Ganrich

I think if she goes too far that he may just snap. However, he is now out of the King's Guard, and as such is the heir to Casterly Rock. So, he could make that claim, and go home and leave her to her mess. I had an interesting thought that hasn't been discussed here. Westerosi rule of succession goes: male children oldest to youngest, then brothers, then daughters, then bastards (males then females). Correct me if I am wrong. Technically, if I am not mistaken... Gendry has the rightful claim. Cercei might have another storm on her hands if the right people get their hands on Gendry and know who he is.

I half expect him to shove a sword into her back to save people from her wrath (like he did with the Mad King). Making him a double "king"slayer, a kinslayer, and bringing closure to that relationship. It would bring him full circle.

I probably will. I want try openMW. If you aren't aware, it is a new engine for morrowind that pulls certain files from the core game (which you have to own a copy of), but upgrades graphics section of the engine. This means it could allow modders to make new models for the game that reach modern standards. Just imagine Morrowind that looks as good or better than Skyrim. It supports higher resolutions, they are trying to iron out engine bugs still remaining in the vanilla game, and they are supporting mac/linux/windows. Probably the single most interesting mod I've seen for Morrowind (save arguably tamriel rebuilt). Morrowind, even after 14 years, still has one of the most impressive and dedicated modding scenes. It's awe inspiring. Too bad Bethesda can't see it.

New Skyrim MOD inbound.

Yeah, Le sigh... I want another morrowind. Yeah, Axiom Verge is good though. I'll give it that. I think it's different enough to keep from lawsuit territory, and it probably doesn't make enough money anyway. It's sad that Metroid and Castlevania are pretty much dead. The lack of Metroid is why I don't ever own Nintendo systems anymore.

Maybe one day they will do it with Elder Scrolls.

I agree. The whole high speed transit between Westeros & Essos is a bit much for me to swallow. Although oddly dragons are not, go figure. This is supposed to be a "medieval fantasy". It takes time to move around by foot or horseback. Unless of course a lot of time is passing between scenes. But that is not the impression. I usually don't complain if it happens from one episode to another. Timelines are wonky, even in the books. However, they couldn't have the Queen of Thorns upset at the death of everyone in her house prior to Cercei's coup. They didn't have to have that comment. She already had motivation to ally with someone else, and the Dornish were one of two parts of the Kingdom (along with the Vale) that didn't fight in the war of the 5 kings. So, historical enemies or not, they share a common foe. She didn't need that extra plot motivation. That alliance could have occurred last episode, and I wouldn't have commented. Or, and maybe better yet, Varys could have told Tyrion it would be wise to land in Dorne since they hate the Lannister's. Then he could have stayed in Westeros to wait for Dany's arrival. I called it, though. Manderly and Frey pies were kind of weak by comparison to the books. Too late for Manderly to be satisfying (definitely the weaker of the two), and Frey Pie came out of no where.

I enjoyed the section where he lists all the things the UK will have to do to leave the EU. He basically said "Now they have to work to do x, y and z." Usually when you set a goal you have to work to attain it, John. "We want to leave the EU." "But now you have to implement things that the EU has been dictating for you." "Yeah, that's the point."

This episode was better than the last few, but I could've done without Varys using Littlefinger's teleporter at the end. One minute he is in Dorne setting up a southern alliance with the Martell's and the Tyrell's, and the next he is heading back to Westeros on Dany's ship. They must be BFFs with Scotty.

Did House Karstark join in with the Boltons? I know they turn in the books, but I don't remember them mentioned much in the current season. In fact I thought House Umber replaced the Karstarks in the show. I'm sure I just missed it since they have been so marginalized. Also, I agree the doom of house Frey is incoming. They haven't shown up with such force in this season to lead to no pay off. Even if all we get from this season is Jaime telling them they aren't going to get any support from the crown.

