I don't know how yall can keep all the characters straight. I have no idea what the names of 80% of them are, so I've had to give them nicknames. Many characters all look the same, so I have to use context clues to figure out who they are.

For instance, the characters at the wall:
Jon Snow
Sam...Jon's fat friend
Gilly...Sam's girlfriend
The kid who's now Jon's assistant
A bunch of other dudes that I can't tell apart from each other

The guy who used to protect Peter Dinklage and the guy who betrayed Danny look the same to me. I can only tell them apart by who they're speaking to and what they're doing in the scene.

Stannis, Peter Dinklage's dad (who's now dead), and several of other guys all look the same. I can't tell any of them apart unless there's something or someone else in the scene that clears it up for me.

The guy who used to protect Peter Dinklage, the amazonian knight lady, and the little boy who can take over animals' bodies and is protected by Hodor (along with a bunch of other people) all seem to have the same name...which is terribly confusing.

The names of each castle & town are completely lost on me. Who lives where, who is from where, which groups like each other, which groups hate each other, and why...none of it makes any sense.

If anyone has a cheat sheet they can point me to with pictures of everyone and an explanation of how they all fit together...without spoiling anything...I'd really appreciate it. Without it, there's about 30% of each episode that I just don't understand those story lines or who those people are.

Does anyone have any thoughts as to what Cersei was hinting at when she kept telling Margary "if you need anything darling....anything, just ask."

I guess I've seen Cersei do enough mean stuff that I'm skeptical of her whenever she's says anything (especially when she has as much emphasis as she did on those lines). Makes me wonder what she's getting at. Then to follow it up immediately with a Raven to Littlefinger......I don't think she was panicking....I think she's got a plan of some sort.

6PM EST

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I don't think she was panicking....I think she's got a plan of some sort.

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+1

My money is on Cersei trying to set Marge up.

http://viewers-guide.hbo.com/?icid=mobileinterstitial

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Does anyone have any thoughts as to what Cersei was hinting at when she kept telling Margary "if you need anything darling....anything, just ask."

I guess I've seen Cersei do enough mean stuff that I'm skeptical of her whenever she's says anything (especially when she has as much emphasis as she did on those lines). Makes me wonder what she's getting at. Then to follow it up immediately with a Raven to Littlefinger......I don't think she was panicking....I think she's got a plan of some sort.

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This was what I wondered as well. My wife wrote it off as that she has to be that way with Maergery now due to her position. I guess I just didn't get it and all the while, I don't trust her due to her past.

Definitely interested in seeing what Cersei and Littlefinger are communicating about. I'm surprised Cersei hasn't figured out Littlefinger was behind the killing of Joffrey, or that he's protecting Sansa. (Or has she?)

Tommen telling Cersei to pack her **** and GTFO was greatness. Granted it's all Margery's doing, but still, can't wait to see her smug face when she has to leave King's Landing.

Also, thank GOD Tyrion is showing up at Mereen. That plotline was going nowhere fast and was getting very boring.

Also:

http://gameofthrones.wikia.com/wiki/Game_of_Thrones_Wiki

Note: this site discusses "In The Book" at the bottom of each page. Easy to avoid on a mobile.

Margery has to see just how dangerous Cersei is to her. If she isn't working to actively remove her (not just relocate), she is making a big mistake.

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I don't know how yall can keep all the characters straight. I have no idea what the names of 80% of them are, so I've had to give them nicknames. Many characters all look the same, so I have to use context clues to figure out who they are.

For instance, the characters at the wall:
Jon Snow
Sam...Jon's fat friend
Gilly...Sam's girlfriend
The kid who's now Jon's assistant
A bunch of other dudes that I can't tell apart from each other

The guy who used to protect Peter Dinklage and the guy who betrayed Danny look the same to me. I can only tell them apart by who they're speaking to and what they're doing in the scene.

Stannis, Peter Dinklage's dad (who's now dead), and several of other guys all look the same. I can't tell any of them apart unless there's something or someone else in the scene that clears it up for me.

The guy who used to protect Peter Dinklage, the amazonian knight lady, and the little boy who can take over animals' bodies and is protected by Hodor (along with a bunch of other people) all seem to have the same name...which is terribly confusing.

The names of each castle & town are completely lost on me. Who lives where, who is from where, which groups like each other, which groups hate each other, and why...none of it makes any sense.

If anyone has a cheat sheet they can point me to with pictures of everyone and an explanation of how they all fit together...without spoiling anything...I'd really appreciate it. Without it, there's about 30% of each episode that I just don't understand those story lines or who those people are.

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This made me laugh, because i'm sure everyone has felt this way at some point watching the show. It's a little overwhelming. I've been considering going back and watching season 1, because I didn't know who the hell anyone was and I fell like I missed a lot of what was actually going on.

There are tons of character guides out there that will help you out and not spoil anything. It also helped me a lot to get semi-familiar with the map of Westeros/Essos so you have a better idea where everyone is geographically.

Overall, I definitely liked this ep.

Everything with Cersei was great. From her back and forth with Margaery, to her trying to figure out what the heck Tommen was getting at, to her scheming with Littlefinger....so many possibilities.

