The Meeraculous Third Reed

5. Not much in the way of anything particularly exciting. The problem is that the producers' favourite characters are too obvious. Last scene, Tyrion and Sansa giggling were particularly awful.

I'm somewhat surprised at all the tens in all honesty. I tend to agree with much of the "official" review (especially regarding the "Oh Shit! It's a trap! Moment). In all honesty, I found the RW somewhat underwhelming. There were a few nice twists (stabbing Talisa in the womb multiple times was pretty shocking, as was Catelyn slitting his wife's throat), but overall, I really didn't feel that much sadness. Obviously I've read it several times before, so the impact might have dulled a bit, and perhaps the burning of the tents next week will bring a degree of gravitas to the occasion, yet for the most part, it really wasn't that effective. Why is this? I think a lot of it simply stems from the fact that I give far less of a shit about show Robb, show Catelyn etc than I do their book counterparts. That's a result of two seasons' worth of poor characterisation, which cannot be saved by piling on the sympathy at the RW. The seeds for the RW should have been sowed months prior. They weren't, and that lessened the occasion for me. There were other things too. Grey Wind dying like a bitch, Arya acting so damned calm about the whole thing. Obviously, the scene did its job; Twitter went apeshit, people will probably be shocked. I can't help thinking though that it could have been so much better. The Bran/Rickon scene did far much more for me emotionally than the RW. I think the separation was done nicely, I liked the way that Jojen and Meera took a back seat to allow the Osha/Rickon/Bran relationship to flourish. All in all I thought that bit was fantastic (maybe seeing the attack through Summer's eyes would have made it even better, but meh). All the other scenes were fine (there is only so much you can do with choreographed sword-fights). I gave it an 8. I should've given it a 7. It was by no means a 10. Breaking Bad 3X12/13, 4X13 are tens. The Wire 2X11, 4x12/13 is a ten. This was not a ten.

I gave it a 4. I honestly feel that was generous. So much filler. My god. Almost every scene was just played out for seemingly no reason. That's to say nothing bad about the acting (Iwan Rheon is good. Damn he is good. I just wish he could play a more likable character), just that so much of it served little purpose. Secondly, the changes from the book in this episode were truly truly awful. Gendry storyline? Pass. Utterly ludicrous. This marriage notion? Likewise. Can't remember exactly, but have Willas and Garlan now been retconned? Just so silly. Continued white-washing of Tyrion and Cersei? Just really really annoying. Is Jojen being an epileptic in the books? Even Varys and LF are getting boring. LF is my favourite favourite character, and it's just so annoying to see him (not Varys, Varys never reveals anything to him) just throw stuff out there for Varys to hear. Yes he's more likely to be frank with Varys, a man with whom he shares both respect and disgust for and knows is playing much the same game at him, but ffs, LF has literally spent years carefully honing a public persona. Aidan Gillen deserves better. Jaime, Roose and Brienne were good. As was the aforementioned acting of Rheon. Nothing else did it for me at all.

Oh my god. Never would have clocked that without you pointing it out. I gave a 6 last week, and felt it was a bit low. I'm giving the same this week, even if I thought the episode was ever so slightly worse. Pros: Pretty much every new character introduced hit the right notes with me. Anguy and the Reeds in particular. Acting continues to be 95% very good. Sansa, Jaime and Brienne, BWB scenes all hit their mark and were enjoyable to watch. Also, the Marg/Joff scene dragged a bit but Jack Gleeson is a damned good actor. Cons: Nothing particularly exciting happened for the second episode in a row. Tyrion shoehorned into the episode for no other reason than he's a fan favourite Catelyn speech was just silly. Few others but I have a headache right now.

