Arya Stark: Valar Morghulis

[Carrie Ann]

Maybe the toughest of all Starks. Good place to link to one of my favorite Tumblr posts.

[Monty]

Arya thinks of nothing but murder all day.

[Pickles Aplenty]

I have trouble liking Arya, and I'm not sure why.  I can tolerate her on the show, but I skip most of her chapters in the books because she drives me nuts.

[Joystickenvy]

She's still my fav, even if she has gone a bit psycho.

[scrb]

Anyone know if the character in the books grows up as much as the actress is growing up?

Guess it could potentially be a spoiler.  But can the show keep the actress through the whole run of the series if for instance the character remains 10-15 year old girl in the books?

[jellysalmon]

So far she hasn't looked too different from when they started, I think she'll be fine. The actor who plays Bran on the other hand...

[Joystickenvy]

They started all the show kids as older than the book kids anyway and 30 year old actors play teens on TV all the time, so I don't see why it has to become an issue, tho it's definitely a good thing they came up with the cart so poor Hodor isn't trying to carry TV Bran in a basket.

[halgia]

In the books, Arya is 9 in Game of Thrones and still 11 as of the end of Dance with Dragons (according to this timeline, which has major book spoilers). Maisie Williams was 14 during season 1 and is 16 now.

So show-Arya is definitely going to have to be older than book-Arya, but it probably won't really matter. And it's not like GRRM doesn't know this, and so might not do anything in the last two books that would have to be too drastically different if Arya looks a little older.

[scrb]

So all the fighting training that Arya was doing doesn't really lead to a payoff?

She's not going to become the next Brienne?

[Border Spice]

Simply my favorite character. Only one more week to go!!

Also, I like this new site.

[Independent George]

So all the fighting training that Arya was doing doesn't really lead to a payoff?

She's not going to become the next Brienne?

It's impossible to answer without spoiling.

She doesn't become the next Brienne. Based on her preview chapter from the next book... more like she becomes something that would scare the crap out of Brienne. 

[Constantinople]

It would be ironic, but psychologically plausible, if Ayra ended-up turning into someone like Joffrey.

Syrio described Death as the One God, but a god you want to avoid.

Perhaps because of what's happened to her family, perhaps because of Jaqen talking about offering people to the Red God, Ayra seems to have flipped that on its head and turned it into let's go kill people.  After all, Valar Morghulis, so why wait?

[Happy Harpy]

I watch for a couple of actors/characters and Maisie Williams/Arya is one of them .And about tumblr,  Arya Stark is kind of Chuck Norris in those memes

 

It would be ironic, but psychologically plausible, if Ayra ended-up turning into someone like Joffrey.

I'm not certain. I don't think that Arya could take pleasure, as Joffrey does, in murdering innocent people or making weak people suffer just because she can/it's the only way she can get off (as it's implied for him). I can see -and actually, I look forward to- her exacting ruthless revenge, but against the people who wronged her and her loved ones.

I think that sunday night on AMC, I saw a character go Arya Stark on a piece of scum, and I think that Arya might find herself more in this kind of conundrum. I can see her lose control upon her revenge, especially as the trailer shows her with the Hound, who isn't exactly into sparing people and worrying about collateral damages.

Edited April 1, 2014 by Happy Harpy

[CletusMusashi]

I'm actually looking forward to seeing what happens with her and The Hound. Hopefully they can have some zany mismatched buddy adventures. I'll take zany mismatched buddy adventures over crow dreams and wiener-chop bondage any day of the week.

[Netfoot]

God, someone tell me when she comes of age!  Because I am going to propose.....

[CletusMusashi]

Well, if you do, good luck.Stranger wishes have been granted- case in point: my post a few days ago! This is probably about as close to a random drunken wish being granted by supernatural powers as is ever going to happen. Shit, Netfoot, she might leap to hook up with you after a few seasons of this show, which I personally still love, but can see how it might get kind of old being her.

"Hey, Hound, what are we going to do today?"

"The same thing we do every day, Arya. Try to sell you for gold."

