Incesticide

That you fail to understand plain English, and the concepts of cherry picking quotes and context is exasperating. Nowhere did I state that I would like the adaptation to mimic the book word for word. Indeed, in the same post (or an earlier one) I quite clearly note that I am well aware that being a television series, things can and will change due to budgetary contraints, artistic license or what have you. In the post you quoted as well as in an earlier post I also stated that I enjoyed several of the changes, which in many cases I felt were superior to the books. The reason that I will not be following the series any longer is simply that I, personally, overall am not enjoying it. I repeat, the reason that I will not be following the series any longer is simply that I, personally, overall am not enjoying it. While I do not require a word for word and scene by scene tv version of the novels, I do have personal limits beyond which I will not watch something, mainly because I am extremely cynical of the predilection for (practically all) series to introduce cliffhangers and plot twists so as to keep viewership high. Shameless cliffhangers annoy me intensely and strike me as patronising in that they assume that without them I will not continue watching. That is the reason why I disliked some of the changes that were made from the books. The changes I disliked (i.e. pointless sex and the Ross/LF scene in Ep 02, Craster knocking out Jon, Dany's Dragons getting stolen) were quite clearly introduced because they make "good" television. Other changes they made, I felt, were simply inferior to the option of keeping to the books (Jon and Ygritte's meeting, Yara's scripting, not casting Jojen and Meera), and those were chiefly the reason why I felt that the series was moving away from the world that I had imagined while reading the books and backstories. Incidentally, I felt the same way about parts of A Dance With Dragons; Aegon, Tyrion's frustrating storyline, Dany in Mereen, what happens to Jon, Varys doing what he did in the epilogue - all of which struck me as being excessively cliffhanger like and led me to make a rather unprintable exclamation of frustration once I closed the book as opposed to my reaction to ASOS. My impression of the last book was that it was filled with pointless stalling and plot twists - so no, the books themselves aren't immune to my criticising them. However, since GRR Martin is happy with the adaptation and this is his story, the only thing I have a right to do is to stop watching - which I have done. Kindly, do not come off as being willfully ignorant, and purposefully misrepresent my point, in your zeal to prove your point that people unsatisfied with the television adaptation are all unyielding purists.

I doubt that too, to be perfectly honest. I'll probably watch the episodes anyway eventually - if only for the good scenes - but I won't be doing it religiously, won't call myself a "fan" anymore, nor will I be recommending the series anywhere near as wholeheartedly as I used to (or if I do it will be with a massive disclaimer). Not that I'm perfectly happy with the books either, as in there's some minor things I would have written differently, but I can always re-read them and let my imagination go wild. You flatter me, ser. :P That would generally be true except that every episode has been given a score that's heavily skewed towards a value between an 8 or a 10.

As a self-confessed "complainer" I don't claim to answer for everybody complaining about storyline changes nor should this reply be treated as such. In fact in my case, I do believe I agree with you - we're not all masochists. As I said in my original post, I'm no GRR Martin purist and there were changes to the storyline which I particularly enjoyed. The first season gave me no cause for complaint and neither did the second season barring episodes 2 and 6. In my case therefore, the only reasons I can think of to keep watching it would be twofold: 1) There will be episodes which I will enjoy interspersed between the ones that I do not. (Case in point episodes 3-5 this season) 2) The changes made in the series will eventually make sense as I'll be able to appreciate the new storyline for what it is. That said, as from yesterday's episode I've decided to stop watching. I am dissatisfied with the series simply because as from the last episode it is no longer my cup of tea. I watch a tv series to enjoy it. Having read the books and much of the official background information, I have a certain world and detailed story imagined in my head. Now, a few of the changes made in the series occassionally come into conflict with that, in some cases horribly and it isn't something I particularly enjoy. Ergo, since I am no longer enjoying it, I'm more than happy to stick with the original text. I'm well aware that HBO is in the business of making and keeping viewers, plenty of people are happy with the series (as is GRR Martin) so who am I to complain. So, to answer your question. I kept watching it only to see if the second episode of this season was a fluke. It seems that it wasn't.

Exactly.

This is the episode that has beyond any doubt made me decide to stop watching the series. While I very much enjoyed the opening scenes, the death of Rodrik Cassel - especially the beheading, and the riots - The Hound/Sansa's scene especially; I cannot abide by the omission of the Reeds (who add an amazing backstory), Robb's attraction to the Volantene woman, the scenes with Jon Snow and Ygritte, and the utter and complete disregard to Dany's storyline whereby the book has been thrown out completely. The ending of episode 6 is the exact reason why I am extremely cynical towards tv series in general. Pertaining to the question at hand, I gave the episode a 5. I would have given it less but for the very powerful opening scenes. I'm aware that being a TV series, the budget is limited and consequently it would be impossible for the makers of the series to include every battle and every minor character. There were changes from the storyline I happily accepted which I felt improved (Theon's letter burning scene, and the Arya/Tywin scenes were particularly noteworthy) or alternatively summarised things well (Yorren's death and Arya/Gendry's capture). I'm aware (in the words of Neil Gaiman) that "GRR Martin is not my bitch", and that he gives the go ahead to Benioff and Weiss for each episode - which means that he approves of the changes. It's his story and I respect his decision. I'm also aware that unconstructive ranting is not going to be listened to by the makers of the series mainly because the viewership is increasing. That said, my opinion is my own and I watch and read things for my personal pleasure. The series seems to be heading towards some drastic modifications of parts of the storyline - modifications to the world I imagined when I read the books. As such, from now on, I'll stick with the books.

Gave it an 8. It was a vast improvement over episode 2 which very much almost made me walk away from the series altogether. It was also an excellent example of how veering away from the books can be a good thing when used wisely. Theon's scenes were particularly choice, and if I had to single out one scene it would have to be the "letter burning" one - probably one of the most poignant moments of both seasons. Arya's conversation with Yoren was also deftly done despite it not being in the books. Unlike episode 2, I felt that the racy guy on guy scene was actually well made, and was important in terms of moving the plot - Margaery was amazing in her role. Tyrion was obviously great, as always - especially the scene with Cersei. Incidentally I've always thought that Lena Headey plays the role of an increasingly paranoid queen regent to perfection. Unfortunately, I'm still not quite convinced by Sophie Turners portrayal of Sansa. The impression I got from the books was that Sansa was excellent at masking her feelings and was the epitome of politeness despite her internal dialogue. Mind you, her performance in this episode was much much better than in the first episode.

I'm Nick and I come from Malta. Like several people here and others I know, I began reading the books after watching the first season. I bought the lot early this year and spent a week and a half reading through them in pretty much a single sitting, stopping only to sleep/eat/shower. To this day, I'm still kicking myself for not having heard about the book series any earlier.