I think losing Tywin is pretty much a death blow to the Lannisters unless a stronger character emerges to take his place . I just don't see any of the current characters holding it together without help ... possibly an unknown from the Tyrells side If I was Stannis I'd strike a deal with Mance ..use his forces in exchange for protection against the walkers .. may be what ends up happening . It's never really said how big of an army Stannis has but it must be pretty formidable to circle 100k and take them with barley a fight .
My opinion has always been that house tyrell will "win" in the end since they seem to have the most resemblance to house of tudor
Odd that Sandor didn't recognize/know Pod from his time of being a squire to Tyrion, even if Sandor did not come across Pod personally his distant relative was the royal executioner who has Pod's same last name.
Being a squire to a Lannister would be important in pointing out to Arya, since Arya dismissed Brienne's help when Brienne admitted Oathkeeper was given to her from Jaime.
I actually did a school research paper on Wars of the Roses since it resembled Game of Thrones a year ago. I'd say Henry Tudor (the one who won war and founded the Tudor dynasty) was most similar to Daenerys. Exiled at a very young age, scrapped together army of mercenaries, and took over unexpectedly after the other sides had already exhausted each other. Other random connections I made were Richard Neville (the Kingmaker) reminded me of Tywin, Richard III was sort of a fuse of Tyrion/Stannis, Edward York as Robb/Robert Baratheon, and Elizabeth York (who marries Henry Tudor) as Sansa
Wow, it seems some spoilers/theories were dropped on here.. Overall, I thought the season was awesome but there were some things that could have been done much better. Will be a long 9 months.
Am I the only one who thought that The Hound became kind of almost "fatherly" towards Arya near the end? The big scary guy went soft, while the little girl stayed cold and hard as ice. The Hound was playing at being a "bad man" thanks to his upbringing with his brother, while Arya is the real deal, naturally born that way. Also, whenever I see the "behind the scenes" stuff with the actress for Arya, it freaks me out. She has long hair, and is all teenage-girly and giggly in her demeanor. It is unsettling.
The unsettling part for me is that she is a lot older than she appears. She and the actress that plays Sansa is a couple years apart...
I mean, just imagine what Arya has been through. Father got beheaded in front of her. Went to see her brother who was brutally murdered and had his wolf's head sewn on his body. Mother was killed there too. Goes to see Aunt, who ends up being dead. That laugh when she finds out about Lysa sums it up. The girl has just been through so much already, I'm pretty sure it has desensitized her at this point.
I absolutely think that a closeness had developed between the Hound and Arya. If you look at Arya when she is contemplating what she is going to do as she is watching the Hound lying there dying, her eyes look all swollen as if she is sad and holding back tears. She even starts to hand the Hound a skin of water before he told her he did not want water. Arya shows concern for the Hound at various times during their travels together including her concern for the infection he received from the bite the Hound got from Bitter. At no point did Arya ever consider leaving the Hound to go with Brianne, even before the Hound pointed out that her sword was made with Lannister gold. When Arya finally leaves the Hound I think she is full of conflicted emotion. The Hound is this guy that she has wanted dead for a very long time but he is also this guy who has taken care of her and protected her even after there was no money in it for him. For all of the Hounds character flaws, he never once mistreated Arya after he took her captive.
I know what you mean, there's no one from House Tyrell that I can see right now who could take that mantel. Perhaps we'll see a new House Tyrell figure next season. If GRRM sticks to the basic historical framework that he's been working from, I can't see how it couldn't be House Tyrell. I've wondered about Dany also, since she takes up so much screentime but is so disconnected from the events of the seven kingdoms. Ultimately though, there's just too much resemblance between House Tudor and House Tyrell for me to conclude otherwise.
I don't recall the website where I read the article, but there was an interview with the actress who played Arya. They asked her the question about her mindset when she let the Hound die. Her reply was that she was at first conflicted on what she should do but when the Hound started to beg, that was the point when she decided that he deserves to suffer. She said both her character and Sansa have learned from all these bad men/women around them and that they're now using the same thing against these people. Emotional spoiler for those who liked the last scene of Arya at the dock. Spoiler In the same interview, she mentioned that the whole dock scene was shot in a parking lot with a blue screen background and it was kind of difficult for her to pretend to look into "distance" After I read that, it kind of ruined it for me.
To me, it's like Arya was forged from pain and anger coming from a place of helplessness. Everything was taken away from her and she couldn't do anything about it. The Hound's pain and anger comes from a place of weakness. Nobody loved him. I disagree. I think she used the Hound because she knew she needed him. She always intended to kill him. She threw him water (IMO) to keep him alive. She wanted to watch him die for a moment. Maybe she enjoyed it. She was sad because she was reflecting on her family and what she had lost. What people like the Hound had taken away from her. *just my thoughts. She wanted him to suffer. That's how I see it. Arya has been developed the same way a Magneto type character would be. Stone cold and relentless. The bond between the misunderstood, brooding "Dog" and the lost, scared little girl storyline seems too easy for this universe.
So where was the hound and Arya going after they found out the aunt was dead? She was so close to reuniting with her sister. Where did Arya sail off to?? Sorry I was under the influence of narcotics Sunday night and havent rewatched it yet
Have no idea where they were going after they left the Eyrie (sp?) but Arya is heading to Bravos at the end.
Once again, for those that forgot, i has been since season 2 I guess. This video explains the significance of Arya and the coin she gave to the captain. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBV0uOLx8jM&feature=player_detailpage
