#wanting to be king to Ned in the first book . so weird to change his motivations around Roberts death like that lol

[6ebe]

rewatching got is just making me even more annoyed at how poorly the show handled renly and loras like damn

[laurellerual]

Arya and Sansa storyswap: an exercise in imagination

Premise: I tried to speculate what might happen if Sansa manages to escape King's Landing and Arya gets stuck in the capital. I collected my thoughts on this scenario trying to make logical, credible choices that respected the characterization of the characters and the timeline of the books (the wiki was very usefull for this). I discarded all the scenarios that end in "…and then she dies horribly" because they're boring. I write with assumption that they would still remain POV characters and therefore mantain a minimum of plot armor. Like everyone, I have my biases so it's not perfect, but I tried to put myself in the most neutral mindset possible. Enjoy and let me know your thoughts. Part 2, Part 3

Part 1/3: Sansa

A Game of Thrones 

I believe Sansa's story would remain mostly the same until the end of Sansa III (AGOT). The only thing I feel like adding is an exchange with Arya. During breakfast Sansa notices Arya's bruises and her sister tells her about the secret passage with dragon skulls that she found, and how she got out of the Red Keep. Sansa clearly doesn't believe her and she thinks it's just Arya being weird.

At the end of Sansa III they receive the news that they will be leaving King's Landing soon, and she runs away crying and barricades herself in her room. In Sansa IV she is locked in Maegor's Holdfast and we find out that she went to Cersei to tell her about Ned's plan to leave. There's a narrative hole between these two chapters that can be exploited to make little changes. What happened that night after Sansa locked herself in her room? It has to be something that makes her change her mind about going to the queen or at least something that stops her from doing so. Personally I choose septa Mordane, you could expand her character and make her a little more similar to how she is in the show where she is shown genuinely loyal to House Stark.

The septa is present when Sansa escapes to her room so it's not unrealistic that she would decide to follow her. Sansa has been behaving "almost as wicked as Arya" lately so Mordane decides to follow her to lecture her or console her. Maybe she reaches her before she can barricade the door and make her see reason. Or perhaps seeing the girl so out of it she goes to Lord Eddard to talk, and she persuades him to talk again to his daughter and help her to calm down. Here you could write a scene parallel to the one in which Ned talks to Arya about Needle.

Sansa is not happy with her father's plans, and she begs him to go to the queen, to discuss this further and find another solution, to make her stay. To reassure her, Ned tells her that he already intends to go to Cersei (as he will do in Eddard XII), but he does not reveal the real reason why he wants to talk to her.

However he fears that the girl might take the initiative and do it herself. To be safe he assigns her a guard and ask him and the septa to prevent his daughter from interacting with Cersei before the departure. (I would like the guard to be Alyn but at this point he has already left for the Riverlands).

Cersei has less informations and when the moment of Ned's arrest arrives, Sansa is with her protectors that have already been warned to keep the Lannisters away from her. When the Lannister men arrive for her, the Stark guard slows them down and septa Mordane drags her away. First the two try to look for Ned, but they soon realize that the Tower of the Hand is under attack. The septa drags Sansa into the servants' quarters (into the kitchens? in the pantry?) idk.

The Septa shoves her in a dark niche, under a cupboard, throws a tablecloth over her and tells her to stay hidden. Mordane tries to think of a plan, but the Lannister men burst in. They recognize her as one of the Stark servants but when she does not provide useful information on the Stark girls they kill her. Sansa remains there all night, lying in the dust. She tries not to make any noise, she is terrified, and from her hiding place she can see the septa's corpse lying on the ground.

The first light of dawn comes in through a little window. Sansa tries to gather courage, she has to leave before the servants start working. The idea disgusts her, but she sees only one way to go unnoticed: she undresses Mordane, covers the silk dress with the septa's habit and hides the face with her veil. Then she wraps the woman in the tablecloth, as if it were a shroud and hides her in that same niche. She tries not to attract attention and find a way out. Sansa doesn't fully understand what happened, she would like to go to the queen or her father, but she is too afraid of the Lannister men after seeing them kill Mordane.

She hasn't eaten in a whole day so before leaving the kitchens she steals some food, like she did with Jeyne. The thought saddens her, who knows where her friend is? She hasn't seen her since she had breakfast with her and Arya. 'Arya...' Sansa remembers the secret passage her sister told her about and decides to try to reach it. With a little luck she makes it, no one pays attention to an anonymous septa. Thanks to the tunnel she manages to reach Flea Bottom.

Here she lives for a few days, trying to listen conversations to find out something about her father. Obv Sansa doesn't try to kill pigeons, she has to stoop to pilfering some food, and even eat trash. She mostly frequents the surroundings of the The Great Sept of Baelor and prays. She sings religious hymns and people take her for a begging septa and throw her some crumbs. One day the sept square fills with people, they are here for the execution of the traitor Eddard Stark. Sansa tries to climb up to not be crushed by the crowd. She sees her beloved Joffrey give the order! She screams, but her voice is drowned out by the noise.

The show is over, the people disperse again. She looks around desperately searching for something, she hopes for a friendly face. it is then that she recognizes a man dressed in black: it's Yoren. Sansa had seen him a few days earlier in the throne room, while he was asking father for men to recruit in the Night's Watch (in Sansa III). He's going away, but Sansa follows him. Now it's clear to her that King's Landing is no longer a safe place and this may be her only chance to return in the North, to home, to safety.

Yoren realizes he's being followed and try to scare her away. Sansa lifts her veil to show herself, she reveals her identity, She begs him to take her out of the city with him, she try to appeal to the ancient friendship between the Starks and the Night's Watch. Yoren looks at her face and recognizes a certain resemblance to Catelyn Stark. He chooses to believe her, so he cuts her hair, dresses her up as a boy and throws her in with the other recruits.

A Clash of Kings

I find it very funny that Sansa's boy name could be Sandor. Anyway, she tries to act nice and compliant to not put herself at risk, but mostly gets people to walk all over her. The younger recruits bully her because she “looks like a female (derogatory)” and she's an easy target. On the other hand, she doesn't have a sword to steal so Hot Pie and Lommy don't try to rob her, they just think she's a loser. Sansa keeps to herself, she doesn't go near Jaqen's cage, she doesn't catch a rabbit to share with Gendry, she doesn't manage to establish a particular relationship with anyone in the group. The commonfolk sucks, Yoren is kind I guess but he stinks. It will take a long time before she can start thinking about social injustice, for now she's just shocked by their miserable living conditions.

The Golden cloaks come looking for Gendry, but Sansa stays hidden because she thinks they are looking for her. Why would the queen want that rude guy? For a moment she thinks that he vaguely resemble Lord Renly… but no, that's nonsense. And even if it was, he's still a bastard. Yoren tells them that if the golden cloaks return they must escape.

One night the group go to sleep, but soon they are attacked by Amory Lorch. Sansa doesn't want to fight, she tries to hide, but in the chaos she ends up showing a soldier down from the tower, killing a man for the first time. She does everything she can to reach the trapdoor and escape. There's no way she'll go back to free Jaqen, but she decides to grab Weasel in the escape.

The small group of survivors, led by Gendry, arrive near an abandoned village. The Bull decides to explore it and takes Hot Pie with him. Sansa doesn't know it, but Gendry wants to abandon her and the others because he thinks they are just slowing them down. He has decided to propose the escape to Hot Pie because he is the second "less useless" choice after Arya. As per canon, Gendry and Hot Pie are captured by the Mountain's men (and probably die in Harrenhal).

Now here is an important change. Arya was captured and taken to Harrenhal because she returned to the village and try to save Gendry, but I don't think Sansa would do the same so she would not be captured at this point in the story. When Sansa and Weasel hear the sound of men in armor approaching, they run away to hide and leaves Lommy there to his fate.

The two girls now find themselves in the forest alone and without supplies in a land of burned villages, they're severely malnourished. Sansa would definitely think about trying to reach Riverrun, but she has no way of orienting herself. If we want to give her any hope of survival I'd say the only solution is for the two of them to be lucky enough to walk in the right direction. In this way the two get closer to the territory frequented by the Brotherhood without Banners and with a bit of luck the outlaws finds them before they die of starvation.

A Storm of Swords

The Brotherhood takes the orphans with them and feeds them. Weasel is probably left at the first inn/orphanage (where she will live a long and happy life), while Sansa meets Harwin, she is recognized and taken hostage. She learns that Winterfell has been conquered by Theon and that Bran and Rickon are dead.

She stark using women's clothes again because she prefers them. And also because every day she manages to hide the fact that she is a girl less and less. She has no intention of cutting her hair a second time, and now that she started eating regularly again she got her first period too. Coarse as they are, it is a relief to be surrounded by people who recognize her as a noble lady. Lady Ravella is a breath of fresh air and Tom is an acceptable singer. She enjoys Edric Dayne's company and thinks he's cute, but she doesn't understand why he wants to talk about Jon Snow.

Sansa is taken to Lord Beric who promises to reunite her with her mother. The sight of the undead man repulses her, but his behavior is chivalrous enough. She certainly doesn't try to escape, she just hopes that he respects his oath.

One day a prisoner with a familiar and unmistakable face is brought to the Hollow Hill: it's the Hound.

[melrosing]

MBO Robert's Rebellion: Episode 3

decided it would be funnier to call this MBO Robert's Rebellion (melrosing box office..... get it) but I can't be bothered to change the tag so that's staying the same

please check tags for content warnings!

anyway, this episode!! a completely made up tourney, because there are one or two canon tourneys I'm not gonna fit later on + at this stage it works in terms of assembling a few key characters for introductions and check-ins.

small time skip between this episode at the last btw - let's say it takes 3-4 months to plan a tourney Prev: Episode 1, Episode 2

Next: Episode 4

title for this one: Rhaegar: The Anime

A crowd of men and teenage boys cluster around the lists in the courtyard of the Red Keep, looking to sign up for the Kings' tourney. Standing in the background with his friend Jon Connington (12) stands Rhaegar Targaryen (14). Joncon encourages Rhaegar to enter the lists; Rhaegar wonders if his opponents would only lose to him intentionally, but Joncon insists they wouldn't need to. Rhaegar enters the fray to sign his name

opening creds I guess

Jon Arryn arrives at the Red Keep with his wards, Ned (10) and Robert (11), in tow; Jon's here for a bit of politicking, and to show the boys their first tourney. The three seem in good humour, and Robert, who has a new betrothal, wants to know if his wife to be is pretty. Ned asks how he's supposed to know, she's his sister

They're greeted by Tywin Lannister in the courtyard; as they approach Robert asks if that's the king. Jon Arryn says, may as well be lol

Arriving shortly afterwards, House Dayne. Big zoom on Arthur. Ashara is here too, and waves to Ned when she sees him looking

Later arrives Joanna with the twins. She wonders if it was wise to travel in her state, but King Aerys had specifically asked for her presence. Tywin observes the progression of her pregnancy, and looks the happiest he ever will about Tyrion. Aerys comes to greet Joanna, and, once again, manages to make it weird. This seems to grate on Tywin and Rhaella more than it did back in episode 1

With Aerys and Rhaella in their private chambers. Rhaella wonders if Aerys thinks she doesn't notice how he acts around Joanna. Aerys strikes her for the first time: Rhaella is shaken but not surprised - Aerys is surprised but not remorseful

The tourney grounds: everything's well underway. Rhaegar is competing, and Tywin (sitting beside Aerys in the stands) compliments his skill. Aerys says Rhaegar shouldn't even be competing, given this is a tourney to select a new member of the Kingsguard. Tywin wonders aloud if Aerys would allow Rhaegar to take on Jaime as a squire in a few years, and Aerys ignores this notion

Meanwhile, Jaime (7) is hanging around the stands with other kids, trying his hand against a few young squires. He's pretty good. Cersei sits nearby looking bored, tossing a wooden tourney sword between her hands. Rhaegar passes by, and she looks up distractedly

Robert and Ned approach Jaime to introduce themselves to the future Lord of the Rock. Robert laughs when he sees Cersei too, and wonders aloud which is which. Cersei (who has heard this joke enough by now) pulls a face at him and drags her bro away

More tourney scenes. Lots of crashing etc but none of that shit from HOTD as though every other guy is getting his head bashed in with the edge of a shield can we be serious

Rhaella & Joanna. Joanna wonders how Rhaella came by the bruise on her cheek. Rhaella is reluctant to comment, so Joanna changes the subject - she will be hosting their dear old friend the Unnamed Princess of Dorne at the Rock in a few months (GRRM I swear to god if she doesn't have a name by the next book). Rhaella tries to engage with this news but can't

Rhaegar and Arthur final two!!! I know u didn't see this coming. Arthur introduces himself to Rhaegar, and both seem to have the sense they've already met. Both mount their horses and ride at each other; Joncon losing his mind in the stands, Jaime discovering a new fanboy obsession. Arthur wins to great applause, but takes Rhaegar by the arm and raises his hand to celebrate the prince. The crowd roars, only Aerys looks pissed

