The hairy bear

A brief recap of the data: 271 AC: Eddard Stark fostered at the Eyrie. Robert Baratheon follows not much later. 273 AC: The Princess of Dorne considers marrying Elia to Baelor Hightower. She's also toured in search of suitors at the Arbor, Oldtown, the Shield Islands and Crakehall. 273 AC: The Princess of Dorne proposes the matches Jaime+Elia and Oberyn+Cersei. 275 AC?: Hoster tries to convince his brother to marry Bethany Redwyne. 276 AC: Betrothal Brandon Stark+Catelyn Tully 280 AC: The marriage between Jaime Lannister and Lysa Tully is considered. 280 AC: Bethrotal Robert Baratheon+Lyanna Stark 281 AC: Tywin offers Tyrion for Lysa. It's true that there are multiple instigators (Rickard, the Princess of Dorne, Tywin, Hoster,...) and that a conspiracy seems unlikely. But it's also surprising that many houses that up to then had married almost exclusively vassals or Targaryens, suddenly only seem to consider marrying outside his region. Let's take the Lannisters, for instance. Before this decade, the gentree from AWOIAF shows 11 marriages. Only two of them are outside the West (Rohanne Webber and Emmon Frey), and both are specifically explained as oddities. But then enters Tywin and he tries to marry Cersei to the Targaryens, and Jaime and Tyrion to the Tullys. It's the same with the Starks, the Martells or the Tullys. It seems that this generation did not even think of marrying their vassals, after having been doing only that in the past. The friendships forged during the War of the Ninepenny Kings is probably the best explanation we have so far, but it's not entirely satisfactory. Those alliances took place more than a decade after the war, and some of the participants did not participate in the war (at the very least, the Princess of Dorne wasn't there). There's also the fact that this outburst of interregional marriages doesn't seem to have happened after previous conflicts such as the Blackfyre Rebellions or the Dornish Invasion. We are told that Petyr's father befriended Hoster during the war of the 9PK.

I'm not sure about that. Eddard Stark was sent to the Eyre on 271, during the first decade of Aerys' reign when, according to the World Book, the Seven Kingdoms "prospered greatly". And Brandon and Catelyn were bethroted before the Defiance of Duskendale. The most surprising thing to me is how after centuries of great lords marrying almost exclusively daughters of vassals, all of the sudden they all started marrying abroad. I think if I were Aerys, I'd get a little paranoid too.

There are surely many others who wouldn't do it. Don't forget that the king is underage and there's a regent and a Hand that can overrule him. If he gives orders that are highly unethical, you could always double-check with them. But even if one doesn't dare to disobey the king, there are many other thinks that ANY half-way decent man would do. Try not to hit too hard, for one. Hit her just once when you are told to, instead of continuing to beat her senseless until ordered to stop. Perhaps muster a feeble complaint, or suggest to the king to punish Sansa in other ways. At the very, very least, try to look a little conflicted?! You take the context out of the situation, which was Gerold Hightower trying to ease a sixteen year old. But the Lord Commander of the Kingsguard is part of the Small Council (which means that he is supposed to speak up and contribute with his opinions), Gerold Hightower was probably involved in a Rhaegar-led conspiracy to depose the Mad King, and Jaime himself instructs Ser Meryn to do the opposite: Ser Meryn got a stubborn look on his face. "Are you telling us not to obey the king?" "The king is eight. Our first duty is to protect him, which includes protecting him from himself. Use that ugly thing you keep inside your helm. If Tommen wants you to saddle his horse, obey him. If he tells you to kill his horse, come to me." It's also safe to say that if in normal conditions it's not that easy to find reputed and trustworthy knights willing to renounce to any inheritance to serve the king, in Robert's case it was even more complicated: he had to fill five positions at once, it was a dangerous job as he was still widely seen as an usurper, he couldn't rely in half the realm as they had Targaryen loyalties, many young knights had died during the civil war, the prestige of the KG was at an all time low after Jaime had killed Aerys,... So it's not a surprise that the candidates ended being a little bit sub-par.

