Support NeoGAF

[Turin]

Seeing Michael McElhatton(Roose) steal the screen from Ramsay was both satisfying and

Spoiler

bittersweet knowing what will likely happen later in the season

. He could be so much more satisfying as a main antagonist of the storyline.

Echoing the obvious, the Wall stuff was good. North is definitely going to be where most of the fun is this year.

The rest was pretty boring but I am interested to see where these storylines go.

Well, except of course for them........

 

[toastyToast]

this leaves only one conclusion:

Spoiler

- Arya is Jon

That's pretty out there.

Spoiler

Doesn't the house of many faces actually use the faces of people that go there to die? Like a big repository of identities. So they can't just change into someone else entirely. They're not shape shifters.

 

[Moff]

That's pretty out there.

Spoiler

Doesn't the house of many faces actually use the faces of people that go there to die? Like a big repository of identities. So they can't just change into someone else entirely. They're not shape shifters.

I just realized that jon wasn't even in the trailer, or was he?
I am not sure if the faces need to be prepared in the command center, maybe faceless assassins carry an emergency facesteal pack with them at all times

 

[AntiFacebook]

The worst character in the show saves the life of the second worst ones. They give Brienne way more screen time than she deserves

 

[Moff]

The worst character in the show saves the life of the second worst ones. They give Brienne way more screen time than she deserves

brienne, sansa and theon are the worst characters? worse than the sand snakes? roz?
theon is among the best

 

[mantidor]

Cersei, Cleganes, Frey, and Mel are really the only ones left. So I'm doubting that.

Maybe she adds names , after all the things that have happened since she left she has plenty more candidates.

 

[AntiFacebook]

brienne, sansa and theon are the worst characters? worse than the sand snakes? roz?
theon is among the best

Theon is awesome.So is Podric. I was talking about Brienne and Sansa.
And yes, they are worse than the sand snakes.

 

[Dysun]

Thug Brienne is a gross interpretation of the character.
Layered in the thickest plot armor/contrived writing that will make your head spin

 

[Apt101]

Brienne every scene to Cool It Now. The best character.

 

[Ishan]

Okay this dorne criticism is getting out of control

If you divorce yourselves from the immediate plotlines in the books the general book premise is


Dorne is a proud kingdom which wasn't conquered by the targs and joined in by marriage

Resisted by guerilla warfare before it was brought into the fold by marriage

And is hurt by the death of elia and is loyal to the targs and eventully as a kingdom is angry

......

Now book takes it along the lines of Doran as the ruler had an overall plan and worked with oberyn

Then the whole speech and how he convinces even the rebels aka sand snakes to follow his shadow war makes sense

....
Show imagines him as a weak ruler unable to do those so the rebels overrun him through subterfuge

Plot points counter arguments


Also some points e.g. how sand snakes on that boat if you assume the kingdom is just waiting for a chance to overthrow him apart from hotah the ship sailing in was martell so guarded by drone ppl not by lannisters so Jamie and bron can't do shit neither are they in control of if anyone sneaks on board e.g. sand snakes ... neither can they force the Prince off if they try they die ppl forget James didn't go with a full force just him and bron.


This ruler is openly opposed in his house . The freys make veiled threats against Robb he goes over and dies its okay cause guest rights is a huge deal but if elaria openly flaunts Doran grudgingly cryingly kisses his hand and then turns coat it's not okay . You are letting the book back story influence your judgement immensely .

In conclusion

Doran in the show is not a mastermind just someone keeping the peace and it's completely within dornish resistance to 7 kingdoms rule and very much in keeping with oberyns persona to fight back .

They don't hurt young girls in drone . Oberyn feels that way elaria doesn't welcome to how Robert thought it was okay to murder danerys Ned didn't they were still allies seriously it makes sense if you actually dissociate yourself completely from book plotlines but only go with the overall history of the book kingdoms

Doran was a pansy in the show badass in the books hotah was a great warrior in both in books he wasn't betrayed badly or was less trusting he was on the shows .

Also grrm has stated the sand snakes are major characters for the end game anyway .

And drone now is resisting the 7 kingdoms retaliating with guerilla warfare and being vengeful exactly within the character of the book premise just not the book plotline

Edit I will however give you the drone fight scenes were crappy but the plot line is no where near as weak as ppl think

 

[PHOENIXZERO]

They're going to

Spoiler

make Sansa Lady Stoneheart

aren't they?

 

[Vagabundo]

I wonder if they are going to kart Jon's body around for the whole season like Weekend at Bernies.

