wild to me that got managed to get several dream casting choices in sean bean as ned, alexander siddig as doran, and ciaran hinds as mance, then convince thee michelle fairley, lena headey, indira varma, and stephen dillane to sign on only to absolutely waste the vast majority of them for dick jokes made by bronn, overacting to the extreme by littlefucker and whatever the hell emilia was doing. i was robbed!!

Goodbye Petyr Baelish. Thank you Aidan Gillen.

I have to admit, this is a very difficult post for me to write. It took me almost 4 days to get my shit together and be able to turn my thoughts into words. Four days of mourning and healing my broken heart a little bit. But here it is. Think of this what you want. It is not a summary. It is not a judgement post. Just my emotions thrown down in front of you all here on Tumblr, because I just need to get it out of my system to be able to move on. 

My adventure with Game of Thrones begun with the start of the first season, years ago. It was something totally new and surprising. I have been a huge LOST fan before, and The Walking Dead as well so I thought not much on tv could surprise me. I was so wrong. GoT turned out to be captivating, intriguing and addictive series and before season 1 was over, I was done with the books. All of what was written so far. I fell in love with some characters immediately (Tyrion), some had to grow on me and prove themselves with their actions (Jaime), some I had a love/hate relationship with (Cercei), but one character always stood out. Always was different from others. Too original, too special and too exceptional for all this bunch of personalities, protagonists and villains. He got my attention from the very first episode he appeared in. He intrigued me. He was kind, nice and funny, but behind that smirk and blue eyes there was hidden darkness. His smart one-liners, his good (or bad) advices, his intelligent and captivating dialogues with other characters..I got to love his character immediately. First in the show. He had a handsome face of Aidan Gillen, an actor I knew nothing about at that time, not built for a knight but slender and elegant way about himself, very much suited for the court and the position Petyr Baelish was in. He was very intriguing. Not clearly a good, “white” character because it was obvious he was hiding something, but not also a bad guy. So after I read the books, got to know his story better, especially the story that happened before the show, before Sansa, before the war and everything...That is when it hit me. I knew he will always be my favourite, that I will always root for him, that he will for me always be the only person worthy of this stupid Iron Throne because he was the only one who fought for it so hard and worked for it. I know Jon/Aegon or whatever deserves it by blood. I know Cersei is the Queen and for some people, she is the rightful Queen. Petyr is a tragic character. A boy who had nothing but through his hard work, not always fair, not always good, sometimes ruthless and cruel..but he did get power that he wanted. It was love that ended him. We all knew that it will. From the moment he took Sansa from Kings Landing we all knew where it was heading. There could never be a Petyr and Sansa on the Iron Throne. Even though so many people wanted it. There was always death’s breath on Petyr’s back but truth is, he always provoked it. He teased it, but some things cannot be manipulated. 

At some point, I always knew it was going to be Sansa to kill him. And I was even ok with it. I thought I was. But when I heard her speaking in the Great Hall of Winterfell, when she said his name...I left the room. I couldn’t watch this. I came back a few minutes later and asked my husband if it’s done. He said yes but I could see he was really upset and annoyed aswell and he is not a fan. Littlefinger’s death should have been done better. And I don’t mean his begging for his life because seriously, who wouldn’t? Wouldn’t you cry and go on your knees and beg for your life it it was in the hands of the person you love? But the whole Winterfell plot was very poor in my opinion. Arya has become some crazy zombie psycho killer, btw I couldnt stand the triumph on her face when LF was being accused by Sansa, it was disgusting. Sansa struggles to maintain her postion, everyone knows that. But seriously, if she wanted justice, she should have ordered a fair trial for Baelish. Even Tyrion had it. Twice even. Or a trial of combat. Instead she just murdered him. She didn’t give him any chance to defend himself. And she may cry all the tears in the world but thats something I will never forgive her. 

