Game Of Thrones Season 5 TV Only Discussion (Spoilers)

[Cyrus]

Will we ever see Benjen Stark again?

I don't know if you want spoilers or not, but if you don't mind, here's the relevant part (to your question) from the link in Captaindemotion's post above:

Spoiler: Episode 8

Most interestingly, Episode 8 lists Joseph Mawle as making an appearance. If you cast your memory back—waaaay back, to the pilot episode—that was the actor who played Eddard’s younger brother Benjen Stark. Benjen was influential in getting Jon to join the Night’s Watch, but once Jon arrived, he went out ranging and never returned. Book Readers suspect he is the (so far cut) character Coldhands, a White Walker-esque character who helps Sam and Gilly in their hour of need, as well as guiding Bran Stark and company to the giant weirwood tree. If the show was to finally bring in the character Coldhands, or bring back Benjen Stark as a White Walker, this huge battle with the army of the dead would be the perfect time to do so, and to have Jon recognize him.

Personally, I think it's more likely that:

Spoiler: Speculation About The Above

He's been captured by the Wildlings or is working with them against the White Walker threat.

It would have been great if he had shown up right after I asked about him, but I didn't see him in the episode. Was the actor playing one of the white walkers?

The battle scenes were nice but a little confusing.

 

[Owain Taggart]

The army of the dead are reanimated corpses. They can only be destroyed completely with fire.

So, in other words, they're going to need flamethrowers... or uh.. Dragons.

 

[Locutus of Bored]

Will we ever see Benjen Stark again?

I don't know if you want spoilers or not, but if you don't mind, here's the relevant part (to your question) from the link in Captaindemotion's post above:

Spoiler: Episode 8

Most interestingly, Episode 8 lists Joseph Mawle as making an appearance. If you cast your memory back—waaaay back, to the pilot episode—that was the actor who played Eddard’s younger brother Benjen Stark. Benjen was influential in getting Jon to join the Night’s Watch, but once Jon arrived, he went out ranging and never returned. Book Readers suspect he is the (so far cut) character Coldhands, a White Walker-esque character who helps Sam and Gilly in their hour of need, as well as guiding Bran Stark and company to the giant weirwood tree. If the show was to finally bring in the character Coldhands, or bring back Benjen Stark as a White Walker, this huge battle with the army of the dead would be the perfect time to do so, and to have Jon recognize him.

Personally, I think it's more likely that:

Spoiler: Speculation About The Above

He's been captured by the Wildlings or is working with them against the White Walker threat.

It would have been great if he had shown up right after I asked about him, but I didn't see him in the episode. Was the actor playing one of the white walkers?

I couldn't tell. He's not listed as appearing in this episode on IMDb, but that could just be because it just aired.

Jon gave a couple of the lead Walkers a meaningful stare that could have meant either recognition or just fear, but I would think they'd throw the audience a bone and have him say "Uncle Benjen?" or just "Uncle?" so it would make it clear that he was upset at the horror of seeing his uncle like that.

 

[Evil Twin]

^Yeah, I didn't see him listed in the credits at the end. Was even hoping he was that conspicuously hooded guy in Jon's boat. Bah.

I gotta admit, I wasn't expecting much from the Hardhome sequence, but holy fuck that was awesome. Way more exciting than the Battle of the Wall. Got very World War Z when they started plummeting off the cliffside.

Was it established in the books that Valyrian steel works just as obsidian against the White Walkers? I don't recall.

 

[Skywalker]

I can't remember off the top of my head if it was ever established in the books, but it makes sense. Dragonfire is involved in the forging of Valyrian steel.

God, that whole episode was just great. After a decent start I thought the last couple episodes had been pretty mediocre, but this was just...gah. So good! I remember reading about how the battle at Hardhome took a long time to film and I thought "What battle at Hardhome? What could happen there that could require so much time and money?"

 

[Locutus of Bored]

Was it established in the books that Valyrian steel works just as obsidian against the White Walkers? I don't recall.

Yes, but Sam and Jon weren't quite sure at the time.

