Yea I think people don't really take into account how risky this show was financially, and how limited the budget was even after it became a success. They simply don't have the money to go everywhere the books go. Nor would it be possible given the ten hours they have each season. Despite many cuts it oftentimes still feels like a clip show where a viewer might only get 2-5 minutes of a character they really like. That pacing issue makes it very hard to positively compare the show to most other shows, where multiple arcs get a lot of progression and time to breath during each episode.
My problem with the showrunners is that they have a knack for cutting corners, and don't trust the audience. Going for shock factors over character development for instance, or fearing that audiences won't fuck with an episode if there isn't some ridiculous action sequence or sex scene thrown in. That type of mentality is what gave us stuff like Ros from the first three seasons, or last season's ridiculous Yara scene with her trying to free Theon (before her and her armored companions ran away from dogs). Or Oberyn being reduced to a guy who chilled at a brothel all the time.
Overall I try to steer clear of complaints about book stuff - the show is the show, the books are the books. Still, sometimes I can't help but think certain book arcs are more entertaining than the show's decisions. Jon's arc in S2 is a perfect example of that. But then again you could argue it made sense to focus so much on Ygritte and build that relationship for TV audiences to care about it.
