# Game of Thrones, Lord Snow, 5/1/11 **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 1, 2011, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-lord-snow-5-1-11/580390 "2011-05-01T16:38:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Monstre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e274bd/32.png) [@Monstre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monstre)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-lord-snow-5-1-11/580390/61 "2011-05-02T19:50:37Z")
I think this episode clearly established the primary reason Tyrion went to visit the Nights Watch – to pee off the wall. That was awesome. 🙂 Peter Dinklage really is quite a good actor. Enjoying all of his scenes, especially. I really like Arya, too. She’s a little spitfire. ---
**Author:** ![gallows\_fodder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8c91f0/32.png) [@gallows\_fodder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gallows_fodder)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-lord-snow-5-1-11/580390/62 "2011-05-02T19:53:53Z")
> [@acsenray](#): > > How would that work, ecosystem-wise? I’d imagine there would be a lot of extinctions. I don’t know but GRRM has said many times that people who are looking for a scientific explanation for the long winters (binary star systems, etc) are barking up the wrong tree – it’s a fantasy series and if he ever gets around to explaining it, it will be a fantasy explanation. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-lord-snow-5-1-11/580390/63 "2011-05-02T21:11:04Z")
I’m assuming that in such a world, even in a fantasy, they would know to preserve and store up lots and lots of food while the crops are growing. ---
**Author:** ![brocks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7feea3/32.png) [@brocks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brocks)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-lord-snow-5-1-11/580390/64 "2011-05-02T22:53:19Z")
> [@AuntiePam](#): > > Plus, he might not understand that what they were doing was bad. A kid his age isn’t going to know about the incest taboo. I don’t think it’s any kind of spoiler to say that in the book, he didn’t even know about sex. He thought they were wrestling. Of course, his knowledge is still dangerous, because any adult he talked to would understand what nude wrestling was about. ---
**Author:** ![brocks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7feea3/32.png) [@brocks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brocks)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-lord-snow-5-1-11/580390/65 "2011-05-02T22:54:38Z")
> [@MaxTheVool](#): > > I certainly feel like “that murder weapon the anonymous assassin was carrying is recognizably one that once belonged to influential and famous and very intelligent person X” is so corny that no one should believe it for a moment Unless it’s the old double fakeroo. ---
**Author:** ![brocks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7feea3/32.png) [@brocks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brocks)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-lord-snow-5-1-11/580390/66 "2011-05-02T23:03:32Z")
> [@Feyrat](#): > > I assumed she just got a raven (same as Ned and Jon) telling her that Bran was awake and still intelligent enough to be speaking, and now she’s flipping out that he’s not dead and not brain-damaged. It was probably easier to be sanguine about it while the kid was in a coma. But now it’s possible he could remember and talk. It just doesn’t ring true for me. Jamie and Cersei are the only ones who know what Bran saw, so they’re the only ones with a motive to kill him, so they have to be behind the assassination attempt. And so it makes no sense that they would have lived the last weeks or months just hoping he wouldn’t wake from his coma. I guess you could argue that the assassination was Jamie’s plan and he didn’t tell Cersei about it, but that seems unlikely. They are _very_ close, and the show makes it clear that Cersei was both horrified that Bran saw them, and completely ruthless. ---
**Author:** ![Merijeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f05b48/32.png) [@Merijeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merijeek)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-lord-snow-5-1-11/580390/67 "2011-05-02T23:12:42Z")
> [@brocks](#): > > Unless it’s the old double fakeroo. Tyrion does seem to be basically the smartest person in the Realm - thinking on it, I bet he would have ended up a Maester except that Tywin would never let a Lannister “serve” anyone. “If I were to have someone whack the kid would I be so stupid as to give the assassin a weapon that could be traced back to me? Clearly I’m being set up!” -Joe ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-lord-snow-5-1-11/580390/68 "2011-05-02T23:41:42Z")
The only disappointing part of the show so far continues to be the severe lack of attention paid to the dire wolves. We haven’t even seen Robb’s or Rickon’s at all yet, and Jon and Bran should be around their wolves most of the time. ---
**Author:** ![Merijeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f05b48/32.png) [@Merijeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merijeek)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-lord-snow-5-1-11/580390/69 "2011-05-02T23:49:16Z")
> [@DigitalC](#): > > The only disappointing part of the show so far continues to be the severe lack of attention paid to the dire wolves. We haven’t even seen Robb’s or Rickon’s at all yet, and Jon and Bran should be around their wolves most of the time. Yeah, the fact that they only show them when the story demands it RIGHT THEN is kind of giving me the impression that the dogs are more than they could handle for filming. You think they could at least have had Summer sitting in the corner of the room while Nan was telling Bran his stories. -Joe ---
**Author:** ![Taomist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/53a042/32.png) [@Taomist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taomist)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-lord-snow-5-1-11/580390/70 "2011-05-03T00:34:23Z")
Question related to the series rather than this episode, but… I have DVR’d each episode to date. All three of them are really messed up, and unwatchable. I have had no such issues recording anything else on any other channel; right now I’m DVR’ing something else from HBO to see if it’s an HBO thing, or…if it’s just an HBO on Sunday nights thing. :dubious: Anyone else having this issue? 'cause I’m getting suspicious and annoyed. ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-lord-snow-5-1-11/580390/71 "2011-05-03T00:39:30Z")
