Tyrion Lannister and the rest. That’s what I tell people when they ask me what A Clash of Kings, the book following A Game of Thrones in the A Song of Ice and Fire series by GRRM, is about. HBO’s second season of Game of Thrones can’t be all about Tyrion. Too many actors and characters the public love that need screen time, even if it doesn’t exist in the books, but I’m pretty sure Peter Dinklage, and Emmy and Golden Globe winner for his portrayal of Tyrion, will get his due.
So where did the gang leave us off almost a year ago? Well, Joff is king at King’s Landing, Robb Stark is King of the North, Daenerys is somewhere in the desert across the narrow sea with her dragons and nothing much left. Arya is going up north with recruits for the Night’s watch, Sansa is stuck in King’s Landing as a hostage under the Lannister and mostly queen Cersei’s watchful eye, Jaime is Robb’s captive and Tyrion is coming over to serve as the Hand of the king, whores and all accompanying him.
Robb Stark doesn’t have a POV in the books, and we don’t see him at all, ‘on screen’ that is. Only hear about his battles in the West, Lannister country, through other POV’s, mostly Catelyn, his mother, who’s only worried about the lives of her children. Alas, Richard Madden is so popular among the fans, like Robb’s character, that he’ll be getting plenty of screen time in Season 2. Robbporn, it’s called by some fans.
Sansa Stark does have 9 POV chapters in the second book, but not much happens in them. She’s mostly a point of view to show us what goes down at the court, completing Tyrion’s point of view, which drifts off towards other directions. Sophie Turner does Sansa brilliantly in my opinion, which makes her unpopular, and probably not in too many of the scenes, I suspect.
Bran Stark is the one left in Winterfell, crippled, but with dreams growing ever weirder. I truly wonder how they incorporate his development in the show, because the trailers haven’t really shown us my favorite character in the books. Winterfell isn’t exactly the center of the action, but the sea and the waves, eventually, come crashing down on the northern walls as well.
Jon Snow? Life beyond the wall should be another focal point in Season 2, as Jon is one of the most popular characters on the show and in the books. Iceland seems like the perfect setting for the land of always winter. Theon leaving Robb, returning home to the Iron Islands is another big question. How much will they focus on his trials, and the split and spread of events from the books among the seasons (Season 3 and Season 4, mostly about the third and huge book, Storm of Swords, have already been approved) should be interesting to see.
Stannins and Renly, Davos and the Red Lady, there’s plenty to be waiting for. The TV adaptation is its own creature, both GRRM and the creators have said. It tries to follow the books as much as possible, but there certain aspects that don’t show up in the HBO version, certain characters have different fates. It’s understandable, with the constraints of TV allowing only 10 hours a season. Lets just hope they don’t drift away from the source too much, and most of all, lets hope they keep this show at such peak condition.
