GoT - Is Over, Post Your Drogon Sightings

So near the beginning of the Season I posted this. now that the season is completed lets see what I got right vs wrong:

Sylas_sl said:

So how many storylines can they wrap up book 3 on and start on 4/5? The more 4/5 stuff they can start this season the less rushed (or less cut) next season will seem as they've got a lot of written words to convert into season 5 (books 4/5).

Bran's story being completely isolated they can fit in wherever they need to. those actors appear like 4-5 episodes per 10 and the story plugs along at the snails pace it does in the books. Depending on how in depth they want to go with the 3 eyed raven/brynden Rivers/etc they can easily get half way through book 5 this season and still leave enough for 4-5 episodes of bran next season.

Click to expand...

The last scene this season was Bran II, about 1/5 of the way through Dance. Bran only has 3 chapters total, ie 1 chapter of book material left to go. In it, he just talks to Brynden rivers and learns stuff.

Arya's story at any point can be wrapped up, just needs the hound to be wounded, so she can be sent off to Braavos to begin her training. The more of it that happens this season the less rushed it will seem next season. This needs to happen quickly, if there's any hope for her to be more than just training for the rest of the (7 season) series.

Click to expand...

Was wrong about this one, but I don't mind. The extended time with Arya + Hound was great. Season ended just as book 3 ended for her, on a boat to Braavos.

Dany's story is basically an episode away from the end of book 3. Just needs to conquer mereen. The more of her fuddling about trying to rule now the better. Her dragons are big enough to eat a child easily, so if they wanna go all out on her book 5 story they can easily get about half of that shit knocked out this season, leaving enough room for the battle of Mereen (beginning of book 6) to take place as the big event at the end of season 5.

Click to expand...

Dany's story is somewhere between Danaerys II and III. She's presented with the child's bones at the end of her 2nd chapter, and then later chains her dragons. There's been a lot of changes to her story so it seems they are greatly simplifying it, so it's kinda hard to gauge how much of her story is left from the books.

Tyrion can be in Braavos by the end of the season, or even on his way to Volantis. Though I think most believe that Tywin's death won't happen until episode 10. They can always fast forward his travel in episode 1 of next season (just a shot of him in Volantis really, then on a ship towards mereen, depending if they include the aegon story or not).

Click to expand...

As I thought Tywin's death was episode 10. Tyrion's story is right at the end of book 3.

Brienne/Podrick's stories are already advancing well into book 4 territory. Looks like Podrick leaves before the trial, and it looks like jaime will be sending Brienne off next episode in search of Sansa. The two can easily meet up and have their mostly uneventful journey together for the remainder of this season. Depending on how much they focus/cut out of their story this year, they could possibly meet back up with Gendry/bwob this season, before she is taken to LS. This leaves it open for the LS reveal to happen this season (though I don't think it will, I think instead the episode 10 reveal will be, as stated above, Tywin's death by Tyrion), and her/podrick's hanging, ie sword or noose scene to occur in the beginning of season 5. Most likely though if they do go with the LS storyline it won't happen until next season, thus they can bring thoros/dondarrion/catelyn all back for few episodes of season 5 since they aren't really needed in season 4 at all.

Click to expand...

If LS happens at all, it seems it will happen as I predicted, start of Season 5. Though I honestly hope that shit is cut. With that being said, it makes it kind of impossible to gauge where her story is, book wise, if LS isn't there to derail her story for no good goddamn reason. Since they killed Rorge and Biter they moved her fight at the Inn at the cross roads her stay there was peaceful, and she got a tip about Arya. Which allowed them to move that fight where she's injured and bites off a mans ear to a fight with the Hound, which was an excellent scene and a great decision during the adaptation.

So Brienne's story vs the books is either 1 chapter away from being done (If they include LS) or it's completed and all of next season is WoW territory for her.

Jaime's story is slightly weird as they've shifted around his timeline so much. With him at king's landing now and cersei being so cold/distant to him in addition to tywin, once he gives away oathkeeper next episode I can easily see Tywin (via king tommen) ordering him to wrap up the war in the riverlands and off he goes to do most of his book 4 stuff now, in the second half of this season. Again kinda depends on what they do with brienne's story. I don't think they'll bring back Blackfish/Edwin this season, so the big showdown at riverrun and the greatest threat/dialogue from book 4 won't take place til season 5. Though plot wise it's kinda weak, to only inform viewers of what happened to them after the RW off camera, instead of showing the characters this season.

