Game of Thrones Season 5 Episode 7 – The Gift – Open Chat

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Game of Thrones Season 5, Episode 7: “The Gift”

Writers: David Benioff and D.B. Weiss
Director: Miguel Sapochnik
Runtime: 59 minutes
Content Warnings: TV-MA: Adult Content, Adult Language, Nudity, Violence
Synopsis: Jon prepares for conflict. Sansa tries to talk to Theon. Brienne waits for a sign. Stannis remains stubborn. Jaime attempts to reconnect with family.
Video Preview: Episode 7 Preview on Youtube

*Note: this post is for all viewers so please use spoiler coding when discussing spoilers.*

Spoiler coding is still required in this Open Chat post prior to the episode’s official airing (9PM EDT tonight for Episode 7). We ask that fans use consideration for your fellow viewers, and cover and label your spoilers appropriately. If you’re discussing any leaked footage, that is a spoiler and must be covered. Thanks!

Sue the Fury
Susan Miller, Editor in Chief of WatchersOnTheWall.com

445 Comments

  1. I wonder if Dany will meet Tyrion this episode, we know from the promo/pictures she’s there to witness Jorah fight, but will Tyrion be too?
    Oh, I hope to see Yezzan too! 😀

  2. It’s pretty great to know that this one will last 59 minutes! I love when a few extra minutes by the end of the episode makes it feel like a big change in terms how much of the story was told.

  3. Alexandre Laframboise:
    That’s pretty great to see that this one will last 59 minutes! I love when a few extra minutes by the end of the episode makes it feel like a big change in terms how much of the story was told.

    I totally understand what you’re saying. 6 or 7 minutes of difference and you are able to add a storyline with long and detailled scenes…

    Btw (tu es français j’imagine ?)

  4. I missed out commenting on the photo set thread that the photo of Jaime gazing out the window evoked to me the Princess in the Tower (Arianne) chapter. I’m not saying he is taking on Arianne’s role, but it just gives me the sense that the Dorne storyline might get on track this episode.

  5. I have faith the combat scenes in this episode will be considerably better than the previous one.

  6. So much going on this episode. Yeahhhh!!!! It’ll be interesting to see which wtf moment they end with.

  7. Aemon dies! Cersei gets captured! But most of all… Pink Mast in this episode!!

    Finally! Can’t wait! w00t w00t goes the cool train

  8. One of Roose Bolton’s leeches,

    Any GoT fight scene ever has been better than that, to be honest.

    The editing was the major culprit, in my opinion. Some people blame the coreography, but… come on, the editing didn’t help. It was just confusingly shot and edited. That director really doesn’t know how to do action.

  9. Interested to see what they do with this Malko character. Him and his guys were slavers but looked and acted more like pirates. I guess they’re just kidnapping peaople and selling Them to Slavers Bay and Volantis. So a different mechanism in the slave business. The ones doing the dirty work. But since he’s a fairly established character actor with prominent roles in Lost and Oz, I think Malko is gonna be a strong presence in the next couple of episodes.

  10. Hoping for a bit less of an emotional battering than last week please! I’m pretty sure something is going to happen this week which I’m looking forward to, but even if it doesn’t it looks like the show is building to the last 3 episodes being a triple whammy of woah!ness. We have a public holiday in the UK tomorrow so those of us who can’t normally stay up until 3am to watch can join in with our further-west-time-wise fellow Watchers this week :O)

  11. Of course, the fighting scenes this season have been some of the worst ever committed to screen. But let’s remain optimistic.

    PS- I am the biggest Martell fanboy, but at this point I’d rather we learn next week that a meteor has wiped Dorne off the map than see that tragedy continue to play out. At this point, it’s not just been an abject failure to implement Dorne, but a calamity of such epic proportions that it’s actually dragging the quality of the whole show down. A lot.

  12. HBO must really not care about initial airing viewership numbers anymore if there are putting an episode on Memorial Day Weekend this year.

  13. So many incredible and daunting moments to look forward to in eps 7, 8, 9, & 10. The end of quasi-canon is nigh!

    (although some may call it queasy-canon!)

  14. The Bastard:
    HBO must really not care about initial airing viewership numbers anymore if there are putting an episode on Memorial Day Weekend this year.

    I agree.

  15. mau,

    Just out of curiosity, have you read Benioff’s ‘City of Thieves’? I just read an article on it and wasn’t even aware he was an author – apparently it’s quite good.

  16. If you guys are looking for fantasy to read, check out The Witcher series. I’m not into fantasy at all (not even Lord of the Rings), but it’s really hooked me. Great world and characters.

  17. I have high hopes for this episode. Now it’s the time for the season to really kick in. Four episodes remaining!

  18. I hope we get some White Walker scenes soon… I know we might get them in episode 8 though.

  19. Really hoping these final four episodes have the momentum we’ve been waiting for. They shouldn’t be wasting a single scene now. Nervous about Dorne.

  20. Hodor’s Bastard,

    I haven’t quite internalized it, but you’re right… a shit-ton of stuff is happening this last four episodes!

    And that includes surprises for book readers, such as the Battle of Ice (with Roose sending Ramsay —instead of the Freys and Manderlys— out of the castle to fight Stannis in the snow) and Tyrion meeting Dany, which will undoubtedly happen tonight (along with the wheel speech, I bet.) There are probably some other surprises as well.
  21. Chimeny:
    Chriss,

    Is that the same Witcher series as the games? Are the games based on books then? I didn’t know that…

    Yeah, that’s right. The books are well-regarded in Europe, but only in recent years have they started to be translated.

    They also got translated in a really strange order. The first book only being released in English for the first time a few days ago. Bizarre, eh?

  22. Chimeny,

    Based on the books, yes. Though they get away with having a completely different story in the games, which are technically sequels to the novels, because of the amnesia stuff.

    Chriss,

    Well, the first book was a set of short stories, if I remember correctly, so it kinda makes sense. The true story starts with the second one, right? I only read a couple, a long time ago…

  23. This is the fourth episode without Arya isn’t it? LOL. Less important that Bran at this point.

    Let’s start a petition to cut her out of the show.

  24. Luka Nieto:

    That director really doesn’t know how to do action.

    You know what’s interesting? It’s rumoured that Jeremy Podeswa is the director that was supposed to shoot Blackwater, but had to drop out at the last minute due to a family emergency.

  25. Chriss:
    If you guys are looking for fantasy to read, check out The Witcher series. I’m not into fantasy at all (not even Lord of the Rings), but it’s really hooked me. Great world and characters.

    I’ve been reading them for a while. Nice depth in a fantasy series.

  26. Pigeon,

    I’ve read it, and it is really good. So is his other novel, ‘The 25th Hour’, which was adapted into a movie with Edward Norton, that was directed by Spike Lee and that Benioff also wrote the screenplay for. This is why it is so ridiculous when people call him a hack. They don’t even know that he has written two very good novels.

  27. Luka Nieto:
    Chimeny,

    Based on the books, yes. Though they get away with having a completely different story in the games, which are technically sequels to the novels, because of the amnesia stuff.

    Chriss,

    Well, the first book was a set of short stories, if I remember correctly, so it kinda makes sense. The true story starts with the second one, right? I only read a couple, a long time ago…

    Okay, so there are two anthologies of short stories. They translated the second one, but not the first.

    Following those two, you have The Witcher ‘saga’ – three of which have been translated, with the two remaining being translated just now, with expected release dates of 2016 and 2017 respectively.

    I’ve only read the second book of short stories (which does have a continuous narrative throughout, and really important backstory for the saga), but I love it. So much fun. He’s a really colourful writer.

    As for whether the games do the books justice- I’ve only played the third game. But it’s like, well, imagine just reading ASoIaF and then jumping into a video game that lets you freely Rome all over Westeros. It’s that sort of awesome experience.

    But yes. The games have their own non-canon stories. But I actually prefer it this way. You get to just sort of live in the world, rather than play through the books.

  28. Chimeny:
    Chriss,

    Do the games do the books justice in your opinion?

    lol, only a few days ago? Yeah that is weird.

    There are 3 out in English. The fourth one is now on kindle but will be in paperback in June.

  29. otterbox,

    Arya has more screen time than Daenerys so far this season, and is behind only Jon,Cersei,Tyrion, and Sansa. Your trolling is beyond annoying at this point.

  30. Luka Nieto,

    I am suprised as to why you think Tyrion will meet Dany in this episode. Was there any evídence of that in the promo or? (I only saw it once quickly and in bad quality) Because, I mean, he’s stuck with Malko and his crew now, they’re gonna have to sail to Mereen, and before meeting Dany, I think he’s gonna be given over to Yessan. Why are people so sure, they will meet this episode? Is it because it looks like the wedding is this episode? I don’t think they’re going straight to Daznaks now, if thats what your’e thinking. I could see Tyrion being given to Dany as a wedding gift though, it just seems a bit early for that meeting. Or maybe I just dont know how far from Slavers Bay Tyrion and Jorah were when they were caught by Malko. Maybe they were quite close. I just hope we see Tyrion being a slave for a while

  31. Episodes 7 – 10: we are getting down to serious business now! 🙂 All the set-up will start yielding results. I am very happy that we are back to David and Dan writing this episode. The minutes are really dragging today till 9 pm…. so much to look forward to. I hope for a jaunty Rains of Castamere track when a long-awaited moment for me arrives. 😀

  32. Damphairinheshow!,

    Just a few pieces of circumstantial evidence. Personally, I’m pretty sure it will happen tonight, though of course I may well be wrong.

    Also, Tyrion and Jorah were not only close to Slaver’s Bay last episode —they WERE in Slaver’s Bay, though on the western shore, where Valyria is. They simply have to cross the bay.

    In the books, Tyrion saw the slaver ship, the chapter ended, and by the beginning of the next chapter he was already just outside the gates of Meereen, having just been sold to Yezzan. I imagine when we see Tyrion and Jorah tonight they will be arriving in Meereen.
  33. Damphairinheshow!,

    I don’t think they will meet, unless Tyrion is purchased by Hizdahr, or is given as a gift. But I do think they will both catch a glimpse of each other.

  34. Pigeon:
    mau,

    Just out of curiosity,have you read Benioff’s ‘City of Thieves’? I just read an article on it and wasn’t even aware he was an author – apparently it’s quite good.

    No, but I think that they are the best, because Cogman is too dependent on the books. He wrote two worst scenes in show’s history. Yara in S4, and Sand snakes in S5E6.

    David H. is ok, but he use too much exposition.

  35. Tyrion Pimpslap,

    He also wrote the script for Troy. I know the movie wasn’t that good, but that is more the result of a bad director. The script was one of the hottest ones being passed around Hollywood at the time.

    Benioff is as legit as they get.

  36. I’ve really enjoyed this season so far, but it does feel like one giant set-up for the last 2 seasons of the show. Almost every episode of Season 4 had a major event happening. With Season 5, a lot of pieces are being moved around. It is much better then what we have in the books at this stage.

  37. If true that Tyrion meets Daenerys in S05E07 then we’ll probably get her ‘wise’ break-the-wheel speech. The highlight of the season for Daenerys’s fans, I suppose. The lucky cock meets the wise-ass Daenerys, should be written in synopsis.

  38. The Bastard: . With Season 5, a lot of pieces are being moved around. It is much better then what we have in the books at this stage.

    Then S5 has done exactly what AFfC & ADwD did. They were Act II, which set all the pieces in place for Act III.

  39. Tyrion Pimpslap,

    Why wouldn’t they meet?

    We see quite clearly in the trailers and the promo for today’s episode that Daenerys is witnessing Jorah fighting in a sort of slave auction / fighting pit training area, distinct from the scenes at Daznak’s. So she’ll definitely reunite with Jorah, and it will be in this episode. Why wouldn’t she also meet Tyrion? I mean, they can contrive it so that it doesn’t happen, but why would they? Just to follow the rather anti-climactic original climax of ADWD? It will definitely happen this season (remember the leaked Daznak photos, and the ‘wheel’ speech, which only makes sense if delivered to Tyrion), so why not tonight? Why delay it?

    There’s also an interesting report from a Spanish dubber who said that tonight something happens that book readers have been waiting for to happen in the books for years. This fits the bill.

  40. otterbox,

    Arya fans should learn to roll with the punches just like everyone else. Except, you know, Tyrion fans. Which is technically everyone. But I’m starting to undermine my own point so, um, I digress…

    She’s been treated brilliantly by the show runners consistently throughout the first four seasons, and in season five they built all of Braavos and the House of B&W just for her.

    Meanwhile my favourite character is Theon, who was in three episodes in season four and has been downgraded to a side character in season five for Sansa’s sake, who shouldn’t even be anywhere near that plot to begin with.

    YES HE IS A SIDE CHARACTER DESPITE THIS BEING ‘A DANCE WITH DRAGONS’ CONTENT. DO ANY OTHER BOOK READERS FEEL MY PAIN RIGHT NOW? I CAN’T EVEN-

    Basically it annoys me so much seeing people freaking out over episodes not containing Arya. And you did not just compare her to Bran lol!

  41. By pure happenstance, last week turned out to be an incredibly busy stretch of the season for me, thanks to a combination of graduations, work, and prearranged travel. As such, I had next to no time to go through my usual crop of reviews or peruse the comment section of this website as thoroughly as I usually do. Without passing judgment on anyone’s point of view, I’ll just say that turned out to be a blessing in disguise. The reviews and comments I did get around to reading to were mostly thoughtful and well-considered, but I’m very grateful that time constraints largely prevented me from straying into the more poisonous corners of the online discourse, inadvertently or otherwise.

    Stepping away from the debate allowed me to process and fortify my own impressions of the episode and the things that happened in it [short version: It was easily the weakest episode of what’s been an extremely strong season up to this point. After my preseason expectations were undercut by two subpar scenes, the Sand Snakes have some work to do to win back my favor. But I’m still very enthusiastic about and engaged with all of the storylines, including Dorne (now that the focus will shift to Jaime and Doran) and Winterfell. Time will tell if the narrative payoff of the White Wedding was worth the emotional and political capital it apparently cost the show in certain circles, but as a scene itself, I thought it was gorgeously shot, brilliantly acted, and very effective in eliciting the emotion that it was intended to elicit – namely, horror.] With that business resolved, I even got to enjoy some extra time in the sun. Apparently, it’s beautiful outside this time of year! Who knew? 😉

    But now we’re back, and I’m really looking forward to tonight’s episode! Based on the storylines that have been confirmed and my own speculation about what this episode might include, I think it has the potential to be one of the best installments of what’s been a very strong season to date. And if what I hope happens in the episode does come to pass (specifically in Meereen), it has the potential to be a milestone episode of the entire series, for Sullied and Unsullied viewers alike.

  42. Balerion The Cat:
    Oh, I hope to see Yezzan too!

    So do I, tho I have a feeling all D&D will keep from The Yellow Whale will be the name 🙁

    One of my favorite terciary characters (as my nick suggests) 🙂

  43. Hodor’s Bastard:
    Luka Nieto,

    Regarding Roose & Ramsay….

    Come on, Mel, just one more shadow-baby…please?

    Wouldn’t you find it more satisfying if they were taken down by people they’d personally wronged, particularly if they weren’t amongst the stronger, looking-more-likely-to-survive-unscathed, characters?

    SPOILERS BASED ON SANSA IN WINTERFELL VIDEO SPECULATION

    Although if people are right in thinking Ramsay attacks Stannis’s camp in advance it could be personal to Team Dragonstone. If he touches Shireen I will kick the tv screen so hard there will be a Lulu’s Mum’s boot shaped crater where his face used to be. It’s new experimental option you get with Sky Atlantic, pay top dollar and be able to interact with the programme ;O)
  44. Yezzan zo Qaggaz,

    Because he had such a rich personality. He was fat! And yellow! He was Jabba the Hutt. Not exactly a strong character.

    Jared,

    So I gather that, just like me, you are on the Tyrion-meets-Dany-tonight hype train? 🙂
  45. Tyrion Pimpslap,

    Yeah that’s true. It’s just painful to think that, the way they had to space it out, it’s impossible to see him as anything other than a side character now. If he’d been a focus of season two, then disappeared for two seasons, then come back as a focus in season five, people would undoubtedly care about him more. Not to mention it’d have been a bloody cool twist.

    I know it wasn’t realistically possible for the show to work like this, by the way. Without all those torture scenes people would find it even harder to believe the psychological state he is currently in – amazingly, there are people who struggle to understand that even now, given the volume of “why the f*ck won’t Theon just man up already?” comments I see on twitter/youtube etc.