Arthur made KG on the field. We get a sense of the gravity and acclaim that comes with this position. Arthur stands, but looks thoughtful rather than anything

Post-tourney bash!! Everyone enjoying a feast in the Great Hall. Aerys still looks kind of sour. Per obligation, he toasts Arthur. Arthur toasts Rhaegar. Everybody clapped :)

Aerys now in a big sulk, decides to take it out by aiming a few jokes at Tywin. Tywin does not prove responsive, so Aerys turns to Joanna and says (well I'm gonna have to type this out thanks AWOIAF) it seems feeding her twins has ruined her breasts. Joanna, lost for words, excuses herself and her children. Tywin shortly follows. Tension at the table

Tywin & Joanna in the Hand's solar. Tywin, in his anger, asks Joanna why it seems Aerys has such a preoccupation with her? It's an accusation, which Joanna furiously refutes, daring him to say more. Tywin doesn't, and nods his head in apology, leaves. Joanna alone, nursing her bump. She winces slightly

Aerys & Tywin alone in the throne room, where Aerys has been stroking his hand along the razor edge of the seat. He has a small cut, and hides it when he sees Tywin approach. Tywin says he will be departing in the morning to see his child born at the Rock, but perhaps Aerys would prefer he did not come back? Aerys like babe what u mean. Tywin like why were you so rude at dinner >:( Aerys says he was only joking w him. Tywin's like no about my wife!! Aerys makes some excuse, says he meant nothing by it. Tywin walks out without another word

In the coach home with the Lannisters. It's been kind of quiet. As they arrive at the Rock, Joanna is in sudden pain - but it's too early. Abruptly, she and Tywin realise what's happening; the children are rushed one way, and Joanna inside the mouth of the Rock

[sugarprincessbitch]

Can you give me ideas about the fate of my OC Tyrell? On the other hand, we have the stubborn young firstborn girl like her father Hoster Tully, Tulyp Tully, with long red hair like a river and blue eyes like a lake. She rebelled against her father and married Maren Tyrell, who abandoned his titles as Tyrell to be with Tully, marrying in Essos. They had a daughter, let's call her Taryn for now. Shortly after they die in mysterious circumstances, the Tyrells simply give her the family name but leave her to her own fate. Catelyn who always admired her older sister, Tulyp, decides to take Taryn to Winterfell as a kind of revenge for the arrival of Jon Snow and to have more connection with her dead sister. Taryn is the reassuring one of the family, she knows about literature and romance, being thus the best friend of her cousin Sansa and is allowed to train with swords, making her close to her other cousin Arya. When Ned agrees to be the king's hand, Petyr Baelish finds himself intrigued by her, gradually realizing that it is not because of her status as a noblewoman, but because of her personality as Taryn that she is INTJ.

Hi, honey!! I love that you wanted to share with me about your oc.

Ok, first I think that she won't have the surname of house Tyrell, because not only his father lost his titles and right to his family name for marrying her mother, but also she is a bastard ( the marriage is not legitimize by a priest of the seven), so her surname would be "flower", that is the surname that the bastards of house Tyrell have. Maybeee if you want her to have a noble surname, it will be Tully, because I think Hoster will be more likely to have some appreciation for the girl because of its love for his first child ( idk much about Hoster Tully personality, so I don't know for sure what he would do in this situation, but for the convenience of the plot I will do it like this), nevertheless he have to send a request to the king to legitimize a bastard ( a over complicated task if you ask me).

About the whole thing with Catelyn, I thought at first that she could pass as Catelyn child/bastard, but i immediately discard it because it will go against the character devoted wife that we see in the books. So, Ned will obviously now all about Taryn's parentage and will help Catelyn raise her as one of her children wink wink ( I think anyone, even Taryn, not knowing her real parentage will be a huge plot twist hehe). You can choose one of this two if you like (bastard/ Catelyn and Ned false child), obviously this is all my opinion and im not trying to impose.

Knowing a little about the personality of Taryn by what you're telling me, the relationship with Petyr will be a long slow burn/ enemies to lovers troupe type of relationship, because I don't think she is an innocent dove like Sansa, so she would realize the intentions of Petyr right away (having feelings for Petyr will create a GREAT internal conflict between her moral sense and her feelings). In this case, Peter at first will have a weird obsession with her because of how similar she is to Catelyn (idk If you intend her and her aunt to be physically similar), but then when the truth is revealed about her true parentage and also getting to know her and seeing that she is the opposite of what Catelyn is, things will change, he would no more see her as an extension of her crush but as a individual person aside from Catelyn.

(i lost myself in the relationship dynamic too much, if you have new ideas about her you can ask me!!! I will gladly respond)

[jackoshadows]

One of the things that totally baffles and frustrates me in the asoiaf fandom is the fanon that Sansa is smarter and more diplomatic than Jon and Dany.

How can anyone read the books and come to the conclusion that Sansa is more diplomatic than Jon and Dany? On what basis is this comparison made? Jon and Dany are military leaders and rulers respectively who have successfully negotiated from disadvantaged positions. What is the equivalent of this for Sansa?

These are the issues that Dany faced in Meereen -  olive trees burned down, winter on the horizon making agriculture disadvantageous, former merchants and slaves with no money and a blockade on Meereen by surrounding regions. Jon has 19 decrepit castles on the wall that he has to refit and rebuild and get ready and he has no money, food or men to do this. What is Sansa’s more smarter and diplomatic tactics to deal with these issues?

What is his tax policy? How does he feel about crop rotation? How does he handle land disputes between two nobles, both of whom think that they should have the village, so they burn it down to establish their claim. This is the hard part of ruling be it in the middle ages or now. It’s not enough to be a good man to be an effective ruler. It’s complicated and it’s hard and I wanted to show that with repeated examples in my books with my kings and hand of the kings - the prime minister if you would - trying to rule. And whether it be Ned Stark or Tyrion Lannister or Tywin Lannister or Daenerys Targaryen or Cersei Lannister trying to deal with the real challenges that affect anyone trying to rule the 7K or even a city like Meereen and it’s hard. You know, we can all read the books or read history and say oh, so and so was stupid and made a lot of mistakes and look at all these stupid mistakes they make. But these kind of mistakes are always much more apparent in hind sight than when you are actually faced with the decision about, oh my God, what would I do in this situation. How do I resolve this thing? Do I do the moral thing? But what about  the political consequences of the moral thing? Do I do the pragmatic, cynical thing and kind of screw the people who are screwed by it? I mean, it is HARD. And I want to get to all of that - GRRM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJCb3xyWyAg

Where has Sansa dealt with the above issues to make a determination on how she would do better than Dany? Or even do better than Cersei for that matter?

Here is GRRM talking about how frustrating it is that he was not able to compare Daenerys and Cersei as rulers in ADWD:

His biggest lament in splitting A Feast for Crows from A Dance with Dragons is the parallels he was drawing between Cersei and Daenerys.  

Cersei and Daenerys are intended as parallel characters --each exploring  a different approach to how a woman would rule in a male dominated,  medieval-inspired fantasy world.

GRRM, SSM,  July 08, 2007  

George regrets that Cersei and Dany will not be contrasted directly.   He likes the extra breathing room to flesh out the characters. Bran  didn't have any chapters and Dany's ending was different. Now he likes  the way she ended. I think he actually may be doing more with Dany.  

Comic-Con (San Diego, CA; July 20-23)

Where has he talked about contrasting Dany and Sansa? Or Sansa and Cersei? Where are the parallel leadership arcs for Dany and Sansa or Jon and Sansa like there is for Jon and Dany in ADwD?

Jon Snow has negotiated a loan with the Iron Bank, Dany agrees for peace with Yunkai by marriage with Hizdahr and Sansa managed to persuade an eight year old to eat his dinner. How are they even compared at the same level?!

It took an entire book and Ned Stark losing his head for Sansa to realize that the Lannisters were not the good guys. Despite the Lannisters doing increasingly evil things like ordering Sansa’s pet wolf killed. Her younger siblings like Arya cottoned onto that in their first chapters. Sansa then thought that beautiful, charming Margaery was simply the best and the Tyrells ended up using her. She thought Dontos was a good guy. In the Vale, she is pushing the Maester to do what LF wants with respect to SweetRobin. How is she smarter than Jon, Dany or the rest of her siblings? It’s this weird changing of canon in the completely opposite direction. Take the least smart character among the youngsters in the books and make them the smartest in fanon.

I know the show is responsible a lot for pushing this piece of fanon, when Benioff, Weiss and Cogman stripped book Jon and Dany of their leadership arcs and tried to hand them off to Sansa to prop up their favorite character.

But what’s baffling is the so called asoiaf book experts writing about stupid Jon and smart Sansa. About psychopathic assassin murder baby Arya and clever, measured leader Sansa, about ignorant, impulsive Dany and calm, compassionate, hope for the future Sansa. The thing is, no one knows on what basis and metrics they come to this conclusion. It just is. There are no detailed essays comparing Jon and Sansa’s leadership arcs, or Dany and Sansa’s arc of being rulers. But Sansa is still somehow more intelligent and diplomatic.

It’s also connected to this rather sexist strand of thought that only women who wield soft power are smart and level-headed. Tyrion is the only male character allowed to be smart and women who wield hard power like Dany or gnc characters like Arya and Brienne are impulsive, arrogant and ignorant.

In some ways I can see why this has happened. A lot of fandom want Sansa to be special in some way and have an important role to play. And since her narrative story arc is with Littlefinger, she is assigned to be the SMART one. But to be special, she has to be the only smart character.

Plus, Sansa has progressed the least in her arc compared to her peers. She’s a blank slate on whom her fans can project their desires and wishes for her character. The show did something similar - only D&D were too lazy to come up with something original and gave her Jeyne Poole’s story.

But still, there has to be a basis for such statements about the book characters.  It’s not just enough to keep repeating that Sansa is the smartest ever - like ultimate hacks D&D did on the badly written garbage show did. They were rightly laughed at for their ‘Sansa is the cleverest person’ dialogue. But for some reason such statements are accepted for the book version.

The books are well written with gradual character development. Surely, if Sansa is smarter than Jon and Dany we should read that in the books? That this fanon has literally become canon despite not having any basis at all in the books is one of the most frustrating aspects of asoiaf fandom.

[dragonagecompanions]

I just found your blog and I am loving it! If you are still doing the ASOIAF! verse, can you do the DAI companions reacting to Ned's death and realizing for the first time that no character is safe?

Cassandra: Of all the events of the first book, the rise and fall of lords and the history that roiled around the main characters, this shakes the Seeker the most. It is a decided victory for the Lannisters - who are certainly evil- and such a blow for the Starks and the North that she is not sure how they could recover. In the books she loves good triumphs and evil falls! She is not happy about this, but more importantly she is suddenly terrified for every character she loves— for their author is without mercy.

Solas: He did not see that coming, and he sees everything coming. The mage had actually assumed the plot of the book would be somewhat predictable, with the loyal and stalwart Edward Stark striking down the treasonous Cersei and saving the day. Another insipid moral victory that is certainly in some way allegorical for the Chantry. But then the king dies, and Ned dies, and suddenly Solas is very much intrigued. This world stretches out suddenly anew, full of possibilities and stories and an ending he cannot possibly define— and he wants more.

Varric: Damn it, he’s a famous author, renowned for his books of daring and adventure, and he never saw this coming. And if the Inquisitor is willing to keep hacking main characters apart without warning then what else are they planning? And have you seen the book sales? His editor is going to have a conniption fit.

Shit.

Blackwall: He hates it. Ned Stark is a hero, and should win the day. And if he is sick after reading it, too full of memories of his own men who had died equally betrayed....that is no ones business but his own.

Vivienne: Like Solas she is surprised and delighted by the sudden and unusual twist in the plot. Good men are often naive, and there is no faster cause of death or destruction in Orlais than naïveté. And while she does not mourn the dour unimaginative mindset of the former Stark patriarch neither is she a fan of the Lannister queen— and is now more than ever intrigued to see what their dear inquisitor has planned for the rest of his cast.

Dorian: He’s almost homesick, it’s such a familiar song in Tevinter. Change the charges of treason and incest to blood magic and he couldn’t tell you how many ‘righteous’ defenders of the Magisterium had had their own accusations turned back against them— and suffered for them. But aside from the familiar, it has opened a whole range of possibilities for the Seven kingdoms— and he can’t wait for more.

The Iron Bull: Ned Stark was never cut out for politics, and the qunari had seen this coming from the moment he and his wife had heard the news of the former Hand of the King. Robert Baratheon is a weak ruler, and Ned Stark is too good a man to be able to do what is needed to save him. This was inevitable.

But if the Qun doesn’t stop asking him for updates on this book series of all things he’s going to write the next chapter himself just to get them off his horns.

Sera: She hates it! Friggin’ Cersei and her weird brother and their awful little brats and and....this was supposed to be different. This is why she doesn’t like the big people stories— nobles are always killing each other and the little people suffer.

Cole: People are so upset and also happy and scared and curious and it’s not real but it is to them. He doesn’t know what to do with it, so the spirit simply avoids the books as much as possible.

