Lyana

I saved my 10 for this episode and I was not wrong ... It's a solid 10. Heartbreaking but amazing episode. Except the obvious highlight, the other plot lines were handled very good as well.

Well, that was a great episode. I only voted 9, cause I know the show can do even better in the next episodes and it probably would. The final scenes were epic. I finally get that feeling that I am watching a big production with a decent budget. The Blackwater episode was impressive, but the "Dracarys" scene was really something I was looking for. I def got goosebumps. The episode had definitely a strong and emotional beginning. Seeing Jaime defeated and desperate was a call back to reality. He realizes he cannot always count on his father's name. And here enters Brienne an returns him the favor, trying to make him angry and wake the will to live in him. It was emotional scene - sad, but somehow beautiful - representing perfectly the dynamic between the two characters. I was wondering the whole time what was Varys actually doing with the box, while talking to Tyrion. I knew he was up to something but wasn't expecting ... that. I guess there isn't any special meaning behind this deviation from the book story. It was just supposed to give the viewers the feeling that Varys is a dangerous guy indeed and he can wait as long as it takes to achieve his purposes. And from the looks if Tyrion I would say he was rather impressed too. The tension at the NW has started to build up slowly since the previous episode. We see the minor gestures and statements which lead us to thing this apple has rotten from the inside long time ago. Of course in the book the hunger and desperation were almost real. But the show did its best too. Hunger and fear do make people go crazy. The Nights Watch has fallen - not at the Wall, but there in Craster's Keep. And so did Mormont - his watch has ended. I know that there are so many characters this season, but Bran's story line seems really unimportant and somehow distant. We get to see him for a minute pro episode and people are still confused about the Reeds. It is somehow sad, because I have the feeling he has the most important role to play later. The dream of Catelyn was some kind of foreshadowing I guess. We all know what's coming. The Sansa plot is more obvious than in the books and I find that understandable. I really enjoyed the Varys quality time in this episode. He is the best. I can't recall one thing though - why was Ross so willing to spy for him? Margaery is the new sweetheart. I love her interaction with Joffrey and Jack Gleeson is an outstanding actor - probably one of the best in the show. His fear from the common people was almost surreal and than the insecure waving to the crowd ... He nailed it. The Sept of Baelor was impressive. Also we learned some brief history lessons and got to see Cersei truly worried - priceless. Poor Theon. His confession about Ned Stark was heartbreaking. Theon's story is somehow really tragic, but also showing how one's life could be truly affected from early stages. My non-book reader friends still don't feel pity for him, but I guess it would all come later. Aaaaand finally Cersei got her a*s spanked. She deserved it. And from her father's mouth. It was really impressive to see how Tiwyn holds his children - only with one word, gesture or look. He does not have power - he IS the power. And the thin irony was also spot on - he is criticizing Cersei about not being able to handle her own son, but yet he failed tremendously in the proper upbringing of his own children. And only the sound of the letter writing just got me chills. The Olenna scenes are really refreshing. I was surprised to see how Varys was not prepared for her honesty at the beginning of the conversation but he then soon got his confidence back. Those were some really good lines. I was really enjoying the scene. And than the related one with Sansa and Margaery was also fine. They are so different but still willing to be friends - two beautiful little girls in the middle of the cruel Game of Thrones. Was it said explicitly in the show that Loras is in the Kings Guard? Cause that makes the marriage proposal without any real meaning. Sansa wouldn't have fallen for that. Otherwise the slightly change was ok. We don't need another new character to remember. We won't be seeing enough of Arya this season I guess but I'm looking forward to hear some prophecies. I'm not sure if they will include the Ghost of High Heart, or they will just make Thoros to see something in the flames though. As I have already stated, the final scene was epic. The minor complaint was just that we really didn't think Dany would actually sell Drogon. Some more suspense couldn't have hurt but it's fine. Also I hope we get to see more consistent appearances by each character. Not one scene pro episode. Edited: spelling

Voted 9. The best episode so far. The final scenes were pure epicness.

Yeah, I see what you mean, but I'm looking at his character from the TV show prospective now. Somehow they got him to be all hero and stuff at the Battle of Blackwater and i really liked the change. And now from all of a sudden he is that whiny dude, who begs Melisandre not to go away and to help him win over the throne by giving him another shadow baby. He was the one that wanted to be fair and square at the first place and win his battles properly as honest man. And for a moment I got confused and thought "Does he want her back only for the shadow baby or does he have feelings for her?" It just seemed a little inconsistent to me. I really try not to compare book and TV show characters but it is just inevitable. I just don't see how this begging guy could become the tough leader who is determined to win the throne. I think they played it a bit too far with the depression...

