[Watch Will & Grace (And Karen & Jack) Talk About The 2016 Presidential Election]

Holy cow that was like half an episode.

[S01.E01: Pilot]

50 minutes ago, ClareWalks said:

I know very little about baseball so maybe someone else here can help me out. Isn't the screwball a fairly standard pitch? How come other teams would need to "figure it out?" I would have thought it was already pretty well known and figured out by now. Again, I know nothing about baseball (obviously, LOL). More of a football gal, myself. But if someone wants to clue me in I would be most grateful! :)

The screwball is a rare pitch, not many pitchers throw it anymore because it's difficult pitch to master, and if thrown improperly is associated with injury. But it's not some kind of magic pitch that teams would need to "figure out," it's simply a reverse curveball and has been around forever. I could be wrong but I think the only current MLB player who throws the screw with any regularity is Hector Santiago of the Minnesota Twins, and even he only throws it like 12 or 13 times per game, he doesn't use it a ton, just as a little trick to get strike 3. Yu Darvish (of the Texas Rangers) used to throw it but it was wrecking havoc on his arm.

Also Ginny's not actually throwing a screwball, she's throwing a pitch more accurately called a circle change, which combines the characteristics of a screwball with those of a change up, with less wear on the arm. The circle change is a more common pitch then the standard screwball, but it wouldn't give Ginny any benefit. You see the reason current pitchers are successful with the circle change is they deliver it in the same fashion as their fastball, which usually tops out in the 90's, the circle change on the other hand arrives at the plate in the low to mid 80's or sometimes even the high 70's. The 9-10 mph difference in the pitch is what confounds batters, who are expecting a 90+mph fastball but instead are fooled by the change up and swing early.

However Ginny who we know throws in the mid 80's, would have a change up in the low to mid 70's, maybe the high 60's, and that is simply too slow. MLB batters would probably feast on her. Also if she threw it 3 times in a row, like in the pilot, the second or third one would've likely been CA-RUSHED if the batter had any proficiency.

[S01.E01: Pilot]

On 9/23/2016 at 9:04 PM, Netfoot said:

There is always room for a few spin-bowlers on the team.  

Ok, so the underdog makes it to the major league (literally!) and after a shaky start, shows the world that her supporters were right to place their faith in her, after all.  

So, WTF is left to put into episode two?  Will the rest of the season be all about her winning one game of rounders after another?

(And Ghost Daddy:  DSTC...)

There's lots of room for drama. Even disregarding her own family and personal situation, sports is full of drama.

1) Have her give up a few hits early in the 1st or 2nd and load the bases, and have to pitch her way out of it cause the manager doesn't want to go to the pen. This time if she asks to be let out of the game, don't let her.

2) Have her hit in a critical scenario where they are trailing, but it's too early to pull her, or she's pitching great and they don't want to pull her. 

3) Have her lose a perfect game/no hitter in the 7th or 8th. If there's tension on the team maybe make it seem like someone didn't try hard enough for her (fielder doesn't run hard for a foul out).

4) Have opposing pitchers try to bean her and knock her out.

5) Get her tossed by the umpire for arguing balls and strikes.

6) Someone on the team gets traded, not MPG obviously, but maybe her other buddy? I could see that happening. Or they could have her develop a friendship with someone else over a few episodes and then trade him. Either way that allows for another episode where the traded guy comes back on an opposing team and knows all her tricks and tendencies. Also the trade will bring in a new guy; what if this guy's a jerk? And while I'm loathe to consider the possibility he could also be a love interest. Personally I'm hoping whatever love interests she has will be kept off the field. Going down the "she's screwing someone on the team" route is not where I want to go with the premise of a female MLB player, but I acknowledge the possibility a workplace romance could happen.

7) They're already going down the new manager path. What if the new manager coddles her because she's the owner's darling? Or go the other way and he's more of a hardass then the old one?

8) Teams figure out her "screwball" (it's a circle change) and she needs to change her repertoire or develop a new pitch.

9) She goes into a slump right when the Padres are about to contend for a playoff spot (Stop laughing baseball fans. Remember this is an alternate universe.)