-Mod Fereldone

[eternalstann]

so this is a request, can you please do another „sex pollen“ with peter, where he and y/n touch the plant and they fuck the whole night until their craving is gone? i love this sex pollen thing so much😭

Omggg!;!;! I love sex pollen too I got you boo...

——————

you sighed, you and peter had been trapped in this lab for over an hour. where the fuck was everyone? you thought to yourself for the hundredth time.

“Y/N I’m boredddd” Peter drawled from his position not to far from you. He’d been designing a web outfit for the skeleton across from him for almost twenty minutes. “Fuck Harvard, you should go to fashion school Pete” you joke and he gives you a look. “Yeah, whatever let’s play a game” he says turning his body to face you, abandoning his masterpiece on the statue of bones. “What do you want to play?” You ask, raising a curious brow at him. “You have nice eyebrows, let’s play 21 questions” he says thoughtfully and you smile.

“Okay but you go first...” you agree, tucking your knees under you. “Hmmm..” he taps his chin and you roll your eyes. He had to be the biggest drama king you knew. “Who was your first crush?” He asks and you rack your brain, “Andrew Goldsmith in fourth grade” you reply cooly and he clicks his tongue. “Interesting, your turn” he winks. You wondered on what to ask him, “have you ever used ‘Spiderman’ to pick up girls?” and he blushes. “No...well kind of; but not for me. For Ned!” He explains, stumbling over his words a little and you giggle. He was a young man, you wouldn’t blame him if he did. But you couldn’t deny the wave of relief that washed over you hearing that he hadn’t. He wasn’t even yours but you hated the thought of sharing him.

“Okay; who was the best sex you ever had?” He inquires, face stoic. “Peter!” You shake your head. “Um, I don’t know. Maybe Liam..” you mumble and Peters eyes go big. “Liam from the front desk?” He shouts and you shhh him. “I can’t believe you had sex with Liam from the front desk!” He repeats throwing his hands up and sitting down next to a pretty flower. You hadn’t noticed it before, it looked like a large rose. Peter noticed the flower too, leaning in to smell it. “Oh my god..this flower is literally the greatest thing I have ever smelled” he gushed. He picks off a piece and carries it over to you. You hold the flower to your nose and sniff. He’s right, the smell is intoxicating.

“It smells like new books and vanilla” - and you, you want to add. But that has to be impossible you think. “Really?” Peter’s eyebrows go up, “I smell peaches - that’s super weird” he says. Those scents are nothing alike. His eyes linger on your face, a funny look coming over him. “What’s wrong?” You ask, studying him. “Nothing...I just feel strange” he whispers, swaying on his feet. You jump to catch him when he stumbles backwards, and guide him to sit down on the hard floor. “Jesus, are you okay?” You ask, watching him squint his eyes and rub his forehead. “Yeah, I think” his voice is light and airy. Much different from the loud, goofy tone he had moments ago. “Are you hurt? What’s is it Peter?” You quiestion him, feeling his forehead. You nearly gasp when you feel how hot his skin is. “Must be coming down with a cold” he mumbles, scooching away from you. You frown, “no cold would hit you so suddenly like this” you counter. You try to think, but the ability to do so becomes harder and harder as your own body begins to heat up.

“What is happening” you whisper sitting down parallel to Peter. His head is tipped backwards, jawline begging to be kissed by you...wtfff you’d never thought of Peter like this?? “Y/N..” he calls out to you, hand blindly landing on your knee. The head from his touch searing through your clothes. “Hmmm?” You hum, letting your eyes fall shut. You imagination was running wild, all the ways you’d let him wreck you. “You’re so pretty; have I ever told you how pretty you are?” He gasps out. You want to reply but all you can do is hum again. You felt high, your whole body tingling with want for the brown haired boy in front of you.

“Peter..” you whine, legs queezing together on their own accord. “Something wrong...” Peter hums, backing away from you. “Don’t leave me!” You cry, reaching out for him. “I’m not, I just...need to calm down” he whispers. “Fuck, Y/N I really can’t be near you” he grunts standing and walking to the farthest corner away from you. His words hurt but your glad for his actions, you were getting close to jumping on him. You see his prominent bulge through the tight material of his suit and you lick your lips. The sight of his strong frame had a sticky wetness pooling between your legs. You breathing comes out heavier in an effort to maintain your composure but you were slowly slipping into the abyss of desire.

“Peter....can you please turn around” you ask as sweetly as you can. You need relief, before you lose it. His handsome face looked confused at first and his breath caught in his throat when he realized why you were asking. He just nods and turns away. You don’t hesitate before stripping yourself of your suit. You knew you were out of your mind to lay naked on a floor that wasn’t your own. But you’d worry about germs later, now you just needed to cum.

Peters senses are dialed to a 100. He listened to your laboured breathing, and the sound of your wetness as you pushed your fingers in and out of your pussy. His brain imagined what you looked like, only feet away from him. He needed to see you. He took a deep breath before turning around and he feels a pull low in stomach at the sight of you. He wanted to wreck you.

“Peter!” You cry in embarassment when you realize he’s looking at you. “Don’t stop” his voice entrances you. You stare him in his eyes, never stopping your movements. He walks towards you, removing his own suit and you whimper at the sight of his bare skin. You want to feel him every inch. “Hurry up and get over here” your voice comes out rough and desperate, it’s like music to Peter ears.

He obliges your request with fervor, laying a top you. His leg pushing your thighs apart to make room for his hips. He settles between your legs, you arms wrapped around his neck. “Fuck, Y/N can I?” He asks, grasp on reality getting away from him as he rutted against you. “Yes!” You all but scream, dying for him to be inside of you. He barely lines himself up before pushing into you with one go. Shitttt

Your hands grab handfuls of his thick hair as he makes his first thrust. He looks heavenly above you, mouth open and eyes shut. His face tinted pink, long lashes ghosting over his cheeks and broad shoulders holding him up over you. You know you aren’t going to last long. “Y/N..” he moans your name, speeding up. He was fucking you into oblivion. Your back arched into him as he pounded into you, and when one of his hands wraps around your throat you’re done for. You shake as you come on his dick as he uses your body to reach his own peak. “Cum for me baby” you groan, kissing his neck.

“Fuck!” He yells, thrusting sloppily before spilling inside of you. He lays down and his weight feels nice pressed against you. He cuddles into you and you giggle.

“I wanna change my answer” you say, and he looks at you with a dazed expression. “...I wanna change my answer. You’re the best sex I’ve ever had” you tell him and he laughs.

“Round two?”

[starkerforlife6969]

Summer lovin’ - Starker

break up make up fluff, some possessive/jealous tony, and some healthy relationships over here! 

It feels damn good to be back for Senior year.

Summer settles neatly onto the past of Tony’s shoulders, and he steps through the main entrance with a smile on his face.

Immediately, his crew flock to him. Abandoning their lockers- newly painted after summer- and eagerly inquiring after lunch plans and new timetables.

“I heard about Pete,” Steve says quietly, bumping Tony’s shoulder in solidarity. “That sucks man, I’m sorry.” 

“I’ve had all summer to get over it,” Tony sighs. He’d hoped it would be old news by the time school started. They’d had over two months for the gossip to die down. He should’ve known it was a long shot. “It was amicable. Mutual.” 

“Doesn’t have to be,” Natasha grins slyly, “we can say you dumped his sorry ass.”

He knows she’s teasing, but he trips her up just in case she’s not.

*

It only takes a week to settle back into old routines. 

He cruises by in classes like always, relying on his natural flair and intelligence to get him by, and football season starts up again. The freshmen learn their place quickly, check the rungs of the social ladder and know where to sit in the cafeteria. Tony’s at the top, of course, and it’s all pretty great. He likes seeing new faces of admiration to add to his narcissism bank. 

He’s walking down the hall on a Tuesday morning, when he looks up and by chance, catches a glimpse of Peter Parker setting books into his locker.

It’s the first time he’s seen him in a long time. Summer’s done him good. His freckles are all pronounced, hair longer and curlier than Tony remembers, in a cream sweater and tight green pants that should awful but just look good. 

“Tony,” Peter smiles, voice soft, and Tony had thought he was over it, but his heart jerks and flips like he was punched in the chest.

“Pete,” he manages, coming to a staggered stop by the boy’s locker. “How was your summer?”

Peter bounces on his heels the way he always does when he’s excited. “Math camp was awesome!” and he barrels into an enthusiastic regaling of the few weeks away. “I haven’t- haven’t seen you since we’ve been back.”

Tony nods. “Big year.”

Peter meets his eyes. “I’ve missed you. We could…hang out, if it’s not…I mean, it’s probably weird-“

“Not weird.” Tony murmurs, even though it is weird. “We could get milkshakes sometime when you’re free.” 

Steve and Natasha are sending him curious looks from across the hall. 

“That’d be great,” Peter beams, “I’ll text you?”

*

He’s over it, he says to himself, watching Peter suck down a strawberry milkshake with extra whipped cream. 

He’s over it, even as Peter manages to pry him open the way even his own mother can’t. 

He’s over it, even when Peter touches his wrist and says that he doesn’t have to play football if he doesn’t want to. And that MIT will definitely accept his college application. 

“I was thinking,” Peter’s cheeks blush, a lovelier shade than the milkshake, “I might apply to MIT too. That could be kinda fun, right? Imagine if we both got in?” 

Totally not over it, Tony thinks to himself, as he imagines four years of college with Peter B. Parker. 

*

“So, what’s the 411?” Nat asks in the cafeteria, squinting at her pudding cup.

“The what?”

“The lowdown, c’mon, Tony, you and Peter broke up right after the semester finished. No one saw you all summer. And now you’re friends? I want details.” Her eyes light up with possibilities, “was he cheating with that guy from Harrison college like you thought?”

He has to close his eyes, shame rushing through his system, “no, he wasn’t. We’re- we’re in a good place. It’s good.”

“Where were you all summer?”

“I was working on myself, that’s all. A little fine tuning, here and there. It wasn’t too hard. Can’t really improve on perfection.”

She throws her pudding cup at him.

*

Contrary to popular belief, Tony’s never actually started a fight before. Never thrown a punch. 

He has now though. There are bruises on his knuckles. 

“We have to break up,” he says to Peter, on the last day of school, tucked away under the bleachers near an empty field. Everyone’s pulling pranks inside as per tradition. 

Peter nibbles on his bottom lip, and his lashes are long and his eyes are huge. “We love each other,” he points out, but he doesn’t sound beseeching. He’s nodding, like he thinks they should too. 

That gives Tony the final push. He’s making the right decision. “I love you so much, Pete.”

“I love you too, Tony. But I think you’re right.”

“Is Harry okay?”

Peter looks away and Tony feels ashamed. “He’s fine. He’s not- he’s not angry with you or anything.”

“Tell him I’m sorry again, anyway,” he swallows hard, ducks his head. “And are you…are you okay?”

“I can’t believe you thought I’d-“

“I didn’t, really-“

“I would never do that to you, Tony.”

“I know, I know.” Tony takes a breath. “I know you wouldn’t. I’m sorry. I’m- I’m gonna change. But I think we should…”

“Be apart.”

“Yeah.”

Peter nods, and he smiles, tiptoeing up to kiss Tony right on the mouth. Sensual and full of longing. Tony groans against him. “Just something to remember you by this summer,” Peter sighs, winking, and Tony laughs.

He moves out of his parents house that summer and in with his aunt.

His dad is a bitch to get out of his head but every day it becomes easier and easier to ignore him. 

*

They tread carefully around each other. There’s a new friendship on top of an old foundation and they want to make sure everything’s solid before moving too far. 

“Separate timetables,” Peter confirms, sliding his back into his pristine notebook. “But we’re still on for Karaoke this Saturday? You can bring your friends.”

“Not a date,” Tony chuckles, “just friends hanging out.”

“Just friends.” Peter beams, “but…we should bring people. A lot of people.” Tony quirks an eyebrow and Peter sighs: bashful. “To resist temptation.” He explains. 

Tony laughs at that, loud and delighted.

*

“Maybe take another route to class.” Steve mutters, hands warning on Tony’s arm, trying to tug him back. “Let’s go around the west block-“

But now Tony has to see. He rounds the corner and- and-

There’s Peter, his hair ridiculously, adorably mussed from the wind outside and he’s in a flannel shirt with fucking dungarees, but more important than any of that- there’s a letterman jacket on his shoulders. 

The name B A R N E S - 12 embellished on the brilliant blue.

And that must be the name of the guy leaning against Peter’s locker, and looking down at him with interest. The guy’s built, with slicked back hair and dark combat boots and a weird sort of brooding intensity. 

“Who the fuck is that?” Tony asks, voice level, tone quiet.

“New guy.” Steve winces, “James, I think? Peter’s his assigned tour buddy.”

His knuckles ache with the memory of Harry, and he turns away.

*

Peter gets a new profile picture on facebook. It interrupts Tony’s flow of memes to see Peter balancing on a hay bale against the sunset looking like a country child. He smiles, before noticing-

It’s a video pic.

