Game of Thrones and my Sunday cable television

Game of Thrones returns Sunday while Walking Dead wraps up the season Sunday also. What would ever happen if my glorious cable tv shows ended? True Blood returns Sundays this summer, I am thankful to have my television shows, but what if it ended?

George R. R. Martin is a notoriously slow writer. A well-known fact that worried many fans who wished to watch Game of Thrones but were unwilling to commit, fearing Martin might not be able to write the end of the book series before the television show caught up to the books.

Thankfully according to the Game of Thrones’ showrunners, David Benioff and Dan Weiss, Martin sat down with them and took them through the entire plot — all the way to the end — spoiling them for who actually wins the Iron Throne. [See here] Ooh... 

So even though the newest A Song of Ice and Firebook, The Winds of Winter, does not have a release date, readers should be confident that although Martin is still writing it, it will make an appearance sooner than later. He even is offering up an entire chapter for preview.

[Source]

Game of Thrones Trailer #1 - Season 4

Is it April yet??? yowsa!

Day Three SDCC 2013

Friday at SDCC. My main goal was to get into Hall H for Veronica Mars, Walking Dead, Game of Thrones, and Sony Screen Gems. We went to line at 8am and after 8.5 hours of waiting in line, we got into Hall H.



The line went around Hall H, down the street by Bayfront, along the water (wrapped up/down three rows worth) down around the Symphony Stage and along the water to the parking lot.

Sadly at that time the following things had occured:

• Missed Veronica Mars
• Missed Walking Dead, but saw Norman Reedus wave from the rooftop
• Missed Game of Thrones, cried a bit as cosplayers for Game of Thrones left the Hall H line that they had sat in for hours like us
• left the line to use the bathroom, which had no t.p. thank goodness I had stuff in my bag to use
• got heart burn from living off of trail mix, gatorade, bottled water and dried fruit snacks
• sun  burned patched of my arms that were not correctly sunscreened due to being hung over and under rested
• burned the top of my head/scalp from sun beating down on us
• rubbed black ink all over my face when the magazine I was using as a fan began to make my hands black and my hands began to make my face black as I wiped the sweat from my forehead.
• sat on sidewalks, curbs, grassy areas, cement areas, by the water, along the road, under the Hall H line tents and finally in a seat inside.
• met amazing SDCC fans
• collected some more Ender's Game buttons from "recruiters"
• complained enough that I am shocked no one around me smacked me upside the head

Charming right? It was a rough day for sure. Besides being hung over from the night before, getting 2 hours sleep only, and dealing with hot sun beating down on me, we waited a very long time only to miss everything.




Amazing cosplay. When we all didn't get into Game of Thrones panel these guys left and we all gave them a round of applause.

It felt this year, like there were more lines, more camping out (for hall h and just to get IN to the convention) I don't know that this was because of Twilight fans in the past setting the bar high, or if people actually enjoy laying in a sleepinng bag on the sidewalks of San Diego, but it was pretty crazy this year!

Anyhow, I did enjoy Sony Screen Gems (Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2, Robocop, Moral Instrument, Spiderman 2) amazing stars, amazing clips, trailers, surprises and a fun time.

Metallica was also incredible. Their new movie is 3-D and looks like a pretty interesting film. They also gave our tickets for a secret concert that night, I didn't win, sadly. I felt the process was b.s. they hadn't given out all the tickets yet, but the winning #s were put on the board. Then we got tickets, and the same numbers won, but some people who just got tickets won, so how easy was it to just find the "winning #" to win? total bs but ah well.

Here are some cool things we did see along the journey:




Minion Blimp! I saw this at Long Beach airport when I left SDCC also!



We did not make it INSIDE, but Norman Reedus came to us, kinda of, Still very cool!



Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 panel



Mortal INstruments Panel



Robo Cop panel



Metallica movie panel

Amy and I went to dinner and chillaxed that evening after a long day.Much more to say and share, but I do indeed need some sleep... check back soon!