I wonder what kind of storyline can bring together Sinclair and Zathras (who went to the past in season 3), Lockley (who came to the station on season five), and David Sheridan (who was born after the series ended). I feel that maybe there's a little too many characters to do all of them justice. It'd be a pity that they go to the trouble to stretch the timelines and recast beloved characters, only to give a character a couple of minutes of spotlight. Let's remain optimist, though.

@Desiring Nectarines You correctly recall that in her first ACOK chapter, Sansa claims that "Joff never asked the Hound to punish her. He used the other five for that." But later on, when news of battle of Oxcross arrive, Joffrey orders Sandor to hit her. Ser Dontos intervenes, to Joffrey's displeasure, and the Hound remains quiet. Then Joffrey orders Meryn and Borros to hit Sansa and after the first punches the Hound tries to stop it ("Enough"). Joffrey refuses to stop, and then Tyrion enters the room and puts an end to it.

Jaime Lannister knows Ser Meryn Trant very well, and he thinks of him as "sly and cruel", and no more than an "adequate fighter". In a conversation with Loras Tyrell, he actually brings up Trant and Blount as examples of mediocre knights. The only tourney victories that we know from him are against Harwin and Ser Hobber Redywine. Not particularly impressive. He didn't participate at the Battle of the Blackwater, since he stayed all the time near Joffrey. And then, he fails to seize Arya Stark when he was fully armored and accompanied with five men, and only had to face a single man armed with a wooden sword. All things considered, he doesn't seem much worthy of the white cloak. The day to day of the court was run by the Hand, of course. It's to him that Ser Meryn should have gone when the King was hungover or whoring. If when you say that the Queen made his life easier you mean that she had bought his loyalty, then I'd agree. And that's precisely why he is a bad KG. They had a choice. The Hound didn't beat Sansa when Joffrey ordered him. And Ser Aryn Oakheart: Once he even objected when Joffrey commanded him to hit her. He did hit her in the end, but not hard as Ser Meryn or Ser Boros might have, and at least he had argued.

Still, a sane man wouldn't bet all his race on a single expedition at sea. A single storm may be the end of your people.

To assume that there's other bodies of land across the sea is a reasonable bet. But proposing to put the entirety of your people on boats and sail aimlessly to the unknown from where no explorer has ever returned? It's beyond stupid.

Yeah, I agree that he and his half-sisters surely had came to an agreement beforehand. A prince will have to obey his father's wishes because he is probably going to live many more years, and he could desinherit you if you don't obey him (just as Egg did with Duncan). But that's not the case with Aegon III. He was already king, and Lord Peake and the regents couldn't change that. And in just three years he could impose his own will. What can Peake do if Aegon III doesn't say the vows? Whip Gaemon? And even if Peake somehow managed to find a septon willing to perform a marriage by delegation, once king, Aegon III wouldn't have any trouble annuling an unconsumated marriage. Here's Corso's letter with ink spilled over it in some misshap (instead of Archmaester Glyndayn's work being damaged by fire. Here's the introduction to Gyldayn's work, who is still alive, but strangely has his work misplaced, destroyed, and damaged by neglect or fire. I guess his desk resembles mine... If you argue that Merryweather, Stackspear and Grandison were neither Black nor Green, then I don't see how we can count as a black partisan a six-year old girl whose parent constested Alyn's claim and whose grandfather openly declared that Rhaenyra's sons where bastards. As I see it, Daenaera is actually a wife that can be supported by both Blacks and Greens. Same with Snadoq. He didn't thake part in the war, and no one in Westeros associates him with the Blacks or the Greens. He is just loyal to the king. That doesn't make him black. (we don't consider Tyland Lannister a black, do we? Why would anyone whose goal is to reunite the realm and leave the civil war behind name his daughter after one of the rival claimants? Aegon wasn't much loved as a king and his situation is precarious enough. It wouldn't be in his interest to antagonize the old green supporters, the citizens of King's Landing, the Stokeworths, the Mootons... The name Rhaenyra brings bad memories to most of the Westerosi. It's politically inconvenient. It makes perfect sense to me. Doesn't a similar thing happens with the name John among the English kings? He has a bad reputation, so his descendants have decided to name their sons with names that have more favorable associations.