Tony plays it. 

“I’m king of the world!” Peter yells in delight, nearly losing his balance, arms flailing. 

“You’re a moron!” Someone behind the camera hollers fondly and Tony recognises the voice. The low, brooding timbre.

*

“So, you and James, huh?” He asks, going for nonchalant as he catches up to Peter as they walk to the parking lot after school.

Peter quirks an eyebrow in surprise. “Who?”

“James, new guy, very built, very tall.”

“Oh, Bucky,” Peter laughs, “I’m his assigned tour guide, I think he wants to try out for football so you could have another player on your team!”

Tony gets to his car and feels like everything’s slipping away. “How your MIT application going?” He asks desperately, and Peter hums.

“Sent it off yesterday, how about you?”

Relief courses through Tony’s system. “Sending it off tomorrow.” He promises and Peter gives him a ludicrously adorable thumbs up. 

*

The next morning, Peter is wrapped up in a leather jacket three sizes too big, and Bucky Barnes is  at his side.

Tony’s knuckles ache. He tries to pretend to be interested in the contents of his locker, but his ears are straining-

“Dinner, tonight?” Bucky says, voice low and inviting.

“I promised Ned we’d finish the Lego death star. You can join us if you like.”

“A movie on Friday.”

“Buck…”

“Think about it. Please.”

The bell rings. 

“Wait, take your jacket-“

“Keep it. I like seeing you in my clothes.”

Tony slams his locker shut. 

*

With blood pouring from his nose, Harry still manages to gargle out: “I’m straight, you dick!”

“Tony!” Peter cries in horror, rushing back to the booth. “What’s going on? Oh my god, Harry-“

Tony feels the world slipping out from under him. “I thought you were-“

“Oh fuck, it hurts! I think he broke my nose!”

“I don’t understand- someone call an ambulance! Tony, why are you even here?”

The words sound disgusting as he spits them out. “I followed you.”

Peter eyes are huge and astonished. “Why?”

“I thought…” He can’t say it. 

Peter gasps.

Tony doesn’t have to. 

*

Peter’s still in the band room after school, and Tony slips in silently, and just watches for a moment. Then he clears his throat. Peter jumps, before beaming at him. It’s a smile that makes you feel like the centre of the universe. 

“Why aren’t you going out with Barnes?”

Peter gapes, looking stunned, before scoffing. “Don’t be ridiculous, Tony, I couldn’t-“

“Why not?” He presses. “He’s handsome. He cares about you. You like each other.”

“Tony…”

“Pete.” Tony shakes his head. “Please, for the love of god, don’t think about me. Think about you. Do what makes you happy.”

Peter’s hazel eyes are swimming. “I don’t want to hurt you.” He admits after a long moment, and it stings Tony more than he’ll ever admit. 

“I have nothing to be hurt about. You’re my friend, Peter, and I only want you to be happy, okay? Do what makes you happy.”

Peter gives him a long look, before sniffling. “That’s really cool of you, Tony,” he whispers gratefully. 

Tony lets out a wet laugh, but has to admit that though it hurts- it feels a little good too. 

* 

“Alert, alert,” Nat whispers frantically, “incoming!”

Tony turns in his seat in the cafeteria, only to feel warm lips press against his own. 

Someone whoops.

“What makes me happy,” Peter whispers, once Tony’s returned to reality, “is you.”

Tony could fly. He gets up, cups Peter’s face in his, and grins. “Well then, I can only oblige. As a friend.”

“As a friend.” Peter giggles, and they kiss again. 

*

“Don’t be too upset about it,” Steve consoles Bucky in the corner of the cafeteria watching the couple kiss. “They’re kind of endgame.”

Bucky gives him an unimpressed look. “And who are you?”

“Steve Rogers. I play football.”

Bucky scoffs, but can’t stop himself from admiring the way Steve’s shirt clings to his chest. 

[gascon-en-exil]

A Game of Thrones 10th Anniversary Season Ranking: Part 2

Link to Part 1

Time for the bottom half of the list. The four seasons here will surprise no one, but the order might.

#5 Season 6

You can tell what I most what to talk about here...but there's an order to these things.

S6 actually has a bunch of great ideas, but they drown beneath the most slapdash plotting and character work the show has seen yet in order to set the stage for the narrower conflicts of the last two seasons. It's notorious for bringing back characters who haven't been seen in a season or longer only to kill them off (Balon Greyjoy, Osha, Hodor, the Blackfish, Rickon, Walder Frey) or awkwardly graft them back into the main plot (Sandor Clegane, Bran). There are plot threads that ought to be compelling but are too rushed in execution, like the siege of Riverrun, Littlefinger's hand in the Battle of the Bastards, or Daenerys's time back among the Dothraki and then finally getting the hell out of Meereen. Arya hits on the only interesting part of her two-season sojourn in Braavos - a stage play, of all things - only for it to stumble at the end with a disappointing offscreen death and some incomprehensible philosophy ahead of the start of her murder tour of Westeros. There's also so much cutting off the branches, enough to be conspicuous; the final shot of Daenerys leading an armada of about half the remaining cast she assembled partially offscreen says that better than anything else. Well, not anything....

Highlight: Without exaggeration, the opening of S6E10 is easily my favorite sequence in all of GoT. The staging, the music, the mounting suspense even as it becomes increasingly obvious what's about to happen, the twisted religious references particularly in Cersei's mock confession to Unella, Tommen throwing himself out a window because he can't deal with the reality of how terrible his mother is, how Cersei gives absolutely no fucks whatsoever about murdering hundreds of people at once in a calculated act of vengeance largely prompted by her own poorly thought out actions - I love it all. It's the single most masterfully-executed act of villainy in the whole show - Daenerys torching King's Landing probably has a higher body count, but the presentation there is all muddled - and if I had any doubts about Cersei being my favorite multi-season major character they were silenced in this moment. The explosion of the Sept doesn't sit perfectly with me, because I liked the Tyrells and because of what I said about deaths like theirs and Renly's in the previous post under S2, but I think that unease only cements the strength of this sequence. It's an overused phrase in fandom these days, but GoT at its best is all about moral greyness that gives its audience room for multilayered reactions. Cersei nuking the Sept and making herself the sole power in King's Landing, which in a sense is just a more overt example of the kind of character/plot consolidation elsewhere represented by Daenerys's armada, is one of those events that's impossible to approach from a single angle if you care about any of the characters involved. And hey, it's not in the books (yet, presumably), so unlike Ned's death or the Red Wedding the GoT showrunners can take the credit for realizing this one.

Favorite death: Even leaving aside the Sept and related deaths there's a lot of good ones to choose from in S6. Ramsey is cathartic but too gory for me, Osha's was a clever callback but a little delayed, it's hard to pin down specific deaths when Daenerys incinerates the khals, and Arya only gets half credit for Walder Frey and his sons when she saves the rest of the house for the opening of S7. I'm thinking Hodor, not so much because I enjoy his character or the manner of his death but because it's a clever bit of playing with language (that must have been hell to render in other languages for dubbing) wrapped up in some entertainingly murky consent issues and some closed time loop weirdness. It's all very...extra? Is that the word for it?

Least favorite death: Offscreen deaths continue to be mostly letdowns, in this case Blackfish and the Waif. Way to botch the ending of Arya's already near-pointless Braavos arc, guys. Speaking of Arya, this spot goes to Lady Crane, whom the Waif somehow kills with a stool or something. It's a dumb way to send off an entertaining minor character.

#6 Season 8

I swear that I'm not putting S8 this high solely because of Jonmund kind of sort of happening. I've never been very interested in either of them and the sex would be far too bear-on-otter to suit my pornographic preferences, but even so the choice to close out the series with them is hilarious.

I really don't need to elaborate on why S8 is down here; everyone who's ever watched the show has done as much in the nearly two years since it wrapped up. I do however need to explain why I've ranked not one but two seasons below it. My biggest argument here is that I don't believe it's fair to critique S8 for problems it inherited from earlier seasons. A non-comprehensive list:

Mad Queen Daenerys: unevenly built up beginning from S1 and continuing in some form through every following season

The questionable racial optics of Dany's army: also seeded as early as S1 and solidified by S3 with the Slaver's Bay arc

Cersei only succeeding because she makes stupid decisions and then lucks out until she doesn't: apparent from S1, directly lampshaded by Tywin in S3, fully on display with the Faith Militant arc of S5-6

Jaime not getting a redemption arc or falling in love with Brienne: evident with his repeated returns to Cersei throughout the show as one of the most consistent elements of his character, particularly in S4 and during the siege of Riverrun in S6

Tyrion grabbing the idiot ball/becoming a flat audience surrogate mouthpiece: started in S5 around the time the showrunners ran out of book material for him and wanted to make him more of a PoV character and his arc less of a downward spiral, although I've seen arguments that changes from the books involving his Tysha story and Shae set him on this trajectory even earlier

The hardening of Sansa's character: began in earnest in S4 and never let up from there

The strange ordering of antagonists: set down by S7's equally strange plot structure - the Night King had to come first with that setup

CleganeBowl and the dumber twists: from what I've heard the whole thing of writing around fans on the internet guessing plot twists started pretty much when the book content ended, so S5-6 maybe?

Yes, there's plenty to criticize about S8 on its own merits...but just as much that was merely the writers doing what they could at that point with deeply flawed material.

Highlight: This may sound cheesy, but the better parts of S8 are almost all the cinematic ones, whether that's E2 being a bottle episode with tons of poignant character send-offs before the big battle, a handful of deaths with actual satisfying weight like Jorah's and Theon's, and an epilogue that incorporates both closure for individuals and the broader uncertainty of messy socio-political systems that GoT has always been known for before working its way back to the Starks at the very end for some tidy bookending. Even imperfect moments like the Lannister twins' death and the resolution of Sansa's character felt weighty and appropriate based on what had come before.

Favorite death: Forget about the audio commentary attempting to flatten Cersei's character; Cersei and Jaime Lannister have an excellent end. Cersei especially, as the scenes of her stumbling her way down into the catacombs as the Red Keep crashes down around her really show off how her world is abruptly falling apart and how she retreats into her own self-interest at the end in spite of her demise being at least partially of her own doing. There's some stupid moments associated with these scenes, like Jaime dueling Euron to the death and CleganeBowl, but I can excuse those when the twins end up dying exactly where you'd expect them to: in each other's arms, in a ruined monument to their family's grand ambitions that, like Casterly Rock itself, was taken from another family.

Least favorite death: Quite a few dumb ones in S8 have become forever infamous. Missandei sticks out, and for me Varys too just as much because of how the writing pushes him to do the dumbest thing he could possibly do purely for the sake of killing him off ten minutes into the penultimate episode. But no one belongs here more than Daenerys Targaryen, killed at the height of a rushed and uncertain villain reveal by a man who takes advantage of their romantic history (who is also her family, because Targaryens) to stab her in a moment of vulnerability - pretty much only because another man tells him that Daenerys is the final boss. Narratively speaking that might be the case, but even so this is the end result of multiple seasons of middling-to-bad buildup. Not even Drogon burning the symbolism can salvage that. Also Fire Emblem: Three Houses did this scene and did it better.

#7 Season 5

...Yeah, we're going to have to go there.

Sansa's rape is not a plot point that personally touches me much. It's terribly framed in the moment and the followup in later seasons is inconsistent at best, but it's not a kind of trauma I can relate to. On the other hand, in the very same episode Loras is tried and imprisoned for homosexuality, and Margery faces the same punishment for lying for her brother. That hits much closer to home, not just for the homophobia but also for the culture war undertones of the not!French Tyrells persecuted by a not!Anglo fanatic who later reveals himself to be the in-universe equivalent of a Protestant. The trial is just one part of Cersei's shortsighted scheming, just as Sansa being married off to Ramsey is part of Littlefinger's, and both of them get their comeuppance in the end...but it's unsettling all the same. I especially hate what the Faith Militant arc does to King's Landing in S5, swiftly converting it from my favorite setting in GoT to a tense theocratic nightmare that only remains interesting to me because Cersei is consistently awesome. What's more, pretty much everything about S5 that isn't viscerally uncomfortable is dragged out and dull instead: the Dorne arc, Daenerys's second season in Meereen, Arya in Braavos, Stannis and co. at Castle Black. The most any of these storylines can hope for is some kind of bombastic finale, and while several of them deliver it's not enough to make up for what comes before, or how disappointing everything here builds from S4. S4 has Oberyn, S5 has the Sand Snakes - I think that sums up the contrast well.

Highlight: S5 does get stronger near the end. As much as his character annoys me I did like the High Sparrow revealing his pseudo-Protestant bent to Cersei just before he imprisons her, and there's a cathartic rawness to Cersei's walk of atonement where you can both feel her pain and humiliation and understand that she's getting exactly what she deserves (and this is what leads into the climax of S6, so it deserves points just for that). The swiftness of Stannis's fall renders his death and that of his family a bit hollow, but it's brutal and final and fittingly ignominious for a character with such grand ambitions but so little relevance to the larger story. The fighting pits of Meereen sequence is cinematic if nothing else, and even the resolution to the Dorne arc salvages the whole thing a tiny bit by playing into the retributive cycles of vengeance idea (and Myrcella knows about the twincest and doesn't care, aww - no idea why that stuck with me, but it's cute all the same). Oh, and Hardhome...it's alright. Not great, not crap, but alright.

