Game of Thrones, episode six
May. 23rd, 2011 09:10 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
marinessGame of Thrones
Episode 6! But first, a few words from my father, who would like to complain that what this show is really missing a nice introduction from Alistair Cooke, who would remind you what happened last week and set everything into a nice historical context. Which made me think of the nice polite Masterpiece Theatre version of this, with, of course, Derek Jacobi playing Varys.
But moving on!
1. Having earlier said that I thought the show was doing a nice job making TV Sansa more sympathetic than book Sansa….Scratch that, and you have got to be kidding me.
To say I didn't like the scene between Sansa and the septa is an understatement, mostly because I see that as a fundamental misreading of the character and the point GRRM was making through her. The one thing book Sansa was never was rude, except with her sister. Never to the septa or others; she even refrains from making a truthful and realistic comment to her friend because it would have been rude to say so, and above all, Sansa wants to be a lady. This is a critical part of her character, now and later, and changing that was a bad misstep.
On a related note, the show Sansa had earlier been falling out of love with Joffrey, or at least sending him fearful looks from time to time, so, although this matched completely with the books, I also wasn't thrilled with seeing her falling back into love with him again, even if this set up the "OH YOU CAN'T TAKE ME FROM KING'S LANDING BECAUSE I'M IN LOVE WITH A PSYCHOPATH!" bit.
Back to much preferring book Sansa over show Sansa for any number of reasons, to the point where some of us have changed our minds and decided that since the little baby dragons don't have to eat Viserys anymore they can eat show Sansa.
2. Was I the only one to gasp when Tyrion so nearly rolled right out of the sky cells of the Eyrie and into the deep, deep CGI sky?
3. Why, Nymphadora Tonks. Are we searching for the Elder Wand in Bran's clothing or were you simply trying to make that six degrees of separation between the entire Harry Potter cast and this show that much easier?
(Seriously, I had no idea she'd been cast, but given that all of the Harry Potter filming is done, she has plenty of time to devote to Osha, I guess, depending upon how much HBO decides to give to that role. Given all of the screen time already devoted to one character not at all in the books, that could end up being a lot.)
4. Speaking of little baby dragons….Ok, HBO, for once, your focus on dragon eggs actually paid off with something in the script, but at this point, even I'm beginning to wonder if Jorah Mormont is with Dany only because he's got some sexual fetish about dragons and is waiting for her to hatch them so that they can do it on top of writhing dragons.
(That is not in the books. So far.)
Just saying, HBO.
5. BUT YAY! for strong, silent types that strongly and silently pour molten gold over mean people willing to steal highly foreshadowed dragon eggs! Viserys! Did NONE of all of those lingering camera shots warn you that the dragon eggs are massively important to the plot? You were doing just fine with all of your selling your sister and abusing her and pushing her and threatening her with death up until then.
Incidentally, kudos to Harry Lloyd, both for until this episode pulling off "most true to the book character" of anyone in the series, and following that up with actually making the possibly second least sympathetic character in the series (after Ser Gregor Clegane) mildly sympathetic, if for only three seconds, even if our bloodthirsty group went YAY when he went CLUNK on the floor.
Just because it was Viserys, people. Our bloodthirsty group is not, in general, a fan of people going CLUNK on the floor. Even if our initial reaction to this was SHOW THAT AGAIN! CLUNK CLUNK!
6. I did have to crack up when Lord Beric Dendarrion was sent off in that, "Oh, yes, you're just off to arrest someone" manner. Partly because the entire scene was already pretty hilarious, what with Littlefinger's – "Have you possibly done anything that might – might – upset the Lannisters recently?" and Pyrelle's "But, but, just because he's a huge mean guy who cuts off the heads of horses and burns his brother's face doesn't mean that Ser Gregor isn't actually a nice knightly type deep down inside." But mostly because of the entire casualness of that choice of Lord Beric and the total lack of any indication of just where this entire plotline is about to go.
Then again, my distinct feeling, upon rereading the book, is that GRRM had no idea where that particular plotline was about to go either when Lord Beric bowed and agreed to go…but more on that in a book post, if I get around to it. So yay on HBO for keeping this general feeling.
7. And Peter Dinklage definitely grew on me this episode, primarily with the confession of his crimes, although I am distinctly disappointed that we will never know what did happen when Tyrion brought a jackass and a honeycomb to a brothel…
…with that said, much as I enjoyed the trial scene, it was also the first scene where I genuinely wished Peter Dinklage was less good-looking; I think it makes more of an impact when Bronn stands up for the hellishly ugly dwarf, the embodiment of evil by all appearances, instead of the jovial good looking joker.
