We have a mixed bag of Game of Thrones news out of Spain for our readers today. Girona became yet another city in the show’s world, another member of the theatrical troupe is identified and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau’s presence in Girona is unquestionably confirmed.
WotW reader Ramon Ferrer shared two photos of the current filming preparations around Girona Cathedral with us today. The vans appear to contain some armor, though it’s difficult to see much detail.
#girona #gameofthrones #armour #cathedral @WatchersOTWall @Los7Reinos pic.twitter.com/UkqQBNqg8U
— Ramon Ferrer (@rferrerca) September 12, 2015
In casting news: Actor Leigh Gill has been identified as a member of the theatre troupe company spotted filming this week in Girona with Richard E. Grant and Essie Davis. He appears to be playing the part of Tyrion Lannister in the troupe’s in-show performance. It’s not known if Gill is playing a show equivalent of Bobono from the novels, though it’s a possibility.
Thanks to Carne for this find!
Game of Thrones star Nikolaj Coster-Waldau was spotted today in Girona. His presence was rumored, and we’ve heard some big spoilers about a Jaime scene being filmed this week, but now we have a verified sighting.
Cameras will roll at the Castell de Santa Florentina over the next few days, beginning today. Recent spoilers gave us a hint as to what Game of Thrones family the castle in Canet de Mar will host in season 6.
Shooting on another scene started today, confirming that Girona is Oldtown as we have heard for months now. We have spoilers courtesy of Los Siete Reinos– scroll down for more info!
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John Bradley was seen filming a scene in which Samwell speaks with a maester at Oldtown. The specifics of their conversation weren’t heard. It was a small scene, with no extras involved. And for those who are curious, the maester was not Ian McShane. (For those wondering about McShane’s role, we do have info in that regard in another post.)
Wun Wun!
Ho…und!
oh my!
Great news!!! Really need to learn more about that Jaime scene, maybe if the director was spotted we would know in which episode that scene is happening.
I saw the pics on Twitter earlier- that type of armour hasn’t been seen on the show as far as I’m aware (it appears to be polished steel)… Very intriguing. Well done guys on another great scoop… Can’t wait to see pics of Jaime storming Baelors Sept!
Cool news! That must be Tyrell armor, right?
Bryan Cogman just confirmed in his Twitter he will write two episodes this season as well.
Season 6 or (“will write”) 7?
Luka Nieto,
Are you talking about S6 or S7? I presume that Cogman would have completed his scripts for S6 already?
Oops – sorry, Otto. See you already asked.
Off-Topic Otto,
Cersei\’s Brain,
Oh, sorry. Meant “wrote”, obviously. Season six.
Nice to have some confirmation of Oldtown scenes, but a bit sad to have more confirmation McShane is not Marwyn! XD
The armor does not seem familiar to me… Red cloaks could be Tarly men perhaps? House sigil being red huntsman on green field as I recall…. Then again didn’t the Lannister house guards have red cloaks? Hmmm…
I’m excited for the Horn Hill scenes to begin filming!!!
Maybe we will finally get leaks of the actor portraying Randyll Tarly….
Yay Nicolaj! Now the fun begins. 🙂
Watch out, Sam! Someone at the Citadel isn’t who they are supposed to be! 🙂
Darquemode,
I’m not sure those are cloaks.
Hopefully we’ll see the extras in costume and the armor will have a sigil somewhere, giving us a clue. According to the reports, Jaime will lead Tyrell men, so they should be Tyrell soldiers… right?
Darquemode,
Yeah, McShane as Marwyn would’ve been awesome. And the Jaime scene sounds intriguing. Since he’s Lord Commander of the kingsguard he bound by duty to help Marg, even though Cersei obviously won’t like it. Something has to drive a wedge between those two.
So, confirmation that Sam gets to the Citadel and they at least cast some people for that location, despite a lack of casting information. Not really surprising, but I saw at least some people speculating that him going to Oldtown would be some kind of red herring.
Luka Nieto,
Yeah the logic follows…
Although I think every Tyrell we have seen on GOT has worn some shade of green, right? I guess that does not rule out red cloaks, if as you point out, those are even cloaks….
Also, GoT won an early creative Emmy tonight for best makeup for single camera show.
I tried zooming in on the armour in Photoshop to see if we could get any more detail but sadly the pictures aren’t high enough resolution for a really clear look. Stuck them here if anyone’s interested, but you can’t really see much more than from the top photo and zooming in any further is super blurry. They don’t seem to have any distinctive markings or colours, just plain(ish) silver. The 3 on the right look like they might have a redder lower half, but that could well be the reflection of the red material in front of them.
Maceless Fan,
I think that should be a fun scene or mini-arc too!
Cannot wait to see Cersei’s reaction to Jaime helping to rescue her competition!! XD
Sean C.,
I started to wonder if some of the more recent doubters were right about Sam not going to Oldtown… Glad they were not.
Even if the books do not show much and the show may not show much of Oldtown either, I find the Citadel to be very intriguing! I think they will have a larger part to play in the upcoming books. Or at least Sam will discover something there that is of great importance. Something about the Others/ White Walkers or the destruction of the dragons maybe….
Luka Nieto,
He didn’t tweet which eps by any chance – wondering if he’ll do the transitions (4&5 or 5&6) again..
Cersei\’s Brain,
Cogman recently said he’s been working with Daniel Sackheim and Jack Bender. If he’s writing consecutive episodes again, that would mean he’s writing episodes four and five. If they are not consecutive, he’s writing any two of the following: episode 3, 4, 5 and/or 6.
So Downton Abbey beat out GoT for best costuming. Blah. So over Downton Abbey – it has really jumped the shark in the last couple seasons.
We already saw tyrel soldiers in season 5 right?the Soldiers with olenna when she is in front of the sept and get a litllefinger letter.
Aguero,
They may have been soldiers, but they weren’t wearing armor.
Not obviously… I don’t know how things are really scheduled, but I’d guess each stage takes quite a long time. I wouldn’t be surprised if season 7 writers were already lined up, at least. But enough for us to focus on now regarding season 6…
Luka Nieto,
Tyrell Soldiers Behind olenna:
http://i3.examiner.co.uk/incoming/article9328837.ece/ALTERNATES/s615/GOT_MP_093014_EP507-4587.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/Ex8cPFM.jpg
igorcarvalho,
Well I was so, so wrong :/
I’m puzzled then. Either these are super-heavy-armor Tyrell knights, or we’re missing something here.
Only Vale knights have wore that kind of heavy plate armor in the show so far. But it wouldn’t make any sense for Vale knights to be in King’s Landing… right?
Cersei\’s Brain,
Downton Abbey is pretty terrible now, I agree,but the it’s one remaining virtue is its costumes (and that mansion).
Oldtown confirmation makes me wonder if Jaqen will get in on the act at some point; I could see him leaving early in the season. This would also account for the Waif’s radical actions if there’s no one there to discipline her.