MORE SDCC HERE

In Memory of... those lost on Game of Thrones (from Comic-Con)

Game of Thrones Pop-up Guide to Westeros at #SDCC

Game of Thrones fans should swing by the Insight Editions booth (#1134) to grab “Game of Thrones: A Pop-up Guide to Westeros“. The book, which was illustrated by Michael Komarck, will sell for $59.95 and feature “numerous mini-pops that bring to life iconic elements of the such, such as direwolves, White Walkers, giants, and dragons”.


See more: http://www.westeros.org/GoT/News/Entry/The_Pop_up_Guide_to_Westeros

Game of Thrones: The Real Iron Throne, described and envisioned by GRRM

Fans of the popular book and television series Game of Thrones, have loved the infamous 'Iron Throne' however, George R R Martin recently revealed that HBO's version, simply isn't as large, or terrifying, as the one he envisioned while writing the books.

The Real Iron Throne, he writes, "is a bit of an oxymoron. There is no real Iron Throne. It doesn't exist. I made it up. I said it was made of melted swords, but really, it was made of words, like all such fictional constructs."
In the show, it appears like this:

However, GRRM writes:

This Iron Throne is massive. Ugly. Assymetric. It’s a throne made by blacksmiths hammering together half-melted, broken, twisted swords, wrenched from the hands of dead men or yielded up by defeated foes… a symbol of conquest… it has the steps I describe, and the height. From on top, the king dominates the throne room. And there are thousands of swords in it, not just a few. This Iron Throne is scary. And not at all a comfortable seat, just as Aegon intended.

Here it is:

Game of Thrones Season 4 filming

 I am so excited to see cast of Game of Thrones again at Comic-Con this month. I am also excited to learn they have begun filming, hopefully preparing a few clips for us at SDCC?!?!

The cast and crew will begin filming in Northern Ireland, and units will be heading to Iceland and Croatia later this month.
Season 4 of Game of Thrones will span roughly the second half of the third novel in the A Song of Ice and Fire saga, A Storm of Swords.
It will pick up after the shocking conclusion to season 3, which saw Robb Stark and his mother Catelyn slain by Walder Frey, Jon Snow split from the Wildlings, and Daenerys freeing the slaves in the city of Yunkai.

http://www.hypable.com/2013/07/08/game-of-thrones-season-4-filming-begins-today/

This Week's TV....

I am so behind on my PVR.... Currently on my must watch list:

Revenge, Celebrity Apprentice, Carrie Diaries, Vampire Diaries, The Following, Revolution, Dallas, The Voice, Vikings, Cult, Motive. I am caught up on Game of Thrones, and there have been reruns on many shows so as long as I dedicate some time this week I should be good to go again before my vacation... ha ha then it's back to being behind...

ZAPIT has some updates/spoilers that have me excited....

"The Vampire Diaries": As high school graduation approaches, everyone's future is uncertain... but we're particularly curious about our one remaining human. "We are going to let ourselves really enjoy Matt in the last couple episodes," says EP Julie Plec. "He looks around at all the people in his life that are about to graduate, maybe move on to college, or go off and live some supernatural destiny elsewhere, and then here he is figuring out his next step. He's thinking, 'Do I have any options? What are they? And what do I want to do now that I'm free to get away from all of this if I want to?'"

"Hannibal": Will Graham has a knack for getting inside the mind of a killer, but he never actually killed someone before the confrontation we saw in the series premiere. So it's no real surprise his boss orders him to get a psych evaluation in this week's episode. But who does the evaluating? Dr. Hannibal Lecter, of course.

"The Carrie Diaries": If you were bummed about Carrie and Sebastian's break up last week, never fear! In true high school fashion, they get back together in tonight's season finale -- just in time to make some prom plans! But don't get too swoony, guys. These two hit a major bump in the road before prom night fun... and Sebastian's reaction may change their relationship forever.

"The Following": In next week's episode, Roderick is feeling the pressure as his police department is called upon to aid in the Joe Carroll case, and he's got to play the role of sheriff and dutiful Follower at the same time. He does the one thing that could put him on Joe's bad side for good ... he puts Joey in dire danger. Meanwhile, look for Ryan to do his best to recruit a follower of his own.