So it is over now. Littlefinger’s story. At some point also Sansa’s because their stories connected and became one. I think I am relieved. Because with all the stupid, idiotic and pathetic things that DDs gave us this season, I won’t have to worry they will ruin my beloved character even worse. And people love to ruin. To be mean and cruel. I read some of the reactions of GoT fans from my country on FB. The last episode was streaming here in the major cinemas and ppl could go and watch it there. Their reactions frightened me. Especially this one: “the best moment was when Arya killed LF and everyone started applause”. Shit. What kind of world do we live in? What kind of people watch the show and how much of it can they really understand?

One last word about Aidan Gillen’s performance. I really have no words for it. This guy deserves all the Emmys, Globes and Oscars, seriously. In 2 minutes he went from self righteous, through defensive, disbeliving to complete mess and a child that had always been within him. I love him and always will for giving this character such depth and all the emotions we could experience. Best actor on the show, no doubt. 

Well, that’s it. Sorry for long post. I am heartbroken but in time it will heal. There is no justice for our loved ones i think, not even in fictional worlds. But we know these characters for years, we bind to them. And 7 years is a lot. It feels like loosing a true friend, someone important. But some day it will get better, let’s us all remember it. 

“ There is a sadness in this world, for we are ignorant of many things. Yes, we are ignorant of many beautiful things - things like the truth. So sadness, in our ignorance, is very real. The tears are real.  Then the day when the sadness comes - then we ask: "Will this sadness which makes me cry - will this sadness that makes me cry my heart out - will it ever end?" The answer, of course, is yes. One day the sadness will end”. The Log Lady, Twin Peaks.

Goodbye Petyr Baelish.

Thank you Aidan Gillen. 

Have you read the interview with maisie on the makinggameofthrones page? She mentioned how long sophie had been waiting to end the Littlefinger storyline. I don't know what to say...I've read that the sansa bran scene was cut off to make the audience belive sansa is better than baelish, although she was about to murder arya! And it was becausw sophie asked it. Srysly who knows what is really behind the scenes...What do you think? :(

To blame petyr for the conflict between sansa and arya is the stupidest thing i’ve ever heard, i mean are people blind or what? Arya kept behaving like a sociopath serial killer around sansa, creepying on her, blaming her for their fathers death even when sansa confessed she was forced to write the letter. Sansa said aryz loves jon better and kept saying to LF how much she’s afraid of arya, how dangerous she is and so on. He didnt encourage her to hurt arya it was her decision.

I don’t reallyread interviews or follow GoT actors in any way (w/ the exception of Aidan), sono, I haven’t seen any of this, anon, but lol @ them cutting that scene. It just madethat poor plot even poorer. That’s all it “improved”, imo. It wasstill fairly evident that - as opposed to some grand scheming - somethinghappened *last minute* to change Sansa’s mind, and that Bird Brother Bran wasthe source of this last minute reversal.

As for her being “better”, well… she did come out on top, that is true.Like when you come out on top racing a rickshaw w/ a Ferrari you borrowed just for that occasion. You are not the betterdriver, you don’t even own the Ferrari, you just have a grossly big advantage. It’s not impressive (as far astalent goes), it’s just boring w/ a predictable outcome. All that sanctimoniousreminiscing about Ned’s honor when both sisters were busy revenge murdering,turning on each other, and playing dirty was a bit too much, too. They are notmuch “better” anymore - which, given what they have been through,would be completely acceptable if they (and their stans) still didn’t genuinelytry to pretend to have the moral high ground.

Petyr was feedingSansa’s paranoia, imo, which is manipulation and indirect encouragement, but hedidn’t create the paranoia itself, on that we agree. Arya created this heavilycreepy-hostile atmosphere when she acted like Sansa had beheaded Ned herself andwas planning to do the same to Jon. Then Sansa way too quickly went to “ok,I feel threatened, so now I have to kill her. There is no other option”. Youcan’t put this on Petyr. The sisters had the very reasonable option of throwing that joke of a letter away and close ranks. They didn’t. That’s on them.

