181 replies to this topic

[Brady]

Lord Wyman Manderly has been a minor character from as far back as Game of Thrones. He seemed smart enough, but otherwise unimpressive, just some fat old rich guy. But, boy oh boy, did Lord Too-Fat-to-Sit-a-Horse step up to the plate in this book. Because beneath all that blubber, Wyman Manderly is a stone cold gangsta. Easily my favourite character in what was a decent, but very flawed book.

"The North remembers" indeed.

[Black Betha]

I disagree with you about ADWD, but agree about Wyman Manderly. That guy kicks ass, although I have to admit I liked him from the beginning - he always struck me as more cunning than he seems. I really root for the Manderly-Baratheon-Stark alliance I see forming but I'm afraid Targaryens will take the Iron Throne in the end...

[Han Solo]

The best part about it is that absolutely no one believes that Wyman actually has it in him to be a stone cold bastard. He and Roose Bolton were my favourites in ADWD.

[Sir Thursday]

I wasn't quite sure what Manderly was doing once they got to Winterfell. I kept thinking "Here's where he makes his move. Yeah, the food is actually poisoned after all, but he has developed a resistance to Iocaine powder!" and the like throughout the Theon PoVs, but was disappointed when he never seemed to do anything except be suspiciously drunk and merry. Unless he was behind the death of Little Walder, which I think was more likely to be Big Walder.

Could anyone see a devious masterplan under the surface that I couldn't? I so wanted there to be one...


ST

[Reyne]

Sir Thursday, on 17 July 2011 - 07:05 PM, said:

I wasn't quite sure what Manderly was doing once they got to Winterfell. I kept thinking "Here's where he makes his move. Yeah, the food is actually poisoned after all, but he has developed a resistance to Iocaine powder!" and the like throughout the Theon PoVs, but was disappointed when he never seemed to do anything except be suspiciously drunk and merry. Unless he was behind the death of Little Walder, which I think was more likely to be Big Walder.

Could anyone see a devious masterplan under the surface that I couldn't? I so wanted there to be one...


ST

You know those three 'pork' pies that he was serving so merrily at the wedding feast?

You know those three Freys that 'mysteriously vanished' on the way to Winterfell?

You know that Rat Cook song that Manderly asked for after he got drunk?

[Ser Hippie]

"Still, it may have been a blessing. He would have grown up to be a Frey"  

[rhaze]

My theory is he masterminds the betrayal of the Freys during the Stannis battle. And the information Ramsay has that Stannis is dead and his army destroyed is a ploy initiated by Manderly.

[Asarlai]

Reyne, on 17 July 2011 - 07:06 PM, said:

You know those three 'pork' pies that he was serving so merrily at the wedding feast?

You know those three Freys that 'mysteriously vanished' on the way to Winterfell?

You know that Rat Cook song that Manderly asked for after he got drunk?

Along with the pre-ADWD revelation that at least one person would die by being baked into a pie in this book.

[A Time for Wolves]

What are the Manderly words? I want a Manderly motto T-shirt.

[Eddard Lannister]

Yea Lord Manderly was excellent in this book.  His house takes a lot of flak, all other references to him and his sons had to do with their weight, but he showed that he has ice in his veins and is quite the Northman.  The "North remembers" line was great and completely reminiscent of Robb's words to the Blackfish in ASOS.  My second favorite quote of his was right before that one though when he is describing one of the Freys.

Quote

“They watch me, ser. Day and night their eyes are on me, noses sniffing for some whiff of treachery. You saw them, the arrogant Ser Jared and his nephew Rhaegar, that smirking worm who wears a dragon’s name. "

This chapter might be one of my favorites from the book.  We get a lot of Stark history in this chapter, Edric Snowbeard, his great-grandson Brandon Stark, known as "Ice-Eyes."  The story about the Greystarks who rose in rebellion along with the Dreadfort.  I've read this chapter 3 times already and loved it more each time.

[Lummel]

A Time for Wolves, on 17 July 2011 - 07:39 PM, said:

What are the Manderly words? I want a Manderly motto T-shirt.