Click to expand...

Yep they didn't do any of the riverrun stuff. And the rumor is that Jaime heads to Dorne next season anyway, so it looks like potentially all of the Riverlands stuff is kinda done. It's possible that he does it towards the end of Season 5 after he finishes up whatever he's doing down in Dorne. Again his story other than Riverlands stuff is done, especially if no LS.

Davos/Stannis story has been subject to the greatest amount of artistic liberty in adaptation. I can easily see Davo's informing stannis of his plan next episode, and Stannis and his knights setting sail (for east-watch by the sea) the following episode, with Davos himself booking passage to Braavos. It's entirely possible him and Arya appear in the same scene booking passage on the same ship, though of course she'll be practicing her make believe name and life story (not enough of this happened in the show so far, just Arya=Arry) so davo's won't know who he's riding with. Just more Odd Couple starring Arya Stark + 1.

Click to expand...

Wrong here. Was right about Davo's heading to braavos, just didn't know Stannis was going with. And of course the both of them head to the wall together. Looks like his story either a: being changed completely and he sticks with Stannis, cutting his whole side mission, or that they are saving all that for Season 5, with Stannis sending him to treat with the northern lords (Karstark, Manderly, etc) and his Book 5 stuff can pick up from there.

Storylines that will most likely maintain their pacing are of course Jon Snow's, Sansa/Baelish, Cersei's (to an extent, they could start hinting at the quarrel to come between her and Marg after her wedding to Tommen), and Sam/Gilly (though not sure what they're doing with Gilly, since she's now in moletown and the wildings are about to pillage it. Not sure they will kill her off, probably just scare her enough so that she'll get on the boat with Aemon and Sam and head to Oldtown at the end of this season).

Click to expand...

Ok wrong about a few of these.

Jon's story so far is the only one that hasn't completed book 3. Namely the choosing for Lord Commander. But that's something they can take care of episode 1. Sansa/Baelish story line has pretty much completed all of the book content. The only things left is leaving the Eyrie due to the ice/snow, the minor revolt plot against Baelish as Lord Protector of the Vale which is deftly handled by Baelish, and Baelish telling sansa about his plan to engage her to Harry the Heir. With the way they handled the Lysa's murder coverup, it seems that all 3 of those things either won't happen or will be handled a different way, so Sansa/baelish (who always gets decent screen time) will be all new for the show material next year or be complete WoW territory.

edit: forgot the ironborn, no idea what the fuck they are doing with Yara's storyline, why Balon isn't dead yet, or what Theon's going to be doing since nothing really happens until winterfell.

Anyway, that's my predictions/thoughts on how the rest of the season will pan out, given the constraints the show runners are under to finish the story in 7/possibly 8 seasons.

Click to expand...

Yep. Hoping to hear casting news for Euron/Victarion. Season 5 can start off with a dead Greyjoy and a Kingsmoot.

Jabberwhacky_sl said:

Overall I enjoyed it quite much, but it just felt like so many coincidences lining up:

1. Jon Snow walks directly to Mance
2. Stannis rides directly to Mance
3. Breanne walking directly into Arya and the Hound (up in some random hills 10 miles away from the gate, no less)
4. Tyrion walking directly to the Hand of the King's chamber. I'm gonna take a stab in the dark and say that it's not located directly above the dungeons full of nasty smells and loud yells where Tyrion has been imprisoned, and yet besides the two guards directly outside his door, none were on duty.
5. Honorable mention to the scene outside the Tree, where we think "oh no bran's about to die WOW fireball from out of fucking no where" in cliche fashion. This brings up the problem of foresight, when the dude inside says he's been watching with 1000 eyes but....just really wanted them to have a dramatic fight scene outside his door.

Individually they're kinda acceptable but I feel like there were too many. Regardless, the big plot points are pretty exciting, what with Stannis finally being back in Westeros, Tyrion going half Oedipus and shaking shit up in King's Landing, Arya finally getting her ass to Braavos, Bran finally getting his ass to the tree, and Daenyrs....locking up 66% of her dragons? lol.

Click to expand...

