A season of the hit HBO series ‘Game of Thrones’ typically has a budget of at least $10 million, and the best part is that the money shows. From exotic, fantastic locales, to jaw-dropping special effects and epic battle scenes, it would be easy to see why it has become the cultural phenomenon it is today. It’s also good to point out that it was spawned by a book, published in 1996, by George R.R. Martin. It was the first, initially intended to be a trilogy. However, that grew to seven, with five already published. The books became a massive hit, and the TV series even more so.
‘Game of Thrones’ sits on a throne of firsts. An average of more than 23 million Americans watched each episode last season, even as attempts to get Nigerian stats failed. Notable, also, is the fact that a good chunk of viewers here watch pirated video files of the series, almost as soon as it is shared online on file-sharing/torrent sites, helping to make it the most pirated show ever. Yet another source for many Nigerians, is via pirated DVDs sold on the cheap by vendors in front of many supermarkets, or regular markets. Aired in more than 170 countries (DSTV, in Nigeria), it also holds the record for most Emmy awards ever won by a prime-time series.
In the fantasy world of ‘Game of Thrones’, there are houses, to which viewers - or indeed readers - often find themselves aligned. The houses are all vying for the titular throne, with varying degrees of intensity. And therein lies the charm for most of the series’ loyal following: The horse-trading, the brutal politicking, the steep, dangerous stakes and how it all ties into every character’s individual quest for power. It comes as no surprise that such a world is now closely followed by ardent viewers the world over.
At the height of its popularity, somewhere between the third and fourth seasons, D.B. Weiss and David Benioff, creators of the TV series, would dish to Vanity Fair magazine that then-president Barack Obama was such a huge fan that he would request for advance screenings of new episodes. “Who could refuse the president?” laughed Benioff at the time. Obama’s impatience will be perfectly understood by fans who wait for their latest fix.
Carmen McCain, an American professor, had been hearing so much about it, and decided to check the books out first, in 2015. “I bought all 5 on my Kindle and read for about 2 months straight. It was like one long, massive book. It took over my life. I would get home from work and start reading right away. Once I finished reading the books, I ordered the series on DVD, and it would be the same pattern. Get home from work, watch 2-4 episodes. On weekends I would binge-watch and finish up. I can’t wait for Season 7, which premieres next week.”
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