Game of Thrones (TV, fantasy) Thread

[Progmetty]

Now you see Tyrion.. now you believe.
That. Was. Class. A. Acting. I'm still blown away.
It was like an Atheist coming face to face with a God, not slamming Atheists.. just the closest comparison I could find to the look on Tyrion's face. Tyrion who never believed in any surviving supernaturals told of his universe, not white walkers, not giants, not mammoths and certainly not dragons; sees it and in a flash re-examines his knowledge and his idea of "possible".
Amazing episode all around, gotta give it another go around.

[Fiery Winds]

The entire episode I was hoping for another scene with Tyrion and that whole sequence delivered in every possible way.

[BlackInk]

Yeah, beautifully done with the poem, the visuals of Valyria, and then Drogon flying over. The stonemen were alright, but I don't really like the sounds they made. But that's just me being nit-picky.

I've never had a problem with Stannis.

[masterthes]

Stannis' stock has really gone up lately, but I can't totally root for him, because of Renly

[Prog Snob]

I hope they do introduce the Griffs at some point. I would be highly pissed if they tossed away that story line, especially considering who Young Griff is.

I read a fan theory that since it's pretty clear Young Griff is cut (at least from his story that we read about in aDwD, it's possible he is in the show in a different scenario.  Maybe Trystane Martell is actually Aegon?  We know the show is taking a different approach to Dorne and with the casting of Trystane and no Quintin or Arrianne, is it possible that Doran's master plan included hiding Aegon as his own child this entire time?  I personally believe Young Griff is just flat out cut though and that Aegon is a fake in the books.

I sincerely hope that they don't remove Dany's only other living relative (besides Jon Snow of course).  That's fucking with a major story line in the book.  It's not like killing Ser Barristan or sending Melisandre and the Princess with Stannis. We're talking about a major part of the plot. I'm all for making the show it's own entity but I think that's a bit extreme. Unless that's something the writers are holding off untll the final episode of the season.  That would be a huge cliffhanger along with Jon Snow's "death". How else do you end Dany's and Tyrion's story this season?  I think that would be a perfect way to close out the season.

Dany flying off on Drogon should be the end of her story arc this season as it was in the books leaving Tyrion in control in Mereen (taking Selmys spot)  Young Griff was a major storyline for the last book, but so was Quintin and that lead no where... it's very possible Young Griff is a fake and that storyline does not lead anywhere as well.  We just don't know.

I don't consider Young Griff (if he is who we know him to be) and Quintin to be equal as far as importance. You're right, it does remain to be seen about Young Griff but considering this was a plan of Vary's from the beginning, I do put a lot of faith in him being Dany's nephew. 

There's no way the show is done with Varys yet, given the lack of closure in how he was left in Volantis. I could see him giving up on Danaerys and producing a Young Griff, though probably not until next season. I'm sure he'll also reappear like he did in the books to murder Kevan Lannister or someone similar, but the latter was motivated by the former.

Pretty much. Varys probably continued with his plan to meet with Young Griff and they'll show up at some point. [/quote]

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

Yea the poem scene with Tyrion and Jorah in the boat with the dragon and everything was really nice.

[cramx3]

I hope they do introduce the Griffs at some point. I would be highly pissed if they tossed away that story line, especially considering who Young Griff is.

I read a fan theory that since it's pretty clear Young Griff is cut (at least from his story that we read about in aDwD, it's possible he is in the show in a different scenario.  Maybe Trystane Martell is actually Aegon?  We know the show is taking a different approach to Dorne and with the casting of Trystane and no Quintin or Arrianne, is it possible that Doran's master plan included hiding Aegon as his own child this entire time?  I personally believe Young Griff is just flat out cut though and that Aegon is a fake in the books.

I sincerely hope that they don't remove Dany's only other living relative (besides Jon Snow of course).  That's fucking with a major story line in the book.  It's not like killing Ser Barristan or sending Melisandre and the Princess with Stannis. We're talking about a major part of the plot. I'm all for making the show it's own entity but I think that's a bit extreme. Unless that's something the writers are holding off untll the final episode of the season.  That would be a huge cliffhanger along with Jon Snow's "death". How else do you end Dany's and Tyrion's story this season?  I think that would be a perfect way to close out the season.

