Season 6 Episode 9 "Battle of the Bastards" - "Non book readers"

Nody

Pre empting the upcoming episode post by including some highlights from the charter. I'll try to set up each episode in advance each week; thread will be unlocked on Sunday evening.

This is ONLY about the specific episode shown on TV! No information from any other source, interviews etc. are allowed to be posted with the one exception that SPOILER tagged lore from the DVD releases and interviews will be allowed in the thread. Such information has to directly relate to the episode however and be clearly marked as for example "DVD lore from Season X relating to matter Y"

Lore and conclusions go here

This means book readers are allowed to post but they can not reference ANYTHING from the books.


In addition anyone picking up 3 yellow cards will be banned from the forum for the current season; in case of serious enough transgressions the ban may come earlier than 3 cards

empacher

Holy ****ing ****. Terrible episode. Load of filler. Next episode better have some action.

Lemlin

empacher wrote: »

Holy ****ing ****. Terrible episode. Load of filler. Next episode better have some action.

Not sure if sarcasm....

Thought it was a fantastic episode. With Sansa going badass and a potential alliance between Yara and Danerys, are the ladies of Westeros taking over?

Sansa seems to be more of a ruler than Jon will ever be.

Essien

While I'm pretty sure it wouldn't have made any sense, I was half expecting a White Walker intervention when that horn went off!

laugh

Beautiful!

J. Marston

Phew, what an episode.

The Battle was insane and brilliantly executed. That crush scene was horrific.

I allowed myself hope that Rickon would make it. You'd think after six seasons I would've learned. Zig-zag, Rickon. You should've zig-zagged!

Can't believe Tormund and Davos both survived. Delighted they did though. Wun Wun on the other hand, the last giant is gone but he went out like a beast.

I don't care if the Knights of the Vale riding in to save the day was somewhat predictable, I still punched the air in triumph when they arrived!

Sansa setting the hounds on Ramsey was delightful and a suitably grotesque ending for a great villain.

And before all that was the stuff in Meereen! Holy shít, that was brilliant! Three Dragons tearing around the place!

Loved the interaction between Dany and Yara too...

"I imagine your offer is free of any marriage demands."

"I never demand but I'm up for anything really."

One of the best episodes of the entire series.

Lemlin

I was expecting at first that Ramsey would release the hounds on Rickon as he ran back to Jon.

ads20101

Incredible episode.

I know it's early on and I am (seriously) sleep deprived but this has to be my favourite episode of the season series.

I actually shouted when the Knights of the Vale arrived. I genuenly thought that I'd woken up the house at 3:30am. I honestly thought my wife would get up and tell me how stupid I was, but she stayed asleep (a tad worrying on the security front I think!!!)

Never before have I enjoyed a punch so much when Jon put Ramsey on the ground.

Stunning, just a stunning episode

Turpentine

"Hello Clarice"

Great episode, but you can really tell it's into "screen-writer" territory now. They they know where to go, but every beat seems to be taken from a previous film.

Tenger

empacher wrote: »

...... Terrible episode. Load of filler. Next episode better have some action.

I think someone may have nodded off and missed the Dragons killing a fleet and the small scuffle outside Winterfell.



Enjoyed the episode myself but was a little put off by the encirclement of the Northern army by the Boltons, who lets than happen to them?.....does no-one play Total War anymore?
And Jon letting himself be played like a lute by Ramsey was more than a little naive, I would be having a chat with my commander after that performance if I was Tormund and Davos.

*I've been on a TW binge last week!

Unearthly

The giant

Amazing episode. Had a stupid grin on my face as the credits rolled.

EagererBeaver

Tenger wrote: »

I think someone may have nodded off and missed the Dragons killing a fleet and the small scuffle outside Winterfell.

I think some people struggle with sarcasm

Tenger

EagererBeaver wrote: »

I think some people struggle with sarcasm

Feck it. I posted then asked myself that question. Must think before trying to be clever after 4 hours sleep!!

Cantstandsya

Jon is great on the battlefield, he took out more than his fair share of Bolton men, but he's not very good at strategy, Ramsay really played him at the start here... and previous episodes show that he's not exactly great at rallying people to his cause either...