I do wonder though, if that whole fight scene is merely a test. The Waif was wearing Arya’s old clothes, and maybe Arya has to both metaphorically and literally kill Arya as a final test …
GOT won production design at the Emmys; they lost cinematography, which I expect is a consequence of having four nominees.
Luka Nieto,
I don´t know what armor is that Sue posted, but i hope they dont change the Tyrell soldiers , i really like de look of they in season 5.
maybe Tarly soldiers sand by Randyll, dont know.
Sean C.,
Hooray for Deb Riley!
Luka Nieto,
Tarly or Hightower armor is my guess, if it’s new.
Ehhh. I hope we get some news about Dany soon…
I’m starting to worry about the lack of filming of Bran and Sansa. Isaac and Sophie did not seem to be filming much these days ….
I’m feeling the same way about Sansa. *Sighs*
http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/style/living/article1605978.ece
Interview with Gwendoline Christie where she talks about filming a fight for three days. It’s published 9/12/15, so it’s discussing S6 filming, but it’s unclear when the interview was actually done.
HotPinkLipstick,
I’m not saying Christie is talking about this, but just imagine Brienne following Jon Snow into battle against the Boltons. Little Jon Snow with three giants at his side —Tormund Giantsbane, Smalljon Umber and Brienne of Fucking Tarth. Man, do I wanna see that!
Selina,
I don’t know if this is the case with Sansa, although I seem to remember some mention of her filming something (I could be wrong, though), but I’d guess all of Bran’s filming will be done at Titanic Studios, as opposed to location shoots. Also, didn’t we find out Bloodraven was already shooting?
So much to film for the entire season, and it’s so early in the process, I expect it means exactly nothing.
Luka Nieto,
Not to mention the prospect Brienne of Fucking Tarth fighting next to Jon with part of Ice reforged!
Selina,
There are still 3-4 months of filming left. I wouldn’t worry about Sansa. Bran may only appear in 4 or 5 episodes, though.
Sadly, the snow pile that Theon and Sansa jumped into was covering some spare iron and wood spiky torture devices and they did not survive.
Selina,
Bran is a boring character to me,so the less we see of him,the better,his only purpose is for the visions and those are already confirmed to be in the show so i don’t really care for the other stuff . Even Martin said the Bran is his least favorite character to write for and it shows when the visions and the lore are more important and interesting than him,he even took his warging away from him and gave it to the other Starks and that was the only thing unique,lol poor useless Bran .
Well, you win some, you lose some….
That’s kind of his average anyways, I think.
*Wild crazy theory time*
So, I’ve been thinking. With the recent news of SnowBowl/BastardBowl going down (and no mention of the Vale Army in that scene), is it possible…well, ANYTHING is ‘possible’, so let me reword…is it plausible that LF uses the Vale forces to attack the Freys in the Riverlands instead? It’ll clear the path to the North and give him full control of another Kingdom. Yay or nay?
Luka Nieto,
THE HYPE IS REAL.
Hodor’s Bastard,
Kraken satay?!
Thanks, now I’m hungry…
I have a love for most things British, but for all the actors on the show that I really like, I just don’t like the show. I find Mary’s character really irritating, which doesn’t help.
RosanaZugey,
Cersei gave Littlefinger permission to attack the North, thus giving him a reason to mobilize his troops without drawing suspicion. If he begins attacking Lannister loyalists, however, the Crown will know that something is up.
lol. That WOULD be some shit that would happen, too. Smh.
Pigeon,
I tried to watch Downton Abbey but i couldn’t last past first half of the first episode,listen i like period dramas and costume dramas but when your show is so monotonous that it literally puts you to sleep,you know that show is not for you . Sadly Mad Men has a similar effect although with that show i atleast struggled to finish the first season .
RosanaZugey,
Littlefinger was filming at Winterfell, from what we’ve been told, so that doesn’t fit. Beyond which, there’s no point in going to all that trouble to get the Crown’s permission to invade the North just to invade the Riverlands.
Are we still considering the Crown a threat? I got the impression LF set up Cersei last season to make sure the Crown wouldn’t matter anymore (at least, that’s what I got after his talk with Ollena). If the Vale attacks the Freys, it could be the reason Jaime ends up going there (obviously, I’m throwing spaghetti at the walls to see what sticks…but its not outside the realm of possibility).
Don’t forget the other protein being served up. Surf & Turf! 🙂
UNLESS LF brought the Vale army south to Kings Landing. He might not have intended it originally but its plausible that he gets news of Cersei’s weakness in KL (he could mean to aid her against the Faith and earn more trust or simply help to free Margaery and gain more Tyrell goodwill) and Stannis’ defeat in WF (meaning Roose doesn’t necessarily need him anymore) or even of Roose’s subsequent defeat depending on the timing (meaning Jon has WF with the Northmen behind him so LF realizes he will never control WF) and so LF decides that his best course of action is to take the Vale army south instead of North. I know he told Sansa he would come back for her but LF is not exactly the most loyal of friends. He’d abandon Sansa if that’s the way the wind blew. If I was writing it, that’s how I would do it. Have LF go south instead of North and abandon Sansa. It’s a nice twist that few people would anticipate.
A friend I trust saw Julie Christie in Reykjavik about 2 weeks ago and she told her she was shooting a small role in GOT. She didn’t say the role but she has the look for a Lannister, maybe a prettier version of Genna Lannister?
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_XD06DC9l9M/UBqY2oNqLBI/AAAAAAAAAmo/FSooVkel76E/s1600/julie2007.png
Edith,
fuck, I love Julie Christie. That would be great if this is true. Reykjavik, hmmm.
Was he? I thought LF’s location sightings were in the places where the Vale scenes were filmed last season.
RosanaZugey,
http://watchersonthewall.com/littlefingers-trailer-spotted-and-other-filming-updates/
Edith,
Well, if Max von Sydow can be in GoT, I can believe Julie Christie can have a cameo too! Oh my! This type of casting is now getting out of hand! 😀 I’m exhausted, lol! Next season, we’ll all be playing “Spot the cameo” game!
So Girona is Oldtown too! I hope they can keep the looks of every place that is filmed in Oldtown distinct; the loacles are something that really sets GoT apart from other shows.
But it’s awesome that Sam was finally filming a scene.
GOT wins drama casting at the Emmys. I know the show not winning that in the past had annoyed many.
Edit: Oh, and both sound and picture editing. That makes 5 Emmys, so far. They haven’t announced VFX yet, but they presumably will win that too.
Sean C.,
Good for Nina Gold! Stunt coordination, sound mixing and special fx too!
I thought Dowton Abbey was at least interesting in the first season; bearable in the second. But there was way too much time skipped over and the characters ceased developing, and the plots and subplots were just unbearable. Pity, because those costumes really were heavenly.
