S06.E09: Battle Of The Bastards

[proserpina65]

19 hours ago, KaleyFirefly said:

It was fantastic, but for me, the most awesome battle of the series (visually) will always be "Hardhome."

Hardhome did set the standard. 

[proserpina65]

15 hours ago, paigow said:

Liam Neeson is his father...so maybe that will make it easier...

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0320661/fullcredits?ref_=tt_cl_sm#cast

This was 2005  - Look at all the GoT cast members

Yeah, I enjoy Kingdom of Heaven DESPITE the presence of Orlando Bloom.  It's a beautifully made film, and almost all of the supporting cast is amazing.  Too bad it has a giant nothing of an actor in the middle.

[Lady S.]

47 minutes ago, terrymct said:

I really hope that Littlefinger and the Knights of the Vale just showed up at the last minute (it's a bit of a ride up the King's Road from the Vale, isn't it?). The alternative is that Sansa had them waiting over the hill, putting Jon, Rickon, and all the fighters on their side at risk until it was the right moment to swoop in and surprise Ramsay's troops. That would be a cold and calculated maneuver. Is she capable of that? I'm thinking yes, since the whole feeding Ramsay to the dogs thing was stone cold.

Do you really think Rams would have handed over Rickon if he knew the other side had him outnumbered? That guy still thought Winterfell would protect him after the KotV made their grand entrance and he was smiling as Jon beat him bloody. 

It was seeing Shaggy's head that made Sansa storm off from the parley. She was right about Rickon being a dead boy walking but she was not unaffected by that fact. 

[Harald Hardrada]

That is the most satisfying death I have seen since the Purple Wedding. An unfortunate end for the Boltons. Hope we can see the same with the Targaryen girl and her annoying dragons.

[Atia]

3 hours ago, Neurochick said:

Perfect desktop background too.

My on demand started working again yesterday, so last night I watched the episode again, especially the last scene when Ramsay's dogs finally ate.  Was that a real dog?  It looked real when it got up in his face and was sniffing, but even I could see the bad CG when it bit his face, the sound effects were awesome in that scene.  If that was a real dog, what species is it?  It looked like one of those old hound dogs I used to see on my uncle's porch in Georgia. 

One more thing, did Ramsay see Littlefinger sitting there smiling smugly at him?  If he did, Ramsay must have realized that Littlefinger played him, I mean first he brought Sansa to him, and THEN his defeats his arms. 

I'm still thinking presa canario 

[Mabinogia]

1 hour ago, terrymct said:

I really hope that Littlefinger and the Knights of the Vale just showed up at the last minute (it's a bit of a ride up the King's Road from the Vale, isn't it?). The alternative is that Sansa had them waiting over the hill, putting Jon, Rickon, and all the fighters on their side at risk until it was the right moment to swoop in and surprise Ramsay's troops. That would be a cold and calculated maneuver. Is she capable of that? I'm thinking yes, since the whole feeding Ramsay to the dogs thing was stone cold.

I would think it was more like Littlefinger hid just out of view without Sansa's knowledge, waiting for the most heroic moment to then flagged her down and acted like he just got there. I don't think Sansa is that calculating...yet. I think she'll get there, but she's just getting started. But I can totally see Littlefinger making sure his contribution had the biggest possible impact.

That dog definitely looks like the one who ate Ramsey. All hail the great presa canario!

[Constantinople]

1 hour ago, terrymct said:

I really hope that Littlefinger and the Knights of the Vale just showed up at the last minute (it's a bit of a ride up the King's Road from the Vale, isn't it?). The alternative is that Sansa had them waiting over the hill, putting Jon, Rickon, and all the fighters on their side at risk until it was the right moment to swoop in and surprise Ramsay's troops. That would be a cold and calculated maneuver. Is she capable of that? I'm thinking yes, since the whole feeding Ramsay to the dogs thing was stone cold.

 

22 minutes ago, Lady S. said:

Do you really think Rams would have handed over Rickon if he knew the other side had him outnumbered? That guy still thought Winterfell would protect him after the KotV made their grand entrance and he was smiling as Jon beat him bloody. 

