Game of Thrones 6.1 "The Red Woman" (spoiler alert - season premiere!)

[NewJeffCT]

Daenerys meets a strong man in the Season 6 premiere, while Cersei sees Myrcella once more.

[NewJeffCT]

1. some articles from the past week

http://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2016/04/23/10-big-game-of-thrones-season-six-predictions/#4280f98a719b

http://heavy.com/entertainment/2016/04/game-of-thrones-premiere-season-6-2016-time-channel-when-what-on-tonight-station-tv-after-the/

http://nypost.com/2016/04/23/these-fanatics-know-game-of-thrones-better-than-its-creator/

http://moviepilot.com/posts/3881236

[Ron Obvious]

2. Can't wait! n/t

[NewJeffCT]

3. should be interesting

No idea what's going to happen, to be honest.

[Solly Mack]

4. Watching Season 5 as I type.

Looking forward to tonight.

Still team Arya & Jon. (Team Stark! ( w. caveats) and Stark Dragons & direWolves & Trees - Oh, my!)

Still can't work up a lot of sympathy for Sansa (I am not without some - but I adore the Starks and have little patience for those who betray them, to include other Starks & GRR Martin) - though I do want to see both Ramsay and Baelish murdered in the most gruesome way possible. And Roose, ALL the Lannisters - Yes, all. Let's hope Tyrion is only a Lannister on his Mother's side.

[Ron Obvious]

5. This is the first season where we didn't watch all previous series before the new one.

Well, apart from the first one, of course. I think we're finally really clear on who's who and what they're about. Not easy on a show as complex as this one.

I only realised around this time year that it was Roose Bolton at the red wedding. OK, maybe I'm particularly dim...

[Solly Mack]

6. Oh, you're not dim. The show is often done in such a way that it takes more than one viewing to

catch everything. I always re-watch for that reason.

[NewJeffCT]

7. the books

take more than one read as well - the show is complex and has a ton of characters, but the books have like 3x more characters with "speaking" parts and probably another 3x more without speaking parts or seen through flashbacks/dreams

[Solly Mack]

8. That's why I am always reading them over and over and over and over...

[NewJeffCT]

9. I've read the first three twice

and also listened to the audiobooks another 3 times each. I've read books 4 and 5 once, and listened to the audiobooks 3 times each.

When book 6 is officially announced, I'll likely go through at least the audiobooks again.

[MuseRider]

83. Which audiobooks did you listen to Jeff?

I listened to one on Audible and hated the reader. I saw that the others were read by him so I am passing. I assume there are others. His characters all seemed weak and slimy, ok some of them are but they are often strong at the same time. He also read Varys sounding like he was drowning in his own slobber. It was unpleasant. Anyway, if you found others (surely there are but my library choices where I am are very slim).

[NewJeffCT]

85. Roy Dotrice was the reader

He's now a 90 something British guy with a real gravelly voice. Kind of awkward when he's reading the sex scenes, though.

[MuseRider]

93. LOL!

That is funny.

[Frank Cannon]

100. Dotrice played Father on Beauty and the Beast

A CBS TV show written by... George R. R. Martin.

Another fun fact: Dotrice dubbed Harvey Keitel's voice in the movie Saturn 3, because the director didn't like Keitel's Brooklyn accent.

[NewJeffCT]

102. cool

Dotrice also played pyromancer Hallene in season 2 - the guy that gave Tyrion the wildfire for his defense of Blackwater. He was supposed to play Grandmaester Pycelle but fell ill before shooting started and was replaced by Julian Glover, who had memorable roles in The Empire Strikes Back (the guy that led the assault on Hoth to start the movie) and Indiana Jones & the Last Crusade (he was the guy that chose poorly!)

[Frank Cannon]

107. THAT'S where I've seen him before!

It was driving me crazy. I remember him now in his Darth Vader hat.

Thanks for that!

[Ron Obvious]

12. I first heard about the books on an NPR interview

Apparently George R.R. Martin also had trouble remembering all the characters himself and had to create a spreadsheet to keep it all straight. At that time (book 3, I think), he had about 1,000 named characters to keep track of already....

