this last one definitely showed the signs of the budget being spunked on the penultimate episode. i guess i had low expectations for the house of the undying. they could've spent half an episode in there and really gone big with it but i didn't see it happening. what they did on the smaller scale worked fine tho.
i didn't think the winterfell thing was handled as well as it could've been. not even one shot of the northmen outside the gates? it was all too vague. the business with ramsay in the books seemed a bit unnecessary on reading but i actually missed it here. the show might have done better to add ramsay in and take its time more with that storyline. it mostly disappears in book 3 anyway, and the bran parts there could be easily condensed to accommodate an escape mid-season. the burned kids could've been the season cliffhanger.
i didn't much like how the jon/halfhand thing happened either - also needlessly vague. i mean, it was clear enough what qhorin was trying to do, but there was no moment when the penny seemed to drop for jon, and in the end he killed him cos he said something mean about his unknown mam. at least they got where they needed to be, by a roundabout way.
on the plus side, tyrion's face was impressively fucked up, even if they had to keep his nose. if dinklage was really committed to his art he'd have let them hack it off. disappointing.
this season was always when the real challenge of making a tv show out of such a wide ranging story was going to be obvious. they really could've done better. i know there are pressures and expectations, but they would've been helped themselves a ton by cutting dany out of nearly all the first half of the season. i thought robb rampaging off in the west and then returning with his marriage a done deal was a great narrative twist, and i don't know how well the show was served by making him much more static and giving that nurse so much screen time. meanwhile, other parts of the story got sometimes bizarrely truncated.
― Roberto Spiralli, Monday, 4 June 2012 20:24 (1 year ago) Permalink
i suspect they didn't want to have to cast Ramsay until season 3
after playing up theon's story to great effect this season i wonder if they'll actually vanish him for 2 years like in the books. theon's reintroduction was probably my favorite thing post-book-3 and i suspect it would have been less effective had GRRM peeked in on him even once during the interim
― ciderpress, Monday, 4 June 2012 20:44 (1 year ago) Permalink
I'd go so far as to say that they really messed up this stuff. Not only did the writers/Kit Harrington turn Jon into an ineffectual, drooling idiot, like, someone whom the Night's Watch would actually kick out, he dragged down Qhorin's BAMFness too.
They also changed Ramsay/Reek into Dagmar Cleftjaw.
I do not look forward to Ian's return, I'll have to make sure my eyes are ready to roll.
― Liz Leeemon (Leee), Tuesday, 5 June 2012 03:30 (1 year ago) Permalink
However, any new scenes with Varys are so much A++++.
― Liz Leeemon (Leee), Tuesday, 5 June 2012 04:55 (1 year ago) Permalink
yeah but needs less Ros. When they introduced Dontos in the first episode of s2 and then cut out that whole storyline including finding out Littlefinger was behind it all, it makes Sansa seem stupid for not going with the Hound, when in the book it's cos she has this other escape plan in the works.
― gyac, Tuesday, 5 June 2012 13:05 (1 year ago) Permalink
― max, Tuesday, 5 June 2012 21:25 (1 year ago) Permalink
today is really having a strong finish
― WHEY AHR MAH DREGUNS? (DJP), Tuesday, 5 June 2012 21:26 (1 year ago) Permalink
Bf asked me the same while viewing "What's milk of the puppy?" Some people just have not read enough poison & dagger-laden fantasy novels, jeez.
― how did I get here? why am I in the whiskey aisle? this is all so (Laurel), Tuesday, 5 June 2012 21:30 (1 year ago) Permalink
I've never thought I was partic good at following intrigue, based on my inability to get more than like 5 sentences into denser political articles without my eyes blurring, and me figuring that politics was basically the same thing, but non-fantasy people watching this show make me feel like a fucking genius.
― how did I get here? why am I in the whiskey aisle? this is all so (Laurel), Tuesday, 5 June 2012 21:32 (1 year ago) Permalink
finally watched this last night. was the crazy white walker monster at the end supposed to be coldhands??
― deadcandace (diamonddave85), Thursday, 7 June 2012 15:38 (1 year ago) Permalink
no
― Number None, Thursday, 7 June 2012 15:38 (1 year ago) Permalink
the white dudes on the horses are Others. it's implied that coldhands is reanimated dead. he also wears nights watch duds.
― Roberto Spiralli, Thursday, 7 June 2012 15:44 (1 year ago) Permalink
and he rides a stag
― Number None, Thursday, 7 June 2012 15:47 (1 year ago) Permalink
or an elk
yeah i was a bit confused since he didn't immediately kill samwell
― deadcandace (diamonddave85), Thursday, 7 June 2012 16:17 (1 year ago) Permalink
If you were a scary supernatural being, would you feel threatened enough by Sam to kill him?
But yeah, Coldhands crossed my mind too.
― Liz Leeemon (Leee), Friday, 8 June 2012 01:48 (1 year ago) Permalink
it's never mentioned who coldhands is in the books right? are we supposed to believe that he's benjo or whatver the stark's ranger uncle's name is?
― Jibe, Friday, 8 June 2012 07:08 (1 year ago) Permalink
benjy is the prime suspect
― Roberto Spiralli, Friday, 8 June 2012 10:47 (1 year ago) Permalink
this season was so much better than the corresponding book. arya's story was WAY improved in pretty much every way.
― Mordy, Friday, 8 June 2012 10:59 (1 year ago) Permalink
agreed.
