“Game of Thrones” Transcended Technology in Season 7

For quite some time now we have been told over and over again that technology has forever transformed us from a society that embraces shared experiences amp8211 something at which broadcast television and before it terrestrial radio excelled amp8211 into one whose citizens prefer to ingest or digest entertainment and informational content in ways that lead to everincreasing social isolationamp160 The days of television bringing us together with anything other than breaking news coverage major sports events and certain awards shows are in our collective rearview mirror or so we have been led to believeGame of Thrones this season certainly let some of the hot air out of that balloonamp160 The ferocious swell of excitement each week that accompanied every new episode and continuously expanded the showamp8217s audience was unlike anything I have seen since the early seasons of AMCamp8217s The Walking Dead and before that HBOamp8217s The Sopranosamp160 This wasnamp8217t even the final season of Thronesamp160 We have one more to go amp8211 at a date to be determined likely in 2019 a punishingly long time to wait now that the wall has a giant hole in it and the army of white walkers is marching through it ready to wipe out civilization as we have come to know itI strongly suggest that programmers at every network study this most recent season of HBOamp8217s most successful series ever including but not in any way marginalizing The Sopranosamp160 While theyamp8217re at it they should ignore the growing chorus of amp8220scholarlyamp8221 critics who have been busily complaining about it especially the season finale because it all moved too fast and didnamp8217t dwell on draggy character development and grisly torture and bla bla blaamp160 As an old friend used to say if she was driving too slowly in parking lots and other drivers were angrily blowing their horns amp8220Let amp8216em tootamp8221I39ll admit I have my own questionsamp160 For example the fearsome Night King pictured at top did not know that Viserion would end up destroying much of the great wall when he began leading his minions toward it so what was his original plan of attackamp160 If the walkers can39t swim how did they get to the bottom of the lake and wrap Viserion39s dead body in chains so that it could be pulled to the surface and rebornamp160 But really who caresamp160 For that matter how do we know that we won39t get answers to such questions when the series returnsamp160 Thrones this season was nothing less than a magnificent thrill ride with stateoftheart visual effects that were matched only by firstclass acting and viewers loved every minute of itIndeed it was impossible to go anywhere during July and August and not meet someone who was watchingamp160 Veteran viewers including yours truly were reenergized by it all over againamp160 New viewers fresh off binges couldnamp8217t get enough amp160It has been reported that the season finale delivered 121 million viewers a record for the series amp160When the audience for other methods of viewing on Sunday HBO Go replays HBO Now etc was factored in the total number of viewers lurched to a reported 165 million that nightIncluded in those numbers are dozens of members of the Television Critics Association who made a point of stopping whatever they were doing on Sunday nights at 9 pm during their recent summer tour to dash to their rooms at the Beverly Hilton Hotel and watch this sprawling saga continue to play out in grand cinematic styleThe buzz for this show has been more deafening than anything since the early season finales of Foxamp8217 American Idolamp160 Thatamp8217s why the total audience for Thronesamp8217 season finale was a reported 36 higher than last yearamp8217s season ending episode and why episodes throughout season seven have according to HBO been delivering approximately 31 million viewersamp160 Thatamp8217s roughly eight million more per episode than last seasonBut of even more importance Thrones this season was a show amp8211 the only scripted show as far as I know amp8211 that had to be watched week by week as each new episode was telecastamp160 In other words it had to be watched when it was first on or at some point that evening or something huge was lost for the vieweramp160 A palpable anticipation built from one Sunday to the nextamp160 The Thrones experience this year was a lot like the broadcast experience of old when one could detect a shift in the force whenever certain shows came on as millions of souls stopped what they were doing to watch a program when it was on largely because in the preVCR era they had no choiceThrones viewers had a choice amp8211 and the choice of millions was to watch it together in the general senseamp160 Now we know that TV can still do thisamp160 HBO39s masterpiece of conematic storytelling effectively transcended current technology establishing an urgent emotional connection in its viewers that could not be ignoredIn that regard Thrones is in increasingly rare company amp8211 only The Walking Dead comes close though with the unfortunate arrival of the heinous Negan character TWD is no longer the fireball that it had been for many yearsHow interesting that both of these shows have hordes of murderous zombies on their canvasesamp160 Thrones though now has a zombie dragonamp160 TWD has a lunatic with a baseball batThrones winsClick the social buttons above or below to share this content with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writers

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“Game of Thrones” Transcended Technology in Season 7

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Ed Martin

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