I believe the tradition started because the groom-to-be and the father were negotiating a transfer of property, namely the wife-to-be. So yes it's gross and people should stop doing it.

I remain dubious, and what does an ape accent sound like?

At 17 I think he'd be too old to pick up anything but the most rudimentary language (see: cases of children literally raised by wolves, or who were isolated by their parents and never taught to speak). And if he was abandoned as a baby, how would he teach himself to read? Without hearing a spoken language, and absent…

Well, DiCaprio's character dies, so it has at least one point in its favor.

I don't think he ever would learn how to speak, though that would depend on his age when he runs into humans again. (I'm pretty hazy on my Tarzan-lore.)

Not to mention his odious daydreams about getting to shoot people (read: African Americans) in New Orleans.

Jon is going to need one of the dragons, given his parentage. I'm guessing it'll be Rhaegal.

I saw an article referring to this as 'straight terrorism,' and I think that's exactly right.

Exactly what I was thinking.

It's really good in the same way the Bible is really good. That is, it gives you some insight into history and culture and you'll understand references you didn't get before, but as a reading experience it kind of sucks.

Evidently.

G Willow Wilson, yes! Try Martha Wells' Raksura books if you haven't; they're tremendous.

Be prepared for lots of misogyny. In the first trilogy, the women were only there to have sex with. I stopped after book 3, wondering why I'd kept with it so long.

The Name of the Wind is not excellent. It is derivative and rather dull. Scott Lynch is much better.

I learned more about hotel napkins than I ever wanted to. The pretentiousness level was off the charts.

I hated it with rare passion. Dracula is a complete yutz and the entire thing is a boring slog.

Tigana. It's a standalone and probably his best. I find his more recent stuff off-putting; he spends way too much time being self-consciously profound, to the detriment of both story and characters.

And one cannot finish a single book in the series without thinking, "Man, there's something wrong with that guy." That guy being Martin, of course.

I wouldn't disagree with your take on Sam's character, but there should have been at least a hesitation, a moment when you could see him thinking "is there any way I can get Lucifer out of here without touching him?" Something. And instances like this add up, creating the character incoherence that's been bothering me…

There may be a through-line, but I can't see it for all the trees. Just as an easy example, there is no way Sam would have picked up Lucifer (even in Castiel's body) to rescue him from Amara, because of all their unpleasant history. Like, he should have been physically incapable of doing that, no matter how much he…