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Really enjoyed the episode. Like most I was heart broken in the lead up and burning of poor Shireen, but it was obvious that she would come to a bad end and the series has been hinting at her fate for quite a while. Will miss her interactions with Davos. Have been waiting for the Meereen fighting pits all season and it was worth the wait. The CGI wasn't seamless, but acceptable. The touching of hands made for an interesting cliff hanger.

posted in wrong thread - sorry!!!! :D

Season comparison 2014/2015 on the same dates: Ratings May 13th, 2014 GAME OF THRONES HBOM 9:03 PM 6399 3.4 BREAK HBOM 9:52 PM 3415 1.8 NBA PLAYOFFS- ROUND 2 L TNT 8:00 PM 4501 1.7 May 4, 2014 GAME OF THRONES HBOM 9:03 PM 7155 3.9 REAL HOUSEWIVES ATLANTA BRVO 8:00 PM 4289 1.9 WATCH WHAT HAPPENS LIVE BRVO 9:30 PM 3923 1.7 May 12th, 2015 GAME OF THRONES HBOM 9:03 PM 6559 3.5 NBA PLAYOFFS- ROUND 2 L TNT 8:30 PM 5030 1.9 REAL HOUSEWIVES ATLANTA BRVO 8:00 PM 2588 1.1 May 11th, 2015 1 GAME OF THRONES-04/26 HBOM 3.5 4.7 1.2 34% 2 TEEN MOM SSN 5-04/20 MTV 1.0 1.9 0.9 90% 3 LIP SYNC BATTLE-04/23 SPIKE 0.8 1.7 0.9 113% In any sense of the word that is called crushing the opposition.

I'm guessing a lot of people would say that there are certain members of the book readers club who "stick their fingers in their ears and shout argument ad populum at the top of their lungs" at any change at all. As for the viewing figures according to everything I've seen they are still holding high. The US Cable ratings has episode #5 down as the most watched program of its time slot, over the NBA play offs. In Europe its ratings are still killing every other show, to the best of my knowledge. So if its still the most watched show on TV...kind of kills your point doesn't it?

:lol:

Tell that to my wife, who has never read the books and never would. During the entire episode she sat quietly watching it all unfold. The last scene her eyes never left the screen, but she did rest her head on the arm of the chair. When the Boltons all had dinner, my wife loved the little smile on Sansa's face when Ramsay was put in his place. When Stannis had that scene with Shireen a couple of weeks back, she delighted in telling me that she knew he wasn't such a bad guy - she's team Baratheon by the way. A show that keeps fans of walks of life glued to the screen, thats good TV. A Fantasy show that keeps people with no interest in fantasy watching, thats great TV.

Exactly. Yes there are dragons, but there is also politics, intrigue and real emotional value to the story. People who would never have picked up a fantasy book are being drawn into these worlds and that is great to see.

I mentioned that very point in another thread. It was fascinating, I watched the show with my wife and got a real insight into how she sees things. While I still have the over all plot points in my head, these little changes are making the season for me.

Discontent is a little like a rolling stone, to use a terribly over used metaphor. In season one its “Oh no, they changed this one thing that I liked”, by season 5 its “they changed a word, it was never sword, it was block”, I’m never watching this sh*t again, the wrong person got raped”. Despite being told that the show will be different, over and over and over again, people have a blockage. Instead of enjoying having a really well made Fantasy show on TV, something that encourages the genre, we have people screaming blue murder. If anyone has ever watched “The Big Bang” where the main characters get really involved in a stupid argument over a comic book character, like how does superman clean his underwear, and the audience laughs at how pointless it is. Well this is it in real life. The reason Sansa was put in that position was to make it personal. So that it would be emotionally tearing for the audience and not just another “read shirt” being tormented by Ramsay. Real emotional tole. We care about Sansa, we don’t want her to get hurt, she does, the Boltons become enemy #1. Stannis becomes hero #1 if he can smash heads.

I think that's the point. The Boltons have hurt someone that we all kinda feel protective of. You don't have to like Sansa to know that she hasn't had the easiest of times. And just when you started to think that things were looking up, she has been put into the worst position possible by the man that she saved last season. But isn’t that what makes a good story? Our reaction to what has happened to this poor girl and our need for her to be saved, avenged or for her to take that vengeance herself?

