Why haven't any of you doll fuckers started a Game of Thrones topic?

[LoneSage]

Season 1 is perfect, I wouldn't change a thing. It captured the source greater than other seasons.

Dorne was shit in the books and in the show, but for different reasons. I'm glad they completely dropped the (f)Aegon storyline, and a lot of scenes with Penny (the dwarf girl) were cringey in the book.

AFFC and ADWD were bloated. I get what gurm wanted to do, and I'm sure the books are better on re-reads and if somehow he doesn't die first and finishes the series they'll be better received in the grand scheme of things, but coming from ASOS with those two, ugh.

The show is its own thing now. Show Jaime is not book Jaime. He doesn't know or care if Cersei fucked Lancel? Pssh.

The show got some stuff right (wildfire) and excised some good stuff (battle at the fist of the first men) and completely botched others (kingsmoot). It's still a good show and I can still appreciate it.

But man season 1 is in a league of its own, for sure.

 

[Taiso]

i'm okay with some of the changes. Others, I just endure them because, despite being a poor overall adaptation, it's not a bad show in its own right.

I DO agree with the video when the guy says the show is too glib with its brand of authoritarian violence.

It made me appreciate the mournful tone Jon takes in the show all the more. He's one of the few characters that continues to feel remorse for all the unfortunate things that have happened. Although I must still say that book Jon is VASTLY, VASTLY better than TV show Jon. And it's not Kit's fault. The script just doesn't do him justice.

Also, the lack of Ghost in Jon's story on the show is fucking bullshit. Fuck that part of the show. i don't care about the reasons, rationale or the TV show's narrative. It still fucking sucks and is bullshit.

 

[LoneSage]

He's one of the few characters that continues to feel remorse for all the unfortunate things that have happened.

And I think this right here is why people like Jon much more than Dany. When Jon had to slice off Janos Slynt's head, he did it because it was his duty. It wasn't a fun moment for him. But when Dany immolates all the Khals, it's like there's a hint of a smirk on her face. It's annoying and really unattractive.

Anyways!

My favorite character is back, Cleganebowl is all but confirmed.

And Lady Stoneheart...? I feel it'd be retarded to introduce her character now so late into the show.

 

[Taiso]

I'm also in the dark about where the Jamie Riverlands thing is going in the TV version. In the books, it looks like Brienne, who's either agreed to work with Lady Stoneheart or is somehow at her mercy, is leading Jamie into a trap or a confrontation of some kind in his scene in A Dance With Dragons. But if Lady Stoneheart isn't in the TV show, where is any of that going to go?

Also, last night's episode was really meh. Watching people I've never seen before shit on the Starks was tedious nonsense. This feels like it should be their triumphant return but that's mired in more pointless politics in service to...nothing? Because there's going to be a fight for Winterfell. Just let the banners rally behind the Starks, for fuck's sake. The show's coming to an end. It's time for their struggles to end.

Also....lol at Arya taking numerous stabs to the gut and not bleeding to death. Totally tone deaf for what this series has been to this point when it comes to betrayals. Would have worked in heroic fantasy. Not so much this. Didn't have to be stab wounds to the gut. Could have been a vicious slash or two. Would have been much more believable.

 

[Lagduf]

Also....lol at Arya taking numerous stabs to the gut and not bleeding to death. Totally tone deaf for what this series has been to this point when it comes to betrayals. Would have worked in heroic fantasy. Not so much this. Didn't have to be stab wounds to the gut. Could have been a vicious slash or two. Would have been much more believable.

I actually thought I was watching Arya get killed. The first cut was across her belly, thought he guts should be spilling out. Somehow the faceless girl didn't hit any vital organs with those numerous stab wounds...? Aren't they trained in, you know, assassinating people? Would've been more believable had she suffered less grievous looking wounds and somehow managed to get away faster.

 

[Taiso]

She'll end up putting up a good fight and then getting saved by someone, like the Faceless Man in what will shock the idiots in the TV audience but which the rest of us can easily see through as a dumb plot twist that has no substantial literary foundation.

