I think it has to do with the reviewer - God Bless him! - being a "guest" reviewer. People would be mad if he gave the episode what would be perceived as a low grade. Better to inflate the grade a little and be more critical in the actual review?

Greetings! I am your designated asker of (possibly) dumb questions… Why did the Wildlings/Free People team up with the scary cannibals? Is it just The Enemy of My Enemy Is My Friend?

You mean, because non-readers of GRRM won't necessarily have certain expectations?

I get the feeling that, with his attitude about how Castle Black only made it past one night, and there's more attacks to come, together with Ygritte getting killed, he doesn't have much of a plan. He just feels like there's nothing more he can lose.

Good call, re: Helm's Deep. I actually had the thought, during the episode: "Where are you, Legolas?!"

Talking of which, would the Night's Watch ever issue an S.O.S. to any of the available armies, in order to call for back up?

Fwiw, I prefer several more Stray Observations (by far) to stills from the episode.

It really did, esp as regards Floki. The show plays up his eccentricities so much, I forget his talents.
Thank you for taking the time to go through my questions and answer them. PS: Feel free to Skype with me next season, while I pause the DVR and ask you clarification questions. :)

Slight digression: I love how "time jumps," on The Simpsons, change absolutely nothing.
And real-time time jumps on Game of Thrones changed adorable child Bran to "child" Bran going through adolescent "awkward phase" all-too-soon.
Heck, sometimes a year going by on GofT meant a character looked like a completely…

I swear, the ratings system is so fail.

I would contribute to that.

I confess, I've seen the finale several times now, and I still can't tell when Floki is faking things… until he tells Bjorn he has been protecting him, that is.
I am not sure about his scene with Helga and the baby and what that all meant.
My working theory is that he wanted Helga and daughter to be in a safe place when…

Finally just saw this episode… had some questions and comments (mainly the former). Hopefully people are still in this thread.
1. I thought Rollo could have survived the poisonous mushrooms, simply because he's a huge guy, and made it though the battle where most would have died, having been trampled. I just thought…

I am not sure what I hoped Craig F. would do immediately after the Late, Late Show, but when I read Celebrity Name Game, I lol'ed inside. Then I realized (I think) that was not a joke.

It was also strange that he was so set on revenge against Ecbert but wanted very much to forgive the guy Ragnar bloodeagled.

To me, the drug storyline is (or was) most interesting when it is depicted as a trap that Dylan jumped into and can't escape. I don't care about the details at all, it's when they focus on those (characters whom Dylan works for or with, and what they're up to) that the indifference sets in.
The drug plot was at its…

Not in many theaters; mostly you buy a viewing online or through cable.

I felt satisfied by the movie, though I thought B was a fair grade.
Here are some thoughts/questions my friend and I had:

Absolutely not! "Bought" it on demand (Mine all Mine, until the technology changes) and watched it back-to-back.

I think, though, that if Terminus people are surviving on human flesh, they're going to starve to death. Among the limited, and dwindling, group of survivors, how many will make it to Georgia?
Terminus would have to start breeding humans, and it would take more than ten years for any offspring to be worth eating.
I…