A Song of Ice and Fire/Game of Thrones Spoiler-Filled Discussion

Given the big difference between Thoros in the show and the Thoros of the books (which his personality is heavily changed by his resurrections) I wonder if Lady Stoneheart will have more of a 'personality' in the tv series as well.

 

Yep, I'm thinking that way because the RW is, AIUI, episode 9...

 

I suspect she will, simply because they'll want the actress to continue giving a performance the audience will relate to - but even if she does appear at the end of this season, I doubt we'll know how much personality she has until season 4.

 

Pretty much everything that happened offpage (the Brotherhood Without Banners resistance, Lady Stoneheart's corruption of it, Theon's torture at Ramsay's hand, etc.) will be shown as it happens rather than explained to us after the fact. And that's the perfect way to deal with the padding in the 4th and 5th books. Maybe we'll even get to see Stannis sweet talk those barbarian tribes.

 

Based on the personality the writers have given Catelyn thus far, and their general reluctance to embrace Martin's more grotesque characters, I shudder to think what they might make Lady Stoneheart into. Maybe a raspy soliloquy about how all her troubles are because she wasn't nice to poor ickle Jon Snow? Or a version where the vengeance is Thoros' idea and all she wants to do is mother everybody in sight.

 

I'm hoping that they're actually going this way to more fully pull the rug out by going with the corruption of the mothering instinct that causes, for example, female terrorists to be more deadly than the males.

(Seriously, this is a real thing - security forces around the world are advised to shoot women terrorists before male ones in hostage situations, because the women are more likely to start killing hostages)

 

His personality is changed by finding out his god is very real and very powerful after decades of going through the motions. Beric is the one who is resurrected repeatedly.

 

Ah you're right. He became the 'front man' for him and did most of the speaking. Been awhile since I read those parts in the book.

 

Did anyone else think that the way that the 'serving man' promised to rescue Theon had echoes of the Theon/Reek relationship at Winterfell (which was omitted from last season). Anyone want to hazard a guess at who Theon's 'helper' is going to turn out to be?

 

Yeah, it's obviously Ramsay, even setting aside the fact that the "serving man" is being played by the guy who was not-officially-but-everyone-knows-anyway cast as Ramsay. This must be why they announced his character only as "Boy."

 

They're taking the Theon/Ramsay story from Book 2 (which they didn't have time to adapt) and doing a variation of it in this season to given him and Ramsay something to do. Just as in book 2, Ramsay is pretending to be someone else to get close to Theon.

 

Okay I have to post my paparazzi moment somewhere..



Natalia Tena at Supanova Melbourne YAY!

 

Does she wear a wig for the show?

 

Ugh, I hate that people that have read the books are going around posting in non-spoiler threads pretended to be non-readers. I really enjoyed the last episode and the season is definitely getting better. They've added some great bits that weren't in the books.

 

Seems odd to see Simon from Misfits playing a guy who turns into such a BASTARD (no pun lol).

Especially considering the stuff that plays out when he marries the fake Arya. But that's probably years down the line.

 

I dunno, he always seemed a better actor to me when was the more-than-slightly creepy stalker of late S1/early S2 of Misfits where he talked to dead girls in freezers than the I've-got-a-Destiny-to-fulfill superhero of later. Not that he didn't do that stuff well, but I have no problem seeing him as an absolute monster.

 

Let the Ramsay Snow mind games begin. I got chills when he was called "little bastard" right before that arrow thrummed. I never particularly liked Theon in the books, but what Ramsay does to him and others is revolting.

For me, Ramsay is a character that is so beyond the pale that Martin cannot kill him horribly enough. Poor Jeyne Poole's plight (that sounds too sanitized a word) turned my stomach.

The scenes between Jaime and Brienne were marvelously played.

I found the scene in the council chamber to be hilarous, but was not very amused by the Pod scenes. I feel like Bronn is being shown just to keep Jerome Flynn around.

The scenes between Dany, Missendei and the slavers were suitably funny and distressing. They are doing a good job of setting up the Mormont vs. Selmy rivalry.

I keep feeling like the scenes North of the Wall are getting a short shrift. Perhaps that is because I found that storyline the most compelling in the books?

The Blackfish is perfectly cast, and I love the Brotherhood.

 

Did Theon not escape with Jayne?

I always wondered why everyone says Joff is the nastiest little shit in GoT when Ramsay is clearly worse.

 

He does, but that's way later from where the show is now.

Well, timing mostly.

Joffrey appears right out of the gate and shortly after, we see what a little prick he is. He murderers the lead POV character, abuses another POV character, and continues to act like an incredibly entitled shit doing vicious things. He's easy and visible right from the start as the guy you can 100% hate and throw your darts at in this world of moral ambiguity.

Ramsay is much more of a long game. He first appeared in A Clash of Kings, but he's mostly Reek until the end. He didn't get introduced as the most sadistic motherfucker in Westeros until 2011 and most of his terrible things come to a POV character that we last saw murdering children. It's a real testament to his viciousness then that almost everyone actually gained sympathy for Theon, despite his past actions, just because of how bad Ramsay was. If he had been in AGoT and done this to a Stark? He'd be more hated than Joffrey.

BTW did anyone else appreciate the nod in the ep to the "Meereenese Knot" that gave GRRM so much trouble pre-ADwD?

 

They seem to be really toning down the Theon torture scenes. I gather that much of this is happening as a build up to the main "Reek" on-page material, but so far, there hasn't been any flaying, removal of appendages or other nasty psy-ops stuff that Ramsay was infamous for. I told my wife that the audience will soon start to take some element of pity on him, and based on what she's seen so far, her response has generally been *shrug* "Meh...he deserves it". From the non-book POV, I agree - the punishment has not yet exceeded the crime. I really hope they don't puss out on this one.