474 replies to this topic

[D_Richard]

Gnomestress, on 20 June 2011 - 05:06 PM, said:

Shae 2.0 amidst characters like Tyrion, Tywin, Bronn, & Cercei is like Kesha headlining for The Three Tenors (Yes, Pavaratti is dead...but for this example we have raised him from the grave, talent intact).  Yes, she's pretty to look at but compared side by side to real art and talent she is one dementional and pedantic.  Not to mention that Kesha & Shae 2.0 both have a voice that makes me want to drive spikes into my eardrums.

Hyperbole like this gives legitimate and well-articulated criticisms a bad name.

[Ser Kevan Raley]

I must say that this the last episode of the season felt a bit underwhelming, a bit anti-climactic, but that was perhaps inevitable after all that happened in the last. It was however still a very good episode. With that said I must also announce that Game of Thrones is now officially the best TV show in many years, and one of the best modern ones. Excellent work by HBO. I bow down.

Some notes:

• I like they man playing Yoren and how he saved Arya. One wonders why since a Night's Watchman mustn't have any loyalties and yet he helps the daughter of a traitor get away. Must be because she's Benjen's niece.
  
• But I wonder how successful Arya will be playing a boy. Maise Williams, for all her excellence, is older than Book Arya and could grow up too fast for it to be plausible.
  
• They did good with conveying the same dreams Bran and Rickon had. You could tell how creeped out Osha (who has now cleaned up) felt.
  
• Liked the poised dignity displayed by Catelyn when walking past her men, but almost cracking when she got out of sight.
  
• "And then we will kill them all!" The Lady has strength and resolve. Despite initially not being (or rather looking) who I imagined as Catelyn Stark, I'm now behind Michelle Fairley's portrayal. So much in fact that I caught myself imagining her when I'm re-reading the books.
  
• Joffrey is not just a cruel king, he's wimp too for not wanting to watch the bard getting his tongue cut out, despite it being his ruling.
  
• I'm already in the camp that sympathises with Sansa, and I really felt for her here. She showed strength not flinching away and then by saying perhaps Robb could bring her Joff's head instead. And she nearly shoved him off the gantry, had the Hound not intervened. I also liked the small scenes she had with the Hound. He was rather gentle towards her.
  
• The King in the North! Heck, despite it being strategically unsound, I'm behind it! I don't recall Theon Greyjoy swearing fealty so forcefully as he did. Did he even do that in the book? This will make his treachery all the more repugnant.
  
• No Riverrun. I'm pretty sure they were in Riverrun in the book, but I guess they decided to not add another locale this season. Pity, I'm curious as to how it will look on screen.
  
• Jaime is an arrogant ass, isn't he? He almost seems like he has a death wish when he speaks with Cat.
  
• My, that Lancel Lannister is one skinny ass boy. Much like Loras. Ugh! What was the point of that scene except showing early that he was Cersei's lover.
  
• Speaking of pointless scenes, why did they show that scene with Pycelle and Ros? To show that Pycelle is a Lannister loyalist who even thinks Joff has a sense of true greatness? We know that already. That he's more limber than he leads on?
  
• I liked that Tywin poured Tyrion's cup of wine. It showed that he's started to appreciate his dwarf son. Pity that won't last. At least he recognises that Tyrion is needed to rule in King's Landing.
  
• I also liked the camaraderie shown between Jon Snow and his brothers when they brought him back. It was actually a bit chilling to hear then recite the oath.
  
• I didn't catch any mentioning of Daenerys being barren after her "miscarriage". Hm.
  
• But man, Dany looked good nekkid and sooted with the dragons crawling over her.
  
• Excellent CGI work with the dragons. That was one of my main worries about this whole series, that they would frak it up. The dragons were actually rather cute. But not as cute as Emilia Clarke...
  
• Gah! Now we have to wait until next spring for season two (they start filming on July 25th).

[Unnamed]

Eponine, on 20 June 2011 - 04:55 PM, said:

I guess it all depends on what people think Tyrion would or should fall for....  

