Really like the imagery at the end, well-built via the discussions at the inn and at a point feels like Jaime's woken to a nightmare. Also, great point about Jaime being missing for so long, I hadn't considered that timeline. Excited to see how this one comes out!
So I get we're kinda having to live with the fact that George made it so that Jaime was missing in the Riverlands but like: Isn't this entire chapter literally just going to be Jaime knowingly walking into a trap? I mean the man has already been captured before after overpursuing something he was after. Surely he's wisened up a little bit? I think the whole pursuit is incredibly suspicious from the beginning. He has reason to believe that Sandor is either: A) Leading an Outlaw Band, or B) working with the Brotherhood without Banners. In either case, what does Jaime exactly expect to do to get Sansa back, with just him and Brienne? The whole ride Brienne isn't answering any questions about what the hound is doing, who the hound is working for, what he might want in exchange for Sansa etc. etc. And Jaime just keeps riding with her? Why? Like Sandor must want a ransom, or a hostage swap. Does Jaime plan to ransom his sword? The only hostage to swap for is himself. But the fact that it's literally just him and Brienne going, means that there'd be nothing to stop the Hound and his gang of followers from just killing/capturing them both and taking what he needs without returning Sansa. This is so obviously a trap that, IMO it's just kind of not believable that Jaime would fall for it, even with his deep desire to fulfill his oath to Catelyn. Here's my alternative proposal: Here's what I think could maybe a cooler way for Jaime to "go missing" for a couple of weeks. Instead of "shaking" pursuers, Jaime and Brienne are 'tracking' the Hound (Lem Lemon Cloak), through the Riverlands. They justify "losing pursuers" in the first bit by saying it's likely the Brotherhood had eyes on Jaime at Penny tree. But the rest of their time they are genuinely tracking Lem Lemon Cloak (who Brienne claims is Sandor, who is now working for the Brotherhood). Like they stop off at inns and people say "oh the Hound rode that way," and stuff. Eventually they actually Reach Lem's camp. Brienne's very bad plan is to essentially walk in the front door, and to try and ransom Oath Keeper and Jaime's Golden hand for Sansa. While staking out the camp, Jaime and Brienne manage to capture a BwoB scout, and then interrogate him briefly. Jaime asks, "What tent is lady Stark being held in?" and the man explains what the tent looks like, but ofc Lady Stark isn't Sansa, it's Lady Stoneheart (but the man is killed by either Brienne or Jaime before he can give away further info). Jaime wants to go in and spring Sansa in the night, Brienne agrees to this plan. They actually do manage to sneak into the camp and they make it to the tent, but ofc the lady there is not Sansa stark, it is Lady Stoneheart, conversing with "the Hound" over a war map. Jaime figures he might as well go for the kill: he attacks the hound and actually manages to kill him (but Lem manages to scream out before dying), but as he turns to attack Lady Stoneheart, Brienne steps in the way (maybe even deflecting a strike from Jaime's sword). The chapter ends with the clattering of boots and the dancing orange glow of burning swords as guards surround the tent.
I never considered her to be mentally challenged. I just thought she was traumatized from whatever horror befell her and her mother before they met up with Arya. I'm re reading the book 1 right now so we'll see but ever since I first read it I was always scared for Weasel. Knowing George and how no one is spared especially with the small folk I was always in fear she would have some horrible fate. If she is ever mentioned again I do hope she gets a happy ending or at least as happy as can be all things considered. Poor baby...
Sure this is a slower chapter than the other ones but it's important to give room to breath to the story as well (at least a bit, George does it too much perhaps). I like how you described the effects the poor fellows are having and also how much trouble Hasty could cause. I do wish some of Jaime's squires are spred the warthof Nimeria though
The door of the inn should totally be painted red. If Tyroshi are in the inn with a red door, perhaps on the other side of the world a certain house with a red door is in Tyrosh...
@@Xob_Driesestig I think it's obvious to us readers who are familiar with Lemongate. Most people don't even question Dany's origins, so the story needs to start getting closer to the reveal.
