‘Game of Thrones: Complete First Season’ Blu-ray Review

This review was originally published for Project-Blu on February 28, 2012, and has been re-published for the release of Game of Thrones: The Complete Third Season.

The Movie itself

Game of Thrones The Complete First SeasonBased on the bestselling novels by George R.R. Martin, A Song of Ice and FireGame of Thronesdepicts the war for the Iron Throne in the Seven Kindgoms of Westeros. Game of Thrones: The Complete First Season follows the first book, Game of Thrones, quite well as it chronicles the battle of multiple families fighting for what they believe is rightfully theirs. Whether it be the throne itself, revenge, or something else that fuels the fight, in the end it won’t matter as the first season builds up for an all out war that will change the landscape of Westeros forever, and also change television forever.

I can make it complex and draw it out, but simply put, Game of Thrones: The Complete First Seasonis the best single season of television that has ever aired. Immediately showered with awards and praised by the masses, this adaptation of Martin’s work is truthful to the source, devastating to HBO’s budget, and crucial for anybody who wants to watch a bit of good television.

Game of Thrones follows along multiple plot lines; all of which are wholly captivating. Lord Eddard “Ned” Stark (Sean Bean) governs the town of Winterfell with his family. His wife, Catelyn Stark (Michelle Fairley) is a strong woman who doesn’t trust those nearest the king, who is a dear friend of Ned’s. After King Robert (Mark Addy) loses his trusted advisor (The Hand of the King) he summons Stark to join him at the palace in King’s Landing. With reason to believe King Robert’s wife, Queen Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey), and her twin brother, Jaime Lannister (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) are the two behind the deaths of those surrounding King Robert, Ned decides he must join him in King’s Landing to defend the Iron Throne from the many other families vying for it.

Meanwhile across the Narrow Sea, Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke) marries Dothraki King, Khal Drogo (Jason Momoa… CONAN!!). The unseemly match is fulfilled in order to provide Daenerys’ brother, Viserys (Harry Lloyd), with an army and ally so that they may fight for the throne that was taken from them years ago by King Robert. There are a few more stories in addition to these. One of my favorites follows Ned’s bastard son, John Snow (Kit Harington), and Tyrion “The Imp” Lannister (Peter Dinklage) on their way to The Wall. Tyrion’s somewhat unrelated story ultimately connects all the dots showing just how complex these books, (and now the televisions series), really are.

There’s nothing I can really say about the story that does it justice. The show is incredible. Amazing. Flawless. The accuracy of the source, the big budget production, and great acting all surround a complicated story that doesn’t pretty up anything and makes each moment as real as it can be. Game of Thrones: The Complete First Season makes it quite clear that it’s setting up each character for the long haul. This is achieved at the same time it surrounds the build-up with some of the most entertaining drama on television.

Each character was cast perfectly, which is something that doesn’t come easy. Never would a fan of the series think of replacing any main character. Dinklage is hysterical. Sean Bean portrays the hero magnificently. Even Lena Headey’s performance as Queen Cersei is believable enough to erase some of her beauty. The children in the series are impressive as well; Maisie Williams plays Ned’s young daughter, Arya, most impressively. And the “future king,” Prince Joffrey Baratheon (Jack Gleeson), is as dark and twisted as they come.

Beyond the incredible story and flawless acting, Game of Thrones: The Complete First Seasonachieves perfection in almost every other area as well. The costumes, set designs, score, and editing are all top-notch. There’s nothing that one can find to draw a complaint, not even those long time fans of the books that are more difficult to please. The show is flawless to the point that even the opening title sequence won an Emmy!

Game of Thrones: The Complete First Season is a ten part story that holds nothing back and delivers an incredibly intriguing back and forth fight for the Iron Throne. George R.R. Martin’s story, the one he claimed could never be put on a screen, comes together wonderfully and accurately with each moment being more amazing than the one before. David Benioff and D.B. Weiss did a spectacular job recreating the novel by making sure every aspect of the first season was perfect. This is a show that cannot be missed.

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The Presentation

Best Buy recently released a sampler disc that featured the first episode from Game of Thrones: The Complete First Season. Without any hesitation I was in store to pick up this single episode disc in order to get a taste of what this incredible first season would look and sound like on Blu-ray. HBO held no punches with that first episode leaving me with extremely high expectations for the Complete First Season. Thankfully, Game of Thrones: The Complete First Season has a stunning AVC encode and an amazing DTS-HD 5.1 track that delivers a full high definition presentation better than any television series I’ve seen to date.

