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Great, another filler episode

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Hard to tell a story without actually telling the story...

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Great, another filler episode

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I don't understand comments like this. Do you want a major character to die every week?

How did anyones story advance other than blondie?

And I love people getting upset anytime this show is questioned. Relax, its not like someone just told you that your son is a ****ty ass soccer player



[This message has been edited by MBeezy17 (edited 5/13/2013 7:17a).]

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How did anyones story advance other than blondie?

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Robb
Arya
Learned more about the Wildlings and subsequently Jon Snow
Tywinn and Joffery's "relationship" and standing with each other.
Jaime is literally transforming in front of our eyes this season (last night included).

The people that gripe about episodes like this are the same ones that watched the Sopranos and whined after every episode when someone wasn't killed. They're also the same ones that hate The Wire because it's "too slow/boring". Sometimes the greatness of the episode is the development of the personalities and characters themselves. Ultimately, that's what this (and most HBO shows) are.

Assuming you mean Brienne for 'blondie', I would argue that Jaime's story advanced as much, if not more.

The Theon scenes are getting hard to watch

I think Blondie is Dany

No love for the dragons?

Anyone else notice the rubber tread on the bottom of Jon Snow's girls shoe when she was shaking the rocks out of her boot? That & the mother of dragons having a box full of perfect beef steaks in the middle of the desert were the only things that came close to bothering me about this episode.

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How did anyones story advance other than blondie?

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Robb
Arya
Learned more about the Wildlings and subsequently Jon Snow
Tywinn and Joffery's "relationship" and standing with each other.
Jaime is literally transforming in front of our eyes this season (last night included).

The people that gripe about episodes like this are the same ones that watched the Sopranos and whined after every episode when someone wasn't killed. They're also the same ones that hate The Wire because it's "too slow/boring". Sometimes the greatness of the episode is the development of the personalities and characters themselves. Ultimately, that's what this (and most HBO shows) are.

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Don't forget half man, his *****, & Sansa getting set up for a threesome or a very bad ending.

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I think Blondie is Dany

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I would love every single show to be 60 minutes of her.

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Great, another filler episode

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Again, and I say this without a hint of elitism or rudeness (nothing wrong with liking action), this show really isn't for you.

This episode was written by George R. R. Martin. This episode is exactly what this story is about. Politicking, strategy, maneuvering, subterfuge, scheming, slow-burning character stories...

There isn't a huge Return of the King -esque payoff coming. That's just not the story you're watching.

Trust me on this.

To be fair, Dany isn't in the middle of the desert. She is on the coast working her way up Slaver's Bay and just destroyed a major city and got any provisions she could want.

Personally I thought the dragon scenes were awesome, that was actually as much dragon screen time as we have gotten all year.

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There isn't a huge Return of the King -esque payoff coming.

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You mean walking around for 9 hours then throwing a ring lava to watch enemies fall over inexplicably?? Or a more specific instance, like abandoning your army to talk to ghosts?

So have we pretty much determined by now that the guy torchering Theon is just some evil/sicko that gets off on jacking with people? Or does he have some kind of agenda? I'm thinking if he had an agenda, he'd of voiced it by now. Somehow I think he's just enjoying messing with him and last night sealed it for me. If he wanted info, he'd of just kept bringing the pain. With last nights leave him hanging and hinting that he's going to cut his johnson off....I think he's just a sadist.

And while those scenes have in a way become boring to me, it makes me think they're building up to some end game there that we can't see yet. So I'm hesitantly curious.


So now Dany is Abraham Lincoln huh? It's no longer about her "regaining what's rightfully hers" but it's about freeing all slaves? That's a pretty big jump but I'm interested in seeing where it goes. And looking back I guess she's always been nice/decent to everyone (unless they cross her).


Something about Robb's wife felt wrong last night to me too (Seppinwall referred to it). Something about her writing in Valeryian (sp) had me wondering if she has an alternate motive. When she said she was pregnant I kind of dismissed it and thought that must be what I thought was coming, but looking back on it I still wonder if she's all she says she it or if she's a spy/assassin/other. It was either REALLY well acted if there's something else there, or poorly acted and I'm reading to much into everything.

The only other thing I can think of with Theon is if he is being conditioned or trained to be afraid of the horn like dogs being train with a noise and then punishment. After they are broken they are just as scared of the noise as they were the punishment.