I doubt Ramsay would, but it's possible Umber or Karstark (or both) would have shanked Ramsay and turned over Winterfell & Rickon in exchange for being confirmed in their current positions as Lord WhoZeeWhatZee of FrozenPileOfNorthernCrap.

23 minutes ago, Lady S. said:

It was seeing Shaggy's head that made Sansa storm off from the parley. She was right about Rickon being a dead boy walking but she was not unaffected by that fact.

I agree.

[Lady S.]

27 minutes ago, Mabinogia said:

I would think it was more like Littlefinger hid just out of view without Sansa's knowledge, waiting for the most heroic moment to then flagged her down and acted like he just got there. I don't think Sansa is that calculating...yet. I think she'll get there, but she's just getting started. But I can totally see Littlefinger making sure his contribution had the biggest possible impact.

Yeah, I can't see Littlefinger actually giving the army to Jon to command. Sweeping in with the KotV after allowing the other forces to bleed themselves fighting each other was always his plan. And if Sansa was down with that plan, why would she tell Jon to wait and not to do what Ramsay wanted? If she was willing to sacrifice both her brothers, there was no need to argue with Jon, just let charge into Ramsay's trap.

Edited June 22, 2016 by Lady S.

[Neurochick]

35 minutes ago, Atia said:

presa canario 

Beautiful animal.

[meep.meep]

15 hours ago, KaleyFirefly said:

Snow hair don't care -- it must be free!

But ever since returning from the dead, he's been rocking the man bun.

The Wildings seem to need their long locks flowing in the breeze.

[terrymct]

Yes, of course Sansa was right about Rickon's days being numbered. She was right about Ramsay being able to manipulate Jon into exposing himself and putting his troops at a disadvantage. I'm just still holding a little hope that she's not completely ruthless.

[Bean421]

More from Sophie about the episode: 

Quote

Sophie Turner talked to HBO’s Making Game of Thrones about Sansa’s influence on the outcome of the battle between her brother and her former husband (which “Sansa wasn’t expecting to win”) and said that Jon’s reluctance to take her strategic advice the night before has sexist roots.

“I think the social boundaries of the time period that Thrones is loosely based on means that these men still view women as less capable of battle planning or anything to do with typical seemingly ‘male’ activities. Patriarchy, even in this fictional world, is very real,” she said.

I know we're going round in circles about this but a few things:

1. Jon apologized for not asking Sansa's opinion

2. He asked her for advice or what she would do. She withheld information and offered generalizations about Ramsay's personality. 

There was no actionable advice so to attribute this particular situation to the patriarchy seems a bit off. 

[Mabinogia]

1 hour ago, terrymct said:

She was right about Ramsay being able to manipulate Jon into exposing himself and putting his troops at a disadvantage.

If Ramsay had gotten Jon to expose himself...*fans self* Oh, you meant break ranks and move within firing range? My bad.

[annsterg]

It took me a while to figure out (aided by a bit of the Google) that the shield Jon was holding in the Winterfell keep when he was advancing on Ramsay was a Mormont shield!

So at least 1 of the 62 Bear Islanders lived through that battle!

[taanja]

18 hours ago, Hecate7 said:

They meant no one who's actually watching the show.

I have watched the show since ep one season one. I didn't hate Ramsey. I like my evil seriously evil. I thought Joffrey was great. And Ramsey's father as well as the Lannister patriarch (his name escapes me at the moment). They both had a cool dude factor going hand and hand with their evil tendencies.

  But of course I never liked or cared about that girl that got burned. Or the new one-- what's her name? She hasn't done anything to deserve my affection one way or the other.

[DarkRaichu]

7 minutes ago, annsterg said:

It took me a while to figure out (aided by a bit of the Google) that the shield Jon was holding in the Winterfell keep when he was advancing on Ramsay was a Mormont shield!

So at least 1 of the 62 Bear Islanders lived through that battle!

Only to die once they reached Winterfell.   Didn't Jon pick that shield from the ground?