10) There are trade rumours about her. Lots of ways to go here, maybe her team wants her to get traded because while she's a fair pitcher, her real asset is filling the stands, and they'd rather have someone better? Maybe she lets the rumours get to her head and she starts dreaming about starting somewhere else? Obviously she won't get traded in the end.

[S01.E01: Pilot]

14 minutes ago, Daisy said:

Thanks everyone regarding the pitching. 
I was just more surprised that they didn't just make it a team in the AL. :) I agree - the Bullpen to Starter story makes a bit more sense, but i guess as the hurt pitcher said - people are going to figure out the circle pitch/screwball (is this their version of the knuckleball i'm wondering), so i guess that the show wanted to lessen the exposure? 

The circle change is a real pitch, and a lot of very accomplished pitchers use it extensively. Cole Hamels, Zack Greinke and Marco Estrada are all known for their circle changes. Pedro Martinez was said to have one of the best circle changes ever.

In my opinion it would've made more sense to make her a knuckleballer, someone could rely on that one pitch to get them through a career, it's unlikely a pitcher could do so with the circle change. The knuckler is also not widely practiced, so a girl could conceivably get good enough at it to hold her own at the major league level while only pitching in the mid-80's.

But that also might have limited the story possibilities for the sake of realism.

[S01.E01: Pilot]

2 minutes ago, Danielg342 said:

It's one more reason why I think Ginny should have started out in the bullpen and worked her way to the starting gig- we could then realistically see her develop her hitting for when she'd need to be up there and (as we did tonight) we wouldn't miss the historic first at bat by a female in Major League Baseball.

They could've also fixed this by putting her on an AL team as opposed to the Padres.

Then they could've just had her play AL opponents and she wouldn't have to worry about hitting until they had a road trip to an NL park.

[S01.E01: Pilot]

15 minutes ago, Daisy said:

Okay. so. I have to ask. (I'm still learning baseball, it's so complicated compared to hockey for me) but this is what I know. 
There are two Leagues. American and National. 
the Padres are in the National league, and there's no designated hitter.
So even if Ginny can pitch, is she a capable enough hitter?  how are they going to address that - i mean that's gonna have to come up soon right? 

 

Ghost Dad threw me (I literally said - well this is so dumb, we know the dad's alive we just SAW the oohhhhhhhh....). Good twist, show. Good. twist. 

Most pitchers don't need to (and aren't expected to) hit super well. Her goal 90% of the time when she gets up to the plate will be to not get hurt.

That could be a story line later though, I'm guessing a ton of pitchers might try and throw at the girl to try and rattle her.

If it was a critical situation where her team was trailing and needed a hit to win or tie the game, she'd almost certainly get pulled for a pinch hitter.

Another note: was anyone else annoyed that her dad called the pitch a screwball? She's very obviously throwing a circle change.

[S01.E01: Pilot]

Just now, Nidratime said:

No he wasn't. Cheney was in the Capitol during the 2002 State of the Union which was the first after September 2001.

I wasn't talking about the 2002 State of the Union. I was talking about the Presidential Address to the Joint Session of Congress, which took place on Sept 20, 2001.

[S01.E01: Pilot]

1 hour ago, Constantinople said:

I never understood in real life why, if the Designated Survivor were taken seriously, it wasn't the Secretary of State or Secretary of Defense instead of the Deputy Assistant Undersecretary  for Public Urinals.

First of all it should be pointed out that the Designated Survivor doesn't supplant the Presidential Line of Succession, he/she merely is someone whose survival is specially insured.  This particular attack must have killed the President, the VP, the Speaker of the House, the President pro tempore of the Senate, the Attorney General, and the Secretaries of State, the Treasury, Defense, the Interior, Agriculture, Commerce, Labor, and Health and Human Services. If even one of those people had survived (and was constitutionally eligible) they would've taken the presidency ahead of Kirkman. The very fact that all those people died makes this a massive attack whose scope is almost impossible (if not completely impossible) in a place as highly guarded as the Capitol.

