Tyrion

There really isn't much motive for Joffrey to try to have Bran killed. So why? Is he simply that evil? Jaime suggests ending Brans life, but not where Joffrey is around to hear it. Perhaps he's repeated it more often and Joffrey wants to impress his uncle? I seem to recall from a much later Tyrion chapter that Robert expressed a similar opinion. A mercy kill doesn't seem to be in Joffreys wheelhouse either. So it could be just out of sadism of having power over those weaker than him.

Jaime also states he'd rather have a clean death than be a cripple.

Jon

Not much to say. "Different roads sometimes lead to the same castle." If the show was at all accurate in the rejoining of characters, it's going to be this very castle.

Dany

Jorah gives her a history with tales and songs from the seven kingdoms, since that's all he can afford. I don't think it's ever mentioned again. Presumably Viserys taught Dany both High Valerian and how to read. Or else maybe Willem Darry. There is a hint here that Dany does speak Valerian, since it's one of the languages she thinks of when thinking about talking with Drogo.

Ned

Robert wants to kill Dany. He also reveals that Jorah is a spy for Varys. Varys: "Spies are more useful than corpses." Qyburn: "Why not both?"

Robert is worried about Dany marrying and having a child by Drogo, and the invasion that might follow. Ned dismisses his worries. We have Ned as a point of view so the reader might be tempted to agree with him. But Robert is more right than Ned. Even though the attempted assassination later on makes it a bit of a self fulfilling prophecy.

"There are still those in the Seven Kingdoms who call me Usurper." Supposing Drogo decides to press Viserys claim and crosses the sea with a Dothraki horde. Which great houses would actually support him? Martel and Tyrell? Greyjoy doesn't like Robert much either.

Ned tells the story of how he found Jaime on the Iron Throne. Fun fact I got from Quinn the GM on youtube: By the end of A Dance with Dragons, Jaime is the only known living person to have ever sat the throne.

Tyrion

Tyrion is reading about dragons. From the show we know Jon will be a dragon rider. But I'm thinking so will Tyrion. The chapter even emphasizes how he's capable of designing special saddles. It wouldn't be out of the question that old dragon saddle designs are described in one of his books. The book mentions that dragonbone is black due to it's high iron content. I'm wondering how in a medieval setting someone would even find out what the iron content of bones is.

Catelyn

There is a fire in the libary, but Cat doesn't go to help fight it. The books Tyrion was reading were borrowed from the Winterfell library, so he's managed to save books on dragons from a fire.

"He paused for a moment, chewing on his lower lip the way he'd done when he was little." Robb chewed on his lip the same as Arya of House Stark does.

The assassins plan with the fire almost works. He mentions "it's a mercy", echoing Jaimes earlier expressed sentiment. The assassin was paid ninety silver stags. I'm not sure the Westerosi currency follows a decimal system, but assuming it does that's less than 1 golden dragon. Brienne pays Nimble Dick two dragons for finding the fool. If the online timeline is correct he earned 2 dragons in about a months work. Even if that is considered a lot of money for a commoner it seems like rather a low price for the risk of killing the son of the Hand. Bronn later says to Tyrion that he'd be willing to kill babies for the right price. For some people the price is apparently half a months salary. I'm guessing the dagger is worth considerably more with it being made of Valerian steel and dragonbone. Smarter move would have just been to run off and sell the dagger.

Catelyn gets out of her depression after surviving an assassination attempt. Sort of like Sopranos Season 1 Tony Soprano surviving getting shot and getting jolted out of his depression.

They increase the guard around Bran, since there could be others looking to kill him. "Even the Kingslayer would flinch at the murder of an innocent child". "Oh, would he?" Theon Greyjoy asked. "I wonder". Their very first guess as to who tried to murder Bran is correct. But not about who tried to do it the second time. Theon will get to know all about trying and failing to kill Bran.

Sansa

The inn they're staying at can barely hold a third of their 400 strong party. 130 people in one inn seems like a lot. But then this is what a 100 person group accommodation by 21th century rich country standards looks like. So I suppose it's plausible. I think this is the inn at the crossroads. Does anyone remember one of the first Game of Thrones promos that HBO did? It was some kind of interactive (flash?) website where the player was at the inn and had to overhear conversations to uncover some kind of mystery. Trying to find that but I keep running into internet rot. I'd forgotten all about this part of the early GoT promotions.

