Season 8: Speculation and Spoilers Discussion

[MarySNJ]

15 hours ago, Eyes High said:

The Iceland stuff is from a Nutter episode, so 8x01, 8x02 or 8x04. Iceland is usually doubling for beyond the Wall, but it seems unlikely that Jon and Dany are going to go skipping off beyond the Wall when they are needed at Winterfell.

Winter has come, and the Wall has been breached. The NK brings the cold with him, so it could really be anywhere in North at this point. 

[GrailKing]

http://watchersonthewall.com/dragonpit-set-takes-shape-game-thrones-season-8-italica-shoot-approaches/#more-162093

[Eyes High]

NCW and other main actors were filming at the multi set at Corbet near Banbridge (Linen Mill Studios), according to Irish Thrones. Irish Thrones wouldn't name the other actors, but they likely include Kristofer Hivju and Gwendoline Christie, who were both spotted in Belfast on Sunday.

2 hours ago, GrailKing said:

http://watchersonthewall.com/dragonpit-set-takes-shape-game-thrones-season-8-italica-shoot-approaches/#more-162093

Looks like the same setup as last year. Lots of photos, although I doubt we'll see much once the site shuts down for filming.

Less than a week until Italica filming starts. We could have some big endgame spoilers coming out of Seville depending on who shows up for filming.

Edited April 17, 2018 by Eyes High

[whateverdgaf]

52 minutes ago, Eyes High said:

NCW and other main actors were filming at the multi set at Corbet near Banbridge (Linen Mill Studios), according to Irish Thrones. Irish Thrones wouldn't name the other actors, but they likely include Kristofer Hivju and Gwendoline Christie, who were both spotted in Belfast on Sunday.

I sense a Golden Bitch Slap on the horizon. :)

[Eyes High]

17 hours ago, whateverdgaf said:

I sense a Golden Bitch Slap on the horizon. :)

Hee. 

More tidbits:

1. The exterior shots of the castle doubling as Highgarden in S7 will be used again in Season 8 (but they won't be returning to that castle to film, they'll just be using the exterior shots to establish the location). Sam gets Highgarden? Bronn gets his castle? 

2. An eagle-eyed fan on /Freefolk noted that Margaret Prescott, who has worked on previous seasons as a seamstress and costume maker, is credited in 8x01 on IMDB as the "costume maker for Emilia Clarke," a new title. Is S8 Dany's costuming so intricate that she needs a costume maker all to herself? Does it have something to do with pregnant Dany? 

[bubble sparkly]

Haha I guess Dany is serving fierce looks in s8. I would think she would have to be wearing wintry attire in most of the episodes, so hopefully she gets some more bitching coats like from 7x06.

The timeline for s8 is going to be all over the shop, but surely Dany won’t develop a visible belly until maybe ep 4?

[Edith]

1 hour ago, Eyes High said:

Hee. 

More tidbits:

1. The exterior shots of the castle doubling as Highgarden in S7 will be used again in Season 8 (but they won't be returning to that castle to film, they'll just be using the exterior shots to establish the location). Sam gets Highgarden? Bronn gets his castle? 

2. An eagle-eyed fan on /Freefolk noted that Margaret Prescott, who has worked on previous seasons as a seamstress and costume maker, is credited in 8x01 on IMDB as the "costume maker for Emilia Clarke," a new title. Is S8 Dany's costuming so intricate that she needs a costume maker all to herself? Does it have something to do with pregnant Dany? 

1. Probably Sam. Maybe finishing writing his book, A Song of Ice and Fire? 

2. IMDB can be edited by anyone so not really a reliable source of information. For season 6, I guess, they have Michelle Fairley listed as cast member. 

1 hour ago, bubble sparkly said:

The timeline for s8 is going to be all over the shop, but surely Dany won’t develop a visible belly until maybe ep 4?

This is going to be interesting. If the GC arrives at Winterfell in episode 2 or 3, then that means that a lot of time must have past between season 7x7 and new season. The same thing can be say for Theon at Winterfell. 

[GrailKing]

For those who want a link :

 

http://watchersonthewall.com/game-of-thrones-season-8-spoilers-castle-of-fallen-house-will-return-with-a-twist/

[Eyes High]

3 hours ago, Edith said:

1. Probably Sam. Maybe finishing writing his book, A Song of Ice and Fire? 

2. IMDB can be edited by anyone so not really a reliable source of information. For season 6, I guess, they have Michelle Fairley listed as cast member. 

1. That would be my first guess.

2. Fans monkey with cast info (Michelle Fairley made a number of appearances post-Season 3 on IMDB), but they usually can't be bothered with crew stuff, and if they did put a fake in, it would be something meant to be obviously "spoilery" like "Costume Maker - Lyanna Targaryen" or something like that.

