Game of Thrones Farewell – Discordance
This week’s page is a fantastic image by Rivenis, creator of the surreal fantasy webcomic Diskordia, this page comes to us all the way from the sunny isle of Barbados.
It’s actually a coincidence that this page ended up debuting on the same day as the final episode of Game of Thrones as it wasn’t originally planned that way. This work was in progress for several months and was actually intended for something else some other time.
Then I came to learn recently that the very last episode of this incarnation of a story in this show’s universe was going to be on this date. You see, unlike all the people I know and work with who don’t watch or read any of the numerous things I do, I’ve never actually seen Game of Thrones – or even clips from it. Not a criticism, just so many things and only so much time, you know? I’ll get to it one day, I’m sure … I think.
Well, actually I stand corrected I’ve seen one scene when I was walking past a TV it was on many years ago. A kid looking into a window in a tree, he’s seen – and then promptly thrown out of it to his seeming doom. That’s literally it. I’ve been told that’s from the very first episode.
However, it’s a mark of how much of a cultural touchstone is, even by not seeking anything out about the show I’ve picked so much by passive osmosis. I know that kid survived his plummeting to seemingly certain doom is called Bran Stark, I know who Ned Stark was (easy to work out what happened to him since he was played by Sean Bean), Arya, Tyrion, Cersei, Brienne, Tyrion and a large part more of the cast (enjoy a remarkably hilarious and bizarre experience involving Khal Drogo and the show’s producers with Daenerys on the sidelines as told in animated form here), who plays them and a lot of what happened to them and what’s going on generally (how about that Night King?).
Somehow, I seem to know a remarkable amount of the plot for someone who’s both never seen it or read any of the books as well as is definitely not going out of the way to seek any information about the story out as of yet (maybe even more than Jon “You Know Nothing” Snow by the looks of it). I guess I hear a lot about these characters because of and in association with announcements about other work the actors who play them get involved with. Isn’t that right, Sansa “Dark Phoenix” Stark? Soon to be a motion picture in a cinema near you … again (wow, 2006 receded so far into the past quicker than I thought it would, didn’t it?).
Anyway, I came to learn the series finale was coming due to its proximity to the Avengers: Endgame release and in retrospect, since we’d just received this image not that long ago, I thought it felt appropriate to use it now given as luck would have it this image had content close enough to be thematically relevant. Also, it’s a fantastic piece of work in its own right. I’m also guessing there’s a fair amount of crossover between the readers here and watching Game of Thrones (it’d be great if that was going the other way as well, wouldn’t it? I think we could at least go to twice a week if it did!).
As for this image itself, it’s continuing to represent the contrast between the two most featured worlds of Exiern to date and how different environments can potentially lead to radically different outcomes. Represented here in the form of metaphor combined with their actual realities and all rendered by the exceptional talent of the artist and his ability to think in the truly surreal and abstract.
Seriously, check out Rivenis’s work at his website, it’s something else and probably quite unlike much (if not everything) you’ve likely seen before. Well, unless you’ve read something like the exceptional Zenith series by Grant Morrison (as featured in the long-running British print comic 2000 AD). We definitely hope to see more of Andrew contributing to us one day.
On a final note, the first I ever remember hearing of Game of Thrones in any way shape or form was that Lena Headey (Cersei) was picking up this role after The Sarah Connor Chronicles was cancelled (coincidentally one of three actresses to play Sarah Connor who has worked with George R. R. Martin or one of his works in some capacity along with Linda Hamilton and Emilia “Where are my dragons?” Clarke).
I still think that was a great show with an especially great final run to the end of Season 2 and a great set up for a Season 3 (that ultimately never happened) but I thought even then that it was for the best because at most it might get one more (truncated) season at best and it seemed likely for the actress, even though I knew nothing about this new show she was joining, it just felt like something that would probably guarantee Lena more work for longer.
Well, how about how that ended up working out then?
Never seen an episode, never read any of the books.
When the first of the books came out, I’d already formed a dislike of buying books from endless series that (a) never resolve anything by the end of that book, and (b) make you have to buy all the books to know what’s going on.
I told George Railroad Martin—well, I’ve said it often enough, and maybe he’s seen it—that I’d read the books when the series was complete. Seems my worries were justified—he hasn’t completed the series.
