Shows like Game of Thrones

TerrorFirmer · 12-05-2019 9:25pm #1

Thought this might be an interesting thread given the massive withdrawal ahead of most of us.

What to watch next that might fill that void, in the same vein? My recommendations would be...

1) Rome. Another HBO show, incredibly rich production values and like GOT, full of political wrangling, impressive acting and overflowing with blood, profanity and nudity as is HBO tradition.

2) The Last Kingdom. Similar to Vikings, but in my opinion somewhat superior, and itself pays homage to Game of Thrones on numerous occassions in later seasons. Another bloodthirsty show that doesn't shy away from battle, with some memorably epic clashes, particularly in S2 and S3 when the budget was ramped up considerably. Not as complex as GOT; but I'd almost consider it GOT lite edition.

3) Spartacus. Gets a bad reputation for being trashy - and the first season is perhaps guilty of that - but once it finds its feet, it's a truly incredible costume thrill-fest - every episode is absurdly excessive in terms of gore, profanity and entirely trashy nudity, but the character development across the seasons is extremely good and it all culminates in a really epic closing season. Probably my personal favourite show in this vein behind GOT.

4) Vikings. Decent show, though, a little flat for my liking in many regards. Still, decent characters, good action, and plenty twists and turns throughout. Not as explicity violent, or excessive generally, as any of the above mentioned shows, GOT included, but great production values and worth it for the character journeys and production values.

Anyone else have other suggestions?

bazermc · 12-05-2019 9:31pm

Fair city.

somesoldiers · 12-05-2019 9:33pm

Resurrection Ertugrul ( I read somewhere it was the Turkish GOT)

https://m.imdb.com/title/tt4320258/

First 4 seasons available on Netflix but it’s a big commitment, 150 odd 40 min episodes. I’m on ep 40 so far and I’m enjoying it.
I wouldn’t call it GOT ( it isn’t fantasy but loosely based on history)more like Vikings, with tents instead of boats!

IAMAMORON · 12-05-2019 9:42pm

Looking forward to Watchmen , out in the Autumn. Looks class.

PTH2009 · 12-05-2019 11:38pm

That Britannia thing looks similar

Never watched it though

Dave_The_Sheep · 13-05-2019 12:08am

Hopefully the Witcher series, with Henry Cavill can go somewhere towards taking up the mantle. The source material is all there, just a question of doing it justice.

13-05-2019 12:14am

I'm not sure if any shows will fill the void. I imagine I'll be left with that strange empty feeling I get after finishing a really amazing book. Right now I'm in bed wearing my Thrones pjs. That's a sign of devotion right there!

Dave_The_Sheep · 13-05-2019 12:14am

IAMAMORON wrote: »

Looking forward to Watchmen , out in the Autumn. Looks class.

That ... looks like a seriously vague representation of Watchmen. It looks awful. It's a simplistic cross between Man In the High Castle and Handmaiden's Tale and Far Cry 5.

I realise it's only a trailer, but there's not a lot of the subtlety of the Watchmen book (or film) evident there.

TerrorFirmer · 13-05-2019 12:18am

somesoldiers wrote: »

Resurrection Ertugrul ( I read somewhere it was the Turkish GOT)

https://m.imdb.com/title/tt4320258/

First 4 seasons available on Netflix but it’s a big commitment, 150 odd 40 min episodes. I’m on ep 40 so far and I’m enjoying it.
I wouldn’t call it GOT ( it isn’t fantasy but loosely based on history)more like Vikings, with tents instead of boats!

Cool. Vaguely remember hearing about that, must give it a go.

ixoy · 13-05-2019 10:10am

The 'Wheel of Time' series could be the next big thing. Huge in scope, massive character list, prophecies, large battles, etc. Plus it's finished too so need for the producers to have to make up an ending.

paulbok · 13-05-2019 10:37am

PTH2009 wrote: »

That Britannia thing looks similar

Never watched it though

Thought Britannia was terrible. Couldn't make it's mind up on being a historical or fantasy drama., The two never sat well together.

Unearthly · 13-05-2019 11:12am

Keep away from Britannia. Awful stuff

IAMAMORON · 13-05-2019 11:25am

Dave_The_Sheep wrote: »

That ... looks like a seriously vague representation of Watchmen. It looks awful. It's a simplistic cross between Man In the High Castle and Handmaiden's Tale and Far Cry 5.

I realise it's only a trailer, but there's not a lot of the subtlety of the Watchmen book (or film) evident there.

Thanks for your insight. I am actually going to watch it first. See if I like it then.

Crikey.

The_Honeybadger · 13-05-2019 12:19pm

Brittania is complete rubbish, if anybody hasn’t seen it don’t bother.

