[Book & Show Spoilers] Too much King's Landing?

[Ser Desmond Wine's Bane]

The intrigue in Dorne will replace some of the intrigue in KL but they are going to have to sell it really well or people just wont buy it as an alternative. Part of the problem will be having both Sunspear and Pyke as two new major focal points at the same time. I feel Balon needs to die sooner rather than later to establish Euron and Vic this season to get people attached then introduce Sunspear next season (with the Kingsmoot also next season)

[Queen of Whores]

The intrigue in Dorne will replace some of the intrigue in KL but they are going to have to sell it really well or people just wont buy it as an alternative. Part of the problem will be having both Sunspear and Pyke as two new major focal points at the same time. I feel Balon needs to die sooner rather than later to establish Euron and Vic this season to get people attached then introduce Sunspear next season (with the Kingsmoot also next season)

Dorne will probably just be sexposition central, so I'm not worried about that one :Lol:

[averde]

This is one of those problems that will get worse as the TV series gets further in the story. By not weening tv shows off Kings Landing earlier I'm worried it'll be to noticeable and annoying to show fans when no ones there in later seasons. The show has a few issues like this, for example the portrayal of Stannis is pretty evil so far in the show and it'll be a shock to a lot of tv viewers when he's a hero later this season even (although I have a bad feeling they may make him not so much a hero but that's a different topic)

[Angmar]

The problem with King's Landing is that for most of the show it's used just as a place where fan-favorites can meet up and start sassing at each other. Compare the number of scenes with Varys, Littlefinger, Tyrion, the Queen of Thorns, etc, where not much plot happens and it's just babbling and one-liners.

And those scenes then diminish and hurt the other storylines.

[Turncloak_]

I'll take Kings Landing any day over Dany running in circles in Essos. I would prefer we got to see things like the Tower of Joy but the show doesn't do flashbacks. Strange that we didn't get the knight of the laughing tree story last season. I also think they could have done a much better job with Jon and the wildlings. No mention of the horn of winter by Ygritte, no member jokes by Tormund, reduced version of the first meeting between Jon and Mance (the blu ray DVD had their entire meeting as a deleted scene)

[benalapin]

What I always wondered is whether D&D are aware of this popular opinion against the focus on King's Landing in season 3, and if they would actively try to prevent that from happening again.

[Khal-a-bunga]

^ What "popular opinion"? Get serious. King's Landing gets the focus that it does because it's the most central location in the series (I mean, this is the location where the Iron Throne sits...), and it has the largest concentration of cast members. Once that concentration of characters is diluted, the show will follow suit.

And to say that 'not much plot happens here; it's just a place for characters to meet up and sass one another' is patently false. It's empirically false. Just about every scene in the entire show focuses on either the plot, the characters (and their relationships to one another), or important/relevant information about the past. That many of these scenes also contain quips and jabs, humor and levity, etc. is just an added bonus.

I'd love to hear some examples of scenes that served absolutely no purpose.

[Black_Goat]

^ What "popular opinion"? Get serious. King's Landing gets the focus that it does because it's the most central location in the series (I mean, this is the location where the Iron Throne sits...), and it has the largest concentration of cast members. Once that concentration of characters is diluted, the show will follow suit.

And to say that 'not much plot happens here; it's just a place for characters to meet up and sass one another' is patently false. It's empirically false. Just about every scene in the entire show focuses on either the plot, the characters (and their relationships to one another), or important/relevant information about the past. That many of these scenes also contain quips and jabs, humor and levity, etc. is just an added bonus.

I'd love to hear some examples of scenes that served absolutely no purpose.

As someone else said above, season 3's King's Landing storyline covers about eight chapters worth of story. It also covers seven Cat chapters, four Bran chapters, three Sam chapters, six Jon chapters, six Davos chapters, four Dany chapters, six Jaime chapters, and eleven Arya chapters. These are rough estimates, but more or less a sixth of S3's story should have been set in KL. It got at least half the screentime.

