In all four seasons of Game of Thrones so far, no single choice has been considered so irredeemably foolhardy - both in-universe and out - as Robb's to forsake his vow to marry a daughter of Walder Frey's and instead wed another woman. For love. Even the most romantic viewers were slapping their foreheads and swearing at Robb over this. There's really no defending him. While he certainly does not deserve the fate that would befall him in Season 3, his decision to marry a woman from Volantis instead of adhere to the terms of an alliance with a powerful and populous family at a time in which he is seriously short on allies is so ridiculous as to boggle the mind. Worse, Robb does not even have the excuse of ignorance. Catelyn outright tells him that he would face dire retribution from Walder Frey if he broke his vow and married Talisa. Even she could not have predicted the bloodbath of the Red Wedding, but the fact remains that it was entirely avoidable. Robb did not need to love or even like his Frey bride; he just needed to legally wed her, bed her, and be done with it for a time. He may have carried a torch for Talisa for the rest of his life, but at least that life would have lasted for longer than a few more months. He could have at least waited until the end of the war to throw the alliance away. This is what mistresses are for, Robb.
Fiction buff and writer. If it's on Netflix, it's probably in my queue. I've bought DVDs for the special features and usually claim that the book is better than the movie or show (and can provide examples). I've never met a TV show that I won't marathon. Follow on Twitter @lah9891 .
