." Also, if you are living under a rock, I would suggest contacting a real estate agent. I'm not telling you how to live your life, but I might consider moving. 

"Game of Thrones" is based off (more or less) the novels of the series "A Song of Ice and Fire," the first novel of which is also the title of the show. American author George R.R. Martin is also one of the executive producers of the show, is noted for infusing several time periods, cultures and myths to create the world of Westeros and the characters therein. 

The first of two columns on "Game of Thrones," "A Song of Ice and Fire" and the surrounding fanbase, Into the Hive Mind tackles the fan and cultural phenomenon of George R.R. Martin's novel and show. 

 

Subject: "A Song of Ice and Fire," novel series by George R.R. Martin

The first novel of the five currently-published novels of the "ASOIAF" series, "Game of Thrones," was published in 1996, With a cast of over a thousand named characters (many of whom are only mentioned in passing), the series is notable for defying common fantasy conventions of relying on magic as a means of advancing the plot, instead using realistic portrayals of political and militaristic actions. 

Based off the War of the Roses, a war between the Lancasters and the Yorks of England in the mid-1400s, the series follows three main shorelines: firstly, the struggle for the Iron Throne, which had been held by the Baratheon family after Robert Baratheon had overthrown the previous Targaryen dynast. Secondly, there is the story of the Night's Watch, the sentinels of the northern border of the continent of Westeros, who protect the land. The third follows the exiled daughter of the Targaryen king, Daenerys, who attempts to reclaim the throne after being forced into marriage with a warlord of the Dothraki nomads.

Also, she has dragons, so. There's that.

The series is notable for having morally ambiguous characters—you might hate certain characters and love others, but no character is solely good or solely bad. Chapters are told through different characters' points of view, giving multiple takes on each person.

Also notable is the sheer diversity of the characters—many of the characters are women or children (not a majority, but for the fantasy genre, it's rather unusual to have more than a handful of stock characters), and out of those, there are quite a few who have fully developed story arcs. Consider Daenerys, whose story arc focuses on her maturation from a young pauper pushed unwillingly into a marriage with a perceived barbarian, a rape survivor and individual completely without agency, to an ambitious woman with machinations on the throne of Westeros. Moreover, the racial diversity of the characters is detailed (depictions of the Dothraki cultures, discussions of race relations, etc.). 

"A Song of Ice and Fire" (abbreviated as ASOIAF, which, in my opinion, defeats the purpose of an abbreviation in that it is actually more difficult to type than the series name itself) has had effects on understandings of the fantasy genre overall. Like Tolkein's "Lord of the Rings" or Rowling's "Harry Potter," the series has been described as a "gateway drug" to fantasy. Although certainly targeted towards a much older audience (given the graphic descriptions of sexuality and violence), it breaks down preconceived notions of the cliches and tropes of the genre. Without an emphasis on a sort of deus ex magica, a heady grounding in realistic scenarios and history and frank discussions of the lifestyles of complex characters. 

The series has five novels, "A Game of Thrones," "A Clash of Kings," "A Storm of Swords," "A Feast for Crows," "A Dance with Dragons" and, forthcoming, "The Winds of Winter," and also has supplementary novellas "Blood of the Dragon" (1996), "Path of the Dragon" (2000) and "Arms of the Kraken" (2003). There are also three novellas called "Tales of Dunk and Egg," about Ser Duncan of Tall and his squire Egg (who would go on to become King Aegeon V Targaryen). 

Although fans have been, in the past, disgruntled with the gaps between publication ("A Feast for Crows" was published in 2005 and "A Dance with Dragons" was published in 2011), my advice to readers eagerly awaiting the publication of "The Winds of Winter," is to be patient. George R.R. Martin, to borrow a phrase from his fellow author Neil Gaiman, is not your bitch. 

 

Subject: "Game of Thrones," HBO series (2011-present)

Martin's series skyrocketed in sales after an initially disappointing run after the publication of "A Game of Thrones" in 1996. Through word of mouth, the series became more and more popular over the following volume, with following novels gaining immediate recognition.

In 2007, the series was optioned to be adapted for television by HBO, with Martin a part of the executive production staff. The pilot was produced in 2009, and nine more episodes were made in 2010, premiering in 2011 to immediate audience and critical reception. The first season covers "A Game of Thrones" and events therein; the second follows the basic plot of "A Clash of Kings." The third season (premiering in March 2013) only has covered the first half of the lengthy "A Storm of Swords" and the commissioned fourth season is slated to cover the remaining plot of the book and the beginnings of "A Feast for Crows" and "A Dance with Dragons."

With nearly universal critical acclaim, the show received 13 Emmys for its first season, including Outstanding Drama Series and Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series. 

While not universally true, the television fandom is more active and larger than the book's fandom, simply because most of the avid book fans eventually became a part of the television fandom as well; the television fans do not all read the novels. 

I'm going to be honest: I've only seen the first two episodes, and I figure that I will only ever see the first two episodes, because it is violent as hell. I can deal with all sorts of murder and mayhem so long as it doesn't happen on screen. Show me bodies. Show me cannibalism. I can deal. I couldn't deal with seeing characters beheaded or animals maimed or people hurt as I watched. So if you, like I am, are faint-hearted (nothing to be ashamed of), perhaps the books would be better fitting for your tastes. There's also a ton of nudity and sex, so maybe don't watch the show with your parents. Or do. I don't know. If that's what you're into and you're okay with it, cool. 

The show is not without some criticism, though, particularly when it comes to casting and depictions of women. The show brought the term "sexposition" to the forefront, a word that has come to mean "expository action or information taking place within a backdrop of sex and sexuality." Characters will sometimes explain motives or information while having sex with prostitutes of female characters. The second season in particular seemed to have more "dehumanizing sex" without much informational content; Anna Holmes of the Washington Post noted that the nudity was less for the purpose of the plot, but for "titillating heterosexual men." As Maureen Ryan of the Huffington Post says, the series, which, in some cases, brings to light the oppression inherent in a patriarchal society (one rooted in historical details), "is undercutting its own goals…[Ryan] can't take it seriously as a treatise on oppression or the examination of female roles in a feudal society if much of the female nudity is thrown in as frivolous window dressing."

If you've seen the show and read the novels and still need something to do to tide you over until "The Winds of Winter," then fear not. There's still more. There's a card game, a board game, artwork, roleplaying games, a monthly comic of the same name, graphic novels, and video games either in production or available for consumers. "A Game of Thrones: Genesis" was adapted by Cyanide, with another game called "Game of Thrones," released in 2012 by the same maker. A social network game, "Game of Thrones Ascent" is in development currently, and will allow players to live like one of the nobles in Westeros. There are full-sized weapon reproductions (you, too, can sit upon the Iron Throne. If you have $30,000 to spare and do not want a comfy chair at all; if not, you can buy this 1/6 scale model) as well as a companion guide, "The World of Ice and Fire," is in development. 

There' so much in these subjects that to do a single column on the topic, so next week, I will actually go into the fandom, including fandom controversies, fan activities and general geeky goodness. 

 

In the meantime, you can reach Columnist Christine Bancroft here or find her on her stupid Twitter here. She has been told that she would be either Tyrion Lannister or Roose Bolton if she happened to be a character in the stories.