Game of Thrones - Book Readers' Thread - - Part 19

[Huddsy]

I really dislike how Cersei is being handled this season as well. Instead of her descent into madness, they're making her feud (which is all in her head in the books) with Margaery a glorified cat fight. In turn, her actions with the Faith Militant, in which she arms them because she doesn't believe they exist (much like The Others). Her arming of them is simply a short-sighted movement to clear the crown of some more debt.

I'm hoping that some of these changes by D&D are because they have some long term insight from GRRM rather than just dumbing things down...

 

[Hush]

I hate that they are making the Unsullied into chumps. It's infuriating.

 

[The Apocalypse]

I hate that they are making the Unsullied into chumps. It's infuriating.

Yeah, I was actually thinking the same thing.

 

[Hush]

That and how Selmy was taken out was the first time the show truly angered me since Ned was killed. Don't like a lot of these book deviations.

 

[Spidey-Bat]

Oh, I don't think Littlefinger just merely knows that Rhaegar didn't kidnap and rape Lyanna and that they were really lovers--I think he had a hand in helping Rhaegar and Lyanna run away together. After all, Littlefinger's whole deal is to secretly cause chaos in the realm in order to advance himself, and certainly arranging it for the son and heir to the Iron Throne and the daughter from the greatest of the Northern Houses to run off and elope together which resulted in an all-out civil war between the Seven Kingdoms would right up his alley. Not to mention look what Littlefinger was able to get out of Robert's Rebellion--he became Master of Coin, thanks to his seducing Lysa, who just so happened to be married to Jon Arryn, the Hand of the King appointed by Robert.

And the other reason Littlefinger could've arranged for Rhaegar and Lyanna to run away together? Remember, he tried to fight Ned's older brother for Catelyn's hand in marriage and lost. And we know that, deep down, this really hurt Littlefinger's pride since he's been in love with Catelyn from the get-go, and probably was thinking "I'll show them! Nobody humiliates me like that and gets away with it!" And, having observed first-hand Rhaegar's affection for Lyanna at the Tourney of Harrenhal, thought to himself, "Aha! That's how I'll get back at the Starks. And seize a little opportunity for myself in the bargain."

Now whether he also knows Jon Snow could be the son of Rhaegar and Lyanna is another matter, but it wouldn't surprise me if Littlefinger, being as clever as he is, at least suspects the truth about Jon's true parentage.

Littlefinger was barely a teenager during the Harrenhal tournament. It's very unlikely he had the same political machinations at that age as he does now.

Spoiler

It also undermines Rhaegar and Lyanna. They're meant to be two people who fell deeply in love. They're Romeo and Juliet and Arthur/Lancelot and Guinevere rolled into one. If GRRM was a traditional fantasy author, he would have written the series about Lyanna and Rhaegar instead of the horrible aftermath in Westeros.

 

[dude stannis]

So far they've cut:

Tywin's corpse stinking up the joint.
Burning down the Tower of the Hand.
Comedically incompetent assassination attempts on Bronn.
Bronn naming his stepson 'Tyrion' in retaliation.
Frey corpses, Frey corpses everywhere.

They're doing some absolutely great work condensing AFFC and ADWD into a season, but those books are made by their moments rather than their story.

 

[Reek]

That and how Selmy was taken out was the first time the show truly angered me since Ned was killed. Don't like a lot of these book deviations.

so you don't watch the show much?

 

[Greens]

So far they've cut:

Tywin's corpse stinking up the joint.
Burning down the Tower of the Hand.
Comedically incompetent assassination attempts on Bronn.
Bronn naming his stepson 'Tyrion' in retaliation.
Frey corpses, Frey corpses everywhere.

They're doing some absolutely great work condensing AFFC and ADWD into a season, but those books are made by their moments rather than their story.

Burning down the Tower of the Hand could have been a great scene, but alas.

 

[dude stannis]

Yeah, I thought that would be an iconic trailer money shot.

 

[Victarion]

http://www.independent.ie/entertain...of-thrones-star-liam-cunningham-31162235.html

My guess:

The Pink Letter isn't a ruse. Stannis is dead, Brienne, Sansa and Theon are fleeing through the winter storms for Castle Black. For the Watch happens. Chaos breaks out at Castle Black. Selyse and Melisandre burn Shireen in an attempt to resurrect Stannis. It doesn't work. Jon is dead, Stannis is dead, Davos is dead, Ramsay is heading for Castle Black and Lord Bolton is still ruling as Warden of the North.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

http://www.independent.ie/entertain...of-thrones-star-liam-cunningham-31162235.html

My guess:

The Pink Letter isn't a ruse. Stannis is dead, Brienne, Sansa and Theon are fleeing through the winter storms for Castle Black. For the Watch happens. Chaos breaks out at Castle Black. Selyse and Melisandre burn Shireen in an attempt to resurrect Stannis. It doesn't work. Jon is dead, Stannis is dead, Davos is dead, Ramsay is heading for Castle Black and Lord Bolton is still ruling as Warden of the North.