Pointless scenes? Off the top of my head:

- Olenna's successive scenes with Varys, Tyrion, Cersei, and Tywin. Yes, these scenes feature good performers reciting snappy dialogue, but they only exist for that purpose. In light of the show's treatment of characters like Cat, Mance, Stannis, and Sandor, was it absolutely necessary to have a scene between Tyrion and Olenna in which they discuss payment for the royal wedding? Okay, the scene wasn't technically pointless (in that something did occur over the course of it), but it was a poor adaptational choice. The other conversations are variations of the same.

- Most of the stuff with Bronn and Pod; great characters but truly filler scenes.

- The overly complex Olenna-Loras-Sansa plot, which was rushed and reduced Loras to a stereotype. In the books, the plan to marry Sansa to Willas is foiled 'offscreen' by Littlefinger, and then Tywin proposes the countermeasure of marrying Sansa and Tyrion.

- From the PW last episode: Cersei and Pycelle. The season premiere established her relationship with Qyburn, but the show felt the need to hammer it home, I guess.

And on and on. Now, you can defend any one of those scenes and that's fine, but what I'm wondering is: Why no Bael the Bard story? No KotLT? No Tormund and his bear-child? These scenes would be dialogue heavy like a lot of S3's two-character filler moments, but they would service the books and the storyline. I don't mean to quibble with adaptational cuts, which I understand must take place, but it seems like they showrunners are very specifically cutting at the expense of all stories except KL.

[The Eunuch]

Well, the TV show is called "Game of thrones", so... I guess it's quite logical that we spend a lot of time in King's Landing, the center of Westeros' politics and seat of the Iron throne.

The (added) scenes between Littlefinger, Varys, Tywin, Olenna and others are a delight. Nobles playing their game of thrones, isn't it what it's all about? Of course it was not in the books because none of them is a POV character.

Watch the "Chaos is a ladder" sequence between Littlefinger and Varys. Do you really think it is a filler? I get chills whenever I watch it... We, readers, know how much it is true about Littlefinger.

I love the many genres of the series : fantasy, action, zombies, war, love... But the genre that made me ADORE the series (and read the books) is politics. The Game of thrones, precisely.

[Winnief]

Well we know KL is going to be burned at some point in the story...I'm hoping that as things progress, we'll see more of the action taking place in other locales to wean off viewers. Varys is gonna have to go into hiding, LF and Sansa will be at the Vale, and things are going to get very, VERY interesting in the North, so hopefully the focus will start to shift. Obviously, they're gonna have a ball with Cersei vs. Margaery in Season Five, but there's a limit to how much screen time they can give them, and Essos might be more interesting if Tyrion AND Arya are running around there.

[Turncloak_]

Well, the TV show is called "Game of thrones", so... I guess it's quite logical that we spend a lot of time in King's Landing, the center of Westeros' politics and seat of the Iron throne.

The (added) scenes between Littlefinger, Varys, Tywin, Olenna and others are a delight. Nobles playing their game of thrones, isn't it what it's all about? Of course it was not in the books because none of them is a POV character.

Watch the "Chaos is a ladder" sequence between Littlefinger and Varys. Do you really think it is a filler? I get chills whenever I watch it... We, readers, know how much it is true about Littlefinger.

I love the many genres of the series : fantasy, action, zombies, war, love... But the genre that made me ADORE the series (and read the books) is politics. The Game of thrones, precisely.

The Chaos is a ladder speech is one of my all time favorite moments in the series. Littlefinger is quickly becoming one of my favorite characters in the show. I really don't care for him as much in the books however. Some characters are more fleshed out on the show such as LF and Tywin which is a huge bonus

[Queen of Whores]

The Chaos is a ladder speech is one of my all time favorite moments in the series. Littlefinger is quickly becoming one of my favorite characters in the show. I really don't care for him as much in the books however. Some characters are more fleshed out on the show such as LF and Tywin which is a huge bonus

Wait, you seriously think Littlefinger is more fleshed out in the series??? I agree that Tywin is, but Littlefinger...? Wow, I've honestly never heard anyone say that before. The vast majority of comments I've seen regarding Littlefinger is that he's done pretty badly on the show as compared to his book portrayal.

