Ok, so having just finished the Game of Thrones Podcast I was so amped about the series, that I immediately pulled an all-nighter watching and finishing the first season, so I will be all set for the second season, which airs Sunday April 1st. Having read the books, I can tell you that I am very excited to see how the second book – which is acting as the basis for the second season – is brought to life on the screen. There are many new characters which are introduced, some of which were spoken about in the first season (Stannis Baratheon, Balon Greyjoy, etc.) plus a whole slew of new faces. Unfortunately, some have yet to be cast, which leads me to believe that some of the story arcs from the book will not be seen this season and instead be placed in the third. No matter, there is plenty of material to make this season just as exciting. I just hope those characters aren’t cut out completely.

But this post isn’t about refreshing people’s minds or to discuss events passed. This is about the future of the series, and what we can look forward to. Please note: There will be minor spoilers here, so if you care to continue reading, you have been warned. I will try to keep them at a minimum, but I will be discussing new characters and what events I hope to see during the course of the second season and what might be left out. Unfortunately.

Characters

There are plenty of characters returning to Westeros (and across the Narrow Sea), but there are also plenty of new faces joining as well. Some of them you will come to love, while others you will hate as much as the Boy King and his mother. There are a few that I am really looking forward to seeing this season, here’s who and why:

Jaqen H’Ghar was actually introduced in the first book, but only briefly. In fact, you don’t get introduced to him really as much a brief description. Also, you would have seen him on the show without knowing it. In the last scene of Arya’s story arc, when she is meeting Gendry, Robert’s bastard, she walks past a cage of criminals who are being sent off to the Nights Watch. One of the three criminals in the cage has a sheet/hood/cover over his head and face. That would be Jaqen. You come to see him much more in this season, and when he ends up owing Arya a few favors, he definitely piques your interest. This season he will be played by Tom Wlaschiha and I hope that they do the character justice.

Brienne of Tarth is the first female sword fighter that we see in this series, other than Arya. Although Brienne has a little more skill than our young Stark. She first appears at Renly‘s camp, during a tournament of sorts, and we really get to see her at her best. Although she is described in the book as not the prettiest maid, she is definitely willing to do what it takes on the field of Battle. She makes friends with Catelyn Stark, and after a few events unfold, is stuck in a precarious situation. This season Brienne will be played by Gwendoline Christie.

Davos Seaworth is a smuggler turned knight, thanks to Stannis Baratheon, but not without a price. Although he helped to save Stannis and his men during a long siege, he was still held accountable for his smuggling days, and was forced to give up a few fingers, which he keeps around his neck in a bag. If that doesn’t make you love this character I don’t know what will. But seriously, you do end up having a soft spot for Davos in book, as he is the voice of reason for Stannis and is always at odds with Melisandre. Davos Seaworth will be played by Liam Cunningham in the show this season, and I hope that he gets his fair share of screen time.

Events
Unfortunately, due to budget constraints there were a few battles from the first season that had to be cut out. Which is really a shame because there was some serious time devoted to it in the books. For example, Tyrion didn’t get knocked out by his own men on their way to war, and Jamie’s battle with Rob before his capture is a little more detailed. But obviously, with a book as detailed as George R.R. Martin, you can’t get everything put into the series. But here are some events I hope to see put in and done properly.

The House of the Undying is a place that Daenerys visits while she is in Qarth. I honestly can not describe this, so here is a description from the Ice and Fire Wiki: He who enters must enter alone or not at all. The front way leads in, but not out again. When one enters, there will be four doors; the door one just came through and three others. To reach the Undying, one must always take the first door on the right and always takes stairs up. The rooms of the House of the Undying are sometimes open to sight, and are filled with strange visions of many sorts; days that were, days that will be, days that never shall be, and visions of surpassing beauty or horror. One must not enter any room until reaching the audience chamber. Sounds crazy, right? I’m just hoping that we get to see this place come to life in the proper way it deserves.

Battle of the Blackwater is the largest battle during the Clash of Kings and it is epic. Not only is it a siege on the Red Keep but there are also Naval battles and the use of something called “wildfire” which should be pretty cool to see on screen. During this battle, Stannis’s troops have to deal with all kinds of weapons and tactics thought up by our most loved Lannister - Tyrion. Hopefully, the budget will be able to be stretched enough, so we may see this actually happen because if it comes down to watering it down, I would be very disappointed.

Creatures

I couldn’t discuss what I am looking forward to this season without bringing up the creatures of Westeros! For those of you who watched the HBO series, you know that the last scene of the first season was a total What the Frak moment. So here are the two creatures I am looking forward to seeing more of, and what I hope will be done with them this season. I bet you can already guess what creatures I am talking about.

Dragons! Yes, of course, I had to bring up the dragons. I would be crazy not to. We caught a glimpse of them in that last episode, and they were pretty cool. But this time around, they have grown a bit and I would like to see how HBO is going to do them justice. Each dragon has a different color and its own personality, so I am hoping that this is really developed this season and doesn’t end up being underwhelming.

Direwolves are the lovable (and dangerous) pets of the Stark children. They grow to be much larger than regular wolves, and are often described in the book to be as big as horses. The first season used adult dogs to stand in for the juvenile direwolves, but this time around they will be created using CGI. I can’t wait to see what type of look they go for with the wolves, because they really aren’t just larger wolves. Ice and Fire Wiki describe them as such: An adult direwolf is as large as a small horse, and can rip a man’s arm from its socket. Even a juvenile direwolf is quite capable of killing a man by ripping out his throat. Physically they are not simply larger versions of wolves, but have slightly different proportions from their smaller cousins: their head is larger with a more pronounced muzzle, their legs are longer, and they have proportionately more muscle mass than a similarly-sized normal wolf would. I do hope that they put some effort into this and they don’t end up looking like a regular wolf.

Well that does it folks. My wish list for this upcoming season of Game of Thrones. I know there is plenty more to the book than that, but these are the things that I hope for this season. What are you looking forward to? Anything on the list that I didn’t touch on? Let us know in the comments below!

NERD IT UP!!

Sources: Game of Thrones Wiki, Wikipedia

About Sean Perreault

Hailing from the Great White North, Sean spends his most of his days working, but during his time off, he tries to see any movie that is in theatres (Yes that is how they spell Theatre in Canada), sometimes more than once. He is a gaming aficionado and enjoys reading Scifi/Fantasy Fiction/Graphic novels in lieu of sleeping. To keep himself sane, he is working on a few short stories and a novel.

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