People who don't fully understand these books/the show

[The Mountain That Posts]

My girlfriend has seen all three seasons, and is currently reading A Clash of Kings.

She was in the middle of reading the Battle of Blackwater when she texts me "why is Davos called the onion knight?"

:bang: :bang: :bang:

Also, my mother(who read the first four books but hasn't seen the show) keeps confusing the Martells and the Tyrells.

[Ser Edmure Tully]

My pet hate is when people dismiss it as "sexist" or "porn".

Granted HBO's boob quota in the show can get kind of frustrating, but to dismiss the shows as porn is to ignore the brilliant work the actors actually do, and that annoys me to no end.

The sexism one, with the books in particular, some people seem completely unable to comprehend that sexism exists in the ASoIaF universe, but this fact does not make the series inherently sexist or misogynist.

ETA: Also when people cant comprehend that Stannis was right in killing Ren... just kidding, I wont go there :D

[Dany Girl]

Martells vs Tyrells is slightly more understandable since there are so many dang characters. I forget some of the smaller side characters which can bite me in the butt because those small parts can have such a big effect sometimes.

The Onion knight though. ..smh that's pretty bad since it's straight out stated.

[Sansa_Stark]

People who think Cersei is a dependable character and that everyone who hates her are just misogynistic losers.

[Florina Laufeyson]

Averted with my mum. She gets it. Just by watching the show no less. My brother? lol hes read the first three books and..well..just doesnt seem to understand whats really going on. He sorta just strawmans his way through and i just go "bahahaa...ookay...whatever brah."

A lot of people missing things has to do with the nature of the series itself. Its highly detailed and nuanced. Its why im highly reluctant to encourage a friend of mine to get into the show. Hes not exactly the brightest bulb in the lamps. A lot of things in very easy to get film and such sorta fly over his head due to him just Here For Godzilla so to speak. He expresses interest in the series due to the sheer amount of publicity and people talking about it. I explain to him that Game of Thrones (and the books themselves) is exceedingly detailed and if you blink, you WILL miss something key to the overall plot. The nuance of the characters will be lost on him. So instead of saying "Here, borrow season one and tell me what you think." i go "ehh im not sure this is your bag, broseph." Cuz its not.

Hell, for most of us here on the forums, we had to reread the series or POVs quite a few times for us to really "get" shit.

The sexism one, with the books in particular, some people seem completely unable to comprehend that sexism exists in the ASoIaF universe, but this fact does not make the series inherently sexist or misogynist.

Theres a reason that link in my sig is there. ;)

Another one is people who do not have very good reading comprehension skills shouldnt really read this series.

[blood of the dragoon]

The kinslayer is accursed in the eyes if gods and men.

And yes, chronicling sexism is not inherently sexist.

And the boob quota is awesome, don't knock it.

[Morienthar]

Still trying to get people to read the damn thing.

[Dany Girl]

My pet hate is when people dismiss it as "sexist" or "porn".

Granted HBO's boob quota in the show can get kind of frustrating, but to dismiss the shows as porn is to ignore the brilliant work the actors actually do, and that annoys me to no end.

The sexism one, with the books in particular, some people seem completely unable to comprehend that sexism exists in the ASoIaF universe, but this fact does not make the series inherently sexist or misogynist.

ETA: Also when people cant comprehend that Stannis was right in killing Ren... just kidding, I wont go there :D

these bug me too. Especially the sexism one. I like that there is sexism (because that's honest to the time period the book emulates) but then you have these strong females that rise above it and kick ass. Arya, Daby, the Dornish womem in general, Brianne. These women show that even though Westros is a "mans" world, women aren't week little objects that must be protected by the big strong men.

[mindchap]

Anytime someone who watches the show asks me about the books the first thing I tell them is, imagine how graphic the show is then multiply that by ten. Sure there are more BPE than any other normal show, but they do leave out most of the pinched nipples and some of the stuff that could only be shown on PPV.

As for the sexism, I don't see how a story with that many strong female characters can be considered sexist.

[Ser Edmure Tully]

Theres a reason that link in my sig is there. ;)

Another one is people who do not have very good reading comprehension skills shouldnt really read this series.

I was trying to think of where I'd read that article. I remember clicking on that link in your sigil one day, reading that, and thinking wow, that sums up my feelings on alleged sexism and misogyny in the series better than I ever could.