While I love this show, this season has been very, very slow to this point. The kingslayer lost his hand and Khaleesi is building an army. That pretty much sums up the season thus far. Outside of those two plotlines, everything has been pretty stagnant to this point. We ended last season with the Lannisters and Stannis at war, with Robb about to join the mix, as well as an army of frozen zombies on the march, and so far almost nothing has happened with any of that.

I understand that a lot of this show is driven by the political games and dealings, but the plot just hasn't advanced much at all this season. I appreciate character development (Jaime's story arc has probably been the best part of this season), and I don't need an awesome action sequence in every episode, but this season has been below the bar set by the previous two seasons, at least thus far.

Perhaps part of that is because Tywin Lannister is running King's Landing, and Tyrion, Cersei and Joffrey are all on their best behavior. So much of the show has been driven by their conniving and scheming, and with their dad/grandad in town, they are pretty much stymied. Littlefinger and Varys have been fairly quiet, as well.

But, this season just has not been that good so far, at least when compared to the first two seasons. I don't see how anybody other than diehard fans who lack objectivity can disagree. I'm hoping that the final three episodes raise the bar, and I suspect they will.

[This message has been edited by Salty (edited 5/13/2013 10:38a).]

[This message has been edited by Salty (edited 5/13/2013 10:38a).]

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The kingslayer lost his hand and Khaleesi is building an army. That pretty much sums up the season to this point. Outside of those two plotlines, everything has been pretty stagnant to this point.

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Jesus Christ, sometimes I wonder if people like this are even trying to watch the show or just have it on while they play video games or something.

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But, this season just has not been that good so far, at least when compared to the first two seasons. I don't see how anybody other than diehard fans who lack objectivity can disagree. I'm hoping that the final three episodes raise the bar, and I suspect they will.

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you should have figured out a long time ago that this isn't a series that will burn through its plot in one season. The fact that there are 5 1000+ page books should clue you in on that. A lot has happened this season in terms of character development, and a lot of people are moving into locations so that more events can happen. This is a large world and people can't teleport across it instantly. Enjoy the great writing, enjoy the deep characters, and stop *****ing about the fact that it takes a little bit for things to unfold.

HZ1985, I'm not much of a video game guy, myself. Instead of throwing a cheap jab in there, why don't you explain where I'm wrong? I can sum up this season in pretty much one paragraph:

Jaime's hand was cut off while in captivity, and he has grown closer to Brianne while trying to get back to King's Landing. Khaleesi has gained an army of loyal slave warriors and is on the march. Tywin is running King's Landing, and as we build towards the royal wedding, he has arranged for Cersei to marry Loras and Tyrion to marry Sansa. The Night's Watch has been fractured, and Jon Snow is running around with his red-headed wildling girl. Robb has entered in a new alliance with Walder Frey, which requires him to marry off Edmure to Frey's daughter. Theon has been tortured all season for no apparent reason, and the rest of the Stark kids are running around in the woods.

Did I miss anything? If I hadn't seen a single episode this season, I could watch the final three episodes after reading that paragraph and probably catch up pretty quickly. This season hasn't been bad, but the plot just has not advanced much. I'm sorry if you disagree, but that is no reason to make snarky comments and insinuate that I'm a knuckle-dragger who can't appreciate the subtleties of dialogue and character development. I can. I don't need to see arms cut off and skulls bashed in in every episode. All I'm saying is that the plot has not advanced much to this point in the third season.

So, no thoughts on the hound taking Arya?

[This message has been edited by redline248 (edited 5/13/2013 11:16a).]

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And while those scenes have in a way become boring to me, it makes me think they're building up to some end game there that we can't see yet. So I'm hesitantly curious.

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I'm curious as well, just thought they could have combined the two scenes into last week's episode. They spent a decent bit of time on Theon/torcherer scene this week and it really didn't establish anything new. I found that to be filler.

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Something about Robb's wife felt wrong last night to me too (Seppinwall referred to it). Something about her writing in Valeryian (sp) had me wondering if she has an alternate motive. When she said she was pregnant I kind of dismissed it and thought that must be what I thought was coming, but looking back on it I still wonder if she's all she says she it or if she's a spy/assassin/other. It was either REALLY well acted if there's something else there, or poorly acted and I'm reading to much into everything.

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I think it was implied when they first met that she was "reporting back" to someone, and it aint her mom.

Robb losing a quarter of his army to honor?