Favorite death: I don't know why, but Theon tossing Myranda to her death is always funny to me. Maybe because it's so unexpected?

Least favorite death: Arya's execution of Meryn Trant is meant to be another one of the season's big finale moments, but the scene is graphic and goes on forever and I can't help but be grossed out. This is different from, say, Shireen's death, which is supposed to be painful to witness.

#8 Season 7

I can't tell if S7's low ranking is as self-explanatory as S8's or not. At least one recent retrospective on GoT's ruined legacy I've come across outright asserts that S7 is judged less harshly in light of how bad S8 was. If it were not immediately obvious by where I've placed each of them, I don't share that opinion.

Because S7 is just a mess, and the drop-off in quality is so much more painful here than it is anywhere else in the series except maybe from S4 to S5 (and that's more about S4 being as good as it is). The pacing ramps up to uncomfortable levels to match the shortened seasons, the structure pivots awkwardly halfway through from Daenerys vs. Cersei to Jon/Dany caring about ice zombies, said pivot relies largely on characters (mostly Tyrion) making a series of catastrophically stupid tactical decisions, and very few of the smaller set pieces land with any real impact as the show's focus narrows to its endgame conflict. As with S6 there are still some good ideas, but they're botched in execution. The conflict between Sansa and Arya matches their characters, but the leadup to that conflict ending with Littlefinger's execution is missing some key steps. Daenerys's diverse armada pitted against Cersei weaponizing the xenophobia of the people of King's Landing could have been interesting, but there's little room to explore that when Cersei keeps winning only because Tyrion has such a firm grip on the idiot ball and when Euron gets so much screentime he barely warrants. Speaking of Tyrion's idiot ball, does anyone like the heist film-esque ice zombie retrieval plotline? Its stupidity is matched only by its utter futility, because Cersei isn't trustworthy and nobody seems to ever get that.

And how could I forget Sam's shit montage? Sums up S7 perfectly, really. To think that that is part of the only extended length of time the show ever spends in the Reach....

Highlight: A handful of character moments save this season from being irredeemable garbage. As you can guess from my screencap choice, Olenna's final scene is one of them, even if Highgarden itself is given insultingly short shrift. S7 also manages what I thought was previously impossible in that it makes me care somewhat about Ellaria Sand, courtesy of the awful death Cersei plans for her and her remaining daughter. The other Sand Snakes are killed with their own weapons, which shows off Euron's demented creativity if nothing else. I like the entertainingly twisted choice to cut the Jon/Dany sex scene with the reveal that they're related. And, uh...the Jonmund ship tease kind of makes the zombie retrieval team bearable? I'm really grasping at straws here.

Favorite death: It's more about her final dialogue with Jaime than her actual death, but again I'm going to have to highlight Olenna Tyrell here for lack of better options. She drops the bombshell about Joffrey that the audience figured out almost as soon as it happened but still, makes it plain what I've been saying about how Jaime's arc has never really been about redemption, and is just about the only person to ever call Cersei out for that whole mass murder thing. There's a reason "I want her to know it was me" became a meme format.

Least favorite death: There aren't any glaringly bad deaths in S7, just mediocre or unremarkable ones. I still think the decision to have Arya finish off House Frey in the season's opening rather than along with their father at the end of S6 was a strange one that doesn't add much of dramatic value.

[randifrnz]

Hiiiiii I am here to say I love your writing and that I'm really looking forward to the final chapter of your story and this is a no pressure post btw I'm just like really hyped and i don't want to pressure nor rush you!! I just wanted to tell you how eager I am because waiting for it it's like giving me something nice to look out for during this weird times.

Hellooooo thank you so much!! I truly appreciate your words so much!! If it helps anything, I am also very eager to be able to post it hopefully soon! 

An update: It’s looking like it may be about 11k and may be broken up into two chapters if it keeps up like this.

A spoiler: the last section spans the rest of their lives. Which has been a part of why it has taken so long to write. When I first outlined the story and this chapter, it was meant to be short flashes of all the points I wanted to hit culminating in no more than 5k words. But as I started on it, I couldn’t help but really flesh out each scene and then think of all the other scenes I also wanted to be in this story and since it’s the end I realized there was nowhere to put those scenes but here! (sometimes I understand why GRRMs books start getting way too long and take a decade to write lol)

Again, thank you so so so much for letting me know you like the story so much, it truly helps keep me motivated and consistent with working on it.

A snippet from a part I wrote last night (subject to change in editing, so you can totally tell me if you don’t like it since I can still change it haha) as a thank you! I decided to do a small section from Gendry’s POV for fun.

King Robert Baratheon loved many things. He loved ale and women and sleeping and, most unfortunately for Gendry, he loved hunting. 

Gendry had been able to eschew joining the king on hunting trips over the years. He would claim bouts of sickness or vital duties or would simply be visiting another kingdom for months at a time with Arya. 

From what he had heard of them, they were affairs designed as Gendry’s own personal Seven Hells. It was three days and nights in the Kingswood outside of King’s Landing with three men of the Kingsguard and whichever men of court the king had in favor at the time and had deemed enjoyable enough to bring along.

He had heard that on one trip, the men, guards included, got themselves so blindingly drunk that one of them died in his sleep, drowning in his own vomit, and they were all still so pissed that they did not notice until their return and the man’s poor wife cried out at his lack of presence.

He had heard that on another occasion, Robert had brought a whore along with them whom they had all shared throughout their days together. All men returned with lice in the hair of their genitals, requiring the prompt shaving of that hair to the king’s great amusement.

The man was crude, rude, and had never once spoken a word to Gendry in the nigh three years he had known the man that did not sound like the scrape of a dull sword along a rough stone.

Gendry petulantly packed a sack for the hunt while forlornly thinking on how this would be the first time he and Arya had been apart since their wedding night.

He even almost smiled when he tucked into his belt the valyrian steel hunting knife the king had given him that long ago morning, which he then had used to slice his own skin rather than brutalize his young bride as the king had wanted.

At the gate to the Red Keep, his wife and her father bade him farewell, Arya with a firm but chaste kiss and Ned Stark with a nod and a glint in his eye that told Gendry he knew exactly how much Gendry would hate his next three days. With hunched shoulders and a sour face, Gendry left with the king and the rest of the men through the gate.

Thank you!!!!

[nightqueendany]

The Original Final Season 7 - Preface

Okay guys. I’m still polishing up some of the later episodes, but this whole thing is almost done. And as motivation to make me finish the later episodes and publish them, I’m going to give you Episode 1 today, in a post directly following this one. If you do not see the link just yet, simply refresh this post and I should have put it in place, pending no issues with my Internet connection.

I’ve talked about this A LOT. What follows below and in subsequent weeks (I’m going to make you guys suffer, I’m going to put each episode out weekly) is 1) my explanation for WHY specifically I believe there was an “Original Final Season 7” and also, 2) WHAT I believe that Final Season contained.

NOTE: I will refer to the actual show events of Seasons 7 and 8 as “show canon” and will refer to my speculation as “Original Final Season 7.”

*Disclaimer because I have this weird feeling I’m going to get bombarded with anons asking me for links to “the original scripts” or interviews where this is all mentioned or something:

THIS IS ALL MY OWN SPECULATION. NONE OF THIS HAS BEEN PROVEN TRUE. THERE ARE NO “ORIGINAL SCRIPTS” FOR A FINAL SEASON 7...THAT I KNOW OF.

Alright, now that that’s taken care of, I’m gonna lay this out here for you guys. (Parts of this may get fanficky but whatever, this is what makes the most sense in my mind based on what we’ve got on the table).

(Also note, this series will be really really fucking long because it includes what I *think* the original Season was, and evidence from aired episodes as to why I think that, along with long-winded, detailed descriptions of scenes, etc. Sorry not sorry)

Here is how I went about this speculation to determine what I believe was likely the “Original Final Season 7”:

1) I looked for instances in the series as a whole where plots were never finished OR scenes/lines were either retconned or never paid off  - i.e. Dany’s S2 throne room scene script clearly saying “snow” and in 8x06 it’s now ash - post Emmy script release note: the script may say “snow” but remember, it’s the same day as the attack on the city from 8x05 when it was sunny and super hot outside. Either the script was changed just to make it say “snow” OR it was snow in the 8x06 episode, but D&D literally changed the fucking weather just to make it snowing in Dany’s throne room scene when King’s Landing hasn’t had snow since 7x07. Either way, something was retconned and it’s fucking idiotic and hella obvious.

2) I examined Seasons 7&8 specifically for the same things - scenes/lines never paid off or left unfinished/unexplained, i.e. Yara’s line “somewhere the dead can’t go” when this was never needed because the Night King was defeated in one episode; also all the baby talk between Jon and Dany and Dany never being pregnant in show canon.

3) I looked for instances in the series where a plot was “undone” in a very short span of time. Meaning, something that could have taken seasons upon seasons for buildup but was scrapped or easily deconstructed an episode later or same episode - i.e. Jaime/Brienne finally getting together in 8x04 and Jaime leaving Brienne that same episode; also Theon rescuing Yara from Euron’s ship very easily in 8x01 when she was a captive for most of Season 7.

4) And lastly, I looked for things that have been said/mentioned either in show canon or by cast/staff that ignores something previous that is a contradiction of their words - i.e. Jon pledging to Dany in 7x06 after she already said she would help him and Jon in 8x01 saying he gave up his crown so Dany would come help OR Dan Weiss saying in 7x05 that Dany isn’t mad and isn’t her father and then in S8 naming Dany the “Mad Queen”.

There are many of these instances in the series so it wasn’t hard to map out a rough outline of what I believe the “Original Final Season 7” was.

So, why do I even think there even was an original, final Season 7 outline/possibly even an entire Season of script? Why do I think this a likely possibility rather than me just being a delusional Dany Stan who wanted a different ending for my fave?

Back as early as 2013, after season 3 ended, the number 7 was being thrown around. Seven seasons to finish the series.

[Producer Frank] Doelger said: “[The number of series (seasons)] is being discussed as we speak. The third season was the first half of book three, season four will be the second part of book three. George RR Martin has written books four and five; six and seven are pending....I would hope that, if we all survive, and if the audience stays with us we’ll probably get through to seven seasons.”

Keep in mind, at this same time, D&D had also JUST had their meeting with George about the series endpoints.

“Last year we went out to Santa Fe for a week to sit down with him [Martin] and just talk through where things are going, because we don’t know if we are going to catch up and where exactly that would be. If you know the ending, then you can lay the groundwork for it. And so we want to know how everything ends. We want to be able to set things up. So we just sat down with him and literally went through every character.”

Vanity Fair, March 24th, 2014 (LAST year being spring 2013)

So this meeting on the series conclusion took place right when D&D were just polishing up the scripts for Season 4, before filming began that summer). A year after their meeting with George, (the same 2014 Vanity Fair article), D&D apparently played with the idea of an eighth season, but that could have just been the reporter’s speculation.

In other interviews, they were fairly adamant about 7 being the “magic number.” And back in the very beginning when Dave and Dan first started Thrones, they always said they imagined the series taking 70-75 hours to tell the story - so again, the equivalent of 70 episodes or a normal full 7 Seasons of 10 episodes each).

With the major complaint from both last season and season 8 being that it felt “rushed” however, people may wonder how the hell the series was supposed to conclude after Season 6. However, when you think about it, Season 7 being the final season doesn’t seem that odd if it were originally going to be a regular 10 episode arc. The final two seasons only totaled 13 episodes anyway, so really, it’s just three fewer episodes than in the version that we got. And if some episodes in the final Season 7 were over an hour long, the series as a whole would easily reach that 70-75 hours D&D always talked about.

So, what was the original 10 episode final Season 7 supposed to look like?

Season 7 Episode 1: ?

Season 7 Episode 2: ?

Season 7 Episode 3: ?

Season 7 Episode 4: ?

Season 7 Episode 5: ?

Season 7 Episode 6: ?

Season 7 Episode 7: ?

Season 7 Episode 8: ?

Season 7 Episode 9: ?

Season 7 Episode 10: ?

To figure out the outline of the 10 Episode Final Season, let’s start near the end.

ONE FINAL BATTLE

Author George R.R. Martin, whose series of novels forms the basis for Thrones, had revealed to the duo the broad strokes of how his Song of Ice and Fire saga secretly ends, including a description of an epic FINAL BATTLE that’s been teased from the show’s VERY FIRST SCENE. But this climactic confrontation was miles out of reach for a series that cost about $5 million per episode. “We have a very generous budget from HBO, but we know what’s coming down the line and, ultimately, it’s not generous enough,” Benioff said.

EW

When Entertainment Weekly interviewed D&D back during the filming of Season 3, D&D made it sound like George had planned only ONE final battle - the battle between the living and the dead. Not two battles, one with the living against the dead and another later battle with the living against the living. Just ONE.