Hummm….I see. Although IrishThrones kind of doesn’t have any credibility with me after the LS thing.
So, where does LF being in the North actually fit into the story now? If he’s not there in episode 9, does he leave? Does he go back south (as Dame Pasty suggested)? Recent news makes me wonder what HE’S doing. If he’s not in Winterfell in episode 9, he either came and went, or doesn’t get there till episode 10.
So Littlefinger clearly returns to the North at some point as he said he would… but when exactly, and under what circumstances? That’s gonna be a burning question for me, and makes me worry about the potential outcome of Snowbowl. I worry now that Jon might retake Winterfell only to lose it to Littlefinger shortly thereafter, totally ruining the victory not just for Jon… but also for the audience.
Seriously, we need to see the good guys win a major victory for once. A REAL victory. Too many Red Weddings and For the Watches will tire viewers out and they’ll start to lose interest. Let’s see the tide start to turn a little, for god’s sake.
I think the audience is already tired of the bad guys always winning. I mean, that kind of novelty was intriguing and captivating in the beginning (i.e. “Oh my God! They killed the main character! How avant-garde!”) Now, however, it’s just tiresome. Give us something to cheer about already.
Spartan_Halo,
Seriously, I will not waste my time giving the answer I wanted to give you.
Nymeria Warrior Queen,
Yes, Sophie filmed a few days, but I have seen that she has not been in Belfast for a long time (She has been in Canada, Croatia and in London, as seen in pics with fans). Same with Isaac, he seems that he hasn’t been in Belfast since early August.
lol. We’ve seen Kit in Belfast more than we’ve seen Sophie, and he’s supposed to be ‘dead’. Screw #HairWatch someone give me a #SansaWatch
Anywho, I’m going to be positive and speculate that she’s not filming because they’re waiting for cooler weather. *Shrugs* It’s all I can come up with.
Doesn’t Sam meet with another Maester, sort of a gatekeeper, before he encounters Marwyn in the books? I hate to give up hope altogether that McShane is playing Marwyn.
Selina,
Sophie was in Belfast a decent bit in late July to mid-August, as I recall. But regardless, there are 3+ months of filming left, and I’d say her scenes are mainly interiors anyway, so we have no idea how many she could have done in the time she was already there. We had hardly any filming information about her last year either.
Sean C.,
There’s also the possibility Sophie won’t have quite as much screen time this season. With the Ironborn being back in the mix, Bran being back, and the possibility Rickon will have a bit of his own story, at least until,
there’s less time to go around.
Edit: Yay! The spoiler codes work, again…and groovy new format for the editing. Whichever one (or more) of you got this all up and running, again…Thank You!!! 🙂
Nymeria Warrior Queen,
I expect there will be less screentime to go around this year, but that would apply to everybody.
With the Smalljon appearing in only two episodes, I don’t think we’ll see Rickon before whoever it is finds him finds him (I tend to think that will be Sansa, if her learning they were still alive is to have any significance at all).
It could be that what happens in the vicinity will be important and that Sam’s actions/reactions there will be key. In particular, many have speculated that this is where Euron will be attacking. They need to have some main character wherever Euron is doing stuff in the books or the show: perhaps Sam is that character.
I really doubt that Rickon will have any story of his own. He’ll be a prop in some other character’s (or characters’) story. Given that Sansa now knows about Rickon, I would bet that he’s part of her story. The fact that we seem to have Jon + Wildlings + Umbers vs. Ramsay also is consistent with this: if Ramsay goes after the Wall to find Sansa, but Sansa goes to the Umbers for Bran, then this confluence would make sense. Indeed, now that they have Bran as a tree god, they have a plot device for directing the two sides together.
This is speculation, of course, but it fits the few things we know plus details from last season fairly simply.
And, of course, the other advantage is that this would make Jon’s, Sansa’s and Bran’s stories heavily overlap, as well as perhaps Brienne’s and Davos’ stories. That means that 1 hour of TV time will be much more than 1 hour of summed character time: over 60 minutes, Jon, Sansa and Bran could all get, say, 25 minutes each due to “shared” time. (Those numbers are hypotheticals, by the way….)
What about Wun Wun? Oh, and Ollie?
😀
Sean C.,
I wasn’t trying to say it would only apply to Sansa. I was just pointing out less time to go around may impact her screentime, in addition to other characters.
Maybe Sansa will find Rickon (and Osha), and I’d actually like that. I still don’t think it impossible we see Rickon and Osha for a bit with the Umbers before that, though. We’ll see.
Wimsey,
I’m a bit too in love with the the idea of Jon and the Wildlings pulling a Rohirrim to want Jon to join up with them too early.
Pigeon,
Agreed – though Downton is very pretty to look at, last season was really bordering on god awful – I will watch the final upcoming season because now I’m in it for the duration. Just hope Fellowes manages to come up with a new plot. Seems like they keep recycling the same one every year.
Sean C.,
I doubt my original speculation of a battle of Oldtown will actually happen now that we’ve heard the climactic battle in the North is happening. There probably isn’t enough budget for that, though with Thrones you never know (maybe episode 9 will intercut between two big battles- Ramsay vs Stark loyalists and Dany/Dorne vs Euron in Oldtown).
I hope upcoming filming news will give us a better idea of the whos and whats of Oldtown. For all we know, they may have cast a Marwyn, some other bit Maesters and a Sarella as well as someone to stand in for Pate. I don’t think they need much to do that storyline justice (but that’s just guesswork since it’s all TWOW).
Nymeria Warrior Queen,
1. Meets Brienne
2. On the run, separated from Theon (who saves her one last time from Ramsay)
3. Brienne takes her to Last Hearth, where Smalljon pulls a Manderly speach and reveals Rickon
4. Ramsay rallies the Karstarks against the Stark lotalists (Umbers and probably Mormonts, judging by Lyanna Mormont’s letter last season, maybe some others too).
5. The battle happens, and Jon and the Wildlings interrupt and save the day. Jon kills Ramsay.
6. Biggest Stark reunion ever! Rickon, Sansa and Jon. I’m guessing Davos and Melly are also part of it.
The spoilers don’t work for me… 🙁
As in, they work too well. I click on ‘show spoilers’, both on my laptop and on my phone, and they stay hidden.
In between Richard E. Grant, Essie Davis, Ian McShane, Max von Sydow, and (possibly) Julie Christie, this season is really the season of stunt casting of acting greats. It’s reaching Harry Potter levels. Who’s next, Alan Rickman? I’m starting to think Laurence Olivier and John Gielgud would guest in GOT if they were still alive.
Seriously, though, Julie Christie as Genna Lannister would slayyyyy (although I would watch Julie Christie play Randyll Tarly, let’s be real). YASS QUEEN YASS QUEEN.
Also, Iceland = Riverlands, if Jaime’s there. Sounds like a possible Genna Lannister.