Dany flying off on Drogon should be the end of her story arc this season as it was in the books leaving Tyrion in control in Mereen (taking Selmys spot)  Young Griff was a major storyline for the last book, but so was Quintin and that lead no where... it's very possible Young Griff is a fake and that storyline does not lead anywhere as well.  We just don't know.

I don't consider Young Griff (if he is who we know him to be) and Quintin to be equal as far as importance. You're right, it does remain to be seen about Young Griff but considering this was a plan of Vary's from the beginning, I do put a lot of faith in him being Dany's nephew. 

There's no way the show is done with Varys yet, given the lack of closure in how he was left in Volantis. I could see him giving up on Danaerys and producing a Young Griff, though probably not until next season. I'm sure he'll also reappear like he did in the books to murder Kevan Lannister or someone similar, but the latter was motivated by the former.

Pretty much. Varys probably continued with his plan to meet with Young Griff and they'll show up at some point.

I think we will see Varys again doing what he did at the end of aFFC and he will do it in the name of Dany not Aegon.  I guess that will tell for sure, but considering Varys speech in episode 1 to Tyrion, it seems that's how the show is proceeding.

[ariich]

Enough with the tiny quote pyramid. Fine to use tiny text for book spoilers, but the quote pyramid is unnecessary.

[Cyclopssss]

I loved the shot of them entering Valerya. One of the  epic scenes of the series so far, I think. I also can totally see a battle between Brianne and Ramsey Bolton coming up.

[Zydar]

I loved the shot of them entering Valerya. One of the  epic scenes of the series so far, I think. I also can totally see a battle between Brianne and Ramsey Bolton coming up.

Yeah Valyria seems like a beautiful place, I hope we get plenty of scenes from there.

[BlackInk]

I think it's likely this was the first and last time saw it. Asshai though, that's a place I hope we'll see before the show ends! A dark mythical weird city apparently larger than Volantis, Quarth, King's Landing, and Old Town combined. I'm not sure how it would be possible though, since it's a loong way off and there are not many hours of show left, which is a shame.

[cramx3]

I think its possible for Valyria to show up again given it is where the Targaryans are from and obviously Drogon seems to like it there.  Who knows though, but speaking of cities we'd like to see... I would really like to see Oldtown.  There were a few mentions of it last episode so maybe thats a hint that we will get to see it at some point.

[hefdaddy42]

Not sure why we would see Valyria again - AFAIK, the only reason we saw it on the last episode is to have a reason for that scene with the poetry and the dragon.

Valyria is a smoking ruin, no one lives there.  Not much reason for anything to happen there.

[Zydar]

I didn't know that. I haven't read the books or anything. Just thought it looked great in the episode.

[hefdaddy42]

I didn't know that. I haven't read the books or anything. Just thought it looked great in the episode.

Well, it DID look great in the episode. 

[cramx3]

Not sure why we would see Valyria again - AFAIK, the only reason we saw it on the last episode is to have a reason for that scene with the poetry and the dragon.

Valyria is a smoking ruin, no one lives there.  Not much reason for anything to happen there.

There is some importance to it in the books which remains a mystery (not really a spoiler below, just points that the book makes and the show does not):

No one understands the Doom and the similarities between Dragons and the Whitewalkers.  The book hints at Valyria and North of the Wall as being opposites ends of magic.  Could tie in with The Lord of Light vs. the Old Gods.  Or it could all be just ancient lore talked about but having no real meaning to the plotlines in the book or show.

[hefdaddy42]

Not sure why we would see Valyria again - AFAIK, the only reason we saw it on the last episode is to have a reason for that scene with the poetry and the dragon.

Valyria is a smoking ruin, no one lives there.  Not much reason for anything to happen there.

There is some importance to it in the books which remains a mystery (not really a spoiler below, just points that the book makes and the show does not):

No one understands the Doom and the similarities between Dragons and the Whitewalkers.  The book hints at Valyria and North of the Wall as being opposites ends of magic.  Could tie in with The Lord of Light vs. the Old Gods.  Or it could all be just ancient lore talked about but having no real meaning to the plotlines in the book or show.