[NewJeffCT]

14. If you can stand to read the NY Post link

I have above, they also mention Elio Garcia and his girlfriend, who have helped Martin immensely with keeping the characters and history straight in his books. Garcia also runs the westeros.org website.

[Ron Obvious]

65. Read it...

I quite agree with the couple in Sweden that the show suffers when it diverges from the book story lines. LittleFinger (as a DU'er I almost wrote MiddleFinger) sending Sansa to the Boltons made no sense at all. He was obviously in love with her mother and I think he's projecting his feelings on Catelyn's daughter Sansa. Or if not that, I thought he felt protective of her as a potential father figure or he might even be in love with her.

In either case, sending her to be savaged by the Boltons made zero sense. Jayne Poole (as Arya), yes, but not Sansa.

[herding cats]

10. I'm going in spoiler free.

I've even kept away from westeros.org for months.

This is the first episode which is completely foreign to me, and I cannot wait to bask in the graphic, gory and gigantic experience of it totally blind!

No concept of what "might" happen, or what has to happen to further the plot. I'm just going in bare and seeing where the journey takes me.

[NewJeffCT]

11. I'm pretty blind on this one as well

I went to a spoiler place on Facebook, and even they didn't seem to have much.

(I think last year, Direct TV mistakenly released the On Demand episode of Game of Thrones too early for most of season 5, so people could watch it at 9am on Sunday mornings)

[herding cats]

15. I hope you enjoy it!

I hope we both do! 😃

[Solly Mack]

13. It's time!

[Baitball Blogger]

16. Begins where it left off!

Good. No shortcuts.

He looks very dead.

Ghost is not happy.

[Baitball Blogger]

17. The right person found him.

The blood is black. What does that mean?

[Baitball Blogger]

19. Oh, yes! Bring your dark magic!

[Solly Mack]

28. I think the blood was black because of the cold?

[Solly Mack]

23. I want Jon to stroll in and scare the crap out of all those men.

[WolverineDG]

72. Something is up with that body

otherwise, they wouldn't have to be hiding behind a locked door defending it.

[mainer]

80. If they burn the body, will it make him alive again?

Since he presumably has Targareayn blood through his father, would fire be what he needs to come back? I'm anticipating they light a funeral pyre, and then he walks out naked and reborn, just like the Mother of Dragons. The Lord of Light, doing magic.

[Solly Mack]

18. I hope they don't spend several episodes bringing Jon back. Let Ghost out of the barn.

Get on with the payback!

Course, Jon is big on mercy. (but will his new self be?)

[Baitball Blogger]

20. Red Witch to the rescue!

[NewJeffCT]

21. I hope so

but,I'm not sure

[Baitball Blogger]

24. At least he is free of any allegiance to the Night Watch.

Assuming he does come back.

[Solly Mack]

22. Yeah - I want her dead.

After Jon is returned, of course.

[NewJeffCT]

25. For the night is dark

and full of terrors.

[Solly Mack]

26. and Wildlings

[Solly Mack]

27. Nah, Ramsay will feed her..Oh...see...I have a sick mind.

[NewJeffCT]

29. ouch - Roose just put him in his place

just ripped him up, piece by piece

[Solly Mack]

30. Ramsay will kill his step-mother.

or his father.

[NewJeffCT]

31. that is my guess as well

or, he will die trying

[Solly Mack]

32. As long as it is a brutal death.

[NewJeffCT]

33. Jon is Lord Commander of Castle Black

oops - no cell service in that part of the North, I guess.

[Solly Mack]

35. Boohiss! :)

[NewJeffCT]

36. Brienne to the rescue

kind of predictable, I thought

[TorchTheWitch]

88. Actually, he's Lord Commander of the Night's Watch

that includes ALL the castles on the Wall.

[Solly Mack]

34. Yay! Brienne!!

[Baitball Blogger]

37. Finally gets to come through on her promise.

[Solly Mack]

39. Yes, of sorts.

[NewJeffCT]

40. Brienne pledging her life to Sansa

Theon saves Pod.

