I take you back to April 11th, 2011. HBO was catching fire with series like True Blood, Curb and Boardwalk Empire, while Showtime was living large with Dexter. Television was great and there was a new series getting practically no attention, Game of Thrones. I watched the first episode and remember being like, “who the fuck are these people.” I understood nothing and eventually went to the HBO webpage to learn more about each family and who I was watching. With a general interest growing, I went to Barnes and Noble and bought all of the books. In a span of a year, I had caught up to as far as George R.R Martin would take me. Since then, I’ve watched a series explode, and not in the good way.

There are a few types of Game of Thrones fans who I’ll describe as I see it:

The GoT Nerd – These are the fans who literally know everything about GoT. They’ve read the forums. They are up to date on the latest rumors. The get excited when they find their “Easter Eggs.” It’s impossible for a regular viewing fan to have a conversation because you’ll be lost. It would go like this:
You know the part in the middle of episode 4, season 3 when Jon Snow shook Sir Alliser Thorne’s hand with his off hand? Well, Alliser has his pinkie hooked under the hand shake which foreshadowed he was going to double cross him.
Within 1 minute, you’ll know that you’re not qualified to hang with this person and you’re going to be using a lot of, “hmmmm…yeah…I think I remember.”

The Late Arriver – There are always going to be people late to the party. There’s nothing wrong these people I should add. Wasting hours of your life on a TV show that isn’t going to be good should always be guarded against. However these are the guys who binge watch 6 straight seasons and act like it’s current. It’s like “Bro, I’ve been watching since 2011, I can’t remember what the Hound said to Arya after he killed the fat kid.” I can barely remember where I lived in 2011 so my working knowledge is a bit off.  These people can be noticed by their sheer excitement for GoT’s.

The Early Adopter – I fall into this category after reading the books and watching show, so this is only category I can speak properly about. I really liked GoT. I read 5,000 pages of books and was immersed in this fantasy world. I paid attention to the details of the books and was aware of how the books were different from the show. I was that shithead who would say, “yeah, I know what happens because the books were ahead of the show.” Now here is where it gets diluted for me. I read all of this material 5 years ago and honestly forget about 90% of what I read. I stayed current watching the show but each season takes places for a few months and then you get another 9 months off. When season 7 premiered last night, I couldn’t even pay attention. I have a working knowledge of what’s going on, but I simply don’t care because I flat out don’t now what’s happening. It’s over for me. My interest in a TV series can’t survive for 5 years straight. I’ll probably finish the series for finality, but I find myself looking at my phone more than I’m watching, which is a sure sign that it’s over for me. Also here’s an example of a detail from last night that was completely lost on me. Here is the clip from way back when about the people in the house.

To get back in the spirit, I’d have to re-watch the entire series of 6 seasons and I’m not going to do it. Too much time. Maybe in a few years when I’m overly bored and need a time killer, but right now, I’d rather spend it other ways.