I can’t see the spoilers either 🙁
Nymeria Warrior Queen,
Yes absolutely. I’ve never bought the “Jon rallies the North” theory. But do subscribe to “Jon saves the North”. Arriving late in the battle to save the non-Bolton/Frey northern houses, just as they appear headed for certain defeat, would be epic, and the best way for Jon to win the support and gratitude of the North, and prove his skill as a battle commander (which he actually has no real experience with). But is it maybe too Blackwater Bay-ish?
thats it I’m certain mcshane is howland reed now.
Sue the Fury,
The Ice Queen! That is hype!
Lulus Mum,
I’m the one who sent the tweet, I have uploader all the images I took to imgur in full resolution. Hope it helps.
http://imgur.com/a/AFmfA
Moles town bastard,
I’ve been thinking mcshane is playing howland reed for a while now. They’re keeping his casting so close to the vest, and every day another role possibility is eliminated.
Walder!
Chris,
Could be Jon Connigton for all we know 🙂 Seriously though, your comment makes much more sense. Thanks for the great idea.
Selina,
Now i’m just wondering what to do with my life because you did not respond to me,might as well just end it,your words of wisdom are clearly missed .
Man, if Julie Christie has a (small) role, that would rock !
I have the same problem now on phone and tablet – and I used to be able to tap the hidden text to view, but that doesn’t seem to work any more either.
More on topic – interesting news about Sam and the Maester, but unless that was definitely Marwyn, it doesn’t rule out McShane playing him? The role being of ‘key importance’ is interesting too, though I guess it’s hard to know with some characters how important they’re going to be, as we don’t really know where much of the plot will go from here…
Amazing to see so many big names being linked with the show, let’s hope the plots give them plenty to work with! The Dorne plot last season was the only real disappointment for me in the show so far, hopefully it was a one-off.
Wimsey,
Olly is small and hopefully dead by then. Good idea about Wun Wun, though. In terms of gigantic characters… well, he’s the only actual giant.
There is no way Sam spends half the season intermittently traveling and off-screen. He has to arrive to Oldtown early in the season and, just as in the books, then take Gilly to Horn Hill. I’d be shocked if the next we see of Sam, Gilly and Little Sam is not the lot of them in a boat looking at the Hightower of Oldtown or something like that.
There is no way Sam spends half the season intermittently traveling and off-screen. He has to arrive to Oldtown early in the season and, just as in the books, then take Gilly to Horn Hill. I’d be shocked if the next we see of Sam, Gilly and Little Sam is not the lot of them in a boat looking at the Hightower of Oldtown or something like that. Why do I say this?
Remember: despite a few secondary storylines playing catch-up, such as the Greyjoys, all major characters are going to immediately (or after a few episodes) embark on TWOW material. If they followed your suggested timeline, Sam would be a whole season behind by the end; there is no way Sam could possibly go much beyond his AFFC material! So that can’t be it. An early Oldtown is a done deal as far as I can tell, considering that they can’t leave Sam so incredibly delayed behind all other characters, and that in the books Sam goes to Oldtown first, planning to leave Gilly and the baby at Horn Hill later.
Why do you think they won’t advance Sam’s story (much) beyond A Feast for Crows in season six? I can’t see the logic in that move.
Where did you read that all characters would be jumping straight into TWOW arcs in S6? As you said, the Greyjoys still have AFFC/ADWD material to cover, not to mention Jaime and possibly Brienne.
I read somewhere that Julie Christie had largely retired – but then things one reads online can be wrong. I’ve liked her in everything I’ve seen her in except “Far from the Madding Crowd” – not her acting just I have book Bathsheba with black hair and dark eyes in my head and I just couldn’t accept Ms Christie’s very blonde personification – friends who hadn’t read the book liked the film though. She is one of the people I had thought of as a possible Aunt Genna though I thought they weren’t casting the character. I imagine they would have to pad her out a bit if they are keeping the book persona of Aunt Genna as pleasantly plump.
Because D&D have absolutely no reason to faff about…? Seriously. Tell me: aside from the fact that TWOW hasn’t been released yet and some book readers don’t want to be spoiled, what’s the reason in delaying any TWOW material? Why are they going to delay Sam’s story? Yes, delay, with inventions. Because Sam already got his AFFC story in season five! During his AFFC travels, four things happened: he unknowingly met Arya; he learnt about Daenerys; Aemon died; and he had sex with Gilly. That’s it! And 3 out of those 4 plot points were covered in season five! Now, I’d love for Sam to meet Arya, but it was barely more than a cameo, and Sam didn’t even know who it was.
So… other than spoilers, why delay Sam’s story with what’s sure to be fluff, considering they covered all the relevant plot points last season?
Literally no one would be suggesting this if TWOW had been released a long time ago. Except for arriving at Oldtown, in season five Sam had his AFFC character development and plotline inside the confines of Castle Black. The only thing left for him to do is… arriving at Oldtown! No one would be suggesting otherwise if there was a whole exciting TWOW storyline ahead we already knew about and wanted to see adapted; yet D&D do know whatever that storyline is, and they won’t delay it for no reason by having Sam traveling all throughout a plotless and storyless half of a season.
Chris,
Small but important role!!
Luka Nieto,
Of course the majority of S6 will consist of TWOW plot (I’m not suggesting otherwise) what I’m saying is that it’s not necessarily the case for several cast members. And in the case of Sam, his arrival in Oldtown and (potential) meeting with Marwyn has also yet to occur (which could be the scene Jon was filming recently). We don’t yet know where the Hornhill trip falls in relation to this.
@ everyone who still thinks Ian McShane will be Marwyn or Howland Reed, his character has been confirmed to interact with the outlaws in the Riverlands. So he will certainly not be playing either one of those characters.
Apollo,
I said the traveling part of Sam’s plot was covered in season five, his voyage.
I was responding to jentario, who suggested Sam would not arrive at Oldtown until after the mid-season Horn Hill —that is, until episode 7 or so. This would mean Sam spends the first half of the season either off-screen traveling or we actually witness him in his voyage south… doing what? The character development and plot Sam had during his voyage were already covered in season five. The only thing left for him to do, as I said, is to arrive in Oldtown; which is why I said the next thing we’ll see is him arriving in Oldtown.
Dutch Maester,
Have you read TWOW, somehow?
Speaking of small parts I feel a bit nostalgic about Mirri Maz Duur and Mia Soterious prrformance. I hope we will see more such characters than just Mel.
Luka Nieto,
You’re right of course, but they might be switching things chronologically. It’s happened before and we were largely able to guess why, but now we simply don’t know where his story is going. So it might, for the show, make more sense to go to Oldtown after Horn Hill for some reason.
