nara

I really hope that they include Loras teaching Mommy how to joust and fighting at Storm's End. A gifted fighter needs something better to do than be token gay guy. They did the same thing with Oberyn last year, defining him by his sexuality. I do like that he's friendly to Cersei. I remember thinking in the books that Margaery should defer more to the queen regent like her brother does, if she wants to stay alive.

I think that Cersei will show her anger in future episodes by breaking with Jaime and sending him out of KL It won't be a battle, but a betrothal. Unfortunately, Sansa is in for some brutal treatment from Ramsay. I wonder if HBO will keep that horrible sex with dogs thing that happened to poor Jeyne Poole. While HBO seems up for anything that can be provocative, I gotta believe that there are lines that won't be crossed. Yes, although excellent with some details (costumes, sets, locations) they are pretty careless with some plot points.

I think Tormund will be the new Mance and will lead the Wildlings, go to Winterfell, etc.

I assumed that was because we saw so many of them being killed in Season 2. Perhaps a few more will pop up in upcoming seasons

I had forgotten how much I loved this show. I clapped my hands when I saw Lancel in the recap and gave out a sound that was a mix between a gasp and squeal when I realized that the first scene was Cersei and Melara going to Maggy the Frog. Is this the first prophecy they've include in this show? I cannot remember. Glad they kept it. Could this mean that this is the only prophecy that actually matters? Does the valonquar not actually matter? That was my thought exactly! Plus she was way too young IMO. I do wish they'd left in Melara's lack of fortune and the fact that death is in the room. As a long-time denier of Cersei-killed-Melara who has been convinced, I missed it. However, I get why they left it out. IIRC, in the books, the Unsullied guy goes to the brothel to be hugged. My interpretation was that it was not about sex, but rather about affection, and there is no evidence that she would have been all or partially nude. That's foreshadowing for you! And an HBO promise of nudity to come. Like all the Lannister men, his hair turns from blond to brown when the showrunners decide we've forgotten that the color of Lannister hair was a key plot point at earlier in the show. Good opener. I liked that they focused on a few stories, rather than trying to include everything. Glad for the return of Kevan and Lancel. Sad for the departure of Mance. H would see more e barely appeared in the show and I was hoping that we would see more of him this season. :( Was horrified that Dany has apparently not been to visit her dragons since she locked them up. WTF? Although in past seasons, the straying from the books has annoyed me. Now, it gives me some hope that we will be a little less spoiled by the show for the eventual last 2 books.

Oh, definitely--she does so in the books too. Mel is totally going to do the seduction thing with Jon. However, she can't be a serious love interest for him.

I really liked the younger giant's reaction to the other one's death. I felt for him... If there's one thing that D&D won't sacrifice, it's an attractive young woman who flirts with Jon! They are more likely to invent reasons to get her naked. However, she may not play the same role as she did in the books, which is a pity. Did he have to use a sword in that Pompeii movie? Perhaps the movie budget allowed for a great trainer.

Ha! WTF? No Frey pie? No Wylla Manderly? No "The North remembers...and this mummer's farce is almost over"? Am I the only one who thinks Lady Stoneheart can wait until next season? (especially given all the plots that need time in episode 10) She's only important when Brienne finds her. Also, I don't think there's been any build up to the fact that there is a Lady Stoneheart attacking Freys. I think that's necessary to get the full effect of her.

True, but I assume that he fought well in some war to get that position. After all, he was a butcher's son, so he had to earn his way up.

Forgot to mention-- is it just me or have there been a couple of interesting mentions of "no one" and "no body" this season foreshadowing Arya's future? Per Sam, when you're nobody you're not afraid...