I’ve watched all the ones in the OP and agree with his / her assessment they are all worth a watch. I don’t rate the Last Kingdom all that highly though I’d put Vikings well ahead of it but that’s nitpicking.

Spartacus might be my favourite show ever, completely and totally OTT but a brilliant show none the less.

Somebody on here at some stage recommended Black Sails which is a crude pirate adventure series. I watched a few episodes and didn’t think it was great there are several seasons so it must be popular I might come back to it at some stage.

Frontier is on Netflix, period drama about the fur trade in Canada in the 1700s it’s decent enough but nowhere near GOT or Rome quality

Feisar · 13-05-2019 2:20pm

ixoy wrote: »

The 'Wheel of Time' series could be the next big thing. Huge in scope, massive character list, prophecies, large battles, etc. Plus it's finished too so need for the producers to have to make up an ending.

Here's hoping! It'd take some budget to do it justice.

is_that_so · 13-05-2019 5:33pm

TerrorFirmer wrote: »

Thought this might be an interesting thread given the massive withdrawal ahead of most of us.

What to watch next that might fill that void, in the same vein? My recommendations would be...

1) Rome. Another HBO show, incredibly rich production values and like GOT, full of political wrangling, impressive acting and overflowing with blood, profanity and nudity as is HBO tradition.

2) The Last Kingdom. Similar to Vikings, but in my opinion somewhat superior, and itself pays homage to Game of Thrones on numerous occassions in later seasons. Another bloodthirsty show that doesn't shy away from battle, with some memorably epic clashes, particularly in S2 and S3 when the budget was ramped up considerably. Not as complex as GOT; but I'd almost consider it GOT lite edition.

3) Spartacus. Gets a bad reputation for being trashy - and the first season is perhaps guilty of that - but once it finds its feet, it's a truly incredible costume thrill-fest - every episode is absurdly excessive in terms of gore, profanity and entirely trashy nudity, but the character development across the seasons is extremely good and it all culminates in a really epic closing season. Probably my personal favourite show in this vein behind GOT.

4) Vikings. Decent show, though, a little flat for my liking in many regards. Still, decent characters, good action, and plenty twists and turns throughout. Not as explicity violent, or excessive generally, as any of the above mentioned shows, GOT included, but great production values and worth it for the character journeys and production values.

Anyone else have other suggestions?

I thought Rome was excellent. Cost a bomb which is why they axed it.
I also enjoyed the Last Kingdom 1 &2. It is more fact-based as a lot of the characters did exist in reality. Set at the time of King Alfred and yes they do the burnt cakes!

nix · 13-05-2019 5:39pm

Rome is one that always intrigued me but i never touched... yet

Does it get wrapped up despite its axing? or is it a finish that will make one mad at how it was left?

is_that_so · 13-05-2019 6:48pm

nix wrote: »

Rome is one that always intrigued me but i never touched... yet

Does it get wrapped up despite its axing? or is it a finish that will make one mad at how it was left?

I think it worked out OK and was not annoying but it's been a dozen years since it ended! Had a quick look at final episode synopsis and it was a natural enough place to end. Very good cast in it.

TPF2012 · 13-05-2019 6:59pm

Dave_The_Sheep wrote:

That ... looks like a seriously vague representation of Watchmen. It looks awful. It's a simplistic cross between Man In the High Castle and Handmaiden's Tale and Far Cry 5.

Dave_The_Sheep wrote:

I realise it's only a trailer, but there's not a lot of the subtlety of the Watchmen book (or film) evident there.

Think it is a sequel set 30 years after the film. The world in chaos after Rorsharch journal lets the world know that Dr Manhattan was not responsible for the genocide that took place at the end of the film. Also the possible return of Dr Manhattan, who is basically a God. Looks really good.

Nermal · 14-05-2019 8:44am

nix wrote: »

Rome is one that always intrigued me but i never touched... yet

Does it get wrapped up despite its axing? or is it a finish that will make one mad at how it was left?

Rome ended perfectly.

I recommend Wolf Hall.

beauf · 14-05-2019 9:02am

I've watched a bit of last kingdom I thought it was good, but perhaps no surprises as you'd get in GOT. Which constantly did the unexpected.

Spartacus I watched a lot of it. But it's so ott I just got tired of it.

Wheel of Time I've read. Kinda lost it's way and become too long winded. It's then ended too quickly. Kinda suits a TV show but it's not got the plot twists or flawed characters and scheming that made GOT so addictive.

Good idea for a thread though.

loyatemu · 14-05-2019 9:28am

Nermal wrote: »

Rome ended perfectly.

I recommend Wolf Hall.