Dutch Maester,
Faithfulness to the source material is never my point; it was just a suggestion that this is how it happened in the books, and they may follow the same logic. My main point has nothing to do with that, and even less with chronology: Does nobody here actually care about Sam as a character and the plot? D&D certainly do. They wouldn’t have decided to confine the plot and character developments Sam had during AFFC’s voyage south inside Castle Black in season five if they were going to retread that ground in season six. They already “spent” that whole plot and story of Sam’s trip; they have literally no reason to revisit it, unless you really want GPS-like updates of Sam in Braavos, then along the coast of Dorne, etc.
What is it that you guys want to see in his trip south? Sam taking care of an ill Aemon? Season five! Sam learning about Daenerys and telling Aemon about it, who worries she has no family to guide her and laments his old age? Season five! Aemon hallucinating he is young again and speaking to his brother Egg? Season five! Aemon dying of old age and Sam eulogizing him? Season five! Sam and Gilly then having sex for the first time? Season five! Literally the only thing in Sam’s voyage that hasn’t happened is Sam meeting Arya; so yeah, maybe we see that, that’d be cool. But that’s not enough to fill the first half of the season. And that means we’ll see Sam do something else before Horn Hill; what something else? Could it be what he does in the books and what was explicitly set up at the end of season five, with yet no mention of Horn Hill? Oldtown.
dothrakian raven,
Well there was a casting call for a red priestess. Also video, of a actor auditioning for that role.
Dutch Maester,
That was my thinking as well…
If they use Sam’s arrival at Horn Hill to introduce Randyll Tarly, and they want to introduce Randyll earlier in the season it could make sense to have Sam go to Horn Hill before Oldtown I guess. Maybe sail from Eastwatch to some port, then by land to Horn Hill on his way to Oldtown? Doesn’t make a lot of sense to me honestly, but maybe…
Need to take a closer look at the directors for the various Sam and Randyll episodes and see which eps they direct.
Luka Nieto,
I also expect Sam arriving too Oldtown when S6 begins. But with Girona being both Braavos and Oldtown, Sam having a little stop in Braavos around EP1-2, wouldn’t suprise me either.
An appearance of Sam at Oldtown in the middle of S6 is just absurd from a narrarive point of view! It will happen in the 1st ep and if not, no later than the 2nd.
Luka Nieto,
Oh I agree, and I think you’re right we’ll see Oldtown before Horn Hill. I do hope he returns there after dropping off Gilly.
dothrakian raven,
Exactly. It is absurd, narratively. Sam has nothing else to do but… travel, which Game of Thrones almost always skips, and they would especially skip it if there’s no plot or character development during the trip. Don’t get me wrong; there was plenty of both… but that was adapted already, in season five! I imagine their unwillingess to show voyages and having characters unnecessarily isolated from other main characters (Jon, in this case) is the main reason they moved the contents of Sam’s AFFC voyage to Castle Black.
Mihnea,
I’d love it to happen! Especially if in the show Sam somehow recognizes Arya, or the scene is expanded in some other way. But, of course, it still wouldn’t be enough for Sam’s first whole half of the season. Unless they do an Arya cameo, Sam simply has nothing else to do but arrive at Oldtown; and if he does encounter Arya, then maybe he arrives Oldtown by episode three or so.
Luka Nieto,
My guess, if he does go to Braavos: it happens around EP 1 or 2. then by EP 3 he is in Oldtown, here I expect a scene or two, with him entrying the Citadel, and one scene where he explains his plan to Gilly: getting her and baby Sam at Horn Hill, pretending that BS is his basterd.
Then in EP 5 he arrives at Horn Hill,….and from here on I have no clue.
Mihnea,
It doesnt make sense to go to OT via Braavos. Its in the opposite direction and an extremely long journey for lil Sam. And all that just for a brief encounter with Arya…
Spartan_Halo,
Don’t know anything about downtown abbey and I want it to stay like that. Mad Men however was awesome I’m and I hope it cleans up at every award show this year. GoT will eventually have its “moment in the sun”…..That one shot of kristina Hendricks bent over the table while the crew is checking her out thru the glass is xrayed into my brain, goodlawd
dothrakian raven,
I said IF. I don’t expect it to happem.
jentario,
Bruh, that battle you’re proposing between euron/dany at oldtown would be epic! As long as it ends with euron victorious, I cannot stand dany. Imo, her story didn’t have to go past drogo giving her backshots
McShane is EB/Meribald. I, too, thought he’d make a great Marwyn, but (in my opinion) Marwyn will have a more active role in WoW, so he’ll probably be a younger and lesser-known actor.
As for Sam’s trip, I think that they will skip Braavos completely, and that Sam will do Horn Hill before Oldtown. Remember, the final scene for Sam in DwD is he and Marwyn’s crew following Marwyn out the door towards the docks. He can’t go to Horn Hill after meeting Marwyn because he’s off on an adventure!
Also, isn’t that Nikolaj talking to the crew member by the armor (or someone inside the arched doorway) in that first pic?
Luka Nieto,
1) Sam wouldn’t be traveling all season, he’d be in Braavos for an episode or two, then in Horn Hill for a couple of episodes and then exclusively in Oldtown.
2) In my opinion, narratively, it doesn’t make much sense to have Sam take a detour to Horn Hill in the middle of his Oldfown arc when they can do it before he gets there.
3) Sam WOULD be entering TWOW material the moment he leaves Braavos. Horn Hill is TWOW, and chronology be damned.
4) I don’t think Sam’s Oldtown material is going to be very TV friendly, I think they can and should rush thròugh his Maester training (even if that means we only get a couple of scenes of him learning, as opposed to what will likely be hundreds of pages in the books) and get to the more interesting material which is the Dorne, Euron and Faceless Man involvement. 4 Oldtown episodes are more than enough.
5) Sam is a secondary character and won’t be in every episode. Having him go from Braavos to Oldtown to Horn Hill within the first half of thd season alone would take up way more screentime than Sam is likely to get. Maybe it’s possible without Braavos, but I don’t see the Faceless men getting into the picture without that (and could D&D really miss out on Sam and Arya’s meet up from the books?)
6) The lack of Oldtown news implies IMO that we won’t be seeing too much of it in season 6. Otherwise we would have heard of some castings and locations earlier… No?
lol, no doubt the Chicks will be happier JCW hair is growing back to season 1-2 levels…
If they are having various city-locations this season it makes sense for practical reasons to streamline it all through the same city where feasible
Sam has gotten… maybe more screen time than he should have until now, as his character stands He was Pip, and Gren, and Jon’s internal monologue all wrapped into one. Hell, he pretty much was 1/2 of the Night Watch.
Without Jon, why would he continue to get so much screen time post-Jon? I think he’ll get significant screen time in Old Town, Horn Hill and Bravos would be cool but doubtful… so maybe… 5 of 10 episodes? Aemon’s early death solved any need for ANY travel scenes, and boats are expensive and used minimally on the show as compared to the books…
Lady Wolfsbane,
Boats aren’t really expensive. It’s all a single boat on land, and the water has always been CGI. In Game of Thrones literally none of the ships you’ve seen has been a real ship on the water.
