Things That Detract From Your Enjoyment

[James Arryn]

47 minutes ago, Curled Finger said:

I took the comment to mean that Gandalf as a hero paid no real price for coming back from the dead.  There was no consequence for the death for the story really.  

Well, firstly Gandalf is more or less immortal, which GRRM knows. Secondly, he did pay a price. He’s not the same person at all, Gandalf the White. He barely recognizes his former companions and even his own name, as they knew it, because he’s been through lifetimes of suffering since. He is never as relaxed, warm or avuncular with his former friends as he used to be, and ultimately sets sail for the East when his work is done. And, again, just him, immortal him, paying a price. Vs….how many mortals has GRRM brought back? The Hound (twice), the Mountain, Cat, Beric, Bloodraven, Bran, Rickon, JonCon, Aegon, Ned, Davos, half the NW, every living person B of the Wall, soon to add Jon, Tyrek, Ashara Dayne, Ned etc.)…I mean, this was your big issue with Tolkien, George?

[Curled Finger]

5 minutes ago, James Arryn said:

Well, firstly Gandalf is more or less immortal, which GRRM knows. Secondly, he did pay a price. He’s not the same person at all, Gandalf the White. He barely recognizes his former companions and even his own name, as they knew it, because he’s been through lifetimes of suffering since. He is never as relaxed, warm or avuncular with his former friends as he used to be, and ultimately sets sail for the East when his work is done. And, again, just him, immortal him, paying a price. Vs….how many mortals has GRRM brought back? The Hound (twice), the Mountain, Cat, Beric, Bloodraven, Bran, Rickon, JonCon, Aegon, Ned, Davos, half the NW, every living person B of the Wall, soon to add Jon, Tyrek, Ashara Dayne, Ned etc.)…I mean, this was your big issue with Tolkien, George?

Ah, I see what you mean better now.  Not sure when Ned died the 1st time, but I do recall the last.  Never thought Davos or The Hound were dead, but with the in story rumor, sure it all gets very complicated.  It can be frustrating and it can be quite a bit of fun.  I thought every word of it was a trick for a very long time.  

[James Arryn]

3 minutes ago, Curled Finger said:

Ah, I see what you mean better now.  Not sure when Ned died the 1st time, but I do recall the last.  Never thought Davos or The Hound were dead, but with the in story rumor, sure it all gets very complicated.  It can be frustrating and it can be quite a bit of fun.  I thought every word of it was a trick for a very long time.  

The repeat Ned was a joking nod at conspiracy theories. You should have thought both the Hound and Davos were dead, we were directly told both were, unless you mean you don’t believe anyone’s dead until enough time passes? But that’s…what’s our longest, officially/verified? I guess BR? But that’s supernatural, you might say, so…Jon Con? So like 12-14 years? Multiply that by GRRM and, well, Westeros might possibly have found the cure for death so far as we’ll know, before we die still reserving judgment. 

[Lady Stonehearts Simp]

Daenerys’ plot armor after her dragons hatch infuriates me. The fact that the Qarthians didn’t kill her or imprison her and steal the dragons makes no sense to me.

[Craving Peaches]

7 minutes ago, King Benedict Justman I said:

Daenerys’ plot armor after her dragons hatch infuriates me. The fact that the Qarthians didn’t kill her or imprison her and steal the dragons makes no sense to me.

I find it a bit irritating that everyone in the area just seems to act brain dead whenever Daenerys is around. 

[Willam Stark]

- Tyrion's prowess in battle (seriously Georges?)

- Essos in general (I don't care about what's happening there)

- The Iron-born (How can these stupid folks still be around?)

- We may not see the end of the series (ASOIAF, D&E, F&B 2...)

[Craving Peaches]

1 minute ago, Willam Stark said:

- Tyrion's prowess in battle (seriously Georges?)

Another thing I find stupid is Tyrion cartwheeling and flipping around like Yoda fighting Dooku in Attack of the Clones, and yet at the same time he cannot walk up a few steps without his legs cramping. What is going on???

[James Arryn]

1 minute ago, Craving Peaches said:

Another thing I find stupid is Tyrion cartwheeling and flipping around like Yoda fighting Dooku in Attack of the Clones, and yet at the same time he cannot walk up a few steps without his legs cramping. What is going on???

That was an honest mistake; George found out a lot more about dwarfism after writing the first book, specifically things they can and can’t do. 

[Craving Peaches]

Just now, James Arryn said:

That was an honest mistake; George found out a lot more about dwarfism after writing the first book, specifically things they can and can’t do. 

But it happens after the first book too. Tyrion is cartwheeling his way through Essos.

[James Arryn]

1 minute ago, Craving Peaches said:

But it happens after the first book too. Tyrion is cartwheeling his way through Essos.

Oh, those, I think it’s him trying to make up for/wink at his 1st book ninja Tyrion. 

[Craving Peaches]

2 minutes ago, James Arryn said:

Oh, those, I think it’s him trying to make up for/wink at his 1st book ninja Tyrion. 

Well then I expect to see Tyrion's cramping legs magically healed in the next book.

[Aejohn the Conqueroo]

2 hours ago, Corvo the Crow said:

No I enjoy them but I think it should be left at that, two wights among prominent characters is enough, anymore would be too much.

