Things I'd expected in the GoT Season Finale but didn't get

[yendi]

Note that none of these are complaints. But they are spoilers for the books as well as the show:

1. Dondarian finding Cat's corpse and giving his life for hers (her eyes opening would have been a perfect final scene). I do suppose they could be waiting until Season 5 to have Lady Stoneheart, since she really doesn't have to appear on screen again until Briane is off on her quest for Sansa (which clearly can't start until the next murder/wedding, which likely won't be until mid-season). I'm now thinking that her reappearance is likely to wait until the Season 4 finale.

2. The Hound dying. At this point, I'm not sure they're going to have him get killed as early as he had died in the books -- it really should happen now or in the first two episodes of next season. I'm enjoying his relationship with Aria as much as I enjoyed Tywin's last season. That said, her final words clearly set things in motion for the next chapter of her life.

3. Brienne being arrested. It really should have happened as soon as they entered the city, and Jaime's apparant betrayal would have been an idea season ender for that plotline.

4. Any of Kevan Lannister. He's not a huge character, but since he'd appeared in the first two seasons, you'd think they'd be bringing him back soon, if only to provide some continuity for the city after Tywin's death. Also, Kevan's death is necessary if only because Varys has probably become too sympathetic, and killing a reasonably good man simply because he's in the way will help bring him back to a moral center.

As for next year, I'm assuming that Joffrey's wedding will be at the halfway point (although I wouldn't mind if it were sooner; honestly, other than just getting one scene where Jaime is disgusted by him, we really don't need him any more), which will be followed by two episodes of Tyrion in jail, with his escape and Tywin's death following that. I'm also assuming we'll get the Battle of the Wall, although I don't expect that to be the full episode that the Battle of Blackwater was (especially since we only have two POV characters to follow there). I hope that we'll also get the return of Lysa, whose death would be a pretty solid episode 9 moment (as much for the revelation of the original murder that inadvertently sets the series into motion as for anything else).

Small moment I enjoyed: All the women giggling when Pud walked by (also, contrasting Pud and Theon this season is fascinating).

Oh, and the final scene inspired me to create an image. Because seriously, the entire Dany plotline is extra creepy when you get a visual. Also, I'm so prepared not to care a bit about her next season, given how little I've cared about her recent plotlines in the books.

Comments

[elsewhereangel.livejournal.com]

I also found the final scene with D unsettling but I'm not sure that the person who came up with it intended it that way. I liked her initially in the books but less and less as the series goes on. The whole "I am personally going to stop all the slavery ever and conquer the world while I'm at it because Dragons!" thing is a bit ham-fisted.

[yendi]

Oh, I'm sure the person filming it didn't mean it that way. But yeah, it's all sorts of creepy.

[arielstarshadow.livejournal.com]

I'm not sure how anyone could make "white woman saves all the brown peoples!!!" not seem creepy and also, you know, racist.

[marlowe1.livejournal.com]

The camera focused on the one slave that looked vaguely Caucasian in features. I'm of two minds - on one hand, it is pretty awesome that she is rushing through this society and freeing slaves (and it's depicted as the worst form of slavery possible - not that slavery is good - but there are forms of slavery that are almost civilized) and that's really what she has to do to become a ruler and a heroine that the audience respects.

On the other hand, the White People Solve Racism trope is overdone and if not racist, stupid as hell. Lincoln can do it and maybe a biopic about John Brown would work. Otherwise, it's too self-congratulatory (and anti-historical when applied to movies that take place in America) to really work.

Paradoxically this makes me respect Martin even more because after he demolishes the noble hero always lives and the noble hero's son avenges him, he moved onto the ones chosen to become the saviors get power and fuck up royally (Jon Snow also fucks up as bad as Daenerys)

[yendi]

I do appreciate Martin's handling of the fucking up, but of course, he also had the freeing of the slaves and the fucking up in the same book, which helped balance things a little more for me (and of course, in the books, it's a little easier to pretend that not every major character is white).

[arielstarshadow.livejournal.com]

Incidentally, I wish that image was on a public URL I could post on my Facebook. Because yeah, it beautifully sums up one of my major issues with this entire series of books.

[yendi]

I posted it to imgur (http://i.imgur.com/In58DID.png), so it should be viewable anywhere.

[arielstarshadow.livejournal.com]

Hmmm - Facebook keeps returning an error when I try and post the link. Stupid Facebook.

[yendi]

Feel free to right-click-download and just post it to FB, if you'd like!

[arielstarshadow.livejournal.com]

And y'know, given today's WTF-ery going on with you-know-who, this photo is even more disturbing, and makes me not want to give GRRM a pass on this in any way, shape or form. Yeesh

[marlowe1.livejournal.com]

She is learning how to be a ruler and there's a great scene where she's talking about what a rule should be, but book 5 has some serious Iraq War subtext throughout her entire story - like she really thinks that winning the war is Mission Accomplished.

[radiumhead.livejournal.com]

Most of those things will be in next season. Seasons 3 and 4 are really one long season split in halves.

[yendi]

*nod* I know that's how they're doing that, but those were things that seemed like should have happened sooner, pacing-wise.

[radiumhead.livejournal.com]

Well the whole joffrey/tyrion thing is near the end of the book.

[theweaselking.livejournal.com]

2. You know Sandor Clegane has been on-camera in the books at least twice since his "death", right?

[yendi]

I know the theory (and I'm inclined to believe it, myself).

[theweaselking.livejournal.com]

I think it's very clear that the burn-scarred giant of a caretaker who avoids contact with people from the outside, and whose "patron" is very careful to always say "The Hound" is dead in response to questions about "Sandor Clegane", since he's the one to have buried the body is, in fact, Sandor. He's simply turned over a new leaf.

It's also possible this is an evil GRRM plot to kick me in my feels. That's happened.

[marlowe1.livejournal.com]

The whole speech by the patron that gives the entire history of the Hound is WAY too detailed to be heard from anyone but the source.

I find the strange plunge into religious fanaticism that many of the characters do (for better or worse) really fascinating in books 4 and 5.