We've never seen anyone even wearing spectacles or the equivalent have we? Qyburn maybe, or another Maester as they are supposed to be tech gatekeepers as much as anything. But maybe there's just enough 'magic' and fear of eerie powers apparent in GoT world to keep the pursuit of technology out of most inhabitants reach or intellectual curiosity.
― nashwan, Tuesday, 19 May 2015 15:00 (eight years ago) link
i just go with "its the equivalent of the dark ages in most ways" and leave it at that
― slothroprhymes, Tuesday, 19 May 2015 15:02 (eight years ago) link
There are definitely nitpicky questions that are relevant to the story or the general world building but that isn't one of them. It also seems to get brought up all the time across the fantasy genre but I don't get why it bothers anybody enough to need an answer. Just rationalize it somehow and move on.
xxp
― Evan, Tuesday, 19 May 2015 15:05 (eight years ago) link
i'm still hopeful that at some point the police from monty python/holy grail will bust into westeros and arrest everyone
― Karl Malone, Tuesday, 19 May 2015 15:11 (eight years ago) link
I think the real question is why our world hasn't developed magic or dragons yet.
― Is It Any Wonder I'm Not the (President Keyes), Tuesday, 19 May 2015 15:22 (eight years ago) link
This hasn’t been dealt with directly but (as with everything else) there are numerous fan theories, some of which are quite involved, none of which are really worth talking about, because the answer is, “That’s the genre.”
idk, considering they have winters that last years where loads of people starve to death and they have to spend years on survival - doesn't seem that difficult to reconcile to me. how can they plan or invest when they don't know when winter will end?
― gyac, Tuesday, 19 May 2015 17:38 (eight years ago) link
The winter thing makes no sense either tbf
― Οὖτις, Tuesday, 19 May 2015 17:44 (eight years ago) link
Like how would life even evolve under those conditions
― Οὖτις, Tuesday, 19 May 2015 17:45 (eight years ago) link
series should end with all the different kings pledging money for R&D into inventing the light bulb
― Is It Any Wonder I'm Not the (President Keyes), Tuesday, 19 May 2015 17:46 (eight years ago) link
The true answer is that the people and only the people are the driving force in the creation of world history, to paraphrase Mao Zedong. So since the big houses have all the power, and the people has none, progression is halted. The good ending for the series would be the smallfolk finally realizing their class interests, and rising up.
― Frederik B, Tuesday, 19 May 2015 17:50 (eight years ago) link
Most of season seven consists of Loach'ian discussions amongst the Brotherhood of the Banners about the true way to achieve an uprising amongst the peasants. Then there's some boobs, then some more discussion.
― Frederik B, Tuesday, 19 May 2015 17:51 (eight years ago) link
it was posted (i think here) a looong time ago – but someone shared a link that went into how all knowledge is basically intrusted to the Maesters. and that they have an interest in keeping that to themselves, it makes advancement incredibly difficult to achieve.
― AKA Thermo Thinwall (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Tuesday, 19 May 2015 18:01 (eight years ago) link
Peasant uprising would be amazing. It seems like GRRM hints at something like that, or at least he seems pretty cynical about the typical fantasy trope of the "chosen one." Obviously he uses it to some extent, but so far, the chosen ones get their heads chopped off at some point.
― schwantz, Tuesday, 19 May 2015 18:05 (eight years ago) link
this seems kind of similar to the Helliconia series by Brian Aldiss-winters that last a super long time and destroy progress, a priesthood that keeps knowledge from the people etc.
― Is It Any Wonder I'm Not the (President Keyes), Tuesday, 19 May 2015 18:06 (eight years ago) link
the sparrows thing is m/l a peasant uprising, focused around religious zealotry, obvs one of the best ways to rally the dispossessed
― slothroprhymes, Tuesday, 19 May 2015 18:08 (eight years ago) link
Mostly OTM, but compromised by having one of the two onscreen representatives be from a ruling, aristocratic family.
― Madison Dumbbarfer (Leee), Tuesday, 19 May 2015 18:24 (eight years ago) link
eh, they gave up all their shit, every revolution has defectors from the powerful side
it is a shame the 7 gods cant protect you from flames though
― slothroprhymes, Tuesday, 19 May 2015 18:25 (eight years ago) link
VG the head room reminded me of Return to Oz too!Ramsey Bolton isn't the only one (not) troubling the charts: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iiqF9KRgyck
― kinder, Tuesday, 19 May 2015 19:53 (eight years ago) link
Red lady too.
― Robert Adam Gilmour, Tuesday, 19 May 2015 20:39 (eight years ago) link
Diana Rigg totally won this episode.
― Matt DC, Tuesday, 19 May 2015 22:11 (eight years ago) link
― Frederik B, Tuesday, May 19, 2015 1:51 PM (10 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
lmao
― lag∞n, Wednesday, 20 May 2015 04:03 (eight years ago) link
It's horrible how well this workshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2VTkL62YnTA
― tsrobodo, Wednesday, 20 May 2015 04:17 (eight years ago) link
Brilliant end.
― Madison Dumbbarfer (Leee), Wednesday, 20 May 2015 05:08 (eight years ago) link
BTW I'm pretty sure I've been in that Dorne palace where everything kicked off. Is it the Alcazar of Seville?