Quote

This is going to be interesting. If the GC arrives at Winterfell in episode 2 or 3, then that means that a lot of time must have past between season 7x7 and new season. The same thing can be say for Theon at Winterfell.

Cynically, Jon got around Westeros a lot in Season 7, going from Winterfell to Dragonstone, beyond the Wall, back south again and then heading north at the end of 7x07, but I agree that if Theon's at Winterfell sans Yara with Ironborn forces in S8 (assuming that 4chan guy who claimed he saw Theon assisting Bran at Winterfell on set), then yes, a lot will have happened between 7x07 and 8x02 or 8x03. If Theon is at Winterfell by 8x03 or whenever the attack takes place, that means that Theon needs to rescue Yara, kill or successfully evade Euron, dump Yara at Pyke (or have an emotional scene where Yara dies), rally the Ironborn to go north to fight with Jon, make it to Winterfell, and make his peace with everyone who isn't Jon or Sansa who has beef with him and the Ironborn (...pretty much everyone) before it's attacked. Theon's going to be a busy boy in the first two episodes for sure. 

I think we can expect a good chunk of the first two episodes to be devoted to Ironborn shenanigans. The rest, other than scenes relating to the advance of the AOTD, will probably be taken up by drama at Winterfell (once the obligatory tearful reunions are out of the way). Jon and Dany are banging! Jon pledged to Dany and ceded Northern independence! Jon's not only legitimate, he's the true heir! Ned Stark lied to everyone for years to protect Jon! Dany's knocked up! Cersei reneged on her promise! Jaime wants to join Team Jon/Dany! Jaime pushed Bran out a window! Dany burned Sam's father and brother! The Wall has been breached by a wight Viserion and the AOTD is closing in! Etc. etc. It pretty much writes itself.

Edited April 18, 2018 by Eyes High

[screamin]

8 hours ago, Edith said:

This is going to be interesting. If the GC arrives at Winterfell in episode 2 or 3, then that means that a lot of time must have past between season 7x7 and new season. The same thing can be say for Theon at Winterfell. 

If they came most of the way by ship, not TOO much time need have passed. I still think the GC follows Theon's old tactic in taking WF with few numbers - take advantage of Jon's absence with most of his men to drop off on the coast at the closest point to WF and take them unawares. 

Yes, it would be dumb for WF to fall for the same strategy twice, but I think the showrunners will hope we'd have forgotten that last time.

[GraceK]

If Cersei loses her baby around the same time she finds out Dany is pregnant, she could see that as the YMBQ taking everything from her prophecy finally coming to fruition and that could make Cersei completely lose her shit and attack WF. At that point she may seriously not care that it’s a looney tunes move as long as there is a chance she can kill Dany and Jon somehow.

Edited April 19, 2018 by GraceK

[anamika]

6 hours ago, screamin said:

If they came most of the way by ship, not TOO much time need have passed. I still think the GC follows Theon's old tactic in taking WF with few numbers - take advantage of Jon's absence with most of his men to drop off on the coast at the closest point to WF and take them unawares. 

Yes, it would be dumb for WF to fall for the same strategy twice, but I think the showrunners will hope we'd have forgotten that last time.

Why do you think Jon is absent? From the look of things, all the battles are being fought at WF and just outside WF with the GC, Greyjoys, Mormonts, Vale, Dothraki, Unsullied  and AOTD involved.  We also know that Jon is present in the WF crypts with one other character when the horn blows signifying the arrival of either GC or the AOTD.

Edited April 19, 2018 by anamika

[Eyes High]

Pilou left London recently. Headed to Belfast...?

Alfie spotted in the Departures area of Belfast’s airport.

Work on Italica site (platform construction) continues. From the looks of it, they have a lot of work to do if it’s going to be ready for Monday filming.

WOTW reports eight new characters being cast:

1. Five characters for an improv-heavy scene haggling over land. No mention of main cast being involved.

2. Strong soldier type for one scene. Needs an imposing presence and combat skills. Shooting week commencing May 23rd.

3. Village girl, to be attacked by a man in a physically intense scene (and will be naked above the waist). Same shooting dates as the soldier in #2.

4. Clean-shaven grieving man in highly emotional scene. Shooting week commencing June 18th. (The scrappy mother's child is also supposed to be shooting between June 19th and June 26th.)

Why "clean-shaven," I wonder?

Edited April 19, 2018 by Eyes High

[WearyTraveler]

1 hour ago, Eyes High said:

Why "clean-shaven," I wonder?

