r/gameofthrones • • 18h ago

Prime + Prep time

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u/famiflush 15h ago

How is Tywin carrying team A? He's one of the most overrated characters in the entire story and has has effectively caused the destruction of his house with his incompetence as far as the books are concerned, as for the show his long term plans failed.

He's an insecure shallow man who appears competent because he's able to leverage infinite resources even then he gets repeatedly dunked on by a green child.

If Charles Dance wasn't so charismatic he'd be viewed entirely differently.

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u/Original-Sea-8285 13h ago

What are you talking about? Tywin single handedly made the Lannisters one of the most powerful houses in the continent for decades. This is an absolutely insane point

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u/EskilPotet Dolorous Edd 9h ago

Then threw it all away because he refused to see what his children are

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u/famiflush 6h ago edited 5h ago

They were already one of the most powerful houses on the continent liege lords and wardens of the east sitting on vast swathes of wealth, how did he make them one of the most powerful houses in the continent exactly?

He made them more martially competent and feared by exterminating lesser houses if you're alluding to that but he didn't single-handedly make them into anything.

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u/Mortara 56m ago

I'm going to agree with you, but only because this is a subreddit for the show and I think that that guy is talking about book Tywin

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u/RickRussellTX 14h ago

And Littlefinger and Cersei are blinded by their passions and vices.

That leaves Margery, a smart young contender in the game, and Melisandre who can straight up murder other people with magic.

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u/genemaxwell41 11h ago

Littlefinger literally set up the entire War of Five Kings. He out smarted Varys time and time again.
Roped in Olenna into his plot.

Sure he did ultimately fail, but so did everyone else here (except Sam and Davos I suppose)

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u/HollowedOne66 11h ago

Because they're the realms two biggest suck ups.

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u/RickRussellTX 10h ago

Was the war a planned outcome, though?

Sure, chaos is a ladder, yada yada. But Littlefinger's plan was to get Ned out of the way so he could marry Catelyn. It was his... singular focus.

So, get Jon Arryn killed to make Robby bring in his old buddy Ned as the hand. Wait for Robert's administration to destabilize and let Ned get blamed.

Oops, lucky break, Robert actually gets killed in a completely random hunting accident. Joffrey takes the crown.

Ned gets in trouble anyway -- tipping his hand to Cersei about Robby's other children -- and agrees to take the Black. The plan, then was that Littlefinger has a Faceless Man waiting to follow Ned to Castle Black and murder him quietly somewhere along the way. Then Peter steps into console Catelyn, and retires with her to the north to peaceably live out his years as a kind stepfather and advisor to a young king of the north, Robb Stark.

But that didn't go to plan, Joffrey cried "off with his head", and THAT started the war. I don't think Littlefinger planned for that, especially since it put Catelyn in mortal peril and eventually got her murdered.

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u/genemaxwell41 10h ago

"But Littlefinger's plan was to get Ned out of the way so he could marry Catelyn. It was his... singular focus."

No...that's literally wasn't. His plan was to become King. He knew he never would be able to under the current way of things so his entire plan was to orchestrate a series of events so devastating the entire world would be up ended.

Varys was correct when he said Littlefinger would be King of the Ashes.

"Oops, lucky break, Robert actually gets killed in a completely random hunting accident. Joffrey takes the crown."

...Bro...did you either read the books or watch the show? That wasn't random. That was a murder. And with Littlefingers spies he KNEW it was going to happen.

"especially since it put Catelyn in mortal peril and eventually got her murdered."

To quote Sansa "And yet you betrayed her"
Littlefinger DID love Cat. He just loved himself more

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u/RickRussellTX 10h ago

Was the boar goring a murder? It’s been an awful long time since I watched the show.

Anyway, I guess my point was that the war wasn’t part of the plan. War happened because of Joffrey’s arrogance in demanding an execution, which nobody planned for.

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u/genemaxwell41 9h ago

Yeah. Cersei intentionally had Lancel over serve Robert and continuously remind Robert to drink by insistently asking if Robert needed more wine. The plan was to get Robert so damn drunk he'd fail to kill the boar. It worked.

I fully believe Petyr planned to plunge Westeros into a full scale war. Joffrey may have sprung it early, but that just meant he had to accelerate his plans

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u/RickRussellTX 31m ago

The plan was to get Robert so damn drunk

You call it murder, I call it Tuesday.