Something like "A man was once like Arya. A man understands." Or some other stupid crap. All without spending any real time with the character.

 

[HDRchampion]

I actually thought I was watching Arya get killed. The first cut was across her belly, thought he guts should be spilling out. Somehow the faceless girl didn't hit any vital organs with those numerous stab wounds...? Aren't they trained in, you know, assassinating people? Would've been more believable had she suffered less grievous looking wounds and somehow managed to get away faster.

From the previews of next episode you see Arya jumping off a ledge with different clothes & pretty agile for being shanked a few times so its probably not even Arya that got stabbed, Jaquen probably trying to test that one bitch telling her to make it quick but she ended up going for the gut to make her bleed out slowly...Probably last straw before Jaquen ends up killing the bitch.

Im so glad Hound is back, but its not looking like a Cleganebowl is going to happen. It will probably be a rematch between Loras & the Mountain.

Blackfish was freaken awesome, he had that one scene awhile back w/ the funeral arrow & been waiting for his return!

 

[Fygee]

I actually thought I was watching Arya get killed. The first cut was across her belly, thought he guts should be spilling out. Somehow the faceless girl didn't hit any vital organs with those numerous stab wounds...? Aren't they trained in, you know, assassinating people? Would've been more believable had she suffered less grievous looking wounds and somehow managed to get away faster.

Stomach wounds can sometimes cause a long, painful death if not treated. You'll bleed a lot, but you may not necessarily bleed out, at least at first. Jaqen asked the Waif to make it quick, but clearly the Waif wanted to her to suffer, and that's why I believe she stabbed her in the stomach rather than cut her throat, stab her in the heart, etc.

That and injuries are only as bad as the plot dictates. Look at the The Hound and his miraculous recovery. Dude should have been deader than dead after the wounds he suffered.

Honestly I'm not sure what to predict with Arya at this point. Will she live? Probably. I also think there's a bigger game at work her that we're not seeing or aware of. Jaqen saying it was "all a part of the training" and nursing her back to health seems way too predictable and "sunshine and rainbows" for this show.

 

[Taiso]

That and injuries are only as bad as the plot dictates. Look at the The Hound and his miraculous recovery. Dude should have been deader than dead after the wounds he suffered.

I disagree with this notion because you're basically justifying the character surviving because the plot says she needs to live. But, as I stated, these types of wounds, on THIS show, have been fatal. The general climate for stabbings is that the characters die. And Arya isn't even a fully grown adult (although she's a tough kid).

I'm okay with her surviving an attack from the Waif and even with the Waif wanting her to suffer, but rationalizing stab wounds to the stomach on this particular show is a needless defense of a badly scripted scene. Slashes would have worked better, or maybe a leg wound or something like that. Something where you believe Arya could conceivably survive on this show. If it were Xena or Legend of the Seeker or something, I'd just roll with it.

 

[ballzdeepx]

From the previews of next episode you see Arya jumping off a ledge with different clothes & pretty agile for being shanked a few times so its probably not even Arya that got stabbed, Jaquen probably trying to test that one bitch telling her to make it quick but she ended up going for the gut to make her bleed out slowly...Probably last straw before Jaquen ends up killing the bitch.

This is exactly what I thought. They made sure to show a few things leading up to the assassination attempt.

The waif has never liked Arya and has always been jealous - letting her emotions control the training to the point of faceless man having to tell her to stop. This makes her no different or better than Arya honestly except Arya shows traits of compassion now and then.
The waif was told to make it quick by faceless man
Arya was shown being very cautious about retrieving her sword and leaving quietly, looking over her shoulder multiple times

Vs.

Arya was shown carlessly talking to people, waiving around money and in a somewhat cheerful mood booking passage
The actual attempt was done in a way that would be very painful avoiding major organs, and no follow up after she fell in the water. The waif was definitely prolonging the kill in a way to make her suffer - Not exactly a good trait of an assassin.

So the more I thought about all of that, it doesn't make much sense to have her go out like this.