They usually (not always) choose beardless men to portray Southern nobility, but who knows?

[Eyes High]

42 minutes ago, WearyTraveler said:

They usually (not always) choose beardless men to portray Southern nobility, but who knows?

Quite possible.

Surprised they're doing another rape scene. I was under the impression that they backed off on such scenes since the S5 backlash.

Emilia Clarke in full costume does an adorable promo for a GOT set trip contest. I really, really hope this means the white fur coat is back for S8, because there's no topping that.

[GraceK]

17 minutes ago, Eyes High said:

Emilia Clarke in full costume does an adorable promo for a GOT set trip contest. I really, really hope this means the white fur coat is back for S8, because there's no topping that.

That promo was adorable indeed! I loved Kit being all fake serious  ? and her calling him boring and then referencing his six pack!! ?? nice to see the man bun is back after all! And Emilia seems to be having long hair again after all so that’s interesting too. 

Edited April 19, 2018 by GraceK

[Eyes High]

11 minutes ago, GraceK said:

That promo was adorable indeed! I loved Kit being all fake serious  ? and her calling him boring and then referencing his six pack!! ?? nice to see the man bun is back after all! And Emilia seems to be having long hair again after all so that’s interesting too. 

 

I'm wondering if she's in S8 costume/hair or if they just threw something together so that she could do the promotional video in costume. As /Freefolk pointed out, her hairstyle is different. And yes, Kit was hilarious.

Via /Freefolk: Pilou did an interview in late February/early March saying that he had been on standby (i.e. not filming) for the past couple of months. I think it's a safe bet that while the Ironborn seem to be involved in the Winterfell battle, Euron won't be.

Edited April 19, 2018 by Eyes High

[Sunshinegal]

6 minutes ago, Eyes High said:

Quite possible.

Surprised they're doing another rape scene. I was under the impression that they backed off on such scenes since the S5 backlash.

Emilia Clarke in full costume does an adorable promo for a GOT set trip contest. I really, really hope this means the white fur coat is back for S8, because there's no topping that.

I am surprised too.  I wonder why they would have that scene.    Unless they are showing the consequences of war and showing that smallfolk suffer.  Because other than that I don't see any reason to have a scene like that.

That white coat was awesome.  I hope its back too.  Especially since she would be in the North and needs warm clothes in winter.  I hope we see other great outerwear this season, not just for Dany but for the other characters too.

[Eyes High]

4 minutes ago, Sunshinegal said:

I am surprised too.  I wonder why they would have that scene.    Unless they are showing the consequences of war and showing that smallfolk suffer.  Because other than that I don't see any reason to have a scene like that.

That white coat was awesome.  I hope its back too.  Especially since she would be in the North and needs warm clothes in winter.  I hope we see other great outerwear this season, not just for Dany but for the other characters too.

Yeah. "You know what GOT needs? More rape scenes!" said no one, ever. It could just be a more graphic version of the Sansa riot scene where the victim has torn clothes but is rescued at the last minute, but it still seems unnecessary. If they have a nudity quotient--and there wasn't much in S7--why not fill it with consensual sex scenes?

I'd be perfectly happy if Dany wore that white coat for the remainder of the series (with appropriate alterations for her pregnancy). Michele Clapton is never going to do any better than that. I too look forward to awesome outerwear for the other cast members, although judging from the Dubrovnik set pictures, Jon's clothing remains pretty plain.

Speaking of Dubrovnik and costumes, Cersei's costume involved a necklace with a lion pendant on a long chain. Is that what will be used to strangle her in the show?

[screamin]

15 hours ago, anamika said:

Why do you think Jon is absent? From the look of things, all the battles are being fought at WF and just outside WF with the GC, Greyjoys, Mormonts, Vale, Dothraki, Unsullied  and AOTD involved.  We also know that Jon is present in the WF crypts with one other character when the horn blows signifying the arrival of either GC or the AOTD.

 

Well, if he's there, it would mean he sat idle while all points between WF and the Wall - which are northern territory he is responsible for defending - were overrun by Others. Seems a bit irresponsible toward his subjects.

And come to think of it, if Jon and Dany are present when the GC attack, they will look incredibly feeble if the combined army of the North, the Vale, Dany's army and 2 dragons are overwhelmed by one itinerant band of mercenaries.

If the attack is both the GC and the Others together - well, it would be quite a coincidence that the GC and the Others both show up and 'join forces' at the same time and place to attack WF together. It also has the same issues with Jon sitting idly in WF while all his vassals North of WF are attacked and absorbed by the NK.