― Matt DC, Wednesday, 20 May 2015 18:47 (eight years ago) link
yeah we were pretty sure it was, and it was: http://scribblerinseville.com/filming-game-of-thrones-in-sevilles-alcazar/
― anonanon, Wednesday, 20 May 2015 19:17 (eight years ago) link
nice spot
― lag∞n, Wednesday, 20 May 2015 19:29 (eight years ago) link
so #sansagate is a thing
― Mistah FAAB (sarahell), Wednesday, 20 May 2015 19:58 (eight years ago) link
....what
― slothroprhymes, Wednesday, 20 May 2015 19:59 (eight years ago) link
do you just mean the negative reactions themselves or is there some creepy counterattack defense thing as well, i am literally always paranoid that that MRA shit is right around the corner :/
― slothroprhymes, Wednesday, 20 May 2015 20:00 (eight years ago) link
A short pause to mark the realisation that from now on *gate will evoke MRAs chimping it up rather than a national scandal that did for a US President.
― Andrew Farrell, Wednesday, 20 May 2015 20:05 (eight years ago) link
i started to read a thinkpiece abt heres why the rape was not necessary to advance the plot but im p sure the person didnt understand what the words plot or necessary meant, guess u wldnt write a piece like that if u did
― lag∞n, Wednesday, 20 May 2015 20:12 (eight years ago) link
Considering it was a change from the books, they could have done it differently
― Mistah FAAB (sarahell), Wednesday, 20 May 2015 20:30 (eight years ago) link
The Mary Sue has a solid view on it.
― Andrew Farrell, Wednesday, 20 May 2015 20:35 (eight years ago) link
yes, I read that. People should read that. I think there are spoilers in it though.
― Mistah FAAB (sarahell), Wednesday, 20 May 2015 20:36 (eight years ago) link
xposts maybe easier to discuss on the spoiler thread?if we don't know where the plot is going it's p hard to defend a Strong Opinion whether or not the scene was necessary.
― resulting post (rogermexico.), Wednesday, 20 May 2015 20:38 (eight years ago) link
i think there's a difference between the event happening and whether it needed to be depicted on screen -- so that scene was not necessary, especially considering it wasn't part of source text
― Mistah FAAB (sarahell), Wednesday, 20 May 2015 20:41 (eight years ago) link
the equivalent scene in the source text is like infinitely worse than what was shown on the show
― Clay, Wednesday, 20 May 2015 20:44 (eight years ago) link
i don't buy any of that. if you're still watching after they killed dozens of babies, portrayed incest, exploded a guys head like a watermelon and cut off a guys cock – you have no right to complain. all this "i will never watch the show again" grandstanding is bs. especially if you've read the books and knew this (or something even worse) was coming.
― AKA Thermo Thinwall (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Wednesday, 20 May 2015 20:47 (eight years ago) link
that was an xpost to the marie sue link
― AKA Thermo Thinwall (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Wednesday, 20 May 2015 20:48 (eight years ago) link
The equivalent scene in the source text isn't in the source text though, as it involves a character that isn't in the TV version at all (I realise I'm skirting the thread title here) - anything they did would be a change.
― Andrew Farrell, Wednesday, 20 May 2015 20:50 (eight years ago) link
― Mistah FAAB (sarahell), Wednesday, May 20, 2015 4:30 PM (19 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
literarily anything in any work of art could be done differently
― lag∞n, Wednesday, 20 May 2015 20:51 (eight years ago) link
― Andrew Farrell, Wednesday, May 20, 2015 4:35 PM (15 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
ha thats the one i stopped read, genuinely odd
I think you're arguing semantic there, but it's obvious what event in the book maps onto the event in the show. xp
― Madison Dumbbarfer (Leee), Wednesday, 20 May 2015 20:52 (eight years ago) link
it felt gratuitous, esp. in the larger context of the jamie/circe rapey scene from last season that wasn't portrayed as such in the book.
― Mistah FAAB (sarahell), Wednesday, 20 May 2015 20:52 (eight years ago) link
if the complaint is that it happened to one character and not another, that's not much of a moral stand to take against the depiction of rape as a cheap device in fiction
― Mordy, Wednesday, 20 May 2015 20:52 (eight years ago) link
xp -- not to spoil anything, but the only "necessary" things plot wise are:
1. Theon is forced to watch/participate in something horrible Ramsay does to a woman he knew from his time at Winterfell (in the book it was Sansa's bff). 2. Something horrible happens to the woman so that she would want to potentially escape3. Ramsay is an evil sociopath (which could be argued has already been conveyed adequately)
There is a lot of leeway with how to script and visually depict these plot points
― Mistah FAAB (sarahell), Wednesday, 20 May 2015 20:56 (eight years ago) link
I used to think this show was just about power struggles, but I'm beginning to think it's core reason for existing is to continually test the audience's capacity for shock
― Οὖτις, Wednesday, 20 May 2015 20:58 (eight years ago) link
the power struggle stuff has gradually receded and/or become incomprehensibly convoluted but the murderboobs quotient abides as a central focus
― Οὖτις, Wednesday, 20 May 2015 20:59 (eight years ago) link
but I'm beginning to think it's core reason for existing is to continually test the audience's capacity for shock
surely this has been obvious from the finale of season one?
― Mordy, Wednesday, 20 May 2015 21:00 (eight years ago) link
the mary sue piece isnt badly written or not understandable per se but its def moving the goalposts, like why didn't you stop watching the series pilot when drogo has sex with dany in a way that most rational people (myself included!) would term rape or at the very fucking least deficient consent
that said, perhaps the most pressing real problem is the way the camera lingers on theon's face during it, and while i understand that as a way to not actually show us what's happening and kind of appreciate it for that reason, it is inevitably going to imply that the assault is notable in the story for how it makes theon/reek feel rather than uh the victim of sexual assault - whether that's what the benioff/weiss braintrust intended or not
― slothroprhymes, Wednesday, 20 May 2015 21:01 (eight years ago) link