Then A Man Dies: the Jaqen H'ghar Story

[@NotYurAverageJoe]

I really hope your community continues to grow dude. You’re one of the few ASOIAF youtubers who I feel still has passion and always has something new to say. The way you analyze things is so unique and interesting, and your enthusiasm never feels forced.

[@DavidLightbringer]

thanks so much, I'm doing my best!!

[@pauldaskal9510]

From the 90s too

[@pauldaskal9510]

Jamiriquee rules

[@B4D_5USHI]

As a millennial who grew up in a mid size rural town, I rarely met anyone who enjoyed reading at all, and even fewer sci-fantasy fans I could nerd it up with theorizing about weather sam saw an ent-wife in the shire, or what the effects of spice melange would feel like, or if greyscale is some sort of ancient ryonish bioweapon. I found some friends in the online community, but posting on message boards isn’t the same as a conversation with a friend over a joint and a pile of tacos. Plus a lot of the communities are pretty toxic. As the OP noted, You are a paragon of the way fantasy fans should be, genuinely enthusiastic and interested about the story and the characters and the worlds they inhabit. I feel like I finally found that friend. I look foreword to years more amazing content. I’d love to hear any theories you have about the Kingkiller chronicles, or what(spoiler alert for storm light archive) taravangian is going to do now that he’s a shardbearer. Martin does take his time, maybe a few spin off series would help dull the pain of waiting.

[@ceplin2144]

David and Preston are the only ones I feel with valuable insight nowadays

[@DanKeshet]

Arya figures out how Jaqen made Weese's dog attack him. AFFC, Cat of the Canals:

[@DavidLightbringer]

No doubt!

[@espalier]

Fuck! It’s all there if you know what you are looking for!!

[@theletterm5425]

Question is, how did Jaqen manage to carry around a vile of basilisk blood all this time?

[@espalier]

we've been shown several maesters have some quite interesting poisons laying about, I'd guess from that collection of alchemical danger.

[@jofuk5137]

@@theletterm5425 pouches in his sleeves most likely. Dried blood, just add water.

[@melissamoore5223]

Does anyone else go back and rewatch all LML videos? Cuz I read the books, re-read patiently waiting for the next one, and the books aren’t enough I’m that obsessed. So I’m grateful for all the awesome content David has put out there and continues to put out 🥰 makes the wait easier to endure for sure

[@SteamnaPan]

I recommend audio books... Lets you wonder.

[@brettstalling2269]

facts

[@Roaringmoonbeam]

Yes. And it's my second time watching this video in particular. Glad I'm not the only one

[@UniquelyStellar]

Almost daily, for years

[@Djynni]

The intro reading: I think of that moment when Arya gave Jaqen's own name as the third name in order to force him to help her as the point where Jaqen really started to think about Arya in a different light which ended in him giving her the coin and the words.

[@AStarkofWinterfell24]

If the faceless men and others are both demons freed from the wierwoods, wouldn’t it be crazy if they teamed up with the others instead?

[@soxpeewee]

I assumed it sealed the deal but he was already interested

[@TheInvisibleShadow95]

I wouldn't be surprised if they were preparing for a hit on Daenarys or even her dragons if that's an option. They might even be anticipating an offer on her, or the Crow's Eye if he actually manages to marry her.

[@theesundancekid]

3 years later this is still one of my favourite live streams

[@dirtygiraffe]

I just gotta say a few things: 1. Loved your Rorge voice. I always enjoy it when you read from the books. Your passion for the material translates into your reading. An A Song of Ice and Fire audio book read by you is something I actually would pay good money for. 2. Your Egyptian inspired pattern hoodie is awesome. 3. A burning barn? Or a burning Bran? Hmmm...

[@DavidLightbringer]

Lol, burning barn. Nice.

[@Ash.Crow.Goddess]

Yes, the Rorge voice is epic. I'll always hear that in my head everytime I read it from now on.

[@stumpe9662]

I don't think jqan was in the black cells for arya. I think he was there to see and take notes on the dragon skulls. Also makes sense considering he's getting a book on the death of dragons, I think he just happened upon arya and realized her potential

[@soxpeewee]

He might have known Varys as well...Varys traded a ton of info and books maybe. It's possible Varys wanted to get to Melissandre cause his little birds told him about all her evil juju Edit: The Faceless men would want to take out a resurrectionist like Melissandre not to mention that Rhllor folks practice slavery which they don't like . It would give them an excuse to check out the Others in person. Also Jacqen would be less visible to Melissandre because he would be posing as a murderer who was a potential danger to her which had an element of truth ... The Faceless Men pass on their assignment when compromised, dead, etc so there's probably already a backup. Jacqen quit this mission after the fire because he'd have no legitimate reason to go to the wall otherwise Besides the obvious that Varys hates magic, slavery, and Rhllor priests in particular, feels he needs to protect the realm. Stan is is part Targaryen which he hates. The Faceless Men seem to wanna dispatch all the Targaryens as well.