More often than not Petyr can’t make others do stuff they weren’t alreadyconsidering or willing to do. He cannot take away free will and control minds,so the responsibility doesn’t - can’t - fully rest w/ him, either. This issomething haters and antis passionately ignore so they can make him the Evil Oneand their faves without fault and blameless. One of Petyr’s major talents is sniffingout existing conflicts and wants/needs,feeding them and turning them to his advantage. So this silver-tongued dude could NEVER talkme into offing my sister for ANY reason unless I was already thinking about it.(I am not, sis, you are safe)

It really feltlike they threw that letter in just to have something“recent” to pin on Petyr at his non-trial and force a Cat-Lysaparallel w/ the whole “turning sister against sister” shit. Lysa turnedon Cat bc she was bitter and abused by her father, bc she was obsessed and jealous,bc she wanted Petyr for herself and he was clearly not reciprocating. He wasnot responsible for her feelings or her (or her father’s) behavior (the same way Cat was notresponsible for his). Later on he sure as shit exploited it, but once again theinitial animosity was already there and it was there due to the younger sister’s behavior. So we actually have a parallel here,just not the one they want to force “officially”.

Distorting andpushing *everything* bad that ever happened on Petyr, including their ownfamily crap, then absolving themselves of any personal responsibility (despitehaving quite a lot) is what happened in that hall, and I can still smell thatbullshit. There is a difference btw giving the antagonist their due andscapegoating. One is justice, the other is self-serving deflection.

Game of Thrones 7x07:  Look What You Made Me Do

And just like that it's over! This truncated season of seven episodes blew by as fast as a trip from Dragonstone to Eastwatch. I'm still not really sure why this season had to BE only seven episodes, I know the show is intensely expensive, but HBO has the money and why not shell out for three more episodes of their most popular property? Now faced with the prospect of a final season not hitting our little screens until 2019, I feel like a six episode finale is just not gonna cut it. I mean are we even going to make it two more years as a society? I would be super bummed if I had to leave this physical plane without having heard the final chords of the song of ice and fire. Although if the producers want to take the time to think very hard about writing and storytelling, I would not be adverse to that. Let's be real, while this season was full of spectacle, and had plenty to enjoy, the writing was just not up to the par of previous years. Drama that felt natural and earned was shelved in order to rush forward big "show stopping" moments such as Dany and Jon's meeting, ice dragon making, and this past episode's all hands on deck summit in the dragon pit.

Fan theories spiraled wildly out of control in correspondence with the increasingly erratic storytelling on screen. Instead of trying to predict the solution to a complex puzzle-plot, we are now in a time when literally anything can happen, including (but not limited to) Lannister lieutenant Ed Sheeran. Still, were we not entertained? There were absolutely moments this season that will go into the annals of GOT greatness: Arya's Walder Frey Face Swap Massacre, Olenna Tyrell's Final Fuck Off, Loot Train Battle  Dragon Destructo-Fest 2k17 to name a few. But the season's writing on a whole often veered into what felt like fan service (or straight up fanfiction). Game of Thrones isn't the first show to do this, but it is the first show to do it that up until this point has been famous for granting essentially the opposite of fan service. Oh you love this strong, glorious, perhaps ridiculously attractive, character? It would be a shame if something were to....happen...to them. But that being said this episode felt a bit more solid than it's immediate predecessor, and while they may not have completely stuck the landing, it was more of a point deduction for some hops rather than a horrifying leg break (did anyone else see that last Olympics? There is not a day that goes by I don't think about it.)

