#asoiaf talk

[fatalism-and-villainy]

Something interesting about how Theon's arc, along with both the Stark sisters' arcs, is centered on having to conceal one's identity, and even maintain that performance internally, when you consider that deep down, Theon wanted to be a Stark. Obviously they're not exact parallels, as Theon's identity isn't actually a secret to those around him, but it is interesting that Martin incorporates his arc into the themes of identity alongside Sansa and Arya. Especially since his connection to the Starks is usually directly emphasized in relation to the Stark sons.

[maironsbigboobs]

I do get why people say Stannis is gonna burn Shireen but I really don't think he will. 2 reasons: he's not at the wall to give the order, and it's going to be nothing to do with winning battles etc. The Wildlings are afraid of Greyscale, Val says Shireen is "already dead". I think Shireen will burn for something related to that - if sickness broke out at the wall..

[quiddling]

your rhaenyra is biblically accurate canon milf

thank u i wanna scissor the sadness out of her so bad it makes me look stupid

[fantasynovel]

reading asoiaf is really a magical experience bc you get to explore new lands and meet fascinating characters and build complex theories based on the sociopolitical landscape of the book and you also get to know, and this is important, you get to know like twenty-seven of grrm's kinks

[the-amazing-spider-bi]

sorry but Jaime Lannister’s characterisation is so funny to me. yes I tried to kill your eight year old but I draw the line at paying people to do my killing for me. you better believe if I want a third grader dead I will do the child murder myself. preferably with a sword so I can look him in the eye while he dies by my blade

[carlsdraws]

a girl and her dogs

[amber-laughs]

He loves him. He raised him. That’s his son.

"Come, let us see what mischief my sons have rooted out now."

He hates him. A constant reminder of the worst days his of his life. The weight of House Stark on his shoulders with no warning.

“He dreamt an old dream, of three knights in white cloaks, and a tower long fallen, and Lyanna in her bed of blood.”

He doesn’t miss him.

“The thought of Winterfell brought a wan smile to his face. He wanted to hear Bran's laughter once more, to go hawking with Robb, to watch Rickon at play.”

He begs, in his dying hour, for one last moment with him.

“The thought of Jon filled Ned with a sense of shame, and a sorrow too deep for words. If only he could see the boy again, sit and talk with him…”

He’s his greatest shame.

“I've never lain with any woman but Cersei. In my own way, I have been truer than your Ned ever was. Poor old dead Ned. So who has shit for honor now, I ask you? What was the name of that bastard he fathered?"

He’s his highest honor.

“The Starks were not like other men. Ned brought his bastard home with him, and called him "son" for all the north to see.”

He’s his darkest lie.

“Catelyn had asked her husband the truth of it, asked him to his face. That was the only time in all their years that Ned had ever frightened her. “Never ask me about Jon,” he said, cold as ice.”

He’s his kept promise.

“Promise me, she had cried, in a room that smelled of blood and roses. Promise me, Ned. The fever had taken her strength and her voice had been faint as a whisper, but when he gave her his word, the fear had gone out of his sister's eyes.”

[swordmaid]

brienne but she's wearing 1949 cocteau's beauty and the beast inspired fit!!! this is the inspo pic i used if ur curious.

gonna be posting more of this redesign thing (and also jaime's ver) some time in the future but i just wanted to share this one <3

[imjustapoorwayfaringgeek]

au where everything went good and lya and cat are hanging out with their kids

im not completely satisfied with this drawing but i still like it enough

[visenyaism]

Sorry if this is reaching for something that isn't there but I was thinking about how tywin basically commiting raped to both his son and tysha (while watching), and than later went on to sleep with the same sex worker his son had been sleeping with, and how...strange that all is. Like two incidents involving some sort of sexual thing going on between them (on tywin's part). Idk if it's just abuse and tywin's need to have power over tyrion but is there more to it? Am I wrong? Sorry if this is a silly thought

no you are absolutely 100% correct that there is something extremely evil about the psychosexual enmeshment of all the lannisters which goes beyond jaime and cersei and seems to originate with tywin. the first thing he did upon attaining power was having his father’s mistress whipped naked through the streets for two weeks. tywin married his cousin joanna (who i would argue really ends up as like a proxy in whatever psychosexual humiliation rituals were happening between tywin and aerys). Tywin enacts these violent sexual humiliation rituals with his children (most often tyrion who i think reminds him of himself but also cersei) who in turn enact them on each other. Tywin also appears to be very fixated on the power and authority of house targaryen and passed this to his children as well. there’s something there.

[fatalism-and-villainy]

Reading this transcription of GRRM's original outline letter for ASOIAF and it's crazy. I knew about the original "Sansa marrying Joffrey and having a kid with him" concept, but had somehow never heard of the plan for Arya to be in love with Jon and resulting love triangle between Arya, Jon, and Tyrion??? WILD.

