What Game of Thrones Characters Are Left To Cheer For?

WARNING, THIS ENTRY INCLUDES SPOILERS TO THE GAME OF THRONES SEASON 5 FINALE:

If you're an avid GoT viewer like me I'm sure the last couple of episodes have left you feeling a mixture of emotions. Season 5 was quite dull until Jon Snow decided to pay a visit to the Wilding camp just as the White Walkers did.  That episode was electric!  One of the best episodes on TV I've seen in years!  I felt like Jon defeating one of the White Walkers solidified him as THEE hero of this series.  And then, two episodes later.....he's dead.  I was monumentally shocked, that he was killed Julius Caesar style by his own men.  I always thought the three characters that were safe in Game of Thrones were Jon, Tyrion, and Daenerys.  So now my theory is shot to hell.  But in the season 5 finale lots of people saw their end, or took a tragic turn, including the rightful heir to the iron throne; Stannis Baratheon.  Jon Snow was my favorite character(as was quite a few fans) because he was one of the few honorable ones left.  So now, with more members of the Stark and Baratheon family dead, I have to ask; who else is there to cheer for?

JAIME LANNISTER

Jaime started out the series as a huge ass.  He pushed Bran out of a window for catching him fornicating with his sister, kills Ed Stark's best man on the streets of Kings Landing, and has his nose up in the air at everyone.  But then, he gets captured by Robb Stark, is set free, and humbled when his hand his chopped off, making him worthless in the eyes of his father and sister.

Jaime has gone through probably the biggest arc in the whole series.  So much that he has become one of my favorite characters.  He's the golden boy who fell from grace and is trying to find a way to still matter; especially to his family.  With his father and two of his children now dead Jaime seems to be just trying to hold on to the ones he loves.  Even if his sister/lover is the one character on the show that needs slayed the most.  I would love to see the three Lannister siblings in a room together again!

TYRION LANNISTER

Jaime and Cersei's younger sibling has been looked at his whole life like a bastard for being a dwarf.  Peter Dinklage explodes as this character in every episode and his exchanges with Cersei and Tywin are some of my favorite because of the tension they all bring.

Tyrion has gone from black sheep, to Hand of King, to king slayer, and then father slayer.  He's tried to stay a good person throughout it all, and is smart enough to still be alive.  Now he's going to be running Meeren while Daenerys is away.  I feel like he's got some big things coming up on the horizon, and given that he is constantly underestimated because of his size, he may just be the right man for the job. On a side note, I'm not a fan of Danerys.  I think she has gone from naive to arrogant.

 

BRIENNE OF TARTH

In a world dominated by men Brienne has worked twice as hard to prove herself a worthy adversary for anyone who raises a sword against her.  She failed to protect Renly Baratheon and Catelyn Stark so she sought out to find, and protect, Arya and Sansa Stark.  So far she is not doing a great job, but she did manage to kill "The Hound" at the end of season 4.

The end of this season saw Brienne take her revenge on Stannis for killing his brother.  I can only imagine now she will go back to trying and protect Sansa from a distance, or track her down since Sansa and Theon have escaped the walls of Winterfell.

SANSA STARK

When the series started, Sansa was so annoying.  But through five seasons this young girl has been through the ringer.  From losing most of her family, to being tortured by Joffrey and Ramsay.  Now she's escaped with her once trusted friend, Theon, and are on the run.  But if I know Ramsay, his hounds won't be far behind them.

Ever since the death of her father and brother the entire seven kingdoms have been looking to marry Sansa Stark, knowing she is heiress to the North since no one knows where Bran is.  I thought Sansa would be a stronger character in season 5, but she still seems to be playing the victim.  I'm just hoping that by the end of the series either she or Theon puts a dagger in Ramsay's throat.

'Jurassic World' Brings Extinct Franchise Back To Life

Whenever my friends and I are just sitting around, shooting the shit, occasionally the topic of scary movies come up.  Most people say films like It, Halloween, or Friday the 13th as the film that scared them the most.  For me, it was a movie I saw as a kid called Jurassic Park.  At that point in my life the main dinosaurs I watched were in The Land Before Time.  They were cute, happy, and sweet.  My view about these extinct creatures changed after I saw a cup of water vibrate.

Twenty years later ol' T-Rex is back to try and scare the hell out of me again.  Jurassic World is the fourth film in the franchise, but luckily for all of us we can just forget the last two ever happened and go straight to Chris Pratt taming raptors.  John Hammond's vision has been brought to life as Jurassic World is a huge success, but the scientists and creators of this theme park aren't satisfied.  They've created a new dinosaur all their own.  And like A.I., we know that humans creating new life and playing God never works out.

