Game of Thrones - Teaser

HBO made available online the first 12 minutes of the first episode of Game of Thrones, and I am already hooked.  First off, watch it, then rejoin me for my thoughts.

I know nothing of A Song of Ice and Fire, the series of books by George R. R. Martin that this show is based on.  I've been told they're quite good, the new Lord of the Rings even.  Since not long after the series was announced, I've been planning on reading them.  Then, as it got closer, I thought I should at least read the first one (titled A Game of Thrones) since I assume that it is going to comprise the first season.  Finally, it came to the series debuts in two weeks and the first book is nearly 700 pages long.

That's when I gave in and decided I was just going to watch the teaser and come in completely fresh.  Not have any preconceived notions about the world, the characters, or any future plot developments, and I am glad I did.  The introduction of the White Walkers would not have had the same impact if I had already been waiting for it to happen.

I love how the opening just throws you into the world, no dialog and no exposition for the first few minutes.  There is a huge wall called "The Wall." They never comment on it's function, but I can only imagine, if I can borrow some SAT shtick, The Great Wall of China : The Mongols :: The Wall : The White Walkers.  Lord Stark (played by Sean Bean, it will be tough to not think of him as Boromir) tells us that they've been gone for thousands of years.  I wonder if they're like the Sith, biding their time before they scale The Wall and attack.

After the creepy introduction of the White Walkers, we come to Winterfell.  Here we're introduced to Lord and Lady Stark, a number of sons, and I believe a daughter.  Lord Stark and the possible daughter are the only stand out so far, but we only get to spend a couple minutes with them.  I especially enjoy Stark's explanation of why he has to be the one to behead the deserter, a very good character defining moment.

Overall, I'm very intrigue by this world so far and really keen to see the full episode, I suppose HBO can't ask for a better response.