Edited April 19, 2018 by screamin
added thoughts

[SimoneS]

Seriously, if I was Emilia Clarke, I would steal that white coat on my way out the door of the final episode. That coat is the still the most fabulous thing ever.

[Sunshinegal]

Just now, SimoneS said:

Seriously, if I was Emilia Clarke, I would steal that white coat on my way out the door of the final episode. That coat is the still the most fabulous thing ever.

Maybe HBO is feeling generous and gives the coat Emilia after the show is over.  That coat is tailored to her specifically.

30 minutes ago, Eyes High said:

Speaking of Dubrovnik and costumes, Cersei's costume involved a necklace with a lion pendant on a long chain. Is that what will be used to strangle her in the show?

Interesting theory.  It means that anybody could kill her. 

[Eyes High]

51 minutes ago, Sunshinegal said:

Maybe HBO is feeling generous and gives the coat Emilia after the show is over.  That coat is tailored to her specifically.

Interesting theory.  It means that anybody could kill her. 

Yes, I saw that theory on /Freefolk and I was intrigued.

I went back and looked at the Mercenary casting call from the fall (Harry Strickland) and it said that he would be filming in May and June. So it sounds like Harry Strickland will be involved in whatever is filmed on the KL exterior set. 

KL filming is unlikely to start any earlier than May 23rd, which is just after the Spain filming wraps up.

[bubble sparkly]

Re the apparent rape scene, I wonder if it will have plot purpose. Perhaps it will be one of Dany’s soldiers that is the attacker and will lead to even more tension in the North, or someone will save the girl and have a redemptive moment (maybe Theon or Jaimie, which will make the North soften to them slightly). Not that GoT needs more rape scenes...

We’d better get some consensual love scenes in s8 too...

[Eyes High]

15 hours ago, bubble sparkly said:

We’d better get some consensual love scenes in s8 too...

Sophie Turner said something to the effect of how there are more relationships forming in S8 than any other season, so fingers crossed.

Apparently, Kit, Emilia, David Nutter, Hannah Murray, and the long-absent Nathalie Emmanuel were also in Belfast this week.

ETA:

Italica news! I usually just repost stuff I find on /Freefolk or Twitter, but this is something I found myself. From madrerio on Instagram, posting a selfie from the amphitheater:

Quote

Dracaris! En este pueblito se filmó el gran encuentro de la temporada pasada de Game of Thrones ¿Se acuerdan? Cuando le soltaron el White Walker en la cara a Cersei y Daenerys hizo su entrada triunfal en dragón. Ahora están preparando todo para rodar de nuevo, uno de los obreros nos dijo que una escena de batalla. ¿Será el Cleganebowl? Fue increíble estar ahí, se me bifurcaba la imaginación, por un lado visualizaba gladiadores y romanos de flequillo, y por otro a todo el elenco de GOT cagado de calor bajo el sol andaluz actuando. 

Rough translation: "Now they're preparing everything to film again, one of the workers told us that [it's] a battle scene. Will it be Cleganebowl?"

Edited April 20, 2018 by Eyes High

[Edith]

35 minutes ago, Eyes High said:

Apparently, Kit, Emilia, David Nutter, Hannah Murray, and the long-absent Nathalie Emmanuel were also in Belfast this week.

NCW, Gwen, Maisie and Sophie too. Also 

The filming together part is just speculation.

39 minutes ago, Eyes High said:

"Now they're preparing everything to film again, one of the workers told us that [it's] a battle scene. Will it be Cleganebowl?"

Cleganebowl get hype!!

[YaddaYadda]

Only person on the planet who doesn't care for Clegane bowl.

While Amelia's coat is nice, I hope the costume department will stop buying carpets from Ikea to turn them into costumes. 

That scene with the half-naked girl sounds like some rape scene. Thanks, but no thanks! It's war and rape happens all the time, but I really don't need to see it. 

Is it me or there has been no Bronn sighting?

[Eyes High]

46 minutes ago, YaddaYadda said:

Only person on the planet who doesn't care for Clegane bowl.

While Amelia's coat is nice, I hope the costume department will stop buying carpets from Ikea to turn them into costumes. 

That scene with the half-naked girl sounds like some rape scene. Thanks, but no thanks! It's war and rape happens all the time, but I really don't need to see it. 

Is it me or there has been no Bronn sighting?

Not just you, but Jerome Flynn usually flies under the radar.

[GrailKing]

Airport???

[GraceK]

1 hour ago, YaddaYadda said:

 

Only person on the planet who doesn't care for Clegane bowl.

 

I don’t care either . What’s the point? There’s not any emotional payoff for Sandor, that’s not even his brother anymore. It’s a zombie Frankenstein abomination. That’s how I personally see it anyway. 

