GoT Season7---Dragonstone

[Merry Prankster]

Some random thoughts about Dragonstone:

Grrrrreat opening scene!  MP was WTF? for a few seconds until he remembered the God of many faces.  Farewell and good riddance to the Frey vermin.

The Hound is becoming human.  He even attempted a prayer.  Wonders never cease.  Wait until he gets a load of his brother, king of the zombies.

Jorah turning up in some sort of confinement in the Citadel was a bit of a surprise but it makes sense.  Will Sam be able to help him?  So Dragonstone has a mother lode of dragonglass.  Shocker! (tongue planted in cheek).

Cracks appear between Jon and Sansa.  Littlefinger will be certain to break out the chisel and hammer.  Sansa appears to have learned some wrong lessons from Cersei, e.g., her Old Testament philosophy on vengeance and near-obsession with Cersei and the Lannisters.  Sansa has hardened in a troubling manner.  Jon should rest uneasily on his new throne.

Danerys homecoming was a wonderful scene.  Not a word to the very end when Dani demonstrates her ability to toss aside even a powerful, emotional moment and focus on the matter at hand.  MP wonders if Westeros is worthy of her and whether she can ever clean out the vipers’ nest that is the Seven Kingdoms.

Someone should call 911 and report that Cersei’s heart is missing.  WOW!  She is empty and appears devoid of humanity, driven only by ambition and the lust for power and revenge.  With the Lannisters’ backs to the wall look for Cersei to be at her treacherous, manipulative best.

MP continues to be impressed by the strong female leads and their powerful performances.  Each dominates the screen in a different way.  The confrontations between these three should be delicious.  And one must not forget Yara Greyjoy, Brienne, Arya or the Red Woman.

Overall, MP enjoyed the episode but it had a transitional feel, i.e. arranging the pieces on the chess board so they can be put in motion.  MP expects more action in subsequent episodes.

[LindaM]

Just remember, the book series isn't finished.

[ponytail]

Saw a bit today that caught the text that Sam was poring over. It mentioned something about ground dragonglass being used to cure diseases....hmmmm.

Good beginning for the new season. I see where it was the most watched episode ever!

[Merry Prankster]

Saw a bit today that caught the text that Sam was poring over. It mentioned something about ground dragonglass being used to cure diseases....hmmmm.

Good beginning for the new season. I see where it was the most watched episode ever!

 Ground dragonglass.  Great catch, Ponytail!  Kudos!  MP wonders whether dragonglass is used in the forging of Valyrian steel swords.    MP read that the HBO Now website went down in large parts of North America for the first half-hour of Dragonstone and the HBO Go website went down in other parts of the world.  Both due to heavy demand.  MP supposes HBO now stands for Home Broken Office.

Just remember, the book series isn't finished.

Ah, LindaM you have hit upon a major pet peeve of mine.  Let me take a moment to review my experience with epic, Encylopediae Brittanica fantasy series.

First, Robert Jordan.  I began his Wheel of Time series in 1992 after the first three books had been published.  In 2013 I read the last volume of the series, #14.  It was written by Brandon Sanderson because Jordan had died years earlier.  At least half the books in the series were almost pure filler.   What would have been an excellent six or seven volume series became a bloated, overwrought, overwritten epic semi-mess to which Sanderson brought some semblance of order and a very satisfying conclusion.  After that 22 year experience I swore off reading any fantasy series that was not complete BEFORE I began reading it.

This brings me to the current master and chief snake-oil salesman of epic fantasy, George RR Martin.  I began reading the Song of Ice and Fire in 1996 soon after the publication of the first volume, Game of Thrones.  I have the hardcover version with the original silver foil dust jacket and it has become quite valuable.  Alarm bells went off because it was only the first book in a multi-volume series but the story was very good so I decided to persevere.  Also, at the time I believe I read somewhere that Martin intended to wrap up the story in three volumes.   What kind of fool am I?

The next two volumes came out over the next four years, a reasonable time frame, and they also were very good so I was hooked, even though Martin’s three volume plan was out the window.  I checked his website every couple of months to see when volume four, A Feast for Crows, would be finished and he lied and lied about its’ status.  Finally, he must have had an attack of conscience and made no more promises regarding a publication date.  In the meantime, the guy is attending every fantasy/sci-fi conference known to humankind (probably including those held in peoples’ living rooms) to pick up awards and give speeches and writing/editing OTHER books.

Finally, five years later, A Feast for Crows came out.  I picked up a copy within days and devoured it.  Such a disappointment!  I know many in Martin’s legion of loyal fans disagree, but I thought it was a pile of meandering drivel, far below the quality of the first three volumes.  Echoes of Jordan, where by that time I was up to my eyeballs in drivel and filler.  I swore off Martin.  Thank God I did.  Since 2005, he has published exactly ONE more volume in the series.  ONE BOOK IN TWELVE YEARS!  But to his credit, he hasn’t missed a single conference, award, speaking engagement or chance to take a bow.  With such a busy schedule how can one expect the man to find time to write?  Bronx cheer, George!

