[BOOK SPOILERS] Favourite/least favourite characters in GoT TV-series?

[Jons_Ghost]

Sansa - In stark contrast (pun intended ;) ) to her sister Arya, Sophie Turner as Sansa is the worst casting decision in the show. Many people defend her performance by saying "Sansa is supposed to be annoying". I would disagree, there are a fair few quirks in Sansa's character that made me warm to her quite early on but Turner's Sansa is simply insufferable. She portrays her as a horrible brat, not a starstruck and naive little girl who is out of her depth. I understand its hard to get that sort of thing across in the limited screen time she has but every other actor seems to grasp the subtleties of their characters. Turner took the easiest route possible in portraying Sansa which makes her performance bad, in my opinion. There must have been many, many more young actresses better suited to the role.

Agree with this. I don't get the book Sansa hate, but the TV character is so annoying and bratty. In the book she just comes across as a little girl who hasn't grown up and thinks life is a fairytale with all princes and princesses who is forced to grow up and see the world as it is as the series goes on. TV Sansa has no endearing qualities to her at all.

[NW Deserter]

I get the feeling that D&D intentionally made Sansa more hate-able to offset the likeability of the rest of the Stark family...because let's face it, most new viewers see Ned/Robb/Arya, perhaps even Jon and Catelyn, as the "good guys" of the series, and the Lannisters as the "bad guys". We as readers know this really isn't true, and so both families need a member to go against that feel. Tyrion serves as that character for the Lannisters well enough in the book, and he's doing it on-screen as well through his wit, charisma, perspective on life, and camaraderie with Jon. I suspect Sansa is being made more bratty and distant from the Starks (and obviously admiring of Cersei) on purpose.

[Mad Queen]

I'm disappointed with Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as Jaime. He acts like a lord, not like a knight, and I can't imagine him as the brilliant warrior he is supposed to be, whose smile cuts like a knife. He lacks testosterone and an edge that book Jaime has. There is no danger there. Tyrion, Arya, Jon and Jorah Mormont are nearly perfect though, and Viserys is actually a vast improvement over book material. Dany should be younger, but is otherwise great.

[Queen in the North]

I love the show thus far, especially Arya, Tyrion, and Viserys. The one (slight) oroblem i have is that Ghost growled! He's always completely silent in the books, except for one time when Jon's dreaming. I get that they probably couldn't train the dog playing him to growl silently, but I need SOMETHING to nitpick about.

[Ser Kevan Raley]

I just can't understand why some are disappointed by Littlefinger. Aidan Gillen is pitch-perfect in the role, especially after the latest episode. He both looks and acts the part with flying colours.

Another standout for me is Arya. I'm so impressed by Maisie Williams. And I normally don't care much for kid actors, but perhaps her being new to all this is what's made the difference.

And of course I must take a bow to Peter Dinklage's portrayal of Tyrion. He steals every scene he's in.

*****

My "least" favourite would be Michelle Fairley's Catelyn. Not because of her acting - which is very good - but because she just doesn't look the part. She's just too old and I had imagined her to be really beautiful. Fairley is not hideous, but just not someone I'd imagined being mother to Sansa. Unfair (no pun intended) maybe...

Another one is Cersei. While Lena Headey is a beautiful woman, she's not this drop dead sexy woman I had imagined. When I read the books I had cast Tricia Helfer in my head. Headey's got the cold calculating bitch thing nailed, but she should have upped the "sexy seductress" thing.

[Lord Tywin]

Kudos

Arya - Maisie Williams is nigh perfect despite not being a natural lefty (as a southpaw I notice these things). It's easy to see how GRRM himself thought she knocked it out of the park.

Jorah - Somehow, he's pretty much exactly like I pictured him in the books. Isn't he described as balding with light hair and a bit of a beard, and a ruddy face? He's not pathetic yet, but I don't recall him becoming so until he

confesses his love for Dany

.

Varys - probably not that hard to portray portly, bald, deceptively simpering and without manly bits (ok, maybe that last part is tough).

Eddard - my only concern is that they've already gone way over budget paying for a big time actor.

Allister Thorne - not much screen time, but this guy nails the menace and pettiness.

Ghost - damn, that was a vicious snarl in episode four.

Robert - apart from the long hair, he looks and acts the part with vim and vigour tinged with pitifulness and a lot of booze. By the way, Henry VIII wasn't a slovenly drunk, nor did he take the throne by force, so it's not quite right to compare Robert to him. Maybe an older Edward IV is a better comparison (and considering the War of the Roses motif in the books...).

Tyrion - good work by Dinklage, and good job by the writers/director to not have him perform circus tricks in an early scene.

Irri - I think I'm in love.

Benjen - maybe this actor should have gotten a bigger role, because he combined battle skill, confidence, nobility and self-sacrifice really well.