[Solly Mack]

41. Yeah. I'm glad about Pod. Not sure Sansa is worthy of someone like Brienne though.

But she is a Stark, so...well. Good on her.

[Baitball Blogger]

42. Keeping a Stark alive is a full time job.

[WolverineDG]

73. yes, I was happy that

for once, Sansa doesn't end up in a place worse than the one before.

[NewJeffCT]

74. I wonder what happens

if she does make it to Winterfell and Ser Aliser Thorne is in charge and Jon is still dead.

[WolverineDG]

77. You mean Bolton?

Jon is at the Wall.

I can see her claiming Winterfell as Lady Stark & causing all kinds of crap for the Boltons as a result.

[Solly Mack]

90. No kidding! That is usually what happens to her.

[Solly Mack]

38. Help Pod! Yes!!

[Solly Mack]

43. And their shrouds shall be gold

2 down - 1 to go.

[Solly Mack]

44. You'd think Cersei would be prepared for the death of her children. She's had years to

come to terms with them all dying.

[Solly Mack]

45. Bold talk there, Jaime.

[Solly Mack]

46. I really, really want those religious fanatics dead.

[NewJeffCT]

48. yes

religious fanatics never seem to have good results

[Solly Mack]

104. and it is a prime example of just how stupid Cersei is.

[ohnoyoudidnt]

71. Why are they still alive?

Jamie is back in King's Landing. I was expecting him to do something about them upon his return.

[Solly Mack]

89. There is no way Tywin would have ever allowed those sparrows to exist.

Yet Jaime and Cersei are both so not his children. Not in intelligence, anyway.

I don't know why they're still alive. I would have mangled them to bits by now.

[CrawlingChaos]

95. Me too!!!

Those self-righteous assholes are at the top of my death wish list!

Maybe Margaery will figure out a way to take out the Shame Septa in some daring escape attempt. Fingers crossed...

[Solly Mack]

105. Looks like Jaime is going after him in the previews.

[Solly Mack]

47. Stupid, stupid sand snakes. Stupid, stupid.

[NewJeffCT]

49. they just staged a violent coup

didn't see that one coming

[Solly Mack]

50. They want that all-out war.

They think they want it anyway.

[Baitball Blogger]

75. They say that book fans of GoT have no further clues to go on

because the t.v. show is beyond the scope of the book.

How much of that is true?

[NewJeffCT]

82. It's mostly true

there are some hints of things to come in the books, but nobody for sure knows the resolution, except for Martin himself, and maybe his wife and Elio Garcia.

[NewJeffCT]

51. hmm, Varys and Tyrion alone

that's not good. No guards?

[Baitball Blogger]

76. Why is that a bad thing?

[NewJeffCT]

81. they have no guards around them

It looked like somebody was watching them, and last season, we had Ser Barristan and Grey Worm ambushed. I was expecting them to get attacked

[Solly Mack]

52. There goes the fleet

[herding cats]

53. That's gonna pit a hitch in Daenerys' return.

[Solly Mack]

55. Yes. Bummer.

[NewJeffCT]

54. Drogon has gone AWOL

I wonder where he'll turn up - is he the Brienne of the Dothraki Sea?

[Solly Mack]

56. Arya!

[NewJeffCT]

57. a beggar in the streets

and, the waif still abusing her

[Solly Mack]

59. Next time there'll be a cat. See the waif fall.

[Solly Mack]

58. Is there a stray cat handy?

[Solly Mack]

60. Kill Ser Alliser already.

[Solly Mack]

61. No shocker that.

[NewJeffCT]

62. what was that at the end

I'll need to rewatch it - I look away for a second and Melisandre is an ancient woman?

[Solly Mack]

63. She took her red jeweled choker off.

You know how she once said she could cast illusions? In the books, mainly - Mance's death? The choker caused people to see her as young when she is really old.

[herding cats]

64. Or, did it make her actually young?

Is she off to bed to die a natural death of old age now that she's reliquinshed her powers? A sort of an exit clause in her contract?

I'm not clear on that part.