    All I’m saying is it’s a shame it had to work out the way it did. Which brings me back to the original point I was making: Fans of X Character need to learn to roll with the punches, as the TV adapts the story as best it can.

    ..

    ..

    Unless X is Tyrion lol.

  46. Luka Nieto,

    I am indeed! I’m aware that their meeting is not guaranteed to happen this week, but now that Tyrion and Jorah have been captured by slavers, this is the first of three possible episodes (from now through Episode 9) in which it plausibly could. The meeting of Tyrion and Daenerys was and remains one of my five most anticipated moments of the entire season (the others being Hardhome, Daznak’s Pit, Cersei’s walk, and For the Watch). I’ll be damned if I’m going to miss out on the opportunity for some good, old-fashioned hype! 🙂
  47. Jared: With that business resolved, I even got to enjoy some extra time in the sun. Apparently, it’s beautiful outside this time of year

    Winter is coming.

  48. The Bastard,

    Have you seen the Troy Director’s Cut perchance? It is a significant improvement over the theatrical version. More Sean Bean and development for Diane Kruger’s Helen. Also the sack of Troy is much more brutal and true to the period.
    As for the director, Wolfgang Petersen is a good filmmaker. This is the man who directed Das Boot, Air Force One and the Perfect Storm. I’d place blame on Brad Pitt’s star power because he mugged it up for Achilles and ended up being the weakest part of the film. The sole exception being the Achilles/Priam scene. Oh and Orlando Bloom was a weak Paris to boot.
    But Bana’s Hector, O Toole’s Priam and great work from James Cosmo, John Terry, Brian
    Cox and of course Sean Bean working with Benioff’s script seemed like a winner. I just think Petersen lost creative control with the production or with post production.

  49. My crackpot predictions regarding Ramsay vs Stannis.

    Ramsay will somehow get to Shireen or Selyse during his night time raid and wound or kill either one of them. Stannis will go full Red Rahloo mode and set Ramsay on fire with his flaming sword, leaving him to die screaming. He tries to extinguish the flames with some snow but fails due to the fire being made by Melisandre’s magic. Greatjon Umber arrives and smashes the remaining Bolton soldiers sent out with Ramsay. Roose is pissed and we finally get a leeching scene.
  50. I predict that Myranda dies in this episode, brutally mauled by dogs with Reek and Sansa watching on the orders of Ramsay.
    I have actually started to really apricate Myrandas character as it puts another layer to Ramsays insanity. As revealed last week, she is part of hieracy-game and as of now she is last woman standing. And with Sansa now in the mix, she’s gonna die soon. so that Sansa becomes number one. That will give viewers a feeling of dread, because we know what happens to the others. And I really loved the mentioning of the girls. Kyra, Violet (who we saw seducing Theon), Tansy (who we saw die horribly). They all had something that annoyed or ‘bored’ Ramsay, and these details really adds layers to that storyline, I think, because now we can actually see that, YES, Myranda has actually had that jealousy edge in her personality from the very first scene, she was in (seducing Theon with Violet) and YES, Tansy actually really seems quite nice un until she is ripped apart. It’s a great writing choice in my opinion and that Little run-Down of Ramsays bedwarmers in last episode is very Bryan Cogman. I prefer ramsay pyramyd of bedwarmers to the Bastards Boys from the novel. And after tonight, as I said, Sansa will be last bedwarmer standing. Mark my Words!

  51. Lulu’s Mum: Wouldn’t you find it more satisfying if they were taken down by people they’d personally wronged, particularly if they weren’t amongst the stronger, looking-more-likely-to-survive-unscathed, characters?

    Oh , of course! But my answer would be very different if you asked that in show context vs book context. Given that there are no dragons around Westeros yet, Mel is sort of the nuclear option (and she is tagging along with the Stannis contingent…so please use her!!!).

    Btw, I would pay to see your reaction (as described) if Shireen is indeed touched. 😉

  52. Damphairinheshow!,

    Yeap. The only notable landmark between Volantis and Slaver’s Bay is Valyria, and they crossed it in episode five. So, in episode six, when the slavers got them, Tyrion and Jorah must have been on the Eastern shore of the Valyrian peninsula, which makes up the Western side of Slaver’s Bay. They must have been walking north, in order to go around the bay (if they didn’t find a boat.)

  53. Luka Nieto,

    Makes sense then, that Malko and his crew is on their way from Slavers Bay to Volantis, because Dany shut Down slavery.

  54. Hodor’s Bastard,
    Aaah I’m not a book reader, I just read spoilers, so I know the general points but not the finer details.

    I was never a massive Shireen fan before this series but now she seems in real danger I think my mothering instinct is kicking in big time. That lovely scene with Stannis made her look about 8 years old. The teenage characters in this tend to look like teenagers but she looks like a young child and therefore far more vulnerable. If she survives I’m gonna adopt her.

    As I said the Sky Atlantic thing is experimental, on account of this apparently not being a documentary but pretend (whaaaat?) but if you see a woman in a purple duffle coat with two tabby and white cats suddenly appear in a cartoon Tasmanian Devil whirl and out-crazy Ramsay while totally destroying him, then it worked ;O)

  55. Am I the only one who would be perfectly okay without Arya for a season or two? I think it would only improve the show and everyone’s arcs. And the training could be skipped. No more sweeping or corpse cleaning.

  56. Joshua Atreides,

    Agree with all of this about Troy. I would merely add that Brendan Gleeson was also excellent.
    Indeed, Bloom and Pitt aside, the cast was almost perfect.

  57. otterbox,

    We get it. You are an Arya superfan that is posting stuff sarcastically. You tipped your hand when you complained in another thread about D&D’s favoritism towards Sophie/Sansa. You aren’t amusing.

  58. The Rat Kook,

    With Theon as your favorite character you got away lightly. My favorite parts of books 4 and 5 are Dorne and Asha´s chapters…….

  59. Bitching Alert:
    I still have PTSD from last episode I was about to scream at my wife thinking she change the channel to a Xena warrior princess, scorpion king or a Netflix low budget movie. A whip a fkn whip, we are talking about killing not BDSM Bron could could cut that that whip. One of them took a punch in the face, a teenage girl took a hit from Bron. Cheesy dialog, over acting, where are the stunt doubles just cover their faces and get pros to do the fighting. I fight for Dorne who do you fight for? I love the changes, but I’m scared of the butterfly effect. The Iron Born, BWB, Manderly, northern loyalist in the riverlands, black fish Nimerya. If you want to know if a slave is a good fighter make him fight one of your crew hands tied. In the books every sand snake had different attributes and the prince move them like chess pieces. Repe is always uncomfortable to watch but let’s be real if it was a Cersey it will be a different backlash. I’m Emotionally attached to the show I’m looking forward to this episode knowing that it can’t be worst than the last.

  60. So The Gift could have multiple reasons…all speculation..
    Jorah’s gift of Tyrion to Dany…
    I would say Arya and the “gift of death” so I am surprised that it doesn’t look like she is in this one?
    Queen of Thorn’s gift to us all of revealing Cersei
    Sam’s gift to Gilly

    What else?

  61. Luka Nieto,

    If that’s all you took from the books, you must have skipped over quite a significant portion of one of Tyrion’s chapters. Speaking for myself, I find a character that wants to

    honor the Mereen-Yunkai treaty (unlike others in his camp), is smart, treats his slaves well (at least when compared to the other slavers), is slowly dying of disease (and yes, is quite overweight) rather interesting. But if you think it is wise to replace him with cartoonish villain who is evil for the sake of being evil, I won’t waste any more time trying to convince you.

    EDIT: Can’t get spoiler tags to work, what the hell…

  62. Tyrion Pimpslap,

    The 25th Hour was a great movie!

    As for Troy, as much as the changes to the history of it offended my Classics degree sensibilities (or maybe insensibilities?) and made other major epic stories impossible by killing characters that aren’t supposed to die and leaving others alive, I really enjoyed it.

  63. otterbox,

    Your opinion is noted. No need to bring it up several times in every post. Arya is a fan favorite and is 3rd to Jon and Tyrion in total POV chapters in the books. She will not skip a season, with only 2 seasons left.

  64. According to the synopsis there will be some really tense moments in this episode, especially in the part where Brienne is going to spend ‘hours’ gazing out of the window (when she should take some rescue action). Namely in this episode ‘she waits a sign’. Can’t wait to see Brienne’s blue-eyed steady gaze.

  65. The Rat Kook,

    Even with his limited screen time, I actually find that Alfie’s acting has been the best of all at Winterfell, followed by Iwan Rheon.

  66. Tyrion Pimpslap,

    Keep in mind that GRRM wanted a time skip. Skipping a season for her would only help her portion of the story.

    Also, I don’t bring it up in every post.

  67. Blah blah: Sam’s gift to Gilly

    It’s more like Gilly’s gift to Sam. Maybe we’ll finally get past his virginal “What’s it like?” phase. It’s his turn to Kill the Boy. Nudge, nudge, wink, wink…Say no more!
    #FPM

  68. The Bastard,

    IIRC tons of fans complained when they didn’t show on Memorial Day. I know I was bummed; glad that they are not skipping a Sunday!

  69. Pigeon,

    Oh totally, I absolutely love Alfie’s acting. It’s amazing that he can still get you so invested in the character despite sort of being on the sidelines right now. I hope he gets nominated best supporting actor.

    (and more screen time/lines!)

  70. Chriss,

    Ive not heard of this series – reading the synopsis it looks like its long on battles; Im assuming it has lots of plot and character development?

    It might be interesting some time, maybe during our off season, to have a post about what fantasy people have been reading. I’ve always been a fan of Raymond Feist and Barbara Hambly….Might be an interesting discussion.

  71. Am I the only one who would be perfectly okay without haters for a season or two? I think it would only improve the show and everyone’s comments. And the bitching could be skipped. No more whining or crying.

  72. Lulu’s Mum,

    Oh, I like Shireen too Lulu’s fond mama. I think the actress who plays the part is responsible for endearing the character to me to a great degree. I do have an awful feeling of foreboding though. Bad things have happened to good people in GoT – Eddard’s execution in Season 1 comes to mind regarding the decent not escaping

    and what with Melisandre’s propensity to burn people with royal blood I’ve been thinking of the old(ish) film “The Wicker Man” where a good person was burnt and nobody came to rescue him. The victim was played – you probably know this – by Edward Woodward who was married to Michelle Dotrice, daughter of Roy Dotrice who read the ASOIAF audio books). After what happened to Sansa last week if anything happens to Shireen I will certainly go into traumatised mode.

    This is one instance when I would not mind being wrong.

  73. I seriously doubt that Ramsay will die this season but I can’t help but be worried for Shireen. The attack on Stannis’ camp will likely be in hardhome ep no. 8 and I’m really thinking that Selyse will die what with her being chest down in the snow and all.

  74. Ginevra,

    Yeah if the haters skipped a season or two and then came back after their training to be more respectful then we’d be able to better appreciate them when they return. It would also leave more room for the better commenters to properly flesh out their discussions. Its win win for everyone.

  75. Dame of Mercia,

    Onboard with the

    Shireen worry

    ladies. But still soooo excited to see all the happenings tonight!

    Tyrion meeting (or at least seeing) Dany, Sansa FINALLY taking some action, setup for the WoS, perhaps Sam and Gilly heading out…

    Glad my appendix picked last Monday to decide that it needed to leave my body pronto so I’ve missed most of the rape/not rape, needed/not needed, well done/not well done BS. I formed my own opinion and shall keep it to myself. Cheers to the new ep, everyone!

  76. The poor Sand Snakes have been picked on enough, and so I have tried to leave them alone. But there are a couple of things that bother me, and perhaps there is a good explanation. I thought others would bring them up, but I haven’t seen it mentioned.

    Why do they wear elven boots? Is this a nod to LotR or Santa Clause? Or do these boots actually have a functional purpose in the sand or something?

    And why didn’t Jaime and Bronn use their swords to cut right through Nym’s whip the three to four times she had it wrapped around one of them and pulled taut? Is a leather whip harder to cut through than a person’s neck?

  77. I will admit to being a bit gutted that here we are already at Episode 7! It’s kind of a lovely ‘before huge events’ happen, the anticipation is there, with still so much to come. But in only 3 weeks it’ll be over for another year…

  78. Ginevra:
    And why didn’t Jaime and Bronn use their swords to cut right through Nym’s whip the three to four times she had it wrapped around one of them and pulled taut?Is a leather whip harder to cut through than a person’s neck?

    The leather’s probably made out of some special snake that is only found in Dorne.

    (I genuinely can’t decide if I’m trying to be silly or if this is a serious answer.)

  79. Ginevra,

    I compared the elf boots to a certain Monty Python sketch, and was crucified for picking on Obara, so there you have it. The goose – stepping was quite impressive.

  80. Ginevra,
    Pigeon,

    Elvish boots? Really?

    Dornish culture is based on Medieval Moorish Spain (with a touch of Indian & Southeast Asian in the show’s clothing choices.) They went for a kind of Arab shoes for the Sand Snakes, which makes sense.

    Anyway, pointy boots are a thing in many cultures. Elvish boots…

  81. Dame of Mercia,
    Oh yes, the actress is great. I probably made it sound as if I only took to her because she looks so young but Kerry Ingram has made me really care about Shireen. No matter how good the script, story etc, having the right actor makes or breaks a character for me. Her face when Stannis tells her, in his own awkward way, he loves her gave me all the feels. Awwww.

    I approach the show in the same way I would a horror or disaster film – anyone could die. There is obviously a scale of likelyhood from not even going to make it through the first scene to no-one saw THAT coming, but I REALLY hope they don’t burn her. Not just because I like her but because being burned alive is such a horrible way to die. That’s why I can’t get behind Stannis, because he allows people to suffer like that. Killing your enemies in GoT world is fair enough, but you don’t have to make them suffer unnecessarily. A quick and clean beheading is far more ‘merciful’, although that is obviously a relative phrase here :O(

    This is GoT though and I think they would go there if they had to, but it would be one of the few things I really couldn’t watch.

    EDIT: Ashara D sorry to hear about your appendix :O( Last week was quite an emotional battering for those of us caring about the more ‘underdog’ characters and some of the commentary which went with it was equally depressing. I’m looking forward to something a bit less harrowing this week, she said optimistically. I’ve seen the leaked inside the episode clip and there’s one bit which is going to make me smile quite a bit. I shan’t say any more :O)

  82. Schrödinger’s Cat: She tried, but Jon Snow wasn’t having any of it.

    What would be the agenda of snow/shadow baby that was the result of a J & M tumble on the desk? Count turnips in the cellar?

  83. I too am worried for Shireen. I just watched that little compilation of clips from the show where Selyse, Mel, Stannis and Shireen have various scenes together. I got such a sense of foreboding again that Stannis would actually be forced to make a horrible decision because of his ‘all or nothing’ stance regarding his bid for the throne. I want to think he loves Shireen too much to ever allow harm to come to her, but what if Selyse takes it upon herself to sacrifice her for the good of the Stannis host. Yep, that whole Iphigenia thing could still play out.

  84. Hodor’s Bastard,

    Remember that she first has to go through a pregnancy. A surprisingly fast one, but still. It’s not simply a quick fuck and a shadow baby is born.

  85. I think we need to form a Worried About Shireen Support Group. There’s at least 5 of us in this thread alone.

    Apparently one way they help alcoholics who are trying to never drink again is to get them to break the idea of “never again” down into small chunks. So instead of no drink for x years, think I won’t have a drink for the next hour, or ten minutes or whatever seems manageable. I’m going to apply this to the show and work backwards from the end, so every 5 minutes or so tell myself, yes she’s still ok, even if the scene is entirely unconnected to her storyline. Oh look Olenna has a scroll, I wonder what it says, but more importantly Shireen is still ok and there’s only x minutes left in which something horrible can happen to her this episode. Then she’s safe for another week ;O)

  86. Luka Nieto:
    Ginevra,
    Pigeon,

    Elvish boots? Really?

    Dornish culture is based on Medieval Moorish Spain (with a touch of Indian & Southeast Asian in the show’s clothing choices.) They went for a kind of Arab shoes for the Sand Snakes, which makes sense.

    Anyway, pointy boots are a thing in many cultures. Elvish boots…

    That’s why I asked. I wanted to know if there was a good reason. Thanks, Luka.

  87. Lulu’s Mum:
    I approach the show in the same way I would a horror or disaster film – anyone could die.

    In searching Google, I happened across an article claiming to know some of the characters who would make it to the end. I tried to guess who the characters would be before clicking on the link, and I got 100% of the characters that the article was claiming would make it. So I think I would be fairly devastated if any of these didn’t make it until the latter half of the last book at least. But by the end of the end, we may be left with no one.

