Thoughts on "A Dance With Dragons" part 3

Part 3 of my Thoughts on “A Dance With Dragons” by George R. R. Martin.

Spoilers...

House Greyjoy

The Greyjoys and all of the Ironborn get hit pretty hard in “Dance.” In “A Feast For Crows” you really started to get to know these people a little bit. You saw the Kingsmoot and got a feel for their culture (they are clearly based on the Vikings), they are a proud people who have always lived by the sword and they live on this one tiny archipelago. Since the rule of the Targaryens, the Ironborn have been handcuffed. Their islands can’t contain and sustain their numbers and yet when they raid in order to survive they face the wrath of a unified Westeros. Imagine what would have happened to the Vikings if there had been a European union in the Viking era.

Of course, I feel less sorry for the Ironborn when I realize that for the most part they’re a bunch of vain and arrogant pricks. Theon, Victorian and Euron all think they are God’s gift to women and believe it is their destiny to be great men, when in reality they are merely pawns in the game of thrones.

At the end of “Feast” I was convinced that the Ironborn were on an upswing, I didn’t imagine they’d conquer Westeros, but I thought they’d manage to eek out and hold onto some limited amount of territory. Instead, the Greyjoy’s conquests of Moat Catlin and Deepwood Motte were left without resupplies. Euron was more interested in fighting the Tyrells at the Shield Islands and sending 100 ships to impress Daenarys than protecting the toehold his brother Balon had envisioned.

My favorite chapter in the entire book was Asha Greyjoy’s first chapter. She holds Deepwood Motte, but she realizes that she can’t hold it forever without reinforcements. She knows her glory will be short lived, but she doesn’t care, she’s living the warrior life she was raised for. But, when the castle is attacked, she realizes it would be better to live than die fighting a losing battle. Her men feel the same way. They retreat into the forest hoping to get to their ships and just when they’re sure they’ve gotten away, they are ambushed in the darkness. But, her men seem determined to fight to their last breaths. Asha cuts down several men, but she is eventually overwhelmed. I read this and thought it was the perfect end for her character. The Ironborn or the Vikings both would have called her death glorious. I was kind of disappointed to see that she was still alive as Stannis’ prisoner.

Not Surprising Enough?!

I want to respond to the people that are criticizing Martin for not surprising us. Personally, I thought there were a lot of surprises in “A Dance with Dragons,” but these critic’s chief argument is “Well, people on the internet have been saying maybe Aegons alive for years.”

People on the internet have been saying it…So what! Does that mean Martin should
re-envision his story? “Oh, I’m not fooling them,” he thinks. “Instead of Aegon being alive, I’ll raise Baelor the Blessed from the dead. No one’s thought of that.”

People on the Internet have had years to think about this series. In that time they have come up with any number of theories. Ever hear the phase if you throw enough shit at the wall eventually something sticks? I’ve seen perfectly reasonable theories suggesting that Jon Snow, and/or Sam Tarly, and/or Tyrion Lannister are all Targaryens. [The last one is actually less far fetched after this novel because Barristan Selmy told Daenarys that Aerys II had the hots for Tyrion’s mom] But just because fans thought of it, it doesn’t mean it wouldn’t be surprising. I mean, I could say I think Theon Greyjoy is secretly a Targaryen. If that turned out to be true, I’d still be quite surprised. Is Martin’s job to tell an exciting and consistent story or is his job to razzle-dazzle us?


If the answer is surprise, here are two Martin hasn’t thought of:

1) Bran’s next vision is of a burly bearded man sitting at a computer typing his family’s adventures.

2) Edric Storm is brought to King’s Landing and stands before Tommen’s small council in the throne room. They ask him where Stannis hid the Dragon Eggs that were rumored to have been on Dragonstone. Storm breaks down under the pressure and admits, “Stannis made me smuggle one of them up my butt.”

Oh, wait, Martin’s out of luck, he can’t use either of those ideas anymore, because I already thought of them; They’d not longer be a surprise.

Here is Part 2 of my review of "A Dance With Dragons"
Here is Part 1 of my review of "A Dance With Dragons"
Asha Greyjoy and Edric Storm artwork are from an Italian Game of Thrones site Terra-di-Mezzo

Thoughts on "A Dance With Dragons" part 2

Part 2 of my Thoughts on “A Dance With Dragons” by George R. R. Martin.