[Cynna]

19 hours ago, Hecate7 said:

They meant no one who's actually watching the show.

(This makes me laugh and laugh everytime I see it!)

7 hours ago, Neurochick said:

Was that a real dog?  It looked real when it got up in his face and was sniffing, but even I could see the bad CG when it bit his face, the sound effects were awesome in that scene.  If that was a real dog, what species is it?

Yes it's real, I don't think there was any CGI used in that scene. It's a Cane Corso in the final shots, the other one seen is a Presa Canario. They're both mastiff breeds.

34 minutes ago, DarkRaichu said:

Only to die once they reached Winterfell.   Didn't Jon pick that shield from the ground?

Yup. :(

[annsterg]

1 hour ago, DarkRaichu said:

Only to die once they reached Winterfell.   Didn't Jon pick that shield from the ground?

Maybe it was ... merely a flesh wound?

Crossing fingers for BAMF Lady Mormont not having lost ALL her men at arms.

[paigow]

2 minutes ago, annsterg said:

Maybe it was ... merely a flesh wound?

Crossing fingers for BAMF Lady Mormont not having lost ALL her men at arms.

Maester Sam should send Tormund to Bear Island and see if Wildling - Bear inter-species breeding yields hybrid super soldiers as replacements.

[HumblePi]

5 hours ago, Lady S. said:

Do you really think Rams would have handed over Rickon if he knew the other side had him outnumbered? That guy still thought Winterfell would protect him after the KotV made their grand entrance and he was smiling as Jon beat him bloody. 

It was seeing Shaggy's head that made Sansa storm off from the parley. She was right about Rickon being a dead boy walking but she was not unaffected by that fact. 

I don't think Ramsay had a single thought of handing Rickon over to Jon Snow alive. Even if he knew that his troops were outnumbered, he was just that evil to kill Rickon. Ramsay is dead but Game of Thrones always needs one person that's so reviled and hated by fans that there will certainly be another on the horizon. My question is who will it be? I have thought maybe Littlefinger or even the Hound. We've all grown a soft spot for the Hound and maybe there'll be a little thumbing of the nose at us by the writers if they turn the Hound into something evil. But neither Littlefinger or the Hound has really done enough to earn our contempt. I do see a final battle coming between the Hound and his 'little' brother the Mountain though.

Walder Frey will be reappearing next week and he will either be the next bad guy on the hit list, or he will be next season's nemesis.

Edited June 22, 2016 by HumblePi

[Drogo]

The Mountain is The Hound's older brother. 

[Cyranetta]

Quote

It is still so strange to me that Ghost is completely absent. Did Jon leave him at the Wall?

Now for me it  made sense that Ghost was not there. If he had been part of a pack (as he should have been), there might have been a way to deploy them around the edges to pull down straggling enemies. A single canine, no matter how splendid a direwolf, would likely get trampled by horses or axed or otherwise done in quite soon in that kind of battle, so I'm very glad he's somewhere else alive.

[HumblePi]

8 minutes ago, Drogo said:

The Mountain is The Hound's older brother. 

that's right and I got confused because the actor's biological ages are 20 years apart.  Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson plays the older brother, Ser Gregor Clegane, he's actually almost two decades younger than Rory McCann, who plays his sibling Sandor.

[Hecate7]

14 hours ago, RCharter said:

I wonder if Tyrion was more upset about Theon killing Bran and Rickon and took it out on Theon by bringing up the mean spirited jokes.

Tyrion has suffered far worse insults and taken them in stride, but I think killing children would really strike Tyrion's heart.  Especially since he liked Bran.

I thought the dialogue made it pretty clear Tyrion was furious with Theon for murdering the Stark boys. That Theon is innocent of that particular crime will probably soften Tyrion's attitude a little, enough for learning what Theon has been through to soften it a little more. Tyrion has always been a Stark sympathizer, and marrying one has made him even more of one.

[RCharter]

8 hours ago, annsterg said:

Maybe it was ... merely a flesh wound?

