Season 4: Little Questions That Don't Fit Anywhere Else.

[joliefaire]

This was a very effective thread at another site, so I thought I'd bring it to life here, in anticipation of the season about to begin.This thread is for nagging little questions or confusions you might have after watching an episode.  Things that don't deserve an entire thread because it will probably take just one or two answers to clear the matter up.  It saves the board from seeing dozens and dozens of new threads opening up after each episode just to answer a single question at a time.

Example, during the opening credits, after Winterfell burned, I kept focusing in on that...white spot?  in the middle of destroyed Winterfell.  What the hell IS that?  I asked in the Little Questions thread, a couple people answered and the issue was solved to my satisfaction.  Viewer consensus is, its apparently the Godswood, it apparently survived the burning of Winterfell. 

Example:  My sister bought me this t-shirt and we can't identify the flag in the middle.  What is it?  Answer:  The flag of the Brotherhood Without Banners, it consists of tattered bits of of other House flags.

Example:  Why did Robb and Talisa get married under the Seven, when neither of them follows those gods?  Bryan Cogman, the show writer, eventually answered (not very effectively, IMO)

Example:  Just re-watching season 1 and in the prologue there seems to be a symbol layed out from the body parts. I was just wandering what this symbol is meant to represent? From memory it seemed to be a circle with a line through it or something like that.. My own personal answer:  I believe that layout matches the way HBO shows GoT titles and announcements, always with the double straight lines through any capital O.

Example:  Many inquiries about the music/musicians in various parts of various episodes.  Many answers.

You see the direction.  Got a little question that's nagging at you about what you just saw?  Post it here--someone will probably have your answer!

Edited April 1, 2014 by joliefaire

[halgia]

We should clarify: we're expecting answers to (sometimes) be based on books knowledge, but avoiding any significant spoilers of things that haven't happened on the show yet, right?

[joliefaire]

Yes, if you want to expand on that, that'd be great.  Thanks so much!  This thread really does soak up so many of the single, one-time 'what about this nitpick over here' issues. Of course, there will be those who use it to whinge ('My question is, why is Stannis a jerk?') type of post, but eventually, from what I've seen, it evens out and gets back on track.  If you think the spoiler/non-spoiler designation should be modified, of course, please do.  Like everybody else, I'm a newbie here!  Thanks for the input!

[Wilowy]

What are they going to do with all the kids growing up so fast? Bran is still small in the books, and in the previews Isaac looks like a pre-teen. And don't get me started on how much Maisie's shot up between filming. Sophie is just an Amazon (lovely, but still) - she'll be pushing Brienne's height pretty soon.

By the time George finishes the books, they'll all have grandkids.

[joliefaire]

Well, but then, this site is not at all about the books.  At all.  Its about the HBO show.  Two different animals.  And this thread is about little questions viewers may have about what's appeared on the show.  Seriously, a Mod is posting this?

Edited April 1, 2014 by joliefaire

[Wilowy]

My question was about the kids on the show. It's a fair question, one I'm curious to know the answer to, and I'm a viewer of the show as well. If you don't know the answer that's fine, but there isn't any reason to be rude.

[joliefaire]

I'm not rude.  Not at all.  I'm just stunned.  A board Mod saying this about the author of this series?

 

 

By the time George finishes the books, they'll all have grandkids.

I don't even know what to say.  I'm just stunned.  I've never seen anything like this from a Mod anywhere, ever.  I'm just speechless.  Do you expect ordinary forum members,show viewers to...what?  Am I, an ordinary show viewer, or any viewer here, supposed to explain what HBO is going to do about the kids growth?  Honestly, I'm just speechless.  I'm outta here.  Astounded.  Seriously, you're a Mod?

Edited April 1, 2014 by joliefaire

[David T. Cole]

I'm not getting why this is a capital offense here. Legitimate question asked. Mods are allowed to join in the discussion, they are not content monks. Was the question not fitting for the topic? Was the grandkids line beyond the snark pale? I don't think so, but even if they were, this reaction is way over the top and over the line.

