Oh, yes, of course. But Tommen's been getting very bad advice and doesn't really know what he's doing. I assume he'll send for Uncle Kevan next episode, just on the grounds that who the fuck else is there to run things?

Well, they're leading us to Red Wedding 2: The Reddening at Riverrun next book. But, yeah, I don't think they'd work terribly well on TV. The problem is that the Dorne plot also isn't working well on TV.

Theon in the books has had a sort of, very slow, not anywhere near complete, redemption. Just the titles of his chapters in A Dance with Dragons are all about him slowly reclaiming his identity. If it's just about breaking him, what the fuck is the point of keeping him around at all? Is that something people find…

Yes, he can do that, but then Margaery and Loras (and Cersei, now) die, potentially. Tommen has to be willing to risk that to take action against the Faith. And he's clearly not.

I mean, maybe you shouldn't speak for all women? (Not to say that scene was well-handled at all - I thought it was awful and pointless - but definitive statements like that get on my nerves)

Lancel also participated in her (clumsy, indirect) attempt to get Robert killed. And it's also illegal to have extra-marital sex with the King's widowed mother, anyway.

Sometimes. But he also obviously feels guilty and that he betrayed Robb, in particular.

Right, absolutely. Of course, the whole thing is a power play by the High Septon, who will be acting as judge, jury foreman, and prosecutor.

Jaime at Riverrun with the Blackfish and a bunch of Freys might have been properly entertaining. Not a whole season's worth of plot, but a nice couple of episodes.

Well, Olyvar apparently knows the location and appearance of one of Loras's birth marks. That's about the extent of the evidence.

Actually, even if we ignore that, didn't Tyrion converse with Maester Aemon at some point in Season 1?

If Jon is a Targaryen, he met a bunch of Lannisters back in Season 1 - a snotty conversation with Jaime and a longer and more fruitful acquaintance with Tyrion.

And Robb. Robb who had been more a brother to Theon than any son born of Balon Greyjoy's loins. Murdered at the Red Wedding, butchered by the Freys. I should have been with him. Where was I? I should have died with him.

Archmaester Marvin wrote the book on that subject, I believe.

I thought it was a five year time jump? At any rate, the obvious answer was to just jump in the deep end and only explain intervening events when you absolutely have to. It's not like the set-up was actually all that confusing. The only plotlines that feel like they need some immediate movement are Brienne, Stannis…

I thought King's Landing was great, and Tyrion meeting Dany was a good moment. The rest was pretty awful.

Eh, don't particularly care about those. At least Ellaria is played by a good actress, and it's not like book Trystane was an interesting character. The Sandsnakes are just a charisma void.

They know about porn, right?

Cersei's a prisoner, but Doran doesn't know that yet. Tommen's not a prisoner - the reason Cersei tells him he can't use force to get Margaery freed is because if he attacks the Sept they'll murder her first. But I assume he'll call in Grand-Uncle Kevan now that Cersei's in prison.

twice - talking to Ellaria in the first Dorne episode, and then talking to Areo Hotah last episode.