In most cases, especially in peace time, The Designated Survivor is merely a contingency plan for a very unlikely scenario. With no visible present threat, it doesn't make sense for an important cabinet member to miss a presidential address. In fact the President would specifically want the pertinent cabinet members in attendance so he could thank/congratulate him/her and let them get the acknowledgment (and also congratulate himself for appointing them to the cabinet.)

Now, if there was a clear and present danger to the Presidency, then it might make sense for the Designated Survivor to be the VP, Speaker of the House, or Secretary of State. For instance when President Bush delivered the Presidential Address to the Joint Session of Congress following the September 11th attacks, Dick Cheney, then the VP, was the Designated Survivor, because there was a higher then normal possibility that another attack could be coming. 

38 minutes ago, Constantinople said:

In the morning Kirkman was out of a job.  Now the President is dead and Kirkman is the Preident.   Seems fishy.

As mentioned above, this actually does make sense.

Typically the Designated Survivor is the Cabinet Member with the least reason to attend the event. The President had taken all of Kirkman's initiatives out of his State of the Union address and was about to fire him. He wasn't going to be mentioned in the address, and he had no agenda to push. He literally has zero reason to be at the State of the Union.

[Adventure Time - General Discussion]

On 7/12/2016 at 10:16 PM, Lantern7 said:

I DVRed this and "Card Wars," then watched in chronological order. Are most card games like that? My experience starts and ends with Yu-Gi-Oh! Nice to see Jake try to suppress his all-consuming desire to win. Funny to see BMO know where the story was going and (literally) jump ship.

Card Wars seems like an amalgamation of a lot of games, personally I have the most experience with Magic the Gathering and it shares a lot of similarities with it.

But Card Wars is both more and less complicated then most card games. 

It's less complicated in that most card games have different casting costs for different cards. In most games a more powerful card is more difficult to cast then a less powerful one. For instance in Yu-Gi-Oh (as I understand it anyway), to summon more powerful monsters you need to sacrifice weaker monsters. In Magic the Gathering, your land gives you mana and to play powerful monsters or spells you need more mana then you would need for weaker monsters or spells. Card Wars seemingly allows you to play whatever card you want, and the cards don't appear to have casting costs, you just say "I'm playing this one." However you may be limited by the amount of cards you can play per turn.

On the other hand Card Wars, almost certainly in mocking manner, has card interactions that are just ridiculous, and so overly complicated that no sane person could actually be expected to follow them. For instance the Pig destroys cornfields, but gets trapped in the mud lands, and the granary weevil both destroys cornfields and creates infinite haymaker but only with a downed feedman (and presumably not a live feedman.) What card would interact with another card in so specific a fashion? But that of course is the joke.

[Game of Marriage: Alliances]

On 7/1/2016 at 9:06 AM, domina89 said:

Not that I think this would ever happen, but what if Jon married Sam's sister?  It would be an alliance with the South (admittedly not Highgarden but a prominent lower house nonetheless), and it would help smooth things over for Sam with his family if his BFF the King raised his family up in prominence.  She might be too young, though- I can't remember how old she's supposed to be... 

Downside- who wants Randyll Tarly for a father-in-law?  

The other downside is it places the Tarlys firmly in Jon's camp, perhaps surrounded by enemies, if the Queen on the Iron Throne doesn't take kindly to the North's secession from the Kingdoms. 

It would be difficult for Daenerys (or anyone on the Iron Throne) to allow a subject in the heart of the Reach to be so closely allied with a foreign King, effectively granting that King lands within their dominion.

If the Iron Throne is unwilling to accept the North's sovereignty, the Tarlys could face, at best, a frosty relationship with their neighbors, and at worst an embargo or even siege of their lands and castle.

Jon would be safe in the North, the winter snows preventing any invasion, in the temperate Reach, on the other hand, the Tarlys would be taking a terrible risk putting their trust in a foreign King whose army would be unavailable to protect them until winter passes. 

[Season 7: Speculation and Spoilers Discussion]

16 hours ago, TxanGoddess said:

Okay so who is actually even left on the show that knew Rhaegar well enough to testify as to his general character with women?  Just Jamie right?

I don't for a minute believe the show will ever give us a definitive answer re:  rape and kidnap vs honorable marriage.  But I guess if Jamie makes it that far into the storyline alive he could at least tell Jon what might have been most consistent with Rhaegar's other behavior.