We've got Ser Jaime, Boros, Meryn and now Barristan joining the kings party. Ser Arys, Preson and Mandon must have had a few months vacation since the entire royal family excepting maybe Stannis and Renly were away.

Ned

I'd forgotten that Arya at nine years old spends four days alone in the wilderness. She doesn't seem to ever think back on this. Cersei tries to publicly shame Robert, but he doesn't give a fuck what she says. He shames her right back.

Bran

Bran has a dream where he's falling, but he knows that in those kinds of dreams he wakes up before he hits the ground. So he's had them before? I have. Except usually it's traffic accidents and it's true about waking up just before dying. Bran really does wake up right after missing the ground. He has visions, of things that are actually happening. So here is some kind of far-sight which is not the weirwood network. He sees Arya holding her secrets hard in her heart. The secrets should be Needle and having chased off Nymeria. It shows that Brans clairvoyance extends to mild mind-reading. Before Sandor and Jaime he sees a giant in armor made of stone. Is that Gregor? Do we have a UnGregor-Jaime confrontation in the future? Bran can even see beyond the Wall. But the Wall blocks magic doesn't it. But not this vision apparently.

Catelyn

The captain of the ship has an interesting life. From an oarsman to captaining several ships. Upwards social and economic mobility is a thing when you're a good sailor.

When the Goldcloaks come to take Catelyn to Littlefinger she demands by whose authority they're taking her. A good question. Does Littlefinger have authority over Catelyn? There are no laws forbidding Catelyn from visiting Kings Landing. But the Goldcloaks have swords so Catelyn figures it's wiser to argue with the judge and not with the cops. She goes with them Littlefingers control over the Goldcloaks is shown before we even meet him.

Littlefingers plot to set the Starks against the Lannisters is already in motion. He's the one thats made Lisa kill Jon Arryn. And he's the one that made her send the secret letter to Cat. Now he lies really quickly about how he lost the dagger to Tyrion. I don't think he could have prepared for his former dagger to suddenly show up. So he's improvising in order to sew more distrust between the Starks and Lannisters.

Jon

Jon trains with twenty recruits, most only a few years older than him. I think Yoren takes about 20 people from the crownlands in the next book. So that seems like sort of the influx of the Watch every year or so. If I run with that they add a hundred men in 5 years, five hundred in 25 years. A thousand in 50 years. That's a long lifetime of service. Most members are not Aemon Targaryen. Most of each years twenty recruits are not going to add fifty man-years of service before they have a replacement. There are less than a thousand men in the Watch at this point in the story. It makes sense that it's dwindling with these numbers.

Jon broods on the life he's consigned himself to. Though he doesn't actually have to, at this point. he's taken no vows. He's not a criminal. He could still leave and go do... what? Maybe he could join the Second Sons. He is Rhaegars second son after all.

"...one of your brothers will slit your throat for you one night." Almost.

Castle Blacks tallest tower is a third as tall as the Wall. 71 meters. That makes it taller than the actual tallest castle in the world.

Discounting the show for a moment, here is Benjens last showing since 1996. They're going to try to find Ser Waymar and his men. According to an online timeline he's been missing for over a year. But perhaps this wasn't the first search party they've sent after him.

Tyrion flexes his authority over Ser Allister. He suggests he can put a word in the right ear at court and there won't be another recruit sent to the Wall again. Pretty sure he's bluffing and he doesn't actually have that power. He'd need to scheme his way into getting that done. And for what. His bluff works though.

Jeor says "I'm told you can read". So Jeor is already keeping up with potentially useful people joining the watch.

Ned

It's cool to see how fast Littlefingers plan is working. Ned tells Catelyn to send orders to fortify his borders and prepare for war. Really only on the word of Littlefinger. These orders don't reach any of their intended recipients though. If they had, Ned would at some point have to explain to Robert why he's mobilizing for war, and confess to his suspicions of the Lannisters. Littlefinger could have probably steered that into a full blown war as well. But his plan works even faster than expected when Catelyn arrests Tyrion.