Game of Thrones Season 3 preview... is it March 31 yet?

I can NOT wait for Game of Thrones to return.... I hate how HBO series' are short and only come on once a year... feels like the wait between seasons is foreverrrrrrrrrr non?

Game of Thrones Season 3 Stills

Is it March yet?

I can NOT wait for more Game of Thrones... while I was late to hop the fan wagon, I am fully in love with this show. Last year at SDCC I was so excited to hear the panel and enjoy the Q & A with the cast, who were all so amazing!

Here is my fave... Khaleesi.....

See more new stills at HYPABLE

My Comic-Con Jounral - Friday

Slowly but surely I am getting through all the wonderful that was my first SDCC.


Tuesday & Wednesday Journal

Thursday Journal

And now... Friday... another busy day (weren`t they all?)

Back in Hall H. I woke up with stiff legs. I have a pre-exsisting knee injury that sometimes leaves me unable to walk. For the most part I medicate, rest, ice, elevate and move on. Occasionally I am in the ER for a knee tap or minor procedure, but typically it is a day or two of rest.

Sadly, at Comic-Con there is no time for rest... I iced, stretched, medicated and hobbled over to the Hall H line. Unfortunately in trying to join my group in line, I twisted my knee and aggrivated it further :( Luckily I saw some other friends in line and joined them. Stacey and Lisa suggested I get a wheelchair, but I didn't want to be restricted, so I hobbled.

When the line was let in, my friends saved me a seat as I was very slow hobbling inside. I got an aisle seat so I could keep my legs fairly straight and as pain free as possible. When better seats became available, they moved up, but I stayed because I couldn't move as easily and had to keep an aisle seat to leave my leg straight.... But this is not the end of my pain story. More at the end of this post....

Anyways, the first up was Paranorman. I was really excited to see Anna Kendrick, she and Billy Burke are the two I have no met yet. Seeing her so close was very cool.

*Paranorman Panel review and details here*

After was the amazing Big Bang Theory panel. I was upset to learn that Jim Parsons wasn't able to attend because of his committment to broadway and Johnny Galecki missed his flight and wasn't able to attend (but was at autographs later, which I was unable to attend) At least they had Jim Parsons by skype and a lil doll to rep JOhnny on the podium ha!

ALso cool, the moderater was from Mythbusters!! *More on Big Bang Theory Panel here*

The panel itself was pretty awesome. I loved seeing the actors up close and how they interact and react to questions about their characters.

In the end an astronaut came out and offered Simon a real trip to space, he turned it downa nd instead they offered it to one of the fans who asked questions... everyone who asked a question went up on stage and got a gift to unwrap. One was a trip to space - insane!!! Very cool!

Next was Chris Harrison moderating The Walking Dead panel. They started with the writers and behind the scene folks for some questions, then brought out the cast for more.

*The Walking Dead Panel Review and details is posted here*

Next was Game of Thrones moderated by the series author George R R Martin.

*Details on the Game of Thrones Panel Here*

After this I was ready to leave to try and make the Women who kick ass panel... I think... there was a panel I wanted to get to so I slowly tried to stand up, as to not bend or hurt my knee further, but all of a sudden, a women tried to jump over me to get a seat in my row... really? I was leaving, in 3 seconds she could have had that seat, or mine, or whatever, but NO... she couldn't wait...

As she tried to hop over me, she was unsuccessful and landed on my leg.

I don't reacll fully what happened in that moment, except shooting pain, tears, screaming and collapsing.

I was so lucky to have friends sitting in the row behind me because they helped take care of me. This lady still tried to push past me, to which I lost it and said some not so nice words to her as medics came. Funbmie and Jess were super stars staying with me. Medics came and checked me out and took me to first aid. I was given a wheelchair and that was that.

Having a wheelchair was the worst. I couldn't move around, even if a friend was pushing me people bumped into me jostling my sore legs, they'd push me into and over other people's feet, I was lower than everyone so it was super scary going through crowds, feeling claustrophobic.... gah!