I don't know about Jaime, he knew Rhaegar, to be sure, but I'm not sure Rhaegar trusted him as much as others. It seemed like right before the Trident Rhaegar (or perhaps the Kingsguard) had begun to notice Jaime's disillusionment, especially with regards to Aerys, and he confided in Jaime that he would be calling a council to make changes, in hopes that Jaime might side with him over his father. But I'm not sure how much he trusted him with beyond that.

Jaime also knows about "the things we do for love" if Rhaegar loved Lyanna (but Lyanna did not love him) he probably could easily see Rhaegar being capable of kidnapping and rape, even murder. After he saw Aerys go mad (remember Aerys was a charismatic magnetic individual once too), Jaime has first hand knowledge of the insidious madness lurking in the Targaryen bloodline, it wouldn't be a leap to think it may have claimed Rhaegar. 

Finally, Jaime, while he probably respected Rhaegar, didn't seem to love him like Arthur Dayne, Barristan Selmy or Jon Connington did, so I don't know how eager he'd be (if at all) to clear his name and speak to his character. He probably couldn't care less about how Rhaegar is remembered.

[This Is A Supercut Of Every Sitcom Reference To Ross And Rachel. Ever.]

Eh, Ross and Rachel are alright, but they're no Russ and Rebecca from Chums

I'll be here always, while the rains fall in Wales!

[Season 7: Speculation and Spoilers Discussion]

9 minutes ago, SeanC said:

 

It goes by whichever region the bastard is most associated with.  

So among Robert's bastards, Mya is Mya Stone because she was raised in the Vale, even though her noble father was a Stormlander; Robert's bastard with Delena Florent, a Reach noblewoman, is Edric Storm, because he was raised at Storm's End.

Aegon IV's various bastards have different surnames depending on where they were raised/where their mothers were from, so you have Daemon Waters (later Blackfyre) versus Brynden Rivers and Aegor Rivers.

Exactly. So Jon if he remains a bastard would remain Jon/Jaehaerys Snow, because regardless of who his father is he was raised at Winterfell and holds ties to the North more then anywhere else.

[Sansa Stark: A Direwolf In Sheep's Clothing?]

3 minutes ago, Luckylyn said:

Jon did try talk to Sansa about it during the whole who gets the Lord's bedroom scene.   Jon reassured her that the bedroom and Winterfell was hers, and she said it belonged to all them as a unit.  Sansa tried to apologize for not telling Jon about the Vale army coming, and Jon responded by telling her they had to trust each other.  He's aware that division between them is possible and needs to be avoided.  It's up to Sansa now to speak up about any concerns she has.  At this point, Jon trusts Sansa, and Sansa trusts no one.  I don't see Sansa working with Littlefinger against Jon after Littlefinger handed her over to Ramsey.  I could see Sansa playing some political games to benefit herself because she trusts no one except herself to protect her now and that having unexpected negative consequences for Jon or even Bran who she doesn't know for certain is alive.  This is Sansa's issue for understandable reasons.  Jon has given her honesty and protection.  I don't know if there's anything else he could do to win her absolute trust after what she has been through.  I do think Littlefinger needs to stop underestimating her. 

I think he needs to be a little bit more reassuring.

Jon is taking Sansa at her word, because he's used to dealing with people who aren't very duplicitous. All the girls he's been involved with, romantically or otherwise, (Arya, Ygritte, Gilly) are very straightforward, they say what they mean and they mean what they say.

Sansa is so much more Southern in her mentality, she doesn't say what she means all the time, because in the past that's caused her pain and trouble ("Maybe my brother will bring me your head") and she has trouble taking Jon at his word, because she has trouble taking anyone at their word. That's why when he's pushing her as Lady of Winterfell in private, but then accepts the crown later that day with just a look to her it has to feel jarring if nothing else. They went from being a unit, to him being the King. What's she supposed to say in that moment when everyone is hailing him as their King? It's on him to include her.

I don't think it's enough to have the one conversation and be like "Oh you said it was ok for me to take the Lord's chamber, so it must be cool for me to become King right?"

