S06.E02: Home

[WearyTraveler]

15 minutes ago, Eyes High said:

From a book reader's perspective, in addition to the Jon Snow resurrection (which is huge, admittedly), we also found out that Bran's not going to be in the cave forever. A lot of book readers took it as virtually confirmed that Bran would never leave the cave, so if he does in the show, it's a big deal. Leaf also seemed to be implying that Meera would survive for some time, as Leaf told her she needed to be around to help Bran.

This is where things get wonky.  I think most book readers saw Jon's resurrection coming, so, the show confirming that was expected.  But, the show has also killed Barristan, Doran, Myrcella and Trystane who are still alive in the books. Martin has said the show has killed people who have a role to play in his next books (if he ever finishes them).  The show has butchered the Dorne storyline and they are doing Jaimie no favors.

I think Bran getting out of the cave might be one of those things the show does that may not be in the books, like merging Sansa and Jeyne Poole's storylines.  I think book Rickon is being kept alive to inherit Winterfell, but the showrunners might think that the audience would be more emotionally connected to Bran than to Rickon, whom we haven't seen for a long, long time, and never had anything important to do on the show.  So, they may be merging Bran and Rickon's storylines.

Until GRRM confirms it, like he did Shireen's burning at Stannis' hand, I'm not going to take it as book canon.

11 minutes ago, VCRTracking said:

Game of Thrones' Kit Harington to Fans: 'Sorry for Lying to Everyone!'

I saw that and LOL at EW's soooper sikrit, BTS report.  There were so many leaks regarding Jon's resurrection, they all looked rather silly insisting that he was dead, dead, dead.

Also, Jon's resurrection is already on YT:

 Ghost is HUGE!!!

[Winnief]

Hey we'd ALL love to meet the Mormont women whose children are fathered by bears!  I just don't know if it will happen this season...

[FemmyV]

7 minutes ago, ParadoxLost said:

I wonder if the reaction to Jon's resurrection won't be entirely positive amongst those that we'd hope it would be.  They are fighting an undead army.  Jon being a little less ice zombie compared to the enemy might not be that reassuring.

Jon's ice zombie will probably have better communication skills.

[that one guy]

1 hour ago, RedheadZombie said:

Someone upthread stated Jon knew Rickon and Bran were alive.  Is this true?  When did he find out?

Sam told him, after meeting Bran at the Nightfort.

[stillshimpy]

Just incidentally, at some point, apparently without my knowledge, I became a big Thormund fan.  I had a big case of the "Oh hell yeah!"s going for Wun Wun, Edd and Thormund storming the gate and -- this is key to my joy -- imprisoning Ollie, world's least sympathetic orphan, on ice.  

Ollie's Adolescence is hard on us all. 

[Winnief]

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Jon's ice zombie will probably have better communication skills.

And it'll definitely be prettier.  That's gotta count for something right?!? 

[SeanC]

4 minutes ago, RedheadZombie said:

Brienne not telling Sansa that Arya was with the Hound.  Brienne didn't know the Hound prior to their battle, right?  But Pod knew him.  This means that Brienne and Pod would have both agreed to keep this news from Sansa.  Unless they're withholding it temporarily.

I don't think there's any indication Brienne was deliberately withholding that information (why would she?).  Rather, the writers just had her relay the news in a manner that avoided saying his name.

[Winnief]

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I don't think there's any indication Brienne was deliberately withholding that information (why would she?).  Rather, the writers just had her relay the news in a manner that avoided saying his name.

True-it's not like Brienne would have known that the Hound had any particular significance to Sansa. 

[stillshimpy]

Plus, the Hound left King's Landing before Brienne got there.  I'm sure she is meant to know who he is, but she wouldn't necessarily think that Sansa had any close dealings with him.  He's known as a dangerous man, so not saying "Arya was with The Hound" might have been purposeful only in that she didn't want to distress Sansa unduly because Brienne beat him and knocked him down a really big ass hill.  

[mac123x]

Ollie's Adolescence is hard on us all.

Jake Lloyd the Second.  I hope he dies soon.  Or just stays offscreen, that'll work for me.

