
I don’t watch ‘Game of Thrones’
Whatever will I do?
“For the show’s countless fans, the Season 7 premiere on July 16 marked the much-anticipated start to what will be two glorious months of premium television entertainment.
But for those who Just Say No to Jon Snow, it marked the start of two months of confusing references, absentee friends, and the not-so-gentle admonishments of the “Thrones”-loving masses.”
— The Boston Globe
Apparently, “Game of Thrones” is such a thing that there’s a need to write articles about or for people who don’t watch it, like me.
Take, for instance, this from today’s Boston Globe, where we’re introduced to Mike Marre, for whom Mondays used to mean talking Red Sox or Patriots with his co-workers, “only to discover that the water-cooler conversation has become once again dominated by talk of dragons, medieval queens, and the happenings in some faraway land called Westeros.”
“I feel like the dork at the middle school dance,” says Marre, “standing in the back with nothing to talk about.”
Last week, one of my favorites, Alyssa Rosenberg of The Washington Post, wrote a handy guide that folks like Mike can use.
“If you don’t watch ‘Game of Thrones’ and don’t intend to, that’s okay! To each their own! But if you’d like to avoid being talked into watching ‘Game of Thrones’ by everyone you meet, or to understand the references you see everywhere, here’s your guide to the most important bits of what you’re hearing when the show comes up in conversation — with suggestions for what will make you sound smart if you get dragged into a ‘Game of Thrones’ exchange by accident.”
If I watched “Game of Thrones,” I’d read Rosenberg’s reviews for sure — after all, she is one of my favorites — but I tried reading her guide and most of it went over my head.
Plus pulling the cheat sheet out of my pocket or calling it up on my phone would be really awkward … “Hold on … hold on … <scrolling, scrolling> ah, yes, Euron Greyjoy …” before spouting off the one line she provides.
So why don’t I watch? Well, it’s something I don’t like talking about much in public, but …
… the show just doesn’t really interest me.
I never read the books, and fantasy worlds aren’t really my thing.
People who are into it, knock yourselves out … I’ll be over here talking sports with Mike.
I don’t like the Red Sox or Patriots, but I think we can figure something out.