[Haleth]

Could this be a place for non book readers to ask questions about plot points with the answers being spoiler tagged?  For example, the Unsullied are discussing who put out the hit on Bran while he was comatose.  If someone really, really wanted to know the answer, could it be asked here with the answer spoiler tagged?  Just curious.

[gautam7]

 

 

What are they going to do with all the kids growing up so fast? Bran is still small in the books, and in the previews Isaac looks like a pre-teen. And don't get me started on how much Maisie's shot up between filming. Sophie is just an Amazon (lovely, but still) - she'll be pushing Brienne's height pretty soon.

By the time George finishes the books, they'll all have grandkids.

The show runner D.B Weiss touched this topic in this interview on Vulture. I got this link from wic.net. I am on phone and for some reason the vulture website is not loading so I have not read this, so there might be spoiler. Proceed with caution if you don't like spoiler.

http://www.vulture.com/2014/03/db-weiss-on-game-of-thrones-kids-aging.html

Edited April 1, 2014 by gautam7

[Wilowy]

Could this be a place for non book readers to ask questions about plot points with the answers being spoiler tagged?  For example, the Unsullied are discussing who put out the hit on Bran while he was comatose.  If someone really, really wanted to know the answer, could it be asked here with the answer spoiler tagged?  Just curious.

Possibly. I do think a lot of those type questions could go in the Season 4: TV Spoilers thread. If you're just not sure where something would fit, this is a good place for that. 

Thank you for that link, gautam7!

[Independent George]

Possibly. I do think a lot of those type questions could go in the Season 4: TV Spoilers thread. If you're just not sure where something would fit, this is a good place for that.

I think this thread could be a good middle ground for people who generally don't want to be spoiled, except for one or two things that they really,really want to know about. So this way, the completely unspoiled thread remains for the Orthodox Unsullied, while this thread is acceptable for Reform Unsullied.

[Ffiferoo]

I think this thread could be a good middle ground for people who generally don't want to be spoiled, except for one or two things that they really,really want to know about. So this way, the completely unspoiled thread remains for the Orthodox Unsullied, while this thread is acceptable for Reform Unsullied.

That seems like a good compromise (and I love the "orthodox" and "reform" terminology).  I like Haleth's idea of spoiler-tagging answers to questions so that if someone who is unsullied comes through, they won't see any spoilers unless they want to for that particular question.  

[Turtle]

I think this is a good idea for a topic - I often have little questions about episodes that don't require a spoilery answer, but that could be cleared up by someone with more info about the overall story arc, whether it comes from spoilers or the books.  So I vote Yeah for a Little Questions thread.

Also, team #Willowy. 

[yellowfred]

For example, the Unsullied are discussing who put out the hit on Bran while he was comatose.  If someone really, really wanted to know the answer, could it be asked here with the answer spoiler tagged?  Just curious.

Is that just a hypothetical or is that a question you want answered?  If you want an answer:

Joffrey.

Edited April 3, 2014 by yellowfred

[Haleth]

Oh, I know.  I've read the books.  I was speaking for any Unsullied who wants to cheat. ;)

Edited April 3, 2014 by Haleth

[joliefaire]

I'd think that's exactly the type of question that would belong here.  It'd be great if the person asking the question would remind whoever wants to answer, to put their answer in spoiler tags.  I know that sometimes, when you're involved in discussions in half a dozen threads simultaenously, its easy to get confused whether or not a given thread is a spoiler or spoiler-free thread.

Sunday's nearly here--get those Little Questions ready!

[joliefaire]

 A Little Question here--some years back, there was a wonderful book fan who made gigantic pictorial maps of GRRM's world.  I just came across one at another site and don't want to bring it to this site until/unless I can credit the original artist.  Anybody remember his/her name?

 

ETA:  Nevermind, I found the answer.  The artist is J. E. Fullerton and his/her incredible maps can be found here. 

http://www.geek-art.net/j-e-fullerton-a-song-of-ice-and-fire-illustrated-maps/

Note:  These will be spoilery only in that the maps show a ton of places, names and sigils that non-bookreaders have never even heard of.