Crossing fingers for BAMF Lady Mormont not having lost ALL her men at arms.

All the hearts for a Monty Python reference.

[Constantinople]

Another Season One character bites the dust.

[CeeBeeGee]

On 6/20/2016 at 0:12 PM, HumblePi said:

Exactly! And besides we got a glimpse of those 'old hills' a few episodes ago, the 'hills' are lowlanders now and she's about 280 years old (give or take a few centuries).  Davos finding the wooden stag he carved and gave to Shireen is significant in how and who will end the life of Melisandre. Why that wooden figure didn't burn in the pyre is nothing short of miraculous, but good TV. I know from my limited knowledge of the Salem, Mass. witch burnings that a witch can be burned at the stake. I'll throw out a wild guess and project that Melisandre will suffer the same fate that she subjected Shireen to.

 

The Salem witches were hanged, not burned at the stake. That was mostly a medieval, European thing.

[terrymct]

Quote

"The Salem witches were hanged, not burned at the stake. That was mostly a medieval, European thing."

I believe one of the men who was accused was crushed to death. They put a board on top of him and loaded it with stones, something like that. On another subject, I'm really hoping Davos ends Melisandre's connection to power if not her life. He's a more measured man than Jon so he won't run at her with sword drawn, but damn that would be viscerally satisfying.

Edited June 23, 2016 by Drogo
Quote formatting

[Lady S.]

18 hours ago, annsterg said:

It took me a while to figure out (aided by a bit of the Google) that the shield Jon was holding in the Winterfell keep when he was advancing on Ramsay was a Mormont shield!

So at least 1 of the 62 Bear Islanders lived through that battle!

It was very fitting since Jon fights with a sword which formerly belonged to House Mormont.

[HumblePi]

4 hours ago, CeeBeeGee said:

 

The Salem witches were hanged, not burned at the stake. That was mostly a medieval, European thing.

Thank you for the fact check

[annsterg]

10 hours ago, Constantinople said:

Another Season One character bites the dust.

Poor Rickon.He was dealt a terrible hand. Of all the Stark children, he had the least happiness/fewest years of stable home life with his family.

I hope that while the Greatjon was alive, he was treated as an honored guest, tutored in all the things a highborn lad should know, and had some comfort and safety before it was ripped away.

[paigow]

12 hours ago, Hecate7 said:

I thought the dialogue made it pretty clear Tyrion was furious with Theon for murdering the Stark boys. That Theon is innocent of that particular crime will probably soften Tyrion's attitude a little, enough for learning what Theon has been through to soften it a little more. Tyrion has always been a Stark sympathizer, and marrying one has made him even more of one.

Theon cannot rule the Iron Born because he has betrayed them too many times. Got many of the SEAL Team killed by refusing to leave. Lied to the Iron Born occupying Moat Cailin that they would get safe passage home if they surrendered. Lost Winterfell due to mutiny instead of just pillaging and leaving. When he takes off his pants and explains this backstory to Tyrion, things should be less - not fewer -  hostile.

[Hecate7]

2 hours ago, paigow said:

Theon cannot rule the Iron Born because he has betrayed them too many times. Got many of the SEAL Team killed by refusing to leave. Lied to the Iron Born occupying Moat Cailin that they would get safe passage home if they surrendered. Lost Winterfell due to mutiny instead of just pillaging and leaving. When he takes off his pants and explains this backstory to Tyrion, things should be less - not fewer -  hostile.

What are you saying? I never said Theon could rule the Ironborn, and I didn't use the word fewer. I was just explaining why Tyrion is so hostile to him when they first meet. Tyrion was a jerk to Theon the first time we saw them interact, as well, without any explanation at all--goading him because he was a Stark hostage, not a Stark family member, a fact of which Theon was already only too aware. We never saw Theon make all those short jokes, but if he did that explains Tyrion's rudeness in their first encounter. Tyrion may also have suspected Theon of being the one who threw Bran from the tower--he knows who sent the assassin, but not what led up to that, so that also might explain why he was so mean.