....They're Arya and The Hound, they're Arya and The Hound,

One just wants vengreance, one wants all the chicks around,

They're riding toward the Vale,

Say no to death and jail,

They're Anya, they're Anya and The Hound, Hound, Hound, Hound...

Edited April 8, 2014 by CletusMusashi

[Independent George]

I was watching Archer last night, and it made me think of Arya and a joke from last season.

Arya is a child-murderer while the Hound is a child murderer. The hyphen means she's a child who is also a murderer, while without a hyphen is for someone who murders a child.

Ok, so that's not actually funny in this context, but it does make me wish the 'Song of ISIS and Fire' tumblr was still active.

Edited April 8, 2014 by Independent George

[Lady S.]

I'm betting the Hound was also once a child murderer with the hyphen. If he was always a big guy, he could have started pretty young. At least as young as Podrick. I think Arya has more in common with him than Joffrey. Not that that's a good thing either, but still, better than Joffers.

Edited April 10, 2014 by Lady S.

[Constantinople]

To:     Arya of House Stark a.k.a Arya Stark of Winterfell

Re:     Updated Death List in S4E5

 

I've noticed you've added Beric Dondarion and Thoros of Myr to your death list, presumably because they sold your friend Gendry to the Red Woman.

 

Sometimes you can act a bit rashly when you get your dander up, so here's a tip.

 

Be sure to take out Thoros first.  Otherwise, you'll never get Beric off your list.

 

Yours truly

 

- A viewer

[Independent George]

Do you remember that girl who chased cats around the castle, and balanced on one leg while talking to Ned about what she might be when she grew up? Watching Arya slowly walk away from the grievously wounded Hound without uttering a single syllable was all the more sad and horrifying because we remember who she was not long ago.

[Tippi]

Maisie is such an amazing actress.  Her Arya is so damaged and so fierce.  I am always reminded of the scene with Ned where she makes clear the life of a lady is not for her; it just continues to play out. In Maisie and Rory's last exchange I kept waiting for her to stab him--what a stunning end that was!  I was touched that her first plan was to go to Jon.  And I loved that gorgeous scene with her riding her white horse along the river.  I can't wait for what happens next!

[bluvelvet]

I really do hope that Arya reunites with Syrio and original recipe Jaquen (make it happen show!) to teach her along the way.

 

I am curious as to what happens now because honestly I feel as if she has been wandering around with a kill here and there since season 2, at least now she has some movement to a new place of her own choice.

[Lady S.]

I'm glad the show has all but confirmed Syrio's death and while original recipe Jaqen was really gifted facewise, he also said that Jaqen H'ghar was dead before changing so the actor returning for anything that's not a dream sequence would also feel like a retcon to me. At least Sandor can possibly be saved without a too ridiculous plot twist.

 

I was touched that her first plan was to go to Jon. 

Yes! I feel like that's been too overlooked when discussing how coldly she left Sandor, when we don't know what her response would be if he'd tried the begging and pleading tactic first instead of complaining about being beaten by a woman, insulting Arya, and describing Mycah's murder and saying he wished he'd raped Sansa. As best as I remember their insults were always a matter of give and take, with Arya treating him better when he wasn't being such a brute, and their moment of prior tenderness over his neck wound came after he allowed his vulnerable side to show instead of trying so hard to keep up the tough Hound persona. Arya is no sociopath yet, and her rather extreme sense of who deserves to live and who to die is just a traumatized child's twisted version of the black-and-white Stark morality.

 

I also liked how when Brienne said she'd sworn to protect Cat, Arya asked accusingly why she'd failed. It was nice to finally get both characters' reactions to Cat's murder after seeing Sansa's reaction in the premiere, while Brienne and Arya's plots were mostly used as comic relief and for showcasing Jaime and Sandor's inner turmoil. IMO Arya is more like Cat and Sansa more like Ned, though both were closer to the other parent. Like that early episode of Roseanne about Roseanne trying to make Dan spend more time with girly Becky while she tries to bond with Darlene, when it's clear throughout the series that Darlene is more like Roseanne no matter what their relationship is like.