From the moment the John Williams score roared off the screen I was transported back twenty years as I saw something familiar, but also something new. Director Colin Trevorrow was able to recapture the tone and appeal of the original film, which I'm a bit surprised how well he did given his small directing experience.  Chris Pratt, having just come off the mega Marvel hit, Guardians of the Galaxy, shines once again as the lead.  I wasn't sure if to expect Star-Lord in this film or not, and was pleasantly surprised when he played a bit more serious and rough character, but still with a little humor.  Opposite Pratt is Bryce Dallas Howard, who plays the serious, cold, uptight, park runner whom Pratt has to thaw throughout the film. I felt like her character was very stereotypical with not a lot of originality to her, but still played off of Pratt pretty well.  I just don't believe she lasted the entire film wearing those high heeled shoes!

All the other actors seem insignificant next to the dinosaurs.  It was a pleasure to see the raptors evolve out of their usual serial killer role in the franchise to more of a White Fang metamorphosis of wild-beast-turned-man's-best-friend.  I'd definitely want Blue as my pet.  The action was great, I loved seeing some dino on dino fight sequences, and as I watched my wife squirm in the seat next to me I think the suspense of the film worked as well.

I've heard the film makers have several sequels already planned and judging by the little easter eggs in the movie I believe it's true.  From the cleaning out of the lab, too the scarred T-Rex at the end looking over his kingdom.  And I think we all want to see a reunion of Owen and Blue.  I'm sure they'll bring Chris Pratt back, and hopefully the two brothers will continue to play a significant role in the franchise; otherwise their heart to heart talk I believe is a waste.  I think the only expendable one of the main four is Howard.  We'll see if Opie's daughter has made enough of an impression to survive to another film.

My wife wants to go back and see the movie in 3-D, and she HATES 3-D,  so she really must have liked the film.  I'm fine waiting till I buy it on blu-ray, but I am drooling over what the special features will include.  I want see an interview with the actor who decided to save his two margaritas as the pterodactyls attacked!  I'm glad Jurassic World is breaking box office records.  It's a rare film everyone can enjoy that doesn't seemed dumbed-down for any age group.  I'm also now excited to see where the franchise continues from here.  Just as long as they don't turn the sequels into musicals I think it'll be alright.  Trust me, that stuff ruins dinosaur franchises.  

RATING:  B+

'Furious 7' Director Submerges Into 'Aquaman'

Anyone who knows me knows I'm an unbashful Aquaman fan.  The DC character has been the butt of many jokes ever since the 1960's when he appeared in his own cartoon series and then was featured on Superfriends.  Aquaman has been through many interpretations throughout his 70-year run, but Geoff Johns breathed new life into the character when he brought him back from the dead in Brightest Day and also wrote him into The New 52's Justice League, and he got his own comic book series once again.

Warner Bros and DC Entertainment are busy trying to catch Marvel with their own cinematic universe.  Jason Momoa from Game of Thrones has been cast to play the King of the Seven Seas in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice coming out next year, with his own film slated for 2018.  A few days ago it was announced that Fast & Furious 7 director, James Wan, has now signed on to direct the Aquaman stand-alone film. 

Fast & Furious 7 broke box office records, but let's be honest. Most of that hype was due to the tragic death of Paul Walker while filming the movie. Wan, Universal Studios, and the cast handled the situation great and honored Walker's memory perfectly, but Aquaman is a whole different machine.  Before F&F, Wan had mainly done horror movies. He started the infamous Saw and Insidious franchises, and while I'm not a horror fan I still appreciate any film maker who creates something that is good enough to start a series. Fast and Furious is also not known for Oscar winning performances and story telling. As the series continues the stunts and plots get more and more ridiculous.  

DC characters like Aquaman and Wonder Woman are very mythical. When dealing with worlds like Atlantis and the Themiscrya you need directors who can handle the fantasy aspect, but flesh out the characters to make the movie work.  Formerly attached to direct the Wonder Woman movie was Michelle MacLaren, who would have been a good fit with her background working on Game of Thrones and The Walking Dead.  Kenneth Branagh also had a background dealing with Shakespearean stories when he directed Thor, and it helped make the fantasy world of Asgard believable.  I have yet to see that kind of talent as a director from James Wan.

Given that Aquaman will be part of a much bigger cinematic world Wan will also have to deal with producers and studio heads throwing in their 2, or even 10, cents into the project Wan will be the captain of. Like all the other WB/DC films set to come out in the next few years, I am hoping for the best but don't have much faith in WB since they put Zach Snyder in charge of the big DC films coming out. I was disappointed with Man of Steel and thought Zach Snyder was the wrong director to reintroduce not only Superman onto the big screen, but the now entire DC Comics universe.

I have yet to see enough of both James Wan and Jason Momoa to see if they have the talent to pull off the epic film Aquaman should be. However, given both their action backgrounds this may be the next step in their careers to not only elevate their reputations, but also Aquaman. And the movie is still three years away. Like mighty rivers and oceans, the DC Cinematic Universe current could change directions by then. Either way, I'll be watching.