This.

It think it is, if you don't want to end with a completely different story. An adult Aegon III would have been expected to lead his mother's armies during the Dance. He would have been executed by Aegon II. There would have never been any regency. If the Strong boys had been older they would already be married and with sons, and if they were younger, their bastardy would be a minor issue... A 14 year old boy, sharp or not, definitely has agency. Any 14 year old has fully formed preferences and wishes, and even though Rhaena and Baela took the initiative in the ball, it was ultimately Aegon's decision to choose Daenera. The regents could have ignored Aegon's choice, but the regents hoped to be in the king's good graces when, in three years, he reached majority. And it's not like they could force Aegon III to say the vows or consumate the marriage. Its doubtful, since the Summerhall reports that in the first edition of TWOIAF were attributed to Maester Glyndayn, were later changed to some maester Corso. If George had intended to maintain Glyndayn as the last maester of Summerhall, he wouldn't have corrected a published work. For the sake of nuisance, I'd like that during Robert's youth Maegor and Vaella were still alive and/or they had some descendants. That would muddy the succession a little bit. But in all likelihood, the scenario you describe is the one we'll get. I don't see Aegon III's court as "pretty much black" at all. He dismisses all the regents and the Hand (both greens and blacks), and we have no reason to believe that he favored either side during his rule. Most of the kingsguard was of minor houses (Raskyn, Whithouse, Cobb, Warwick), Isembard Arryn was from a distant branch of the family,... And the very little we know of his reign seem to indicate that he did want to leave the civil war behind (and that wouldn't be possible if you exclude one side from court). Regardless of how Garmund and Rhaena ended marrying, it's politically very significant that the last dragonrider is married to Lord Ormund's son. And we also see no sign that Aegon III's sons ever intended to favor the old black allies (Elenna marries a Plumm and a Penrose).

We know Vhagar also flew with Aemond and Alys Rivers. We see that when they return together at Harrenhal to face Daemon. Alyssa took newborn Viserys with her on a ride. There are other instances where it can be assumed that a rider can bring guest passangers with him on the dragon.

Even in a "medieval fantasy setting in a feudalistic society" it is Lady Caswell who has the legitimacy to impart justice on Caswell lands. Not another lord from distant lands, nor the sixteen-year old uncle of the victim. It was Lady Caswell's duty to judge the murder. She did it swiftly, and even went as far as to execute people whose guiltiness was dubious. What happened at the Hogs Head is not her fault. You are now arguing that the fact that Lady Caswell sent Maelor's head to King's Landing was seen as an insult. And there's absolutely no basis for that. Maelor's mother and Maelor's grandmother were living there. Even if they were kept as prisoners, there was no reason to imagine that Rhaenyra wouldn't let them honor the memory of the poor boy. It makes much more sense to send the body to them, and not to an underage uncle. As you have quoted, Daeron claimed that he would sack Tumbleton to give them the same treatment "they" had given Maelor. There's nothing hinting that he was unhappy for not having received Maelor's head. But even if you want to believe that... that would only mean that Lady Caswell had to be punished. What about the hundreds of wounded that were burned alive in a sept? What about the people of the town who were put to the sword or driven to the river to drown?

Probably not. Aenys had 12 (Jaehaerys and Alysanne's 10 suriving children, plus the two daughters of Rhaena). But if you accept bastard grandchildren the winner would be Aegon IV: He had 4 Targaryen grandchildren, plus all the Dornish children from Danaerys, plus the surely big offspring that his dozens of bastards produced.

