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I need my spectacle. Is there any TV show that comes close Game of Thrones in regards to production values?

Memento

Memento

Banned
Oct 26, 2017
8,129
Lets just... kind of forget about the plot in the last seasons and just appreciate how insane the budget of this shitshow was.

There is no denying this is peak TV in regards to production values, and that was a big reason on why it became so big on mainstream.

So, is there any other TV show with similar high production values as GoT? Will there EVER be one like it?
 
Replicant

Replicant

Attempted to circumvent a ban with an alt
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
9,380
MN
Rome was probably pretty close. It didn't have the CGI, but it's sets were crazy
 
TheYanger

TheYanger

Avenger
Oct 25, 2017
10,153
I mean. Star trek shows don't have the budget but their effects and battles got pretty fuckin grand for TV when they went to CG (and before htey went to CG they're weren't as 'huge' but the models were always fucking amazing).
 
Ryuelli

Ryuelli

Member
Oct 26, 2017
15,209
I come from the year 2040. The Harry Potter TV series has the highest production values I've ever seen. The S.P.E.W episode was especially good.
 
BDS

BDS

Banned
Oct 25, 2017
13,845
I am a time traveler from 2023 and I can tell you that Jeff Bezos is pouring obscene amounts of money into the later seasons of The Expanse and they look fucking nuts.
 
Inugami

Inugami

Member
Oct 25, 2017
14,995
When does Amazon's LotR series come out? I'm expecting GoT level designs and CG there.
 
Kill3r7

Kill3r7

Member
Oct 25, 2017
24,441
Rome, MadMen in a very different way, but nothing comes close to GoT in overall spectacle.
 
Avitus

Avitus

Member
Oct 25, 2017
12,919
KojiKnight said:
When does Amazon's LotR series come out? I'm expecting GoT level designs and CG there.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

I don't want CG. Part of the magic of the movies was how much preproduction they did, essentially figuring out how they were going to film as much practical as possible + making the props to do so.
 
RDreamer

RDreamer

Member
Oct 25, 2017
14,106
Nothing's really close, but I'm gonna use this thread to recommend Black Sails, and I'll keep doing so to anyone that remotely wants something GoT-like. It's amazing.

Also the naval battles could not have been cheap. Show looks crazy good.
 
Inugami

Inugami

Member
Oct 25, 2017
14,995
Avitus said:
I don't want CG. Part of the magic of the movies was how much preproduction they did, essentially figuring out how they were going to film as much practical as possible + making the props to do so.
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GoT level CG isn't anywhere as in quality. But even in quantity, GoT didn't actually have that much.
 
Replicant

Replicant

Attempted to circumvent a ban with an alt
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
9,380
MN
Avitus said:
I don't want CG. Part of the magic of the movies was how much preproduction they did, essentially figuring out how they were going to film as much practical as possible + making the props to do so.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Rome is your show then. It even has some actors that were in GoT. At least 3 off the top of my head.
 
PoppaBK

PoppaBK

Member
Oct 27, 2017
2,165
Altered Carbon has some A+ production values. I enjoyed the show as well, but I know overall it wasn't well received. I have a feeling the second season will be scaled back unfortunately because of this.
 
SofNascimento

SofNascimento

cursed
Member
Oct 28, 2017
21,328
São Paulo - Brazil
Just the first three minutos of Rome show more production value than most historical TV shows (bad video quality though):



Look at those beautiful mail shirts! Most shows would just throw some leather armor and be done with it.
 
holtz

holtz

Avenger
Oct 25, 2017
1,060
Yeah, Rome is a definite one, it helps the show is great. The Lost in Space netflix series has a huge budget but it's not that great.
 
blainethemono

blainethemono

Member
Oct 27, 2017
421
gonna just repost this from a different thread about game of thrones from a while back:


DrSlek said:
There are many, many significantly better shows and better scenes out there.

Any number of scenes from Black Sails for starters.
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Click to shrink...


Black Sails is like, what if Game of Thrones was good.

It's the level of quality I expected when HBO announced their adaptation of A Song of Ice and Fire, owing to their lineage of producing excellent historical fiction shows (Deadwood, Rome, Carnivale etc.), the potential that D&D absolutely failed to deliver on in any way. I never expected to see something reach that high again in my lifetime.

- Large-scale battles that are won through faction leaders developing coherent strategies and executing their tactics well in the field, as opposed to characters that - the audience is told - are supposedly intelligent and capable commanders who, displaying nothing but sheer incompetence in battle, are almost invariably saved by reinforcements at the last minute. I'm rewatching Season 1 currently, and Flint's strategy to get the Andromache to stop turning is already more interesting than any battle on Game of Thrones, and it's probably the simplest move he ever pulls. It's so much more fun to watch political conflicts between characters and factions when they're not being dumbed down at every turn to suit the narrative.