Edited June 17, 2014 by Lady S.

[Conan Troutman]

Yeah, Syrio is officially dead (and I never really had a doubt, but the Hound confirmed it).

As for Jaqen: If B&W really wanted to bring him back in his initial incarnation, I guess they could find a way to explain why he did go back to it. Maybe as simple as having Arya ask for a familiar face. But as much as I liked original Jaqen, there's no reason to believe they couldn't find a new actor who could do a comparable job. It's the only instance on the show where no recast would be odd. 

 

Agree on not killing the Hound: His strategy of trying to provoke her into finishing him backfired horribly and she probably would've done it otherwise. But while I feel kinda sad for him, it was also consistent for Arya to react like that. Not to mention pretty badass. Props once more to Maisie who absolutely nailed that scene. 

 

I'm glad she can finally go to Braavos now, that's been her obvious destination once she got that coin. I only hope that she doesn't become on of the Faceless Men but only learns from them. It'd be a bad idea to have her being played by different actresses, if only for a short time. So I hope either GRRM didn't go that route in the books or alternatively, B&W take a different path. 

[Independent George]

Or they can just go the Quantum Leap route, show a scene of Jaqen looking into a mirror at the reflection of his new face, and then leave Waschila in for the rest of his scenes. That's waaay easier than casting someone new.

 

I can't imagine them doing anything else with Arya in S5/S6 - there's no way they're losing Maisie.

Edited June 17, 2014 by Independent George

[Hecate7]

I was watching Archer last night, and it made me think of Arya and a joke from last season.

Arya is a child-murderer while the Hound is a child murderer. The hyphen means she's a child who is also a murderer, while without a hyphen is for someone who murders a child.

Ok, so that's not actually funny in this context, but it does make me wish the 'Song of ISIS and Fire' tumblr was still active.

Arya is also a child murderer. She likes killing fat boys. She has killed children and will probably do so again.

[Shanna]

Arya is also a child murderer. She likes killing fat boys. She has killed children and will probably do so again.

He likes killing fat boys? What are you talking about.

Aryas killing this far has been more or less justified as far as concerned.

Masie was fantastic this episode. The Hound definitely took the wrong tact with her.

Edited June 18, 2014 by Shanna

[Rocket]

Interview confirmed on last episode 

The hound bringing up all that bad stuff is the reason Arya did not kill him.

 

Masie was great and is the youngest actor in English history to win their reward for best supporting actor. 

 

I think the fat boy quote was Arya trying to warn someone or something not that she meant it. 

 

No I think Arya is perfect for assassin school she takes killing as something that needs to be done right but not for pleasure. Yes she lectures a victim but that only part of her need for justice not pleasure.  Good assassin organizations want their killers to only kill those they have to kill and not go on extra killing sprees for pleasure that can only get them caught and draw unwanted attention that they did not get paid for. Arya's only limitation is I believe that she will only kill those that she thinks deserve it. Less than ideal but I think the Faceless men could still find that useful as lots of important people in Westross need killing. But the Faceless part does have me worried on how Arya will be if she changes appearance. As above I don't see them changing the actress she just too good. I'm sure they probably brain stormed is there any way to keep Tywin alive and still have things happen right and thus very reluctantly killed him. 

Edited June 19, 2014 by Rocket

[Independent George]

She killed the stabkeboy in S1E8. She didn't quite intend to, and it was justifiable self-defense, but he was a fat boy and she killed him.

In S1E10, when Hot Pie tries to bully her, she draws Needle and tells him she already killed one fat boy, and she likes killing fat boys.

Edited June 18, 2014 by Independent George

[Hecate7]

Arya is also a child murderer. She likes killing fat boys. She has killed children and will probably do so again.

He likes killing fat boys? What are you talking about.

 

As Independent George pointed out, I was quoting Arya. Arya killed a child who was going to turn her in to the Lannisters during her escape from King's Landing. She has no problem killing anyone, of any age. As she gets older she won't be much different from the Hound or Ygritte on that score--she'll kill whoever she's ordered to kill.

