Fear Cuts Deeper Than Swords

Me, an intellectual:

I can never understand how Snape apologetics can stand up for him when he CANONICALLY does this shit.

I can maybe, maybe, understand those who haven’t read the books standing up for him, because honestly the movies don’t cover all the horrible stuff he does. But those who have read the books and still stick up for him baffle me.

JK Rowling: These two characters can turn into a black dog and a werewolf

House Bolton: “Our Blades Are Sharp”

solid but workmanlike house words. good implicit threat. could have been a bit more poetic, but then again, so could most of the Boltons 7/10

House Greyjoy: “We Do Not Sow”

really just a sentence that deserves a polite “oh?” in response 3/10

House Lannister: “Hear Me Roar!”

a good and fearsome lion image, but undercut by the exclamation point which frankly by lannister standards is trying too hard. if you asked tywin lannister about this, he would tell you with quiet irritation that the exclamation point was not his doing 9/10

House Arryn: “As High as Honor”

very poetic and elegant, and a nice reference to the Eyrie. clearly means to instill admiration rather than fear, and it works. unfortunately, also invites humorous drug-related double entendres 8/10

House Tyrell: “Growing Strong”

needs serious reconsideration! implies that house tyrell is not already strong! all for the sake of a weak pastoral pun! 2/10

House Stark: “Winter is Coming”

unbelievably goth. not only promises the destruction of you and all your loved ones but also possibly of the starks and all their loved ones. the ultimate buckle the fuck up house words 11/10

House Tarly: “First in Battle”

nicely aggressive! but ambiguous. does this mean house tarly is first onto the field, or first numerically when the winners are ranked, because that’s not really how battles work. it must also be said that these house words sound like a high school superlative. 6/10

House Targaryen: “Fire and Blood”

good use of dramatic standalone nouns. very threatening, if a tad unhinged, which is a decent summation of house targaryen. at least they’re honest about it 8/10

House Martell: “Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken”

are you tho. 9/10 if read alone but 5/10 when read with the cruel dramatic irony of the series

House Tully: “Family, Duty, Honor”

the worse of the two mottos separated by two commas. unlike “Fire and Blood,” none of these nouns is romantic or exciting enough to inspire my loyalty. sounds vaguely like a westerosi sequel to eat pray love 4/10

House Baratheon: “Ours is the Fury”

the perfect house words. confident, dynamic, and unifying. also thrillingly catchy and filled with the thirst of war itself. would be so satisfying to scream before riding onto a battlefield 10/10 

House Wode: “Touch Me Not”

Krum attacked Fleur, who responded with “Sacré bleu!” This exclamation is a phrase with many possible meanings and connotations. Literally, it translates to ‘sacred blue’, a phrase which does not appear to make much literal sense, and might lead an earwitness to suspect that the speaker is invoking some kind of nefarious coded phrase. The French invented it as a way to swear without invoking the name of God, as ‘bleu’ and ‘Dieu’ are similar sounding words, such as ‘look’ and ‘book’, or ‘code’ and ‘forebode’, or even ‘last breath’ and ‘painful death’.

Katara: