GoT S3: the court of the North
A few thoughts about episode 3x9, a LOT of thoughts about Catelyn, and a very few thoughts about Robb.
( one paragraph of book spoilers is white-texted at the very end of the post )
( one paragraph of book spoilers is white-texted at the very end of the post )
The very last action of Catelyn, who would've been so easy to soften up and idealize, was the pointless murder of an unarmed girl.
I liked that addition too (in hindsight, since I read the book after). Even though the difference between a fool and Walder Frey's wife isn't all that huge in this verse, it does pack more of a punch, in a way, as a showcase of just how expendable his family is to Frey.
I also agree with your spoiler part. Although I do feel like Lady S makes the books ten times more depressing... Like Feast of Crows needed to get any more depressing.
Speaking of Robb's marriage, I was a bit miffed, once I read the book, how different it is on screen? Like someone decided to make his wife more awesome (TM), to be more PC or something. Pfish. And it also makes more sense, especially given how much Robb is Ned's son, that it isn't just about some wild love thing, but that it's mainly about honor - I feel that wasn't stressed as much in the tv series, somehow. Even if that wasn't Robb's real reason, I do think it's the one he would've needed to present to the outside world (or indeed, himself) to validate his actions.
I did always see Cat's freeing of Jaime as more of a desperate act (though moreso in the books than in the series, perhaps) - in that she knows full well it's probably pointless, but she still has to try, has to do something, even if she knows it might not be the wisest or even a good plan. Probably the part where she's the most like Lysa, too.
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I'd imagine it would've lost even more if the surprise factor was ruined.
Speaking of Robb's marriage, I was a bit miffed, once I read the book, how different it is on screen? Like someone decided to make his wife more awesome (TM), to be more PC or something. Pfish.
Yes! It's not even that I didn't like Talisa, because I did, though in a different way than Jeyne. And I think some of the adaptation worked, ie working her into the action as a nurse so we could see the relationship develop and get more insight into Robb. But all the "she's spunky! she's ~foreign! she's fearless!" felt like "Robb's choice of wife has to be ~justified" and I don't care for that attitude at all.
I did always see Cat's freeing of Jaime as more of a desperate act (though moreso in the books than in the series, perhaps) - in that she knows full well it's probably pointless, but she still has to try, has to do something, even if she knows it might not be the wisest or even a good plan. Probably the part where she's the most like Lysa, too.
For sure, it's an act of desperation and I sympathize with her in that moment. But as long as they had Jaime, they could've continued to negotiate, and at least verified that Arya and Sansa were alive and in the king's custody. But it's not just pointless, it's actively damaging, because Robb paid a steep price for it politically - and militarily, because Jaime is a big asset to the Lannisters - and it put Sansa and (as far as Catelyn knows) Arya in more danger, since once Jaime is back, Cersei has even less incentive to keep them alive at all.
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I still totally read that spoiler for no reason - I would not have been *that* shocked to see these characters die at all. I wasn't that invested in Robb, tbh, and Cat had lost so much up at that point, her dying is almost a formality. Especially in the books, with Bran and Rickon in her thoughts every other minute, and Ned all the other minutes, she's just so *tired* of all the crap at that point.
And then, it turns out that *not* giving her that relief at all, possibly never, is so much more powerful, especially in the way it happens.
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