So something has been bothering me as a Dany fan and I want to hear some opinions from people who are genuinely unbiased please. I’ve been under the impression that D and D are still doing the endgame that GRRM has in mind right? I have found out recently though that killing Viserion was completely their own idea in order to get a cool ice dragon to break down the wall. That wasn’t George’s plan for the wall to come down. Which has led me to think that whatever GRRM endgame is, it doesn’t really matter that Viserion is dead cause it doesn’t effect it either way which is HUGE. So does that mean that Dany actually does die? I haven’t wanted to believe it I’ll be honest but If the showrunners can just up and kill one of her dragons and make a drastic change like that and still have GRRMs endgame, I’m worried.

[YaddaYadda]

5 minutes ago, GraceK said:

So something has been bothering me as a Dany fan and I want to hear some opinions from people who are genuinely unbiased please. I’ve been under the impression that D and D are still doing the endgame that GRRM has in mind right? I have found out recently though that killing Viserion was completely their own idea in order to get a cool ice dragon to break down the wall. That wasn’t George’s plan for the wall to come down. Which has led me to think that whatever GRRM endgame is, it doesn’t really matter that Viserion is dead cause it doesn’t effect it either way which is HUGE. So does that mean that Dany actually does die? I haven’t wanted to believe it I’ll be honest but If the showrunners can just up and kill one of her dragons and make a drastic change like that and still have GRRMs endgame, I’m worried.

There were some outlines that leaked, where they seemed to have a difficult time deciding if it was Rhaegal or Viserion they were going to turn into a wight. That said, I don't think all three dragons will be alive by the time the Wall falls in the books. I'm sure she's going to lose at least one of them to whichever character. 

As far as D&D go, I know they have said they are going to have to have the same endgame as GRRM, but I'm personally very doubtful. I don't think Dany dies. I mean it seems like GRRM is moving toward some kind of Targaryen restoration and I think it starts with her.

If I'm being completely honest, there are two things I'm looking forward to. The Jon/Arya reunion and the RLJ reveal because 20 years is a long time to wait for that and I'll take it however I can get it. Everything else sounds underwhelming.

[Sunshinegal]

3 minutes ago, GraceK said:

I don’t care either . What’s the point? There’s not any emotional payoff for Sandor, that’s not even his brother anymore. It’s a zombie Frankenstein abomination. That’s how I personally see it anyway. 

So something has been bothering me as a Dany fan and I want to hear some opinions from people who are genuinely unbiased please. I’ve been under the impression that D and D are still doing the endgame that GRRM has in mind right? I have found out recently though that killing Viserion was completely their own idea in order to get a cool ice dragon to break down the wall. That wasn’t George’s plan for the wall to come down. Which has led me to think that whatever GRRM endgame is, it doesn’t really matter that Viserion is dead cause it doesn’t effect it either way which is HUGE. So does that mean that Dany actually does die? I haven’t wanted to believe it I’ll be honest but If the showrunners can just up and kill one of her dragons and make a drastic change like that and still have GRRMs endgame, I’m worried.

My speculation is that if the dragons die, it is the price to pay to save the world.  I also believe that for most of the story Dany needed the dragons emotionally because she had no other family.  I am also speculating that Arya will lose Needle (or it will break) because she needed Needle to not lose herself completely and to tie her to her family when she was all alone in Braavos.

[WindyNights]

5 hours ago, YaddaYadda said:

There were some outlines that leaked, where they seemed to have a difficult time deciding if it was Rhaegal or Viserion they were going to turn into a wight. That said, I don't think all three dragons will be alive by the time the Wall falls in the books. I'm sure she's going to lose at least one of them to whichever character. 

As far as D&D go, I know they have said they are going to have to have the same endgame as GRRM, but I'm personally very doubtful. I don't think Dany dies. I mean it seems like GRRM is moving toward some kind of Targaryen restoration and I think it starts with her.

If I'm being completely honest, there are two things I'm looking forward to. The Jon/Arya reunion and the RLJ reveal because 20 years is a long time to wait for that and I'll take it however I can get it. Everything else sounds underwhelming.

Nah. There's no way a dragon is dying in TWOW before the Wall falls. 

[Eyes High]

6 hours ago, GraceK said:

So something has been bothering me as a Dany fan and I want to hear some opinions from people who are genuinely unbiased please.

I don't claim to be unbiased, but I'll take a stab at your question.