  88. Ginevra,

    No, you aren’t the only one. Don’t get me wrong, I have no issue with someone feeling strongly about their dislike for one thing or another, especially if they are able to debate it. There’s a difference between that and those who just troll, though, and there are at at least one or two who regularly troll.

  89. Lulu’s Mum: I think we need to form a Worried About Shireen Support Group. There’s at least 5 of us in this thread alone.

    Count me in the support group! Anyway, she’s completely safe till the last episode, I believe.
    Now I have a different worry about tonight’s episode.

    I think we are getting a Daenerys and Tyrion meet-up. For which I am extraordinarily hyped. But… what if, being prudent, he doesn’t reveal himself as Tyrion Lannister, and Jorah doesn’t tell/has no opportunity to tell anyone either? I vaguely recall someone saying, before S5 started, that D and T would meet, after a fashion. Tyrion could just present himself as a dwarf fleeing persecution by Cersei.
  90. otterbox,

    I strongly disagree. The corpsecleaning and floorscrubbing is essential for her training. All men must serve.

  91. So not specifically relevant to this thread but did anyone else think the face arya touches in the hall of faces looked like septa mordane? could just be a random old woman but really reminded me of her, though I don’t think so as I’m assuming they only get faces from the people that come to the house of the undying.

  92. Thanks, Lulu’s Mum! So far so good.

    Ok, Concerned for Shireens! Fingers crossed that our smart little button of a gal makes it through this episode. As the AAers say (kind of): “One Sunday at a time.”

  93. Ashara D:
    Thanks, Lulu’s Mum! So far so good.

    Ok, Concerned for Shireens! Fingers crossed that our smart little button of a gal makes it through this episode. As the AAers say (kind of): “One Sunday at a time.”

    You do understand that the only thing your concern will accomplish is to jinx Shireen and spell her sudden but inevitable demise? My advice? Pretend she doesn’t exist and maybe she pulls through!

  94. Ginevra:
    Kay,

    Why does that make you worry?What are you thinking could go wrong there?

    Nothing would go wrong. I just want those two to actually meet and know who they are, so that the story following that reveal can proceed with whatever relationship they will have in the future. I hope I am wrong and he tells her who he is. Otherwise, his identity will not be public knowledge till the end of 5.09 or 5.10, I think, when Jorah enters the scene.

  95. Kay,

    I’ve been looking forward to the Dany and Tyrion union for a couple of years now, as well, mostly because I believe that Tyrion has been the advisor she so desperately needs. I may be wrong. I often am. But I just see a lot of mistakes that Dany makes despite some decent advice from Selmy and others. But Tyrion I hope will be a force who cannot and will not be ignored, who will convince Dany to do wise things, and who will raise the bar of her rule and her war game strategies, as well. But perhaps I’m giving Tyrion too much credit.

    I also don’t think that Tyrion will keep Dany in the dark for long if he does lie to her. There are too many who would know instantly that this was the dwarf brother to Cersei, and it would be much better if that news came from Tyrion, I would think.

  96. Ginevra,
    You’re right, although in theory anyone could die the chances of say Jon, Dany, Tyrion, Arya, Sansa, Bran, Jaime, Cersei and Stannis all dying are very slim, certainly not before the very end.

    I don’t really mind what happens as long as the conclusion is as good as the preceding stories have been so far. At least they can’t have some wtf ending like they do on soap operas where everyone finally gathers together, makes peace and are then wiped out by a plane crash/tidal wave/terrorist attack. Although I’ve just read an article on crappy films in the Cannes film festival and one is about genetically modified flying nazi zombie sharks. If you’re gonna go out in a blaze of glory THAT is the way to go! ;O)

  97. Luka Nieto,

    It was more the strange march she was doing in them that I found odd/amusing. Trust me, some of the outfits I’ve worn for folk – dancing were far more….unique. 😛

  98. Stefanos,

    Actually what amazes me is that I don’t think he’s over acting – I don’t see him chewing the scenery.He is subtle, andvhe uses that expressive face to show so much. . He’s becoming one of my favorite actors in the show, and he’s making me, if not care for, at least be interested in what happens to him . I was so not interested in him when reading,and thought Reek was a suitable punishment at the time.

  99. Ashara D:

    Ok, Concerned for Shireens! Fingers crossed that our smart little button of a gal makes it through this episode. As the AAers say (kind of): “One Sunday at a time.”

    One sunday at a time – love it! I recommend pets for cuddling purposes if it all gets a bit too much. I have two cats and it’s greedy of me not to share if anyone needs to borrow one. Comfort food is good too. Guys and gals we can get through this together! :O)

  100. The Rat Kook,

    HA!

    There’s actual a fairly wonderful GoT animated parody on YouTube by ‘seanzoz’ (first 4 seasons) – and one of my favourite moments is when Ned is kneeling at Baelor, he slowly puts the One Ring on behind his back and vanishes. Holy crap did I laugh.

  101. Pigeon,
    *shudders* Do you know the programme Dallas that was on in the 80s? They killed off one of the main characters and it was so unpopular with the audience that in the first episode of the following series the entire preceding series really was dismissed as someone’s dream. I don’t know how to do a wtf smiley but imagine one here.

  102. Pigeon:
    Tyrion Pimpslap,

    The 25th Hour was a great movie!

    As for Troy, as much as the changes to the history of it offended my Classics degree sensibilities (or maybe insensibilities?) and made other major epic stories impossible by killing characters that aren’t supposed to die and leaving others alive, I really enjoyed it.

    They cut out Diomedes and made Aeneas a young boy. Sigh. But on a movie like that you can see that Benioff would be restricted to telling a more Hollywood-esque movie, with a love-driven Achilles, making Paris and Helen’s elopement more consensual, making Menelaus and Agammemnon villains, etc. Maye those sort of constraints drove him to really love ASOIAF whe he first read it.

  103. Pigeon,
    We need pass on our knowledge of past atrocities to avoid these things being repeated in the future. Some of the posters/readers on here are too young to know of such horrors and may dismiss them as old wives tales! ;O)

  104. Hodor’s Bastard: What would be the agenda of snow/shadow baby that was the result of a J & M tumble on the desk? Count turnips in the cellar?

    Um… a way for Jon to easily avenge his brother by murdering Roose Bolton without even having to leave Castle Black or break any vows he hasn’t already broken. I thought that was pretty obvious. Stannis wanted Renly dead. His ‘son’ took care of it. I’d assume it’d be the same for Jon.

  105. Yung Wolf,

    I am precisely the answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe, and everything – in addition to being ancient.

  106. The Rat Kook,

    I hope it’s ok to link here. I find a lot of parodies fall flat, but I love the animation and little digs they get in, especially Littlefinger’s ‘7 Kingdom News’ segments. They do a particularly fun mockery of Renly’s personality change. It makes more sense if you’re a sullied, but it’s amusing either way. 🙂

    Game of Thrones Parody – Season 1: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL25C75E567A8DF6DC

  107. Ginevra,

    dany is wise enough to make good decisions particularly for a young girl with no experience …its just her situation in meereen that has made her fail ..and lets face it anyone would have struggled in that city

    dany in the books always listens to council and makes the better choice that council cannot see.. Barrisatn has nothing to tell her other than leave for westeros and conquer it

    the only thing tyrion can be helpful for dany is with his knowledge of westeros history in which dany is lacking…. other than taht she is perfectly capable of making her own decisions whicg are wise

    and about this episode i think they will meet but the wheel speech will happen next epsiode
  108. Valaquen,

    I don’t think it deserved the criticism it got, for sure. I actually thought that Eric Bana was great. So many good actors in that one.

    Of course, I always thought Achilles’ mother was a few bricks short of a load for not dipping his damn foot in the water after dunking him by it. For that matter, who holds a kid upside down by one heel….oh those Greeks! 😛

  109. Your precious little blonde girl ain’t the hero. She is the villain. George RRrrrrr made you hate Jaime. Until you didn’t. The pretty blonde girl is not your saviour. She’s awful

  110. Best episode of the season by far! Wow!

    ETA: The Sand Snakes were much better this time. I actually like Tyene!

  111. WhaaaaWhoooo 🙂

    Thank you GOT for giving me the introduction that GRRM didn’t offer me yet.

    “I am the Gift. My name is Tyrion Lannister” 😀

    ps… I love character driven episodes and there was much to rejoice in this episode. Even one of the Sand-Snakes got a bit of Redemption.

    pps…. Bronn Safe! …. Stannis…. 🙁

    Surely next episode is Not just devoted to Hardhome????

    🙁

  112. NAILED IT! D&D fucking nailed it. You can’t deny that was a supremely entertaining hour of television.

  113. Best episode of the season, by far. It was 59 minutes and I was sad when it was over. The first episode this season I can say that about.

  114. Holy hell, this episode actually picked up very well since the last one! For sure the best episode this season. The episode before this one doesn’t feel as awkward anymore. Really enjoyed what happened after the High Septon’s monologue.

  115. GeekFurious,

    Yup. That’s why all the people getting crazy after specific episodes bothers me. Watch the seasons as a whole, and those little “nitpicks” of characters tend to go away when it makes sense as a whole. This episode in particular made a lot of changes make sense.

  116. Ginevra,

    I am the answer to life the universe and everything

    Hee, my husband said that the day I turned 42 🙂 Love a good Douglas Adams reference

  117. that was the best episode of this season yet i am sure more best episodes are coming up

    so tyrion did meet dany and tells here who he is …wonderful

    my only gripe is going to be its look like dany will make jorah fight in the pits ….

    cersei saying “iam the queen” Tommen saying “iam the king” ah the callbacks to joffery

    Aemon RIP

    looks like jon will kill an white walker

    and it looks like stannis will make a decision to burn shireen

  118. Really, really good episode, imo.

    The moment Aemon said “Egg,” I got tears in my eyes.
    We saw Ghost!
    The scenes in Dorne were much better (even without Siddig).
    I loved ending the episode seeing Cersei thrown in a cell. 🙂

    And lots of other stuff, too…

  119. Great episode.

    Agree with most everyone in saying this was the best of the season. Hope the last 3 episodes are just as good, or better. Great stuff.

  120. Wow great episode, I do wonder if it was clear enough to unsullied audiences

    the lancel – Cersei connection

    But that was always going to be tough to present on TV 5 seasons deep, best episode of the season imo so far !

  121. This show is brutal!

    Aemon mentioning Egg…my life is complete. Now my mourning begins.
    Fuck Ramsay, Mel, Olly, and Lancel!
    Stannis doubting himself….shit!
    Sam and Gilly > Missandei & GW
    Ghost uncaged is always a good thing!
    The gift had nothing to do with land!
    I need to know what Olenna and LF discussed….dammit!
    Tommen is useless.
    Marg looked hot in prison.
    Dorne is still silly.
    YzQ….meh.
    Wow….Tyrion and Jorah really took the fast track to Dany….wow
    That look on the High Sparrow at the end! Delusions of grandeur!
    Cersei is so screwed…by her own family!!!!

  122. jentario:
    I actually like Tyene!

    I’m betting that a lot of guys did.

    I feel mixed. I was so hoping for resolution to all of the controversy. I’m ready to move on. And yet Cersei’s arrest and Jorah’s gift were awesome.

    Aemon’s passing was bittersweet. Ride, Gilly, ride upon your mystery ship. Be amazed at the friends you have here on your trip.

    I’m surprised there was no mention of “The Gift.”

  123. the flow of the episode was excellent ..D&D did a good job ..

    first finishing up with all the icy dark cold wall and north to warm sunny meereen Kl and Dorne

  124. Ugh, whatever. Terrible acting, stupid changes, uninspired plot twists, and the wolf they cast as Ghost clearly wasn’t a real direwolf.

    Hahahaha fuck that was a great episode. 😀

  125. Khal Tommen: I do wonder if it was clear enough to unsullied audiences

    I am book Unsullied, but not stupid. I do watch a lot of TV. 😉 So it was crystal clear. 🙂

    ZOMG! What an awesome episode! Loved everything in it! Tyrion introduces himself to Daenerys. YES!! Aemon’s death, Ghost, Dorne, TYENE!!! you lil minx, Cersei undone by what she created (kinda reminds me of Viserys meeting his end at Khal Drogo’s hand, the man he sold his sister to) and how feisty was Myrcella? 🙂 Much more than her poor bro. Off to rewatch!

    Pigeon: and the wolf they cast as Ghost clearly wasn’t a real direwolf.

    Hehehehe…… 😀 😀 About sums up certain predictable attitudes.

  126. Ok so what’s Tyene’s angle? Trying to make Bronn do her bidding or just fucking with him? And that scene could have gone exactly the same with only one woman in the cell. Still no need for three.

  127. so the wall needs a new maester now. And Aemon told Gilly to get south before it was too late……..The glass candles are burning.

  128. A Man Grown,

    Fun boobs to spice up the Sand Snake storyline. Also the Obara/Nymeria eye rolls were hysterical :-]. Glad this Sand Snake scene did not suck

  129. Best episode of the season so far. Kings Landing, the North and Mereen were all excellent and I thought the Sandsnake scene this week was actually really good as well. I just really hope Stannis makes it through the season alive 🙁

  130. What a bunch of prudes they are. Its like we are watching CBS or NBC.
    What a joke. After Sansa last week this week they butchered Sam and Gilly which is actually in the books. I want to see an actual love scene and those rags come off. Not 2 seconds of her starting to ride him sort of…
    And Dany covering up like that. What is this? Network give me a break.
    they threw in a random topless scene of new actress instead. Though she looks gorgeous (not a fan of the short hair but ok) and has some of the best boobs we have seen on the show. Now if only we could compare them to some other cast members.

    Thought the Ghost show up was lame. How is he not with Jon?!
    Other than that and the PG-13ing of the show (except for the sweet flayed old lady….) Violence is fine but when they can avoid skin they will. Come on HBO. what’s going on? Its almost like they threw all the nude scenes in ep 1 and 2 in just to lure in viewers rather than to support the story… And then when scenes that MUST have nudity they shamelessly avoid it. So so dissappointed. At least we ll see Hannah’s ass in the upcoming Bridgend for those who want to know…

  131. I liked how Reek didn’t all of a sudden turn back into Theon after last episode. He is a broken thing. I wonder what, if anything will happen to make him snap out of it, though?

    Aemon, you lived a good long life. Go frolock in the afterlife with Egg and Ser Duncan.

    Sam, you lucky bastard. First you got a pet direwolf, and then you became a man! You even get to keep her with you, so long as you don’t marry her or get her preggers. Greatest loophole ever!

    Stannis, you better control your Red Priestess! Inspiring speech, though. I’d freeze for you. Fuck the Storm Crows!

    Jorah, she still doesn’t want you. Poor guy. Tyrion, time to start putting the moves on Dany.

    Cersei. You better come out swinging. Teh seven hells with those zealots! Quick, summon Qyburn!

  132. Chriss: It would have been difficult for my expectations to be much lower. Cry more.

    We know. The books, the books, the poor pooks.

  133. Jorah. <3

    And….I am absolutely loving Eugene Simon this year. Lancel is killing it.

    Damn you, Egg, right in the feels.

    Canadian wolf does this girl proud.

    Aaaaaand Bronn.

  134. Turncloak,

    Heh…missed that. Really? Makes sense but I thought it would be independent of KL and more strategic. The HS didn’t know that info prior? Seems risky that LF told HS that…he’ll be next blasphemer to be targeted.

    Alexandre Laframboise,

    For no reason other than I hate Lancel, in book and show.

  135. flintwielder: We know. The books, the books, the poor pooks.

    Haha. Yes. It was the books. It wasn’t the woeful acting, tedious writing, or entire lack of any suspense or tension. It was the books.

  136. Great episode. Actual tears fell for Maester Aemon.
    Loved everything Olenna.
    Enjoyed the exchange between Cersei and Margaery. Oh the shade of giving Margaery her leftovers from the night before!

    There have been so many great music moments this season. The end credits from 5×05, the HOBAW Hall of Faces last week, and Theon’s walk across the courtyard and up the stairs this week are all highlights.

    The only scene that fell flat for me was Jaime and Myrcella. I wanted to like new Myrcella but I’m just not feeling her.

    I will die if/when they hurt Shireen.

  137. Chriss: Haha. Yes. It was the books. It wasn’t the woeful acting, tedious writing, or entire lack of any suspense or tension. It was the books.

