Mr Smith

Settling on a 9. Didn't hate anything, but still disappointed with Aiden Gillen's portrayal of Littlefinger. Everything at the Wall is being done really well, and I like the mutineers arc. Also thought they nailed Dany's bit (pun not intended). The final scene more intrigued me than anything else. Looking forward to see whether they take it any further.

7. It almost managed to pull itself up near the end, but not quite. Some absolutely outstanding scenes up against some very, very poor ones. What I liked: Tywin teaching Tommen about the virtues of Kings. Up there with my favourite scenes from this show ever. Sam looking after Gilly. We didn't get to see much of this in the books, with the wildlings a lot closer to the Wall. Great character development. Arya and the Hound. Excellent from start to finish. Endearing the Hound to us while reminding us what he truly is, and Maise Williams continues to kill it. Tywin negotiating with Oberyn. Top draw stuff from both actors, and finally some good dialogue. What I hated: Jaime borderline rape of Cersei. How was that necessary, please someone explain that to me. Fuck. Tyrion's selflessness. Why do D and D think the sun shines out of Tyrion's arsehole? Can't we get a little bit more of his dry sarcasm and mutterings of vengeance? (I did however think throwing suspicion onto Tywin was a nice touch) Sansa's escape. Not only was it horribly rushed, but then we had to have Aiden Gillen and his stupid accent trampling over all of Sophie Turner's good work. He has utterly ruined that character. Parting thoughts: the dialogue was much improved, but poor decision making by the creators regarding the development of critical characters damaged the scene. Episode remained solid overall.

I did notice this, a bit lazy of them. I disagree with you about the overall episode though, thought everything was done at a high level. Consigning half the episode to the wedding was important as well, and they seemed to include just about everything from Tyrion's chapter in the books.

9.5 for me, rounded up to a 10. Last 20 minutes pulled it over the line. Purple Wedding itself was surprisingly true to the book, right down the the Pigeon Pie and the dwarves, which I really didn't think they'd include. Bran's vision was a little odd, but most of the Bolton stuff was excellent. All King's Landing scenes appreciated.

8, after some consideration. Not everything I hoped for, but a solid start with some very promising setup. What I liked: - Kit Harrington finally coming into his own. His scene in front of the NW command was just how I would have wanted it to be; humble, frank, and dispensed with any of the moodiness we've seen from him in previous seasons. - The Dragons. Excellent stuff from the CGI department, and just a glimpse into the mayhem to come. - Tyrion/Shae stuff. Despite the fact that I hated where they've taken Shae in previous seasons, they're handling her the right way in the circumstances, and dispelling any suggestions that they might change her death scene. - Oberyn. He has charisma, sex appeal, and just enough menace to make an impression. - New Daario. Says a lot that he's won me over in a few scenes, but I like the subtlety he brings to the role, which was lacking from the previous actor. - The opening scene. Just a nice way to start the season. What I wasn't wild about: - Jaime's 'confrontation' with Tywin, which wasn't that much of a confrontation. Admittedly, I'm not as upset about it as I was at first, but I do feel they could have injected a little more anger into that scene. Jaime seems a little too indifferent for the most part. - The dialogue. Detracted from a lot of good scenes, and is the main reason this score wasn't higher. Detracted from Oberyn's scene with Tyrion, in particular, but there were others. They need to go back to the source material and study Martin's subtlety. - Dontos. That ship had sailed guys. No one will have remembered who he is. You choose not to use him in Season 3, so stick to your convictions, and find Sansa another way out of King's Landing. Also, giving her the necklace and just telling her to wear it is going to come off as a pretty dodgy way to pull off that particular twist. They made a right hash of this one I'm afraid. A random thought: I seemed to notice the drawbacks of being a book reader a lot more in this episode. Take Arya and the Hound in the tavern. Thats a scene that's meant to be filled with tension, but because I knew what was coming I was just sort of like 'OK enough with the chicken metaphor and the over the top cruelty of the Lannister soldiers, lets just get on with the fighting already'. You lose something from knowing what's coming. Just a bit of a shame.

