Rating: 4.5 Stars

It has been almost eight years since the cultural phenomenon known as “Game of Thrones” premiered on HBO. Adapted from George R. R. Martin’s fantasy book series “A Song of Ice and Fire,” the show has endlessly taken the world by storm. Along with “The Sopranos,” “Breaking Bad” and “Mad Men,” it is a key component of the new golden age of television. The iconic story will come to a climactic conclusion later this year. 

The fight for the Iron Throne began on April 17, 2011. Showrunners David Benioff and D. B. Weiss perfectly understood the massive landscape they were given and successfully fit it into a television format. They knew the best way to draw in viewers was introducing the houses (families) with precise details. Understanding the characters’ relationships and their historic backgrounds is the foundation for most of the conflicts in the Seven Kingdoms.

The first noble house audiences are introduced to are the Starks of Winterfell. The wise warrior and patriarch, Eddard Stark (Sean Bean, “The Oath”), rules the North with his strong-minded wife Catelyn (Michelle Fairley, “The Feed”). The rest of the family is quickly introduced, which includes eldest son Robb (Richard Madden, “Bodyguard”), avid climber and second youngest Bran (Isaac Hempstead Wright, “The Boxtrolls”), oldest daughter Sansa (Sophie Turner, “X-men: Apocalypse”) and youngest daughter and tomboy Arya (Maisie Williams, “The New Mutants”). Also introduced here is Ned’s other son born out of wedlock, known in the world as a bastard, Jon Snow (Kit Harington, “How to Train your Dragon 3: The Hidden World”). Bean’s performance as the honest patriarch during a fraudulent time is one of the most captivating in recent memory. The actor’s track record helps bring a positive reputation to the highly risky story.

On the opposite side of society lies the Lannisters, helmed by Lord Tywin (Charles Dance, “Ghostbusters”) of Casterly Rock. His daughter, Cersei (Lena Headey, “Fighting with My Family”), is married to King Robert (Mark Addy, “Mary Poppins Returns”) of House Baratheon solely for political gain. The simultaneous amount of charisma and vulgarity that Addy possesses as the ruler of Westeros is baffling. Fellow Lannisters include Cersei’s twin brother and knight Jaime (Nikolaj Coster Waldau, “Shot Caller”), youngest sibling and dwarf Tyrion (Peter Dinklage, “Avengers: Infinity War”) and Cersei and Robert’s eldest son and heir to the throne, Joffrey (Jack Gleeson, “All Good Children”). Dinklage won an Emmy for his work on the season as the intelligent and sarcastic black sheep, and the role became a career-definer for the veteran actor.

When the opening theme by Ramin Djawadi played for the first time, the audience did not realize how special and iconic the theme they were in for would be. Djawadi’s decision to use the cello as the main instrument is a microcosm of the show’s unorthodox nature. The innovative title sequence that goes along with the beautiful composition introduces viewers to relevant locations in the episode, using a graphic to simulate cities popping up throughout the landscape, almost like a board game. 

The first season relies heavily on deception and dialogue-driven conflict rather than straight-up warfare. This is due to the less grandiose budget the developers were granted. The ending of the ninth episode, “Baelor,” is arguably one of the most well-shot scenes in the history of television. Many elements from the beginning still echo in the present state of the series. Everyone involved with the series is dedicated to delivering a cerebral experience as shown by the initial standards they set in the beginning.

Image from GameofThrones via YouTube