    Oh man, you just described aFfC/aDwD.
    Poor soul.
    But don´t you worry: S6 has been scripted without being weighted down by mal-edited, bloated tomes. Hurray !

  138. Turncloak,

    I don’t know, still not feeling it. At least the scene was more entertaining but it was yet another example of “wait another week to find out the point of this.” Someday there has to be a point to them.

    You’d think Tyene would have at least tried to extract some promise from him before giving the antidote.

  139. I thought this episode was one of the best this season! Everything was perfect except I hated how the episode was titled the Gift and had nothing to do with the Gift (land) or the Gift (death). Other than that I thought it was great. So glad they kept the “Egg I dreamed I was old” line, made me tear up. Tyrion FINALLY meeting Dany, glad we don’t have an ADWD scenario and have to wait a whole book only to have them not meet. Don’t understand what D&D are doing with Tyene x Bronn but its probably just to show boobs. Cersei’s imprisonment was just like the books! Can’t wait to see the Walk. Next weeks episode is going to be sick. Hopefully we’ll get a proper White Walker vs. Human battle at Hardhome. Hated that they skipped the fight at the Fist of the First Men.

  140. flintwielder: Oh man, you just described aFfC/aDwD.
    Poor soul.
    But don´t you worry: S6 has been scripted without being weighted down by mal-edited, bloated tomes. Hurray !

    Let’s hope we maintain the Craster’s/Dorne standard. Then we can get rid of all of those book readers who watch. Along with the rest of the haemorrhaging audience.

  141. Am I a terrible person for wishing Bronn had died? Not that I don’t love him but it felt like we needed another death. Hell, it’s GoT! This late in the season, it’s about time they start killing a few regulars.

    “I dreamed that I was old…” Oh my shit. That was magic!

    Horrid to see Sansa covered in bruises, to know what she is enduring each night. Two episodes left and I really hope that TPTB aren’t going to just leave her lingering in this reality. Something…anything has to happen to help get her the hell out of this situation.
    I waver between feeling such sympathy for Theon and just wanting him dead.

    Don’t do it, Stannis! Please. Please don’t go there!

    The direction of this episode has definitely been the best of the season. Who directed this one?

  142. OH. MY. GAWD!

    The last three episodes are promising soooooo much. 7 episodes of build up and then kapow! Need LF’s jetpack so I can watch them now. Yes, I know that’s not how time travel works but I don’t care.

    My fellow Worried About Shireeners – deep breaths now, calm, calm. She made it through this week unscathed. One sunday at a time. I need to go to bed now, it’s 3.30am here, but I’m too full of bloody-hell-it’s-all-about-to-happen thoughts, in a really good way :O)

  143. I love the Jorah/Tyrion relationship, even more so than the Bronn/Tyrion relationship, and I hope Tyrion tries to help him now, especially since it looks like Dany’s going to either sentence Jorah to death or send him back to the fighting pits. On the other hand, I’m not really sure how Tyrion’s going to get off scotch-free, being a kinslaying Lannister (I also hope he manipulates Dany into not executing Jaime, should she ever make it to Westeros). When they showed the Daznak’s Pit scene in the season 5 trailers, it looked like Jorah was protecting Dany once more, so it wouldn’t surprise me if she has a change of heart about him and tries to break up the fight, unwittingly running into the trap that the Sons of the Harpy have lay for her. Then again, I also expect her to ride off on Drogon at the end, thus cutting her time with both Jorah and Tyrion much shorter than the audience will expect.

  144. I’m getting tired with all the haters, episode was awesome!! That speech at the end with Jonathan Pryce was just priceless and Cersei’s face when she realized it was a trap lol.

    Also, for everyone saying Sansa’s progress was destroyed, you were completely wrong, she is definitely not the little girl from King’s Landing anymore.

    Just one complain, why isn’t Ghost with Jon?? I guess too expensive to have the direwolf but I want to see him more.

  145. Chriss: Let’s hope we maintain the Craster’s/Dorne standard. Then we can get rid of all of those book readers who watch. Along with the rest of the haemorrhaging audience.

    Yup. They´re cancelling the show after S5, it´s going sooo bad.

  146. Tyrion Lannister and Daenerys Targaryen were in the same scene tonight. They spoke to one another. There were no fake identities, no last-minute interventions, no obfuscating bullshit. Tyrion walked right up to the Dragon Queen and announced his presence. The rest of the episode barely even matters to me (though to be clear, I thought it was excellent). That moment, however brief, was everything I needed.

    I’ll have more composed thoughts on the rest of the episode (and the walking legend that is Jonathan Pryce) later, but for now … HELL YES!!!

  147. Moonlight,

    I would actually really love it if Dany finally decided to fall for Jorah, and he said “Lol, nope. Going back to the whore in Volantis. ” They love him as a lovesick puppy, and it’ll never happen, but that would be hilarious. Iain Glen makes my day. 😛

  148. Best episode so far, full of beautiful shots and great dialogue and character development. As someone already mentioned, I too am not feeling this new Myrcella. I don’t know if I was expecting too much because of the recast and all the promises that this actress would be outstandingly superior to Aimiee but I just found her meh, even bad-ish sometimes.Overall, I think these next episodes will be really great.
    And Jonathan Pryce is just amazing, he almost makes you like the HS until you realize what a horrible person he is.

  149. The She Bear: I’m getting tired with all the haters, episode was awesome!!

    Yes, it was a great episode, and don’t let the trolling bother you. People like that are little more than gnats. They’re annoying, but they can be ignored.

    For the record – Just because someone didn’t like the episode doesn’t make them a troll, but when they just post a bunch of crap without backing up anything, obviously just trying to get a rise out of people…a response…some attention, well, fuck ’em.

  150. They can’t actually off Shireen, can they? I mean they legally can’t with her actress being underage and whatnot?

  151. Pigeon,

    That would be great hahaha. Since the show is going for a more crowd-fulfilling stance (ex. making Tyrion much nicer than he was in ADWD) I could actually see D&D having Dany fall in love with Jorah.

  152. Moonlight: On the other hand, I’m not really sure how Tyrion’s going to get off scotch-free, being a kinslaying Lannister.

    I think the kinslaying part actually works to Tyrion’s advantage in this instance. He just took out Dany’s most formidable opponent for her. “You’re welcome.” And he killed his own paterfamilias, which proves that he’s turned against his family completely. The Queen Mother wants him dead more than any other person in all the world, and Tyrion might be able to spin that and say it is because she knows he’s the one person who can bring the House down, who knows all of their secrets, who knows how to defeat her.

    I’m not sure he can do all of that and simultaneously save Jorah, though.

  153. Chriss

    I don’t understand a couple of things you are saying. Number 1, how is what happened a Crasters the standard? That was the low point of the series so far… The standard of the series are chapters like this one and besides chapters like this one we have had overachievers like The Rains of Castamere and Blackwater and Baelor and The Lion and the Rose AND The mountain and the viper. So your point is that we should judge an entire series based on its lowest point? Number 2 Why are you watching something that you obviouly dislike?

  154. Nymeria Warrior Queen: Yes, it was a great episode, and don’t let the trolls bother you, they’re little more than gnats.They’re annoying, but they can be ignored.

    She better not go to Westeros.org then. The place is filled with people who hate watch it will a passion.

  155. Toby:
    What a bunch of prudes they are. Its like we are watching CBS or NBC.
    What a joke. After Sansa last week this week they butchered Sam and Gilly which is actually in the books. I want to see an actual love scene and those rags come off. Not 2 seconds of her starting to ride him sort of…
    And Dany covering up like that. What is this? Network give me a break.
    they threw in a random topless scene of new actress instead. Though she looks gorgeous (not a fan of the short hair but ok) and has some of the best boobs we have seen on the show. Now if only we could compare them to some other cast members.

    Thought the Ghost show up was lame. How is he not with Jon?!
    Other than that and the PG-13ing of the show (except for the sweet flayed old lady….) Violence is fine but when they can avoid skin they will. Come on HBO. what’s going on? Its almost like they threw all the nude scenes in ep 1 and 2 in just to lure in viewers rather than to support the story… And then when scenes that MUST have nudity they shamelessly avoid it. So so dissappointed. At least we ll see Hannah’s ass in the upcoming Bridgend for those who want to know…

    I always wondered who were the weirdos that watch the show for the boobs. Nice to know now 🙂

  156. Hodor’s Bastard:
    Turncloak,

    Heh…missed that. Really? Makes sense but I thought it would be independent of KL and more strategic. The HS didn’t know that info prior? Seems risky that LF told HS that…he’ll be next blasphemer to be targeted.

    From the HS dialogue ” we just recently found out things about you Cersei”(or something to that extent), it seems that Lancel was Littlefingers trump card.

    If you think about it TV structure wise it makes sense. Lancel runs into LF in the prior episode> LF meets with Oleanna about a young man, similar to the young man he gave Cersei> The High Sparrow brings the young man to out Cersei. It all fits like a nice puzzle.

  157. He may not have been wearing a silly vest, but I’d be willing to bet that the guy who freed Tyrion was supposed to be Strong Belwas.

  158. Sawyer:
    Chriss

    I don’t understand a couple of things you are saying. Number 1, how is what happened a Crasters the standard? That was the low point of the series so far… The standard of the series is chapters like this one and besides chapters like this one we have had overachievers like The Rains of Castamere and Blackwater and Baelor and The Lion and the Rose AND The mountain and the viper.So your point is that we should judge an entire series based on its lowest point?

    Chriss is complaining because GoT is leaving aSoIaF behind.

  159. Gifts:
    Sam gave Jon a dagger made of dragon glass.
    Gilly gave Sam an experience to remember.
    Tyene gave Bron a show, followed by an antidote.
    Littlefinger gave Olenna a boy to testify against Cersei.
    Cersei gave a bowl of (probably poisoned) soup to Margaery.
    Jorah gave Tyrion to Daenerys.
    Everyone gave everyone else a hard time.
    Tyrion gave me a laugh when he beat up the fellow who had him chains.

    Blah blah,

  160. Ginevra,

    Well, even if he can’t help Jorah, let’s hope he can at least help Jaime. The show had Tyrion and Jaime leave on good terms, and no matter what he says, I can’t see Jaime killing Tyrion, not even for Tywin.

  161. Turncloak: If you think about it TV structure wise it makes sense. Lancel runs into LF in the prior episode> LF meets with Oleanna about a young man, similar to the young man he gave Cersei> The High Sparrow brings the young man to out Cersei. It all fits like a nice puzzle.

    Thanks for connecting the dots! I often miss the details, and these were critical. So who was the other young lad LF was saying he’d given to Cersei? Was that Ramsay?

  162. O Christ!

    Halfway thru rewatch…

    Reek didn’t light the candle… Ramsay pulls it out when showing of his skinning skills.
    Brienne didn’t see any sign 🙁

    I missed this 1st time and surely this is Bloody dangerous for Sansa… and there’s No Way she can trust Theon again.

  163. Am I the only one who missed when Sansa picked up…whatever she picked up when she was walking with Ramsay?

  164. Ginevra,

    The young man Baelish “gifted” to Cersei was Olyvar; remember he was in Baelish’s employ when he hooked up with Loras in S3.

  165. flintwielder,

    I believe so… And he is going to find a way to make it D&D fault that the old guy hasn’t finished book 6 in 4 years, 5 years if we count the time between this season and the next one.

  166. Ser Oromis Locke:
    They can’t actually off Shireen, can they? I mean they legally can’t with her actress being underage and whatnot?

    I honestly don’t know anything about rules like that. Something though tells me Stannis will tell Mel no (and may actually die due to his choice). Mel will decide she backed the wrong guy and rides back up to the Wall just in time for the end of the season

  167. Durrandon’s Fool:
    He may not have been wearing a silly vest, but I’d be willing to bet that the guy who freed Tyrion was supposed to be Strong Belwas.

    I was just going to ask if anyone else thought he was Belwas. Looked like he used an arakh.

  168. Ginevra: Thanks for connecting the dots!I often miss the details, and these were critical.So who was the other young lad LF was saying he’d given to Cersei?Was that Ramsay?

    The young man LF gave to Cersei was Oliver, who worked in his Brothel, slept with Loras, and confessed to it to the HS

  169. Stannis Baratheon is my favorite character. I think it was at the end of season 2 when the red priestess basically told him he would end up doing anything to reach his goal. And I think we are starting to see that happen.

    I do think Stannis wins the Iron Throne….. And then the Iron Throne becomes meaningless….

  170. Turncloak: From the HS dialogue ” we just recently found out things about you Cersei”(or something to that extent), it seems that Lancel was Littlefingers trump card.

    If you think about it TV structure wise it makes sense. Lancel runs into LF in the prior episode> LF meets with Oleanna about a young man, similar to the young man he gave Cersei> The High Sparrow brings the young man to out Cersei. It all fits like a nice puzzle.

    The only thing that bothers me about the timing is it means Lancel did not come fully clean when he joined the Faith Militant right? Might come back to bite him

  171. Ginevra: Thanks for connecting the dots!I often miss the details, and these were critical.So who was the other young lad LF was saying he’d given to Cersei?Was that Ramsay?

    But Lancel is Worth less, and for me The young men is “The Gift” *Roll Credits* oups sorry, and it’s clearly Robin Aryn, he will “”give”” her the Vale.

  172. The Bastard,

    Well, by this point, most people who enjoy the show and post about it on the internet know not to go there, unless they want to see people melting down over anything and everything, but I guess each place has their niche.

  173. Moonlight,

    I also very much hope he’d never kill Tommen or Myrcella, but I think he’ll need to lie and convince Dany that he’s willing to kill them all before she’ll let him live. By the time Khaleesi reaches and conquers Westeros, I’m hoping Tyrion will have enough influence to save the quasi-decent Lannisters.

  174. Ahhhhh I’m at work! I can’t wait to be cut! Stupid Memorial Day fair weather drinkers!

    Trying by to read too much but I’m so happy so many people were impressed!

  175. Ginevra: Thanks for connecting the dots!I often miss the details, and these were critical.So who was the other young lad LF was saying he’d given to Cersei?Was that Ramsay?

    I think Littlefinger gave up his brothel keeper/Loras’ lover. Why, I don’t know. To pretend to still be on Cersei’s side? I would think it hurt his relationship with the Tyrells, though

  176. i predicted the old lady will be flayed by Ramsay

    but for a second when Reek went to ramsay and screen turned to Brienne …oh shit will it be Brienne

  177. Richard Weetabix,

    But the implication was that he had just gifted Cersei with a handsome young man. And perhaps that was LF having Olyvar testify at Loras’s trial, but do we know that? Or is it just a good theory?

  178. Ginevra,

    tyrion is the man who was planning to have Myrcella and Tommen fight each other ,..wonder how he will save them if they both fought in a war and one of them bound to die..and if you think dany will demand him to kill the children then that wont happen

  179. Richard Weetabix,

    I agree. It wasn’t Lancel that Littlefinger was speaking of. That is why the High Sparrow said “There was a young man who came to us broken…” or along those lines. Lancel has been with the them for a while. Unless Littlefinger pushed Lancel to the High Sparrow a long time ago, it can not be him. However, if Littlefinger DID push Lancel to become religious…. He would be a better player than anyone could of thought. However, that would take away from Cercei’s stupidity and arrogance. What I always liked the most about her downfall was that she was the creator.

  180. JTargs:
    Ser Oromis Locke,

    ?? I didnt think it was illegal to kill characters w/ underage actors.. dont they do that all the time?

    As you can see I still haven’t made it to bed. I think SOL means they can’t film certain scenes with actors who are too young to watch that scene themselves, which is actually true and they are very strict on that in the UK (which covers filming in Northern Ireland).

    Obviously there are child actors in scenes which fall under this criteria and to get around this different parts of the scene are filmed separately and cleverly edited together. For example when Bran sees Cersei and Jaime having sex in series 1, the actor who played Bran was too young to be present for the sex part of the scene. If you look at it closely, he is only in the same shot as them when they looking a bit flustered rather than while in the act, so to speak. There are several other examples, particularly from when the Stark kids actors were quite young themselves.

    The girl who plays Shireen is actually about 16 in real life so would be allowed to be present for some nasty stuff, although not if it was 18+ rated. The thing about scenes with burning is that the actors tend to be nowhere near actual fire anyway due to the danger aspect, quite apart from anything else. So even if they do go down that route, and I am in TOTAL denial until it happens and even then may convince myself it didn’t, she wouldn’t necessarily need to be there for a lot of it.

  181. Ginevra,

    It’s much more likely to be Olyvar than, say, Loras, since everyone knows Loras is gay. Olyvar implicates Margaery as well, which is the outcome Cersei most wanted.

