The newest season 5 video from Game of Thrones is short but sweet, offering several new pieces of footage with interviews from executive producers David Benioff, Dan Weiss, and Frank Doelger, along with commentary from actors Peter Dinklage, Emilia Clarke, and Iain Glen.
In other news today, from the continuing coverage courtesy of Entertainment Weekly, the showrunners confirmed that Bran Stark will return next year after his season-long absence. EW reports that Bran will be trained by the Three-Eyed Raven off-screen before returning in season 6.
“Like, it would be far less interesting, after The Empire Strikes Back to have an hour-long movie in between Empire and Return of the Jedi where Luke is training,” Benioff tells EW. “It’s so much cooler to cut from end of Empire to begging [sic] of Return, where he’s become the Jedi.”
Benioff indicated they expect Isaac Hempstead Wright to return to the role. “I certainly hope so,” he says. “Unless he goes off to college and decides he doesn’t want to come back.”
Let’s hope that’s not the case! It’s strange to lose Bran for an entire season but better to have the character off-screen for a year than to have his storyline stretched thinner than it already has been.
Shodor
Jon looks quite pissed in his shot at the beginning of the vid !
I’m really scared about D&D killing off Tormund this season.
Valyrian Steel B*tch
http://i.imgur.com/d24lYer.gif?1
I love this time of the year as there is so much news, and excitement for the upcoming season. It’s going to be epic!
Benioff needs to watch The Empire Strikes Back again.
Is that Rhollor’s Flames behind Arya in 0:07?
I highly doubt Isaac Hempstead-Wright when asked if he wants to return would be like “Nah, think I’ll pass on all that money, fame and future acting gigs”. Keggers and mid-terms for me please.”
Darjan,
Except that’s basically what Jack Gleeson is doing in turning away from an acting career right now.
Why? What he’s describing is exactly what happens between the movies. There’s a big time gap between the end of Empire and the start of Jedi and when you see Luke when he first shows up at Jabba’s Palace, he’s definitely a different kind of Jedi than what we saw him at the end of Empire.
Sue the Fury,
To be fair Jack Gleason would be the extreme exception to the rule.
Because his training takes place in TESB. He obviously does a lot of practice in between movies, and perfects his abilities – but his actual training takes place in the the second film.
John M W,
What they’re referencing is how self-assured and different he is in Jedi. A true master as opposed to the guy going through the training in Empire. There’s clearly a lot of stuff he went through between movies to get him to the point that he’s at when he walks into Jabba’s and mind tricks all the minions and calmly asserts what he’s going to do. Lucas had no interest in showing how he evolved to that point, he skipped it. That’s what Benioff is referring to.
Sue the Fury,
Except Joffrey is dead (end on a high note – George Costanza) and Bran is still alive.
Would I be banned if I admitted I have never watched an entire ‘Star Wars’ movie or read any of the books? I’ve seen bits and pieces of episodes 4-6, but never could make it through the entire movies.
You’re clearly not human.
John M W,
I have seen ‘Spaceballs’.
GRRM’s “five year gap” was meant to, among other things, cover the Stark kids’ “training phase” to a great extent. That had to be dropped for other reasons (one consequence of which being that the kids largely vanish from AFFC/ADWD, though in Bran’s case that problem began even earlier, in ASOS, when his sisters’ stories were continuing to ramp up in that novel).
The show has, somewhat ironically, largely ended up following that template. In Bran’s case, his training is going to occur offscreen. In Sansa’s case they just turned her into a “player” like flipping a switch, sans training (or, perhaps, have retconned that her training was in King’s Landing, when they never depicted any such thing). Arya is the only one whose training arc appears to be getting dramatized in something akin to the manner of the books.
Tyrion Pimpslap,
I don’t like Star Wars at all either.
What if next time we see bran he has a root growing through his eye that would be kind of awesome in a dark twisted way.
Depends on if there is a minimum age limit to post here. :p
Burn the witch!
Again with the Star Wars analogy! Curious. 😀 First, Alfie Allen saying Jon’s parentage is a bit like the Luke situation. Now Bran’s training compared to Luke with Master Yoda.
Tyrion Pimpslap,
Nope. I liked the first two Star Wars movies pretty well, disliked Jedi, and hated the prequels so much that it killed the franchise for me. Maybe my midichlorian count is too low because I wasn’t born from a virgin mother. Who knows.
Things would have to go really disastrously bad in ASOIAF for that to happen.
@0:47 You can see Jorah is the last man standing in the pit like a balla, shot calla.
Tyrion Pimpslap,
“How many assholes do we got on this ship anyhow?”
— Dark Helmet
Don’t know why anybody has to bring the prequels into the discussion. We were having a nice, pleasant conversation about the Star Wars Trilogy.
I never watched the three original ones. So when the second trilogy was released and I watched I fell in love. Now I couldn’t for the life of me enjoy any of the originals and people look at me like I’m from another planet when I tell them so.
I never watched the three original ones. So when the prequels were released and I watched I fell in love. Now I couldn’t for the life of me enjoy any of the originals and people look at me like I’m from another planet when I tell them so.
The only thing I found more enjoyable about the prequels was the saber fighting. The story and characters, at least portrayed how they were, in the prequel were far worse in my opinion.
Jamie confirmed to be fighting Obara in the video:
https://i.imgur.com/8BijSiU.jpg
Jon Snowpenhauer,
I actually liked the characters (quigon, obi wan, the queen, skywalker, the green dwarf, grievous and count duku, etc.) and the fact that the hero ended up being corrupted was refreshing to me and unexpected, perhaps because I never saw the originals I admit, but the prequels are the ones I like. From the originals I found the princess so annoying and ridiculous looking… Han Solo was ok and Luke was like so uninteresting to me that I had to tried many times before I could even finish watching.
To add to the real content of this thread: I’m very excited to see Jorah in the fighting pits and the confrontation as a whole. I’m pretty sure that’s going to be an spectacular episode. I’m also looking forwad to Sansa, Arya and Jon’s storylines; something that hadn’t happened to me for the last two seasons lol.
Doing a little GIFing right now and spoted somthing interesting. There is part of a shot in this still that clearly isn’t supposed to be there. Most liklely its just a crew member, but the person could be in a costume. Anyway, I just found it funny.
I don’t feel bad for Bran,he’s a boring character with a boring storyline .
Greenjones,
Yeah, i always shrug when people act like the Star Wars series,well the originals that is,is some deep,philosophical cinematic experience,they are just a bunch of fun popcorn movies ,nothing more . To be honest i’m not even that excited about the new movie that’s coming out .
Freaks.
😉
There’s a shot of Obara fighting Jamie in the trailer #2 as well…
We’ve actually known for quite a while due to the leaks, but this is about as clear as it gets. In trailer 2 you could slightly see his profile, here you can see his full face.
Jon Snowpenhauer, you can also see his golden hand @0:49
And his left hand holding the sword… 😛
This video has me thoroughly stoked for this season! The locations, the costumes, the unknown storylines, Brienne cleaving an opponent’s sword in two, Stannis finally dressed for the weather and looking badass, Mel looking so mysterious, and Arya in tHoBaW! Squeeeee!
Re: Star Wars
It’s not about the quality of the original, it’s about the global cultural phenomenon it became at the time. And it is highly quotable: “These are not the ‘droids you’re looking for.”; “Don’t get cocky.”; “We…we’re all fine here. How are you?”; “Into the shute flyboy!”; “Will somebody get this walking carpet out of my way?”; “That’s no moon.”; etc. And most iconically, “May the Force be with you.” Love it for the cheesy, swashbuckling adventure tale that harkens back to the 1950’s Saturday matinee serials that it emulates. In it’s way, it is no less influential a film than Citizen Kane.
It will be interesting to see what Bran has been up to in Season Six…that would be hopefully bolstered by Martin finishing and releasing “The Winds Of Winter” beforehand…maybe this year…
Never seen any of the movies apart from short clips, they just don’t appeal to me at all – and I’m a huge sci-fi fan otherwise.
In the books, Bran’s training is focused into one chapter before he disappears in exactly the same way Benioff explains. Now, I wouldn’t mind losing that training if the scenes weren’t so interesting and full of potential (such as the string of flashbacks including a surprise cameo of an actor who’s outright said he’d love to return to the show), but it’s a shame.
Bran would only really need to appear in two to three episodes and end on an extremely memorable note, and the same “training off screen” effect could have been applied without such a major character and storyline skipping a season and while giving fans at least a minimum bit of answers to explain what was going on at the end of season 4.
Does George have a lot of Bran’s training in Winds of Winter?
Not interested in that.
Bran turning into a tree? Not interested in that.
It’s not Bran’s story that concerns me it’s the Greyjoys who are already playing a role in Winds from the excerpts released.
D & D love sword fights, both necessary and unnecessary. An appropriate title for the show could be Sword Fights and Cliches.
Boojam,
The Greyjoys (or specifically Vicky) are about to pull a Quentyn and end up being completely irrelevant. Might as well have been a ship delivery man.
Euron might still have an impact on the story, and they can introduce him in season 6 ( when they have less new characters and storylines to work with).
SerDuncanTheTall,
He even hits the poor man in the head with the sword :O
RIP extra #3
Jesterr223457,
You SHOULD be excited for the new film. Brienne and Syrio are both in it.
Thing is, Luke actually got too LEAVE Dagobah after his training.
Young Griff,
Who doesn’t love sword fights? I mean….they’re pretty awesome!
We already knew most of Jorah’s whereabouts this season, thanks to trailers 1 and 2 and the leaked pics from Osuna, but gods I’m so happy for Iain Glen. Such a talented actor (plus he’s hot as seven hells) so underused the last couple of seasons.
Let’s take a look at some things of note:
00:04 – Sansa in Winterfell.
00:06 – Arya in the House of Black and White. Behind her, a statue of the Fiery Heart of the Lord of Light. R’hllor wasn’t one of the 30 gods (or Godly-facets of the Many-Faced God, according to them) specified to be in the temple, but only about half a dozen where mentioned by name, and it makes sense for the Red God to be there (by the way, you may remember that both in the books and the show Jaqen H’ghar says he owes lives to the Red God.) For those keeping track, we’ve already seen them build the statues of the Weeping Woman of Lys and the Lion of Night of Yi Ti.
00:11 – Jon Snow and Davos share a scene together. Yes!
