The Mormont part didn't bother me at all. I knew from the beginning that it was likely Mormont, and that if it was he would be bringing Tyrion to Daenerys. So referring to him as "the knight" simply felt like the way Tyrion was thinking of him, the same way Theon sometimes thinks of himself as Theon and sometimes as Reek.

As for the character deaths... Martin killed off some PoV characters, but I don't think that is what makes the deaths in the books significant. Instead it is that Robb was instantly the "good guy" that it seemed we were supposed to cheer for. It looked as if the sides were taking shape, and he would obviously suffer a lot, go through a bunch of trouble, and then in the end emerge victorious in heroic fashion, as we've seen in plenty of other books. Instead he got killed, and that threw the whole "good guys" and "bad guys" perspective into disarray. Martin has been pretending to kill his characters since the very first book, and it hasn't bothered me any of those times, and has been pretty predictable for the most part. Only Catelyn's survival was surprising, but then again, she didn't even survive, did she? She's much closer to some kind of demon or Other than anything. I don't believe Jon is dead either, that's true, but I think the main point there isn't that he dies but that he is no longer the Lord Commander, so his life just got even more difficult.



You have an interesting way of phrasing what she did... Strangers tell her to do that, and it is either do that, or leave and fend for herself. All the other characters have blood on their hands too, and most would also be willing to kill in exchange for being fed and given shelter and taught. Not to mention that a case can be made for the man deserving to die. Not for the silly justifications Arya gives for it, with him having a villain's beard and all that, but because he betrayed the people he signs contracts with. Whatever the case, Arya is simply doing what is required of her, exactly as every other character in the books. The very theme of Song of Ice and Fire, it seems to me, is showing how far people can be willing to go.



As Lord Brynden tells Bran, one man in a thousand is born a skin changer. Those aren't such bad odds, so it shouldn't be surprising that there are so many wargs. The only surprising thing is that there weren't more of them before, but perhaps their abilities were simply slumbering, and were awakened recently when magic started coming back into the world. As for the Stark children... They're the main characters, they're all wargs for the same reason Daenerys was able to give birth to dragons.

And I think you're right about Rickon. Bran mentioned several times I think in book 2, about feeling rage and other emotions that weren't his. Rickon is just a little boy, so he wouldn't have the willpower needed to maintain proper control of himself, and that is why his wolf is more wild, and he has become more wild as well. It'll be interesting to see what his journey with Asha has done to change him, and where Davos went to rescue him.



It's truly unfortunate that the storylines didn't converge there... But once again, disappointment seems to be a theme of the series as well, though usually it is the characters that suffer it, and not the readers. As for Quaithe, her predictions have proven more accurate than most, but you are right, that part of her prediction does not seem like it will come to pass. The perfumed seneschal part seemed to be the most important part of it anyway, or at least the one that Dany remembered best.



It does seem too good to be real, and completely out of the blue. I suppose it isn't entirely unrealistic, considering how baby Aegon's body was unidentifiable, but still.... It's too early to tell if he's real or not though. I hope he is though, simply because I find it very fitting for Dany, who always thinks of herself as the rightful ruler of Westeros, and of reconquering it being justice, to be demoted to another mere pretender, albeit one with dragons.



Can't comment on the Buffy comparison, but it's possible that Dany and Viserys were insurance, in case things went wrong with Aegon. Or Aegon was insurance for them. Or that the Aegon really is fake, and that Daenerys and Viserys were kept as secret trump cards. However, what I think most likely is that we still haven't seen all the pieces of the puzzle. Illoryio and Varys cannot be as good friends as they claim, for the simple reason that everyone in the books betrays nearly everyone else. I do not believe that they are completely of one mind on all things, so I think it's entirely likely that they have formed plans against one another, possibly maneuvering Dany, Viserys, and Aegon to suit their needs.



Which is entirely fitting. The Northmen are what the north made them... So in the south they seemed like barbarians with giant beards, but now that it's winter, all the southerners and "summer knights" are going to die, while they'll finally show their mettle.