  182. Nymeria Warrior Queen:
    RosanaZugey,

    I noticed her picking up something, but I have no clue what it was.

    It looked kind of like a corkscrew. Possibly an old hand drill or awl?
    It definitely looked sharp enough to be a nice weapon. I was glad she didn’t try to go through his armor though! Perhaps she will be able to give him a gift soon!

  183. I’m not thinking that it was a gift that

    Tyene gave to Bronn. Remember, he’s a sellsword. …and now he owes her one.
  184. Who the hell are the “Worthy Masters”? Is that the ruling class of the long lost fourth slaver city? Meerastaporkai? And why are there Wise Masters in Meereen?

    Do you even Song of Ice and Fire, D&D?

  185. Lulu’s Mum,

    WHEW! She made it through, but that Red Witch needs to burn in her OWN fires before she touches a hair on poor Shireen’s head!!

    Awesome episode! Loved

    (well, in a story-telling way) the bruises on Sansa and the way I couldn’t tell Theon had betrayed her until Ramsey showed the woman. Nice twist for us book readers! EGG!! I had to shush my Unsullied family during that scene. They just thought it was more Sam & Gilly blah blah blah. KL was great–QoT, LF, Marge looking a little worse for wear and showing her claws (thorns?), that scene at the end! TYRION AND DANY MEET!!! I’ve been waiting 12 loooooong years for that! Whooped in triumph! Love Iain Glenn’s expressions, running to the door to see his boo then running back to be her badass! I wondered if PD asked D&D to give him a fight scene when he beat the slaver. Ha!
    So…questions: Is Tyene playing Bronn? Is a daily dose of that antidote required so that he becomes her plaything/puppet? What is going to be the catalyst that brings Theon back? Stannis’s horns? Will the Boltons produce Asha/Yara as a captive and they break out together as last remnants of their families? Will Brienne run into A/Y and put together a plan to spring them both? Will Stannis bring them together? WHY ISN’T GHOST WITH JON?? Is that part of the modified FTW storyline? Sam will think Jon is dead and he’ll really be inside Ghost? But how the hell would they do that on tv?

    I spoilered all for those that can’t see it until tomorrow.
    Anyway, good night all! Sweet dreams!

  186. Jerry,

    You’d think if the High Sparrow were for real he would have already punished Lancel. The HS should have led Cersei into a cell to see Lancel chained to the ceiling, like Ser Osney in the book, and that being the moment Cersei realizing she is f-ed. That would have been perfect.

  187. It was hilarious that they had tyrion tied in a merenese chain knot and that the solution was a random guy cut it. I think that may be the best inside joke I have ever seen.

  188. crabber son,

    I hear ya Crabber. It is an absolute hot mess in many ways.
    Dorne is a disaster of epic proportions. I can’t imagine anyone thinking it’s actually well written. Ugh, what were they thinking?
    The wall has been well done except for tonight’s Sam stuff.
    The KL stuff seems rushed. Cersei has been whitewashed into the evil queen and the faith are a creepy, fanatical cult. Am I the only one sick of Olenna? She is very one-dimensional.
    Daenerys’ story has had its highs and lows, mostly lows. I like her seeing Jorah fight and meeting Tyrion. I hope they don’t butcher her major scene of the season like they did with the HotU in season 2.
    Winterfell- I’m still scratching my head at the decision to put Sansa there. Anyone else think George recently reading the Alayne chapter was a jab at D&D? Sansa was disposed of like hot garbage by Littlefinger. She’s back to season 1 and 2 Sansa. Naïve, helpless victim. It’s sad how they the writers took away all her autonomy and ruined her development. It was well established in the first few seasons that Sansa was traumatized. The Ramsay stuff feels like piling on and beating a dead horse.

    Season 4 was disappointing. Season 5 has been an absolute flop for me.

    Tyrion’s story has been well done, cheap penis jokes aside. I have no issues with Arya’s story except for the way she was ultimately accepted into HoBaW.

  189. Best episode by far.

    From start to finish it was entartaining and Dany/Tyrion felt a little bit rushed,but still it’s fantastic they’ve meet.Aemon and his line…I cried.No shame in that.Finally Ghost cameo.Did you noticed when Ramsay mentioned Jon Snow to Sansa two times?It looks like pink letter is in the show in some form or another.Alfie is killing it.

  190. Really enjoyed that. I guess you could call it a gift. I don’t really think there was a weak part to the episode. Even Dorne, whilst not amazing, felt a bit more like proper Game of Thrones, so hopefully it continues on that trajectory.

    I’ll probably post my main thoughts on the recap thread tomorrow, but it’s in the top 2 for me this season/maybe the top.

    “Brienne waits for a signal” Yeah, definitely worth mentioning in the synopsis, lol.

  191. Mike,

    All I could think is it must be something she can use as a weapon. I plan on paying close attention on my rewatch.

  192. Oh for cryin’ out loud, Dany you aren’t swimming in good advice these days. Take gifts that are dropped in your lap.

  193. Nymeria Warrior Queen,

    My mind immediately thought of a way to pick the lock on her door. The way Sansa’s character is written, she doesn’t seem to be the violent type. However, I can see her escaping and trying to find help.

  194. dragonbringer:
    i predicted the old lady will be flayed by Ramsay

    So did I!

    A Man Grown:
    Ok so what’s Tyene’s angle? Trying to make Bronn do her bidding or just fucking with him?

    The plan was to kill them, but it got foiled, so Tyene had to expose her nip like the antidote was in it.

  195. Moonlight:
    I love the Jorah/Tyrion relationship, even more so than the Bronn/Tyrion relationship, and I hope Tyrion tries to help him now, especially since it looks like Dany’s going to either sentence Jorah to death or send him back to the fighting pits. On the other hand, I’m not really sure how Tyrion’s going to get off scotch-free, being a kinslaying Lannister (I also hope he manipulates Dany into not executing Jaime, should she ever make it to Westeros). When they showed the Daznak’s Pit scene in the season 5 trailers, it looked like Jorah was protecting Dany once more, so it wouldn’t surprise me if she has a change of heart about him and tries to break up the fight, unwittingly running into the trap that the Sons of the Harpy have lay for her. Then again, I also expect her to ride off on Drogon at the end, thus cutting her time with both Jorah and Tyrion much shorter than the audience will expect.

    That happens on 509.
    Jerry,

    I like this theory. I want her there for the end.

  196. Ginevra,

    Wow…thanks for those picture. Yep, you and Mike are right, it looks like a corkscrew thingy used to tap barrels, and more importantly, like a nice lil weapon (or maybe something to pick locks?). I can’t wait to see her use it!

  197. Mike,

    I was thinking she’d use it to get out of her room where she’s locked. I’m sure she can find her way out of the castle if she can only find her way out of the room.

  198. Ginevra,

    The young lad that LF gave Cersei was Oliver (whom he left in charge of his brothels when he left to marry Lady Lysa in the Vale). In turn, LF gave the Queen of Thorns Lancel.

  199. Hodor’s Bastard: Seems risky that LF told HS that…he’ll be next blasphemer to be targeted.

    Somehow, I am doubting that LF plans to stick around KL all that long.

    So, did you like Aemon’s last words?

  200. Gwenivere,

    It looks like you beat me to that thought. Whatever it ends up being used for, it’s nice to see her thinking like that.

    KG:
    Nymeria Warrior Queen,

    I believe it was a knife. Hard to tell though.

    Like I said above, I really like the idea she’s planning on taking matters into her own hands.

  201. LOVED this episode!

    – Tyrion. met. Dany. Jorah kicking ass holy crap. Only reservations here are that I guess Dany is going to sentence Jorah to death by fighting pits? Egh. Hope she comes around.

    – Sansa in WF scenes were sad but wonderful. “You’re a bastard. You were legitimized by Tommen. Who’s a bastard.” !!! Hopefully Theon ratting her out is leading to her saving herself instead of being saved by Theon. Is she going to try to get revenge, or..?

    – Everything at KL! Marge called Cersei a bitch. Cersei/Tommen scene was actually very well acted by both and kind of sweet. Pryce and Rigg fucking killed it.

    – Sand snake/ Bronn scene was… good?! I just wish that we had gotten some more proper Sand Snake scenes earlier this season. I liked all of them in this scene. It was fun. (Although they didn’t have to focus quite so much on Tyene’s boobs. A bit gratuitous… but she is super attractive.) Just wish they’d gotten some proper scenes/dialogue.

    – The Wall was strong. Aemon ;( So sad to see Vaughn go. So so good this ep. Sam/Gilly was sweet.

    – Calling it. Stannis is going to die. Mel’s #TeamJon from now on.

  202. Stannis in season 3 “what is the life of one bastard against a kingdom ” …guess he forget about it

    its brilliant when you think about it A human heart in conflict …

    iam sad that shireen will die but i still cant see stannis do it maybe after he is injured or killed selyse will do it

    and the sells words stannis had was Stormcrows LOL

  203. Very good episode.

    Glad that Tyrion and Jorah got to Dany quickly. No need to drag that out. Maester Aemon’s passing was appropriately done. Clearly, it is not safe for Gilly at CB. I appreciate Stannis’ dire situation but no one better touch Shireen.

    I’m getting impatient for the real Dorne story line to kick in. At least the Sand Snakes are behind bars. Glad that Bronn is still around but I don’t get why he was poisoned then saved. Myrcella behaved like a mini-Cersei.

    Not sure what to expect from the “Sansa in WF” story line, especially now that one of her supporters is dead.

  204. Jared: Tyrion Lannister and Daenerys Targaryen were in the same scene tonight. They spoke to one another. There were no fake identities, no last-minute interventions, no obfuscating bullshit. Tyrion walked right up to the Dragon Queen and announced his presence. The rest of the episode barely even matters to me (though to be clear, I thought it was excellent). That moment, however brief, was everything I needed.

    I hear ya! D&D just cut that Meereenese knot with an axe!

    Overall, great episode. The haters are making me laugh even more than they usually do.

  205. It occurred to me that, while extremely unlikely, an interesting twist would be if Dany, who is believed to be barren, were to name Shireen her heir, since they’re technically distant cousins. Like I said, this is highly unlikely, but it would be a really cool turn of events.

  206. Ginevra,

    when he was with illyrio ..he thinks about it and how it will make cersei more mad ..he doesnt feel one bit about them

    Nymeria Warrior Queen,

    i and many others predicted that too …

    but what really surprised me was for a moment i thought Brienne will be the one to go and flayed by Ramsay

  207. Yung Wolf: They fucking did it! They added the Aemon “egg” line!

    What was good is that they added a little fan candy without making it completely gratuitous. It was short, only slightly stilted dialogue (of course Gilly would have no idea who Aegon is, just like 99% of the audience) and then a good final line.

    It is kind of too bad that they cut the three heads of the dragon bit, but I’m not sure how they could ever have made that work. That’s something that has to appear at the beginning of a season and then get answered at the end of the season. (Doctor Who has provided some excellent examples of that in the last decade: Bad Wolf, Harold Saxon, the Crack in Space & Time, Missy.) However, it really has to be part of a one-season arc. Perhaps it will be introduced next year if the three heads are resolved in Winter (and if all three heads are in the show).

  208. Losing track of who said what now, but for what it’s worth…

    The thing Sansa picked up looked like a corkscrew, but it would be rather odd for one to being lying around outside, so probably a workman’s tool. Ramsay you are soooooo dead. I don’t know where and I don’t know when but there is no way on earth you make it to the end of the story alive. Heed my words Bolton Jr. YOU ARE GOING DOWN!

    Spoilers for people who haven’t watched this episode yet

    I assumed the young man LF gave to Cersei was Olyvar. Don’t think it looks too good for him either. Tyrell’s are after his blood, LF would turn on him in an instant, the Faith won’t be happy if he withdraws his testimony. The list is endless…talking of which: Cersei’s I love my kids speech + the prophecy makes it look pretty dodgy for Tommen and Myrcella too. If all three of them need to be crowned, T would have to get it first presumably and then M be crowned (although maybe just in Dorne, not necessarily Iron Throne crowned).
    And well done the person who called someone trying to rape Gilly and Ghost coming to the rescue. I assume it was on here, the only other comments thingy I read is for the Guardian recap.

    That’s it, really am going to bed now. Final thought – at least a certain person I also hope gets their comeuppance didn’t say now you have less friends. That would have required Stannis to turn back on the grounds of principle! ;O)

  209. AA: You’d think if the High Sparrow were for real he would have already punished Lancel.

    Didn’t he already say what happens to someone depends on if they repent and how sincere/contrite they are? Perhaps he was satisfied with Lancel’s confession.

  210. Moonlight: if Dany, who is believed to be barren, were to name Shireen her heir, since they’re technically distant cousins

    Given that Daeny

    suffers a miscarriage in her last Dragons chapter

    , I doubt that will wind up happening!

  211. Simeon,

    Indeed, that would be typical of many religions: people who freely confess get off lightly, those who do not get off…. not so lightly.

  212. Moonlight,

    i once joked about she will name missandei her heir

    dany will make shireen her heir if she meets her but sadly she is not going to survive this season and dany is not barren

  213. There was an odd scene in this episode that had me puzzled to it’s importance if it had any…?

    Just before Littlefinger mets with Olenna in the brothel, he reviews his peephole into one of the rooms and looks regretful.
    Then it pulls away to a destroyed bedroom with a sculpted male figurine laying amongst the ruined bed.
    What is this relevance…?
    Is it Littlefinger remembering spying on Catlyn when she stayed there, if only to spy on her getting undressed???
    Is it him remembering he’s not going to “Play by their Rules” and suddenly realising there are unexpected pieces on the board?

    Even the music seems to imply something lost or ominous, especially when he views the 7-pointed star scrawled on the wall. Littlefinger seems troubled by this.?

  214. Jerry,

    To me it seemed like Lancel spilled the beans when he joined and he’s already taken his punishment. I expect wanting to join the faith full time and give up his Lannister name made the HS go easy on him. So the HS has known about Cersei for a while but only now has the power and influence to get at her. He chose his time carefully and then pounced.

  215. Am I the only one that thinks Sansa is going to kill theon and not ramsey. It seems a little too obvious to give her his murder weapon

  216. Lulu’s Mum: The thing Sansa picked up looked like a corkscrew, but it would be rather odd for one to being lying around outside, so probably a workman’s tool.

    Yeah, I think that it’s supposed to be a hand-held precursor to a drill: you basically screwed it into wood, removed it, and put in screws of the same size. (Screws hold tighter than nails.) The name escapes. me. (Adze jumped into my head, but that’s not right: and I cannot get it out!)

    Oh, and it’s good for opening wine bottles, too. And for embedding in your husband’s brain for kicks and giggles!

    On that note, I think that we might be seeing some payoff from last week’s traumas for Sansa. This stuff was pretty much dead-opposite of all the Sansa scenes in Kings Landing. And I like that she is the one actively dragging Theon out of Reek.

  217. Oh wow, I think shireen is toast and so is Mel. Shireen is going to be murdered by selyse/mel and stannis is going to Azor Ahai them right through their traitor hearts… Then cradle his burnt dead daughters body and cry stannis tears… And then go on to win that damn battle in the snow.

    I never was sure whether the books would go there but I think now that always was GRRMs plan. Yikes that is dark.

  218. dragonbringer,

    I see it now. In context, to me it seems just like some drunken ramblings of a guy who’s just lost everything. Though I think he would and still will love to bring war against Tommen’s army, he likely views that as war against Cersei’s puppet rather than as direct harm to Tommen. Then again, I’m not sure how a defeated king and the next heir to the throne could be allowed to survive.

  219. Tyrion Pimpslap,

    she was completely healed at the end of the chapter so it cant be bloody faux …i am guessing it was miscarriage because of the berries che ate and drinking those muddy waters

    and in the books it looks like the berries had the same taste like what Mirri gave her when she was carrying Rhaego

  220. Spoiler for people who don’t read spoiler posts in the off season

    Moved this from my other post as I was mixing different types of spoilers together. I think Patchface said Tommen was going to die this season. Someone certainly did and s/he has had some quite good insider info before, although some of it was apparently mistaken. We haven’t had many big(ish) name deaths so far and everything is going to hit the fan in the next 3 episodes, so looks more likely than it did, although by no means a certainty.
  221. KG,

    No… it was more than that!
    I can’t help thinking it’s implying a downfall to Littlefinger… and sooner than we expected.

  222. Tyrion Pimpslap: She could just have the bloody flux. She shat a lot in that final chapter.

    Wrong orifice! Remember, Daeny initially thinks that it’s just some

    hellishly bad menses: which basically is what miscarriages are in base biological terms.