[Sansa Stark: A Direwolf In Sheep's Clothing?]

38 minutes ago, Advance35 said:

But even as the number 2, that only buys her time doesn't it?  Eventually Jon would likely marry and then Sansa is out on her ear. 

Maybe after everything she's been through she can't help but always be conscious of her political value or lack there of.   She doesn't like or trust Littlefinger but she realizes she may have to "work with" an enemy.   He is the reason they won back Winterfell.  That's a fact, a sad fact but one all the same.   I don't think this is going to take up too much story or screentime but I can understand why Sansa may be disquieted by the way things shook out.

Honestly I don't think that Sansa, deep down, wants the lordship or the crown. She does want to be acknowledged by Jon (and the rest of the Northerners) for her contributions, and listened to and respected. She definitely feels snubbed, but I think it's more of a "Hey, I helped too here. Little credit? Anybody?"

But logically Jon in power is only good for Sansa. He's never going to turn her away, or put her into the cold to solidify his claim. And once he marries and has a child there will be no more suitors lusting after her for her claim to Winterfell and Jon, who she does trust to do the good and decent thing, will be the one with official power over any requests for her hand. He'd never sell her to someone she disapproves of, not after her ordeal with Ramsay.

I can't help but feel this all could've been sorted by a frank and honest conversation between Sansa and Jon. But of course Jon is too thickskulled to see that there is even a problem, and Littlefinger is going to use that to try and drive a wedge between them.

[HBO's Official Game Of Thrones Blog Has Published A Pretty Big Spoiler]

2 hours ago, Silly Angel said:

It doesn't say that Rhaegar abducted Lyanna, just that those were the rumors. They still could have married in secret, which would explain the presence of the Kingsguard at the TOJ and Lyanna's desperate need to have Ned care for the baby.

Pretty sure every mother in the world would beg their brother on their death bed to care for their child.

I mean if Jon is a bastard is Lyanna gonna say "Oh, he's just a bastard Ned. Drown the whelp for all I care"

Kingsguard presence can be explained through them being given an order. Jaime was protecting the King (as well as Elia and Aegon and Rhaenys) and Rhaegar was with Barristan and Lewyn Martell and Jonathor Derry and Ser Jonathor's brother Ser Willem was guarding the Queen and Viserys.

With the Royal Family sufficiently guarded the Kingsguard are sworn to obey the King, and presumably the King had conferred that ability on Rhaegar as well by appointing him as his commander.

[HBO's Official Game Of Thrones Blog Has Published A Pretty Big Spoiler]

1 hour ago, Umbelina said:

How is that a spoiler though, who else could have been Jon's father, though I note there is no "marriage" noted between his parents, which may just be an oversight, but they are saying she was "abducted" which implies she didn't go willingly.

Also Jon doesn't have a little crown by his name designating him as a member of the Royal Family, even though he's acknowledged to be Rhaegar's son.

[S01.E03: Goring Oxes: How You Can Survive the War on Government Through Five Easy Steps]

Gotta believe Gustav's gonna sacrifice the cat to SCIENCE!

Cat autopsy will confirm the brain bug hypothesis. But he'll have to kill the kitty before his head explodes. I assume the head explosions destroy or disperse the brain bugs, otherwise they would've been discovered long ago.

Poor kitty.

[Sansa Stark: A Direwolf In Sheep's Clothing?]

1 hour ago, Eyes High said:

Littlefinger has managed to screw over other characters--some of whom are much smarter and savvier than Sansa and Jon--who did not trust him as far as they could throw him but still naively thought they could handle him. Tyrion has always known Littlefinger was bad news, but Littlefinger still managed to ruin his life and nearly get him killed at least twice (three times if you think he's responsible for the attempt on Tyrion's life at Blackwater, which he might have been in the books at least, even if the show blames Joffrey). Judging from her lukewarm reaction to Littlefinger's unveiling of his scheme and his leaning in for a kiss--"It's a pretty picture" and a gentle hand on the chest stopping him--and the fact that she appears to be listening to Littlefinger's warnings about Jon posing a threat to her and usurping her rightful place, Sansa still hasn't learned her lesson.