(Also should note, this says the FINAL BATTLE was teased from the show’s FIRST scene, which contained the White Walkers but not Daenerys. Daenerys didn’t even appear in the episode until sometime much later meaning the “epic final battle” was about the White Walkers, not Dany burning down King’s Landing as we got in show canon).

Both the books and the show begin by showing the audience the threat beyond the Wall. This is the main threat. This is the main event. The Game of Thrones doesn’t matter and is a distraction for both the audience and the characters. In GRRM’s original outline, he explicitly says that the greatest threat to the realm of Westeros is the Others and that there will be one final battle.

So this was our original “Episode 9”. Literally and figuratively. Episode 9 is always supposed to be the episode where the craziest thing happens in the entire season - Ned’s death, Battle of Blackwater, Red Wedding, Battle at Castle Black, Dany flying away on Drogon from the fighting pits of Meereen, Battle of the Bastards.

The only exception to this could be argued to be Season 5 as Jon Snow is killed in Episode 10, not episode 9. However, the change in structure of the season was probably the biggest clue to the audience that Jon wasn’t going to stay dead, as they had never ended a season on a cliffhanger of the death of a major character. We’ve always been given one more episode afterward to process said character’s death.

If Jon were going to die and stay dead, he would have died in Season 5 Episode 9, because of this pattern: Season 1 Episode 9 - Stark death (Ned). Season 2 Episode 9 - Battle (Blackwater). Season 3 Episode 9 - Stark death (Robb). Season 4 Episode 9 - Battle (Castle Black). Season 5 Episode 9 - no Stark death (where there should have been - and a Battle was in Episode 8 - Hardhome). Season 6 Episode 9 makes up for the flaw in the pattern where we get a Battle and a Stark death (Rickon).

Ergo, based on George’s original outline, D&D’s previous statements about George’s plan, and the pattern, 7x09 was the original Battle for the Dawn. So that’s what I’ll call this episode.

Season 7 Episode 1: ?

Season 7 Episode 2: ?

Season 7 Episode 3: ?

Season 7 Episode 4: ?

Season 7 Episode 5: ?

Season 7 Episode 6: ?

Season 7 Episode 7: ?

Season 7 Episode 8: ?

Season 7 Episode 9: The Battle For The Dawn

Season 7 Episode 10: ?

I don’t want to give the entire season away just yet, as I’ll be posting each episode in full detail, but I will fill in one more “event” from the outline above.

In the 7x06 Inside the Episode, David Benioff said something that I’ve always found very interesting.

“The whole path of the show, in some way, had been trying to map out all the episode endpoints and with this one, it was the dragon opening its blue eye. And realizing that the Night King has finally gotten his own weapon of mass destruction.”

This statement really made me think because a) it tells us how D&D planned the series - mapping everything out by episode endpoints. And b) Benioff doesn’t say “the ending of the penultimate episode of Season 7.” He just says, “this one.” So this tells me, if anything, D&D had always planned to kill Viserion and have the Night King raise him as his mount. BUT it also tells me this was always meant to happen in 7x06, regardless of when Season 7 ended….either at an Episode 7 or an Episode 10.

Season 7 Episode 1: ?

Season 7 Episode 2: ?

Season 7 Episode 3: ?

Season 7 Episode 4: ?

Season 7 Episode 5: ?

Season 7 Episode 6: ends with Wight!Viserion opening his blue eye

Season 7 Episode 7: ?

Season 7 Episode 8: ?

Season 7 Episode 9: The Battle For The Dawn

Season 7 Episode 10: ?

So what does each episode of the “Original Final Season 7″ look like? The following posts will be my rendering of a final, ten-episode Season 7 with explanations as to why certain events happen and why they’re likely based on the show canon, Seasons 7 and 8.

Without further adieu, here is what I believe to be the Original Final Season 7:

(Links to come weekly as I post each Episode, if link does not work immediately, just refresh a few times until it does. Two episodes today as Episode 1 is very short and familiar, Episode 3 next Tuesday!)

Original Final Season 7: Preface Post (Current Episode)

Season 7 Episode 1: Family, Duty, Honor

Season 7 Episode 2: Greywater Watch

Season 7 Episode 3: The Last of the Dragons

Season 7 Episode 4: Dragonglass

Season 7 Episode 5: The Storm

Season 7 Episode 6: Summerhall 

Season 7 Episode 7: A City Fit For A King

Season 7 Episode 8: Protectors of the Realm

Season 7 Episode 9: The Battle For The Dawn

Season 7 Episode 10: ?

[juicemitio]

Alright I went to Louisville Galaxycon and saw Travis and Clint twice, for their worldbuilding workshop and their Q&A. Here's some interesting stuff I learned (I didn't include stuff they talked about that's pretty common knowledge or they talked about on the last ttazz)

Graduation 

Fitzroy was originally going to be a jock that was weak bc he no longer had a team, Travis told Griffin that that didn't really work for the world so they reframed it as him training to be a hero, was great academically and behaviorally, but had a problem no one had seen before and no one felt like dealing with. It specifically wasn't "barbarian fails bc he can't keep his rage in check," it was that no one was willing to deal with his magic so they shipped him off

Someone asked Travis to explain fitzroy's magic, so from the DM's mouth- he's a barbarian subtype with elemental magic which has a random effect while raging, which we haven't seen yet (path of the wild soul if you want to look it up and see what he can do) and he took a feat which gives him the ability to cast 3 cantrips of his choosing. What I thought was interesting was that Travis described Fitz's magic using the word "elemental" twice, even though that isn't specifically stated in the path of the wild soul entry

Travis knows Argo's secret and is very excited about it 

Clint has a pirate fiction book he reads every night before they record to get into the headspace to play Argo, he told us the name but I forgot it 

There is one small little concept that made the whole of graduation make sense to Travis and is what the arc will be about, and he only figured it out a few days before recording. Obviously he didn't tell us what it was

Originally it was going to start with everyone starting at age 11 and slowly killing the other kids off, but Justin didn't feel comfortable playing a game surrounded by kids dying 

The accounting scene is already one of Travis' all time favorite taz scenes

The pegasus scene informed Travis on exactly how he was going to treat the firbolg

Also Travis referred to Justin's character exclusively as "the firbolg," which means "master firbolg" is solely a thing going on with the npcs in the game which I find hilarious. They just all decided to give him a dope title bc he deserves it, meanwhile no one will call Fitzroy "sir"

To Fitzroy, social threats are an extremely real and serious thing, like the Biggest thing to him (we were talking about what characters found threatening in the workshop, for context)  

There's some big concept/idea that comes up in the next episode that travis almost let spill and had to quickly stop himself from saying it

Someone mentioned eating breakfast in their question in the workshop and Travis goofed on it for a second, then said "cereal world" suddenly, and Clint had to pick up the question bc Travis had to take a second to make a note of it in his phone 

Travis started brainstorming graduation in March and they recorded the first episode in October, and his main job in that time was working on graduation 

Before Buckminster was adapted for graduation he could not fight at all, if he got into a fight he would die, he poured everything into charisma and could talk his way out of any fight (even the big bad of the game he crit 20d his check and the big bad walked away from the fight) 

Travis is really into psychology and how if you assign a label to someone they're going to act more like it (ie you tell a kid they're amazing and smart and talented and they become more like that, you tell a kid they're annoying and dumb and a problem they become more like that), and how that was a major contributor to play into hero/villain/sidekick/henchperson dynamics, you get assigned this arbitrary title of good/evil/subservient and you become like that to fit the role, and then the inevitable pushing against that mold

Travis is fully aware of his story being compared to harry potter and he doesn't care bc it's apt (people in a school arbitrarily divided into four groups and one of them is the Bad One), also he knows people describe it as "sky high meets Harry Potter meets my hero academia" and he actually finds that really flattering bc he thinks that sounds cool and like something he'd want to watch 

On that note, Travis is a self-identified Slytherin and he's always upheld that the reason Slytherin is depicted in a bad light is bc Rowling decided she didn't like them, and he's always sympathized with the idea of a first year Slytherin working their ass off following the rules and doing their work and getting points, and Dumbledore rewards three idiots for breaking like every rule and pulls the trophy away from you. This was a big inspiration for graduation, of one group getting a bad rep and being portrayed as evil for literally no reason 

Amnesty

Clint & Travis's favorite scene they've ever done together was Ned & Aubrey's final scene together 

Aubrey and Dani do move in with each other at the end of amnesty

Balance

Travis' main emotion around taz is pride and he's most proud of the scene in stolen century with the spirits in the robots, bc they had to record it a second time bc it got way too dark and ended in a really grim way and about 20 min after they finished they all decided that they weren't happy with it, that it didn't fit the tone, he's really proud they didn't just leave it be and they took the second pass at it to make it right

I'm pretty sure he's talked about wanting to kill Magnus off at the beginning before but he mentioned that it was only at the end of petals to the metal he actually realized he wanted Magnus to live, bc Hurley had to sacrifice herself to save Magnus bc Magnus had been so reckless, that hit Travis really hard. Travis realized that Magnus' recklessness was getting people hurt and so Magnus did too, so Magnus become a bit more cautious and took up rogue training to try not to get anyone killed again 

Dust

Dust wasn't designed to be anything more than a one off and the workload was completely unsustainable, the document of notes for dust was about 100 pages and only about 10% of it got used

The reason Travis loved it so much was bc it was a mystery and he found it really fun

Commitment

Clint would love to revisit commitment, but probably not in podcast form bc he didn't find himself really being in the moment as much bc of all the different things he had to keep track of, he'd like to see a comic adaptation/continuation if possible

It was based of a comic he wrote that never got published bc the company producing it failed (he still cashed his paycheck) so he reused it bc he still liked it a lot, it was about how America was founded as a monarchy instead of a democracy and what that changed in the usa's (united sovereignty of america's) history, and how people now were fighting to establish a democracy. Also there were cowboys and spaceships and other cool stuff he put in there bc he liked it

General adventure zone

The reason why they're are able to do romantic relationships w/o being weirded out by it (they joke about it but they don't actually care) is bc it's never done in an explicit or sexual way and since it's the decision the characters would make to pursue the relationship then that's the decision they make. He reframed it as it wouldn't be weird if a family were writing a script together and there was a romance and one person wrote lines for one character and the other wrote lines for the other. He did mention that two siblings playing characters in a relationship as actors on screen wouldn't be cool though

They sometimes get comments that some of the stuff they do is "fanservice," but they feel that they owe their success to their fans and they owe some to them 

They are both aware of and proud that Justin is the best at character creation, Clint specifically really was talking about how Justin's strong suit is definitely character creation and characterization

General mcelroy stuff

They walked pretty close to me when they entered the stage room for the q&a and like… they're short, like shorter than you think

Travis referred to his unborn child as "baby dod" (I'm not 100% certain but I'm pretty sure) which I looked up and is a nickname for George, and given with their older kid being named Barbera and nicknamed BeBe and Travis talking before about how he and his wife like classic names with cool nicknames it makes sense

Travis had an earing in his right ear, I didn't get to see his left ear and I couldn't tell if it was an actual piercing or a fake, it looked really good though. Also his tinted glasses look a lot cooler irl than they do in pictures

Clint told the teenage mutant Ninja turtle story with the signatures that griffin told on mbmbam, but Clint remembered it as happening at King's Island, not Disney. This story was prompted by the question of the biggest lie he ever told his kids, and he only came clean about this a few months ago

Travis told a story about how he finished a videogame when he was younger and was so excited that he picked up a plastic knife, yelled "throwing knife!" threw it directly at Griffin who dodged it and it hit and shattered a window

[mockingbird-on-the-throne]

Sorry this isn’t my crack theory this is just a bunch of thoughts I’ve had about Sansa. Doing a reread of asoiaf now and got to the first Alayne chapter last night. It got me thinking- what does every other POV have in common? Now maybe it’s not in your face, and maybe it takes a few books, maybe they only briefly come in contact with it or it only influences them in a subtle way, and maybe it’s not in every chapter but.... for the most part, every other character is linked to or directly affected by magic ((you can argue with me about this but I am prepared to be slippery)). Where is the magic is Sansa’s story?

The closest we get to magic with Sansa is Lady (who dies almost immediately, and Sansa’s wolf dreams never get to develop compared to her siblings’), her marriage to a dude obsessed with dragon lore (who she never really interacts with), and....?????? Kinda weird for a book that is otherwise steeped in magic beasts, prophecy, blood magic, all-seeing networks of wizard dudes, skin and face changing, and general lovecraftian deep ones shit, written by a dude who clearly is influenced by that sort of stuff and keeps writing about hereditary magic powers and hiveminds. So like, what the fuck?