Jon's new role is going to be pretty interesting. Ser Alliser stepping aside and letting him have Janos Slint was a nice spin and you've got to wonder if Alliser will be trying to undermine him or shift over to his side of things with leadership. Obviously Jon's got their attention..... In season 1 and 2, almost everything at the wall bored me to death. All of the training, the marching through the snow, just didn't seem like much. But over the last 2 seasons, I've done a complete 180 and I love almost everything that's happening up there.

Anybody else notice Ramsey's specific wording? I think it was "I won't hurt her". So it seems like he can take that 2 different directions. He can either have someone else hurt her (one of those girls that jacked with Theon all the time) or he can hurt someone else and make her watch. Same kind of deal as the wall....I thought the Ramsey Theon junk was pretty pointless whenever it was all starting to go down. Now I can't wait to see that story line each week, because I feel like I'm about to watch some train wreck each time they're on screen.

Now my boring story lines have shifted to Arya and Brienne. I've loved Arya's story from season 1 all the way through. But I can't (yet) get into anything based on these first episodes. I really don't want to see her sweeping and walking around in the dark for a whole season so I'm hoping she gets to do something soon. While the Pod/Brienne back story stuff is a little bit interesting, I feel like we're just watching 2 people travel cross country by horse; some cool scenery, but not a lot of excitement.

One question: have we ever seen the "high sparrow" before this season? I feel like I've seen that guy before but it may be from a different show/movie. I can't figure out if we're supposed to know him from earlier or if all of his stuff is supposed to be new. I'm guessing Cersei appointing him is to align herself with "the church" and thus have power through that side of things at Kings Landing?

The High Sparrow is Jonathan Pryce, an insanely prolific Brit actor.

I know he is the governor in Pirates of the Caribbean. I don't think he has been in the show before.

I left out King's Landing and the religious dudes in my first post, but I definitely think the "high sparrow" will be a new key character since its Jonathan Pryce. You're correct, we haven't seen him before. He's done lots of stuff. I love Bond movies, even the terrible ones, so my first thought when I see him is as the media super-villain from Tomorrow Never Dies. 13 yr old Squirrel Master liked that film more than he should have, mostly for the wonderful Teri Hatcher.

Wow, that was a sidetrack. But yeah, no idea what's going on with the High Sparrow or the High Septon guy either, but I think its safe to say that he/they will be part of what Cersei has cooking behind the scenes. My guess with her though, is that while she thinks she can play the game like Tywin, she won't be as good as she thinks is, and things will ultimately backfire on her. I think she's kind of run her course as a character and we'll see probably by the end of this year, her in the midst of a downfall of some sorts. Maybe even dead.

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I don't know how yall can keep all the characters straight. I have no idea what the names of 80% of them are, so I've had to give them nicknames. Many characters all look the same, so I have to use context clues to figure out who they are.

For instance, the characters at the wall:
Jon Snow
Sam...Jon's fat friend
Gilly...Sam's girlfriend
The kid who's now Jon's assistant
A bunch of other dudes that I can't tell apart from each other

The guy who used to protect Peter Dinklage and the guy who betrayed Danny look the same to me. I can only tell them apart by who they're speaking to and what they're doing in the scene.

Stannis, Peter Dinklage's dad (who's now dead), and several of other guys all look the same. I can't tell any of them apart unless there's something or someone else in the scene that clears it up for me.

The guy who used to protect Peter Dinklage, the amazonian knight lady, and the little boy who can take over animals' bodies and is protected by Hodor (along with a bunch of other people) all seem to have the same name...which is terribly confusing.

The names of each castle & town are completely lost on me. Who lives where, who is from where, which groups like each other, which groups hate each other, and why...none of it makes any sense.

If anyone has a cheat sheet they can point me to with pictures of everyone and an explanation of how they all fit together...without spoiling anything...I'd really appreciate it. Without it, there's about 30% of each episode that I just don't understand those story lines or who those people are.

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It's called paying attention

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+1

Anyone else get the feeling that Cersei is about to exercise the nuclear option?

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Anyone else get the feeling that Cersei is about to exercise the nuclear option?

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I am thinking the same thing but I don't have any idea what the nuclear option is.

Any ideas?

What like maybe wild fire?

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Anyone else get the feeling that Cersei is about to exercise the nuclear option?

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I am thinking the same thing but I don't have any idea what the nuclear option is.

Any ideas?

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I'm thinking she's about to end the speculation on Tommen's parentage. If he isn't an heir, Margaery isn't a queen.

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Anyone else get the feeling that Cersei is about to exercise the nuclear option?

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I am thinking the same thing but I don't have any idea what the nuclear option is.

Any ideas?

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I'm thinking she's about to end the speculation on Tommen's parentage. If he isn't an heir, Margaery isn't a queen.

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No way. I think they'd execute her and Jamie if she admitted that. Plus she wants her son in power.

She'll probably just try and figure out a sneaky way to kill Margary. But Margary may be planning the same thing.

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Anyone else get the feeling that Cersei is about to exercise the nuclear option?