    Also, Daeny provides a few other details in that scene that pretty much make it pretty clear what happened such as

    the fact that she had not had a menses in multiple months and that this was coming at the wrong time.

    That said, the bowel issues were probably a side-effect of the same thing: i.e., those berries that she was talked herself into thinking were Dothraki treats.

  223. Wimsey: What was good is that they added a little fan candy without making it completely gratuitous.It was short, only slightly stilted dialogue (of course Gilly would have no idea who Aegon is, just like 99% of the audience) and then a good final line.

    It is kind of too bad that they cut the three heads of the dragon bit, but I’m not sure how they could ever have made that work.

    Did you noticed a Three-headed dragon necklace besides that beautiful dress Dany was wearing?It’s never too late for this,although,I have this feeling Dany is a Three-headed dragon or literally Drogon,Viserion and Rhaegal.D&D seems to hate all the prophecies and just remember HotU scene.It wasn’t that tought to put some visions that matters,but Jason was good.

  224. Here Be Dragons,

    I thought the scene was providing great motivation for LF to join with the QoT in bringing down the High Sparrow, although nothing to that degree seems to be in motion quite yet. Perhaps it just gave motivation to defy Cersei since she’s the one who gave the Sparrow his power in the first place.

  225. OK, so Sansa’s rape last week was totally unnecessary. It is clear now that the scene was just added to the end of the episode for shock value in order to create a media outcry that will generate more attention for the show. What a despicable move from the showrunners.

    On top of that more of than half of the storylines the show has come up with make no sense whatsoever when one thinks about them.

    What a disappointment this show has become. It is now pretty much a – admittedly pretty looking – pile of garbage.

  226. Geralt of Rivia,

    I don’t think that they hate prophecies. It’s just that it’s bad TV to do something like that and not deliver the goods by the end of the season. If they had done it in Season 2, then the audience would have been irked that there was no payoff in Season 2: and, of course, 3 years later they would have forgotten it. Unless, of course, it came up again in Seasons 3 and 4: but, again, where is the payoff?

    So far, we’ve gotten one prophecy: and we’ve been seeing payoff in the last two episodes. Of course, this one might keep paying off next year: but just as long as they reintroduce it next year, that is OK. (Puzo might have written that you should throw a gun away after using it, but Chekhov never did! 🙂 )

  227. Did I see it wrong? I thought Theon was going to the ruined tower to light the candle.. but when he opened the door to the top room – Ramsey was in it…. I thought he was planning on helping her… BUT… when faced with Ramsey he lost his nerve.

    I didn’t think he went to wherever Ramsey was to rat her out…. but that Ramsey was in the broken tower.

    was I wrong?

  228. dragonbringer,

    Which is a real shame, since I think that Dany would actually really like Shireen. Even if Stannis were to be killed off (which probably will happen, sadly) it would be like the Dance of the Dragons, where the rival was killed off but the rival’s child was spared.

  229. Lulu’s Mum:
    I think we need to form a Worried About Shireen Support Group. There’s at least 5 of us in this thread alone.

    Sign me up. I like Stannis, but that will change if he lets Mel burn Shireen. I’m also worried about Selyse doing something when Stannis isn’t around to stop her.

    Stannis needs some other source of king’s blood. Maybe Yara is still hanging around. She has king’s blood now that Balon Greyjoy has declared himself King of the Iron Islands. I like Yara, but given a choice between losing her or Shireen, it’s an easy choice for me (and I imagine an easy choice for Stannis if he gets the option).

  230. Ginevra,

    captured or exiled …i cant see dany ordering tyrion to kill them …

    Geralt of Rivia,

    i storngly believe she is the three headed dragon ..the three heads will be her dragons and AAR ,TPTWP and TSWMTW

    and i think the show did show us the three headed dragon in the house of undying

  231. Jared: The rest of the episode barely even matters to me (though to be clear, I thought it was excellent).

    I want a gif of that introduction to play on a loop. The possibilities now are endless.

    Geralt of Rivia: Did you noticed a Three-headed dragon necklace besides that beautiful dress Dany was wearing?

    I want that neckpiece! So elaborate and beautiful. Daenerys is going back to asserting herself as the Dragon Queen, though in this episode she sat through that inane pitfighting to the death. Hopefully she’ll be stronger in the next episode. I did like her and Daario being somewhat in love and their chat.

    About HS, Cersei, and Lancel, my distinct impression is that L confessed all when he joined the Sparrows, and HS simply wanted to milk as much power as he could from stupid Cersei, before springing his little surprise on her. 😀 So…. whatever “gift” Littlefinger is going to give Olenna is different,most likely Olyvar’s “testimony”, since at one time Olyvar was sent to “corrupt” Loras.

    Very, very sad that the Iphigenia parallel to Shireen may be coming true. Not for a moment do I believe that Selyse will be responsible, because of a spoiler photo….. I think Stannis will succumb to Mel’s suggestion; it’s a slippery slope from thinking one’s brother’s innocent bastard sons are fair game to thinking one’s beloved daughter is fair game.

  232. It’s rare these days that GoT does a full-boat episode that basically features everybody other than premieres/finales, but when they do, I wish they would all be as good as this one. Only Arya/Jaqen-not-Jaqen were left out, and everyone else is in (admittedly Brienne’s presence in the episode is wordless and only a few seconds). But let’s go through just how much great stuff we got:

    –Sansa being the one trying to pull Theon out of Reek. Sure, she needs to ask for help, but hell, she’s trapped at Winterfell. So, y’know, it makes sense. But she’s taking the reins, sassing her husband for being a bastard, picking up a corkscrew-type-tool for later use.

    –A real live awesome Sand Snake! Ok, yes, maybe I’m being somewhat distracted by what appear to be an amazing pair of breasts on Rosabelle Laurenti Sellers, but that scene was still a gem. Gave us a bit of her character that separates her from her sisters, gave us a nice amount of humor, wasn’t forced, was a nice, relaxed moment, and of course, Jerome Flynn rules.

    –One of the best staredowns of the year between Jonathan Pryce, who absolutely killed it this episode, and Diana Rigg, who equally killed it. Pryce is fantastic in this role, and so is Rigg. And I love their mutual nod to the problems of aging: “For me, it’s the knees. You?” “Hips,” she says, matter-of-factly. And he makes a good point to her by noting that, well, wealth isn’t everything.

    –Another great moment between Baelish and Olenna, too.

    –Ah, Maester Aemon. I look forward to Peter Vaughan’s curtain call. He did a hell of a job as the old man, and so glad they left in the “Egg” dialogue. Sure, we needed a bit of exposition, but so what. It was so sweet, and beautiful. And the attempted rape of Gilly (oy, again…but can’t exactly say that aspect of the Night’s Watch hasn’t been established), along with Maester Aemon telling her to get the baby south, makes me think that we will see the AFFC plot that I won’t go into.

    –“Oh, my…” Sam having sex. Hilarious.

    –Melisandre, you’re a sicko. Goddamn it.

    –Nice to see Jorah Mormont kicking some ass. And nice to see that “The Gift” didn’t refer to the area south of the wall, the gift of mercy, but Tyrion himself. Hysterical.

    –The Yellow Whale, Yezzan, seems in some ways to recall Oliver Reed’s Proximo, one of the few really bearable parts of Gladiator; particularly his speech to the fighters before they get out into the ring.

    –Jaime’s pained, broken look when Myrcella says “Of course you don’t. You don’t know me.” Whew.

    –Oh, and we get the end of “The Dornishman’s Wife.” Hysterical.

    –Cersei’s a liar and a creep, but her words to Tommen were heart-felt for sure.

    –That last scene. First, this Hannah Waddingham actress looks dead-on perfect for the severe Septa Unella. She’s so harsh-looking. And then of course, Jonathan Pryce just gets the MVP for this episode. Again, that last scene, with Cersei, and the “strip away the gold…” monologue. He absolutely crushed it.

    Great episode. Up there with the best of the year.

  233. Here Be Dragons: I can’t help thinking it’s implying a downfall to Littlefinger… and sooner than we expected.

    Not necessarily. I see it as symbolizing that LF’s ties to KL are smashed: and he’s leaving a bit of a parting gift before he goes!

    That written, it is possible that LF will be putting the Church on his hit list. My money is on LF: knowing how to cater to fantasies puts someone in the drivers seat when dealing with fanatics.

  234. Kay: So…. whatever “gift” Littlefinger is going to give Olenna is different,most likely Olyvar’s “testimony”, since at one time Olyvar was sent to “corrupt” Loras.

    It was Lancel. It seems that LF knew all along. (I’m not sure that the show made that particular detail clear, but it made very clear the general detail LF knew lots and lots of things.)

    On a side note, it makes Cersei look marginally less stupid than she does in the books. In both cases, she sets herself up in her attempt to drag down Margaery: but in the book, her coup de grace for Margaery winds up nicking her own head, too. Now, it’s the snake that she assumed would stay hidden that’s bitten her.

  235. So in the trailer for next week,

    Sansa says she wishes she could do to Theon what Ramsay did to him? She is really making hard for me to give a shit.
  236. My prediction is that Brianne is gonna freak out when she charges for the castle and finds Stannis there!!! She’ll probably be faced with a choice- save Sansa or kill Stannis- 2 oaths she swore to uphold…

  237. The main thing I’ve taken from this episode is that Lancel was not Littlefinger’s to give to Olenna but could the “handsome young man not even Cersei knows about” be a certain MIA Stark boy. I mean it is Littlefinger, it could literally be anyone in the seven kingdoms.

  238. No yara but Sansa name dropped Balon and reminded viewers that theons his heir. And melisandre reminded viewers of the leech curse, leaving out balons name and totally messing with us book readers. Am still anticipating seeing yara and Balon by the end of the season. Definitely interested in seeing the end of Arya’s storyline in braavos, Jamie’s in dorne, the winterfell storyline and of course the conclusion to the mereen storyline

  239. That they chose to add two Night’s Watch guys sexually assaulting Gilly right before Sam and Gilly’s consensual sex scene from the books is…dubious.

    Granted, I expect this is just meant to be yet more reasoning for them to leave the Wall, but…why is that needed? There’s already plenty of reason. Aemon’s dead. They need a replacement, and Sam is the most obvious candidate; and Gilly would go with him regardless. And for a show that once had Shae speak the (rather true) line about women not wanting to have sex after attempted rape, what the heck?

    I’ve expressed my criticisms about the handling of the Faith Militant and the logic of much of this plotline, but I thought both of the High Sparrow’s big scenes this episode were very good. Two of the better invented dialogues; I particularly liked his comments on the anonymity of the carvers of the first sept, versus the Great Sept of Baelor.

    On the subject of the much-discussed Winterfell plot, Sansa hasn’t gone “full Jeyne” (not that I ever expected her to), but there’s every indication here that Sansa’s being raped (repeatedly, as this episode makes clear) is just going to be handled as yet another bad thing done to her that she grits her way through, which I don’t think is a terribly good way to be handling this, if (as the defenders claim) this is going to be big for her character development.

    Wimsey:
    On a side note, it makes Cersei look marginally less stupid than she does in the books.In both cases, she sets herself up in her attempt to drag down Margaery: but in the book, her coup de grace for Margaery winds up nicking her own head, too.Now, it’s the snake that she assumed would stay hidden that’s bitten her.

    You could argue that’s counterbalanced by the changes they made to the rise of the Faith Militant, which is now 100% Cersei’s idea, rather than something she came up with while trying to resolve a separate problem. She just gave them an army and judicial powers because she wanted them to be used against Margaery.

  240. That last shot in the preview for episode 8… If those are wights beyond that gate… Damn.

  241. Sean C.: if (as the defenders claim) this is going to be big for her character development.

    It already has been given this episode alone. Turner played Sansa with a force that we’ve never seen before from Sansa: and it almost certainly stems from that. Even more telling was the way she didn’t crumple when given a setback.

    What I liked most about what we saw is that Sansa was actively pulling Theon out of Reek. She needs him: not as a rescuer, but as a tool. Instead of passively waiting for a fairy tale night, she’s starting to go a bit Arya: and it’s about time, too.

    Sean C.: She just gave them an army and judicial powers because she wanted them to be used against Margaery.

    Which, again, is a bit brighter than doing it just to get out of paying a loan in that it is more active and conniving: she sees them as a tool to her goal. Of course, it is just as foolish because she clearly doesn’t get that there is a good reason why you should never let religious people arm themselves. However, two ideas can be equally foolish with one being still a brighter idea than the other: that is the difference between wisdom and intelligence, after all.

  242. dragonbringer:

    Geralt of Rivia,

    i storngly believe she is the three headed dragon ..the three heads will be her dragons and AAR ,TPTWP and TSWMTW

    and i think the show did show us the three headed dragon in the house of undying

    I almost asked that question, too, after the teaser you laid out.

  243. Iron_Unbroken: OK, so Sansa’s rape last week was totally unnecessary. It is clear now that the scene was just added to the end of the episode for shock value in order to create a media outcry that will generate more attention for the show. What a despicable move from the showrunners.

    And you build that bold assumption on what exactly? – Seriously, I have been in this community for years now and I love it here, but some of the comments I read here are just so bitchy, it’s beyond belief…

  244. Wimsey: It was Lancel. It seems that LF knew all along.

    No, I have problems with it being Lancel. Not disputing for a moment that LF knew all along. But other things don’t make sense, such as HS being very much OK with Lancel when he first joined the order and confessed. In the season pilot, Lancel asked for Cersei’s forgiveness, so it’s doubly certain that he had told HS everything already.

    Sean C.: but there’s every indication here that Sansa’s being raped (repeatedly, as this episode makes clear) is just going to be handled as yet another bad thing done to her that she grits her way through, which I don’t think is a terribly good way to be handling this,

    So it was fine for Daenerys to be raped repeatedly, in Season 1, and for it to be actually SHOWN in more than one episode? She did learn to take control and change her life. It seems to me to almost be an exact parallel. But I am certain that you think differently, and your opinion will absolutely not change.

  245. I don’t think LF’s gift to Olenna was Lancel. From the High Sparrows words, it sounds as though Lancel confessed when he first joined the Sparrows, as others have pointed out. As others have also pointed out, the only way that would involve LF is if he was the one who somehow sent Lancel to the Sparrows, in the first place. I think it would also mean Lancel and/or the High Sparrow are in cahoots with LF, and I really, really, really doubt that.

  246. Wimsey,

    I always love reading your posts because they are very well thought out. However, I am still not convinced it was Lancel he was speaking of.

    Could you elaborate on why you are so sure it is Lancel? Why wouldn’t he come clean in the first place? Did Littlefinger really send him to the High Sparrow so long ago? Could it have been right after the “power is power” incident? I understand why the High Sparrow would sit on the information to gain power, but why come out with the truth at that moment?

  247. Kay: No, I have problems with it being Lancel. Not disputing for a moment that LF knew all along. But other things don’t make sense, such as HS being very much OK with Lancel when he first joined the order and confessed.

    Why is that a problem? People are forgiven when they confess. The Sparrow explained that quite well: punishment is based on how contrite one is. And if someone is so contrite that they are seeking to join religious order, well, that’s pretty contrite. (Because we all know how much going to church sucks! 🙂 )

    Now, Lancel might very well have left out with whom he committed his sins: but, then, he was confessing his sins, not those of someone else.

    At any rate, good old Occam’s Razor (see my icon!) comes into play here: never multiply explanations without necessity. What other handsome young men are there that Olenna can use in her war with Cersei? (And Occam’s Razor says, yes, that is to what LF is alluding: because, again, what else is there?)

  248. freoduwebbe,

    didn’t think he went to wherever Ramsey was to rat her out…. but that Ramsey was in the broken tower.

    I thought the same thing, and thought Ramsey was going to do something to Theon to get him to tell why he was even there. Hadn’t thought he’d rat on Sansa, but now that you mention it – that does make sense, how else was R to know about the old lady.

  249. freoduwebbe,

    I thought the same thing. But the window in the room where Ramsay is gave it away. Plus he looks at the tower but doesn’t go in that direction.

  250. Gwenivere: Could you elaborate on why you are so sure it is Lancel? Why wouldn’t he come clean in the first place? Did Littlefinger really send him to the High Sparrow so long ago? Could it have been right after the “power is power” incident?

    I am sure that Lancel confessed his sins and showed great contrition: after all, he joined the Church. I doubt that he confessed with whom he committed the sins. After all, that is for the other sinner to do. I doubt that LF had anything to do with Lancel joining the Church: he just took advantage of an opportunity presented.

