Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

This blog will pay for itself.

“That’s what the insurrection act is for!”

No one could have predicted…

Jesus, Mary, & Joseph how is that election even close?

He wakes up lying, and he lies all day.

It’s a doggy dog world.

It’s all just conspiracy shit beamed down from the mothership.

‘Museums aren’t America’s attic for its racist shit.’

My years-long effort to drive family and friends away has really paid off this year.

Fuck that bum, let’s go Joe!

The cruelty is the point; the law be damned.

Oh FFS you might as well trust a 6-year-old with a flamethrower.

It’s the corruption, stupid.

When do the post office & the dmv weigh in on the wuhan virus?

You cannot shame the shameless.

Something needs to be done about our bogus SCOTUS.

If you cannot answer whether trump lost the 2020 election, you are unfit for office.

… riddled with inexplicable and elementary errors of law and fact

I wonder if trump will be tried as an adult.

… gradually, and then suddenly.

Fundamental belief of white supremacy: white people are presumed innocent, minorities are presumed guilty.

New McCarthy, same old McCarthyism.

They are lying in pursuit of an agenda.

Let’s delete this post and never speak of this again.

You are here: Home / Food & Recipes / Food / Street Food & Thrones

Street Food & Thrones

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Okay, I’m dying to discuss the latest episode of Game of Thrones, but I realize not everyone is watching it in real time and many folks aren’t watching it at all. For those of y’all with Netflix, may I suggest an alternative that got me through the stomach-churning wait for the latest Thrones?

I love this series so far, primarily because it focuses on the people and their stories, which are fascinating. It’s really good!

If you are all caught up on Thrones, maybe you can access a hidden spoilers thread by clicking on the photo below of Arya Stark in her street food days:

Don’t know that it’ll work across all platforms, but maybe? Anyhoo, open thread!

ETA: READ AT YOUR OWN RISK IF YOU WANT TO AVOID “GAME OF THRONES” SPOILERS! Not just the hidden thread; I can’t control what people say on the main thread either.

Reader Interactions

176Comments

  3. 3.

    Cermet

    Spoiler Alert!

    I was rather both pleased and surprised at how the Night King was killed. So very glad the “you know nothing” John Snow didn’t. Considering his over all battle plan failure and really useless dragon riding the show did it right.

  5. 5.

    rikyrah

    I will look.at Street Food.

    For those on Netflix, may I suggest IMPOSTER.

    I stumbled onto it, and just love the twists and turns.

    If you have Amazon Prime, I would suggest

    MADE IN HEAVEN.

  6. 6.

    Kristine

    I understand folks’ complaints about the episode, but I still enjoyed it. I needed a break from the utterly relentless grim–as opposed to regular everyday grim–and it gave it to me.

    I’m seeing Endgame tomorrow morning. Not sure I’ll get more of the same, but friends have loved it so I will take what I get.

    PS I tried to post this on the spoiler thread, but the comment didn’t appear. It could be a Chrome issue because the comment totals don’t always match the actual number of comments anymore, and sometimes comments don’t show up unless I refresh the page several times.

  9. 9.

    Another Scott

    @Kristine: The multiple-refresh-to-see-new-comments isn’t a Chrome thing, it’s a “CDN” (content distribution network) thing. The CDN is intended to take load off the B-J database, and it does that, but unfortunately it is often distributing old pages. So you need to refresh multiple times to be sure you get the latest page. It (probably) affects all browsers.

    HTH a little.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  10. 10.

    rikyrah

    There is another supernatural show following Killing Eve, set at Oxford with a witch and vampire as romantic interests. I can’t remember the name of the show, but I am watching it every week. It’s on AMC.

  12. 12.

    cmorenc

    Here in the real nonfictional world, we are stuck playing in a “Game of Bozos” until at least November 2020 (or January 2021, since even in defeat as lame ducks, the gang of Bozos will have time to inflict as much damage as the can over the intervening two months).

  15. 15.

    Mike in NC

    OK, that nearly 90 minute nighttime Battle of Winterfell episode of GoT was confusing and exhausting at times, but we were satisfied by the way it wrapped up (no spoilers). Will need to read a few more recaps to clear up exactly what was going on at times.

  17. 17.

    Mike in NC

    @rikyrah: We missed the first several episodes and will need to start from the beginning using the the local on-demand feature.

    We also love iZombie.

  19. 19.

    TenguPhule

    To the surprise of nobody here, Barr is going “Fuck you, you and what army?” to the House demand that he testify.

  21. 21.

    Miss Bianca

    @rikyrah: Damn, I seem to recall that you were watching this one – what was the name of that “Romeo and Juliet”-based show that features Rosaline and Benvolio? I want to see if it’s out on DVD and I cannot remember what it ‘s called! And I read the book and I *still* can’t remember it! Aagh!

  23. 23.

    TenguPhule

    And because its a day ending in Y in the worst timeline, the measles epidemic in the states has reached yet another record breaking high.

  28. 28.

    kindness

    The battle pretty much happened as I figured it would. Arya is a bad ass. I figured she’s be the one to get Cersei, not the Night King. Bad Ass none the less.

  31. 31.

    Puddinhead

    I thought the reveal that the Red Lady was actually Chris De Burgh was a little cheesy for my taste.

  34. 34.

    JR

    Since when in the history of conflict do you send your cavalry ahead in a straight charge without infantry and/or artillery support

  35. 35.

    Kent

    @kindness:

    The battle pretty much happened as I figured it would. Arya is a bad ass. I figured she’s be the one to get Cersei, not the Night King. Bad Ass none the less.