Moreover, show Shae doesn't seem to admire him in any way....

If she really does start to fall for him... that character is one who I think deserves as much pity as hatred. She was always in above her head. Not everyone has to be a skilled player.

I really liked this post. Although you're reading a lot more into Shae's potential "character" than I ever bothered to, I find it very much "at evens" with my reading of the books.

-VM

[Unnamed]

D_Richard, on 20 June 2011 - 05:15 PM, said:

Hyperbole like this gives legitimate and well-articulated criticisms a bad name.

I think hyperbole like this makes it apparent how boring legitimate and well-articulated criticisms tend to be. We're never going to all agree--why not keep it fun and amusing?

-VM

[tarantella]

The King, on 20 June 2011 - 04:49 PM, said:

* Question: if I only let myself read 2-3 pages per day can I stretch ADwD out to the premiere of S2?  I'm dreading SoIaF withdrawal around July 13.

Sure.  The question is can you really do it?  That sounds like real torture.

I don't know why they put the Cersei fucking Lancel bit in so early.  Didn't that come a lot later in the books?  Is Jaime's story going to get accelerated?

Edited by tarantella, 20 June 2011 - 05:25 PM.

[D_Richard]

If it's fun for you to say a single actress is ruining the entire series, then I'm in the wrong place.

[Gnomestress]

D_Richard, on 20 June 2011 - 05:15 PM, said:

Hyperbole like this gives legitimate and well-articulated criticisms a bad name.

You're not a fan of humor, are you?  I've given many a long winded criticism over the years and I've found that they generally get ignored or looked over.  Toss in an analogy or a quip and you're bound to get more responses.

Thanks for putting words in my mouth though.  I definitely said that she's ruining the whole series.  Word for word.  In bold.  I think there may have even been some sneaky exclamation points that crept in there too.

Unnamed, on 20 June 2011 - 05:19 PM, said:

I think hyperbole like this makes it apparent how boring legitimate and well-articulated criticisms tend to be. We're never going to all agree--why not keep it fun and amusing?

-VM

See VM?  He gets jokes.

[D_Richard]

Gnomestress, on 20 June 2011 - 05:29 PM, said:

You're not a fan of humor, are you?  I've given many a long winded criticism over the years and I've found that they generally get ignored or looked over.  Toss in an analogy or a quip and you're bound to get more responses.

Sensationalism leads to attention. Well, you're right. Because I bit.

[JJxvi]

So, do any of the "Shae-haters" want to revise any earlier "They better not replace Shea with Ros!" opinions?

[Sega AM2]

Easy, on 20 June 2011 - 11:40 AM, said:

I actually wanted the the dragon scene and the entire season to end with a close up on Drogon where he unleashes a burst of dragon flame which engulfs the entire screen - cut to credits.

Nevertheless, the scream echoing around the world worked goosebumpingly well.

I believe Dany mentions that the young dragons can't breathe fire. It's why she has to cook their meat herself and feed it to them. One of the few smart things that Viserys passed along to her before he got crowned.

[TheMountainThatAbides]

Actually I really like Shae. And Osha as well for that matter. The latter maybe even more than Shae.
This episode really made me realize just that.

[Leuf]

Eponine, on 20 June 2011 - 01:18 PM, said:

2. The gap between when Dany walks into the fire and how everyone falls asleep while she's supposedly burning. Maybe for people who didn't know what was going to happen, the delay was a moment of great tension and build up. But IMO it was kind of an odd dead spot.

Yeah, I thought there was going to be a scene change there and maybe that was the plan but they moved things around in editing.  Also maybe you can have a mega cool fire scene and you can have mega cool dragons, but you can't have mega cool dragons in the mega cool fire scene.  Dany has pretty flat lighting on her once the dragons are there which I imagine makes things easier.

As far as Theon goes, with his "Am I your brother?" question, I wonder if they aren't setting it up for later when he goes back to Pyke for them to have a bit of a falling out.  I know in the book it's Theon's idea but they might switch it around.  "You said I was your brother", "My brothers are dead."