I think hints are all they are.

Or maybe not.  We'll see.

[Progmetty]

Concerning Stannis and Little Finger....Being that Stannis said 'that wasn't Ned Stark's Way' and he and Little Finger were around and saw what went down......do  you think they both know that Jon Snow was the Love Child of Rheygar and Lyanna? Cold that explain the admiration that Stannis seems to have for Jon?

I think that is definitely a possibility.  I always thought Stannis admired Jon because he was a Stark in blood and Stannis had a lot of respect for Ned.  The show is throwing tons of hints about Jon's real potential parentage this season so what you pointed out, could be the real reason why Stannis treats Jon the way he does.

I think LF knows but it's unlikely that Stannis does, Stannis treats Jon with respect because he think's he's Ned Stark's last surviving son and Stannis admired Ned Stark who was also the reason Stannis knows he's the rightful heir to the throne after his brother's death.
I think if Stannis knew about Jon; he would have warned his brother Robert about a Targaryen heir as soon as the rebellion ended and Robert took the throne. Robert was obsessed with killing every Targaryen in Westeros out of both anger for what happened with Lyanna and caution of legitimate heir starting a claim war. I know Stannis was not fond of his brother but he would have at least warned about that child since it jeopardized the newly founded Baratheon dynasty.

I fear that Stannis is becoming too awesome and he will be killed.  Besides saving the Night's Watch last season, this season he has been the loving Dad, Jon's best friend, and been nice to Sam.  He cares about the White Walkers and wants to defeat the bad guy Boltons.  He seems destined to die now. 

    I was thinking the same thing. Prior to this season I had little interest in his character and in fact found him quite annoying. Now, he seems pretty cool and I'm rooting for him....which....is usually the kiss of death.

Unless the Boltons have a real secret plan to defeat Stannis; I don't see how they could win. Forget Stannis having a bigger army, he has Melisandre's creepy magic and if they can't enter Winterfell he could just slip her the old Stannis saucisse and have her give birth to a shadow assassin to kill Bolton.
I dunno where Cersei stands on the looming Northern war ordeal, she seems to be only interested in petty rivals with her daughter in law.

[Fiery Winds]

Unless the Boltons have a real secret plan to defeat Stannis; I don't see how they could win. Forget Stannis having a bigger army, he has Melisandre's creepy magic and if they can't enter Winterfell he could just slip her the old Stannis saucisse and have her give birth to a shadow assassin to kill Bolton.

I agree, Stannis wins hands down, unless Melisandre requires a payment that he is unwilling to pay (sacrificing his daughter, perhaps?).

[Podaar]

My favorite Stannis moment from this week was:

Night's Watchman: "Let them die. Less enemies for us!"
Stannis: "Fewer."
Davos: "What?"

[Zydar]

Hehe yeah, the grammar nazis are everywhere

[Evermind]

He made the same grammar-nazi-objection in S2 with Davos I think (less fingernails to clean), but it was way funnier here.

[cramx3]

Unless the Boltons have a real secret plan to defeat Stannis; I don't see how they could win. Forget Stannis having a bigger army, he has Melisandre's creepy magic and if they can't enter Winterfell he could just slip her the old Stannis saucisse and have her give birth to a shadow assassin to kill Bolton.

I agree, Stannis wins hands down, unless Melisandre requires a payment that he is unwilling to pay (sacrificing his daughter, perhaps?).

But this seems to obvious hence why I think he fails.  How? I have no idea.

[RuRoRul]

Yeah, Stannis seems to be a goner this season - a heart to heart with his daughter, being respectful to Sam and acknowledging they need to learn how to defeat the White Walkers, Jon Snow thanking him for saving the Wall. At least he didn't say "We'll talk when I get back" before he left :

That and the fact it's been established as Stannis having the bigger army and being "the favourite" against the Boltons makes it pretty unlikely that things will go according to plan. You don't have "good guys" going to confront "bad guys" (or as close to that as possible on Game Of Thrones) with the good guys having all the advantage just for them to succeed as expected. Stannis may not be dying as that is almost getting too obvious, but something's got to go wrong for them or else there won't be much tension.