00:20 – For those saying that the producers change too much or even don’t “get the story”: “This season is very much about characters stripping away who they once were and becoming something different”, says Frank Doelger, an executive producer. That’s literally the story (not plot) of AFFC and especially ADWD. If you want a catchy catchphrase for it, the book even provided one: “Kill the boy and let the man be born”, as Aemon told Jon Snow. I’m extremely happy they aren’t losing sight of the actual story of the characters that’s being told with all this thick plot. Wimsey would be proud.
00:23 – Tyrion in the boat he will share with Jorah.
00:45 – Wisely, they keep obscuring Tyrion’s presence at the Pit.
Abyss,
The bald guy is a Thenn if that’s who you meant.
When it rains it pours…Not a pipsqueak for aaaaaages and now it’s an avalanche of videos, pics and interviews. Love it and hate it as my impatience for the season to begin is reaching Joffrey-esque brattish levels.
Personally I’m all for Bran disappearing only to return stronger, wiser and invincible a la Gandalf and take everyone by surprise. I’ve no idea what it is he’ll do but he’s definitely one of the bridges between the supernatural forces and the “realms of men” and when the two start properly colliding he’ll be right in the middle. That sounds a lot more exciting than watching the learning process, which must be mostly an internal journey and therefore not terribly cinematic.
Same for Sansa, I think they were right to have her brutally turn, because for me at least it’s understood that it didn’t happen in a minute but is the result of a long (verrrrrry long) process of absorbing information that culminates in her finally choosing a stance.
Whereas Arya’s training promises to make for much more TV-friendly tribulations.
I like the original Star Wars; all I liked about the prequels were the better CGI effects. Gods, I’m so mainstream.
Young Griff,
There’s no such thing as unnecessary sword fights.
I´m afraid the actor playing Bran will look like Pycelle the way he is aging by the time next season arrives. 🙂
I used to like Star Wars, but then I turned 16 and discovered other Star Wars fans are horrible, overly-critical nerds that like to over-analyse every single aspect of it, and they did everything in their power to suck all the fun out of it. Lucas even says on one of the commentaries there was always something a bit tongue-in-cheek about them and they were never meant to be taken that seriously. But, sadly, that’s exactly what the geek collective did, and now we have Disney brand Star Wars where the Empire is still magically around thirty years after Jedi because people don’t feel like it’ll be a real Star Wars film without Stormtroopers, Tie Fighters, X-wings and all the usual, old ideas they just keep recycling.
It’s a reflection of all the problems with modern storytelling and film making. The issue doesn’t lie with the storytellers, but the actual audiences who are uncomfortable with anything that’s new and original. They feed on familiarity and the comfort of seeing things they’ve already seen. Lucas tried to do something different with the prequels and people hated it. JJ Abrams will just recycle the same stuff from the original films, and naturally you’ll love it.
To keep it on topic, I no longer have any interest in the Hollywood blockbuster because watching just a couple of episodes of GOT is millions times more satisfying than watching two hours of superheroes destroying an entire city.
Josla,
I don’t want to live on this planet anymore.
00:03 The soldiers with red flags enter the Winterfell!!!
Umbers? UMBERS????
http://img2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20150215174222/gameofthrones/images/0/08/Umber_sig.png
mau,
That would be awesome. I’ve been freeze-framing but can’t see what’s on them at all. Looks like there’s some yellow too though it may be a trick of the light…
Luka Nieto,
No, it is not Sansa! Soldiers have different helmets!
And LF and Sansa are are at the front of procession in trailer, but at 00:03 they are not.
A Girl Will Obey,
They may be Bolton soldiers, but they are not from the Vale.
Different helmets!
On the little finger timeline. I’m guessing there going to be a lot of passage of time quotes this season I.e. you have been gone a month, we have been at the wall for three months.. The books were pretty nebulous time wise at this point so it shouldn’t be a big deal.
mau,
The helmet and armors are Bolton though I can’t see the flag.
Dragonslayer,
Their flag has red on it. These are they likely.
Isaac doing work outside GoT ( Box Trolls immediately comes to mind) , I think, shows that he is keen to pursue an acting career. I’d be surprised if he didn’t return.
mau,
Hmm. I hope that’s what it is. Would also make a wedding seem more likely.
I wonder if they got the Greatjon back, or if they’ll just be featured extras.
I saw the first two episodes in the cinema when I was……even younger than I am now but haven’t seen any other episodes. It’s “horses for courses” – I found the “Lord of the Rings” exceedingly heavy going and didn’t finish the book(s) though I did listen to a radio adaptation on the BBC several years (decades) ago. When I admitted finding it difficult I had friends/acquaintances look at me very strangely. And then with food, I HATE Christmas Pudding but lots of people tackle it with relish at the relevant time of year. I can’t understand it when people take it as a personal insult when one dislikes one of their likes…
Lol
Tyrion Pimpslap,
I saw the original star wars movies in 1996 when I was 7, didn’t really fall in love with them instantly like everyone else claims, I mean my favorite characters in the movies was the talking robot and his clumsy beebing little robot friend. This proves why Lucas was actually making a lighthearted good vs evil story for kids that grown ass adults who live in their moms basements took too seriously LOL.
Arya havin’ a larf?,
Always thought that “Star Trek” or “Dr Who” was far superior to “Star Wars” for a real scifi fan – but that’s just me.
When I was a kid I liked them. However I tried to rewatch A New Hope a couple of years ago and fell asleep…
mau,
I said Sansa in Winterfell (00:03 – 00:05). Not Sansa arriving at Winterfell. The guys arriving (00:02 – 00:03) are Boltons (not Arryn or Umbers), which is exactly what I said 😉
Young Griff,
They might include some unnecessary sword fights, but it appears they’ve done a pretty good job keeping out the unnecessary characters *cough*
From what it appears i have the impression this season will close with a lot of cliffhangers.
Uff,
I’m not trying to be rude but I think you went full Kanye on your cliffhanger paragraph.
Of course it will be used this season , have you got any idea how much a scene like that would have cost to film , why would they spend season 5 budget on season 6 material lmfao
Same here. Watched 4-6 again after Sith came out. Bad acting, bad writing, corny jokes, annoying/silly robots, poor FXs.
Certainly not the same movies as viewed from the eyes of a child in the 80s.
I am intrigued by the shot depicting Olenna in the video. She almost seems to be watching an excecution.
Uff,
Uhm, why would they shoot something, and then use it later???? Also, David Nutter appeared on set. He directed episode 9 and 10 this season, so….
Olenna looked upset. I wonder what she was seeing.
If they cut fAgeon that means that he, in D&D’s opinion, doesn’t plays any role in this story.
If they wanted fAegon they would cast him. Very simple .
Sue the Fury,
True. But he didn’t do it after Season 2.
Sue the Fury,
Good point, but I got the sense that Jack would never have left the show early, even if he wanted to, out of a sense of loyalty. There seems to be a strong sense of loyalty to this show among the entire cast; everyone seems to love working on it. And Isaac only stands to get into better colleges with bigger scholarships if he can demonstrate commitment to the end of the show, since that’s an indicator that he’s persistent, career-oriented, hard-working, and will probably be successful later in life. IMHO.
SerDuncanTheTall,
If you made that gif you are awesome haha! XD
SerDuncanTheTall,
I hope they’ll make a point of it on screen, to show how superiour Valyrian steel is to normal steel. Perhaps also explain better just how valuable it is. That scene where Jaime gives her the sword in season 4 is a little off to me, she seems to be more impressed by the armour(fine armour no doubt but 100 such suits of armour is not worth a fraction of the sword) than the sword.
mau,
I think Aegon, much like soooo many other plot developments in AFFC and ADWD is just smokescreens and filler.
Greatjon of Slumber,
I know. It was pretty much a facetious remark in the post.
Macharius,
How is Aegon filler? GRRM has already promised we will get a 2nd Dance of Dragons. This clearly implies we will get Dany vs Aegon in book 6. Dany needs an adversary to face in her conquest of Westeros. How anticlimactic would it be if she just steam rolls the competition?
Rygar,
Actually I be viewed them as a child in the 90’s but yea they still held up back then. Not so much now
Did something happen with the edit button? I’m unable to edit my comments on mobile
Turncloak,
Given how much GRRM writes about the Targs and loves their dysfunctions, it could be argued that the Starks are the filler. The ASoI&F tale is nothing more than a description of the lunacy that occurred during the extended gap between Targ dynasties. 🙂
I like the Star Wars prequels better then the original trilogy. And I grew up with the OT. I get tired of articles about Episode 7 taking shots at the prequels. What worries me is a new SW movie every year. That is far too commercialized. I don’t mind a new trilogy. Heck I wouldn’t mind a new trilogy once a decade. But to expand it into a yearly thing will water it down and make it like the Marvel movies…. Where there are no real stakes in the conflicts.
If anything SW and GoT have a lot in common. They are the only two major pop culture stories where good guys get killed, corrupted, or lose limbs. There is real stakes to the movies. Disney need to keep this in mind going forward or SW will just be a comic book movie.
Back to GoT…. I don’t mind Bran missing a season. I don’t mind newer characters being cut, changed, or combined. I just want a good conclusion for the main 20 characters or so. I don’t even care if half of them die. I expect it. I just want to know in the next few years how this story ends.
Hodor’s Bastard,
That would be bad writing. The story started in Winterfell with the 7 kids…. Robb, Sansa, Arya, Bran, Rickon, Jon, and Theon. If they are filler then the entire saga is a huge misfire.
They are simplifying it. Instead of having Aegon come, defeat Lannister and Tyrells with his allying wit the High Sparrow, they will simply remove Aegon, let Dany come so she takes ALL of Aegons role. She will ally with the High Sparrow, she will take down the Lannister and Tyrells etc.
Cersei vs Dany seems sexier in the show, than Aegon vs Dany to D&D I think.
It cuts a HUGE portion of the books aswell, where Dany will be influenced by the Lord of Light (Moqorro is coming to her from Benerro the high priest of Rhillor from Volantis, and she will go to Volantis in the books and probably be convinced to follow Rhillor if she is told she is basically jesus) and Aegon will be loved by the people of Westeros as Rhaegars son come to save them from Cersei, whereas Dany comes over and claims he is fake, follows a new religion and claims she is jesus. That whole dynamic will be lost on the show.
Now Dany will just be seen as a hero saving the realm, and will probably not be converted to Rhillor, so no mistrust from the Westerosi.
It sucks, cause I think that is a much better “Game of Thrones” style story, ofcourse Dany will be hated by her own people. She didnt listen to Jorah(Allies will be in westeros) rather allied herself with pirates, ruthless sellswords, dothraki, etc. all things Westerosi are fearful of, and now she challenges Aegons rule and popularity, who only has knights(Golden Company are the nobiliest of knights for a Sellsword company) and will have only allies in Westeros(Probably Dorne, and with Randyll Tarly).