Yeah, very interesting post by George. Some thoughts: Although I'm must confess that I loath having another unfinished saga spoilered by an inferior tv show (I would have hoped that they would have chosen Nymeria or the Sea Snake instead), the fact that they are only adapting one novella per season and that George is entertaining the idea of interweaving the Dornish travel in there sweetens the deal. Not a fan that this new show is run by Ryan Condal and other guys from the writing staff of HotD. I feel that they are already have enough pressure to produce one good season of their own show, and it's nice to see some variety too. I hope Condal doesn't become the Dave Filoni of Westeros. George makes it clear that he'll be involved, that this material (unlike house of the Dragon) doesn't allow for much room for new inventions, and that they will stay true to the material. All of that seems to indicate that this adaptation will be extremely faithful to the original material. I think it's telling that George mentions Avery's and Miller's comic adaptation. That one was also a very faithful adaptation that was presented in six chapters/issues. For reference, the cliffhangers for each of the issues are: (1) Egg joins Dunk, (2) Manfred refuses to vouch for Dunk, (3) Aerion kills Ser Humfrey Hardyng's horse, (4) Baelor suggests to Dunk to demand a trial by battle, and (5) Baelor reveals that he is joining Dunk's team. I suspect that we will have a similar structure, even though the first three episodes will certainly seem a little bit slow.

Dunk and Egg, without any doubt. It's far more engaging, and more varied (as they keep visiting different locations).

Not necessarily. There was one sympathetic Sealord who welcomed them to Braavos and acted as a witness in the secret treaty with Dorne, but another one may have been ruling when Viserys and Dany were expelled from his house.

Eddard thinks: Martyn Cassel had perished with the rest. Ned had pulled the tower down afterward, and used its bloody stones to build eight cairns upon the ridge. It was said that Rhaegar had named that place the tower of joy, but for Ned it was a bitter memory. They had been seven against three, yet only two had lived to ride away; Eddard Stark himself and the little crannogman, Howland Reed. And the fight at the Tower of Joy obviously took place after the Sack of King's Landing (it's even referenced in the initial exchange between Ned and the KG trio).

@The Grey Wolf Strikes Back You're right, of course. Not sure what I was really thinking here.

He'll be an interesting figure during Aegon V's reign. Not only his father was elder than Egg, but also his mother was the only daughter of king Aerys I. Given that Egg wasn't particularly well-liked amongst the nobles, Maegor would be an obvious rallying point for all the malcontents. One also wonders if his name wasn't openly suggested as Prince of Dragonstone when Aegon's three sons broke their marriage alliances. It's even possible that during his "short, bloody rebellion" Lyonel Baratheon tried to crown Maegor.

There'll be no shortage of strong women in House of the Dragon. Rhaenyra, Alicent, Rhaenys, Mysaria, Neetles, Baela, Alys Rivers... Joanna Westerling is a character who doesn't move from Casterly Rock and doesn't interact with any of the other main characters. And his story only gets interesting after the end of the Dance, during a period that the show doesn't intend to cover. I doubt that we will ever see her in the show, and if we do, she'll be just a tertiary character with a couple of lines.

Seven knights of the kingsguard makes perfect sense because they are not the only ones who are supposed to be guarding the king and his family. There are hundreds of guards at the Red Keep. Increasing the number would be a terrible idea because of tradition (there's always been seven members), religion (seven is a sacred number), and prestige (the kingsguard is supposed to be a very elitist group. The very best of the Westerosi knights. Fifteen is far too much for that). Also, your proposal includes two members that are not knights. Again, bad idea. As for the rest of the list, I won't enter into particulars, other than saying that many of your invented offices make little sense, and that many of the lords that you suggest would never agree to leave their seats for some undistinguished bureaucratic post at court.

It's entirely within the realm of physics!!

Yeah, as I see it Temple of Doom is far superior then Crystal Skull. ToD had many flaws, and the dynamics between Indy and Willie haven't aged well. But at least there's plenty of excitement and fun, with a several iconic scenes (mine cart chase, rope bridge,...) and without anything as idiotic as surviving a nuke inside a fridge.

The Behind the Scenes section for House Peake claims that: House Peake is a reference by George R. R. Martin to the books of Mervyn Peake. Titus Groan is the main character of the Gormenghast series. Furthermore, the history of House Peake and its sigil may refer to the three castles that the Groan family owned before it was left with only one. The remaining castle is Starpike, which is similar to Steerpike, the name of the main antagonist of the series. Can anyone familiar with the Gormenghast series confirm if the underlined part is correct? I had never heard that before.