Inside HBO's Game of Thrones!!

Inside HBO’s Game of Thrones is balanced delicately between a lore compendium (though I’m sure the GRRM enthusiasts would snigger at such a broad-stroke volume being considered a serious lore compendium) and a Making Of. It’s probably a valid argument that by the very nature of a fantasy series a book like this would have to cover a reasonable chunk of lore – but hey, it don’t matter. I thoroughly enjoyed every and all aspects of this.

Join me after the jump for Beanage! For costuming! For badassery! Though no boobs, I feel obliged to warn you, though it is an HBO production.

I pre-ordered mine from Book Depository, about four months ago. I was super eager, and a little deflated when the book in question turned up in bookshops before mine appeared. But all was forgiven when it did turn up – looks like the standard Australian version is a hardback with a paper dustcover, whereas the one I have is – kinda embossed, and puffy. You’d know what I meant if you felt it. Regardless of how I try and explain it, it feels like love and has the weight of money and many hours of blood, sweat and coffee. There is much, much love in this book.

Having spent what feels like a sizeable chunk of my life with this collection of characters and their respective actors, I don’t believe I’ve ever had such a widespread multiple-actor-crush. Whenever an actor appeared in-text to offer insight into their character, I think I bounced a little. They even managed to coax Sean Bean out of his den in the woods to offer insight. They didn't even manage that for the audio commentaries.

It’s sort of a given that it’s visually stunning – all of the epic publicity money shots are here, Danaerys with her pretty white pony, The Joff looking like a smug little bastard on a spiky chair, Sean Bean looking like a hardened hard rocking badass son of a bitch with a huge goddamn sword. Everyone looks incredible – when GoT starts, and everyones poking around in Winterfell (which is a bit of a blasted-heath of a locale) the sheer expense and detail of things like costuming and set-dressing are lost a little. But in a medium like photography, where you suddenly are exposed to the tiny detailing and the weathering of garments and armor (if the Lord of the Rings extras taught me anything, it’s that weathering clothing is time consuming, expensive and apt to make the costume department cry), you are suddenly exposed to how much money has gone into this, let alone manpower and time.

As the series rolls on into the third season (cannot get here fast enough) I think this volumes going to get more and more useful. Whilst I’m relatively good at maintaining the whos-who aspect on GoT – probably through sheer amount of rewatches – it’s going to be rather nice to have the book on hand when I’m plunged back into the world.



Also – Lena Headey, I want to BE you.