Game of Thrones (spoilers)

[Jeremy Blackman]

I've always thought Sansa was one of the best characters, so it's interesting to see how everything in King's Landing is sort of swirling around her, given that she is "the key to the North." (Will that become a thing?) King's Landing's sharpest players are in this particular game, and it's going to be fascinating to see who ultimately prevails. Of course it would be best if Sansa exercised some agency in the process, to realize some of her character's potential... we'll see if and how that happens.

[Fernando]

Sansa is one of the best for sure, I wonder when she hears about marrying Tyrion if she'll want to flee with little finger, which obviously would be worse than being paired with the imp, at least he isn't gay (loras) or creepy (lord twat beard)....there are so many outcomes for this part of the story that I really don't have a clue what will happen....

oh, Cersei's face when Tywin told her she would marry too was priceless, first she was forced to marry a drunk womanizer now a gay lord...haha I guess she deserves it...

Brienne and Jaime's buddy cop story is pretty great, this damn show gives you so many mixed feelings, right now I feel bad for poor Jaime but then I remember how the prick pushed Bran out and how he ambushed Ned and his men, still, cant help feeling a little empathy for the man.

mean while at Stark camp....I think that beheading Rob did will curse him, and now he wants to go begging for an army to Walter Fray? he must have something under his sleeve otherwise I cant see Frey helping him.

[Fernando]

SPOILERS S03E06

another good one.

showdown of the week
Tywin vs Lady Olenna. well clearly Tywin holds all the cards now, he apparently will get away with those weddings.

sibling bonding
after all Cersei didn't order Tyrion's death...I was sure she did, perhaps it makes more sense that Jeffrey did it, anyway, that was a great scene, I love that you can see the human side of ppl you are supposed to hate and Cersei was for once not playing games with Tyrion.

showdown of the week 2
Varys vs Little finger. what a pair make this little finger with Joffrey, fucking sadists cunts. poor Ros played the most dangerous game and lost horribly. ''Chaos is a ladder'' I wonder if Varys learned from this defeat and what he will do...

other good stuff happened, Arya and the red witch, Jaime and Ser Bolton.


this phrase worries me....if you think this has a happy ending, you haven't been paying attention...


and the next two are directed by Michelle MacLaren those should be sweet.

[squints]

this phrase worries me....if you think this has a happy ending, you haven't been paying attention...

Seriously, stick with the idea that GRRM does NOT like seeing people happy.


Watching theon get tortured (AGAIN) had me cringing all day thinking about his finger. God damn that was gross.

I've read a storm of swords by now, and while i know what is going to happen, I am still intrigued as hell to see how it all plays out here. I'm holding out on the next book, just waiting for this and next season to be done so i can go into season 5 completely blind.

[Jeremy Blackman]

''Chaos is a ladder'' I wonder if Varys learned from this defeat and what he will do...

And yet he sort of won that battle for now, right? Varys was trying to deny him Sansa ("the key to the North"), and he did.

I feel comfortable liking Varys now. People like Littlefinger need to be kept in check. The "chaos is a ladder" line was totally chilling, probably one of the best lines so far. I like that it was saved until now.

[03]

SPOILERSOBVZ
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i love gore but that finger shit made me and everyone i know freak out a little.
best things:
- i'm glad they're saving more khalisi stuff for michelles episode. she is consistently the most satsifying part of the show, i think because her moments are so sparse and sporadic that they dont get old. for instance the dragons havent gotten too incredible yet which is a very good thing.

- gradual increase of tyrion time is good. but whats happening with crazy virgin guy?
- opening scene was nice, that shot framed by the trees jesus.
- the wall climb was verging on mindless action similar to the firesword fight in last ep, but i loved the resolution at the end. the shows visuals will never cease to mesmerize me.
- how hilarious was jamie eating the meat one handed? i almost peed. but what are they gonna do with brienne who was looking surprisingly sexy in woman clothes.
- and yeah theons story is now confusing in a funny way because they straight up referenced it with 'this is why! no its not why!'
- it took me a minute to realise who the chick shot up with arrows was. i can only keep up with so many characters. but my god that shot was amazing, especially with littlefingers amazing monologue in the voice of darkknight batman.