Edited April 3, 2014 by joliefaire

[TooMuchCoffee]

I like the idea of this thread but the discussion so far has confused me a bit.  The thread is labeled No Spoilers.  However, I can see where some answers could potentially be spoilers. 

I would think, unless something has explicitly been shown or answered on the television series (not books) aired to date, it probably needs to be in Spoiler tags. Why not err on the side of caution? Bookwalkers forget sometimes what has already happened on the show, been foreshadowed or dropped altogether perhaps to be picked up in a future episode. 

As an Unsullied, I opened this thread because the No Spoilers tag is displayed. Reading the comments makes me a bit nervous so I will probably avoid it.

I go out of my way to avoid spoilers. The only GoT threads I read on TWoP were the ones solely for the Unsullied.  They were monitored almost brutally for which I am forever grateful.  It only takes a split second for your eyes to see something they didn't want to see. 

That green No Spoilers label should mean a thread is safe harbor. Maybe I'm still confused.

[halgia]

That green No Spoilers label should mean a thread is safe harbor. Maybe I'm still confused.

That is what it's meant to mean, and we've decided that answers should be spoiler-tagged here. It's hard for bookwalkers like me to remember what's been on the show and what hasn't, so spoilering everything is probably best.

I just reread the thread and don't see anything that looks problematic, other than maybe a little bit of discussion of character age which could be minorly spoilerish I guess. Was there something in particular that made you worried? (In general, if so, flag it and a mod will put it in spoiler tags.)

[joliefaire]

How do people 'like' a post here?  I've had several 'likes', but when I tried to 'like' someone else, I only see options to report, edit or quote.  No 'like.'  What am I missing?

[Pagali]

For me, there are 3 icons at the bottom right of each post by other people. The first one looks like a Thumbs Up, and says "Like this item" when I hover over it.

Only on my own posts I see the Report, Edit, or Quote icons.

Edited April 4, 2014 by Pagali

[joliefaire]

For me, there are 3 icons at the bottom right of each post by other people. The first one looks like a Thumbs Up, and says "Like this item" when I hover over it.

Only on my own posts I see the Report, Edit, or Quote icons.

Thanks, Pagali, I do see it now.  But, I swear it wasn't there before when I looked!!  Thanks.

[TooMuchCoffee]

That is what it's meant to mean, and we've decided that answers should be spoiler-tagged here. It's hard for bookwalkers like me to remember what's been on the show and what hasn't, so spoilering everything is probably best.

I just reread the thread and don't see anything that looks problematic, other than maybe a little bit of discussion of character age which could be minorly spoilerish I guess. Was there something in particular that made you worried? (In general, if so, flag it and a mod will put it in spoiler tags.) 

Thanks. No, there was nothing specific. I was a bit sidetracked by the "controversy".  I always operate under the premise that there are no stupid questions.

It wasn't clear to me at first that all answers will be behind Spoiler tags. If so that's great. Thanks again.

[Guest]

Here's something that's been bugging my since the 1st season:  

If someone marries a bastard does the woman take the bastard name too?  And then what happens when they have children?  Do the children have a bastard surname even though the child is not really a bastard?

For example:  Jon Snow marries Ygritte.  Does she become Ygritte Snow?  If they have a child is his name Gritty Snow?  

I wasn't sure if this was the correct place to ask this because "Season 4" is listed in the topic title; but this question didn't seem to fit anywhere else.

[joliefaire]

Interesting question.  Obviously, it hasn't been addressed in the show.  But my guess is the answer is yes.  In Medieval Britain, it was common to add 'Fitz' before the family name of a lord's bastard.  So if Baron Henry Morgan had a bastard son named John, and wanted to acknowledge him, the child would be John FitzMorgan, for life.  Then, John FItzMorgan's offspring would become FitzMorgans as well, down through the generations.  And even today, we know there are many 'Fitz' family names, Fitzgerald, Fitzpatrick, etc. 

