Dave Schumaker » television

Why do people in fantasy worlds speak with a British accent?

Dave — Sat, 07 Apr 2012 16:26:13 +0000

This is something I’ve often wondered, especially lately as we’ve been watching “Game of Thrones.” Why do people in these fantasy / medieval worlds (e.g., “Lord of the Rings” and “Game of Thrones”) always speak with a British accent?

Martin has said English accents work best for fantasy, as the genre is rooted in the Middle Ages.

“It’s full of castles and lords and swords and knights and all the other trappings that we associate with England in this country. It seems natural. It would be hard to do with a group of actors who had thick Southern accents,” he has commented.

Hah, seems to make sense to me!

Old Media Policies

Dave — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 02:59:02 +0000

This is especially apt, since Kerry and I just started watching “Game of Thrones” this weekend. Over at PandoDaily, MG Siegler writes, "Help! I’m being forced to pirate Game of Thrones against my will!", explaining how he can’t legally watch the latest season of HBO’s new show.

The problem is that I’m not an HBO subscriber. Believe me, given the quality of their programming, I would love to be. Unfortunately, it’s absolutely impossible to subscribe to HBO unless you also subscribe to cable (and/or satellite television). You cannot give HBO your money directly. They will not accept it. They are fully in bed with the cable companies and are not going to get out of that bed anytime soon, because of what they get paid to perform their unnatural acts in that bed. A lot of money.

My only option to watch this upcoming seasons of “Game of Thrones” legally in 2012 is to get HBO, which means getting a cable subscription. I’m not going to do that. Why would I pay upwards of $100 a month for something I have no interest in? I just want HBO.

One could argue that you could always just wait until 2013, but in the day of instantaneous media consumption and ubiquitous on demand content, why must viewers unnecessarily wait?

What a tough crowd

Dave — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 22:22:58 +0000

Via our internal team chat this morning at work. You think there’d be more Project Runway fans around, since we all appreciate good design here.

Marking my calendar

Dave — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 19:04:53 +0000

Outside of The Wire, Mad Men, and Lost, this is one of my favorite television events.

Toy Story + The Wire

Dave — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 18:30:47 +0000

[Via Kottke]

Treme on HBO

Dave — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 17:11:42 +0000

Treme is a new show on HBO created by David Simon (who also created The Wire). It’s focused on life in New Orleans, three months after the Hurricane Katrina disaster.

It’s definitely enjoyable, and in only three episodes, it’s become one of my favorite shows that I’m currently watching.

Green Screens

Dave — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 02:42:06 +0000

I always wondered how they filmed a number of these outdoor scenes in movies / television. This is devastating though. It’s like finding out Santa Claus isn’t real.

[Via Kottke]

LOST – 1967 Intro

Dave — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 19:41:23 +0000

Hah, someone created an intro for the television show Lost as if it aired in 1976.

Star Wars intro mashups

Dave — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 17:30:26 +0000

Hah!

Star Wars / A-Team intro

And even better, here is a Star Wars / Airwolf intro

Colonels!

Dave — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 15:54:16 +0000

Highly amusing clip from Stargate Atlantis.

(Via Mark Rebec)