nara

I love Tywin and Arya together; but why would Lord Tywin Lannister unburden himself about his son's childhood dyslexia to a serving girl, even a clever serving girl? He's not just a distracted politician, he's Tywin, who is not egalitarian or at all interested in what servants think of him except their knowing to obey him.

Speaking of HBO nudity requirements, I was thrilled to see yet another Roz-free episode.

Tywin talking to Arya was an improvement on last season's "dude talking to Roz or another prostitute" scene. (I believe the fans have called that expositwhore or something like that.) They need a way to share what a character is thinking in a way that won't affect the story. it has mostly been men talking to prostitutes (Peytr, Pycelle, Theon, etc.) since those women can't do anything with the info they hear. Similarly, Arya won't be able to use the info Tywin is sharing, so the writers decided to use this method. Even, though it is uncharacteristic of Tywin, it's better than another Roz-like scene.

Forgive my mis-memory as I read the first four books one after another, but doesnt Jamie do SOMETHING in ACOK? Like Anything?

Jaime is barely in ACOK (shows up in catelyn's last POV, I believe), but there is a mention of an escape attempt, so we should see that in the show. I remember reading the book-- waiting and waiting for Jaime to show up--and being very disappointed.

On a separate subject, Someone else mentioned it, but I was annoyed that they made Myrcella cry. I loved the part of Tyrion's POV where he thinks that Myrcella Baratheon is a born princess and didn't cry at all (and comforted Tommen) when she went away. I think she'll turn out to be the best and bravest of the Lannisters.

Also, I found myself wondering if TV-Arya would have been better off revealing herself to TV-Tywin. He seems like the type who is sensible. Therefore, he would keep her a hostage, but well protected, for Jaime's sake. Just wondering...

How did Roose know that Theon had killed Ser Rodrik? Correct me if I'm wrong, but Luwin's raven says the following: "Ironmen have taken Winterfell. Theon Greyjoy in command."

This was sent before Theon had killed Rodrik, when Luwin was desperately getting his raven off mid-takeover. Yet Roose knows that he's dead, despite (presumably) only reading the above.

Sup?

Theon thought that Maester Luwin would obey him as Lord of Winterfell. He may not have guarded him and therefore Luwin was able to send more ravens...Or, he may have actually asked him to announce his conquest of Winterfell.

Overall, okay with the changes they made in this episode.

The dyslexia thing was strange, but I like that it showed Tywin's true affection for Jaime. It makes a good contrast for his relationship with Tyrion.

The riot scene was great. I thought that Sophie did a fantastic job acting the attack scene--it was pretty frightening. I miss Lollys, but considered what happened to her, it's probably just as well that they left her out. I also thought it was better on horses, but I can spare the expense if it saves a character.

Love the Dany ending. Unexpected! I'm sure they'll tie it back to her story somehow.

I like the Robb/Jeyne changes. We don't see them fall in love in the books, so it explains his actions better.

Not sure I liked...

The Littlefinger/Arya peekaboo. He seemed to recognize her, but would he let her go if he caught her? I don't think so--he'd keep track of her.

Sansa and Shae as friends, but that could be because I don't like Shae...

I don't remember LC Mormont telling Jon to obey Quorin without question. It looks like they may leave out the fight where Jon has to prove himself by pretending to be a turncloak. That would be a real pity because it's so critical to his character development. Hopefully, that will turn up in the next episode.

Good episode. Didn't care for the Petyr - Catelyn scene. It seemed uncharacteristic, though I always wondered why he didn't make any play for her after her husband died.

Am I the only one glad to know that HBO has some standards and couldn't bring themselves to show us Sansa being too badly beaten? They even blocked the view of the first punch a little. Glad to know some lines won't be crossed.

One thing i read in the twop-board: Are they implying, that Tyrion decides to use the "services" of the woman he finds with Pycelle, when he puts the second coin on the table? I didn't think so, but apparently one might get the idea....

The way I interpreted it was that he thought she deserved extra money for having to do it with an OLD man like Pycelle.

If in future episodes they play up a Cersei's informants then I'll retract that complaint, but to me at the moment it looks more like they're emphasising that Sansa is still a highborn lady and is very used to being waited on hand and foot. I can't think of any significant plot advance that happens as a result of Cersei's informers, the only one that springs to mind is that Tyrion provides it as a reason to employ Shae - which has already happened.

What I got from the Sansa/Shae scene was simply that, since she has to bottle up her true feelings in front of everyone else, she's taking her anger out on a handmaiden. It's also a good lead into the Sansa-Tyrion marriage.

Is it just me or have they made no mention of Cersei/Lancel so far this season? They had a random scene with them at the end of last season, where it was clear they'd slept together, but there's been no follow-up so far. I thought at the time that the scene in episode 10 was out of place and the fact that it hasn't been discussed in the first 3 episodes confirms that belief.