[@woolyhoggett]

Black and white coat is AWESOME!!!!

[@soxpeewee]

Jacqen Hagar clearly couldn't escape as Arya had to save him

[@wurstgitarre]

Did you know that Tom Wlaschiha, who played Jaqen in the show, is the nephew of Ekkehard Wlaschiha, a great opera singer, who was (unfortunately he has passed already) especially famous for playing sinister roles in the operas by Richard Wagner, which are mostly based on Northern mythology. Since in ASOIAF there's so much connected to or based on different mythologies, I think somehow we've come full circle. ;)

[@markdaniel5784]

Thanks for the continued excellent content man, you are getting us through hard times and we really appreciate it.

[@jrocktheride]

At 40:30 you mentioned Arya basically dying and coming back with demons. You might mention it already here or elsewhere but I was listening to AGoT today and one line stuck out to me that made me think of your theories and it hit me again here. In the chapter with Jon just after he says goodbye to Bran and then gives Needle to Arya. Jon jokes about Arya gettung in trouble and having to do needlework all winter, and says something like "you'll be found cold and dead, your hand still clutching a needle". Oof!

[@MrPm000]

"In Dublin's fair city, where the maids are so pretty, I first laid my eyes on sweet Molly Mallone. As she wheeled her wheel barrow, through the streets broad and narrow, crying cockels and mussells, alive alive oh. Alive alive-oh, alive alive-oh, crying cockels and mussells alive, alive-oh. She died of a fever, and no-one could save her, and that was the end of sweet Molly Mallone. But her ghost wheels her barow, through the streets broad and narrow, crying cockels and mussells, alive, alive-oh. Alive, alive-oh..." This song is quite obviously the inspiration for Arya's whole Bravo arc.

[@DavidLightbringer]

Oh wow yeah it obviously is, great find!!

[@tmmm8578]

Never commented but been a patron for 6 months or so. Always dope, always entertaining and always educational

[@tracymetherell8744]

Welcome to commenting! Keep it up because It helps him with the Utube algorithm

[@jswagaudio]

“Ill present this without comment” *reads one sentence of paragraph* “now let me comment on this real quick”😂😂

[@DavidLightbringer]

~this is how wed do it~

[@ThommyofThenn]

i think in this series full of cool dialects and other manners of speech, Jaquen has the most epic way of talking. soft and poetic speech but can be enigmatic and threatening. "A man sees..a man hears..," he's just so casual about it even in deadly serious situations. Also interesting how he says "*even* him of fire." as if he mislikes Rh'llor more than the others. If the many face god is the dark gods of death in other religions, you'd think he would view Rh'llor as just another of them

[@zegreeno]

You make this fandom continue with amazing videos like this. Love your deep dives and literary analysis.

[@ARVETDEG]

Hum. Just now realized two things. One: The reason Beric Dondarrion resurrected Cat, was because he felt guilty when he failed Arya and lost her, despite knowing something would go wrong when reviving her, but due to his ignorance, he didn't know just how awful Cat would become. And two. Gendry's bull helmet, symbolizes his bastard status. Because while a Bull has horn like an antler, a bull (obviously) isn't an antler but have similar forms and features. Thus, representing that Gendry is a Baratheon but not a true one. Amazing. George is just amazing.

[@Persephone_Personified]

During the burning barn scene she "hears the sounds of dying horses"as she flees the fire... EXACTLY like the blood ritual with Drogo and the sounds Dany hears the horse making after his throat gets cut and he's dying. Also, there is 3 people in that scenario as well.

[@AStarkofWinterfell24]

If the faceless men and others are both demons freed from the wierwoods, wouldn’t it be crazy if they teamed up with the others instead?

[@Skooby59]

I always feel bad that i rarely catch these live, but they’re great to listen while cleaning and stuff. Makes me feel like i’m back in a really chill lit lecture from college

[@DanKeshet]

One of my favorite moments in these videos is when LmL goes "Okay I don't want to go into all of it but let me try to restate my entire theory about all the symbolism in the books in 5 minutes, with examples."

[@DavidLightbringer]

Lol yep strong vibes of that, whatever that is

[@jenniferchase4085]

lol i know its hilarious, but also why i cannot leave a concise comment about any symbolism .... i too will go on forever

[@ThommyofThenn]

1:13:41 Arya has the presence of mind in an extremely violent combat, to try and make sure the little child doesn't sit in the middle of it. Arya is a badass

[@samanthamorris5340]

Really loved this, thank you for making top notch content.