I had to laugh at her "Only a fool would trust Littlefinger." Girl, what does that make you?

I think that was her point. It was a self deprecating warning.

"Only a fool would trust Littlefinger" she leaves unsaid the "a fool like me." This is pretty in tune with Sansa's character, she's usually harder on herself then anyone else when she makes a mistake.

She definitely doesn't trust him now, she may think she can outsmart him, which could be just as dangerous.

51 minutes ago, Umbelina said:

It depends on Littlefingers real role in things though, since none of that Bolton crap happened in the books, and indeed, Littlefinger protected her, keeping her in perhaps the safest possible place, and in disguise to protect her from Cersei.  Then again, how much do the showrunners really know about what happens between Sansa and Littlefinger later in the books?

His character is the most different and the most ruined from the books, even worse than Jamie's.  So, since they are insisting Littlefinger did not know (oh please!) Sansa has reason to believe that (since he never actually did it) and could conceivably still be involved with him.  Sansa may be his weak spot, but really, it's mostly because of her resemblance to his real initial motivation, her mom.  She certainly can't outwit him, but the show may try to push that idea. 

Sansa's a mess, the total little black dress of the story, so at this point, absolutely anything may happen with her.  Each person that watches her scenes since she parted with Theon sees something different, and the showrunners CERTAINLY see it differently than what they showed us on screen, so???

She definitely can't outsmart him, that goes against pretty much everything we've learned so far.

The only way for Sansa to win (IMO) is to somehow find a way to pull Cersei's "power is power" gambit on Littlefinger. She could actually turn on him right now, if it wasn't for the fact that he's Lord Protector and Sweetrobin listens to his voice like gospel. If she can win Sweetrobin to her side (via marriage?) then she could easily pull the old "power is power" on him. The only thing is she has to be smart then and kill him.

This would let them mesh the book storylines in a bit too, just write out Harry entirely and replace him with Sweetrobin.

[Season 7: Speculation and Spoilers Discussion]

2 hours ago, Umbelina said:

Sansa could be anything right now.  I'm a bit annoyed with the writing (show) because it's incredibly vague and her scenes can and have been interpreted differently by almost everyone that is watching them.  I think that's deliberate to hide her eventual story from us, which could be just about anything.  Honestly.  She could betray or be loyal to Jon.  She could be Queen, marry Jon, or Littlefinger (who very well could be King, but it would probably be a short reign.)  She could enjoy her home, survive the Winter and call it a day.  She could, like her Aunt, throw caution to the wind and marry Sandor for love.  (I would be shocked at that one though.)  She could die, in several ways.  Honestly, she is like clay, mold her anyway you want to.

To me this is what makes Sansa the most intriguing character, in the books as well as the show. Everyone else has a very clear motivation and sometimes a method. Not Sansa though.

Sansa is the wildcard, other then Winterfell (and in the show, revenge on Ramsay) she has very few goals, and she has no concrete loyalties. She has nothing that she definitely will or will not do on principle, and other then Cersei she has no real enemies anymore.

Very interested in where they take her.

[Ask A BookWalker: Questions From The Unspoiled]

On 6/27/2016 at 7:47 AM, CofCinci said:

Is there any more wildfire/explosive deposits?

In the show Jaime tells Brienne that the Mad King stashed wildfire almost everywhere in the city, not only beneath the Sept of Baelor, but also under the slums of Flea Bottom, under seemingly random taverns, stables, and houses and even beneath the Red Keep itself.

Spoiler

In the books it's further expanded that the Mad King stashed wildfire not only under the city proper but also under every one of the city gates, to prevent anyone from fleeing the inferno he was planning.

He wasn't kidding when he said "Burn them all!"

[S06.E10: The Winds of Winter]

3 minutes ago, Argenta said:

So who would be the rightful claimant to the Iron Throne?

Not that i think Cersei would give a damn - in fact she'd be certain to have any potential rivals murdered - but I'm curious. I've looked at the Baratheon family tree and I can't see any candidates. 