Now that he knows that Theon isn't trying to get anything for himself, that he's suffered hugely for what he did, and he knows what Theon's living with, one hopes he'll stop rubbing it in and making eunuch jokes. He's joking mostly because it's horrible and because laughing at his own dwarfism has helped him live with it, but he's not stopping to think that it's his OWN laughter that eases things for him, not someone else's.

There will still be a little hostility because Theon did many bad things, but hopefully Tyrion will dial it down a bit so that they can work together.

Edited June 23, 2016 by Hecate7

[paigow]

1 hour ago, Hecate7 said:

What are you saying?

Sorry. Did not make it clear that he should have explained this when Dany asked him about ruling Pyke.

[meep.meep]

On 6/22/2016 at 1:20 PM, Cynna said:

 

Yes it's real, I don't think there was any CGI used in that scene. It's a Cane Corso in the final shots, the other one seen is a Presa Canario. They're both mastiff breeds.

 

According to the actor, the dogs were real but weren't there with him physically.  So lots of effects.  Not sure if  its actually termed CGI.  He says it was too dangerous to even consider having him in the scene with the real dog because if something went wrong, then he was a gonner.

From an Esquire interview:

How did you film that final scene? Were those real dogs or were they CGI?

It's a combination. They use plates so it looks like the dog is there, but the dog isn't actually there. Those dogs are bred in a specific way and trained in a specific way… They're not like normal dogs that you can tell to sit and stuff. They only listen to their owner, and they're kind of like guard dogs. It's not really safe to have them anywhere near an actor. They're quite vicious.

 

They're also not the type of dog that anyone would ever use for hunting.

[lmsweb]

Not sure if anyone else remembers this, but there was a big news story back in 2001 about two Presa Canarios killed Diane Whipple in the hallway of her apartment building. One of the dog's caretakers was sentenced to 15 years in jail. The woman who was killed had 77 bite wounds. Incredibly aggressive dogs.

[RCharter]

5 hours ago, lmsweb said:

Not sure if anyone else remembers this, but there was a big news story back in 2001 about two Presa Canarios killed Diane Whipple in the hallway of her apartment building. One of the dog's caretakers was sentenced to 15 years in jail. The woman who was killed had 77 bite wounds. Incredibly aggressive dogs.

Yes, I think I mentioned earlier that the dogs got a bad rap after the SF dog mauling so I sort of wished they wouldn't have used them for that scene.  Those specific dogs had been raised to be aggressive, and they were in a small, cramped apartment.

[Mabinogia]

Well, same could be said for Ramsey's dogs. They were raised to be very aggressive and to eat human flesh so I don't really blame the dogs for what happened.

[terrymct]

I watched the episode again and something occurred to me. People are talking about the rise of the female leaders, but there's really a twist on that. Each of the effective or potentially effective female leaders has a man or men giving significant guidance. Dany has Tyrion, Varys, and sort of Ser Friendzone. Lyanna Mormont has her unnamed older male advisors. Yara has Theon. Sansa has Littlefinger, maybe Jon but probably won't listen to him. Strong women without male advisors or guides have troubles: Ellaria and the Sand Snakes: Murderous, emotional, hope we never see them again. Melisandre: Tried to direct men rather than taking input from them, ended in lots of death. Cersei: Tried to do some world class manipulation and king making on her own without her father or brother, has failed at almost everything.

Edited June 24, 2016 by terrymct

[DollEyes]

Quote

Joffrey certainly DID kill off "baby relatives." He had all of Robert's known bastards killed, including the horrible scene in Littlefinger's brothel, where the baby was torn from his screaming mother's arms and killed. We thought Cersei was responsible for the murders but it was Joffrey.

Quote

Joffrey was the worst, but so was Ramsey.

ITA, re the last point. Just because Joffrey may have technically committed more infanticide than Ramsey, that didn't make him better than Ramsey by a long shot. They both killed innocent people regardless of age just go get what they wanted, neither of whom were worthy.  Both Joffrey and Ramsey were sociopathic monsters who deserved to die, with or without the baby-killing. 