[@DavidLightbringer]

oh good I was worried it was too disorganized. It was a challenge for some reason

[@AStarkofWinterfell24]

If the faceless men and others are both demons freed from the wierwoods, wouldn’t it be crazy if they teamed up with the others instead?

[@AStarkofWinterfell24]

@@DavidLightbringer If the faceless men and others are both demons freed from the wierwoods, wouldn’t it be crazy if they teamed up with the others instead?

[@mitth.rawdog.nuruodo]

@@DavidLightbringerA man is a complicated topic.

[@ariananegron4679]

somehow i have the patience to watch your 2 hr videos but i cant sit still long enough to rewatch game of thrones show

[@DavidLightbringer]

appreciate that!

[@MC-el2us]

Honestly one of the strangest scenes in the novels @meeting the kindly man

[@blackeyedlily]

Excellent podcast! I really enjoyed it. Happy holidays to you and all the people we find typically in your live cast feeds!🌟

[@Djynni]

If people don't like to read into stories, they just want to read them and enjoy them and that's it, why are they watching KZbin videos about books? I suppose there might be KZbin videos OF people reading books, but I imagine that those videos would be clearly titled as "Reading ASOIAF: A Game of Thrones" or some such. I don't imagine you would come to a LML video accidentally thinking he was simply reading the books... O.o

[@DavidLightbringer]

doesn't happen often, but sometimes...

[@thevalonqar2238]

Always love to see these pop up.

[@AlgoRhythim]

6:06 Jaqen does his best Drax the Destroyer impersonation

[@therunningman_]

Dude you made some epic connections in this one!

[@coyotegaxiola4281]

Your disturbingly nasal impression of Rorge is deeply unsettling, and also awesome.

[@Varatil]

1:29:30 Just hopped to the "all notifications" bell tier, off the strength of the Jamiroquai hat defense. Idk I just find it weirdly charming. Myth content *and* personability? That's a good channel to follow right there :D

[@Christv420]

A man deserves his own story.

[@mormontsraven4072]

"You get the feeling that everything in Braavos is connected" I think symbolically this works too, because the hundred isles of Braavos are all connected by small stone bridges. Braavos should be called Bridge City

[@DavidLightbringer]

The canals are a weirwoodnet symbol, for sure

[@ericschwegler7514]

Just finished the arya chapter where jaqen gives arya the coin in ACOK!!!

[@toxogandhi]

I like your ramblings. Ramblings make conversations - or monologues - more fascinating.

[@TheLegendaryGentleman]

Got here a little late but still making it starry night Sunday with LmL and co

[@claireb2326]

The faceless men storyline has always been puzzling to me, loved this stream as it connected it back to the main story for me at last :)

[@DavidLightbringer]

haha we'll see if any of that is right

[@elizabarry4]

these streams help me get through work, they are the perfect thing to have in the background!

[@maatthecat3966]

So many layers. Great video, LML. Thanks

[@mauralee9987]

Love your videos so much and you! Wishing you and yours Happy holidays, if you celebrate!

[@CrimsonTemplar2]

Great video. I’m really enjoying this character series.

[@DavidLightbringer]

Glad to hear it!

[@siddhantrasaily4836]

Great work David....keep up the good work... I would love to share a joint of my own home grown sticky Icky with ya as we talk about asoiaf Love from the Himalayas 🙏

[@DavidLightbringer]

Oh yeah next time I’m up your way lol

[@DavidLightbringer]

What strain you growin up there?

[@siddhantrasaily4836]

@@DavidLightbringer local indica land races dude

[@siddhantrasaily4836]

Gets me couch stoned as I enjoy your streams....man I love your humour XD Praise Garth XD !

[@catherinehalverson1436]

Finally got the chance to watch - so fun! Great analysis as always! Love the jacket/hat combo!

[@DavidLightbringer]

House of Black and Silver

[@salpimienta2961]

Great deep dive. Thank you.

[@cheesesticks1234able]

in the weasel soup scene after the bit in the godswood with jaqen, theyre actually freeing men that serve bolton to kill lorch's men, and these northmen are called others several times and r led by a glover with the silver fist sigil

[@DavidLightbringer]

oh really? Shit I should have read further... Arya is letting everyone out of hell huh???

[@WhoIsCalli]

Very cool live stream. Loved the symbolism of the House of B/W door being the crossing to death. Great stuff 😊

[@ericschwegler7514]

HOW MANY FACELESS MEN ARE THERE?!? how many we seen in one room at one time been binging all the live streams this week love the channel!

