It’s funny, the only Bran chapters that I liked were Bran 1 and 3 because the only parts of Bran I’ve ever liked are the people and things around him. Daenerys 2 is the main one that gives me pause when recommending these books to people who are skeptical abt GRRM’s treatment of women.
@@ModuliOfRiemannSurfaces The Jeyne Poole chapter in ADWD must have been a nightmare. Which I understand why many people feel so off put by GRRM’s writing.
@@nont18411 That bit I understand because of the context of who Ramsay is in concert with why they’d want to give him someone who knows the Starks. The Dany stuff in book 1 hits you right out of the gate and it really would not have been difficult to write her as at least 15 or 16 yrs old.
It’s so frustrating to see House Stark being written to be so stupid. I know that George is a brilliant writer but I’m kinda tired of this “being good and honorable = being dumb” trope. For example, everyone else knows NEVER to trust Littlefinger. Then there are Ned, Catelyn and Sansa who trusted him wholeheartedly (Sansa is excusable because she’s still young and impressionable and Petyr is a pdf file). The dynamics between each houses are very off-balance which is good for the plot but I sometimes find it hard to suspend my disbelief. - House Stark: Like I said, they are good, honorable but stupid. That’s why they keep getting betrayed and brutally murdered after making just ONE mistake. - House Lannister: The most balanced house in the series. They have the adequate amount of skills, intelligence and plot armor. How some characters like Cersei, Jaime and Tyrion survived their own circumstances are believable and they have some breathing room for mistakes. - House Targaryen: The epitome of plot armor. Daenerys can make as many mistakes as she wants. Everyone and their grandma knows that Daenerys will never face any danger what so ever until she cross the narrow sea to Westeros. It’s so off putting reading her chapters compared to everyone else whose lives are always at stakes. And about Jon, he got killed because he’s a Stark. He gets revived because he’s a Targaryen. That’s how plot armors galore this house really is. - House Baratheon: Seems like a background house to facilitate House Stark and Lannister. I mean, 5 books already and we have ZERO POV chapter of a Baratheon character. - House Greyjoy: Very balanced as well, almost as much as the Lannisters. The only issue I have with them is that they (the Greyjoy proper, not just Theon) were introduced way too late when most of the main conflicts were over. Other than that, I like them. They also have my favorite character Theon, who is a peak subversion of a damsel in distress trope. - House Martell: The plot armor is almost as low as House Stark. The only thing preventing them from being wiped out from existence like the Starks is that Doran is a very strategic man, like a calmer, less “war-crimey” version of Tywin.
In terms of the starks being dumb, I dont think Ned was dumb at all. I think yes he should have fled after Robert's death like Renly. He never trusted LF in my opinon if he choose to stay he needed LF there was no way around that fact.
@@TheGreaseGoblins I have little issues with Starks being dumb. My issue, however, is how they got punished severely right away after just one mistake. Ned trusted Littlefinger once. Died immediately. Robb didn’t marry a Frey girl. Also died immediately with his mother. Jon sent his friends away once. Also also died immediately. While the remaining Starks are either joining a death cult, having the mind hijacked by Bloodraven, surrounding by cannibals in a remote island or being groomed by a pdf file. No other houses face this much amount of danger. The Lannisters also made mistakes as well but they don’t get punished right away. It’s more like a culmination of multiple mistakes, which are more believable. And about the Targaryens, the script (more like George) protects them a lot. Putting Dany in Westeros and she will drop dead faster than Robb Stark and yet, I still find it hard to believe that she managed to not just survive but also thrive to the highest position in Essos, which is known to have more dangerous criminals than even in a crime-ridden Westeros. I know she had dragons but she barely managed to control them and in Dance of the Dragons, having a dragon doesn’t guarantee its rider any safety. Meanwhile, the dragons are absolute plot armor for Daenerys. It’s no coincidence that Dany is the most skippable character both in the books and the show. And like I said, Jon died because he’s a Stark. He came back to life because he’s a Targaryen. And Faegon will stay alive as long as he keeps his Targaryen facade intact. Once he’s revealed as a Blackfyre, he will drop dead in an instant.
