[Televisionary]

HBO has today unveiled the official poster for its upcoming launch of Game of Thrones , kicking off Sunday, April 17th at 9 pm ET/PT. Depicting Ned Stark (Sean Bean) on the Iron Throne, it's a stark (heh) use of imagery that highlights the violent nature of the show's plot and the war that threatens to overtake the land of Westeros. When men play at the game of thrones, who will win and who will pay the heaviest price? The poster's tagline? "You Win Or You Die." Fitting, no? You can check out a larger version of the poster below... Game of Thrones premieres Sunday, April 17th on HBO.

"Hold tight." While the walls have been closing in on the Henricksons for some time now (really, almost since the start of the series), the stakes have never been higher for the polygamist family, beset from all sides. It's impossible not to feel that the endgame is finally here as the countdown to the series finale begins. (Are there really just two episodes left?) On this week's episode of Big Love ("The Noose Tightens"), written by Seth Greenland and directed by David Knoller, the noose certainly did tighten around the family's collective neck, as law enforcement officials closed in on Bill and Barb, Margene took a stand against just about everyone, and Nicki came face to face with the madness that has overtaken her brother Alby. In a series that's been overflowing with twists and turns, this week's installment might rank up there with some of the craziest, most jaw-dropping episodes to date, a rollercoaster ride of betrayal, deceit, murder,

The fans are hungry for blood. Or, in this case, more True Blood , which doesn't return for another few months yet, sadly. However, the cast and crew of HBO's seductive vampire drama was on hand last night for the Paley Festival's True Blood panel, which brought together an astonishing 17 actors from the series on stage with creator Alan Ball. The evening, moderated by TV Guide Magazine 's Debra Birnbaum, kicked off with a selection from the Paley Center's archives--in this case, a fitting scene from the pilot episode of the similarly fanged Buffy the Vampire Slayer --before presenting a sizzle reel from the first three seasons of True Blood ... and a scene from the upcoming fourth season. So just what did we lucky attendees get to see from Season Four? The scene that Ball presented was set outside Fangtasia as a mob gathered outside the club to protest, chanting "Steve Newman's right; you're devils of the night." (Hmmm, any chance we might get to

Winter is coming a little earlier than expected... HBO will give Game of Thrones fans a chance to catch 15-minutes of the April 17th series premiere a few weeks early, with a one-time airing on April 3rd at 9 pm ET/PT. The 15-minute teaser, or "exclusive preview" in HBO parlance, will air on HBO's linear channel just once, before it's made available the following day on HBO.com, HBO on Demand, and via the premium cable channel's subscriber-only online service, HBO Go. The series itself, meanwhile, is slated to kick off its ten-episode season on Sunday, April 17th at 9 pm ET/PT. The full press release from HBO can be found below. HBO PRESENTS 15-MINUTE GAME OF THRONES EXCLUSIVE PREVIEW APRIL 3 HBO will present – for the first time – a sneak peek of the first 15 minutes of the first episode of a new series when GAME OF THRONES EXCLUSIVE PREVIEW debuts SUNDAY, APRIL 3 at 9:00 p.m. (ET/PT). Following this one-time-only play, GAME OF THRONES EXCLUSIVE PREVIEW will be

I have traveled to Pentos and the Inn at the Crossroads. Thanks to HBO (and Campfire)'s new immersive experience The Maester's Path, I've accrued the first link in my maester's chain. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, then you haven't read George R.R. Martin's "A Game of Thrones," the first in the author's multi-volume novel series which is about to hit the airwaves next month as HBO's Game of Thrones . Last week, I tweeted that I had received an ornate wooden box from HBO containing scrolls, vials of various scents (from incense and pear brandy to wood beams and salt harbor). Following the instructions (lovingly embodied in a series of hand-tied scrolls), I was directed to mix the scents to create two blends, each one embodying two locations within the world of Game of Thrones . Pear brandy, wooden beams, and crusty bread combined to form the heady perfume of the Inn at the Crossroads, while salt harbor, incense, and spice market

"We're on separate paths." - Adaleen While the Henricksons have overcome many huge obstacles over the last five seasons, it seems as though the thing that's tearing them apart might be themselves. Through thick and thin, through betrayal and compromise, Bill and his wives have always seen past the here and now to the eternal, to the celestial kingdom where their family would spend forever walking hand in hand. But that eternal happiness is now being called into question, as is their felicity among the quotidian existence of life on earth. This week's episode of Big Love ("Til Death Do Us Part"), written by Aaron Allen and directed by David Petrarca, found the Henricksons besieged on all sides: from Albert Grant's vengeful vendetta against Bill, to the LDS Church, and among themselves, as the paper wedding of Bill and Nicki fast approached. We've been told that their marriage is a legal formality, a means to an end as it would allow the two to le