Quote

I’ve been under the impression that D and D are still doing the endgame that GRRM has in mind right? I have found out recently though that killing Viserion was completely their own idea in order to get a cool ice dragon to break down the wall. That wasn’t George’s plan for the wall to come down. Which has led me to think that whatever GRRM endgame is, it doesn’t really matter that Viserion is dead cause it doesn’t effect it either way which is HUGE.

I tend to think that the non-Drogon dragons are toast in ASOIAF, and I'm iffy about Drogon as well.

As Jon says in AGOT, different roads sometimes lead to the same castle. The ASOIAF ending and the GOT ending are the same "castle" roughly: who lives among the Starks/Lannisters/Dany, who dies, who gets married, who ends up on the Iron Throne, etc. Viserion being turned into a wight, like Cersei blowing up the sept or the Sand Snakes murdering the Martells, is a different road.

Quote

So does that mean that Dany actually does die? I haven’t wanted to believe it I’ll be honest but If the showrunners can just up and kill one of her dragons and make a drastic change like that and still have GRRMs endgame, I’m worried.

Dany may well die in the show, but only if she dies in the books, in my opinion.

ETA: According to Irish Thrones, there has been shooting at Ballintoy Harbour (previously used as Lordsport of the Iron Islands) which will continue next week. Irish Thrones is speculating or teasing (I'm not clear which) that it's a surprise invasion of the Iron Islands.

Since Spain shooting is supposed to start on Monday, we can reasonably suppose that whoever's involved in the dragonpit filming will not be involved in whatever's being filmed at Ballintoy Harbour.

Edited April 20, 2018 by Eyes High

[Edith]

1 hour ago, Eyes High said:

According to Irish Thrones, there has been shooting at Ballintoy Harbour (previously used as Lordsport of the Iron Islands) which will continue next week. Irish Thrones is speculating or teasing (I'm not clear which) that it's a surprise invasion of the Iron Islands.

Since Spain shooting is supposed to start on Monday, we can reasonably suppose that whoever's involved in the dragonpit filming will not be involved in whatever's being filmed at Ballintoy Harbour.

 

1. Either Theon fighting Euron and taking back the Iron Islands. Pilou was/is in Belfast filming, and the scene WOTW reported between Theon/Yara is her death scene.  Or

2. NK attacking the Iron Islands. Euron did ask last season if the wights could swim. 

Lannister banners still in KL and fake snow.

Edited April 21, 2018 by Edith

[bubble sparkly]

2 hours ago, Eyes High said:

I tend to think that the non-Drogon dragons are toast in ASOIAF, and I'm iffy about Drogon as well.

Yeah I agree, a dragon might not die via the NK's hand in the books but that doesn't mean all the dragons survive.  I can see why D&D went with wight!Vis bringing down the wall, because someone blowing a horn and the wall just falling down is a really lame visual.

Also, there is that other dragon tamer horn thing that might result in one/all the dragons being under the control of someone else for a while in the books.

There was a lot of discussion in s7 about how Tyrion was suddenly a pacifist and that Dany should have taken out Cersei etc before going North.  I'm guessing the main reason for that situation is that Dany with her armies and dragons can obviously defeat anyone quite easily.  However, if she defeated Cersei and co in 7x02 then there is no way the show could be dragged out to s8.  GRRM has the same problem in the books, I'm guessing.  Dany is in Meereen to learn to rule, but mainly because if she gets to Westeros she could easily defeat the Lannisters etc and take the throne.  To stop an absolute whitewash and keep the tension going Dany probably needs to lose some/all her dragons in the books too.

[SimoneS]

10 hours ago, GraceK said:

So something has been bothering me as a Dany fan and I want to hear some opinions from people who are genuinely unbiased please. I’ve been under the impression that D and D are still doing the endgame that GRRM has in mind right? I have found out recently though that killing Viserion was completely their own idea in order to get a cool ice dragon to break down the wall. That wasn’t George’s plan for the wall to come down. Which has led me to think that whatever GRRM endgame is, it doesn’t really matter that Viserion is dead cause it doesn’t effect it either way which is HUGE. So does that mean that Dany actually does die? I haven’t wanted to believe it I’ll be honest but If the showrunners can just up and kill one of her dragons and make a drastic change like that and still have GRRMs endgame, I’m worried.

In 2013, D&D met with Martin and he told them how the story ends. D&D have always said that this ending will happen on the show, but the journey to the story's end on the show would be different. An example is Sansa who has been given Jeyne Poole's story to keep her front and center.  And since Martin didn't know every detail of all the plots or the fate of all the characters, mostly the broad strokes (although he did tell them the three holy shit moments, two of which were Hodor's fate and Stannis burning Shireen alive), they could take liberties with those plots and characters. They may have done this with the Wall and Viserion or Martin intends for this to happen, but differently.  