    For Arya they pretty much borrowed from Summer Glau’s character River in the 2005 Serenity movie where the Summer character took on all the reavers with her blades. It was almost a frame-for-frame remake of that scene. https://youtu.be/XuKpvyO3-qE Some of the GOT writers must be Serenity fans. I gotta admit, I didn’t see the exact ending coming. The overall arc of the battle, yes, that was obvious because someone had to be left to take on Cersei in the upcoming episodes. But I didn’t see Arya’s role in it.

  37. 37.

    Archon

    @JR:

    Don’t think too much about tactics and strategy when watching GoT it will give you a headache.

  39. 39.

    TenguPhule

    @JR:

    Since when in the history of conflict do you send your cavalry ahead in a straight charge without infantry and/or artillery support

    Every Hollywood film about knights. Ever.

  42. 42.

    Mnemosyne

    @judyinsd:

    I had an actual historian recommend those books to me. Apparently the author is herself a respected historian and is able to weave her research into the fiction.

  43. 43.

    BC in Illinois

    @rikyrah:

    BREAKING: St. Louis County Executive Steve Stenger indicted on federal charges, will resign office according to his attorney

    He has resigned. The County Council will select a new (acting?) County Executive this evening.

    Steve Stenger was carrying on a pay-for-play operation for the county government, in plain sight. He barely tried to cover it. He barely won re-election, because his main opponent wasn’t a great candidate himself.

    Since we have brought local news into the thread, it’s worth noting that St Louis County — once safely Republican — has been selecting some really great Democrats recently. The abysmal Bob McCullough, who mis-handled the post-Ferguson prosecutions, was replaced by Wesley Bell, a magnificent Ferguson City Council member. A Stenger ally, thought to be a safe candidate for County Council, was defeated by a vastly better Democrat.

    Now we need to get enough St Louis County energy to defeat Rep Ann Wagner (R – safe Republican vote) who mis-represents parts of St Louis County (which has come a long way) and St Charles County (which has a long way to go).

  45. 45.

    TenguPhule

    In interviews this past week, several farmers across the country said the debate hundreds of miles away in Washington had left them in limbo, wary of moving forward without the promise of federal aid. Outside their state governments, which have allocated money, and their delegations, the farmers said, few politicians understand the scope of the damage for their families and their communities.

    Trump’s refusal to spend more money on Puerto Rico relief is now impacting farmers across the country, via the FTNYT.

    But few of the farmers here, eager for any update on the status of negotiations in Washington, were willing to single out a culprit beyond the forces of nature and the specter of a federal government seemingly disconnected from its citizens. And few objected to the prospect of Puerto Rico receiving more aid — as long as their money was allocated, too.

    “It’s our turn, but we’re not getting our turn,” said Bart Davis, a cotton farmer who met with Mr. Trump when he visited after the storm. “They’re not doing their jobs up there.”

    Some of them I’m sure are very fine people.

  46. 46.

    Mnemosyne

    For the theater nerds among us, G and I are really enjoying “Fosse/Verdon.” It’s doing a really good job of showing how and why they remained artistic partners even after their romantic relationship broke down.

    Plus it does what every good movie and TV biography does: it makes you want to go out and watch all of the works they’re re-creating.

  48. 48.

    SFAW

    @JR:

    Since when in the history of conflict do you send your cavalry ahead in a straight charge without infantry and/or artillery support

    Well, when Minas Troney needed help, the Rohirrim/Roi-Tanners couldn’t exactly wait for the 155s to roll up.

  51. 51.

    TenguPhule

    Donald Trump’s top economic adviser said the White House still backs Stephen Moore for a position on the Federal Reserve Board despite growing criticism over past comments deriding Midwestern cities and women.

    “We’re still behind him,” National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow told reporters at the White House on Monday. “No change in our position.”

    Bugger it.

  52. 52.

    Kent

    @TenguPhule:

    But few of the farmers here, eager for any update on the status of negotiations in Washington, were willing to single out a culprit beyond the forces of nature and the specter of a federal government seemingly disconnected from its citizens. And few objected to the prospect of Puerto Rico receiving more aid — as long as their money was allocated, too.

    “It’s our turn, but we’re not getting our turn,” said Bart Davis, a cotton farmer who met with Mr. Trump when he visited after the storm. “They’re not doing their jobs up there.”

    Fuck them. Ben Sasse and the Nebraska Congressional delegation voted against the original hurricane aid for Puerto Rico. What you sow you shall reap.

    https://www.bustle.com/p/16-republicans-who-opposed-a-hurricane-disaster-relief-bill-in-the-senate-2979420

  55. 55.

    Kent

    @Villago Delenda Est:

    @Archon: DEFINITELY don’t think about it while watching ANY Star Wars film.

    Exactly. Such as all the times that they line up in straight rows like Roman legionaries in a inter-galactic high technology war.

  56. 56.

    mikefromDublin

    I’ll be watching GoT in a few but yeah, was just about rdy to watch that food show but watched Avengers last night so now I’m watching some marvel stuff first to get some history of the chars I don’t know.

  57. 57.

    Nicole

    I didn’t love the episode. It was fine at first (we have a pretty good TV, watched in on HBO, not streamed, and turned all the lights off, so I didn’t have the too dark to see issue a lot of viewers did), but the more I thought about it the more it fell apart for me.

    And, the Seven forgive me, but I didn’t like the grand climax. Arya’s assassin skills have reached the point where it strains credulity. She’s like the good guy version of Ramsay Bolton now and it makes me disengage from her character (no criticism of the excellently talented Maisie Williams; this is me grousing at the writers).

    Not to mention, Jon Snow fails so spectacularly upwards at everything he does. It’s like the Rich White Boy Story. I thought the point of the end of Season Seven was how foolish Cersei was being, and yet it looks like she called it all right- the North took care of the existential threat and it didn’t cost her a single soldier. I’m sure she’ll get her comeuppance, but it won’t be due to making the wrong call on this.