 

 

we don't know what her response would be if he'd tried the begging and pleading tactic first instead of complaining about being beaten by a woman, insulting Arya, and describing Mycah's murder and saying he wished he'd raped Sansa

Probably the same, really. She didn't feel like killing him.

 

The Hound is not a manipulative person. He's used to getting his way through force and intimidation, and not having to be manipulative at all. But he's too proud to beg, so he tried to provoke her into killing him instead of begging her to do it--somehow he knew she wasn't going to want to. If he had begged and pleaded, I think that would probably have ticked her off just as much, but it still wouldn't have inspired a mercy killing.

 

It would be nice to think that she didn't do it because there were mixed feelings stopping her, rather than out of cruelty. But I think she really did want him to have to lie there and feel helpless while she took the money and walked off, and realized that this was a better revenge than killing him when he was wounded and trying to get her to kill him.

 

The Hound is not terribly bright. He had already given up any hope of a ransom for Arya, which means that he died trying to protect her from what he thought was a Lannister flunky ready to kill her. Not sure what changed his mind, there, at the end, and made him say, "go with her, she'll help you," instead of "hide behind a rock til she's gone."

[Lady S.]

I don't think there's any indication she actually enjoyed killing the stableboy, she looked kinda startled when it happened actually. All the people she's killed since have been scum and weren't killed on anyone else's orders, so I don't see how she can be said to already be on the Hound's level, even if she is on that road. She could have just ridden away and not found Sandor at all, I think it's a bit of a stretch to say she must have done so just to rob him and take joy in watching him die painfully, that'd be a huge turnaround from the rest of their s4 scenes, not to mention a huge shift from the books. (I guess she offered him her water-as he did to the dying peasant-just to torture him more because she knew he wanted wine?)  I think all their previous scenes this season point toward his still being on her revengenda out of habit and a sense of duty to Mycah and Arya having nowhere near the hate-on for him that she used to, but unfortunately for Sandor, he had to be sure to remind her why he was on the list to begin with.

Edited June 18, 2014 by Lady S.

[Shanna]

She killed the stabkeboy in S1E8. She didn't quite intend to, and it was justifiable self-defense, but he was a fat boy and she killed him.

In S1E10, when Hot Pie tries to bully her, she draws Needle and tells him she already killed one fat boy, and she likes killing fat boys.

The stableboy was going to drag her to the people who killed her father and I think she was bluffing with hot pie. That's what mean, it was all justifiable. she didn't kill hot pie and he started the whole fight anyway.

[Lady S.]

Hot Pie was also probably bluffing about having killed a boy himself, and then Gendry threatened to beat him like an anvil. I don't know why that one line of Arya's should be taken as gospel instead of bravado. If you want to compare her to The Hound, that guy was full of tough guy bullshit right to the end, but no one really thinks he was as hard as he made out.

[Gudzilla]

The " I like killing fat boys, I'm good at killing fat boys" line is what turned her into one of my favorites, and thats even with the fact that I am a fat boy. ;)

[Hecate7]

Neither Arya nor the Hound were out there killing anybody for the sheer fun of it. Both took pleasure in the kills they made. Neither one of them ever killed a child by choice. The Hound had his orders, Arya was trying to escape. They are very much in the same boat.

 

It'd be pretty funny if there WAS a maester hiding behind that rock. Just saying.

[Lady S.]

Arya told Sandor she took pleasure in killing Polliver and Rorge, two decidedly horrible people. The only indication she felt the same about her instinctive killing of the stableboy is her bluster to Hot Pie when he was threatening her. Sandor chose to work for the Lannisters as Joffrey's dog and chose to leave that job on his own terms, his "just following orders" murder of Mycah was more his choice than Arya's self-defense killing of the stableboy was hers.

I'm still seeing more fear and alarm here, than the satisfaction she took in killing Polliver, but maybe I'm missing something. But then I don't think Sandor really took any satisfaction in killing Mycah either, since he doesn't consider it or any of his joyful kills a happy memory. If anyone really believes he took real pleasure murdering children, I'm not sure why we should feel sorry for him.

