Rachael Stevens has watched Game of Thrones since its debut in 2011.
The seventh season of HBO’s hit-series concluded Sunday — its season premiere, “Dragonstone,” had more than 16 million viewers, breaking previous HBO records.
As the show heads into its final season, the popularity of the show continues to grow because of the use of plot devices and its medieval setting.
Stevens, a junior studying communication sciences and disorders, likes the medieval style that Game of Thrones uses and the show’s characters.
“I really grew to like all of the characters,” she said.
Akil Houston, an associate professor of African American studies at Ohio University, believes the development of the plot and characters bring people to the TV and computer screens every week to watch the fantasy show.
Game of Thrones is notorious for killing off its characters, a tactic that adds to the suspense of the show, Houston said.
“You never know who is going to be the next to go,” he said. “The unexpected is something that people love to see.”
Houston watches the show, but not religiously, he said. He likes to see how the show affects people and pop culture.
The “human experience” is something that is reflected in the shows despite the fantasy elements, he said.
“There are some aspects that are very real. We want to believe that inherently people are good (and) their moral (compass) points to doing good, but some people are just not,” Houston said. “I think these shows give us that reality that ‘no, this is not a good guy. All of the motivation of this particular character are motivated by self interest.’”
The power dynamic between all of the characters in Game of Thrones is something that is relatable to real life. The idea that people are vying for control and putting a “finger on the pulse of anybody who might think that they have an opportunity to rise up,” Houston said.
Stevens thinks the action and plot adds to the viewing experience.
“It’s never ever boring,” she said. “Every episode has something, and it surprises you.”
