Canon Claude

It was always the dragons which played a major role in keeping the realm together. Meanwhile, I always saw Otto as a stuffy posh man who hates the sexually liberal and dashing Daemon, as well as hating his corruption when he’s a fussy rule maker. Kind of like Bowen Marsh, I suppose.

Oberyn would never have missed the chance to avenge Elia. I can easily imagine a scene where Doran does plan to send Oberyn east, but Oberyn refuses and insists that he’s going to King’s Landing to confront the Lannisters.

That’s fair. I retract that. Though one thing I would ask is whether you could clarify if GRRM actually called it boring or if that was your word choice?

Speak for yourself. That history isn’t boring to everyone. And if GRRM called it boring, then he’s biting the hand which feeds him.

Did you also find the War of the Five Kings boring?

There’s another discussion trending right now about the Kingsguard, specifically about which men Aerys would name to replace the men he lost at the Trident. Someone brought up Oberyn, but that just made me think Oberyn would never agree to that. But then that made me wonder about something else. Across the books, we are told that the Kingsguard is a highly honoured and sought-after position. Men like Richard Horpe and Quentyn Ball aspired to be Kingsguard but were rejected. The Red Dog was a rebel before agreeing to join Jaehaerys’ Kingsguard. Robin Massey was chosen by an underage Aegon III, but his appointment was overruled by Unwin Peake. But as far as I know, I don’t think there’s been a case of king naming someone to the Kingsguard who doesn’t want the honour. Has anyone ever refused to serve in the Kingsguard? Is that something which is even allowed?

It depends, as with his time at the Wall, on the friends he manages to make.

Believe it all you want, but until GRRM confirms it, it’s just, to quote Alan Rickman, idle speculation.

I’ll be generous and say that Brandon blundered his entourage blundered their way into a treasonous act, but only because on the surface, the Targaryen prince abducted Lyanna Stark for his own selfish ends. Polygamy, in that world, is not allowed, so even if Rhaegar had the best intentions, what he did was a crime in the eyes of any average Westerosi. We also have no proof that Rickard, Eddard, Robert, and the fathers of Brandon’s entourage deserved to die, yet Aerys sentenced them to die anyway. Was that not unjust? Was that not tyrannical? Did Aerys and Rhaegar not do terrible things which resulted in millions dying? To the seven hells with House Targaryen, I say. When you strip them down, they’re a bunch of deformed Aryans relying on eugenics to stay in power while their fire burns the world over and over. The rebels did horrid things too, sure, and it’s tempting to say that their families are being punished for their sins, but then it’s also telling that Daenerys is the only one of her family to get a chance at redemption. If the gods are punishing the rebels, then they punished House Targaryen too, and in the case of Aerys and Rhaegar, rightly so.

I’m pretty sure that the rest of Westeros will be too busy worrying about half a dozen other things instead of who rules the North. To be honest, I don’t get why the Northmen didn’t split off ages ago. They’re barely involved with the rest of Westeros and nobody has a high opinion of the North anyway.

Who says Wyman couldn’t delegate? I’m sure there’s gotta be at least one person whom he can absolutely trust. Maybe Marlon Manderly came along to Winterfell, or maybe Robert Glover is there in disguise.

Maybe he tried? It never said that he didn’t. Sounds awful but given what a sexist Hoster was, and what a product of his environment he was, I doubt Catelyn would have been fully aware of any deals being made about her future. Why should Hoster involve her in the minutiae? So for all we know, he did suggest it somehow and Aerys turned him down.

Do you mean plot as in storyline or conspiracy?

And it also robs the Blackfyre story of a real payoff.

Bowen Marsh didn’t act because he thought he had a better solution. He wanted to stop Jon’s plan because he couldn’t handle his world changing so radically. He acted out of fear and suspicion and stubborn conservatism. He wont last long either. Bowen’s mess is a Night Watch outnumbered by Free Folk whose entire loyalty was to Jon Snow. Marsh better start running.