    I always retain the right to utterly and completely change my mind during the last 3 episodes. I’d be thrilled. I like surprises.

    And I am only human… after the excellent Episode 2, I’m shipping Brienne and Jaime so hard right now. ;)

  58. 58.

    ??? Goku (aka Amerikan Baka) ??

    @TenguPhule:
    Why can’t they place the blame where it belongs? Why can’t these idiots blame Trump for his racist childishness?

    Mostly rhetorical. Mostly.

  59. 59.

    TenguPhule


    US builds migrant tent city in Texas as Trump likens treatment to ‘Disneyland’

    The US government has begun erecting tents close to the border with Mexico to house detained migrants – even as Donald Trump likened the treatment of undocumented families entering the US to “Disneyland” on Sunday.

    Life at the foothills of the Franklin mountains in El Paso, Texas has been rudely disrupted in the last few days by construction crews coming and going near the adjacent border patrol station.

    The main frames of two large tents popped up last week. They are expected to hold up to 500 migrants amid a level of chaos at the border that has unfolded under the Trump administration’s immigration policies.

    Forget about policies, I will support any Democratic Candidate that will fucking stop and reverse every fucking thing Trump has touched, done or defiled.

    He told the Fox News show Sunday Morning Futures: “When they used to separate children, which was done during the Obama administration, with Bush, with us, with everybody, far fewer people would come, and we’ve been on a humane basis, it’s pretty bad.”

    He added to the host, Maria Bartiromo: “We go out and we stop the separation. The problem is you have 10 times more people coming up with their families, it’s like Disneyland now.”

  60. 60.

    Amir Khalid

    @Kent:
    Come to think of it, I always wondered why the Rebel Alliance had to evacuate an entire ice planet after losing one battle on one field.

  62. 62.

    TenguPhule

    @Jeffro:

    I’m here for people who want to talk about AVENGERS : ENDGAME btw ;)

    Speaking of movies where you have to stop thinking and just go “you should really just relax”

    Whoever the writers were, they were paid way too fucking much for ripping off someone’s fanfiction story idea.

  63. 63.

    Brachiator

    @Kristine:

    I’m seeing Endgame tomorrow morning. Not sure I’ll get more of the same, but friends have loved it so I will take what I get.

    A few random thoughts about Avengers Endgame. Totally non-spoilery

    All I will say for now is that for a nerdy ass comic book movie, it was pretty damn ambitious. And this nerd was happy. It is a satisfying resolution to Infinity War.

    It has some unexpected humorous touches, generally very well done. It plays fair with viewer emotions, and the crowd I saw it with was happy. You have moments that make you gasp and moments that make you cheer, all honestly earned. What more could you ask for?

    People coming to see the movie included a good number of dads with daughters. There were also a good number of groups of girls and women coming to see the film.

    I am not sure that the movie will make a lot of sense to people who have not seen most of the earlier movies.

    Some excitable little boys were running around in the area between the front row and the screen while there parents or older siblings watched the end credits. And these little boys were ready to see the movie again right now.

    There is no post-credits final scene! You might as well go home when the credits start rolling.

    One of the craft people identified in the credits was a Victor Hugo Rodriguez. I thought that was cool.

    The one thing I will note as a public service announcement. It is a long ass movie, 3 hours plus with trailers. Make sure you take a personal break before hand.

  64. 64.

    Tazj

    @Kent: Also used in the movie War Horse during WWI, with the same result.

    This has been said many times since last night but I was expecting some kind of interesting or enlightening conversation between the Night King and Bran. I don’t know why or what possibly could have been said. I wasn’t disappointed that Arya was the one who killed him, of course.

    @Al Z.: Very adorable puppy!

  65. 65.

    ruemara

    @rikyrah: Yay. I too am watching A Discovery of Witches. I’m kinda meh on it right now. but that’s ok because most of my tv watchin’ is done during tv & podcast writin’.

    Not really into GoT because the sexposition was so dumb and I can barely stand any of the characters. But I am very proud of Arya. Lyanna Mormont, tho, is an ICON.

  66. 66.

    Rommie

    Sadly, someone’s certainly made a Name for themselves now, and will likely eat a lot of arrows and/or bolts at the next fight that’s coming, if not end up like her Dad, because that’s how the GRRM guy rolls. Subversion is a favorite writer tool, though…

  67. 67.

    UncleEbeneezer

    Oh this Street Food show looks amazing! We were absolutely blown away by the street food in Vietnam and Cambodia, and can’t wait to see what the Yucatan offers in October.

  68. 68.

    ??? Goku (aka Amerikan Baka) ??

    @TenguPhule:
    Isn’t Avengers: Endgame based off a comic book storyline? Also, not cool dude dissing the concept of fanfiction like

  70. 70.

    NotMax

    Am enjoying the two Mary Beard expository mini-series about the Roman Empire available on Prime, Meet the Romans and Rome: Empire Without Limit. Her affection for the subject matter is positively contagious.

  71. 71.

    Kent

    @Tazj: I haven’t been following all the discussion threads, but I kind of missed the part about why Bran was so important to the Night King that he had to stop his distruction of Winterfell and the human race and go hunt him down. It’s not like he was Frodo and carrying the one ring or anything. There was the bit about Bran being the 3-eyed raven who carries the memories of mankind. But that hasn’t really been developed in any meaningful way for such a critical plot point.

  72. 72.

    Brachiator

    @JR:

    Since when in the history of conflict do you send your cavalry ahead in a straight charge without infantry and/or artillery support

    In the movies and on TV.

