SilverShadow

One thing to remember is IIRC a good chunk, if not all of, the book material is from Maesters' perspectives who would have had every reason to make Rhaenyra sound worse than she was to make the point a woman shouldn't sit the Iron Throne. Not that I think she'll be a saint at all, but we're getting a third-person omniscient take on the story after having heard it from sources that would have had biases. And ofc there'll be some differences because of the medium change as well.

I've watched episodes here and there but binging for the first time. I'm most of the way through Season 3 ATM. It really is a charming show most of the time. It does a better job of working characterization in than a lot of other episodic procedurals. As far as controversial characters go, I like Cam and am ambivalent on Sweets. Cam really works as a pragmatist middle ground between Booth/the FBI and the Squints. I'm glad they squashed her and Booth as a thing early because that was really the best way to make fans hate her. Sweets I don't have a read on yet. I thought he was kind of condescending with his 'fish have souls' girlfriend. I am not yet at the infamous Zach twist though I am spoiled for it.

Catching up on posts, so sorry for responding to an old comment but so much word. The three things I never got but I wanted so badly were: 1) Princess Slumber Party. At minimum Snow, Emma Cindy, Belle, Aurora, and Ariel. I wouldn't mind adding Jas, Merida, and Mulan. Preferably no Regina. 2) Princes' Night Out. Preferably at the same time as the above, with the episodes following each other. Charming, Hook, Thomas, Phil, and Eric. Rumple can come because socially awkward Rumple is hilarious. Aladdin can also be there if Jas is with the girls. 3) Hook and Eric being sailing bros. They're both boat nerds. ONE SCENE JUST ONE of them talking about ship stuff while Emma and Ariel look at each other all 'can you believe we love these dorks?' and I would have forgiven the show all its sins. Okay maybe not Murderella and Queen of Everything Regina, but most of its sins.

Been rewatching bits and pieces of this show lately and while there's stuff that's genuinely good there's definitely things that haven't aged well and piss me off (like the treatment of women in general and Morgana's character arc post-season 2.) By the end of the show Merlin has collaborated with the anti-magic side far more than he's helped magic users and he essentially damns Camelot because killing Mordred for something he hasn't done yet is more important to him than being honest and ending the magic ban. And the double-standard of him giving up on Morgana immediately and trying to kill a 12 year old because he might do a bad someday VS instantly forgiving Kilgarah for roasting god knows how many innocent people really annoys me.

I got to see Megan too! Of the first three Glindas (though I never saw the other two live, only in promo performances) she was my favorite by far. IMO she was the best at balancing the comedy with the more emotional parts. I didn't love Shoshana Bean as Elphaba, however. After a few days to let it sink in Beetlejucie and Hadestown are still the two shows I want to see more of, based off their performances.

I am aware. I meant specifically I was happy that it won rather than one of those two. (Though I don't love bio-jukebox musicals either and I found the Prom's score to be only so-so.)

Congrats Hadestown! I'm happy it pulled out a win over the directly adapted from movies properties.

Yay Santino and Stephanie!

Hmm of the performances the only shows I might try and see are Beetlejuice and Hadestown, and I was already semi-interested in both. Santino was charming AF but Tootsie doesn't interest me at all.

Considering Martin's love for Tolkien, Jon getting a variation on Frodo's ending, where he retreats from the world because he's now too traumatized and broken to continue his former life makes sense. I also wouldn't be surprised if the books explicitly make Dany Nissa Nissa. Honestly the part that bugs me most is fucking Bran as king. If he's merely overseeing a council of equals as a neutral arbiter I'm okay with that, but him being king just bothers me. He's such a nothing character I can't see him convincing people to follow him. But if his role is more behind the scenes settling of disputes, that I could see working.

I think Sansa being icy to Dany was a deliberate choice. She's seen how the powerful can make nice with those they can control and or believe to be on their side and didn't want another surprise. I think she wanted to see as soon as possible any signs of Dany being another Joffrey or Ramsey (or Cersei or Littlefinger...) and the quickest way to do that was to challenge Dany's authority, albeit in a very limited way. IMO it was a test and one Dany didn't exactly pass. And while Dany and her forces fighting the Night King with the North is commendable, it was also practical for her. Cersei choosing to take the risk of all of mankind being wiped out on the off-chance she came out on-top was so short-sided and abhorrent even Jaime finally left her because of it. I like Dany and want her to have a positive ending, whether it does or doesn't involve the IT. Because as a viewer I've spent 7.5 seasons with her. Sansa hasn't. The only context she has is what she's heard and seen from others and how Dany herself has behaved in front of her. And from Sansa's perspective, there have absolutely been some red flags, along with a lot of bad family history. IIRC Sansa never says she trusts Jaime herself. She says she trusts Brienne, who helped her flee the Boltons, tried to offer her aid even before that, and has protected her since. Jon's judgement is suspect in Sansa's eyes because he's in love with Dany and she's seen how that can twist people's perceptions. And when she looks to her next best source of information, Tyrion, he expresses doubts that compound her own.