- Spectacle in general




https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SjIwtyaxOcQ


- Genuinely surprising plot twists that don't always rely solely on the Game of Thrones style of shocking the audience by killing characters, usually through manufactured drama and having characters make inexplicably dumb and uncharacteristic decisions. Twists that serve to recontextualize whole seasons of character interactions and motivations. Just pitch-perfect storytelling all around, really


[major season 2 spoilers]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I3X1C2ZhteI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bFeWdByC9Y


- In addition to maintaining a cohesive set of themes throughout its frequently dark and serious narrative, the show also never forgets to be super entertaining and funny




- Surprisingly great representation of LGBT characters and POC - three of the most powerful/pivotal characters are black women.





https://www.inverse.com/article/109...sails-is-quietly-tv-s-most-revolutionary-show

https://www.dailydot.com/parsec/black-sails-best-show-2017/

X3y7Egx.png



- A generally solid cast with no weak links as bad as Kit Harington and Emilia Clarke

- god-tier score by Bear McCreary that eclipses anything from GoT and it's not even close

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7nQkqnDEanE&index=4&list=PLTD-7wUN5nd7pEnooSJnTtZgG5NATTZ0p

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1KmZI97DXk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBRPjEPjxWs


- perhaps most importantly, Ray Stevenson (AKA Titus Pullo) is in it and he plays Blackbeard

QtsYrl3.jpg



Netflix really should have tapped these guys to do The Witcher starring Zach McGowan and Luke Arnold, or better yet, give them (and Bear McCreary) a Star Wars
 
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Heshinsi

Heshinsi

Member
Oct 25, 2017
16,093
If you mean "this looks expensive holy" then Star Trek Discovery easily. That show looks like it costs a fortune to make.
 
Vic_Viper

Vic_Viper

Thanked By SGM
Member
Oct 25, 2017
29,053
WestWorld. If you can forgive the crappy season 2, the show has a lot of potential. Hopefully the upcoming Watchmen show will be just as good as the Leftovers was.

Then theres the upcoming Disney+ shows like the Mandalorian.

Finally, Amazon is about to launch a bunch of shows, like their LotR show and a bunch of comicbook properties that im looking forward too.
 
TheCrackedJack

TheCrackedJack

Member
Oct 27, 2017
2,030
There are shows that come close if you exclude action sequences from the discussion. As nothing comes even remotely close to something like Battle of the Bastards, for example.

But Rome, Vikings (very well done action sequences), Westworld, Black Sails (again has very impressive action) are about the best.
 
WillyFive

WillyFive

Avenger
Oct 25, 2017
6,979
Outside of its infamous submarine shot, Lost fits this bill. It even has a fully orchestrated soundtrack by a (future) Oscar winning composer.
 
Burrman

Burrman

Banned
Oct 25, 2017
7,633
TheYanger said:
I mean. Star trek shows don't have the budget but their effects and battles got pretty fuckin grand for TV when they went to CG (and before htey went to CG they're weren't as 'huge' but the models were always fucking amazing).
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
Are you talking about discovery? I've never been into ST but grew up with my dad watching TNG once in awhile. Is it good?
 
RDreamer

RDreamer

Member
Oct 25, 2017
14,106
blainethemono said:
gonna just repost this from a thread from a different thread about game of thrones from a while back:





Black Sails is like, what if Game of Thrones was good.

It's the level of quality I expected when HBO announced their adaptation of A Song of Ice and Fire, owing to their lineage of producing excellent historical fiction shows (Deadwood, Rome, Carnivale etc.), the potential that D&D absolutely failed to deliver on in any way. I never expected to see something reach that high again in my lifetime.

- Large-scale battles that are won through faction leaders developing coherent strategies and executing their tactics well in the field, as opposed to characters that - the audience is told - are supposedly intelligent and capable commanders who, displaying nothing but sheer incompetence in battle, are almost invariably saved by reinforcements at the last minute. I'm rewatching Season 1 currently, and Flint's strategy to get the Andromache to stop turning is already more interesting than any battle on Game of Thrones, and it's probably the simplest move he ever pulls. It's so much more fun to watch political conflicts between characters and factions when they're not being dumbed down at every turn to suit the narrative.

- Spectacle in general




https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SjIwtyaxOcQ


- Genuinely surprising plot twists that don't always rely solely on the Game of Thrones style of shocking the audience by killing characters, usually through manufactured drama and having characters make inexplicably dumb and uncharacteristic decisions. Twists that serve to recontextualize whole seasons of character interactions and motivations. Just pitch-perfect storytelling all around, really


[major season 2 spoilers]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I3X1C2ZhteI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bFeWdByC9Y


- In addition to maintaining a cohesive set of themes throughout its frequently dark and serious narrative, the show also never forgets to be super entertaining and funny




- Surprisingly great representation of LGBT characters and POC - three of the most powerful/pivotal characters are black women.





https://www.inverse.com/article/109...sails-is-quietly-tv-s-most-revolutionary-show

https://www.dailydot.com/parsec/black-sails-best-show-2017/

X3y7Egx.png



- A generally solid cast with no weak links as bad as Kit Harington and Emilia Clarke

- god-tier score by Bear McCreary that eclipses anything from GoT and it's not even close

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7nQkqnDEanE&index=4&list=PLTD-7wUN5nd7pEnooSJnTtZgG5NATTZ0p

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1KmZI97DXk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBRPjEPjxWs


- perhaps most importantly, Ray Stevenson (AKA Titus Pullo) is in it and he plays Blackbeard

QtsYrl3.jpg



Netflix really should have tapped these guys to do The Witcher starring Zach McGowan and Luke Arnold, or better yet, give them (and Bear McCreary) a Star Wars
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...


Yes yes yes.

Three episodes from the ending and I'm fucking LOVING Black Sails. The plotting and consistent/logical character motivations are such a breath of fresh air compared to the latest seasons of GoT. Every time I question something either the character does exactly what I thought or it's answered immediately.
 
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