Spoilers...

This novel really began to illuminate the rest of the Ice and Fire world. Up until this novel I was convinced that the other places in the world were just kind of there, but not really important as far as the story Martin wanted to tell. They also never seemed real to me. Westeros, its people, and its culture has been examined at such length that it seems real to me. The rest of the world was just a couple of passages here and there and someplace for Daenarys to wreak some havoc. However, so much of “Dance” takes place outside of Westeros that you really start to get a feeling about the bigger picture. There is a whole world out there most of which could care less about Westeros

At the beginning of the novel, Tyrion meets Illyrio Mopatis, the Pentosi merchant who hid Daenarys and her brother. We’ve known since “Game of Thrones” that he’s been working with Varys, but we didn’t know why. Illyrio gives Tyrion several explanations such as gold and power, but I don’t buy those answers. I think Tyrion almost hits on the true answer when he looks at a map of the free cities and says something about how close they are to Westeros yet the Targaryens never moved across the Narrow Seas to conqueror them. Illyrio doesn’t want Daenarys to rule in Westeros for wealth or power, he wants her to rule in Westeros so she stays the hell out of Pentos.

Little People

In “Dance” Martin seems to write the “little people” better than his main characters. I don’t mean dwarfs. I mean the characters that only appear briefly. These throwaway characters had interesting stories that were often times only hinted at, but it was always enough that my imagination took over and filled in the gaps. The characters also had motivations that I readily understood like hatred, revenge, and lust. Characters like:

Lord Manderly- Since White Harbor is the only useful eastern port in the North, the Lannisters and the Freys are interested in currying his favor and yet Lord Manderly’s son Wendel was killed in the Red Wedding. Manderly hates the Freys and Lannisters but is unable to oppose them openly for political reasons. It is fun to see this bit of intrigue play out. And to see how when when he is trapped in Winterfell with the other nobles how hard it is for him to maintain his façade as the days begin to pile on.

Lady Dustin- Who as I mentioned previously, blames Ned Stark for everything that has gone wrong in her life. Events that in her delusion are Ned’s fault include King Aerys II's burning Brandon Stark and others to death, The War of the Usurper and more specifically the death of her husband Lord William Dustin at the Tower of Joy.

House Blackwood and House Bracken- The two neighboring Houses have apparently had an ongoing feud reminiscent of the Hatfields and McCoys since before the recorded history of Westeros. In fact, both Houses believe that they were the “Kings” in the region during the time of the First Men and both House believe the other House betrayed them and usurped their rule. Everything possible has been done to end the feud including intermarriage, but somehow the feud continues. I also love the imagery that at the center of the Blackwood’s castle (Raventree Hill) is this tremendously large and completely dead weirwood tree. It’s been dead for a thousand years (The Blackwoods claim the Brackens poisoned the tree) and yet since weirwood doesn’t rot, the tree remains. Each night it is home to hundreds of ravens, that “cover the tree like black leaves.” Can you imagine what a depressing castle that must be? I think the Blackwoods would feel better about their lives if they moved out of that castle.

Main Characters

These kinds of “little characters” contrasted with some of Martin’s main characters whose motivations and reasonings were so murky that I often felt as if I didn’t understand the character at all despite the fact that the chapters were written from their perspective.

Daenarys Targaryen- I didn’t understand what was going through her head for the entire novel. The image I have of her from the previous novels is decisiveness. She struck me as the only character truly worthy to rule Westeros. In terms of arc, her story always goes from bad to worse and then she wows you at the end of the novel, but I felt like this was the first novel where she was just acting foolish the whole time. Couldn’t she see that she was fighting a losing battle in Meereen? She never had the hearts of the people. The Harpys would never stop and no ruler could ever change a culture in which slavery was so ingrained. She took away their livelihood their self-image and offered them nothing in return. Of course you could argue that Daenarys ends the story in a better position then before since she has mastered a dragon, but I would argue that I’m not sure if she ever learned a lesson about how to rule. I’ll be happy if she at least learned how not to rule.

