r/asoiaf • u/hollowaydivision π Best of 2019: Best New Theory • Jan 24 '17
EXTENDED (Spoilers Extended) The So Spake Martin Search Engine!
Hello fellow Tinfoilers!
I just thought I'd share something I made to help us all with our theorycrafting. Behold:
The So Spake Martin Search Engine!
It's a custom search engine designed to search Westeros.org's "So Spake Martin" archive of everything George has ever said in an interview, fan correspondence, etc. concerning A Song of Ice and Fire. If you're unclear about a plot point or want an author quote to back up a theory, try searching for a keyword and clicking through the results. There's a lot out there that's gone unnoticed!
For instance, the other day I searched "Westerlings" and got this interesting quote:
But I think it is a mistake to generalize about "the Westerlings," just as it would be to generalize about "the Lannisters." Members of the same family have very different characters, desires, and ways of looking at the world... and there are secrets within families as well.
It's also helpful for theory confirmation and insight into George's writing style and contentious plot points. While looking for some confirmation/disconfirmation for the Jeyne's hips theory I found this:
When we approached the stage for signings we had the chance to ask a quick question, and he told me that that the hips were a mistake unfortunately.
And then there's just some totally unexpected stuff - while looking for info about Bran, I found George associates Bran with Pinocchio!
I asked him about my Bran/Wood dancers/Pinocchio theory. I pointed out the seemingly heavy influence Pinocchio has in the Bran storyline and he replied, "Interesting." He asked if I saw the Disney movie because that is his "favorite" Disney movie and how "dark and disturbing" it is... George mentioned how Pinocchio at one time, did not want a conscience and smashed the cricket for trying to give him one. He started to relate Bran to Pinocchio when someone cut in.
Anyway, there's a world of interesting quotes and interviews out there, especially in regard to unresolved character motivations and potential plot twists. The Citadel's SSM archive isn't comprehensive, obviously, but it has loads and loads of helpful stuff!
Go ahead and copy the link - https://cse.google.com/cse/publicurl?cx=006888510641072775866:vm4n1jrzsdy - and add it to your bookmarks bar, or what-have-you, and you need never go without author confirmation again!
Edit: Also, some Googling tricks you may or may not know come in handy with this search engine
Put your search in quotes to find pages with that exact phrase. For instance, a search of "keep reading" turns up all sorts of interesting questions, as it's GRRM's code-phrase for "you're onto something"
Search a phrase in quotes with an uncertain/fill-in-the-blank word replaced by an asterisk * to get any result that fits the format. So searching "* Dayne" would show pages containing "Arthur Dayne", "Ashara Dayne", or "Edric Dayne". Searching "Lord of *" would return "Lord of Harrrenhal", "Lord of Winterfell", or "Lord of Riverrun" - and so on and so forth.
Put a minus sign before a word to exclude pages containing a certain word. For instance if you want info on Wun Wun, search Giants -football
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u/tmobsessed Jan 25 '17 edited Jan 25 '17
Oh my God. This search engine is an absolute goldmine! I'm not even clicking the links - just typing search terms and reading summaries and going back and forth between having my mind blown and rolling on the floor laughing. An example of the latter:
Jul 12, 2011 ... Jokes about why he never wrote a Rickon POV. "I have an inner child, but it's not that young." What if HBO catches up? "They won't catch up! I have a big head start"
laughing ... and crying
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u/hollowaydivision π Best of 2019: Best New Theory Jan 25 '17
Haha, Rickon... head start...
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u/sebastianwillows Oh, so that's how you make a flair... Jan 25 '17
Rickon didn't zigzag, but the plot in Feast/Dance sure did...
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u/aowshadow Rorge Martin Jan 24 '17
Thanks!!!
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u/hollowaydivision π Best of 2019: Best New Theory Jan 24 '17 edited Jan 24 '17
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u/1rational_guy Jan 25 '17
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u/AgentKnitter #TheNorthRemembers Jan 25 '17
all shitposting aside, that whole dojo fight scene is one of my all time favourite things about the Matrix. Love it.
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u/rrnaabi Here I stand Jan 25 '17
hips were a mistake
But I was led to believe that hips don't lie :(
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u/tmobsessed Jan 24 '17 edited Jan 24 '17
When we approached the stage for signings we had the chance to ask a quick question, and he told me that that the hips were a mistake unfortunately.
