Game of Thrones on HBO

[Atocep]

Jon is one of the few that have seen the true threat people face. My guess at this point is he's going to attempt the tough sell of uniting the north and wildlings against the coming threat.

[bhlloy]

He was with the wildlings though, and he knows that Bolton will execute him on sight, so who else is he uniting?

[Groundhog]

I'd imagine within the next couple of episodes Jon's storyline is going to tie in with what's happening with Rickon, Ramsey, and Smalljon - my guess is a Smalljon/Jon Snow/Wildlings alliance. But I could be way off, and that really is Rickon.

My premature guesses for what's going to happen elsewhere:

1) Daenerys is about to get another army of horsemen to replace the Unsullied.
2) The different factions in Kings Landing are going to ally against the Sparrows and then Dorne.
3) Bran is going to spend the rest of the season as a plot device to show flashbacks.
4) Arya... I have no idea.

[Chief Rum]

If that's not Rickon, then the show creators went next level to fool us, because they actually employed the same actor who played Rickon in the first seasons. Art Parkinson was 8 or 9 when Season 1 was filmed. He's 14 now.

[stevew]

Some talk that the Hound was nursed back to health by a sparrow and will become their champion vs the zombie mountain.

I've really seen enough of Ramsey dunking on people playing nerf basketball...would be nice to kill him off and move on.

Are we positive Stannis is dead? I don't think he is because it was not shown on screen. Maybe he's taking on the black as the new Lord Commander?

All the Dorne stuff sucks.

[Groundhog]

I'm pretty convinced Stannis is alive. If they don't take advantage of showing us a character dying in a particularly graphic and shocking fashion then I'm going to go ahead and assume that's for a good reason. In the case of the Hound, we might not have seen it for a good reason (as Arya mentions last episode).

[Peregrine]

My friends and I enjoy calling the "upgraded" Gregor, Mount Frankenstein.

[Honolulu_Blue]

I'm pretty sure they've confirmed that Stannis is, indeed, dead.

It was great to see the Tower of Joy scene play out. While they definitely made Ser Arthur Dayne seem like a bad ass, which was good, and the dual-wield long sword action was sweet, I really wish he would have had just one great sword, "Dawn". It would have been a nice touch.

[flere-imsaho]

I am 99% sure I read somewhere where the showrunners confirmed Stannis was dead but that they didn't feel they needed to show his death on-screen (as opposed to his death not being on-screen because he's not dead). Which: a) seems odd given what they've been happy to show on-screen and b) probably doesn't mean anything given the long and hard protestations from the showrunners than Jon Snow was dead.

The Tower of Joy fight was unmitigated bullshit. Only in movies do people dual-wield longswords, especially in the manner (all spinny and flashy) that he did.

[JPhillips]

I think I was the only person that hated the Dayne fight. Why did he let himself get surrounded? Why didn't he use the height advantage of the steps? Why did the rebels quickly come at him from one direction?

It looked nice, but the tactics used didn't look like they came from brilliant warriors.

edit: Okay, me and Flere.

[Kodos]

As Obi Won showed us in Star Wars III, you can't be beat if you have the higher ground. Learn from Anakin!

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by flere-imsaho

The Tower of Joy fight was unmitigated bullshit. Only in movies do people dual-wield longswords, especially in the manner (all spinny and flashy) that he did.

Agreed. It was fantasy sword play at it's best (or perhaps worst). It was all visual flash with no basis in reality or how actual combat would work.

[flere-imsaho]

It was the exact opposite of the brilliance that was the Hound-Brienne fight.

[stevew]

Originally Posted by flere-imsaho

I am 99% sure I read somewhere where the showrunners confirmed Stannis was dead but that they didn't feel they needed to show his death on-screen (as opposed to his death not being on-screen because he's not dead). Which: a) seems odd given what they've been happy to show on-screen and b) probably doesn't mean anything given the long and hard protestations from the showrunners than Jon Snow was dead.

The Tower of Joy fight was unmitigated bullshit. Only in movies do people dual-wield longswords, especially in the manner (all spinny and flashy) that he did.

Stannis tells her to do her duty or something before she's about to kill him. Her duty at that moment was to protect Sansa.

[Atocep]

99% certain Stannis is dead.

[jeff061]

I don't know, I think this show has been rather lazy for a couple seasons now and I'm disappointed season 6 seems to be continuing that trend. Every scene seems to be unnecessarily drawn out with eye rolling delays and obvious conclusions that lose their punch due to the overly tedious build up. And yes the Tower of Joy fight would have been better suited for a child's cartoon(sans kill shots and blood) than an adult's drama.

Arya is the only story line I find interesting at this point. Everything else is a retread of something that already happened.

And yet I know I will keep watching until the end.

[bronconick]

6 on 2 odds require either a fantasy or comic book ending to even make it a story to be remembered. If it's "realistic", it's closer to gang violence. "Remember when we jumped so and so and kicked their ass?"