I don't think Sansa told Tyrion lightly. She was clearly shaken up by the revelation of Jon's parentage and at this point doesn't trust Dany, and I'm not sure that she's been given reason to. Especially when Tyrion confirmed that even he, someone in Dany's camp, is afraid of her. Telling Tyrion is a pretty calculated move. She chose him-not any of the Northern Lords, who would have been all too happy to put a Northern male candidate who was raised as a Stark on the IT, for a reason. She knows his loyalty is with Dany but also that at heart he is a decent and intelligent person. If someone who is firmly Team Dany, whose opinions carry weight with her, concedes that Jon is the better candidate, that tells her something. If he doesn't, that tells her something too. I also don't think there was anything malicious in her questioning if their armies were fit for battle. I think it was genuine concern and having a bad feeling about going straight from one battle to the next. Jon and the Northern forces will be part of the fight, and if they get decimated that's bad for the North and for Sansa. I also don't think the question is something that needs a ton of military expertise to be asked. She has eyes. She can see how many died, how many are wounded, if those left seem weary or demoralized. Answering how long the men would need to get back to 100% is out of her wheelhouse however. I wouldn't expect her to know off hand how long wounds take to heal or how much time to recover from the physical strain of the battle would be ideal.

Noone's brought up what I consider one of Dany's earliest (and worst) sins-when she let Drogo and the others pillage the Lamb Men to sell them as slaves so they could buy ships to get to Westeros. Yeah she tries to 'save' some of the women later, but it's an early instance of her putting her ambition ahead of what's 'right'. I like Dany a lot but that was not one of her finest moments. I always thought her later ant-slavery crusade was partially based on the guilt of having been party to that.

What was the worst flashback(s)? Which storyline do you pretend never happened? Which twist melted your brain? All three of these apply to the whole "Snow and Charming drop-kicked Maleficent's egg-baby into another dimension of their own free will and then it never came up, not even in the deep dark secrets cave in Neverland, until Season 4." Or really any retroactive "See THIS character did a bad so they are just as bad as Regina/Rumple and so Regina and Rumple can't be held accountable for the bad shit they did." Hook killing Charming's Dad is a close second but ultimately mattered exactly 0 so meh. How would you fix your least favorite character arc or storyline? Storyline: The three evil Queens. 1) The author brainwashed Snowing into the baby thing AND wiped their memories of it, which explains why it didn't come up in Neverland. They still feel awful about it and vow to help Mal find her kid however they can. 2) Ariel and Eric come back for several episodes and have relationships with this Ursula(I know this was likely related to actor availability but this is my fantasy). Goddess Ursula also shows up. 3) No heroes don't kill bullshit with Emma and Cruella when Emma thought her child was in mortal danger. At what point did you completely give up trying to understand the timeline? Season 7 with Enchanted Forest 2.0 Character: Cindy 2.0. Recast but also write her to be less selfish and awful in the EF flashbacks as well as make it feel like she's more desperate in Hyperion Heights. What bad writing made you want to punch through your screen? Eggbaby nonsense, Hook killing Charming's Dad, Everything about Cindy 2.0 from Season 7, Mother Gothel's origin story. Which character deserved better period. Snowing but especially Snow. The show had no idea what to do with her once the baby was born. Secondary or guest character they didn’t use enough? Ariel and Eric. All of the princes and princesses really. Most unnecessary secondary or guest character? Poor Will Scarlett in Season 4. Worst casting decision? Cindy 2.0. It's great they went with an actress of color but she read as too old for the part and her line readings and reactions made her come off as entitled and bratty. I kind of wish they cast Tiana's actress as Cindy 2.0 because she was great and made you feel sympathy even when her character made bad decisions. If you could recast someone who would it be and why? See above. Also Neal. MRJ is not a bad actor but he came across as too "modern" and sort of sleezy. He didn't feel connected to Bae. Which Chekhov gun(s) do you wish had been fired (even just to put the storyline out of its misery)? I'm still bummed early Season 3 made a whole big thing about Ariel needing to tell Eric her secret and then WE NEVER SEE IT except for the fakeout in Season 6. What character or plot arc should have been revisited? Regina never really reckoned with the harm she did to so many people, not just Snow, and never really seemed to feel much guilt about it, just upset that it meant she wasn't going to get her happy ending. Rumple eventually had to face up to his deeds in Season 7 but she never did. Most problematic event on the show? All the men being raped via mind control and magic (Graham, Robin, Nook) Worst acting? Cindy 2.0 Scene so bad it should be forgotten forever? Eggbaby. Why did you keep watching? I loved the cast and the riffing on fairytales and Disney. Who do you blame? Writers, Big Disney, bad schedule, fan service, etc? The writers. They had such a bad case of New Toy Syndrome and would set up all of these interesting ideas and developments and then just drop them for the next thing. They also had NO idea how to use guest stars in a meaningful way and it drove me crazy.

Trailer's out!