I really don't know how I feel about that episode. It might take another viewing. Not sure whether I was satisfied with the ending, but maybe thats because I built myself up to expect UnCat. The decision by Stannis and co. to march on the wall was incredibly poorly done. Too much focus on Davos vs Melisandre and not enough focus on the importance of the decision to both Stannis's character and Melisandre's. Jon/Ygritte confrontation was well acted. Dunno about the scripting though. The dialogue between Tywin and Tyrion felt clunky. The whole Sansa/Tyrion bonding thing was bullshit. I know it was meant to show that they were getting somewhere as a couple before dropping the RW bomb on Sansa but still, really disappointed. One scene I did like was Yara pledging to rescue Theon - looking forward to seeing how that story develops. Sam's scene with Aemon was also good, and I liked most of his stuff with Bran; though I thought the Reeds' intentions regarding the Others should have been more obscure. Jaime's return was good, Lena Heady's reaction was probably the best acting I've seen from her. Shock, relief, apprehension and a hint of revulsion all in one look. Theon learning his name was eh, dunno how they could have made it better though. Varys's offer to Shae: I actually wanted to kill myself. Character assassination in the case of Varys and more bullshit Shae/Tyrion lovestory. Fuck I am so done with her as a character. The Arya scene was completely unexpected. I thought they'd save that for a while. Great acting on Williams' part though. And more good stuff from the Hound: "the next time you do something like that... tell me first" - excellent stuff. At the moment I'm going with a 6. A very poor season finale IMO.

A sumptuous 10. Having said that, the Red Wedding wasn't quite as fluid as I'd hoped; they drew it out to long and had too many lingering stares. Maybe that meant more to the non book readers, but I felt like having it all happen a bit faster would have made it better. On the positive side, the way they lulled the audience into a false sense of security with all the lighthearted banter was outstanding. In the book there was a lot of discomfort in the leadup, but I liked the way they did it here. And the best thing is that the rest of the episode was FLAWLESS! Fantastic stuff between Arya and the Hound. Even better stuff with Bran, this episode made his season, and made up for all the boring banter that went before. Jon's escape was very good, and I particularly liked Ygritte in this episode, she portrayed her conflicting emotions incredibly well. Very pleased with the progression of Dany's story, and the subtle conflict between Daario and Jorah. Not overdone or underdone. Unsullied, welcome to Bolton-hate.

Ugh, very average episode. 7 at best. The wedding was handled VERY poorly, but I thought the bedchamber scene between Tyrion and Sansa was good. Daario was flat, and his dialogue was even flatter. Stannis/Davos scene was pretty good, and the leeches were also done well. Sam the Slayer was not at all how I pictured it, and felt quite clumsy. Very forgettable episode. But in other news..... Tits!

Hmmm... This episode probably only deserves a 7, but I'm going to give it an 8 because I liked a lot of the dialogue.... AND THERE WAS A DECENT SHAE SCENE!!!!! I wouldn't have thought it possible. What I liked: Everything Jaime/Brienne. This means a lot, because i was NOT rooting for them in the book. Their farewell, and Brienne's plee to honour their oath, was particularly touching. Jon/Ygritte banter. I was particularly pleased they included Jon telling Ygritte they wouldn't win. I felt that was really important for Jon's character. Gendry learning his parentage. Is it just me or does it feel like they're going to do something more with him post-Melisandre? Maybe Martin has told them something about his future? That reveal just felt really significant. Osha's moment. It made up a bit for the fact that she's been a pain in the ass up till now. Still think its about time she left. Tyrion's scene with Shae. This is the first Shae scene I have enjoyed. Her character felt more real, and we finally saw her real fears about Tyrion's future treatment of her. It doesn't mean I like her, or forgive ruining her character, but it made her and everything they've done with her up till now a little more bearable. Dany being a badass. Nuff said. What I didn't like: Tywin/Joffery - underdone and underwhelming. I expect better from the writers. Talisa pregnant. I'm caring less and less about her every episode. Theon's gelding. Lacked subtlety. Willing to forgive it though, as everything about that thread up till now has been great.

I dunno why everyone's so down on this one. I'm quite happily giving it an 8. No really huge moments, but a lot of good small moments between characters. I loved the Thoros monologue. Thought it finally shed a bit of light on a character who up till now has been a bit of an anomaly. Quite enjoyed the climb itself, although some of the CGI could have been better. Ramsay's game playing was excellent, and I'm glad he hasn't revealed himself yet. And Tywin and Olenna were outstanding, every scene of theirs so far has been the best in each episode. Littlefinger's speech was great, probably his only good scene so far this season. There wasn't much I really disliked about the episode, but there were a few disappointments. I really wish we'd spent more time with Jaime and Roose, that scene felt terribly underdone. The Bran stuff was also highly underwhelming, though i suppose they have to stretch that storyline out to breaking point.