The full 1080p picture for the show is stunning. The amount of detail is unrivaled with every scene in every episode looking incredible. Colors are absolutely amazing in Game of Thrones. The uses of some vibrant reds and blues stand out amongst the highly muted clothing and scenery of Winterfell. Green leaps from the screen with trees looking three-dimensional and grassy fields wave in the background with as much life as the characters in the scenes themselves. Stubble on faces, hair details, seems on clothing, fine lines in weaponry and on architecture all stand out making the series that much more awesome. The season may need to be visited multiple times as it seems each viewing offers more from each scene than the previous journey through the Complete First Season.

The audio is another winner, with the English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track shaking off the stereotype of being reliant on the center channel due to its dialogue driven plot. The show features primarily dialogue, with action sequences not being as frequent as you Transformers fans might have hoped for, but each speaker plays in intricate role in making this soundtrack come to life. Sounds of nature leap out in the background, swords clash with a realistic and clean sound, and the score broadcasts across the surround sound system with a beautiful and refined tone. The subwoofer has a role in nearly every episode as it roars with a light rumble, adding an extra dimension to an already incredible track. As amazing as the remaining sounds are, Game of Thrones is a dialogue driven story and this track does dialogue exceptionally well. Conversations are never lost, as all the details of each confrontation, explanation, or even each inappropriate remark are clear and loud. The DTS-HD 5.1 track rivals that of many big blockbuster movies on the market today. Judging from the way the video and audio were treated it’s all too clear that HBO knows they have a gem in their hands.

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The Extras

Game of Thrones: The Complete First Season is filled to the brim with extra features. The amazing box set is loaded with plenty that will keep newcomers entertained and fans drooling over their favorite aspects.

  • Audio Commentaries: There are seven commentaries across the ten episodes, including a track from the author George R.R. Martin himself.
  • In-Episode Guide (HD): An interactive guide that accompanies each episode that provides some additional information about the fictional world the series takes place in.
  • The Complete Guide to Westeros (HD): A must for anybody unfamiliar with the books as this plays out much like the In-Episode Guide but features much more information on the kingdoms of Westeros, helping the audience get a better understanding of the characters’ histories.
  • Character Profiles (HD): Fifteen of the main cast members describe their characters (Ned and the remaining Starks, the three main Lannisters, the Targaryen siblings, Jon Snow, Khal Drago, Petyr Baelish and King Robert) to allow viewers to get a better grip on who they are portraying.
  • Anatomy of an Episode – A Golden Crown (HD): Don’t watch this until you’ve seen the episode, as it takes a behind the scenes look on how it all came together. This is viewed as a companion to the show as a split-screen feature.
  • Making Game of Thrones (HD): A half hour documentary on how the first season came together. Includes interviews with cast, crew, and R.R.
  • From the Book to the Screen (HD): George R.R. Martin (Author), David Benioff, and D.B. Weiss (Executive Producers) talk about how they took a book that “couldn’t be made into a movie or show” and, well, made it into a show.
  • The Night’s Watch (HD): An awesome feature that takes a deeper look at The Wall up north and the men standing guard.
  • Creating the Show Open (HD): The title sequence is fascinating so much so that it won an award (an Emmy!). Take a look behind the scenes on how the interesting sequence was created.
  • Creating the Dothraki Language (HD): Watchout Klingon, there’s a new fictional language in town. This short featurette takes a look at how the language came to be.
  • Dragon (Easter) Eggs: Thanks to a friend of mine I was given info that the three dragon eggs featured in the season are hidden across the menu. Find them for additional extras.
  • *Exclusive Packaging: Best Buy is featuring exclusive packaging in either House of Stark silver with a beautiful direwolf or House of Targaryen with a multi-headed dragon. Neither packaging offers anything in terms of additional extras or footage, but they do look awesome. If you’re a collector, or a huge fan you might want to check these out.

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Final Thoughts

Simply put, Game of Thrones is the best thing on television since color… or Mad Men. OK! Who am I kidding, as much as I love Mad Men this is better. Either way, this show is flat-out amazing and does a fantastic job staying faithful to the original story George R.R. Martin concocted in his crazy mind not so many years ago. The series itself warrants a purchase and repeated viewings, the Blu-ray adds so much more though with reference video and audio and an endless supply of extra features. All of that shows how serious HBO took this series and also speaks for how serious you should be taking it as well. If you haven’t seen Game of Thrones: The Complete First Season you need to, and you need to in time to start enjoying the second season come April.

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