AegonIV

Go here, and skip to 1:22. You'd have to blink for over a minute to miss it.

1. The show is quoted (even in the "Previously on Battlestar Galactica" of this episode) that wildefire "burns so hot, it melts wood, stone, even steel." So why would it not destroy the chain - oh yeah, if we leave it underwater - but then it's a night scene, so how do they film that?

2. Why would Tyrion waste two ships and the men on them to wildfire just to pull a chain (since there is no Star Trek transporter in Westeros to magically get them out of the massive river full of wildfire that doesn't magically not go past the chain) and have those ships not able to hold the chain in place because they're also destroyed by wildfire, when the massive wildfire bomb that happened in this episode makes Tyrion look even smarter than he did in the book?

3. It's at night. In the fog. They don't see it's only one ship until it's almost upon them, and then can't see that it's unmanned until they're right next to it. There are no motors, or oars on these ships. There is no forward, reverse, or neutral. There is no ship to ship satellite radio to tell the other ships anything. There's only sails and a tiller. And I'm not sure if you've ever sailed yourself, but once you get inertia on water in a ship/boat controlled only by wind power, there is no stopping, only steering, furling sail, coming about (which isn't fast in a ship that size), and rope on a cleat for a break - but you need a dock for that.

The scene as written in ASoS, is unfilmable. What they accomplished in this episode is stellar, and never before done for television. It's groundbreaking. I wish more people could understand that.

As has been said before, but bears infinitly repeating: We've been given a show that is by and large unproducable for the screen. Start there in your mind. We're so damn lucky to be getting as brilliant, and perfectly cast a show as this! I don't care who writes the episodes. I love every last one of them.

The chain was pulled up from the bottom of the river by two winch towers on opposite banks of the Blackwater.

As I mentioned in my original post, you could easily allude to the chain without actually showing it in the river - the audience would know there was a chain by the earlier set up and then demonstrating the winching/rising of the chain at the riverside and then having the sailers/soldiers realize (through panic and dialogue) that there's no escape.

The fog still works to the plan's advantage but to count on it as an essential part of the plan seems sloppy as it wouldn't necessarily be a given.

The show was still great, I just thought that this one aspect of Martin's original material was particularly clever and should have been included. YMMV

Definitely enjoyed the episode and on the whole I like the choices that were made regarding deviations from the books.

However I do believe that Tyrion's chain could and should have been included. A set up in an earlier episode - Tyrion telling all the smith's in King's landing to begin constructing large links and assembling them would be enough to plant the concept in the viewers' minds and then the pay off would be manifested by simply showing men on either side of the Blackwater towing it out of the water at the signal. Men on the ships would only then have to report that an enormous chain was preventing escape. Not perfect, but it certainly could be done without an enormous increase in budget IMO. I could be wrong...

But this is a critical story/character point. It makes Tyrion look like a masterful tactician and prevents Davos from looking somewhat foolish. An empty ship approaching an armada has got to raise suspicions in any competent commander particularly one who has survived using his wits to avoid being trapped or bought by surprise.

Deal breaker? Nah. Still a great episode.