John Snow- Martin got me again. I was positive that Jon was Martin’s fair-haired boy. Sure he had a bit of a rough time of it at the Wall, but he rose all the way up to Lord Commander in a few short years. I was also convinced like many fans that he was Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark’s child and that Eddard knew Jon would be killed by Robert if that was revealed…but none of that matters now does it?

Snow’s end shouldn’t have surprised me he spent the entire novel pissing off every living creature at the wall. Was he really oblivious to the fact that his men were just waiting for him to slip up so they could mutiny justifiably?

A lot of people are convinced that this is just a cliffhanger ending and that Jon Snow will end up being alive. I don’t know, I think it’s clear Jon is dead. Maybe Melisandre’s magic will revive him, but the Jon that returns will not be a brother of the Night’s Watch. Maybe he’ll become a nameless wildling, and he’ll romance Val… Or maybe he’s just dead!

Stannis Baratheon - continues to not impress me. He is a rigid man who does not believe in compromise. He lives in the shadow of a brother whom despite his faults was still a better man than Stannis will ever be. But, Stannis continues to barrel forward despite the fact that he is in over his head at every point. I do not believe he is dead as Ramsey’s letter stated. It was clear from the letter that Ramsey was looking for Theon and the false Arya. They were last seen with Stannis. Therefore it would seem that Ramsey hasn’t found him yet. Notice how there is no mention of Asha. Is it possible that Ramsey merely killed the Umbers that were standing outside Winterfell and banging their drums?

Theon Greyjoy- Reading his chapters was quite disturbing, in a series full of scum and villainy, Ramsey Snow/Bolton really takes the cake. He took Theon to a point through torture where Theon’s will snapped. Theon was no longer human instead he was a sort of sniveling animal thing. I mentioned this to a friend that hasn’t read “Dance” yet and he said that Theon sort of deserves what he got because of how he betrayed Winterfell. And he further commented that it is kind of ironic that I feel sorry for Theon despite his evil actions. And yet, I guess it’s just good writing because I can’t help but feel sorry for Theon. I wouldn’t wish what he went through on my worst enemy.

Tyrion Lannister- His chapters were always a highlight of the novel. They are full of humor and yet were by no means comic relief. Martin does not treat Tyrion with kid gloves, if anything Tyrion is put in extra-tough spots and yet always manages to somehow talk his way out of them. My favorite Tyrion moment is when he goes into a laughing fit because he realizes that Aegon took his bait and is going directly to Westeros and also realizes that despite the fact that he is technically Jorah Mormont’s prisoner, Mormont is taking him exactly where he wanted to go in the first place: to Daenarys. I fully expected Tyrion to meet Daenarys by the end of the novel and/or figured he might use his book-knowledge of Dragons to try and wrangle one of them. Instead his story kind of ends with a whimper and I just kind of went “is that it?”

Here is Part 1 of my review of "A Dance With Dragons"
Ramsey Bolton artwork is from an Italian Game of Thrones site Terra-di-Mezzo

Thoughts on "A Dance With Dragons" part 1

Spoilers...

The thing about "A Dance With Dragons" by George R. R. Martin, and the series in general, is the complexity of it. Not only are we expected to recall the events we read about 6 years ago and the books before that, but we are also expected to understand references to hundreds of places around Martin’s world and hundreds of Houses and their family trees. The librarian side of me has always found this aspect of it to be fascinating; Constantly having to put the book down and study the maps in the front of the book, or the appendix in the back.

I’ve also found some great maps online, such as the map above. The full map is a true work of art. Here's the most complete map of Westeros I've seen as well as a world map (Though the Free Cities are a bit off. We were all just guessing about those until Martin put the map of them in "Dance." Thanks Martin!)

I use a website called the Citadel, they have a concordance of the series, but find it quicker for simple things to search the Wiki of Ice and Fire. However, sites like this have started to update so anyone reading “Dance” for the first time will have to use great caution.

I wonder what Martin uses to keep all these characters and locations straight. How does he remember how many children Maege Mormont has or which of Lord Manderly’s kids was killed at the Red Wedding? Does he have a database or pen and paper charts. It never ceases to amaze me that he can keep it all straight.