Side note, it also sucks cause Aegon will be the perfect way to defeat Cersei. She loved Rhaegar, and to have his own son now take her power is a dagger in her heart lol. She loved Rhaegar so much she appointed the bastard of Driftmark Aurane waters to the small council just cause he looked like Rhaegar lol I think that was to remind us of her feelings for Rhaegar so that when Aegon comes that will definitely be an issue with Cersei. Its perfect.
Forgive me if anyone has already posted this. Just found one more nudity spoiler on recapped
The Bastard,
Have no fear, I’m an unrelenting Stark supporter…but I can still speculate outside the box. My silly response was in response to the equal silliness of considering Aegon/fAegon filler, considering the respect that GRRM has given the Targs over the past decade. As Turncloak mentioned, GRRM is leading us toward another Dance…and he already has the 3 heads in place.
Kyrion,
Here is the problem.
D&D already know how the show will end and have probably mapped out all of the major story lines until the end. They have already had to keep Bran out this season because his story line was too far ahead.
If they add all of that Aegon content, the entire Northern story would have to be stretched out. And that just can’t happen. In a book you can just leave a character for 300 pages. In a show, it would not work.
Aegon would just slow down the conclusion of the show.
No matter what thematic resonance Aegon’s story has, the fact is that he’s barely been developed as a character, and Cersei has, making her a much better antagonist to Dany.
I love that there is a site who clearly has sources within television productions that can provide tons of spoilers of all kinds but they have chosen to only focus on reporting when certain actresses get naked. I don’t think you know what you have there, guys.
I have thought this since the first trailer. I do not have the skillz to enhance video, but there was something about the X-shaped map markers that was off. So I looked up the HBO version of the Umbers sigil and saw what you posted–crossed shackles. And just because the armor is the same shape doesn’t mean that it is exclusive to the Boltons. It could be a northern design. Also, the guys riding through the gate have blackened steel armor. I don’t remember the Boltons having blackened steel armor. I’m betting that they are Umbers.
Nope. The Dance is Dany v.
.
Day 3 of the NY Daily News Game of Thrones advent calender provides a small hint at Missandei’s role in Season 5 from the lovely and talented Nathalie Emmanuel. http://interactive.nydailynews.com/2015/03/game-of-thrones-calendar/index.html
“She plays hard-hearted ex-slave turned adviser to one of the most powerful queens on “Game of Thrones,” but all it takes is the right song to reduce Nathalie Emmanuel to tears. “I have a few songs, I won’t say which, that remind me of certain times and places that make me very still and sad,” says Emmanuel, 26. The curly-haired actress has gained global stardom playing Missandei, a key member of the inner circle of Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke), a rising power who commands armies of elite warriors and three unpredictable fire-breathing dragons. While Missandei typically keeps her emotions tightly under control on “Game of Thrones,” things begin to change for her in season 5. “I express myself a lot with music,” says Emmanuel. I use it to bring forth an emotion, so with scenes where I have to cry, I listen to this music between takes. You have to understand, that it’s hard to cry on camera. Sometimes you have to bring that emotion a lot when there are lots of takes and it can be quite challenging – you just dry up completely. No more tears.”
So Missandei will have a crying scene this season – possibly more than one.
They’re clearly Boltons. The flag is red and blue and the soldiers are wearing the same helmets as those standing behind the Bolton family in the photo released a while back.
SerDuncanTheTall,
At least the armor is being portrayed correctly and not being sliced through. Well, it might be that way after some VFX but I hope not. I love the shot of the Bolton soldiers.
Jared,
Jared,
Hodor’s Bastard,
Whatever happens to him, I’d bet it will take place in episode 10.
I may be one of the greybeards around here, I’m guessing (41 yrs old) but what it was with Star Wars was not that it was a deep philosophical experience, but that it was a simple story that was incredibly well-told, and by that it meant that it adhered to a three-act structure in every movie where each act is pretty much cleaved by location as well. Add to that the tremendous jump up in special effects technology (compare it to Logan’s Run from a year earlier) and you had a great experience – the tremendous music, effects, photography, sets, a fully realized world that pulled you in immediately that never seemed strained or forced, or attached to our own world the way Star Trek was – and that’s what did it. The acting is mostly fine, and Hamill even looks like Olivier when compared with Hayden #@%$# Christensen.
Carne,
No, the person is only in this one frame and overlapping with the Wildlings. It clearly is an editing error. 😉
Luka Nieto,
That seems like something that’s happening concurrently or prior to Daznak’s in order to take him out of commission.
Jofrey’s Cunt,
But it’s always nice to have a confirmation.
Luka Nieto,
King Tommen,
Actually kinda agree about Bran
Thing there is that through other characters POV (Theon) we get an implied sense of his development
In this case they’ll be able to simply re-introduce him at a higher level so we don’t get development filler
It’s a bit like Theon/Reek in reverse, we re-visit Theon in a completely transformed state, but the show went through the rather uncomfortable process…
It would be good if they could do the same for Arya in particular
With Sansa they kind of showed her progression, eg how she talked to Lysa and played the “stupid little girl” card. It is a bit muddled after that though because to show her progression they have undermined Littlefingers character by putting him in a vulnerable situation he never would put himself in. He always has a go-to plan
The only slightly downside is that this season there was the opportunity for heaps of backstory via Bran visions. Hopefully next season
Hopefully they can sneak in some proper BR makeup too while they are at it, if they can re-cast characters they can re-make some. It was only once scene they had to apply the zombie makeup for, it’s like making someone a Wight or Wight Walker. After all that unnecassary special effects with the skeletons they messed that up and made him like Gandalf
nice!
Aegon was barely in like 200 pages in a 1500 page book. Give him to the Winds of Winter before we expect to see some character development….I think he will get some, despite not being a POV.
The show just wants Cersei vs Dany, which is understandable, but still not as good. A Dance of the Dragons is WAY better than a fight between Cersei and Dany. Cersei wont have Dragons at all, whereas potentially Aegon will with Dany riding Drogon, she cant very well ride Rhaegal and Viserion, who also don’t like Dany now that she tied them up and locked them away. Its perfect for a future fight between Dany with the large Dragon vs the other two dragons by Aegon and mysterious rider/dragon seed, just like in the first Dance of the Dragons. Maybe Jon, maybe Stannis, whoever has Targaryen blood will do basically. (And not Tyrion, he isnt a Targ dammit)
King Tommen,
I think that there’s a chance it could be happening concurrently.
One possible scenario:
I actually enjoy the Bran chapters not so much because of what’s happening (he is walking northwards towards a Cave) as they always provide fascinating backstory to the Universe, eg the Knight of the Laughing Tree story, and the vision of blood sacrifice while in the tree and seeing different family members through the Winterfell Weirwood tree
Does everyone really think Cersei will be an antagonist after this season?
Jared,
I think you are on point.
Crabber’s Son,
You’re forgetting the real enemy is in the North. Even if Dany seizes power rather easily, then she will have to go North to protect the Kingdom, which many theorists agree is what’s gonna happen. GRRM himself has described the titular ‘game of thrones’ as a distraction from the real problem they’re all gonna be facing soon enough. The clue is in the name: “The Winds of Winter.”
As for Cersei’s fate, TWOW spoilers:
Kyrion,
Far more likely is that Aegon doesn’t get any dragons and the Second Dance with Dragons is over fairly quickly.
mau,
They are Bolton soldiers
Can see the Flayed Man banner
Can also tell from Stills of Ramsay, Roose and Walda where the Bolton troops with the same helmets are standing to ceremonial attention behind them
King Tommen,
Luka Nieto,
The dragonfood masters appear in episode 4 IIRC, not in the finale… Which is conveniently named Sons of the Harpy.
jentario,
Are you sure? I don’t remember a specific episode at all… So maybe there are two attempts? And no, I don’t they will both die so early.
GaiusB,
GaiusB,
And additionally, you kind of want Drogon to be the one to save Dany as the only free dragon. If they were freed before, why wouldn’t Rhaegal and Viserion come to the Pit as well?
Crabber’s Son,
The point is , you do not know what will happen . None of us know. Only GRRM and D&D know the end of the story.
You really think that they would cut fAegon if he is so important (ruler, dragonrider,….) ?
Why would they do that ? Because of the time ? HBO has confirmed that they would allow 10 seasons if they asked.
Too complicated? Why? 10 lines would be enough to explain everything. In the book, revelation wasn’t done any better.
The reason is different. I guess.
Luka Nieto,
Or Second Dance with Dragons is between Jon and Dany and Aegon is just red herring, because without him it would be too obvious?
Luka Nieto,
jentario,
Battle of Mereen will be included. Leaked script form FB confirmed that.
jentario,
Luka Nieto,
Luka Nieto,
So I searched IMDB to make sure… My mistake, they’re marked under episode 5. I guess it’s still possible they changed around scenes and moved this to episode 4, but it’s seeming less likely now. I wonder what the Sons do in this episode that actually award them the episode name.
Also, one little (maybe big?) tidbit: Gemma Whelan aka Yara Greyjoy is marked under episode 10. Now, this could be just some fan entry, but for some reason I doubt it. It’s a bit to specific. Could this be setup for an expanded Ironborn plot in season 6? Maybe there’s still a chance for Euron?
jentario,
Trolling is usually quite specific. Or maybe it was a wishful fan. Also, wasn’t she recently marked under episodes 7, 8 and 10 or something? Anyway, I wouldn’t pay much attention to that.
As for the aforementioned battle, why do you think it’s cut? I’ve argued why I think it’s not, in my previous comment.
Jared,
Throw in the twist that
and we have a deal!
King Tommen,
And the second argument i dont see it as an issue that only Drogon would help her. He is more connected with Dany and he was not chained by her.
Macharius:
i think that they will, as she probably gonna face the 4 riders we have seen in the shoot just before.
Well, they will introduce new characters next season I’m sure. There is always about 10 new characters.
My bet:
Euron Greyjoy
Aeron Greyjoy
Howland Reed
Randyll Tarly
New grand maester
Maybe some characters from Oldtown
Killing off characters is a good thing in many ways…
If we want to see some badass Greyjoy characters in Season 6 then D&D need to make room.
I’m still hoping for D&D to merge that Crows Eye guy and that other warrior brother of his into one BA character.
The introduction scene of him jumping into that enemy boat and hacking down the whole crew was an amazing read, would translat well on screen.