Maybe they resurrect Jon by accident?

 

[Hush]

so you don't watch the show much?

I love the show but I in particular didnt like these deviations because i love Selmy in the books.

 

[DarthSkywalker]

I am a Selmy guy too, so this has been beyond disappointing. But the reaction on ASOIAF fan boards are hilarious.

 

[Kane52630]

Glad to see after 4 seasons they finally made Stannis an actual character.

 

[Hush]

He really wasn't much of a character in the books til his Book 5 Story really. At least I didnt care about him that much til book 5.

 

[Victarion]

Yeah, he didn't get my attention until I saw him being the only king that could be arsed to defend his kingdom.

 

[ThePhantasm]

I figured there had to be something big at the end of this season, because so far the season itself has been kinda a drag.

 

[Roose Bolton]

He got a lot of character development in A Storm of Swords. They may have been Davos chapters, but they were all about Stannis. He'd confess a lot of his fears and doubts to Davos, his history, his grief, his general struggles in life. That storyline was basically about Davos saving Stannis' soul.

It kind of suffered in adaptation process for various reasons. They tried to go into his character a little bit in season 3, but you could tell they weren't really all that keen on that and had to try and get the leech burning and the paper shield stuff all done in one season in the event that there was no season 4. Plus they backpedaled after giving away their hand too early in the climax of that season.

 

[Spidey-Bat]

http://www.independent.ie/entertain...of-thrones-star-liam-cunningham-31162235.html

My guess:

The Pink Letter isn't a ruse. Stannis is dead, Brienne, Sansa and Theon are fleeing through the winter storms for Castle Black. For the Watch happens. Chaos breaks out at Castle Black. Selyse and Melisandre burn Shireen in an attempt to resurrect Stannis. It doesn't work. Jon is dead, Stannis is dead, Davos is dead, Ramsay is heading for Castle Black and Lord Bolton is still ruling as Warden of the North.

Spoiler

The Pink Letter is fake in the book as we know Stannis is alive from Theon's TWOW chapter. I think Loras might get killed in the show. He might be referring to Jon, too.

 

[Roose Bolton]

If Loras was die in a way reminiscent of what we hear in the books....that would be pretty messed up to see.

 

[Drz]

Stannis is going to destroy the Boltons, sorry Victarion. Stannis has prepared to win.

I like the new theories fans have pondered how Stannis will make Theon Greyjoy & Asha Greyjoy into rulers of the Ironborn, by having them do kickass stuff so they can win the Kingsmoot and the reasonable Ironborn who aren't into plundering can establish a proper alliance with the North and Stannis!

 

[Victarion]

Stannis is going to destroy the Boltons, sorry Victarion. Stannis has prepared to win.

I like the new theories fans have pondered how Stannis will make Theon Greyjoy & Asha Greyjoy into rulers of the Ironborn, by having them do kickass stuff so they can win the Kingsmoot and the reasonable Ironborn who aren't into plundering can establish a proper alliance with the North and Stannis!

I want this so bad. All this development has me worried for him.

 

[Roose Bolton]

If we're being realistic and going by what we know of the books (not something that is vital to what they're doing to the show at this point) Stannis has something up his sleeve for the Boltons. Likewise, Lady Dustin knew that Roose was in a more vulnerable situation than he let on, and all Stannis had to do was bloody Roose's forces for all the northern lords to turn on him like a pack of dogs. Probably what will happen book-wise is that the Battle of Ice will end with both sides ****ed, but Roose dead and Ramsay on the loose somewhere.

 

[ThePhantasm]

Spoiler

The Pink Letter is fake in the book as we know Stannis is alive from Theon's TWOW chapter. I think Loras might get killed in the show. He might be referring to Jon, too.

I don't think either of those would be more shocking than the Red Wedding, though.

 

[Spidey-Bat]

I don't think either of those would be more shocking than the Red Wedding, though.

It is because they'd seemingly come out of no where. There is an awkward tension prior to the massacre at the Red Wedding.