Annoying

Catelyn - Casting a 55-year-old to play a 30-something is mystifying. She is a little too crabby, as well. But she should play

the undead Catelyn

with aplomb

Cersei - the wig looks weird, and Lena Heady doesn't convey any emotion except smugness.

Jaime - too old, too rough around the edges, not threatening at all. And "the things I do for love" line was delivered with way too much indifference, but maybe that's the director's fault.

Sam - for some reason I pictured him bald. I find his character utterly uninteresting, albeit with slight improvement in Feast, so can't really fault the actor or writers here.

A Little Disappointing

Littlefinger - flat in his first episode, a little better in episode IV, so I have a new hope that he'll improve. I can see him playig the "nice" (to Sansa, anyway) Littlefinger of Feast For Crows.

Jon - Come on, the characters were supposed to have aged three years, not twenty. Other than that, the actor does fine..

Danaerys - I'm confident she'll get more interesting just as her character does. The actress is very eloquent & enthusiastic in interviews, and she's hot. But no violet eyes?

Viserys - he seems really odd (and not in a Viserys kind of way). Can't put my finger on it - maybe it's the wig.

The Hound- Not quite the right look, and he doesn't become interesting until later.

Looking Forward To

More of Gregor- he's despicable, but very important for a supporting character with very few lines.

Bronn - a great swordsman with an attitude problem.

The Goat - "thsaphiresth." Enough said.

Stannis

Jaqen

Ygritte

Lord Tywin Lannister - I just hope we don't actually see him shit gold.

[The King of Ashes]

Lord Tywin, I agree wholeheartedly with what you said about Benjen.

I'm now going to controversially state that I think Joseph Mawle would have been a better Eddard than Sean Bean. To be honest, Bean isn't that great an actor... He's just famous and they needed that factor.

[Kaitscralt]

The only character I'm having trouble accepting on the screen is Catelyn.

[Ser Warpechowski]

Agreed, Jayme doesnt look dangerous enough, LF doesnt look smart enough and Cat isnt hot enough.

BTW, i liked that the characters from the book were younger.

[Isabella Stark]

Benjen - maybe this actor should have gotten a bigger role, because he combined battle skill, confidence, nobility and self-sacrifice really well.

Hey, for all we know, he'll have a really big role in "season 5" ;)

[King_Baratheon]

Little Jack Gleeson plays a good winey hate-able Joffrey. But in the books he is supposed to look like a young Jaime: Tall, strapping, golden (though winey and spoiled). They got the winey and spoiled part down, but he is skinny, and short, and to young. It seems they aged him down.

[gogorath]

For me, Mark Addy, Maisie Williams, Harry Lloyd and NCW have actually stolen the most scenes.

I think most people agree on the first three, so I won't waste electrons, but I think NCW is really nailing the character well. I've always thought of Jaime as someone who the opposite of introspective and doesn't think past his next emotion (even as he matures, the man doesn't really plan, does he?) yet at the same time, like with all cocky people, there's a certain level of desire for validation, acceptance, praise, etc., that you see in Jaime's pride and desire for people to excuse some of his actions. Some of it's the writing, but a lot of it is the acting for me.

Dinklage is fantastic, but he's also got the best role, so I'm holding him to a really high standard. Everyone else I'd put at above average or incomplete except a couple of folks. Like most HBO shows, the acting is superb.

As for Aiden Gillen's Littlefinger, the actor has earned a pass -- he hasn't been bad, but expectations are really high. I'm going to reserve judgement for more screen time.

[Keltess]

For those who've read the books: Which character do you like the most? Which character do you find less interesting compared to the books? I'm not talking solely about how faithfully the character has been adapted, but primarily in terms of performance.

Here's my list of favourite characters:

Arya:

I think Arya was one of the most fascinating characters in the books, and Maisie Williams has done such a great job bringing her character to life. She's definitely one of the most interesting characters in the series so far. In fact, I think all the child-actors have been well cast, although Williams is a standout. Casting kids or younger actors can be very difficult (they often lack experience or skill and their acting is either very flat or exaggerated), so kudos to the producers/directors/casting directors for pulling this off.

Jon Snow:

I wasn't particularly interested in this character in the books, but Kit Harington has managed to really draw my attention towards his character. I think primarily this is because of his excellent performance. He's low-key but very natural. You get the sense that he's burdened (since he's a bastard), yet highly determined, and he only seems to brighten up when he's together with Arya.

Eddard Stark:

It's crucial that the director/casting directors get this lead character right, but Sean Bean's stoic, firm but also warm portrayal of Ned is spot on. A 'lesser' or a miscast actor could easily have made Ned much less captivating than he really is.

