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While I understand that dragons must be totally CGI and that everyone imagines what they might look like differently, I just don't like how they are portrayed either in GOT or this series. Their physical motion seems off. Guess it's my biologist brain interfering with my suspension of belief. Sure, there are lots of meticulous details (almost too meticulous) to revel in, but I find them unbelievable. There is usually some functional beauty in all creatures, particularly flying creatures. These airborne beasts are an exception. Cumbersome, distorted, exaggerated, those flexy wimpy wings just wouldn't support that sort of weight, etc.
Yup. Totally agreed. For one thing, the dragons' wings would need to be at least three times larger for them to have any hope of flying. But the way they fly just looks clunky and weird.
The show is also missing a prime opportunity for worldbuilding:How do the Targaryens (and why only them) bond with and control the dragons? I'd love to know that. So far, it seems simpler than training a dog, which doesn't make much sense for such a dangerous alpha predator. Personally, I'd rather find out more about that than watch another 20 minutes of back-stabbing betrayal and incest.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Parnassia
I also find myself getting bored with the neverending political maneuvering between characters none of whom seem to be worthy of someone's good opinion. I get the message: it's supposed to be a cruel dog-eat-dog world where being an upstanding person won't save you, but without a ray of light anywhere? Not even the stereotypic humble goodhearted peasant thrown into the deep end of history by chance? What really separates this from the broadcast evening news? Everyone just gets to wear swords and prettier dresses.
Agreed. GAME OF THRONES never lacked for dastardly villains and betrayals, but it also had genuine (if often imperfect) characters you could root for. I haven't found one in HOUSE OF THE DRAGON yet.
But I think this may be a reflection of our current culture. Post-modernism has reached the point where it no longer really believes in heroes or virtue. Everything and everyone is corrupt. We demand tolerance for everything but grant forgiveness for nothing.
So far, the only characters I definitely like are King Viserys (despite his being a screwup, he has tried to do the right thing; it's just that he's not very good at making long-range decisions) and the Velaryons (Lord Corlys & Lady Rhaenys).
There seems to be some moderate fan-drooling among some female watchers who post on Facebook, for Daemon Targaryen, which I find disconcerting. The prince is handsome, flashy, charismatic, etc.; but a man who also butchered his wife when she lay helpless and also seduced (at least did his best to 'deflower') his underage niece. He's not honorable or even nice. And he's going to do something particularly awful later on...
The show is also missing a prime opportunity for worldbuilding:How do the Targaryens (and why only them) bond with and control the dragons? I'd love to know that. So far, it seems simpler than training a dog, which doesn't make much sense for such a dangerous alpha predator. Personally, I'd rather find out more about that than watch another 20 minutes of back-stabbing betrayal and incest.
Well, someone writing this has a lot more "material" in terms of back-stabbing, betrayal, and incest to draw from. Portraying those is easier. It takes a lot more creative effort to dream a somewhat believable dragon-human culture and tradition of cooperation out of thin air. The whole spectacle is still pretty unique, but IMHO the authors/writers are showing signs of imaginative burn out. Dragons were such an integral part of that world's history. For those of us who would revel in the portrayal of such a rich culture, they are leaving a huge meaty gap in it.
I'm very partial to birds myself, so I probably pay more attention to how flight is portrayed in a movie or TV show than most viewers. Flight is such a wonderful thing. Some really get it right (IMO the Harry Potter films did) so it IS possible. Others fail badly (LOTR did). Maybe it's silly to focus on this single aspect but a poorly done flight capable major character takes the bloom off the entire thing for me.
Last edited by Parnassia; 10-04-2022 at 01:14 PM..
Well, someone writing this has a lot more "material" in terms of back-stabbing, betrayal, and incest to draw from. Portraying those is easier. It takes a lot more creative effort to dream a somewhat believable dragon-human culture and tradition of cooperation out of thin air. The whole spectacle is still pretty unique, but IMHO the authors/writers are showing signs of imaginative burn out. Dragons were such an integral part of that world's history. For those of us who would revel in the portrayal of such a rich culture, they are leaving a huge meaty gap in it.
