Cersei

[Nahlim]

I was happy to see we get to see things from her eyes. At first. it was entertaining to see how she wants to slap everyone. Then, it kinda got scary. When we didn't have her POV there was some mystery around her. I thought there might be a way to understand all of the things that she does... I thought she couldn't be a complete bitch. But I was wrong... And although I wished for someone to put her in her place, the scene where she was dragged and imprisoned by the septas sent chills down my spine...

[Grazzy]

It was funny to realize that Cersei wasn't a great plotter after all, when reading her POVs in AFFC. In GoT, I got all impressed by her talk with Ned, the classic "you win or die" part; but it was all talk: she just thinks too much about herself, and simply put she was just lucky to be a Lannister, and her father being lord Twyin - the great mastermind behind everything. She thinks she's intelligent and cunning, she's just a stupid, selfish bitch, whose actions are never justified. She's beyond redemption in my opinion; unlike Jaime, she'll never learn anything. I used to hate her twin brother but I became greatly fond of him after reading his POVs. Hers were just outrageous, funny many times, but disappointing somehow. I like the posts here saying she's a sociopath, it really fits.

[Sean Billings]

Cersei was my favorite character by far in AFFC. Yes, she made a couple grievous errors. Arming the clergy & not paying the iron thrones debts to the bank in Norvos may cost her dearly. No war can be fought without strong financial backing. However, she is not totally unwise to be suspicious of those around her.Psychotic, no! Neurotic, well yeah.

[Chelisandre]

I agree, I think it was a huge mistake to allow the faith to rearm. She never even paused to consider the ramifications. I've finished the book so I know somewhat how it plays out. All I can hope for is that it will eventually come out and be proven that her children are not the true heirs so she had no authority to allow the faith to rearm in the first place. But something tells me that once rearmed, that won't be a good enough reason for them to lay their arms down again... And being as the rightful heir (from their POV) is Stannis and he is all mixed up with Melisandre and her gods, I just don't think the faith is going to step aside for that. IMO Dany is the true and rightful heir. When she gets back everyone should just take a knee as far as I'm concerned.

[Brianne of Brooklyn]

Not surprised. Tyrion ran rings around her in CoK. Had she been truly cunning she would have studied at the feet of her father and younger brother. She got by on looks and it shows.

totally agree. and how i hated the cersei chapters in AFFC if only because her actions became so increasingly erratic -- she is one straight jacket short of the looney bin. you can just see her digger her grave deeper and deeper, surrounding herself with sycophants and useless advisors, turning allies into enemies and expecting everyone to bow down to how mighty and clever she is. it was obnoxious. and don't get me started on her major penis envy.

[Brianne of Brooklyn]

Cersei was my favorite character by far in AFFC. Yes, she made a couple grievous errors. Arming the clergy & not paying the iron thrones debts to the bank in Norvos may cost her dearly. No war can be fought without strong financial backing. However, she is not totally unwise to be suspicious of those around her.Psychotic, no! Neurotic, well yeah.

would have to respectfully disagree. the best character in AFFC is the other lannister...jaime.

[Sean Billings]

would have to respectfully disagree. the best character in AFFC is the other lannister...jaime.

Yes, Jaime's chapters were excellent too! I really like the way his character has developed since AGOT. I just think Cersei's chapters were so much fun to read. One never knows what scheme she think up next.

[Margaery1]

Its my first time posting "anything"...so this may or may not make sense....anyway....Not defending Cersei by any means, cos I always suspected and disliked her…but I do find it interesting that a sub-topic of patriarchal society keeps popping up in the books and women like Arienne from Dorne, Asha from the Iron Isles, Cersei and then eventually Tyrion, favor the possibility of a Queen rather than a King on the throne (any of the thrones).

Cercie has out to prove that she was that Queen. She was born before Jamie and told at an early age that her rights to own Casterly Rock went to her brother because of his sex. After having her fortune told by Maggy the Frog, she believed, like any child would do, the prophecy that benefited her, (e.g., she wasn’t going to marry a Prince, she was going to marry a King). I think she became undone when her friend’s fortune became true that very day…to me she was haunted, from that moment on she did everything to make sure the ‘bad’ prophecy would not come true.

She was manipulating at an early age, remember that it was Cersei who seduced Jamie to not marry Lysa Tully and to take the life in the Kingsguard. In one clean swoop she talked to him out of Casterly Rock, owning property or taking a wife…Cersei was bad news from early on…curious to see what happens to Jamie :cool4:

[Northern Girl 30]

I was so happy to see she got thrown in a cell! But I assume when Jaime gets back she could get out..or maybe he will finally see her ways and leave her there...

Just having a little trouble putting the pieces together of why it happened to her...Littlefinger is the mastermind behind all this (hiring Osney Kettleback himself) who ratted her out to the Septon ? or was it just the fact that she allowed the Faith to hold arms again and they are just trying to get back some power in Kings Landing?

[Brianne of Brooklyn]

Yes, Jaime's chapters were excellent too! I really like the way his character has developed since AGOT. I just think Cersei's chapters were so much fun to read. One never knows what scheme she think up next.

i think they were fun to read at the end because it was like, ok, let's see how much she messes things up now. to watch her dig herself deeper and deeper into a hole, knowing that all her machinations would come back to haunt her made her last POV chapter in AFFC all the more satisfying. although the POVs showed she wasn't behind a lot of schemes and that, in fact, she's a piss poor player of the Game of Thrones, she still is a despicable person as evidenced through her inner monologues and outward actions towards other characters. she gets what she deserves and i'm eager to see what happens to her.

and i believe whatever dastardly end GRRM has in store for dear Cersei, it will most certainly come at the hands of jaime, our valonquar....she forgets she has two younger brothers, having been the first one out of the womb, with jaime clutching at her heels.