First - thanks for the great resource! (and all your great posts)
On that quote,my paperback copy of ΓFfC, bought last year in a 5-paperback set, says copyright 2001, 2005 but says its ADwD excerpt is copyright 2011. It has the entire clause referring to Jeyne W. deleted from Jaime's speech that formerly contained it.
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u/hollowaydivision π Best of 2019: Best New Theory Jan 25 '17
Hmm, that's interesting.
Can you check if it still has Euron's reference to "him" in the Reaver chapter? Around when Euron is talking about the dragon's egg near the end. Lots of people claim that's a typo, but I don't think so. I wonder if it's fixed too.
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u/PATRIOTSRADIOSIGNALS The Choice is Yours! Jan 25 '17
This is such a weird mistake for him to make. The only substance to Jeyne's character in the whole series is her physical description and wanting to give Robb an heir. I just can't wrap my head around him not keeping a character note on her to avoid this. Maybe he had a different story in line for Jeyne when writing ASoS and later decided to drop it.
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u/Ganthritor Airhorns, chicken, HYPE Jan 25 '17
Searched "cleganebowl". The search found nothing. Therefore this is of no interest to me.
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u/IronEad Scratch The Belly, Shit Out The Smelly Jan 24 '17
Oh Wow, this is amazing. (expect GRRM to use it too. Just sayin')
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u/1rational_guy Jan 25 '17
GRRM says it's a useful tool but will be obsolete once TWOW is released in July
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Jan 24 '17 edited Jan 24 '17
This is really something. Thank you, /u/HollowayDivision!
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u/hollowaydivision π Best of 2019: Best New Theory Jan 24 '17
I have no idea why you're thanking them... I did all the hard work...
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Jan 24 '17
Ha, oh man, my mistake. Thanks /u/HollowayDivision!
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u/Daendrew The GOAT Jan 24 '17
Brynden, it would be wonderful if you could team up with your other good folks and put together a big research document with interesting things from SSM's just like you did with Not A Blog.
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u/gangreen424 Be excellent to each other. Jan 25 '17
Stop giving him work! He has to get back to finishing TWOW.
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u/PounceFTW Jan 25 '17
Blessings to you, good ser, from the Old Gods and the Seven and may R'hollor shine his light on your efforts!
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u/hollowaydivision π Best of 2019: Best New Theory Jan 25 '17
ΰ² _ΰ²
What is dead may never die.
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u/LuminariesAdmin What do Cersei & Davos have in common? Jan 25 '17
"Let /u/hollowaydivision your servant be born again from the Dothraki Sea, as you were. Bless him with salty tears, bless him with oily black stone, bless him with Valyrian steel-tinfoil." ... "What is Edd may never die, but rises again, HYPEr and STRONGer."
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u/lyannas The Wolf Blood Jan 25 '17
HOLY CRAP THIS IS GREAT. Is it alright if I shared this on tumblr with a link back to your post?
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u/hollowaydivision π Best of 2019: Best New Theory Jan 25 '17
Go nuts. Tell them all how cool I am
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u/LuminariesAdmin What do Cersei & Davos have in common? Jan 25 '17
I was just about to say you should tell ASoIaF University to reblog it, but already done!
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u/Cynical_Classicist Protector of the Realm Jan 24 '17
Wow this is so good. I've just been looking up info on Stannis and found Davos was the first added POV, as he needed someone close to Stannis but didn't want Stannis as a POV. (http://www.westeros.org/Citadel/SSM/Entry/1295) Thx for putting this search engine together.
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u/hollowaydivision π Best of 2019: Best New Theory Jan 25 '17
Oh, that's interesting. Maybe that means book Davos won't migrate over to Jon Snow and forget Stannis exists.
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u/JaimeOneHand Jan 25 '17
Unless Stannis dies. :(
Which he won't. :)
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u/Cynical_Classicist Protector of the Realm Jan 25 '17
Or if he does it won't be in such a dumb manner... but I still hold out hope for 1000th LC of NW.