[@SpiralSine6]

According to a meeting Arya attends in Dance, there are at minimum eleven Faceless Men, not including herself. Depending on how the passage of time works between each story arc, there may be two more if you believe Pate and the one believed to have played Jaqen H’gar to be other individuals. From what we can show or theorize, there is somewhere between 11 and 14 (including Arya). Arya claims that it is the largest meeting she’s seen, so either there are not many more in total or they have a lot of “field agents” that never come back to the House.

[@CrimsonTemplar2]

A man is symbolic. Great video. Lots of depth in the material.

[@DavidLightbringer]

so glad it made sense, it was a little scattered when i did it, at least it felt that way

[@ikesweitzer9815]

“Azor Ahai is a tapestry”

[@shannontucker3250]

My opinion, The faceless men wanted the waif to be killed. She was way too aggressive. She wanted to have Aria killed from the beginning.

[@Key212]

You got some of the best insightful information like I’ve loved Game of Thrones for a long time but never have I had these insights before coming across your channel I love Jack in her car thank you for opening up some new areas of thought regarding these loved characters

[@danielthornebille6980]

Maybe he was there to kill Robert because robert could'nt pay his debt to the Iron Bank of Bravos?

[@christopherbarber5283]

Lol who are the two herbs who already disliked this video ? “Grrrr I don’t like nice little subcultures of people coming together to geek out over topics they love grrrrr I pull on my dogs leash too much because I’m hate everything grrrr”

[@DavidLightbringer]

i have powerful enemies well okay not that powerful lol

[@Djynni]

You do have to wonder how little a life someone must have to bother clicking on a video and giving it a dislike. If you don't like this content just don't click on it! You can even block it from your feed - it's not like you're forced to watch it lol.

[@joemc7614]

Did you mean grrm?

[@yorgivon-schmourgeussborgi]

It's literally other, BITTER, content creators.

[@yorgivon-schmourgeussborgi]

@@Djynni They have an alert set just so they can dislike

[@nodiggity9472]

John Lennon called, said you can only keep the glasses if you put Yoko on your next livestream. She's a massive fan.

[@KaritKtana]

OMFG LML I just pressed play and you nearly gave me a heart attack!!

[@wafflingmean4477]

Something that just occurred to me is could the Faceless Men find a way to make Arya age faster? I heard GRRM initially intended for there to be a large timeskip, but went back on it. However the timeskip may have been crucial for certain plotlines. It's very likely it would have been more for the younger characters. Arya may be far wiser than her years and have specific skills that make her deadly, but at the end of the day she's a child. I don't really see her trekking all over Westeros or learning how to fight when at least for now she is just physically extremely weak. Without the Brotherhood or the Hound it's likely she would not have survived long if she was travelling. She can't protect a horse or money and winter is coming. So narratively it makes sense that when Arya returns to Westeros she'll be older, but this can't happen anymore. I admit this theory is quite weak since it's not based on in book evidence for this sort of magic but I feel like it still has some weight, and could also lean into the idea of Arya having her childhood, innocence and humanity stolen from her. Also, if she does actually end up with an ending of going to travel the world, it again makes much more sense for her to do this if she can take better care of herself.

[@Max-lp8gt]

You keep asking what the Faceless man was doing in the cart after Ned was executed, but that would have been a surprise at the time. The plan was for Ned to go North with Yoren and the cart. Not only this, but King's Landing was locked down, the gates all closed and guarded, as the watch looked for Arya and Robert's bastards. I would argue it's likely that the faceless man first gets close to Ned as Arya's "dancing teacher" Syrio, who came so well recommended by someone. Then when Ned ends up in the black cells, the faceless man replaces one of the other men in the Black Cells, Jaqen, already slated to be sent with Ned. Who might have made such a recommendation and also has access to the black cells when he changes his face into Rugen? Varys, who actually is the one to convince Ned to take the black instead of being executed. Later, after Ned was dead, Yoren's cart provided a way out. Also, it would seem that the faceless man, Jaqen, was on his way to kill Balon Greyjoy after leaving Arya, before he eventually makes his way to Oldtown, very possibly on the same ship Theon used to get to the Iron Islands (in fact, I low key love the tinfoil that the captains daughter, who remains nameless, was actually the faceless man who killed Theon's dad). The Faceless Men do clearly seem to have some sort of agenda apart from completing contracts. I think that it's also possible that Jaqen wasn't there to kill Ned, but to help him, and that Braavos being found originally by the "moonsingers" is actually a reference to the Starks playing a part in the founding of Braavos and doom of Valyria.

[@PackLeader12690]

A man is one of my favorite characters

[@Henbot]

Think the show retroactively tried to have it shaped that she was an assassin trained to kill the Night King as a way to tie stuff they left or wanted up . So in show logic that how it makes sense

[@travisthesutherland]

Keep ‘Em coming man!