    @Jeffro:

    I’m here for people who want to talk about AVENGERS : ENDGAME btw ;)

    I don’t know. I’m still willing to minimize spoilers for a few more days at least. I managed to see the movie spoiler-free and am glad I did.

  73. 73.

    JoeyJoeJoe

    @rikyrah: I watch that and The Enemy Within. I liked Morris Chestnut from seeing him in things as early as Under Siege 2: Dark Territory

  77. 77.

    NotMax

    @Brachiator

    Just as a general FYI, there are apps out there which claim to hide or block spoilers. Sort of like the pie filter here. No personal experience with any of them, so cannot speak to their effectiveness.

  78. 78.

    Roger Moore

    @Kristine:

    I’m seeing Endgame tomorrow morning. Not sure I’ll get more of the same, but friends have loved it so I will take what I get.

    I feel as if Endgame is satisfying, but I don’t think it’s one of the very best MCU movies. In particular, I’m not happy with some of the character development. I don’t want to say that the characters developed in impossible directions, but that I think they needed to sell the way they developed better than they did.

  79. 79.

    satby

    @raven: I’m really liking Unforgotten. And a guilty pleasure has been Lucifer: pure popcorn.
    I binged on all five seasons of In Plain Sight lately too. And if the rain keeps up as it has been I’m going to have to see if I can do a movie marathon on the Criterion channel. Because I’m bored sitting inside.

  80. 80.

    Emma

    Question: I’ve seen a lot of people pissy about the fact that it was Arya who took out the Night King. Now, as I’ve said before, I’ve never watched the show, but from comments it seems she was trained to be a sort of ultimate assassin for years. The Night King could not be destroyed through frontal battle so why not her? It seems to me this plot was telegraphed seasons ago.

  83. 83.

    Mike in NC

    Always hated the Night King character in GoT. All that was missing from that dude was a MAGA hat.

  85. 85.

    LuciaMia

    Still not sure, when the Night King does his resurrect-the-dead thing, does that only affect those killed by wights? Or any old dead body laying around?

    Re: the Night King impervious to fire. So is Dany. Can there be some ancient blood tie to him and the Tragaeryn line?

  86. 86.

    Brachiator

    Watching Avengers Endgame and Game of Thrones during the same weekend was intense. There are thematic parallels in both the movie and the tv show. The Thrones season finale is an endgame in its own way. Scenes in the first part of Avengers remind me of the quiet moments of Thrones Episode 2.

    After the climactic battle of the third episode, I am not sure what they are going to do for three more episodes.

  87. 87.

    Roger Moore

    @JR:

    Since when in the history of conflict do you send your cavalry ahead in a straight charge without infantry and/or artillery support

    Waterloo. OK, they launched an infantry charge first, but a big chunk of the afternoon at Waterloo consisted of one unsupported cavalry charge after another.

  88. 88.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    @TenguPhule: Nah, those farmers just need to cut out the corruption and pull themselves up by their boot straps like Puerto Rico.

  90. 90.

    Roger Moore

    @Amir Khalid:

    Come to think of it, I always wondered why the Rebel Alliance had to evacuate an entire ice planet after losing one battle on one field.

    They weren’t occupying the whole planet. They were occupying one small base on that planet. More importantly, they were weak enough that they knew they’d have to evacuate the moment the Imperial fleet found them. The battle was just a cover for their evacuation.

  91. 91.

    dmsilev

    @Brachiator:

    The one thing I will note as a public service announcement. It is a long ass movie, 3 hours plus with trailers. Make sure you take a personal break before hand.

    Back in the days of yore, it was not unusual for long movies to have an intermission halfway through. I feel that if you’re going to push a three hour film, bringing back that tradition isn’t a bad idea.

    Enjoyed it greatly, the plot holes didn’t bother me much. Maybe have a spoiler discussion thread towards the end of the week?

  94. 94.

    Mrs. D. Ranged in AZ

    @Emma: The producers said afterward in the “Inside the Episode” that they’ve known for three years that Arya would be the one to kill the Night King so they laid the groundwork. There are tons of little references that predict it, so yeah, the clues are there for those with eyes to see. The problem is that it deviates from the typical “white male hero protagonist saves the day”. It makes people uncomfortable, I think. I personally loved it.

    And can we get a great big ol “HELL YEAH” for Lyanna Mormont? I was crying and cheering at the same time.

  95. 95.

    Roger Moore

    @Brachiator:

    There is no post-credits final scene! You might as well go home when the credits start rolling.

    I enjoyed waiting through the main title sequence. Every major character got their own splash scene with a clip from a previous movie, and I thought that was a nice way of saying goodbye to the past 10+ years of building the story.

  96. 96.

    Amir Khalid

    @Roger Moore:
    A whole planet has a lot of places to hide. I wonder why they didn’t consider that option. The Viet Cong made good use of it.

  99. 99.

    NotMax

    @Roger Moore

    Am one of those oddballs who likes sitting through the entirety of the end credits. Although over the years there has been substantial bloat, to the point where one half expects a credit to appear for Caterer’s Nephew’s Dog Groomer.

    ;)

  100. 100.

    Mnemosyne

    @thalarctosMaritimus:

    Well, we’re waiting for another test to come back, because the second needle aspiration biopsy came back as negative for lymphoma. ?‍♀️ If this one comes back negative, too, we’re back to square one, which is frustrating.

    We have discovered that she likes the Wellness dry kitten food, so we’re trying to keep her weight up with that. The next best guess the doctors have is inflammatory bowel disease, but we have to wait to make sure it’s definitely not cancer before we can start treating her for that.

