tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30892649.post489361819749970646..comments2024-02-04T05:13:04.501-05:00Comments on Nik at Nite: Game of Thrones 5.10: Mother's MercyNikki Staffordhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04463618183850438914noreply@blogger.comBlogger24125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30892649.post-79106698034183695392015-06-19T09:36:29.819-04:002015-06-19T09:36:29.819-04:00Marebabe: it was like a nod to The Empire Strikes...Marebabe: <i> it was like a nod to The Empire Strikes Back</i><br />I actually had a section in there originally where I wrote about how I kept feeling Star Wars references throughout this episode, but then the paragraph didn't quite fit the discussion so I deleted it. But when Arya was whipping the faces off only to find her own, my husband said, "Well THAT was very Star Wars." And later, when Jaime was doing his speech with Myrcella, I said to my husband, "*I* am your fah-thah." But then he never got to say the line. ;) Nikki Staffordhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04463618183850438914noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30892649.post-57443188803385660592015-06-19T09:32:59.967-04:002015-06-19T09:32:59.967-04:00Blam: Awesome comments, as always. Awesome to see ...Blam: Awesome comments, as always. Awesome to see you! <br /><br /><i>Until now, I somehow had not made the connection between Drogo and Drogon’s names at all. Weird.</i><br /><br />I believe that's part of the reason why Drogon is Dany's favourite — she named him after Khal Drogo. The other two dragons — Viserion and Rhaegal — are named after her two brothers. Nikki Staffordhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04463618183850438914noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30892649.post-58126697385146085312015-06-19T01:27:31.431-04:002015-06-19T01:27:31.431-04:00@Marebabe: // it was like a nod to The Empire Stri...<br>@Marebabe: <i>// it was like a nod to </i>The Empire Strikes Back<i> //</i><br /><br />Yes! So totally. <br /><br />@ Marebabe: <i>// Leaving Grey Worm, Missandei, and Tyrion to govern Meereen reminded me of </i>The Wizard of Oz<i>. Each has skills and qualities that will help the people of Meereen accept their leadership. //</i><br /><br />Another great association.<br /><br />@Marebabe: <i>// everyone immediately thought of Julius Caesar with the stabby murder scene //</i><br /><br />Huh. Sorry. You lost me there. 8^)<br /><br />@Elizabeth: <i>// Arya is proving herself to be quite deadly and my boyfriend has a theory that she will be tasked with killing Sansa at some point without actually knowing it is Sansa //</i><br /><br />… Whoa.<br /><br />@QuestionMark: <i>// I'm just not a fan of death getting cancelled/retconned. //</i><br /><br />I hear you on Chris Pine’s Kirk, and I can appreciate the sentiment in general. The ability to resurrect someone via the Lord of Light has been established, however, and this situation perhaps telegraphed in retrospect, far more satisfyingly than <i>Into Darkness</i>’ equivalent setup. We knew Kirk wasn’t gonna bite it permanent-like, the misguided echo of <i>Wrath of Khan</i> and unearned appropriation of affection for these characters’ previous incarnations entirely aside, whereas if/when Jon Snow is resurrected — as this Azor Ahai or some altered version of himself or whatever — it will feel, presumably, done well, like an evolution, his death (or “death”) having been an essential part of the character’s journey in one long, sprawling but discrete story.<br /><br />I’m still curious about Melisandre’s usage of “You know nothing, Jon Snow,” and how or whether it indicates any kind of association with his Wildling love. The way she turned around at the door to say it made it rather a non sequitur, but it remains to be seen whether she has a connection to Ygritte specifically or could feel her spirit through a mystic/telepathic moment she, Melisandre, was having with Jon Snow, or even if there’s a latent Ginger Hive-Mind accessible to all the men and women who’ve been <i>tooched bah faaah</i>.<br /><br />@JS: <i>// since we have only seen them do that with live babies //</i><br /><br />The fact that this is an entirely valid sentence in the context of our discussion is almost as creepy as Joan.<br /><br>Blamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07342343767763035991noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30892649.post-12668986531083074762015-06-19T01:25:09.040-04:002015-06-19T01:25:09.040-04:00@Nikki: // And that still means, whether it was He...<br>@Nikki: <i>// And that still means, whether it was Headey or someone else, a woman had to actually go through that to ensure that the scene was caught on video for all of us to watch and be reviled by it. So I found the scene very unsettling. //</i><br /><br />I agree with Nikki how hard it is to watch, how totally exposed she is. What’s remarkable about this is how situationally sympathetic we can be towards these characters. Of course we feel for both Cersei, in-story, and the real women who made that march on a human level, but it’s not like we haven’t delighted in Headey’s portrayal of Cersei before both for the brilliance of her sheer amorality and her palpable maternal pain in certain moments, even as so much of what she’s wrought disgusts us. <br /><br />Few to none of the people we follow across this world are innocents by now. Myrcella is one, from what little we’ve seen, yet so was Bran when Jamie kicked him out of Incest Point. And whether it’s because Jamie has grown enlightened or we’ve just grown to love the actor’s performance — surely a bit of each — we feel grief over Myrcella’s apparent death as much for his sake as her own, if not more.<br /><br />@Christopher: <i>// I think it’s pretty obvious that Jon Snow </i>is<i> dead; the question, rather, is whether he’ll </i>stay<i> dead. //</i><br /><br />I’m of the opinion that if somehow he really does stay entirely dead, if this is some grand misdirect of the expected plot turn on the part of the storytellers, Weiss and Benioff and/or Martin, it will actually be bad writing. We’ve invested so much in him, and so much of his role in the story that must come into play as things climax isn’t easily transferred to other characters, that he has to survive or, more likely, transmute. I of course have no idea whether his body fails to burn in the Watch’s traditional funeral pyre like Dany’s with her dragon eggs, assuming he gets such an honor, or his rebirth comes in some other fashion, like his spirit using Ghost as a Warg waystation similar to Spock’s katra or the Lord of Light granting Melisandre the ability to bring him back. I have to assume that everything Harrington and the showrunners are saying right now is carefully (?) parsed spin, though.<br /><br>Blamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07342343767763035991noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30892649.post-50739567098581255832015-06-19T01:21:07.821-04:002015-06-19T01:21:07.821-04:00Intermission: Want to see Bronn sing and dance his...<br>Intermission: Want to see Bronn sing and dance his way through an endearingly tacky sort-of Mersey Beat doo-wop hybrid cover of a Drifters classic looking like a square-jawed Anthony Michael Hall? <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5V8ecsrxeY" rel="nofollow">You're in luck.</a> Me, I can't get enough of it.<br /><br>Blamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07342343767763035991noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30892649.post-64015677613776264892015-06-19T01:15:11.621-04:002015-06-19T01:15:11.621-04:00A big thanks to Nikki and Christopher for these po...<br>A big thanks to Nikki and Christopher for these posts. I’ve not been able to comment much, as I barely get to read ‘em before the next episode airs due to how the week shakes out, but I appreciate ‘em. Would that we could flip the odometer like we did back in the days of <i>Lost</i>. <br /><br />@Christopher: <i>// I would have preferred Brienne seeing Sansa’s candle just as Podrick brought the news, and having her make a painful choice between oaths //</i><br /><br />Me too; Nikki was right on the money about it being cheesy. And <i>Game of Thrones</i>, when it’s working at least, is better than such hackneyed tropes. Except I’m also forgiving of them to an extent because the show has so much apparent Destiny going on. <br /><br />@Nikki: <i>// the scene kept going, not pausing to cut to Arya sitting up in bed //</i><br /><br />Yeah. I was right there suspecting, expecting, hoping even for it to be a dream — not with Meryn Trant, but when a man totally fracked with a girl’s mind and she was pulling face after face off the dead body.<br /><br />Arya properly ventilating the guy who killed her “dance teacher” — now in the midst of physically and emotionally torturing* underage girls* before raping* them (*** or as GRRM probably calls it, <i>Yahtzee</i>) — I’m down with that. Sure, I wouldn’t like to see Arya growing cold and her soul corrupted by vengeance or indifference to human life. Contextually, though, her distraction from the prescribed Faceless Man curriculum aside, Arya was/is entitled to her moment.<br /><br />@Christopher: <i>// Drogon will be conveniently absent, and they will find Drogo’s ring //</i><br /><br />Until now, I somehow had not made the connection between Drogo and Drogon’s names at all. Weird.<br /><br />@Christopher: <i>// Her long, humiliating walk from Baelor’s Sept to the Red Keep is depicted almost precisely as it is described in the novel. //</i><br /><br />If Jonathan Pryce’s role as the High Sparrow <i>did</i> veer significantly from the books, would that make him a deviated septon?<br /><br />Please tip your waiters, folks.<br /><br>Blamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07342343767763035991noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30892649.post-45999253314886768172015-06-17T19:29:20.559-04:002015-06-17T19:29:20.559-04:00"What is dead may never die" If he is de..."What is dead may never die" If he is dead, he cannot die again, which would make him unstoppable?!?<br /><br />"Jon always comes back" Sam Soothsayer predicts it<br /><br />"and now his watch is ended" which frees him up to pursue other career opportunities...<br /><br />"Dead is dead" um, that didn't work on LOST either - JL was dead, but his image was used for something else. (I assume it is impossible to spoil anyone here on LOST).<br /><br />Melisandre has visions and mis-reads them. My feeling is she FINALLY figured out Stannis was not Azor Ahai and remembered her feelings about Jon, and also did not want to stick around for the dying and so went to the closest place. She SHOULD be able to call on the Lord of Light to resurrect Jon or bring out the real Jon/Azor Ahai/etc but remember she was impressed when she saw the priest do it with Beric, she hasn't necessarily done it herself.<br />Lastly, if they left his body out or stuck him in an ice cell AND he came in contact with a white walker or a wight, he would be a wight. I assume he would have to be alive to become a white walker since we have only seen them do that with live babies. If I remember correctly, when he burned the wight, he got burned himself, so I am not 100% on the Targaryen theory either. Well, at least not pure Targaryen.<br /><br />With Cersei - as you said Nikki, a significant reason for the power of that scene was that we lived it with her. Assuming it was a mile long, it probably took her 15-20 minutes, but the 3 minutes we got was long enough to empathize with her. Lena Headey did an amazing job conveying the changing feelings during that mile. The schmucks standing there gawking when she crossed the gates - I have a feeling the mountain may be deployed to clean out the small council, if she retains any Queen Mother powers. Or even if she doesn't.<br /><br />Very excited for what is to come.<br />JShttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06219841452322761803noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30892649.post-78105442705449562882015-06-17T15:06:58.747-04:002015-06-17T15:06:58.747-04:00Page48: I couldn't agree with you more. I was ...Page48: I couldn't agree with you more. I was having a conversation with a FB friend on their wall a couple of weeks ago about how ridiculous it is, that we get SO outraged at completely menial things these days. <br />OMG the Cadbury eggs have CHANGED THE CHOCOLATE!!!! I am outraged and will boycott them now.<br />Uh, guys? There's some, um, serious shit happening in the Middle East right now, maybe we should... <br />THE CHOCOLATE IS NOT THE SAME!!!!<br /><br />Or how about threatening to have Joss Whedon hanged because of some minor scene in the Avengers film and calling him out as an anti-feminist when HE CREATED BUFFY. Argh. I'm just so tired of it. It's why I so rarely post anything on FB that's pissy and complaining. There's just too much of it there already. :/ Nikki Staffordhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04463618183850438914noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30892649.post-45656810487780044382015-06-17T15:03:59.666-04:002015-06-17T15:03:59.666-04:00I want to second Marebabe's comment that we...I want to second Marebabe's comment that we're so happy to have you back, Joanie!! <br /><br />QuestionMark's brick-in-the-head comment is also one of my favourite things. I think we need to demand a rewrite of that scene just for the sadistic Nik at Niters. Nikki Staffordhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04463618183850438914noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30892649.post-68063880304703798022015-06-17T14:52:35.230-04:002015-06-17T14:52:35.230-04:00@ Marebabe - I was waiting for a brick to come fly...@ Marebabe - <i>I was waiting for a brick to come flying, and she'd be all like, "Shame! Sha-AHH, JESUS CHRIST!!!" LoL I may be a terrible person.</i><br /><br />Ahahahaha! "GODDAMN IT! Who threw that? Never mind: YOU'RE ALL GOING TO HELL!" <br /><br />Oh man, I could think about this all day :)Joan Crawfordhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04513335615114222374noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30892649.post-65198227744027944772015-06-17T13:39:48.697-04:002015-06-17T13:39:48.697-04:00@QM: I agree about the “not really dead” trope. Cu...@QM: I agree about the “not really dead” trope. Cue the eye roll when it happens. There is a difference, though, when someone is really most sincerely dead and gets RESURRECTED. That is a “bow your heads in awe” kind of thing. I guess we’ll see, won’t we. And I loved your rewritten scene with the nun getting clocked with a heavy doorstop. That would’ve been brilliant! <br /><br />@Nikki: That was a very satisfying SPLAT noise! They did it right.<br /><br />Here’s a thought. I suddenly pictured the showrunners trolling the Internet for a couple days here, just to take the pulse of the fans. Of course, they know exactly what’s in store for our characters next season, and possibly the whole rest of the series. They must be laughing their butts off and rubbing their hands together with glee, reading the most popular fan theories and speculation. Somehow I doubt that anyone has it exactly right. I don’t know why, but I have a feeling that the rug is going to be viciously yanked out from under us come next year. Actually, this is the analogy I used when speaking to my husband about Game of Thrones: Have you ever seen what a rat terrier does to a rat? It’s a lot like what Drogon did to a few Sons of the Harpy there in the fighting pit. THAT is sort of what the showrunners do to viewers. Pulling a rug out from under someone is far too mild and gentle for them.<br />Marebabenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30892649.post-9338643538518563852015-06-17T13:12:46.666-04:002015-06-17T13:12:46.666-04:00Question Mark: LOL on the nun comment, that would ...Question Mark: LOL on the nun comment, that would have been AMAZING!!!! <br /><br />Also, I forgot to mention in our post that my favourite thing about Myranda's death was that "splat" sound it made. ;) Nikki Staffordhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04463618183850438914noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30892649.post-78040490667163616872015-06-17T12:03:59.270-04:002015-06-17T12:03:59.270-04:00@MAREBABE: My first comment vanished as well! Some...@MAREBABE: My first comment vanished as well! Something is afoot in Internet-ville.<br /><br />I, for one, really hope that Jon Snow actually IS deader than dead. I've got nothing against him; I think Jon is a great character and a nice dude, and Kit Harrington plays him very well. But I'm just not a fan of death getting cancelled/retconned. It sucks me right out of the experience. When a character dies, they should DIE. (And I'm talking to YOU, Shia LaBeouf in "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen", or Chris Pine in "Star Trek 2: The Cure for Death"). It feels like we're given this big, emotional moment and then the writer just pokes his/her head out and says, "LoLz! J/K!" In the words of Benjamin Linus, "Dead is dead".<br />We'll miss you, Jon Snow. And now your watch is ended.<br /><br />For the record, during Cersei's scene, was anybody else hoping that someone in the crowd would chuck something really heavy at that nun? I was waiting for a brick to come flying, and she'd be all like, "Shame! Sha-AHH, JESUS CHRIST!!!" LoL I may be a terrible person.<br /><br />My favourite death of the episode, though, has to be Ramsay's girlfriend. It was a total "Return of the Jedi" moment, with Reek as Vader stepping up and saving his family member from a psychopath. I punched the air with glee and did the dance of joy.The Question Marknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30892649.post-67120609466412819212015-06-16T23:32:33.782-04:002015-06-16T23:32:33.782-04:00First things first: “Hi, Joan! I’ve missed you, an...First things first: “Hi, Joan! I’ve missed you, and I’m so glad to once again be commenting on one of Nikki’s posts WITH YOU!”<br /><br />@Elizabeth D: I’m intrigued by all the possibilities concerning Daenerys for next season. One thing that’s hugely in her favor is the fact that she’s fluent in Dothraki! Back when she was haggling over the purchase of her Unsullied, it was to her advantage to hide that she could speak and understand High Valyrian. But I can see no reason for her to not immediately hail the Riders in Dothraki. “I’m so glad to see you! My dragon broke down back there. Could I have some water, please?”<br />Marebabenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30892649.post-63630625231713182302015-06-16T22:29:25.997-04:002015-06-16T22:29:25.997-04:00Shame...shame...shame...shame....too funny. Can&#...Shame...shame...shame...shame....too funny. Can't wait to see Cersei get some payback next season. MOUNTAIN SMASH!!!!<br /><br />I'm just happy all my favorite characters made it (Cersei, Melisandre and even Bronn who I thought wouldn't be leaving Dorne alive.<br /><br />Everything has been covered so well above that I don't have much to add. It was an incredible season and I look forward to GoT being completely brand new now that we're past the books.<br /><br />This just better not be the end of Dany & Tyrion together.<br /><br />Thank you so much for putting these recaps together.<br /><br /> -Tim AlanAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30892649.post-39799272560294369262015-06-16T21:46:09.626-04:002015-06-16T21:46:09.626-04:00Internet outrage over Sansa's rape, internet o...Internet outrage over Sansa's rape, internet outrage over Shireen's murder, internet outrage over this and that. Haven't these legions of the outraged noticed over the course of 5 seasons that life on GOT makes living under ISIS look like a Sunday School picnic with free wifi?<br /><br />I sometimes think that Al Gore invented the internet for the sole purpose of giving people a place to lay down their phony outrage. I'll bet that most of these people don't even know they're outraged until they see that everyone else is outraged. It's outrageous. It's enough to make me Tweet. <br /><br />#knowmyoutragePage48https://www.blogger.com/profile/09728079057077761364noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30892649.post-21877276211936028692015-06-16T20:25:56.919-04:002015-06-16T20:25:56.919-04:00Also, why is the Lord of Light no longer helping S...Also, why is the Lord of Light no longer helping Stannis? I mean, yes, he's an evil shit but the god didn't seem to mind that before... he even gave him a Killer Ghost Baby to help him get closer to the throne. Is this explained in the book at all? Is Melisande just a crappy priestess who doesn't know how to summon his help consistently or is the lord of light actually invested in this?Joan Crawfordhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04513335615114222374noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30892649.post-44566177285609619782015-06-16T20:04:40.385-04:002015-06-16T20:04:40.385-04:00Great recap, you guys! I too am unsure if Stannis ...Great recap, you guys! I too am unsure if Stannis really died. I don't think he died, actually. I think that the Crows will try to burn Jon's body (thus proving Jon is a Targaryen when it fails to light) and then he'll rise up as a White Walker. I for one think he will be just as cute with blue eyes.Joan Crawfordhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04513335615114222374noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30892649.post-4684468714861147542015-06-16T19:40:44.601-04:002015-06-16T19:40:44.601-04:00(continued)
Regarding Daenerys, I'm very curi...(continued)<br /><br />Regarding Daenerys, I'm very curious about why she dropped the ring. I honestly don't really recall having noticed it before but if it signifies her position in the Dothraki then this is very significant. The logical theory is that she did not want to be recognized, but that ring is likely the only thing that would provide her any protection from the Dothraki riders she encounters. Without it, to them she is a vulnerable woman alone in the world and the Dothraki are not known for their good manners. When reading the book I remember thinking that they would see how powerful she was with her dragon and they would start to follow her, perhaps that may happen, but the bit with the ring is perplexing. In theory she could ride off with them not knowing her real identity, but then that leaves everyone behind in Mereen and there is no story there without her and we all love Tyrion and want to see him be brilliant so she needs to be there and we need to see her forgive Ser Jorah before he dies of greyscale. But if the Dothraki find out who she is anyway, what's the point of dropping the ring? <br /><br />I do think Syrio is not dead and that he is one of the faceless men. Arya is proving herself to be quite deadly and my boyfriend has a theory that she will be tasked with killing Sansa at some point without actually knowing it is Sansa, maybe she is referred to as Lady Bolton or something and Arya will have to choose between her new life and her old one as I think she's going to be quite obedient from now on so that would prove quite tricky. I'm actually really looking forward to getting back to Bran's storyline as I think that's where we'll learn more about the backstory. I also want to know where Rickon is and Osha. I named my cat after Osha so I'm hoping we'll see them again at some point.Elizabeth D.noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30892649.post-23325302022285107782015-06-16T19:39:24.639-04:002015-06-16T19:39:24.639-04:00Great analysis. Very enjoyable to read. It's a...Great analysis. Very enjoyable to read. It's a relief to have so much of the tv show caught up with the last book so that I can talk to more people about theories, however there are still a couple of bits and pieces that are possibly being saved for next season or are just not being used at all so those bits are a little tricky.<br /><br />First of all, thank you so much for getting this out so fast this week as I only just watched the episode last night so it is still fresh in my mind and I enjoyed everything you both said. I agree completely with the idea that while he may be dead, Jon's not gone for good. My boyfriend quoted Monty Python at that point "I'm not dead yet". Since they drew even more attention to Melisandre being there than was done in the book I think that is a given that she will play a role in this. Although another theory we had after reading this in the book was that he would warg into Ghost just at the point of death and that would be how he would continue until he could warg into something else, a dragon maybe. The books seem to talk about warging more than the series does as other characters do it as well, but perhaps that is not as important overall as a plot point as the books make it out to be, since the show only has Bran doing it IIRC. Although it was amusing about the uproar over Kit Harington cutting his hair short earlier this year. Many considered this to be proof positive that his character was gone for good. But we'll see. <br /><br />The events that took place in Dorne are very interesting to me as I'm wondering what will happen with Prince Trystane who is en route to King's Landing with the father of his now dead fiancee that one of his family members has killed. I don't see them turning back and there is nothing ahead for him except a certain death. My personal theory is that somehow he will end up in the place of one or two other characters who were absent from another storyline. Sorry for being vague but this may or may not be spoilers. When I first saw him that's who I actually thought he would end up being but then the engagement with Myrcella threw me. However now he is freed up to have other adventures if they choose to include that and if that aspect of the other storyline is actually important to the eventual outcome of the story.<br /><br />I do think that Brienne killed Stannis. After everything he had done and lost he was finished and there's not really anywhere else for this character to go. I have no idea what they will do with Brienne beyond this but I hope it's spectacular. I did not think it was possible to hate anyone more than Joffrey and then along comes Ramsay Bolton. I think that Theon has to atone for his sins against the Starks by helping Sansa and that he will end up dying for her. I had hopes for that bottle opener Sansa swiped that it was destined for Ramsay's neck, but alas she used it on the door only. But I'm sure that Sansa will find herself as a Merry Widow before too long. Now that I'm thinking about it, I suspect that Ramsay will murder his father before his father's new baby is born to protect his position. Once his father is dead Ramsay will get killed (possibly by Theon who will also die in the process) and then Sansa will step out to reclaim her place as the Warden of the North. I won't think about how Littlefinger will insinuate himself into this just yet. <br />Elizabeth D.noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30892649.post-30154374947735873252015-06-16T17:49:59.105-04:002015-06-16T17:49:59.105-04:00I don't know what happened to my first comment...I don't know what happened to my first comment. It up and vanished! So, here it is again.<br /><br />Excellent analysis, Nikki and Christopher! And putting this together by Tuesday afternoon? Brilliant! Surprising! And much appreciated.<br /><br />I jotted down a few ideas as they occurred to me. First of all, among the many cliffhangers, there are three who, as far as we know, are still imprisoned and need to be released, or at least fed regularly: Margaery, Viserion, and Rhaegal. (It’s odd that I forgot about Loras until you mentioned him. Loras, too.)<br /><br />When Arya was peeling off faces one by one, I expected that we would see the face of Syrio Forel. It just shows how fully I subscribed to the fan theory that, since we didn’t actually see Syrio die, he and Jaqen H’ghar must be one and the same. Another thing about Arya seeing her own face there at the end, it was like a nod to The Empire Strikes Back, when Luke seemingly struck down Darth Vader and saw his own face under the mask and helmet.<br /><br />Leaving Grey Worm, Missandei, and Tyrion to govern Meereen reminded me of The Wizard of Oz. Each has skills and qualities that will help the people of Meereen accept their leadership. Like the Scarecrow’s brains, the Tin Man’s heart, and the Lion’s courage. <br /><br />For much of season 5, Drogon was off on his own adventures, no one knew where. When we caught up with Daenerys and Drogon in the finale, he was lying on a heap of skeletons, and at first I wondered where they were. But I finally figured out that he had a home base, a nest, and he instinctively returned to it when he was wounded. It’s not like Dany had a bridle and reins to guide him where she wanted to go. He went to a place of rest and comfort. He went home, which now appears to be somewhere out in the middle of the Dothraki Sea. Also, as soon as I saw Daenerys drop the ring to the ground, I assumed it was left as a token for anyone who might be trying to find her, like Pippin in The Two Towers.<br /><br />So, off the top of my head, I spotted similarities with Star Wars, Wizard of Oz, and Lord of the Rings. And of course, everyone immediately thought of Julius Caesar with the stabby murder scene. There are, after all, very few truly original ideas in modern storytelling. I don’t mind. This has been a ripping good season of Game of Thrones, and it will be hard waiting for season 6. Bring it!<br />Marebabenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30892649.post-570359473738263752015-06-16T17:47:02.168-04:002015-06-16T17:47:02.168-04:00I was just thinking some more about Syrio Forel. H...I was just thinking some more about Syrio Forel. He was actually seen in the “Previously On” segment at the start of the finale! The little blurb with Syrio showed the start of his fight with Meryn Trant, and it was included to remind us of what Meryn had done to earn a top spot on Arya’s kill list (though it was hard to see his face with that helmet on). But it also inspired me to hope that the Syrio/Jaqen fan theory might be true.Marebabenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30892649.post-2154028914169027032015-06-16T16:27:30.503-04:002015-06-16T16:27:30.503-04:00Jon is only "mostly dead". "Mostly...Jon is only "mostly dead". "Mostly dead" is different than "All dead"!<br /><br />First, his head is still on, so he can come back. <br /><br />Two, they didn't burn him - he'd become a white walker if they didn't. I'm not sure how long you have but the Night's Watched turned and left awfully quick. Big mistake, huge!<br /><br />Three, Melisandre is there and I would assume can do the same thing the Red Priest has done for Beric Dondarion. He's been brought back 9 times -- remember when he fought the Hound?<br /><br />Four, I heard Kit and a few others renegotiated their contract through Season 6. :)<br /><br />I also think Melisandre has determined he has King's Blood -- whether it be Targaryen or Baratheon. I think the dark hair is a clue. They made such a big thing about the book that identified the families by looks and all Baratheon's had dark hair. Was it only Targaryens with "pure" blood that had the silver white hair? I can't remember.<br /><br />I did read that a body double was used for Cersei. Either way, that was a pretty powerful scene. Though for me it went on a bit long.<br /><br />Great recaps as always. What is the countdown to next season?!!?!Kiki Bnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30892649.post-44528076692388030772015-06-16T15:31:01.447-04:002015-06-16T15:31:01.447-04:00I completely agree with Chris about Melisandre res...I completely agree with Chris about Melisandre resurrecting Jon Snow. I was less convinced yesterday when I saw the articles with Kit Harrington proclaiming that Jon Snow is deader than dead. But reading Chris' comments made me realize...Harrington could be saying that with all honesty - you DO have to be deader than dead to be resurrected. And if Jon is resurrected as Azor Ahai, then Jon Snow really would be dead...<br /><br />Of course, as you say, all of this could just be a red herring and he really is dead and off the show. I still question though, if that is the case, how on earth they would really make us care about what is happening at the Wall and with the White Walkers. Overall I've found this the storyline that is the slowest and has the most uneven pacing over the course of the past 5 seasons, and without Jon Snow (or some version of him) on the Wall, I'm not sure I could bring myself to care about what's going on there. Maybe once the White Walkers make it to Winterfell...Marinanoreply@blogger.com