[flere-imsaho]

With dragons and the White Walkers, it's unclear to me how it ends with anything but a fantasy ending.

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by flere-imsaho

With dragons and the White Walkers, it's unclear to me how it ends with anything but a fantasy ending.

Yeah, that's how I've always thought it would end. The first three books were more about the wars of men and then the series - at some point - would shift more between the wars of gods - The Other vs. R'hollor / Ice vs. Fire - that sort of thing.

[Logan]

Are they still thinking the show will end after season 8? Seems like we're getting really tight against that, if so.

[ISiddiqui]

A 13 episode season 7 is what I've been hearing (divided into part 1 and part 2).

I can see it as they have been blowing through plot. I can see the cliffhanger for this season being Dany standing on the shore of Westeros before fading to black.

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by Logan

Are they still thinking the show will end after season 8? Seems like we're getting really tight against that, if so.

I believe, based on what I recall reading last, is that after this season there will be another 13-14 episodes broken out across two seasons.

HBO is no hurry to get rid of its only big time drama.

It's still weird to me at times that this little fantasy series that I started reading in 1999 has become this massive, tent pole show for HBO.

[Logan]

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

A 13 episode season 7 is what I've been hearing (divided into part 1 and part 2).

I can see it as they have been blowing through plot. I can see the cliffhanger for this season being Dany standing on the shore of Westeros before fading to black.

She better get moving if that's the case.

[ISiddiqui]

Originally Posted by Logan

She better get moving if that's the case.

She has 7 more episodes, with which how quickly they are going through plot, that can easily happen.

[whomario]

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

A 13 episode season 7 is what I've been hearing (divided into part 1 and part 2).

I can see it as they have been blowing through plot. I can see the cliffhanger for this season being Dany standing on the shore of Westeros before fading to black.

So in 7 Episodes (if she even is in all) and roughly 30-40 Minutes screentime, she´ll need to beat up those dothraki widows in that witches-tent, need to be rescued and/or somehow take control of the Dothraki, get back to her base, find and reconnect to her dragons and also reconquer the other cities (if for no other reason that to cross the sea with anything more than her dragons she´ll need a fleet, seeing how her own got destroyed). I have a really hard time seeing that happen.

Also, what are the White Walkers doing ? Hibernating ? I´d like some movement on that front as well (speaking of which, we just saw Sam for the first time who presumably is going to come up with some sort of knowledge to help everybody out).

Right now i have a really tough time envisioning any proper conclusion in less than 2 more full seasons after this one.

[ISiddiqui]

Originally Posted by whomario

So in 7 Episodes (if she even is in all) and roughly 30-40 Minutes screentime, she´ll need to beat up those dothraki widows in that witches-tent, need to be rescued and/or somehow take control of the Dothraki, get back to her base, find and reconnect to her dragons and also reconquer the other cities (if for no other reason that to cross the sea with anything more than her dragons she´ll need a fleet, seeing how her own got destroyed). I have a really hard time seeing that happen.

All she needs is a dragon to show up. They seem large enough that they can cross the narrow sea .

[Groundhog]

Originally Posted by Honolulu_Blue

Agreed. It was fantasy sword play at it's best (or perhaps worst). It was all visual flash with no basis in reality or how actual combat would work.

I'm in this camp, too. I liked the scene in terms of fleshing out some background information, but the cheesy fantasy choreography made me think of that 'If Game of Thrones was released in the 80s' clip I've seen on Facebook a bunch of times.

[Groundhog]

Originally Posted by whomario

Also, what are the White Walkers doing ? Hibernating ? I´d like some movement on that front as well

Given how big a part of the story they've been (down to the first scene of the first episode/chapter (IIRC)), the Hollywood conclusion would be a unified Westeros vs the White Walkers in the 2nd last episode.

[MrBug708]

I feel like the problem is that there are a bunch of "great fighters" so how do we distinguish them from each other? I mean, Loras is an elite fighter. Jaime is an elite fighter. The mountain is an elite fighter. Oberon was an elite fighter. Brienne is a strong fighter. Ned was a battle fighter. Robert was strong. The Hound was strong. Bronn basically kicks everyones ass. Jorah beat up a bunch of Dothraki. Sir Barristan was quoted as being one of the greatest fighters. Grey Worm is an unsullied who have no fear. Dario has his own high level skill set. Khal Drogo was a fearsome warrior. I feel like there needs to be some distinguishing between everyone. It was more or less a 2 minute scene that has very little meaning to anyone but us book readers and even then, not really on the top 100 complaints of the show.

[stevew]

Is there any possibility that "Rickon" is actually faceless Arya?

[Groundhog]

That would seem to be contrary to her being no-one and all that jazz. Not that I have any idea how any of the weird ass Arya stuff is going to tie back into the main storyline.

[BishopMVP]

Originally Posted by Logan

She better get moving if that's the case.

