Where do we go from Here, unbowed? (spoilers galore)

[nyser1]

Has anyone else noticed how they are reducing each and every house to essentially two people (if even): a head of the hosue and possibly a male heir. Some of these were already the case, but some are changes (i.e. Greyjoys, Martells, Tullies). The Arryns, Baratheons (of both King's Landing and Dragonstone), Greyjoys (show version, Balon alive and "Yara" too), the Martells, and Tyrells.

With Cersei alienating herself from each and every person, Tywin dead, Jamie in Dorne, the Lannister forces depleted by war, and Tommen showing more signs of being an "oaf" than a "stag" (or lion *cough cough*), who exactly has her back? I find it hard to believe that with Mace en route to Braavos (awaiting who knows what from either Meryn Trant or Arya) the QoT will just let the family be killed off. This is also why I mentioned the reduction in family sizes earlier, as rather than there be several possible male heirs to Highgarden, Loras is the only one in the show. Everything is on the line, and I would think the Tyrells, who were not greatly affected by the war, have a bit of leverage over the crown in King's Landing. It would be quite foolish (to say the least) for the QoT to not take action.

[HouseLark]

I see Sansa gaining some measure of revenge before The on is partially redeemed by helping her escape. Sansa needs to gain something from the rape scene in terms of it affecting her character arc (i.e. her chracater could not develop in the way it will if the rape did not happen) otherwise its a highly exploitative scene that will count towards discrediting the show. I'm not expecting Sansa to "kick ass" but she will need to get some some vengeance - I'm taken back to Littlefinger's comment earlier in the season about the only justice being that which they create. By the end of the season I expect her to be with Stannis, and I expect to see the Pink Letter in episode 10.

As for the rest, I think it all plays out as we would expect. The series is taking shortcuts to get to the point where Feast/Dance ended and I don't think any character will end up anywhere beyond or short of that by the end of episode 10.

One question that I think will hang over the series at the end of this season is how much all out misery can viewers live with? The horrors heaped on the Starks is unrelenting, at some point viewers are going to need to see light at the end of the tunnel. "Gritty realism" isn't all about decent people getting crapped on, sometimes things go right for them too.

[DireGhost]

For some reason my computer won't let me do the official quote function, but...

"There's also the whole Brienne storyline which I wish they would have dropped. If Brienne doesn't "save" Sansa what's her purpose?"

It is not a coincidence in my opinion that the paths of Brienne and Stannis are about to meet.

[JetonGrajqevci]

It looks like Maester Aemon dies. When Thorne says to Sam you are losing all of your friends, there is a fire which could well be the funeral of Maester Aemon.

Nice catch! Makes sense as Sam considers Aemon one of his allies. Also, noticed a fighting scene with someone getting smashed by a shield, can't quite make who/where that is.

[JonSnowed]

Surely Aemon dies before Jon leaves the wall and then Sam/Gilly leave for Old Town? This then sets up the Ides for when Jon returns from Hardholme.

[Pies are coming]

If Sansa was smart and willful enough to lead a Northern resistance or somehow fight the Boltons, she would have started doing so already and she wouldn't have become yet another of Ramsay's victims. Expect nothing from her.

At this point, I'm not even sure the Starks deserve to restore themselves to their forefathers' throne. Jon and Bran are too busy trying to fend off the White Walkers to retake the North, Arya is too alone, Rickon is a child and Sansa remains the same idiot from season 1.

Unless Arya becomes a dragon rider and redecorates the Twins in Harrenhall style, I don't see why the North should bow to any of the current generation of Starks.

[acosta]

I'm not even worried about Sansa. She knew marriage involves sex, and yeah, neither she nor Theon liked it much, but it's not like he brutalized her. It was just vanilla sex. It's repulsive because of who it is, but one way or another, whether Stannis comes and wins, the North rises up from within, Sansa escapes with Theon, Sansa escapes with Brienne, or even if the Boltons win but Littlefinger returns only to kill them anyway, the Sansa/Ramsay marriage isn't going to last.

Sansa's endurance is her strength. In the long run, she has Winterfell back, and she'll live to see Ramsay choke on his last breath just as she did Joffrey. Every other Stark would have resisted, and every other Stark would have been killed. But she learned from Cersei and Littlefinger, to have patience, to let people crap on you for a while if that's what it takes to ultimately bring them down.

