Game of Thrones Season 3

Go.

I'll go first.

I don't mind them moving the assassination attempt on Dany up and changing the assassin to be Wizard Corpse Lips. It creates a nice feeling of momentum, gives them something to threaten her with consistently while she's over there, and reminds us that some people are still loyal to Targaryens, or at least would be if she came back. That's kind of important, I think, because on the show, up to this point, we pretty much just have Viserys word for it, and it becomes obvious early on that he's talking nonsense. So it helps to get a glimpse of the idea that, yes, there are some people who would want her in charge.

Don't mind that the dragons seem a bit bigger than I remember them being in book 3, either. And man, do they look cool. Especially when you remember that this is a TV show.

I haven't read the books. The Axe Wielding zombie succumbing to fire bodes well for Khaleesi and her babies though, id have to assume.


also putting this here.

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Pretty good episode, but Strong Belwas better be in the next one, especially since it looks like Vargo Hoat and the Bloody Mummers are all but excluded from the series. You can't do Game of Thrones without Strong Belwas! (Well, actually, you probably can... but come on!)

At least we're getting Qyburn (even though Robb's presence at Harrenhal and the circumstances of Qyburn's finding is terribly off-base) and presumably Missandei, and I'm hoping they'll include Grey Worm too (maybe Mr. Nipple?).

What I really liked in this episode was the Jon Snow/Mance Rayder scene, which was pretty damn close to the scene in the book. I wish Tormund Giantsbane was older and huskier, but it seems that actor will do fine... and I have a feeling Ciaran Hinds is going to be fantastic as Mance).

I also really liked the scene with Margaery Tyrell visiting the orphanage. Even though that scene wasn't in the book, it shows that the writers understand where her character needs to be. She's starting to feel like the right Margaery and she's going to be a great thorn in Cersei's hindquarters.

And I liked the scene between Tyrion and his father. My fiance, last season, remarked that she really liked Tywin Lannister. After that scene, she asked, "Was it really that harsh in the book?" Yes, yes it was. Tywin Lannister is NOT a nice person.

They had Jon give Mance a completely different reason for wanting to join, though, if memory serves. Either that or they excluded the exclamation point on it.

I agree with you completely about Margaery. I think elevating her like this is brilliant and will really pay off down the line.

So far, it seems like most of the changes are of the standard "take something a tertiary character did and give it to a secondary character we already know" variety. That's to be expected, and I think it's worked pretty well so far.

Oh, and the giant was pretty awesome. Really well done. Easy to forget, between that and the dragons, that this is still just a TV Show, and not even a broadcast one. I know people gripe about the scale and the tricks they use to skip over the battle sequences, but c'mon...what they put on screen is pretty incredible, under the circumstances.

You're right. I think his reason in the book was something about being a bastard all his life and wanting to feel like a free and accepted individual. But I can't remember for sure, and the ASOIAF Wiki is down at the moment. I liked the reason given in the show, though.

YES! That was awesome!

Yeah, he mentioned the bastard thing. It's what ended the chapter; I just don't recall if he also said something like what he said in the show. He may have.

But yeah, I was fine with it. The overwhelming majority of the changes make a lot of sense to me when you consider the constraints.

Does it seem to anyone else as if they're going to sail through the main points of book 3 a lot faster in the show than they ought to?

I also agree that they almost have to keep a lid on the number of characters they introduce or use in the show. It's one of the more confusing things about the show -- so many people to get to know and remember ... and then throw in trying to remember to whom they are loyal (since that's constantly up for grabs). It'd get really ugly if they used every single character the book uses.

It doesn't help that they sometimes use actors who look a little too similar, and that confuses me too. The guy playing Bronn looks too much like, ohh, whoever it was following Robb around this episode. (sigh) And were they at Winterfell? I'm assuming it was Harrenhal (otherwise Robb wouldn't have said, "Find a room that would work as a cell" -- he'd already know the place).

But, frankly, some of those open courtyards look so similar (especially when it's gray and muddy) that it's not always completely clear which castle/holdfast/whatever they're in until they either pan back or put things in a bit more context. Maybe it's just my poor eye for set details working against me.



Slow start to the season so far, I'd say, but SO MUCH is going to happen this season that I'll be patient.

