I think the "cunning" is what turns me off. Lady Olenna just seems like a crafty old lady. Margaery Tyrell is an attractive and incredibly interesting character but how could you ever trust a person like that? Dangerous. Poison. Power hungry. Morals bend to suit whatever situation comes. She just participated with her new husband in murdering that poor woman in their room (they just showed the picture afterwards).
Before I delve into the specific issues, the intrigue and cunning are some of the best parts of the show/books for me. Anything where I can't really figure out whats going to happen before it does, and makes my brain work hard to keep up is a winner in my book.
Almost no other shows (some books do) have intrigue on the level that GoT does, and that gives me a cine nerd hard on for it.
Margary's role in Ros' death hasn't been fleshed out yet. Yes they had the scene where Margary and Joffrey are basically jerking off his new crossbow, but I'm going to need something a little more concrete than that.
Maybe I'm just thinking Margary is a little better of a person than she is, but the scene where she's giving to the poor is making me give her the benefit of the doubt so far.
Maybe it's better to do the right thing and die than compromise your values and live.
I think Robb was naive and stupid. He sort of had it coming. His mother and Catelyn did not though.
Tyrion and Jon I like. I don't know how strategic either of them are though. Both lack influence and power.
Varys is someone that I just am not attached to as a character at all.
Tywin Lannister is scum. Melisandre is evil. Stannis Baratheon is weak.
The one person I'm advocating for now that is left and seems to be in a position of having a chance of winning the game is Daenerys Targaryen.
New things develop though and I don't know what will happen.
Maybe it is better, but if your going to choose play the game of thrones it's not a winning strategy.
If that was my stance I would just try to find the guy who was going to win, and be his loyal vassal and keep my virtue in tact.
If your going to stand on top, you've got to get your hands dirty.
Tyrion is brilliant playing the game, maybe not quite as good as Varys/Littlefinger (not as much practice) but just as talented. They also don't have the constraints of being tied to houses with members more powerful than themselves.
Jon isn't in the same league. He's smarter than Robb and Ned in this regard, mostly because he wasn't the chosen son, but I'm hoping he won't succumb to the same trap. But being smarter than Ned and Robb at playing the game doesn't make one an all star. Without seeing him have to use his wits much (the wall the knights watch and the wildlings don't provide too many instances for us to see his talents) its hard to say how adept he would be.
The scenes with Varys, especially if he's talking to Littlefinger, Tyrion, Olenna (or other smarties) is always a delight for me.
Tywin while certainly a bad guy mostly for his ruthlessness, isn't even close to the level of Joffrey, Gregor Clegane,
etc..
If Tywin was the king and there weren't massive ongoing threats to his family, I think his rule would be infinitely better than Joffrey's, or the Mad Kings, or Robert's for that matter (Tywin is much better at the day to day running of things).
Tywin is also another smarty who I greatly enjoy. Charles Dance is perfect for him casting wise.
I think of Stannis much the same way as far as how good his rule would be. He certainly not as quick as Tywin though (he would never be manipulated by Melisandre that way). Stannis' ruthlessness is in service to his code, but he would run things efficiently as well.
I don't know enough about Melisandre to really have a good read on her yet. I don't like her or trust her but she gets it done.
Dany is a good person, but she frustrates me frequently along the same lines as naive characters in the story. She will need good advisers, and thinkers to keep her ship afloat in the long run I suspect.