Sansa being betrothed to Loras, now Tyrion; losing out her chance to leave KL?

Jon becoming a wilding, introduced to giants, wargs and nekkid redheads

Tyrion becoming the treasurer.

The Tyrells have thorns in the lions, showing they are playing for control of the Throne too.

No plot has moved forward, other than Dany.

How do you discount the fact that there have been (what seems to be) no less than 11 key new characters (at least they're being made out to be key) thus far this season, in addition to some pretty big enhancements on a few "old" characters?

New "key" characters:
Grandma Tyrell
Redheaded dude with Jon Snow
The Reed kids with Bran
Grey Worm
Mean Torture Guy
Thoros (drunk Red Priest)
Barrick (One Eyed Cat of 9 lives)
Blackfish (Wet Sh**s guy last night)
Edmure
Mance Rayder (lesser so far, but gonna be a player)


Old characters becoming bigger players:
Margy Tyrell
Sir Barristan Selmy
Roose Bolton


When a show has introduced a dozen new big characters, and really enhanced 3-4 others, and all of that in basically 5 episodes or less of what's considered a short season for big time shows (10 eps), then I'd say there is going to be a lot of characters development, pieces moving around, lining things up, etc. I don't necessarily need big mind blowing plot moves to appreciate the show/season. But while you're paragraph of season plot is funny, I think it's missing a ton.

You've got the Red God coming more and more into play. Arya keeps getting psychologically gutted. The chess piece that is Gendry is being moved in a different direction. Who's side is Jon Snow on? What happens to him at Castle Black (and is he on a collision course with Bran and the Reeds?)? Daeny has transformed her character, built a big army, has control of her dragons and is on the emacipation proclamation warpath. The Tyrells are causing all kinds of twists in the goings on at Kings Landing. I HAVE been disappointed that Varys and Littlefinger have become small bit players this season (for the most part). Robb is getting in a pretty serious juggling match in the North. Dealing with Karstarks, playing chess in the war, now he's a daddy-to-be, he's trying to get/keep the Frey's.

And that's not covering the Brotherhood, Theon, Jaime/Brienne, etc. I think what it seems is that there are SO MANY plots going on that not being able to spend a ton of time on any one of them is making it seem like none of them are moving. Book readers correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't they cutting book 3 into 2 seasons of show because of so much happening? That would explain a lot.

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I think it was implied when they first met that she was "reporting back" to someone, and it aint her mom.

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I don't remember any such implication.

Salty,

I don't think it is a right or wrong thing. If you are only seeing the broad strokes of the plot moving that's fine but there is an awful lot going on beneath the surface. I've been glued to every detail of every episode but to you maybe it moves too slow. I would rather they give the detail personally as it makes the story much richer. In the end they are making 20 hours of TV (2 Seasons) on basically one book while having to keep some actors engaged that aren't actually in Book 3 or have much smaller roles.

You did completely skip Arya who has had a lot happen as well with her meeting up with the BWB and now the Hound capturing her. Roz was also killed which was significant as she was a character all the way back to Episode 1.

The style of the story will always be to kind of trot along and then "poof" Jaime gets his hand cut off or the like. There is a lot of misdirection and deep scheming going on. They could cut out a lot of storyline but then it would make even less sense and just cheapen it.

The story takes patience. If you don't like it then that's ok, personally I think the slower pacing with sudden action is better and makes for a more realistic story. For instance they try to keep the travel times and information flow realistic but that can also be tedious.

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I think it was implied when they first met that she was "reporting back" to someone, and it aint her mom

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Man I must have missed that. Interesting.

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So, no thoughts on the hound taking Arya?

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Man I am REALLy wondering where that goes. His attitude towards Sansa, her attitude towards him when she's saying the people she wants dead, her trying to get him killed in the flaming sword fight. It almost seemed like he was hanging out close to their camp, or maybe they didn't do a very good job of showing how far away from the Brotherhood she had gotten, but it seemed like she was not far away from their lair. And like him or not, he's been "honorable" up until now it seems. Anything "bad" he's done was on orders, otherwise he saved Sansa and tried to get her to leave with him, he wouldn't let the Mountain kill Loras in Season 1, his argument during his trial with Berrick Dondarion came across as sincere and truthful. Pretty intriguing.

Why people watch shows like this and then ***** is beyond me.

Last night had so many different things going on and because it wasnt a Michael Bay production people complain.

