A Game of Thrones, the book, was published all the way back in 1996. (I wonder what was it like back then. Did they even have the Internet?!) The series, entitled A Song Of Ice and Fire, was originally intended as a trilogy, then grew into a septology. The fifth book, A Dance of Dragons, was published in 2011, and 70-year-old author George R.R. Martin has still not announced a release date for the final two volumes. Poor book fans have been feeling more tortured than Reek, waiting over 20 years to see how the story ends.
Well, thank the old gods, the Seven and the Lord of Light for the TV show! HBO's adaptation has been a monster hit, capturing the spirit of what made the books special: an adult, nuanced take on fantasy, with unpredictable storylines, political intrigue, and unique, morally gray characters. And also, dragons and boobs. Can't forget about the dragons and boobs. Really top notch work. Anyway, since the show passed the books, the showrunners have been following Martin's outline, and now they're reaching the end. Today HBO announced that the eighth and final season of Game of Thrones will premiere in April 2019.
On Twitter, HBO released a video teaser that doesn't contain any new footage, but does start the hype train. It begins with Cersei's famous quote, "When you play the game of thrones, you win or you die." Then we see a fast-paced montage with highlights from the previous seven seasons - Ned Stark's betrayal, King Joffrey's choking, Tommen Lannister's suicide. Awww. So many fond memories. Then it all ends with Jon Snow's quote, "There is only one war that matters and it is here."
The final season will consist of six episodes. I know that doesn't seem like enough time to wrap up the story, but keep in mind, the episodes are super-sized. Iain Glen, who plays Ser Jorah Mormont, aka Ser Friendzone, told Express, "We all sat down for the read-through of six feature-length episodes. They took longer to film, cost more, and are more surprising." He added that there are "monumental set pieces." So, it sounds like there's more than enough time to wrap up the fate of Daenerys and Hot Pie, plus show sweet ice zombie battles.
Ian isn't the first Game of Thrones actor to discuss the final season. Peter Dinklage, who plays Tyrion Lannister, told Entertainment Weekly the final battle is "brutal," and "makes the Battle of the Bastards look like a theme park." Sophie Turner, who plays Sansa Stark, said "a lot of fans will be disappointed" with the finale. And Kristian Nairn, who played Hodor, said "Hodor, hodor, hodor, hodor, hodor, hodor, hodor." Geez, way to spoil the ending, Kristian.
So, you only have five months more to wait, show-fans. Then you can really rub it in those book-fans faces. Ha-ha! You've been waiting for an ending for 22 years!
Westeros won't be disappearing from your TV for too long, though. HBO is developing five spin-off series, including one hotly anticipated prequel starring Naomi Watts.
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