I was going to mention Wolf Hall - if you like the political aspects of GOT. It's obvioussly a lot more sedate, but on the plus side only 6 episodes (so far, like GOT they're waiting for the next book to arrive).

oppiuy · 14-05-2019 11:09am

Big thumbs up for vikings but the last season and a half has been terrible. I started watching the last kingdom during vikings and at first didn't really get it as i was comparing to the 2 but i actually really like the last kingdom. Ive also started reading the book by Bernard Cornwall and they are Great.

Spartacus is BLOODY brilliant.

is_that_so · 14-05-2019 11:10am

oppiuy wrote: »

Big thumbs up for vikings but the last season and a half has been terrible. I started watching the last kingdom during vikings and at first didn't really get it as i was comparing to the 2 but i actually really like the last kingdom. Ive also started reading the book by Bernard Cornwall and they are Great.

Spartacus is BLOODY brilliant.

His inspiration for writing them is that he's descended from someone in there.

mewso · 14-05-2019 11:11am

Sci-Fi stuff but the remake of Battlestar Galactica has alot of the elements. Gritty, political scheming, fascinating big bad. I would also love to see Stephen Donaldson's Gap Cycle made into a TV show.

is_that_so · 14-05-2019 11:23am

mewso wrote: »

Sci-Fi stuff but the remake of Battlestar Galactica has alot of the elements. Gritty, political scheming, fascinating big bad. I would also love to see Stephen Donaldson's Gap Cycle made into a TV show.

BSG also has a whole mythology to boot. It too, of course, upset people!

TerrorFirmer · 14-05-2019 11:42am

That's a great point. I was actually thinking along the lines of similarly themed medieval/fantasy/historical shows, but Battlestar actually is probably far closer than all in being so incredibly strong on the character/overall narrative front and having tonnes of twists and turns along the way. And, of course, incredibly rich production values. Like GOT, it was about so much more than just "good guys versus bad guys" despite the obvious premise.

Spartacus, GOT and BSG are probably my holy trinity of favourite shows ever.

Sleepy · 14-05-2019 12:06pm

For those who like High Fantasy and can overlook some occasionally ropy acting, The Shanara Chronicles, while far more like Lord of the Rings than Game of Thrones, in terms of it's simplistic story-telling was far more enjoyable than I expected it to be.

Loafing Oaf · 14-05-2019 12:35pm

is_that_so wrote: »

I thought Rome was excellent. Cost a bomb which is why they axed it.

were there really further series planned? Seemed to come to a natural end at the conclusion of S2...I wonder does the TV Cersei take some inspiration from Rome's Atia.

I'm hoping the forthcoming Amazon Tolkien series will fill the GoT-shaped hole in my life. Looks like we could be a while waiting for it though...

is_that_so · 14-05-2019 12:41pm

Loafing Oaf wrote: »

were there really further series planned? Seemed to come to a natural end at the conclusion of S2...I wonder does the TV Cersei take some inspiration from Rome's Atia.

I'm hoping the forthcoming Amazon Tolkien series will fill the GoT-shaped hole in my life. Looks like we could be a while waiting for it though...

They had a two year contract with the BBC/HBO, which was not extended due to cost. You can see all that cost on-screen! Bruno Heller had plans for 2-3 more seasons and a film.

Greyfox · 14-05-2019 12:43pm

is_that_so wrote: »

BSG also has a whole mythology to boot. It too, of course, upset people!

BSG was amazing, its like the wire set in space

Loafing Oaf · 14-05-2019 1:01pm

is_that_so wrote: »

They had a two year contract with the BBC/HBO, which was not extended due to cost. You can see all that cost on-screen! Bruno Heller had plans for 2-3 more seasons and a film.

Oh right. I vaguely remember something about a movie but I'm surprised they were planning more series. The drama kind of drained out of Octavian's life once he consolidated power. Plus you'd be covering the same ground as I, Claudius. Maybe it was going to focus on "the further adventures of Titus and Lucius"

Flying Abruptly · 17-05-2019 2:17pm

The_Honeybadger wrote: »

....

Somebody on here at some stage recommended Black Sails which is a crude pirate adventure series. I watched a few episodes and didn’t think it was great there are several seasons so it must be popular I might come back to it at some stage.

...

Black Sails is a great show, really gets going towards the end of season 1. Don't understand why it's not more popular. It has the politics, history and fantastic naval battle scenes.

TerrorFirmer · 17-05-2019 2:21pm

Flying Abruptly wrote: »

Black Sails is a great show, really gets going towards the end of season 1. Don't understand why it's not more popular. It has the politics, history and fantastic naval battle scenes.

It has ridiculously decent production values for a show that wasn't even that popular. Around 500K viewers per episode.