Keeping my fingers crossed!
mau,
And… whatever new characters TWOW introduces. This is the problem with trying to guess based on unpublished source material.
Luka Nieto,
There is absolutely no indication that anyone is marching on them. There is no siege, the entire threat is coming from inside Meereen itself.
The show has also taken steps to have Tyrion come to Meereen through other means that have nothing to do with Yunkai. They made Yezzan a Meereneese trader instead of a Yunkish one. They have no Quentyn, no Brown Ben Plumm, no Pale death, no individuals that would have any connection to a Yunkish invastion/seige. Vicatarion is not present and it looks like they’re killing off Barristan this season. There’s no Green Grace, no Tattered Prince, no hostages exchanged etc etc.
What “Battle for Meereen” is left to have? Based on the shots from Drogon/Dany, the city is going to be put to waste by the end of the season by the internal battle. What dramatically is there to gain by staging another siege after the Sons of the Harpy have made the attack themselves?
I think there’s plenty of evidence to suggest that the decision to have some kind of Battle for Meereen has been condensed into whatever confrontation is happening this season with the Sons of the Harpy.
mau,
Must say , I’m not sure how Cersei is going to offer up much resitence if Dany ( and apparently everyone who is going to be tied to her if fAegon doesn’t happen) invade. The Lannisters are a spent force ( the show interestingly added that their Gold Mines were now dry), Tywin is gone, Kevan is gone, Jaime and Cersei are at odds. She’s going to suffer a dramatic drop in power whatever happens in her trial. The Tyrells are pretty much proppping them up and I can’t see them being particularly intriguing antagonists or be able to offer much resistence with Dany and potentially Dorne and the Gold Company’s powers combined. This is the reason I haven’t give up complete hope on young Griff ( or Trystane being his proxy) or Euron as although the north has a great couple of antagonists with the WW and Boltons. The Riverlands have the Freys, but the south well it’d all be a bit too easy for Team Dany at the moment.
King Tommen,
What you are describing is not the leaked script conversation but the conversation from Season 4, in which the resurgence of the Wise Masters and Cleon was introduced, and Dany stays in Slaver’s Bay partly to install order. You’re disregarding what the leaked script summary actually, explicitly, says: according to Daario and Hizdahr, the Wise Masters intend to attack Meereen. The summary says nothing of Yunkai and Astapor going to shit; it’s certainly not “the gist of it.” I don’t know where you got that from. The exact words are: “The Yunkai’i are eager to attack her.” So, are D&D gonna introduce that plot-thread and just… forget about it? Okay…
And what are you saying about the shots with Dany and Drogon? That’s before Daznak (she’s certainly not wearing the same dress.) Meereen is not up in flames. It’s night. Those are lights.
Arthur,
Oh yeah and I hope Pulo gets the role from ROME! Lol
Is it just me or season 5 looks epic? 🙂
Kit, HBO’s 7 days in hell looks great too! 🙂
http://loser-city.com/features/sxsw-film-7-days-in-hell-and-the-invitation
S4 talked about Cleon the butcher rising to power in Astapor. Does that mean the show has to deal with that or was it more just background about how what she’s done in the past hasn’t set things right?
Luka Nieto,
King Tommen,
jentario,
jentario,
Shite, forgot to spoiler tag. No edit button showing up either.
jentario,
It shows with spoiler tags to me 😉
TheTouchOfFrost,
Why would they cut young griff
Luka Nieto,
King Tommen,
It’s, of course, happening, because they wouldn’t ever cut something like that, especially now that they have the budget. No, they ain’t cutting the Battle of Fire, or the Battle of Ice for that matter.
Luka Nieto,
I think you’re way off on this and the last time you and I argued about what was going to happen based on evidence we have, it didn’t work out so well, amirite?
You’re interpreting the conversation incorrectly. Once we see E1, it should become more clear.
Knowing where we are at the end of this season in Meereen, explain why there would be any dramatic reason for the show to stage a further siege in S6? Why would they do it when the war in Meereen has already taken place?
Jofrey’s Cunt,
We’ve known that since the Tyene audition tape and the Rosabell interview published on this very site confirmed it.
Luka Nieto,
I agree with Luka. The Yunkish threat is quite clearly being established and I think something will come of it, though maybe not this season.
Greenjones,
Not this season, no. If it was going to pay off this season, it’d be the focus of Dany’s story arc in season five, which it obviously isn’t.
King Tommen,
Hodor’s Bastard,
I think that’s in play.
Leaving aside the greater details, the basic options as I see them are:
King Tommen,
If you are right what happens when
Crabber’s Son,
Crabber’s Son,
Luka Nieto,
I expect that shot to be in one of the first episodes then you dont see Drogon again for another 8 episodes or so.
Crabber’s Son,
I have doubts that Drogon even takes her outside of the city. The dragons neutralize the Harpy threat, the city’s basically demolished and S6 starts with Dany deciding to take the remnants of her army toward Westeros. Perhaps they reintroduce a Dothraki element to this but I have a feeling the show has dispensed with them (perhaps that changes).
Crabber’s Son,
davy,
Are you talking about the one Dothraki guy fighting in the Pit along with the rest of the slave fighters? That’s not really reintroducing them.
King Tommen,
The guy having his throat slashed by a Son in the second trailer is also a Dothraki. However, I agree that doesn’t constitute reintroducing them.
Clearly, the Unsullied ranks are going to be depleted throughout S5 and especially in the climax (which funny enough, mirrors the probable decrease in their number in the Battle of Meereen from TWoW, see what the show’s doing there?). Perhaps the final step for Dany to start her journey to Westeros is to fortify her army with Dothraki which she could accomplish early in S6.
So Dany requesting the 3 months of peace, do we think thats out? Cause It seems weird that she gets attacked by the Sons of the Harpy at Daznaks, thats kind of the whole reason she married Hizdahr to pacify them, and they gave her 3 months of peace.
I would really hate if they made the sons of the Harpy just villainous and demanding, when they accept compromise in the books, and its Dany that eventually doesnt accept Compromise and wants to just give her enemies fire and blood.
King Tommen,
Actually, they seem to have a set for
http://www.makinggameofthrones.com/production-diary/2014/11/7/the-dragon-has-four-heads
jentario,
Oh, yeah. That too. I forgot about it.
They didn’t accept compromise, they just were laying low for a while so that Hizdahr could get into power. Hizdahr is clearly the Harpy
jentario,
Yeah, it’s possible that could be the spot where he takes her initially although I doubt they’re there for very long.
Kyrion,
King Tommen,
She is still khaleesi and I think the dothraki are more in line with her new attitude. Besides she still kind of holds a grudge against them for leaving her and killing that one bloodrider guy, so she will want to kill the leadership and take over. I definitely think they will still be a part of her army. I actually agree that there is no need for
King Tommen,
I agree
You are correct on the former: the Harpy’s basically were playing Daeny pretty false, and most of their “compromises” were to create loopholes. However, I suspect that
is the Harpy. I wonder if they will bother with this in the show: it is not as if a particular leader to the counter-revolutionaries is all that necessary for the show.
No, it would take a bit more than that to really “reintroduce” them. On the other hand, they have been omnipresent since Season 1, so it is not as if they really need re-introduction. After all, a group of people are easy to remember even if the individuals are not.
Crabber’s Son,
I expect it to be in 502 or 504 specifically.
Wimsey,
I suppose it’s equally likely that that person will turn out to be the Harpy. Either way they are bullshitting Dany.
Greenjones,
Personally I think it may happen once she’s accepted all the compromises, so not long before the wedding. Then again, I’d expect him to be a little bigger by then…
You know he’s gonna die eventually, book or show.
As much as I like Tormund he has a countdown on his head the way he carries himself
Crabber’s Son,
There are strong parallels between Jon and Daeny, but I would say that they are a bit different:
One thing that I really liked about the last trailer was how this was emphasized: both Jon and Daeny were speaking out on behalf of people that the status quo won’t defend.
And, of course, there is the additional parallel that we might or might not see concerning the end of the book! However, GRRM has been writing the two in parallel in a lot of ways since the very beginning, and the show has done a good job of tracking that.
King Tommen,
Oh, to be certain they are. And the thing is that Daeny knows this. But that is politics, isn’t it: you know the opposition is always playing you false, and the trick is to figure out exactly how they are playing you false and to try to make sure that they do not figure out how you are playing them false.
There might be a certain level of irony developing here, too. It is possible that some of the concessions that Daeny makes to the Harpies will wind up benefitting her because those concessions will benefit the commoners in ways that the Harpies did not foresee. We saw the first taste of that last year when Daeny decreed that the former slaves could go back to work for their former Masters: but as employees, not slaves. There are a couple of other things like that the could arise this year, and which very well might prove to be important in Winter.
I am NOT forgetting Dany being poisoned. The Harpy are not responsible.
That makes little to NO sense why they would do it. They got everything they wanted. It seems much more likely that the shavepate would poison Dany. He got removed from his Brazzen Beasts, and he would clearly not have a huge influence on the new Hizdahr Dany kingdom. He constantly tried to have Dany kill Loraq family members and others during the height of the Sons of the Harpy.
Also the locusts were poisoned, when its very well known that Dany eats vegetarian and doesnt eat Meereenese food. So the poisoner wasnt targeting her, likely targeting Hizdahr zo Loraq.
This is the genius of GRRM. Its subtle, but its Dany who eventually doesnt accept Comprimise, not the harpy. Its Barristan who betrays the peace, not the harpy.
See, most stories it would very much be the other way around, where the hero character reacts to the actions of the villians.
Same with Jon Snow, its JON that disrputs the Boltons hold on the North by stealing Farya, the Boltons never antagonized him or even cared about him(unlike the show where they sent Locke up there to kill Jon, typical villianesque move only Cersei did cause its Cersei) so when the bastard pink letter is sent, its entirely JONS fault, he brought it upon himself.
We all know Georges Modus Operandi, EVERY character no matter what, cause their own downfall.
Egg caused the tragedy Summerhall.
Ned Caused his own arrest.
Robb caused his own red wedding.
Catelyn Aswell allowed the red wedding thanks to Jaime being freed.
Cersei allowed her own arrest thanks to empowering the Faith Militant.
Arianne allowed too many people into her group and brought Darkstar along cause he was pretty.
Jon caused the pink letter.
Dany and Barristan broke the peace in Meereen thanks the the Shavepate.
Its not hard to see. George is specifically writing against the stories where the main characters downfall or trouble is always some outsiders fault, and they are just the helpless victim. He knows the reality is a lot more grey and dark.