Tyrion Lannister:

Peter Dinklage was a complete unknown to me prior to watching GoT. But so far he's turned out to be one of the best characters in the series. I remember that his character was great in the novels as well, but you can't take it for granted that the screen adaptation will go that smoothly.

In the books, Daenerys was one of my favourite characters, but so far in the show I've found her plot to be less interesting (but far from boring, though). Initially I wasn't too ecstatic about Emilia Clarke (she didn't quite look the way I'd expected and she seemed a bit passive), but I think this will change later as her character becomes stronger and more self-confident.

The Danish actor Nikolaj Coster-Waldau does a good job as Jamie Lannister. My only criticism has mostly to do with his looks: He looks almost too 'clean' and handsome. But he obviously knows how to act and it's not difficult to dislike his character. His face seemed very familiar, and after checking on IMDB it turns out that he's appeared in two Ridley Scott movies: Kingdom of Heaven and Black Hawk Down.

I think the main cast in GoT is doing an excellent job. In another thread I wrote that (in my opinion) the acting overall (including support/secondary roles) ranged from average to excellent, but after watching a few episodes of other popular shows such as Spartacus, I was reminded of how good the acting in GoT really is.

In reply to your post about Nickolai. I remember in the book Jaime saying that he would have to shave before going to see Cersie because she liked them to look as "twinlike" as possible. So when you look on it in this light... Later on when Jaime is taken captive and then ends up on the run with Brienne it will be interesting to see how his "look" changes.

[Lord Tywin]

Hey, for all we know, he'll have a really big role in "season 5" ;)

I wonder if he'll need gloves for his cold hands.

[redwinger]

I was very happy to find our that Peter Dinklage was playing the role of Tyrion. Although FAR better looking than book Tyrion, i think he's great actor. I remember him from watching Nip Tuck.

Soooooo likes and dislikes:

Likes:

Catelyn...I pictured very pretty much the same. Slightly older with a very homely stern look about her.

Tyrion... my favorite so far, sporting a small crush:D

Arya.. like her character but she is much prettier than the book portrays her. She looks nothing like a boy. She is very much a pretty little girl. Playing her part very well

Ned... perfection. Perfect for the part. Couldn't have pictured anyone else

Sansa.. played well with what they are giving her but much to old. Shouldn't have aged her

Cersei/Jaime... no complaints. Cerseis wig is terrible

Dany/viserys....spot on imo,

Varys...I think a good fit. I did think he would be fatter and I'm waiting on a comment about him smelling of lavender

Dislikes:

Renley....too wimpy, too young looking

Loras... This is the knight of flowers? The most beautiful knight. Looks ridiculous in that wig and very wimpy. Not even one iota what I imagined in the book

The hound.... not scary enough, big enough, nor had his part been big enough.

Joffery...looks too much younger than Sansa though I have to admit he looks like the brat he should be. Whoever described him as a draco malfoy the look was spot on

Maester pyecelle.... his beard should be longer

Syrio... his character seems almost cliched or comical with that accent. I did not picture him this way at all. I pictured him older, dirtier and much more serious. He makes a huge impact on Arya and his role should be bigger. He sounded like he had a bad Italian accent

[lifefullofwords]

My "least" favourite would be Michelle Fairley's Catelyn. Not because of her acting - which is very good - but because she just doesn't look the part. She's just too old and I had imagined her to be really beautiful. Fairley is not hideous, but just not someone I'd imagined being mother to Sansa. Unfair (no pun intended) maybe...

Another one is Cersei. While Lena Headey is a beautiful woman, she's not this drop dead sexy woman I had imagined. When I read the books I had cast Tricia Helfer in my head. Headey's got the cold calculating bitch thing nailed, but she should have upped the "sexy seductress" thing.

So is the only thing that matters about the adult actresses how hot they are and how sexy they act? Because that's kind of the impression I got from your post.

I agree that Michelle Fairley is too old to play Catelyn, although it's also a make-up/styling problem, they could do more to make her look younger. But I'm not sure where people got the idea that Catelyn is still super hot in the books. Isn't she supposed to be a bit of a faded beauty anyway? Plus starting at the end of season one a lot of shit will happen that ages Catelyn so Michelle Fairley will have the right look for most of the series even if she does look too old now. I'm actually more concerned about her acting than her looks and disagree with you about her performance. I am personally not sure she's up to such a difficult role, although the nice thing about TV is the actors get plenty of time to settle into their roles.

Also, regarding Lena Headey as Cersei not being sexy enough: the decision to make Cersei less sexy was NOT HERS. That was a creative decision made by D&D and it is not her call whether or not to play up her sex appeal. We will never know whether or not she could have played a sexier Cersei because she is playing the character as conceived by D&D and not the book character. I agree Tricia Helfer would have been good though, especially if they had made Cersei a sexpot. I wonder if she auditioned... IIRC they had a tough time casting Cersei so they must have seen a ton of actresses.

