[spoilers] Nitpicking with impunity

[Lady Fevre Dream]

I said a couple times last season that LF seems sometimes like he's acting in a different show...he's in some kind of broad satire or black comedy...where everyone else is playing in a straight drama. It's really strange, especially that it seems to continue to become more and more pronounced, I found myself in his scene with Sansa paying more attention to 'how far will he go with this stupid voice' than I did to what he was saying.

I probably paid more attention to how close he was going to put that creepy face, issuing forth that creepy voice, in Sansa's face. I think I spent most of the scene doing a bit of backing up for Sophie/Sansa.

[Lady Fevre Dream]

My sentiments exactly. I watched this episode for the second time last night (I always watch it twice because the first time I'm too concerned with the deviations to enjoy it. The second time I can usually check my brain at the door and find some semblance of entertainment.) I think this is one of the worst episodes yet. The writing is appallingly lazy and sloppy and the writers are asking too much of the viewers with regard to suspension of disbelief and gaps in logic. I'm not asking for Vince Gilligan/David Milch/David Simon caliber writing, but JESUS, how hard is it to be consistent with character development and story lines? Jaime a rapist when he starts his redemption arc by saving Brienne from rape (I'm none too pleased they had him murder his own cousin)? The Hound is robbed by the BwB in front of Arya, but Arya can't figure out why he doesn't have any money, which is the entire reason she's with him in the first place. Then the Hound states he has a "moral code", which he immediately violates, as well as the sacred law of Guest Right, and becomes just as bad as the Freys? Sansa easily slipping out of KL (where did she get the cloak and how did Dontos/LF know she would wear the necklace to the wedding)? And, god, do I ever hate Show!Stannis. Why isn't he making his way to the Wall? I gave up trying to convince my Unsullied husband that Stannis is actually an interesting character that I root for. And what's up with the Thenns? The writers are just going for cheap comedic relief and shock value. All very cringe.

I'm usually very easy going with the show (although some of last season was rough, maybe because it was my first time watching episode by episode?) but you've summed up perfectly the problems with this weeks episode. This episode was a good representation of both the big problems (like the 'rapey' scene) and the little ones that do tend to add up (the Hound's money situation, Sansa and Dontos and all the issues there between necklace wearing and cloaks appearing) until it's hard not to complain about it all and nitpick. I was also a bit optimistic with the first couple of episodes, maybe that's part of my disappointment. I've given up on recognizing Stannis, I'm hoping I do when he gets to the Wall, at least that's what I've been telling myself. The what's with the Thenns is a good question, okay......awful cannibals, we get it. Insert eyeroll for their appearances.

Maybe I'm just tired of being easy going and continually having to 'get through it?' Or, that's how I do feel this week. With less material with which to work, I guess maybe I was too hopeful that they'd bother to take the time for things to make sense. I guess we'll see how easy going I can continue to be, but it would be nice if the show helped me out, and it didn't require such effort on my part. When all the issues get outlined in one post, for just one episode, it does seem like my remaining easy going about it will keep being put to the test.

[perfectdark]

Meh new Daario still a miscast. Terrible scene altogether with Dany. There relationship seems so forced now.

[YourMomsBox]

The Jaime scene was awful and I hate hate hate what they just did to the character. His season 3 development suddenly looks like a great freaking waste whatever way you try to cut it. Took long enough for him to be redeemed from shoving Bran from a window, then it is undone in one scene. Even if it was in the books (don't remember), that could have been scrapped for a different Jaime/Cersei scene.

[Cas Stark]

I'm usually very easy going with the show (although some of last season was rough, maybe because it was my first time watching episode by episode?) but you've summed up perfectly the problems with this weeks episode. This episode was a good representation of both the big problems (like the 'rapey' scene) and the little ones that do tend to add up (the Hound's money situation, Sansa and Dontos and all the issues there between necklace wearing and cloaks appearing) until it's hard not to complain about it all and nitpick. I was also a bit optimistic with the first couple of episodes, maybe that's part of my disappointment. I've given up on recognizing Stannis, I'm hoping I do when he gets to the Wall, at least that's what I've been telling myself. The what's with the Thenns is a good question, okay......awful cannibals, we get it. Insert eyeroll for their appearances.

Maybe I'm just tired of being easy going and continually having to 'get through it?' Or, that's how I do feel this week. With less material with which to work, I guess maybe I was too hopeful that they'd bother to take the time for things to make sense. I guess we'll see how easy going I can continue to be, but it would be nice if the show helped me out, and it didn't require such effort on my part. When all the issues get outlined in one post, for just one episode, it does seem like my remaining easy going about it will keep being put to the test.

I was really hopeful with the first episode this year, which I thought was masterful. But, this week they're falling back into a lot of the bad habits I objected to previously..spending inordinate amounts of time on pointless elements, like Sam and Gilly, back in the brothel 24/7 and the whole rape/not rape fiasco...if that doesn't shake faith in D&D, I don't know what could.

[Fat Trell]

Since this is a nitpick thread, why does he feel the need to clarify "What Mike is saying is that we need to be very careful about how to proceed"? Yeah dude, that was kind of the whole point of the 3 minute conversation we just had...