Edited June 19, 2014 by Lady S.

[angelita100]

I've started watching the show about a month ago.  I'm on season 2 and Arya is hands down my favorite character. I'm so enjoying her scenes with Lord Tywin Lannister.  I can't wait to see what direction they take her. 

[Constantinople]

Watched the S2 finale over the weekend, which led me to recall that the coin that Jaqen gave to Arya was in the finale for 3 straight seasons: S2, when he gives it to her; S3, when she uses is do distract a Frey soldier before killing him; and S4, when she gives it to the ship's captain from Braavos.

I realize this isn't the main point, but now I'm wondering what happens to the coin. Does the ship's captain turn it, and Ayra, over to Faceless Men HQ in Bravos in exchange for a free kill? Or do we never see the coin again.

[Conan Troutman]

I guess the captain leads her to the Faceless Men (or shows her the way to their headquarter or something like that), she'll show them the coin and tell them about Jaqen and that'll be more or less it. I'm not sure if she's going to need the coin after that.

 

I'm more interested in how the whole story there plays out. The training is obviously vital for her, but she's still got business in Westeros to take care of, as well as family. So I don't see her becoming a full fledged member of the Faceless Men until her evergrowing list is empty and her remaining siblings are in safety - which probably won't happen until the very last episode. It's hard to execute your assassination orders when you're currently engaged in a full-scale personal vendetta on another continent and executing your assassination orders is pretty much the job definition of a Faceless Man.

After the show's over though, if she makes it out alive, that might be an intruiging career choice for her, depending on how far down the path of sociopathic killer she'll be by then or if she somehow recovers. It could even make a nice spinoff, if it weren't for the fact that your main character would be a shapeshifter. Maybe more fitting for another book, if GRRM were to ever finish those other ones first.

 

Another thing I've been wondering is if we see her reunited with Gendry. Braavos seems to be the city in Essos nearest to Dragonstone. So assuming he crossed the Narrow Sea, he could be somewhere in Bravos, too. Though I don't know how that could fit in with the Faceless Men storyline or if we even see him next season at all. 

Edited August 13, 2014 by Conan Troutman

[Nanrad]

IMO Arya is more like Cat and Sansa more like Ned, though both were closer to the other parent.

 

I agree. I didn't come to this conclusion until I started writing fanfic, which made me assess the characters more (and what actually made me start liking Cat). Although more is like the other parent, but Sansa and Arya believe that they relate more to one over the other because of gender and societal status. 

[Avaleigh]

From the mother's mercy episode thread:

 

I can't remember the last time we saw Arya help anyone in a nonviolent way. I'm trying to think of her just trying to help someone in general and the best I can come up with right now is the awesome way she stuck up for Lady's life after that whole mess. She was also pissed off when the Hound robbed that man and his daughter. She didn't do anything about it (she couldn't) but she wasn't happy to see them being robbed and if it had been up to her she would have insisted that they get their money back. 

 

She came up with a quick lie to help save Gendry's life. 

 

Am I forgetting anything else? 

Edited July 15, 2015 by Avaleigh

[Lady S.]

In s3 when the brotherhood first comes along she met them first while Hot Pie and Gendry hid, trying to protect them, then she ran after Gendry and tried to save him from Mel, and later stopped the Hound from killing the dude he robbed to get the cart for their wedding transport. In s4, she cleaned his wound in the scene where he tells the story of his burn scars. The most recent nonviolent help would all her duties inside the House of Black and White, especially with the dying little girl and coming up with a soothing lie for her.

[Hecate7]

I submit that Arya isn't doing any of these things because she is "all about helping people," but rather because she's basically decent and she does like some people. She hates her "helping" tasks in the House of Black and White, and would much rather be out killing people. She has killed ten people, I think? and still her last act each day, or whenever she is stressed, is to recite the names of people she intends to kill someday.