I do think the the idea for Daenerys to intentionally kill Drogo to revenge his murder of her brother is honestly crunchier and more interesting than what actually does happen, though. Even if I firmly believe that Mirri Maz Duur did nothing wrong.

[melrosing]

payne revelation!!! think it is a nice AFFC parallel that Brienne is running around the riverlands with Podrick Payne as her new squire, whilst Jaime, elsewhere in the riverlands, has effectively become a squire to Ilyn Payne. and I think it's like. Pod is Brienne's past and Ilyn is Jaime's future. Pod is a lonely, discarded child who wants to hone his strength to stand tall and defend himself, even as he desperately craves the company and comfort of others. he has seen something of how cruel the world can be, but is looking for ideals in people like Brienne. which is more or less exactly as we find Brienne when she first appears in ACOK: lonely, discarded, clinging onto Renly's train and desperately seeking his attention and regard, idealising him, trying to be a knight worthy of song. Pod is her inner child, and Brienne is trying to help him grow and build his strength without subjecting him to the cruelties she's known in doing so.

and then there's jaime and ilyn lmao, who I think are easily one of the most underrated relationships in the series. Jaime sees the man he could become in Ilyn: nothing more than a headsman for Cersei's whims, with no agency and no autonomy. and what's more, Ilyn has come to accept that as his lot in life. part of Jaime's project in dragging him out into the riverlands is to see if Ilyn can be rehabilitated, and if so, then perhaps Jaime himself can be, too. but it becomes apparent that Ilyn is past wanting that for himself. he seems to enjoy some of the freedom of the march, but he doesn't change. in fact, he laughs in Jaime's face: he makes it feel as though attempting rehabilitation for either of them is a joke. he's Jaime's ghost of christmas future, warning him of the man he could become, whilst simultaneously making him feel there's no possible alternative. he will never fight like he once did, his darkest deeds were still done, and what can he do but spend the rest of his days in Cersei's service. BUT jaime ultimately rejects that, effectively leaving Cersei's service to join Brienne, and pursuing change regardless.

im about to say something!!!! payne..... pane..... pane of glass.... mirror!!!! reflection!!!!! growth!!!!! you heard it here FIRST

[asharaxofstarfall]

i do not like the dany and rhaenyra stans that hate on sansa and alicent for "bowing down to the patriarchy" and "not stopping their oppression". dany goes through a traumatic marriage at thirteen in which she is regularly raped to the point of contemplating suicide. she forces herself to love her husband and make him love her to spare herself more abuse. she then gets pregnant with his child and goes through a horrific birthing and loses her baby at only fourteen. this whole situation is very, very common for women in their society. the only difference is that daenerys gains three dragons at the end. they empower her and help her move forward to claim her 'birthright'. let's looks at sansa in comparison. she is sold off as a child bride at twelve years old. her betrothed arranges for her to be publicly stripped and beaten. she is then married to the son of the man that killed her brother. her new husband sexually assaults her on her wedding night, but does not rape her. pretty much every man that she encounters tries to sexually harass and assault her. she escapes her marriage and is now being groomed by her mothers childhood friend. she knows that his feelings and actions towards her are wrong, but he's all she has. sansa has to use "a womans courtesy and grace" to get herself out of potentially harmful situations. we also see this with dany's 'seduction' of drogo. the only difference is that sansa is never given dragons to protect herself like daenerys is. she still has to rely on herself. people call rhaeneryas dragon moments 'badass' and put alicent down for sticking to the patriarchy. alicent sticks up for herself by calmly telling her husband that he can take her daughter away from her when she is cold and dead in her grave. that is the only thing she can do in that situation, and its a a risky thing to say to her groomer, abuser and husband (who is also the king) but she still does it to protect her daughter. when alicent is feeling lost, she prays to the mother. when rhaenerya is feeling lost, she rides syrax. alicent and sansa (and even cersei) are not afforded with magic and fantasy to escape their abuse, they have to do the best they can with what little power the average noble woman is given in their society.

[knightsickness]

the alicent-criston-larys greenie triangle is soooo fun bc criston and larys are obviously supposed to be character foils (lowborn + highborn, able-bodied + disabled, conventionally attractive + conventionally ugly, knight + schemer, devout + depraved, actively homophobic + effete etc.) as alicent’s two allies but instead of it being a shoulder angel shoulder devil good and evil advisor it’s a lawful evil advisor and a chaotic evil advisor. if she asked either of them what she should do about her bastard step-grandkids they’d say i could kill them for you

[the-amazing-spider-bi]

people do not understand when i tell them that sometimes, asoiaf is a comedy

[winterprince601]

love it when characters come back from the dead. it's just the piece of media admitting it can't do without them. trapped in the narrative? baby, the narrative's trapped in here with ME.