I need to say how much I loved this episode. Beric/Hound duel- so well done. And Sandor's reactions to the flaming sword, his shield, catching on fire, etc. Fantastic. I actually gasped at that moment when he stepped into that little bit of fire and screamed. Arya was amazing as always. Happy to see the return of her nightly prayer. The scene with Gendry was heartbreaking. Jon Snow/Ygritte- Not hugely impressed with this scene. As many others have stated, it felt a bit rushed, but I did get a good laugh out of "You know nothing, Jon Sno--oooh!" Qyburn- I haven't seen many people commenting on him, but I was hugely impressed. He was amazingly creepy, especially that last look as he's working on Jamie's stump right before Jaime screams. Selyse- Boy is she batshit crazy... Fetuses in jars? Wow... Also, one of the fetuses being named Edric? Nice little nod there Shireen is absolutely adorable even with the Greyscale and her creepy singing of Patchface's song. I enjoyed the creepy singing enough to sit through the entirety of the credits for once just to hear it. I'm loving the Shireen/Davos relationship. Finally getting some Stannis development away from Mel and seeing him interact with his family. Jamie/Brienne bath scene was absolutely PERFECT. I can't wait to watch this scene with my non-reader friend who hates Jamie with a passion. I want to see if this changes her view at all. The final scene with Tywin laying down the law and telling his children who they will marry. Fantastic. This is the Tywin I remember from the books. Charles Dance is absolutely killing it. Tyrion's response "I was wed", is a good reminder to the non-readers about Tysha (gods know the book readers can't forget her. Where do whores go?). Surprisingly, I actually had sympathetic feelings for Cersei in this scene when she says "Father, don't make me do it again, please." I typically hate Cersei, but that one line and it's beautiful delivery reminded me forcefully that she'd already been married to a man who didn't love her once, and look how that turned out.
