Arya kiddin' Posted December 23, 2013 Share Posted December 23, 2013 Isn't Valyria based on Tolkien's Numenor? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roddy the Ruin Posted December 23, 2013 Share Posted December 23, 2013 Bumping myself so I don't have to switch through 65 pages Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhaegar's Second Son Posted December 24, 2013 Share Posted December 24, 2013 I don't know if this has been said but Shakespeare has a thing for antlered men. In most of Shakespeare's work men appear with antlers and this is a sign that they have been cuckolded. And who is known for wearing antlers on their helm? And who's wife is cheating on them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Light a wight tonight Posted December 24, 2013 Share Posted December 24, 2013 Ser Gregor Clegane=Three Dog Knight! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Reckoner Posted December 27, 2013 Share Posted December 27, 2013 Valyria reminds me of Michael Moorcock's Melnibone, Both societies were conquerors who rode dragons, both hail from an island nation, both are regarded with a certain degree of superstitious dread by the other kingdoms of humanity. Similarly, when I read about the Brazen Beasts, I was immediately reminded of the Empire of Granbretan from Moorcock's Hawkmoon novels. Both groups wear beast masks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morienthar Posted December 27, 2013 Share Posted December 27, 2013 Isn't Valyria based on Tolkien's Numenor? Which was to an extent based on Atlantis... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Castellan Posted December 27, 2013 Share Posted December 27, 2013 (edited) Re historical 'dance of dragons' between Queen Matilda and Geoffrey, I noticed that like Dany Matilda actually spent most of her life out of England as she was married off quite young, switching I think to speaking German day to day, so was quite a stranger to the country she was heir to. She also acquired a humungous title - Holy Roman Empress through her marriage - as well as some lesser ones. She failed to attempt to take England at a key point as she was stuck in Normandy (?) having her third child. Geoffrey got the jump on her and took it. Also, when she did get the upper hand at one point, with London surrendering to her, she ruined it through her arrogance, not realising that the Londoners expected her to give them tax relief as a reward for their backing. hmmm .. I just wrote this from memory - better go check my facts. Edited December 27, 2013 by Castellan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mother of Mountains Posted January 7, 2014 Share Posted January 7, 2014 Which was to an extent based on Atlantis... It's even called Atalante in High Elven. Anyone wonder if there's a link between Mors Umber and Canadian Arctic survival expert, Mors Kochanski? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jiriki Posted January 15, 2014 Share Posted January 15, 2014 Don't know if this has been mentioned yet or not (and I don't want to read through 65 pages of forum): ASOIAF shares many similarities with Memory, Sorrow and Thorn. Specifically: The king and his red-robed advisor -- several people keep warning the king against trusting his red-robed religious advisor, who blasphemes against God, but the king doesn't heed their advice, instead making light of their concerns. He believes the red-robed advisor will help him get what he wants, through mystical means. The threat from the north -- Politics and court intrigue distract everyone from the real threat in the far north, where otherworldly creatures live. A few people in the north warn of the danger, but those in the south make light of these old tales. What could possibly happen? The girl in disguise -- A girl of noble birth hates wearing dresses and being a girl. She'd much rather be taught how to wield a sword and learn how to defend herself. She dresses as a boy and assumes a boy's name. Several people easily discern that she is a girl, yet she continues to dress like a boy. There are others, but these are a few that stick out in my mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rains Posted January 18, 2014 Share Posted January 18, 2014 Casterly Rock is inspired by my home xD Really, look at Gibraltar in Google Images. Martin visisted there once... before I read the books that is, or even the series. Else I'd kick him in the balls and kiss him afterwards. One for the feels, the other for the fanboyism. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Browndodd Posted January 21, 2014 Share Posted January 21, 2014 Found some old notebooks of mine earlier today, from long before I came across GRRM's work. They are festooned with line-drawings of dragons and various other lizards, including one of the three-headed beast King Ghidorah from the Godzilla movies, which looks startlingly like the Targaryen sigil. I wonder if Martin was a fan, too? (I also like hot baths. You have been warned) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rains Posted February 4, 2014 Share Posted February 4, 2014 (edited) Maybe Valar from Valar Morghulis probably comes for the Valar of Arda, they are the 'gods' of Tolkien's universe. Edited February 4, 2014 by Rains Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frey family reunion Posted February 4, 2014 Share Posted February 4, 2014 Ser Gregor Clegane=Three Dog Knight! Ha, that's a great catch and pretty hysterical at the same time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Browndodd Posted February 4, 2014 Share Posted February 4, 2014 There is a herb called valerian, one of whose folkloric properties is to keep dragons at bay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