It wasn't so much to brand the child as being someone 'illegimate', it wasn't an insult.  Just the opposite, it was a mark of favor, an acknowledgement that the child is of royal blood.  At the same time, it quite neatly made clear for all time that the child and any of his offspring for however many generations, would never be in line to the lord's title and property.

[Lady S.]

It hasn't been specified in-show but I think that is the idea,

bastard names are something of a backhanded honor because only noble bastards get them. Smallfolk like Bronn and Ros don't have surnames at all. So Gendry is just Gendry, because Robert never acknowledged him. Jon's children can't get a surname that their parents don't have, so unless he was legitimized and became Jon Stark, they would also be Snows. The book example of this is one of Walder Frey's bastards, married with children also named Rivers. Legitimate children born to noble bastards can have modified bastard names though, with a prefix or suffix.

[quarks]

The bastard name issue was somewhat addressed in the books. I am spoilering it since it contains some minor information about past events that have not been mentioned in the show so far, and it's anyone's guess as to whether these events will get mentioned on the show in the future.

1. In some cases the children of bastards seem to lose their surnames completely and just become smallfolk with single names, since they are not children but grandchildren of bastards and therefore are not entitled to the bastard name.  This may be an advantage in some cases - in the books Catelyn Stark tends to have a negative reaction to anyone with a bastard name, for instance. In other cases they keep the surname - as with the Frey grandkids.

2. In other cases the bastards gain new last names and use them for their children. For example, some time in the past one of the Targayen bastards got the last name of "Blackfyre" and became known as Daemon Blackfyre. His descendants were known as Blackfyres and called themselves House Blackfyre. Daemon Blackfyre was eventually legitimized, however (plus, acknowledged son of the king) so it's possible that this is a rare exception that only happened because of that legitimization.

3. In other rare cases the bastards have been legitimized, eliminating the entire name issue.  So far this seems to have happened only when the other heirs have died out or when there has been some question as to who actually fathered the heirs.

[Guest]

Interesting question.  Obviously, it hasn't been addressed in the show.  But my guess is the answer is yes.  In Medieval Britain, it was common to add 'Fitz' before the family name of a lord's bastard.  So if Baron Henry Morgan had a bastard son named John, and wanted to acknowledge him, the child would be John FitzMorgan, for life.  Then, John FItzMorgan's offspring would become FitzMorgans as well, down through the generations.  And even today, we know there are many 'Fitz' family names, Fitzgerald, Fitzpatrick, etc. 

It wasn't so much to brand the child as being someone 'illegimate', it wasn't an insult.  Just the opposite, it was a mark of favor, an acknowledgement that the child is of royal blood.  At the same time, it quite neatly made clear for all time that the child and any of his offspring for however many generations, would never be in line to the lord's title and property.

Thanks guys.

Jolifaire - That was an interesting history lesson.  I have never heard of that before nor would I have thought about the "Fitz" family names today.  It does seem to me though that in Westeros it is an insult.  I also thought any bastard would get a bastard name be it a commoner bastard or a high born bastard.  But if it's only high borns that get bastard names that would make some sense even if Westeros considers "bastard" an insult.

Lady S & Quarks - I didn't read the stuff under the spoiler tags; but after the show is over and I go back and read the books it's good to know I'll find an answer.  OR I'll just come back here after the show is over and read what you guys said.  (Thanks for not putting spoilers out there)

FYI:  You guys probably already know this but.... If you quote a post with a spoiler tag you will see the actual spoiler text in the editor.  I found this out when I tried to quote Lady S & Quarks.  I quickly deleted the quotes and didn't see anything but that was a close call.  Again this is probably common knowlege to everybody but I didn't know that's how it worked.  That's my one new thing for today.

 

Edited April 9, 2014 by Guest

[quarks]

CuriousParker, I did NOT know that, so thanks - I'm not worried about Game of Thrones spoilers but I will be careful on other threads.

[Lady S.]