So our merry band of zombie hunters, as well as Brienne and Pod, have all assembled at King's Landing in order to persuade Cersei into a ceasefire. How much time has passed since the zombie capture? Days, weeks? Who knows. What's important is all of our favorites have assembled in a veritable class reunion. Pod is happy to see his old boss Tyrion still in one piece, Bronn is reunited with Pod, and Brienne and The Hound are downright chummy despite Brienne being under the impression she had murdered him during their previous encounter. Time really does heal all. But how much time? That's the true question. For once Jon is not the most popular princess at the party, he didn't fight in the Battle of the Blackwater, and he didn't co-parent a murderous pre-teen. Our group is escorted to the not-at-all-a-trap Dragon Pits where they await Cersei. Bronn and Pod peace out immediately because Bronn don't give a shit and also can't contractually be in the same room as Lena Headey. Ain't love grand.

Cersei is rolling deep (her crew includes Euron thank god), but her entrance is promptly upstaged by Dany flying in on Drogon. Before anything can happen, Euron interrupts the proceedings to call out Theon for, essentially, being a little bitch. It is glorious. Anyway the zombie is produced and runs right at Cersei, where exactly none of the people sworn to protect her do a single goddamn thing. Euron weighs the threat of millions of the undead versus the safety of his little island and peaces HARD. I absolutely loved this reaction and wish it had been genuine. Is Euron my favorite character? Unclear, but strong maybe.  Cersei says she will stand down if Jon promises to stay neutral. Jon I Can-Not-Tell-A-Lie Snow/Targaryen of course blabs that he already bent the knee to Dany. No one is impressed by this. Not only is Jon the least popular, he is now also the least liked.

Brienne cements my theory she only made the trip to tje Landing o'Kings to act as Jaime's moral compass, and pleads with him that loyalty to houses is dumb in the face of the current threat. She's not wrong. Later on Cersei will call Jaime the stupidest Lannister, but surely it is Tyrion who proceeds to fall hook, line, and sinker for her hand-on-stomach motivated-by-concern-for-my-baby-change-of-heart routine. Did anyone truly think that Cersei would just...join up with the good guys? That is a "what if" fanfiction summary too ridiculous for even this season of the show to pursue. Cersei is the woman who blew up half her own damn city, she does not have time for Jon Snow and Daenerys Targaryen. Why risk her throne when the zombies will kill these silly children for her? Why risk anything when the Iron Bank subplot has resulted in a whole mercenary army in Essos? Actually speaking of Essos...why doesn't everybody just move over there? Why not just let the Night King HAVE Westeros if he wants it so bad. Like they said, the zombies can't swim and Essos doesn't seem to be physically connected to Westeros in any way. Look I'm just saying.

Back at Dragonstone, it's revealed that Theon actually was impressed by Jon's foolhardy declaration of loyalty. Theon's subplot this season has been understated, but honestly one of my favorites. While he hasn't had the flashiest part in recent seasons Alfie Allen has turned in a consistently subtle and poignant performance in this role. Over the course of the show Theon's journey has been about belonging and finding his worth. This was at times less than subtly symbolized by first his castration (literal/figurative/symbolic/etc) at the hands of Ramsay, and then even less subtly by his reclamation of said "manhood' this episode. But that aside his new side quest to rescue Yara is pleasingly cyclical as he stakes his loyalty to the one person who ever willingly and proudly claimed him as family. Also now that presumably Yara is tied to Euron, who is pivotal to claiming Cersei's mercenary army.... I'm just saying maybe Theon will be able to play the part of hero in the end after all.

Speaking of families coming back together, all is well in Westeros as the Stark Sestras team up to take down Lord Baelish once and for all. Look I am always happy when storylines end in positive female friendship, but I still can't help feeling frustrated with the way this was played out. It is unclear how much time is passing for any of the characters in the show, but at what point did Arya and Sansa realize they were being played? Were any of their public confrontations for show? Surely there would be no point to their private arguments, so at least some of their discord had to have been real. How much, if it at all, were they able to set up Littlefinger in return? Or did they just arrive at their conclusion moments before the mock trial? I admit as an audience member I was fooled, not by clever storytelling, but by total misdirection that robbed us of the satisfaction of seeing these two bright young women begin to think for themselves. Like so many scenes written this season this was another example of a satisfying punchline delivered at the cost of a seemingly reverse-engineered build up.