I think Dorne epitomises the TV show's problems. The equivalent part of the books was not well received and elements of it (Darkstar, he's of the night, r00fles) were pretty cringeworthy. Show has managed to make it look like the height of tight, believable plotting and characterisation. At least we got the 'fire and blood' speech and promise of better to come from Doran as pay off in the books, in the show the plot line was taken out behind the wood shed and dispatched summarily, excluding perhaps the single most ridiculed part of the show in the Sand Snakes. That may have been a good thing given how poorly executed (heh) the plot was but it looks clumsy at best given how much time was wasted in Dorne last season. I still think we'll get Manderly eventually for the same reasons I did previous- the Freys have to be dealt with and going full Mrs Lovett on them has shock attraction. Maybe Jon will send Davos to visit them and we'll get the 'full' Davos/ Manderly plotline, just delayed and with little logic since the Boltons aren't a factor any more. But it's the sort of thing that should be a slow burn and not randomly appear an episode or two before it becomes relevant- introduce Manderly, have Davos meet him, have some Freys visit. Doesn't take much preparation. And really, the battle would have made so much more sense if it had been Manderly, a (more or less) local guy who Ramsay was expecting to turn up with his army as an ally, instead of Petyr 'mass teleportation' Baelish who can apparently avoid Bolton scouts and supply his army etc despite not being local in any way. It would also have the added value of being how Ramsay won Winterfell in the first place, by stabbing someone who expected him as an ally (General Sideburns) in the back. You could even retain feeding him to the dogs if you wanted to. Manderly's appearance will be less satisfying after the Bolton's are gone. I don't see the Starks riding down south to the Twins and killing Freys. I expect The BwB, the Hound, and maybe Arya to do that. Manderly's presence in the books was basically a small glimmer of hope to people like myself who want to see the North step it up a bit, and get revenge for the Red Wedding. It'll be anticlimactic after taking Winterfell. Just like that battle was a bit weak because of Jon's resurrection giving him at least a season's worth of solid plot armor. A betrayal of Ramsay would have been better. I wish they hadn't killed GreatJon, and the other two Umbers and Manderly had been working on ships like in the books. That way the Umbers and Manderly could at least have turned the battle. It wouldn't have required Littlefinger, and it would have been more satisfying all around. Manderly potentially minting a Northern coin and building ships with the Umbers also gives more credence to the Bolton betrayal. This is because the Boltons have the Umber north of him and Manderly to the south. It would slowly burn away house Bolton's power, or at least given that perception to Roose. I didn't just want Manderly, but the potential for something on the level of the Red Wedding for the north. I expect we will see that either next week or next season via the Riverlands story and the Freys. We will see. I agree with you on the Dorne story, though. It is an extreme example of what is wrong with the show, but this season the north is as well.

The biggest issues to me are how shallow it all is, really. They are fine breaking character to shoe horn people in the directing they need the arc to go. Arya has shown she is smart enough in prior seasons to not galavant around Braavos tossing gold bags, but for suspense they force the character to do it. Sanaa's arc change has been abysmal. They should have kept her in the Vale. The Dorne plot was, and is, laughable at how it's handled. It's one of the weaker parts of the later books, but Doran Martell is a character I expected some interesting stuff from. Nope. Just get out the eraser on that one. Jaime's arc would have been fine had Tyrion told him about Cercei's infidelity. That single line "She was ****ing Lancel, the Kettlebacks, and Moonboy for all I know." That conflict plus Brienne makes him on of my favorite book characters, and it would have added to his scenes. The North forgot. Ramsay is a cartoon villain. I was hoping for Val, too. They have taken a book series that is probably the single most detailed fantasy series of the past 100 years and made it as shallow as a puddle in a light drizzle. I expected it to not be as deep as the books, but the past two seasons have been too far a contrast for my liking. As an avid reader, and having a solid grasp on character development, I am sorry that I can see bad writing when it's in front of me, Bruce. The rule of cool gets mighty mundane after many books, tv shows, movies, and games use it at the detriment to their characters and stories. They have been abusing the rule of cool for years, and it gets old. Interesting characters make a story better than cool stuff, fan service crap like this battle, and too many dragons.

The episode was meh. No Manderly. They lost me. Honestly, they could've gotten two seasons out of ADwD, but they consolidated everything and hamfisted it. I agree, Longknife, about the predictability of it. You can definitely tell they don't care about the details of it, and don't have Martin's work to copy anymore. On the plus side... I don't have to worry about the show spoiling the books. It's hard for bad writing to spoil good writing, and they have gone so far off the rails that I know the books will still be satisfying. Jon's plot armor was amazing though. It kept me at the edge of my seat. /sarcasm. They should've kept Stannis alive, and ended this season with the pink letter. They could have rezzed Jon just prior to read it. Honestly, if this season ended on all the points of ADwD the internet would be tearing itself apart. It would have been entertainment enough to see people squirm at all those cliffhangers. I love how Ghost has been MIA since Jon was brought back. They could have a few less dragon scenes and give us a dire wolf. They've killed all the other wolves save Nymeria and Ghost. At least let us see some wolves. Edit: also, I'm tired of Littlefinger being the Deus Ex Machima machine. It's boring. He needs to die so the Starks can learn to stand on their own feet.