[@manyeyedcrow9391]

Great stream, Rohane Webber is a great character, can’t wait for that one as well.

[@theletterm5425]

Very cool video, lots of interesting points! But I have to say I disagree with your idea that Jaqen was in the Black Cells to recruit Arya. This might get a bit long. First off, it's kind of unlikely that Jaqen would end up en route to the Watch to begin with. In order to plan that he would have to know that Yoren would be coming to King's Landing AND that no one would volunteer to join. Already some pretty big assumptions there but not impossible to predict I suppose. What would be impossible to predict is that Arya would join the same group. Remember that Arya only ends up with Yoren, because Yoren had met her before and recognized her in the crowd at Ned's execution. I don't see how Jaqen could have known planned any of that, let alone while being chained up in the black cells. The only work around would be if the Faceless Men had access to R'hllor magic and saw a vision of Arya joining Yoren's group but that's really reaching for an explanation in my opinion. Also at this point in the story Arya has exhibited no clear signs of being a warg and has even lost her wolf. The only reason one could assume she's a warg would be the event on the Trident with Joffrey and Mycah where Nymeria attacks Joffrey but that's also quite weak evidence. If the FM were looking for a warg I don't see why they wouldn't go for say Jon or Bran or Rickon instead. Finally there is the problem that Jaqen doesn't even ensure Arya makes it to the House of Black and White. All he does is give her iron coin and tell her to give it to any man from Bravos and then he just leaves her. If his plan was to ensure Arya becomes a FM recruit he can't really expect a 9 year old girl to safely cross and ocean on her own. I think the story suggests much more strongly that Jaqen meeting Arya was happenstance in some way but that he quickly noticed that she is someone special and opted to test her to see if she could make a worthy recruit. He gave her the coin as a kind of "letter of recommendation" and then left to do his mission at the Citadel. As to Jaqen's original purpose or mission I'm really not sure. It's weird that his persona is so conspicuous. A Lorathi with red and white hair and a very distinct speaking style that is accompanied by a noseless brute and a man with files teeth? Not the most subtle disguise for a Faceless Man, especially if you compare it to his later disguise as the Alchemist who looks like an average person to Pate. I think the likeliest explanation is that he was simply gathering intelligence on the events at King's Landing and the Red Keep. If like Varys he knows about the secret tunnels and passages throughout the Red Keep he could have used those to listen in on conversions and spy on important events. All the while pretending to be chained up, which would serve as a good alibi. I do also like the idea that he was hired to kill Ned, which could have been arranged by Littlefinger who is the first character to mention the FM and whose family originates from Bravos.

[@PedroKrick]

Haven't finished the stream but just wanna write my thoughts on the facewearing thing: I guess that glamour is hard for non magical people but it comes really easy for skinchangers, like, as in mance needing the bones of rattleshirt( that are already somewhat magical bc they"remember") plus the ruby and with the help of mel he could pull off the glamour. Now arya who already is a powerful skinchanger and has a face of the person(anything more personal than that?) And then she drinks that suspicious bitter liquid, if it's like bran drinking the paste and involuntarily slipping into the tree, she basically skinchanged automatically after into what remained of that person. It's like a boosted glamour for someone who's already magical(skinchanger)

[@DavidLightbringer]

Interesting notion! Hadn’t considered how her skinchanger ability could affect that

[@PedroKrick]

@@DavidLightbringer yeah and btw, the kindly man thought she was ready to wear faces only after she opened her third eye and learned how to skin change more than one animal with the cat in the whole blind "punishment" time(maybe she isnt failing up that hard heheh). So maybe there's a relation.

[@GeminibBorn]

@@PedroKrick The masks must be easier to manage for a skinchanger than whatever Blood Raven has in mind for Bran

[@jimmyheebs6721]

Wicked intro and great hells beelow the job well done!

[@sydneyscott2509]

I read ASoIaF during the show's height, but I had to set the books aside while in school. Now I'm reading Feast and consuming as much of your content as possible. I am seriously amazed at the depth of your analyses and your passion for this series and its symbolism

[@calikesh6475]

These character study streams are terrific!

[@celly8713]

That was one of the best intros I’ve seen

[@celly8713]

always looking forward to the costume designs on your videos

[@WinkyDinKdink]

Love the hat! Perfect amount of party and starry cranium wisdom.

