Enjoyable episode, thanks. (From the 'nose pressed against the glass from outside' and 'not going to see S4 for about 10 months' and 'bring on the show spoilers anyway' point of view.)

Just a detail about what's happened to the Loras/Brienne grudge in the show: in S2, Loras stated outright that he believed that Brienne hadn't harmed Renly.

edit: I now see that Lex already mentioned this on the outward-facing page for this episode

Show Daario:


Book Daario:

At the end of the episode (or it may have been episode 140), you talked about bringing back Larry for a guest hosting.


To that idea, I say...

Great episode, glad to have the show recaps back.

Couple of notes to bring up in the discussion.

Lemoncake rating - Holding the rating down so "it can grow over the course of the season" seems like an unfair way to rate things. If the episode is great and has very little "wrong" with it, the rating should reflect that IMO. Episodes are great for different reasons. If only Episode 9 is allowed to have a 5 rating... then what is the point of grading on 5 lemoncakes for the first episode if no matter what the show does it can't achieve it.

Tyrion - Shae... Smart people do stupid things. Especially when love is involved. See Tyrion from the books when he goes straight to Shae in the books one evening (instead of thru the brothel back door). Also I don't think the show is setting her up to betray him because she is angry with him. More like because Cersei finds out about her... Cersei is going force Shae to testify against him during his trial. Blackmail.

Lady Stoneheart- Only way to have Stoneheart in this season is to do the Epilogue from the books. But the show could make the LSH reveal when Brienne is brought before her. Combining/streamlining scenes and what not. Which if they do that... that won't happen this season. That will bring Brienne to the end of her Feast material... while Jaime will still be in King's Landing for Tywin's funeral.

Loras-Brienne - In the second season there is a scene where Loras says he doesn't believe that Brienne did it. And that Loras blames Stannis for it. It may have been a deleted scene.

Wow spot on

But this has its own flaws, if she's forced to testify then Tyrion killing her goes from morally wrong to morally wrong and straight up stupid.

He's not killing her because of the Testimony necessarily... Because he assumes that when he sees her, that she is sleeping with Tywin... after everything that happened with Tysha that is unforgivable to Tyrion. Crime of passion.

I'm thinking Arya and the Hound will run into Rorge mid-season. Andy Beckwith has been brought back from S2. Arya knows who he is so we'll have a "previously on GoT" link up and Arya/Hound will probably take his nose. Sandor will get his injury with a more infamous villain this way and if the Hound's helmet is still floating about, Rorge can pick it up! Then Rorge can pop up again later for Brienne to kill him and get injured with the final shot of her being thrown in front of Stoneheart.

I'd never seen that deleted scene that Forty Two posted (I need to watch my S2 blurays again), but there was another scene in the show where Loras says the same thing. It sticks out in my head because the acting in that scene from Loras and Littlefinger was just as cheesy and unnecessary as the mass effect armor dress that Margaery was wearing (those actors are fine most of the time, just not in this scene). It was the one where Loras says he'll "put a sword through his righteous face" (referring to Stannis).

I wish they could have used the scene that Forty Two showed, but when Renly was stabbed by the shadow baby he had just taken his armor off, so there would have been a discontinuity error if they kept that scene in.

As Amin always says, the show may change things randomly from time to time but they are good at remembering the consequences of those changes. Thus, no Loras imprisoning Brienne this season.

Great episode; love the recaps.

I thought the pre-fight scene between Polliver and Hound did a great job of building tension leading up to the fight. I got a Tarantino vibe from it.

Great episode I'm with Kyle on not feeling the new Daario yet. Willing to give him time to settle in though

Maybe they run into Locke.

I would really like if they brought back Locke - Noah Taylor is awesome!

I would have thought the same but according to WiC, he is coming back...

Just saw on WiC that Locke is going to be in episode 2!