The Terrorists CAN compromise, and they did in Meereen. Green Grace said it best, peace is a pearl beyond price.
The Yunkai were an entirely different matter, though even they were starting to pacify. Dany achieved peace. Legitimate long lasting peace. She just didnt like it. Thats the tragedy of the story. Dany is at fault, not the harpy.
And the sad thing is, the show will likely ignore that and just make the Harpy typical saturday morning cartoon villains.
Greenjones,
Kyrion,
I wasn’t speaking about the show. I ws speaking about the books
So I think you also were wrong. You claimed that they would certainly cut fArya, which 99 % is not true. And now you claim that they will cut Battle of Meereen.
You also claimed that Sansa will marry Ramsey.
The only thing you were right was about Sansa in WF. Everything else is incorrect.
mau,
Yeah, it’s confirmed Ramsay “has a new plaything.” Unless King Tommen argues that’s Sansa (which I don’t think is the case; he himself said that she’d be put in the fArya situation but without the torture), it’s gotta be a new character. Myranda is not ‘new’ either.
Kyrion,
Except, you know, for slavery no longer existing, and a foreign army and ruler occupying their city after having conquered it. They had plenty of reason to do it.
I always maintained that there were multiple options for Sansa in Winterfell and it was about combining the arcs for Winterfell and Sansa which is where the evidence was pointing. I speculated on a number of ways it could go, Sansa marrying Ramsay being one of them. I still don’t think there’s a fake Arya and nothing that’s come out to this point has pointed towards this outside of “it happened in the books”. We’ll see on that.
The Battle for Meereen is in fact happening, it’s just happening this season and it’s being done by the Sons of the Harpy, not a Yunkish siege. I’m happy to put that out there as this is where all the evidence is pointing.
That isn’t grey. it’s just black. Having every single major characters downfall happen due to their own decisions is just as simplistic as having it be solely because of outside influence. Thankfully I believe George hasnt made it as simple as that.
Also,pretty sure Locke was not sent to kill Jon Snow
Um, since when is Daeny a vegetarian? Since when didn’t she eat Meerenese food? (I know that she complains a couple of times about some of their dishes and that she isn’t crazy about eating dog, but she was eating it.) The poisoned locusts almost certainly were planted by the Harpy’s people. It is possible that Hazdahr didn’t know about it. That probably is why he is so flustered by it: he’s realized that the powers that be consider him to be acceptable collateral damage, and he no doubt thought that he was much more important in the grand scheme of things. Had he suspected that it was for him, then his reactions would have been far different: he would have had a righteous indignation because an enemy was trying to kill him! Oh, sure, he could sell it as “they tried to kill your beloved Queen” – after all, that is a freebee – but he would have been understandably furious. However, he’s not furious: he’s just bewildered and scared.
Hardly. After all, it was Stannis who wanted Arya stolen, and Jon simply acquiesced to the scheme. The Boltons certainly know that. The real threat that Jon represents to them is that if he is legitimized, then he becomes “the” Stark. Sooner or later, they would have turned their attention towards Jon. Jon might be too “good” to do that sort of thing: but the Boltons are not going to think that someone like Jon exists, never mind take the chance that he might be that person.
There is that, too!
Luka Nieto,
Where’s this confirmation?
King Tommen,
We’ve had so many news the last couple of days… maybe Entertainment Weekly? The text said that Theon gets a brief respite from Ramsay’s attentions when he gets a new plaything.
King Tommen,
The new plaything line? That’s in the EW article.
Luka Nieto,
Good, so we’re that much closer to this being Sansa I guess.
Unless everyone is still hanging on to the “Winterfell worker” nonsense.
King Tommen,
I’m not. She’s an extra.
But do you think Sansa as Ramsay’s ‘new plaything’ is likely? That seems so wrong, considering where they were taking the character.
Luka Nieto,
What kind of plaything is up for grabs, I don’t think it’s the Jeyne Poole type of thing with any physical torture.
And to what degree the relationship is (betrothed etc) is completely up for grabs. He just might be taking an interest in her because she’s around, which would make Myranda jealous.
Every shot we have of Sansa in WF, she’s looking apprehensive or worried, I think there’s a reason for that.
I think this flows better with her character evolution. She very much wants to play the game but it’s not like she flipped a switch last year and became a completely different person either. This might be a case where she’s signed up for a plot and has quickly realized she’s in over her head (which requires help from Theon to get out of). That tracks more with her character from previous seasons.
King Tommen,
I can’t wait to see the look on people faces when “Winterfell Worker” is just literally a Winterfell worker. Also can’t wait to see when Myranda is just simply Myranda. I agree that the whole
Gatehouse Ami,
No, there’s no way that’s the case. Those characters have nothing to do with each other beyond the name.
King Tommen,
It’s more than implied that the new plaything is a sort of Reek substitute —a newer plaything than him. Whoever they are, torture is involved.
For people wondering when that scene with Drogon takes place, according to the same person that released the leaked scripts it’s episode 4 or 5.
Here’s a description, it’s not that spoilery, so it’s safe to read:
Balerion The Cat,
I hope it’s true. Mainly because it’s time for Dany to break down externally. The Ice Queen thing is understandable in public, but we need to have her be… a person, even if it’s alone.
It’ll help people identify with her again, feel for her, as most of us did in the first season. Personally, I still enjoy her, but I see why people are starting to be fed up with her new behavior.
That’s debatable I think. New plaything could just mean a new person that takes Ramsay’s attention away from Theon. I don’t think you can immediately assume torture as there’s lots of ways Ramsay “plays” with people.
Balerion The Cat,
Could you linked the source?
Balerion The Cat,
Sounds like a good scene. Hope that’s how it plays out.
Greenjones,
Right away.
Here it is: https://www.facebook.com/TheSheWolfOfWinterfell/photos/a.1434024710173263.1073741828.1434015483507519/1589012024674530/?type=1
King Tommen,
Here’s the page with the plaything quote.
King Tommen,
We haven’t been shown any other way Ramsay plays with people, and the text implies what it implies… but whatever you say man.
EDIT: oh, and apparently the quote DOES say “a new plaything to torture.” So yeah. Do you still believe it’s Sansa? Do you believe Sansa is getting tortured? Because that’d surprise me a lot.
Balerion The Cat,
Yes please to this scene
Balerion The Cat,
Thank you kindly.
Luka Nieto,
Indeed. To torture.
Sean C.,
Gatehouse Ami,
Someone did a pretty convincing analysis and Theon’s wearing Northern clothes, not Vale clothes.
Luka Nieto,
Thank you, it looked so weird!
Luka Nieto,
what if LF is getting tortured? Lol.
Regardless, I think the person getting tortured has to be a dude. Torturing females is not something the show has done before. I don’t think they want to open that can of worms, especially for a younger actress
Balerion The Cat,
Some great symbolism there
I think “torture” can mean many things, and hanging someone up on a cross and cutting off their fingertips is one extreme. Psychological torture, which is what Ramsay was doing with Theon before revealing his true identity is another. Sometimes writers take some liberties with descriptions. I’m not going to jump to that conclusion because there’s no one on the show for him to be another “Reek” so it’s not plausible that he’s doing that exact same thing to this person as he was doing to Theon.
Luka Nieto,
That was Newstar on AFOIAF and I made postimgs to prove/explore that point. He’s actually wearing a cloak quite like the one Ramsay wears and a collar similar to Robb’s at the RW.
Crabber’s Son,
TheTouchOfFrost,
There’s one problem with this idea, though, ‘Aegon’ is not Rhaegar’s son. He is an impostor.
Greenjones,
Thank you! Your memory always saves my vague recollections 😛
Luka Nieto,
Here it is put even more concisely by me on paint.
LOL, what if Littlefinger’s the “new plaything to torture”?
I doubt the plaything is Myranda, although I suppose she could be a “new plaything to torture,” if Ramsay tires of having her as a girlfriend and decides to torture her instead.
Here’s an enhanced version of the image. The previous frame is identical except for the compression noise, but it lacks the transparent ghost face, so I subtracted out what was the same between the frames and then cranked up the contrast.
http://i.imgur.com/0Uclsr3.png
“Hardly. After all, it was Stannis who wanted Arya stolen, and Jon simply acquiesced to the scheme. The Boltons certainly know that. The real threat that Jon represents to them is that if he is legitimized, then he becomes “the” Stark. Sooner or later, they would have turned their attention towards Jon. Jon might be too “good” to do that sort of thing: but the Boltons are not going to think that someone like Jon exists, never mind take the chance that he might be that person.”
Jon did it, it doesnt matter if it was Stannis idea, Jon did it, he is held accountable, and unlike you think, he took full responsibility for it in his final chapter. Its Jons “fault” the Boltons are pissed off at him, he is responsible.
Its even in the pink letter itself, where Ramsay says he will not trouble Jon or the nights watch if he gives him people from Stannis’ and Mance Rayder’s party.
Tyrion Pimpslap,
Only two people know that though. If that’s the case.
Just accept that Winterfell Worker is fArya and we can move on. 😀
The meaning of that sentence is very clear . Sansa will not be a victim again and she will not be tortured in any way.
She will be a guest at her “sister’s” wedding, and her whole storyline in Winterfell will be very interesting filler
Battle of Meereen will happen, because Dany can not be in Westeros at the start of the 6th season. It is too early.
And they would never even mention Yunkai and Astapor if they cut that battle. What’s the point?
Why is it too early?
Yivo,
Because presumably she’ll affect the plot of other characters in Westeros. So, are they deleting whatever all their TWOW plots pre-Dany’s arrival? No, of course they aren’t.
I don’t know why people think they have to hurry up so much. Two more books, two more seasons. One book per season. Why are some people so intent on deleting whole story arcs? They’ll be simplified, of course, but they won’t just disappear.
Cersei’s trial, Battle of Ice(maybe S5), Jon’s cliffhanger, North, LF and Sansa, Walder Frey…
Dany can be in Westeros in 605 at earliest…
mau,
I belive that she will be in Westeros in S6, but not at the start.
You can have her preparing to come to Westeros at the start of S6, I’m assuming there will be complications and there’s a bit of a travel involved in bringing an army across the Narrow Sea. Stannis took half a season to sail his army from the Stormlands to Blackwater Bay remember. We certainly don’t need a redundant seige on Meereen that she spent all of S5 defending.
You can also have her land in Dorne (for example) and have her strategize with them or have her own problems as a result that don’t involve her moving towards the Iron Throne immediately.