A Feast for Crows, Chapter 5:

Sam tells Jon that he has uncovered little on the Others, but one book mentioned dragonsteel swords as being effective against them. However, neither is sure if dragonsteel and Valyrian steel are the same thing.

http://awoiaf.westeros.org/index.php/A_Feast_for_Crows-Chapter_5

The same conversation is revisited in A Dance with Dragons, Chapter 7 but from Jon's perspective.

 

[Skywalker]

Good catch. It's been far too long since I read any of the books.

 

[Locutus of Bored]

 

[M.A.C.O.]

Lmao Brilliant.

Hipster Jon Snow response:
Naw...

 

[Locutus of Bored]

Hipster Jon Snow response:

"I was into Valyrian steel before it was cool."

 

[TEACAKE'S PLEATHER DOME]

OMFG.

 

[M.A.C.O.]

Hipster Jon Snow response:

"I was into Valyrian steel before it was cool."

And what's cooler than being cool?

Ice cold!

Haha

 

[Ethros]

Just out of of curiosity/interest was all that sequence in the last 20 minutes or so straight from the books? Differ at all?

 

[Tom]

The battle at Hardhome was not in the books, it is new just for the TV series.

 

[M.A.C.O.]

I thought the battle was in the books. It just wasn't shown/details weren't given. We only know a tragedy happened there.

 

[137th Gebirg]

^^^ Jon sent Cotter Pyke and some of his rangers to Hardhome to collect the Wildlings that were holed-up there. A raven came back with a message about the remaining Wildlings eating their dead and the place being mostly deserted with "dead things in the water". It was very vague, and nowhere near as epic as what we saw last night.

Edit - I forgot that Melisandre apparently had a vision of this happening, but without any involvement of the Nights' Watch:

Snowflakes swirled from a dark sky and ashes rose to meet them, the grey and the white whirling around each other as flaming arrows arced above a wooden wall and dead things shambled silent through the cold, beneath a great grey cliff where fires burned inside a hundred caves. Then the wind rose and the white mist came sweeping in, impossibly cold, and one by one the fires went out. Afterward only the skulls remained.

It's clear that the production crew used this source material for their scene and "turned it up to eleven".

 

[QCzar]

"I was eleven...

...now I'm going to chew off your f*cking face."

Seriously, I love that the wights look like actual decomposed dead people. No attempt is made to monster-them-up or make them look extra evil. And yet it's somehow all the more unsettling.

 

[Icemizer]

While I thought the battle was terrific my favorite scenes this week were wth Danny and Tyrion. Very well done andI look forward to hopefully seeing Varys get his bald head there before the end of the season.
I also liked the tall Sister who keeps trying to get the confession. A stern looking woman who reminds me of the Nuns from my youth. Yikes.

 

[FPAlpha]

Well.. it took them long enough to make an A episode again

That episode just flew by and so many good moments with several of my favorite characters:

- It breaks my heart to see Jorah rejected again for his past mistakes. His character is so tragic, one huge mistake followed by another one which led him to the situation he's in without any hope that Dany will forgive him because she can't see that he changed or can she? She took it hard when Tyrion spoke the truth about Jorah but either her own stubborness or her position made it impossible to forgive him.

- Tyrion just speaking the truth and finding someone who would listen.. a rare thing in this world

- It seems it was the episode of truth.. everybody was with the backs to the wall but still decided to come forward with the truth. Apart from Cersei and Arya it seems this was the episode with the most honest and righteous characters who have realized that the truth for once is better than a well made lie.

- Cersei.. damn.. it was good to see some justice happen to a bad guy/gal. A nice change of pace after so many good guys have died.

- Arya beginning her training and learning about the Many Faced God's own style of justice, not a bad thing.

All considered this was an excellent episode and we have still two more to go.

 

[Beagleman]

Is it me or did the Whitewalkers's look get changed a bit, I thought they looked a lot less 'otherworldly' and more human here than last time we saw them (or the gif upthread). I also miss them around bare-chested.