― catbus otm (gbx), Friday, 8 June 2012 14:19 (1 year ago) Permalink
so they're gonna start off season 3 with the red wedding? that should get everyone all riled up!
― messiahwannabe, Saturday, 9 June 2012 03:20 (1 year ago) Permalink
They're STARTING with that? Holy shit.
― Victory Chainsaw! (DJP), Saturday, 9 June 2012 03:47 (1 year ago) Permalink
no way that's true
― Roberto Spiralli, Saturday, 9 June 2012 03:53 (1 year ago) Permalink
source?
― milk of the puppy (Jon Lewis), Saturday, 9 June 2012 03:57 (1 year ago) Permalink
just pure conjecture, but we've got the background all set up, and it would be a hell of a kickoff. get em yammering at the watercoolers and whatnot.
― messiahwannabe, Saturday, 9 June 2012 03:58 (1 year ago) Permalink
nah they'll stretch it out, red wedding will be episode 8 or 9 of season 3. They're introducing all the tullys from the casting stuff upthread so that'll all have to go down for a few episodes. They'll give us more of the Boltons, etc.
― Clay, Saturday, 9 June 2012 05:11 (1 year ago) Permalink
yeah we haven't even met the tullys yet so there's that whole bit at riverrun to get through first
― ciderpress, Saturday, 9 June 2012 06:58 (1 year ago) Permalink
they also have to set up Beric Dondarrion's death defying abilities
― Number None, Saturday, 9 June 2012 11:46 (1 year ago) Permalink
And the Martells, maybe?
― Ò (Ówen P.), Saturday, 9 June 2012 13:35 (1 year ago) Permalink
Martells don't figure much into RW, though?
― Liz Leeemon (Leee), Saturday, 9 June 2012 16:26 (1 year ago) Permalink
Riiight. So, if they split Book 3 into two seasons, it stands to reason that Red Wedding happens at the end of Season 3, and "RIP Lysa, Tywin, Shae" happens at the end of Season 4
If that's the case, I wonder what else would happen in Season 4, seeing as Theon, Hound, Cat and Robb would be gone/out of the picture. They'd surely have to introduce some of the new characters? I guess we'll be seeing a lot of the Boltons...
― Ò (Ówen P.), Saturday, 9 June 2012 20:10 (1 year ago) Permalink
presumably a lot of the earlier stuff in AFFC would be happening in season 4. A lot of the iron islands stuff happens chronologically not long after Balon kicks it, which is around the same time as the RW.
― Clay, Saturday, 9 June 2012 21:52 (1 year ago) Permalink
Joffrey's wedding happens after the RW, as would Tyrion's trial, which will mean Oberyn (at least).
― gyac, Sunday, 10 June 2012 00:01 (1 year ago) Permalink
they'll also need to do the whole storyline with the Eyrie.
― gyac, Sunday, 10 June 2012 00:03 (1 year ago) Permalink
yeah I'm guessing joffreys wedding/death spectacular around midway season 4 with the aftermath (particularly tyrion's trial lasting longer/being a bigger deal in the show) taking up the rest of that season.
― Clay, Sunday, 10 June 2012 00:51 (1 year ago) Permalink
god i can't wait to see that little fuck choke to death. the hbo nation will cheer!
― messiahwannabe, Monday, 11 June 2012 10:23 (1 year ago) Permalink
I don't think I've ever looked forward to a scene in anything so much.
― I found him in a Bon Ton ad (Nicole), Monday, 11 June 2012 12:44 (1 year ago) Permalink
What if they change it so he doesn't die and he stays around forever it's possible
― brony ver (s1ocki), Monday, 11 June 2012 13:55 (1 year ago) Permalink
eternal sadface
― Victory Chainsaw! (DJP), Monday, 11 June 2012 13:58 (1 year ago) Permalink
that would be amazing
― BC Forgbs (Ówen P.), Monday, 11 June 2012 14:00 (1 year ago) Permalink
And what if the show gradually comes around to his POV
― brony ver (s1ocki), Monday, 11 June 2012 14:01 (1 year ago) Permalink
what if they kill Tommen instead
Ser Pounce's head on a pike ;_;
― Victory Chainsaw! (DJP), Monday, 11 June 2012 14:02 (1 year ago) Permalink
definitely give Cersei more to do in Season 5 besides sit around getting wasted
― BC Forgbs (Ówen P.), Monday, 11 June 2012 14:03 (1 year ago) Permalink
Tommen should instead waste away of ennui
― BC Forgbs (Ówen P.), Monday, 11 June 2012 14:04 (1 year ago) Permalink
Mark my prediction:
First scene of season 3, Jon Snow administering 'the Lord's Kiss'
― milk of the puppy (Jon Lewis), Monday, 11 June 2012 17:37 (1 year ago) Permalink
WE CAN HAZ BLACKFISH.
― Tom Crucifictorious (Leee), Wednesday, 4 July 2012 23:46 (11 months ago) Permalink
Oo, nice.
― I wish to incorporate disco into my small business (chap), Wednesday, 4 July 2012 23:49 (11 months ago) Permalink
Flawless, better than your faves, etc.
― I found him in a Bon Ton ad (Nicole), Thursday, 5 July 2012 00:10 (11 months ago) Permalink
Mackenzie Crook has been seen round Belfast with the cast. As has this guy: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1528121/ Nooooo idea who either of them might be.
― gyac, Thursday, 5 July 2012 18:28 (11 months ago) Permalink
perhaps edmure tully for the latter?
― ciderpress, Thursday, 5 July 2012 18:30 (11 months ago) Permalink