Game of Thrones: Season 2

Description

In the second season of the epic HBO original series Game
of Thrones, kings from across the fictional continent of Westeros vie for the
Iron Throne. As winter approaches, the cruel young Joffrey sits upon the
Throne in King’s Landing, counseled by his conniving mother Cersei and his
uncle Tyrion, who has been appointed the new Hand of the King. But the
Lannister hold on power is under assault on many fronts, with two Baratheons
donning crowns, and Robb Stark fighting as the King in the North. With
tensions and treaties, animosity and alliances, Season Two is a thrilling
journey through a riveting and unforgettable landscape. The epic
scope of the grand television fantasy series Game of Thrones is matched by the
extraordinary wealth of extras found in its sophomore-season set. Based on A
Clash of Kings, the second novel in George R.R. Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire
series, season two of Game of Thrones admirably encapsulates the sprawling War
of the Five Kings, which pits the malevolent Joffrey (Jack Gleeson) against a
host of contenders for the throne of the late King Robert (Mark Addy),
including his brothers Stannis (Stephen Dillane) and Renly (Gethin Anthony).
Further complicating matters is the appointment of Tyrion Lannister (Peter
Dinklage) as Hand of the King to Joffrey, which sets off an intense behind-
the-scenes power struggle with his siblings, Cersei (Lena Headey) and Jaime
(Nikolaj Coster-Waldau), who carry on an incestuous affair. Meanwhile, there’s
also the issue of Daenerys (Emilia Clarke) and her three dragons; Daenerys
spends much of season two making her way across the Red Waste in order to
launch her own plan of conquest. These central conflicts are supported by a
host of secondary storylines, including Alfie Allen’s Theon Greyjoy, who is
faced with dreadful choices in his own quest to prove his worth, and new cast
member Carice van Houten as Melisandre, a priestess who uses a variety of
wiles, including sex, to spur Stannis’s assault against Joffrey’s forces in
the series’ showstopping set piece, the Battle of Blackwater Bay. That Game of
Thrones manages to not only weave together all of these myriad threads but
also make them compelling and fully realized is among the keys to the show’s
astonishing popularity, as are the performances, which, along with the
direction and writing, help to make the series the best costume fantasy drama
ever produced on television. Its blend of historically inspired intrigue and
supernatural elements keeps it far afield of camp territory, where most TV
fantasy has bogged down in the past, while the cast, led by the extraordinary
Peter Dinklage as the wily Tyrion, rivals any modern day/dress series. Of
course, the show’s copious violence and sexuality (the latter of which borders
on excessive this season) are also key factors, but the visceral nature of
these parts mesh well with the show’s overall theme of a medieval land gripped
by extraordinary bloodshed. The five-disc DVD set of Game of Thrones’ second
season provides an exceptional amount of supplemental material on the show’s
production, primarily through 12 commentary tracks, including multiple tracks
on single episodes. Among the participants are the main cast, including
Dinklage, Headey, and Coster-Waldau, as well as series cocreators David
Benioff and D.B. Weiss; director Neil Marshall (The Descent), who helmed
“Blackwater”; and Martin himself, who explains many of the differences between
his source novel and the program. The Battle of Blackwater Bay gets its own
half-hour making-of featurette, while a quintet of the actors, including
Headey and Clarke, participate in an informative roundtable discussion about
their characters and the show’s locations. Martin also returns for a brief
conversation about the various religions of his fictional world along with
Benioff and Weiss. Both die-hard fans and first-time viewers will appreciate
the length and depth of the extra material included in the set, which expands
greatly on the already massive world of Game of Thrones. –Paul Gaita

Features:

Product Details:

• Genre: Science Fiction & Fantasy, Drama
• Format: AC-3, Box set, Dolby, NTSC, Color, Full Screen, Widescreen, Subtitled, Multiple Formats
• Contributor: Lena Headey, Alfie Allen, Kit Harington, Nicolaj Coster-Waldau, Michelle Fairley, Sophie Turner, Peter Dinklage, Iain Glen, Emilia Clarke, Maisie Williams, Richard Madden See more
• Language: English
• Number Of Discs: 5
• Is Discontinued By Manufacturer ‏ : ‎ No
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ Unrated (Not Rated)
• Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 1.5 x 5.7 x 7.4 inches; 7.04 Ounces
• Item model number ‏ : ‎
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ AC-3, Box set, Dolby, NTSC, Color, Full Screen, Widescreen, Subtitled, Multiple Formats
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 9 hours and 10 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ February 19, 2013
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Alfie Allen, Kit Harington, Richard Madden, Peter Dinklage, Michelle Fairley
• Subtitles: ‏ : ‎ French, English, Spanish, Korean, Portuguese, Dutch
• Language ‏ : ‎ English (Dolby Digital 5.1), French (Dolby Digital 5.1)