alfary waleriah glorianne
Kathy Douds
When we last visited Westeros, everyone was still recovering from the death of Ned Stark and planning their next moves. Jamie Lannister was captured in a surprisingly daft move by Robb, Catelyn and their troops, and Daenerys Targaryen was simultaneously burying her husband and giving birth to some noisy ass dragons. An attack by some undead entities at The Wall led Mormont, Snow and his troops north of the wall, all while the brothers and family members of the Baratheons and Lannisters readied for a long, bloody battle.
But what I thought this premiere really did well was re-establish where everyone was, while providing us some interesting looks into what is going to be happening: and does so without feeling like 55 minutes of talking head recaps. This might be because the dialogue continues to be fucking awesome, consolidating entire plotlines (which can take up four or five pages of crowded book space) into a couple important lines, and still managing to throw in some great zingers along the way.
LinkedIn and 3rd parties use essential and non-essential cookies to provide, secure, analyze and improve our Services, and to show you relevant ads (including professional and job ads) on and off LinkedIn. Learn more in our Cookie Policy.
When I got the call and offer from LeagueApps in late May to become their next, best, and first ever content marketing specialist, I could hardly contain myself. The Face With Tears of Joy doesn't even begin to describe my emoticon at the time. I literally wrote "dream job" in my diary that night.
I had spent the better part of the previous two years making cameo appearances on Google hangouts and YouTube videos for a few fantasy sports websites while writing bi-weekly articles throughout the year. I juggled between retail and sales jobs. And yes, I argued on behalf of Sheetz with my friend who represented team Wawa in podcasts. (Spoiler alert: We didn't get paid).
So naturally, I was ecstatic for the opportunity in content marketing. So ecstatic even, that I wanted to dive right in and make an immediate impact. My thought process was, well, I really had no thought process. All I had to do was write a few blogs every week, create a gif here or there, and reference Game of Thrones in everything. Right?
Those of you new to the content marketing game are probably thinking, "Yeah, jabroni. It's that easy." Meanwhile, veterans of CM (a little nickname I gave content marketing, no big deal) that are actually still reading this are quietly sitting back with a smug, Jimmy Fallon-like smile.
Unless you're Superman- and even still, probably not for the Man of Steel- you can't do it all immediately. Look at CM as the Iron Throne. Each player has a strategy in the game of thrones. And that's where the title of this piece comes into play. If you want to win the game of CM, you'll need to structure your strategy around a key player in Season 7 of HBO's fabulous television series.
But there's also a strong possibility that your friends will no longer recognize you. Or worse, they will no longer want to even associate with you after discovering your tactics. Losing existing customers is something I would never propose.
The name of the game in CM is to generate leads and increase conversions. Bran can do that by just rolling his eyes back. Screwed up a pitch? Call Bran. Need a contract signed in tomorrow's lunch? Better make sure Bran is in that meeting.
Where's the fun in being the best if you can't tell people you're the best? Bran just stays in the shadows. Not a soul south of the Wall knows that Bran can literally do anything. That won't fly in CM. Don't let The Door hit you on the way out, Bran. R.I.P. Hodor.
Talk about being a high-powered business woman. She successfully vanquished her competition, seized the role as the industry leader, and stabilized (we think) her position with a loyal following. If only Machiavelli were alive to see her today.
It's so hard to not put together a strategy based off of Tyrion. He's strategic, political, backed by powerful friends, and is great at sales. I have no doubt that Tyrion Lannister could make the perfect content marketing specialist. Could you imagine his company's blog posts? Scratch that. Imagine their SnapChat and Instagram. Pure gold.
Everybody's favorite zombie is a hard worker and flat out knows how to get things done. If his marketing director tells him to jump, he says how high. At least, he used to. There's no telling what he's capable of in his second life. Hopefully he's not "too loyal" again.
Cunning. Strategic. Witty. Charming. Powerful. Wealthy. Dude has it all. He's also got plenty of enemies. Sure, he probably knows who they are and what they are doing. But at some point, that one that you really, REALLY pissed off is going to have his or her day. It will probably be in the form of a Twitter troll on your page that ends your social media life.
For real. Jaime is perfect. He has rode across the entire country. He knows the plight of the farmer and the arrogance of the landowner. He is loved and feared. He knows what it's like to be disabled. The guy knows his demographics.
