by Yasmeen Khan

HBO’s new adaptation of George RR Martin’s novel “A Game of Thrones” begins by opening a gate onto one of the most memorable sights in the Seven Kingdoms – the Wall. We’re led into this new world by the men of the Night’s Watch. They take us through a cramped tunnel, lit only by the flames of their torches. When the panoramic view of the bright, ice-blue Wall opens up, the contrast makes its vastness all the more impressive. (I have no intention of calling this a birth metaphor, don’t worry). Later we’ll see the Wall in different weather, different moods, but for now, it’s an icy blank, a manmade glacier stretching across this new world.

The opening tells us what this story is about – the grand sweep of the landscape and the tunnels of detail human activity makes within it. The whole of the prologue is almost wordless, and almost monochrome – snow and trees, ice and black robes. Blood is black. Even the eerie blue of the wights’ eyes is a subtle contrast, rather than a glaring one. The otherworldly is part of this world. No need to draw attention to it. You’re in good hands, the opening says. Hands that have the confidence to show and not tell, that expect us to be intrigued and hooked by the setting alone. It’s a promising start. And an appropriate one. Weather is integral to the story of “A Song of Ice and Fire”, as the characters’ repetition of the words ‘Winter is coming’ will constantly remind us.

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