Need to get HBO....or at least save up for the Box Sets.

Just announced to day on my favorite author's own webpage.....George R. R. Martin's "A Song of Fire and Ice"  books are being developed by HBO into a cable series.  Martin plans to write 7 novels in this series, and is currently working on the 5th.  So far we have "A Game of Thrones" "A Clash of Kings" "A Storm of Swords" and "A Feast for Crows" published and out in paperback.  He is currently working on "A Dance With Dragons".  I have talked about this particular author in the past (Cathy gets a bit bored with me when I do....since I have numerous times bent her ear over how great of an author I think he is).  According to the article in Variety, each 1,000 page novel will be filmed as an entire season of the show.  Martin's take on things (and I agree) is that his books are too complex to make into a single 2 + hour long movie for each one.  Characters and storylines would have to get cut or combined and it would lose something.  The way he writes his novels is episodic to begin with.  Each chapter is titled with the name of the character who it is about.  He will also be involved which is good because he won't let them screw it up.  Martin's credits included writing for the late 80's CBS version of "The Twilight Zone" and eventually co-producing it.  He knows television.  HBO has a history of taking it's time with series and making them worth waiting for.  Take "The Sopranos" for example.  One of the best Dramas on TV; period.  "Rome" is another as well as "Deadwood".  Both critically acclaimed and high rated TV Dramas.  HBO is a perfect venue as well because the novels are essentially "R" rated and the tone of them won't be lost.  For those that don't know Martin's works, he is (in my opinion) one of the bravest and truest authors out there.  "A Song of Fire and Ice" is set in a medieval world (think Lord of the Rings).  Instead of the definite good and bad presented in LOTR, we've got lot's of grey in Martin's world.   Action, political intrigue, wizardry, dragons, Knights, Kings, etc.  When I say "true" I mean he presents a real world view of the term "Heavy is the head that wears the crown".  When I say "brave" I'm referring to the fact that this man kills off characters right and left; or at the least has horrible things befall them.  His "heroes" die because they've tried to do the right thing but told the wrong person.  I think of it this way.  If every Bond villain would have just had Bond kneel before them then shot him in the back of the head; the movie would be over in the first half hour.  This is what Martin does.  His villains take captives and off them; simple.  They don't give grand speeches while the hero is strapped to a table.  Nope it's off with his head and it's done or throw him off the battlements.......he will anger you as a reader because just as you are starting to like a character; something has to happen to him/her.  Great reading that sucks you in from page 1 and I think the series will be that way too.  Suck you in from episode 1.