[Hyper]

Funny, when I read the book I never pictured Cersei as a sexpot character that looked like Tricia Helfer's "6" in BSG - yet that seems to be a lot of my fellow male readers impression. I'm not sure why... I always saw her more as classic elegant beauty, who could switch from completely charming to icy bitch as needed. While a more toned down Helfer could have worked (she looks much better that way anyway), I think Headey is wonderful.

[lifefullofwords]

Funny, when I read the book I never pictured Cersei as a sexpot character that looked like Tricia Helfer's "6" in BSG - yet that seems to be a lot of my fellow male readers impression. I'm not sure why... I always saw her more as classic elegant beauty, who could switch from completely charming to icy bitch as needed. While a more toned down Helfer could have worked (she looks much better that way anyway), I think Headey is wonderful.

Yes, I totally agree... I also did not see the character like that, although a toned down Helfer would have worked well, although she would not have worked for the icier Cersei. But it is likely the OP thought of her because, from what I've seen of the show, her BSG character was so hypersexualized and for some reason that's how a number of readers see Cersei.

Anyway, I did not realize until the series came out that so many male (and some female) readers basically picture Cersei looking like a porn star. I know this because in almost all of the fan art that has been linked to that is exactly what she looks like. And a number of actresses suggested have had almost no experience and huge fake boobs. Thank god they cast Lena Headey instead.

As you said, Cersei's not really a sexpot in the books anyway. She doesn't even enjoy sex a lot of the time (unless it's with Jamie) although she does use sex to get what she want and she's kind of a tease. Thus far show Cersei is quite a bit colder but there's still plenty of time to develop that aspect of character if they're interested. It comes out way more in ACoK and ASoS that it does in AGoT anyway. I actually really like the direction they've taken her so far and Headey is great. Also absolutely stunning, I can't believe how hypercritical some male posters are of the actress' looks. At least I haven't seen anybody call Emilia Clarke unattractive yet, that would be blasphemy.

[Ser Kevan Raley]

So is the only thing that matters about the adult actresses how hot they are and how sexy they act? Because that's kind of the impression I got from your post.

:rolleyes:

I agree that Michelle Fairley is too old to play Catelyn, although it's also a make-up/styling problem, they could do more to make her look younger. But I'm not sure where people got the idea that Catelyn is still super hot in the books. Isn't she supposed to be a bit of a faded beauty anyway? Plus starting at the end of season one a lot of shit will happen that ages Catelyn so Michelle Fairley will have the right look for most of the series even if she does look too old now. I'm actually more concerned about her acting than her looks and disagree with you about her performance. I am personally not sure she's up to such a difficult role, although the nice thing about TV is the actors get plenty of time to settle into their roles.

Well, it seems we have reverse opinions about Michelle Fairley. I really like her acting but think she's not young or pretty enough. I find it difficult to think that Littlefinger would have been so up in arms over her. And considering she's the mother of the really beautiful Sansa I expected her to look more like an older Sansa.

Also, regarding Lena Headey as Cersei not being sexy enough: the decision to make Cersei less sexy was NOT HERS. That was a creative decision made by D&D and it is not her call whether or not to play up her sex appeal. We will never know whether or not she could have played a sexier Cersei because she is playing the character as conceived by D&D and not the book character. I agree Tricia Helfer would have been good though, especially if they had made Cersei a sexpot. I wonder if she auditioned... IIRC they had a tough time casting Cersei so they must have seen a ton of actresses.

I don't care whose decision it was to downplay Cersei's sexiness. It was the wrong move, IMO. With that said, I think Lena Headey is hot anyway.

And yes, Tricia Helfer did auditioned for the role. While she obviously didn't get the part, it got her hooked on the books (according to her twitter).

[lifefullofwords]

:rolleyes:

Wow, thanks for your mature and articulate response to my main issue with your post.

Well, it seems we have reverse opinions about Michelle Fairley. I really like her acting but think she's not young or pretty enough. I find it difficult to think that Littlefinger would have been so up in arms over her. And considering she's the mother of the really beautiful Sansa I expected her to look more like an older Sansa.

Agree that she and Sophie Turner don't look much alike. It doesn't help that they've dyed their hair totally different colors. I have no problem at all believing Littlefinger fell head over heels for Catelyn though when he was much younger since presumably Fairley was quite beautiful twenty years ago.

And yes, Tricia Helfer did auditioned for the role. While she obviously didn't get the part, it got her hooked on the books (according to her twitter).

That is exactly the kind of thing that makes me wish I could watch audition tapes. Good for her for reading the books... I wonder how many of the actors they auditioned wound up doing so, lol.