[@dantemorgenstern]

Littlefinger can't afford a Faceless man. He has too much and they value sacrifice, the price for him to kill a beggar would be more than he would be willing to pay. The dynamic of the Faceless Men to me is, anyone can have anyone killed but only if they'll sacrifice enough. Sociopaths like Littlefinger won't sacrifice, because for them the things that would actually be a sacrifice aren't money but things closer to home, but sociopaths aren't who the Faceless Men want. They want to help the more desperate. The slave begging for the gift in the mines, those truly hurt and by someone, the father betrayed by his new wife when she poisons his daughter. A beggar could kill a king easier than Littlefinger kill a beggar with them. The price the beggar would have to pay? As the Plague Man says, "The price is you. The price is all you have and all you will ever hope to have." The first man to join the founder paid the cost of joining. The point being, the reason the price depends on what you have and who you want to kill depends entirely on the sacrifice you're willing to make. This is also why the masks work so well, they are giving their "everything" (which I think is also the cost of drinking from their pool for peaceful death) and why the wearer of the mask get pain and memories from the mask. They give their everything, the price to use it is to accept their everything, pain and all. Also, the cut seems just a forehead cut, the blood pouring down the face, never says anything implying a full face cut. "The cut was quick, the blade sharp, the blood washed down BROW and CHEEKS and CHIN" in order, no blood from the chin going down and specifically running from top down, which wouldn't be the case in a full face cut from a quick cut as blood wouldn't reach the chin before the knife in a quick cut. It's a forehaed slash to get blood to cover the face. The only exception to this cost I can think of is Euron, if a man cares for nothing than he has nothing to sacrifice in payment, yet he seems to have hired a FM to kill Balon. And this stealing a book seems out of character, they aren't thieves. At best they would be trading a book for a book, like Arya and the poisoned coin, but even that seems not like Martin. Maybe the Kindly Man lied, but I doubt it. Besides, they probably don't need to steal for info, they likely have a ton of info from the faces they have, which they are getting a lot I think from the alcoves in the House. Braavos is a port city that trades all over the world and they seem to get a few faces a night, if they are getting that person's everything like I think, they have plenty of information from all over. As for the Doom, I think it's actually either an accident, too many people prayed for the death of the ones keeping the Fourteen Flames in control and they didn't know it would happen, or so many people prayed for the death of Valyria itself. Most likely the former, I think it was an accident. The FM were new still then, not privy to much information, and figuring things out. Maybe they even gave too many to Him of Many Faces and the order itself is having to pay for it, which is why they are SO precise now and won't kill anyone outside of the one He designates for the gift. Also, the FM have offered and even encouraged Arya to leave to this point, even to set her up as a noble wherever she wanted, I don't think they are grooming her so much as her stubborn nature keeps her there, and things will change now that she has her acolyte cloak and she's only now past the point of no return with leaving (even when she was taken into the Hall of Faces, she was told it isn't to late to leave.) Apologies if this reads as argumentative, it's just my suspicion and I can't prove it, nor do I think much of the FM will be proved, big fan of the channel and the ASoIaF community as a whole.

[@jazwhoaskedforthis]

This was great, thank you.

[@mehgancorker7242]

Before this podcast, I was totally one of those people who didn’t read beyond the surface level of the story. I just thought all the old myths were to give the world color. And I certainly didn’t think about the repeated symbolism of certain acts/phrasing. Thank you for renewing my love of ASOIAF and assuring me that the actual end will be nothing like the show!

[@thevalonqar2238]

Another great one LmL. The top hat is epic.

[@jintym2951]

Another great stream where I gained some fruit for thought and had a lot of fun 😄 xx

[@charlessindo9645]

Love the Black and White hoodie. As always love your insight. As you said I am leaning towards the faceless men playing a much bigger part in the endgame of ASOIF. For those that look deeper into the meaning of these novels, you’re missing half the adventure. Think DEEPLY people. Love ya. Praise Garth and screw the algorithms.

[@KingMonkeyII]

Thanks, now I have Jamiroquai rolling around in my head - “you, give me somethin, somethin that nobody else can give….”, LMAO. Not that it’s a bad thing! Great stream as always!!!!

[@stephaniehunter802]

Is it possible that the faceless men are using a glamour like melisandre. Could they be connected?

[@DavidLightbringer]

my conclusion was that glamour magic is something that can be done by more than just fire wizards... hell Mel is also a shadowbinder, which is something different than "R'hllor priestess," so it's hard to know. Glamours seem like an easier magic to perform, like the fire mage's tricks in Qarth

[@mistermaestersirthomas9164]

Oh thanks, I've been looking for 4 separate powers. So now there are 4 poem/songs (1 not said yet) about 4 grandmothers: Flint, Whent, Targaryen, and Dayne; and Dayne is Shadow magic.... Ohhh.

[@mcfarland1981]

@@DavidLightbringer bloodraven is glamoured in the third dunk story. But he uses a blue moonstone (cold) gem were as Mel uses a ruby (fire) gem....