You might say ‘well, the closer a character is to Kings landing the less magic in their story, and Sansa is only involved in the game because of littlefinger who is decidedly non-magical’. But why? We all (sorry, speaking from the creepyshipping network) are hard for Petyr and think he’s so damn brilliant and think... what? That he’s not aware of the fucking DRAGONS in Essos??? He doesn’t know the history of the land his grandfather was from? He doesn’t understand the magical backgrounds of the major houses and the conquering of Westeros?? Well, you might say, he doesn’t need anything more than backstory because magic has left the world. Has it??? No, it hasn’t, and that will be Perry’s downfall... maybe, and I would accept that, I guess, but it seems like a major oversight by a dude who really doesn’t really do oversights...

So what about Sansa? Well, I think that there is some magic going on that we just don’t see. There are other characters who really only have magic done around them or by people they meet (like Jaime- his life is saved and changed at Harenhall, a cursed place, by a maester-school drop out linked to a wack-ass sorcerer, while his father’s armies are harassed by a warrior that many people have seen die in many ways... yet who always appears again on the battle field). Even the stony, serious, teeth-grinder Stannis the Mannis, who is balls-deep in the game, is never more than 5 feet away from a priestess who gave birth to a shadow demon, thinks he (or someone) is Azor Ahai, and is a servant of Rhllor (who is clearly a powerful entity, whether or not you believe it is a ‘god’).

So my question is just what does LF know? Does he have allies? Does he have a back up plan for when the magic comes full force to Westeros? He clearly has somecommunication lines open with Essos from his years of being master of coin. Sansa always sees him writing letters. Who the hell is he writing to?

Basically, my guess is he knows more than we think (and why would we think he knows anything? We really only see him from Sansa’s view and she doesn’t think about magic, possibly because it’s too linked to songs and stories and she is a traumatized kid). He doesn’t talk about magic because the only magic centers in Westeros are north of the wall, some people at the citadel, whatever the fuck is about to happen with Euron (do we think LF is just... ignoring the iron islands?? A whole ass nation???) and... maybe.... harenhall. People have proposed that harenhall might be the place where some prophecy needs to be fulfilled, because monumental things keep happening there, it’s a crossroads, it’s ‘cursed’... could LF be planning to do something there that requires Sansa? Idk. Maybe LF is totally ignorant of magic, has been ignoring the stories of far Essos, the north, Dany, whatever Rhaegar was up to, all of the gods worshipped on Bravos, Euron, Varys’s weird Blackfyre connection, the resurrection of the Mountain and others... but he just disappeared from the books for like a few hundred pages, keeps writing letters to a mysterious odd-page character(s), is lord of a cursed castle destroyed by dragon fire, and has acquired a possible warg from a family of wargs who might fulfil a prophecy, who is conveniently ignorant of all magic yet extremely perceptive and maybe a pretty good judge of people (considering how characters like Brienne, Cersei, Ned, Arianne, Dany, and Tyrion are older and arguably should be better at that than her, but really aren’t)... like imagine if she knew even two things about magic. She would be likely to put clues together. Is she being kept so deep in the dark because of that???

Sorry this is long and directionless- I just wanted to vomit this into a text post to keep myself thinking through Sansa’s upcoming chapters and see if anyone knew of any discussion about this they could point me towards.

[tacitwhisky]

Jon / Sansa Reread - Bran I, AGOT

In which Bran sees an execution, talks to Jon, talks to Ned, and then finds some direwolves.

I always love when other people do rereads, so I’m trying my hand at it, with a focus on Jon and Sansa and how Martin writes them. This is essentially fanfic research, and for that it’s always best to go back to the original source.

So if this is a Jon and Sansa reread why am I starting with a Bran chapter? Because while on the surface Bran I is about Bran, it’s also equally about introducing the male side of the Starks and so has a lot of valuable insight into Jon’s character. It’s also one of my favorite chapters in the series for just how sparse and laconic Martin’s style is throughout.

The morning had dawned clear and cold, with a crispness that hinted at the end of summer. They set forth at daybreak to see a man beheaded, twenty in all, and Bran rode among them, nervous with excitement. This was the first time he had been deemed old enough to go with his lord father and his brothers to see the king’s justice done. It was the ninth year of summer, and the seventh of Bran’s life.

This is such a great hook to open a chapter and the book as a whole with and ticks a lot of important boxes in just a paragraph: the setting, Bran’s age and state of mind, and a good hook. Who is being beheaded? Why is he being beheaded? Why is a child going to go see it? As a writer you almost always want to have an underlying tension or question that the reader wants answered to drive them forwards.

Bran’s bastard brother Jon Snow moved closer. “Keep the pony well in hand,” he whispered. “And don’t look away. Father will know if you do.”

It’s interesting Martin has Jon play the role of older brother here rather than Robb. Despite his half-brother bastard status Jon is clearly close with Bran, as we’ll see later when he visits Bran’s bedside after he falls. He doesn’t coddle Bran though; partly this is to emphasize the Stark coldness, but also I think it’s an insight into Jon’s character.

There’s a recurring thread through these early chapters that Jon doesn’t have quite the same leeway as the true born Starks in Winterfell. He’s probably especially sensitive to disappointing Ned. After all, his existence at all is already an embarrassment and spot on Ned’s honor.

Bran’s father sat solemnly on his horse, long brown hair stirring in the wind. His closely trimmed beard was shot with white, making him look older than his thirty-five years. He had a grim cast to his grey eyes this day, and he seemed not at all the man who would sit before the fire in the evening and talk softly of the age of heroes and the children of the forest. He had taken off Father’s face, Bran thought, and donned the face of Lord Stark of Winterfell.

As Ned’s son Jon does exactly this in ADWD when he has to don his own Lord Commander face. While in this chapter we don’t get to see into Ned’s head, in ASOS and ADWD we’ll see just how much it costs Jon to maintain the cold Lord Stark persona both personally and politically when he makes Gilly touch the fire and give up her child, or forces Sam to travel south, or demands child hostages from the Wildlings to cross the Wall.

Jon’s cold practically is an aspect of his character that doesn’t really get explored much in fanfic, or even really included at all. There’s a couple reasons for it, I think. First, even if they have read the books, the show’s presentation of Jon tends to be what sticks in most people’s heads, and the show has definite habit of softening and whitewashing Jon’s character so he can be the Hero, not to mention Kit Harington’s constantly plaintive look.

Second, I think a lot of fic writers prefer to have Sansa be the cold hard one (which is also a show invention, but we’ll get into that later) paired with Jon as the emotionally softer one. Which is fair. I love that contrast and dynamic. But I do wish we got a little more examination and exploration of the parallels between how they both got to their Stark face and how they interact now.

The head bounced off a thick root and rolled. It came up near Greyjoy’s feet. Theon was a lean, dark youth of nineteen who found everything amusing. He laughed, put his boot on the head, and kicked it away. “Ass,” Jon muttered, low enough so Greyjoy did not hear. He put a hand on Bran’s shoulder, and Bran looked over at his bastard brother. “You did well,” Jon told him solemnly. Jon was fourteen, an old hand at justice.

Just in case you were wondering if Theon was a terrible person or not.

“The deserter died bravely,” Robb said. He was big and broad and growing every day, with his mother’s coloring, the fair skin, red-brown hair, and blue eyes of the Tullys of Riverrun. “He had courage, at the least.”

“No,” Jon Snow said quietly. “It was not courage. This one was dead of fear. You could see it in his eyes, Stark.” Jon’s eyes were a grey so dark they seemed almost black, but there was little they did not see. He was of an age with Robb, but they did not look alike. Jon was slender where Robb was muscular, dark where Robb was fair, graceful and quick where his half brother was strong and fast.

Jon calling Robb “Stark” here is interesting for a couple reasons. Partly this is just Martin trying to set up really quickly for the reader Jon’s bastard status; even Arya, who Jon is closest to, will in her inner narration call him her half-brother quite a bit. But it also signals a kind of a acknowledged formal space between Jon and the other Starklings, even if it’s one they’re used to.

Robb was not impressed. “The Others take his eyes,” he swore. “He died well. Race you to the bridge?”

“Done,” Jon said, kicking his horse forward. Robb cursed and followed, and they galloped off down the trail, Robb laughing and hooting, Jon silent and intent. The hooves of their horses kicked up showers of snow as they went.

There’s a really chilling kind of casualness to the older boys’ reaction to the execution. Even Jon who treats it more seriously than Theon is still able to shift modes easily. Part of this I think is just early installment weirdness, but it also nicely shoves the reader into the medieval mindset of westeros in a way that the show never quite achieves. Though it’s underrated, the underlying medieval mindset is one of the key differences between books and show and causes havoc in later seasons as the showrunners have to adjust and soften character to make them more palatable to a modern audience while not changing the underlying actions themselves. It creates a sort of cognitive dissonance and some of the themes logical coherence slip through the crack.

The contrast between Robb laughing and Jon silent and intent is a great character detail. Robb isn’t taking this as seriously as Jon, because Jon takes everything seriously. He has to. It’s another way his bastard status influences his personality. Robb can lose and he’ll still be lord of Winterfell one day. Jon? Not so much. So this is how Jon treats everything in his life: seriously. It’s a also a bit of a childhood and teenager thing.

Bran thought about it. “Can a man still be brave if he’s afraid?”

“That is the only time a man can be brave,” his father told him.

This is one of the clearest articulations of Martin’s ethos and the theme in all of his work, but especially ASOIAF, of existential heroism. When we talk about Jon as a hero, it’s that which makes him one in the end, not the magical sword or rags to riches; when it comes down to it he does the right thing no matter how much it costs him personally (ASOS) or materially (ADWD). It’s also one of the themes the show completely misses, instead espousing that being honorable makes you stupid.

His lord father smiled. “Old Nan has been telling you stories again. In truth, the man was an oathbreaker, a deserter from the Night’s Watch. No man is more dangerous. The deserter knows his life is forfeit if he is taken, so he will not flinch from any crime, no matter how vile. But you mistake me. The question was not why the man had to die, but why I must do it.”

Bran had no answer for that. “King Robert has a headsman,” he said, uncertainly.

“He does,” his father admitted. “As did the Targaryen kings before him. Yet our way is the older way. The blood of the First Men still flows in the veins of the Starks, and we hold to the belief that the man who passes the sentence should swing the sword. If you would take a man’s life, you owe it to him to look into his eyes and hear his final words. And if you cannot bear to do that, then perhaps the man does not deserve to die.”

“One day, Bran, you will be Robb’s bannerman, holding a keep of your own for your brother and your king, and justice will fall to you. When that day comes, you must take no pleasure in the task, but neither must you look away. A ruler who hides behind paid executioners soon forgets what death is.”

This has been explored more and better in other meta, but the Starks and the north in general has a far more personal view of justice and governing than the south. This isn’t to say it’s better, but it is different. Later as Lord Commander we’ll see just how much of that ethos Jon picked up from Ned: in beheading Janos Slynt, in the mission creep at Hardhome, and in his failure to really use his institutional power to make changes to the Night’s Watch. There’s a strong sense of personal responsibility and connections in northern governance.

Half-buried in bloodstained snow, a huge dark shape slumped in death. Ice had formed in its shaggy grey fur, and the faint smell of corruption clung to it like a woman’s perfume. Bran glimpsed blind eyes crawling with maggots, a wide mouth full of yellowed teeth. But it was the size of it that made him gasp. It was bigger than his pony, twice the size of the largest hound in his father’s kennel.

“It’s no freak,” Jon said calmly. “That’s a direwolf. They grow larger than the other kind.”

Theon Greyjoy said, “There’s not been a direwolf sighted south of the Wall in two hundred years.”

“I see one now,” Jon replied.

Notice how calm is Jon with Theon here. It’s a bit of a cheap shot at Theon to make us like Jon more as a character, but is also very in line with his character. Very rarely even in later books does Jon react emotionally to things (with a few exceptions like when he tries to murder Alliser Thorne); he tends not to from a place of emotion and almost always takes time to think things through. The reason for this is Jon is calm because he has to be. It’s a result of his marginalized status in the Stark household. There’s no leeway in his bastard position for emotional outbursts: Catelyn isn’t going to put up with that shit, and he’s already enough of an embarrassment to Ned just by existing.

While we don’t ever really get much thought from either Jon or Theon about their relationship with each other, their interaction in this chapter is I think indicative of it as a whole; slightly adversarial and only cordial because of their mutual friendship with Robb. Theon as a whole is a really interesting foil to Jon; irreverent where Jon is serious, emotional where Jon is calm, dismissive where Jon is willing to learn about others.

They both have outsider status in the Stark household, but instead of bonding, Theon is significantly closer to Robb. While Jon does have privilege, Theon has more (he is the Greyjoy heir after all) and more importantly, has internalized it far more. It makes sense that aside from just personality differences Theon would think himself above Jon and be drawn to Robb as a source of privilege.

“Born with the dead,” another man put in. “Worse luck.”

“No matter,” said Hullen. “They be dead soon enough too.”

Bran gave a wordless cry of dismay.

“The sooner the better,” Theon Greyjoy agreed. He drew his sword. “Give the beast here, Bran.”

In case you had any doubt Theon is in fact the worst, here we have him enthusiastically ready to commit puppy murder.

“Lord Stark,” Jon said. It was strange to hear him call Father that, so formal. Bran looked at him with desperate hope. “There are five pups,” he told Father. “Three male, two female.”

