Strange then that one of them is the first Oscar nominee to appear on the show.

He is? What did he do WRT that? Lannisters and Boltons, yes.

I don't know if it's intentional, but this show does a good job of making the viewer think/hope that some deus ex machina is going to come out of the woodworks and save our heroes (Theon waking up!), then nope, horror, fade to black.

I'm surprised that the knowledge of a birthmark is enough to incarcerate both the queen and her brother. What proof did he have that Margaery walked in on them?

Second low-key wedding of the season. I guess everyone learned something from the horrors that happen at the big weddings.

The Lannisters, without Tywin, are just really crappy planners. That was Jaime's plan, to run into his niece/daughter in the heart of enemy territory and hopefully waltz out of there with no ship?

Unless Littlefinger was bluffing, I still don't see how he's going to get back to the Eyrie and then set upon Winterfell to catch the victor just in time. Surely Stannis, the master planner, has already anticipated the other forces (even forces from Kings Landing) that may try to aid the Boltons? It's not like his army being there is a big secret, everyone knows about it.

Maybe I missed this, but why does Lancel forgive Cersei? She wasn't repentant at all, but why (in his mind) is she free from the wrath of his gods? Surely he confessed his sins before he got marked and everything, right? I realize this will probably come out later, but I'm confused why he pardons her and her alone.

Uh, that was a kangaroo court.

Anyhow the point of that display of meted justice is to show how much power the Mortal Kombat monks have - they're even above the royalty.

The entire Dorne sequence was stupid, not just the Sand Snakes. Does Doran ever do anything besides sit and sulk in that one fucking chair? Jaime and Bronn waltzing into the garden in disguise like the fuckin Scarecrow, Tin Man and Cowardly Lion sneaking into the Witch's castle in The Wizard of Oz. Five seconds after making their way in they happen to bump into both Trystane and Myrcella alone and out in the open, apparently still on the same leisurely walk from episode 1. How convenient for Jaime and his non-existent plan. Then, not five seconds after that is when the Snakes happen to decide to attack. And a poorly put together attack scene it is. Up till now that botched rescue attempt of Theon from S4E6 was the show's worst moment. But this I couldn't believe I was actually watching. That someone actually watched these scenes and saw them fit to actually air. This was true "jump the shark" shit right here.

Isn't he in a Game-of-Thrones-styled wheelchair?

Yup it's a wheelchair. He's riddled with gout.

Can someone explain why the Faith Militant can be armed/created by the King signing a piece of paper, but he can't sign another piece of paper disbanding them?

So the episode title is the motto of House Martell, with the implication being that Cersei has them under siege? Sorry, I don't read the books so I'm not up on my house lore.

Because sometimes events get set in motion and then get away from the leaders. The Faith Militant wanted the King's stamp of approval. That doesn't mean they necessarily would have disbanded had he refused, and if he tries to withdraw it now, what's to stop them from denouncing Tommen as a heretic? And then Tommen is dealing with possible revolution.

Yeah, they really needed some more background for this to work. This episode should have had Bronn and Jaime scouting the city a bit to find their target, and the Sand Snakes developing a more coherent plan. The rescue/attack should have been saved for another ep. I don't think it would have fallen so flat if it weren't pretty much all rapidly crammed into this episode in addition to the coincidental timing, which might have been overlooked if they had more establishing scenes for all involved.

I just figured Dorn is the size of a postage stamp.

Actually I got the impression from the show that they were not in the city at all but in a small spa like retreat used by the royal family. Called something like "the water gardens". I simply assumed it was well away from the city. Once they got inside (dressed as guards) it would be a simple mater of finding the one white girl there.

But it's a place where you can see everything from the facade above, or at least it seemed like everyone was in view of where Doran was sitting. I don't know how the Sand Snakes, who presumably know the area, thought they would have gotten away with it. What was their plan, anyway, to escape retribution if they succeeded?

Yeah that whole thing was just silly. Also the fighting choreography was hideous.

I was really hoping that Sansa would pull out a knife and stab Ramsey, and when that didn't happen, I was hoping Theon would at least stab him when he started with the raping. Oh well.

And yeah, that fight with the chicks was embarrassingly awful for this show - Buffy had better fights than that! And yes, those actresses playing the sand chicks are awful.

Also, wouldn't the king say, "fuck you, I'm the King and this ain't a theocracy, let go of the queen!" then have everyone in the room killed? I would!

Joffrey and other kings had done much worse things.

at least Ramsey didn't pull out Theon's removed _ _ _ _ and start doing Sansa with that

that would have truly been disturbing

The storyline is still going...

Little Theon is currently located at the Iron Islands. That'd be one hell of a commute for some underage firebushed hoo-hah.

cockmerchant

I don't disagree, but how long have they really been around. We know they went into power while Littlefinger was in Winterfell (maybe a bit before). He is now in Kings Landing. Wasn't it established that it would take 3+months to make that trip? So it would be safe to say they have been establishing their reign for at least that long if not longer.

i missed something, as usual, but why did Baelish give Sansa to the Bolton's? was this his plan all along?

I liked Littlefinger's comment to Lancel that "we are both pedlars of fantasy; mine just happen to be entertaining" (paraphrasing).

I also was hoping for more from Dorne. I guess the best thing about Dorne got its head crushed last season. I just hope this little trip doesn't end up being the end for Bronn.

It may have taken the king dragging his entire entourage along that long but I seriously doubt the trip is nearly that long on horseback.

A week at the most. When the Starks made the trip with the king it only took a couple of weeks and they had a full guard, carts, and bunch of other stuff to tote around.