I don’t think anyone is suggesting that in 601, Dany is attacking King’s Landing.
Yeah, I can see Daeny’s return basically being mid-Winter, so the middle of next season would makes sense. I could see a couple of ways in which this will happen.
King Tommen,
Don’t get me wrong. I would LOVE to end Mereen plot in S5…. But why they mention Yunkai and Astapor?
I hope that you are right…
is pointing in that direction too…
Wow! That scene sounds wonderful! Very emotional.
New season 5 pics
http://imgur.com/a/iMuBc
Hey, let’s change topics for a second, if you’ll indulge me. Here’s something I hadn’t considered until now: we say a lot that only a few people —GRRM, D&D, maybe Cogman— know what lies ahead in the story; only they know what’s gonna happen in TWOW and ADOS. It makes sense, doesn’t it? It feels right. You know what feels totally weird to me? In a matter of months, by June or July, a lot of people will know details about TWOW —even if there are significant changes in Season 6 compared to the novel, the major beats will still remain, especially those that concern the major characters.
While the crew don’t get to read the scripts early on, they are provided with a summary, so that location scouts know where to start looking, set and costume designers and VFX artists know what they’ve got to start working on, etc. And quite a few actors do get to read the whole scripts —the main cast don’t just get their lines.
It’s a funny feeling, isn’t it? In a matter of months, the very secretive future of the Game of Thrones / ASOIAF story will be shared with a ton of people, probably quite a while before the book is published. I do think the book will be released before season 6 (though there’s no way ADOS then can be released within a year, before season 7), but still. For some months there, the actors and the crew will have to keep their secrets even better than they’ve been doing till now.
mau,
I think you mention them because they are places she has been to before on the show and “liberated” and we want to have it communicated that her doing this has had zero effect and they have reverted back to their original status quo.
At some point, Dany has to be extricated from Slaver’s Bay to go to Westeros and (on the show and in the books), it’s definitely not going to be a “well looks like I fixed this whole situation” resolution. It’s going to be a mess, a lost cause and Dany’s realization that she can’t change the entire world’s slave situation is finally going to motivate her to go back to her original goal.
There is no arrangement (again in the books or the show) where she leaves Meereen and she’s comfortable that it’s in good shape. It’s going to be more a resigned escape really, there’s no final WAR TO DECIDE IF SLAVER’S BAY IS GOING TO BE OK. It’s just about how much she has left of her forces in order to make the Westeros trek.
The actions in S5 are creating the conflict that the Battle for Meereen will do in TWoW. Her Unsullied army is going to be depleted and Barristan is (probably) going to die. I see no good dramatic reason to tack on an additional siege by either a faceless enemy or by a new set of brand new characters who the show will have to dispatch in short order so that she can get to Westeros a few episodes later. They have the ability to sacrifice a character like Greyworm in this season’s conflict so there will be stakes but you don’t (presumably) off Barristan as well unless you’re planning on wrapping up her stuff there and Selmy isn’t with her on her Westerosi trip. If there was a siege in S6, wouldn’t you keep Barristan around to have him play his book role then?
Tyrion Pimpslap,
I think that they’re not going to touch on the Blackfyre stuff in the show but his key feature is that he is someone who has an apparent claim to the throne. They may not even claim he’s a Targ and have he and Myrcella (with her being in line to the Throne after Tommen) as the challenge to Dany. I think the important thing is to keep Dorne and Dany on opposing sides. Kinda hard to tell as we don’t know what’s going to happen in tWoW.
Luka Nieto,
I think that this month here will answer everyone’s questions , they have to figure out how many seasons they’re gonna do before they can omit like yunkai , aegon , lsh , clegange bowl . Right now it’s suppose to be over in a year or two but if let’s say they sign season threw to 8 they can cut out Tyrion meeting aegon and introduce him later and if they don’t make a deal than they can say trystane is aegon and hide his identity till next season so it gives em flexibility with going in whatever direction they choose . And based of all the reevor talk I think will see euron at the end of the season .
King Tommen,
King Tommen,
I actually don’t mind this at all. I say let them focus on the battle of Ice/ Siege of Winterfell and do it justice. It would be nice to get a proper northern battle since we didn’t get any at all before the Red Wedding.
Luka Nieto,
And it’s not like he doesn’t have a motive. Dany had his father crucified.
Wimsey,
Interesting indeed.What do you think enemies or allies maybe even lovers in the end?Personally I just don’t buy that love angle(a bit predictable),but D&D are capable of that.
King Tommen,
Does there have to be one? Even in the books, who cares? A coalition of slave masters revolving against her is enough, isn’t it?
Turncloak,
That’s not a problem:
Luka Nieto,
I also wonder about the Dany/Hizdahr marriage on the show. In the books, she’s suspicious of his motives the entire time and his ability to keep the peace for the allotted time certainly puts a neon arrow at him. On the show however, he’s presented from the start as a very reasonable man who the audience should have sympathy for. It may be part of a huge misdirect that the books didn’t really bother with.
As is GRRM. One thing that GRRM has established is that both are one another’s “type”: Jon likes strong, free-willed women who talk about freeing the oppressed, and Daeny has a soft-spot for charismatic men who defy convention.
As for “predictable,” that shouldn’t be a bad thing: if nobody can predict before it happens, then that means that the writer did not set it up well.
King Tommen,
True. I loved Hizdahr’s introduction in the show. Much less slimy. When he stepped into the audience room, I expected him to ask for the pits to be reopened, but instead he gave a heartfelt plea for his father to be buried. A wise choice. I mean, the pit thing will happen this season, but still, first impressions are important. They certainly want us to sympathize, at least at first.
King Tommen,
King Tommen,
I think Xaro Xhoan Daxos could prove to be the mastermind in the books…and maybe still even the show but it’s certainly a longshot.
Wimsey,
Well, as much as anyone is a “villain” on the show. If they do indeed go through with him putting a duplicitous face on his motives the entire time in order to infiltrate Dany’s confidence so that she and her allies are murdered, it probably would paint him in a fairly villainous light, even if we are made to understand his motivations.
They are really simplifying things, eg there is no Brazen beasts
They are just straight out insurgents which as someone has posted probably wear down the Unsullied somewhat
Would be disapointed if this notion that Drogon merely drops Dany off on the pyramid, they need to reintroduce the Dothraki a bit more IMO but more than that emphasize the fact she is leaving Mereen
In the books I reckon she actually heads East to Asshai in WoW, so I am wondering if she leaves and Quaithe comes back into it
Ghost’s Lunch,
GRRM has said we’ll only see more of Asshai in description. No character will go there.
He’s reasonable in the show last season and reasonable in the books, Barristan seems to have erred in locking him up
They may have decided to streamline things so much they’ll turn him into a Villain, but during the Champion fight they made a point of showing that Quintessential Villainous master who later got lynched but they were showing Hizdahr watching more silently as a kind of contrast
Both Hizdahr and that old slave are both there to show that things are so simplistic as Dany has presumed and feeds into Barristans call for restraint so I hope they don’t wreck that by making Hizdahr the villain.
I would actually like if we have no idea whose pulling the strings, in the books there’s a strong suspicion placed on the Green Grace, but you never see who these people are, so while the show has to show the harpy’s it will be good as a trade-off if we have no idea who is behind them.
In this case it would work out well if Hizdahr is legitimately trying to help Dany as a moderate and suggests opening the pits as a populist gesture but he gets taken out by the radicals during the Daznaks scene
Ghost’s Lunch,
Especially if he’s a red herring —I want for the show to make some of the characters and the audience become convinced that he’s one of the terrorists when in fact he’s not. That’d be great.
I didn’t think his intro in the books was slimy, he is simply a lobbyist for the Pit Fighting industry in essence, and is fairly honest in what he is doing. Admitting that he is trying to repackage his usual arguments unlike most of the advisers/lobbyists like the Green Grace, Perfumed Seneschal and Shavepate with their agendas
Luka Nieto,
If she does, I can’t see the books let alone the show finishing in what they’ve been allocated! The longer it goes on , the more I think she’ll never actually set foot in Westeros.
Kyrion,
The Sons of the Harpy kill innocent people so that they can scare Daenerys into establishing oppressive institutions. Even if they “compromise” with Dany, that’s pretty damn villainous, gotta say. Going back on a deal they made with her doesn’t make them that much shadier.
And, honestly, I don’t think Dany should compromise with them at all. I have a very “we don’t negotiate with terrorists” attitude towards the Sons of the Harpy.
Luka Nieto
So, Meereen will become Daenerys’s Ben Tre? ‘It became necessary to destroy the town to save it’, a USA major figured out in Vietnam in 1968. He was talking about the decision by commanders to bomb the town regardless of civilian casualties, to beat the Vietcong. Meereen’s version of Vietcong then appears to be the Sons of the Harpy, and khaleesi’s war in Slaver’s Bay appears to be her version of the Vietnam War? Oh, and btw, do lives of freed slaves mean nothing to the caring khaleesi?
King Tommen,
Or her!
Uknow0,
Luka Nieto,
I don’t think that it will even be that. I think that it will be
it is Westeros bound!
How much of that the show will included, I don’t know.
Luka Nieto,
The only true way to affect change in Slaver’s Bay is to scorch the earth entirely. Whether Dany would actually take those steps is doubtful but she should at least come to this realization in short order in the books.
Wimsey,
Unless the battle lasts for weeks, I don’t know how that can be the case. How can Dany go to Vaes Dothrak (or even only to the nearest Dothraki khalesar, close to the scouts she encounters at the end of ADWD), bend the Dothraki to her will with the help of Drogon, and go back to Meereen before the battle’s done?
That isn’t true. If the people left behind do things right, then it can turn out ok. It does not always have to be Astapor: and as Astapor just happened, people would be much more cognisant of what not to do!
Luka Nieto,
Oh, the time in the different narratives doesn’t always line up. She was away for several weeks by the end of Dragons.
Also, why would she go to Vaes Dothrak? Why not just take what she has and go straight to Mereen?
Oooh, just noticed this post. I am just a show watcher, but from all the spoilers coming out, I too thought that their journeys were getting more and more closely parallel. I agree that Jon’s story with Wildings parallels Daenerys’ with the slaves. What faction in Jon’s story do you think the Dothraki parallel? After all, the root of the slave problem in Essos are the Dothraki; they perpetuate the slave-based economy. Do you think the Wall and its Watchers are to blame for the plight of the Wildings? Or is it the general populace of Westeros?