[@janeway73]

"Can gods be killed?" Isn't it Euron who fancies himself a god?

[@Chris-vu4dw]

Epic symbolism as always. Thanks LmL!

[@tanksmoonchild]

As always this was awesome.

[@DavidLightbringer]

Glad you enjoyed it :)

[@bobbehwitchie]

I fucking love these deep character studies. I miss the cause I work but always catch it on my day off. This one was really fun.

[@tawk_studios]

@LML - The faceless men are avatars of the God of Death coming out of the House of B&W. The House of B/W represents the realm of death or weirwood realm, as we see from weirwood doors as portals and kindly man / Jaqen looking like Bloodraven. Unlike how Bloodraven and the children of the forest use greenseer magic to skinchange animals, men and trees, Jaquen and the faceless men use fire magic (glamours) and blood magic (sacrifice), and maybe even a little water magic (Bravosi Water Dancers?). The faceless men kill people, take their faces and skin, and take their memories. The children of the forest accept volunteers, usually skinchangers and/or greenseers to join the volunteers' memories and power to the collective weirwood realm (realm of death). Jaqen is an avatar from the realm of death or weirwood realm, stepping through the weirwood portal upon Arya's request, killing Boltons and freeing Starks. Arya runs into Harrenhal Godswood asking for help from Old Gods and comes back with weirwood tree assassin Jaqen to kill Boltons and free Starks. The Boltons parallel the Starks in the same way the faceless men parallel the children of the forest. The Boltons seem to be some strange corrupted bloodline of the Starks or perhaps more likely, the Boltons are trying to steal power from the Starks with no shared blood at all. The Boltons and faceless men are both also into dungeons and wearing skin. I feel the references to the Arya is taught to be so still that she cannot be seen, she learns these skills in the House of B/W and seems to need them in Harrenhal Godswood. I always think of Bran being the one to enter the weirwood realm and battle, and here we see Arya step into Godswood asking for help from the Old Gods. This could be foreshadowing of Arya using her skills to sneak past wights into Godswood to get Bran access so he can help defeat White Walkers, since he will be the new avatar of the weirwood realm and Bloodraven successor. Arya could even stab Jon freeing him and allowing Bran to skinchange Jon back into Jon's body to save them like Coldhands. The imagery reminds me of when Gilly is backed against the weirwood surrounded by wights (weirwoods) and Sam stabs wighted Paul with ember, then they are surrounded by ravens and saved by a skinchanger, Coldhands. Arya chooses to go there and pray to weirwood for her killer savior from death, much like the children of the forest using water magic for their killer savior from death. Gilly and Sam are forced to pray and kill when cornered, much like the faceless men use blood magic to force worshippers to pray and kill when told. Wighted Paul, Coldhands, Gilly and Sam seem to be reenacting the corruption of greenseer magic with blood magic that the faceless men seem to continue to practice. Arya seems to be reenacting the children of the forest using the original greenseer magic and water magic that the children of the forest seemed to have used for things like the Hammer of the Waters. Here, Arya is calling upon the Old Gods, like the children of forest calling upon green and water magic, to free her people and kill the Bolton thieves, who represent blood magic. CHECK OUT "TAWK STUDIOS" on KZbin: kzbin.info/door/Yq7xc_oNreS0Xn4ObvjJ5w WATCH NEW EPISODE OF "POT TAWK" on KZbin: kzbin.info/www/bejne/mpW4Z2N-lqt_Zs0 WATCH NEW EPISODE OF "TAWK THERAPY" on KZbin: kzbin.info/www/bejne/mYiroWt7aq2Ugsk

[@DavidLightbringer]

I was thinking of that Gilly scene too, I meant to mention that link, and also to bring up Asha getting brained by that axe in the Wayward Bride chapter. Same sort of weirwood tree maiden sacrifice setup, and Stannis the "black strag in a burning wood" emerges at the end. Good eyes!

[@tawk_studios]

@@DavidLightbringer Thank you. Great stream. I vote to analyze the symbolism of the Brothers Baratheon, Stan, Bob and Ren, and their parallels to characters from the Age of Heroes. We sent over an idea on IG. Please let us know your thoughts.

[@Jonjzi]

I had the thought that the source of magic comes from planetary alignment of some sort, which I infer from how the Thief being in the Moon Maid suggests that there exists a correct timing for certain events, as influenced by the stars. The astronomical event opens the door to the flow of magic wich can then be harnessed by certain thing, like in dragons or Mel's ruby. Those objects become conduits through which magic can continue to flow once harnessed, even after the astronomical event has passed.