I have one more fun character that can be added to the Bonifer Hasty storyline. When Jaime asks on whose authority Bonifer is giving land away, the answer could be 'Shella Whent', the original lady of Harrenhal. Baelish tells Sansa that Shella has reportedly died, but her whereabouts and manner of death are unknown, and Baelish has a big incentive to lie about that. Shella would obviously hate the Lannisters so would be fine trying to raise an army against them and she could later tell Sansa about her Whent heritage/give more information about house Lothston.
I was surprised that we get a "filler" chapter like this, I expected Jaime's story to start with him chained in Stoneheart's cave, paralleling Theon and Aeron. We already knew he would be captured by the brotherhood anways and the chapters tend to start with our characters in places they didn't expect. Nice outline nonetheless.
Whereas Martin would have essentially had nothing happen and then one of Jamie's prophetic or frightening dreams would END the chapter, it is much more economical to continue to resolve arcs when the dream BEGINS the chapter. Perhaps someone will happen now!
Is the Inn of the Kneeling Man working with the Brotherhood??? Because previously they were, and Brienne's boldness at showing up at the inn implies she thinks/was told they still are, but then hanging out with sparrows makes it seems like they're against the Brotherhood. So which is it? Or were they previously on Team Brotherhood, but changed their mind and the Brotherhood themselves haven't realized they've lost an ally?
Well, its a presented as a mystery, something Jaime is pondering. But it seems that Brienne purposely stopped by the Inn and then told everyone exactly where they were going. And then, low and behold, the Brotherhood find them. It shows that someone at the Inn is still with the Brotherhood. Jaime suspects Sharna and she's the obvious choice....which means it's probably not Sharna. If the reader figures out the identity of Boy, they may know who Boy is friends with....
Ren Lemoncloak Seriously - Lem is actually a double-agent Renly who has been a faceless man the entire time and had a body double die for him. This was clearly foreshadowed by Renly wearing costumes as a child. And when he asks Loras to help him pray it's actually the ritual to change his face. The lemons are a hint at his affinity for fruit.
@@GodKingReiss just a chunk? The whole thing seemed gruesome af, that was one nasty attack by a dirty guy that was actively eating her face. Especially because the limited medical technology in story. I will have to reread that text but in my mind it was pretty bad.
Are these Poor Fellows going to have a future appearance? Could they intervene in Jaime and Brienne's meeting with Stoneheart? After all Brienne told them where she's going
Also couldn't the first Jamie chapter actually be something happening? Like he was missing for weeks because Lady Stoneheart had planned something? So Jamie reappears for the wedding of his cousin, Daven Lannister. Jamie is invited in, given bread and salt, and Jamie invites in the brotherhood
I'm a bit sad to hear you talk about resolving Stoneheart already. While I think your idea of Brienne having to kill her fits very well, getting rid of her when she's really only just joined the main story, after being teased for so long, would feel like a big anticlimax. Not to mention that it would rob us of confrontations between her and Arya/Bran/Sansa/Littlefinger... She seems like a character with loads of potential that I would have liked to be in the story for the long haul.
Her reveal in ASOS ended the Catelyn story. No need to resolve lady stoneheart as a character, she's just a vengeful spirit of a dead character, fully drowned in grief and hate. There's no arc there. She's a monster now, playing her part in the arcs of Jaime and Brienne. Her actual appearances should be limited, like the others, while looming over the story as an incoming threat. Sad to hear that's also coming to an end soon then...
@@tychoclavius4818 "a character with loads of potential" was perhaps not the right phrasing, perhaps I should've said "an antagonist", or even just "a plot thread", with lots of potential.
Wait wait wait… 1 chapter before we RESOLVE Lady Stoneheart? She seems like such a deliberate inclusion to the overall narrative. I was expecting her to be involved through Dream of Spring. I know you need to move things forward, but this seems like a mistake.
My thoughts on her inclusion are to significantly reduce the number of Freys, undoing Walder’s life work and causing utter havoc with the lineage. If Stoneheart dies early in Winds, I don’t see how her inclusion has an impact on the story beyond being there for Jaime and Brienne to have character development.