Haven’t had any problems. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-lord-snow-5-1-11/580390/72 "2011-05-03T00:54:10Z")
Have they said or implied anything in the series (no book spoilers requested) that Tyrion knows about his brother and sister’s “closeness”? And Tyrion’s not like Claudius I gather- the family _does_ realize how intelligent he is, right? ---
**Author:** ![Merijeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f05b48/32.png) [@Merijeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merijeek)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-lord-snow-5-1-11/580390/73 "2011-05-03T01:41:00Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > Have they said or implied anything in the series (no book spoilers requested) that Tyrion knows about his brother and sister’s “closeness”? > > And Tyrion’s not like Claudius I gather- the family _does_ realize how intelligent he is, right? I think everyone realizes how intelligent Tyrion is. If anything were to cause him to be underestimated, it’d be because there’s a bunch of folks who aren’t as clever as they think they are - like, they think they’re his equal in intellect and cunning and they just aren’t. As for the twins’ “closeness”, if you look at the two(?) meetings we’ve seen where all three Lannister siblings are together, Tyrion certain seems to let on that he knows something. -Joe ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-lord-snow-5-1-11/580390/74 "2011-05-03T01:52:04Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > And Tyrion’s not like Claudius I gather- the family _does_ realize how intelligent he is, right? In the last episode he compared it to his brother’s sword, which implies he uses it in service of his family and the King, so one has to assume so. He’s also implied in the first episode to have a reputation as dangerously clever (as well as a horny little bastard), so it’s not just the Lannisters and Baratheons who realize it. I’m also not buying he’s involved in the assassination attempt - it seems too unsubtle for him…and I get an idea that he’s got issues with his siblings, so he’d probably happily let them hang for this whole situation. ---
**Author:** ![Merijeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f05b48/32.png) [@Merijeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merijeek)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-lord-snow-5-1-11/580390/75 "2011-05-03T01:56:02Z")
> [@Tengu](#): > > I’m also not buying he’s involved in the assassination attempt - it seems too unsubtle for him…and I get an idea that he’s got issues with his siblings, so he’d probably happily let them hang for this whole situation. But, most folks in Westeros are big into family duty - something else Tyrion has already mentioned in the same speech when he was describing his mind being his weapon. So, love them or hate them he still wouldn’t necessarily hang them out to dry. -Joe ---
**Author:** ![FlyingDragonFan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c89c15/32.png) [@FlyingDragonFan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlyingDragonFan)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 11:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-lord-snow-5-1-11/580390/76 "2011-05-03T11:40:38Z")
For anyone trying to figure out the layout and scale of Westeros, here’s a nice map: [Westeros](http://shaghaghi.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/WesterosMap1.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-lord-snow-5-1-11/580390/77 "2011-05-03T12:42:01Z")
I bet Dinklage ate the role of Tyrion up. Female actors are always complaining that they are forever relegated to roles as “the girl.” But actors who are dwarves probably contemplate an endless vista of roles in which they play “the dwarf.” Tyrion is at least an interesting, viable character on his own. ---
**Author:** ![Snickers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5daacb/32.png) [@Snickers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snickers)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-lord-snow-5-1-11/580390/78 "2011-05-03T13:26:34Z")
> [@Taomist](#): > > Question related to the series rather than this episode, but… > > I have DVR’d each episode to date. All three of them are really messed up, and unwatchable. I have had no such issues recording anything else on any other channel; right now I’m DVR’ing something else from HBO to see if it’s an HBO thing, or…if it’s just an HBO on Sunday nights thing. :dubious: > > Anyone else having this issue? 'cause I’m getting suspicious and annoyed. I had a whole lot of problems with my digital cable signal last Tuesday and Wednesday, on all the channels (tho’ HBO seemed to be the most affected). The Daily Show episode that we taped Tuesday night just stopped about six minutes in, and trying to FF didn’t do anything either. It could be a signal problem instead of a channel problem - at least, it was for me. I have Comcast, for what it’s worth. On Comcast, all of the episodes are available through their On Demand service - if your provide has something similar, I’ll bet they’re on there too. For this reason, I don’t DVR GoT; I just watch it when I want in the next week or so on On Demand. All three were up yesterday; I’m not sure how long they’ll keep them available, but I’m betting it’ll be for a while. ---
**Author:** ![gonzoron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a6a055/32.png) [@gonzoron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzoron)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-lord-snow-5-1-11/580390/79 "2011-05-03T14:50:53Z")
> [@Snickers](#): > > On Comcast, all of the episodes are available through their On Demand service - if your provide has something similar, I’ll bet they’re on there too. You can also watch them through [HBO.com](http://HBO.com) (obviously, you have to be an HBO subscriber to do so). I don’t know how many episodes they keep, but as of last week, they had eps 1&2. ---
**Author:** ![Lantern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d26b3c/32.png) [@Lantern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lantern)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2011, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-lord-snow-5-1-11/580390/80 "2011-05-03T20:56:25Z")
I think this was the best of the episodes. Some wonderful scenes like the one between Ned and Arya. The scene with Old Nan was great too and apparently she was played by a well-known [Welsh actress](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret_John)who passed away recently. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-lord-snow-5-1-11/580390.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/game-of-thrones-lord-snow-5-1-11/580390.md?page=5)