Why I Dislike Peter Dinklage’s Tyrion

Despite everything below, I admit that watching this a few times over could make anyone want to hero-worship Dinklage.

I know most people won’t agree with me on this, but I just don’t like Peter Dinklage’s version of Tyrion on Game of Thrones. It’s not really about Dinklage himself (I think he’s an excellent actor, and his interpretation of the character is as good as it could be under the circumstances), it’s about the writing – or, rather, more than that.

Don’t get me wrong, I love Tyrion. Not as much as Varys or Cersei, of course, but he’s still one of the best characters in ASOIAF (as proven by his continually growing fanbase). The problem is, there’s a huge difference between writing from Tyrion’s point of view in a book, as GRRM has done magnificently for five volumes now, and writing dialogue and actions for him based on that original writing, as GOT’s writers have done.

My point is, the writers over at HBO have overdone the character. Every phrase that flies out of his mouth is a witticism or a snide remark, except for a few very rare instances of moderation where common sense prevails. I’m not saying this isn’t true in the books (we all know how kickass Tyrion can be), but on paper the witticisms are balanced with insight on  his mind and thoughts, causing a very different effect. When adapted to television, even a high-grade cable network like HBO, the mesmerizing quality of GRRM’s writing transforms into heavyhanded, almost irritating stuff that puts me on edge whenever Peter Dinklage walks into a room.

The problem is, transferring such a complex character as Tyrion from the page to the screen is hardly a small issue, even for the most competent writers (and I’m not saying that the writers over at GOT are bad at adapting the original material, because they absolutely rock at it).

As I said before, these are all personal views. I like Peter Dinklage, I love Tyrion, and Game of Thrones is as good an adaptation as ASOIAF could ever get, but I think that even the best shows should be challenged a few times, at the very least for their own benefit. I hope I like season-two Tyrion better than season-one Tyrion (heavens know the turmoil in the coming plot arcs could warrant all sorts of changes in character), but I don’t think I’d stop watching even if I didn’t.

Season 2 Posters

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It’s hard not to love every ad HBO places for this series. Personally, I loved the sexy visuals on the crown one and the nice play on the Stark words with “War is Coming”, but the fan-made one is easily the best, even if it is Stark-themed (obviously). Can’t wait for April.

Rubies on the Trident

“Rhaegar fought valiantly, Rhaegar fought nobly, Rhaegar fought bravely. And Rhaegar died.”

- Jorah Mormont, A Storm of Swords

Awesome House Artwork

I was browsing ASOIAF-related artwork sites when I came across these beautiful house-themed posters by LiquidSoulDesign. Far too many to post here, but I’ll give a shoutout to my faves.

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I’d prefer it if Swann, Connington, and Blackwood (my personal favorite along with HBW) had words of their own, but still, AMAZING artwork. Excellent choice of aesthetics and colors.

Naturally, all rights to their respective owners.

I CAN BE A DRAGON TOO!

“The next time you raise a hand to me will be the last time you have hands.”

- Daenerys Targaryen, ”Cripples, Bastards, and Broken Things” (S01E04), Game of Thrones

Abbreviations

srsly wtf

Just in case, a comprehensive list of abbreviations used here and in other media to refer to book titles, plot points, and other content in a convenient way. Also, there are minimal spoilers in the “Organizations” section, but I think they’re harmless.

BOOKS & STORIES

• ASOIAF: A Song of Ice and Fire, the primary book series.
• AGOT: A Game of Thrones, Book One of the series (1996).
• ACOK: A Clash of Kings, Book Two (1998).
• ASOS: A Storm of Swords, Book Three (2000).
• AFFC: A Feast for Crows, Book Four (2005).
• ADWD: A Dance with Dragons, Book Five (2011).
• TWOW: The Winds of Winter, Book Six (forthcoming).
• ADOS: A Dream of Spring, Book Seven and, supposedly, the last (forthcoming).

ORGANIZATIONS

• BWB: The Brotherhood Without Banners, an organization of outlaws featured in the later novels.
• COTH: The Children of the Harpy, a group of politically motivated assassins featured in ADWD.
• TFM: The Faceless Men, an order of elite assassins featured in Books Four and Five. Also known as the House of Black and White (HBW).

EVENTS:

• RR: Robert’s Rebellion, the war which led to the establishment of the Seven Kingdoms’ current monarchy. Also known as the War of the Usurper (WU), especially to Targaryen loyalists.
• WFK: The War of Five Kings, on which Books Two to Four focus.
• RW: The Red Wedding, one of the most important events of ASOS and the series as a whole.
• BBW: The Battle of the Blackwater, a turning point in the War of Five Kings.

OTHER

• GRRM: George R.R. Martin, author of the series.
• GOT: Game of Thrones, the HBO series based on the novels (2011 – ) Not to be confused with AGOT (above).
• AWIOAF: A Wiki of Ice and Fire, a database of ASOIAF-related information maintained by Westeros.org, the principal fansite for the series.

Other abbreviations may follow, should the need arise.

Me & Westeros

After all, who doesn't?

Before we begin, an introduction.

I started reading A Song of Ice and Fire back in 2010, when I discovered the series online and asked my mother to bring me the first volume back from the United States. Happily enough for me, she ended up buying three of the first four books, and I greedily devoured them within a month. Then came A Dance With Dragons and the HBO series, and ASOIAF finally came into the public view once and for all.

Simply put, Song is one of my favorite and most beloved series of all time. Not only is it a landmark achievement in fantasy, itis also a profound study of human emotions and motivations and a brilliant reflection on the consequences of war and the passage of time. Of course, that’s only scratching the surface: in its multitudes of characters and settings, thousands of different stories intersperse in a way only an author like GRRM can come up with.

Perhaps because of the enormity of this fictional world and the many different forces that fight for dominance within it, I believe it’s possible for very strong disagreements to appear between fans. For example, one will notice that I frequently defend characters hated by most readers (Cersei, mainly) and express open disregard for fan favorites (Eddard and Jon, mostly). For this reason, I hope people will recognize my devotion to the series over my personal opinions and respect my arguments for what they are – reflections of a fan. Valar dohaeris.