[Pubrick]

the latest episode had a few problems so i can see why no one is talking.

spoils for s03 ep7

a bit too much bullshit
the main problem was with the ending. i just don't believe that all these people can be so easily manipulated by Jamie saying a few bullshit words about his dad and the price of his head and whatever else. ugh. it was so overused it felt contrived and frankly it didn't even seem like ANY of the actors really believed the bullshit they were saying in these scenes, jamie included.

they tried to make it interesting by throwing in a random BEAR but it just fell flat. so the whole episode suffered.

it was overall a wasted episode. the whole show is beginning to feel like a tease that goes absolutely nowhere. sometimes someone gets killed, great, but no one ever gets anywhere.  a whole episode to climb a wall, another episode to walk a bit further away from that wall... wow, and here's a windmill. haha.. it sounds ridiculous when you think of it that way, but truth be told that scene with the windmill was actually sorta nice, visually. but nothing compared to the final kiss after they scaled the wall in that previous ep, visually and emotionally. so what happened here added nothing.

that dickhead who will "make kings rise and fall" was shown kings landing. great, GIVE US MORE, his story is actually interesting! meanwhile the little girl was taken by the hound and it didn't even feel that significant even though it was the only truly dangerous incident surrounded by so much BULLSHIT.

bullshit with theon, we get it, he's been tortured. this is the kind of thing i say i never tolerate in other shows that constantly jump the shark, and if i wasn't for the rarity of such a lackluster episode i would be tempted to have to put my money where my mouf is and just stop watching altogether. but i'm hooked and it's good enough to stick with, for now.

nothing in this episode was new, interesting, or even worth showing. what a fucking waste of time and money.

[polkablues]

bullshit with theon, we get it, he's been tortured.

This is the one part I completely agree with. As long as his storyline is "still being tortured," we don't need to check back in with him every week.

I don't mind a slow episode like this every once in a while, though. Not a lot of plot movement, but a lot of character movement. Tyrion faced off with Shae, Dany is cementing her status as hot Lincoln with dragons, we got the goddamn brilliant scene of Grandpa Lannister quietly putting the Little Shit in his place. And damn it, I like following around Jon Snow and Ygritte, even when they don't do anything but marvel at old windmills and make out against rocks. I'm invested enough in all these characters (except the whole Bran roadtrip... DOOOONNNN'T CAAAARRRRRE) that I can deal with an episode or two where they don't technically DO anything.

[Fernando]

spoils for s03 ep7

a bit too much bullshit
the main problem was with the ending. i just don't believe that all these people can be so easily manipulated by Jamie saying a few bullshit words about his dad and the price of his head and whatever else. ugh. it was so overused it felt contrived and frankly it didn't even seem like ANY of the actors really believed the bullshit they were saying in these scenes, jamie included.

they tried to make it interesting by throwing in a random BEAR but it just fell flat. so the whole episode suffered.

I ate up this episode's jaime and brienne story and found it believable, I think he could manipulate ppl easily because they didn't have a choice, what could the guy taking him to king's landing do? he doesn't deliver Jaime lord bolton fucks him up, he does without going back he's a dead man so no other choice than to return to harrenhal. maybe Lock could do whatever he pleases but he already fucked it up by chopping his hand, lord bolton told him when he showed up with Jaime, that's my guess why he lets Jaime leave with her.

so....Jaime FTW.

it was overall a wasted episode. the whole show is beginning to feel like a tease that goes absolutely nowhere. sometimes someone gets killed, great, but no one ever gets anywhere.  a whole episode to climb a wall, another episode to walk a bit further away from that wall... wow, and here's a windmill. haha.. it sounds ridiculous when you think of it that way, but truth be told that scene with the windmill was actually sorta nice, visually. but nothing compared to the final kiss after they scaled the wall in that previous ep, visually and emotionally. so what happened here added nothing.

