Game of Thrones Complete!
I finally finished that leviathan of a book. Man, that was a good (long) read. I realized that it's hard to convince other people to read a book when your pitch includes the line, "After the first 400 pages, things really start to take off! Wait, no, it's worth it! Seriously!"
Character impressions, crack theories upheld, some shipping, and a fandom rant
As of the end of this book, my aforementioned crack theories still hold. Lysa Aryn was at least involved in Jon Aryn's death, and Lyanna/Rhaegar = Jon Snow.
To break it down...
Oh, Ned. Ned, Ned, Ned. I loved him, but he deserved to die for being so stupid. EVERYONE told him-- sometimes using small words-- how the game works, and after a while his nobility just became stupidity. I missed his POV afterward, though. :(
As of now, I can't stand Sansa, and I love Arya. Surprise, surprise. The Internet, chatty spoiler whore that she is, tells me Sansa/Sandor is going to become canon, and EW. Do not want!
I want Cersei and Joffrey's heads on platters. The Internet tells me I'll at least get the latter. So there's that. Tyrion remains my favorite Lannister by default due to the fact that I uncharacteristically hated the rest of them just as Martin wanted me to.
Daenerys Stormborn is possibly my new favorite female character of all time, vying for the position with reigning champ Valentine Wiggin. KHAL DROGO. RHAEGO-- brb, sobbing in the corner. Still mourning poor, deluded Viserys.
RENLY/LORAS!!! Okay, so I didn't get that from the book at all, but the Internet also tells me later books make this pairing canon. Awesome.
Okay, we needs to talk about the fandom for this series. I simply do not understand how such a dedicated and fanatical fanbase can have such a dearth of fanfic. I know Martin has a "NO FIC" policy(another reason I put off reading him for so long), but... so what? Since when do we listen and obey? Fanfic isn't for the author of the source material-- it's for us. Okay, rant done.
I'm only really fuming because I suddenly started shipping Robb/Theon, likely because I'm a tragedy whore and the Internet whispered to me that Theon's going to betray the hell out of everyone soon. Naturally, that made my ears perk up. I think Theon is my new Draco in Leather Pants. And poor Robb is so going to die now that he's had all this pressure dropped on him. King of the North, indeed. Mah bebeh! So, darling, good Robb is doomed, and Theon, always at his side with a smirk in place and possibly a poisoned whisper, is a ticking time bomb of evil. My kind of pairing! But I've found a total of ONE good Robb/Theon fic. ONE, people. I also kinda maybe wanted some Jon/Arya-- just sayin'. Sigh.
Lastly, I find it completely incomprehensible that none of the mysteries that got set up (some at the beginning of the book) were solved by the end. And the Internet, cruel vixen that she is, tells me they STILL haven't been solved three books (and a decade) later!!! The hell, Martin?
I have the next book on my shelf, but I think I need a mental break before I start that one since I'm still kinda marveling that I managed to get through 700-and-then-some pages in such a short period of time. I feel fairly proud, and that's going to go away if I pick up another 725 pages right off the bat.
Character impressions, crack theories upheld, some shipping, and a fandom rant
As of the end of this book, my aforementioned crack theories still hold. Lysa Aryn was at least involved in Jon Aryn's death, and Lyanna/Rhaegar = Jon Snow.
To break it down...
Oh, Ned. Ned, Ned, Ned. I loved him, but he deserved to die for being so stupid. EVERYONE told him-- sometimes using small words-- how the game works, and after a while his nobility just became stupidity. I missed his POV afterward, though. :(
As of now, I can't stand Sansa, and I love Arya. Surprise, surprise. The Internet, chatty spoiler whore that she is, tells me Sansa/Sandor is going to become canon, and EW. Do not want!
I want Cersei and Joffrey's heads on platters. The Internet tells me I'll at least get the latter. So there's that. Tyrion remains my favorite Lannister by default due to the fact that I uncharacteristically hated the rest of them just as Martin wanted me to.
Daenerys Stormborn is possibly my new favorite female character of all time, vying for the position with reigning champ Valentine Wiggin. KHAL DROGO. RHAEGO-- brb, sobbing in the corner. Still mourning poor, deluded Viserys.
RENLY/LORAS!!! Okay, so I didn't get that from the book at all, but the Internet also tells me later books make this pairing canon. Awesome.
Okay, we needs to talk about the fandom for this series. I simply do not understand how such a dedicated and fanatical fanbase can have such a dearth of fanfic. I know Martin has a "NO FIC" policy(another reason I put off reading him for so long), but... so what? Since when do we listen and obey? Fanfic isn't for the author of the source material-- it's for us. Okay, rant done.
I'm only really fuming because I suddenly started shipping Robb/Theon, likely because I'm a tragedy whore and the Internet whispered to me that Theon's going to betray the hell out of everyone soon. Naturally, that made my ears perk up. I think Theon is my new Draco in Leather Pants. And poor Robb is so going to die now that he's had all this pressure dropped on him. King of the North, indeed. Mah bebeh! So, darling, good Robb is doomed, and Theon, always at his side with a smirk in place and possibly a poisoned whisper, is a ticking time bomb of evil. My kind of pairing! But I've found a total of ONE good Robb/Theon fic. ONE, people. I also kinda maybe wanted some Jon/Arya-- just sayin'. Sigh.
Lastly, I find it completely incomprehensible that none of the mysteries that got set up (some at the beginning of the book) were solved by the end. And the Internet, cruel vixen that she is, tells me they STILL haven't been solved three books (and a decade) later!!! The hell, Martin?
I have the next book on my shelf, but I think I need a mental break before I start that one since I'm still kinda marveling that I managed to get through 700-and-then-some pages in such a short period of time. I feel fairly proud, and that's going to go away if I pick up another 725 pages right off the bat.