Wonder what it is about him that's supposed makes him so special? Can't just be because he's a good fighter?

wp_rathead

maudgonner

Tormund is such a scene stealer. His wide-eyed lack of understanding when Jon explained a pincer movement to him was priceless. I'm so relieved he made it through alive.

The opening shot of the battle, where Jon faced down the advancing cavalry alone was gorgeous. And only got better when it seemed he was doomed, only for his own side to flood past him in attack.

I was afraid Davos would be overwhelmed with rage about Shireen. I'm glad he was able to put it aside and focus on the battle, he was much more in control than Jon. Melisandre has got some revenge coming her way next week, without a doubt.

2smiggy

excellent episode, can't wait to watch again this evening as I was a bit drunk last night

glad Ramsey finally got what was coming to him, even though for a minute I thought they were really going to shock us, and kill John Snow again !! Also nice to see the other dragons get some action. A lot happened in the episode , and it moved the story on nicely. Hopefully episode 10 won't be too much of a let down

Texas Jack

Where's Ghost?

They should have set him on Ramsey

Unearthly

Texas Jack wrote: »

Where's Ghost?

They should have set him on Ramsey

It was more poetic to have his own hounds do it

homerun_homer

And you all said Davos was gonna die!

Epic episode, start to finish. I had genuine fear and concern for Jon though I knew deep down he had to survive and win the battle. It was intense and there was some amazing imagery throughout, Jon facing the Bolton army alone, the crushing scene, the dragons burning the ships and so on.

Did anyone else find Peter Dinklage a little off in parts? Had a feeling of someone who had been on holidays and was trying to re-find how he plays Tyrion. I'll watch it again to see if it was just me being tired at 5am watching it.

Huntergonzo

Great episode, it really delivered after a string of midseason disappointments. Episode 9 steals the show as ever (except for last season when Hardhome took that honour), Sansa finally got her revenge on one of the shows best psychopathic villains and what a fitting death Ramsey got. Jon was brilliant again in battle and probably my favourite moment was Sansa and Littlefinger turning up with the reinforcements.

Then finally the Bolton banners are removed from Winterfell and the Stark banners raised in their place, we waited a long time for that. But this is Game Of Thrones so we can't expect things to go smoothly!

JoeyJJ

What an amazing episode it delivered so much, Jon isn't a great thinker never was he goes with his gut, didn't expect anything else, the trample scenes were amazing, and the horses colliding with each other and people, the sound was amazing. Great scene of a headless body on a horse in background as Jon as trying to get his bearings.

Kinda expected the one that should be killed from the 3 to survive, kill the backstabbers, that is her all over.

Jon and Sansa may differ on what to do next, Sansa has revenge and little finger in her ear, Jon will want to focus on a defence from the North and maybe reinforcing the knights watch.

homerun_homer

Oh I should add...

F**k the Umbers and Karstarks.:mad::mad:

FortuneChip

Ramsay gone before his time.
Goodnight sweet prince.

flazio

FortuneChip wrote: »

Ramsay gone before his time.
Goodnight sweet prince.

Seek professional services. I'm just sorry it wasn't one of the dire wolves that met their new pedigree chum.

As for Rickon, hide behind one of the flayed men for cover until Jon gets to you.

StringerBell

Overall that was an absolutely fantastic episode

Dair76

One or two (very) minor annoyances, but overall a thoroughly enjoyable and satisfying episode. Hopefully next week will be just as good (if maybe not as epic) and we can finish the season on a high.

muddypaws

I have a new theory, that the title actually refers to a battle over toilets, and its what the whole thing is about. Women seem to be taking over all the thrones, so a decree will be issued, seat must down, not left up - Game of Thrones.

BullBlackNova

Great episode, really enjoyed it.

Though the storyarch was predictable (is this the 3rd or 4th time they've done the 11th hour save in a battle?), the way it was shot made it particularly memorable.

I'm glad Ramsey fiiinally got what was coming to him. Iwan Rheon was superb from his first scene but the character had run out of road a long time ago - now we were just re-treading the same thing with him so to get an ending that satisfying was great.