Just now, SeanC said:

I don't think there's any indication Brienne was deliberately withholding that information (why would she?).  Rather, the writers just had her relay the news in a manner that avoided saying his name.

For one thing, she might not know that Sansa knows the Hound.  Sandor buggered off in S02E09.  Brienne didn't get to Kings Landing until the end of season 3.  Brienne might have skipped his name because she thought that Sansa might know him by repute only, and would be scared that Arya was with him.  Ironically, she'd probably feel good that Arya had him protecting her.

 

For another

the writers might be avoiding naming him until he can pop up later, still alive, for a nice surprise.

[Unknown poster]

8 minutes ago, WearyTraveler said:

This is where things get wonky.  I think most book readers saw Jon's resurrection coming, so, the show confirming that was expected.  But, the show has also killed Barristan, Doran, Myrcella and Trystane who are still alive in the books. Martin has said the show has killed people who have a role to play in his next books (if he ever finishes them).  The show has butchered the Dorne storyline and they are doing Jaimie no favors.

I think Bran getting out of the cave might be one of those things the show does that may not be in the books, like merging Sansa and Jeyne Poole's storylines.  I think book Rickon is being kept alive to inherit Winterfell, but the showrunners might think that the audience would be more emotionally connected to Bran than to Rickon, whom we haven't seen for a long, long time, and never had anything important to do on the show.  So, they may be merging Bran and Rickon's storylines.

Until GRRM confirms it, like he did Shireen's burning at Stannis' hand, I'm not going to take it as book canon.

I saw that and LOL at EW's soooper sikrit, BTS report.  There were so many leaks regarding Jon's resurrection, they all looked rather silly insisting that he was dead, dead, dead.

Also, Jon's resurrection is already on YT:

 

 Ghost is HUGE!!!

When did Martin confirm that Shireen's fate in the books matches the show? I've heard that he gave them the idea for her show exit, but that isn't quite the same thing. Given the Baratheons locations and situations at the end of ADWD, not to mention everything we know about book Stannis, it seems pretty far fetched to think they will end up in sync with the show storyline.

[KaleyFirefly]

1 hour ago, that one guy said:

What is done may never die, but rises again, harder and stronger.

Killing Walda was stupid. Doesn't Ramsay need the alliance with Walder Frey? Bad things happen when you cross that guy.

I thought so too. He could have just killed the baby (and put word out it died during birth or something), then kept Walda around for alliance purposes. 

[Winnief]

Ramsay is incapable of thinking farther than the nose on his face, and sooner or later that's gonna catch up with him.

[SeanC]

Just now, KaleyFirefly said:

I thought so too. He could have just killed the baby (and put word out it died during birth or something), then kept Walda around for alliance purposes. 

The Freys haven't been providing the Boltons with any support in the show, unlike the books.

[Alayne Stone]

Not that I'd call myself a Euron fan but his introduction did absolutely nothing to me. Can't believe his "when they see my sails, they pray" line felt so flat. I also hate how somber Yara is in the show. She's so much funner in the books.

I was expecting the Tyrion dragon scene to be a lot more hokey based on the spoilers but for once I thought it actually played out really well. Nice little touch with the book dialog that was adapted when he talked about wanting a dragon when he was younger, "it could be little, like me." Sniffs.

Thought the scene with Sansa and Theon was, once again, very good. Sophie and Alfie have really good chemistry together, and I saw that on a purely platonic level.

I'm so here for the flashbacks. HERE FOR IT. I love that it doesn't feel like a flashback either. I liked the way they interjected Bran and we, through his eyes, feel like that scene was happening in real time. Kudos to the actor playing young Ned. He managed to get Sean Bean's tone down. And I loved little Lyanna. She's exactly how I pictured her.

Man, what a way to end the episode. So glad the cast can finally talk about it now.

TOWER OF JOY NEXT WEEK GET HYPE.

Edited May 2, 2016 by Alayne Stone

[Winnief]

Quote

TOWER OF JOY NEXT WEEK GET HYPE.