Absolutely! Glad they showed why he is a leader in the NW and not just some guy who has it in for Jon Snow. Fun episode! Lots of changes, but many were positive. Loved: I've already mentioned Thorne being more of a hero. I love Show-Sam better than Book-Sam, who is so insufferably cowardly that I can't stand it. I enjoyed the "loop-hole"-finding and him taking the initiative to kiss Gilly and hide her. I enjoyed the Sam-Maester Aemon convo, but when I realized that it cut into their ability to show Stannis, that annoyed me. Was I the only one who expected him to say that the girl whom he loved was Olenna Tyrell? I know that she's nowhere nearly as old as him, but that thought popped into my Death of Pyp and Grenn. Sad, but I especially loved Grenn's heroism and the recitation of their vows as they prepared to face the giant. That was very moving. Pyp's realistic shaky hands was also touching to me. Losing 3 people he cared about will have a real impact on Jon. Really enjoyed the mammoths and giants. Unleashing of Ghost! Makes up for lack of unleashed Grey Wind in the RW episode! Would have preferred to see more, but I get that the CGI budget was needed for giants and mammoths and such. I've always preferred Show-Ygritte to Book Ygritte. I liked the fact they kept her death and Jon seemed willing to send himself on a suicide mission in consequence. Didn't care for the way he held her as she died because I was thinking that someone could kill him during that time. However, I did like the last "you know nothing, Jon Snow". Didn't love: Janos Slynt the coward: I didn't think this was realistic for a man who led the Gold Cloaks. However, I was concerned that he would be killed and we would not get "Edd, fetch me a block," but it looks like they may have been setting that up. Execution for cowardice works for me! I was also afraid that he might rape Gilly in the room, so I'm thrilled that didn't happen. Not ending with Stannis! I am no great Stannis fan, but I was yelling his name from the beginning of the credits. I realized immediately (since he didn't appear in the credits) that he might not show up, but I think it would have been better to cut some of the pre-battle conversation and allow for Jon to meet with Mance and Stannis to arrive. I agree with the folks who say that there's too much planned for episode 10. In my opinion, Arya's departure could have been done in episode 8 (since they have been wasting him with her and the Hound anyway) and Stannis's arrival in Episode 9. Not all the arcs have to tie up in the last episode of the season. So looking forward to next week.

I thought they did that so that when Jojen says it, we'll be afraid...

If you're looking for people who don't think too much about everything, you've come to the wrong forum. How strange. I also suddenly thought of Mia Sara when I saw her.

I can't remember--have they laid the groundwork for Oberyn being a poisoner in the show?

I get that it was Tywin who sent it, but if I were him I'd wonder if Dany would ask, "Hmmm. Why did this letter take so long to reach us? We were first with a Dothraki horde and then with several thousand Unsullied. We would have been easy to find..." Of course, Dany didn't stop to ask that question, but wouldn't be reasonable to assume that she'd be suspicious?

For a moment, I though you meant the Unsullied soldiers realizing they now have dicks. Agreed. After all, this is the guy who teased Cersei Lannister about twincest in season 2. Book-LF would never have been that dumb. And I thought MY theories were crackpot! :) Effect. She was playing the poor victim. Anya Waynwood (if not the others) were likely to be sympathetic to this point and it actually worked. She's fantastic! And she's been wasted in this show. I've said it before and will continue to say that I hope that they give her the Taena Merrywether role. Maybe if I say it often enough D&D will hear it.... Think of it like your mother, who loves you but criticizes everything about you. Or maybe that's only true for daughters!

That would be interesting, That could be the baby that Jon swaps with Gilly's child... But I want more Mance and I want Val to appear, so I hope not.