Episode 6! But first, a few words from my father, who would like to complain that what this show is really missing a nice introduction from Alistair Cooke, who would remind you what happened last week and set everything into a nice historical context. Which made me think of the nice polite Masterpiece Theatre version of this, with, of course, Derek Jacobi playing Varys.
But moving on!
1. Having earlier said that I thought the show was doing a nice job making TV Sansa more sympathetic than book Sansa….Scratch that, and you have got to be kidding me.
To say I didn't like the scene between Sansa and the septa is an understatement, mostly because I see that as a fundamental misreading of the character and the point GRRM was making through her. The one thing book Sansa was never was rude, except with her sister. Never to the septa or others; she even refrains from making a truthful and realistic comment to her friend because it would have been rude to say so, and above all, Sansa wants to be a lady. This is a critical part of her character, now and later, and changing that was a bad misstep.
On a related note, the show Sansa had earlier been falling out of love with Joffrey, or at least sending him fearful looks from time to time, so, although this matched completely with the books, I also wasn't thrilled with seeing her falling back into love with him again, even if this set up the "OH YOU CAN'T TAKE ME FROM KING'S LANDING BECAUSE I'M IN LOVE WITH A PSYCHOPATH!" bit.
Back to much preferring book Sansa over show Sansa for any number of reasons, to the point where some of us have changed our minds and decided that since the little baby dragons don't have to eat Viserys anymore they can eat show Sansa.
2. Was I the only one to gasp when Tyrion so nearly rolled right out of the sky cells of the Eyrie and into the deep, deep CGI sky?
3. Why, Nymphadora Tonks. Are we searching for the Elder Wand in Bran's clothing or were you simply trying to make that six degrees of separation between the entire Harry Potter cast and this show that much easier?
(Seriously, I had no idea she'd been cast, but given that all of the Harry Potter filming is done, she has plenty of time to devote to Osha, I guess, depending upon how much HBO decides to give to that role. Given all of the screen time already devoted to one character not at all in the books, that could end up being a lot.)
4. Speaking of little baby dragons….Ok, HBO, for once, your focus on dragon eggs actually paid off with something in the script, but at this point, even I'm beginning to wonder if Jorah Mormont is with Dany only because he's got some sexual fetish about dragons and is waiting for her to hatch them so that they can do it on top of writhing dragons.
(That is not in the books. So far.)
Just saying, HBO.
5. BUT YAY! for strong, silent types that strongly and silently pour molten gold over mean people willing to steal highly foreshadowed dragon eggs! Viserys! Did NONE of all of those lingering camera shots warn you that the dragon eggs are massively important to the plot? You were doing just fine with all of your selling your sister and abusing her and pushing her and threatening her with death up until then.
Incidentally, kudos to Harry Lloyd, both for until this episode pulling off "most true to the book character" of anyone in the series, and following that up with actually making the possibly second least sympathetic character in the series (after Ser Gregor Clegane) mildly sympathetic, if for only three seconds, even if our bloodthirsty group went YAY when he went CLUNK on the floor.
Just because it was Viserys, people. Our bloodthirsty group is not, in general, a fan of people going CLUNK on the floor. Even if our initial reaction to this was SHOW THAT AGAIN! CLUNK CLUNK!
6. I did have to crack up when Lord Beric Dendarrion was sent off in that, "Oh, yes, you're just off to arrest someone" manner. Partly because the entire scene was already pretty hilarious, what with Littlefinger's – "Have you possibly done anything that might – might – upset the Lannisters recently?" and Pyrelle's "But, but, just because he's a huge mean guy who cuts off the heads of horses and burns his brother's face doesn't mean that Ser Gregor isn't actually a nice knightly type deep down inside." But mostly because of the entire casualness of that choice of Lord Beric and the total lack of any indication of just where this entire plotline is about to go.
Then again, my distinct feeling, upon rereading the book, is that GRRM had no idea where that particular plotline was about to go either when Lord Beric bowed and agreed to go…but more on that in a book post, if I get around to it. So yay on HBO for keeping this general feeling.
7. And Peter Dinklage definitely grew on me this episode, primarily with the confession of his crimes, although I am distinctly disappointed that we will never know what did happen when Tyrion brought a jackass and a honeycomb to a brothel…
…with that said, much as I enjoyed the trial scene, it was also the first scene where I genuinely wished Peter Dinklage was less good-looking; I think it makes more of an impact when Bronn stands up for the hellishly ugly dwarf, the embodiment of evil by all appearances, instead of the jovial good looking joker.