Ironically it'd be Daenerys (or Jon), Robert has legitimacy via the female line of House Targaryen through his grandmother Rhaelle Targaryen (aunt to the Mad King Aerys II). With no Baratheons left, the line of succession would go through Aerys and end at Daenerys (or Jon if someone can prove he's Rhaegars trueborn son)

[S06.E10: The Winds of Winter]

Well I'm definitely in the minority here, cause I didn't really like it that much. Lots of problems for me.

MINOR PROBLEMS

Varys - Mentioned by other people, but it's sloppy when it feels like he teleports back to Meereen from Dorne. You need to show that some time has passed or it's laughable.

Dorne - So we killed Doran to give his plot to Ellaria? Yeah fantastic idea, I buy vengeance crazed Ellaria being smart enough to organize in less than a year what it took Doran years to organize. Oh wait no I don't. Seriously just kill all the Dornish and be done with it. You ruined it show, and there is no saving it.

Cersei - Way too cold on Tommen's death. I get the fact that she's probably very numb, but it's her last child. Rationally it makes sense that she'd prepare herself for his death after Joff and Myrcella died, but from what we know about Cersei I just didn't buy it.

Sam - I know Sam is GRRM's author insert into the story, but does that mean he has to take George's role as travelogue? Seriously why the fuck does any of Sam's story matter? Is he just here to show us new places and then move on to the next new place? Cause that's what it seems like. Well newsflash: Nobody cares!

The King in The North - I'm not so upset that Jon was made King, it seems like it'll happen in the books due to Robb's will. But I still want him to be a little reluctant to steal his siblings birthrights, as far as he knows Bran and Arya are alive and Sansa is sitting right fucking next to him. I mean put up a little resistance and let Sansa talk you into it, she certainly doesn't WANT to be Queen, and she certainly looked happy that they had foisted the title and responsibility on Jon, but I think Jon still needs to be reluctant to take the crown.

All in all, I'm fine with all of those, just me picking some nits. But...

MAJOR PROBLEMS

Loras - I honestly didn't think it was possible to ruin Loras Tyrell more then they already did. In the books he's still a brave knight who dedicated himself to his true love, and is unrepentant of his love, and is a kick-ass swordsman. Now he's a dead guy who's last act was to cast aside that love and hate himself for his sexual orientation. I hate you show. I hate you so much.

Qyburn and Pycelle - This death didn't make any goddamn sense. When Varys killed Kevan (and Pycelle) in the books it made perfect sense, they were fixing the kingdom and making it harder for Cersei to fuck everything up, and Varys didn't like that. But that wasn't going on here, Pycelle was just as much Cersei's toady as Qyburn. With Kevan dead Pycelle would've gone back to doing everything Cersei said without question. Now if Qyburn wants to kill Pycelle just because he hates him, that's fine, but then his speech about bearing him no ill will and ushering in the new makes no sense. Dumb. Just kill him, don't try to shoehorn in badass things from the books you like with different characters, it doesn't work.

Arya - Where did Arya get another face? I can't imagine "Jaqen" just let her take some after she spurned him and the Faceless Men. Did she kill some poor girl to get it? Also we've been told that to "someone" the faces are as good as poison, and she's clearly not "no one," she's never used the faces safely, how can she be doing so now? 

I hated those problems. But to show I'm not all complain...

GOOD STUFF

Music - Just gorgeous. The best job the music staff has done so far. Every scene was perfectly scored, bravo.

Oldtown - I know I complained about it up there, but my complaint was that we didn't advance the story at all. Oldtown and the Citadel itself looked beautiful. I just wish something had happened there, we've been waiting all season for Sam to get to Oldtown.  

Tower of Joy - Perfectly executed, no problems here.

Sansa and Jon - I love every scene with Sansa and Jon, they are just delightful. Even if they aren't destined for romance, Sophie Turner and Kit Harington have great chemistry. It was wonderful that they had a moment to acknowledge their Stark ties away from everyone else.

Sansa and Littlefinger - Also this, wonderfully played. I almost felt like they were going to kiss until Sansa shut that down. Sophie Turner has chemistry with everybody it seems.

Cersei - Other then her coldness at Tommen's death, Lena Headey did wonderfully this episode. Throne room scene gave me chills. King's Landing is in trouble.