I know!!!  We can finally discuss the Big Reveal with the Unsullied.

 

I mean a lot of them have already guessed but it will be so much better once it's official.

[Alayne Stone]

I really don't know why Brienne said "she was with a man" either unless she thought that maybe Sansa would at the very least be familiar with his reputation and thus that it might worry her. I don't know, it was a weird choice to make though.

[KaleyFirefly]

1 hour ago, lmsweb said:

When they kept panning to Ghost I was terrified they were going to kill off my pretend furbaby (the whole "death pays for life" thing)

They had better not touch a single hair on Ghost's furry head! If they kill Ghost I'm done with show! Done!

[Tippi]

Welcome back, Jon!  I was expecting a more fiery resurrection, but this actually worked quite nicely as well.  Loved the flashback and I'm looking forward to more.  Meera is really quite lovely and I hope there will be something good for her in the future. 

While I do enjoy a villain that you can love to hate, Ramsey is just vile.  I'm afraid there isn't a death bad enough for him.  Please show, do not let him be reborn as a White Walker.

Edited May 2, 2016 by Tippi

[trif]

The first Varys-is-a-eunuch joke last week was so clunky I thought it must be a form of (reminder) exposition for an upcoming plot point. Now that it happened again I'm inclined to suspect they were just out of ideas for Tyrion's weely joke quota.

Karstark's complete non-reaction to Ramsay gutting Roose I also took as evidence that Ramsay premeditated this, and Karstark was in on it. But Karstark just discovered that Sansa is still escaped and might actually make it to John on the way there-- he is the one delivering the news. So then we are supposed to assume that Karstark feels so strongly that they should attack Castle Black to kill Jon that Ramsay felt comfortable making a "just in case my dad won't do this, are you cool if I grab power?" bargain on the way in to report the news? Obviously it's in character for Ramsay, but count me among those who are pretty sick of how he, as a major character with a lot of screen time, is not subject to the normal rules of politics (and military strategy) that drive this show. Roose did make the "if you act like a mad dog, you'll be treated like a mad dog and taken out back and fed to the pigs comment" which is maybe supposed to be prophetic. I hope it's not just a punch line for Ghost or his own dogs to end up eating him after Jon (and Sansa?) retake Winterfell. It can be that too, but I'd like it if the run up to his demise also involves the actual spirit of Roose's comment, which is that people have to be able to think you follow some of the rules some of the time to even try to work with you. At least name-checking some other houses makes me hope they are going to develop some of those more political and interpersonal motivations down the line this season.

Glad Tommen is getting some character development! He's too central to the plot now to keep off stage with contrivances like "he's busy sulking". There was an interesting moment during his apology to Cersei where I felt like she was thinking of the prophecy and still believing he was going to die. Yet she was obviously touched by his speech. Looking forward to seeing where that goes and if/how Cersei blows this newfound trust. Will she actually make a sincere attempt to get Margaery back and restore the Tyrell alliance?.

[Winnief]

Agreed.  Living with the death of Stark children's dire wolves in the past has been as traumatic as living through the deaths of Starks, and Ghost was always my favorite puppy too.

[Unknown poster]

7 minutes ago, KaleyFirefly said:

I thought so too. He could have just killed the baby (and put word out it died during birth or something), then kept Walda around for alliance purposes. 

For as much as they are pushing Ramsey as the "big bad", he really isn't much smarter than his book counterpart. He doesn't appear to have any plans, outside of attempting to rally the Umbers and Manderlys to go kill the Nights Watch. (I'm not sure that's an easy sell) swapping Roose out for him is a major downgrade, character wise, and if it doesn't lead to Ramsey promptly running the Bolton ship into the ground, it's not going to work for me.

[WearyTraveler]

9 minutes ago, Unknown poster said:

When did Martin confirm that Shireen's fate in the books matches the show? I've heard that he gave them the idea for her show exit, but that isn't quite the same thing. Given the Baratheons locations and situations at the end of ADWD, not to mention everything we know about book Stannis, it seems pretty far fetched to think they will end up in sync with the show storyline.