Similar to how reading the books has ruined certain show characters, I think watching The Wire has ruined Aidan's performance as LF. Those who haven't seen it think he's fine, those who have are like "WTF, we know this guy can act."

Because his aide just made a veiled threat towards both of them. They were the "good people in supervisory roles." Carcetti was trying to smooth that over a bit, imo.

Back to Gillen's performance; maybe the show runners are trying to emphasize the differences between "Petyr" and "Littlefinger?" His normal voice for the amiable politician and the bat-whisper for the cruel schemer.

[Lady Fevre Dream]

I was really hopeful with the first episode this year, which I thought was masterful. But, this week they're falling back into a lot of the bad habits I objected to previously..spending inordinate amounts of time on pointless elements, like Sam and Gilly, back in the brothel 24/7 and the whole rape/not rape fiasco...if that doesn't shake faith in D&D, I don't know what could.

And, don't forget, lest we are getting tired of THE brothel, we now have what appears to be a very busy, if not down right overpopulated, Mole's Town brothel. Honestly, how many whores does that dinky actual hole in the ground of a town need?

[Cas Stark]

And, don't forget, lest we are getting tired of THE brothel, we now have what appears to be a very busy, if not down right overpopulated, Mole's Town brothel. Honestly, how many whores does that dinky actual hole in the ground of a town need?

LOL, see, that's a sign you're got too much T&A...because that is exactly what went through my mind, I was like, oh, another brothel, so we can mix it up a little with the naked whores, only these ones will be downscale and grimmy, awesome...I was completely taken out of the story wondering if we were going to get any naked moletown whores in the next 2 minutes...

I hate that they're wasting Pedro Pascal on orgies, I'm all for hedonism, but if all they really do is lay up in LF brothel all day and night...that whole egalitarian vibe that Dorne has going for it..sort of disappears.

[Electric Wizard]

I just saw episode last night. It seems I'm not the only one who thought the whole arrival at Meereen scene was a bit naff. The dialogue seemed forced and clunky, and the duel with the champion was completely anitclimatic. Once I saw Daario was going to take on the rider, I thought at least they might highlight his cocky aspect by having him toy with him like Belwas does. But no; it was all over in seconds.

Even the positioning of the characters seemed wrong. Can't believe they had Dany strutting about so close to the frontline and the ramparts in plain view. The whole army seemed hemmed in by the cliffs and looked very vulnerable. And WHEN WILL WE SEE BARRISTAN ACTUALLY FIGHT SOMEONE?! One of the greatest swordsmen in the realm and all he's done is thrown his weapon onto the floor of the throneroom and squash an insect! If they scrapped Belwas then this seemed a good opportunity to finally show Barristan's prowess and bravery, even if it does differ from the books and would mean Dany risking one of her most valuable assets. It just would have been good to see him in action for a change.

[Lady Fevre Dream]

LOL, see, that's a sign you're got too much T&A...because that is exactly what went through my mind, I was like, oh, another brothel, so we can mix it up a little with the naked whores, only these ones will be downscale and grimmy, awesome...I was completely taken out of the story wondering if we were going to get any naked moletown whores in the next 2 minutes...

I hate that they're wasting Pedro Pascal on orgies, I'm all for hedonism, but if all they really do is lay up in LF brothel all day and night...that whole egalitarian vibe that Dorne has going for it..sort of disappears.

You've hit the nail on the head with the reason I'm soooooooooo nitpicky about this episode. I was taken out of it way too much, I'm not sure I can count how many times in this epi that I was taken out of the show and stopped to think about this type of thing. The whole brothel equation, the Oberyn and Ellaria, again, at a brothel, Olyvar as the male Ros, The Damn Over The Top Thenns, The Hound and yeah, he has feelings about the weak and them getting out of his way, but he should have been bitching to Sansa about that, not Arya, timing and actions off, why was it foggy for Sansa in the harbor when it was sunny a few minutes before at the wedding, Tywin scene stealing and I love Tywin but so does D&D, a little too much, and the big.....hold the phone, stop the presses, and WTF is going on with Jaime and Cersei.

That's just off the top of my head, LOL, and that is way too many times to be taken out of the story. Oh look, I didnt' even mention that for the first time I DO see why people say, at times, EC's Dany looks high, cause well, she did in her first appearance this time, LOL, and sorry for the run on sentences, but that was also my point. It was being taken out of the story for too many considerations this episode, just way too many.

[Rhaegar The Rocker]

I read a comment on an article that someone thoughT Oberyn was far more interesting in the show and that I do not understand. The only interesting thing they added was THE conversation with Tywin/Cersei. Besides that its been basically "Oberyn is a freak and here is some full frontal male nudity."

Not having him tell Tyrion the story about Cersei is a massive oversight IMO. Though maybe they're saving it for later.

[Roose Seal]

If you guys are expecting subtlety, you haven't been paying attention. :D

more seriously though, S1 was fairly subtle, even if they hit us over the head with heavy (s)exposition but it worked. Since then, it's basically Hercules with a budget.