Robbs going to be a dad
Dany may lay waste to another city and grow her army. Not to mention getting some need boats.
Theon continues to get it bad
Jamie and Brianne are now joined for a good while
The Imp has all kinds of trouble on his hands
Sansa is coming to terms with the life she is being delt
Tywin showed Joff who is really running the kingdom
Jon is moving further south and now has a "wife"
Arya is being held by the Hound
Bran isnt going to Castle Black as we thought
Gendry is back in KL and he knows who he really is

Al that and they didnt even touch on Littlefinger, Varyes, Cercie or Stannis.

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I'm officially out on the Theon scenes. We get 60 minutes each week and we know we lose 5 minutes that could be spent doing anything more productive than watching some poor guy get tortured to the point of having his D cut off.

At least they had the damn decency of throwing in a little nudity to get through that scene but I'm seriously sick of wasting my time watching a dude get tortured. Come back to his character when you're ready to actually further the plot...

[This message has been edited by Texas Tide (edited 5/13/2013 2:53a).]

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Will be much more enjoyable when Theon gets his revenge against this Hornblower. And that's just my guess - have not read the books.

why would anyone root for theon? he made his own bed.

I don't understand all the hate for this episode and the comments about how "slow" the story has been. I thoroughly enjoyed last night, felt like that hour flew by.

It seems to be that episode 9 of each season is when **** hits the fan ("Baelor" season 1, "Blackwater" season 2), so I'm guessing this season will follow suit. So just hang tight all you people with ADHD, something will happen soon...

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why would anyone root for theon? he made his own bed.

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This. I think it's hilarious how this guy is screwing with him. Theon is the worst, he brought it on himself. Ok, maybe hacking off his twig & berries was a bit much....

[This message has been edited by boy09 (edited 5/13/2013 11:55a).]

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Man I am REALLy wondering where that goes. His attitude towards Sansa, her attitude towards him when she's saying the people she wants dead, her trying to get him killed in the flaming sword fight. It almost seemed like he was hanging out close to their camp, or maybe they didn't do a very good job of showing how far away from the Brotherhood she had gotten, but it seemed like she was not far away from their lair. And like him or not, he's been "honorable" up until now it seems. Anything "bad" he's done was on orders, otherwise he saved Sansa and tried to get her to leave with him, he wouldn't let the Mountain kill Loras in Season 1, his argument during his trial with Berrick Dondarion came across as sincere and truthful. Pretty intriguing.

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The Hound and a few other characters like him are some of the most intriguing on the show to me.

One could argue that he and Tyrion are two of the most "honorable" characters we see. No, they aren't the most moral individuals, but they have their own sense of right and wrong and very strongly adhere to it, unlike the many involved whose standards seem quite flexible.

Truth be told, I was okay with this season until last night and I realized there were only three episodes left. It feels as if we're in the middle of the season, not almost done with it.

I was talking with a friend who has read all of the books, and like many of you, he has been happy with this season and said that there is a lot of significant things that are happening, but admits that it may not seem that way if he didn't already know what was coming. It seems to me that those of you who I assume have read the books seem to be enjoying this season on a different level than those of us who haven't. Please try putting yourself into the shoes of somebody who doesn't know what is coming and understand why I'm scratching head and wondering where most of the plotlines are going, because they just seem to be meandering around and doing little.

On a side note, I've been very tempted to read the books, but I've enjoyed the show so much that I didn't really want to know what was coming. I felt like reading the books might spoil some of my enjoyment of the series. This is the first time I've wondered if that decision has backfired on me.

As for the Arya/Hound storyline...I haven't really thought about that yet. It seemed like last season, he had a bit of a soft spot (if he is capable of having one) for Sansa, but I'm not sure how that relates to his sister. Sansa and Arya couldn't be much more different when it comes to the their personalities. I can only speculate that he is taking Arya as some type of leverage...that he can trade her somewhere down the line for gold or safe passage somewhere. I don't know why else he would want her.

I think Arya is one of the best characters on the show, and I'm very curious to see what happens to her. She seems destined to be a distinguished warrior...it seems as if her destiny is to eventually end up training with the face-shifting assassin who saved her last season.

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I don't remember any such implication.

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I'll go back and see if I can find what episode it was in. I've never read the books, but I know there's some reason why when they first met (and she was writing then) that I was led to believe she was reporting back to someone.