 

Although she did suggest that the Hound let her take care of his wound, that's not something she thinks about much. She's willing to help people she cares about, but we've never seen her do it when she could be killing someone on her list instead. The people she helps are generally either people she needs in order to get from one place to another, and people who have already done her a good turn, like the carter or the farmer. She's a decent person and would rather help most people than harm them, but she's not about helping people. It's not what she wants to do with her life. She's about killing and revenge, and that is her life plan. She doesn't feel that she wasted her life or failed, when she hears of someone dying from his wounds. She does feel that way when she hears that one of her intended targets died and now can't be killed by her.

[Conan Troutman]

She has killed ten people, I think?

 

So far, we got:

 

- Unnamed stable boy while escaping King's Landing

- That Frey soldier who mocked Robb after the Red Wedding

- Polliver (the guy who stole Needle and killed Lommy)

- That companion of the Biter she had to ask for his name so she could add him to her list and then kill him (checked the wiki and it says he's called Rorge, but whatever)

- Meryn Trant

 

Then there's that sick girl, but that was a mercy kill. Plus, she ordered hits from Jaquen for the Tickler, that dude who saw her stealing some strategy paper from Tywin and some guards. She's also guilty of the death of No One (does no one count as one? The math of Thrones is weird...), who killed himself because Arya killed Meryn instead of the insurance scammer.  Pretty impressive list and she just got started...

 

Hm, speaking of Jaquen/No One, why did that guy (or girl or whatever) sacrifice himself for Arya? What are the Faceless Men's plans for Arya? If she was just another wannabe assassin to them, they could have easily replaced her - it's not that there's a shortage of those in this world... I thought at first that a young girl was still a rare commodity for them, allowing them to get close to people they otherwise couldn't - but apparently they can not only change their face, but also size and gender and age rather effortlessly - if Arya's coworker can easily morph into Jaquen just like that, I have to assume they all can, so that can't be it, either. So it has to be something special about her, presumably her being a Stark. Was it a coincidence that Jaquen was in that cage? If he's that masterful assassin, why did he get captured in the first place? So I'm guessing he set out specifically for her, let himself getting captured, let her help him escape so he could introduce himself later and fix her up with the idea of joining them later.

 

But how could he know that she would be there and how events would unfold? He also was able to detect even the smallest of lies from Arya, so the FM (or at least their boss, whoever that is) are probably not just walking lie detectors, but can see into the past and into the future. So what could it be that she can give them that no one else can? Special access to her family members? But why would they need to kill Jon or Bran? Speaking of Bran, he also has that sight gift, along with Jojen and the Tree Guy.  Is it just a coincidence or are they all connected? Mostly Tree Guy, the Children and the Faceless Men, because they could know each other from before the events of the show. I really hope Bran will give us some insight about what those folks are up to next season, because that's a complete mystery right now. 

 

ETA: If the FM are indeed somehow connected to the Children of the Forest through the gift of sight, they could have some common goal or enemy. It could be that WW and dragons are different sides of the same coin, in that both are magical and their existence is a threat to the other species in the World. So now the Children would probably focus on dealing with the WW, while the FM might be tasked with taking care of the dragon problem. First step towards a solution could be to take away their mother, so they are no longer united and it would be easier to kill them one by one. So they need Arya because her being a Stark would allow her to get close to Dany (who may have use for a Stark in her camp to form an alliance or whatnot) and kill her, something a regular FM could not because reasons. Plus Mel told her back at the BwB camp she saw eyes of many different colors, eyes belonging to people Arya had killed.

And the Targaryens have purple eyes in the books...

So that would explain why Jaquen went to great lengths to recruit her and then killed himself so that she could complete her mission. Of course, if she will actually carry it out is another question, but at least it would explain why they need her.

Edited July 17, 2015 by Conan Troutman

[Hecate7]

So far, we got:

 

- Unnamed stable boy while escaping King's Landing

- That Frey soldier who mocked Robb after the Red Wedding

- Polliver (the guy who stole Needle and killed Lommy)

- That companion of the Biter she had to ask for his name so she could add him to her list and then kill him (checked the wiki and it says he's called Rorge, but whatever)

- Meryn Trant

 

Then there's that sick girl, but that was a mercy kill. Plus, she ordered hits from Jaquen for the Tickler, that dude who saw her stealing some strategy paper from Tywin and some guards. She's also guilty of the death of No One (does no one count as one? The math of Thrones is weird...), who killed himself because Arya killed Meryn instead of the insurance scammer.  Pretty impressive list and she just got started...