The scene where Jon was being chased down by the cavalry was one of the best they've ever shot IMO, also loved Davos finding Shireen's doll - the backdrop of the sunrise was stunning. The direction and cinematography was absolutely superb for the full episode.

Nice to see real progress in Dany's character, and her story - this has long been a bugbear of mine re: how slow the developments were so now that we finally seem to be getting somewhere, I'm quite happy.

Rickon dying was very predictable but nicely done - as was already mentioned, I actually presumed he'd be chased down by Ramsey's dogs. TBH, I actually don't understand why the dogs weren't introduced at some point - perhaps when the army was encircled and trapped? Just seems odd that he brought them up beforehand to not use them in any fashion!!

My only question over the whole thing now is how they will reconcile Sansa not telling Jon about the armies of the Vale. It doesn't add up - she knew they were needed, she was right, she asked them for help and they came... Obviously it was done for the dramatic reveal on screen, but in terms of story, had she told Jon to wait they could've saved hundreds/thousands of lives.

Onwards until next week then - I'm glad it's an extra long one because they have a loooot to do!

StringerBell

Cantstandsya wrote: »

Jon is great on the battlefield, he took out more than his fair share of Bolton men, but he's not very good at strategy, Ramsay really played him at the start here... and previous episodes show that he's not exactly great at rallying people to his cause either...

Wonder what it is about him that's supposed makes him so special? Can't just be because he's a good fighter?

You need both

Jon is fantastic on the battle field, and his courage is beyond reproach. His emotions still get the best of him but thats not his thing, he is very like Ned even though there are doubts about whether he is his biological father, he did raise him.

Sansa is the calmer one, the thinker, the strategist and as the Blackfish said, just like her mother.

Brains and brawn so to speak, both are needed to rule properly.

I would disagree though that Jon is not great at rallying people, he is an inspirational guy, he has the wildlings fighting for him and he will be absolutely crucial in the wars to come with the White Walkers.

Plus, he can marry Dany and create an heir, Sansa can't really do that

golfball37

Wow. I haven't been on the edge of my seat cheering for a side in battle like this since I first saw Braveheart. Just amazing. The scene when he was smothering was so frightening I got up off my armchair as I couldn't sit down.

Up there with the best episodes imo. It's the only show that's ever done that to me and thank god it still can.

klose

What an awesome episode, nice to see the good guys win for once. Heart was racing for the battle scene!!

Texas Jack

Some giants hold the door, some giants open the door. RIP OPDOR

Shane St.

that was incredible. the shots when jon was alone on the battlefield and the horses came in from all sides was unbelievable. props to the directors

princemuzzy

outstanding

its a brilliant show when it wants to be as good as anything ever on tv

i went from watching behind my fingers with nerves to roaring like an idiot when they won

Shane St.

ScreenHunter_119 Jun. 20 12.13.png

PressRun

It was a great episode. The battle scene was incredibly cinematic and visceral. Like a proper war film scene.

I'm very interested in what's going to happen at Winterfell now. I don't think Sansa trusts Jon's judgement (and I wouldn't blame her, Jon is an honourable guy, but Ramsay toyed with him in a way that Sansa predicted) and with Baelish in her ear, I wouldn't be suprised if there's a falling out over what to do next. I am hoping Sansa will undercut Baelish's power though and stick with Jon. I can only assume we'll be enlightened as to why she neglected to tell Jon about the Knights of the Vale, even though she looked fairly torn about whether to say something or not when they were arguing about the fact that Jon didn't really understand what he was up against. The best reason I can think of is simply that she doesn't trust anyone anymore. Her "nobody can protect anyone" line seemed to show a fair bit of disillusionment and a 'you can only trust yourself' kind of mentality. If she is just outright distrustful of other people now, I hope that also applies to Baelish.

Also, surely Davos is going to do something about Melisandre now?

2smiggy

EagererBeaver

muddypaws wrote: »

I have a new theory, that the title actually refers to a battle over toilets, and its what the whole thing is about. Women seem to be taking over all the thrones, so a decree will be issued, seat must down, not left up - Game of Thrones.

"Comedy"

You should take a class with Grey Worm and Missandei.

