Is this a sign that the critics of the Sansa in Winterfell arc are twisting themselves into knots? Two weeks ago, there was outrage that Sansa was allegedly being shown as nothing but a victim, that she was regressing to season two status, and, worst of all, that her rape was going to spur Theon's redemption. Now,…

…and I think that they chose not to do that story because it made more sense to have Littlefinger simply use his guardianship over Sweetrobin in order to exercise control over the Vale rather than take additional steps to replace Sweetrobin with Sansa via Harry the Heir. It's the simpler approach, and I don't fault…

Right, with milk of the poppy, which he is given because he is so sickly. Littlefinger could have killed him in some way in the show, but (1) it would have been more obvious and more difficult and, more importantly, (2) why bother replacing him when you already have him under your thumb?

Show Sweetrobin, though an immature oddball, seems to be in much better health than book Sweetrobin. There's no signs that he's going to die anytime soon. For Sansa to have control over the Vale's armies, she would have needed to marry Sweetrobin. However, Littlefinger believes that he, as Sweetrobin's guardian,…

Agreed. Show Sam is a much better character than book Sam. I really like show Sam (though I still find that the Sam-Gilly scenes drag more than most others, probably because they are naturally less epic than some of the other storylines), but I strongly dislike the Cringer-esque, pants pissing book Sam. Show Sam…

I'd say that this episode was at least in the top 3 GOT episodes. I'd probably keep Blackwater at the top, but I keep going back and forth over how this compares to the Red Wedding episode (Season 3, Ep. 9).

Thank you, Master Krejci.

One of the best episodes of the show, coming in only slightly behind Blackwater. The Arya and the Sam/Gilly scenes are ok, but drag. The Battle of Hardhome was incredible, both in the quality of the scene and in the story implications. I loved not really knowing what was going to happen.

"I am but a young girl and know little of the ways of war."

Maybe he was going to mention them. Dany cut him off in the middle of his sentence.

The Dorne thing was always bullshit, in the show and in the books.

I think that Valyrian steel is supposed to be a Westerosian version of Damascus steel rather than katanas.

Ah yes, the Buffoon and the Dean of Admissions… it's a veritable forest down there.

I was 14 or 15 when these albums came out, and Holy Geez I wanted to lick 'em!

To a certain extent the GOT fanbase seems to have lost its appetite for political intrigue. Hence the large number of people moaning about this season being too slow despite fascinating scenes like the High Sparrow vs the Queen of Thornes. People were even complaining last season when Tywin was still around. I…

The problem is that the Boltons are so prominent in the last 2 books. In fact, the Reek/Theon in Winterfell chapters are generally considered the best in ADWD. You can't really cut the Boltons out of the show, so what do you do with them? Too bad the show didn't keep the Freys and Manderlys to add more depth and…

She insisted that they be free men, and they're obeying the letter of the law - they're technically free because they have a living wage.

We could have had the book scene, with Gilly keeping her clothes on while Sam flops out the "Fat Pink Mast." He should have had the prosthetic that Marky Mark used at the end of Boogie Nights.

I agree to a certain extent. Too bad they didn't decide to keep the Freys and Manderlys and cut Dorne & reduce the House of Black and White.

I also don't understand the basis for that criticism. Why couldn't Sansa's rape and mistreatment be used to further both the Sansa and Theon story arcs? What would be "problematic" about that? Isn't being forced to watch a former friend / quasi sibiling be raped a sort of sexual assault? It's logical that it would…