There were interviews with D&D in the entertainment news outlets.  I recall the quote "when he [Martin] told us how Shireen would die and that it would be on Stannis orders", I think they mentioned it in the videos they do after the episodes.  Martin never contradicted them

I remember this because, at the time, the forums were ablaze with the revelation that Stannis would sacrifice his own daughter.  Many of us wondered about the logistics, off course, giving the geographical locations and distances of the characters in the books, but it doesn't need to happen the same way as it did on the show.

[stillshimpy]

While I do enjoy a villain that you can love to hate, Ramsey is just vile.  I'm afraid there isn't a death bad enough for him.  Please show, do not let him be reborn as a White Walker.

That's the thing, he's not really even interesting.  He's just constantly competing in some "I'll top that! Again! And again!" Nastiness and Repulsiveness Olympics at this point.  

Karstark is allegedly there and allegedly defected from the Starks because they didn't have enough bloody thirsty honor for the Karstark's ends.  The problem is, Ramsay has no honor, loyalty or human emotion that means anything.  Even if Karstark was in on the "oh he's totally going to kill his father" of it all, how does that not bother him?!?  If he'll kill his father, a baby, a woman -- who is the daughter of one of his allies -- and essentially anyone who gets in the way of his rather formless end goals, how can Karstark not understand "Well, he'd not only kill me, he'd kill my children....my wife....my relatives....me...and it wouldn't even necessarily be to accomplish anything, just that I got in the way of him doing what he wanted at that moment..." 

People don't follow savage toddlers as a way of life. 

[Eyes High]

I loved Carice's performance this episode. Having something to do other than be smug and enigmatic has given her the chance to flex her acting muscles, and it's been great.

[Winnief]

Quote

That's the thing, he's not really even interesting.  He's just constantly competing in some "I'll top that! Again! And again!" Nastiness and Repulsiveness Olympics at this point.  

Precisely.  Frankly Roose was a MUCH better villain than he was.  What a waste.

[SeanC]

On a minor note:  Walda walking around perfectly normally right after she gave birth is ridiculous.

[Winnief]

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On a minor note:  Walda walking around perfectly normally right after she gave birth is ridiculous.

Good catch.

 

Still not as ridiculous as finding Dany's ring, or LF's infamous teleporter though.

[Unknown poster]

2 minutes ago, SeanC said:

On a minor note:  Walda walking around perfectly normally right after she gave birth is ridiculous.

Hey, she carried that baby to term in about a month, so I suppose anythings possible....

[Oscirus]

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I thought so too. He could have just killed the baby (and put word out it died during birth or something), then kept Walda around for alliance purposes. 

Walda became dangerous to keep around once Roose died.  If the lie is kept up that Walda was poisoned like Roose, then their alliance is still tight since I'd imagine that Walder would want revenge for what happened to his daughter.

[stillshimpy]

I loved Carice's performance this episode. Having something to do other than be smug and enigmatic has given her the chance to flex her acting muscles, and it's been great.

It has been -- if not fun -- far more interesting to see Melisandre in the wake of having her faith destroyed.  The actor really has been conveying her despair and weariness, but hopefully in amongst that "it was all a lie" is the guilt of all the people she sacrificed to that faith.  All the people she killed, or burned thinking that fire was the purest death and she was sending them on to some wonderful form of the afterlife for their sacrifice.  

Not only is she having an existential crisis that would cripple almost anyone, it would be horrible to have that kind of knowledge pressing on her soul.  Not merely being wrong, but being that wrong in her action towards others.  

Admittedly, Jon's resurrection could restore that faith ten fold and make her even more voraciously faithful, which is a terrifying thought, or she could also think that her Lord of Light judged her unworthy in some capacity.  It will be interesting to see what she makes of Jon's return. 

[avecsans]

Why is the Many-faced God wasting his time issuing hits on insurance scammers in Braavos when he could be eliminating Ramsey Bolton?  And did Lord Karstark Junior realize what a psychopath he was dealing with when he hitched his wagon to the Bolton star?  I will miss snarky Roose and his mellifluous voice.  I can't decide the best way to take out Ramsey.  For Theon to kill him?  Or Sansa?  Or for his own dogs to do the job?