  101. 101.

    bemused

    I just clicked on an interesting pocket feed: Julie Sedwig, “Why Doesn’t Ancient Fiction Talk About Feelings?”, Literature’s evolution has reflected the growing complexity of society

  102. 102.

    schrodingers_cat

    @rikyrah: Its gets darker and more interesting as it goes on. Of the episodes you have seen, I loved the one with Deepti Naval (older couple getting married) and the other one with Shweta Tripathi( the one about dowry) the best.

  103. 103.

    thalarctosMaritimus

    @Mnemosyne: yes, I hear you. Sometimes it takes excruciatingly long to figure out what’s going on.

    We’re holding all good thoughts for you and Annie as you go through that.

  104. 104.

    Roger Moore

    @Amir Khalid:

    A whole planet has a lot of places to hide. I wonder why they didn’t consider that option. The Viet Cong made good use of it.

    There were three problems with that:

    1) Hoth is an ice planet which they make a big point of showing as incredibly inhospitable to human life. They needed a substantial base to be able to survive. And there wasn’t a nice civilian population on Hoth for the rebels to blend in among, a key way the Viet Cong avoided detection.

    2) They were surprised and didn’t have a chance to set up multiple bases between the time they knew they needed to deal with the Imperial fleet and when the invasion started.

    3) The imperial fleet’s sensors are too good. The rebels can hide by finding some random obscure planet, because there are literally millions of backwater planets where they could be hiding, and it will take even a big space Empire a lot of time to search them all. But if the Empire actually brings the fleet to their planet, they can’t hide the existence and location of their base.

  105. 105.

    Chyron HR

    Wait a minute… his name is the Night King? I’ve been calling him Walter Wight! Why didn’t someone tell me? I’ve been making an idiot out of myself!

  106. 106.

    Brachiator

    @Roger Moore:

    I enjoyed waiting through the main title sequence. Every major character got their own splash scene with a clip from a previous movie, and I thought that was a nice way of saying goodbye to the past 10+ years of building the story.

    Yep. I also sat through all the credits even though I didn’t need to.

  107. 107.

    Mnemosyne

    @bemused:

    I recently went to a conference about early modern Europe and one of the interesting findings was that, in the pleadings people made to be granted a legal separation in the Church of England’s courts, no one talked about their feelings until 1780, and it was a very abrupt change. “Sensibility” suddenly became valued on a societal level and marital court records reflected that.

  108. 108.

    Emerald

    @LuciaMia: Any old dead body. That’s why the corpses long buried in the crypt start climbing out of their tombs.

    Thought that was great!

  109. 109.

    different-church-lady

    I appear to be the only human being on the planet who isn’t even slightly curious about it.

  110. 110.

    Brachiator

    @bemused:

    I just clicked on an interesting pocket feed: Julie Sedwig, “Why Doesn’t Ancient Fiction Talk About Feelings?”, Literature’s evolution has reflected the growing complexity of society

    Huh? The epic of Gilgamesh deals with loneliness, the need for friendship, all kinds of emotions.

    Ah, I just found the essay. A long read to save for later. Thanks for the tip.

  113. 113.

    Emerald

    Anybody know if Brienne of Tarth survived? It looked like she didn’t, but the verdamnten screen was so dark I couldn’t really tell.

    I was sure she’d get slaughtered because her story arc kind of ended when she achieved her lifelong dream of becoming a knight, but now there’s a new possible romance with Jamie.

    So did he or somebody else save her, or what?

  115. 115.

    MazeDancer

    This large crowd celebrating the end of GoT as one is adorable.

    I did the same. Instantly raised my hands over my head like “Touchdown!” – and I don’t even watch football – and shouted “Arya!!”

    They did a great job of building up the “all hope is lost” quotient, I kept trying to figure out how they were going to continue the story. Did not expect the big win.

  117. 117.

    schrodingers_cat

    @Brachiator: As did the Mahabharata. Karna’s eternal quest to belong as the child born out of wedlock. Geeta is entirely about Arjuna’s crisis of conscience and his internal struggle about not wanting fight his mentors and beloved relatives.

  119. 119.

    Emerald

    @MazeDancer: Oh I knew they had to have the big win, otherwise the series would have been over. However, they really did get me with how long they took to get there. I was expecting it for 15 minutes at least before it finally happened.

    Glad they gave poor old Theon a good death.

  120. 120.

    Robert Bowsher

    @JR: You can make it work, if you’re heavily armored and the other side doesn’t have ranged weapons. That was War: Middle Ages style until Swiss pikemen and English/Welsh longbowmen showed up.

  123. 123.

    Emerald

    @Emerald: Answered my own question. Google is our friend. She survived! Hooray! Now Jamie can stick his new Lady in Cersei’s eye! Hah!

  124. 124.

    Roger Moore

    @Brachiator:

    The epic of Gilgamesh deals with loneliness, the need for friendship, all kinds of emotions.

    Yeah, and I seem to remember The Illiad contains an extensive scene of Achilles whining about feeling unappreciated.

  125. 125.

    Immanentize

    @Robert Bowsher:
    Agincourt, as I cryptically mentioned above, was one such battle. The armed horsemen were sent to carve up the foot soldiers and break ranks. Then you would send in your foot soldiers to mop up.

  128. 128.

    Immanentize

    @Roger Moore:
    But the difference between the treatment of the mind in the Illiad and the Odyssey is really striking — the latter being so much more overtly “emotion based” if that is the right phrase.

  129. 129.

    Kent

    @Emerald:

    Anybody know if Brienne of Tarth survived? It looked like she didn’t, but the verdamnten screen was so dark I couldn’t really tell.

    I was sure she’d get slaughtered because her story arc kind of ended when she achieved her lifelong dream of becoming a knight, but now there’s a new possible romance with Jamie.