Think Dany's a wight?  I'm on the fence myself. I'm also a little suspicious of a few historical Targs like Maegor and Aegon II after their convalescences. Could just be over suspicious, but if a character disappears for a while and makes a somewhat improbably recovery, sires twisted little dragon babies or comes back outright impotent I start to wonder.

[Corvo the Crow]

1 hour ago, Craving Peaches said:

I find it a bit irritating that everyone in the area just seems to act brain dead whenever Daenerys is around. 

Everyone in the area(slaver's bay) was brain dead long before Dany to be honest, especially the slaves. They have a slave population far outnumbering them and even arm them en masse and those armed slaves have not for once rebelled. I'm curious as to ratio of Rome's slave to free population that it got three servile wars and they didn't have slave armies like these Ghiscari. In Spartacus' war rural populace, former soldiers etc. joined too, not just slaves.

 

[Alester Florent]

23 minutes ago, Corvo the Crow said:

Everyone in the area(slaver's bay) was brain dead long before Dany to be honest, especially the slaves. They have a slave population far outnumbering them and even arm them en masse and those armed slaves have not for once rebelled. I'm curious as to ratio of Rome's slave to free population that it got three servile wars and they didn't have slave armies like these Ghiscari. In Spartacus' war rural populace, former soldiers etc. joined too, not just slaves.

 

Estimates of Rome's enslaved population as a proportion vary quite widely and it's a controversial topic; it also depends what period you're talking about and whether you're including just Rome, the whole of Italy, the colonies, etc. (of course this also feeds back into when in Roman history we're talking about).

For the middle-late Republic, i.e. the period of the Servile Wars, and including all of Roman Italy, the figure seems to be slaves comprising between 20% and 40% of the total population, but take that with a large pinch of salt (preferably one from a mine with non-rebellious slaves). I haven't seen any sensible or well-supported estimates giving an enslaved population of over 50% for this period, in any case.

For an example of an ancient society where slaves far outnumbered free men (not citizens, as there was generally a distinction between free men and citizens), we need only look at Sparta, where the helots far outnumbered free Spartans. And the helots rebelled. A lot. It didn't work, but that's a different matter.

[Curled Finger]

3 hours ago, James Arryn said:

The repeat Ned was a joking nod at conspiracy theories. You should have thought both the Hound and Davos were dead, we were directly told both were, unless you mean you don’t believe anyone’s dead until enough time passes? But that’s…what’s our longest, officially/verified? I guess BR? But that’s supernatural, you might say, so…Jon Con? So like 12-14 years? Multiply that by GRRM and, well, Westeros might possibly have found the cure for death so far as we’ll know, before we die still reserving judgment. 

I suffer from a terrible case of really cute but not always that bright.  I just didn't think Davos or the hound were.  I thought Brienne was, for all it's worth, and see how wrong I can be about things.  Jon Connington was certainly supposed to be dead until he wasn't and I didn't really care when he turned up.  I reckon I just don't put a lot of stock in anything I am supposed to think in the story.  As I say I learned to think everything was a trick.    I imagine we will die of boredom before anything else! 

[Rondo]

Overuse of secret identities and too many coming back from death.  

[astarkchoice]

15 hours ago, Craving Peaches said:

Tyrion, Tywin, Stannis et al plot armour. Tywin gets so lucky, Tyrion has the thickest plot armour in the series followed closely by LF, and Stannis has deus ex machina to aid him and has troops spawn out of thin air. If Stannis needed to have more troops just have him lose slightly fewer in the Blackwater rather than granting him magical northern troops spat out from the hills.

None of those guys have plot armour per say they all get shitty luck too

Tyrion maybe as by grmms own admission he wasnt aware of dwarf physical limitations when he wrote tyrions earlier daft battle scenes

[astarkchoice]

11 hours ago, King Benedict Justman I said:

Daenerys’ plot armor after her dragons hatch infuriates me. The fact that the Qarthians didn’t kill her or imprison her and steal the dragons makes no sense to me.

Quarth is a trade hub so stealing valuables off travellers would be against their very nature , they have 0 imperial ambitions so dragons are of 0 use , she was under a council members protection (with her owm personal  fanatical close quarters protection detail)

[astarkchoice]

13 hours ago, sifth said:

The magically respawning Lannister army. Rob constantly beats them, but another Lannister we never heard of just shows up to take the place of the one Rob beat.

Gregor’s plot armor annoys me the most. The guy constantly gets stabbed and hit with arrows and is just fine whenever we next see him. Even being “killed” hasn’t slowed down his plot armor.

Dunno

The lannister family we are specifaly told theres the lannsiters of casterly rock and the many lesser  linked lannister families around lannisport  and often they intermarry (hillbilly banjo playing)

The army lannister army doesnt respawn if anything we are told of its constant losses , the smaller half jamie commands is pretty much decimated repeatedly but tywins larger half is largely untouched

 

As for ser gregor weare told the big ox has insanely dense plate  armour but somehow has thick chainmail and boiled leather below that without affecting his movment much  so him getting hit with arrows and being ok seems fine!

[astarkchoice]

For me its jamies maiming : A sellsword of all people ,surrouned by other mercs thinking he could chop off the hand of one of the richest families on earth with 0 blowback for himself! You would never ever be safe again!!!!!!