[TV] HBO Game of Thrones - Page 850

On May 20 2013 16:37 Aelfric wrote:

Which is the bigger number, five or one ?

On May 20 2013 18:02 jcroisdale wrote:

Gymnophobia (from Greek γυμνός - gumnos, "naked"[1] and φόβος - phobos, "fear"[2]) is a fear (phobia) of nudity. Gymnophobics experience anxiety from nudity, even if they realize their fear is irrational. They may worry about seeing others naked or being seen naked, or both. Their fear may stem from a general anxiety about sexuality, from a fear that they are physically inferior, or from a fear that their nakedness leaves them exposed and unprotected.

Guys don't worry the boobies won't hurt you. They might even make a scene better.

On May 20 2013 18:07 Yoav wrote:


Lol. Except that she was wrong. She would have died that night had her enemies not fought amongst themselves. Numbers aren't everything, even in a siege situation like she faced, where they matter more. In pre-modern battles, relatively few men were actually killed while both forces are coherently fighting. Most of the battle casualties came during the rout, which is why motivated and disciplined forces were consistently able to beat forces multiples of their size. If you're tougher, they break first, and then they die en masse. Never mind that most casualties weren't battle casualties at all, but were deaths due to hunger, thirst, and disease.

The great military leaders of the ancient world and middle ages weren't great because of "tactics" of any kind... they were great because they could both
a) inspire loyalty
b) keep troops fed, watered, and largely healthy

Dany has those down. The Great Houses of Westeros, not so much. If she is defeated at this point, it will have to come from a mistake she makes... probably out of hubris.

On May 20 2013 18:07 Yoav wrote:


Lol. Except that she was wrong. She would have died that night had her enemies not fought amongst themselves. Numbers aren't everything, even in a siege situation like she faced, where they matter more. In pre-modern battles, relatively few men were actually killed while both forces are coherently fighting. Most of the battle casualties came during the rout, which is why motivated and disciplined forces were consistently able to beat forces multiples of their size. If you're tougher, they break first, and then they die en masse. Never mind that most casualties weren't battle casualties at all, but were deaths due to hunger, thirst, and disease.

The great military leaders of the ancient world and middle ages weren't great because of "tactics" of any kind... they were great because they could both
a) inspire loyalty
b) keep troops fed, watered, and largely healthy

Dany has those down. The Great Houses of Westeros, not so much. If she is defeated at this point, it will have to come from a mistake she makes... probably out of hubris.

On May 20 2013 18:11 Aelfric wrote:

You don't read much do you?

On May 20 2013 18:19 SergioCQH wrote:


But tactics can play a large role in affecting troop morale. Enveloping the enemy like Hannibal did at Cannae can reduce their fighting strength. Great generals knew how to put their troops into positions where their fighting spirit would be high.

On May 20 2013 18:37 Yoav wrote:


Plenty, I assure you. But high fantasy often asks to be analyzed like history, rather than literature, so I try to oblige. For a literary view: Dany currently has a major plot riding on her, 4 major accessory characters (none of whom would have any purpose if she kicked it or lost her power), 2 entire cultures relevant only to her. All of this makes her unkillable/beatable for the time being. However, Martin is explicitly setting out to create a counterpoint to what he sees as more traditional high fantasy, and she is so much like a classic fantasy hero that her chances of ultimate victory are low. Furthermore, she has ascended from near-slavery to near-godhood, and her trajectory from here is unclear. To remain an interesting character, she will have to develop in one way or another, perhaps as a result of factionalism within her ranks. My guess is that she will be the season protagonist of next season.



A fair point. But the Punic Wars are an odd case: highly professional forces on both sides for several of the key engagements. Scipio and Hannibal had opportunities to use tactics in ways that were simply not available to, say, any army in the Crusades, or even the War of the Roses. Dany probably can employ tactics (presumably commanded by Selmy or Worm) given her force's modernesque discipline and combined arms, while the average Westerosi army will be, like the average medieval army, little more than a heavily armed mob.

On May 20 2013 18:07 Yoav wrote:

On Military Numbers
Lol. Except that she was wrong. She would have died that night had her enemies not fought amongst themselves. Numbers aren't everything, even in a siege situation like she faced, where they matter more. In pre-modern battles, relatively few men were actually killed while both forces are coherently fighting. Most of the battle casualties came during the rout, which is why motivated and disciplined forces were consistently able to beat forces multiples of their size. If you're tougher, they break first, and then they die en masse. Never mind that most casualties weren't battle casualties at all, but were deaths due to hunger, thirst, and disease.

The great military leaders of the ancient world and middle ages weren't great because of "tactics" of any kind... they were great because they could both
a) inspire loyalty
b) keep troops fed, watered, and largely healthy

Dany has those down. The Great Houses of Westeros, not so much. If she is defeated at this point, it will have to come from a mistake she makes... probably out of hubris.

Edit: On Nudity


Actually, for some of us, the issue is that the extremely imbalanced male/female ratio suggests that much of the nudity is very much a matter of titillation.

Several nude scenes were obviously unecessary titilation aimed at the lowest common denominator. But GoT has also had quite a few examples of how powerful nudity can be: Danaerys' whole plotline can be framed with her nude scenes, representing humiliation (bro/Drogo), rebirth (from the pyre), and now near godhood (this ep).

But let's not kid ourselves that nudity is just another element like feasting or banners or long walks. Like violence, nudity and sex and important and literarily powerful. Gratuitous violence for its own sake has no place in literature. The same is true of nudity and sex. They are tools, and when present needlessly, draw unhelpful attention to themselves.

On May 20 2013 18:08 -Archangel- wrote:
Hilarious are all the people that would pick up that dagger when 99% of you would probably just kneel in the snow waiting to die like that guy in S01EP01 did.

On May 20 2013 19:14 NightOfTheDead wrote:


Perhaps, but monkey is way smarter than Sam is, just because Sam thinks with something else.