Wavering between 8 and 9. On the one hand no wow moments, but on the other, some very good interplay between characters. Beric/Hound was very well choreographed, a fight with a flaming sword can end up looking very clumsy but they dealt with it very well. Karstark execution was perfect in every way. Jaime's story and its deliverance was phenomenal. Very interesting that they've decided to include Selyse and Shireen, and the former was sufficiently creepy. We'll see where this goes. Tywin/Tyrion/Cersei was maybe the highlight of the episode for me, and they've done well not to overcomplicate that particular arc. My major problem with this episode was Jon's arc, which I feel has been very poorly handled this season (once again). I felt like he folded way too easily, and it would have meant more if Ygritte had been trying to seduce him throughout most of this season rather than last. The whole scene felt rushed, and it was pretty ridiculous how close the hot water spring was to the mouth of the cave. Also really liked the little moment between Gendry and Arya, I've really enjoyed Arya's humanisation in this season.

I see no reason not to give this one a 10: there was nothing about it that I didn't enjoy. I really liked the fact that we got to see Jaime try to use a sword with his left hand; it made the loss of his sword hand mean more. Natalie Dormer continues to steal the show this season. Quite enjoyed the Varys vengeance scene; its interesting that the show continues to make Varys far more likeable than Martin did... Beric was very well cast. Astapor was colossal.

I gave it an 8. This episodes biggest strength was its humour. I absolutely loved the wordless banter with the chairs at the small council, Tyrion dragging his chair across the floor was priceless. Also quite enjoyed Talisa assuring the Lannister boys that Robb only ate children on the full moon. I know plenty of people didn't like the Pod stuff, but I thought it was great. Also really enjoyed Dany, and the fact that her thread is, to the most part, keeping the book dialogue. As far as I'm concerned, the best scenes of the season so far have been the ones that stuck to the book dialogue (Tyrion/Tywin, Margery/Sansa/Olenna, Dany in Astapor). I liked that they put in Tyrion explaining how the Bank of Braavos works, always good to get that stuff in. I thought Theon's arc picked up the pace, and I'm happy with where they're taking it. Someone said that Jaime's scene was ruined by last episode; as Brienne beating him has played down how important losing his hand is and I agree. The scene was great though, particularly in the way they lulled you into a false sense of security. I have two major problems with this episode. The first is character assassination. They've really messed Stannis up. But the real disappointment was Littlefinger... he was never that much of a kiss-ass in the books, and he certainly wouldn't have been one to try to make it first to sit at Tywin's right hand. They've completely missed the point with him I'm afraid. The second is the Bear and the Fucking Maiden Fair. They got it in earlier in the episode and it was really enjoyable, so why would they ruin the final scene by playing that stupid punk rock rendition? Really inappropriate and hugely unnecessary. Last little grumble: Mance Rayder is impressing me less and less each episode.

I gave it a 6. Maybe a little harsh, but there were a few bits I was really annoyed about, in particular certain new characters and events not getting the resonance they should have. I didn't like the way they handled the news from Winterfell, and I was really disappointed with the Theon stuff. I know there's plenty to come, particularly from the "boy", but I was hoping for a little more of a horror factor. Actually quite enjoyed the Cat/Jon Snow story. Love the Tyrells, brilliant stuff from both Margery and Ollena. Points as well go to Sophie Turner for her outstanding acting in the scene with the Tyrell women. That was probably my favourite scene of the episode. I really, really, REALLY hate where they're going with the 'getting sansa out of Kings Landing' arc though. Involving Shae, and then Tyrion, is a big mistake IMO. I've come to expect that from every scene that involves Shae however; I was also furious that we had Sansa and Shae sitting there discussing Littlefinger and his intentions with her. Bad, bad, BAD! Bran's arc was eh. Thought the introduction of the Reeds was ok. Brieanne and Jamie was reasonable, not quite amazing. I dunno, maybe my expectations are just too high.

My first post :D I gave it an 8. Thought about 9, but the Littlefinger/Sansa scene put me off a bit, and the general content of the episode, while good, wasn't exactly mind blowing. Mance :thumbsup: Mel/Davos :thumbsup: Margery :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :thumbsup: The scene with her, Joff and Cersei was gold. Looking forward to seeing how quickly they develop that. Barristan :thumbsup: as always