Hahaha.. now I’m thinking about it…
Episode 2
Same arrives in Bravos, uses some already established CGI. Blah Blah Blah a change in ship to get to Horn Hill. Runs into Blind Arya, she picks up on the Westeros accent awkward joke about “the things I’ve seen” state of the continent.
Episodes 5 and 6
Horn Hill. NO idea, Significant WoW stuff, dropping off Gilly.
Episode 8 and 10
Old Town
One or two scenes of getting accepted into Hogwarts, meeting Sphinx? Then discovering a secret in the books, cliffhanger
Luka
Expensive CGI water and background that people won’t’ even notice vs. a bit of ground and a wagon? Why? Why does Sam and Gilly have money for such a journey, we don’t want to look too hard into their finances 🙂
Lady Wolfsbane,
jentario,
All of these suggestions assume Sam’s TWOW material will be brief and will only have to do with discovering something in a book. But we haven’t read TWOW! And last we heard of them, Euron and his fleet had just conquered some of the Arbor and were already deep into the bay of the Whispering Sound, and had been entered the Honeywine river and tried to attack Oldtown. Something’s gotta happen with that. And that’s only the few stuff we know because it’s been foreshadowed! Why must we assume Sam’s story will be so entirely predictable?
I say yet again: If we had read TWOW, no one would be making these predictions in which Sam’s story extends just beyond what we already knew from AFFC. We would expect them to adapt Sam’s whole TWOW story, whatever it is. And, since D&D do know this story, that’s what they’ll adapt, not just the ending of Sam’s AFFC story and what’s been immediately foreshadowed in that ending.
As for not hearing about much Oldtown filming or casting, or a sack of Oldtown… who knew the Battle of Ice would come and gone last season, and Stannis would die? Exactly.
I can see it now: Kit’s Jon starts his stirring speech to the Wildling masses, with the camera showing him and cheering Wildlings like Tormund.
The camera focusses on Jon, who gets more impassive and closes on a shouted climax!
Grand silence, with just Ed standing there. The Wildling hordes are shown half a kilometer away charging the Boltons.
Golden Globe right there! 😀
I completely agree. This is not Lord of the Rings: it’s not about finding out where the White Walker’s exhaust shaft is. (Oops: I mixed geek metaphors.)
Harry Potter fans made a similar mistake: many were convinced that Harry had to go back to Hogwarts in the last book because he had to learn “the Spell” that would defeat Voldemort. Never mind the colossal idiot plot that this would have created – “If only Dumbledore had asked the Herbology teacher if she knew a spell for defeating the worst of dark wizards!!!” – but the story was going to come down to Harry working out some key identity crisis, not learning a spell.
It will be the same thing here. It’s not about learning how to kill the White Walkers or defuse R’hllor. It’s about coming to terms with them and what they represent.
The other thing we are lacking is: what will be the mutual identity crisis of Winter? It won’t be the same as in Crows/Dragons anymore than it will be the same as those in Thrones, Kings or Swords.
But having Euron’s threat be proximal to Sam almost certainly means something. What? Your guess is as good as mine at this point!
It could well be the other way around. Ramsay told Sansa that Jon was at the Wall: and that would be the place he would think to look for her once he realizes that she’s not hiding somewhere in Winterfell. Moreover, we have good reason to think that this is what is going to happen in the book, too.
So, if it’s Sansa rallying the Umbers and possibly others (the Mormants would be an obvious choice given that two of them are/were prominent characters in the show), then they might be the ones to succor the Wall against Ramsay. It probably will be done in Rickon’s name and even with Rickon there: but 1) he’s still a bit young ( although now a teenager!); and, 2) Rickon is not a main character.
The thing is (and that’s what the others seem to be ignoring), we don’t have to guess exactly what it means to know for sure that it will mean something. Sam will have a story in TWOW —and for that to happen, it must be something that goes beyond the few plot points that his last AFFC chapters set up for the immediate future —studying; Horn Hill; an ironborn attack. That’s basically nothing, in terms of story; that’s just setup. There’s a whole immense book ahead, and Sam will have a proper story in it, and that’s what D&D have surely adapted, not just his last AFFC chapter and what it in turn sets up.
Basically it boils down to this: Is anyone so arrogant as to assume they can predict the ending of Sam’s TWOW story based solely on the ending of Sam’s AFFC story and what it promises for the beginning of Sam’s TWOW story?
Agreed.
And I agree with you entirely that Sam’s plotline this year will be almost entirely Winter material. They’ve got to keep things moving along! There is no point in doing his voyage: all of the key story and plot points were made last year already.
Tell that to GRRM..
Well, they have yet to film in the semi-desserts of Navarra and Almería. It would be strange that Emilia didn’t film at least in one of those. lol
Sansa on the other hand… I hope she’s supposed to film indoors, ’cause I’m definitely more interested in her than in whatever Sam does, or almost any other character really.
I still can’t read the spoilers. Is anyone else having this problem?
Have I done something wrong? Is there something I should be doing that I’m not?
I’m new and technology challenged so please be gentle with me 🙂
Off topic.
If anyone is interested, I saw Gendry this morning. He’s alive and well and was chopping hazelnuts.
Let-it-Snow,
These are the spoilers:
Let-it-Snow,
You should be able to just click anywhere in the blurred grey area of the spoiler text to expose the hidden text. At least that is how it has always worked for me. Good luck.
Numerous reviewers did just that!
Oh hey, I’ll try. Maybe not TWOW, but Season 6.
– Sam has a couple couple-type scenes with Gilly and Young Sam (who is shown to have escaped the Wall-induced stasis). He’s like, ‘oh, my father….’
– Sam takes Gilly to Horn Hill. There are some Valyrian sword shenanigans, hopefully.
– Sam ends up in Oldtown. He barely has the time to meet some Maesters and talk to them about Dany, the Dragons etc., before…
– Euron attacks Oldtown and burns it to the ground. Sam’s like, dammit, Jon’s half-brother’s wannabe-killer’s uncle, I escaped North to get away from this type of sh*t.
– Sam ends up as Euron’s slave/captive. Once Dany arrives in Westeros, Sam will become the second person, after Tyrion, to have met both Jon and Dany – in the proper time, he will direct Dany North.
– Then, he’ll probably die.
Let-it-Snow,
Have same problem both with mb & laptop
So you’re saying aaall of that fits in the last three to four episodes? Horn Hill is being directed by Jack Bender, after all.
Luka Nieto,
I agree about Sam being the second main character to meet Dany and directing her North, though. But not in season six.
Wimsey,
The difference is that the show has not limited timespace. GRRM can write a whole book about Sams journey around the world but D&D can not afford it timewise. Therefore Sam will be in OT early in S6.