I definitely agree Cersei's humanization in the books isn't all that great. The only good thing about her is that she loves her children. Otherwise she is a powerhungry monster that tends to hate being born a woman. Many of her decisions aren't about her kids but about her power, and that makes her not very human in many people's eyes. The TV show Cersei is probably a bit better, and I like Lena Headey. She rocks that part. The 5 year break would have helped, but it may have hurt in other areas. He would have spent a lot of time going over what happened in that time, for instance. That makes skipping the period pointless if you are going to cover large parts anyway. Either way would have had some issues. Jon and Dany I feel the same way about. They are in crappy situations, and they do what they can. Dany is a good example of why the 5 year break is something that may have been a good thing. Those Dragons gotta grow, and she needed something to do while it happened. If the break happened she could have chilled in a city, and not much happened. Jon, I feel, didn't try to bridge the gap with dissenters in the Night's Watch. He is shown as being tired of their opinions, and I agree he should have known better. Morale cannot be ignored in a military group, and that is sure to be worse when the institution is as old as the NW. That hate takes a long time to die, and Jon should have known that.

I agree. It could still have ramifications for Davos' arc, and/or the North in general. @Gorgon - More likely Qybern learned that the wildfire placed by Aerys is still within King's Landing and placed accordingly. Especially given the premonitions of Bran earlier in the season. If those rumors are true then Cercei could burn the Sept down and destroy the faith in a single stroke. @Zoraptor - Sansa is 12, and doesn't have your reasoning skills, yet. She just knows that the Queen was angry and protecting your son. She also spends her remaining chapters blaming Arya for it. I still don't see it as stupid. She isn't use to cruel, manipulative, selfish, power hungry people, and I expect it took a few instances for her to realize what she was seeing. She was raised on fairy tales, and always treated with great respect. She was then tossed into a hornets nest with noexperience to fall back on. After the beheading she starts figuring it out. As for Cercei... She is single minded, and has always been stupid. She thinks she is smarter than everyone else, but that isn't the case. Even Tywin tells her this (in the show, but I can't recall if he does it in the books). I've known people like this. They have bipolar disorder, but I would dare say Cercei may as well to an extent. Dany is a good Conqueror, but a stupid governor. I believe that is one purpose to her arc. Martin always talks about his dislike of typical fantasy of "Aragorn is a good King because he is a good man" when history has examples of good people being bad rulers. Tywin is a good ruler, Roose Bolton, And so on. They aren't good people though. Some good men in the series are good leaders like Eddard Stark. However, others like Edmure are not so great rulers. We don't get PoVs of Kings, but we do with Dany. It's easier to critique her when we are inside her head. Jon is between a rock an a hard place. He knows of the dead rising, and has a group of men under his command who don't know or believe. He makes decisions based on what he knows, and his men see it as betraying the purpose of the institute. All that said, I am rereading the books now, but only at Clash at the moment. I could easily be forgetting some stupidity. It has been a few years since I read the books, and I stopped re-watching the series before a new season prior to season 4. If you could specify your instances it could greatly help.

In fairness, book Sansa is 12 or 13 years old in Game of Thrones. I wouldn't call her stupid, but incredibly sheltered. She sees the world she wants to exist, and ignores the one that actually exists. Ignorant? Absolutely. Stupid implies the wrong attribute IMHO. She is much more interesting as the books go on, for sure. It's ironic that the one time she rebels against her father is the one time she shouldn't have, and the consequences were incredibly dire. On Petyr Baelish - I would argue that he has made mistakes, but hasn't seen the ramifications of them, yet. He has made an enemy of Tyrion by pointing the Starks at him with the dagger, and he has tried to kill him twice. (Once at the blackwater, and at Joffery's wedding). You could argue that the dagger could have gotten Tyrion killed as well. He obviously wants Tyrion out of the way (in chains or a grave). Tyrion is still alive, and I'd imagine that he will undoubtedly have issue with Baelish if they cross paths again. Tyrion may have a Queen with dragons when they meet again. That is, "if" they meet again. I think they will. Baelish's obsession with Sansa may also be a mistake. They kind of have a Sith thing going on, and eventually the servant kills the master in that scenario. His arc could go another way, but he has made mistakes and I expect he will pay for them in the end. We will see. It could also be a combination of those two things as well. Tyrion saves his wife from the man that tried to kill him multiple times. I would also say that Stannis has had a lot of effect on the story (he is also a static character). He definitely disposed of Renly, and one could argue he had a magical hand in Robb's and Balon Greyjoy's deaths. His attack on King's Landing had some ramifications on that story. His movement North saved the Night's Watch, got the Wildlings south of the wall, helped ensure Jon as the new LC, it allowed Mance to go on his mission, he started gaining Northern allies and enemies, he sealed a deal with the Iron Bank, his command to Davos may bring Rickon into the scenario, etc. He may not quite have as much impact as Littlefinger, but he is a close second.