    So did he or somebody else save her, or what?

    I think so but it was hard as hell to tell what was going on. My Tivo recording of the cable HBO stream was so bad and pixilated that I turned it off and switched over to the HBO-GO stream on my Samsung Smart TV and that was a bit better. Slate did an article this morning about why this episode was so difficult to watch. https://slate.com/culture/2019/04/game-of-thrones-long-night-dark-cinematography-twitter-complaints.html

  130. 130.

    Miss Bianca

    @Roger Moore: As well as a lovely domestic scene between Hector, Andromache and baby Astyanax (just before the battle where old Achilles offs Hector and drags him round the walls of Troy) which I recall dealing quite explicitly with emotions.

    I was always rooting for the Trojans over the Greeks. Probably because of that scene.

  131. 131.

    mrmoshpotato

    To add to all the discussion about Netflix’s Street Food series ?, just finished the Delhi episode.

    Starting the Singapore episode now.

    Highly recommended.

  133. 133.

    Aaron

    GOT: Just glad someone other then GRRMartin is running the series because the whole ‘battle with the knight king’ would have been dragged out over multiple episodes, and they looked poised to do so, what with the ‘Ill retake the Iron Islands so you have a place to retreat to” comment by theon’s sister.
    They are really getting to a finish!
    also: having kids with your secret valyerian brother is unlikely to be a problem the first generation you do it. cf? sersei

  134. 134.

    Robert Bowsher

    @Immanentize: Yes, but enough bowmen (and Welsh were #1 back then) and that plan doesn’t work. Same with pikemen – charging them was a good way to lose.

    Most of the leaders back then hadn’t figured out combined arms yet. A lot of times the failures were due to nobles’ attitude; “I’m wearing my armor and am on my horse, so by God I’m going to attack!”

    I think it turns out that a better way is almost the opposite of that plan – the infantry fights it out, and the cavalry attacks routed enemies when you win or fends off the opponent’s cavalry when you lose.

    ETA: I though Julian Jaynes was awesome back when I read “Orgins…” in college. I’m still not convinced he’s wrong.

  135. 135.

    Kent

    @Robert Bowsher:

    I think it turns out that a better way is almost the opposite of that plan – the infantry fights it out, and the cavalry attacks routed enemies when you win or fends off the opponent’s cavalry when you lose.

    Right. Use your mobility where it’s needed. For recon and to protect your flanks. Don’t grind it up sending it up the middle. Good generals knew this going back to Alexander as he demonstrated when he defeated the Persians at the Battle of Gaugamela by using his cavalry properly.

  137. 137.

    Brachiator

    @Miss Bianca:

    I was always rooting for the Trojans over the Greeks. Probably because of that scene.

    One of the most amazing things about The Iliad is how fair Home is to the Trojans. They are not a demonized enemy. Hell, Agamemnon is more an antagonist than is any Trojan.

    @Immanentize:

    But the difference between the treatment of the mind in the Illiad and the Odyssey is really striking — the latter being so much more overtly “emotion based” if that is the right phrase.

    There has always been speculation about Homer, One line of thought is that Homer was a woman, on the basis on how much emphasis there is on domestic life in The Odyssey. Hell, I think it possible that a woman composed both sagas.

    In any event, I always admire the description of Hector becoming afraid, and running away from Achilles in The Iliad.

    While he stood there thinking, Achilles, peer of Ares, approached, the plumes of his helmet nodding, brandishing the mighty spear of Pelian ash in his right hand, high above his shoulder, his bronze armour blazing like fire or the rising sun.

    Now Hector was gripped by fear and, trembling at the sight of him, afraid to stand his ground by the gate, set off running. Achilles, confident in his own speed, pursued him.

    Like a hawk, swiftest of birds, swooping on a timorous dove in the mountains, darting towards her with fierce cries as she flees, eager to seize her, so Achilles ran and Hector fled as fast as he could in terror, below the Trojan wall.

  138. 138.

    Jeffro

    @Brachiator:

    The one thing I will note as a public service announcement. It is a long ass movie, 3 hours plus with trailers. Make sure you take a personal break before hand.

    My son and I made a pact to spot each other bathroom breaks at the 1-hour mark, and that worked PERFECTLY! Hardly missed anything important at all, and then we were all set for two hours of non-stop action after that!

  139. 139.

    Kent

    @Emerald:

    @Kent: She did according to the Google machine!

    The need some main characters left to take on Cersei. I have a feeling that Tyrion is going to loom large in upcoming episodes.

  141. 141.

    Jeffro

    @Brachiator: (whoops, missed this comment)

    I don’t know. I’m still willing to minimize spoilers for a few more days at least. I managed to see the movie spoiler-free and am glad I did.

    I’m glad I did too but even the Post has “THE FOUR BIGGEST DEATHS IN ENDGAME! SPOILERS!!” up on its website. Kind of hard for anyone to avoid it for much longer.

    I will say this, I had the endings to two major characters completely accurate, but reversed, in my early predictions with my son…I had a third character’s ending completely spot-on. Did not see the one surprise death coming at all.

  142. 142.

    Immanentize

    @Robert Bowsher: I still love Jaynes. I had a very illuminating talk with a chair of a psychology department at a big ass Boston school who said when Jaynes was writing, consciousness was all the rage. But it proved a bit too difficult to test in ways that made funders happy. So, in the 80’s, theories moved more to the questions of phychology through electric neuron causation and left consciousness alone for decades. With the advent of AI algorithms and search for better learning not on a strict Skinner model, he thinks consciousness theorizing is back on the table. He told me nothing in “Origins” has ever been disproved.

  143. 143.