[revbfc]

56 minutes ago, DollEyes said:

ITA, re the last point. Just because Joffrey may have technically committed more infanticide than Ramsey, that didn't make him better than Ramsey by a long shot. They both killed innocent people regardless of age just go get what they wanted, neither of whom were worthy.  Both Joffrey and Ramsey were sociopathic monsters who deserved to die, with or without the baby-killing. 

They're both awful.  The biggest difference between them was that Ramsay was a more competent foe.  

[Popples]

If people still want to know why Ghost wasn't in the battle, it came down to him and Wun Wun, so Ghost was nixed. But he's not dead!

[Deanie87]

Quote

Make room at that table for another chair! I'm not sure how it happened either, I think it's the chemistry of the actors, I was a little blindsided by it.  Glad Ramsey got fed to the dogs, I could think of no more fitting end, although the actor is amazing.  This episode had a lot of girl power in it and interested to see where it goes.  

Yeah...me too.  At one point I think he kisses her on the forehead and I was like "Wait, that's it?Why am yelling for them to make out?!?"  But I was. His dark looks and her pale skin and red hair, they just look good together, especially when they are all wrapped up in furs and the actors do have a lot of chemistry. They aren't full blood siblings, and even if they were, it's not like that is unheard of in these parts. So I am all here for the Jansa. Snonsa? Snark? 

I really, really wish that Theon had somehow gotten some revenge on Ramsay, beyond his escape and all that it entailed. I'm sure he's just glad to be free and I'm sure that he would be pleased to learn that Ramsay died at Sansa's hands, but he earned a bit of that.  I would have liked to see Theon confront Ramsey as himself and not Reek. I know that Theon has done some awful things, but Ramsay's treatment of him is one the most sadistic things this show has produced. And given the various skull crushing, rapes and daughter burnings, that's saying something. 

[AliShibaz]

I sure do hope no one else has posted about this. I checked the 3 last pages of this thread but didn't see it.

The following is a link to a GIF that shows John Snow in the battle with his sword but it appears the producers did not want to weigh him down with a bunch of heavy iron. So ... his sword's scabbard is either empty or it's made of rubber. I found this to be hilarious ...

http://metro.co.uk/2016/06/24/this-new-game-of-thrones-gif-has-completely-destroyed-jon-snows-street-cred-for-all-time-5964788/

I hope you all enjoy this as much as I did. Look for the GIF titled "Valyrian Rubber".

Edited June 25, 2016 by AliShibaz

[wayne67]

Anyone else curious as to whether they're going to burn all those corpses before the White Walkers come?

I wonder what kind of army will be left by the time the White Walkers arrive. 

[lmsweb]

23 hours ago, AliShibaz said:

I sure do hope no one else has posted about this. I checked the 3 last pages of this thread but didn't see it.

The following is a link to a GIF that shows John Snow in the battle with his sword but it appears the producers did not want to weigh him down with a bunch of heavy iron. So ... his sword's scabbard is either empty or it's made of rubber. I found this to be hilarious ...

http://metro.co.uk/2016/06/24/this-new-game-of-thrones-gif-has-completely-destroyed-jon-snows-street-cred-for-all-time-5964788/

I hope you all enjoy this as much as I did. Look for the GIF titled "Valyrian Rubber".

LOL I had a friend of mine send me that GIF, and I had to confess to him I was so distracted wondering if Kit was going to actually make it onto the horse that I never noticed. I have to assume that was take 41 of the day because he really looked done in trying to heave himself into the saddle.

Edited June 26, 2016 by lmsweb

[Constantinople]

"You will support my claim as queen of the Seven Kingdoms and respect the integrity of the Seven Kingdoms"

Dany voting No on Pykexit

[RCharter]

On 6/24/2016 at 7:04 AM, terrymct said:

I watched the episode again and something occurred to me. People are talking about the rise of the female leaders, but there's really a twist on that. Each of the effective or potentially effective female leaders has a man or men giving significant guidance. Dany has Tyrion, Varys, and sort of Ser Friendzone. Lyanna Mormont has her unnamed older male advisors. Yara has Theon. Sansa has Littlefinger, maybe Jon but probably won't listen to him. Strong women without male advisors or guides have troubles: Ellaria and the Sand Snakes: Murderous, emotional, hope we never see them again. Melisandre: Tried to direct men rather than taking input from them, ended in lots of death. Cersei: Tried to do some world class manipulation and king making on her own without her father or brother, has failed at almost everything.