I think Cercei will definitely kill Kevan Lannister and Pycel. They inhibited her from getting to and/or whispered things to Tommen. Getting between her and her last remaining child is a deathwish, and being an untrusted manipulator of him is just as bad. She will probably use Qybern and his control of Varys' little birds. That way it's similar to the books. Of course, Varys himself could make a pit stop on the way to his secret mission. As to the rest of the list of characters that majestic posted: Meera, Brienne, Podrick, and Tormund are probably safe for the moment. I agree about Bronn. He is a really minor character that has been extended because of fan loyalty and he has little to contribute because of it. Ramsay and the Freys will be outta Winterfell. The Freys at the Twins will probably survive a bit longer.

This episode was a twofer on that front. Both the Blackfish and Arya. Arya's offscreen fight has people crackpotting that the Waif won and assumed Arya's identity. Still upset about a lack of Manderly. Seems the actor is only credited for one episode this season, and that is probably episode 10. Which means he won't have his speech. :/ I've lost hope on this season... Just read the new chapter of WoW for Damphair that GRRM released. Euron is going to be scary.

Jon's story arc has been merged with Stannis'. I believe Sansa has been merged with Jeyne Poole's (FArya) and perhaps Val's. This is odd because Val and Jon have some very romantic feelings swimming around, but the original story from GRRM had Arya and Jon falling in love. I believe it has changed from Martin's original plan, but perhaps only from Arya to Sansa. This would happen late In the 6th book perhaps after the Val story ran its course. People may cringe because of the incest, but they are probably cousins, and cousins are wed in the Seven Kingdoms (Tywin Lannister married his cousin) and it was common in the our own Feudal era. Plus, prior to Jon's parentage reveal, it would echo the Lannister incest somewhat. Also, Val and Jon have some similarities to the Night's King story. Davos' has been moved to be with Jon, and Rickon's arc has been is changed. I think it is too much change for characterization to survive it unscathed without extending the show time. I hope this weeks episode opens or ends with Davos in White Harbor. I need that speech. Then consider who has been percieved dead in the Red Wedding from northern houses, and you have the mess we are experiencing from the show writing. GreatJon Umber was killed I think where in the books he is imprisoned. Karstarks are pissed because Rob beheaded their lord. No Glover in White Harbor. No Umber/Manderly alliance. Ramsay ran off the Iron Born instead of Stannis. Blah, blah, blah. It makes the North wishy washy. They better remember. In the books, 3 of Robert Baratheon's bastards survive, IIRC. The girl in the Vale that leads Cat to the Eyrie, Edric Storm who Davos saves from being burned by Stannis and Mel, and Gendry. Although I believe things will end with some symmetry to the initial layout of the Seven Kingdoms, but I also expect that this will be the death throws of feudalism in the Seven Kingdoms (at least in the books). So, a Bastard of Robert's may get Storm's end. However, Gendry is the one almost no one knows about. This season has me disappointed enough that I decided to start listening to the audio books at work, but I'm only nearing the end of the first book. So, I could have a faulty memory on some things in the books.

Agreed. I would add how terrible Jon's regression as a character is. The former Lord Commander that defended the wall against the Wildlings with a far smaller force, infiltrator of the Wildlings, survivor of the ranging north of the wall isn't capable of making eye contact with a 10 year old and can't show any backbone against a Glover. sarcasm/ Ned Stark's "son", indeed. /sarcasm. Even more strange is he just had a convincing speech to gain the Wildling support to take back Winterfell. It's wishy washy at best, and terrible writing at worst. I'm leaning toward the worst case scenario. Arya gets stabbed 4 times and walks it off. Silly. What a waste of Ian McShane, and a horrid use of the Meribald character to boot. All around a dissatisfying episode. The best part was the Blackfish, IMHO. The are really trying to beat the Starks down this season. As if the past 5 seasons weren't enough. I guess it will continue until episode 9 or 10, and it will turn it around or the cliffhanger will give hope for a brighter tomorrow for the Starks. It's getting trying either way. Also, the preview for next week... Book Jaime > TV Jaime. He needs to get a spine when it comes to Cersei. I'm tired of his Cersei worship already. Edit: Jon name dropped Manderly a few times. That means he will likely show up. My fingers are crossed he retains his character in this. I hope he gets his speech with Davos. One of the best parts of the 5th book IMHO.