I am kind of liking chastened Melisandre but I wonder if her arrogance will come back now that she has resurrected Jon?  And I love the alliance of Ser Davos, Tormund Giantsbane and Dolorous Edd.

[Winnief]

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Why is the Many-faced God wasting his time issuing hits on insurance scammers in Braavos when he could be eliminating Ramsey Bolton?

A better question is why hasn't the Many Faced God taken ANY interest in the horde of undead beyond the Wall or Cersei's abomination in armor?!? 

Really Faceless Men, get your priorities in order!!!

[Unknown poster]

3 minutes ago, Oscirus said:

Walda became dangerous to keep around once Roose died.  If the lie is kept up that Walda was poisoned like Roose, then their alliance is still tight since I'd imagine that Walder would want revenge for what happened to his daughter.

I'd be more inclined to believe Walder would wash his hands of the Boltons entirely, once he no longer stood to profit. 

[Alayne Stone]

I know Carice has been expressing her desire to portray a more vulnerable side to the character, so I'm glad she's finally able to do it. My only, only gripe with the whole thing (and it is a minor one, really) is the fact that there's never really been any reason for her or Davos to want to invest in him. She saw him fighting at Winterfell in the flames but so far no actual reference to him possibly being AA. Should be interesting to see how she reacts to his resurrection.

Poetic justice for Ramsay would be to have some sort of four legged creature take him out, preferably ghost. But I don't see that happening. I'd be satisfied with Sansa ordering his execution and Jon delivering the blow to his neck though.

Sadly, I have a feeling Euron's going to be an even more cartoonish villain than Ramsay. And I'm already seeing lots of people cheer him for having killed Balon, presumably unsullied viewers. I keep thinking "Oh my sweet, summer children. You know nothing." Because he's worse.

[Sunnydayman]

Nice episode.  There can only be one Sith.  Ramsey is more evil than his father so it makes sense that he survived.  

Is Arya going to have kill the mean girl or is the mean girl really Jaqen?  

I was was hoping that Jon would be resurrected on the funeral pyre and come out as a Targaryen.  Glad to have him back however it happened.  

[Alayne Stone]

And you know, I was never really sold on Meera Reed's casting, but I really liked the little we saw of her in this episode. I don't know if the melancholy is much closer to her book counterpart or if it's because the actress just seems to have grown more into herself ... but I really liked her.

I find it curious that no one's touched on the fact that Leaf said "He won't be here forever." I know I was one of those people who assumed Bran would never leave that cave. Clearly that's not going to be the case in the show.

[Oscirus]

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I'd be satisfied with Sansa ordering his execution and Jon delivering the blow to his neck though.

As a Stark, the person who delivers the sentence has to carry it out.  So in your scenario, Sansa would have to deliver the sentence.

 

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I'd be more inclined to believe Walder would wash his hands of the Boltons entirely, once he no longer stood to profit. 

An alliance with the most powerful house in the North (at the moment) isn't such a shabby prize.

[KaleyFirefly]

1 hour ago, magdalene said:

I may be ready to give up on show Jaime. He is so ineffectual and completely out of character. 

But he is so pretty to look at.

[Audreythe2nd]

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Sadly, I have a feeling Euron's going to be an even more cartoonish villain than Ramsay. And I'm already seeing lots of people cheer him for having killed Balon, presumably unsullied viewers. I keep thinking "Oh my sweet, summer children. You know nothing." Because he's worse.

Granted I only saw the man for like two minutes, but he wasn't played cartoonishly at all. He might be worse in terms of his actions, but I doubt he's going to have the unsubtlety of Ramsay, which is the main problem with Ramsay in the first place. If he's an interesting villain along the sames veins of a Tywin or Roose, I could get behind that. 

Edited May 2, 2016 by Audreythe2nd

[kittykat]

Oh man, all of this was so good.  