[rebelgb]

The show is almost becoming unwatchable. Ive continued to watch because I am going through withdrawals waiting for the next book, but man I can only take so much.

Screw you HBO: Yeah we get it, you are all about screaming out for Gay/Lesbian/Bi rights. I mean wow. Hey GoT viewers, did you know that even in this fake make believe world set in a mideaval time there were Gays and Bisexuals??? Hey we are the champions of the cause!! WoW, really? They have ruined the Red Viper for me, one of my favorites in the books. I dont care about his sexual orientation, jesus, how about highlighting his importance to the story?

Ok there are a lot of people who dont like Dany, me Ive always like her; but the whole stand in front of a wall with your army and yell out about freeing the slaves blah blah blah. Yeah we get it. Again is this the result of HBO writers who just graduated in Liberal Arts making script? What a waste of a scene. Lets cut out the great fight scene (well most of it) and have Dany give another boring speech. We also get to see some terrible special effects with the catapults.

The Hound is a thief now after breaking bread with a man under his roof? Huh? Another character on his way to at least small redemption who has been ruined. Good job HBO.

The Cersai/ Jamie rape scene is inexcusable. The directors explanation that it was directed to be a consent scene and if you watch it closely it obviously is, well, is total rubbish. He knows damn well they wanted to paint Jamie as a rapist. After all arent all men according to HBO? WTF? At least be a man about it and admit it.

Martin should be really really pissed; but im sure he got enough money from HBO to over look the RAPING of his books.

[RumHam]

The Hound is a thief now after breaking bread with a man under his roof? Huh? Another character on his way to at least small redemption who has been ruined. Good job HBO.

In defense of this one thing, I hope there's more to the Hound thing than we can appreciate at the moment. The fact that he violated guest right seems very specific. They needed something to give Arya motivation to hate him again. Prior to that the two had gotten pretty close. You could almost imagine her wanted to stay with him over going to live with her crazy aunt.

[King of the Road]

The show is almost becoming unwatchable. Ive continued to watch because I am going through withdrawals waiting for the next book, but man I can only take so much.

Screw you HBO: Yeah we get it, you are all about screaming out for Gay/Lesbian/Bi rights. I mean wow. Hey GoT viewers, did you know that even in this fake make believe world set in a mideaval time there were Gays and Bisexuals??? Hey we are the champions of the cause!! WoW, really? They have ruined the Red Viper for me, one of my favorites in the books. I dont care about his sexual orientation, jesus, how about highlighting his importance to the story?

Ok there are a lot of people who dont like Dany, me Ive always like her; but the whole stand in front of a wall with your army and yell out about freeing the slaves blah blah blah. Yeah we get it. Again is this the result of HBO writers who just graduated in Liberal Arts making script? What a waste of a scene. Lets cut out the great fight scene (well most of it) and have Dany give another boring speech. We also get to see some terrible special effects with the catapults.

The Hound is a thief now after breaking bread with a man under his roof? Huh? Another character on his way to at least small redemption who has been ruined. Good job HBO.

The Cersai/ Jamie rape scene is inexcusable. The directors explanation that it was directed to be a consent scene and if you watch it closely it obviously is, well, is total rubbish. He knows damn well they wanted to paint Jamie as a rapist. After all arent all men according to HBO? WTF? At least be a man about it and admit it.

Martin should be really really pissed; but im sure he got enough money from HBO to over look the RAPING of his books.

http://i.imgur.com/sYQXmFr.png

[rocksniffer]

i am a knowledgeable and faithful book reader that enjoys the show with gusto...i find that getting pissed off for page after page because the show is altering the books is a waste of time, energy and electronic resources...i was glad for example that i didn't have to sit through 70+ courses at the wedding feast to see that putz Joff get his comeuppance... :smoking:

[iknownothingjonsnow]

In defense of this one thing, I hope there's more to the Hound thing than we can appreciate at the moment. The fact that he violated guest right seems very specific. They needed something to give Arya motivation to hate him again. Prior to that the two had gotten pretty close. You could almost imagine her wanted to stay with him over going to live with her crazy aunt.

Doesn't that sort of highlight the difference between good writing and bad?

You've correctly diagnosed the problem. Good writing would be having The Hound do something in character which upsets Arya enough to respond the way she eventually does.

Bad writing would be 90% of what the show does when it deviates from the source material.

[RumHam]

Doesn't that sort of highlight the difference between good writing and bad?

You've correctly diagnosed the problem. Good writing would be having The Hound do something in character which upsets Arya enough to respond the way she eventually does.

Bad writing would be 90% of what the show does when it deviates from the source material.

Try as I might, I can't disagree with you here.

[Roose Seal]

Doesn't that sort of highlight the difference between good writing and bad?

You've correctly diagnosed the problem. Good writing would be having The Hound do something in character which upsets Arya enough to respond the way she eventually does.

Bad writing would be 90% of what the show does when it deviates from the source material.

Yes. Bad writing is having the character be whatever you need him to be for the purpose of the story. This often leads to characters acting out of, well, character out of nowhere just to further the plot.

Good writing is working within the restrictions set by the character to bring the story where you want it to be.

[Swagwell]

"WHERE WERE THE DRAGONS?"