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 Shadow Captain Edithae wrote:
Watching the episode for the second time now. Skipped straight to Hardhome.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 DarkLink wrote:


I like the books... but the show is an improvement.

Not always.

Did I say that every single aspect of every single scene is better than every single equivalent in the books?

 Shadow Captain Edithae wrote:
Watching the episode for the second time now. Skipped straight to Hardhome.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 DarkLink wrote:


I like the books... but the show is an improvement.

Not always.

Because That was the most important part and most interesting bit.

It feels like they're going to send Sam and Gilly south to get help from the crown/other lords (which would tie into the beginning of the season with Jon and Sam sending the letters) or he'll head to Oldtown to train, taking Gilly/little Sam with him.

I wish Maester Aemon had gotten to give his little speech from the books before he passed, but the show is probably taking it in another direction.

As for the Fire/Ice balance, I think it's going to have some connection. Dragons came into the world just around the time that Walkers were beginning to rise and push south. GRRM hasn't really explained how magic works in his world, but there was probably some sort of premonition/feeling in the air with all the blood magic sacrifices which then lead to the rebirth of dragons into the world. Dragons are directly tied to fire and magic. Walkers are directly tied to ice and magic. Both have followers that can raise the dead and with the exception of the High Sparrow stuff, all the religious talk has been about the Lord of Light/Rh'llor vs. The Great Other.

But I think they'll use Sam's reading as a way to start to dig out the information, as they've had Jon, Aemon, and Stannis all tell him to keep finding out whatever he can.

 Asherian Command wrote:

 Shadow Captain Edithae wrote:
Watching the episode for the second time now. Skipped straight to Hardhome.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 DarkLink wrote:


I like the books... but the show is an improvement.

Not always.

Because That was the most important part and most interesting bit.

And it's important to keep in mind that different medium have different strenghts and weaknesses. Most of the changes I've heard people complain about simply wouldn't work well on screen, and so they had to do something different. Like, if the series went into as much detail with exposition and backstory, we'd still be in about book 3. So inherently, certain aspects of any story are better presented in book form, just like other aspects are better as a tv show. But the overall series is a refinement on the books.

 Asherian Command wrote:

 gorgon wrote:

 Hulksmash wrote:

 gorgon wrote:

To me, that world seems like a land steeped in forgetfulness. They've forgotten about the true nature of magic, the true nature of R'hllor and the Others, the reason for the conflict with the Others, the original purpose of the Wall and Night's Watch, etc. And personally I feel like Martin will explore many of those things before the series is over. Maybe I'm wrong. *shrug*

Martin might. But it will be through 76 POV characters that no one has heard from before and they will all be in the next book which won't cover a single thing about existing characters except for a tease that some day Dany and Tyrion might meet.....

Love the show. Loathe Martin as an author.

As an author? I dunno. If you're going to punish him for the last two books, you still have to praise him for the first three.

As a person...well, it almost seems at times that his entire goal has become to troll his own fans.

Which is why people don't like him.

His books are great. But they are not the literary work of a genius.

They still have many flaws.

As does The Lord of the Rings. *shrug*


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 Dr. What wrote:
It feels like they're going to send Sam and Gilly south to get help from the crown/other lords (which would tie into the beginning of the season with Jon and Sam sending the letters) or he'll head to Oldtown to train, taking Gilly/little Sam with him.

I wish Maester Aemon had gotten to give his little speech from the books before he passed, but the show is probably taking it in another direction.

As for the Fire/Ice balance, I think it's going to have some connection. Dragons came into the world just around the time that Walkers were beginning to rise and push south. GRRM hasn't really explained how magic works in his world, but there was probably some sort of premonition/feeling in the air with all the blood magic sacrifices which then lead to the rebirth of dragons into the world. Dragons are directly tied to fire and magic. Walkers are directly tied to ice and magic. Both have followers that can raise the dead and with the exception of the High Sparrow stuff, all the religious talk has been about the Lord of Light/Rh'llor vs. The Great Other.

But I think they'll use Sam's reading as a way to start to dig out the information, as they've had Jon, Aemon, and Stannis all tell him to keep finding out whatever he can.

More and more I think the balance of ice and fire is the key concept in the series, instead of the conflict of ice and fire, if that makes sense.

Also consider that during this awakening we have Daenerys and her emerging dragon affinity abilities (passed to her line from the Valyrians?) on one side and the Starks and their emerging Warg abilities (passed to their line from the Others/WW?) on the other.

And of course there's a certain someone who may embody that balance. Which has me wondering if the Prince That Was Promised will end up being more of a peacemaker than a warleader.

 gorgon wrote:


And of course there's a certain someone who may embody that balance. Which has me wondering if the Prince That Was Promised will end up being more of a peacemaker than a warleader.

Which is exactly what I think Azor Ahai/The Last Hero was and that the Night's King/ The Wall are products of it.

Where an Earth is Brann this season btw?