I'm very partial to birds myself, so I probably pay more attention to how flight is portrayed in a movie or TV show than most viewers. Flight is such a wonderful thing. Some really get it right (IMO the Harry Potter films did) so it IS possible. Others fail badly (LOTR did). Maybe it's silly to focus on this single aspect but a poorly done flight capable major character takes the bloom off the entire thing for me.
Blame Martin. It's all in there, all the filth and the betrayals, as a hasty compilation without any kind of character development. I consider Fire and Blood a stream-of-consciousness book, just "one d**n thing after another," cashing in on his own elaborate universe. I'm reading a couple of pages at a time, keeping up with the series, trying to avoid getting into next week's atrocities. I'd even say that the TV series adds a few humanizing features you don't find in the book. Such as:
Spoiler
In the book it says that Laynor is killed, and Qarl left the country and is never heard from again. In the TV version we see Qarl in a rowboat, heading out to sea with a companion who looks strikingly like a bald Laynor--and the body presented as Laynor was maimed beyond recognition. So the TV series apparently keeps Laynor alive to live and love another day...
To me, this show is boring. It’s been hard for me to get through episodes.
I can’t put my finger on it, but probably subconsciously comparing to GOT.
I was always intrigued and the large number of characters all seemed unique and interesting.
In this show there isn’t even really one engaging character or enemy. And the story line isn’t really pulling me in.
.......It's hard to invest in a story when there is no one to root for, and everyone is an idiot.
I think this is the point. It is not a "story". It is a history of a family who were monsters, cruel, and corrupt. More like watching a history channel show where members of the royal family all tried to assassinate each other, as they did in Europe and Britain for centuries.
Dragons can fly because they are full of gas. It's the same gas that they ignite and use to breathe fire. it's lighter than air, giving them some resemblance to a dirigible.
I think this is the point. It is not a "story". It is a history of a family who were monsters, cruel, and corrupt. More like watching a history channel show where members of the royal family all tried to assassinate each other, as they did in Europe and Britain for centuries.
Fair enough. A documentary about skin graft would not be "a story" either. But it doesn't mean I would want to watch it.
I'm not hating HOUSE OF THE DRAGON. I'm just not loving it. It's decidedly mediocre. GAME OF THRONES either ran hot or cold. HOUSE OF THE DRAGON (at least so far) is consistently lukewarm.
Quote:
Originally Posted by oregonwoodsmoke
Dragons can fly because they are full of gas. It's the same gas that they ignite and use to breathe fire. it's lighter than air, giving them some resemblance to a dirigible.
If that were true, then they would fall from the sky every time they "expelled" their gas. Which they don't.
But it's not wise to expect too much aerodynamic accuracy from dragons. The fact is that a beast of that size shouldn't be able to fly at all. The goal of the animators is to create a convincing illusion of flight --- a task at which they are mostly failing thus far. I don't know if the budget just isn't up to task or what. But HoD's dragons just look clunky.
To me, this show is boring. It’s been hard for me to get through episodes.
I can’t put my finger on it, but probably subconsciously comparing to GOT.
I was always intrigued and the large number of characters all seemed unique and interesting.
In this show there isn’t even really one engaging character or enemy. And the story line isn’t really pulling me in.
I agree.....I've been watching but I think I am going to drop it off my watch list. There is nothing compelling about it. I loved Game of Thrones and the books it was based on and probably would have dropped this show before now had it not been for that connection. I gave it more time to catch me than I would have otherwise. Still hasn't done it.
When I first started watching GOT, I thought it was boring as hell. That's because the story telling was very slow and the pacing was really bad in the 1st season. I wasn't hooked on GOT until season 3 when the action was more intense. I think this series is also starting out that way, it's actually more complicated than GOT because they did some time skipping. I do think by the end of the season there will be one big reveal that will make people want to watch S2.
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