I'm brand-new and defionitely haven't tried to quote spoilers yet, so sorry about that. But show-wise, LC Mormont did say the recruits at Jon's "class" at the Wall came there with names of proud houses, bastard names, or no names at all. And I don't think any of the commoner characters (Bronn, Ros or the rest of Littlefinger's "investments" etc.) have had surnames.

Jerks calling Jon Ned Stark's bastard sure aren't trying to compliment him, but I always roll my eyes at Jon's line about bastardy not being a good life. Robert's bastards in King's Landing would know more about how bad a bastard's life can get. I think it's more of a classist differentiation. Highborns who'd look down on noble bastards would probably also look down on Davos for not being born noble or even Littlefinger for being lord of a pile of rocks. (The difference being courtesy means their position has get them a seat at the table.)  Lowborns' problem would be bitterness about noble bastards being more priveliged even though they're not noblemen, that's how Ser Alliser motivated the recruits against Jon back when he felt better than them. Then there's also people who just like to only use the correct terms. I don't think any of the wildings really think being a bastard is any worse than any other kind of southerner, since they don't even like the concept of property rights. The exception being that "daughter-fucking, wildling bastard" Craster but he's already an odd duck for the daughter-fucking and white walker-worshipping.

[Guest]

I'm brand-new and defionitely haven't tried to quote spoilers yet, so sorry about that. 

No worries.  I didn't know either.

[Travy1991]

What are they going to do with all the kids growing up so fast? Bran is still small in the books, and in the previews Isaac looks like a pre-teen. And don't get me started on how much Maisie's shot up between filming. Sophie is just an Amazon (lovely, but still) - she'll be pushing Brienne's height pretty soon.

By the time George finishes the books, they'll all have grandkids.

In my mind, a year passes with every season of the television show. In the first season; Sansa was confirmed as being aged 13, Bran aged 10 and Arya is about 11. Now that we're in the fourth season; I see Sansa as 16, Arya as 14 and Bran at about 13. If that's the case, Sophie Turner was only about a year older than her character when filming the fourth season.

I've actually been working out a show timeline. It's not terribly precise and I'm not attempting to be hugely accurate or anything but I'm up to Episode 4 of Season 1 and I can see about 8 months passing in just the first four episodes! In my mind, travelling distance on foot/horseback from The Wall to Winterfell is about a month. From Winterfell to King's Landing, about two months (the halfway location between these two destinations would be the Crossroads Inn).

The way I've worked out is something like this:

The show starts in 300AL in my mind. I know the books begin in 298AL and we're only up to 300AL now with the fifth one but I think 300AL (the beginning of a new century) is a good starting point for the show. Below I've included my idea of a breakdown. I've put in our months in place of whatever George's system is (George has stated that Westeros has a 12 month cycle like our own but they probably aren't named the same way, i.e. January to December but that's what I'm using here).

January 300AL: Gared, Will and Waymar travel north of The Wall. They encounter the White Walkers and somehow Will survives.

February 300AL: It takes Will about a month to get from the Haunted Forest to Winterfell on foot. Ned executes him, returns to Winterfell and hears of Jon Arryn's death. Catelyn tells him the king is coming to Winterfell.

April 300AL: Robert and the Lannisters arrive in Winterfell, having begun their journey from King's Landing in February 300AL. I know Cersei states in this episode that they've been riding for over a month but I'd place it around two because...have you seen a map of the Seven Kingdoms? There's a huge distance between Winterfell and King's Landing particularly if you consider the leisurely pace that the Queen and her children were riding at. During "April", Bran would have discovered the twincest, been pushed out the window and Ned would have taken the Hand of the King job. He sets out for King's Landing with Sansa and Arya while Jon, Benjen and Tyrion head for The Wall. At the end of the month, Bran is almost assassinated and Catelyn makes the decision to go to King's Landing with Ser Rodrik Cassel. Meanwhile across the Narrow Sea, Dany is introduced to Drogo and they get married.