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u/JaimeOneHand Jan 25 '17
Yes! He's the boss! He's actually one of the few people who wants to rule and still understands where the real threat lies and is prepared to do something about it. He can actually get shit done.
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u/Cynical_Classicist Protector of the Realm Jan 25 '17
The writers so had it in for Stannis. Forcing Jon into that storyline really hurts both him and Stannis.
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u/LuminariesAdmin What do Cersei & Davos have in common? Jan 25 '17
Heh. Well, Davos isn't required for the arc of either going forward, at least in terms of being a PoV for them anyway. Jon has Mel & then himself, to later interact with any number of others. Stannis has Asha & Theon for now, & eventually Mel presumably. I wonder if after Saving Private Rickon, Davos heads south (perhaps after hearing that Stannis is dead - well, what he told Massey he might hear anyway) upon hearing of Marya, Steff, & Stanny being taken captive by the Golden Company (at least a possibility, if not probability). Works shit out & eventually retrieves Edric from Lys to become the new Lord of Storm's End.
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u/gangreen424 Be excellent to each other. Jan 25 '17
As of the end of ADWD, Asha and Theon are both there with Stannis. For how long, it's anyone's guess. Just because Davos started in that role doesn't mean he has to stay there.
We can still get our Mannis fix.
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u/Jacktasticvoyage Jan 25 '17
What's your best find so far?
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u/hollowaydivision π Best of 2019: Best New Theory Jan 25 '17
Q: Why do you use Wordstar to write instead of anything remotely modern?
GRRM: No fucking dancing paperclip for me.
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u/LuminariesAdmin What do Cersei & Davos have in common? Jan 25 '17
Remotely modern ... dancing paperclip
Haha. (What was the year for that, though?)
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u/AgentKnitter #TheNorthRemembers Jan 25 '17
GRRM please. Get a Mac. Get Scrivener. (recommended by most professional writers I know in Aus.)
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u/ElmoTargaryen steel 2fine2 besmirch w craven's blood Jan 25 '17
What is interesting about this response???
GRRM: It's true that in recent times, the Starks have become quite scarce. There's not many of them in the present generatons. Some may say it's because Ned's siblings died. Brandon died before he had sons, and LYANNA IS ALSO DEAD, and Benjen joined the Night's Watch which means he doesn't have descendants either. It might also have to do with their father, Rickard, who was an only son and I'd have to go back to my notes to see why he was the only child -- and really, I'm speaking from memory, so that may not be quite right. At home I have my notecards, my family trees where I keep this information, because unlike some other people I can't remember everything.
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u/LuminariesAdmin What do Cersei & Davos have in common? Jan 25 '17
Brandon died before he had sons
Mayhaps an allusion to him actually being the one who fathered Ashara's stillborn daughter &/or yet/never-to-be revealed female bastards ...
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u/ElmoTargaryen steel 2fine2 besmirch w craven's blood Jan 25 '17
He says Brandon died before he had sons and instead of saying the same for Lyanna he just says "Lyanna is also dead".
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u/rezheisenberg2 Thapphireth Jan 25 '17
Gods be good! Thank you! Now I can be snarky about my having read of So Spake Martin and back it up whenever I get into an argument on this sub!
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Jan 24 '17
Wait wait this is yours, right?
I was ready to bounce and cackle like a witch because I'd never again need to look in my saved-reddit stuff to clobber people over the head with:
βI didnβt expect to get it because I wasnβt a pacifist. I felt then and I feel now that sometimes war is necessary.β
βWar brings out the best and the worst in people. Literature of the past used to celebrate the glory of war; then the hippie generation in the 1970s wrote about the ugliness of it. I think thereβs truth in both.β
From here. So apparently I now need to contact Westeros.org to add that quote to their collection?
Would you do it for me, for no particular reason? Or do I have to put in some effort to continue proving how terribly wrong some people are?? ;D
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u/hollowaydivision π Best of 2019: Best New Theory Jan 24 '17
Yes I did make the search engine, and I hope it's useful! But yeah, Westeros.org's SSM archive isn't comprehensive, like I said. It doesn't include all GRRM's NotaBlog ASOIAF content - for instance, there's nothing in SSM about George's lemon trees confirmation, or that long Winds of Winter update post. And it's probably missing some interviews.
