While it is true enough that I am a lot less optimistic about season 2 than I was about season 1, I shouldn’t give the impression that there’s nothing I am looking forward to. In terms of casting, I think Melisandre and Brienne have the potential to be really good. If that turns out to be true, that will be very enjoyable as those are two characters I really like. I wasn’t really taken with Brienne until she became a viewpoint character and I downright disliked Melisandre until her chapter in A Dance with Dragons, but now they are definitely among my favourites and what I know about the characters all together will still affect how I see them in the second season. So, I am keeping my fingers crossed for those storylines.
I also have hopes for the Beyond the Wall storyline, though likely it will (once again) be sad to see how little the wolves will be used. That’s one of those unavoidable changes that I can’t fault anyone for, however.
As for the rest…Sophie is a great Sansa, so any scenes with her (but without the trainwreck that is Cersei on the show) should be something to look forward to. Maise is also a great Arya, but Arya is not a character I like to read about at all and it colours my feelings for her on the show. Given the lack of any casting for the Bloody Mummers, I am also left feeling dubious about the final execution of her storyline in general. Robb…well, no. Not happy with this expansion of his story. Again, doing the typical thing. Theon and Bran we’ve not seen or heard much about, nor Asha (except that idiotic name-change), and the same really goes for Renly’s court. We won’t get a huge melee and a spectacular fight between Loras and Brienne, of course, but that’s another of those sad, mostly unavoidable facts.
And I very much fear that, once again, we will be cheated out of most dreams, visions, etc. However, I’d forgive a lot of things if it turns out they’ve secretly brought back Harry Lloyd to play Rhaegar for the scene in the House of the Undying.