My housemate used to dismiss the series whenever she saw me reading it and say "Oh I've heard about that series, its just completely sexist and degrading to women". It used to infuriate me :bang:

[Free Northman]

Hmmm.

I have a few pet irritations.

One is how a remarkable number of fans allocate undue importance to characters who are so obviously just mid series filler material. If you're not Jon, Daenerys, Tyrion, Bran or Arya, you're simply not a main character. It really is as simple as that.

So no, Stannis is not the hero of this series folks. Not because of any anti-Stannis bias, but simply because the structure of this story is pretty clear.

Another irritant is how some fans go to incredibly extreme lengths to try and overcomplicate the main conflict in this series. They forget that the average reader does not have access to the collected myths of the Irish, the history of the Sidhe and whatever other real world parralels they think they've uncovered for the Others and the Children of the Forest.

So some huge twist at the end where the Others are revealed to actually not be the evil monsters they've been portrayed as to date will seem to come totally out of nowhere to the average reader, and will frankly appear to have no build up or foreshadowing in the series itself.

Yes Heresy 9000, I'm looking at you folks.

Those are my two main gripes. But hey, what appears obvious to me may appear less clear to others, so let's see how it all turns out.

[Ser Edmure Tully]

The kinslayer is accursed in the eyes if gods and men.

And yes, chronicling sexism is not inherently sexist.

And the boob quota is awesome, don't knock it.

I wasnt knocking it (the boob quota that is), I like it as much as anyone, but I just think they could be more selective. I'm still recovering from Ramsay and the Dreadettes :ack:

[Jon of the Dead]

People who think Good = Starks, Evil = Everyone else.

[blood of the dragoon]

I wasnt knocking it (the boob quota that is), I like it as much as anyone, but I just think they could be more selective. I'm still recovering from Ramsay and the Dreadettes :ack:

That scene was fucking metal

[Florina Laufeyson]

I wasnt knocking it (the boob quota that is), I like it as much as anyone, but I just think they could be more selective. I'm still recovering from Ramsay and the Dreadettes :ack:

Har! Ramsay and the Dreadettes is an excellent band name.

Then there are those who think Dany is as pure as driven snow. Likewise Jon. Both are very flawed and thats what makes them interesting. But the idea of those two winding up together makes me rage more than a dragon in heat. D:<

[Free Northman]

Florina

We may not like that potential outcome, but it cannot be excluded as a possibility based on the premise of a "lack of understanding of the series". Martin may well intend for them to end up together, although I fervently hope it is not the case.

[Errant Bard]

And yes, chronicling sexism is not inherently sexist.

And the boob quota is awesome, don't knock it.

And you don't feel like talking of "boob quota" is sexist either, I'm sure. :)

[Myrish Swamp Thing]

One is how a remarkable number of fans allocate undue importance to characters who are so obviously just mid series filler material. If you're not Jon, Daenerys, Tyrion, Bran or Arya, you're simply not a main character. It really is as simple as that.

Thank the Seven for secondary characters, then.

[thecryptile]

Still trying to get people to read the damn thing.

This is me all over! None of my friends will read "book books", with the exception of how-to manuals. Also, everyone I know who is show-only think Stannis is the hero!

[Bridgeburners]

I think the actual prose and style of the books make it pretty easy to understand overall. But then, I wouldn't expect people to always catch every detail when they first read it. I certainly didn't.

For one thing, I'm terrible with names. I remember, eight years ago, when I first read the series, Jorah was introduced briefly in Dany's chapters, but he wasn't really a major figure or anything, and his was among many names introduced to her, so I didn't note it in my head. So when, at the small council, they talked about having a man named "Jorah" spying on her, I didn't quite register that detail, and glossed over it as one of the many small details discussed. By the time Jorah had established himself as a prominent figure in the series, I had forgotten about that meeting.

Funny thing. While I was in the middle of aSoS (the latest one at the time), my brother, to whom I recommended the series, was in the middle of GoT. One day, when he left the GoT copy lying on a table, I picked it up for a second and decided to look at a random passage. It happened to be the small council meeting when they discuss Jorah being a spy, and I thought "damn! How could I have missed this detail?" It just so happened that at that very night, when I continued aSoS, I reached the point where she found out he was a spy and banished him from Mereen.