The Atlantic essays

This past week, The Atlantic has run a series of five different takes on the hotly anticipated HBO show after watching the six preview episodes. Each of the essays approaches Game of Thrones from its own perspective, offering a review and discussion.

Correspondent and pop cultural blogger Alyssa Rosenberg opens the series, drawing parallels with The Sopranos and The Wire:

The cruelty of Game of Thrones, much like that of The Wire, isn’t transformative—it’s revealing. Just as trying to reduce crime by creating a safe zone for drugs will get a good cop fired, there are grave consequences for Arya Stark, the noble girl who steps outside her sphere to challenge her world’s expectations for how girls should spend their time. Conformity is no certain refuge either: In Baltimore, adhering to an agreement earns an informant a beating, while in Westeros, Arya’s sister Sansa learns that lying for a prince won’t keep her safe.

Adam Serwer, staff writer for The American Prospect, continues discussing the realism and darkness of the series:

Rather than being about an epic, glorious battle between good and evil, this is a story about lives being crushed by the feudal system they are born into. The producers have grasped that this is more a story of politics than one of heroism, a story about humanity wrestling with its baser obsessions than fulfilling its glorious potential—and that’s where the show’s possible crossover appeal lies. It’s a fantasy story that defies expectations by ultimately being less about a world we’d like to escape, at times becoming uncomfortably familiar to the one we live in.

Nick Baumann, associate editor at Mother Jones, is wondering whether non-readers will readily commit to the show:

I worry that many folks who haven’t read the books, or don’t read fantasy generally, won’t find the moral ambiguity and general brutality of Martin’s world particularly appealing. Part of the draw of Game of Thrones for fantasy readers is how different it is from the rest of the genre. But if you don’t read fantasy, you might not care about that … The story picks up as the series goes along—especially as the characters spread out across their world. But by then, it might be too late for some folks.

Attorney and blogger on culture and law Amber Taylor takes over:

Human passions are no less intense today than they were centuries ago, but for most HBO subscribers the stakes are dramatically lower. Kingdoms do not ride on our choices, and few things in our daily lives carry the sort of deadly consequences that confront the Starks. To the extent that we can identify with the many men and women playing the game of thrones, we can channel those passions into a context appropriate to their intensity. If that’s escapism, book me a ticket.

Associate editor Eleanor Barkhorn offers a transcendental viewpoint to conclude the coverage:

As a friend in seminary reminded me recently, the suffering depicted in Revelation serves a purpose: to confirm that life is a struggle and requires endurance. The brutality of Game of Throneshas a similar effect. Regardless of the escapist mindset I use to approach literature, these stories force me to acknowledge that evil does exist, and that life on this earth involves a battle against darkness.

• Published on 04/17/2011 at 12:41 AM CDT
• Last updated on 04/18/2011 at 7:07 AM CDT