Some snobbish rebuttals and minor details that may not have been directly revealed in the show:
1. The wildling army that was camped directly beneath the wall, just out of arrow range? They had 100k dudes it's not like they were hiding. They had a lot of stuff to cram into that episode, not sure if they could justify 20 minutes of Jon Snow walking around until he found Mance's tent.

2. See above.

3. Not sure how much detail was shown in the earlier shots, but it's a valley, leading up to the Bloody gate. It's why it's called the bloody gate. I know they explained that if you wanted to go to war against the vale you'd have to march your army through that valley for like 50 miles while you're constantly under fire just to meet a gate you can't reasonably siege cus you're in a valley, under fire. There's really only 1 way to go by land in and out of the Vale. Of course you could climb through the hills and mountains if you wanted to avoid that road. Recall back in Season 1 Tyrion and bronn do just that when they are leaving the Vale and go about 1 day before running into the hill tribesmen? So yeah. Reasonable people take the road. Arya and the hound went to the gate and then turned around. Brienne was headed to the gate. If they didn't run into each other I would call bullshit. Of course the hound stepped off the road a bit and went behind a rock, to go take a shit. But brienne heard/saw Arya practicing and walked up to investigate.

4. He climbs out of that secret passage into the Tower of the Hand. Notice the room he first entered, it's where Tywin moved the small council chambers. Recall lots of scenes there in season 3, including explaining why he moved the council chamber from the Red Keep (It's a separate building) to the Tower of the hand, so it would be easier for him to get shit done. Remember Tywin explaining that shit to Joffrey when joff was bitching that he moved the small council chamber all the way to the Tower of the Hand? Remember the scene when he first moved the small council chamber and all of the council members are vying for seat position near Tywin, Cersei moves a chair to sit next to her dad while Tyrion moves a chair to sit at the other end of the table? So yeah, he finds himself in the Tower of the hand. Recall that all throughout Season 2, Tyrion was the (acting) Hand of the King and lived in the Tower of the hand? Once he's there he knows where to go. To be fair to you though, I'm not sure the show did an adequate job explaining all of the various secret tunnels beneath the Red Keep, which includes the main keep/throne room, The Maidenvault (not shown on the show), Maegor's holdfast (where Cersei and all the ladies hid during the battle of blackwater) and the Tower of the hand (where the Hand lives).

5. I have no retort which doesn't involve book spoilers. I will say in the book it's a torch not fireballs, and it's quite obvious why the guy couldn't exactly get up and go help him, which I don't think it was in the show. It's just a really old guy on the show, but he's much,mucholder in the books.

That episode was awesome and I have no problem with the adaptation thus far. Book purist's sure are a bunch of whiny faggots. That was the greatest episode of GoT to date. Sorry you are butthurt and just now realizing after 4 seasons that a TV show is not a book and that the many, many, many, many, many changes made already before this episode would also result in changes made to this episode. There will be many more changes. And a lot of them have improved the story. Not all of course, but a lot of them have.

Vandyn_sl said:

It's not just comparisons to the book. Arya magically disappears behind a rock during the Brienne/Hound fight, Jaime lets Tyrion free with about the least amount of dialogue you can have, Tyrion defends himself from Shae and kills her but then decides to kill Tywin because of Shae? The show doesn't explain any of these things.

Click to expand...

Arya doesn't magically disappear behind a rock. The show both showed and explained it, it requires no further explanation. But because you are slow i'll sum it up for you.

Pod goes after Arya while Brienne and the hound fight. That is clearly shown. Arya, who has been practicing at being stealthy (As far back as sneaking up on Cats in Season 1, when she was like 11 years old), evades Podrick, Tyrion's squire (ie only knows how to pour wine, has basically never been outside of KL, can't even cook a rabbit), when Podrick rushes off to help Brienne cus it looked like Brienne was in trouble.

What dialogue was needed between Jaime/Tyrion? Jaime had to get back out of the secret tunnels before he was implicated in Tyrion's release. Tyrion had to meet with Varys to get his ride out of KL. Tyrion stops him and says his last good bye's. What else did the show need to have said? That wouldn't have made sense given the situation on the TV show? ya nothing.

Tyrion kill's shae yep. and then kills Tywin because of Shae, yep. What do you need explained to you? are you 3 years old or something? Either you have down's syndrome orit isjust comparions to the book. pick one.