The superimposed image in that frame is just Frank Doelger, from a few seconds later (0:42) . The frame with the superimposed image is identical to the frame before it except for that glitch, so I subtracted out the unglitched image and cranked up the contrast on what was left. I posted a link to the enhanced image, but it’s stuck in moderation , but it’s nothing too exciting.
Kay,
The slave economy seems to be a lot older than the Dothraki: they just joined in the fun, it seems.
But as for who parallels the Dothraki…. in retrospect, I think that I see the initial point in that Daeny’s sojourn with the Dothraki might parallel Jon’s sojourn with the Wildlings. In some ways, those were very different: but both taught the protagonist in question to start thinking about people as, well, people. So, it is not that the Dothraki = Wildlings, it’s that “Time with Dothraki” = “Time with Wildlings” for teaching both to think outside of the norms for Westerosians.
At any rate, what both characters demonstrate is a willingness and even desire to take their “mission” beyond what is expected of them (serving the Night Watch and restoring her house) to protecting/serving a larger body of people.
Here’s a pic I found on Facebook, posted November last year.
King Tommen,
An NW extra taking a picture with a guy in WW prosthesis presumably during
Greenjones,
It’s one of the well-garbed White Walkers seen in 4×04, too.
Unfortunately, I doubt we’ll get another 1h+ finale, considering the main reason that happened in season 4 is that we we were contained to a single locale in episode 9. What do you think?
Holy shit, it sure is!
Here’s the link from Carne’s post:
http://i.imgur.com/RAkq3zN.jpg
And here’s a set pick from season 4
http://www.glacialart.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Game-Of-Thrones-Set.jpg
Also this.
Wimsey,
Could not disagree more. Theon definitely redeems himself. Nobody could have gone through what he went through and then saved an innocent and cannot be said to have not been redeemed.
Luka Nieto,
It’s more likely in 510. TristanSnow seemed certain that it was.
Carne,
I like that both Hardhome and Daznak’s crew members apparently got custom T-shirts.
Carne,
Another good find. Now, in a mirror of me on AFOIAF suggesting you put the previous link on WOTW, I’d suggest you put this on AFOIAF.
Carne,
He is armored in black and has long hair. I’m guessing this means the other WW we saw with the master will be present as well. I’m hyped.
When my post comes out of moderation (it’s been stuck in limbo for an hour, but I know it’s Saturday night and even mods have lives), there’s a comparison of the image Carne posted with an image from season 4. Not that there was doubt it was a “well-garbed” one, as Luka said, but seeing the two images together got me really excited, especially when thinking of some of what’s been floating around about Hardhome.
i hope hardhome is really graphic and dont like a horror movie scene. Im not scared enough of white walkers yet.
King Tommen,
Yes some of us are most certainly hanging onto the Winterfell worker option. Though you and I clearly disagree on what is nonsense. For me the idea of Sansa filling that role is far more nonsensical than the idea that it is someone, almost anyone else. Especially when the person cast as Winterfell worker is a dead ringer for who she’d be pretending to be.
Greenjones,
Do you have a link to all the EW scans from the new GoT issue??
Good! What does Bran contribute to the story?
He sits on tree roots underground, I will eat my hat if anyone can explain the importance of Bran in 25 words or less.
JamesL,
Here you go.
mau,
To show why she stays in Meereen? The other two cities go to shit when she leaves, so she doesn’t want to leave this one before establishing a stable government (and proving to herself she can be a good ruler).
Easteros Bunny,
Fair question. Until TWOW comes out, we can only speculate about Bran’s importance. The number of people that know the answer can probably be counted on one hand…
Maybe I’d learn more if I got G.R.R.M. roaring drunk at Norwescon (which thankfully will be his only convention for awhile), but I suspect that he could drink me under a table. I’d rather he stay on task and finish the bloody book, though 😉
Greenjones,
Thanks 🙂
The EW article was a good read but there wasn’t any new spoilery details except that I’m pretty sure Melisandre and Jon Snow are going to fuck this season.
Does Meliandre try to seduce Jon in ADWD? I think I remember her making some comments but I’m not sure.
Greenjones,
Has anyone gone and tapped on the images on the page about the props to see what they each say? I know someone the other day said that the blurb on the Arryn shield confirmed that Robin Arryn is getting some combat training, so I wonder if there’s anything interesting under any of the others.
Afeastfordances,
I’ve only ever seen images of them rather than the actual online or print article, so I don’t know. I’ve heard that Robin Arryn bit of info from a few different place though.
JamesL,
It does seem she’ll give him her signature “Hey, guess what I’m only wearing one layer!” move though. (From the first trailer).
Tansy
because Rhaegal is pissed.
representing the new House Bark?
————————————————-
Ramsey will have his bride.
————————————————-
I’m starting to think Alayne might be Ramsey’s bride. Why show Alayne bathing in the trailer? Why is Alayne taking a bath important in the show?
Also the alleged leaks that Sansa gets married and sex.
JamesL,
What I think will happen in the show is that (unless they really did fuck after that scene in the books) Melly will try to seduce him but he’ll dodge her advances. I bet that topless scene will be part of it.
So stupid question but…I just found this site, which reminds me a lot of wintersiscoming.net…which has really started to suck. Ads everywhere, terrible writing and staff…wtf happened to wic and should I just come here now? I miss oz’s unsullied column
Adam0928,
Yep, you should move here. This is the place were the old staff of WiC (before Fansided took over) and the active part of the community moved to. As to what happened to WiC, you can read Oz of Thrones version here.
Question: What happened to the edit-Button? I can’t correct my post above.
I think you’re right on this. The question then becomes: what does that mean for Dany’s future as legitimate and/or legal ruler of Westeros? After abandoning the Slaver’s Bay to its own devices, herself apparently finally embracing the whole “fire and blood” thing, I can’t see her further story arc being as simple as many would like to think: go to 7K, grab the IT, defeat the usurper Aegon, smash the WWs. If Meereen turns out as you predict, her Westerosi storyline may be quite a bit more nuanced and unpredictable than generally believed.
Greenjones,
Yeah, I remembered a sexy image of Melisandre in the first trailer which is why I figured she would be having sex with Jon but now looking at the brief clip again she’s not actually having sex in it so it doesn’t really confirm anything other than she will probably attempt to seduce him.
Turncloak,
Turncloak,
Is that a Frey in that training skirmish with Jon?
I seem to recognize their trademark cap
Nymeria Warrior Queen,
Can we glean anything from the WW attire to give us anymore clues about them? It doesn’t look that Westerosi and more like it’s from Essos but it’s pretty hard to tell!
Adam0928,
I’ll let one of the mods fully explain but pretty much the entire community shifted here. Oz still writes the odd column or two as far as I’m aware.
I too wonder about this. And not only have we lost the edit button, now we have to sign in almost every time we post :/. I thought I left that crap behind in wic
Turncloak,
Can I add my regular moan of no spoiler button either!
I know it’s not the end of the world that we have to copy and paste the spoiler tags but it’s a bit of a ballache having to scroll back up to the start of the comments to find it especially when there has been a lot of replies in the thread.
Thought I’d throw it in there if things are going to be fixed 🙂
Hmmm … your understanding of “for awhile” sounds dodgy. He has another the next month. And the one after that.
TheTouchOfFrost,
Or if adding a spoiler button is not possible, maybe move the spoiler code near the comment box. 🙂
I hope Melisandre and Jon get to make love, without anything involving leeches.
A spoiler button in the comment box would be great, but all you have to do is hit the “code” button in the comment box and replace the word “code” with “spoiler.”
Rygritte,
But, and I’m no expert here so excuse my ignorance, wouldn’t it be easier to replace the code button (which I didn’t notice untill now) with ‘spoiler’ ?
Turncloak,
Okay, so that’s not just me. Good to know.
George talked on his blog about the show passing the books: http://grrm.livejournal.com/412015.html?thread=20411247#t20411247
It’s nice to see him finally acknowledging the fact that the show will most likely surpass the books.
I just wish some bookreaders wouldn’t feel so entitled, I’m quite surprised GRRM responded to that guy, not because of the question, but because of how over-dramatic he was.
Balerion The Cat,
And there’s also this on his blog:
I am still aiming for two more books. But of course I have been wrong before.
Sure, Martin says nothing new. But, is it my imagination, or is he a little bit more uncertain than before? A bit more overtly open to a possible eighth book?
Balerion The Cat,
It is especially harsh considering Pratchett’s passing only a few days ago. A kindred spirit has left the kingdom and I’m sure GRRM is feeling it. I’m surprised he responded as well.
Balerion The Cat, A spoiler button would be more convenient. The code button is useful for other code. Probably best to have both like the italics and bold buttons.
Can someone explain why people think Dany will end up burning Meereen to the ground? I can see Dany becoming more of a ‘rule with an iron fist’ Queen because of her experiences with the Harpy.
But I’m not sure why people think that her experiences with this ‘terrorist’ group will lead to her becoming a psychopath and losing regard for all the innocent lives that would be lost in Meereen?
She may make some really lousy and harsh decisions towards her ‘enemies,’ namely the Masters she had killed for killing the slave children. But she is still a very compassionate person that really cares for people. What goes down at Daznak’s isn’t going to make her character go through this 360 change.
Jesterr223457,
You mean you use a lower case i on purpose?! 😛
Balerion The Cat,
That would also be excellent!
Rygritte,
That’s a handy trick. A spoiler button is the ideal but will take whatever I can to save some scrolling!
Brennan,
She’s not gonna suddenly turn into a villain, but the experience does make the character go through a 360 change —no more compromise with her enemies, not because she lacks compassion but precisely because she’s compassionate towards the slaves. I’m not painting her as villainous. But she will “suffer no fools” from thereon out.
Luka Nieto,
True: but a big part of that has to do with Daeny
(I am not a big one for “epic” and/or “in your face” moments, but a sort of “Hi, remember how you wanted to drag me off to wherever it is that widows go? Meet Drogon. Drogon… eat what’s his name here….. Now, the rest of you, bow to your new Khaleesi and follow me, or become dragon treats. Oh, and, um, can you point me to Meereen, there’s a good chap…”)
Balerion The Cat, Calling it a betrayal is nonsense. I’m more interested in his thoughts about letting tv producers tell the ending to the best story he ever wrote, especially considering how working in tv pissed him off so much that he wrote asoiaf.
Wimsey,
That’d be great. Immediately followed by this.
Point of clarification: a 360 degree change puts you in a complete circle and back where you started. A 180 turns you in the opposite direction. Just a pet peeve of mine.