It's fitting in a way that the resolution to Barb and Bill's current problems--or, at least specifically, the question of Cara Lynn's protection--should occur at the spot where their relationship truly began: at the stone bench where Bill proposed to Barb all of those years ago. On this week's episode of Big Love ("The Special Relationship"), written by Patricia Breen and directed by David Petrarca, we witnessed what might just be the end of Bill and Barb's marriage, or at least the legal, paper version of it. While Bill reassures Barb that they would still be sealed for eternity, the sting of his suggestion is evident: in order to safeguard Cara Lynn's future, Bill would have to marry Nicki. Which means legally divorcing Barb. Let's be honest: Bill has always had a special relationship with his first wife and rightly so. Of all of his wives, Barb was the one with whom he has spent not only the most time, but also spent as man and (single) wife. T

"It's all been such a waste." - Lois Throughout its run, Big Love has sought to shine a light on the abuses of the polygamist lifestyle and belief system that the Henricksons adhere to, offering a spectrum of fundamentalism through which to see the center at its core. For all of the abuses at Juniper Creek, the old ways embraced by Roman Grant and his false prophet son Albert, they seem infinitely more sane than, say, the Greenes or Bud Mayberry. This prism has been useful in the past because it clearly establishes that the Henricksons don't walk the fine line that many other believers of the Principle do. In their vision of this religion, there is the semblance of free will: there are no forcible sealings, no teenage brides, no breaking of laws or inverting the beauty of the divine Principle. But that's not quite the case as we learned last week. Bill Henrickson, as we know, did take an underage bride in Margene, attempting to rationalize and sanctify that most

"We're not holy. We're all unholy." - Barb As dire as things have been for the Henricksons in the past, things looked especially bleak at Christmas, even as Bill noted that they had made it through the darkest day of the year and into the light. But that's the problem with the sunlight sometimes: in the harsh light of day, you can't avoid the seeing the truth right in front of you. Things are not what they seem: plum pudding contains no plums, after all. On this week's gut-wrenching episode of Big Love ("Certain Poor Shepherds"), written by Jami OʼBrien and directed by David Petrarca, the family has to contend that their own inner secrets may be the thing that destroys them in the end. Even as they make their way onto the ice--to the ironic strains of ABBA's "Knowing Me, Knowing You"--in a show of unity, Bill and his wives are anything but a singular unit, each concealing something in turn, a hurtful truth that puts further strain

"I'm trying to win a place at the table." - Bill Many mourned the loss of the original opening credits of Big Love . Set to The Beach Boys' "God Only Knows," it offered a look at the celestial family created by the Henricksons, a glimpse into the eternity offered to their family. But of late, the new credits, which hauntingly depict the various members of the Henrickson family in a state of freefall, seem all the more appropriate, as the clan continues to come apart at the seams. And as each of them searches for their own definition of "home." This week's evocative and powerful episode of Big Love ("A Seat at the Table"), written by Julia Cho and directed by Adam Davidson, found each of the wives grappling with their own inner compass in the wake of their public outing. Revealed to be "lying polygamists," each of the three wives attempts to find a new path for themselves. For Margene, it's the effort to prevent any furt

"My brother has his sword and I have my mind." - Tyrion HBO has released its newest teaser trailer for its upcoming adaptation of George R.R. Martin's Game of Thrones , launching April 17th. (Yes, I'm sure your calendars are marked. Get your lemon cakes ready.) Unlike the staggering trailer that the pay cabler unveiled last weekend at the Television Critics Association Winter Press Tour--which I'm still hoping they release online soon--this teaser is more atmospheric than anything else, playing up the visual of the Iron Throne as a backdrop for the characters themselves, each of whom gets the chance to whisper a single line of dialogue that sums up their characters' inner struggles. Provocative and eye-catching, yes, but it doesn't quite have the snap and sparkle of the one that HBO showed at their Game of Thrones session. I do love, however, that they looked to offer a primer on the diverse characters of the show, setting up the central conflicts and the

"I don't even know what the road in front of us is going to look like." - Bill In terms of the narrative of Big Love , which entered its last season with this week's evocative episode ("Winter"), written by Mark V. Olsen & Will Scheffer and directed by David Petrarca, roughly a week has gone by since the Henricksons publicly outed themselves as polygamists, joining together on stage in a symbolic gesture of unity. Finding them as the fifth season begins, the family has fled Sandy for the isolation of the desert, embarking on a camping trip together both as an act of escape and also one of healing. But the old slights still sting. The Henrickson family is in recovery mode, the wreckage from their act of courage still smoldering around them. Their trip to the wilderness is a reactive move, a reversal from their bravery in the face of those flashing cameras. The fallout has been severe as we see from this week's installment: Margene loses her job and he