[BlackInk]

Ratings are disappointingly low... The first episode seemed to continue the annual growth in viewership, but the next three were really low compared to previous season differences. I thought it had to do with the leaks at first, and that it would be back on track with E05, but ratings for that episode is even lower. Almost as low as season 4 lowest. I hope it gets better..

[Podaar]

Ratings are disappointingly low... The first episode seemed to continue the annual growth in viewership, but the next three were really low compared to previous season differences. I thought it had to do with the leaks at first, and that it would be back on track with E05, but ratings for that episode is even lower. Almost as low as season 4 lowest. I hope it gets better..

I nearly stopped watching after episode 4, but not because there was any problem with acting, writing, production or the show in general (okay, maybe the directing has been a bit slow). No, I nearly stopped watching because I don't like the show spoiling the book experience for me. 

There are some major (dare I say favorite) threads/characters in the book that are completely missing in this show. It is widely known that the show runners know the ending of the story so when your favorite plot line is missing it tells you that ultimately its not important.

For me, it was obvious that by episode 2, I wasn't going to enjoy this season as I had previous seasons so I resolved to stop watching. In the end, Mrs. P convinced me to watch the episode so that we could chat about it.

Maybe I'm not the only one who feels this way?

[gmillerdrake]

Maybe I'm not the only one who feels this way?

Although I still enjoy the show.....If I had to use one word to describe the season thus far it'd be 'underwhelmed'. I think GOT's has created such an expectation for themselves that they are entering an era of not being able to live up to it. The acting is still spot on....the production.....it's all great, but the content of the episodes IMO has been inferior to previous seasons to this point. Saying all of that I still think it's one of the better shows available to watch, and again....I still enjoy it greatly. It just seems like somethings 'off' this season and I can't quite pin point it.

[hefdaddy42]

There are some major (dare I say favorite) threads/characters in the book that are completely missing in this show. It is widely known that the show runners know the ending of the story so when your favorite plot line is missing it tells you that ultimately its not important.

Or, it tells you that they have finally reached their limit on how many characters/plotlines they can keep juggling in the air at once, so they are hotshotting, shortcutting, and otherwise splicing together various threads from the book to arrive at the same place, but without the cast of thousands that the books would require.

In other words, it's not that those storylines/characters aren't important - they will just tell them/arrive at the same place using the characters they already have in place.

I hope.

[Tyrias]

Maybe I'm not the only one who feels this way?

Although I still enjoy the show.....If I had to use one word to describe the season thus far it'd be 'underwhelmed'. I think GOT's has created such an expectation for themselves that they are entering an era of not being able to live up to it. The acting is still spot on....the production.....it's all great, but the content of the episodes IMO has been inferior to previous seasons to this point. Saying all of that I still think it's one of the better shows available to watch, and again....I still enjoy it greatly. It just seems like somethings 'off' this season and I can't quite pin point it.

To be fair, I'd say these first 5 epsiodes of Season 5 have had a somewhat similar role as the first 5 episodes of season 1. A lot of plotlines had their climax during the end of season 4 and those new plotlines need some time to get moving. A few examples (some minor book spoilers below, as in differences between books and show, but nothing that would spoil the show for non-readers):
Tyrion - we've always seen him scheming in King's landing, and he is no longer there, interacting with chraracters he doesn't know that well and just heading towards a new plot (despite that, I really enjoyed the Tyrion bits this season, especially in Episode 5).
Dany - Well, after taking Meereen, she really hasn't been up to anything totally exciting, but she has to learn to rule. Which is not that exciting to watch, but stilll necessary (and I liked most of her parts as well).
Jaime - on his way to a new quest, but just at the very beginning of it. Also very exciting for book readers, since he does something enirely different in the books.
Jon - We've had 3, almost 4 seasons build up for the battle at the end of last season, they are still trying to recover from that and deal with the consequences.
Arya - Everyone she's travelled with is either dead or thought dead, and she is in a completely new place.
and so on.