[@DavidLightbringer]

That would be a very Lovecraftian idea

[@joeywheeler5541]

Just subbed thank you so much for all your hard work and thank you for keeping me interested in this story. You sir are a fucking legend

[@BrimstoneVomit]

Jaqen's relationship with Arya at Harrenhal is a little intriguing because it funneled down to a trick of names. As in, naming Jaqen H'ghar for blackmail. Yet we learn later that The House of Black and White a place for "no one." Does this mean the name "Jaqen H'ghar" should've held no power over him in this instance, since it's just an alias? Or does the name belong to the face/skin he assumed, and is therefore his true identity for a time? Is it not an alias at all and, like Arya, he clings to a former self? Or is this "name him" stuff all just part of the ruse while he tested/learned about Arya, and she made an impression by using it?

[@MrFredstt]

Great question! Idk for certain but to me it seems that since he was wearing that person's skin he essentially is that person for a name so the name would then hold power over him

[@jazwhoaskedforthis]

This is a question I'd like to ask GRRM

[@applewagon253]

I know this is more Arya focused, but the reading got me thinking: did Ned’s decision to teach her “dancing” seal her fate as a killer, or provide her with the tools and the ferocity to survive the coming perils?? Both? I caught myself creating a false dichotomy there...

[@applewagon253]

Also from the readings... Biter scared the SHIT outta me 😶

[@LautaroFs]

I think that if she hadn't learned to "dance" with Syrio Forel she would never have escaped the Red Keep and would have been quite an annoying prisoner for Cercy. I think it is a "law of the jungle" situation to eat or be eaten, kill or die. And well Ned do the right thing, because she wanted to learn, the only thing that he do was respect her caracter.

[@CrimsonTemplar2]

Ned saw a lot of his sister in Arya. I think he wanted to help her live up to her potential. Her winding up at the house of black & white was a future no one could have foreseen. I agree that without that skill set she probably would have died at Cersei or Joffrey’s hands for being a colossal pain.

[@hinakhodiyara7883]

Epic as always. Appreciate it :)

[@yidArmy102]

Good job man. Thank you David

[@tb4965]

Great vid dude

[@rhaevan.maniyara]

Okay, the opening spooked me up!

[@JELazarus]

I think that one name for the J'aqen art is supposed to be like Corven IceNail... but anyway, great job as always, LmL! Thank you for all the hard work!

[@DavidLightbringer]

I'm so bad at those, you're 100% right

[@mangeybum1443]

As always, great content!

[@CJusticeHappen21]

Just gonna throw out there how much Uncle energy Jaqen's "puff out your cheeks and stick out your tongue" moment has.

[@KaritKtana]

🤣👌 So true!!

[@Sinfjotli22]

Given that the FM posing as JH winds up at the citadel looking for a key, is it possible he was trying to get info from grand maester Pycell? Or possibly some lost secret of the red keep? The black cells would be a good starting point for access to the castle, especially given that varys was a jailor and would have known not to ask questions of a certain prisoner.

[@sarahconnor2129]

Biter was in the fighting pits of flee bottom, Of KingsLanding.

[@petergill9479]

Hes there to recruit her and in the end shes going to have to kill Jon because hes gonna be undead. What better person to get close to jon than his favorite sister.

[@jazwhoaskedforthis]

Oh no, Jon is Nissa Nissa

[@petergill9479]

I meant Aria was going to kill Jon

[@LeonM4c]

Less than 1 minute in amd I'm giggling like a schoolgirl, I LOVE you

[@LGManDee]

8:09 Interesting- Lorathi talk in the 3rd person as a rule, and Jaquen never stops this speech pattern, spare here where he speaks in first person to take a solemn oath. We can perhaps infer he takes the oath here as his true self.

[@DavidLightbringer]

oh good call

[@korinnastricke558]

1.05 mins in - yeah, he’s totally doing that stuff. 😀 love your analysis. Saves me worrying I missed it.

[@1Omega5]

TBH that green magic you used in the beginning with the Hubble ultra deep field was pretty fucking cool! XD

[@DavidLightbringer]

hey you recognized the space photo I used! NERD! ;)

[@1Omega5]

@@DavidLightbringerI really am! it's my phone's wallpaper 😭

[@iateabagelonce]

I love this so much. It puts so much of the series into perspective. I'm rereading ACoK right now so this is perfect. This also makes me wonder about Jaime and Brienne and the Azor Ahai symbolism. Jaime has a lot of Azor Ahai symbolism, but does Brienne have some as well? Since George plays around so much with their gender roles? Will they switch Azor Ahai/Nissa Nissa roles because of the gender role games? It's making me really look forward to my reread

[@DavidLightbringer]

yea they do! they both do both! i need to read the one where they fight in the river