I have never watched an entire episode of Game of Thrones. That kind of fantasy genre has never really been my thing, and the snippets of episodes I have seen have been... odd, to say the least. The first encounter I ever had with the show was a scene of two people getting it on in a medieval bathtub whilst discussing dragons. After that I generally avoided the series. With season seven underway, it is hard to go through your day without seeing an article or hearing your friends talk about it. Although I won't be starting the series anytime soon (AKA never), I do have to accept that I will inevitably be sucked into conversations about it with my friends, which I don't particularly mind. I'll just be really, REALLY lost the entire time. If you also have friends that are obsessed with the show, odds are you've done at least a couple of these things to try and engage with your Game of Thrones diehards.
1. Naively asking someone to summarize GoT
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A rookie mistake that we all made in the beginning. There's just too much to learn.
2. Acting interested in plotlines you know nothing about
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Even the most skilled of us won't be able to pick up all the character names and plotlines after on conversation with a GoT fan, no matter how hard we try. I try to be an enthusiastic listener, but I'm not about to whip out a notebook to keep track of everything.
3. Avoiding controversial opinions
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I've been asked my opinion on multiple occasions. As fun as watching your friends debate is, it isn't as great when you have no idea what they're talking about. Plus, these fights can last as long as winter does in the show. Wish them luck and let them duke it out.
4. Pulling the "spoilers" card to avoid the conversation
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Look, I would be lying if I said I've never told someone I don't want to talk about GoT because I am going to start watching it soon. I love when my friends are excited about a book or a show that they like, but alas, I don't always want to hear about the latest fan theory.
5. Asking basic questions to the point of annoyance
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On the flip side, sometimes I totally want to talk about my friends' fav show. Which means I end up asking a lot of "Who is that again?" and "Wait, what happened?" kind of questions. It can exasperate even the most seasoned GoT fans.
6. Trying to figure out what characters to root for
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In a similar vein, I still don't really know who I'm supposed to be cheering on. The white-haired dragon lady? The pale guy who's last name is an icy precipitation? Who knows?
7. Pretending to make meaningful commentary
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8. Thinking the conversation is over but...
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There's always one last thing to talk about. And I get it, there's a lot to cover between the books and the series, but I have places to be and other TV series to watch.
9. Avoiding the fans who are a little... much
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Most GoT fans are great, but every fandom has its thorns. There's nothing worse than encountering a fan who thinks they themselves belong in a GoT knowledge hall of fame.
10. Pretending you've seen the show
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I don't always lie about watching DoT, but when I do, it's to avoid public shame and I always get called out on my lies and end up making a bigger fool of myself.
11. Loving the dragons
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You might have no idea about what's going on in the show, but who doesn't like dragons?