    Suzanne

    I very much enjoyed the episode. HOWEVER, I am still confused as to the fate of the dragons. The Night King had Viserion, so RIP Zombie Dragon. Was it Drogon that had all the wights hanging off him/her? It looked like Drogon who came and sat by Daenerys as Jorah Mormont died. So I presume that one survived. And did Rhaegal survive? It was very hard to tell.

  145. 145.

    Barbara

    @TenguPhule: I don’t wish harm on anyone, and I do hope they get the aid that they should, but of all the ideas that leave me perplexed, the most perplexing is the idea that a rational adult could possibly have thought at any time that Donald Trump actually cared whether they lived or died, or in this case, whether they lose their livelihood or their homes. The only thing he wants is their anger. If it’s not enough for them to live on, oh well.

  146. 146.

    Roger Moore

    @Robert Bowsher:

    I think it turns out that a better way is almost the opposite of that plan – the infantry fights it out, and the cavalry attacks routed enemies when you win or fends off the opponent’s cavalry when you lose.

    It depends a lot on how well trained the infantry is. Infantry has to be very steady to stand up to a cavalry charge. If the infantry is unsteady and breaks, the cavalry can cut them to pieces. And that’s a highly desirable outcome, because it means you can win the battle with minimal loss. In contrast, slugging it out with your infantry and hoping the cavalry can ride down the enemy when he breaks will result in heavy losses to the infantry in the process.

    As an alternative, you can try a combined arms approach. One classic approach is to bring out your infantry to force the enemy infantry into a linear formation and then try to take them in the flank or rear with your cavalry. Alternatively, you can threaten the enemy infantry with your cavalry to try to force them into an anti-cavalry formation and then try to hit them with your infantry in a linear formation or with close-range artillery.

  147. 147.

    Miss Bianca

    @Immanentize: Damn, I tried, I truly tried, to read that Julian Jaynes book back in the 80s, when I was a college student. Just could not handle it. It’s probably still in my pile of academic books somewhere.

  148. 148.

    Immanentize

    @Miss Bianca: I still discuss one of his insights/comments every year in my first year criminal law class when I start talking about mental state —
    When you were a child, learning g how to tie your shoes was a big deal. Parents have all sorts of little stories to help about bunny ears, etc. You were keenly aware of the difficult hand-eye coordination issues. Not to mention doing a good enough job to keep your shoes on…. But now, when you tie your shoes, can you say you do so consciously?

    ETA. How’s Roxy?

  149. 149.

    Brachiator

    @schrodingers_cat:

    As did the Mahabharata. Karna’s eternal quest to belong as the child born out of wedlock. Geeta is entirely about Arjuna’s crisis of conscience and his internal struggle about not wanting fight his mentors and beloved relatives.

    Yes! Yes! Great example.

  151. 151.

    Miss Bianca

    @Immanentize: Well, I would make the case that I tie my shoes consciously, only because after the first few times they come unknotted on a hike I actually, grimly, go through the bunny ears motions *twice* to double-knot, wondering. “why don’t I just do this in the first place?” Don’t know if that counts. : )

    Roxy is as cute as a wolf girl gets. She’s coming in the house more and is even starting to expose the soft white underbelly for skritches. Progress!

  153. 153.

    Mnemosyne

    @Barbara:

    I’m still convinced that a large number of conservatives were raised in abusive and/or unstable homes. They have a deep need to believe that authority figures have their best interests at heart even when they obviously don’t because otherwise it means they’re on their own with no help in sight. They probably often found themselves in situations where the adults in charge would cover for each other and lie about what happened.

    There’s probably also a thread of good old-fashioned affinity fraud. It’s a lot easier to con people if you convince them that you’re just like them, and it’s really hard to expose that kind of fraudster, because their marks have to keep on believing to keep their own self-image in place.

  154. 154.

    Mrs. D. Ranged in AZ

    @Suzanne: When Rhaegal crashed I was pretty sure he was a goner. But if you watch the next ep preview, look closely at the dragons flying. One is green, flies over a boat, I think, it’s Rhaegal and in another scene two dragons are flying together. So two dragons left, thank goodness.

    PS: I would like to ask your advice about some personal stuff I’m going through with my trans kid. Would you be willing to communicate via email? If not, I understand. :)

  155. 155.

    bemused

    @Immanentize:

    One of my first thoughts was who had the luxury and energy in those ancient times to write about emotions when most people were just trying to survive.

  158. 158.

    Immanentize

    @bemused: Have you considered the energy necessary to write any epic? I think some people had plenty of time on their hands….

  159. 159.

    Jeffro

    @Barbara:

    the most perplexing is the idea that a rational adult could possibly have thought at any time that Donald Trump actually cared whether they lived or died, or in this case, whether they lose their livelihood or their homes. The only thing he wants is their anger. If it’s not enough for them to live on, oh well.

    Exactly! Why do they think he plays “You Can’t Always Get What You Want” at his rallies? He wants that hate and anger and resentment going full blast – it’s all he knows

  160. 160.

    Kent

    @bemused:

    One of my first thoughts was who had the luxury and energy in those ancient times to write about emotions when most people were just trying to survive.

    In every successful ancient society there’s always an aristocracy with plenty of time on its hands that is looking to leave a legacy, no matter how hard life is for the slaves and serfs. That’s how we got ancient monuments as well as literature and history.

  161. 161.

    What Have the Romans Ever Done for Us?

    I used to read a lot of Fantasy and Sci-Fi, with a heavy emphasis on fantasy. I say this as a prelude to highly recommending The Expanse (streams free with an Amazon Prime membership). If GoT is better than The Expanse I’ll have to watch it at some point, because The Expanse is pretty fantastic.