serdog Posted February 5, 2014 Share Posted February 5, 2014 Maybe not a reference but rather an interest linkSeashell are tied to the Spencer Family( the Earls Spencer arms bear a band of Seashells and Diana, Prince of Wales(and her sons the Duke of Cambrige and Prince Henry of Wales use Seashell as marks of Cadency on their personal arm) its interesting that Seashell are also linked to the Westerlings I will not make comment on the paralles in the marriage but its a interest little link Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fire Eater Posted February 5, 2014 Share Posted February 5, 2014 Daemon's battle with Aemond ending with Daemon plunging his sword into Aemond's eye so hard it came out the back of his throat over the God's Eye could be reference to the Last Battle of Mag Tuired in Irish mythology, where Lugh drove Balor's eye out of the back of his head, with the eye creating a lake known as "Lake of the Eye." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HosteenOsteen Posted February 11, 2014 Share Posted February 11, 2014 The Calormen section of THE HORSE AND HIS BOY in C. S. Lewis's The Chronicles of Narnia is a bit reminiscent of the Dothraki/Essos sections in ASOIAF. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barmyscouser Posted February 12, 2014 Share Posted February 12, 2014 In Anglo-Saxon tribal society, free men would assemble in a folkmoot to settle disputes and make laws. In Saxon kingdoms it evolved into the witenagemot. A Witenagemot chose King Harold. King Harren wasn't chosen by a kingsmoot, but he's from that culture. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Killer Snark Posted February 13, 2014 Share Posted February 13, 2014 (edited) I don't think anyone else has ever picked up on this, but the showdown between Oberyn and Gregor reminds me a fair bit of the deathmatch between De Racine and Protoid in the third, originally the last, run of Bad Company in 2000AD. Since Martin is a self-confessed comic-book nerd, I would find it actually suprising if he's never followed 2000AD. Anyway, without going into the backstory of Bad Company, De Racine intervenes to save one of the main characters from death at the hands of Protoid, a monstrous shape-shifting alien whose craft they are aboard and who is the central villain of the third story arc, who has just been revealed to be intending to kill the rest of the party spread out across the planet below. Racine has undergone many body modifications to turn his body into a cybernetic arsenal; he's also smarter than Protoid, so despite how one-sided the fight seems on paper he hands the alien's ass to him on a platter and loses whilst gloating because he lets his guard down, not realising Protoid is a physical extension of his ship. From what seemed certain victory, he dies a swift but horrible death by having his face sliced off by an enormous pair of surgical shears. Similar to what happens in Oberyn's contrapasso; both characters die through massive facial injury after taking their victories for granted; both are arrogant, handsome, permanently jaded sensualists who annoy other people with their attempts at dry wit. De Racine used to be a member of an Elite Earth fighting force but maybe left on account of having become bored of it; like Martell, he is fond of using poison, via his hidden biological weaponry: he can fire tongue-darts. In fact, he has undergone a highly expensive operation to have his blood transfused with a toxin poisonous to all life forms with the exception of himself. Edited February 19, 2014 by The Killer Snark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saltovergray Posted February 13, 2014 Share Posted February 13, 2014 Don't know if this has been pointed out before (if so, stop me. I looked through a few pages and found nothing), but I picked up on two possible Macbeth references/homages (well, three now that I think of it.) -Cersei is very similar to Lady Macbeth, what with her wishing she was a man/being power hungry. That's pretty obvious though, thus the "third, now that I think of it" -The Mountain "dashed Aegon's brains out on a wall" (paraphrasing), the wording is very similar to Lady Macbeth's soliloquy in which she would be willing to dash out her baby's head against a wall in exchange for power/unsexing (this if off the top of my head, I'll have to dig up a copy and edit in the actual line). -The Hound supposedly cut Mycah from the shoulder down to his belly button, and in the opening scenes of Macbeth, Macbeth is attributed to have "unseam'd him from the nave to the chops" Just a few things that I noted which may or may not be references. Again, sorry if it's been said before. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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