Game of Thrones

Since the new season of Game of Thrones started recently, I felt that is was appropriate to talk about this amazing series.

I started to watch Game of Thrones a year ago. It had always looked interesting, but I just never found the time for it. After it was highly recommended, I decided it was the time to sit down and finally watch what everyone was talking about. I was far from disappointed: the show was fantastic!

Whenever someone asks me what Game of Thrones is about, I never know what to say. The show is very complex, constantly changing the point of view. The books are like this too. In each chapter, the point of view changes to a different character.

In short, Game of Thrones is about Westeros, a fictional kingdom. Several families in this kingdom (Stark, Lannister, Baratheon, Targaryen) are fighting to gain control of the Iron Throne (as seen above).

This HBO series is based on A Song of Ice and Fire series by George R. R. Martin.

Game of Thrones started its third season on March 31. It is on HBO Sunday nights at 9.

Game of Thrones: Season One Trailer

Harry Potter

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1

We all knew this was coming: Harry Potter. If you haven't noticed, the background image is of Harry Potter battling The Doctor, who we have already talked about.

Jo Rowling came up with the idea for Harry Potter in 1990, on a train from Manchester to London. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone was published in the UK in 1997 and in the United States in 1998. This was the beginning of a worldwide phenomenon.

I began reading Harry Potter in 2001, after my sister took me to see Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in theaters. If it weren't for Harry Potter, I wouldn't be the same person that I am today. Before I read Harry Potter, I hated to read. Now I'm an English major, dedicating my life to my love of reading. If someone had told me that this one movie would change my life forever, I probably would have laughed at them.

As I have said before, Harry Potter has its own genre of music: Wizard Rock. Wizard Rock shows are always fun, nerdy events.

Me & Alex Carpenter (The Remus Lupins)

Me & Jason Munday (Ministry of Magic)

Even though all of the books and movies are completed, the Harry Potter community is still going strong. Within the last few years, Harry Potter fans could join Pottermore, an interactive website. Here, fans could explore each chapter, make potions, and even be sorted into houses (I was sorted into Ravenclaw).



A Chapter in Pottermore
 

There is also a Harry Potter theme park in Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida. It is called The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Fans finally have the chance to walk through Hogsmeade and visit Hogwarts.

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter



Nerds in New York

I know that this isn't like my other posts, but it is still relevant. I just recently came back from a trip to New York City, and I felt that it was appropriate to talk about some of the nerdy things that I did there.

One nerdy place that I visited was Forbidden Planet, a nerdy store. They had everything you could imagine: Harry Potter, Doctor Who, Game of Thrones, superheroes, and so on. It felt like a sort of nerd paradise.

Forbidden Planet

Right next door was The Strand, which is a bookstore. As an English major and a lover of books, I was amazed by what I saw inside. There were about four floors in the store, with books piled from floor to ceiling.

The Strand

Anyone familiar with the Science channel would recognize this name: Obscura. Obscura Antiques and Oddities is a small store in New York. It was made famous by the show Oddities. I was excited to finally see the store in person, but it turned out to be a bit disappointing. There were a lot of interesting objects inside, but it was not the same store that they use in the show. (I have a theory that there is another store used for the show, and that this one is for tourists.)


Obscura Antiques and Oddities

As a big Doctor Who fan, there was one thing in Central Park that I had to see: Bethesda Fountain. Earlier in this season of Doctor Who, this fountain was featured in an episode called "The Angels Take Manhattan". This episode is particularly upsetting for any Doctor Who fans, as it is was the last time that we saw Amy Pond and Rory Williams, the Doctor's companions.

Bethesda Fountain

Close-up of Bethesda Fountain