Is there any news anywhere about who the director is for Sam’s conversation scene with the Maester at OT?
Also, not being a book reader, I am quite puzzled as to why so many posters write of Sam going to Braavos on the way to OT. From the bookmarked map I have, that is NOT on the way unless someone wanted to go to somewhere in Essos. Castle Black to OT would be nicely done by sea sailing around Westeros, or sailing to King’s Landing and then journeying across land to Horn Hill, OT, etc.
Now that’s an excellent guess. It’s only logical that Sam’s stint at Oldtown and learning about everything may clue him into WWs and dragons, and if he meets Daenerys, he’ll be able to tell her to go north and what to do, once she gets there.
dothrakian raven,
The same is true for both media, although I agree that books can afford to be a little more drawn out than can TV or films can. Still, one of the #1 criticisms of books is that authors put in too many unnecessary “scenes.” The soul of wit and all of that….
Diario di Girona has a few new stuff to say about the now famous scene in the stairs to the Great Sept:
– It will be filmed on Tuesday the 15th (but rehersals will be tomorrow.)
– There are three main characters involved: King Tommen, Jaime, and Margaery, who will mount Jaime’s steed after being freed. That last tricky thing is what they will be rehearsing tomorrow Monday.
– Interestingly, Tommen will emerge into the scene from inside the Sept.
– A camera will be placed in the Sant Feliu belltower, which will be looking at the top of the stairs. Considering that’s where they are placing all the props, it seems that’s where the main action will be focused; at the top of the stairs.
– Surprisingly, the cathedral’s facade won’t be completely CGI-d over, as they claim that the statues of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, which are at each side of the cathedral’s gate, will be transformed into something else with the use of props. This means they’ll use the rest of the facade —well, the gate, at any rate.
– There will be Tyrell soldiers and either Gold Cloaks or Lannister soldiers —or both; the report wrongly assumes they are one and the same.
Let-it-Snow,
I’m on a laptop and using a Firefox browser, and it works just fine for me. Sorry you’re having problems.
It’s funny you should mention Gendry. I’m doing a reread and just got to the point (oh, shit, sorry, I’m going to use spoiler code here, but if you’ve read the books, it’s where we leave Gendry in the books, and I’m surmising how great it would be if we found him in that general vicinity in season 6)
, I think I would audibly woo-hoo. 🙂
Kay,
Naval routes often are indirect: Sam was hopping ships that were bound for certain ports, not chartering a ship to Oldtown.
That written, it is not clear to me what Sam can learns about WW at Oldtown. At this point, the key thing to learn about the is not “what” but “why”. That will not be in a book. Similarly, what is there to learn about dragons?
Well, it looks like Kit officially, albeit accidentally, let out what the future is for his character. Click at your own risk – obviously spoils things.
Many had already speculated but this seems to really confirm things.
Thank you Luka Nieto for the spoiler info.
Darquemode that is just what I’m doing. I’ve been coming on this site for awhile now and have always been able to read the spoilers by clicking on them. But now I’ve joined they won’t work for me. Maybe it wants me to unjoin 🙁
Luka Nieto,
Very cool, thank you! 🙂
No, nobody should be arrogant enough to assume that they can predict what will happen in Sams arc in TWOW, as none of us actually know. And that includes you. You’re the one making more assumptions/attestations that anyone else here. We don’t actually know that Sam will encounter the Iron born and we CERTAINLY don’t know that Sam will be the second main character (he’s not a main character) to meet Dany/direct her North. For all we know someone with the right knowledge could discover his horn at Oldtown OR during any potential travels to Oldtown. And the sequence of any of these multitude of (equally possible events) is still unknown to us all. D&D have changed storylines around many times and will continue to do so.
Fingers crossed for Gendry’s very soon safe return Nymeria Warrior Queen.
By the way he’s looking even yummier 🙂
Thank you Ser Pounce for that link. I’m very needy, keep wanting reassurances that Jon Snow will definitely still be with us. What a nice kitty you are.
[ Strokes the nice kitty]
Apollo,
Meeting Dany is just something I’d like to happen.
The only assumption I made is that TWOW will give Sam a story, and that the show will tell a story in season six, instead of stretching Sam’s last AFFC chapter and what it immediately sets up into a whole season.
Let-it-Snow,
Purrrrrrr.
We already knew it thanks to Sue’s post about his big scene but now he’s all but said it as well.
Seriously? Nobody should be arrogant enough to try to predict Sam’s storyline?
That was the most fun of last year, “being arrogant” and trying to predict Sansa’s storyline. It’s FUN! We see different people dreams, fears, hopes and wild silly guesses about their favorite characters…
Geepers creepers people have some fun with it… this is a community not an angry religion… dare to speculate a bit
Actually, Luka is making the same number of assumptions as anybody else. Many people here are assuming that Sam’s S6 storyline is basically going to involve his Crows’ journey, probably because this is all we know for certain that Sam does that has not been televised.
Luka is assuming that Sam’s S6 storyline is going to involve mostly what he does in Winter (which starts shortly after he gets to Oldtown).
Now, people on one side can say: “well, we shouldn’t assume that Sam will do anything about which we do not know from the books.” However, we already know that this season is going to be a story and (largely) plotlines from an unpublished book. So, this seems to be an unsound assumption.
Luka’s conjecture that Sam’s story will somehow involve Euron is just that: conjecture. However, we know from the books that Euron is besieging areas near where Sam is going to be. (Well, except for the tin-foil hat covered “Euron is Daario” crowd….) We also know that Euron is not going to be a main character: it is much too late in the series to introduce those. So, that means: to who’s storyline will Euron contribute? We have a small list of probable candidates based on geography: Sam, Cersei and Jaime.
So, Luka is not making any more assumptions than is anyone else, the assumptions he is making are not unsound, and the idea is reasonably probable in the absence of knowing what happens in Winter.
Lady Wolfsbane,
Yeah, let’s try. I’m just saying, assuming D&D won’t use their knowledge of TWOW and will limit themselves to what we the readers know (from AFFC’s last chapter and what it sets up) is quite arrogant.
I have no clue what might be discovered about the White Walkers, but as far as dragons go, per the hints in AFFC the suggestion is very clear what Sam might learn about dragons at Oldtown, that being:
Ramon,
Hello and thanks for the great photos, hope you had a good time on your spying mission – must be interesting seeing the behind the scenes stuff. Sorry I wasn’t trying to steal your glory here, just thought Photoshop might be able to help and most people don’t have access to it.
As I’m looking at them anyway thought I’d zoom in on your higher res copies and overwrite my earlier version here, hope you don’t mind, the credit is all yours 😀 Clearer view makes it look more likely there aren’t any really distinguishing patterns or colours to speak of. Gold Cloak and Lannister armour doesn’t seem to match, my best guess is Tyrells as they wear a lot of stuff over the top of it, as you can see in the pictures igorcarvalho linked to above. Filming is in the next few days so we should know soon.
