"The Dance Of Dragons":(Written by David Benioff & D. B. Weiss; directed by David Nutter.)
Synopsis:
Spoiler
Stannis (Stephen Dillane) confronts a troubling decision. Jon (Kit Harington) returns to The Wall. Mace (Roger Ashton-Griffiths) visits the Iron Bank. Arya (Maisie Williams) encounters someone from her past. Dany (Emilia Clarke) reluctantly oversees a traditional celebration of athleticism.
Preview:
Spoiler
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"Robert was never the same after he put on that crown. Some men are like swords, made for fighting. Hang them up and they go to rust.” -DN
He IS sort of a king in Dorne. However in this case, I really thought the purpose was to NOT cause a rift with the crown and Doran is doing just THAT. And Jamie would be much better swearing the allegiance to Myrcella if she's proclaimed queen of Westeros! Anyway, that preview scene it's so not in the pooks
-- Edited by TormundsWoman on Sunday 7th of June 2015 07:52:40 PM
Man oh man that Shireen scene. Gut wrenching but very effective. They set up Stannis for a sea change this season. He had a real chance to become a good father, a decent human being. But he turned back to what he's always turned to in hard times on the show; listening to Melisandre and burning people. It reminds me of the major theme of the Sopranos: People have the genuine chance to change themselves for the better, but often choose to fall back on old habits, take the easy way out. It's very disappointing but I think this is what the story's been leading too since Season 2. Melisandre tells "you will betray your family, everything you hold dear", and here we are. In many ways his character arc these past few seasons has been a battle for his soul between Davos and Melisandre, and in this episode he definitively chose her. No way Davos backs him after this.
I also thought Daznak's was a bunch of fun, and that the CGI was excellent. The flight at the end was always going to look cheesy no matter what, but it was enjoyable. But man, that Shireen scene. It's hard to think of anything else really
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"Give a man a fire and he's warm for a day, but set fire to him and he's warm for the rest of his life" - Terry Pratchett
I think the the first part's of the ep, the fanatical burning of his own daughter, bled in the Daznak Pit's final moment. They get two different types of emotions and I just can't switch from one to another that fast. That being the Shireen/Davos, Shireen/Stannis and generally everything Shireen was superbly acted. And Drogon's entrance was pretty amazing too.
No matter which scene came first that was going to be a problem. Both are monumental, both are the opposite of each other emotionally. I don't think swapping them around would have helped much either
-- Edited by Cosca on Sunday 7th of June 2015 11:33:29 PM
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"Give a man a fire and he's warm for a day, but set fire to him and he's warm for the rest of his life" - Terry Pratchett
Don't know, Cosca. I think it is easy to get high and then crash. You experience each fully But getting a crash and then trying to recover to a high is nowhere near as easy
She was kind, and curious, smart and generous, sweet and honest and faithful. Not only just a kid. Fuck the stories where all that is good has to die.
Gurm and D&D are horribly, creepy, mediocre.
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"I´d not prolongued the chewing up, Doc. Nor the being spat out. Not go out a cunt. It´s the dispatch I find inglorious. The whole delusory fucking self importance.". Al Swedgin ;).
Rhaegar, despite wounding Robert, was struck down with a massive blow from Robert's warhammer, which scattered the rubies encrusted in Rhaegar's armor under the water. Rhaegar died with Lyanna Stark's name on his lips.
The "attack" on Stannis' camp was underwheliming, just things torched. But I guess it was meant to be a sneak attack and just sabotage, not a battle.
Alliser' staredown was good, I always liked show Alliser. A hardass, but fair and honorable.
The Shireen/Davos scene was so sweet. They were all invented for the show and they were all a pleasure, the actors really made them work.
FINALLY, some Doran! Left me wanting more, he was so underused this season.
I gotta say, I laughed at the slapping game between the snakes, and poor Bronn getting conked was fun too. Who knew our buddy Bronn would still be alive this far in the season?