May 300AL: Jon arrives at Castle Black and doesn't fit in so well. In Essos, Dany is also having a hard time until Doreah shows her how to assert herself in the bedroom and then Stockholm Syndrome kicks in (or at least Dany makes the best of a bad situation). Meanwhile, the king's party stop at the Crossroads Inn. Joffrey acts like a little bitch, Arya is awesome, Mycah gets run down by The Hound and poor Lady gets butchered on orders from Cersei. :( Bran wakes up from his coma.

June 300AL: Ned arrives in King's Landing and joins the Small Council. Catelyn arrives in King's Landing and Littlefinger plants the seeds to start a war. Catelyn then heads back to Winterfell after saying goodbye to Ned (for the last time *sniff*) Arya meets and learns how to "dance" from Syrio Forel. Tyrion and Yoren leave The Wall. Dany discovers that she is pregnant at the very end of this month.

July 300AL: The tourney for Ned's appointment as Hand of the King begins. Ned starts snooping around and finds Gendry. Tyrion arrives in Winterfell and gives Bran a saddle. Dany stands up to Viserys and gives him a good whack in the face. Sam arrives at Castle Black.

August 300AL: Catelyn has arrived at the Crossroads Inn (she and Rodrick probably did so leisurely which is why it took two months). They bump into Tyrion who has arrived at the Crossroads Inn. Catelyn calls on her father's bannermen to seize Tyrion. *headdesk*

And as you can see, it's not out of the question that a season of the show can take place over a whole year as that's just four episodes. Events should speed up considerably with the next six episodes. The one season over a year can certainly explain how the kids keep growing (Sophie and Maisie are probably at that age where they're done growing but Isaac will probably still continue to shoot up and mature) and it also explains the huge growth spurt the dragons took from the Season 3 finale to the Season 4 premiere.

Really, I don't think the showrunners (or maybe even Martin) have put a huge amount of effort into making an accurate timeline. They're just doing what can service the plot best.

Edited April 11, 2014 by Travy1991

[Haleth]

I hope this isn't off topic, but I'm looking for some reading material to take with me while traveling.  Is anyone familiar with Scott Lynch's Gentleman Bastards series?  Is it something a GRRM and JRRT fan would enjoy?  Thanks!

[yellowfred]

In my mind, a year passes with every season of the television show. In the first season; Sansa was confirmed as being aged 13, Bran aged 10 and Arya is about 11. Now that we're in the fourth season; I see Sansa as 16, Arya as 14 and Bran at about 13. If that's the case, Sophie Turner was only about a year older than her character when filming the fourth season.

Well, the main problem with that is that Sansa actually says in "Second Sons" that she's going to be turning 14 soon.  I'm not saying that the show couldn't start accelerating the timeline going forward to accommodate their young actors aging, but they haven't so far.

[Travy1991]

Well, the main problem with that is that Sansa actually says in "Second Sons" that she's going to be turning 14 soon.  I'm not saying that the show couldn't start accelerating the timeline going forward to accommodate their young actors aging, but they haven't so far.

I think Sansa said she was 14 in "Second Sons" when Tyrion asked her for her age. That could still mean she was turning 15 later that year. I doubt the show is following my timeline but it makes sense that each season takes place over the course of the year. I wonder do the showrunners spend much time focusing on timelines? There were a couple of criticisms about how Littlefinger "teleported" around the Westeros in Season 2...from King's Landing to Storm's End to the Stark camp to Harrenhal and then back to King's Landing again.

[Jalyn]

I hope this isn't off topic, but I'm looking for some reading material to take with me while traveling.  Is anyone familiar with Scott Lynch's Gentleman Bastards series?  Is it something a GRRM and JRRT fan would enjoy?  Thanks!

Maybe best in the general books topic?

Regardless, the Gentleman Bastard Series is completely different in tone and style than either GRRM or JRRT.

There's no "quest" or "prophesized one" feel to the story anywhere, making it even less standard epic than GRRM. 

* The world building, while deep, is done entirely differently and is done with a very light hand. Being a fan of both GRRM and JRRT, I find Lynch to be more enjoyable than either but less likely to cause me to spend time thinking about it when I'm not actually reading it.