 

[Euron]

I guess you can make the argument that Show Doran died because he was too naive for the world. He believed he could keep the peace and do nothing, all with a sense of honor. There's no place for honor in GOT. He had no ulterior motives or plot for revenge but stood only as an impediment to the ones who were actually planning revenge.

It's just hard to accept that he's a completely different character. They nailed the look and feel so damn well.

 

[bitbydeath]

They're going to

Spoiler

make Sansa Lady Stoneheart

aren't they?

Spoiler

Brienne gonna goof and accidentally slit her throat with her sword?

 

[Ishan]

I guess you can make the argument that Show Doran died because he was too naive for the world. He believed he could keep the peace and do nothing, all with a sense of honor. There's no place for honor in GOT. He had no ulterior motives or plot for revenge but stood only as an impediment to the ones who were actually planning revenge.

It's just hard to accept that he's a completely different character. They nailed the look and feel so damn well.

Agree with you here . I knew the book plotline and he and hotah they way they were portrayed in s5 gave the vibe of ppl in control and elaria and the snakes as impulsive emotional ppl . Especially with the castings. The plot showise makes sense the execution was bad as I said I agree with that part . If the overall goal was to kill them off they should have made elaria seem more scheming and Doran more aloof and ignorant seeming .

Edit and to further go down this road they don't have the whole send drone mountains head to appease etc . In the show it's assumed Doran just accept a it as a death during trial by combat no questions asked with no apologies etc and on top of that they got a Lannister trying to sneak in and take back Marcella and his guy bron punches dorans son and Doran just makes peace with a punch back . So the book and show are very divergent on who Doran is as a person book just completely different personas. If you accept they are just different ppl in that universe the plot makes sense .

 

[Paganmoon]

She's doing the Swedish translation of the show this season so she has to watch it for work.

She's not really paying attention though. As when Davos asks "who do you trust" to which Edd replies "the men in this room" was translated to "no one here".
So yeah, she has to watch them, but apparently doesn't really have to watch them.

I absolutely hate botched subtitles. And HBO Nordic doesn't provide English subs as an option, and further more they overlap the subs for the dothraki so you can't read either.

At least HBO Nordic has finally fixed their subpar streaming quality, can hardly see macroblocking now and darker scenes don't melt.

The episode itself, surprised they didn't resurrect Jon in Ep1, Dorne is still pretty shit (didn't like Dorne in the books either fwiw). Brienne happening upon Sansa was meh. Arya part was ok, should really introduce her warging soon though. Dothraki/Dany was meh.

Still, cool to get "new material", it's been a while.

 

[duckroll]

Okay this dorne criticism is getting out of control

Edit I will however give you the drone fight scenes were crappy but the plot line is no where near as weak as ppl think

Naaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah....

Sand Snake murder list:

+Teens in love
+Crippled man
+Messenger
+Only black guy in Westeros

 

[PHOENIXZERO]

Spoiler

Brienne gonna goof and accidentally slit her throat with her sword?

That would be funny but no,

Spoiler

without the whole Zombie part but basically giving her that story

.

 

[Lord Panda]

The point of "revealing" that Melisandre is like 400 years old (and everything in that scene) is:

- To provide shock value of granny porn and to let it linger for a few scenes showing her saggy breasts and having a full frontal view just to give viewers something to talk about the next day at the water cooler


If GoT were a well written and well directed show that cares about quality execution, there are so many ways they can get the same ideas across in more subtle ways, but nope, gotta go for the most obvious, heavy handed, and/or shocking ways to generate instant buzz. That's probably also why it's the most popular show on HBO I guess.

Yeah, the creative and directors team don't really do nuance and subtlety. It's all about tits, dong, tits, bush, tits, bush, tits, dong to ram their scenes across. At least the seniors age group is now represented in the full frontal nudity charts now.

This was Melisandre at her lowest point and questioning her faith and purpose ... the scene kinda fell flat for me because rather than focus on her emotions and inner demons, it opted instead for the closing and cheap shock value by focusing on her exterior transformation. I think also the episode, and the show, tries to do so much at the same time and the characters don't get the proper development they need.

Dorne and Danaerys scenes really bog the show down. Emilia Clarke's performance is still unconvincing.

 

[WhereAreMahDragonz]

They're going to

Spoiler

make Sansa Lady Stoneheart

aren't they?

As in like actually killing her or just have her kill Boltons?

 

[munchie64]

Theon is awesome.So is Podric. I was talking about Brienne and Sansa.
And yes, they are worse than the sand snakes.

I know it's not true, but I shall believe you were banned for this.

 

[Branduil]

Am I the only one who was, like, not surprised or shocked at all by the Melisandre reveal? "Youthful witch is actually ancient" is one of the oldest fantasy tropes there is.