Lol! I'm down with that!

Sooo, here we go in order of appearance: The whole Riverrun situation - This episode had a really great start with the introduction of the House Tully. I admit it could have been overwhelming to the non-book readers sparing energy to remember one more noble house, but they just may get used to it. Edmure not being able to shoot the arrow straight to the target was a nice touch. Brynden was spot on. I remember vaguely in the books, that Edmure's impatient actions cost Robb e great victory over Tiwin, not over The Mountain. But I didn't get it in the books either, so I guess here it has been simplified to the TV viewers with the straightforward "Kill the Mountain". So I guess it was a fine and necessary change. I'm just hoping that the North isn't introduced further as weakened, so the impact of the RW would be bigger. One funny council - Here comes one of the best scenes in the episode, full of subtle moments. The old council with the "new" old Hand, so we could see how they would react around the new boss. I liked it how after the initial hesitance, Littlefinger reacted fast and got the best place. Although I presume Varys was like "Ok, have the chair... We'll see who gets the really important things". Cerse's narcissistic nature was shown only in one simple action like the moving of the chair. I always wondered about Tiwin's attitude to his daughter. I always thought he was way too patient and tolerable of her incompetence. And as usual Tyrion is the one to express openly his opinion with sarcasm and witty comments. The chair dragging scene reminds me of one hilarious scene form Johnny English 2. It really had me laughing and it brought some freshness to the show. The bear and the maiden fair - Another great song from the books was given life with very nice and suitable reference to Jaime and Brienne. Although in this case the maiden fair looks like a bear. The scenes with Jaime and Brienne remain one of the strongest yet and NCW is nailing the part. He was really irritating at the beginning of the series, but now is showing truly how his character evolves. The Stark from Winterhell - This was another good one :) Bye, bye Hot Pie, you served your role well. And we get to see how sentimental Gendry is. I'm willing to see a bit more of Arya's story-line tho. I know that not much is happening with her in the book either, but dang is she cool. Family reunion - Catelyn's little moment was actually quite moving. Not much to say here. It was alright tho. The young wolf - That was an interesting scene. We get to hear about the legends how Robb turned into wolf at night. Which was actually quite interesting for me. I've always considered it as some kind of reference that Robb was a warg too. But away from that, it was just a cool scene for scared little boys. Quite the artists - So we are back to the Wildling Camp. I read some complaining about Kit's acting and Jon's part. I'm completely fine with Kit. He did very well in season 1, but since then the show runners are giving his character not much of an action. I got the feeling that Jon Snow's part has been kept low profile for a reason. If that's not the case, that is just poorly written. Since he's my favorite in the books, I sincerely hope we get to see more consistent wildling plot and not just some random plot scenes. Nice touch with the WW art. Very David Fincher style I might say. The changed situation at Craster's Keep - For the first time we get to see how miserable the NW actually is. Craster may act that nothing has changed, but we can see that the nice NW is not so nice anymore. The subtle looks and the nervous environment point to some coming menace, which does not necessarily comes from the outside. I just hope we still get to see Sam the Slayer. Winter is coming - The "Winter is coming" and the "Bastard" references were really great references for the die hard fans of the series. I've read the books but am just as curious how Theon's story will continue form now on. But am pretty sure we've met Ramsey already. Stannis ... ohhh the pity - Why (dramatic screaming towards the sky), why on earth destroying such a nice written character? I still have no clue whatsoever. Just ... speechless... The Queen (or the Don?) - And the family has chosen the new Don. Dany is having some awesome parts this season. I'm not a fan of hers in the books, but here in season 3 I really find her charismatic and interesting. Her story-arc promises to be well handled, consistent and properly written. I liked it how Jorah and Ser Barristan were the two sides of the same coin. Dany really is ready to kick some slaveholders a*s. The Rhaegar mentioning almost got me jumping on my chair from joy. My boyfriend thinks I'm a total geek now. The Meereenese Knot - Well, well, well ... look who got laid. Podrick is not so lame anymore. Although the prostitutes may have been paid to lie, I prefer to leave it the way it is and think of Pod as of some really cool guy from now on. It was a bit of unnecessary scene, but pretty fresh tho. Imho there must be such a refreshing and funny scene now and then. It's not always about the drama and the plots. The one-handed knight - As soon as I saw the final scene coming, my stomach dropped. I felt really horrible about Jaime. The final scene was intense, although I'm not sure if it was as much of a shock for the non-book readers. But I somehow missed the motivation behind Locke's decision to cut Jaime's hand of. Was he irritated by Jaime's self-indulgent behavior? Was that a reason good enough to cut his hand of and not fear lord Tiwin's revenge? It has been a while since I've read the books so I can't recall the exact scene there either. Bur it was well handled and I definitely felt the tension. The rocky song at the and had a little dissonance with the cutting scene, which created a nice contrast. Edited: spelling