CMOTDibbler

PressRun wrote: »

It was a great episode. The battle scene was incredibly cinematic and visceral. Like a proper war film scene.

I'm very interested in what's going to happen at Winterfell now. I don't think Sansa trusts Jon's judgement (and I wouldn't blame her, Jon is an honourable guy, but Ramsay toyed with him in a way that Sansa predicted) and with Baelish in her ear, I wouldn't be suprised if there's a falling out over what to do next. I am hoping Sansa will undercut Baelish's power though and stick with Jon. I can only assume we'll be enlightened as to why she neglected to tell Jon about the Knights of the Vale, even though she looked fairly torn about whether to say something or not when they were arguing about the fact that Jon didn't really understand what he was up against. The best reason I can think of is simply that she doesn't trust anyone anymore. Her "nobody can protect anyone" line seemed to show a fair bit of disillusionment and a 'you can only trust yourself' kind of mentality. If she is just outright distrustful of other people now, I hope that also applies to Baelish.

Also, surely Davos is going to do something about Melisandre now?

Have you seen this?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MehJaeTVrxI

PressRun

"I thought you knew what I wanted."

Sounds pretty icky from Baelish.

CMOTDibbler

PressRun wrote: »

"I thought you knew what I wanted."

Sounds pretty icky from Baelish.

So pretty much in character then

I suspect that Sansa is shuddering inwardly, but then I know nothing

PressRun

I hope she has a plan to deal with him.

FortuneChip

There was a lot of potential foreshadowing about what it takes to rule in that episode.

Davos & Tormund raised some interesting parallels between Stannis/Mance and Sansa/Jon that could develop with either Littlefinger or Melisandre acting as a "demon" proxy.
Sansa has doubts over her brother and has already been scheming behind the scenes - sure it was for the greater good, for now.

Some of it bleeds into what Dany & Yara were talking about with regards to ruling as well.

Texas Jack

^^^^

So from all that, is it Freys and Lannisters v The North?

CMOTDibbler

FortuneChip wrote: »

There was a lot of potential foreshadowing about what it takes to rule in that episode.

Davos & Tormund raised some interesting parallels between Stannis/Mance and Sansa/Jon that could develop with either Littlefinger or Melisandre acting as a "demon" proxy.
Sansa has doubts over her brother and has already been scheming behind the scenes - sure it was for the greater good, for now.

Some of it bleeds into what Dany & Yara were talking about with regards to ruling as well.

IMO, I don't think she has doubts about Jon, but she certainly has doubts about Littlefinger. That's why she doesn't tell Jon, because if Littlefinger lets her down, it won't have affected the way Jon approaches the battle. All she can do is try and get him to postpone the battle so that Littlefinger has time to arrive if he's going to.

She also knows that Jon wouldn't trust Littlefinger either, so there's no point in telling him.

Loafing Oaf

BullBlackNova wrote: »

Nice to see real progress in Dany's character, and her story

I.e. turning lezza.:p

Graigmanliam

Liam Cunningham's voice goes through my feckin head, can't stand it

Kirby

Complete opposite. I think his voice, accent and timbre is excellent.

CMOTDibbler

Kirby wrote: »

Complete opposite. I think his voice, accent and timbre is excellent.

Absolutely. Liam Cunningham has excelled himself in his role. Absolutely love the way he plays Davos.

ziedth

Wow, just wow. I envy everyone who is going to watch for the first time later. As good as hardhome was that was better.

I actually thought John Snow might die there and red witch fail to bring him back or Davos kill her before she had a chance too.

Yes, we all knew there would be an 11th hour save the day moment but I think the littlefinger/John/Sansa power struggle will be interesting next season.

I thought the hounds were gonna run down Rickon but it was actually a very clever move from Ramsey. His ending was brilliant and much like Tywin I think he'll be missed in coming episodes.

I actually feel sorry for the Mereen bit as that was as good a scene on that story arch as it's had and it's largely been forgotten about. Loved the throne room scene too.

There has been some legitimate criticism of this show this season (although I never tire of any episode if I'm honest) but there was as good as it gets for me.

Knowing our luck not half the next episode will be based on the current regime in Dorne