Winter is Coming to HBO.

After two years of sitting on the rights, HBO has actually commissioned a pilot of George R.R. Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire series, with the idea that the series would tackle one epic book per season. The Live Feed points out here that HBO has 10 pilots in competition with no way of knowing how many shows they’re looking to produce in full, so no wild parties yet. On the other hand, even if it doesn’t get the nod, we’ll at least get an hour of the beginning of Game of Thrones and the extremely yummy Ned Stark. And if HBO does the whole series, oh! how exciting. I’m thinking of the absolutely beautiful production values on its now-done-with Deadwood, Rome, and Carnivale. I want the show to look rich and complex—lush furs and velvets, the icy plains of Winterfell—but most of all, I want it to stay as much a political thriller as a swords-and-horses set piece. I do worry, but apparently George R.R. Martin has read the script for the pilot and likes it. He says on his blog that “all of you can relax, it’s very faithful.” Here’s hoping for a full series!

Dream cast, anyone? I’m voting Molly Parker for Caitlin Stark, for starters. (Also, please, from the bottom of my heart, no spoilers in the comments, or white them out.)