And of course, compared to the books after Book 3 (which is basically at the end of season 4), the show is still moving at lightspeed. I think they are doing a really good job of adapting the gist of those books to the screen without doing many of the mistakes the book did and becoming overly complicated. I'm pretty sure we'll get a few GOT-legendary moments this season, but in total this one is going to be more of an intermediate catch-your-breath and character development season, just like books 4 and 5 were. I'm pretty sure speed will pick up again at the end of season 5.

[gmillerdrake]

Maybe I'm not the only one who feels this way?

Although I still enjoy the show.....If I had to use one word to describe the season thus far it'd be 'underwhelmed'. I think GOT's has created such an expectation for themselves that they are entering an era of not being able to live up to it. The acting is still spot on....the production.....it's all great, but the content of the episodes IMO has been inferior to previous seasons to this point. Saying all of that I still think it's one of the better shows available to watch, and again....I still enjoy it greatly. It just seems like somethings 'off' this season and I can't quite pin point it.

To be fair, I'd say these first 5 epsiodes of Season 5 have had a somewhat similar role as the first 5 episodes of season 1. A lot of plotlines had their climax during the end of season 4 and those new plotlines need some time to get moving. A few examples (some minor book spoilers below, as in differences between books and show, but nothing that would spoil the show for non-readers):
Tyrion - we've always seen him scheming in King's landing, and he is no longer there, interacting with chraracters he doesn't know that well and just heading towards a new plot (despite that, I really enjoyed the Tyrion bits this season, especially in Episode 5).
Dany - Well, after taking Meereen, she really hasn't been up to anything totally exciting, but she has to learn to rule. Which is not that exciting to watch, but stilll necessary (and I liked most of her parts as well).
Jaime - on his way to a new quest, but just at the very beginning of it. Also very exciting for book readers, since he does something enirely different in the books.
Jon - We've had 3, almost 4 seasons build up for the battle at the end of last season, they are still trying to recover from that and deal with the consequences.
Arya - Everyone she's travelled with is either dead or thought dead, and she is in a completely new place.
and so on.

And of course, compared to the books after Book 3 (which is basically at the end of season 4), the show is still moving at lightspeed. I think they are doing a really good job of adapting the gist of those books to the screen without doing many of the mistakes the book did and becoming overly complicated. I'm pretty sure we'll get a few GOT-legendary moments this season, but in total this one is going to be more of an intermediate catch-your-breath and character development season, just like books 4 and 5 were. I'm pretty sure speed will pick up again at the end of season 5.

Oh certainly....I understand what they are doing and why. Those are great points you made. It has to be difficult to set these story lines up....and only have literally two or three minutes at a time to move them along. I'm not contesting that this season 'sucks'....it doesn't....for me at least it's just appears that if you stack this season up along side the last season or two....it's not quite as fast paced.

[faizoff]

I think season 4 is still my favorite from the show just because it seemed intense throughtout. I love this season so far as well, don't care about changes from the book or if the ratings are low. It's definitely very different in vibe from the previous season. I mean it has to because season 4 was packing some intense events throughout. Not sure if this season will top the previous season but I love all 5 episodes so far. Most of the episodes seem like half setup and half action so far. My guess like everyone is that the action will intensify now on.

[ariich]

Yeah I think seasons 1 and 4 are my favourites so far. Nothing bad about season 5 so far, and some really great moments, but lots of exposition, some of which is great and some of which just sort of feels a bit bland. But then if all the exposition leads to some big stuff in the second half of the season, it will have been totally worth it, so just have to wait and see!

[BlackInk]

This season is also the beginning of 'act 2' of the entire overall story. Last season was the climax to the massive 'act 1'. I think act 2 will a bit more low key before shit really starts to go down in the final act of the story. Not saying there won't be important things happening this season though, I'm sure there are, and I love the season so far.

It's hard for me to rank the seasons because to me it's all the same season. One single long story, so I can't really seperate the seasons without feeling that I shouldn't.

[sneakyblueberry]

It feels like there should be more than two acts

[BlackInk]

Yes, act 3 is the final two books, and probably starts with season 6 by the looks of it.