[Margaery1]

i think they were fun to read at the end because it was like, ok, let's see how much she messes things up now. to watch her dig herself deeper and deeper into a hole, knowing that all her machinations would come back to haunt her made her last POV chapter in AFFC all the more satisfying. although the POVs showed she wasn't behind a lot of schemes and that, in fact, she's a piss poor player of the Game of Thrones, she still is a despicable person as evidenced through her inner monologues and outward actions towards other characters. she gets what she deserves and i'm eager to see what happens to her.

and i believe whatever dastardly end GRRM has in store for dear Cersei, it will most certainly come at the hands of jaime, our valonquar....she forgets she has two younger brothers, having been the first one out of the womb, with jaime clutching at her heels.

I agree, she has her twin...valonguar!!!

[redqueen]

I think Cersei's obsession with Tyrion is making her blind to other things. She won't take Jaime's or her uncle's advice and that will bite her. If she wants to hurt Jon Snow for accepting Stannis's help, she shouldn't wait. I think she should send a hundred men and see what happens to them once they arrive. The problem is once they arrive that they won't follow her orders. It doesn't matter who she sends.

I don't know if she's psychotic, but she's definitely paranoid and neurotic. Then, is it paranoid when they're really out to get you? I see a lot of her choices weaking the throne. She can't be weak and kept the throne under her control. Her counsel members choices are weak and that will weaken her. She doesn't see her mistakes. She can't see how bad Joffrey. If she's seen as crazy, the throne will also be taken from her. She's standing on very thin ice. She's grieving for her father and her son and she needs to make intelligent decisions or find people under her that will. She's not willing to do that.

[Faceless Frog Eater]

I think her scheming against Tyrion was thanks to Vary's or Littlefinger (LF would have the most to gain from setting them against each other). I can't wait for the Iron bank to "have it's due" Will that mean that Bravos will be pulled into the war as well? Maybe they'd just send a faceless man against whoever holds the Iron Throne (bye bye Tommen?).

[ThundergodCid]

Yes, Jaime's chapters were excellent too! I really like the way his character has developed since AGOT. I just think Cersei's chapters were so much fun to read. One never knows what scheme she think up next.

But, it did take Jaime having his hand cut off and being tortured by the Brave Companions, along with meeting one of the few honorable people left in Westeros in Brienne to start his development towards respectability. Cersei wasn't really given that opportunity.

[JDNight]

Cersei certainly has problems facing reality. I think she also has a major self esteem problem in that she can not face reality. She lies to herself constantly and even believes the lies. She does this because she can not face the truth of the people around her and the world she lives in. I certainly realized that there was a good deal wrong with her even as early as a GoT. Even that early it was obvious that she could not at all be diplomatic about anything. Couple this with a complete inability to determine the importance of any given event. To her, everything that affects her is important, and anyone who is not absolutely for her, is against her. This strikes me as some form of personality disorder, such as NPD. A good example is her reaction to Joffrey's incident with Nymeria. Cersei insists that Sansa's wolf Lady be killed. This was neither just nor diplomatic, and it does not take into account the importance (or lack there of) of the events. Cersei is lashing out because she felt slighted.

Her over protectionism of her children is also a sign of this. It would do them some good to face some dangers and difficulties. However, she does not want any of them in harms way in the slightest. Not only that, but she feels that despite all of the risks and difficulties that other family members and Lannister allies are going through, her children did not need to concern themselves with a risk any greater than watching a jousting event!

Finally, look at how she viewed Joffrey. He was a monster. A monster that even a mother could see! In my mind she never even really denies this. She saw him as a strong and proper leader. He was even less diplomatic than she was. Talk about a failure of parenting, or even just supporting your own house.

When the chapters in AFFC came out, I was only surprised by the fact that she drank so much, as this was only slightly alluded to in the previous books. Everything else made complete sense to me.

[FacelessDude]

From what I've read of Cersei, it's obvious she's a sociopath. I just finished the prologue and I'm done with the Captain of the Guard, Hotah I think his name is. But I am expecting Cersei to be not so cunning and not the best deceiver. She only succeeds at her plots because of the gold she has, and that can pay anyone, a plotter.

[FacelessDude]

From what I've read of Cersei, it's obvious she's a sociopath. I just finished the prologue and I'm done with the Captain of the Guard, Hotah I think his name is. But I am expecting Cersei to be not so cunning and not the best deceiver. She only succeeds at her plots because of the gold she has, and that can pay anyone, a plotter.

[FacelessDude]

From what I've read of Cersei, it's obvious she's a sociopath. I just finished the prologue and I'm done with the Captain of the Guard, Hotah I think his name is. But I am expecting Cersei to be not so cunning and not the best deceiver. She only succeeds at her plots because of the gold she has, and that can pay anyone, a plotter.

[baksh]

Yeah, I agree, she is no Tywin Lannister. Even Tyrion was more of his father than she was. Pity, because she is supposed to be damn beautiful. Well, as is the case mostly, they either have the brains, or the brawns, and it seems she is all brawns and no brains. :P ;) Not a surprise then that she is surviving only by knowing how to use certain people and most of it is with her beauty, I wonder if she will be just as capable if something happened to her the like of what happened to Tyrion after that battle with Stannis Baratheon. That would be gross. Imagining Cersei without a nose. Andd suddenly she becomes just another weak piece in the game for others to move, rather than the mastermind that she thinks she is.

[KhaleesiDany]

In this book my favorite detail about Cersei was how she accused her maids of shrinking her gowns, then forced them into indentured servitude to pay for them. I was just thinking, Queenie, you had three kids!