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I am thinking the same thing but I don't have any idea what the nuclear option is.

Any ideas?

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I'm thinking she's about to end the speculation on Tommen's parentage. If he isn't an heir, Margaery isn't a queen.

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No way. I think they'd execute her and Jamie if she admitted that. Plus she wants her son in power.

She'll probably just try and figure out a sneaky way to kill Margary. But Margary may be planning the same thing.

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It's kind of wild. It really leaves her with nothing. For some reason the idea popped into my head during the preview for episode 3. The Septon being shamed made me think he was being shamed for the wedding that was conducted in that episode.

If you watch the preview for next week at the end of the episode, I think they gave us what Cersei is going to do.

****Speculative Spoiler?****















It showed her talking to the high sparrow about a sinner within their midst. I took this to mean she's going to tell him that Margaery was a bit promiscuous. Probably won't knock her out of her position, but it takes away her biggest weapon which is how much the public loves her.








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Anyone else get the feeling that Cersei is about to exercise the nuclear option?

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I am thinking the same thing but I don't have any idea what the nuclear option is.

Any ideas?

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I'm thinking she's about to end the speculation on Tommen's parentage. If he isn't an heir, Margaery isn't a queen.

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Of course not.

Just can not see her coming out about Tommen like that. It would basically undo all she's done the last few years. She's going to do something to spite Margery surely, but it won't be that. Cersei is plotting something, that we know. Her sending messages to Littlefinger was an overly obvious parallel to Tywin's messages to Roose Bolton. Roose even talked about it. She's imprisoned the High Septon dude for some weak **** and is trying to replace him with this new guy we know nothing about other than he's played by one of the most prominent actors to appear on the show, meaning his character must have meaning. I can't even really guess what how the Littlefinger messages could have to do with the High Sparrow stuff, very likely they are unrelated and just parts of two seperate plots she has going, but something is a foot that much they want us to know. That's why I think they are setting us up for her fall or death. Plus, she just doesn't have much to do in KL anymore except be made a mockery of by Margery and play make pretend Queen with the King's counsel. With the death of Tywin & Joffrey and the departures of Tyrion and Jaime, there just aren't many characters left for her to do anything with.

Friend of mine and I were swapping texts earlier and something came to mind: who have we not seen in a while? And do you think we'll see any of them again?

Off the top of my head, I came up with:

Gindry - last seen in the boat
Brotherhood guys - Last seen turning the Hound loose before he and Arya hooked up
Greyjoy sister (Greyjoy family) - Last seen trying to free Theon before Ramsey showed up and ran them off.
Jorah - showed up in a brothel last night
Hound - Laying down after the whipping Brienne gave him
Asha and Little Stark Boy - Last seen leaving Bran and going to one of the houses still loyal to the Starks
Bran and Hodor - Last seen fighting zombie kids near the North Pole
Cat's Uncle (Old dude that could shoot the bow) - Last seen going for a piss right before the Red Wedding went down
The Other Tully Guy - Last seen marrying a Frey girl before the Red Wedding went down

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Gindry - last seen in the boat
Brotherhood guys - Last seen turning the Hound loose before he and Arya hooked up
Greyjoy sister (Greyjoy family) - Last seen trying to free Theon before Ramsey showed up and ran them off.
Jorah - showed up in a brothel last night
Hound - Laying down after the whipping Brienne gave him
Asha and Little Stark Boy - Last seen leaving Bran and going to one of the houses still loyal to the Starks
Bran and Hodor - Last seen fighting zombie kids near the North Pole
Cat's Uncle (Old dude that could shoot the bow) - Last seen going for a piss right before the Red Wedding went down
The Other Tully Guy - Last seen marrying a Frey girl before the Red Wedding went down

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My guesses:
Gendry - Never to be seen again. I'm probably wrong, but its hard to see how he could factor into the stories we're currently building unless its something super random like he ends up in Bravoos and reunites with Arya. Hey he's a swordsmith - could make her a new sword if she ever has to dump Needle.
Brotherhood guys - As previously mentioned, I speculate they meet up with the Hound. I felt this might never happen, but since the Priest guy was mentioned by Tyrion this past episode, that makes it way more likely in my mind they do reappear.
Greyjoys - Probably never major characters again, I could see them as part of the victim pool in the impending Sansa/Brienne/etc revenge killings, after Boltons, along with the Freys.
Jorah - Answered last night
Hound - See Brotherhood guys
Asha and Rickon - F if I know. Probably done, almost certainly irrelevant even if they do pop up again.
Bran and Hodor - Next season. Bran's warging will have to be important, too much time spent following him around if not.
Two Tully's - Ehh, doubt they appear again. Can't even remember their names. One was like Blackbeard or something. I guess if/when we see the Frey's again they could make appearances. Likewise with Rickon, I doubt they are relevant even if shown again.

edit: I wonder if Theon would be part of a Sansa/Brienne team. He was going out of his way to not allow her to see him. If he feels empowered by them, could definitely lead to vengeance against his family.

also, wonder if Rickon could be hiding with the family who told Stannis no in that letter in the earlier ep.