I can't believe I'm pissed off about Roose Bolton being dead.  But dammit Ramsey.  I agree with this above who say that young Karstark was in on it.  Let's see how many people will quit the show over a newborn being fed to dogs because that was more vile than any rape I've seen on this show.  I think he's getting ahead of himself when he mentioned the Umber and Manderley houses aligning with him.  No so fast sociopathic baby feeder.

Good to see Bran again.  That Winterfell flashback was wonderful and heartbreaking.  Once such a happy place.

Hi Balon, bye Balon.  The last of the five kings has fallen (two books too late).  We'll see how it goes with Euron. 

I know people are worried if the show is going of the rails without the books to guide them but I've enjoyed the pacing of these episodes.  One example is Arya, if this were an S3 or 4 episode I suspected there would've been half a season of blind beatings but we're already moving on.  Is it next Sunday yet?

[BloatedGuppy]

I'll be frank...the decision to watch Game of Thrones this year was not an easy one. My opinion of the series started a slow deterioration during the second season, the nadir of which was reached in Season 5 where things began to go badly...at times even comically...off the rails. I'd always felt the show bungled almost universally whenever it deviated from the source material (often for indefensible reasons, or no evident reasons whatsoever) but I appreciate this kind of ironclad loyalty to source material rankles show fans.

 

So all that said, I'm quite enjoying Season 6 for the simple reason that there's nothing to compare it against. I mean, it's still flatly ridiculous in many moments, but without any vastly superior source for contrast it holds up as a silly but fun show, instead of a crushingly disappointing adaptation. Doran murdered by the Sand Snakes?! Sure, okay. It could happen! Ramsay stabbing Roose in front of witnesses, and the witnesses are all okay with it? WHY NOT! I'm sure there are egregious departures occurring here that would ordinarily have me frothing at the mouth, but as it stands, it's hardly fussing me at all.

 

So it's just the little things that end up irritating me through two episodes.

 

• Why on earth is Davos so fixated on resurrecting Jon? He barely even knows him on the show. They've established no friendship between them. Davos was never particularly committed to the Watch or their goals. I see you in there, cumbersome plot device. It all would have worked MUCH more naturally if Melisandre had just come to that bloody conclusion on her own.
• Why are the Faith Militant not arresting/detaining Jaime? It's completely out of character for them, and he threatened the High Sparrow right there in the sept. 
• What on EARTH are Varys and Tyrion doing wandering around Mereen unattended right after the unsuccessful assassination attempt on Daenerys? "We're disguised, no one will suspect anything?". You're two of the most physically conspicuous individuals on the continent. Absolutely ludicrous.
• How does Varys already have "Little Birds". Buddy you just arrived. Spy networks take time to set up.
• Why are the Night's Watch archers all pointing their bows at the side of the building in order to look ready, with strings drawn back? That's preposterous. One, that's very physically draining, two, what are they planning on shooting at? All their targets are inside a closed room.
• Really terrible dialogue at moments, with the Sand Snakes and Tyrion being the most notable offenders.
• Bloodraven just kind of chilling in the roots like the Friendly Giant is so cheesy looking its startling. The show usually does better work with its production elements than this.
• Zombie Gregor's SUPER blue face is also pretty cheesy looking. Also, why is Zombie Gregor out on some random patrol, wherein he kills some townsperson (ostensibly for slandering the Queen). That's really stupid. Kingsguard don't randomly patrol the streets, Zombie Kingsguard even less so.
• Brienne's ability to unerringly cross paths with the Stark Girls has reached High Comedy on the show. Pretty sure that's three times now, across the entirety of Westeros, with at least one of them completely disguised and both moving in secret. She'd have no better luck if they had quest markers over their heads.

All of it adds up to a continuation of the same sloppy, clown-shoe writing that started speckling the show early on and broke out into a raging fire by Season Five. So I expect the quality to continue circling the drain as they run out of their last dregs of book material. However, as I said, perfectly fine to watch it now. Now it's just a fun, cornball show.

[BigBeagle]

26 minutes ago, Oscirus said:

As a Stark, the person who delivers the sentence has to carry it out.  So in your scenario, Sansa would have to deliver the sentence.