Yes, but Lady Bear ignored her counselors, so I don't think they are required or an essential part of her rule.  If anything she was more swayed by Davos, but the decision was solely her own.

Yara has almost no need for Theon, and I can't see many decisions where he has been a driving force.  I think Yara wants Theon around, but she doesn't require his advice

And Sansa's latest decisions may have employed LF, but they haven't been made due to any counsel by LF.  In fact, she has been far more successful as a leader when she realized that LF had sold her out to the highest bidder and was not to be trusted.  .

Additionally, Olenna doesn't seem to have a male figure giving her guidance.

So, I don't know that there is some "behind every strong woman is a strong man" reasoning really holds true here.

OTOH Cersei had her father, and a counsel of men, and Qyburn, and she FUBAR'd almost everything.

[candall]

Quote

"Those dogs are bred in a specific way and trained in a specific way… They're not like normal dogs that you can tell to sit and stuff. They only listen to their owner, and they're kind of like guard dogs. It's not really safe to have them anywhere near an actor. They're quite vicious."

Well, this is nonsense.  There undoubtedly are dogs that unscrupulous people [die in hell] breed to be vicious--dogs bred to win or die trying in illegal fighting rings.  But "actor" dogs would need to be even more responsive than "normal" dogs so they will reliably obey "sit and stuff."  A predilection for aggression is the last trait you'd want for a professional working dog--rather, the opposite.

I don't blame the guy for not wanting to be strapped down and covered in red syrup with a giant dog in his face, but no need to hold himself out as an authority on canine breeding and behavior. 

Hmmph.

[DollEyes]

So much awesomeness, so little time! Dany & her dragone kicking ass & taking names, Grey Worm killing two master with one blow, Daario, the Dothraki & the Unsullied making short work of the "Golden Face Warriors" (as I call them), Lady Bear giving Ramsey the stink eye and Tormund's giving Umber one of the worst facials ever were great, but Jon's giving Ramsey the karmic justice he's so richly deserved with a little help from Sansa & Littlefinger was epic. 

  ReLF, while I agree that his helping Sansa wasn't guaranteed, giving Jon a heads-up would have been nice. I know that Sansa has been through Hell ( to put it mildly), but she shouldn't have kept her deal with LF a secret from Jon. True, "strategery"'s not Jon's strong suit and he's much more about emotion than logic, but Jon's also Sansa's family. Jon's not LF, he's not Joffrey and he's sure as Hell not Ramsey; he's Sansa's half-brother, part of what little family she's still got, which sould have earned Jon the benefit of the doubt in this case. Given LF's track record with the truth in general and the Starks in particular is disastrous at best, I predict that Sansa's trusting him will backfire way sooner than later, probably at much at Jon's expense as her own. However, LF's potential victory isn't a foregone conclusion. For one thing, Jon was dead not too long ago. Jon's return had me worried at first because as Pet Sematary proved, those who comeback from death comeback wrong (again, putting it mildly), but Jon's resurrection seems to have given him special powers, otherwise he wouldn't have survived numerous close calls on the battlefield, including near-suffocation. As for Sansa, she's survived Joffrey and Ramsey, so LF shouldn't underestimate her like they, especially Ramsey, did. 

 

In his infinite arrogance, Ramsey assumed that Sansa was the same helpless victim whom he married and subsequently raped,  but he was wrong, in no uncertain terms. Ramsey believed that Sansa and his dogs would remain loyal to him despite his cruelty to them, only to learn the hard way that starving beasts have no loyalty except to those who feed them and Ramsey hadn't in a week, which meant that Ramsey not only got what he deserved, he brought it on himself.