And as much as I have enjoyed Aidan Gillen's scheming, it was rewarding to see him dispatched at the hands of the women who he spent most of the series attempting to manipulate. Despite his claims otherwise, the only person Littlefinger has ever truly cared about is Littlefinger. Even though the path there was rocky, I look forward to Sansa and Arya's newfound alliance. Arya recognizing what Sansa has been through, and Sansa in turn telling Arya she was the strongest person she knew was a beautiful scene. Both girls have been wearing their hair in styles reminiscent of their parents, and seeing them take on the leadership roles of the previous Lord and Lady of Winterfell was a nice touch.

But not all the show's siblings are getting on, and after threatening Tyrion with death, Cersei is on a roll. Jaime is, for some reason, surprised that instead of keeping her word Cersei has no actual intention of zombie fighting. Jaime has had quite the arc this season, one that has driven him away (perhaps forever) from his twin, lover, and baby mama. As I wrote about previously, Jaime is the archetypal white knight. He is one of the few characters not motivated by greed or self-promotion, but rather a warped familial love.. While he has acted cruelly and cowardly in the past, he is not characteristically cruel or a coward. This season he has witnessed true horror in the form of fiery dragon death, the vengeful Olenna Tyrell, and the true depth of Cersei's darkness. He seems to finally realize that what he perceived as righteous action motivated by true love may have been in service to the wrong side. A Jaime Lannister unmoored from his familial duty is as compelling a wildcard as any, and it will be interesting to watch his journey continue to unfold hopefully in a Northerly direction.

Well, we've come to it. There's nothing left to talk about. Sam and Gilly arrive back at Winterfell just in time for Sam to have an exposition-off with the Three Eyed Arse-Face. Sam proceeds to take credit for Gilly's breaking news, and together with Bran's "vision power" the two explicitly spell out the true nature of Jon's identity. None of their revelations are a surprise to viewers of the show, beyond chiseling 'Aegon Taragaryen" into canon. No, the bigger surprise was that this narration was the voice over to Jon and Dany getting it on on her pleasure yacht. While we heard definitive proof that Dany is in fact Jon's Aunt, we watched their supple bootied bodies writhe around together. What emotion was I supposed to be feeling during this scene? I am honestly asking. Because the emotion I was feeling was void. The absence of feeling. "Jon needs to know." Yeah ya think Bran? With all that you can see you couldn't see that you should have told him this vital, life-altering information just a little bit earlier? Send a goddamn raven since they travel at the speed of light. Jesus Seven Hells Christ.

Also there were many happy romantic flashbacks of Rhaegar marrying Lyanna, but it's super fucked up that Rhaegar ditched his first wife and children to have a SECOND child name Aegon. Like what the fuck is that Rhaegar?? Granted the first Aegon (along with his sister and mother) were horribly murdered by the Mountain, so I guess it was good he decided to make a spare. Oh sorry Jimmy, I decided to have another son with my new wife, who I like more than Mommy, and his name is also going to be Jimmy. If family therapy existed in Westeros, we would probably be in a very different place politically.

Finally, finally we end for with the Night King's arrival at the wall. The new zombie ice dragon is locked and loaded and it BREATHES BLUE FIRE. The blue fire was pretty cool, and I eagerly await it's use in the dragon on dragon throw down that will inevitably occur next season.  With the power of blue fire the Wall crumbles into the sea, devastating and conclusive proof that wall's are never the answer (no matter how cool and icy they look). I have to wonder though, what was the plan for traversing the Wall without a dragon? The Night King couldn't have known one of the only three dragons in the world would fall into his clutches...what was the contingency plan? Doesn't matter, the Wall is down and I'm going to need a wellness check on Ginger Beard.

Well that's it friends, season seven! If our own nuclear winter hasn't come I'll see you back here in.....two years..... Miss ya!

