Are parallels with reality the secret to Game of Thrones' success?

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By CGTN's The Point

The much-awaited TV series "Game of Thrones" has just returned for Season 7. But besides the gripping plots and murderous characters, the parallels between the show and reality are one of the reasons viewers keep coming back, according to one expert.

“Everything that happens (in the TV series) is fantasy, and people want to draw parallels,” current affairs commentator Einar Tangen told CGTN’s The Point with Liu Xin.

“What we really have is religion, power, ego, money all being mixed together and you see the results of what it is. So it’s very easy to see parallels in the world we have today. You have somebody like Donald Trump who could be easily a Lannister,” he added.

People today are less concerned with facts than how they feel about something or someone, and this is the same with "Game of Thrones," Tangen agreed. Viewers are drawn by larger-than-life characters, who resonate with them just from the point of view of human nature, he said.

Based on the best-selling book "A Song of Fire and Ice" by George R. R. Martin, "Game of Thrones" is HBO’s most popular TV series of all time, shown in 170 countries.

The six seasons so far have attracted record viewership and according to media reports, it has also been illegally downloaded more times than any other programs since its first release in 2011.

The Point with Liu Xin is a 30-minute current affairs program on CGTN. It airs weekdays at 9.30 p.m. BJT (1330GMT), with rebroadcasts at 5.30 a.m. (2130GMT) and 10.30 a.m. (0230GMT).