Winter… err Season 3, is coming…

It may seem that winter is in full swing, especially here in mid-Missouri where we’ve got about 15 inches of snow on the ground at the moment. I feel like all I can do is complain about the snow and the winter weather. If you’re from north of Missouri (or west as of late), you might be saying, “you don’t know winter.” Well, that is probably true in comparison. Needless to say, not very many people are excited for winter, looking forward to it or hoping for a long, cold, snowy winter. However, right now I’ve never been so excited to have winter continue into spring. Huh? Winter is coming… it is not yet upon us, that is, winter in Game of Thrones. Winter will be here on March 31^st, when HBO’s adaptation of the George R. R. Martin books will debut its third season.

I never thought I’d be into a fantasy show revolving around dragons, war, beasts and kings, but alas, I am. That is why when I saw this impressive print ad (yes, I said print ad) for one of my favorite shows, I just had to share it.

I LOVE the shadow over the fake news stories… it would have been especially neat if they could get this over real news stories, but it makes its point all the same. This is a great example of a creative way to get a reader to stop, look and take in your message. With the downturn in print (actual news print) one must be very creative in this space to get as much as you can out of this medium. I must say, this wouldn’t work quite as well on the old iPad screen; it would just look like another ad rolling over, click the “X” and it’s gone. Now the next question would be, is the Game of Thrones audience reading the New York Times on a Monday? That I cannot say for sure, but I do know they nailed the execution. Side note:  I showed the ad to someone in our social media department (also a big fan) who wanted to frame the ad. How ironic—expert in one of the newest forms of media coveting one of the oldest forms of media.
Season 3 is set to premiere on Sunday, March 31^st at 9EST/8 CST on HBO. Season 2’s finale grabbed more than 5.1 million viewers on the evening of the original airing, significantly more than the Season 1 finale. This show is gaining viewers as the story lines get more intertwined, which isn’t very common in a plot as complicated as GoT. This may be attributed to more of those “I’m going to read the books first” folks, finishing the massive paperbacks and turning to see how the books are adapted and play out in live action. I’m not one of those, so I have no idea what is going to happen and cannot wait!