As for Dany's fate, she is one of the five main characters who Martin wrote would survive in his famous outline from 1993. Since all five (Daenerys, Jon, Arya, Bran, and Tyrion) are still alive, I think that the odds are good that they all survive. 

Edited April 21, 2018 by SimoneS

[glowbug]

It’s going to be very disappointing for a lot of people, including me, if Jon doesn’t ride Rhaegal. I assumed Rhaegal was kept alive because Jon will ride him, but if it’s true that D & D were considering killing Rhaegal off it makes the prospect of Jon riding a dragon less likely, in the show at least, because if Jon is going to ride any dragon it’s going to be the one named after his biological father so it wouldn’t make sense to even consider killing him off. 

Not doubting the info, but where was it reported that wight Viserion bringing down the wall was D & D’s invention? I just hadn’t heard that before though it makes sense. The books have set up a few ways that the wall could fall that haven’t been set up in the show, and how would the Night King even kill a dragon? There is no way that wight hunt is happening in the books. 

[WindyNights]

1 hour ago, glowbug said:

It’s going to be very disappointing for a lot of people, including me, if Jon doesn’t ride Rhaegal. I assumed Rhaegal was kept alive because Jon will ride him, but if it’s true that D & D were considering killing Rhaegal off it makes the prospect of Jon riding a dragon less likely, in the show at least, because if Jon is going to ride any dragon it’s going to be the one named after his biological father so it wouldn’t make sense to even consider killing him off. 

Not doubting the info, but where was it reported that wight Viserion bringing down the wall was D & D’s invention? I just hadn’t heard that before though it makes sense. The books have set up a few ways that the wall could fall that haven’t been set up in the show, and how would the Night King even kill a dragon? There is no way that wight hunt is happening in the books. 

The books have only set up the Horn of Joramun bringing it down.

The show was setting that up too before GRRM told D & D the endgame. 

It seems like they just didn't like GRRM's payoff with the horn and did their own thing. 

Anyways, D & D said that the NK taking a dragon and bringing the Wall down was an idea that was suggesting itself as they wrote the scripts.

[WindyNights]

5 hours ago, bubble sparkly said:

Yeah I agree, a dragon might not die via the NK's hand in the books but that doesn't mean all the dragons survive.  I can see why D&D went with wight!Vis bringing down the wall, because someone blowing a horn and the wall just falling down is a really lame visual.

Also, there is that other dragon tamer horn thing that might result in one/all the dragons being under the control of someone else for a while in the books.

There was a lot of discussion in s7 about how Tyrion was suddenly a pacifist and that Dany should have taken out Cersei etc before going North.  I'm guessing the main reason for that situation is that Dany with her armies and dragons can obviously defeat anyone quite easily.  However, if she defeated Cersei and co in 7x02 then there is no way the show could be dragged out to s8.  GRRM has the same problem in the books, I'm guessing.  Dany is in Meereen to learn to rule, but mainly because if she gets to Westeros she could easily defeat the Lannisters etc and take the throne.  To stop an absolute whitewash and keep the tension going Dany probably needs to lose some/all her dragons in the books too.

The reason Daenerys got stuck in Meereen because GRRM needed an easy place for her to stick her to while the 5 year timeskip happened.

The second reason is that GRRM is uninterested in Daenerys fighting Lannisters just as he's not going to put Jon in a war against the Boltons. That's too easy. He wants Daenerys to seem like a perceived villain which won't work when the other side is the Lannisters.

And the third reason is that yes, he's trying to get Daenerys' dragons away from her.  One goes to Euron and the other goes to who knows. Maybe Ben Plumm takes it. Rhaegal is the one that seems the closest to Euron's horn while Viserion stays behind. And Viserion notably likes Ben Plumm a lot. And if Tyrion and Ben Plumm take Viserion, they could switch to "Aegon" 's cause if they want to. That'd be interesting.

Then the Tyrion-Daenerys team up that people expected gets flipped on its head.

[GrailKing]

Supposedly an extra posted this, poster's words :The pic belongs to an extra Dothraki (ig) -He filmed the last two weeks based in his ig history -apparently along with the crew they made a mini party yesterday night ( Belfast) -The last time I saw him posting about Belfast was in January (before this last two weeks)

[Happy Harpy]

On 21/04/2018 at 7:43 AM, glowbug said:

Not doubting the info, but where was it reported that wight Viserion bringing down the wall was D & D’s invention? I just hadn’t heard that before though it makes sense. The books have set up a few ways that the wall could fall that haven’t been set up in the show, and how would the Night King even kill a dragon? There is no way that wight hunt is happening in the books. 