The "Meereeneese knot" has always been incredibly easy to untangle. She has dragons available, she has apparently numerous Dothraki hordes that'll clearly end up being her foot soldiers, and she has established allies both within Meereen and the most prominent mercenary groups. All that she's missing is ships... and I think all the book readers have a guess where those'll be coming from. (Can't remember if you are one.)

I'm also with MrBug. The choreography was laughable, but my bigger complaint was that no one would have any clue who Arthur Dayne was, or what was in the tower. I really liked the idea someone had of a whole season, or maybe a 1-2 hour one off episode/off-season movie about Robert's Rebellion, instead of shoehorning these in via flashback visions.

[bhlloy]

Soooo.. yeah. Being fireproof is a highly underrated trait.

The Sansa timing was a bit laughable, but thank God they aren't going to play chase around the North one more fucking episode.

[Julio Riddols]

I don't know about everyone else, but I am loving this season. Things are moving at an incredible pace, every episode is just packed. So many plot lines weaving their way through.. Where last season was a slow burn, this has been a thrill a minute.. I just hope when it does end we don't get a cop out in the vein of Lost.

I think it could end a number of ways and I would be satisfied.. The only thing I don't think I would like would be seeing Littlefinger survive the whole thing.

[Radii]

I loved most everything about this one. As for the season as a whole, we all knew Jon Snow was coming back. Every second this season before that happened had that hanging over it, and it was a slight drag for me as a result at the start. But, overall, there is a hell of a lot to love about what's going on right now. I loved the Sansa/Jon scenes, and Brienne with Davos and Mellisandre especially.

[PackerFanatic]

That was a pretty great episode - and man, when Dany walks out of that burning hut? Chills. Love it.

[spleen1015]

The pacing of the show it way the fuck off now, but I don't care. Loved a lot of what happened last night.

[JPhillips]

Jorah and Daario walking through the crowd at the end reminded me of Bugs Bunny. Pardon me. Pardon me. Excuse me. Pardon me.

[Honolulu_Blue]

It was a pretty great episode. I've really enjoyed the season thus far.

[Kodos]

I want Arya to start kicking some ass.

[ISiddiqui]

I'll be the grumpy curmudgeon, I guess... it was a fantastic visual, but the whole everyone is on fire while Dany is alive and safe has been done, right? Though hopefully this means that going to Westeros is on the agenda now (well, once they remember to grab the dragons, where ever they are). I do wonder what she'll do with the knowledge that Tyrion made a deal with the Wise Masters.

Also, is it just me, or are they portraying Ramsey as some sort of super cunning villain who apparently has knives all over the place?

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

I'll be the grumpy curmudgeon, I guess... it was a fantastic visual, but the whole everyone is on fire while Dany is alive and safe has been done, right?

Has it? I know she emerged from the fire with the dragons from Drogo's funeral pyre, but was there another scene where she was in fire?

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

Also, is it just me, or are they portraying Ramsey as some sort of super cunning villain who apparently has knives all over the place?

He is definitely being portrayed as quite cunning. The fact that he has a knife or even a few on him at all times isn't all that odd or strange. Just the way things are in that world and he probably also invited Osha to that room and totally planned on killing her.

[ISiddiqui]

Originally Posted by Honolulu_Blue

Has it? I know she emerged from the fire with the dragons from Drogo's funeral pyre, but was there another scene where she was in fire?

Other standing aroun looking badass while fire was around her (from memory) - while the dragons were burning the Warlock in Qarth, standing in Astapor while the dragons burned the city to the ground.

[Kodos]

She'd totally kick Dhalsim's ass in Street Fighter.

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

Other standing aroun looking badass while fire was around her (from memory) - while the dragons were burning the Warlock in Qarth, standing in Astapor while the dragons burned the city to the ground.

Ah. Totally different. She didn't physically emerge from flames and use her immunity to fire powers to kill a room full of khals.

Also, she is the Mother of Dragons and has promised on several occasions that she will take hers with fire and blood, so... They've been warned!

[bhlloy]

Originally Posted by Honolulu_Blue

He is definitely being portrayed as quite cunning. The fact that he has a knife or even a few on him at all times isn't all that odd or strange. Just the way things are in that world and he probably also invited Osha to that room and totally planned on killing her.

Yeah he made it quite clear that he knew who she was and that she was loyal to the princes, as that was one of the things that Theon revealed under torture. He clearly has that entire sequence planned out.

I hope that wasn't the brilliant plan to get rid of him. Still hoping for the Umbers double crossing them and stabbing them in the back when the now inevitable big battle for the north goes down

[ISiddiqui]

Originally Posted by Honolulu_Blue

Ah. Totally different. She didn't physically emerge from flames and use her immunity to fire powers to kill a room full of khals.

Pedantic, IMO. It's the same basic visual.

[Kodos]

I thought we should see her clothes burning in the fire.

[Chief Rum]

Originally Posted by ISiddiqui

Pedantic, IMO. It's the same basic visual.

Worked for me!

[Drake]

I make it a policy not to complain about contractually un-obligated Emilia Clarke taking her clothes off.