 

[Ishan]

Guys quick question so when Mel says she saw jon fighting at winterfell it struck me as odd has this been mentioned before (in show of course I know in the books she keeps seeing him etc )? Cause if it's something she saw it te flames after the whole desertion of stannis army it makes sense why made a beeline back to castle black and abandoned Stannis. I can totally see her seeing half the army gone panicking going to the flames sees Jon goes oh shit Jon it is books it to the wall now sees jon is dead and goes oookay it's all crap everything seems wrong ??

Maybe this has been discussed before ?

 

[JustSomeone]

Am I the only one who was, like, not surprised or shocked at all by the Melisandre reveal? "Youthful witch is actually ancient" is one of the oldest fantasy tropes there is.

Yep. Just last year a very popular video game did that, in a much better way.

 

[Real Hero]

Am I the only one who was, like, not surprised or shocked at all by the Melisandre reveal? "Youthful witch is actually ancient" is one of the oldest fantasy tropes there is.

it shouldn't be shocking to anyone who has read adwd

 

[Noray]

Just came here to say that Dorne gif is spot on and holy shit how come Dorne continues to be just fucking terrible season after season? Like irrespective of "dur it's different from the books" which, we're 6 seasons in and everything is different so who cares? It's just so... fucking... bad. Borderline nonsensical, terrible actors, tone deaf, zero interesting characters down there now... just stop.

 

[blackjaw]

Yep. Just last year a very popular video game did that, in a much better way.

Was a book well before a game

 

[Ishan]

Yep. Just last year a very popular video game did that, in a much better way.

Assuming witcher cause that's what ppl have been mentioning during the viewing non stop lol . Which character was it tho ? I'm not gonna play te game th lore has seemed interesting tho

 

[Salarians]

Assuming witcher cause that's what ppl have been mentioning during the viewing non stop lol . Which character was it tho ? I'm not gonna play te game th lore has seemed interesting tho

Light Witcher 3 spoilers:

Spoiler

Yennefer (and probably most of the other sorceresses) are much, much older than they appear to be (100+). We also see several witches (the crones) as beautiful women in a tapestry, then monstrous creatures in reality. Then they appear as these beautiful women again later on.

 

[Moff]

if Sansa was stoneheart, she would have had Brienne hanged by Theon when they found them

 

[Forkball]

 

[JustSomeone]

Was a book well before a game

Did they appear in the books? I didn't read them.

Assuming witcher cause that's what ppl have been mentioning during the viewing non stop lol . Which character was it tho ? I'm not gonna play te game th lore has seemed interesting tho

It was three characters, in fact , called the crones. They are some magical beings that the villagers in the area worship and give offerings to, and see them as beatuful young ladies, though in reality they are old and ugly.

 

[Fuzzy]

The hat got me. :lol

 

[Blue Ninja]

As in like actually killing her or just have her kill Boltons?

The latter. She goin' on a vengeance spree.

Did they appear in the books? I didn't read them.

The crones are a CDPR creation. However, even other witches in the series (Yen, for instance) are also a lot older than their bodies would suggest.

 

[Sayad]

Cersei, Cleganes, Frey, and Mel are really the only ones left. So I'm doubting that.

Cleganes, Frey and Mel all seem on the brink of death!

 

[NeoGiff]

Everyone's favorite ASOIAF fan Linda is still doing GoT reviews.

Her first complaint is that since Ghost is mute in the books, here he shouldn't be howling in grief, but instead unable to convey his emotion. Aaaaahahahaha this is glorious.

(I do agree with a significant amount of what she said about the episode, for once)

 

[BrassDragon]

The series has its moments of stupid but, damn, the Sand Snakes are just insufferable. Even overlooking the mugging, overacting and poor dialogue, they're just not believable as threats in a show filled with badasses and terrifying villains.

I know the show runners don't give a crap about feudal politics but wouldn't the fall of House Martell logically lead to a Third Dornish War?

Who in their right mind would accept a bunch of bastard daughters taking over one of the Seven Kingdoms... Even Daemon bloody Blackfyre had to be legitimized first. Shouldn't there be nobles everywhere with true blood ties and legitimate claims to Sunspear?

 

[JustSomeone]

I really hope the books will get the full metal alchemist brotherhood treatment once a dream of spring comes out(sometime around 2050).

 

[jdstorm]

They're going to

Spoiler

make Sansa Lady Stoneheart

aren't they?

It makes more sense then the actual version which is just a stupid pointless red herring at worst, and an insignificant end game Villan at best. Neither is really that useful.