  162. 162.

    Mrs. D. Ranged in AZ

    @What Have the Romans Ever Done for Us?: One or both of the authors of The Expanse were assistants to GRRM. And there are definite similarities–the machinations of politics, the broad societal effects of change and violence, the redemptive character arcs, etc. I’ve read the Expanse books as well as watch the show. The books are much more streamlined than GRRM’s work (he could spend half a chapter just describing a meal FFS). But I love them both.

  163. 163.

    Kent

    @What Have the Romans Ever Done for Us?:

    I used to read a lot of Fantasy and Sci-Fi, with a heavy emphasis on fantasy. I say this as a prelude to highly recommending The Expanse (streams free with an Amazon Prime membership). If GoT is better than The Expanse I’ll have to watch it at some point, because The Expanse is pretty fantastic.

    Don’t know about better. But it is certainly a lot larger, bigger budget, and more sprawling epic with a LOT more interconnected story lines. I’ve watched both series. But then I was a GOT fan based on the books before the HBO series ever came out so perhaps I’m biased.

    If you have not watched GOT you have 8 seasons of some seriously big budget drama viewing that awaits you. I can’t think of much else out there that is better viewing if you like that sort of epic story arc sort of thing.

    I haven’t watched the most recent season or two of the Expanse. Maybe I need to go back and start the series from the beginning now that I know it is more than just typical scifi fluff. And pay more attention.

  164. 164.

    Brachiator

    @What Have the Romans Ever Done for Us?:

    I used to read a lot of Fantasy and Sci-Fi, with a heavy emphasis on fantasy. I say this as a prelude to highly recommending The Expanse (streams free with an Amazon Prime membership). If GoT is better than The Expanse I’ll have to watch it at some point, because The Expanse is pretty fantastic.

    I very much enjoy The Expanse. It is more straight-ahead SF than fantasy, but I think much of it is truly exceptional. I like the way it shows how Earth and Mars have become different societies, and I totally fell in love with the Belters. Again, the key is in creating compelling characters.

  165. 165.

    Roger Moore

    @bemused:

    One of my first thoughts was who had the luxury and energy in those ancient times to write about emotions when most people were just trying to survive.

    It’s easy to exaggerate how bad things were back then. Even poor farmers and hunter-gatherers aren’t struggling 100% of the time. There are busy times of the year and slack times of the year, and telling stories was a way to get through the slack times. Also, one of the vital purposes of those stories is that they serve as a way of unifying small groups of people into a bigger society; that’s something that might be even more important for people who are struggling to survive and thus are heavily dependent on the rest of their society than it would be for people who are happy and content.

  166. 166.

    Brachiator

    @Immanentize:

    Have you considered the energy necessary to write any epic? I think some people had plenty of time on their hands….

    And of course, the original epics were not written down. They were memorized. Some people not only had time on their hands, they had to be remarkably talented to be able to compose in their heads and recite, or sing their sagas.

  167. 167.

    Suzanne

    The other question…..Melisandre is dead now, but she never mentioned the Azor Ahai prophecy in the last episode. Is Arya “the Princess who was promised”?

  168. 168.

    Brachiator

    @Roger Moore:

    It’s easy to exaggerate how bad things were back then. Even poor farmers and hunter-gatherers aren’t struggling 100% of the time. There are busy times of the year and slack times of the year, and telling stories was a way to get through the slack times.

    Yep. One of the key attributes of human societies (and that of some of our primate relatives) is that we have spare time that we don’t have to devote to survival. And so, social contact and rituals help bind communities. Some previous archaeologists would like to emphasize religious practices, but just the act of sitting around a camp fire and telling stories must have been a part of the earliest societies.

  169. 169.

    Mnemosyne

    @Mrs. D. Ranged in AZ:
    @Suzanne:

    FWIW, you could each email the same front-pager and say it’s okay to share your email address with each other. Betty or Adam check their email pretty often and would probably be happy to oblige.

  170. 170.

    Kristine

    @Brachiator:

    There is no post-credits final scene! You might as well go home when the credits start rolling.

    Good to know–thanks!

    The manager at Gaby’s playcare told me that a local radio station was advising folks as to when were the best times to take bathroom breaks. There are apparently three places, none in the last hour.

  171. 171.

    sgrAstar

    @Brachiator: ummm…what about thhe Wrath of Achilles? One of the earliest, if not the earliest, recorded temper tantrums in human history.
    Any day that involves the Iliad is a good day, so….

    “Rage- Goddess, sing the rage of Peleus’ son Achilles,
    Murderous, doomed, that cost the Achaeans countless losses,
    Hutling down to the House of Death so many sturdy souls…”

  172. 172.

    J R in WV

    @Miss Bianca:

    Roxy is as cute as a wolf girl gets. She’s coming in the house more and is even starting to expose the soft white underbelly for skritches. Progress!

    OK, now I’m demanding pics of Roxy… soft white underbelly being skritched for the WIN!

  173. 173.

    Chris

    @Kent:

    In the prequels, this is made pretty understandable by the fact that the galaxy’s been at peace for 1,000 years. There are no professional armies, at least not on a galactic scale. They’re basically having to learn how to soldier from scratch.

    In the originals, this… never actually comes up? In terms of ground battles, you’ve got Hoth, where the Empire basically blitzkriegs right over the Rebels in short order. And then Endor, where the Rebels and Ewoks PWN the Empire with irregular jungle warfare.

  174. 174.

    Chris

    @Miss Bianca:

    The Trojans had Hector, who was awesome. Achilles was a whiny little shit.

    (Also, people who are willing to start a decade-long civilization-defining war over the hurt pride of a man whose wife cheated on him are clearly fucking demented).

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