    Also, I see no reason to think that Lancel was sent to the High Sparrow for several reasons. One, LF had no particular reason to foresee that this man would rise from nowhere. As informed as LF is, he is not omniscient: and the High Sparrow seems to arise form nowhere fairly suddenly while LF is far from KL. Two, the High Sparrow himself might have been unaware of the particulars behind Lancel’s case: after all, he now has a lot of followers, and Lancel did not necessarily join with him in the first place. Lots of religious people are converging upon KL, and Lancel was one of them. Lancel made it pretty clear in Episode 1 that he’d been doing a lot of soul searching the last few years: but that’s all the detail we get. Where/when/how he made his vows and contritions are unknown to us, and really unimportant save that they happened.

    So, I would conclude that the High Sparrow just learned with whom Lancel committed his (paid up and atoned for) sins. Whether he just learned the details of Brother Lancel’s sinning for the first time, I don’t know: but it’s also not very important to the plot.

    And, again, if nothing else, good old Occam’s Razor: we need to start coming up with very convoluted explanations otherwise. Go with simple until evidence forces you to do go with more complex (and then take the simplest alternative of the ones remaining).

  251. Casso,

    Do u rem the scene with Selsey falling in the snow? I’m thinking she tries but the onion knight stops her.

  252. Oh, and don’t look now, folks, but that’s a Dothraki bloodrider standing next to Danaerys in the pit-fighting scene.

  253. Abyss: And youbuild that bold assumption on what exactly? – Seriously, I have been in this community for years now and I love it here, but some of the comments I read here are just so bitchy, it’s beyond belief…

    Don´t feed the bookw*nking trolls.

  254. Kay,

    But Selsye already knows why the lord of light needs her daughter (bath scene last season). So she’s likely in on it.

  255. urangutan21,

    I don’t agree with either of the posts you singled out, either, but do you have no other way of expressing your disagreement than calling people things like pricks and douchebags?

  256. Greatjon of Slumber:
    Oh, and don’t look now, folks, but that’s a Dothraki bloodrider standing next to Danaerys in the pit-fighting scene.

    Yes, I saw that! 😀 Unsullied on one side and Dothraki bloodrider on the other. I may have watched Tyrion introducing himself a few times…..

    Demonmonkey: But Selsye already knows why the lord of light needs her daughter (bath scene last season). So she’s likely in on it.

    Yes, Stannis has always been very fond of Shireen and Selyse not so much. So….. think of the shock when it actually comes to pass: will a mother allow her daughter to be burnt alive? Will a father who is single-mindedly focussed on being the RIGHTFUL King to the exclusion of everything else, allow it? I guess we will see how each of the parents respond, now that the suggestion is out in the open.

  257. Greatjon of Slumber:

    –Sansa being the one trying to pull Theon out of Reek. Sure, she needs to ask for help, but hell, she’s trapped at Winterfell. So, y’know, it makes sense. But she’s taking the reins, sassing her husband for being a bastard, picking up a corkscrew-type-tool for later use.

    I also saw the “bastard” discussion as an attempt to turn him against Roose, and possibly make him feel insecure enough about his position to make a stupid move (like killing Fat Walda) that would end with either Roose or Ramsay dead.

    Also, possibly to remind him that he needs to keep her alive, so he doesn’t decide to flay her in a fit of boredom.

  258. Demonmonkey: But Selsye already knows why the lord of light needs her daughter (bath scene last season). So she’s likely in on it.

    Moreover, Selyse seems to dislike her daughter greatly. Perhaps she’s upset when someone thwarts this. Hmm, who would do that?

  259. Wimsey: It already has been given this episode alone.Turner played Sansa with a force that we’ve never seen before from Sansa

    I don’t think she was any different from her standard Darth Sansa act since 408. Lots of imperious glares.

  260. Kay: I may have watched Tyrion introducing himself a few times…..

    I’ve been waiting for that scene since Bill Clinton was president.

  261. Gwenivere,

    A young man came to us not long ago, broken in body and spirit. He had so much to strip away, so much weighing him down. But piece by piece he unburdened himself – let go of vanity, pride, sin. Now his soul is so light he will float through the seven heavens like a bird. And he has much to say about you.

    I think that LF only recently gave Lancel to the QoT, only just before or after their talk in the brothel. The “piece by piece” line from the High Sparrow implies that Lancel confessed a little bit at a time and that only just “now” is his soul light enough to fly like a Sparrow. So my guess, if it is Lancel, is that LF just went to him and said, “Dude, you’re not really a good little Sparrow and you’re not really going to be forgiven of everything until you confess everything, you know, including your co-conspirator.” I imagine that would have been enough to get Lancel to confess the last part he’d held onto.

  262. Sean C.: I don’t think she was any different from her standard Darth Sansa act since 408. Lots of imperious glares.

    And grabbing people and literally pushing them around while making pretty imperious demands of them. She wasn’t asking or pleading: she was commanding. We had not seen that before from Sansa.

  263. jentario,

    I was nervous about the Sand Snakes. They’re much better then they’re not shouting, fighting or soliloquizing! Great episode, truly. So much happens!

  264. Ginevra,

    The other issue is, who else could it be? There are no other characters that would be (or that have information that would be) a gift to Olenna right now.

  265. Wimsey,

    i really dont know how you are keeping up with this wait i have been waiting for 4 years and i cant take it

  266. Casso: I also saw the “bastard” discussion as an attempt to turn him against Roose, and possibly make him feel insecure enough about his position to make a stupid move (like killing Fat Walda) that would end with either Roose or Ramsay dead.

    Yes, it shows that she has learned from LF: candles can be burned at both ends. Old Sansa would never have considered that: after all, a Knight was supposed to wisk her away from it all.

  267. Wimsey:
    Ginevra,

    The other issue is, who else could it be?There are no other characters that would be (or that have information that would be) a gift to Olenna right now.

    There’s no one else. I mean, it’s all underlined there. He talks of a young man who unburdened himself, Lancel shows up, stands next to the High Sparrow and glowers, Cersei tries to stalk away. It’s meant to mean that it’s Lancel, who stands in for himself and the Kettleblacks.

  268. Casso: I also saw the “bastard” discussion as an attempt to turn him against Roose, and possibly make him feel insecure enough about his position to make a stupid move (like killing Fat Walda) that would end with either Roose or Ramsay dead.

    Also, possibly to remind him that he needs to keep her alive, so he doesn’t decide to flay her in a fit of boredom.

    That’s a good point, too. His claim is enhanced by his marriage, and diminished without it or an heir.

  269. Demonmonkey:
    Casso,

    Do u rem the scene with Selsey falling in the snow? I’m thinking she tries but the onion knight stops her.

    I hope Davos succeeds in stopping them. He would certainly try if he was in a position to be aware it was happening. I’m totally loving the passing/departing from the books, because not knowing what’s coming up is amazing. I’m finally able to experience some of what the unsullied experience.

  270. Nymeria Warrior Queen,

    I agree but any idea who this other handsome young man could be? Is it Olyvar rescinding his testimony?

    that would b very obviousthat LF did it but Cercei is in prison so who cares? Also it would be closer in line w the books where those who accused Margorie took back what they said under torture.
  271. Sean C.:
    On the subject of the much-discussed Winterfell plot, Sansa hasn’t gone “full Jeyne” (not that I ever expected her to), but there’s every indication here that Sansa’s being raped (repeatedly, as this episode makes clear) is just going to be handled as yet another bad thing done to her that she grits her way through, which I don’t think is a terribly good way to be handling this, if (as the defenders claim) this is going to be big for her character development.

    And why shouldn’t she just grit her teeth and try to get on with things? Because you know, that is what most Real Life Women rape victims actually DO – they have to. There may BE no-one to help them, nowhere they CAN go for help, no way that they can do anything at all except to Survive. They have to survive if they have children and families who depend on them. It is that simple act of Survival and putting one foot in front of the other on a day to day basis which shows their true strength, but I don’t expect you to ever understand that. I am sure Sansa would love you to point her to the local Winterfell Rape Crisis Centre for physical and emotional assistance, or tell her how she can call the Winterfell Cops to come and take Ramsey into custody and then have him prosecuted … Well she could scream and yell for help, but as the Boltons control Winterfell, that wouldn’t do much good.

    Guess she is just going to have to get on with surviving first and then taking whatever opportunities she can find to work towards getting her revenge. She thought she could jolt Theon out of his tortured state, but that would have been too simple and much too quick after what he has been through. But at least she tried ‘something’, and then she had the guts to tough it out and appear in public on Ramsay’s arm with a brave face so that he didn’t have another reason to punish her.

  272. dragonbringer,

    I went into a medically prescribed coma for a while. I just lied and said that it was for tax purposes.

    Seriously, my fanship has waxed and waned over the years. I was really big on it from the time that Kings came out to when Swords came out. There were only so many times you could discuss who Jon’s mother is or what LF’s motive is or whether Aegon is still alive or who the Three Heads are, etc., etc., so I lost a bit of interest over the next few years. Then Crows came out, and I lost a lot of interest!

    The show got me interested again and Dragons kept the interest up.

  273. Wimsey,

    It could be some handsome young man we’ve perhaps not even met yet who testifies at the trial that he witnessed Olyvar conspiring to lie. Though this is a far less likely option, it is within the realm of possibility. I am fairly convinced from the connected dots for Loras. I’m not as convinced about Olyvar being Cersei’s gift, though he is admittedly the most likely candidate.

  274. Casso,

    My theory is that

    Ramsay will leave Winterfell, sneak into the Bolton encampment and kill someone important, more than likely Shireen. That is the scene involving Selyse crawling on the ground. Iwan Rheon was in an interview video with specks of blood on his face and Stannis’ camp was in the background. It has to involve Ramsay somehow.
  275. Demonmonkey,

    I’m not sure who it is. It could be Olyvar. As others mentioned last week, since Olyvar squired at least once for Lancel, he would have had reason to see the birthmark, so LF could have Olyvar to say that’s why he knew it was there. He could have Olyvar “confess” Cersei paid him to give his testimony, thus making Cersei look even worse.

    There’s another possibility, although it’s pretty out there, and born in large part from wanting to see this character, again. Gendry. LF knows how both Jon Arryn and Ned figured out all Cersei’s kids were bastards. He also knows Genrdy escaped the masacre of Robert’s bastards, if I remember correctly. How LF would have found Gendry is beyond me, but he could be used as proof of Cersei’s incest, and while it would mean Tommen isn’t King, so Margaery isn’t Queen, LF can maybe propose Margaery marry Gendry, since he would be a Baratheon heir. I mean, hell, she’s already been married to Renly, Joffrey, and Tommen, so what’s yet another King?

  276. Iron_Unbroken: What a disappointment this show has become. It is now pretty much a – admittedly pretty looking – pile of garbage.

    I do always enjoy people who are so full of venom for a show that they no longer want to watch, that they’d actually come here and tell us.

    Seriously. If you don’t like it, DON’T WATCH IT. But do us all a favor and go quietly. NONE of us here care if you don’t want to watch. This is a discussion community for the show itself, and if you’re no longer watching, you won’t have an educated opinion to share.

  277. Kay,

    It was gorgeous isn’t it.It just makes you appretiate the show even more.It’s not just the acting that stand out for you,but every little detail is there.From the beautiful sets,through amazing wardrobe Dany’s dress,Sansa wedding or Margaery and to end it with those small pieces.Even Maester’s chain is just so detailed…it’s amazing.Not to mention that CGI/Dragons,Meereen,Braavos etc) is breathtaking.This is just great on so many levels.

    dragonbringer,

    Bingo!Jon and Tyrion will be hugely important in the upcoming war against Others/WW too(no doubt),but until proven otherwise my money is on Dany,as you said it.Jon is after all actively trying to do something about this threat.And Tyrion will be involed thanks to his scene with Essosi Mel in the Volantis.That looks just foreshadowed something big for him.

  278. Wimsey,

    glad you came back i really like your thoughts about the series and show is keeping you interested in the series .. as frustrating the wait may be we can agree that this is really an amazing world that GRrm and then D&D brought to life and hope it ends well and make those people who have waited long enough

  279. Geralt of Rivia,

    Geralt of Rivia:
    Kay,

    Bingo!Jon and Tyrion will be hugely important in the upcoming war against Others/WW too(no doubt),but until proven otherwise my money is on Dany,as you said it.Jon is after all actively trying to do something about this threat.And Tyrion will be involed thanks to his scene with Essosi Mel in the Volantis.That looks just foreshadowed something big for him.

    i think this the problem with this theory that most people are afraid that it will somehow diminsh the importance of jon’s arc …but thats just a silly fear …

    do i believe that dany will single handedly save westeros and kill white walkers …no absolutely not but she will need the help of others …jon needs her help and so does she

    the dragons are hers it was she who made the sacrifice and entered the fire to bring them to life and all three share a personality of dany in them …i dont see anyone getting anyone riding the dragons other than her until she dies

    i have a feeling we will be seeing that we will be seeing all three dragons with dany this season finale when she is meeting the khalsar ..that will prove the theory

  280. Benjen Stark is confirmed to be involved in E10.

    Looks like he will somehow be a tie-in to Jon’s arc.

  281. Pigeon:
    So in the trailer for next week,

    His betrayal got an old woman flayed. I wouldn’t be happy with him either.

  282. dragonbringer,

    I agree with pretty much everything and especially on the bit about Jon.Now I’m fully convinced,Dothraki will be there and this meeting will happen.I was initially a bit worried about it(if they can cut this part…it’s D&D who knows really),but it looks good so far.Dothraki bloodrider was there at Mossador’s execution and now in the pit.

    I can see her proudly standing besides her dragons and Khalasar will kneel before her.This would make a very good and sort of positive ending.Much better than rathr depressing Jon moment at the end.

    Just a few words about Jon.In my opinion they downplayed prohepcy quite a bit,because it’s tough as Wimsey said,some people might be confused by that(my nono book readers for sure,but maybe in order to not to diminish Jon’s importance too much.Jon is pumped up as a Hero,but maybe not in the sense of AAR/Lord of Light warrior.But I believe they’ve been subtly hinting at Dany as Three-headed dragon,while Jon will probably lead forces from the ground(another important piece).His knowledge about WW will be important and his leadership skilsl too.It’s not like Dany will do it all alone(like you said),but it wil be a collective effort to save mankind from this threat.

  283. I think the “Handsome young man” that Littlefinger is going to gift to Olenna is…

    Tommen!

    He’s going to let Olenna know what Jon Ayran and Ned Stark both found out about Cersei never giving Robert a Trueborn heir…

    Maybe Littlefinger’s even found Gendry to reinforce this evidence!

    I don’t accept Littlefinger managed to place Lancel into the faith nor pursuaded him to confessed and I think the High Sparrow already had this information before Cersei started her vendetta.

    …but he holds all the pieces to what got Jon and Ned murdered.

  284. Yung Wolf,

    Yara was supposed to be in this episode and she was nowhere to be seen.IMDB is quite unreliable on this.They’ve mentioned Balon Grejoy two times:in Sansa/Ramsay scene and Mel/Stannis.I’m thinking Yara’s return to Iron Islands and some rather bad news.This leaves room for another Greyjoy in season 6.

  285. Yung Wolf,

    They can be messed with, although it seems less common than Wikipedia, say. A few months ago, someone posted Michelle Fairley as ‘Hooded Woman’ in an episode. Lol. Would love Benjen back so here’s hoping it’s not a fluke.

  286. This episode was one of the best of the season.

    I finally enjoyed a scene in Dorne. Until tonight I thought the Dorne storyline was entirely disappointing. I watched Sand Snakes with perpetual scowls on their faces, bad accents, and horrible fight scenes that, even with creative editing, demonstrated they couldn’t fight their way out of a nursing home, let alone fight their way to victory over all of Westeros. I thought it might have been time to unleash a mongoose in Dorne to put the Sand Snakes out of their misery.

    However, tonight the scene between Tyene and Bronn was immensely entertaining. It seems there may be a bit of spark between the poison-dagger weilding Sand Snake and the better half of any buddy adventure. I’m glad Jerome Flynn is still with us. He’s definitely one of my favorites, and he really is a pretty good singer.

    For book readers, the passing of Aemon was expected. His last scenes were sad and sweet. I loved Peter Vaughn playing Aemon, and I will miss him. The heart and voice of wisdom at CB has been silenced, It remains to be seen who will replace him, but Aemon’s last words to Gilly may foreshadow this.