 

Hm, speaking of Jaquen/No One, why did that guy (or girl or whatever) sacrifice himself for Arya? What are the Faceless Men's plans for Arya? If she was just another wannabe assassin to them, they could have easily replaced her - it's not that there's a shortage of those in this world... I thought at first that a young girl was still a rare commodity for them, allowing them to get close to people they otherwise couldn't - but apparently they can not only change their face, but also size and gender and age rather effortlessly - if Arya's coworker can easily morph into Jaquen just like that, I have to assume they all can, so that can't be it, either. So it has to be something special about her, presumably her being a Stark. Was it a coincidence that Jaquen was in that cage? If he's that masterful assassin, why did he get captured in the first place? So I'm guessing he set out specifically for her, let himself getting captured, let her help him escape so he could introduce himself later and fix her up with the idea of joining them later.

 

But how could he know that she would be there and how events would unfold? He also was able to detect even the smallest of lies from Arya, so the FM (or at least their boss, whoever that is) are probably not just walking lie detectors, but can see into the past and into the future. So what could it be that she can give them that no one else can? Special access to her family members? But why would they need to kill Jon or Bran? Speaking of Bran, he also has that sight gift, along with Jojen and the Tree Guy.  Is it just a coincidence or are they all connected? Mostly Tree Guy, the Children and the Faceless Men, because they could know each other from before the events of the show. I really hope Bran will give us some insight about what those folks are up to next season, because that's a complete mystery right now. 

 

ETA: If the FM are indeed somehow connected to the Children of the Forest through the gift of sight, they could have some common goal or enemy. It could be that WW and dragons are different sides of the same coin, in that both are magical and their existence is a threat to the other species in the World. So now the Children would probably focus on dealing with the WW, while the FM might be tasked with taking care of the dragon problem. First step towards a solution could be to take away their mother, so they are no longer united and it would be easier to kill them one by one. So they need Arya because her being a Stark would allow her to get close to Dany (who may have use for a Stark in her camp to form an alliance or whatnot) and kill her, something a regular FM could not because reasons. Plus Mel told her back at the BwB camp she saw eyes of many different colors, eyes belonging to people Arya had killed.

And the Targaryens have purple eyes in the books...

So that would explain why Jaquen went to great lengths to recruit her and then killed himself so that she could complete her mission. Of course, if she will actually carry it out is another question, but at least it would explain why they need her.

 

Don't forget the Frey guys sitting around the fire that she and the Hound killed. I think that brings the count to ten if you count the hits Jaqen did for her.

 

And I actually suspect the Waif was Jaqen all along.

Edited July 17, 2015 by Hecate7

[Conan Troutman]

Did she kill another Frey? That's the one I meant, he was the guy second on the list. But I only credited her with one, since the Hound took care of the rest of them. If we include them, we'd also have to include the other guys the Hound killed in the season 4 premiere. But since Jaquen killed more than one guard, we're already into the double digits. Either way, the Many Faced God has to be quite pleased with her body of work...

 

Yeah, I'm also pretty sure whoever that guy was, it wasn't the same FM that appeared as Jaquen in season 2. But I'm not sure it was her, either. The "real" Jaquen (if we can even call him that) might be somewhere else - presumably somewhere on a mission, if he's one of the field personnel. Dude who killed himself might've been head of HR or something like that and the Waif is the CEO. I wonder if we get to see the chairman of the board next season.

