trailer break: ‘Game of Thrones’

Could it be? Serious high fantasy given a serious treatment by TV? Could this be the Battlestar Galactica of high fantasy?

I haven’t read the George R.R. Martin novels these are based on, but I just downloaded the Kindle sample of the first one, from which the series takes its name [Amazon U.S.] [Amazon Canada] [Amazon U.K.]. Now the question is, do I wait till I’ve seen some of the series before I start reading, so that whatever happens on the show is a surprise? Or do I jump right in?

The fact that Sean Bean stars in this, and that Peter Dinklage also appears, means this would be pretty much a must-see for me anyway, even it weren’t high fantasy treated seriously.

Need more? Check out this 14-minute-long preview:

My interest is definitely piqued.

Game of Thrones debuts in the U.S. and Canada on HBO on April 17, and in the U.K. on Sky Atlantic on April 18.