 Ratius wrote:
Where an Earth is Brann this season btw?

Hibernating.

 Ratius wrote:
Where an Earth is Brann this season btw?

Where is Varys?

 Sigvatr wrote:

 Ratius wrote:
Where an Earth is Brann this season btw?

Where is Varys?

Good question.

 Asherian Command wrote:

 Sigvatr wrote:

 Ratius wrote:
Where an Earth is Brann this season btw?

Where is Varys?

Good question.

With the confirmation that Kevan Lannister has been summoned back to King's Landing to serve as Hand of the King, I imagine Varys is on his way back to feth gak up and pave the way for Dany.

We've seen Bran and Varys this season, haven't we?

I kind of binge watched to catch up, so I'm not 100%.

 Alpharius wrote:
We've seen Bran and Varys this season, haven't we?

I kind of binge watched to catch up, so I'm not 100%.

Varys yes. Bran, no. He's been incognito since Season 4. Though it would be nice if he made an appearence in the finale. Or maybe he could send messages to Theon in Winterfell via the birds and the weir tree.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Also, a random thought.

Perhaps in the next episode we'll get a scene with Melisandre and Stannis, with Stannis asking about her visions.

Stannis: What do you see in your fires?
Melisandre: Only Snow.

That would be cool.

 Alpharius wrote:
We've seen Bran and Varys this season, haven't we?

Varys transported Tyrion to Daenarys-land, they went to a brothel where Ser SoonToBeTheThing captured Tyrion and Varys...is...still waiting...I guess. Brann...I still hope for Theon to admit he did INDEED burn the Stark children and was making it up. Would make for a great story twist even book readers did not see coming and we'd be rid of a terribly written and extremely boring storyline.

 Shadow Captain Edithae wrote:

 Alpharius wrote:
We've seen Bran and Varys this season, haven't we?

I kind of binge watched to catch up, so I'm not 100%.

Varys yes. Bran, no. He's been incognito since Season 4. Though it would be nice if he made an appearence in the finale. Or maybe he could send messages to Theon in Winterfell via the birds and the weir tree.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Also, a random thought.

Perhaps in the next episode we'll get a scene with Melisandre and Stannis, with Stannis asking about her visions.

Stannis: What do you see in your fires?
Melisandre: Only Snow.

That would be cool.

Technically with that idea Jon Would become the person the north would need. Or you know we have sansa escape and the north rallies around her. And they go off to strike and destroy the boltons.

 Sigvatr wrote:

 Alpharius wrote:
We've seen Bran and Varys this season, haven't we?

Varys transported Tyrion to Daenarys-land, they went to a brothel where Ser SoonToBeTheThing captured Tyrion and Varys...is...still waiting...I guess. Brann...I still hope for Theon to admit he did INDEED burn the Stark children and was making it up. Would make for a great story twist even book readers did not see coming and we'd be rid of a terribly written and extremely boring storyline.

I'm beginning to think you look like Sam and someone who looked liked Bran regularly beat you up and took your lunch money.

For those metal fans out there: Mastodon appeared in last weeks episode as wildlings (and then wights)! Apparently Dan Weiss is a fan of the band and the guys in the band are fans of the show, so he asked them if they were interested in appearing on the show.



Here is what the drummer, Brann Dailor had to say:

It was such an incredible experience to be on set as extras for our collective favorite show Game Of Thrones and to be wildlings murdered and then brought back to life by White Walkers was beyond amazing. I watched my best friends Brent and Bill, murdered right in front of me as I myself was stabbed in the stomach and had my throat slit multiple times, and I didn’t mind at all. It made me love being in Mastodon even more. We are more than privileged and honored to have been a part of one of the greatest stories ever told on film, and the catering wasn’t bad either.

 Alpharius wrote:

 Sigvatr wrote:

 Alpharius wrote:
We've seen Bran and Varys this season, haven't we?

Varys transported Tyrion to Daenarys-land, they went to a brothel where Ser SoonToBeTheThing captured Tyrion and Varys...is...still waiting...I guess. Brann...I still hope for Theon to admit he did INDEED burn the Stark children and was making it up. Would make for a great story twist even book readers did not see coming and we'd be rid of a terribly written and extremely boring storyline.

I'm beginning to think you look like Sam and someone who looked liked Bran regularly beat you up and took your lunch money.

I'm assuming that's a Sam fanboy's hurt feelings...

Sam simply is a poorly written character. Books and series. He is just boring and adds nothing. The entire love plot with the RescuedFromFattyMcFat girl is just so clichée. We facepalmed when, just after about to be raped, she jumped on Sam and had sex with him. Come on.

Bran is just...similar. I assume you read the books (if not: SHAME. SHAME. SHAME. SHAAAME!) and even in the books where characters are more detailed...he's boring. Can't walk, can't fight, has magic powers that allow him to control animals (good) and see ghosts (uhm...). His entire plot right now is being stuck in a cave with a three-eyed crow. Literally nothing happens. We fear him suddenly becoming a huge important deus ex machina plot device in the next books, assuming they are written before Martin dies of old age.

