Episode 254 – The Onion Blossom
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Lord Walder Frey submits his emissaries to Riverrun for Hoster Tully’s farewell ceremony, and what would seem to be much, much more. In Dragonstone, Davos emerges from his cell to meet an unexpected adversary, conversation, and a charming new promotion.
Discussion Topics
Holiday gifts
An emptier Riverrun
Visiting Freys
False security
Axel’s lame idea
Stannis blossoms
Blood of the King
Owns of the Chapters
Listener Owns
Camel racing
Looking ahead
Nodor
I’m really looking forward to
I think I can predict who’ll get the next Tyrion chapter own.
I’m looking so forward to the next two chapter that I might even re-read them _again_. The Red Viper AND Jaime’s confession. Pure gold.
Another year, another season another episode of GOO. So glad to hear you guys again! Looking forward to the next episode, 2 amazing chapters coming up. Hopefully, I’ll find the time to reread them.
Re: Blood of the King
Wait, but I thought Robert/Stannis/Renly DO have Targaryen blood via their grandmother? is that not in the first book? meaning, Robert’s bastards would have Targaryen blood, also…
Happy New Year!
After the next episode (Jamie/Tyrion) I hope you will make the following episode a three-chapter one – Arya VII/Bran III/Jon V, because the Bran and Jon chapter really go together. You’d have to record some (more) 3-chapter episodes anyway (either that or have two episodes a week) if you want to finish Storm before the beginning of season 5. (I’m 6 chapters ahead of you in my re-read, so I’m constantly checking Tower of the Hand to make sure I don’t get any chapters mixed up, this is why I know all the numbers.) In fact, there’s a point a few chapters ahead where there’s a perfect opportunity for a 4-chapter episode (or at least space them over two episodes in the same week) – of course, I’m talking about
– not only do they go together, but two of those chapters are very short.
Back to this episode…
Robb himself has never lost a battle, but his bannermen have lost battles before, that’s nothing new. In fact, Roose Bolton lost the very first battle of the war, against Tywin back in book 1 (which was portrayed very differently in the show, and show!Roose did not participate in it, but it was an (expected) defeat there as well) which was mostly a ruse (ha!) to fool Tywin while Robb was fighting the battle at the Whispering Wood against Jaime’s forces, which he won, capturing Jaime. Speaking of Roose, do you remember who sent the northern forces under Robett Glover and the other guy whose name I can’t remember to Duskendale, supposedly under Robb’s orders, back in A Clash of Kings, when Arya was still his cupbearer? Very convenient of Roose to get rid of two bannermen who may be loyal to Robb, as well as of another two of his rivals for the control of the North, sending them far away (whether or not he was also luring them in a trap – this depends on when he started corresponding with Tywin). A few chapters ago, Tyrion was also wondering why the hell the northmen went to Duskendale. And of course, here we find out that Robb never gave an order to Roose Bolton to take Duskendale. It’s one of these minor plot threads that foreshadow a lot, but that you can easily miss on the first read, since the hints are spaced so far apart. (It helps that I finished my re-read of Clash about three months ago, while you did almost a year ago.)
Speaking of people who want to make Robb dead, Melisandre may have seen the deaths of those three kings in visions, but it may be merely a possible future, so she may be thinking that she still needs to do some magic to make sure those things happen. Or, she thinks they’ll certainly happen, but she sees it as an opportunity to impress Stannis, as Kate speculated. I prefer theory 1, I think she’s convinced Stannis already of her power.
Axl Rose Florent and Stannis the Mannis with the Plannis, brilliant. 😀
Yes, though I don’t remember if it has so far in the books been explicitly mentioned it was their grandmother. Ned alluded to it in book 1 when he said Robert had a “better claim” to the throne (than him or Jon Arryn), and in Clash, Renly mentioned they were Targaryen descendants through the female line, but he did it so dismissively than I and many others got the impression at the time that it was some more distant relation hundreds of years ago, when in fact, Robert and Rhaegar were second cousins. (It’s interesting that nobody calls Robert kinslayer in spite of that – goes to show that Rickard Karstark was full of crap when he was calling Robb kinslayer for their much more distant blood relation.)