I didn't get to go to the panel i wanted, but I didn't want to keep Funmbie any longer and risk her missing her panel, so I had her wheel me to Girls Gone Genre room and I watched the panel that was in there before so I could have a good spot in the small room.

Luckily Funmbie made it to her panel, and I got to watch a "SCI-FI that changed the world" panel, then Girls Gone Genre. My reason to go see Girls Gone Genre was to see Deborah Ann Woll, my girl crush!

Also on thep anel were some superstar women from from of my most favourite shows including Buffy, Once Upon a Time and more...

It wasn't an ideal day because of my injury, but along with the sheelchair the medics taped ice packs to my knees (which were leaking by the end of Girls Gone Genre panel ha ha) and they felt a lot  better. I hobbled back to the hotel and rest my knees.

We were supposed to go to Con of the Dead Party that night, we had won tickets, but it didn't work out and I was pretty disappointed, but also relieved to be able to rest my legs a bit. I went downstairs to meet some friends who were eating in the restaurant at the hotel I was at.

Besides sore legs and crazy people and crowds, Friday was a good day. I got to see most of the panels I wanted to see, though I did miss out on a few things and was in pain a lot of the day... meh!

More posts soon for Saturday and Sunday....Check back again soon!

    

My Comic-Con Schedule

There is so much going on at SDCC. Being my first year, I am unsure how it will all work, I have a plan and a back up plan. Sometimes I have conflicting plans, but overall I have mentally prioritized where I need to be and when.

There are also a lot of parties and events I hope to attend. To be honest, I am not sure WHEN I will sleep....

My SDCC Schedule.

I used that, along with parties and off-site events I am hoping to attend to make a spreadsheet that is colour-coded.... Yes, I am insanely over organized.

When I went to Vegas I sectioned off the map so that I could hit everything I wanted when i was in that section of the strip to avoid back-tracking or repeating sections on any given day.... mind you once I got to Vegas I drank and turned 30 and the map went out the window as we wandered aimlessly from bar to bar ha ha!

I just like to plan. I have learned (and remind my self) that I can't change, predict, or control... the things that I cannot control... but I sure as hell plan around everything I can and for anything I can't LOL

Looking forward to SDCC. I will post as much, as often, as I can.

Some links you may wish to check out:

- Mandy's TUMBLR

- Mandy's TWITTER

- MANDY's FACEBOOK

- MANDY's SDCC SCHEDULE

Game of Thrones

I have been told to watch, but my life is busy and I never have time to do the things I want like watch a whole season of a television series or read a whole book in a day... but this weekend I did it!

I watched Season 1 of Game of Thrones and I loved it!

My ondemand has all the episodes up-to-date so I will watch season 2 this week and I guess the season 2 finale is Sunday so i can watch that live then regreat starting the series when I have to wait so long for season 3!

Game of Thrones Panel at SDCC

Hitfix brought live blogging from the Game of Throne's Panel at SDCC.

This HBO hit is amazing and I was excitd to read about what is to come.

More... 2:47 p.m. One thing Comic-Con attendees should thank "Game of Thrones" for: Daenerys Targaryen. And yes, I had to cut and paste the spelling of that name. I'm probably gonna make mistakes, even though I watched/loved the first season of the show and read/loved the first two books of Martin's series. Tell me, I'll fix things. Happy to.

2:56 p.m. We're scheduled to start in 4 minutes. But the line outside of Ballroom 20 is prohibitive. Very few of the people even in the middle of the line are making it in... Sad.

3:02 p.m. Comic-Con organizers are going to have to be smarter next year. Hall H has has almost no line all day long. You can just walk right in. Meanwhile, Ballroom 20 will be turning thousands of people away. It's just not good planning and it's just not fair to fans. Oh well.



3:07 p.m. George R. R. Martin takes the stage to enthusiastic applause. Nobody yells, "Why aren't you home writing?!?"

3:07 p.m. Clip package from the season. Pretty much every actor gets cheers when they appear on-screen. Biggest applause? For the Crown of Gold sequence.



