Well, while you are essentially right that there will be always some people who will want payback and continue scheming but I guess there will be some sort of ceasefire, like getting one King/Queen that unites the kingdoms again for a few years/decades before the next Game of Thrones begins. There will never be peace and closure but I think we can expect the stories of the main characters to be concluded, for the better or worse.

 

I don't care if it's open ended in that sense. Actually, that would be a satisfying and realistic conclusion. However, what I do care about is seeing the major arcs that have been developed across four massive books to reach their climax.

But mostly, I want Dragons.

 

True fact: Daenerys will never sit on the Iron throne for more than 5 minutes. Sod's law.

 

Heh. She's my favourite character.

Daenerys > Jon Snow > Arya > all.

 

Deus ex machina if there ever was one...period.

While its true that I cant wait to see those mo' fuckers in action, it still doesn't detract from the fact that I detest reading over and over again about Aegon the Conqueror and he's pwn-age over Westeros with his three dragons. Its all but a self-fulfilling prophesy.

Agreed. I hate the constant mental and verbal masterbation that she continuously spews.
"I am Daenerys Stormborn, the unburnt, khaleesi and queen, the mother of dragons!" again and again she keeps repeating it whenever she meets someone that so much as looks at her wrong. Arrogant drivel that was at first endearing to her character (given that she was a submissive little girl when the brother still lived) but its gotten too tedious to read now.

Jon is definitely one of my favorite characters but Littlefinger is close second. I was just disappointed that there wasn't more of the Red Viper or Renly.

 

The Daenerys chapters are ok, but not my favorites. Mostly, they're pretty boring now that Drogo is dead. I kinda wished GRRM hadn't killed him off, especially in such a pathetic way. And thanks for pointing out the whole submissive/arrogant dichotomy she has going on. I knew something about her seemed off, but I couldn't place it. You say it's endearing, but I think it's a bit OOC.

My favorite characters to date have been the typical ones (Jon, Arya, Tyrion), but with the last book or two (after he got some personal screentime), I really started liking Jamie as a character. He's still an asshole, but once you see the reasoning behind it, it starts to make sense.

I've never particularly liked Littlefinger. I think he's a genius, but he's also short-sighted and a dick. He's basically fucked over the entire realm singlehandedly just so he can get more power. I would have expected someone of his intelligence to think further ahead than he has (or maybe he has and we just don't know it yet...). That's the other problem I have with him; he doesn't really seem to have any goal beyond securing power for himself. On a side note, the actor playing him in the series is not how I imagined him at all. I always pictured him as a short, slightly fat, baby-faced guy. Completely harmless-looking.

 

The upcoming books need to have more of the Night's Watch and Dolorous Edd.

 

This series has changed my perception of the people I know with the last name of "Stark".

They're all just a tad bit cooler now. ^_^

 

Iron Man wasn't enough?

 

How you can read Daenerys' chapters and think "what an arrogant bitch, fuck her" is completely beyond me.

My favorites are probably Dany, Tyrion, Jamie and Sansa if only to know what the people around her do since she hangs out with some of the most interesting side characters.

But I don't have any characters where I want to skip the chapters because I hate them, kind of puzzles me how some of you guys have.

 

^She herself is not completely arrogant, per se; usually falling to the trappings of young girls mind. However, how she presents herself to others, and expects them to give her her due respect is arrogant.

Maybe you should read a little deeper into the material.

 

A lot of characters are arrogant but that is not always a bad thing so I am surprised it is an issue with her. And she is a Queen, for better or for worse, arrogance is expected so again, it should be no surprise.

My point was that the arrogance should not make a reason for disliking her. Most highborn characters in the series are arrogant in one form or another.

 

I don't really understand this claim. They're the central theme of the books, how can they be a deus ex machina? I think you don't know what this phrase means.

We already know about Dragons. Their central role in the plot has been foreshadowed and emphasised time and time again. They are, in fact, the opposite of a deus ex machina.

As for Daenerys, she's the rightful Queen of Westros, descends from Valyria, possesses and commands the only 3 Dragons in the world (which are not only powerful in their own right, but also the source of magic in some way, and likely the only way to defeat the Others), has conquered several city-states with ease, is beautiful, and commands a vast and well-trained army.

In short: it's not arrogance if you're genuinely better than everyone else.

 

What I meant about reading deeper was not just seeing the arrogance, but seeing how well it is applied to various characters. Tyrion is arrogant about his family name. The same with Tywin. Jamie also has that, though he has been humbled quite a bit.

What I was trying to get at, was that arrogance is not a bad thing, it's just more prevalent in here because GRRM went a little overboard. (I think.)

And, like it or not, some people find arrogance a turn-off. It's expected with characters; some people can forgive those flaws and like them, others can't. You can. I can, too, I'm just playing devil's advocate.

 

My problem with Dany comes from the massive 180 her personality takes as soon as Drogo screws her. When we see her at the beginning, she lets Viserys walk all over her and has this super-fantasy little girl view if how her world is going to work out. Within a year (remember, she's still 13/14), she completely takes charge, tells Viserys to fuck off, and starts taking over the world.

Don't get me wrong, I really like Dany's chapters and I think she has every right to be arrogant, but the arrogant personality she develops just doesn't fit with the personality she has when GRRM introduces her.

 

Hey all, new Game of Thrones cast pictures up. Everybody looks pretty solid, and the scenes resemble those from the books as I pictured them:

Tyrion and Robert look especially well done. Still not sure about Bean as Ned:

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