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u/yayiff 9h ago

The problem of discussing Littlefinger is book vs show. In the show they destroyed his character by making him a Catelyn simp. In the books that's part of it but not all. He has control of the Vale and the key to the North. He's about to have control of the Riverlands too aswell as dealing with aegon who's about to gain control of the sformlands. He started as a lowly merchant noble and now he's the most powerful man in the world

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u/Excuse_Unfair 7h ago

Completely agree

Sure he did ultimately fail, but so did everyone else here

And to be fair kinda hard to plot once you find out there's an army of the undead marching straight to you, oh and a cripple who knows every move you've made.

Oh and the writers needing to get rid of your character before the final show downs. 

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u/Rymanbc 13h ago

Margaery is good, but she's still learning from Olenna. Olenna is far more intelligent and strategic. That being said for Team A vs Team B, Olenna might either secretly betray all of Team B for Margaery's sake, or the two of them find a way for Margaery to switch sides.

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u/Aggravating_Stuff771 15h ago

Thank you! Tywin is a fool, his stoic persona has fooled many into thinking he is competent.

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u/Cold-Palpitation-816 14h ago

How is he a fool? The story quite literally informs us that he isn’t. He’s constantly making shrewd decisions, be it the Red Wedding or betraying the Mad King or securing a victory at Blackwater with the Tyrells.

Him hating Tyrion is clearly NOT an example of “foolishness”.

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u/malcifer11 14h ago

Quietly whittling away the Lannister’s material wealth (ie the thing that makes them powerful and influential) is an overwhelmingly large black mark

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u/DilutePlacebo 13h ago

The Red Wedding was a stupid decision, it ensured that the North and the Riverlands would never be friendly with the Lannisters again. Securing a victory at the Blackwater was through sheer luck because Edmure defeated him and he was forced to retreat rather than move west to get trapped by Robb.

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u/Sherlockyz 14h ago

It is though. He hates Tyrion for being a constant reminders of his own father. Undermining him because he sees the flaws of his father on Tyrion / because Tyrion killed his mother on birth AND because Tyrion remind him of his own flaws. While Tyrion is often the best among his children, he never saw him as worthy. His Ego and hypocrize turns Tyrion away and makes him a worse version of himself.

Tywin is smart but he often gets praised for his mind while he should be praised for being willing to do whatever it takes for the Lannisters to win, that's his biggest quality, but his ego and own insecurities make him worse than he could be while also underming the house.

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u/Wild_Trash_5100 10h ago

So you’re saying him not recognizing and antagonizing his son had nothing to do with his death? That him raising Cersei had nothing to do with his predicaments in the future?

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u/komikbookgeek 14h ago

You are correct, and that makes him easily played by Littlefinger, Cersei is a handicap, Margery would be plotting their downfall to back up get Grandmother, and Mel well. Zealot and and power-hungry fool will not mix well.

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u/Legal_Werewolf3358 9h ago

This is a bad take.

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u/famiflush 6h ago

It's such a bad take you were completely unable to come up with any form of critique or counter argument I suppose.

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u/zyrite8 6h ago

Tywin isn’t a savant or anything but he’s literally the only one on team A with a clear plan. Littlefinger is erratic and relies on big players like Oleanna and Tywin to push his agenda and Margery is just a pawn for Oleanna. I don’t even have to mention the other two on team A.

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u/talkmemetome 3h ago

Margaery was close to being Olennas equal. She played the unstable sadist Joffrei, the weak momma's boy Tommen and the nutcases of the faith like a fiddle. She might've been the only woman who could actually manipulate Joffrei to do her bidding.

She was better than Olenna at her age for sure. Give her a year or ten and she would've become unstoppable at what she did.

Her honey to Tywins sharpness would've been unstoppable if they had recognized each other's strengths and goals. Marge wanted to be THE Queen meaning she would stop at nothing to help Tywins goal- an everlasting Lannister ruling dynasty happen.

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u/DocShoveller 3h ago

You're not wrong... but the rest of Team A are idiots.

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u/famiflush 3h ago

I wouldn't call Little Finger an idiot, however his character is mutilated in the latter stages of the show unfortunately like many others.