Lots of changes but I found I could live with most of them. They’ve added Moat Cailin to the credits, but still no Eyrie? WTF? Moletown – good to show the attack. I guess it was good to have a named character (Gilly) there to witness it. By the way, I noticed that there was less nudity in the brothel than they would typically show. Hoping that’s the direction in which they’re heading. A much as I hated the farting of Bear and the Maiden Fair, it was a welcome break from naked whores number 59 to 63 on the screen. Missendei/Grey Worm – So, are they now saying that Unsullied have penes? I always thought everything was removed… I do get that they need attractive people to show naked/having sex, especially if you believe the story that Emilia has refused any more explicit scenes, but that seems a little weird. Both actors are very good looking, though, and their story is kinda nice if you don’t know about all the stuff being eliminated from the books to incorporate their romance. But what was with Missendei’s delayed reaction in covering herself? Theon/Ramsay – Alfie Allen continues to be flawless as Theon/Reek. I liked the way the ironborn guy got axed in the head—it reminded me to Theon getting bonked on the head during his epic speech about capturing Winterfell. LOVED Theon regressing into Reek when challenged and then regaining his Theon-ness when that guy was killed. I liked how they showed the renaming of Ramsay and the explanation that the Boltons now = the North. However, they have done away with all other Northerners in the show (Umbers, Mormonts, etc.) so it will be strange if/when they show any sort of reaction/rebellion against the Boltons. Also, why did Ramsay refer to “a new home” BEFORE he was legitimized –he hasn’t been given Winterfell yet… The new Sansa – I really liked this approach with Sansa being honest then manipulative. I think it works for the older Sansa, because Sophie Turner is too old and too tall to be taken seriously as a frightened child. The problem is that so many people know that she is Sansa—everyone knows that the more people who know a secret, the less likely it is to stay a secret. Also, it looks like they may be heading for “relations” between “Manipulative” Sansa and Petyr. Not sure I can watch that if it comes… Where is Sweetrobin going? I’m assuming that they didn’t want to pay for snow special effects on the Eyrie (or they’ve forgotten that Winter is Coming) so they had to come up with another reason for them to leave…BTW, I was thinking that they could have made Sansa blonde instead of brunette—that way they could simply have allowed the actress to go to her natural hair color… Jorah’s exile – I’m glad they kept it in, but why a pardon from Robert Baratheon? Why would it take so long to reach them—Robert died 3 seasons ago! Jorah might have been able to explain it away by saying that he subsequently switched allegiences. Wouldn’t a pardon from Joffrey have made more sense—since that would demonstrate recent betrayal? Also, I thought Dany should have shown some indecision here based on the many things that Jorah has done for her. She always seemed ungrateful in the books (but even there she wanted to forgive him), and this made her seem doubly so. Instead, we got Her Imperiousness Daenerys Stormborn. Also, why wasn’t she looking at Jorah when condemning him? The way she was looking over him seemed stupid to me. I would have been okay if I thought it meant indecision, but it didn’t appear to. A random crackpot theory popped into my head in this scene—Barristan’s dismissal from the KG by Cersei and Joffrey was a sham and a way to get him into Dany’s inner circle so that he can hurt her from within her own army! The Hound and Arya – Nice foreshadowing to her future as a Faceless Person, including her ability to kill people in whatever manner was available. I liked the irony of them arriving at the Eyrie after Lysa’s death. However, I would have preferred it to be clearer that her laughing was hysteria, not humor… As much as I adore Jaime and Tyrion together, I thought that scene was painfully long. I would have preferred to spend the time with Oberyn The Trial – Pedro Pascal is THE MAN and killed this scene (until it killed him). His lines could have been cheesy, but he delivered them well. That flipping around and fighting was AWESOME. Only issues I had were no “Eliiiiiaaaa!”(but I'll survive) and the exploding melon head--c’mon Special Effects, you could have done better. I’m not a fan of seeing bodily functions on the screen, but Tyrion vomiting would have been great here. This scene could have been a couple of minutes longer too, to include more of the preparation.

I nominate you to write for the show. I would have preferred Only Cat to Only your sister, though I can appreciate why they made the change. However, your version is better, I would prefer the Mountain not to speak at all. Makes him more mysterious and scary. I guess we won't get Genna Lannister and her Frey husband. Makes sense for character consolidation purposes but I really like her. It's sloppy and shows poor attention to detail. I agree. Sansa in the show is older but reacted like a child. I would have preferred that Sweetrobin deliberately attack the castle. LOL--was that practice? I thought he was executing people. yes, that was a missed opportunity. Ok, now for my thoughts. I liked the Jaime Tyrion scene. In the books, I liked wondering why Jaime was in the background at the trial and didn't stick up for Tyrion or even visit him before the trial by combat. However, this works too. Not sure how I feel about comedienne Mel, but I do like the reveal of Selyse's jealousy and the hint that Mel may try to burn SHireen I liked that they kept Oberyn's visit to Casterly Rock and Cersei's cruelty. However, I couldn't understand why they changed it so his father borugh tthem there. That seemed unnecessary. I'm bored with Arya-hound. Sorry, but it had to be said. I loved the Dany-Jorah exchange. FInally, some good lines for Jorah! But I kinda liked where they were going with ruthless Dany. Sansa scenes. I agree that they were too rushed, especially for an episode called Mockingbird. Also, was it just me or did Sansa allow Petyr to kiss her for far too long??? I was not thrilled with Sophie's acting (which had been exceptional in some episodes) but she seemed very stiff. I thought the kiss was a little too abrupt. Having him help her with the castle and kiss her somewhat spontaneously would have made more sense. As someone mentioned above, having Lysa reveal more about the abortions/miscarriages would have been good.

