It would certainly explain the pacing of this season. LOL
Unless the next two books are about a hundred pages each, I'm assuming we'll see a bit more happen in KL and the North.
I mean, they are only now, 6/7ths of the way through the show, catching up to the end of ADWD in KL. And it should be noted that the Battle of the Bastards is thought of by our author as the Battle of Winterfell, is between Stannis and Roose, and almost found its way into ADWD...
So very little WoW material thus far.
Exactly. Most characters are only marginally further along than the end of ADWD - namely Arya, everyone in KL, everyone in Meereen, Riverrun, and the Wall. It's really just the northern story that has progressed significantly beyond what we've read, but I always expected Stannis to win the fight so we may actually be close, except that Jon and Sansa aren't in WF in the books and instead it's Mance and Stannis.
Which makes me very afraid for the next two seasons. How can they possibly fit 2 books into 1 1/2 seasons when the last 5 books took them 6 seasons to film?
G.o.T-minus 6 hours 45 minutes!!
Plot Twist: TWOW is released this xmas, & HBO & D&D decide they are making so much money off the show they'd like to extend it a couple seasons longer.
Plot Twist 2: Forum becomes about the tv show bc TWOW never comes out, karsa knew this years before Feast was even released & the book fans turn on GRRM & HBO wins the Iron Throne.
“Never forget what you are, for surely the world will not. Make it your strength. Then it can never be your weakness. Armour yourself in it, and it will never be used to hurt you.” ― George R.R. Martin, A Game of Thrones
Exactly. Most characters are only marginally further along than the end of ADWD - namely Arya, everyone in KL, everyone in Meereen, Riverrun, and the Wall. It's really just the northern story that has progressed significantly beyond what we've read, but I always expected Stannis to win the fight so we may actually be close, except that Jon and Sansa aren't in WF in the books and instead it's Mance and Stannis.
Even the northern story, I would argue, is far from the books in terms of substance, rather than pacing ... which is even worse!
Makes me think we've seen little and less in terms of actual book spoilers. (Anyone who believes Mel resurrected Jon by trimming his pubes...or that Sansa will ever be anywhere near Ramsay...let alone marry him and be raped by him...or that obsidian creates white walkers, and kills white walkers, AND preserves men's lives who have been slain by white walkers...or that Brienne will behead Stannis . . . is welcome to purchase my timeshare in Atlantis. But be prepared! I will only payment in the form of Skagosi unicorn excrement.)
The season smacks of stalling. And who can blame them? The author is not the quickest of men.
Which makes me very afraid for the next two seasons. How can they possibly fit 2 books into 1 1/2 seasons when the last 5 books took them 6 seasons to film?
They simply cannot and will not. Theirs is the tip of the iceberg, not the Song of Ice and Fire.
"I can see it. You have more of the north in you than your brothers."
My boss wouldn't let me take the night off. I told him I would've owed him a favor, but no more. However, I'm in the cocktail lounge and asked him to put on HBO on so I could watch, he was ok with that. Otherwise I threatened to sit on my phone and watch it live on HBO Now app if it's slow. He said he didn't give a shit. Game on. I'll just press pause when a table needs a refill.
“Never forget what you are, for surely the world will not. Make it your strength. Then it can never be your weakness. Armour yourself in it, and it will never be used to hurt you.” ― George R.R. Martin, A Game of Thrones
My boss wouldn't let me take the night off. I told him I would've owed him a favor, but no more. However, I'm in the cocktail lounge and asked him to put on HBO on so I could watch, he was ok with that. Otherwise I threatened to sit on my phone and watch it live on HBO Now app if it's slow. He said he didn't give a shit. Game on. I'll just press pause when a table needs a refill.
Me too. I think LF sticks around exactly as long as it takes the Starks (any one of them) to figure out he is responsible for Ned's death. Then he's a goner, immediately. He won't be talking his way out of that one. I think I'd prefer to have Jon kill him, since he is the most like Ned (and b/c he would do it by beheading, which would be very fitting). However, if Sansa orders it done, it might be Brienne who swings the sword, which would have LF die by the same sword that killed Ned. So either way would work for me.
YUP! I've also wondered if this is why they didn't have Lysa do the full confession at the Moon Door. Just some mad statements about how everyone who gets between her and Baelish dies. That way, Sansa doesn't have quite enough info yet. Unlike book Sansa who has inexplicably NOT connected the dots. Show Sansa is short on dots.
And I would LOVE it if Jon takes his head. It's even justice, not just vengeance. But Since they had Sansa make a point of Brienne's willingness to kill Baeilsh on her orders, it would be nice to have her follow through on that.
but again, why the extreme secrecy? The nod last ep to him (Jon) already being a legend for his swordfighting skills was a nice potential hint at SAD though, I must admit. And they picked a very attractive actor to play him, which also certainly doesn't refute the idea of him being the dad... Sigh. Another year of speculation, here we come!
On the secrecy: it will make an excellent cliffhanger. Last year, they had Jon the Be-Holed and Dany the Surrounded. This year? Cersei's Wildfire Wonderland and Finding Jonny (or at least "Finding Jonny's Parents").
I bet GRRM hasn't told them the answer, so they went with what they had. Maybe that was part of the initial agreement- that he wouldn't reveal certain secrets until TWOW was published? And that's why they spent a whole season going nowhere with the story, waiting for more material.
This would make some sense--they stop with the mother implications. Don't move onto daddy.
But then, I'd wonder why on earth they did what they did at the tower with Arthur and his sword.
But I agree that they seem to b e trying to reset the books to get to where Martin left off.
This has me thinking why go this far into inference territory and no cigar? They might has well have said it.
Unless they want the cliffhanger???? Next February, there will be a poster, not of Jon The Bloody Snow, but of a baby in Lyanna's arms--with an unidentified male hand on the baby's head or something.
Though if they want to go with a REAL cliffhanger, the unidentified hand should be female. Ashara+Lyanna=Jon!!!
I've seen some speculation on Sansa's facial expressions and I'm having trouble seeing the suspicion myself. But, though I think Sansa does not wish Jon any ill, it would add interesting drama if those two rumbled.
All art is at once surface and symbol. Those who go beneath the surface do so at their peril. Those who read the symbol do so at their peril. It is the spectator, and not life, that art really mirrors. Oscar Wilde.
WARNING: A very spoilery gif re: Northern Developments in the next episode: ETA: Humph!I can't get the gif to "gif." So, an explanation before the image:
All art is at once surface and symbol. Those who go beneath the surface do so at their peril. Those who read the symbol do so at their peril. It is the spectator, and not life, that art really mirrors. Oscar Wilde.
WARNING: A very spoilery gif re: Northern Developments in the next episode: ETA: Humph!I can't get the gif to "gif." So, an explanation before the image:
"I can see it. You have more of the north in you than your brothers."
I hate all of you right now, omg I actually miss being unemployed for a year. Most people claim they'd get bored, but I never was. Rode horses all week, watched my tv shows, even did a bit of reading, lol!
I have summers off and I agree- there are always ways to fill the time. In fact, riding, tv shows (really mostly just GOT) and reading are exactly what I do most days.
G.o.T-minus 3 hours and 8 minutes!
“In Qohor he is the Black Goat, in Yi Ti the Lion of Night, in Westeros the Stranger. All men must bow to him in the end, no matter if they worship the Seven or the Lord of Light, the Moon Mother or the Drowned God or the Great Shepherd. All mankind belongs to him... else somewhere in the world would be a folk who lived forever. Do you know of any folk who live forever?”
Even the northern story, I would argue, is far from the books in terms of substance, rather than pacing ... which is even worse!
It might not be as far as it seems. Book LF has already offered Sansa Winterfell IIRC, and is in effect in charge of the Vale army. So it seems reasonable to assume they will be going North sometime fairly soon, so LF, Sansa and Vale soldiers will be in the castle. It's possible that Jon would go join them after his resurrection - all of this of course after Stannis wins the Battle on the Ice. So potentially quite a similar situation, except with Stannis probably still alive.
The season smacks of stalling. And who can blame them? The author is not the quickest of men.
Yeah but stalling doesn't seem like a smart strategy. Sure, they'll have source material for next season (here's to hoping this means Season 7 will be good!), but after that? It's not like they can finish the series with the TWOW ending... IMO, they can't wait him out. Not if they want a show every year. Now, a 6 year break might do it, but we should be careful what we wish for...
They simply cannot and will not. Theirs is the tip of the iceberg, not the Song of Ice and Fire.
That's really too bad, b/c it wasn't the case in the early seasons. But I don't blame them in this case, given that there simply is no source material they could follow.
On the secrecy: it will make an excellent cliffhanger. Last year, they had Jon the Be-Holed and Dany the Surrounded. This year? Cersei's Wildfire Wonderland and Finding Jonny (or at least "Finding Jonny's Parents").
But is it really that much of a cliffhanger for non-book readers? And even I am starting to wonder how it could possibly be important enough to live up to all the secrecy and fan hype. Why does it matter who Jon's parents are? He is a Ned-clone in every way; how will a daddy reveal change the character? I guess what I'm really trying to say is that I'm tired of waiting. It's great to have a mystery, but only if it's possible to solve it, i.e. if books are occasionally published to provide more information. In the absence of those, I am tired of waiting.
Season 6 Finale Folks!!! I'm seriously starting to all at once....LOL
Me too!!! (wait is this an ISIS emoji??)
G.o.T-minus 2 hours 6 minutes!!!!
“In Qohor he is the Black Goat, in Yi Ti the Lion of Night, in Westeros the Stranger. All men must bow to him in the end, no matter if they worship the Seven or the Lord of Light, the Moon Mother or the Drowned God or the Great Shepherd. All mankind belongs to him... else somewhere in the world would be a folk who lived forever. Do you know of any folk who live forever?”
It might not be as far as it seems. Book LF has already offered Sansa Winterfell IIRC, and is in effect in charge of the Vale army. So it seems reasonable to assume they will be going North sometime fairly soon, so LF, Sansa and Vale soldiers will be in the castle. It's possible that Jon would go join them after his resurrection - all of this of course after Stannis wins the Battle on the Ice. So potentially quite a similar situation, except with Stannis probably still alive.
Which is totally plausible . . . Unlike the show.
In the show, it's not Stannis v Roose, the way it is in the books. It's Sansa Bolton vs Ramsay Bolton.
It may have canonical ingredients, but it jumped the shark into the realm of fan fiction some time ago imo.
Yeah but stalling doesn't seem like a smart strategy. Sure, they'll have source material for next season (here's to hoping this means Season 7 will be good!), but after that? It's not like they can finish the series with the TWOW ending... IMO, they can't wait him out. Not if they want a show every year. Now, a 6 year break might do it, but we should be careful what we wish for...
Yup. Not saying it's smart, but I can't blame them. GRRM gave them an incredibly complicated mess of storylines, and D&D had no way of knowing they would have to resolve them without the source material. Considering GRRM may not even know what he is going to do with some of his knots, we can't expect it to make sense on the screen when the fan fiction versions are filmed.
That's really too bad, b/c it wasn't the case in the early seasons. But I don't blame them in this case, given that there simply is no source material they could follow.
No source material, and too little time to even use it now. If Winds of Winter comes out before next season, I wouldn't be surprised if D&D used very little of it. Their fork of the river has already changed course.
Even the northern story, I would argue, is far from the books in terms of substance, rather than pacing ... which is even worse!
It might not be as far as it seems. Book LF has already offered Sansa Winterfell IIRC, and is in effect in charge of the Vale army. So it seems reasonable to assume they will be going North sometime fairly soon, so LF, Sansa and Vale soldiers will be in the castle. It's possible that Jon would go join them after his resurrection - all of this of course after Stannis wins the Battle on the Ice. So potentially quite a similar situation, except with Stannis probably still alive.
Makes me think we've seen little and less in terms of actual book spoilers.
Jon - Stark MALE clone, yes!!! Here I go again... Ned/Benjen+Ashara=Jon...Rhaegar+Lyanna=Dany - drops mic... (This message will self-destruct in 10seconds)
They simply cannot and will not. Theirs is the tip of the iceberg, not the Song of Ice and Fire.
That's really too bad, b/c it wasn't the case in the early seasons. But I don't blame them in this case, given that there simply is no source material they could follow.
On the secrecy: it will make an excellent cliffhanger. Last year, they had Jon the Be-Holed and Dany the Surrounded. This year? Cersei's Wildfire Wonderland and Finding Jonny (or at least "Finding Jonny's Parents").
But is it really that much of a cliffhanger for non-book readers? And even I am starting to wonder how it could possibly be important enough to live up to all the secrecy and fan hype. Why does it matter who Jon's parents are? He is a Ned-clone in every way; how will a daddy reveal change the character? I guess what I'm really trying to say is that I'm tired of waiting. It's great to have a mystery, but only if it's possible to solve it, i.e. if books are occasionally published to provide more information. In the absence of those, I am tired of waiting.
In the show, it's not Stannis v Roose, the way it is in the books. It's Sansa Bolton vs Ramsay Bolton.
It may have canonical ingredients, but it jumped the shark into the realm of fan fiction some time ago imo.
Oh I completely agree. I just meant that the characters will end the season in roughly similar positions and locations as they ended up in ADWD. So in theory, if TWOW came out in the very near future, they could get back to a reasonable, book parallel plot rather than fan fiction. But i know that's wishful thinking, as they can't possibly cram that whole book into 7 episodes...
This will be my last countdown update, as I am heading out to go watch with a bunch of Unsullied. See you on the other side!
G.o.T-minus 1 hour and 27 minutes!!!!
“In Qohor he is the Black Goat, in Yi Ti the Lion of Night, in Westeros the Stranger. All men must bow to him in the end, no matter if they worship the Seven or the Lord of Light, the Moon Mother or the Drowned God or the Great Shepherd. All mankind belongs to him... else somewhere in the world would be a folk who lived forever. Do you know of any folk who live forever?”
Jon's at the high table. All of the men in the room rise and draw their swords for him.
Reading a bit too much into that methinks. Jon is not alone at the table.
Your lordship lost a son at the Red Wedding. I lost four upon the Blackwater. And why? Because the Lannisters stole the throne. Go to King’s Landing and look on Tommen with your own eyes, if you doubt me. A blind man could see it. What does Stannis offer you? Vengeance. Vengeance for my sons and yours, for your husbands and your fathers and your brothers. Vengeance for your murdered lord, your murdered king, your butchered princes. Vengeance!