Recently, Unilad published an article about how some fans of the Netflix historical fiction series The Last Kingdom found it a better show than HBO’s game of Thronesand it might actually be one of the best shows of all time. They’re wrong, but not as badly as you might think.
To be clear: This is not a treatise on how The Last Kingdom is not a great TV series. It is a fantastic, swashbuckling, wild rampage through an interesting period of British history that is rarely presented in a digestible way. I love The Last Kingdom and I saw it three times. I read The Saxon Stories I have read Bernard Cornwell’s books several times, and as a reader you have the luxury of knowing that the book series is complete. That is a big plus for the series.
The Last Kingdom has so many endearing things: a lovable, intrepid hero in Uhtred, numerous strong supporting characters like Finan, Brida, Beocca and Hild, to name a few. It is also based on a true story. It covers the events surrounding the unification of Britain in the 9th and 10th centuries from the point of view of the fictional Uhtred.
The reasons for The Last Kingdom’The greatness and enduring entertainment value of the film lies in the incredible performance of Alexander Dreymon as Uhtred and the quality of Bernard Cornwell’s original work.
As good as The Last Kingdom is that the plot is quite linear. Through all the seasons and the subsequent film, Seven kings must dieThe show was about telling the story of how the Saxons managed to unite and fight off the invading Danes, something the British had failed to do four centuries earlier when the Saxons were the invaders.
Although the journey through each season was different, it was somehow the same in each season. Uhtred had to outwit this or that Danish villain, each one seemingly more terrifying than the last.
Many will be waiting for the end of game of Throneswhich, as we can all admit, was not great, but The Last Kingdom also somehow spoiled the ending, this time by squeezing the contents of two books into a two-hour film that was reluctant to clarify the passage of time for the audience.
While The Last Kingdom was pretty straightforward about what was going on, game of Thrones was anything but that. It was full of twists, intrigue and deceit, love and betrayal. Instead of having a clear main character, game of Thrones had several main characters that you could love or hate depending on which one appeared in the episode. If you love villains, no series has ever had more absolutely fantastic villains than game of Thrones.
Tyrion is as great a character in his own way as Uhtred. Who didn’t fight for Arya? What about Jon Snow and Sansa Stark? And Daenerys Targaryen (until the end)? For every terrible villain in The Last Kingdomthere were three in game of Thrones.
The Last Kingdom The production scale was also much smaller. There were castles and fortresses, but they were scaled down to reflect the harsh historical period. Many exterior scenes were shot at various locations in the British countryside.
game of Thrones was a great production, shot in many locations and countries with lavish sets and CGI enhancements. There are some people who probably dislike the stripped down production and straightforward storylines of The Last Kingdomand there is nothing wrong with that.
In short, game of Thrones is simply more. More production, more characters to love and hate, more plot lines and twists, and of course, more dragons.
George R. R. Martins A Song of Ice and Fire book series, although unfinished, is unparalleled in the fantasy genre. When he makes the effort to write, his prose is as good as it gets. This is by no means a knock against Cornwell (not a fantasy author, but a historical novelist). I personally own and have read more than 40 books by him, and he is one of my favorite authors. The best thing about him is that he is an author who actually writes, unlike Martin who is stuck on The Winds of Winterthe next book in his saga, in well over a decade.
Who knows how the end of game of Thrones would have gone if Martin had finished the last two books in the series sometime within the nine years the series ran? I didn’t hate the final season as much as some, although I wasn’t thrilled with the last few episodes. They were still better than the movie that ended The Last Kingdom.
game of Thrones changed television forever. Without it, we might not even have The Last Kingdom. But one thing is absolutely certain: you can love both of them. They are both spectacular and great entertainment. Both have characters you can love and hate. Simply because game of Thrones is the (slightly) better show, on almost every level or criterion, that doesn’t mean you can’t love Uhtred and The Last Kingdom and enjoy every wonderful moment of it.
Next. The author of “The Last Kingdom” offers a realistic interpretation of the Arthurian legend in the series “The Winter King”. The author of “The Last Kingdom” offers a realistic interpretation of the Arthurian legend in the series “The Winter King”. dark
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