Considering the dude just killed his father and lover, I'm glad to see Martin resisted the temptation to make Tyrion's return after eleven years a bonanza of wit and crazy antics. Ironically, though, his mental instability in this chapter (however realistic) definitely makes him a far less likable character. The "wherever whores go" repetition becomes a bit irritating after about the third time it's used, too.
The presence of Illyrio saves this chapter from disappointing, though. I've always liked the idea that he's one of the few top tier puppetmasters in Martin's world, and while that's laid on a bit thick at times (I certainly wasn't expecting Tyrion to be shoehorned towards Dany in the book's first chaper), the little things like his mushroom trickery easily made up for it. Hope he's still around in Tyrion's next chapter, he definitely needs some sort of foil in his current state.
if i know the ASoIaF fanbase even slightly, you guys won't be able to resist watching a slow reader theorize and eventually be proven wrong about everything.
Topic does what it says in the title, basically. Got the book in today and I like to discuss stuff like this, so why not!
Gonna do this chapter-by-chapter initially, with maybe a little bit of broader rumination later on. Don't expect massive write-ups; I love discussion as much as the next guy but at least initially I'd rather spend my time reading the book than writing about it.
Obvious first point: NO SPOILERS PAST WHERE I AM IN THE NOVEL PLEASE. This will obviously open up with time, but I've managed to avoid spoilers so far so please err on the side of caution if need be.
Only other point of potential interest, going in: I really like A Feast for Crows. So if this book is similarly paced and has just a touch less aimlessness (as has been suggested), there's every chance I'll love it.
Currently three chapters in, so I'll catch up just now and then move on later.
vince is right about season two, though - it throws you in at the deep end character-wise even more than season one did. but bear with it for a few episodes and you'll start getting rewarded.
definitely the season that benefits most from a re-watch.
edit: whoa, vince's ranking is basically spot on (i'd go 5>1 but there's not much between them). which amazes me cos i've never seen anyone fully agree with my ranking before!
to remove the ambiguity from the original hint, "7" is often considered part of a larger "6."
still nothing right. and that'd be an even worse peep show ranking than a harry potter one! dark tower is a slightly better guess (always felt wolves of the calla was underrated) but still pretty damn unusual.
I take issue with this. Curren$y's raps are just as good as ever, and Covert Coup is a step below the Pilot Talks. The problem with Weekend isn't with Curren$y, it's with the producer. There's a ton of beats in there that kill the flow; tracks that stay too long, or never even had a good beat to begin with, bring that album down a ton. He's not slipping, he had poorly produced album.
i don't entirely disagree, but curren$y doesn't bring anything to the table on weekend at burnie's lyrically that he hasn't said a million times before either. nor does he frame his old topics in any new or interesting ways, "she don't want a man" aside. i know he's not generally the type that needs to, but when you put out six projects in 18 months subject matter like "i like to smoke weed" and "i am cooler than you" begins to wear thin unless you find new ways to express them.
i'd agree, strictly speaking, that he's not "on top of the game"
but if and when he does put out Act 2 (or anything else), my level of excitement will be greater than for pretty much any other rapper out there. so if we're talking about the best active rappers i'm always gonna include him in the discussion.
andre 3000 might not be "on top of the game" either but that doesn't mean i wouldn't damn near sell a kidney to hear him rap regularly again
screw that, i hate the fact that you need to be seen to be tossing out mixtapes, remixes and all manner of pointless crap to stay "relevant" in the rap game these days
sure, there are those who can be both prolific and consistent (though even curren$y's slipping slightly of late) but to actively criticize someone for not rushing out an inferior product solely to keep up with industry expectations is absurd
please note that i fully appreciate the irony of this post having completely forgotten about jay elec in my initial post last night for these exact reasons
p.s. j. cole is so "slightly above average" that it almost hurts. i'm not the biggest fan of drake either, but he has his own style and does it well so i can't really argue.
as far as traditionalists go in 2011 krit and gibbs are on a tier of their own for me
putting one above the other is hard (though krit certainly has more momentum) - both have two fantastic mixtape-style records and are prepping debut retail albums for release
just out of interest, did any of you guys listen to the Nest album I recommended last month?
and on that note i still have no real interest joining the club proper, but i might pop by and recommend something every so often anyway. just because i can.