[NewJeffCT]

66. I think

it made her look young, but she's really old

[herding cats]

68. Definitely agree

But was it an illusion, or a witchcraft that actually made her young of body? The way she moved different hints at the latter.

What was the significance of her relinquishing it, even if only for a night? It has to mean something other than that she's in an old body parading around in a false young form. At least I hope it does, because that's not much of a revelation. It's already been done to death.

[NewJeffCT]

70. you're right

that beautiful witch that's ugly/old underneath is certainly an old stereotype of fairy tales and fantasy literature. Martin started the series many years ago to break a lot of fantasy tropes/stereotypes: The brave & noble Ned Stark would have been the hero of most epic fantasy novels, but he died. Then, the brave & noble son rising up to avenge his wrongly slain father should have been the next hero - but, he died...

So, I wonder if this is Benioff & Weiss' creation, or if they're going by what GRRM told them? If it's from Martin, then there is probably some sort of twist involved?

[Baitball Blogger]

78. If there is a switch it might be that she is a pathetic figure and she knows it.

She looks like she has failed and she is aware that time and energy are dwindling for her to accomplish whatever it is she is searching for.

[Solly Mack]

67. I think it cast an illusion, but she has been naked before - can't recall if she kept the stone on

though. She is able to cast a glamour - in the books. So maybe that was it. Just another glamour.

I don't think her work is done, even if she feels defeated right now. I'm sure she'll get a knock on the door and resume her usual self.

She probably is thinking it is time to die since she was so very wrong.

But if she thinks about all that snow she saw in her fire - she'll figure it out.

Oh, I think she is very old and makes herself appear young.

[herding cats]

69. Good points.

Still, if the scene was just to show she's an old body glamored to look young, that was weak. Like I said above, that's been done to death. It's a fairytale standard.

I agree she's not done, one way or another her storyline has more to offer (and, probably elicite hate!) in the future.

[NobodyHere]

79. I researched a few scenes

And she keeps the stone on in the couple nude scenes I watched.

[Goblinmonger]

84. Tough research

Thanks for doing the hard work for all of us.

[NewJeffCT]

86. That research

might need to be peer reviewed.

[Solly Mack]

91. She is able to cast glamours in the book, so maybe the stone is being used that way

in the show.

[NewJeffCT]

97. I think that is probably it

I remember the stone glows/pulses at certain times in the books as well, especially when she is invoking some sort of magic.

[NewJeffCT]

87. Nation Relieved...

http://www.theonion.com/article/nation-relieved-insufferable-little-game-thrones-f-52801

[Islandurp]

92. There will be flashbacks

muahaha!!!

[CrawlingChaos]

94. HA!

Actually NewJeffCT, you've been very gracious about answering all my 'how did this differ from the book' questions in past seasons.

Now we're all flying blind I guess!

[Solly Mack]

96. I blame George RR Martin

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

101. "I ain't their bitch"

My favorite GRRM quote after being asked if he's annoyed by questions about the next book's release date.

[NewJeffCT]

103. Isn't there something from Neil Gaiman out there as well

that says George RR Martin is not your bitch, or something like that?

[Iggo]

98. At least the TV watchers won't spoil the ending for people who are reading the books.

[NewJeffCT]

99. I think some of the twists and turns will be different

but, I also think that the fate of the major characters will generally be the same between the books and the show - Jon Snow, Arya and Sansa Stark, Dany, Tyrion, Jamie, Cersei, Brienne, and a few others. Martin supposedly outlined what is going to happen with most of the major characters to Benioff and Weiss.

[mainer]

108. Best theory ever of how Jon will be revived

Won't be by Melisandre. This theory I completely agree with. (Also, there are three Targaryens -- and Tyrion is one of them!)

[mainstreetonce]

109. Why is Tyrion

A Targareon?

[mainer]

110. You have to watch his next YouTube video

He explains it all. Apparently Tyrion is a bastard (Tywin called him as much) and Tyrions mom had an affair with a Targaryen. The theory is, there are 3 dragon riders for 3 dragons, and Tyrion and Jon are the other two with Targaryen blood. They'll all unite to fight together.

[mainstreetonce]

111. Thanks

...