[Lord Buckethead]

I don't see why the North should bow to any of the current generation of Starks.

One could argue that they have really proven themselves to be excellent survivors.

They're still alive, despite all odds.

[Colonel Green]

I'm not even worried about Sansa. She knew marriage involves sex, and yeah, neither she nor Theon liked it much, but it's not like he brutalized her. It was just vanilla sex.

Yes, that's why she was crying in pain.

[acosta]

They have been crappy Starks before. The North has stayed loyal because they've been good wardens/kings for thousands of years, descended from a basically magic past, and everyone owes them. If it's known that Sansa is wanted for murdering Joffrey, all the better. That alone is reason to follow her.

[Fez]

I was wrong about my prediction about Ramsay killing Fat Walda. Instead we indeed have Sansa as Jeyne. Is the only thing left to do is let Sansa escape with Theon? Or will D+D change the script again and let Sansa stay in Winterfell and organize the resistance? Will Theon survive, or will he be knocked off sooner than later, before Stannis gets his hands on him?

Is Tyrion going to turn into Quentin, but with success? Or, here's a shocking idea - is he going to turn into fAegon?

Where do we go from here in Dorne? RIP Bronn, I had imagined him re-united with Tyrion some time in the future.

Arya is more or less where she should be, except with an accelerated timeline?

Margaery is in jail, will Cersei be there next week?

I just watched the preview again, and to me it looked like Ramsay was getting ready to leave Winterfell (hence the kiss on Sansa's cheek) to attack Stannis presumably. Iwan Rohen said his fate at the end of the season was unclear and he didn't know if he'd be back for season 6, so I'm thinking we'll get the scene where Bolton forces return to Winterfell and we don't know if its actually them or Stannis in disguise. Sophie Turner also said that her fate was unclear, but I don't think she jumps, I think Sansa organizes the servants to attack the Bolton garrison; which just so happens to be at the same time that the outside force shows up. And the whole Winterfell situation ends completely unclear.

I think Tyrion's story will be very straight forward. He arrives in Meereen, ends up sold to Hizdar, meets Dany, reveals who he is after Daznak to her (I don't think she flies away, at least for more than a quick ride, because without Barristan dead everything would completely fall apart if she disappeared) and becomes her advisor. Daznak is episode 9, episode 10 is Dany announcing that they're leaving for Westeros immediately.

Dorne? Who knows. I suspect Bronn is dead. I think the season ends with Jamie ignoring Cersei's letter, leaving Dorne for parts unknown and Doran revealing whatever the hell is master plan is in the show; which could be anything. My best guess is a reveal that Trystane is going to marry Dany once she lands and that Dorne will support her. Possibly Varys will show up in Dorne in the ADWD epilogue doesn't happen.

For Arya, we still haven't seen her in the Braavosi clothing that she was wearing in all the pre-season trailers, so that has to happen. Presumably there will be at least one interaction with someone outside before running into Trant and killing him. Not sure how things end for her though. Maybe after killing Trant she realizes that she'll always be someone and sneaks back to Westeros on Mace Tyrell's ship. No clue though.

I think Cersei definitely ends up in jail next episode. I had thought maybe LF gives the High Sparrow proof of Cersei's adultery, but the preview shows Olenna meeting the High Sparrow and I think she gives him the proof. And if Cersei is walking in episode 9, then she needs to end up arrested in episode 7 so that there can be a couple jail scenes in episode 8. Margery looks to be in jail too next episode. I think she gets out before the end of the season though. There was a trailer seen of Margery, looking like she might be topless, on her knees clutching Tommen's waist in what looked like a comfortable Red Keep room, and I'm pretty sure we haven't seen that yet.