I don’t think anyone is suggesting that Dany is going to start burning freed slaves to the ground but she’s now at the point of the story where she’s done messing around and she’s going to use her dragons to bend those who oppose her to her will. If that means that she’ll have them burn some shit to the ground, that’s what’s going to happen.
You also have to take into account that the trek for Westeros is beginning for her very soon so whatever is happening in Slaver’s Bay is going to be done very quickly. She’s either throwing her hands in the air, saying “screw this, if this is how you want things to be, then so be it” or she’s going to let the dragons loose to end things in short order before leaving.
In any case, her returning to try and rule as she did before is not an option.
Brennan,
It will be interesting to see how Dany moves from ruler to conqueror (personally and strategically), and especially how it will parallel the efforts of her great descendant, Aegon the Conqueror.
TWoI&F has a wonderful section on how AtC came to rule/conquer Westeros. In summary, the Targs had been thriving and building on Dragonstone for over two centuries, still focused on the east, but they had observed the chaotic, dysfunctional rule of Westeros from their island and travels through the land. Harren the Black and Argilac the Arrogant were the worst. At age 25, After AtC tried some initial diplomacy attempts (marriage proposals, etc) and failed, AtC bonded with his sisters and Orys Baratheon, gathered up an army and set things in motion. The coolest part was the releasing of ravens to all the kingdoms beforehand to alert them of his intentions.
I recommend that TWoI&F section (pgs 31-45) immensely.
Basically, the point of the section is that it took two years for the conquering to be finalized. And this was all with local armies and fucking BIG, mature dragons. And Dorne never acquiesced either. So, besides her sustained conquering drive from afar, Dany is going to need her “ruler/diplomatic” skills (and advisors!) in order to deal with the local Westerosi, some who may support her and some who will confront her. Obviously, the book is complicating this somewhat but still it is going to be interesting how the path is paved for her and how she actually goes about her conquering (shall she warn the kingdoms with ravens or flybys beforehand?) ….and if her time in Slaver’s Bay truly matters or not.
Should be fun!
If you say so. More than six weeks between appearances is a relatively light schedule for him.
According to his website:
“April 2-5 2015
Norwescon, The Pacific Northwest’s Science-Fiction Fantasy Convention, Seatac WA
May 22 – 24, 2015
ConQuest 46, Kansas City Marriott DT, Kansas City, MO May 22nd – 24th 2015”
I would prefer that he stay in Santa Fe until at least the San Diego Comic Con, despite Norwescon being mere minutes away from my home. Conventions are his means of relaxation, though, so there’s naught to be do done about it.
Maester of Ceremonies,
I am glad you saw the same thing as I.
April follows May and then comes June. He has cons in all three. But no cons in July! I guess he needs to rest up for August when he has two.
Glad to hear he is cutting back on appearances.
True! What bugs me equally is when people use 360˚ or 180˚ when they really mean Perpendicular (90˚). And as there are lots of dimensions, there are lots of 90˚ turns you can take. I think that Daeny is about to take another.
However, 360˚ still might be appropriate IF that turn also takes her back to Westeros.
Hodor’s Bastard,
EDIT: replace “descendant” with “ancestor”. Ugh…editor issues.
Don’t know if this has already been posted here, but hbo asia released this mini trailer to promote their world premiere, there’s some new footage in it too.
New Artisan video: https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10152807817092734
Jofrey’s Cunt,
There’s some brief but cool new shots there.
Jofrey’s Cunt,
Love the shot of a silhouetted Ellaria kneeling before Doran while Areo and the Sandsnakes stand behind. If there was any doubt remaining that Ellaria would be taking much of the Arianne arc, I think that should be put to rest now.
Luka Nieto,
King Tommen,
Yes that shot in the
A little (rather worn) context for some of you here who don’t understand the affection some have for the original trilogy (and the hatred they have of the prequels), it’s because seeing Star Wars in a theater in 1977 was like nothing before or since. It was mind-blowing. Not only were the sound and special effects out of this world, there hadn’t been an old-fashioned adventure story like that on screen in years. It was just a ton of fun at a time when most movies were really depressing (if often great). It’s cliched to say now, but without Star Wars and without the phenomenon it was, well, you know. The prequels never had a chance to live up to that for us, of course, but, my biggest problem, was that they were just so boring. I can forgive all the stupid continuity errors and absurd Jedi flipping sword fights, but I can’t oblige how dull the proceedings were.
Anyway, my two cents on that. As an unsullied, I wonder if perhaps those of us who are overly critical of the prequels because of their early memories are not unlike an ASOIAF book-reader who gets a little hung up on some pretty serious minutia being omitted from the show.
Hodor’s Bastard,
Heh, people often flip-flop those! (As a biologist, that seems strange, but I realize that we use the words more often than do most people.)
Jofrey’s Cunt,
Wow, thanks! Is anyone that has seen the HBO Latino trailer here? I’m curious if that trailer had the same new shots as this one or different ones.
I think it is especially pertinent considering the upcoming season, and the fact the site might have some fresh meat. Might prevent spoilers aappearing in the comments by mistake. Any help would be fantastic!!
Balerion The Cat,
Those who watched it did describe the Dorne shot, I think. Also one of Daenerys in the catacombs we haven’t seen, though we recently got a promotional picture from that scene, which is basically the same thing.
slimchicken,
As someone who was 12 when Star Wars came out, I completely agree.
The biggest problem for the prequels was that the overarching plot had been set by prior stories, and not written to deliver their own stories. However, another problem was that Lucas started to think that the original films were aimed at 6 year olds, not 12 year olds. There is a universe of difference!
Balerion The Cat,
Don’t meantion it. And yeah I’m really curious for that one too, let’s try finding it
Wimsey,
I hesitate to even get started!
slimchicken,
It’s not exactly the same, but I watched The Matrix again last week, and I thought it was pretty average. At the time though, it was amazing; but as there are so many carbon copies nowadays it no longer seems incredible.
Jeb,
Definitely similar. Inevitable, I suspect, particular for films that take place in the “future” and widely copied and improved upon technologically (if not from a storytelling perspective). It’s probably a bit of the nostalgia talking, but I do think the original Star Wars trilogy holds up far better than it ought to, primarily because they used miniatures and physical sets. The things that feel dated are mostly the matte paintings, the in-world tech, and the pacing, which is much slower than more modern audiences expect (even if I’d argue it’s generally more rewarding storytelling).
Jofrey’s Cunt,
1080p GIFs of new stuff in the trailer are on the tumblr now. 🙂
Abyss,
You are just great. I salute you.
Abyss, I’m intrigued by that shot of Jon looking sadder than normal. What is he witnessing? Aemon being lit up? Sam leaving? The fall of Selyse?
Abyss,
Hotah! ’nuff said!
Abyss,
You’re the man!
slimchicken,
It is important to keep in mind when SoI&F fans or HP fans start talking about how great a prequel would be. Robert’s Rebllion or the first Voldemort War would run into similar general problems in that the basic plot outlines were written not to deliver a story, but to set up a different story (or series of stories). Shoe-horning story onto pre-existing plot is very difficult. The only successful attempt of which I can think is Katherine Kurtz’s Camber of Culdi series, which was a prequel to her Kelson of Gwynned series. However, she was able to take advantage of 200 years meaning that the “known” history in Kelson’s time being a bit different from what actually happened in Camber’s time: and part of the story was how the reality got twisted into reported history.
That’s a lot tougher to do when the same people are supposed to be involved in both!
Wimsey,
Agreed. The prequels were sort of destined for failure.
spoilerSpoiler button is better, time and again I’ve seen “cover your spoilers people” with no idea how that is actually supposed to work, so there either needs to be an explicit spoiler button or an explanation next to every article (at the bottom)
As for GRRM books, I reckon there will be 8, pretty much all the pre-release chapters are spillover chapters from ADWD, there are so many complex plots and sub-plots that it is like a Uni Assignment, you start off with “how am I going to write so much” but once you delve into everything you have substantial overspill. Same thing, he’ll aim for 7 books but there will be too much overspill
Rather than destroy the quality of the story to cram it into 7 books it’s better to just have 8 books
As someone who watched the show and then binge read the books toward the end of season 4, I don’t mind him taking his time to finish the books as what is most important is not the show catching up but rather that they are fantastic books in 30 years time that weren’t rushed at the end and their potential undermined. Books and show are different beasts.
In fact we’ll end up with a weird discussion reversal, eg rather than carry on about how book character X has been melded into show character Y and whinge at the minor changes that amount to character assassination it’ll be a case of how do we get to end outcome of plot in the show using the collection of book characters, what are the implications for the myriad of theories like GNC, Riverlands, Maestars conspiracies etc
Already seeing this now with this idea of whether they are “speeding up Sansa going to Winterfell with Vale forces which will be in WoW” or whether that is like a Jaimie to Dorne type situation
Wimsey,
Yeah something like Dance of the Dragons are much easier
There is a lot of flexibility with the detail which has to be shoe-horned into how events seem on the surface
Roberts rebellion may be tricky, eg there is casual reference to certain important battles but when people try to plot the timeline they point out there’s some apparently problematic distance and travel times between battles. Think it was some Preston Jacobs video. I wasn’t paying too much attention as its the historical implications of the battles rather than the nuances of the overall war that is the point in terms of story and its unlikely GRRM sat down and pointed out every minute detail, merely had a backstory event to feed into the contemporary ASOIF POV
And that’s exactly were the explanation is. – Well I guess you could argue that it’s on the top of the comment section, but that really is six of one and half a dozen of another…
Arya’s Nose,
“Star Wars fans are horrible, overly-critical nerds that like to over-analyse every single aspect of it, and they did everything in their power to suck all the fun out of it”
I’ve heard the same things said about ASoIaF fans, and have even seen some examples (looking at you Westeros.org). I love both ASoIaF and Star Wars (the prequels are another discussion). Just because the fans can sometimes be unbearable doesn’t make the story/ movie/ TV show less entertaining. Just stay away from really annoying fans.
Easteros Bunny,
About Bran’s importance … nobody knows for sure, but here is some speculation …
Furthermore, if the ultimate battle is going to be between the White Walkers and the Dragons (Ice & Fire) then Bran will probably warg into one of the dragons (that’s his own shadow he is seeing flying over King’s Landing in the visions) and play a pivotal role in the battle …
By the time this whole thing is over, people who have been saying that Bran is boring and unimportant will see things very differently!!
Wimsey,
Tbh I love both of them,but something just not feel right.Someone mentioned this to me,that it has tragedy written all over it.Maybe I just don’t want them to suffer even more. 😀
Cool observation. He shall fly indeed!