In “Dance,” we met Lady Dustin. She revealed that she was in love with Brandon Stark and that the feeling was mutual. In the Stark crypt she talks about how she blames Ned Stark for all of her life’s woes. Anyway, I was sure she’d never been mentioned before. I thought I’d finally found an example of Martin thinking of something after the fact, but nope, she was mentioned back in “Game of Thrones.” Martin knew exactly who she was and what her story was even though he waited 5 books to start to tell it. It’s like what they say about Homer’s Illiad, “No one dies nameless.”

The final complexity is that we are expected to understand hundreds of years of Westeros historical and cultural references. Martin has outlines 300 years of Targaryen rulers and centuries of legend before that. In “Dance” that history seems more alive and relevant then ever before.

For Ser Barristan “the Bold” Selmy, many events of almost 50 years ago are just as vivid to him as the events of his present. And it is not only him, the surprise appearances of Jon Connington and Aegon Targaryen made the events of the War of the Usurper seem more influential to Martin’s overall story than the War of 5 Kings.

I think, two mysteries in particular are integral to Martin’s story: Who was the knight of the laughing tree at the tournament in the year of the false spring and what happened at the Tower of Joy? Barristan revealed some more clues, and I’ve had my own theories, but I’m sure we won’t get definite answers until the last novel.

I was fascinated with Barristan recalling the events of the Defiance of Duskendale and how in a way he is responsible for the events that followed since Aerys II lost his mind during his imprisonment. I liked the dichotomy that the Defiance was a high point in Barristan’s career since he single-handedly rescued the king, but he personally considers it a low point when he considers all the awful things the Mad King did and the war that stemmed from those actions.

Ser Barristan Selmy artwork is from an Italian Game of Thrones site Terra-di-Mezzo

Top Ten Game of Thrones Bad-Asses

Spoilers through end of “A Feast of Crows.”

It has been 6 years since I’ve read a new Game of Thrones book and even longer since we’ve had chapters from certain perspectives, due to the split nature of “A Feast for Crows and “A Dance with Dragons.” But despite all of that, several of the characters are still quite fresh in my mind. So, they are the Top Ten Game of Thrones Bad-Asses.

The great thing about these novels is that these are by no means the only 10 bad-asses, they’re just the ones that really stuck with me over the years. As I’ve recently gotten on the web and started to refresh my memory about the novels I see tons of other worthy contenders that had for whatever reason slipped my mind over the years like Roose Bolton or Bronn the sellsword.

So anyway in no particular order…

1) Varys- Known as the master of Whispers or the Spider, this guy is a master manipulator. I think it’s been his goal all along to get the Targaryens back on the Iron Throne, he has done so by seeming to help such people as Eddard Stark and Tyrion Lannister, while in reality he was only helping them destroy themselves. He’s finally been kicked off the King’s small council, but the damage he’s done has been tremendous and he’s escaped to manipulate another day.



2) Petyr “Littlefinger” Baelish - For a guy that started life as the lowest of lowly lords he really used his guile to rise to the top. He’s had his hand in almost every evil plan since the first novel. He poisoned John Arryn and Joffery and now murdered his new wife Lysa Arryn. He’s never got over his first love Catelyn Tully and now he has his eyes on her daughter Sansa, whom he’s kidnapped. Don’t miss understand me, this guy is a monster. But he is such a charming monster. He’s like Iago or Dexter. It’s always fun to see a master at work.


3) Tyrion Lannister- Probably the best character in the whole series. He’s one of the most devious and calculating men in all of Westeros, and yet in this series, he’s one of the good guys. He is a dwarf in a world where combat skills are a necessity and yet his keen mind (along with some luck) has seen him through all of his adventures so far.

4) Brynden “The Blackfish” Tully- According to my calculations he is the greatest military mind still alive in Westeros. He is also one of a few people alive who beat back the rebellion of Maelys Blackfyre during the War of the Ninepenny Kings. He’s a hard man. Battle is the only thing for him, to the point where he refused to get married. I don’t think he’s gay, I think he’s not interested in marriage, relationships and/or children. He just wants to bust heads and die in glorious combat. Plus, he proved himself worthy of his name by jumping in the moat around Riverrun and swimming away from an army. How Batman was that?