If you're looking for something closer to those two, you might try Rothfuss (if you haven't already) but I would highly suggest Lynch at some point.

*(No specific book spoilers at all, for GoT, Lord of the Rings or the Gentleman Bastards, I just mention some vague overarching stuff that the Unsullied might not wish to see.)

[yellowfred]

I think Sansa said she was 14 in "Second Sons" when Tyrion asked her for her age. 

She said she'd be 14 in about a month ("at the next moon's turn" or something like that).

[Travy1991]

She said she'd be 14 in about a month ("at the next moon's turn" or something like that).

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eD-eFSQD7Mw

Nope, she just says she's 14.

Edited April 11, 2014 by Travy1991

[Haleth]

Thank you, Jalyn!

[Robespierre]

Okay, guys, I have a really stupid question about the Unsullied. (Bear in mind that I'm not the most observant watcher of this show; my wife loves it, but I only pay attention about half the time.)

 

So, the Unsullied are all castrati, right? (Do they ever say what age they clip them at?)

 

So why do they have deep voices and considerable muscles? Does Astopor have medieval Androgel?

 

Maybe this is a stupid question to ask about a show that features dragons, but I thought the human parts were supposed to work basically the same way as in our world.

 

Am I just overthinking this?

[joliefaire]

 

Am I just overthinking this?

  Yes.  :)

[Wilowy]

His questions are valid, joliefaire. 

 

Does anyone have an answer for Robespierre? I'd like to know too. I'm a bookwalker but do not recall the details of the Unsullied's introduction into the order. 

[Mya Stone]

I don't know why I was thinking that they kept their manhood until a certain age. 

I thought there was some ritual behind losing it, but maybe it's them killing newborns that I'm thinking of. 

[TooMuchCoffee]

It seems like we might get an answer soon. The question was raised in the episode tonight.

[Meredith Quill]

Okay, guys, I have a really stupid question about the Unsullied. (Bear in mind that I'm not the most observant watcher of this show; my wife loves it, but I only pay attention about half the time.)

 

So, the Unsullied are all castrati, right? (Do they ever say what age they clip them at?)

 

So why do they have deep voices and considerable muscles? Does Astopor have medieval Androgel?

 

Maybe this is a stupid question to ask about a show that features dragons, but I thought the human parts were supposed to work basically the same way as in our world.

 

Am I just overthinking this?

I've tagged the answer to leave those who don't want to know unspoiled.

According to A wiki of Ice & Fire:

Their training starts at age 5. They are fully castrated - penis and testicles cut - and their manhoods burned at the altar of the Lady of Spears.

This means that they cannot be as strong as whole men, but this is more than made up for by discipline.

They regularly consume an elixir called the Wine of Courage to deaden their sensitivity to pain.

They drink it with every meal, and every year feel less and less pain.

There is more info but I've only provided the answers to your direct questions.

[CletusMusashi]

Where are all the Hill tribes? In Season 1, you couldn't walk through the Vale area for five minutes without running into them. Then they got all that military equipment from Tywin, supposedly to go back there and cause trouble, and there has been no sign of their existence since then. 

[Robespierre]

Thank you, SilverStormm!

[Lady S.]

Where are all the Hill tribes? In Season 1, you couldn't walk through the Vale area for five minutes without running into them. Then they got all that military equipment from Tywin, supposedly to go back there and cause trouble, and there has been no sign of their existence since then. 

That one's just a show plot hole. They should have been at least mentioned by now.

[dr pepper]

So, the Unsullied are all castrati, right? (Do they ever say what age they clip them at?)

 

So why do they have deep voices and considerable muscles? Does Astopor have medieval Androgel?

 

They take the boys at age 7.

and yes, they cut everything

, so they never know what they are missing. As for their muscularity, i imagine that physical training does that. They are, after all, less defined than female bodybulders. 1) you don't need the almighty T to get strong, and 2) there are secondary sources of it in the body.

Edited June 2, 2014 by dr pepper