He's also loyal and has morals (mostly). He is a man that will sometimes make the unpopular choice, but know it has to be done. He will also forsake his own name and brand (i.e. rejecting his titles and stabbing a king to be known as "Kingslayer") just to do the right thing. And you know he is going to have to do something about the woman he loves in the next season.
The Song of Ice and Fire novels -- aka the Game of Thrones books -- are some brutal business. If you're a fan of the HBO adaptation, you've surely learned at this point that author George R. R. Martin is not afraid to off even his most beloved characters. But if you haven't read ahead to learn what the future holds for the denizens of Westeros, I have some unfortunate news: It's not going to get any better. Don't believe me? Behold every death in the novels in a photo shared on Twitter by the Dorking branch (yes really) of the British bookstore Waterstones. (via Kotaku)
If this is the first you're hearing of this neat Game of Thrones credit trick: Yes, it does in fact change each episode. The reason for this is that the opening credit sequence reflects where the action will take place each episode. So, think of it like a little foreshadowing as to what's going to happen in the episode. Honestly, it's not even something I picked up on until last season (listen, the credits are long and that's usually when I grab my Game of Thrones snack), but as soon as you realize it's happening, it's hard not to see it. It's also a dead giveaway as to whether or not we'll see Dany in an episode. Oh, no Meereen in the opening credits? No, Dany, ugh.
The original idea behind all of this was to show a map each time our characters moved to a new location. According to the studio behind the title sequence, Elastic, they were asked to make these location markers because people were "confused." (Understatement of the century) However, using these maps every time a location changed got too jumbled and it was jarring to break away from the action so often. Instead, why not combine everything together in the beginning? Hey, it now seamlessly works for us, and we're mostly able to figure out wherever everyone is at any given time.
When the new season returns on Sunday, be sure to pay close attention to the locations springing to live on the moving map, because it will clue us in to what might happen in the episode. Or, it'll just confuse us more with a handful of new locations to figure out. Either way, you end up humming the theme song for days.
As anyone with a cable connection or a sword of Valerian Valyrian steel can tell you, the next season of "Game of Thrones" returns April 6. Which means lots of dragons, lots of heads lopped off and lots and lots of visits to brothels. And another 13 weeks of me wondering how everyone in the 1400s stayed so healthy and strong.
I'll be the first to admit that "Yes, it burns when I pee, John Jon Snow" isn't compelling television dialogue. But jeez, isn't anyone in my favorite show going to face disease, besides that poor little girl with "greyscale," a leprosy-like condition that seems to be the reason she spends a lot of time in dungeons?
It is perhaps best to start by pointing out that in this context, thrones are not chairs sat upon by kings; dominions are not regal estates; and virtues have nothing to do with the established habits of decent human beings. All of these words refer to types of angels mentioned in Sacred Scripture.
And then again, even if we are inclined to believe in angels, what are we supposed to make of the seraphs and virtues and thrones? Do the kinds and categories of angels really matter all that much? Should I hope to have a dominion as my guardian instead of a puny little cherub?
I mean, to do it on purpose. Not to slide into it accidentally. Not to write one book that sees some success and becomes two or three or ten. Because those kinds of series? You can taste the small ambition in them right from the very start.
And I'm not saying that's a good thing or a bad thing, just a different thing. An epic is an epic right from the very start. It begins as an epic, has to keep that flame burning on every page, and cross the finish line with worlds having been shattered and forever changed. When you sit down to write an epic, you are taking the fates of millions into your hands. Every choice made on the page becomes about reach and scope and eternity, playing with lives like grains of sand and time on a calendar that can measure centuries. It is a big undertaking.
Ken Liu's new Dandelion Dynasty book, The Veiled Throne, is more than a thousand pages long. That's a thousand pages of garinafins and axe fights, courtly intrigue and cooking competitions. The Wall of Storms has been crossed, the invasion of Dara by the Lyucu is complete (though tenuous) as reinforcements are awaited, so Liu offers us a thousand pages of tension, of waiting and plotting and scheming between disparate, xenophobic cultures. A thousand pages of city ships and poisonings and language lessons and gods reborn; of love affairs and philosophical riddles, art history and the coolest, strangest naval battle I think I've ever seen on the page.
c01484d022