3:12 p.m. Drat. The final scene has to be VERY carefully cropped. But it gets huge applause. "They managed to cover in 10 minutes what took me 1200 pages," Martin cracks.

3:13 p.m. On hand, we have a very bearded Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Kit Harington, Lena Headey (with shades and a jaunty hat), Peter Dinklage (who receives a big piece of a Standing O, easily the biggest cheer of the panel), Jason Momoa (looking like a Dothraki rock star), Emilia Clarke (gorgeous, but dark-haired!) and showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss.

3:16 p.m. Martin begins by asking how the showrunners became involved with his books. David Benioff doesn't know how to talk into a mic. The first four books showed up on his step in 2006. Benioff says that he was hooked from the scene in which Bran gets pushed out the window. "It's like crack on paper," Benioff says, noting that most people tried to get him to make it as "a two-and-a-half-hour PG-13 movie."

3:18 p.m. Emilia came to "Game of Thrones" straight out of drama school. "Do exactly the same thing as I was going to do anyway," Clarke says regarding the advice that she'd give Past Emilia. Did drama school prepare her for this? "No. No. There were no dragons in drama school. The thing that prepared me for this was Dany and falling in love with her."

3:19 p.m. Emilia adds that with her dark hair, people don't recognize her, but one person gave her free frozen yogurt once.

3:21 p.m. "It's kinda fun to be able to play a character who isn't trying to be morally good... I'm not playing to please anybody," Headey says, though she swears that Cersei is misunderstood. "She love her children."

3:21 p.m. "It's a ridiculous experience. I can't feel my feel," Coster-Waldau says.



3:22 p.m. For Jason Momoa, Martin asks, "Who would win? Khal Drogo or Conan?" Well, if Martin didn't ask, the fans would. Momoa responds, "Well, George, between you and me... Drogo would kick Conan's ass." Then Momoa yells something loud in what may or may not be Dothraki. Awesome.

3:23 p.m. Apparently Momoa was responsible for the scene in which Drogo rips out a rival's throat. "I wanted to do something so it looked like he was just the baddest man in the world," Momoa says, apologizing to Martin for deviating from the book.


3:24 p.m. Loud cheer for Peter Dinklage's Emmy nomination. What is it like playing so many people's favorite character? "Well, I don't know if I even have an approach as an actor. But I think everybody on this panel was faced with that when we started this show. Really big shoes to fill." He pauses. "Yeah, it was terrifying."


3:27 p.m. Kit Harington admits that the direwolves didn't always do what they were told, but he adds, "I love my dog. I love Cooper, or 'Ghost' as he was called." He's begun getting recognized, he says, but he suggests it's an "I'm sure I know you from somewhere" thing so far.

3:28 p.m. What's going to be on the DVD and BluRays? "Expect us droning on and on and on," Weiss says. There won't be deleted scenes on the DVD. They used everything they shot, basically. But they'll have lots of supplementary material, Weiss promises. Benioff says that the DVD will include the first auditions for all of the actors. Benioff has particular praise for Jason Momoa's audition. He adds that the found Momoa through message boards. "No offense, but I hadn't heard of you before... I hadn't kept up on my 'Baywatch,'" Benioff cracks.

3:30 p.m. Momoa did a dance for his auditions. The fans want to see it, but Jason demurs. Asked about Dothraki, Momoa says it sounded like "Jabba the Hutt and Fozzie Bear." Momoa describes his big "rape and pillage" Dothraki speech as his favorite scene from the series.

3:33 p.m. Favorite scenes? Coster-Waldau says his favorite was his last scene with Catelyn. Harington references his scene with Maisie Williams' Arya. "My favorite are still to come, because we just read some of Seaosn 2," Headey teases. Dinklage's favorite scene, of course, was when he was on trial. "I felt like the master of ceremonies for a bunch of bored extras," Dinklage says. Clarke's favorite scene? Her last. "I get to meet my babies," she laughs. "Just the sound of those dragons... shivers. Amazing. Just how I thought it would be."