I kinda agree here, the Jon snow story didn't really move forward, we just learned that some wildling also wants Ygritte and she again told her he was hers..

that dickhead who will "make kings rise and fall" was shown kings landing. great, GIVE US MORE, his story is actually interesting! meanwhile the little girl was taken by the hound and it didn't even feel that significant even though it was the only truly dangerous incident surrounded by so much BULLSHIT.

agree again, something interesting happens every time we see Melisandre yet we see very little about her, now makes sense when she told Stannis that there were others with king's blood, does that mean she will fuck him and create another smoke monster, in fact, did that monster in S2 is useful only once?

also interesting what Melisandre said to Arya last episode, seeing death in her and many eyes she will shut forever...will Arya be a killer?

I hope the hound doesn't hurt her.

bullshit with theon, we get it, he's been tortured. this is the kind of thing i say i never tolerate in other shows that constantly jump the shark, and if i wasn't for the rarity of such a lackluster episode i would be tempted to have to put my money where my mouf is and just stop watching altogether. but i'm hooked and it's good enough to stick with, for now.

yeah, it seems to be going nowhere, it has been well established he's in the hands of a psycho, this better have some big pay off or it will be as you said a waste of time and money.

in the end I really liked the episode.

[03]

i also liked this episode. as i said in the chat, i think this one suffered from doing something they don't do often: including almost every single character in one episode. it reminded me of the interview on page 4 of this thread where they said they admired breaking bad for doing so much stuff in one timeslot without it feeling rushed or stretched. which is also kind of weird since its mclarens first ep of the season. hm.

SPOILAHZ
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- not much to say that hasnt been said.

- bear was random but i liked it. where did it come from though? do they just like have bears on hand? and if so, i hope they use more bears. seems like a good weapon if used properly.

- theons story is just ridiculous at this point and i dont care at all. i think they're nailing the unsettling vibe of torture by torturing us with its relentless boring confusion. i feel like theon: 'oh im gonna get laid/oh somethings going to happen, no theyre cutting off my dick, damn.

- my hope: arya's going to kill the hound and it will be amazing.

- i bought jaimes exit on every level, i dont think it felt off at all and was probaly the best scene of the episode.

[Jeremy Blackman]

I enjoyed the episode. It wasn't the best ever, but I guess I just like being in the world. Also I usually don't judge the show on an episode-by-episode basis, since it's normally so consistent and congruous, so I have that bias.

The Tywin scene was amazing. (I had been desperately waiting for a scene like that to adequately define that particular dynamic, and good God, it couldn't have been done better.) The Daenerys scene was almost as good. And there was plenty of good teasing of things to come. I guess that was enough for me.

The episode was written by GRRM, interestingly, and I think it reflects his style of storytelling, which is a little more plodding and flowery (and raunchy, apparently) than the show tends to be. I'm okay with an episode like that once in a while.

That said, I think the biggest problems right now are Jaime and Theon. (Obviously I'm not alone.)

Not totally sure what's being accomplished with Theon right now. They're certainly establishing the character of that psychopath, but that's pretty much it. I don't really like Theon, and no amount of torture is going to improve that. That's not what torture does; sympathy is not affection. (Actually I think I do know what they're doing with the Theon business, but it involves a moderate spoiler, so I'll keep quiet.)

While we're on the "sympathy is not affection" topic, note how they've handled Sansa's situation so much better. Obviously we've had sympathy for her since the end of the first season, but they quickly expanded on that. For me, it was the scene on the bridge when she almost pushed Joffrey off, and we could see the sense of injustice burning in her eyes, and this exchange happened:

Joffrey: I'll tell you what. I'm going to give you a present. After I raise my armies and kill your traitor brother, I'll give you his head as well.

Sansa: Or maybe he'll give me yours.

That's how you do it.

Jaime is probably the biggest challenge for me right now. The thing is, his character in all of his complexity makes complete sense EXCEPT (glaringly) for the time he pushed Brann off the tower. I mean, he did it casually, completely without hesitation or remorse, like he pushes kids out of windows all the time. The show has done much to justify his slaying of the king, which works for me, but it hasn't touched Brann.