@@adashofbitterI tend to agree. But this is Martins problem: he is introducing way too many plots. Maybe if somehow Arya and Nimeria are included in the resolving of the Stoneheart plot, it will have more impact. Influencing Aryas identity problems by her seeing Stoneheart through the direwolf. And somehow the Stoneheart plot ending will also later influence Jamie doing a moral decision (considering all the topics his plot included)
@@peterv1054 it’s a valid concern, but I don’t think the solution is just to bring an abrupt end to existing plots… Introducing more game-changing plots would get unwieldy, but Stoneheart’s there already and needs to be dealt with in a way that feels true to what she’s intended to do in the overall story. I don’t think she has to be a major part of the story - she’s only been in 2 chapters so far… but she has the ability to help resolve other loose ends (like getting revenge on the Freys) rather than being treated as a loose end herself.
The ending is an interesting parallel to Areo Hotah's first chapter, just from a different perspective. When this and the following Jaime/Brienne chapter is out I'd like to read those and the Areo story together to compare.
i think for the next Jaime/Brienne chapter when they are before the brotherhood, one of them should use the 'are there no true knights among you??' line
PJ working harder than any to keep this alive. Resurrecting long lost characters, leaving no (Lady) stone (Heart) unturned. These calls for content are like a cock tease cannot wait until release.
The notion that Jaime would willingly go off with Brienne without guards just seems off. The trauma of his last captivity is constantly with him, it just seems unrealistic that he'd risk capture again. He's literally in the heart of the BwoB controlled territory and he knows this. He has extra outriders shielding his armies movements, and orders twice as many guards to take the Westerlings back to their castle and Edmure to Casterly Rock. I understand the fanfic is going in this direction to follow through with GRRM's writings, but it just seems really really stupid for Jaime to do.
Just throwing this out here. If the "Group of Pursuers" runs into Nymeria, and she dies? The repercussions could lead to Arya I (TWOW/ADOS)? Food for thought? ❤ Im just loving the fan fic.
Is the assumption here that Pod and Ser Hyle were hanged and are now dead and only Brienne was cut down after screaming ‘sword’? I assumed they were all cut down and the others held as hostages for Brienne’s return. I guess this plan still leaves that option open, if the 2-week trek was just to lose Jaime’s army.
Cuz that's not a rule that GRRM follows, and idk how Preston would place Bran I, since its supposed to be super ambiguous when that takes place. To make Cersei and Jaime's trials occur back-to-back, can just put the chapters a little out of chronological order? Its a little weird to have Brienne stall bringing Jaime to Stoneheart for weeks, when she rode through the night to reach him in the first place? makes more sense if a bit of Jaime's off-the-grid time happens later, after meeting Stoneheart?
It’s not strict, but I’ve been putting them in roughly that way for organizational purposes. After the capture, it’s still days to hollow hill and he can be imprisoned waiting too.
I apologize if this is a silly question, but doesn't Jaime witness the beginning of winter in one of his chapters? And yet the opening segment seems to imply a few weeks go by before the actual winter starts. Why is that?
He witnesses snow in Jaime VII, AFfC, but it wasn't winter.. Then comes Jaime I, ADwD, then Cersei I, then Cersei II, then Epilogue (first day of winter).
@@PrestonJacobstheSweetrobin Thank you for such a comperhensive answer. I get the urge to re-read the books every time I see your video in my feed, and this time I think I will take the plunge.
It’s also confusing because when Jaime wakes up that morning of snow at the siege of Riverrun he comments, “Winter is marching south, and half our granaries are empty.” But that’s just describing weather; as PJ said, the Citadel declaration is yet to come.
It sounds really good, although the idea that the Tyroshi sellswords have been hanging around a ravaged Riverlands for over year without coming to the attention of any of our Characters or without heading back across the narrow sea isn't very convincing.
Have Jaime catch a sword with is hand revealing a gilded iron hand stolen from the guy Tyrion did away with. It’s a clue Jaime and Cercei are Aerys’ kids and a clue about pocked faced (dead cells inside living cells, prisoner inside jailer/executioner) Illyn with the rehilted “Dawn” aka “Ice(1)” now with a skull on the sword(heir). Lem(Richard “Dick” Lonmouth) is from the “fire” side of the story so therefore can’t actually warg but “snakecharm” dragonbond and loves’truekiss. That’s how Rhaegar/Romeo came back to life only to die bringing back Lyanna only for her to die with a Caesarean birth only to comeback to have Ned end her.
