LilJonUmber

But Titanic is the best movie ever made. Just kidding. My point is that, being that "D&D are such hacks," it's an accomplishment for the show to have risen to such high levels of viewership. Ya know...in spite of how awful they are.

Vikings is garbage. A child could've written each ep (is it confirmed that this isn't the case?)

Then this is quite an achievement. You book purists need to go kick rocks. You're worse than Bieber fans. EDIT: Then again, you probably thought David Chase was a hack, too, so...

Just to clarify, I meant that D&D have wanted to put their own spin on the source material. I mean, haven't you ever read a book and thought in your head I don't agree with that. I would've done it this way? And really, if we're being fair, that's all they've done thus far. Ball park estimate, I'd say 85-90% of GOT is in the books. That's a far cry from what many like to claim has been 38 episodes of complete fanfic. Anyway, to each their own. Some purists will give an episode a low rating, simply because ONE LINE they hoped would be in the scene was omitted. Clearly, you've got more reasoning behind your vote than those people. Let's hope episode 9 is everything it's been hyped up to be.

Fair enough, and I appreciate the fleshed out response. But my point is, D&D aren't doing a verbatim adaptation, so you may as well get over that--for the sake of your own viewing pleasure; not as me, some stranger, telling you what to do. What's more, while you may not like every change they've made -- nor have I -- I think it's unfair to say that EVERY one has been a poor decision, simply by default. IMO, D&D have had far more wins than losses when they've added scenes or storylines that were not in the book. Making Bronn a more prominent character...having Jaime show up earlier, so there's more interaction with Tyrion...Shae's actual love for Tyrion -- and vice versa -- blowing up in their faces, as he's trying to protect her...Stannis' trip to Braavos...tying up loose ends with the mutineers, et al. It's unfair to bemoan the changes you dislike, without factoring in the ones that were clearly entertaining and/or integral. At any rate, a "1" just seems absurd. Such a low score means that you literally sat there falling asleep, or wanting to claw your eyes out and stab your eardrums, and wanted 53 minutes of your life back upon its conclusion. If you came away with that feeling after 4 x 08, then I feel bad that you're not enjoying what 90% of us on here are...

GRRM seems okay with it, otherwise he wouldn't agree to write an episode each season. If you're TRULY a GRRM loyalist, you'd realize -- as he has -- that D&D has made him a richer man. Their ADAPTATION has spawned hordes of new readers, who would cease to exist otherwise. I'd never even HEARD of ASOIAF until I was walking around NYC and saw a cardboard ad of Ned on the Iron Throne. I tuned in, and the rest is history. To me, this seems eerily familiar to what happens in the music industry with a long-standing band. Fans are so fearful of being considered bandwagoners, that they feel compelled to cling to the earlier works without compromise--simply by default. Surely this is an imperfect analogy, but let me ask you this: If this episode was a "1", then what, pray tell, do you rate an 8-10 on television these days? And if it's TRULY a "1," then why -- oh why -- would you continue watching and commenting on such an abhorrent piece of crap? I'll look forward to your response.

Agreed.

Who would give this episode a 1 or a 2 (...or a 3, for that matter)? When will you realize that this is NOT a word-for-word adaptation of GRRM's source material; it's the foundation, and D&D want to carve out their own legacy based off of it. Idk, you lot must be very difficult people to please, just in general.

To each their own. Hopefully they redeem themselves next ep for you with Only Cat

92% of those who rated this ep voted 8-10. Guess the 8% have good taste, and the rest of us on this site have no idea what we're evaluating.

Or it proves that you're a hard viewer to please.

You're in the minority. The votes on this site say so, and the fact that this is HBOs most watched series EVER is further proof.

Maybe when they came to the realization that they were stuck with an abysmal actress, they felt that having some redeeming qualities would offset that. I kid, I kid (...sorta). I'm with you -- idk why they went that route with her character.

This is my reasoning in a nutshell. They've chosen their path with Shae and Tyrion's character, and while it's strays from the source material in many ways, I take no issue with it. Yeah, Tyrion's way more ambivalent and complex in the books, but with so few characters remaining for viewers to root for that'd be considered a "hero," or even just "good" people, the decision to make him such makes sense. Still, we should begin to see his darker side at some point. Ultimately, when he learns that Jamie betrayed him (with Tysha) that, coupled with losing Shae, will wipe out the short list of people who actually cared about him -- and vice versa. The end result is the same, just a slightly different means of arriving there.

In S3 x 01, Tywin made it a specific point to say, "Oh, and one more thing. The next whore I catch in your bed I'll hang." This led to a subsequent scene with Tyrion and Shae in the very next episode where he warns her that, "...my father isn't the type to make hollow threats. You're in danger." D&D lack subtlety with these sorts of things. Threats on a person's life generally come to fruition. We can reasonably conclude that any chance for sincere love and affection -- that had begun to show traces of materializing -- between show Sansa and Tyrion this past episode was effectively squashed when Sansa learned of the RW. She was reminded that the Lannisters are her enemies, and the damage is irreparable. Realizing that his marriage is a lost cause, and admittedly unwilling to forcibly engage in sexual activity with his "wife," Tyrion will turn back to Shae the Funny Whore, and Papa Lannister will somehow find out. Shae is hanged, perhaps even by her gold chain, and Tyrion exacts revenge. Tywin gets a quarrel, doesn't shit gold. Scene.