    Although he broke his vow, I was pleased to see Sam get his groove on
    with Gilly. No one deserved it more than Sam who lost his mentor and endurred a beating about the head and face by a couple of fellow brothers of the Night’s Watch who were in a raping mood around Gilly. Thankfully, before Sam was beaten to death, Ghost popped in and saved the day.

    The Faith Militant is quickly proving why Maegor Targaryen outlawed them 300 hundred years ago, as it seems no one is safe from their brand of holier-than-though justice. Although these religious fanatics need to be destroyed once again, watching them throw Cersei into a cell after Lancel spilled the beans was immensely gratifying.

    The scenes between Olenna and the High Sparrow were brilliant. It is quite clear that the High Sparrow will not be swayed by the high-born Queen of Thornes to release her grandchildren. However, I agree with Olenna in regards to her smelling a fraud, and find it hard to believe that this barefoot, nazi-like religious zealot is in it solely to serve the Seven.

    Although the High Sparrow has no intention of releasing Loras and Margaery, I think Littlefinger was up to his Littlefingerly ways and has engineered a way to release the two. When Littlefinger told Olenna of a boy who came to him, I think he was referring to Olyver, his brothel manager and star witness against Loras and Margaery. If Olyver recants his testimony, Loras and Margaery would likely have to be released. Knowing Littlefinger’s gift of manipulation, I’m sure Olyver will be recanting next week.

    I’m tired of Sansa being the perpetual victim. From the very first episode, Sansa was victimized. Remember, Arya annoyed her, and threw food in her face. Next, Joffrey abused her. Then Cersei tormented her. Tywin humiliated her by marrying her off to Tyrion, and now Littlefinger is using her in his grab for everything. Hell, even her aunt Lysa was mean to her and tried to push her through the moon door. Alas, that was not enough suffering for poor Sansa. Sansa has now been married off again to the High Sparrow of the sadist crowd, Ramsay Bolton, who is making Sansa his new nightly plaything. Sansa has become the proverbial helpless princess in the tower waiting to be rescued. Honestly, what a waste of Darth Sansa’s attitude and wardrobe.

    Sansa needs to grow a pair. Instead of relying on Theon/Reek to save her, it would be nice to see Sansa defend herself by pulling out a nice sharp knife and removing the part of Ramsay that offends her. She could then sell it to the next cock merchant who came along. Unfortunately, I doubt the cock of a twisted pscho would fetch as much as a magical dwarf cock, but at least, much like the act of embracing the bastard moniker, it could never again be used to hurt her. Alas, enough with Sansa the victim, it’s time for Sansa the vengeful warrior to emerge.

    Stannis and his troops Are on their way to Winterfell on his Napoleonic-like forced march through the winter snows, losing men and horses along the way. As if Stannis isn’t having enough problems, Melisandre suggests that Shireen be sacrificed to the Lord of Light to assure Stannis’s victory. Stannis tells Mel she’s nuts if she thinks she’s going to set his daughter on fire, but if things get worse for Stannis, Shireen may be a gonner

    Surprisingly The most disappointing scene was when Jorah and Tyrion meet Daenerys in a mini fighting pit. Jorah kicked ass, subduing all of the men in the pit. Dany seemed to be pleased with the guy who defeated everyone until he took his helmet off and she saw it was Jorah. Imo, her reaction was less than exciting. Daenerys was obviously stilled pissed at Jorah as she demanded he be taken out of her sight, and she may have been less than pleased with the “gift” he brought her, namely Tyrian, but the Queen of Meereen’s reaction to seing them seemed flat.

  287. Yung Wolf,

    Yep.Episode 10 was always a bigger possibility.IT would be a nice way to introduce a Greyjoy storyline for next season.More Greyjoys and less Dorne, if possible.

    It’s ridiculously huge.I didn’t quite expect that,but it’s shapping up to be an impressive battle.Hopefully it will not be a dissapointment,ebacuse I’m hyped about this.

    Dead things in the water, Giants or maybe even Ice spiders?

    http://awoiaf.westeros.org/images/thumb/e/e1/Marc_Simonetti_Ice_Spider_Other.jpg/400px-Marc_Simonetti_Ice_Spider_Other.jpg

    If D&D manage to include something from this…that would be heaven.

  288. Geralt of Rivia,

    exactly and agreed completely

    i was worried they may cut the arc…but after seeing the post by Dave hill with “the dragon has four heads” and all this dothraki refferences and sightings

    even today we got DROGO name dropped

    think about Dany scene in season 4 episode 1 where dragons fight over the meet …now think this at the end of season 5 episode 10 dany will be sharing the meat with the dragons

  289. Geralt of Rivia,

    i still think that dead things in the water is dead bodies of night watch and wildlings floating in the sea and Nights watch resurrects them ..

    that said i am hoping we see nights king in ice spider next episode and we will be having dany mount drogon in episode 9

  290. For a mili-second, I thought Cersei was actually going to try to do something positive for Margaery, just to show Tommen how sincere she was about helping him. But of course, that idea was totally destroyed when she trotted down to the dungeon with her leftovers. She never felt she had to impress Tommen, because she already has him so firmly in her control. She intended to not make the same mistake with him that she did with Joffrey, by building his position, reminding him that he is in charge. Everything she did this time was to undermine the King. It worked.

    She was wrong the first time, and horrifyingly wrong this time. King Tommen is the only one around who might be able to do something, but he’s clueless. It may cost him his life. We know it’s going to cost Cersei. To whom can she turn now? Jaime can’t come back now, especially not with Myrcella. She shouted “I am the Queen!” as she was being dragged away by the Septa. All I could think of was “No, no you are not, poor deranged bitch, not anymore. If you would have had the graciousness to let events unfold as they should, instead of causing so much grief because of your hubris and some long ago prophecy from a woods-witch, you would have been much better off.”

    It killed me to see Sansa’s bruised arms and hear that she is locked up all day. What surprises me is that there is no hue and cry for a poor, flayed old woman. No protest at the grotesque torture. I knew Theon wasn’t going to “snap out” of his situation. The only positive note in that whole business is that Ramsay said the old lady’s heart gave out before he could get much out of her. Which means she didn’t reveal Brienne. I can’t wait for that fucker Ramsay to die.

    The second Tyrene opened her top to show her assets, I knew that the vast majority of Dorne whiners would forgive whatever weaknesses there were in that plot line. I’ve been a major whiner myself about it, but thought the humor did much to redeem the Sand Snakes. Bronn lives to sing another day! Excellent.

    Tyrion was excellent, as well, both this week and last. I don’t normally say much about him, but should say more. “I am the gift.” You are, indeed, Tyrion. Your logic and quick wit are sorely needed. Those future scenes in Meeren will be great.

    Must go to sleep – basically the whole episode was great. Enjoyed this one far more than last week. Jon be careful. Loved when he thanked Thorne for his honesty. And Sam – Sam finally got some. Remember last season, or two seasons ago, I forget, when he was begging Jon to tell him what love and sex were like? Yay!

  291. Re my last post, just to be clear – it’s Ramsay that I can’t wait to see dead, NOT Brienne. Brienne is cool, and with Pod as the dynamic duo, a breath of fresh air. I was afraid it was going to be Brienne and Pod swinging up there. That would be awful.

  292. Rygritte:

    Or Daenerys could leave Daario in charge of Meereen. Not using spoiler tags, because — purely speculation. Daario understands the system; he was a slave before, then he was in the Second Sons, so he could be a good bet.

    dragonbringer: i was worried they may cut the arc…but after seeing the post by Dave hill with “the dragon has four heads” and all this dothraki refferences and sightings

    Do you have a link to the Dave Hill post? Also, I am not worried about them cutting her arc. Because…. she’s out to abolish slavery. The Dothraki are the primary suppliers. Unless she does something to destroy the source and stem the supply chain, slavery will always persist. So she has to go “back”.

  293. Sullied bookreader that I am, I have a loose idea of the general sequence of events for the next three episodes, but we are off book now. I regret that some scenes were under served (e.g. Sand Snake fight) to conserve budget for the sequences in ep. 8-9.

    What do I look forward to in S6? Oldtown. Wolf dreams. “I know about the promise…” & Howland Reed to show up at last. We should get at least two of those things…

    Shireen’s in peril, but would Stannis sacrifice his heir and the legacy of House Baratheon? I do not believe he would. But Selyse & Melisandre, on the other hand…dun dun dun!

    Does anyone believe that the High Sparrow is actually Howland Reed? I don’t subscribe to that theory, myself. But man, do I want Howland Reed to show up in the books & the show. Will the show give us House Manderly in s6? The Battle for Winterfell might not get the “Alexander Nevsky” ice lake scene ( Sergei M. Eisenstein film, anyone?) that some predict will happen in The Winds of Winter.
  294. Nymeria Warrior Queen,
    flintwielder,

    Well, you guys are right, most of them are most likely just trolling, but that doesn’t make them any less bitchy and also believe that at least a small number of them are serious. Oh well, no real point in talking about that in any detail. 😉

  295. AA:
    Jerry,

    You’d think if the High Sparrow were for real he would have already punished Lancel.The HS should have led Cersei into a cell to see Lancel chained to the ceiling, like Ser Osney in the book, and that being the moment Cersei realizing she is f-ed.That would have been perfect.

    He probably had. Lancel obvously didn’t just confess his sins, it happened long ago and he’s already gone throu the stages of confession, contrition and penance. His soul was already light when he spoke to Cersei in the first episode. The High Sparrow just couldn’t do anything against royalty, until Cersei gave him the means, then he just waited for an apt moment.

  296. Here Be Dragons,

    I don’t accept Littlefinger managed to place Lancel into the faith nor pursuaded him to confessed and I think the High Sparrow already had this information before Cersei started her vendetta

    I concur with this observation, Lancel had gone through his redemption months earlier, before the conversation between LF and QoT, so who is this handsome man that LF will gift Oleanna with to free her grandchildren?

    Not only was this episode the best of the season, but one of the five best of the entire series. Three scenes in particular elevated it from a modest 9/10 to 10/10. In order from last to first; Tyrion/Jorah…Tyene/Bronn…and of course the final long scene between Cersei and the High Sparrow. All the actors must be commended for the exemplary portayal in these scenes and young Ms. Sellers held her own with Mr. Flynn, her deliciously devious, humorous slow seduction of Bronn was quite enthralling to watch, and I laughed silently when the other two snakes rushed up to the bars to watch Bronn die and their dejected expressions when their sister gave him the antidote; she obviously enjoyed his singing voice.
    What can I say concerning Mr. Pryce and Ms Heady’s absolutely perfect piece of acting that already has been said…nothing, so kudos to them. Their scene together is the pinnacle of not only the season but the entire KL arc to this point, the slow buildup, the music, the tension and the revelation (fist pump) left me smiling. Oh and a shout out to Septa Unella actress Hannah, damn, she can be me my Septa any day.

  297. Demonmonkey,

    I need to watch that again – I remember thinking, what in blazes was Ramsey doing in that ruined tower? Now reading your post, that makes lots of sense

    Nymeria

    There’s another possibility, although it’s pretty out there, and born in large part from wanting to see this character, again. Gendry. LF knows how both Jon Arryn and Ned figured out all Cersei’s kids were bastards. He also knows Genrdy escaped the masacre of Robert’s bastards, if I remember correctly. How LF would have found Gendry is beyond me, but he could be used as proof of Cersei’s incest, and while it would mean Tommen isn’t King, so Margaery isn’t Queen, LF can maybe propose Margaery marry Gendry, since he would be a Baratheon heir. I mean, hell, she’s already been married to Renly, Joffrey, and Tommen, so what’s yet another King?

    Oh that would make so much sense. I’d love to see Gendry come back!

    Alas, enough with Sansa the victim, it’s time for Sansa the vengeful warrior to emerge.

    How? You are right she’s been a victim for far too long, but I think you are being unrealistic about her suddenly knowing how to be a warrior. I suspect weapons will not be in the equation here. It will be her wits. She needs to have some agency to realize that she can use them – but given her comments to Ramsey about being a bastard was her way of testing the waters so to speak.

    BTW people keep talking about LF jet pack. Im not as concerned about that as I am the perpetual infant. Hasn’t enough time passed for Little Sam to be at least crawling? Just saying. Hope that Sam does take Gilly south to Old Town!

  298. Princessmaria:
    Alas, enough with Sansa the victim, it’s time for Sansa the vengeful warrior to emerge.

    Sansa isn’t Arya. As much as I love Arya, I would never want Sansa to turn into her. The way she secretly grabbed the metallic corkscrew tool tells me that she isn’t just waiting to be saved, but it would be inconsistent with Sansa’s character for her to suddenly become her sister.

  299. Turncloak,

    Nope, LF gave Olyver to Lady Olenna. Now that Cersei is jailed, Olyver is going to tell the High Sparrow that Cersei made him lie about Loras and Margery. They will be freed, LF will dispose of Olyver and life will go on in KL.
    DORNE STILL SUCKS.

  300. ash,

    Time & distance are fluid concepts on Game of Thrones: Gilly’s baby hasn’t aged in 3 yrs. Littlefinger either has a jetpack or teleports…

    G.R.R.M.’s overlooked the aspect of aging the baby. Perhaps next season we’ll see Oldtown and a toddler…

    I want the Maesters to develop the printing press. “Maester Gutenberg has a wonderful new invention, Sam…”

  301. Maester of Ceremonies:
    ash,

    Time & distance are fluid concepts on Game of Thrones: Gilly’s baby hasn’t aged in 3 yrs. Littlefinger either has a jetpack or teleports…

    Gilly was pregnant in S2E3
    Myrcella left for Dorne in S2E6
    Little Sam was born in S3E3
    Myrcella had been in Dorne “for years” in S5E7

    If we assume an average of slightly less than a year per season, except for seasons 3&4, which seemed to be covering only about a year combined (maybe 8 months for S3, and 4 months for S4), that would mean Myrcella has been in Dorne for about 2 years.

    In S1E1, Cersei mentioned that it took a month for the royal party to travel from King’s Landing to Winterfell. If we assume that each episode averages slightly more than a month, then it is completely reasonable for Littlefinger to go from Winterfell to Kings Landing between S5E4 and S5E6, without a jetpack or teleporter.

    Nobody claimed that Cersei & Jaime needed a jetpack to go from Jon Arryn’s funeral in King’s Landing to Winterfell in less than 5 minutes in S1E1, because they explicitly said that a month had passed. Once they established how long it takes to travel from KL to Winterfell, they don’t need to explictly state that time has passed, because the passage of time can simply be inferred from the fact that people (Littlefinger, for example) are traveling. Sure, we can’t tell the exact time that passes, because maybe Littlefinger is traveling significantly faster than the royal party did, but I think it’s fair to assume time has passed while he was traveling.

    If we assume that not all episodes are covering exactly the same amount of time, and not all storylines are exactly in sync all the time, things can mostly fit, though there are certainly a few continuity errors that really can’t be resolved.

    The biggest continuity error seems to be Tommen, who has aged a lot between the end of S2 and the beginning of S4, considering that S3 seemed to be covering less than a year. Second biggest continuity error is Little Sam, who should probably be about a year and a half old by now, but doesn’t look it.

    The fact that Tommen and Little Sam are clearly aging at extremely different rates is something that makes a coherent timeline impossible, regardless of how fast Littlefinger can travel. We just have to kind of ignore it and enjoy the show, or give up and quit watching. I’m still watching and enjoying it even with the continuity errors.

  302. Casso,

    The only ‘iffy’ thing about the passage of time on the show (that I’m aware of) is Tommen’s age. Best to simply accept it as a straight retcon. Everything else supports the book timeline where maybe 2-2.5 years passed during the first three books/four seasons.

  303. Abyss,

    You’re absolutely right it doesn’t make them any less bitchy, and a couple of them probably are serious. I’m just growing weary of a couple of the obvious trolls around here, and that bleeds over into my reading of particularly bitchy posts which offer nothing other than bitching.

    btw – All that work you did making gifs from the preseason stuff came in handy over on another thread. Thanks, again, for all that! 🙂

  304. honeyimhome,

    Possibly. LF said to the QoT that he was giving her the same kind of gift that he gave Cersei. If he gave both Cersei and the QoT the same handsome young man, Olyvar, then he gave them the same gift, and so I’m almost sure he would have said, “I’m giving you the same gift I gave Cersei” rather than “I’m giving you the same kind of gift I gave Cersei.”

  305. Nymeria Warrior Queen,

    One of the trolls happened to mention that he thought another poster had been banned, which I thought was ironic. Can they not ban Baby Wolf and O t t e r b o x and the like? If they can, why don’t they?

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