I know, but somehow I would respect him more for directly confronting Tywin vs. acting out this way. May be projecting from real life...

I always believed that since LF is known to own a brothel, everyone assumed that he partook of his own wares and she's the result. And now that she's flowered, LF no longer wants her living in the brothel. I actually thought it was appropriate. Stannis has many great qualities (strategic, smart, brave, persistent, etc.) but winning friends and influencing people is not one of his strengths. Convincing the bank required an influencer--and Davos (who, as a smuggler, has probably had to talk his way out of many difficult situations) is a great one. It was hilarious, but I was actually a little annoyed when he didn't stand when Tywin entered the room in the Small Council scene. It seemed a little discourteous and passive aggressive to me... Nope, just Ros replacement as token naked woman. I actually don't like her, because I always assumed that Ramsay was a solo player and that everyone else in the Dreadfort was just too afraid to challenge him or say anything. The show is taking a different approach, and I don't really care for it.

no, those are in Skagos. ;) I thought he might be sincere--only because they've made several characters more sympathetic than in the books. Also was thinking they might create a triangle with Dany-Daario-Hizdahr... I hope not. Jaime is smart enough to know that if he tries to defend Tyrion, they will both die. Also, it violates his duty as KG. Thanks. I completely missed that part! :dunce: Also, isn't Syrio from Braavos? If so, they've already established an ethnic look and accent...

In the books, the killing of livestock and Dany's payments came before the killing of a child. It's an escalation of violence by the dragons OR maybe the same level of violence but perceived differently because a child cannot be replaced with gold.

I kinda liked Stannis and the Iron Bank. Nice set up for the future and makes more sense than a random Banker coming to the Wall to seek out Stannis. Yara -- I was looking forward to this. It's one of the book changes that I liked and I remember cheering when she said she was going for her brother. I felt the scene was very anticlimactic and gave the appearance that she easily lost her resolve. I get that she realized her brother was gone, but I thought they should have drawn out the fighting or shown them being attacked by the dogs. I would have gladly traded the Ramsay sex scene or the Sallador Saan storytelling to flesh out the Ironborn scene. Loved Alfie's acting as Reek. I thought he nailed it. However, as someone else mentioned, he looked too healthy. Not sure what they could have done unless he pulled a Matthew McConaughey in Dallas Buyers Club stunt and lost a lot of weight. However, I thought it was a makeup fail. Dany scene. I really liked the approach to Hizdahr, but I could have waited until next season for his introduction, because he lines came at the expense of Jorah and Barristan having any lines or plot. Only thing is that I have a hard time believing that Dany would not want to marry him...I do hope they keep the part when the dragon eats a small child. That's an important moment for Dany Trial -- LOVED IT. Liked Jaime bargaining with Tywin. This was a logical change given that they brought Jaime back so early (and he's had several interactions with his family). Glad they kept Oberyn interested in Shae and Tyrion's sex life (that always amused me). I have to say that the actress who played Shae looked very beautiful today and did a splendid job with her role. Peter Dinklage was awesome too. Is it just me or was his accent more normal in this episode and less affected? The only thing that annoyed me was the continually close-ups of Margaery. I get that she's an established actress and she has to be given screen time, but it felt odd to me to focus on her so much.

In the books, Cersei and Jaime were 17 when he killed Aerys and 17 or maybe just turned 18 at the time of her marriage. In the show, they were probably a couple of years older. I don't believe the show mentions how young Jaime was when he killed the king. I don't think that Joff reigned for more than 1.5 years. His 13th name day is the day that Tyrion returned to KL--no more than a few months after Robert's death and he's still 13 when he died. Also, Sansa goes from 11 when Robert visits winterfell to 12 when she has her first moon's blood to 13 when Joff died. That suggests 1 to 1.5 years of Joff's reign.