This is such utter and complete bullshit. (Re: Robb Stark's encounter with the apparent substitute love interest for Jeyne Westerling)

‘It’s unlucky for him you were here’
Oh, really? And what about all the guys like him who raped women and slaughtered villagers in the last season because of what Catelyn did? Were they friends with Catelyn Tully & privy to her decision to arrest Tyrion?
‘You don’t have a plan for what happens after the war?’
He doesn’t NEED one! His plan and objectives and casus belli are all the same – get rid of their enemies who are oppressing them. What more of a plan does he need?

And she's from VOLANTIS, which has elections and IIRC, a hint of female power, so by the vapid modern citeria, it's a progressive city, and therefore, Good. Now the snotty love interest can put our patriarchal and aristocratic but well-meaning hero in his place or else demonstrate to the audience horror-film-cliche-style why he deserves to die by highlighting his non-PC attitudes in their interactions & relationship, while also servicing that old sexist romance trope whereby rich powerful men fall for obnoxious women. Political correctness to titilate the critics, and the usual smut & violence and trite romantic plots to placate the viewers! This show has EVERYTHING!

HBO’s idea of daring or creative violations of the expected status quo basically ends at gore and female nudity. Violating the politically correct trope that dictates women must have jobs and skills valued in contemporary society in order to be the “equals” of their love interests – oh, heavens no! And because the creators and/or the network lack the imagination to really portray a world with different rules, where noblewomen actually DO have skills, and important ones, which are far more crtical than a primitive surgeon hacking off limbs, we get this absurdly contrived character, and plot-mandated stupidity on Robb’s part during their 'discussion' to make her look smart enough to satisfy shallow modern sensibilities which demand a farcical veneer of gender equality. Shae was bad enough, but she’s supposed to be a snotty little bitch who pushes further than she should and isn’t bright enough to understand her relative unimportance (though my take on her so far has been that the writers don’t understand that facet of her character, either).

Other thoughts:
- Daenyers has never heard of Qarth?!?! Surely they could find a better expository hook? Maybe have one of the parochial barbarians in her entourage ask her about it?

- I’d have thought Qartheen fashions would have been right up this show’s alley.

- Also, do they really think the attitude she displays at Qarth is making Dany look good? She’s still coming across as the snotty, entitled see-you-next-Tuesday she is exposed as in the later books. Since when does showing up, broke, desperate and representative of a bunch of people not known for moderate or temperate behavior give you grounds to make demands and refuse to show the one commodity you possess?

This politically correct bullshit makes you start looking for it everywhere, so your reaction ends up being “OF COURSE, the black guy is the ‘good’ one of the bunch.” And Xaros’ characterization as representative of the Qartheen is destroyed by arbitrarily making him a foreigner…
The only redeeming possibility for this diversion so far is if they combine Qarth and Mereen somehow to advance Daenerys’ storyline, as not much happens from here on in aCoK – she gets no help, she goes to the Undying and meets Illyrio’s agents. The end. Maybe they’ll toss in her “liberation” of the Unsullied in this season, the way they seem to be merging Arya’s various experiences. They combined the roles played by Lorch & the Mountain on her trip to Harrenhal, and now they seem to be combining her service to Tywin Lannister & Roose Bolton, who is inconveniently located with Robb in the West.

- Is it me, or does the lame-ass, lousy liar, Lancel Lannister look a lot like lovely Lockdown & Lost actress Maggie Grace (the only real girl, and Shannon, respectively)? Alliteration is fun, but seriously, doesn’t he? That’s been bothering me since he served Robert his first cup of wine.

- The conversation between Davos & Melisande about the difference between extremities or gray areas made me think about how she is the most likeable villain or contemptible hero in this series…Likeable, because for a deluded sorceress who is driving the good guys down a bad road, she has genuine sympathy and admiration for the best of them and is only trying to help, and contemptible because of her arrogance, pride and self-delusions and the actions she takes or encourages based on them.

- This show has done the impossible: It makes George RR Martin’s writing look subtle, discreet and tasteful. A crossbow crank has to be the most unique penis-metaphor I’ve ever seen.

- While it's good that they seem fine with skipping characters when they need to, as we have gone without the ironborn in this episode, with only minimal Cersei as well, on the other hand, I don't see the point of the stuff they added, notably Littlefinger's expanded role in this season.