 

[Fygee]

I disagree with this notion because you're basically justifying the character surviving because the plot says she needs to live. But, as I stated, these types of wounds, on THIS show, have been fatal. The general climate for stabbings is that the characters die. And Arya isn't even a fully grown adult (although she's a tough kid).

I'm okay with her surviving an attack from the Waif and even with the Waif wanting her to suffer, but rationalizing stab wounds to the stomach on this particular show is a needless defense of a badly scripted scene. Slashes would have worked better, or maybe a leg wound or something like that. Something where you believe Arya could conceivably survive on this show. If it were Xena or Legend of the Seeker or something, I'd just roll with it.

That's actually my point. Wounds of this type on this show have always been fatal, unless the plot dictates that they're not. Its a method of cheating to provide greater drama and making the stakes seem higher than they actually are. TV shows have been doing this for as long as I can remember. Its not a justification, its an explanation.

That said, I'm convinced there's a lot more to what's going on than what we're being shown at face value (pun intended).

 

[Splitt442]

I'm very happy Blackfish is back.

 

[Taiso]

That's actually my point. Wounds of this type on this show have always been fatal, unless the plot dictates that they're not. Its a method of cheating to provide greater drama and making the stakes seem higher than they actually are. TV shows have been doing this for as long as I can remember. Its not a justification, its an explanation.

That said, I'm convinced there's a lot more to what's going on than what we're being shown at face value (pun intended).

Game of Thrones has always been the best at carrying through on the promise of its unintended consequences for actions the characters take. Other TV shows have gotten away with it but Thrones was the rarest of shows that carried through on that premise. Which is why I say that the climate of GoT is not one where characters survive repeated stab wounds to the stomach. Excusing it as TV logic is fine for most shows. Not for GoT. That's why I continue to maintain it's just a badly executed scene in order to advance the narrative, and with a few quick strokes of the keyboard, a script doctor could have made that scene good instead of the shitshow it ended up being.

And I'm inclined to believe that what we're seeing is what we're getting. It's entirely possible that the Waif could say 'I intentionally didn't stab you fatally in order to make you fear your own death before I corner you,' which would redeem the scene but I still don't understand her motivation in wanting Arya to suffer, especially when Jaqen told her specifically not to do that.

Which is why I believe that, once again, this show will fumble what should be a deservedly triumphant Stark moment by having him rescue her because of the Waif's cruelty.

Honestly, it should be Jon and Sansa rallying people to their banners, not Davos. As much as I like Davos, it's just time for the Starks to become eminent.

 

[MtothaJ]

From the previews of next episode you see Arya jumping off a ledge with different clothes & pretty agile for being shanked a few times so its probably not even Arya that got stabbed, Jaquen probably trying to test that one bitch telling her to make it quick but she ended up going for the gut to make her bleed out slowly...Probably last straw before Jaquen ends up killing the bitch.

Was also thinking that that could have been Jaquen disguised as Arya. The only thing is I thought that the Faceless Men could only disguise themselves as someone if they had that persons face i.e. that person was dead. If Arya is still alive and Jaquen disguised himsef as Arya then that would kind of be poor scriptwriting since it would go against the MO that was established for the Faceless Men.
Another admittedly far fetched possibility is that at the time of the stabbing the real Arya has already been taken out by Jaquen (he didn't want her to suffer so he did it himself) and he is using her face to test the other girl. Would be an interesting twist if the Arya story continues and at some time in the future it is revealed that it is actually Jaquen using her face.
Guess we will have to wait and see how this plays out.

 

[Taiso]

That only has a payoff if:

A.) Jaqen finds where Arya hid Needle and

B.) Uses it as part of her storyline

But honestly, Arya's not going to die like this. Not when the whole point of hiding Needle to begin with was to remind her of who she really is. Killing her at that point would be anticlimactic. Also, Jaqen taking her place would be a 'Gotcha!' moment, and not really proper storytelling mechanics. Martin is too methodical to throw a curveball for the sole purpose of getting the audience to swing. There is a greater literary purpose at work here.