“What of it, Jon?”

“You have five trueborn children,” Jon said. “Three sons, two daughters. The direwolf is the sigil of your House. Your children were meant to have these pups, my lord.”

Bran saw his father’s face change, saw the other men exchange glances. He loved Jon with all his heart at that moment. Even at seven, Bran understood what his brother had done. The count had come right only because Jon had omitted himself. He had included the girls, included even Rickon, the baby, but not the bastard who bore the surname Snow, the name that custom decreed be given to all those in the north unlucky enough to be born with no name of their own.

Their father understood as well. “You want no pup for yourself, Jon?” he asked softly.

“The direwolf graces the banners of House Stark,” Jon pointed out. “I am no Stark, Father.”

I don’t have a lot to say about this passage, but it’s a good example of Jon choosing to do the right thing despite how it won’t benefit him and also show just how much he loves his siblings that he’s willing to do this for them.

Halfway across the bridge, Jon pulled up suddenly.

“What is it, Jon?” their lord father asked.

“Can’t you hear it?”

Bran could hear the wind in the trees, the clatter of their hooves on the ironwood planks, the whimpering of his hungry pup, but Jon was listening to something else.

“There,” Jon said. He swung his horse around and galloped back across the bridge. They watched him dismount where the direwolf lay dead in the snow, watched him kneel. A moment later he was riding back to them, smiling.

“He must have crawled away from the others,” Jon said.

“Or been driven away,” their father said, looking at the sixth pup. His fur was white, where the rest of the litter was grey. His eyes were as red as the blood of the ragged man who had died that morning. Bran thought it curious that this pup alone would have opened his eyes while the others were still blind.

This is such a powerful moment to me. Remember that of all the direwolves Ghost never growls or howls or makes any sound at all. And yet Jon hears him somehow. Even though we just met Jon we understand by this point just how left out Jon feels, and here he has a creature that wants him, needs him, loves him. Later when Jon makes the decision to refuse Stannis’ offer of legitimization we’ll see just how much Ghost means to him.

(I’m not bitter about how the show forgets about Ghost and all the direwolves for long periods. Really. It’s fine. I’m fine. It’s fine. It’s fine. It’s fine. I’m fine. It’s fine.)

“An albino,” Theon Greyjoy said with wry amusement. “This one will die even faster than the others.”

Jon Snow gave his father’s ward a long, chilling look. “I think not, Greyjoy,” he said. “This one belongs to me.”

“I think not, Greyjoy” is low-key my favorite line of the series as a whole, and I hate that they cut it from the show. Instead Theon says Ghost is the run of the litter and Jon gives Theon a look that’s neither long nor chilling and actually feels more like he’s slightly annoyed that Theon is right. It goes back to the difference of how the show softens Jon and casts him more as the reluctant and slightly dense Hero instead of sharp and smart and slightly vicious at times.

That’s largely it for Bran I. Overall it’s a really great insight into Jon’s character and his place in the Stark household while also setting up character threads later chapters will pick up. Speaking of, next up will be Jon I, in which Jon gets drunk and talks with Tyrion. I’m aiming to try and get one of these rereads out a week, so subscribe @tacitwhisky if you’re interested.

Next Chapter (Jon I)

[kateofthecanals]

For a bit of fun, I'm curious if you could do a fix-it for GoT? I'm just so exhausted by all the rage I feel learning about the shit D&D put everyone through (both audience, cast & crew). In an alternate universe where you were hired as showrunner/writer for GoT from Day 1, what changes would you make? Bearing in mind specific things like budgeting limitations of the earlier seasons, ideal series length and number of episodes, unpublished TWOW and ADOS, etc.

Oh lordt, where do I even start????? :-o

I mean, I don’t think I would make any drastic changes, you know? If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. And it’s hard for me to think of stuff to cut or change because so many things lead to other things, and still more that we don’t know about that has yet to pay off. But there are definitely things I would do (or not do) if the task fell into my lap...

First and foremost, anyone adapting ASOIAF NEEDS to keep these 3 fundamental themes in mind at all times:

- Never take anything at face value; ALL narrators are unreliable.

- The Starks are the heroes, not the freaking Lannisters.

- Honor, compassion, mercy, and love are GOOD things and should be striven for at all costs.

As for specific plot/character things:

- Give Sansa’s and Arya’s respective POVs equal weight when they are first introduced.

- No unnecessary, lame “padding”, like the goddamn Littlefinger pornologue. There’s enough freaking content in the books, I don’t need to be making up my own stuff here.

- With the pornologue eliminated, we now have time for (gasp!) Sandor telling Sansa the story of his burns himself!!

- Speaking of Littlefinger, I would make sure that he comes off as a charming, charismatic chum, so that it doesn’t seem weird or ridiculous when people actually trust him. No smarmy, mustache-twirling obvi-villain, thanks.

- Restore The Jeynes -- Jeyne Westerling and Jeyne Poole. They have names, they have faces, they have stories, and they are IMPORTANT. Make it abundantly clear that Robb married Jeyne W. out of a sense of duty and honor, not because he wanted dat Volentene booty. Include Jeyne P. in important scenes in Season 1 like in Book 1; her disappearance in King’s Landing will be noted.

- THE TYSHA REVEAL, DAMMIT.

- THE UNKISS, DAMMIT. I would probably present this visually as a recurring dream that keeps haunting Sansa.

- Pretty much all SanSan content will be included and adapted word for word.

- Cast someone younger as Sandor (sorry, Rory).

- Present Sansa’s forced marriage to Tyrion for what it actually was -- Cersei tricking her, Tyrion not lifting a finger to warn her, Sansa being dragged to the sept and NOT KNEELING, etc. Not sure exactly how I would pull off the wedding night scene without compromising an underage actress, but I think it’s so so important to portray Tyrion’s unbashed lewdness toward her. Basically make it about SANSA.

- Tyrion is a rapist and a murderer. Let’s not whitewash, eh?

- Restore some of Dany’s agency on her wedding night.

- Film the Daznak’s Pit scene as written, with Dany taking shit into her own hands instead of standing around helpless waiting for someone to rescue her.

- BALD DANY.

- Make it clear what Cersei’s Walk of Shame was actually about -- not a moment of slut-shaming but of BODY-shaming... so you know maybe NOT hire a 20-something stand-in to play a woman in her 40s?

- BRAN’S & NED’S DREAMS. In a story that’s mired down in “realism”, these dream sequences would be a nice, fun break from that. An opportunity to get really creative and experimental.

- THE NORTH ACTUALLY REMEMBERS. No House Manderly erasure on MY watch, tyvm.

- FLASHBACKS. If a character is talking about something that happened in the past, SHOW IT. Or better yet, just show it without the talky-talky. Show, don’t tell.

- I would personally cut out all the Dorne stuff BUT I would consult with George on ways to move the story forward with out it.

- LADY STONEHEART.

- Tbh I’d probably reveal Coldhands to be Benjen as well, like the show did, even though GRRM confirmed it’s not him. (Unless, of course, Benjen has some other, way cooler fate yet to be revealed...)

- Make absolutely sure that it’s clear neither Arya nor Brienne are misogynists just because they don’t/can’t perform Traditional Femininity.

- Michele Clapton does not come within 3000 miles of this production. Hire a costume designer that has experience with Medieval-inspired fashion and insist on some damn COLOR.

- Cast an age-appropriate Margaery.

- I would also cast someone way more pretty boy-ish as Joffrey. No offense to Jack Gleason, but he was creepy straight off the bat. Finn Jones would have been better. Or a young(er) Cody Fern. 

- DON’T SLEEP ON AFFC/ADWD. There is so much good, meaty content there, the actors will revel in it. So what if there aren’t any huge battle sequences? There is still a lot of great writing and character development to make up for it. 

Should I run into the issue of the show catching up with the books, there are several options for carrying on without too many hiccups:

1. KEEP A GOOD RELATIONSHIP WITH GEORGE. Don’t ignore him when he makes suggestions. Actively seek his guidance. He has more experience with this than I do. This will come in handy later.

2. As stated above, buy more time for George by actually adapting Books 4 & 5. There is PLENTY of content there to work with while George finishes TWOW.

3. If I do #2 and he STILL hasn’t finished TWOW, then I would work closely with him on the endgame. Go through outlines piece by piece. Send him drafts of scripts for notes. Allow him to write a few episodes himself. This is HIS story, and I have been hired to tell it. In the absence of published source material, George himself is the next best resource -- UTILIZE IT.

That’s all I could think of, anyone reading this feel free to add more!

[jackoshadows]

Often times the characters who make up the houses in ASoIaF are not a monolith and the individual characters of each house do not in many ways embody the house themselves. Ned Stark for example was very different from the Starks of yore and the Old Kings of Winter, like Brandon ‘Ice Eyes’ Stark who hung the entrails of slavers from the branches of heart trees, as an offering to the Old Gods.

The TV show and certain fans have created this weird nationalistic like fervor surrounding the discourse around the  various Houses. For example House Stark (The North is the best!, Northern independence! The Story is only about the Starks! The Starks are the main characters) and the North is glorified as some kind of ideal paradise where the best people live. Other characters/houses are expected to help the North and serve the North for free. There’s a special set of rules for the North and the Starks. 

There’s more compassion for the ordeals that the Starks go through and less for the sufferings of Tyrion Lannister or Daenerys Targaryen.  War is wrong except for when the Starks wage it. Only the Starks have the right to fight for their home.  Concessions are made because the Starks are children, but Dany is given no such pass for being a sexually and physically abused 13 year old at the start of the books. There’s an ‘othering’ of characters that don’t belong to fan favorite houses.

Yes, at the heart of the books are the wars and conflicts between the different houses and so it’s natural that we take sides, but let’s recall that GRRM is primarily telling the stories of specific characters and not houses.

Five central characters will make it through all three volumes, however, growing from children to adults and changing the world and themselves in the process. In a sense, my trilogy is almost a generational saga, telling the life stories of these five characters, three men and two women. The five key players are Tyrion Lannister, Daenerys Targaryen, and three of the children of Winterfell, Arya, Bran, and the bastard Jon Snow.

https://www.insider.com/game-of-thrones-original-story-2017-8

And again:

I’ve always had a soft spot for the outsider, for the underdog. ‘Cripples, Bastards, and Broken Things’, as the title of one of the (TV series) episodes goes. The angst that they have in life makes for more conflict, makes for more drama, and there’s something very attractive about that. My Game of Thrones is told by outsiders of both types. None of them fit comfortably into the society into which they’ve been born, and they’re all struggling to find a place for themselves in which they’re valued and loved and respected, despite what their society considers their deficiencies. And out of that, I think, comes good stories. - GRRM

https://www.buzzfeed.com/danieldalton/purple-socks#221x6x5

There are many underdogs and outcasts in the books - exiled characters, disabled characters, non-conformist characters, characters of low birth, ugly characters, abused characters etc.  These characters belong to different houses.

If we look at house Stark, again, the way Sansa is written is because he thought all the House Stark members were getting along and he wanted conflict and infighting among them as well - just like he had for House Lannister and House Targaryen and house Baratheon etc. Name one house where all their members got along?

Arya was one of the first characters created. Sansa came about as a total opposite b/c too many of the Stark family members were getting along and familes aren't like that. Thus, Sansa was created; he ended by saying they have deep issues to work out

https://www.westeros.org/Citadel/SSM/Entry/1259

Something that we can see in the original outline as well:

Each of the contending families will learn it has a member of dubious loyalty in its midst. Sansa Stark, wed to Joffrey Baratheon, will bear him a son, the heir to the throne, and when the crunch comes she will choose her husband and child over her parents and siblings, a choice she will later bitterly rue.

Sure, Sansa did not marry Joffrey and have children in the books, but she still betrays her father and sibling to marry Joffrey and become queen. Something that GRRM has referred to in other SSMs.

Sansa was the least sympathetic of the Starks in the first book; she has become more sympathetic, partly because she comes to accept responsibility for her part in her father's death.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/feature.html?tag=westeros-21&ie=UTF8&docId=49161

So house Stark is not some special exception where everyone gets along and hold hands and sing kumbaya. As of the last book, different factions are pushing for the different Starks to control the North, Sansa and Jon have never got along, Sansa and Arya have deep issues to work out, Robb’s will legitimizes  resurrected Zombie!Jon as Jon Stark while Bran and Rickon are still alive etc. Their reunions, if it happens, is not going to be all hugs and kisses. Even in the original outline there was conflict between Jon and Bran.

Just like the other houses, we also have Stark family members looking out for their own self interests. Just like other houses, individual Starks also seek power and leadership. There is no Stark exceptionalism.

Arya wants to help the powerless and deliver justice like Dany does. Jon wants to reclaim his home like Dany wants to reclaim hers. Bran wants to overcome his disability and be valued like Tyrion wants to be valued. They all want a family and to be loved despite belonging to different houses.  Isn’t that the underlying theme of the books? That these characters should put aside their differences and the houses should unite against a common threat because underneath it they are all the same?