DRW50

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2666984/Is-The-Queen-goes-scenes-Game-Thrones-set-Belfast-refuses-Iron-Throne.html

A Quint/Nola/Helena clip (dubbed in German) I hadn't seen before.

One of the most bizarre and silly articles I've ever read. This guy looks like the father from Shameless, not Brad Pitt. http://www.politico.com/story/2014/06/2014-minnesota-election-stewart-mills-108199.html?hp=t1

I don't think I ever said she was "nuts," if you're suggesting I did. Arya has been through hell. I wouldn't say that. What I've always disagreed with here is the idea that she is still pretty much intact and that her behavior wasn't a concern. And Maisie is also saying that. I don't think I'd believe it if Margaery was some expert schemer, but I don't think Natalie Dormer (who is a fair amount older than the character in the source material) is as good at playing wide-eyed Margaery. She seemed to regress this season, what with whining about not getting to be queen, her gloating in front of Cersei, etc. Margaery was smarter than that last season, while not being too smart. They got the balance right. Anyway. Casting news. http://winteriscoming.net/2014/06/23/familiar-face-returning-game-thrones-season-5/

I'm sure they will be. I just hope the lengthy absence won't blunt their impact. Margaery works best as a basically kind-hearted but able schemer. Other than the stuff with Tommen, I felt like they had her veering a little too much toward passive and in over her head.

He skeeves me out too. He seems far more interested in publicity than anything else.

Another disgusting ploy from McDaniel, soon to be senator from Mississippi. This is the tea party. http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/chris-mcdaniel-thad-cochran-kate-mcdaniel-whosyadaddy The Chamber of Commerce continues to pay the price for their sucking up to the far right (not to mention all the jobs this will likely cost us...). http://online.wsj.com/articles/mccarthy-wont-reauthorize-export-import-bank-charter-1403450288

Maisie Williams interview. Spoilers. http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/06/23/game-of-thrones-star-maisie-williams-on-arya-stark-s-s4-journey-and-her-crush-on-andrew-garfield.html I wish she could put this on billboards....

Didn't some people accuse Yolanda of distancing herself from Brandi because of public opinion?

Good chapter. I'm not a fan of Cass and Frankie, but their reunion here was sweet.

Block would have been better as Rick, yes. Another example of how consistently weird and abrasive Lucinda was in these years, likely spurred on by Liz Hubbard's ad-libs. I got a good laugh when Tonio asked why she was still friendly with Barbara, and she says, "I like her. She's pretty. I like her." Then we get into lady mob boss with "if you can't handle yourself better, do not expect to inherit my kingdom. I'm talking you and me, Tonio. Do not expect to inherit the kingdom. Not mine." Hubbard is truly one of a kind, because with almost any other actress being that mannered, Lucinda would have been a drag on the show. Instead, she's just so endlessly fascinating, and adds so much to daily episodes that can often blur together. For all the talk of how homogeneous this era was (and generally it was), few shows have ever had a character like Lucinda Walsh. It's at about 35 minutes. This episode also has the hilarious image of Rick Ryan eavesdropping outside Dr. Michaels' door to get dirt on Emily and James.

Browne came before Corinne Jacker, or after? I think that period is all generally seen as listless and lacking stability.

NBC was climbing the ranks in the mid-80s so AW may have benefited no matter what, but DePriest's material did raise the ratings and likely bought the show more time. I haven't watched that era closely but I do think some of it works. I think bringing Mitch Blake back was a great idea. It's just that things like MJ/Adam and the misogyny of her exit story (and of much of the treatment of women at this point) bother me. I like MJ quite a bit and hated to see her leave on such a low point. I wanted to mention that AWHP now has some audio collections available for download as well. Eddie Drueding is asking for some money to help cover site costs, but it's not mandatory.

He went from supporting to pretty much an extra this season. This was a very packed season but I think having Margaery and Loras both MIA (Margaery from episode 5 on, Loras everywhere but episode 2) was a misstep. I think they needed at least one Cersei/Loras scene. I know one of the main GoT wiki pages had Rickon as being in this season, which clearly didn't happen. I guess it was cute. I hope we get a deleted scene.

That's Gendry, Renly's nephew. According to the guy who played him, yes, he is. https://twitter.com/joedempsie/status/479055824414076928

Really? Wow. Well congrats to the actor. We barely got to see his range on GoT so I can't say how he'll be in the role.

Is it me or is Hillary Clinton just sort of imploding in a slow motion trainwreck way these last few weeks? It feels like 2008 again.

It tells you how much or how little screentime can mean. Shireen's scenes were some of my favorites this season and she clocked in at about 3 minutes. I was a little surprised at Dany's relatively small amount of airtime, but it makes sense.

Lena's great there. I love this so much. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PjyK0R-lD8I Someone made a list of screentime for each character this season, and over every season. http://asoiaf.westeros.org/index.php/topic/112748-a-game-of-screentime-season-4/ Some of this is misleading, as, for instance, Jorah/Missandei/Selmy spent a lot of time this season standing in the background. Kit Harington interview. http://www.accesshollywood.com/game-of-thrones-kit-harington-on-jon-snow-meeting-a-king-and-his-season-5-melisandre-prediction_article_95621

This is from a week or two ago, but it's an interview with Carice van Houten and Liam Cunningham (who was at the World Cup apparently, going by a photo on tumblr). http://www.westeros.org/GoT/Features/Entry/Season_4_Interview_Carice_van_Houten_Liam_Cunningham

Queen Elizabeth is going to visit the studios. I can't see her agreeing to sit on the Throne, but that would be hilarious and brilliant. http://insidetv.ew.com/2014/06/18/queen-of-england-game-of-thrones

http://variety.com/2014/tv/news/game-of-thrones-finale-spoilers-tywin-shae-dead-battle-1201220973/

I was much more upset with the dragons scene than I thought I'd be...I guess because Rhaegal and Viserion were still her babies, yet they were the ones who paid the price. Emilia Clarke really sold the pain Dany was going through. I know in the book there was a lot more effort about trying to trap Drogon. I'm kind of glad they didn't do that here. What did you think of the Ygritte funeral? Wasn't that new for the show? I'm glad they had that. Stephen Dillane interview. http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/entertainment/blogs/the-tribal-mind/why-stannis-would-rather-solve-murders-than-seize-the-iron-throne-20140614-3a3s6.html Maisie Williams. http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2014/06/15/maisie-williams-on-arya-stark-the-hound-and-the-game-of-thrones-finale/ The episode director on