Yeah I liked it as well, not sure why they changed it.

I hope Ser Alliser dies soon. I'm tired of him ruining every scene at the Wall. I honestly don't remember why he hates Jon so much. Not taking his counsel even when Jon is one of the few that actually came to the Wall with any sort of training.

I should cancel HBO until the next ep!

There still could be the reveal of a witness to Petyr pushing her out the Moon Door. The event happened quick in that last scene and just cut to black after she was pushed. The beginning of the next episode could address that and show the witness (whoever it is).. Or it could be shown in the "Last time on Game of Thrones" at the opening of the show.

Thanks God that crazy bitch is dead. Every episodes in season 4 is awesome so far. Are we expecting a war at the wall for episode 9?

He's just a dick.

Good:
Scene between Tyrion and Oberyn. Well acted on both sides.
Clever use of Hot Pie. Saves a lot of time. So does Rorge and Biter.
Terrific scene for The Hound talking about his burn. He sounded like a scared little boy.
Carice Van Houten can really act, even when she's stripped and displayed like a cut of steak.
I like how the show persists in keeping what Stannis is doing a mystery.
Littlefinger is still extremely hard to read. Everything he does has at least four possible meanings.

Weak:
Ugh, those Dany scenes were awful tonight. Emilia Clarke can't really carry a scene. Daario isn't nearly as dangerous as he needs to be. The guy playing Jorah looks right and can act at least.
John Snow is slighted by Alliser Thorne... again. We got it.
The exposition establishing who The Mountain is again was ridiculously obvious. Cersei stepping over entrails was eye-rolling.
They need to show the Wilding army again. They keep talking about it, they need to show the actual threat.

So I guess that's probably it for Bronn and we likely won't see his character on the show again.

(...but I hope I'm wrong about this.)

Agreed.

Why the 7 hells was the Mountain killing all those people? Is doing that his morning calisthenics routine?

Wasn't that actually at the root of why he hates him? The fact that he's a dick is a big part of it, but he seems to resent the fact that Jon is someone able and important. He probably feels threatened by him.

As far as this episode is concerned, I have to admit I'm not really on board with Baelish being the ultimate evil genius. I've never read a word of the books so I have no idea where this is going, but I just don't find the character very compelling. I don't know if it's Gillen's performance, or what. It was easy to ignore him when he was just on the periphery, but having him be the main catalyst for everything that's happening makes that kind of difficult.

Since they've changed the casting of the Mountain like four times, I think that's why the continuously reintroduce his character like that. In any case, I like that every scene he's ever been in is basically nothing but horrible violence.

This was a slower, but excellent episode. I wished we saw the trial by combat, but I had a feeling that would be at least two weeks out.

I loved the scenes with Arya and the Hound this week, even more than usual. Arya has become a killer.

And of course the final scene with Pieter was amazing. I do wonder what will become of her son though. I could see him and Sansa becoming unlikely allies.

I still love the Dany scenes, although I do miss the old casting for Daario. He had more gravitas than the current guy. His size and square jaw lent credibility to his cool confidence. Maybe the actors other roles in Treme, Orphan Black, and other shows are making it hard for me to see him in character though.

I really, really love the design of the Meeren scenes. That throne room is just gorgeous.

Agree about Arya.. She has always been my favorite character in the book and seeing her portrayal on screen has been great to see. I kind of laughed at the scene with her and the Hound when he asked her if the 2nd thug trying to kill him was on her list and she responded that she didn't know his name. Leading to her learning his name and then stabbing him in the heart. For such a young girl, she has learned smarts and is able to take care of herself, for the most part.

Question for the book readers - are you bored w/ the Dany storyline a majority of the time, too?

Thankfully, I don't hate it like the Theon/Ramsey story, but it definitely bores me more often than not - which annoys me because they won't go beyond ten eps per season.

Dany's story is probably my favorite in the books, but I seem to be in the minority. She's a polarizing character and her story gets a lot of hate.

Her story is sort of meh. It got a bit interesting when she was conquering the various cities and freeing the slaves.. I'd rather read her story over Jon's and his stuff at the wall. I find his character to be extremely boring and the stuff at the wall as well. The first half of the 3rd book felt like a chore to read with Sam and his storyline and the stuff with Jon back at the wall. The 2nd half more than made up for it though with the other storylines happening in Kings Landing and other settings.

I enjoy Arya too, and I enjoy her chemistry with the hound, but I find her storyline bitterly depressing. I get why people like it, but watching the innocence of a child slowly erode is difficult for me. I know all that is necessary for survival in Westeros, but I can't see it ending well for her. Even if she kills everyone on her list, there'll probably be a hundred more names to take their place. She'll end up like some sort of medieval Jack Bauer; roaming the globe, righting wrongs, and never finding happiness.

In a complete flip-flop of earlier seasons, I've actually become quite compelled by Sansa's story. No matter how adult she pretends to be, she's desperate to hold onto her innocence. Earlier on she was totally naive and self-centered. I get why people hated her. At this point, I think her eyes have been opened wide, but she's unwilling to let the cynicism completely overwhelm her. Watching her build that snow castle last night was heart achingly beautiful. It's a nice counter to Arya's journey.

**Book Question**

I haven't read the books but really enjoy the show. I'm wondering if i start reading the books will I start finding the show less fun?

I thought it was also quite moving when she first walked out and just looked at the snow falling with a feeling of comfort as it reminded her of home. Beautifully shot scene.

imho, no. As long as you understand and take the show and book as two different works of art. The book definitely helps flesh out a ton of stuff.

I enjoyed that part of the book a great deal, so that is why I was surprised and happy it made it to the show. It makes it even more tragic, in the book at least but it has occurred on the show, because she's repeatedly told that she cannot be Sansa.. Then she goes and makes a replica snow scene of Winterfell.

Yes, it was.

Originally Posted by anomynous View Post
Both. Doesn't change anything but it was a great line in the book and I would have liked it to be kept the same.

For the tv audience, easier for them to figure out that he was talking about her "sister" directly.

Yeah I read that, That TV fans might not know Catelyn as 'Cat'

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