Jaime - I actually like the path Jaime seems to be taking, madly in love with Cersei until he discovers he's madly in love with a madwoman.

MEH

Dany - I've never really liked Dany though, so maybe that's just personal preference. I am glad that she's finally on her way to Westeros I guess.

[Sansa Stark: A Direwolf In Sheep's Clothing?]

4 minutes ago, Eyes High said:

Just because Sansa thinks more fondly of her Northern roots doesn't mean she can get back to them. That was the real poignancy of the snow castle scene to me: Sansa only appreciates her home when she has lost it (you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone, etc. etc.). Lady's death is irreversible, and so, too, is the loss of her Starkness, or at least that's where GRRM seems to be going with this. Many ASOIAF characters pine after things or people that are permanently lost to them. Jaime deeply mourns his sword hand, but that doesn't mean it's going to grow back. Sansa's connection to her Starkness has been brutally amputated in similar fashion, and as sad as she may be about losing the North--and for all the talk about how Sansa is hewing closer to her northern roots and disdaining the south, she didn't seem all that sad about the southern domestic paradise at Highgarden she envisioned in ASOS when a match with Willas was proposed--that doesn't mean she can get it back. If my interpretation is correct--and GRRM's comments appear to suggest that it is--Sansa's home in the North is lost to her as much as Lady. That doesn't mean she won't stay at Winterfell for a time in the books, but it will never be and can never be hers again. As I said upthread, according to the books and to GRRM Sansa became an UnStark the moment she lost Lady, and all the snow castles in the world won't change that.

You can argue right back, that just because you lose something once doesn't mean you can never get it back. I suppose we'll see, but nothing GRRM has said makes me believe that Sansa's Starkness is lost to her forever. The way he's written the story, and the path the show is taking leads me to believe that this is about Sansa finding her way home, and about her trying to get back what she lost.

Will she be successful? I don't know, but I haven't seen anything to make me believe that it's impossible.

[Sansa Stark: A Direwolf In Sheep's Clothing?]

On 6/25/2016 at 1:05 AM, Eyes High said:

Lady took food from Sansa in a manner "as delicate as a queen." Lady's dead, and so I imagine is Sansa's chance for queenship of anything, be it the North or the Iron Throne. GRRM has also said that Sansa bears some responsibility for Ned's death. She won't end up as queen of Westeros when her pursuit of queenship in AGOT was partly responsible for Ned's demise. Likewise, she won't end up as queen in the North when her actions led to Ned's death. GRRM has also suggested that not only that Sansa is responsible for Lady's death but also that Lady's death means that Sansa is no longer a Stark. It seems extremely unlikely that Sansa will end up as queen in the North when the very symbol of her Stark identity, the thing that marks her as part of the ruling family of the North, her direwolf, is dead, and even dead as a result of her own actions.

I also viewed Lady's death as the death of Sansa's "Northern self." At the beginning she's already the least Northern of her siblings, she prefers the Faith of the Seven over the Old Gods, she likes dancing and singing and needlepoint, very Southern activities, she loves stories about knights, who are much more scarce in the North, and even her wolf, as opposed to being wild and free, is more like a dog, polite and well behaved and easily trained, and then dies on their way to King's Landing, bringing her fully into Southron intrigue. Of course based on the outline, we know that Sansa was intended to choose the South over the North and Joff over the Starks, so this kind of symbolism makes a lot of sense if she were to follow that path. 

In the actual story, I don't think it means she's lost her Starkness forever, because from that point on she takes a severe turn towards more Northern sensibilities. She stops going to the sept and starts going to the godswood, she loses her love of singing (with a large assist from Marillion), and she becomes jaded and disillusioned with the prospect of knighthood and chivalry.

By the time we see her in ASOS/AFFC she holds no ambition but returning home to her roots. She begins, at least subconsciously, to emulate Jon, the most Northern of her siblings. "Alayne Stone is 14 like Jon, is bastard-brave like Jon, has no time for silly dancing like Jon."

I mean she builds a tiny Winterfell and defends it against it's attacker. If anything she's becoming more Stark-ish as things go on. To me this story feels like Sansa finding her way home.