I’m not sure how the brother of the ruler of Dorne dying in a Trial by Combat minimizes the threat - in fact it makes it far, far greater. In the show and in the books, the death of Oberyn mobilizes action against the regime in King’s Landing (the Sand Snakes in both mediums are involved).
That was before the major head squashing. Jaime is there now on a neice/daughter saving mission that may or may not be necessary. Bookwise, he’s not even thinking about Dorne. The only thought given to them is a “Prince” who gets toasted toot suite.
Why would Tyrion mention this?
But that was from Cotter Pyke asking for help by land. That’s why Tormund was being sent to Hardhome - to rescue Pyke.
Who cares about Oberyn’s death? Doran Martell rules Dorne, not Oberyn. The whole reason Jamie was sent to rescue Myrcella is because Cersei doesn’t trust the Dornish. Bookwise, Dorne is even more of a threat - with Doran planning to overthrow the Baratheons since they sat on the crown (grooming Arianne to marry Viserys until his “crowning” and then shifting to Quentyn to marry Dany) and Arianne and the Sand Snakes trying to steal Myrcella to crown her Queen of Westeros so Dorne could get revenge.
Why wouldn’t Tyrion mention that Dorne would more than welcome the Targaryens back to Westeros? Everyone knows that Dorne doesn’t care for the Baratheons, the Lannisters, or the Reach.
Because Tyrion does not know this. As far as TV Tyrion is concerned, Dorne lost it after the head squashing. Everything that happened after that, he could not possibly know.
I would also like to point out in both book and TV terms, all this political intrigue means diddly squat. Winter is coming to all the land and fuck who rules over whom. The WW and wrights could give a shit.
Just saying.
Yup the seven kingdoms will continue to eat themselves (now its Tyrells against Greyjoys, Baratheons against Boltons, Lannisters against Martells, etc) and in the end its just going to be zombies vs dragons.
Dorne didn’t lose anything with the head squashing. Oberyn was in charge of anything which is part of the reason he was sent to Joffrey’s wedding. It was an insult.
Dorne is one of the 8 major houses in both the books and the show. Now Tyrion also didn’t mention the Greyjoys or Arryns, so I’m not sure how big of an oversight it is, but Dorne 100% is a major player in the show and Tyrion would 100% know that.
Ouchies!
That’s a strange thing to say. Oberyn wasn’t the only person pissed by Elia’s death. The rest of the realm knows this.
I think part of it was how the sequences were done. Tyrion/Dany was super dull and full of plot holes (there are many more powerful families than he mentioned, for example). Hardhome was compelling and scary and awesome.
I think the other part was that we know that’s not what’s going to happen in the books in Mereen. Dany’s not there, Jorah doesn’t have Grayscale, Barristan’s alive, Missandei is like 12, Daario is hostage with blue hair. Hardhome wasn’t true to the books either, but for all we know it happened similarly and it was in the “past” by the last page of ADWD. It’s hard to get excited for something we know can’t happen that hasn’t yet NOT happened, if that makes sense.
I wonder – anyone heard a book reader say he won’t watch the tv series (any longer) because he doesn’t want the books spoiled?
After all, both Martin and the producers have said the show will be ending with the same basic situation as Martin plans for the books.
I read several different forums and social media type things about ASOIAF and I’ve read about a few people saying they’re done or soon will be.
People generally point out that they will have to avoid everything because it’s just EVERYWHERE now that avoiding certain forums or threads or blogs won’t be enough.
And while they MIGHT end up in the same place, I look at this season vs the books and it’s almost entirely different. I’m sure there will be a few things “spoiled” by the show, but I’m guessing that with even less book material to work with than there is now that it’ll be even more made up with just some of the major points happening in a way vaguely resembling what the books will be.
I mean, if someone hadn’t read AFFC/ADWD and watched this season, would you really consider that person spoiled for the books? I certainly wouldn’t. What do we have: Cersei and Marg imprisoned, but under fairly different circumstances, Sam and Gilly do it, Aemon dies, Tyrion is sold into slavery with Jorah. That’s just about it. Oh, Arya. That’s fairly representative so far. So some things a non-reader picking up the books would know, but almost everything else is completely different or happens to different people.
So if in the 10th episode of S7 Tyrion, Jon, and Dany flash fry some Others while riding dragons, I would guess something similar happens in the books, but maybe it’s Dany, Aegon, and Arya in the books. Maybe it’s Cersei burning KL to the ground with all that wildfire that takes out the Others.
And speaking of the Others, I read a fascinating theory on Reddit this week that maybe the Others aren’t pure evil. It’s been bothering me lately how GRRM doesn’t really do black and white evil. He’s too fond of subverting or questioning tropes to have a standard Sauron-esque Evil. And this theory just resonates with me and I’m surprised I haven’t read it before, as I’ve read a million theories and read countless examinations of the text for bits of foreshadowing.
In a nutshell, the Others had a pact with the Starks/NW/First Men. The Wall wasn’t built just to keep the Others out of the south, but the humans out of the far North. The Others are striking not out of some inhuman motivation to slaughter but because the Starks unwittingly failed. Dany and her dragons are kind of the true villains because they’re inadvertently antagonizing the Others.
My personal headcanon with this is that whatever happened at Summerhall brought the Others back, slowly awakened them. And that Jon and Dany will fight each other on dragons. They might start out on the same side, but while she’s fire, he’s fire AND ice and he’ll be the one to end the war. Maybe kill all the dragons, all the magic, bringing balance to the force, so to speak.
Think Stannis burns Shireen in the books, or was that a pure show change? In the book Stannis resisted his brother’s bastard son for quite a while, I’m not sure he gives in on Shireen. Does this say anything about him being AA? AA did kill his wife for power.
Shireen is not even there, shes back at Castle Black with Selyse and Melisandre. If Shireen gets burned the decision couldn’t come from Stannis.
That’s it, Stannis lost my vote.
Apart from those enthralled by the Lord of Light, who’s going to support a king who burns alive his own daughter?
Could it be a fake death, like the fake burning shown in the book?
Or just a way to let you know that, whatever happens in the future, Shireen may not be of overall importance to the novel. She may be killed by an Other during an attack later on.
At that specific point in time she can’t. Stannis can order it unless you think they’re never in the same place and that Stannis can never contact anyone that’s near Shireen.
“Well, he’s certainly committed to his cause.”
Well, in the book all the original soldiers that are with him are zealots. The rest defected. Most of the rest are mercenaries, I’m not sure they would care.
That’s his only child too. No heir. If Stannis dies who would it go to?