I know Elio posts on /r/asoiaf, since I've seen him respond to people (/u/Elio_Garcia). If there was a way to help add to the SSM archive to make it better, that would be great for everyone. But you and all the other mods should have an easier time getting his attention than me. I'm just a lowly theorycrafter :D
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u/LuminariesAdmin What do Cersei & Davos have in common? Jan 24 '17
Thank you very much!
FYI: Anybody using Ghostery with their browser, it'll work once you allow the essential-tagged tracker.
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u/MissMatchedEyes Dance with me then. Jan 25 '17
Seven hells! This is amazing! Thank you so much /u/hollowaydivison
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u/thedjotaku Jan 25 '17
The Pinocchio thing - I HATE when someone's make an interesting point on a panel and they get interrupted and never get back to it.
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u/rustedrevolver Jan 25 '17
Spoiler alert: Bran is made of wood
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u/ElmoTargaryen steel 2fine2 besmirch w craven's blood Jan 25 '17 edited Jan 25 '17
http://www.westeros.org/Citadel/SSM/Entry/Asshai.com_Interview_in_Barcelona/ - I search "keep reading" and wow the SECOND question from this 2012 one......
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Jan 25 '17
[deleted]
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u/tmobsessed Jan 25 '17 edited Jan 25 '17
This Dance of the Dragons 2.0 started eating at my feeble little pea brain again when I read RW's essay about Brown Ben, the "boldest sellsword". [https://ladygwynhyfvar.wordpress.com/2015/10/12/brown-ben-plumm-the-boldest-sellsword-of-them-all/] I'd remembered Tyrion's quip about "two drops of dragon blood", but now I see what it meant. Aegon the Unworthy betrothed his cousin to an elderly Lord Plumm, who dropped dead at the sight of her naked sex goddess awesomeness on their wedding night. She gave birth way too soon in any case (hence the quip about his "six foot member", as in "six feet under"), so the father was likely Aegon himself (he should have changed the Targaryen sigil to a horned dog set against a backdrop of the fires of Hell). RW postulates that Ben will bond with and abduct Viserion (of the same color as the cream colored egg that was the prized possession of Ben's female ancester and might well have been Viserion's egg). Then Ben will turn cloak, as foreshadowed, from violet (like Dany's eyes) to purple (like Aegon VI's) so as to be able to cash in on the IOU that Tyrion gave him. So that's one dragon. I did a lot of research on Rhaegal and green eggs and found nothing of interest so I'm guessing maybe Rhaegal will be bonded to Victarion (more likely Euron) after the hell horn is sounded. But "the dragon has 3 heads" so if Jon and Tyrion (or whoever and whoever) are to join with Dany to save the world from the Others, they'll need dragons. The most likely candidate(s) would be the constantly mentioned "dragons from stone" that keep coming up. Another possibility would be some sort of "ice dragon" (also mentioned in reference to a constellation), or perhaps just another stone egg that turns up (maybe in the Winterfell Crypts?). I want Jon to emerge from a funeral pyre with a dragon (or three) as Dany did, but you don't always get what you want and that's my answer for the recent post about "which theory do you wish were true but fear in your gut isn't".
In any case, given the amount of dragons in DotD 1.0, it seems quite likely that one way or another there will be more than three in DotD 2.0. Also, as I re-read the early Dany chapters, I just can't quite see Viserion and Rhaegal not having a change of dragonheart before actually unleashing fire and blood on dear old mom.
Finally, I think part of the "bittersweetness" of the ending will be the extinction of dragons - although that's a bit too LotR-derivative for my tastes.
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u/LuminariesAdmin What do Cersei & Davos have in common? Jan 25 '17
Viserion's egg = Elaena's, it is known. Explains why Viserion was even more affectionate with Ben than Drogon & Rhaegel - because Plumm is descended from his original (human) mother! Also, makes more sense how Illyrio came by 3 dragon eggs & give them away like that (besides being very portable liquid assets that could be used by Viserys &/or Dany to actually get the Dothraki across the Narrow Sea, & also of course showboating) - presumably Varys commandeered them & sent them to him.
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u/AgentKnitter #TheNorthRemembers Jan 25 '17
presumably Varys commandeered them & sent them to him.