Jaime only makes sense if you ignore the Brann episode. We have no indication that he regrets it. Jaime is being re-evaluated, not evolved. The difference is crucial.

Does anyone know if the books deal with that better? Please let us know, unless it involves future spoilers.

[The Perineum Falcon]

This episode was one of the more divergent in recent memory, all the more interesting that Martin was responsible for it. I take it as a chance for him to tell a different story than the one of the books. At first, I saw this as a problem, as most readers. I was not as enamored with the second season as I was with the first, mostly due to these divergences. But my mind has changed because of this season; they've handled it much better. It is interesting to see how the characters develop on screen apart from the books. It's an alternate history of Westeros, and this excites me. They will still follow the major plot points of the books,  however the journey has changed. What happens if they take a left instead of a right? It grants those that think they know how it will play out a few surprises along the way.

I'm really looking forward to the season finale. It's gonna be BIG. No doubt there will be much discussion afterward.

Jaime is one of the most interesting characters to follow. In the books, at least, he is one of the best developed. As for the Bran incident, Jaime has no qualms with taking a life if he will greatly benefit from it; it's about survival, you either win or you lose. The push was casual, but the impetus was protecting himself and his family. I'm sure there's some remorse there, but justification as well. If Bran had been allowed to legitimize the rumors, the Lannisters would have lost the throne, and their name would have been besmirched. Imagine how Tywin would have handled that.

[Jeremy Blackman]

Some insight from AV Club comments about why the episode is called Second Sons. Paraphrasing:

- "Second Sons" was the mercenary company.
- Tyrion is Tywin's second son, literally and figuratively.
- Stannis is Robert's younger brother. The second son of Steffon Baratheon.
- Sam is a figurative second son, abused/disliked by his father, which was highlighted in this episode.
- The Hound is a second son, the younger brother of The Mountain and forever in his shadow.

[Pubrick]

yeah yeah.

how bout this mufuckin episode from last night NOW THAT'S GOOD GoT.

spoils..

the little thing cos it was an old thing it killed the thing good. oh man!

little dude standoff with little king WOW best scene of the episode.

hound befriending little cool chick was a surprising development, i was expecting 03's prediction to come true. i guess he's the next bad dude we'll be made to sympathize with.

pretty boy and khaleesi, he was pissing me off until he dropped "valar morghulis" and i knew some good shit was gonna go down. hope he doesn't bang her though, oldmate ser jorah friendzone has been gunning for it for so long!

this show is probably the best written soap opera of all time. i feel like the old lady was kind of referencing this when going through the convoluted relationships that will result from the lannister/stark/tyrell marriages. everyone's just trying to get some, just that this is prime time and features child brides. madness!

[Jeremy Blackman]

hound befriending little cool chick was a surprising development, i was expecting 03's prediction to come true. i guess he's the next bad dude we'll be made to sympathize with.

I think so, but he's never been that bad has he? I guess he killed Arya's friend, but he was doing that on orders. Maybe there's something else I'm forgetting. He saved Sansa from the rapey/murdery mob, prevented Sansa (wisely?) from pushing Joffrey off the ledge, offered to take Sansa from King's Landing (but she turned him down), clearly hates Joffrey, seems to have an amount of honor, and apparently has a soft spot for the Starks.

He also refused Joffrey's order(s) to abuse Sansa, which they say is more clear in the books. Someone describes it here:

Yes, he did ask the Hound to hit her and Sandor refused the order.
It's in her third chapter in Clash, the same one where she is stripped and then beaten with the flat of the sword. Joff gives the command, "Dog, hit her" and his refusal is rather obvious by the fact that he doesn't. Instead, Dontos begins to hit her with the melon with the hope this would satisfy Joff. Of course, it does not and Trant (I think it was Trant) actually beats her. The Hound then calls out "Enough" and Joff replies that it is not and says "make her naked" which is when her gown is ripped off.