In Braavos, Mace is such an oaf, he seems like his mind is in a Disney movie! Lol
Of course Trant is a dirty Duggar! I was dissapointed Arya didn't kill him, next week it seems, but how come Jaquen didn't notice when Arya lied to him? He could smell a lie from a mile away, tho he did seem to have a look in his eye.
Ellaria Sand's last scene with Jaime was nice, she was no longer a scowling villian and seemed to let her anger go and turned a new leaf, but did she really? Hmmm.
Shireen...my sweet, she was even sweeter than in the pooks. Her death is unforgivable and sorry Stannis. I love ya, but your days are numbered. You crossed a line. You claim to want to kill the Boltons, but even Roose would not kill his own kin. I hope Brienne stabs the shit outta him next episode.
The pit! Looked so awesome, could be straight outta gladiator!
Big laugh when the lil guy got his head chopped off!
The harpy attack and Drogon saving the day was amazing, almost Lord of the Rings quality! The show has come a long way to have two big scenes, first Hardhome and now this, and I am not complaining for there is no show like this anywhere else.
And guess what I will back like clockwork next week!
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"Robert was never the same after he put on that crown. Some men are like swords, made for fighting. Hang them up and they go to rust.” -DN
When Dany got on Drogon and took off it went to full blown Neverending Story mode. As a book reader I think it's ironic that I've been waiting for the Daznak's Pit huge ADWD finale and after the episode ended all I really could think about was how tragic the entire storyline of Shireen has been and how much she helped shape Davos.
When Davos finds out you can be damn sure he's out of there.
He IS sort of a king in Dorne. However in this case, I really thought the purpose was to NOT cause a rift with the crown and Doran is doing just THAT. And Jamie would be much better swearing the allegiance to Myrcella if she's proclaimed queen of Westeros! Anyway, that preview scene it's so not in the pooks
And he wasn't talking to Jaime anyway !
-- Edited by TormundsWoman on Sunday 7th of June 2015 07:52:40 PM
I'm freaked a bit for Arya next week ... I may vomit.
I'm an emotional wreck after Shareen ... and her Mammy wanting to save her at the last minute (even Stannis was puzzled at that!)
I've been watching back to back Spartacus so the arena was a massive let down for me .
Taming her beast was lame too. Loved the cgi but Jeez Dany is a complete whimp! Where's the whip and challenge of wills? "Fly" "oh um okay mam!". Cut to Harry Potter on his Nimbus!
My feels were all for Tyrion ... bet he had a lump in his pants
And Jon seems to have gone back a series... all pathetic . Just when he was showing some grit.
I'm hoping Sansa ,Brienne and Pod storyline pulls it all back for me ... and Arya.
Davos ... what will he do?
-- Edited by YvyB on Monday 8th of June 2015 05:02:57 AM
Stannis the Mannis fan club cancelled...first your baby brother and now your own sweet child. No throne is worth that.
Sorry, guys. Bit pissed off last night, apparently Saw the late show repeat and my kid was so disgusted when I got home, I thought, oh crap, here we go. Liked seeing more of Doran, I liked this twist on him from the books. Where is Myrcella getting a spine from? Wow! It's sick and twisted and everything else but I like her being near her daddy. I'm going to do somewhere and now.
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Rhaegar, despite wounding Robert, was struck down with a massive blow from Robert's warhammer, which scattered the rubies encrusted in Rhaegar's armor under the water. Rhaegar died with Lyanna Stark's name on his lips.
I was too upset last night, much like Ly about Shireen. Seriously dude... Dillane played the introverted loving dad too well. The man was a fucking genius and I've believed every second his "you are my daughter, my only heir, Shireen from House Baratheon, I told everyone to go to hell when they told me to give up with the greyscale shit". Which is why I now hate Stannis so much. But yes, I thought Dorne was pretty good and Sidig is worth every second of screentime. And I like Myrcella better than Tommen. Hope she survives now. Question: if the necklace is not Myrcella, who's is it. There are only a few in the world. Will they explain that or we just go ahead and assume it was the Sand Snakes and the necklace was a copy?