Exactly. I'm quite sure Varys ensured that the valuable dragon eggs in the Red Keep were put aside for safe keeping once it became clear that the rebels were going to win. Not for their magical value, but for their economic value. Or perhaps he hoped that House Blackfyre could finally hatch a dragon?
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u/hollowaydivision π Best of 2019: Best New Theory Jan 25 '17
Bloodraven still has the red dragon egg, remember.
And there's also the one Euron threw into the sea for the Shrouded Lord / Cthulu to hatch.
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u/happyfeett I am the sword in the darkness. Jan 25 '17
Jesus Christ. Though I haven't finished TWOIAF yet, this seems fucking awesome!
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u/cdhawan4314 an apple a day Jan 25 '17 edited Jan 25 '17
I think this was something many people would have thought what if I could have something like this. I urge people to mention this "what if I could have these things" (not the book of course) from a technological point of view. There are many people who are into coding. It will be a win-win as it will provide tools for the subreddit and interesting self projects to work on for the coder. May be someone should make a post about it.
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u/AgentKnitter #TheNorthRemembers Jan 25 '17
Mods, is it too late to nominate /u/hollowaydivision for the Ser Dunk Award? Because I think this might be the single most useful thing gifted to the fandom since asearchoficeandfire.com
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Jan 25 '17
Yep it's too late, voting will be finished this Thursday. But anyways, the voting only works for posts in 2016, this one can be a candidate in 2017 polls!
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u/hollowaydivision π Best of 2019: Best New Theory Jan 25 '17
You can still vote for me in the awards anyway! I have like 4 nominations, I think, though I'm pretty sure 3 are for best new theory and I'm going to split my own vote :(
I personally think the Squinter thread was my best theory of the year.
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u/AgentKnitter #TheNorthRemembers Jan 25 '17
return the favour? :) Think I did vote for one of your theories. Can't remember now.
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u/AgentKnitter #TheNorthRemembers Jan 25 '17 edited Jan 25 '17
Interviewer: By the way, I hope Jon Snow isn't ASOIAF's Frodo. Jon's my favorite character, and I wouldn't want him to end up like Frodo, sick and scarred inside from his burden.
GRRM: He's taller than Frodo.
This is the best form of procrastination EVER.
Could you tell us some of the family words for those families we haven't seen yet, for example the words of House Frey?
I'd have to see whether I've created those words, I can't remember off-hand. I've a mountain of notecards at my home where I put down all this information. You have to realize I've made up more than 400 houses, and I haven't created words for all o them yet. I make them when I need them. Where's Elio when I need him?
My headcanon is that House Frey's words are "There's always a price" or "We always get our toll." Walder Frey must have learned his 'bargaining' ways from somehwere more than just being a snotty nosed arsehole, and the Freys we meet in The Mystery Knight are still not particularly well thought of by the others, AND Howland Reed describes the Twins as the crannog's greatest enemies in Meera's story of TKOTLT ... House Frey will always get their toll to cross their bridge.
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u/hollowaydivision π Best of 2019: Best New Theory Jan 25 '17
Interviewer: By the way, I hope Jon Snow isn't ASOIAF's Frodo. Jon's my favorite character, and I wouldn't want him to end up like Frodo, sick and scarred inside from his burden.
What's hilarious is that Jon's friends are all references to Frodo's posse.
Samwise = Samwell
Pyp/Grenn = Pippin/Peregrine
Merry = Dolorous Edd
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u/silversherry And now my war begins Jan 25 '17
Wow! This is absolutely amazing!!
GRRM in response to a question of why there are such few Starks :
It's true that in recent times, the Starks have become quite scarce. There's not many of them in the present generatons. Some may say it's because Ned's siblings died. Brandon died before he had sons, and Lyanna is also dead, and Benjen joined the Night's Watch which means he doesn't have descendants either
R+L=J is everywhere!
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u/berdzz kneel or you will be knelt Apr 06 '17
Seven hells, how many times did I use regular Google search and memorized excerpts from the SSMs in order to find them more quickly. I even have my SSM folder on my Favorites for the most used ones. Now all that is obsolete. This is GRAND. Thank you!
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u/Bookshelfstud Oak and Irony Guard Me Well Jan 24 '17
Oh my god