Y'know, I thought I would watch that series when I subscribed to the Canadian streaming service that carries HBO, but whenever I consider it, I just can't bring myself to tune in.

I read all the books when they were published and found it fascinating, but parts of the story are so grim and violent that I could hardly get through them in print, when I could flip to another chapter to see who survived (if anyone) before going back to catch up on the details. Some of the characters -- Roose Bolton, for example -- are so repellent that I emphatically don't want to see them brought to life. If the HBO version were not even gorier and sadder than the original, it might have more appeal, but it is, so it doesn't.