[The King's Foot]

TheMountainThatAbides, on 20 June 2011 - 05:47 PM, said:

Actually I really like Shae. And Osha as well for that matter. The latter maybe even more than Shae.
This episode really made me realize just that.

Maybe b/c Osha equipped an epic hairbrush and you can actually see her face!

[Jaxom 1974]

It was excellent.

I wonder a litttle at he idea of Pycelle playing the Game.  Despite some suggestions based on how some have read AFFC, I never saw him as a player...but it makes for more interest in the show...

Giving us scenes from book 2 that were merely narrative description, such as Arya and  Yoren and the group heading for the Wall...but I wasn't enamoured of the Catelyn/Jaime scene,  it would be better at he end of Season 2.

Need to do a rewatch...

[Tywin's bastard]

Sega AM2, on 20 June 2011 - 05:41 PM, said:

I believe Dany mentions that the young dragons can't breathe fire. It's why she has to cook their meat herself and feed it to them. One of the few smart things that Viserys passed along to her before he got crowned.

That's correct. At best they could do small puffs of smoke.

[freamon]

tarantella, on 20 June 2011 - 05:22 PM, said:

I don't know why they put the Cersei fucking Lancel bit in so early.  Didn't that come a lot later in the books?  Is Jaime's story going to get accelerated?

That must be the idea. If they followed the books, he would have to be excluded from almost the entire Season 2.

Spoiler

I don't know exactly how though. They would still have to keep him in the dungeons for a few episodes while Cat goes to meet Renly and comes back with Brienne after Renly's death, which cannot happen early in the season.

I think A Clash of Kings can be done in 6-7 episodes since most of the important stuff happens in A Storm of Swords anyway.

Spoiler

aCoK is mostly preparation for aSoS. Except for Blackwater. Other than that, Dany is chilling in Qarth and the Brothers of the Night's Watch are chilling (literally) north of the Wall without much happening.

They're already into aCoK so I think the last few episodes of Season 2 can be from aSoS.

[tantoten1]

julandro, on 20 June 2011 - 01:49 AM, said:

Thanks HBO for showing the ass beautiful Eugene Simon.

I am eagerly awaiting the second season. Without a doubt, show the sex scenes.

This Julandro persona is obviously Eugene Simon trying to get...something. It is known.

[Gnomestress]

JJxvi, on 20 June 2011 - 05:37 PM, said:

So, do any of the "Shae-haters" want to revise any earlier "They better not replace Shea with Ros!" opinions?

Ros is growing on me.  I gave her a chance and rather enjoyed the scene she shared with Pycelle.  I think they're using her to during scenes that add important information or character development that occurs in different scenes in the books.

[kalbear]

Uh, not really.

ACOK has a lot going on. We've got Theon marching on and taking Winterfell (and 'killing' Bran and Rickon). We've got Arya and Harrenhall and Jaqen H'gar. We've got Stannis marching on Renly, Renly marching, Stannis killing Renly, and THEN the Blackwater. Tyrion, Cersei and Sansa are all playing their parts in KL and that's probably the most interesting bit. Plus we'll be seeing more of characters we didn't have PoVs for - like Robb.

Jon and Dany don't have a ton to do, but the rest of the cast is pretty full of events.

That being said, it's not that hard to move up Theon's taking of Winterfell and that role, and wind it up by ep 6. Then ep 7 can have Cat freeing Jaime and have him slowly make his way back to KL. He can end up in Harrenhall around the time Arya leaves, which would be pretty amusing, I'd think.

[The King's Foot]

Gnomestress, on 20 June 2011 - 06:11 PM, said:

Ros is growing on me.  I gave her a chance and rather enjoyed the scene she shared with Pycelle.  I think they're using her to during scenes that add important information or character development that occurs in different scenes in the books.

She's like the canary in the coal mine.  If you see Roz, the scene is non-canonical!