Game of Thrones a Medieval Story in a Mythical Land on HBO

Game of Thrones is a HBO series, set during Medieval times, in a mythical land. The ten part series debuted on HBO on April 17, 2011 and has already been renewed for a second season. The series is based on A Song of Ice and Fire,, a bestselling fantasy book series by George R.R. Martin.

The show is about the pursuit of power and family. The story weaves the stories of seven different kingdoms of people of the realm. The main stories are about The House of Lannister, House of Stark and House of Targaryen. The biggest and most powerful family is The House of Lannister, led by King Robert Baratheon (Mark Addy) and Queen Cersei Lannister (Lena Headley).

The setting on the story is not specific. It is a land of the author's imagination, with a stark wall of snow and ice, forests with tall trees and a cruel landscape. There are elements of the mysterious land that are recognizable, but the setting is a combination of cultural elements, to make a truly unique setting.

Rather then a romanticized look at the Medieval era, the film shows an era of hardship, in an unwelcoming land that makes survival difficult. The characters wear black cloaks, simple blue dresses, rough brown garments, leather trousers and furs. It is not a story of ladies in velvet dresses, crown jewels and pretty things. The exception is Kings Landing, where life is extravagant and the costuming is more Persian in style.

Most of the dialog of Game of Thrones is delivered in English, but the film makers had a language creator devise a language for the Dothraki people. The Dothraki are a warring, tribe, between the Moorish people and the Indian People. Instead of just having the actors sprout gibberish for the imaginary language, they had a language created to make the dialog seem more realistic. The actors memorized their lines first in English, so they would know the meaning of the words, and then memorized their lines in the fictional Dothraki language.

Game of Thrones has a large ensemble cast. Male series regulars include: Mark Addy as King Robert Baratheon, Sean Bean as Lord Eddard "Ned" Stark, Kit Harington as Jon Snow, Alfie Allen as Theon Greyjoy, Peter Dinklage as Tyrion Lannister, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as Ser Jaime Lannister, Harry Lloyd as Viserys Targaryen Aidan Gillen as Petyr Baelish ("Littlefinger"), Jack Gleeson as Prince Joffrey Baratheon, Iain Glen as Ser Jorah Mormont, Isaac Hempstead-Wright as Bran Stark, , Richard Madden as Robb Stark, Rory McCann as Sandor Clegane.

Female series regulars on Game of Thrones include: Emilia Clarke as Daenerys Targaryen, Michelle Fairley as Lady Catelyn Stark, Lena Headey as Queen Cersei Lannister, Sophie Turner as Sansa Stark and Maisie Williams as Arya Stark.

The fantasy series Game of Thrones is airing on HBO.