It's a much slower and more thoughtful show than you'd expect too once it settles down. I enjoyed it personally.

Plus, Dickon Tarly is a cast main in it.

nix · 17-05-2019 2:29pm

I did enjoy black sails, but i felt it started strong and got progressively weaker, but still great overall.

I'm currently enjoying Rome, so thanks for the reminder ya'll

hgfj · 17-05-2019 2:35pm

I just finished watching Black Summer. A ten episode season. All episodes are only 35 mins long except for the last two which are 24 mins and 21 mins. Each episode feels like its an hour long. I binged watched it over two nights. It's a zombie type show akin to the walking dead but far, far superior. Tense and intelligent. Best show I've seen for a long time.

Taboo was another really good show. Only one season out so far. Has Tom Hardy as the main actor.

yourdeadwright · 17-05-2019 2:38pm

Isn't the wheel of time being made into a tv series

Sleepy · 17-05-2019 2:54pm

yourdeadwright wrote:

Isn't the wheel of time being made into a tv series

Yep, but the source material is ****e by modern fantasy standards. It was ground-breaking in it's day due to the sheer scope of the story and the world-building put into it but it suffers from some awful prose writing, goes into a slump after the 6th book and suffers from shallow, one-dimensional characters who are, for the most part, stupid. It'll need a hell of a polish to make something good out of it.

Black Flags I gave up on somewhere around the 3rd Season I think. I really liked it at first but it just went on too long.

is_that_so · 17-05-2019 2:56pm

Flying Abruptly wrote: »

Black Sails is a great show, really gets going towards the end of season 1. Don't understand why it's not more popular. It has the politics, history and fantastic naval battle scenes.

Stuck with it for two seasons, which I enjoyed, but then dropped it. All too predictable after a while and as mentioned above it started to get a lot weaker.

OneOfThem Stumbled · 17-05-2019 3:57pm

Greyfox wrote: »

BSG was amazing, its like the wire set in space

Bubby hill it was fraking gritty as felgercarb. Damnit!

Liam O · 17-05-2019 5:05pm

If you can get over some dodgy accents then Borgia kind of captures the political intrigue I think. Really enjoyed it but a lot of people find it tough to get over the Mish mash of accents.

amacca · 17-05-2019 7:21pm

mewso wrote: »

I would also love to see Stephen Donaldson's Gap Cycle made into a TV show.

Yup.....imo it would be perfect for a series if it was done properly.

beauf · 17-05-2019 10:04pm

amacca wrote: »

Yup.....imo it would be perfect for a series if it was done properly.

Great trilogy but not for the depressed would be The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant.

Dyr · 18-05-2019 2:10pm

IAMAMORON wrote: »

Looking forward to Watchmen , out in the Autumn. Looks class.

Are you mental? That looks like pure dog****. Trump Derangement Syndrome is like hulkmania now...out of control.

s7ryf3925pivug · 18-05-2019 3:18pm

BsG was great, but had a stupid ending.

Thought The Last Kingdom was like a single threaded non-fantasy version of Game of Thrones.

is_that_so · 19-05-2019 10:17am

Richard Eager Mall wrote: »

BsG was great, but had a stupid ending.

Thought The Last Kingdom was like a single threaded non-fantasy version of Game of Thrones.

The BSG ending grows less annoying with repeated watching, but still too long though.
The Last Kingdom is loosely based on actual people and actual history, i.e. the first dominant king in England, so it was on a loser from the start!

s7ryf3925pivug · 19-05-2019 10:44am

is_that_so wrote: »

The BSG ending grows less annoying with repeated watching, but still too long though.
The Last Kingdom is loosely based on actual people and actual history, i.e. the first dominant king in England, so it was on a loser from the start!

Yeah I knew that about The Last Kingdom. I read some of the books too. Bernard Cornwall, who wrote other historical fiction including the Sharpe novels. They're good, entertaining light reading.

Stop moaning ffs · 19-05-2019 6:28pm

Knightfall
All about the knights Templar and the holy grail. And politics ridin and killing.
Mark Hamill is in the second season.
Few people I know love it. I’ve only seen the first episode. Obviously a huge budget. Great production values.
Waiting for thrones to finish to jump in properly.

beauf · 19-05-2019 6:30pm

I must check that out...

Stop moaning ffs · 19-05-2019 7:19pm

beauf wrote: »

I must check that out...

I don’t know how to do the thing with the thing but here’s a link to the trailer on YouTube for the first season

https://youtu.be/F9dtepkeR0I

Loafing Oaf · 19-05-2019 7:26pm

If you're looking for something purely historical, the mini-series Charles II: The Power and the Passion is a favourite of mine.

Shows like Game of Thrones

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