Dunno, "Pie is coming" possibly?

It's nice to see that Roose knows that Manderly is ploting against him, but he doesn't know exactly what he is ploting, and you know he's thinking that over even as he's chomping on his delicious Frey pie.

the North remembers indeed.

[Lord Damian]

Lord Manderly is still alive and will play a huge role in helping restore the Starks to what I believe is the Throne of the Northern Kindgom. his loyalty and patronage will elevate his house to huge status. Where Casterly Rock has the Gold. White Harbor has the Silver. Also, Lord Manderly still commands the largest contingent of heavy horse and a fleet of ships in the north.

[A Time for Wolves]

Lummel, on 17 July 2011 - 08:45 PM, said:

Dunno, "Pie is coming" possibly?

I was thinking along the lines of these:

"Fat On Your Flesh"

"The Merman Remembers"

"Trident In Your Face"

[Brady]

Another thing I like, and it goes for this type of character development in general, is that now if I ever go back and reread the earlier books, all of Lord Manderly's appearances are that much cooler.

For instance; IIRC, back in Clash of Kings, Lord Manderly was one of poor Lady Hornwood's suitors. He proposed himself as a husband for her, and stated that she was his cousin and he wanted to help her. At the time, it's made to look like a Northern lord jockeying for position, trying to expand his own influence and power, and Roderik Cassel and Maester Luwin treat it as such. And maybe that was a part of it. But now that we know about Manderly's character a bit more, and how much family means to him, I think his motivations really were more than just ambition, and he genuinely did want to help out his cousin.

The same cousin Ramsay Snow raped, forced into a marriage, and starved to death. So Manderly's grudge with the Boltons goes back before the Red Wedding, as well...

[jack88]

"Don't ask what goes into the pie. Just eat."

[Black Betha]

I find it funny that everybody - me included - started to like him so much when he actually showed his worst as well as his best in ADWD... he might be a loyal and family-loving man but he's also a murderer and a cannibal!

[Joanna vander Poele]

Black Betha, on 17 July 2011 - 09:10 PM, said:

I find it funny that everybody - me included - started to like him so much when he actually showed his worst as well as his best in ADWD... he might be a loyal and family-loving man but he's also a murderer and a cannibal!

I'm starting to think northerners have a certain penchant for human flesh. Seriously, that shit was everywhere this book...

[A Time for Wolves]

Joanna Nox, on 17 July 2011 - 11:55 PM, said:

I'm starting to think northerners have a certain penchant for human flesh. Seriously, that shit was everywhere this book...

I wasn't too surprised though. How do you think they survived previous winters?

[nategator]

I wrote a crazy theory thread a while back during the long wait called:

The fat man rides, err is carried to battle (or the like, for some reason searching is still turned off)

where I set out all the reasons I thought House Manderly would turn out to be hard core Stark loyalists and were probably sheltering Rickon.  Mostly my guess was the preview readings that we had on Davos heading that way and the obvious fake reports that House Manderly had killed Davos in aFfC.  I also noted the open fighting between House Bolton and House Manderly over Lady Hornwood.  Seemed like a lot of bad blood there.  Plus, GRRM always seems pro-fat guys.

Imagine my glee when Wyman exceeded expectations!

The only salt was having a boy show up in the Davos POV and it turning out NOT to be Rickon.  Sadly that prediction went to the even crazier guys who predicted Rickon was in Skagos!  

Edited by nategator, 18 July 2011 - 12:07 AM.

[A Time for Wolves]

nategator, on 18 July 2011 - 12:06 AM, said:

The only salt was having a boy show up in the Davos POV and it turning out NOT to be Rickon.  Sadly that prediction went to the even crazier guys who predicted Rickon was in Skagos!  

Oh, that part TORTURED me. In the page space between Lord Manderly telling Glover to "bring the lad" and Wex actually appearing, I was like, "OMGit'sRickonOMGOMG"...and was super deflated when it just turned out to be Wex.

Anyone else think Wex was unnecessarily dramatic with the whole Toss the Dagger, Flip the Dagger, Toss the Dagger, Throw the Dagger at the Map routine?