Ashara D,
I assume you mean the guy in the dark tshirt with his right arm out? I don’t think it’s anyone we know; might be the same person standing with the armour in another of Ramon‘s photos if you follow the link in his post above (at 4.07 am) but he seems to have slightly longer hair. I’ve stuck zoomed in versions with the others above for comparison.
Edith,
I spoke to some people, and HBO has denied this story: Julie Christie is not cast in GOT.
A bit of a bummer, since I’m a big fan of hers.
Oh and if anyone is having trouble with the spoiler coding, please tell us specifically what you’re using- mobile or not, Android, iphone etc, so we know what to look at. From where I’m standing, with Chrome and a laptop, the spoiler coding seems fine so we need your input.
Hi Sue
I’m using a Chromebook – Acer C720. Funny thing is I didn’t have a problem with the spoilers while I was just reading the posts on your wonderful site. Now I’ve joined and starting posting myself I can’t see them. Maybe it’s coincidence but that’s what happened.
Thanks for asking.
Hi, Sue. I’m using a laptop with Windows 7 and Firefox and an Android phone with, I think, the latest version of everything, including the browser. Neither works.
Too bad! 🙁
Wimsey,
For all we know D&D could replace Marwyn with Sam and after his time in Oldtown send Sam to Essos to connect with Dany…..
So hard to know what will occur from this point on honestly.
Sue – using PC with Windows 10 and Firefox. Spoilers not showing up even though I have clicked the button. Can see them when I move mouse over individual posts.
I thought it would be a bit odd for her to say outright that that’s what she was doing, although who knows. Too bad.
I’ve never understood why some people say that ‘insert actor/actress’ is too famous to bother with a small role on GoT. Celebrities are fans too, and many would be more than happy for a cameo, as other shows have done. Not to mention the not exactly obscure actors already on the show to begin with! 🙂
Hey Sue, this is fantasy, if you want JC to be in GoT she can be, here (obviously winter hasn’t hit KL yet) 😀
EDIT: And for Kay too 😀
Luka Nieto,
THANK FUCKING JESUS!
The Cog-Man should just take over all writing for this show
To elaborate: Have you ever gone sailing? Sailboats and larger sailing ships almost never travel in a straight line towards their destination – not unless they have the prevailing wind at their stern the whole time. (That’s why the Trade Winds are called Trade Winds – and it only works for trade going in one direction.) It’s more of a zigzag path, tacking alternately to port and starboard to take advantage of where the wind is coming from at any given moment.
Remember also that the Narrow Sea is indeed narrow, relatively speaking. If the prevailing wind out of Eastwatch blows in a southeasterly direction, the usual route south might start out with a long tack to Braavos. A sizable ship might want to stop there anyway to pick up and deliver passengers and trade items, as well as restock food and fresh water. Then it would take a southwestward tack back toward the Westerosi mainland.
To hug the shore of Westeros southward would be possible, but more difficult for a larger ship that needs a longer tack to come about properly than for a smaller, more maneuverable one, and possibly more hazardous if there are a lot of rocks, shallows, sandbars, tricky currents and so on inshore. So it’s not as counterintuitive as it might seem for a southbound voyage to stop off at Braavos “on the way.” From a mariner’s perspective, it might not be all that far out of the way – and it might be a safer voyage, with commercial incentives as well.
That being said, I don’t really see what’s to be gained storywise from a near-miss between Sam and Arya – unless it’s a ride to Oldtown for Jaqen (masked or not) on a mysterious mission.
Actually, I would be fascinated to see what Maester training entails, and some of the lessons – and especially the final exams – could be visually very impressive, if they’re anything like what Druids reportedly had to accomplish. Here are a couple of excerpts on the subject of Druidic training from Robert Graves’s ‘Claudius the God,’ the sequel to ‘I, Claudius’ (which I strongly suspect was among GRRM’s sources of inspiration for the political conniving, poisoning and backstabbing that go on in GoT/ASoIaF):
‘The candidate must lie naked all night in a coffin-like box, only his nostrils protruding above the icy water with which it is filled, and with heavy stones laid on his chest. In this position he must compose a poem of considerable length in the most difficult of the many difficult bardic metres, on a subject which is given him as he is placed in the box. On his emergence next morning he must be able to chant this poem to a melody which he has been simultaneously composing, and accompany himself on the harp….
‘The candidate’s last test but one is to spend the longest night of the year on a rocking-stone called the “Perilous Seat” which is balanced over a deep chasm in a mountain… Evil spirits come and talk to him all night and try by various means to make him lose his balance.’
So, who says that learning to become a Maester wouldn’t qualify as ‘more interesting material’? Could be awesome! And in Sam’s case, I expect that there would also be some episodes of comic relief. I could easily envision a humorous montage of mishaps during his training, in which potions keep blowing up in his face a la Seamus Finnigan at Hogwarts or the like. (Though Samwell is more the Westerosi cognate of Neville Longbottom, I guess – and he has already had his slaying-Nagini moment.) He’s a smart scholar, but he can’t possibly be great at every subject, so it could be amusing to see where his studies are most frustrating.
Firannion,
Hello there did you come from? What a nice share of information about sailing and druids, thanks! A near miss with Sam and Arya would be silly fun. *sigh* like Quentyn… I would have liked to see him…
Luka Nieto,
Here’s a quick reason I feel like speculating about Sam’s story – I doubt there will be much of one. He likely has a lot of ground to cover (therefore no scenes) and like Bran will likely go into a training montage-type state.
Speculate about someone that will no doubt make great strides with their plots, like Jon, or Dany or Tyrion? That feels more like hubris….
That would also be very cool! Sansa saving Jon. Like it a lot.
Firannion,
That’s exactly where the book is going to have the time to dive in and explore. I doubt the show will spend much of their screentime on this less important (yet potentially very interesting) arc. Especially this season, when they’re juggling more storylines than ever. Jon*, Tyrion, Dany, Arya, Sansa, Bran, Iron Islands, King’s Landing, Dorne, Jaime… Unless they decide to delay the meaty stuff to season 7 and only build up to it, say, in the finale (with Euron attacking or something), I don’t see them covering Sam’s training for more than the necessary minimum. If they do delay all that, it will likely take them out of sync with TWOW.
Ser Matt the Sullen,
D&D were by far the best writers last season. All of their episodes were amazing, pretty much.
Nymeria Warrior Queen,
I also can’t see the spoilers. When I click the “show spoilers” at the top of the thread, it pops all the way to the top of the article as if I had chosen “back to the top”. But, then it doesn’t work either way as all the spoilers are still shaded out. Even hovering over the shading when it says click to “show spoilers” it doesn’t.
I am hoping the moderators are working on the final issues from the server change last week.
Sue The Fury I am at work using a PC with IE. I could switch to Chrome if you think that would be the issue.