[Turncloak_]

Wait, you seriously think Littlefinger is more fleshed out in the series??? I agree that Tywin is, but Littlefinger...? Wow, I've honestly never heard anyone say that before. The vast majority of comments I've seen regarding Littlefinger is that he's done pretty badly on the show as compared to his book portrayal.

Show Littlefinger has way more charisma than book Littlefinger imo. That's probably mainly due to the fact that we do not have a LF POV like we do on the show. Aiden Gillain has done a pretty phenomenal job at making his character very intriguing/appealing

[Winnief]

Wait, you seriously think Littlefinger is more fleshed out in the series??? I agree that Tywin is, but Littlefinger...? Wow, I've honestly never heard anyone say that before. The vast majority of comments I've seen regarding Littlefinger is that he's done pretty badly on the show as compared to his book portrayal.

Show Littlefinger has way more charisma than book Littlefinger imo. That's probably mainly due to the fact that we do not have a LF POV like we do on the show. Aiden Gillain has done a pretty phenomenal job at making his character very intriguing/appealing

:agree:

If anything, LF is more two dimensional in the books and too obviously creepy towards Sansa.

One thing that makes me feel KL will start receding just a little bit is the fact that LF, (who's such a fan favorite for show viewers,) IS heading to the Vale with Sansa. And if Blackfish heads there as well, (and I think he will,) then that creates a convergence of events there. Plus a LOT of characters one way or another are headed North, which is bound to shift attention as well.

[El Guapo]

What I always wondered is whether D&D are aware of this popular opinion against the focus on King's Landing in season 3, and if they would actively try to prevent that from happening again.

It is not a popular opinion.

[TheBadboy]

After 4th season, the main cast still in KL are :

Cersei, Margaery, Olenna ( if she doesn't leave after the funeral), Jaime ( till he goes to riverlands) Pycelle and Qyburn and Kevan and Tommen.

Tyrion, Sansa, Tywin, LF, Joffrey, Shae, Jaime and Bronn, Varys, Pod, Brienne, Olenna, Loras all will be gone.

The only storyline in 5th season in KL is the bitch battle between Cersei and Margaery. ( That would be made very juicy definitely, one to look forward to)

and Cersei's quick spiral into madness.

I think wall and north will take precedence over screentime

Jon, Stannis, Mel, Davos, Selyse and Shireen, Bran and Co, Ramsay, Roose, Theon, Yara, Tormund, Mance and the wildlings, Sam and Gilly ( till they leave for Oldtown), the whole of NW . So there will be a shift definitely.

East again we will have a lot more characters.

Arya, Sam and Co, Dany and Co, Tyrion, Aegon ( if he makes the cut), Jorah.

Riverlands and Vale will have Jaime, Brienne, Edmure and Blackfish , LF,Sansa.

I hope Iron Islands make the cut because Kingsmoot would be an awesome on tv and there aren't any awesome things happening in Dorne except Arianne's Stupid plot.

[ebevan91]

It is not a popular opinion.

It's really not, but I do think the opinion is more common with book readers. I'd say a majority of show-only people have Tyrion as their favorite character so they probably don't mind the focus being on King's Landing.

[Ser Desmond Wine's Bane]

It's really not, but I do think the opinion is more common with book readers. I'd say a majority of show-only people have Tyrion as their favorite character so they probably don't mind the focus being on King's Landing.

I suspect the number of people who have their favourite character as Carly See might have the numbers over Tyrion.

[Winnief]

The only storyline in 5th season in KL is the bitch battle between Cersei and Margaery. ( That would be made very juicy definitely, one to look forward to)

and Cersei's quick spiral into madness.

Yeah, that will be great-but as you point there's a limit to how much screentime they can give that, and all the other good characters will be elsewhere. So KL is bound to retreat a little at that point....

[TheBadboy]

Yeah, that will be great-but as you point there's a limit to how much screentime they can give that, and all the other good characters will be elsewhere. So KL is bound to retreat a little at that point....

And Lena and Natalie :p