Great episode! Voted 8 cause I keep the 9 and 10 for the best ones ;)

Hesitating between 7 and 8. Gave it an 8 tho. That episode was so anticipated, that I didn't care about the book deviations. It was a nice set up for the ongoing story, but visually weaker that the previous pilot episodes. But in general - thumbs up! I've enjoyed it a lot :)

So, here we go in order of appearance: The opening scene was nicely done. Tyrion's awakening, still hearing the screams and seeing the fire... and than something alsmost as awful - maester Pycelle's smile. It is a new day. a new hand and a totally new situation. The horse shitting was a proper introduction for the proclaiming of the new "heroes of the day". The Tyrells are nailing it and Sansa's smile was priceless. Still don't get why the've cast Dontos, now that we already know who the "secret" helper of Sansa is. But I guess everything LF does, happens for a reason. So we'll just have to wait and see the point of his early revelation. Soooo, Ros serves some purpose... Not sure what to say about that. If the writers have included her in the final episode and wasted some of their precious time for her, I guess she has some important part to play as a spy for Varys. Either that, or the show just wants to ensure us that Varys is in fact an eunuch. The Brienne/Jaime part was there just to remind us, that they still exist - the weird lady knight and the man without honour. Those two have great chemistry, so I don't mind the screentime the show makers spent on them. Well, here's my first minor complaint. As a fresh Stannis fan, I cheered his heroic appearance in the previous episode. But here, him choking Mel, admitting that he killed his brother with a shadow baby (does he even know about this in the book?), complaining about the Red God and right after that suddenly seeing sth in the flames... Seems a bit weird to me. And was that some kind of foreshadowing, about Mel telling him that he will betray everyone and everything? Who is he, the NK? I liked Theon's scene in the context of the show. Alfie did a great job and didn't make me hate the character less, than I do in the books. Liked the conversation with him and Lewin and he has said it straight - there is no turning back, he went too far already. And the moment with his speech kind of preserved the atmosphere of the books and reminded me again why I like Martin's world so much. In a standard good-bad-guy story, we will see a man give a heroic speech, making his men want to die in a battle for glory. But in GoT... nope! The guy gives a speech only to get hit on the head and betrayed by his own men. Now that's a good story. I guess the Catelyn/Robb and the Robb/Talissa (don't care how it is spelled) scenes were a necessity to close up Robb's story in season two and to set up the future events that will be of great importance. Here is of course the question abot Bran and Rickon's death. Why haven't they been used as a catalyst for the release of Jaime and the wedding of Robb? That would have been more plausible and wouldn't have made Catelyn and Robb look like complete idiots. The Jeyne/Talissa thing is also a black spot for me, but I hope we will get some good explanation later as the story goes on. I (still) stay optimistic on this one. Arya's scene was solid. Liked it although Jaquen's question if she would go with him, seemed a bit strange. I hope we get to see him later with his pretty face because the second dude was scary. Bran and Rickon's scenes were heartbreaking. I wept a tear there, I admit. Good to see at least some direwolves. This is an evidence that all the direwolves did not just magically disappear (perhaps only those beyond the Wall). And here we come to THE scene that we all have waited for (at least I did) for the whole season. The HoU-scene in the books is the reason for half the topics in this forum. I was eager to see how D & D will handle this. My expectations were pretty low but I hoped. And the result is .... somehow not surprising. It was kind of a let-down for the book-reader in me. But on the other hand, hey, we can speculate on the TV version as well. And there are some things to speculate on (but in another thread, I know). I knew the writers had two options - either to skip the scene completely (the spoilers are too many and too obvious), or to present entirely new visions, but still related to future events (as they did). I'm pretty sure those are not just some random visions - the show is way better than that. A minor nitpick though: Dany is supposed not to be fireproof in the books. Did the show makers decided to change that? Why on earth would they do that? I have several posts about the mishandled depiction of Jon Snow in the TV show. I definitely don't like what D & D made of him in the second season, but in episode 8 Qhorin makes very clear his intention about inflitrating Jon into the wildlings as a double-agent. I just hope the non-book readers remembered that. And I will be probably the 999th person to ask that but: Where the hell is Ghost? Is he the worst direwolf ever or what? The people who bet on the second season's ending with the 3 hornblasts are probably happy. It was a creepy scene and I got goosebumps when I heared that WW screaming (or whatever he was doing). I got some weird feeling about the way they've presented the WWs. They seem more humanoid as I have pictured them - like humans, whose spirit has been taken away or something (Night's King, anyone?). Why did the WW look at Sam and did nothing? Perhaps it has something to do with Coldhands, or who knows. I'm sure that there is some explanation, so I won't be in hurry to criticize. The final look over the army of wights was creepy as hell. Overall I liked it and look forward for the next season.