5) Sandor “The Hound” Clegane- His brother Gregor burned his face when he was a boy. It’s safe to say it was tough growing up with Gregor as a brother. Sandor was always adamant about the fact that he wasn’t a knight. I guess he never thought much of them. The Hound may be dead or he may be living in a monastery as a monk (As has been heavily hinted). I hope the Hound gives up the quiet life and goes back to fighting, the one thing he’s ever been really good at.

6) Gregor “The Mountain” Clegane- Seeing him portrayed on television doesn’t do him justice, in my minds eye the Mountain That Rides is larger than life. He is the biggest and badest human being that ever walked the earth. He is a monster, he rapes and he pillages without mercy. It would take a small army to stop this man; hence why the Brotherhood Without Banners were originally formed with one purpose: track Gregor down and bring him to justice. During the single combat fight with Obyrn “Red Viper” Martell, Gregor received injuries that later killed him, but his body may live on as an awful creation by Qyburn

7) Jamie Lannister- It seems like Jamie lost a hand and gained a brain. Jamie was just about my least favorite character at the start of the series. He was a one-dimensional, incestuous, and pompous villain. He may or may not have been the best swordsman in the land, but was certainly the biggest braggart. However since the loss of his sword hand he has been a completely different character. He seems to have had his eyes opened and suddenly I find I can’t wait to see what he does next.

8) Brienne Tarth- Brienne just doesn’t fit in; The Lady lords of Westeros are supposed to be demure waifs whose purpose is to birth many baby lords. Instead of a shrinking violet, Brienne is a great warrior strong enough and crafty enough to stand up to anyone in the realm. After killing many members of the evil Brave Companions, Brienne has been injured and captured by Brotherhood Without Banners, who plan to hang her due to her newfound friendship with Jamie Lannister.

9) Jon Snow- has been imbued with all the best Stark qualities such as strength and leadership and his direwolf Ghost is a force to be feared. During Jon’s adventure on the other side of the Wall his loyalties became unclear possibly even to himself. But since his return, and his election to Lord Commander of the Night Watch, they are clear again. Jon may be a Targaryen heir and just doesn’t know it yet. I think his father was Rhaegar Targaryen and his mother Lyanna Stark. Ned believed that his sister had been taken by Rhaegar against her will, but in reality the two of them may have been in love.

10) Daenerys Targaryen- The last of the Targaryens, the Khaleesi, The true heir to the Iron Throne. Time and again she has proven herself worthy of the crown. Her latest exploits with the Unsullied has established her as ruler of all Slaver’s Bay. There she will consolidate her power and meet several envoys that are coming her way, Victarion Greyjoy, Marwyn the Mage, representatives from House Martell, and possibly Tyrion.

On the other hand there have been several characters that were over-hyped or that I have become disillusioned with over time. These are the Top 5 Game of Thrones Disappointments

1) Stannis Baratheon- The first time I read Game of Thrones I thought, “Stannis wasn’t even in that. He’s gonna appear in the second book and really stir things up, isn’t he?” I was convinced he’d be the biggest and badest enemy of the whole series. And yes, Melisandre his R’hllor priestess makes him dangerous, be he isn’t really all that interesting otherwise. He’s kind of milk-toast and boring really.

2) Obyrn “Red Viper” Martell- He was totally played up as a great warrior and he comes to Kings Landing with four of his Sand Snake daughters like he was something out of “Kill Bill,” but soon after he comes to Kings Landing he fights Gregor Clegane in single combat and is killed. At least he killed Gregor too…or did he…

3) Cersi Lannister- Cersi has long thought herself the chief evil-doer in the realm. However, in reality she was riding the coattails of others. In “A Feast for Crows” we see what happens when there is no one left to help her, her own ineptitude and naivety are finally leading her to her destruction. Even her brother/lover Jamie has abandoned her.

4) Tywin Lannister- In my mind, Tywin was the true master of the realm. He was letting everyone else play at the Game of Thrones sure that no matter who won he’d end up on top. But, as you got to see his character in action he became more and more of a disappointment. He wasn't the master schemer I thought he was, he was just an angry old man.