Edited July 17, 2015 by Conan Troutman

[jeansheridan]

It appears Arya is no longer popular to discuss.  I'm glad she's back in Westeros.  I still don't like her Mission Impossible Face Offs, but I guess I will need to learn to accept it.  I'm happy too that the show runners are aware that she's in a very dark place right now.  They lingered on her crazy eyes for a reason in the Frey scene.  That said, when you look at her list of kills, thus far she's only killed nasty people.  There's hope she can be redeemed and become a regular Stark again.  True, all families can probably use an assassin on the roster, but I worry a bit for her soul.  If she continues to be so gleeful about killing she'll slide into Joffrey/Ramsey land and I don't want that for her.  The Faceless Man was at least neutral/professional about his killing but maybe that's something that comes with age.  When Jaime has killed, he's very chill about it, as is Bronn.  Jon still seems to feel it unless he's just whacking away at the undead.  

[Luckylyn]

Arya's experience with the Faceless has shown that she's become skilled and ruthless but still has a code of honor.   She does not want to hurt innocents. but will not hesitate from her goal of destroying all on her list.  She does seem to enjoy causing pain to her enemies and that is where she may end up having problems.   Her murder of Frey was more elaborate than necessary (killing his sons and then baking them in a pie for him to eat) when she could have just simply killed them.

[Ambrosefolly]

4 hours ago, Luckylyn said:

Arya's experience with the Faceless has shown that she's become skilled and ruthless but still has a code of honor.   She does not want to hurt innocents. but will not hesitate from her goal of destroying all on her list.  She does seem to enjoy causing pain to her enemies and that is where she may end up having problems.   Her murder of Frey was more elaborate than necessary (killing his sons and then baking them in a pie for him to eat) when she could have just simply killed them.

Hopefully, Arya remembered that Black Walder was the one that killed her mother. The first guy she killed was very loudly taking about what happened to Cat. Lothar (the other in the pie) killed her sister in law. She might have been at the Twins for a while, long enough to hear what went down at the Red Wedding, then she quickly went to work. 

[Lady S.]

On 7/5/2016 at 6:46 PM, Ambrosefolly said:

Hopefully, Arya remembered that Black Walder was the one that killed her mother. The first guy she killed was very loudly taking about what happened to Cat. Lothar (the other in the pie) killed her sister in law. She might have been at the Twins for a while, long enough to hear what went down at the Red Wedding, then she quickly went to work. 

Maisie seemed to think it was just coincidence that Arya killed Walder the same way her mother was killed, but I think it makes more sense if it wasn't. As you say, the guys in the s3 finale were laughing about Cat's death before they brought up RobbWind. And Walder and Black Walder have already bragged about her murder at least twice this season, so I'm guessing they bring it up pretty often whenever they feel like it. If Roose stabbing Robb was common knowledge in the North, then I'd think the Freys' murder methods at the Red Wedding were also common knowledge in the riverlands. They weren't shy at all about their crimes because they mistakenly believed people were afraid of them, and Arya and Sandor did spend however many days/weeks still among the riverlanders on their way to the Vale post-RW. IA that Arya killing those two particular sons had to have meant she knew their key roles in the RW, so I'd think the manner of how Black Walder killed her mother would also be known. The pie-baking had to be a deliberate nod to the Rat Cook story Bran heard from Old Nan, which presumably all the Starklings knew, so I think slitting Walder's throat after bringing up Black Walder was also a choice with deliberate meaning.

I do think it was ominous that Arya's line about her face being the last thing Walder ever sees echoed Cersei's line to Shame Nun, but there are still key differences between them. Cersei appears to have her own list of enemies to kill, but she doesn't give a fuck about killing others in the process. Her sept massacre also took out hundreds of strangers who meant nothing to her. Whereas Arya's break with the Faceless Men came because she couldn't kill a person whom she didn't feel deserved to die. Arya enjoys murder not out of pure sadism but because she believes the people she kills deserve it and usually her victims have committed some crime with a personal connection to her. Vengeance and bloodlust go hand-in-hand for her so I don't think she could ever enjoy killing random innocents just for the sake of killing. I'd say that's a pretty big separation from the likes of Ramsay. I think her former traveling companion Sandor is still the killer she takes after the most. He's stated he enjoys killing, claimed to live on hate when he had nothing else to live for, and went on his own roaring rampage of revenge in s6.