Well, I really, really tried to watch the show and not think about the books. I just watched it, like I watched the first season (I haven't read the series at that time). I saw how excited my non-book reader freinds were about this episode. And I think it worked. It was really pleasant and liberating not to compare every single detail with the book. So I gave it a 10. This episode was not as spectacular as the previous one, but that also was not its purpose. And I have to say, I'm really relieved that Alan Taylor is back on board as a director. Although Blackwater was one of the best episodes, it it safe to say for me at least, that Neil Marshall wasn't the right choice. This episode felt complete, every storyline got his proper ending and the final scene made my blood freeze. Those are pretty good reasons to be satisfied with the season's ending.

I would love to see Tim Roth on the show! No matter which role he would play.

It's not television, it's HBO! No, let me paraphrase: "It's not a TV show, it's Game of Thrones!" Where should I start... that was an amazing episode. All the tension that has been piling up, showing... no, letting us feel the fear and the misery. And then... THE explosion. That belongs in the cinema, on the big screen. Every freakin' scene was awesome - Tyrion, Sansa, Cersei, Bronn, The Hound, Davos, Varys, Joffrey and Stannis... oh, Stannis. His face, his determination, him swinging his sword. I was like: He's awesome!!! And at the end:"Stand and fight! Stand and fight damn you!", I felt like I was going to cry. I loved the contrast between the two kings. The one is still a boy, escaping the battle while his men still need him and the other is an experienced military leader, whose men escape, when he needs them. The little hints of Varys were also great: - the story about how he has been cut - I see that could be of importance. - his line about the bells and the wedding - nice foreshadowing there. I loved how Sansa tried to trick Joffrey into fighting in the front lines. But the nicest touch for me was how the explosion showed everyone's true face. While Joffrey and the pyromancer were facinated and Bronn didn't show much emotions, Tyrion and the Hound had those "What have we done"-looks and it was just great. And just when I thought the final scene couldn't be more perfect, I hear the "Rains of Castamere" and that has blown my mind! And the writing ... what can I say. Not just that it was GRRM himself, but that episode had amazing dialogs. The great lines were so many. I can't help it and will post the highlights that come on the top of my head: “-Poor nose. -Don’t feel sorry for him. He will be half way up your ass before the night is through.” “You’re just like me, only smaller” “-I’m not escaping. As strange as it sounds I’m the captain of the ship and if the ship goes down I go down with it. -That is good to hear. Though I’m sure many captains say the same while their ship is a float." “-Do you know how to use that? -Chopped wood once… No, I watched my brother chopping wood. -I saw you kill a man with a shield. You’ll be unstoppable with an axe.” “-I will pray for your safe return, milord. -Will you? -Just as I pray for the king’s.” “-If I tell the Hound to cut you in half, he’ll do it without a second thought. -That would make me the Quarterman. Just doesn’t have the same ring to it.” “-We are too far from the gates. Their fire, their archers… hundreds will die. -Thousands.” “-Your father doesn’t believe in the Gods? -He believes in them. He just doesn’t like them very much.” “If any man dies with a clean sword, I’ll rape his fucking corpse.” “Those are brave men, knocking on our door. Let’s go kill them!”