Both characters are just boring and add nothing to the plot. So far. But remember the old GoT rule: when in doubt, rape!

No, it is just me commenting on the fact that you. will. not. stop. talking. about. it.

By now we know that you and your wife hat the Sam storyline.

And Bran too!

Great!

It might be time for you to move on?

Please?

 Alpharius wrote:
No, it is just me commenting on the fact that you. will. not. stop. talking. about. it.

By now we know that you and your wife hat the Sam storyline.

And Bran too!

Great!

It might be time for you to move on?

Please?

Hey, who exactly brought Bran up again?

Zing.

 Sigvatr wrote:
I'm assuming that's a Sam fanboy's hurt feelings...

Sam simply is a poorly written character. Books and series. He is just boring and adds nothing. The entire love plot with the RescuedFromFattyMcFat girl is just so clichée. We facepalmed when, just after about to be raped, she jumped on Sam and had sex with him. Come on.

Bran is just...similar. I assume you read the books (if not: SHAME. SHAME. SHAME. SHAAAME!) and even in the books where characters are more detailed...he's boring. Can't walk, can't fight, has magic powers that allow him to control animals (good) and see ghosts (uhm...). His entire plot right now is being stuck in a cave with a three-eyed crow. Literally nothing happens. We fear him suddenly becoming a huge important deus ex machina plot device in the next books, assuming they are written before Martin dies of old age.

Both characters are just boring and add nothing to the plot. So far. But remember the old GoT rule: when in doubt, rape!

Why do you and your wife even watch this show? All you do is complain about everything with your nose up in the air (and you guys facepalm together? Adorable!).

Also, when did rape have anything to do with Bran's storyline?

 ScootyPuffJunior wrote:
Why do you and your wife even watch this show? All you do is complain about everything with your nose up in the air (and you guys facepalm together? Adorable!).

We genuinely enjoy the show, as portrayed in previous posts. Episode 7 and 6 simply were bad episodes from a writing point of view. The latest episode, as stated before, was a excellent episode. It still is the best series out there, but it has its low points as well. Every series does. I really didn't like most of Arrow season 1, but got told to wait and it got far better with season 2 and 3 respectively. Even GoT has bad parts and when even the books get notsogood, it doesn't bode well for the series.

Varys is relaxing eating Sansa's lemon cakes and drinking Tyrion's stash of Dornish wine.

 Shadow Captain Edithae wrote:

 Asherian Command wrote:

 Sigvatr wrote:

 Ratius wrote:
Where an Earth is Brann this season btw?

Where is Varys?

Good question.

With the confirmation that Kevan Lannister has been summoned back to King's Landing to serve as Hand of the King, I imagine Varys is on his way back to feth gak up and pave the way for Dany.

He is a wanted man in Kings Landing iirc?

He will be searching for Tyrion I guess and chilling at his mates house.....

 Mr Morden wrote:

 Shadow Captain Edithae wrote:

 Asherian Command wrote:

 Sigvatr wrote:

 Ratius wrote:
Where an Earth is Brann this season btw?

Where is Varys?

Good question.

With the confirmation that Kevan Lannister has been summoned back to King's Landing to serve as Hand of the King, I imagine Varys is on his way back to feth gak up and pave the way for Dany.

He is a wanted man in Kings Landing iirc?

He will be searching for Tyrion I guess and chilling at his mates house.....

Remember that crossbow Tyrion used to kill Tywin? Varys probably has it now.

In general, at the pace we're going right now, it'd be hilarious if the series would spoil the end of the books, not the other way around.

Wonder how Jon got the giant on board a ship

 Jihadin wrote:
Wonder how Jon got the giant on board a ship

The giant just swims

Besides that...two boats. I boat under each foot, then stomp across the ocean.

 ScootyPuffJunior wrote:
For those metal fans out there: Mastodon appeared in last weeks episode as wildlings (and then wights)! Apparently Dan Weiss is a fan of the band and the guys in the band are fans of the show, so he asked them if they were interested in appearing on the show.

Holy crap, that's awesome! One of my favorite metal bands, and I know they're supposed to be huge geeks as well. I mean, even in their normal garb the dudes from Mastodon look pretty much like Wildlings.

 Sigvatr wrote:
In general, at the pace we're going right now, it'd be hilarious if the series would spoil the end of the books, not the other way around.

This is already a foregone conclusion.

From what I hear, GRRM hopes to finish Winds of Winter to coincide with Season 6.

So, depending on how much TWOW material they choose to adapt, and how much material they choose to discard, D&D will definitely catch up to GRRM once again (Season 5 has already caught up to him bar the events of the final two episodes) or they will overtake him and start dipping into some of the material/plans for Dream of Spring GRRM sketched out for them. Thereby spoiling the final book and ending of the series.