I'm down with that.

[GrailKing]

2 hours ago, maraleia said:

I love that this season they are killing off all the horrible older men in charge to make way for the next generation. Down with the patriarchy!!!

I don't think it happening quite the way you think:

Bran is coming home eventually, some houses may be led by woman, but not all, Sansa may be Bran's regent or she may form her own house, get the Dreadfort, Missandei could get rulership over seas some changes not total change.

[Minneapple]

Ramsey is the worst. They better write a good and painful death for him, and soon.

Yay flashbacks! And young Lyanna, kudos on the casting. She actually resembles Maisie Williams.

I keep waiting for the show to make Jaime more like his book counterpart. Sigh. Guess I'll be waiting awhile.

Oh, Theon and Sansa. I really liked them together and hope they reunite at some point. It's always nice when a character actually considers that his actions have consequences.

[Eyes High]

Peter Dinklage's acting against what I assume were the dragon puppets was really good, in my opinion. Best work from him in quite some time.

Couldn't help but be reminded of Hiccup and Toothless from How to Train Your Dragon and Chris Pratt with the raptors in Jurassic World. Judging from Twitter, I wasn't the only one.

59 minutes ago, Alayne Stone said:

And you know, I was never really sold on Meera Reed's casting, but I really liked the little we saw of her in this episode. I don't know if the melancholy is much closer to her book counterpart or if it's because the actress just seems to have grown more into herself ... but I really liked her.

I find it curious that no one's touched on the fact that Leaf said "He won't be here forever." I know I was one of those people who assumed Bran would never leave that cave. Clearly that's not going to be the case in the show.

I assumed Bran was never going to leave that cave, too. Whoops!

As for GRRM's statements that TV characters can outlive their book selves and vice versa, and that characters can have different endings than they do in the books, blah blah blah, I think there's an appreciable distinction between second-tier characters like Stannis, Dorne, Trystane and Myrcella and a core Stark character like Bran's fate. A character like Myrcella can have a different road in the show and the books as well as a different destination. A character like Bran, though? If he leaves the cave in the show permanently (as opposed to leaving it and later returning), then I have no doubt that the same will happen in the books. For the core characters like Bran, the roads won't be all that different, and the "different roads will lead to the same castle," as GRRM put it.

Speaking of Bran, IHW's voice seems to have changed since Season 4, or else he's affecting a deeper, richer voice. Love it.

Sansa's affectionate little smile when Brienne mentioned that Arya wasn't dressed like a lady was beautiful.

Funniest part of the episode? One of the serving girls eyerolling at the guy speculating about Jaime's dick size.

Edited May 2, 2016 by Eyes High

[kittykat]

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Why are the Faith Militant not arresting/detaining Jaime? It's completely out of character for them, and he threatened the High Sparrow right there in the sept. 

Wasn't Jamie calling the sparrow out on their hypocrisy of punishing the women way more harshly than the men for the same sins?  He pretty much called him out and said he should've been arrested just as much as Cersei.

[Brn2bwild]

The more I think about it, the more ridiculous I find Theon's reasons for leaving.  If he's feeling so guilty about his sins, you'd think he'd consider it his duty to take Sansa all the way to the wall, and if Jon wants to kill him, it's his right.  Instead it's like: "I'm guilty of killing all these people and I shouldn't be forgiven, but I also don't want to get killed. Byeeeee!"

[GrailKing]

2 hours ago, Eyes High said:

From a book reader's perspective, in addition to the Jon Snow resurrection (which is huge, admittedly), we also found out that Bran's not going to be in the cave forever. A lot of book readers took it as virtually confirmed that Bran would never leave the cave, so if he does in the show, it's a big deal. Leaf also seemed to be implying that Meera would survive for some time, as Leaf told her she needed to be around to help Bran.

Marriage?

[spinxella]

 

Ghost looked so beautiful sleeping peacefully.

Honestly, I'm just ridiculously happy that Ghost survived this episode. No Wolfie sacrifice!

I want him to snack on that treacherous little tween Ollie and then rip out Ramsey's throat.