I always wondered whether the NK would ride one of the ice dragons supposedly sleeping beyond the Wall. That, and Euron's horn, might have been deemed too complicated or needing too much info dump for the show, so they went for the expedition and Viserion going to the NK instead. If one dragon at least is toast, it doesn't change anything for the endgame.

I still think that Bran will warg a dragon (Viserion, probably) when it flies above KL, which would explain the dragon POV, looking down at the city, in his vision. I don't know why GRRM made Jon a Targaryen if it isn't for him to ride one at some point. The forgotten rightful heir is as big a trope as the commoner becoming a prince, so why bother? The two main Targ characteristics are incest, and dragons. I dare hope that the point of Jon's parentage wasn't only to accept he's in love with his aunt (I like them as a couple, but come on).

The only army going for rape and pillage at this point would be Euron's imo; unless they want to establish the GC as mercenaries in for the evulz. Very likely, those last casting news are for characters who will have very minimum screentime. The Evil Brotherhood casting was reported as big news, and they had three scenes, two of them consisting in being killed off.

[Eyes High]

It looks like the Italica set is nowhere near ready, even though filming was initially scheduled to start tomorrow, so Italica filming has likely been pushed back.

[MarySNJ]

On 4/20/2018 at 12:59 PM, GraceK said:

I don’t care either . What’s the point? There’s not any emotional payoff for Sandor, that’s not even his brother anymore. It’s a zombie Frankenstein abomination. That’s how I personally see it anyway. 

So something has been bothering me as a Dany fan and I want to hear some opinions from people who are genuinely unbiased please. I’ve been under the impression that D and D are still doing the endgame that GRRM has in mind right? I have found out recently though that killing Viserion was completely their own idea in order to get a cool ice dragon to break down the wall. That wasn’t George’s plan for the wall to come down. Which has led me to think that whatever GRRM endgame is, it doesn’t really matter that Viserion is dead cause it doesn’t effect it either way which is HUGE. So does that mean that Dany actually does die? I haven’t wanted to believe it I’ll be honest but If the showrunners can just up and kill one of her dragons and make a drastic change like that and still have GRRMs endgame, I’m worried.

I don't care about Cleganebowl either. As you say, Gregor isn't Gregor anymore and killing him would be a mercy. Unless, TVSandor is feeling merciful, it doesn't give him the "justice" he seeks. I could see Sandor killing Frankengregor to protect someone else, but I'm not really interested in seeing Cleganebowl just because. 

As for your question about Dany's fate, I think D&D take creative liberties where they can without completely changing the ending that GRRM has in mind. As I understood it, they were going to end in the same place, but get there differently. So, the dragons may die on the show at different points in the story, but that doesn't mean the big 5 characters will die. 

[Eyes High]

Italica filming has apparently started, but sources on the ground say not to expect any cast until next week.

Ballintoy filming is ongoing.

[anamika]

Maisie williams spotted in Belfast and apparently her stunt double has again mentioned filming for several months.

https://www.reddit.com/r/freefolk/comments/8ecggn/maisie_spotted_in_belfast_her_stunt_double/

Looks like the Arya in KL filming has started. 

[GraceK]

19 minutes ago, anamika said:

Maisie williams spotted in Belfast and apparently her stunt double has again mentioned filming for several months.

https://www.reddit.com/r/freefolk/comments/8ecggn/maisie_spotted_in_belfast_her_stunt_double/

Looks like the Arya in KL filming has started. 

That’s gonna be exciting. My girl Arya in KL!

[Eyes High]

53 minutes ago, anamika said:

Maisie williams spotted in Belfast and apparently her stunt double has again mentioned filming for several months.

https://www.reddit.com/r/freefolk/comments/8ecggn/maisie_spotted_in_belfast_her_stunt_double/

Looks like the Arya in KL filming has started. 

It's actually "a few months" per Kristina Baskett's Instagram post. "A few" got inflated to "several" in the source's (an Arya fan) telling. "A few months" makes more sense, since filming is supposed to end in June, and there's no way that is "several" months.

Looks like Arya's going to have a lot to do in Season 8! And yes, I agree with both @anamika and @GraceK that this means that Arya is going to be in KL for (what I assume will be) the grand finale.

Edited April 23, 2018 by Eyes High

[Sunshinegal]

24 minutes ago, GraceK said:

That’s gonna be exciting. My girl Arya in KL!

That's awesome.  It seems that the final season is Arya's year.

[Happy Harpy]

49 minutes ago, Sunshinegal said:

That's awesome.  It seems that the final season is Arya's year.

Finally!