I am not exactly sure what you mean by your comment, LindaM, but my understanding is that the HBO story began to depart from Martin’s story in Season 6.  I believe seasons 7 and 8 have already been written and might be wildly different from Martin’s story but I really don’t know because he has yet to finish his version of the story.  And this jerk has the gall to already be criticizing the HBO version.  If you had completed SIF in less time than it took to fight the Hundred Years' War you would have no reason to criticize because HBO would be telling YOUR story, you bulbous, blubbering bag of wind!

I am sure many of his fans disagree with me but as far as I’m concerned, authors like George RR Martin, who have talent, use it to hook readers with the beginning of a quality story and then have those readers wait forever to lay out good money and valuable time to consume pile after pile of literary crap, are committing literary fraud upon their fans and deserve a special place in Hades.

Rant over.  I feel better now.

If anyone would like to a read a humorous satirical take on the Procrastinator-in-Chief:  http://mashable.com/2017/07/16/george-rr-martins-copy-editor-winds-of-winter/#vsFCDP0xBmqL

[ponytail]

I could have written this myself, my friend! I too remember the wait for the never ending Wheel of Time series. I bet those books stacked together would be almost 3 feet tall! But, as you say, a satisfactory ending by Sanderson, whose Oathbringer series is another of those epics that I just can't turn away from. I would like to read George's last two books...I do think the next will be out within the next year, but after that, how long until the final book? I hope George lives long enough to finish (and me, too)!

Glad you are enjoying the GoT series with me! And thanks for all your input.

[LindaM]

I hate serial writers because you read and read and get nowhere fast.  I also read the Wheel of Time series but stopped after book 5.  Now I can't remember much of the plot from book one.

Started this series and decided it was going to be another long drawn our fantasy and guess what?  I was right.  Martin doesn't must have a very lenient editor.  I have friends who are writers and they must meet their deadline.  I won't go any further but I will say that I live within 15 miles of a writer's commune in North Carolina and all the writers there tell you not to draw a series out. 

Plus there is one other.  I know MP doesn't read JD Robins but that is really Nora Roberts.  She started the "In Death" series back in the late 1980s I think as a release.  Well, the release is still going strong and up to like 40 books.  I tried to read all of the series but it's long and tedious and you wait for the payoff -- a baby for Eve and Roark -- and it doesn't seem to come.  I've got better books to read.

[Merry Prankster]

Ponytail, thank you for your concurrence on my rant.  I understand why you will finish SIF.  Hopefully, with the finish line in sight, Martin will publish a quality ending within a reasonable period.  The HBO series might add some pressure for him to finish.  Then again, he might be waiting to watch the HBO version to get some ideas.  Say it ain’t so, George!  LOL.  Regarding his health, he’s 68 and it appears to me as if he doesn’t get much exercise or miss many meals, including dessert.  Keep your fingers crossed.

Sanderson is a writer of quality fantasy.  His work on WoT is how I live with the illusion that my investment of time was justified.  And I give him credit for announcing in advance that Oathbreaker will be a 10 or 11 volume series.  If Jordan/Martin had acted in a similar manner I would have had no basis for my rant.  This stuff like “oh, my characters/story have taken on lives of their own and taken me to places I did not expect,” is a load of crap as far as I am concerned.

Have you read anything by Patrick Rothfuss?  He is very good.

I look forward to bantering with you about the HBO series.  You take the lead in commenting on the next episode, okay?


LindaM, I also thank you for your support.  You were smart to bail on Jordan after #5.  Apparently, I felt compelled to become the poster child for Einstein’s definition of insanity.

I have heard of Nora Roberts but have not read any of her work.  30-plus years and no baby? Yikes! Did she freeze some of her eggs?  LOL.

I believe there is a valid reason for editor leniency regarding authors who sell books:  Fear. Once an author starts selling a lot of books the author joins the publishing house’s flock of geese who lay golden egg after golden egg and the power shifts to the author.  Missed deadlines and occasional substandard writing are tolerated because if the editor becomes too tough the author can pick up his/her marbles and move to another publishing house that will welcome the author with open arms.  And the editor will be looking for another career opportunity.  I am sure this is not true in all cases but it sure seems to ring true in some instances.

[ponytail]

Yes, I have read Patrick Rothfuss, another slow, turtle paced writer. How long has it been? 5 years? I adore Robin Hobb, and just finished her latest trilogy. She writes at a good pace, and usually keeps her books to 3 which I appreciate. Tad Williams is another good writer, and is writing a new series 35 years later from the world of Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn. Count me in!

[LindaM]

JD Robb's books have been going on forever but Roark and Eve are still stuck within two years of their marriage.  Time does not move fast in that series.