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At this point, there’s a pretty good chance that you’ve heard about HBO’s sword-and-sorcery series, Game of Thrones, adapted from the novels by George R.R. Martin. In fact, the second season earned the dubious distinction of being the most-pirated videos of 2012. For those who can’t or don’t want to shell out for subscriptions to cable or satellite plus HBO, you can now catch up legally on Blu-ray or DVD. And you should—because not only is this series one of the best things on TV, but the sets they’ve released of the first two seasons are superb.
Jumping in fresh on this season is no easy feat. Based on the second massive book in the series, A Clash of Kings, the narrative picks up shortly after the end of the first season. The realm of Westeros has lost its king and begun a spiral into bloody civil war between five factions. While they fight and maneuver for power, a supernatural threat grows in the north behind a gigantic wall of ice, and in a neighboring continent, another claimant to the throne raises an army of her own while caring for a trio of baby dragons—the first to be seen in a thousand years. To say there’s a lot to keep track of would be an understatement the size of one of Martin’s books.
Thankfully, the series juggles the sprawling cast and plot threads as well as it can, even if it means that a favorite character might disappear entirely for one or two episodes at a time. That there are so many fascinating characters and strong performances underlying them makes it easier to stay invested. Much as he did in the first season, Peter Dinklage steals every scene he’s in as a snarky, noble-born dwarf who uses his wits to stay one step ahead of a treacherous high society. Not every storyline works, and not every performance is as convincing, but there are easily enough truly great examples of each to keep everything rolling nicely.
When the narrative does become too confusing, the Blu-ray set steps in to fill the gap. There’s a ton of background material included in the set, including an inspired viewing option with an on-screen guide to the characters, locations, and pertinent history for each scene. Martin has crafted an extensive mythology and history for his epic, and having access to so much of that while watching an episode makes the whole experience richer. For those who are more interested in the show than the fictional world it depicts, there are also a healthy number of commentaries and behind-the-scenes featurettes to satisfy.
There aren’t many people I know who are casual fans of Game of Thrones. Most are either completely sold on it, like me, or they’ve held off either through disinterest or intimidation. To the first group, I can say that the second season delivers even better than the first, and it’s so much better in glorious 1080p high-def than through a shadily-acquired laptop video. To the second group, I can only say that it’s well worth taking the plunge. Only one can hold the throne in Westeros, but with an epic fantasy as well told as this, we all win.
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