... and both you and BigReg may have some merit. But the show's simplified dichotomy may also be a function of TV as a medium, when you can't apply the nuances from such dense source material.

Along the same lines is an interesting reddit post, how the deaths written by Martin and those written for the show are characterized:

https://www.reddit.com/r/asoiaf/comments/4gtexw/spoilers_everything_dd_vs_grrm_writing_death/

"Benioff and Weiss have been coming up with more and more original content as they continue to ripple away from Martin's source material. Because of this, I'm starting to notice major changes in storytelling techniques. Particularly in how death scenes occur.

There's a very strong pattern I'm picking up on how D&D write original death scenes for major characters. They seem to like incorporating two things before the death occurs: 1. A touching moment, and 2. A direct setup.

Compare this to how GRRM writes major death scenes. Two commonalities I see in his death scenes are: 1. Subverting victory, and 2. Subtle setups."


Interesting post, I'm going to view every death in the show with this prism from now on. If it follows the former characterization I'll assume it's a "show death" and if not I'll assume it's a "Martin death" (sigh).