Share your feelings about characters after finishing aCoK

[Ko Rakharo]

So I've just finished aCoK and I've seen people rooting for some characters here in the forum, but I haven't seen a proper thread about the characters that draw the most of attention on each reader.

So, here's my (not so) short list of characters who've drawn my attention:

- Bran Stark: totally first on my list - at first I thought I liked him just for being a kid and having suffered so much, perhaps a feeling of pity? I knew there was something more to it, and he became probably the nicest POV character in the books for me. His childish view of the world often makes us think in a simple way through heavy matters; not to mention his awesome new "powers".

- Catelyn: OK, here is someone most people don't like because of her boring chapters. I agree, they break the momentum of war with some gloomy and depressing view of things, but, come on, she's basically the one who lost everything! All she can think of is death of what she loved: Ned, Lord Hoster, Arya, Bran and Rickon; her joyful times; Winterfell; and old, peaceful Riverrun; the Robb child. It's all gone. It's all gone, and Robb could die at any moment, as well as Sansa, and gods know what happened to Arya. She would seem like a total-cliché-drama character if you didn't know it's actually all her fault, but yeah, I'd like to see when she will do something other than mourn. She must do something.

- Hodor and Nan: what happened to him? I'd love to see the reason he can only say his own name being something relevant. Also what happened to his mild, nameless family, and whether Old Nan just tells stories that are common lore, or she saw those things? Wouldn't it be cool for her to have been a wildling? It's not something that matters much to the storyline of course, but I think it's really weird how she lived so long after all her descendants but a giant man who can only yell his name.

- Varys: I've got a little bit spoiled somewhere, but it was something like an anti-spoiler: as of aDwD, we still won't know his real past history or present ways and powers. I really hate this guy.

- Lysa Arryn: how could she have been so important in aGoT and be mentioned as much as three times in the sequel novel? She's a paranoid woman protecting one of the most powerful fortresses in Westeros, and if you guys remember, Tyrion Lannister wants some sweet revenge as payment for the time he spent in the Eyrie. Will Robert grow up and be some cruel jerk? That's what his raising seems to hint at.

- Theon Greyjoy: what a bastard. Does he really love Balon and Aeron and Euron as a family with all their stubbornness and acting like they don't even know Theon? I think he's just a kid wanting his crown, much like Cressen saw Renly. His acts, however, couldn't be forgiven. I'll like to see what Lord Balon thinks of what he did in Winterfell... cruel, yet useless. I hate him even more than Cersei, is that possible?

- Sam Tarly: for a while I thought he and Jon would be best friends. I see Sam as what any of us, modern people, would be in a brutal, mediaeval-but-with-scary-magic-and-weather world. He isn't bad or ridiculous for being fat and coward; he grows up slowly as a character, and although it was obvious he would gain courage somehow, I'm expecting more than a motivational, allegoric role in the novels from him. You'll see, he'll become Lord Commander of the Night's Watch (or kill his asshole father...)

Yeah, these are the ones that impress me the most right now. Not to mention world favourites like Jon Snow, Tyrion, Arya, Jaime and Davos... but these are clearly interesting by everyone's eyes. Obviously I didn't espace the generic by saying Bran and Theon, but yeah... you can't be a hipster with certain good characters.

So, your thoughts?

[jakmanuk]

I like Theon, he's someone who came back to his old family, expecting love, but all he got was hate. Then, trying to win his family's love he made big mistakes

As for the other characters, I don't have an opinion on them

[Batbob45]

This is when I stop dislikeing Renly and Start Hating him

I also started to like Tyrion less(The Shireen's dad rumor)

I did like Shitmouth

I like Oakheart and Swann

[Aldark]

I Started like Theon very much , seeing potential around this book , he made mistakes , but he tried to play it smart and do his own things. Well he shouldn't betray Robb though...

From the talk Catelyn had with Jaime , Jaime started becoming my favorite character , instead of a just muscles and looks guy. Awesome guy.

I started liking Renly , but then he was gone... :bang:

well that's all i can think of now..nevermind.

[TheNiggardlyBastard]

I honestly thought Bran's chapters were boring. Anyone else? The Halfhand was pretty cool though.

[johnnyonthespot]

Great topic. I'm sure opinions on characters will change from book to book. Here are my thoughts:

TYRION: He really should be the king. He can arrange marriages and alliances. He can be compassionate, magnanimous, charming, and brutally indifferent. He can plot revenge, hatch intrigues, plan successful military tactics and even hold his own in battle. But by the end of this book, instead of being the hero of the Lannister family and of the people of King's Landing, he is horribly disfigured and forgotten. So sad.

DANY: Her story wasn't as substantial and didn't have the powerful arc that it did in book one, but in my opinion, the chapter "Daenerys IV" was the best chapter of the entire series so far. It blew me away and I'm sure I'll be revisiting it many times before the series is over.

DAVOS & STANNIS: Fantastic additions to the story. I love the characterization of Stannis as a hard, inflexible, Puritanical figure who has the rightful claim to the throne but can't seize it. And Davos is cool as a grateful and loyal servant who nevertheless is willing to speak his mind. I found the addition of "seafarers" like Davos and House Greyjoy a welcome addition in expanding the world-building aspect of these novels. Assuming that both Stannis and Davos are still alive after their defeat at Blackwater, I think they have a big role to play still... though the fact that they inhabit the ancient Targaryen palace of Dragonstone combined with the vision in "Daenerys IV" of a dragon devouring a beating heart does not bode well for their ultimate fates.

SANSA & THE HOUND: I know that a lot of people hate or are bored by Sansa, but I think this is the overlooked gem in A Clash of Kings. Sansa is everything the Hound both despises and desires. She has things that he has lost or could never attain in the first place: physical beauty, youth, dreamy idealism, blue-blooded nobility of birth. Two scenes in particular come to mind: the first is where the Hound is drunk outside the Godswood and tells Sansa her notions of the chivalry of knights is dead wrong, insisting instead that they (including her father Eddard) simply take pleasure in killing. The second scene was during the siege when it seemed that he might kill or rape her, but seems touched by her song about mothers and an end to warfare and flees the castle.

A great book. I'm going to take a few days off from Westeros, but I'll soon begin reading A Storm of Swords!

[johnnyonthespot]

- Bran Stark: totally first on my list - at first I thought I liked him just for being a kid and having suffered so much, perhaps a feeling of pity? I knew there was something more to it, and he became probably the nicest POV character in the books for me. His childish view of the world often makes us think in a simple way through heavy matters; not to mention his awesome new "powers".

At first, I was a bit scared that the supernatural aspects of ACOK were going to overwhelm the gritty, realistic narrative of Westeros established in AGOT. But given the fact that the abilities are limited to a few characters and don't make them immortal, I think it's being handled well and I really look forward to seeing where this is going.

- Catelyn: OK, here is someone most people don't like because of her boring chapters. I agree, they break the momentum of war with some gloomy and depressing view of things, but, come on, she's basically the one who lost everything! All she can think of is death of what she loved: Ned, Lord Hoster, Arya, Bran and Rickon; her joyful times; Winterfell; and old, peaceful Riverrun; the Robb child. It's all gone. It's all gone, and Robb could die at any moment, as well as Sansa, and gods know what happened to Arya. She would seem like a total-cliché-drama character if you didn't know it's actually all her fault, but yeah, I'd like to see when she will do something other than mourn. She must do something.

I'm aware that people criticize her chapters for being boring, but I just don't understand why. Catelyn has been our main window on the progress of the war, and if you look at a map, she's traveled more distance than any other character. Most of the other characters have spent their time at Winterfell or King's Landing.

- Hodor and Nan: what happened to him? I'd love to see the reason he can only say his own name being something relevant. Also what happened to his mild, nameless family, and whether Old Nan just tells stories that are common lore, or she saw those things? Wouldn't it be cool for her to have been a wildling? It's not something that matters much to the storyline of course, but I think it's really weird how she lived so long after all her descendants but a giant man who can only yell his name.

I'm not sure we'll ever get a back story on Hodor or that his name has any hidden meaning. I got the impression that he was just born "simple." I do think the Old Nan stories have some significance, though.

- Varys: I've got a little bit spoiled somewhere, but it was something like an anti-spoiler: as of aDwD, we still won't know his real past history or present ways and powers. I really hate this guy.

I wouldn't want to BE him, but I think Varys is a fantastic character... a bit like Tyrion without the lust for wine and women. He's a master at what he does and I actually felt sorry for him when he described how he was "cut" and his hatred for magic. Eunuchs in Imperial China were often more powerful than the rulers, and Varys seems to be very capable indeed.

- Lysa Arryn: how could she have been so important in aGoT and be mentioned as much as three times in the sequel novel? She's a paranoid woman protecting one of the most powerful fortresses in Westeros, and if you guys remember, Tyrion Lannister wants some sweet revenge as payment for the time he spent in the Eyrie. Will Robert grow up and be some cruel jerk? That's what his raising seems to hint at.

Yeah, her son seems to be a dead end as far as the long-term "game of thrones" goes, so I wonder if they are a dying house that is just going to sit out the war. Plus the Eyrie seems impenetrable to conventional armies, so I doubt it'll be taken over... unless dragons show up there!

- Theon Greyjoy: what a bastard. Does he really love Balon and Aeron and Euron as a family with all their stubbornness and acting like they don't even know Theon? I think he's just a kid wanting his crown, much like Cressen saw Renly. His acts, however, couldn't be forgiven. I'll like to see what Lord Balon thinks of what he did in Winterfell... cruel, yet useless. I hate him even more than Cersei, is that possible?

Agree 100%. Theon is a total piece of shit. He is arrogant. He's disloyal to everyone who has ever claimed him as kin, raised him or cared for him. He has a toxic mixture of resentment and love for both the Starks and Greyjoys. And unlike other characters who engage in treachery, subterfuge and back-stabbing (Tyrion, Varys, Littlefinger, Cersei, etc.) he screws up everything he undertakes, from conquests to executions. If you're going to be a "turncloak," you had better make sure you do it right.

- Sam Tarly: for a while I thought he and Jon would be best friends. I see Sam as what any of us, modern people, would be in a brutal, mediaeval-but-with-scary-magic-and-weather world. He isn't bad or ridiculous for being fat and coward; he grows up slowly as a character, and although it was obvious he would gain courage somehow, I'm expecting more than a motivational, allegoric role in the novels from him. You'll see, he'll become Lord Commander of the Night's Watch (or kill his asshole father...)

Sam knows that he is a "coward" and is honest enough to admit it. I think that is a source of strength in its own way. I also think that his scholarly interests in maps and lore are going to be useful in the long run. He may even find courage in battle, too, eventually... if he doesn't die a horrible death for being "weak" in the first place.

[dfella25]

- Catelyn: OK, here is someone most people don't like because of her boring chapters. I agree, they break the momentum of war with some gloomy and depressing view of things, but, come on, she's basically the one who lost everything! All she can think of is death of what she loved: Ned, Lord Hoster, Arya, Bran and Rickon; her joyful times; Winterfell; and old, peaceful Riverrun; the Robb child. It's all gone. It's all gone, and Robb could die at any moment, as well as Sansa, and gods know what happened to Arya. She would seem like a total-cliché-drama character if you didn't know it's actually all her fault, but yeah, I'd like to see when she will do something other than mourn. She must do something.

I enjoyed the Catelyn chapters in aCoK because it opens up Riverrun to the reader and allows Jamie dialogue as a captor. Through her chapters we find out about the war with Robb and Renly V Stannis.

[Bran17]

Bran: It's getting better, but I still don't see the point of his chapters.

Arya: Cool, hope she doesn't spend a whole book walking aimlessly again.

Tyrion: Awesome.

Jon: Starting to get interesting, FINALLY.

Daenerys: Wish she had more chapters.

Sansa: I like her now.

Catelyn: Love her and her chapters.

Davos: He's nice, but I don't really like his chapters.

Theon: Interesting character. I hope he pays for what he did.

No need to say my opinion on those characters changed a lot after I read the following books. :bawl: