Game of Thrones HBO - Disappointments, discuss.

[The Imp]

With only one episode remaining, I think it's fair to say that the final grade of the first season will be a solid B+. For me, omitting the crow dreams, most of the wolf references, and the TOJ brings the grade down. Overall though, they did a spectacular job given this is the real world and there were very real financial considerations.

 

[Lyanna Stark]

I am in full agreement with you Imp.

Btw KiwiBird, I love the new pic! ^_^

 

[svalbard]

The mssing TOJ scene was a big dissapointment for me, but I can see why it was not done. It would have lacked context and have meant nothing to the non-book reading viewer.

 

[Koopa]

Hmmz, maybe i should re-watch the scene. Whose to say that the fault of interpretation lies simply with the scene happening during the latter part of the episode. That or i am just expecting too much from dear old aemon.

Thanks Lyanna.

 

[Eulalia]

I can see it, adding new actors at this stage, might be off putting. The crows might not have had good enough screen tests, but I like seeing them on camera. Knocking Tyrion out for the battle was not such a bad solution, either. Too much dog would probably not have worked, but doesn't mean it isn't disappointing. I guess these scenes are left to our imaginations. Still give it an A.

 

[Slyde]

Then I must disagree. I thought the point of the scene, that Jon was not the only one to have felt that he was being torn between his vows and his family was driven home strongly. It was all the more keenly felt because here was this old man that he really had never paid that much attention too in the past, pointing out that there had always been this tension in the men of the Night Watch. I felt Vaughan conveyed both dignity and strength, plus the frailty of great age. This combination is hard to carry out but Vaughan carried it off IMO, beautifully. That fact that great old age has ths element of frailty to it has to be recognised.

I have to agree. I thought the scene was very well written and acted.

 

[Pedro Del Mar]

Me too - thought it was excellent.

It's got to appreciated that on tv they don't have as much time to spend on a scene as they do in a novel.

 

[Koopa]

Mormont was awesome in this episode.
Sansa is getting better and better.
The dragons where nice.

Nice last episode. Full of cliffhanger thoug, poor poor tv-viewers.
I can already sense the next wave of moronic complaints.
I'm probably just thinking negatively here.

 

[Syphon of Oor-Tael]

Oh, Kiwi, just look out. People are going to off the walls with this. Imagine how bad it will get when the Red Wedding starts.

 

[Trey Greyjoy]

VERY VERY interesting to see the shift in the Hound's character for the series.

What was with the scene between Pycelle and the ubiquitous whore? I cant recall that from the series, but maybe I just forgot. Seems like the scene was implying he's in better physical condition than what he's letting on.

The dragons were a huge hit in my house.

 

[Lyanna Stark]

Oh, Kiwi, just look out. People are going to off the walls with this. Imagine how bad it will get when the Red Wedding starts.

I shudder to think. Actually shudder. And thus should probably not think. About that anyway.

And Kiwi, not negative; realistic. If we're proven wrong, well, it'll be a nice surprise.

 

[TK-421]

VERY VERY interesting to see the shift in the Hound's character for the series.

What was with the scene between Pycelle and the ubiquitous whore? I cant recall that from the series, but maybe I just forgot. Seems like the scene was implying he's in better physical condition than what he's letting on.

The dragons were a huge hit in my house.

Outstanding stuff.

Pycelle's piece was interesting. He takes on a more prominent role in the next books and this is all about building up his character that we shouldn't really trust him or believe him, as Tyrion didn't before he found him in bed with a whore and cut off his beard to humble him.

 

[Koopa]

Edit: This post was essentially a repeat of TK-421 words who beat me to the punch.

 

[Weasel Soup]

This brought me out of hiding. The Lack of the Tower of Joy scene is making me dumbstruck. No tower of joy, no R + L =J. Jon's character becomes, well, kinda anemic. Promise me Ned, and Howland Reed as extremely peripheral, if not completely unnecessary now. The Reeds with Bran become just 2 weirdos. The whole Reed, Stark, Targaryen "shadow story" is one of my favorite moments of speculation in the book series. And to give enough clue to the tower of joy in the show could have just been a 5 second "fever dream" sequence of a baby and a woman's voice saying promise me Ned. I'm a pouty soup. Otherwise, I have found the adaptation cleverly and well done. I'm hoping to still see some of the lesser characters, the Podricks, the Dolorous Edd's et al, but I do understand they may yet need to be trimmed. Only have 2 more words to add: July 12th.

 

[TK-421]

This has put serious doubts in mind as to the validity of R+L=J.

July 12th indeed and some more tidbits on Job's heritage.

 

[Weasel Soup]

TK, eeep, that thought had occurred to me aswell, but, it, can, not, be?

Hummmmmmmmm.

 

[summeriris]

TK, eeep, that thought had occurred to me aswell, but, it, can, not, be?

Hummmmmmmmm.

Be careful here, you do not want to become the GOT equivilent of a Harmoanian.

 

[Brian G Turner]

Outstanding stuff.

Pycelle's piece was interesting. He takes on a more prominent role in the next books and this is all about building up his character that we shouldn't really trust him or believe him, as Tyrion didn't before he found him in bed with a whore and cut off his beard to humble him.

The scene showed he wasn't be trusted - he stood straight and fit in front of the bed - but then when he was about to step out of the door, he changed his stance to stooped and frail.

I suspect the point with the whore was to show he knew she was one of Littlefinger's little birds, by his rambling and incoherent comment - ie, his "frailty" act.

This has put serious doubts in mind as to the validity of R+L=J.

That whole theory is based on dissection of the immense back story the book is able to provide. As the TV series provides much less of this, there is absolutely no reason to push it. Anyway, even TV viewers have been given more than a few hints - it's just that they've pushed on at such a pace, it isn't important to dwell on it as yet.

Frankly, if ADWD or WOW provide any alternative to R+L=J, I think there will be howls of disappointment all round. It's so logical and there is no real alternative, so an attempt to divert from it would likely be seen as lack of continuity IMO.

 

[Ursa major]

I can't really see the TV series debunking something (whatever that something is) that GRRM has not yet revealed. As far as I can tell, the show's producers wish to remain on good terms with GRRM. And they are, as far as I can tell, fans of the books, so are probably as keen on finding out GRRM's intentions as the rest of us.

Most important, I feel, is that no-one but GRRM knows how something like, say, J=R+L (or whatever the truth really is) will play out and what its consequences would be for the rest of the plot. Making the wrong assumptions (consciously or not) would mean that the end of the TV show could bear little resemblance to that of the books.

 

[Eulalia]

Perhaps we will see the TOJ scene plus Sean Bean in Danys prophetic dreams? (but she won't know who they are?)