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Apologies for lack of tags. I haven't a clue how to discuss differences from book to TV once they've already happened onscreen.... Thanks to whomever fixed the tags.

I was surprised they introduced Tormund Giantsbane so... quietly... since he's not at all quiet in the books. It didn't surprise me, though, that...



Robb was with Roose Bolton (the balding guy from last season and Lord of the Dreadfort), and they were at Harrenhal. In the books, Robb never goes to Harrenhal, but Bolton ends up there. So I'm guessing they're just using the Harrenhal location as a stand-in for Riverrun, as opposed to building all-new sets. Eventually Robb will leave and Roose Bolton will stay, I'm guessing.

My answer:



Either way, I was bummed that the Battle of the Fist got axed. I realize that it's a TV show and the battles are largely going to end up truncated or removed in the interest of budget, but it felt really lame, especially since the Others (White Walkers for you guys following the show) are so important.

Aha, see, now there's another thing: In the book I think they're just called "wights." I assume that the TV show now calls them "wight walkers" because hearing "wight" sounds like "white," and it sounds just stupid to hear, "The whites are coming!"

Hence, wight walkers (not white walkers).

Roose Bolton, duh. Yes. I swear they should put name tags on all these people. Why does the Roose Bolton in the book seem so much larger than the one on the show? He's really just getting lost for me in the show (obviously).

According to the Game of Thrones Wiki, the spelling is "white walkers," presumably for the white, snowy areas they occupy.

In the books, they use a few terms, but they're not necessarily interchangeable. The "wights," I believe, are the reanimated zombie corpses of dead wildlings, Night's Watchmen, animals, etc. The "Others," however, are a bit different. They are age-old beings of the world, and somewhat comparable to demons maybe. They're described as tall and gaunt with pale white skin and blue eyes, and they wear reflective armor. They also essentially create the "wights," but it's not clear how exactly.

The show seems to have combined both types under the single "White Walker" name, and have designed the progenitor beings (like this guy and this guy) to look a bit more monstrous than they do in the books.

Well, they're using him a bit awkwardly. They didn't bring the Greatjon (the boisterous guy from the first season) back, and instead replaced him with Roose Bolton. I guess that makes sense because Roose does have some importance later on, but in the books he's clearly delineated from Robb because he's largely with his own army throughout the books. I think it'll end up being okay, but they could drop his name a bit more for the audience.

Agreed on namedropping Bolton's name.

Interesting bit on the spelling of "white walkers." That's certainly how the audience hears it. I know the difference between the Others and the wights in the books -- and kept wondering when I'd see each type. But yes, in the show, it's a lot more mysterious even to the characters exactly which ones are what types. All just creepy otherworldly scary creatures that are hard to kill.

Yeah, I actually really like the designs of the Others. Not really in line with the books, but at least they look awesome and definitely something you wouldn't want to mess around with.

I'm pretty sure you liked all the worst parts of the episode (Jon's story and that overbearing Margaery scene). The Jon scene was pretty botched in comparison to the books. And this Tormund isn't the right Tormund... yet at least. I have no opinion on Mance yet. Anyways, at least you got something right with the Tywin/Tyrion exchange being awesome.

Also, it's been confirmed that Strong Belwas is not going to be in this season (no confirmation on being completely cut out though, although I wouldn't even mind). It's also been confirmed (casting and all) that Grey Worm is indeed in this season. Do you not follow up with this show in the post-season or something?

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No.

No.

Yes.

Oh.

Cool.

Oh.

Cool.

No.

Yes & yes.

Do you even A Song of Ice and Fire?

Ah yes, the famous "flat contradiction and stunned disbelief" counterargument. Always compelling.

I can only assume at some point you'll become as bored with this as everyone else already is.

I've already put him on my Ignore list. Don't really have much interest in arguing with somebody who joins forums just to be an ******* for no reason. Seen plenty of kids like him before, no big deal.

If they do end up including Strong Belwas, even for just an episode or two, I think a solid cast would be Solofa Fatu Jr., who wrestled as "Rikishi" in the 1990s. He's likely a horrible actor, but it's not like Strong Belwas needs to be Daniel Day-Lewis.