Ok, let's go. I gave a 6, but I'm wavering as to whether it should be a 7. Then I remember the Fist scene.... Pros first: Margaery. Yeah-huh. I've read Ran's analysis of the episode, and he's not really sold on either Dormer or the angle they used for this scene. I see his point, but don't agree completely. Firstly, I think that Dormer did a good job in her scenes, having not been at all convinced by her in season 2. Meanwhile, I see the criticism attached to the scene at the Flea Bottom orphanage (that it doesn't fit with the time period), but I don't think that Margaery's actions are that out of place. I'm pretty certain that there are anecdotes of monarchs such as Elizabeth I conversing with and mingling with "low-born" members of society. The idea of political spin was prevalent way back when too. I also think there is a need to establish that the Tyrells are indeed playing the Game. We never get a POV from them, and much of Cersei's perfectly valid criticisms lie behind too many layers of egomania and paranoia. I also thought the dinner scene was good. Joffrey reminds me more and more of Nero. Tyrion/Cersei/Tywin- Well acted, well crafted scenes. You could argue the Cersei/Tyrion one was necessary, but I think they're really trying to emphasis Tyrion's isolation, both politically and from his family. Kraznys was very good, as were the visuals of the Giant, the Dragons etc. Weaknesses: RIP the characters formerly known as Catelyn and Robb Stark. Extend this to Littlefinger as well. The beauty of Sansa's escape lies entirely in the shock the reader gets at "hearing" LF's voice, then having him emerge from the shadows. Removing Dontos and essentially refusing to acknowledge the presence of either Varys or the fact that LF conversing with Sansa in the open would place suspicion upon a man whose primary motto is to keep one's hands clean. I mean, I can just about see the logic behind this if it looks like they're throwing a curveball (should LF tell the Small Council about Sansa's betrothal to Willas when it comes around), but even so, show LF is a poor imitation of his literary counterpart. The Fist debacle. I've seen this criticism elsewhere, but it's perfectly valid. Why bother going to the trouble of making the massive CGI White Walker army and then doing jack with them? It just seems a complete waste. The plotholes regarding this storyline were also incredibly frustrating. Why is Ghost with the NW? It makes no sense. Likewise Mormont chastising Sam. Oh, Sam didn't get the ravens off in time? Well maybe that's because he was made to go out on patrol. Away from his ravens. The ravens that were supposedly his only job. Anyway, if he didn't get the ravens off, so what? Are they dead now? Because if Sam didn't get them off they're probably still on the Fist. The scene just made no sense. Waiting to pass judgement on Mance and Tormund, but that scene was ok, as were the Davos scenes. It's been indicated that the episodes will get progressively better. Let's hope so, because there is much to improve upon.

I'm thinking of something along those lines. Maybe a bit too obvious though. Barristan mistrusts him, so you'd assume he'd have something inside the city as a reserve. The Green Grace on the other hand...... The Great One's ego is only big because he justifies it. He's no trumped-up Yunkishman. If anything is to be made regarding a bird connection and The Great One, it probably refers to his sigil (Mockingbird). I don't really think these theories have much credence though. The Hound has technique though. I'm in agreement with pretty much all of this. I'm far more inclined to see Jorah as Barristan's killer though. Man holds a grudge. She knows his name, and doesn't really have much of a reason to kill The Great One. Chin up. Just means that TWOW will be all the more exciting. Just to confirm, these were excerpts and not full chapters yes? I see Barristan's army eventually pulling through, but there is no way the battle will be as easy as it seems to be going in the chapter mentioned.

Surely if Podrick is alive then so is Hyle?

Not a bad call at all.

Really CBA with pros and cons really. Roughly a 7 as a TV show, a 3 in terms of being faithful to the books. Lot of the changes piss me off now, I really think I need to start separating myself from the books mentally.

Really CBA with pros and cons really. Roughly a 7 as a TV show, a 3 in terms of being faithful to the books. Lot of the changes piss me off now, I really think I need to start separating myself from the books mentally.

No point doing my usual pros and cons, because almost everything in this episode was perfect. The shot of the wildfyre burning the ships was beyond anything I've ever seen on the small screen. What I would say above anything else though is that Lean Headey was amazing. Better than anyone else, and that is saying something. My only minor gripe is the seeming reluctance to connect Sansa with the Old Gods. The difference in religion is important. I am barrel scraping though. Just a damned good episode. Another thing. Sophie Turner is already damned attractive, and me realising that makes me feel a little dirty.

Lol. He's based on a man who did exactly that in real life.

Ah, the old "purist" shtick. Because criticising the fact that Osha walked past Theon and Dagmer in broad daylight is being a book purist. Silly me.

Oh sorry I must have missed that clear differentiation in your original post.

Right, of course. No criticism can be forthcoming from us laypeople. How dare we have the gall to view a piece of drama with a critical eye.