Yes, but one of the spearwives helped Theon and FArya escape. She was killed IIRC. So, Ramsay may know based on Mance's company. We will see, though. I'm not sure on the pink letter, but I believe Stannis is alive. I can't stop myself from reading unfinished series. At least Jim Butcher keeps Dresden coming. I am waiting for the 3rd Kingkiller book, and a few others too. I am sad.

Excellent point. Thank you. I would like to add that Stannis scoured the globe trying to cure Shireen of greyscale. He either has the same sense of duty with his family, or he cares a fair deal about her. Probably both. He just is incapable of showing that he does care. It goes back to why he doesn't inspire loyalty. He is almost a robot. Also, I do doubt her sacrifice happening in the books. She has greyscale for a plot reason. It is possible it has a plot point tied to the Others or even the undead characters as a whole. The same can be said of those other characters that have it in both tv and book series. EG - Connington/Jorah Mormont. It likely will cause some kind of outbreak, or have some other ramification. It could cause its ramifications after her death, I guess. That would be neat. Stannis does it out of a misguided duty to save the realm, but possibly dooms the realm as a byproduct. I like reading about Stannis. He is an interesting character. I really wish the next book was out already. I've too many book series I'm waiting on being finished.

Trump should be refuted at every point. He should not be given a pass on any dumb, bigoted, and incendiary statement he makes. Apathy is a form of acceptance and an informed voting public should be engaged to the point that Trump is exposed for the sham that he is. Trump is dangerous because he wields the rhetorical power of a demagogue who holds a not insignificant amount of sway on a chunk of the American public. PaddyPower currently has Trump with a 7:4 bookmaker odds of winning the Presidency. Clinton is at 1:2. Aggregate futures markets currently has Clinton's chances of winning at 70%, Trump at 24%, and Gary Johnson at 0.1% There is a difference between attacking other humans at a Trump rally and refuting points. You can remain informed, retain your ability to refute, but not allow it to effect your mental well being. You don't have to have it personally harm you emotionally. Being able to refute and not having it bother you are not mutually exclusive. Apathy is an easy accusation if I am not willing to attack someone based on political ideology. I just believe that almost nothing is worth violence. I would also like to point that we wouldn't get people like Trump running for office if our elected officials hadn't grown the Fed to the point it has. Too much centralized power has been allowed to occur. People keep voting for politicians that want to grow the federal government and then complain when the next politician wields that power in a way that they (the voter) don't seem morally right. It's like leaving an open honey pot on the counter for a few weeks and then complaining about flies.

Evidence of sex, or lack there of, proves whether the marriage was consummated or not. Sansa has now been married twice without proving Tyrion didn't consummate it. It is convoluted and messy. Since she was still married to Tyrion she should default back to him. You don't have to be with child to still be legally married to someone. It was a rotten decision on the TV show. Keeping her hidden until Tyrion is dead, and the Boltons are weak (or dead) is the play here. Just like the books. Then he could ally with her, and have a friend with power in the north, force her marry him and control even more of Westeros, etc, etc. He gains almost nothing by marrying her off to the Boltons. Also, @Guard Dog, the emotional impact of book Stannis sacrificing her is irrelevant. Stannis isn't a POV character. So we have no way of knowing his feelings. I definitely think he cares for his daughter, but is unable to show it. He is borderline autistic. However, I always suspected that her sacrifice (if it happens) is his wife and Mel conspiring while he is away. i also could see him doing it as a last resort as his duty to the realm. Doing it to win a battle in the midst of Northmen isn't going to win him favors with them. He is trying to get them to recognize his right to rule Westeros. Burning his own child alive isn't going to do that.

@Bruce - Anger is one of many human emotions. We are meant to experience them all during a lifetime. Trump says things that anger people. Who cares? Some people bring joy, some hope, some fear, some laughter, some anger, some depression. We have a few choices as to what to do about people that illicit negative emotions within ourselves. 1). Avoid them. 2). Act like a baby a throw a tantrum. 3). Get over it and deal with it. 4). Talk to them about it and try to change things. I usually go from 4 to 1, but sometimes 4 to 3 to 1. It depends on who they are in relation to myself. There are probably more ways to do it, but I just woke up and haven had any coffee. Turn the TV off, go outside, try making yourself smile (it tends to make you smile for real), try making other people smile, and move on with your life. If you think that with 7 billion people on this rock that a few rules are going to make people not be jerks and hurt their fellow man... Then you have some critical thinking to do. No amount of rules will change that people can offend you, and most likely will at some point. So, your best course of action is learning to deal with how to keep them from having an effect on you as an individual. Learn to thicken your skin and wear some armor.