George R.R. Martin is a master at creating iconic villains. Just think of Joffrey or Cersei from the books and the series of Game of Thrones. For this, he follows a simple rule when writing.
Game of Thrones is a story full of memorable characters. Especially the antagonists remain in memory and evoke emotional reactions in the readers and viewers of the books and the TV series, just think of Joffrey or Cersei, whose complete story is partly missing in the series.
Writing a good villain is not that easy. However, George R.R. Martin, the author of the book series, employs a trick when creating these characters, making them three-dimensional and lifelike.
Villains are also human
What is the trick? In a conversation with BGR, the writer spoke about his work and explained that it is important to write real people – not just caricatures that can do nothing but be evil.
The characters must have a clear goal and feel real emotions. This makes their actions easier to explain, and they do not seem arbitrary. George R.R. Martin elaborates:
I do not try to write someone who says, “Oh, I am a villain. Let me just get up today, go out, play the villain, and plunge the world into darkness.” They all have problems. They all have wounds and things that drive them to do the things they do.
George R.R. Martin via BGR
This way, one can better understand a villain’s actions at certain moments – because they make sense from their perspective. They have strengths and weaknesses, make mistakes, and celebrate successes. These characters do not become any less despicable, but they remain memorable.
Does the rule only apply to the bad? No, because just like the antagonists, the “good” characters in George R.R. Martin’s work are also ambiguous and can become quite dangerous. Even a character who behaves heroically at some moments can perform a morally questionable act in the next.
So it is not surprising that the characters, whether good or evil, are one of the great strengths of George R.R. Martin’s books. The author prevents a monotonous, black-and-white view of his fantasy worlds – everything is supposed to feel realistic and understandable. This leads to really great characters and strong episodes in the series. Accordingly, we have a list on MeinMMO: The 10 best episodes of Game of Thrones ranked according to IMDb