[dieseldda]

I'm thinking Sansa uses Brienne as a tool for revenge, until Brienne gets caught by the Boltons. At that point, Sansa and Theon (after a few conversations) escape Winterfell, either by jumping the walls or by the tunnels Luwin mentioned way back when. Ramsay will think she's escaping to the wall and will send a letter to Jon demanding her return. Sansa and Theon will eventually reach Stannis, Roose, knowing that Stannis is north and quagmired in a snow storm, will send Ramsay and an army north to confront Stannis while he waits at Winterfell for re-enforcements from the Vale. The two armies will presumably fight over the frozen lake and Stannis will win with a severe amount of casualties. Ramsay will somehow escape. Littlefinger, seeing first hand that Cersei's gone batshit, will march north with the Vale. They'll be presented as allies to the Boltons until the doors open and Littlefinger sacks the city. Littlefinger will trade Brienne to Stannis for Sansa and become warden of the North, be Sansa's trust in him will forever be tarnished.

[Tagganaro]

They have been crappy Starks before. The North has stayed loyal because they've been good wardens/kings for thousands of years, descended from a basically magic past, and everyone owes them. If it's known that Sansa is wanted for murdering Joffrey, all the better. That alone is reason to follow her.

Yes, that's made it all the more shocking why they cut Manderley, who has that great speech that sort of explains the loyalty and also covers the position of most of the Northern Lords post-Red Wedding. Don't understand what they were thinking there, outside of needing to cut characters, this seems to me to be one of the more important, and easier things to include. It would take 1-2 episodes max, not too much screen time, and then you can have him in Winterfell for the rest of that story.

[dieseldda]

Secondly, I've always believed that Arya will be the one that kills Ramsay. In the books Tycho is wandering around the North and it wouldn't be surprising if Ramsay took him, perhaps while escaping. If that was the case, the Iron Bank would put a contract on him, and who better to execute that than the House of Black and White IE Arya?

[acosta]

Yes, that's made it all the more shocking why they cut Manderley, who has that great speech that sort of explains the loyalty and also covers the position of most of the Northern Lords post-Red Wedding. Don't understand what they were thinking there, outside of needing to cut characters, this seems to me to be one of the more important, and easier things to include. It would take 1-2 episodes max, not too much screen time, and then you can have him in Winterfell for the rest of that story.

Yeah, that was disappointing. That was the single most rousing scene from the whole series and made Manderly my favorite character and I'm fully expecting him to go out in a suicide blaze of glory, but they've really cut down on the northern intrigue with no Mance, no Davos knowing about Rickon, no Freys or Manderlys, and a wedding of great houses that apparently had five people in attendance and no feast.

[Pies are coming]

One could argue that they have really proven themselves to be excellent survivors.

They're still alive, despite all odds.

So? It takes more than surviving to rule the North through winter. Neither is doing anything to regain their father's seat or the respect of their vassals.

[KINGpanther]

We should all be prepared for atleast one more Ramsay/Sansa scene before they part due to battle etc. I am still sick and heartbroken over last night. It was so unnecessary. I will not watch anymore episodes when first aired as I will need to screen them to about any more Sophie/Sansa scenes of this nature.

Yeh it was pretty bad but it has put Ramsey in the lead for 'guy I wanna see die a gruesome death'.

[jet199]

Hopefully we will get the Stark kids warging this season. We should have Arya warging cats and Jon going into Ghost so if the writers want to make it a hat trick they could have Sansa warg Ramsay's dogs so they attack him.

(wishful thinking)

[Faint]

I actually found it quite interesting that they are seemingly working towards the same plot arc in the books involving the Vale marching on the North. They just decided to do away with Sansa's role in it, preferring to incorporate her character with the Northern storyline earlier in proceedings.

I imagine events will work out the same away in both mediums, with Stannis and the Boltons decimating one another, only for the Vale armies to show up and back Sansa.

[acosta]

Hopefully we will get the Stark kids warging this season. We should have Arya warging cats and Jon going into Ghost so if the writers want to make it a hat trick they could have Sansa warg Ramsay's dogs so they attack him.

(wishful thinking)

I still wonder where the books are ultimately going with Bran's abilities. Making the strongest warg ever also a greenseer is close to making him all-powerful. He could warg Ramsay's hounds if he wanted to. He might even be able to warg a dragon or a kraken and take out castles and ships, all without leaving the cave. Maybe also wishful thinking, but what the heck is going to stop him when he realizes just how much he can actually do? Will it just take too long and be too late (which seems to be what Bloodraven hints at when meeting him)?