Dorne was a mixed bag. I liked the scenes with Doran, Jaime and Ellaria but once again the Sand Snakes were pretty bad. There's no way to hide it, those actresses just aren't right for those roles, especially the one who looks Asian. Brienne aside Nina Gold seems to struggle when it comes to casting Boudica type roles, prime example being the clusterfuck that is Asha Greyjoy (fuck Yara that's a stupid ass name!)
So happy I got to see the Fighting Pit scene from ADWD. For the most part they did a really good job considering they're on a TV budget. Some of the CGI was a little ropy at times but that was to be expected. Not sure what to make of Hizdar getting killed off, did he fake his death with rubber daggers and ketchup or was it more D & D fuckery?
The stuff with Jorah seemed a bit excessive to me, I would rather Dany just pardoned him last episode but whatever D & D needed to shoe in some unnecessary tension for the smelly Unsullied.
I am still trying to digest what happened with Stannis. Did we just witness a TWOW spoiler?
Jon's scenes were great except for the moment where D & D preceeded to bang us over the head with the Olly bat. God I am so sick and tired of that character. We get it already, he's not happy with Jon's decision, move on FFS!
Absolutely loved the scenes with Arya and Trant, it looks like we're going to get MERCY Yes!!
Once again like the previous episode I feel the ending scene elevates a solid episode into a great one.
On another note the fight sequences in the pit seemed to have improved vastly. We need more of that and less 20,000 cuts to different angles every second.
I am still trying to digest what happened with Stannis. Did we just witness a TWOW spoiler?
Yup, the burning of Shireen came from GRRM himself, so the same thing will happen in some form in the books.
Yikes. It probably won't bother me so much in the books but it sucked seeing it on screen because Kerry Ingram was so great on the show. I am going to miss her
Finally watched the episodes (8 and 9 back to back), and both were amazing. Dany riding Drogon and a battle with White Walkers were two things we were waiting for since season 1. As was Tyrion meeting Dany and joining her team. Jorah forgiven was also good. Drogon was amazing. The CGI was crazy good up until the flight itself, which was so-so, but is such an immense visual feat for a TV show that it HAS to be forgiven. Hardhome was all kinds of amazing, and I always wanted D&D to use that piece of backstory from the books to redeem the atrocity that was the battle if the Fist (which we saw nothing of at all!). Man, this show has come a long, long way to be able to show us these things- and with the budget ascending every season I'm more and more confident that they can deliver an epic ending with no compromises.
And to our second big scene of the episode. Stannis burning Shireen.
Now, most of you seem to think Stannis is doing that to get the Throne, but that's not true. As he said in (I think) episode 7 (or was it Melisandre) and to Davos in season 3- the Iron Throne is just a stepping stone to a much bigger goal which is to lead the armies of the living in the Long Night. Against the same, ridiculously powerful creatures that massacared the Wildlings in episode 8. The choice he was facing was this: lose the battle, die, let the Boltons hold the North and the Lannisters and Tyrells the Throne- which would mean certain death to humanity in the Long Night, even if Stannis wasn't the "chosen one" (which he probably isn't, but Melly convinced him and is convinced herself). In this situation, Shireen would die anyway, along with most of Westeros. The other option is killing his Nissa Nissa (for us book readers) and making this trully huge sacrifice. Not that I would have made the same decision in his place, but it's not just mindless ambition with Stannis. It never was. He was always season 5 Stannis, perhaps except for in season 3 when he was a bit depressed. People were sure he changed, but this was always who he was- from beginning to end. It was tragic to see Selyse's sudden change, and Stannis being ice cold.
If Stannis loses now, it'll just be terrible. After this sacrifice...