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3:38 p.m. First audience question: How much of the actors read the books? "After my first audition I got the first book and devoured it and not too long a time and then was obsessed with it," Clarke says, but she decided not to read the second book, because she wanted to "be with Dany." She adds, "My celebration wrapping Season One was reading Book Two." Momoa read through and was unhappy when he got to Drogo's fate. "I f***ing hated you, man. I was like f*** this," Momoa tells Martin. "Bring him back," much of the audience yells at Martin, who promises to take it under advisement.

3:40 p.m. "Well, it keeps you on your toes," Martin says in response to a question about why he kills off so many beloved characters.



3:41 p.m. Question for Lena about the many sides of Cercei and the weight of her wigs. "I know I've been criticized for giving her *some* humanity, but I think everyone deserves a chance," Headey says. "The wigs? Part of the game."

3:42 p.m. From the audience, how would the stars end the series if they had their way? "I want Jon Snow to be on the Throne. Definitely," Harington says. Coster-Waldau wants a big battle and a sign saying "20 Years Later..." cut to Jamie and Cersei living happily together in a small cottage. "Bring Khal Drogo back for sure and have him and Tyrion co-rule," Headey suggests. "Dance number," is Dinklage's answer.



3:44 p.m. Questioner calls Momoa her "sun and stars" and asks him about doing fight scenes with long hair. He says it was easy and ends with, "Thank you, moon of my life."

3:45 p.m. I want the Khal Drogo "Hope" shirt that this fan is wearing. She wants to know what moment hooked the stars. Coster-Waldau was hooked with the Bran-tossing scene from the end of the pilot. "I liked the very beginning of the show, the White Walkers. And then I lost interest when I came on. My scene was over and then I was interested again," Dinklage says.

3:47 p.m. What can we expect from the second season? Benioff replies, "Everyone dies, sorry." Weiss answers, "It was all a dream." Benioff says that Season Three will be when things may need to start deviating from the books. He still doesn't know if Book 3 will be one season or one-and-a-half. They're building to a big scene in "Storm of Swords" -- R.W. in specific -- and that's what they want to get up to. "I think we're going to get to R.W. and if that happens, I can retire," Benioff says.



3:49 p.m. George will be writing the Battle of Blackwater scene and he's hoping they'll be able to realize the scene as it was in the book. The showrunners merely promise that there will be a battle.

3:50 p.m. Question about Martin's "Pulling a 'Lost.'" comments. "Yes, I am concerned about the ending. I still have too more books to go and I'm juggling a lot of balls and of course the fear is that some of them will fall on my head," Martin says. "I certainly hope that the ending will tie together and in terms of making people happy, hopefully it will make some people happy." He says that he's a fan of bittersweet endings and that's probably what we'll get.

3:53 p.m. "I've never been a part of anything remotely close to this," Momoa says, when asked to compare working on a Sci Fi Channel show to working on an HBO show. He loves that scifi and fantasy shows let you "rip someone's throat out and rape beautiful women."

3:54 p.m. Emilia Clarke is asked about playing a strong-yet-relatable woman. "When I read the books, Dany, she just seemed very real to me. I understood everything that she was going through, her mentality and everything," Clarke says. Her advice to women? "Own it!"

3:56 p.m. Praise for Lena's performance on "White Collar," but a question for Kit about what drew him to Jon Snow and what he's looking forward to: "He's got a big journey ahead of him. He goes beyond the wall..." Harington is looking forward to Jon getting on with "his own agenda." What drew him to the character? "He's a badass with a sword. He's a mysterious little guy."



3:58 p.m. Everybody loves Kit. Harington says that Martin hasn't revealed to him who Jon Snow's mother is. "I haven't got a clue. Sorry, but I can't fill you in there."

3:58 p.m. Last question goes to Mr. Martin: Is there a particular character Martin has mourned? "Actually, I mourn all of the characters when I kill them," he says. He specifically mourns the "viewpoint" characters. "I tell myself it's not me killing them. It's the other characters. I try to distance myself." Martin agrees that the R.W. scene was the hardest one for him to write. "When they film and show it, I'm going to arrange to be out of the country," he closes.

4:00 p.m. That was a really good panel.