Maybe the books and the show would have been interesting…but from what I have gleaned from the running commentary, that it’s a bunch of amoral people doing immoral things. Tolkien without the Catholic thought. Pass.
Well, I believe Scott has an ending in mind which given the nature of the medium and means of production we’re slowly inching towards …
No, I have no idea what it is either.
Also, at least when Urtica is being amoral, it’s for the greater good … I hope. I don’t know what that endgame is either.
I’m with you there. Admittedly, when the Harry Potter series first came out, nobody knew when the series would be completed; they simply bought the books as they were published. I didn’t. I don’t have that kind of money. I simply bought them secondhand (it’s amazing what you can get for $1 and a lot of patience!). But George R.R. Martin’s books just seem to stretch out for ages. I won’t spend that kind of moolah on them and I have a huge reading list that won’t allow for that kind of time to be set aside for them. My tv also stopped working in 2005 and I’ve been disinterested in replacing it. So I haven’t seen the show either. I don’t get the hype and my interest in the show is a flat zero. We may not be in the majority on this subject but there are more important topics that occupy my thoughts.
Libraries are great, it took me far too many years to take advantage of the one I’ve practically lived next door to for such a long time (fortunately I rectified this mistaken even if albeit belatedly).
This does lead to an interesting question, I know Scott has a plan and an end destination in mind (though no idea what that is) but webcomics really can be an act of faith, can’t they? Scott definitely has every intention of finishing the story he has in mind but given the nature of the medium and how long it can take to unfold – this is the 14th year of this webcomic and production time and expenses are the rate limiting steps – anything can happen between now and then, can’t it?
We are doing our best to make sure this is not going to be one that falls short despite the best of intentions but I imagine there’s unavoidably many years to go yet. Just about anything can happen in the meantime, can’t it?
Well, we’ll do our best and we’ll do our best to make sure our best is good enough.
On the subject of Grant Morrison, recently found out that the first episode of Doom Patrol is available to watch for free legally on Youtube until at least the 23rd of May. I hear it’s a pretty good show that increasingly captures a lot of the source material.
And since I suspect people might be out there looking for a new show for some reason …
https://io9.gizmodo.com/you-can-now-watch-doom-patrols-first-episode-on-youtube-1834845973
Region locked so only people in the US or have a VPN can see it, though (not sure about the legality of the latter to be honest …).
I like Game of Thrones and also read the books, including Fire & Blood about the Targariyans.
I have to tell you – this series is characterised by Loads and Loads of Characters, plots and stuff that even diehard fans find they have missed things.
You really know nothing…
I hear that a lot.
Oh, wait. You’re just talking in relation to this book and TV Series.
Or are you?
Well … either way, we’re still going for a bit longer at the very least (and probably a lot longer most likely). As is that book series, so I hear.
The only good thing about the end of GoT, is people can finally shut the Hael up about it! Just like with that “Lost” crap twenty years ago
And an interesting bit of tid: the GoT books were actually based on someone elses work! Kinda like how “Fifty Shades of BDSM” was based on the “Twitard” books (or was it bad “Hairy Pothead” fanfic? one of the two)
Temporal distortion must have hit you pretty hard because Lost only started fifteen years ago and ended in 2010.
Also, if my ongoing experiences with Buffy and Angel fandom are anything to go by, people are going to be talking about it for a … few decades to come. There’s still the yet to be finished book series for starters. Then there’s that prequel series I heard Naomi Watts was cast for. There’s also a lot more on the horizon, I’ll bet.
I do know that Game of Thrones did draw a lot from historical precedent as well like British History. The best stories are often drawn from real life. Like a certain ship from just a handful of pages ago. Surely no-one believes it was really just sold for scrap now regardless of the official record, do they?
Yeah, it was an exaggeration (just feels like “Lost” has been around for much longer
And also, yeah, know people people are going to be talking about “GoT” for decades to come (people still bring up “Lost” for example), and there is at least four prequels planned
Read somewhere (frequent far too many sites to remember where exactly) that “Fire And Ice” was based on someone elses books, not just that Martin was ‘influenced’ from real life
Prior to a couple pages back, had never heard of that ship
Well it goes to show Evil has more fun and better Clothes !
That is exactly what we were going for here.