Arya and Braavos. Always loved it, slow as it is. Dorne? Indifferent. The changes the show made to this storyline are very bad in my opinion, removing all the drama and emotion from the storyline. The only character development we got here was Ellaria's, and I just hate her after the last episodes so I don't care.
I'm looking forward to the finale. I think it'll be just as big as the last two, in its own way.
Rhaegar, despite wounding Robert, was struck down with a massive blow from Robert's warhammer, which scattered the rubies encrusted in Rhaegar's armor under the water. Rhaegar died with Lyanna Stark's name on his lips.
I was disappointed. I realize that my expectations were too high after four epic episode 9s, but I can't help it. Honestly, I think Arya was the problem. So much time spent showing her spying on Ser Meryn. What a waste. I'm sure there will be a big payoff, but it was redundant and annoying to sit through. And Jaqen is so humorless this season, after having such a playful nature in season 2. WTF? He kind of sucks.
I loved the injection of a bit of humor I to an otherwise dark episode both with Daario's prediction before a most unceremonious beheading and with Bronn getting the elbow to the face.
Definitely the best Dorne scenes yet. They weren't that great, but I'm glad to see some movement in this plot. And I'm sure it's not over yet. Ellaria is too angry to walk away from her quest for vengeance. I think she's going to try to kill Jamie.
I loved what they did with Jorah! They portrayed a knight who is past his prime, but surviving by heart and determination (and luck) perfectly. So good. I liked Drogon, but I wish they hadn't telegraphed his appearance quite so much throughout the episode. The best Essos episode in a very, very long time.
Jon and the Wall was lame. Shoot him with an arrow already, Ollie. I have no idea why the Wildlings would end up at Castle Black. Geography, people!
Finally, Stannis. I have no problem with what happened, even though it was sickening and heart-wrenching. I loved that Selyse was the one whose humanity won out. I wonder whether she'll attack Mel or Stannis. Wouldn't that be a fun twist?
I think she was good in her last two scenes, no longer the cartoony vengeful crone. But I don't think she is done yet.
This! I loved the final scene with Jamie. Do you think she's trying to lure him into letting his guard down? Earlier in the ep, I thought she might kill Doran, but after that scene, I think it'll be Jamie.
Jentario, great take on Stannis' decision. I didn't get the impression Stannis was taking the long view from his conversation with Shireen. It just seemed more about his delusion that he's meant to be king. I appreciate the different perspective. And I hope you're right. D&D have a habit of making a character truly reprehensible before killing him/her. I assumed that's what this was. I hope we'll find out next week whether it was blind ambition or true sacrifice.
I don't hate Stannis, some people compared him as the "new Joffrey"? What? Stannis is a hardass but he does not take any pleasure in the pain and suffering of others.
But jeez Stannis, could you not have given Shireen some milk of the poppy so she would not have to die such a horrible painful death?
I do wonder how Davos will take this? Might he be the one to kill Stannis? He never stuck me as the type, maybe a good punch from his knobby hand! hahaha
Basi, they took the ships from Hardhome to Eastwatch by the Sea...I think...I did always wonder..why didn't the wildlings sail past the wall Through the bay of seals? What is stopping them from circumventing the whole thing? They never explain that in the pooks either.
Don, the Eastwatch is south of the Wall though. Basi is right about geography. Technically these guys landed with the ships on the wrong side of the freaking Wall. I don't know why? You'd think they'd sail SOUTH of the Wall and walk to Castle Black. What with the WW north of the Wall why would they risk being there?!?!
NAILED IT! 
But getting a crash and then trying to recover to a high is nowhere near as easy 
Saw the late show repeat and my kid was so disgusted when I got home, I thought, oh crap, here we go. Liked seeing more of Doran, I liked this twist on him from the books. Where is Myrcella getting a spine from? Wow! It's sick and twisted and everything else but I like her being near her daddy. I'm going to do somewhere and 
now. 
Basi! we sure need new stuff 