| Good news for geeks, with word that George RR Martin's dizzingly complex, ultra-violent and thoroughly addictive A Song of Ice and Fire - or at least first instalment A Game of Thrones - is set for a HBO fantasy drama series, long rumoured but finally greenlit. Admittedly, it's not a film - but with a series this complex, HBO's a better place for it. A pilot for the show has been given the go-ahead, written by David "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" Benioff and D.B. "I Am Legend prequel" Weiss. It is, roughly, the story of a kingdom whose destiny comes to depend on two warring clans, the Starks (goodies, more or less) and the Lannisters (baddies, mostly - but nothing's clear-cut in this world). It's worth noting that this is a fantasy world that is almost entirely magic-free, and largely lacking in monsters to boot, except for the human kind. But don't worry: there's regicide, incest, executions, civil wars, conspiracies, changes of heart, murders, ambushes and even zombie resurrection to keep you entertained - and when a story practically opens with a small boy being thrown off a roof, you know this is not your typical Dungeons and Dragons spin-off. HBO acquired the rights to the books two years ago, and has taken this long to nail plans for the pilot - which, if all goes well, could turn into a complete series and perhaps encourage the book's author, George RR Martin, to finish writing them already. This could make The Wire look like The Teletubbies, so fingers crossed that it works. |