I gave the episode a 9/10. It kicked you were it hurt and the emotional discomfort left cracks that will take time to heal. Dorne was grand. A little slap stick. Convenient timing, plot rushing. The rest of the show had great pace and time to breath. Tyrion and Ser Friendzone had some solid lines. Another strong character pairing. The KL scenes were tense. Cersei is smirking now, but you can’t help to remember what both Tywin and Tyrion have told her in the past, she really isn’t as clever as she thinks she is. Arya helped to kill a girl. She was beaten with a stick. Was brought into a huge room filled with people’s faces. So much to consider there. Very well put together. And Sansa v’s the Bolton’s. Talk about something that will be debated about for years to come. It was horrible to watch, but it cemented, focused, the audience. The Red Wedding was shocking, but it was a plot of many characters. But the Sansa/Ramsay scene will be burnt into the minds of everyone that watched. A reminder why the show has been so successful. And a great way to play with the heads of book readers who are for the first time really starting to understand what TV viewers have been feeling for years.

They are religious extremists, but they they only exist because of the rich/poor divide. Their over the top preachings/actions/reactions are provocated from the violence and poverty suffered by the poor during the war.

9/10 - Excellent episode. The first episode is always a reintroduction, the second and third build the foundations of how things are going to go, by the fourth things start to roll. And that was the case this week. We had already been introduced to the SOH and the Sparrows, now we can clearly see the dangers they pose to the main characters. Violence and public attacks is a sure sign that all is not safe for those at the top of any government structure. The pacing was better as well. Each scene had time to take breath. Dorne: Bronn and Jaime are another great pairing. It was interesting to watch how close to the bone Bronn got with his comments. And it was good that they highlighted how Jaime’s fighting skills are very poor now. This isn’t a show where the hero switches hands and is instantly just as skilled. Jaime isn’t the man he was. Great to see the Sand Snakes, new characters on screen are always refreshing. KL: Liked the ramping up of the power play between Cersei and Margaery. It shows how desperate Cersei is that she would use such an unpredictable force to destabilise the Tyrells. And poor Tommen, he really is just a boy. LF and Sansa: Loved the backstory exposition and how it really fitted in with Dany’s and Jon’s sections. The tangled web was revealed for non book readers. Also it was a nice reflection of season one, as it was the same spot that we first got introduced to Ned and Roberts relationship and their shared history. Liked Sansa’s puzzled look at the feather and how she is starting to realise just how important a cog she really is. Meereen: Dany and Ser Barristan. It was a lovely scene between them. Like a grandfather telling stories. But what happened next came as a shock. Just didn’t see it coming. It was a great send off for one of the good guys. He kicked a** and took names. It was just too soon. Tyrion and Sir Friendzone was well played. Loved Tyrions comment about not being sober during most of the small councils meetings. The Wall: Mel and Jon was as uncomfortable as no doubt it was planned to be. But hands down Stannis and Shireen stole the show. Nothing else needs to be said.

Did you just call everyone on this site that voted 7 or higher stupid?

That's exactly it. The show is being criticised on all sides. People are saying its too rushed, all the characters from the books aren't being included, aspects of the story are being dropped, but something has to give. They have 400 minutes per season to tell a huge story. They have a dozen characters, in several locations, all involved in separate plots. And they have to resolve everything, the entire story, in the remaining 800 minutes. Something that GRRM has yet to achieve. And he is unlimited in the number of chapters he can write. But rather than finishing the story, he just keeps adding new characters/plots. As different viewers have different favourites the show needs to split its time in a clever way to keep everyone happy. So if they take their top 8 characters allow for 2 extra storylines to run with them, then that is less than 40 minutes per character each season, divided over 10 shows. It’s a lot to cram in. Some story arcs are vast, covering lots of detail, others are fairly sparse. But both stories are important. Both are leading somewhere. So the show needs to trim down and stretch out so that it all works. Its a huge undertaking and again GRRM hasn't managed to resolve it so why are D&D being criticised for doing a great job?