5) Melisandre- The Red Priestess has real powers, but I can't seem to figure out what her end game is. And fanatics are usually touched, so she has that against her too.

Follow up to previous post Game of Thrones Fever!
My thoughts on the latest novel "A Dance with Dragons" part 1
My thoughts on the latest novel "A Dance With Dragons" part 2
My thoughts on the latest novel "A Dance With Dragons" part 3
All artwork is from an Italian Game of Thrones site Terra-di-Mezzo

Game Of Thrones Fever!

The next book in the Song of Ice and Fire series (Game of Thrones series), “A Dance With Dragons” isn’t out for another month, but I’ve already got Game of Thrones fever!

I’m not one of those people that rereads all the old books before reading the new one, I’d love to do that but you’d have to add about 4-6 hours into each day before I’d have the time. However, I have been thinking about the previous books, paging through them, reading timelines and character bios on A Wiki of Ice and Fire, as well as watching the TV show.

The show is a really great and largely faithful to the source material. I’ve heard George R.R. Martin is closely involved, so no one gets any smartpants ideas and starts ruining things with Hollywood endings. But the TV show is a double-edged sword (not unlike the Stark’s long-gone Valyrian-steel sword Ice) because while it is a dream come true for the fans of the novels, it is also introducing millions of non-readers to the story and call me an elitist, which I most certainly am, but being a Game of Thrones fan was like being a member of an exclusive club. Finishing the novels was like a badge of honor, you’d conquered the Seven Kingdoms, or at least the thousands of pages of text. It’s like if they built an escalator to the top of Mount Everest, it really wouldn’t really be the same anymore if you said you’d seen the top of Everest, would it?

I know that I am overreacting and that it’s a good thing for Martin to gain a bigger following, but it’s like what happened with the Dinosaur Bar-B-Que. The Dinosaur is this great blues-biker bar/BBQ joint in Syracuse, NY, there is also one in Rochester, which is supposed to be just as good, but I haven’t been there. Anyway, in Syracuse the place is always crowded, because the BBQ is the best you have ever tasted (I usually get the pulled-pork). The music is blasting, the bikers are having a great time, you can bring your family, but you get the feeling that you’re a visitor in the biker’s hangout not the other way around.

Eventually the Dinosaur came to Manhattan in Harlem and I went there and there are no bikers, there is no attitude, no blues music. It’s all yuppies with their kids in high chairs and soft rock coming out of a jukebox. I could have been in Applebees or Ruby Tuesdays. The food was okay, but it just wasn’t the real Dinosaur Bar-B-Que.

So hopefully the TV show won’t reduce the bite of the series that has never pulled a punch, simplified a story or shied away from killing an important character.

As fans of the series know, the 4^th book in the series, “A Feast for Crows” came out in November of 2005. It’s been 6 years. In 2005 I was fresh out of college and working as an ad salesman for a small town newspaper. I was living in a tiny town, Highland, NY, living in my first solo apartment and I’d just started dating a very nice girl. Six years later, I've completed Graduate school, gotten married to that nice girl, moved down to Philadelphia, and have our first baby on the way.

Meanwhile, Martin only just managed to finish a book he was supposed to be approximately 1/3 finished with back when “Feast” was published. If you recalled, basically the “Feast” manuscript was split into two volumes. According to Wikipedia, the final “Dance” manuscript was 1,510 manuscript pages. Now if we subtract 1/3 of that because that’s what was already finished by May 29, 2005 (the day Martin announced the “Feast” manuscript was completed) you have 1007 manuscript pages.

Okay there are 365.25 days in a year. So there are 1826.25 days in the 5 years between 2006 and 2010. The half-year in 2005 starting after May 29 yields 216 days and the half-year from Jan 1 to May 19, 2011 (When Martin announced he’d finished “Dance”) yields 139 days. All together that’s 2181.25 days.

When you divide that you see that Martin only averaged .461 manuscript pages a day, a low average for the guy that wrote “Clash of Kings” in two years.

And I don’t want to get morbid but hopefully Martin finishes the series before he is laid to rest in the Great Sept of Baelor. He’s in perfect health as far as I know, but I worry about him. George, no one wants your series to go the way of The Wheel of Time series, please take care of yourself, and write quickly!