It's a 10, yeah it's a 10!!! That was freakin' awesome! One of the best things I have ever seen on TV (and on screen generally). Loved every single minute of it and the script was amazing. The voting scale must be increased. 10 is just not enough anymore ;)

Nice episode despite the lack of action. The show obviously is slowing down before the finale grande. I liked all the scenes in general. Here are some impressions in order of appearance: - I actually didn't have much to say about Asha until now, because I've just had started to read AFfC. But now I'm nearly half into the book and have to admit that Asha is becoming one of my favourites. Thus the big interest I've had about the Asha/Theon scenes. This is the first time we see her in her true light. The actress has captured the essence of the character and the interaction with Alfie was great. We get too see how the different perception of the ironmen can turn the captives into brave children. I enjoyed very much the emphasis on how different the points of view of Asha and Theon are. And yet, they are still btother and sister and there exists some connection between them as little as it is. The Asha/Theon interaction was one of the highlights of this episode imo. - I'm relieved to see a nice set-up abot the big Jon scene coming in episode 10. I'm glad we're going to see him killing Qhorin after all. About the issue how Jon is represented in the second season, I'll discuss it further in another thread. The big problem here still remains - where the f*** is Ghost? How are the going to think of some plausible explanation that he is gone all the time? Loved the scenes on the Fist too. The shots in Iceland are breathtaking. - I've seen that the scenes with Robb caused a huge discussions in this thread and there are many posts about this, so I won't go in details. My confusion about the Jeyne/Talisa story comes from a memory I have, about reading an article of the cast decisions few months ago. I've read somewhere that they have casted Oona Chaplin for the role of Jeyne Westerling. So I really thought at some point she will be revealed as Jeyne. After watching this episode I'm not so sure about this anymore. But it's fine by me, if she remains Talisa. I see what are they trying to do here and it's ok. We have a beautiful lovestory and a great chemisrty between the actors. They have been made so lovable, that while watching the love scene I had tears in my eyse for knowing what is going to happen in next season. Robb's story line works for me so far. - In this episode we have a near-highlight, where I see a potential to become one of THE highlights at the end of this season and the beginning of the next one. I find the Jaime/Brienne interaction particularly funny and can't wait to see more of that. - Well, the way Arya's story was handled was a bit surprising but as long as the coin-giving is shown, I'm fine with it. There was a plausible explanation for every person Arya picked and her last choice was handled well in this episode. Will miss the weasel soup in the show, but eh, what are you going to do ... it is not the end of the world. The passing through the gate with all the dead Lannister guards was creepy enough. I see the writers have something in mind, since the name of episode 10 is Valar Morghulis. I will miss the Arya/Tywin interactions though. Those were the best. - Tyrion's scenes were THE best moments in this episode. I'm extremely happy about seeing Varys again. Missed him very much and was annoyed by the constant showing of LF. The Tyrion/Varys/Bronn scene was particularly funny and I enjoyed it very much. Nice actintg of Lena Headey too. I've been waiting to see that evil little smile of hers since the teaser came out a few months ago. Also it was a pleasant surprise to see the Red Keep during the Varys/Tyrion conversation. Have almost forgotten that they are in KL. The place looked different form KL in season one. It was a nice refreshing detail. - The Davos/Stannis conversation was one of my favourite moments in this episode. Stephen Dillane is growing into his character with every episode and this was his highlight. "We were forgotten" - all the bitter dissapointment about not being appreciated by his brother was overwhelming and I nearly felt it myself. The cats and dogs-line was hilarious. - Not really much to say about Dany's little scene. Still waiting for the HoU. - Last episode and this episode both ended with something that was thought to be a "twist", I suppose. I didn't really feel the tension as in the books. I watched it both times with my boyfriend, a non-book reader. By the end of episode 7 he was sure that Bran and Rickon are alive and those burned bodies belonged to someone else. But during episode 8 his certainty was shaken and before the end he was already convinced the boys were actually dead. Then the final scene came and had an impact on him - he was really relieved. His reaction made me appreciate those final scenes more as some kind of twist. Overall I liked this episode very much, but now can't wait to see the highlight of the season next week.

I was hesitating between an eight and a nine, but after the rewatch, I think this episode deserves a 9. Not solid, but still a 9. The fine ediiting, the good directing job and the amazing acting convinced me. They definitely stepped in for the lack of action. I think that Tim Van Patten and Alan Taylor are the best directors this show has had so far. The dialog was great, the intersections of the different story lines were very fluent and the episode felt complete. Highlights for me: - every scene with Tyrion - the Asha/Theon interaction - the Davos/Stannis conversation. Good job. I'm satisfied with this episode.