Things I didn't get to:

Clegane-bowl pre-game?

Probably could have thought of some more derogatory things to say about Bran.

Cersei's fake out Stark-alliance fur-lined dress. 

What happened to Gendry?

MVP: You. You made it.

XO MD

P.S. if you want to talk to me on Twitter about incest and shitty Westerosi parenting I'm @marthadee.

Small Town Problems

Grabbers Grabbers is an Irish film about a small town assaulted by                               alien tentacle monsters with a thirst for blood. To start with, although this is seen as one of the great Irish horror films, it’s really more of an adventure film. It’s really more in the vein of Evolution (2001). Doesn’t matter, what we have here is a damn fine film. There isn’t much in this film that doesn’t work. The CG isn’t convincing anyone that what they’re seeing is anything close to real, however, it does get the job done. The thing to note about the CG from a design aspect, is that the CG does not make the grabbers seem horrific. The design is a large reason it feels like an adventure film and not a horror comedy. It just takes you to that cartoonish place. That said, the practical effects are quite good, but there isn’t a lot of them. The acting is great and the characters are lovable. Ruth Bradley plays the most adorable drunk I have ever seen in my life. I want to hang out with every person in this town, so things don’t ever feel slow after the set-up because you want more of these charming characters. The characters sell this film. The dialogue is clever and funny. There’s some nice bit of physical comedy. I was invested in the action despite heavy CG.  I don’t have that much more to add. If you’re looking for a good time, this movie is it. This is an own for me. Go out and cop this one. Wake Wood Wake Wood is another Irish horror film that takes place in a small town. The town of Wake Wood can resurrect the dead. So, a couple of bad things first. The cinematography looks “amateurish.” It doesn’t have that gleam that one expects from professionally shot and produced movies. It’s also possible that it works in the movies favor, kind of mixing with the overall grayness of the film. Didn’t care for the blood used here to much. Sometimes it felt right. Most of the time it was too watery or too cherry red. And that’s it, because really, I love this film. While I didn’t care for a lot of the blood, the practical effects themselves are really quite good and often quite gruesome. This movie sets such a sad melancholy mood, and it’s the first movie this year where I even noticed the score and how well the score compliments the movie. The characters are well written. I have seen a number of films with Aidan Gillen, and in all of them I can’t get past Littlefinger. This is the first film I’ve seen him in where he’s not Littlefinger in the back of my head. All three of the main characters, portrayed by Aidan Gillen, Eve Birthistle, and Ella Connally do a great great job. Ella in particular, because she’s a child actor, so she gets bonus points for her performance here, because it really is very good. Now, it has to be said, Wake Wood is pretty much the Irish version of Pet Cemetery. Here’s the thing, I love Wake Wood, I HATE Pet Cemetery. While Pet Cemetery in itself has a great atmosphere and plethora of gruesome effects, I just hate the protagonist to the point where I can’t get past him. I truly believe he is an complete and total idiot. I don’t feel the same for the characters in this movie. It certainly helps that they aren’t warned by absolutely everyone to the point where people are coming back from the dead to warn them not to do the dumb ass shit that they’re going to do anyway. It also helps that the ritual in which individuals come back to life does not always yield the same results. Which is to say, if you bury some one in the Pet Cemetery, they WILL come back pure evil. That’s not the case in Wake Wood. The two main characters fuck up, yes, but they aren’t complete idiots. They do some really smart things to try to course correct their mistake. The grieving the characters do here is also far more subtle, far more realistic, and thus I was with them as a viewer. I want them to have their peace. I want them to work out. One other thing to note, this movie is really good at foreshadowing. There’s a recurring them, and I really didn’t catch on to it and all the foreshadowing until long after I had watched the movie. I like that. This movie gets tense, both due to the horrible acts happening AND due to the emotional weight of it all on the two protagonists. This is another must see must own movie for me. Ireland is 4 for 4 with great horror movies for me. I’m only that much more excited to see more from them.