 

[HDRchampion]

Was also thinking that that could have been Jaquen disguised as Arya. The only thing is I thought that the Faceless Men could only disguise themselves as someone if they had that persons face i.e. that person was dead. If Arya is still alive and Jaquen disguised himsef as Arya then that would kind of be poor scriptwriting since it would go against the MO that was established for the Faceless Men.
Another admittedly far fetched possibility is that at the time of the stabbing the real Arya has already been taken out by Jaquen (he didn't want her to suffer so he did it himself) and he is using her face to test the other girl. Would be an interesting twist if the Arya story continues and at some time in the future it is revealed that it is actually Jaquen using her face.
Guess we will have to wait and see how this plays out.

Jaquen or any other faceless person...Remember the ending of Season 5 before Arya goes blind, when Joquen drinks the poison she starts removing all those face mask & the last one was Arya face...So its very plausible that it was not Arya.

Her jumping from a ledge with different clothing on, not showing any signs of being stabbed further proves the point.

I wonder if Jaquen still owes his life to her because she saved him. He granted 3 names to kill but she only used 2 so far, maybe the last one will be that one chick...She then parts ways after the debt has been paid.

 

[Taiso]

Jaquen or any other faceless person...Remember the ending of Season 5 before Arya goes blind, when Joquen drinks the poison she starts removing all those face mask & the last one was Arya face...So its very plausible that it was not Arya.

Her jumping from a ledge with different clothing on, not showing any signs of being stabbed further proves the point.

I wonder if Jaquen still owes his life to her because she saved him. He granted 3 names to kill but she only used 2 so far, maybe the last one will be that one chick...She then parts ways after the debt has been paid.

I would totally dig this theory.

 

[Fygee]

Was also thinking that that could have been Jaquen disguised as Arya. The only thing is I thought that the Faceless Men could only disguise themselves as someone if they had that persons face i.e. that person was dead. If Arya is still alive and Jaquen disguised himsef as Arya then that would kind of be poor scriptwriting since it would go against the MO that was established for the Faceless Men.
Another admittedly far fetched possibility is that at the time of the stabbing the real Arya has already been taken out by Jaquen (he didn't want her to suffer so he did it himself) and he is using her face to test the other girl. Would be an interesting twist if the Arya story continues and at some time in the future it is revealed that it is actually Jaquen using her face.
Guess we will have to wait and see how this plays out.

To my knowledge, Jaqen can switch faces, not bodies. I've never seen him suddenly change his height and frame, so I don't think that's what it is.

 

[HDRchampion]

To my knowledge, Jaqen can switch faces, not bodies. I've never seen him suddenly change his height and frame, so I don't think that's what it is.

Here the last scene in Season 5 when Arya's goes blind...You can see Jaqen turning from waif girl back to himself...Also see Arya's face when Arya's was seeing who drank the poison.

 

[GutsDozer]

So the Hound is pissed, Arya is screwed, Ramsey may be getting his ass handed to him soon (maybe), Sansa probably has made another bad decision, and Theon became half a man again. I think that sums up what's going on.

 

[Castor Troy]

I don't think that was Arya at the end. She was dressed much better than when we last saw her. She was flaunting gold around. She didn't have needle on her. She was walking around with her guard down.
Jaqen also owes her one last kill.

 

[Fygee]

Here the last scene in Season 5 when Arya's goes blind...You can see Jaqen turning from waif girl back to himself...Also see Arya's face when Arya's was seeing who drank the poison.

Remembered her face, but didn't remember him being the Waif.

Oh well, magic n' stuff.

 

[F4U57]

Clegane just gets pissed on ale and chops wood while he listens to the believers get butchered. What a Badass!

 

[greedostick]

Yeah, theres no way arya is dead. I would be surprised if they progressed her character this long, and progressed her so far, just to get stabbed in an alley.

 

[Mendel]

"Arya" had wrong clothes when she was stabbed. In the scene few seconds earlier another girl with clothes she used in previous episode walked past her.