 

[WhereAreMahDragonz]

The latter. She goin' on a vengeance spree.

Please god make this happen

 

[YAWN]

I know the show runners don't give a crap about feudal politics but wouldn't the fall of House Martell logically lead to a Third Dornish War?

It should, but wont. The whole of Dorne is about 4 "badass" women now, coming to take names and spread bad pussy. You dont mess with them when they're out for vengence for their family yet kill them with no remorse at the same time.
Sadly they'll be short lived because the only characters who matter are Saint Tyrion, Kaleasy, and dead but totally not dead Jon. Together they'll ride the dragons and fight against the evil Jaime and Cersei when they form an alliance with the White Walkers. Not without a helping dose of nonsensical violence, hollywood level surprises, and tits and ass along the way though!

Plus Varys might be a merman or some shit, I dunno.

 

[Dictator93]

Ramsey's only down to 14-15 good men now, and two of his best dogs were vaporised out of existence by a continuity error, so they may have a chance.

haahahahahaha

 

[jdstorm]

It should, but wont. The whole of Dorne is about 4 "badass" women now, coming to take names and spread bad pussy. You dont mess with them when they're out for vengence for their family yet kill them with no remorse at the same time.
Sadly they'll be short lived because the only characters who matter are Saint Tyrion, Kaleasy, and dead but totally not dead Jon. Together they'll ride the dragons and fight against the evil Jaime and Cersei when they form an alliance with the White Walkers. Not without a helping dose of nonsensical violence, hollywood level surprises, and tits and ass along the way though!

Plus Varys might be a merman or some shit, I dunno.

Um.. Sorry to break it to you but

Spoiler

Jamie is definitely going to kill Cersi. Well Book Jamie is..

Man I hate what the show has done to Jamie Lannister.

 

[Apt101]

I love the roller coaster that is this thread. lol. This is the best.

 

[Sickboy007]

Sand Snake murder list:

+Teens in love
+Crippled man
+Messenger
+Only black guy in Westeros

Oberyn would be proud :*)

 

[Cornballer]

- EW: Game of Thrones premiere ratings set new record with streaming

Game of Thrones premiere ratings are in, and the results are almost as complex as the show itself.

Sunday’s highly anticipated season 6 return of the Emmy-winning fantasy drama delivered a big ratings record by a key modern metric while slipping for the first time among a more traditional measure.

Overall, when including streaming, Thrones’ kick-off hour “The Red Woman” was an all-time best for the series with 10.7 million viewers. That number includes the on-air premiere, the show’s first two repeats and early returns from the network’s two streaming services, HBO Go and HBO Now. The tally does not include those who tuned into the premiere as part of HBO’s free preview weekend, which opened the service to non-subscribers (Nielsen does not include viewers who are not subscribed to HBO as part of the network’s ratings).

So overall viewership is up 9 percent from last year’s season 5 premiere (9.8 million) plus tops the show’s previous all-time high, the season 5 finale (10.3 million).

So the ratings were a record-breaking smash, right? Well, not if you only look at Nielsen, which until a couple years ago was all anybody did. If you pull out streaming to look at Thrones’ on-air numbers, the 9 p.m. premiere (7.9 million) was down 1 percent from last year. When you add in the first two repeats (758,000 and 205,000) the disparity increases to 4 percent. As a whole, HBO has seen some subscribers migrate from the traditional cable and sattalite package to their streaming services.

UPDATE: In the U.K., Thrones delivered 2.2 million for its season 6 launch – the biggest overnight U.K. audience for the show ever (and particularly impressive since Thrones debuts at 2 a.m. there; one employer made headlines by giving its workers vacation time to watch the show).

 

[Moff]

that's really impressive

I admit I never expected that, I always thought the show would get as boring as AFFC/ADWD and the ratings would drop significantly

 

[Fuzzy]

Um.. Sorry to break it to you but

Spoiler

Jamie is definitely going to kill Cersi. Well Book Jamie is..

Man I hate what the show has done to Jamie Lannister.

Why would show Jaime kill Cersei? They get closer every time one of their kids die.

 

[RiZ III]

I dug her story. This blind beggar shit is dumb tho.

Her story was ok until the last book in which it's all the blind beggar stuff. Her story hasn't progressed at all since she arrived in Braavos. Can't really blame the show for that.

 

[bengraven]

Reddit now has me paranoid that Jon really COULD be dead for good, and the reason we saw Mel's glamour trick last night, is that they're going to have someone else be glamoured into being Jon vs. actually resurrecting him. This is crazy talk, right?

Literally my reaction reading this.

(what,no,sad,hm)

Fuck if that's true.