A friend of mine has a very bleak assessment of Game of Thrones: If you love a character, they'll die unfulfilled. If you hate a character, you'll come to learn how they became so hateful and start to love them, and then they try to redeem themselves and die unfulfilled.
It's not quite like that, or else I'd be worried about spoiling by sharing the sentiment. But how the show will deal with the books' long march of constant thwarting and elusive pleasure, while adding additional characters all the time, and still keep interest, was one of the things I worried about last season. How will the show give viewers the emotional boost they need to stay invested while being true to the gruesome, occasionally-grueling canon?
Well, stuff like That Daenerys Scene, I guess. It's time to recap and discuss! I'll bring the words, you bring the animated GIFs.
Let's step out of the episode's chronology and talk about Dany's glorious triumph in Astapor first, since that's the part everyone's talking about in my social circles. A couple recaps back, a couple commenters (and you guys are brilliant, by the way, keep it coming!) said they were just waiting for the grand reveal, whereby we learn Dany's been able to speak High Valyrian all along and has been playing the dumb foreign girl as a strategic move so that the slavers wouldn't see her coming.
A lot of action and crime dramas lean on the tension in that big reveal, when a couple of factions one assumes are equally powerful do the anxious dance around the weapons exchange, and then one of them revels in a breathtaking coup. There's always the moment when you have to arm your opponent and trust they'll keep the deal, rather than use the ammunition you gave them to turn on you.
Keeping nobly mum about her disgust for the slavers and allowing them to underestimate her let Dany betray Astapor, keep her Dragon, and leave a liberated city behind her in a cloud of dust. The great joy moment comes from the fact she gets to have an army of freed men who serve her by choice -- and from the awed looks on the faces of Barristan Selmy and Jorah Mormont, who've been trying to mansplain her out of her agenda all this time.
The dragon who laid waste to Astapor is her largest and most aggressive, Drogon, named after her late husband Khal Drogo. The other two are Viserion, named after her mad creep of a brother Viserys (who died of a molten gold crown in the Dothraki encampment, if you recall), and Rhaegal, named after as-yet rarely-mentioned other brother, the late Rhaegar Targaryen, a charismatic hero and the best-liked figure in the Targaryen's spotty legacy.
The shadow of the Targaryens overhangs this episode, so if you're going to get excited about Daenerys' fire and blood, we might as well fill you in on how she comes by it. It's Dany's late family, former rulers of Westeros, about whose legacy of mental illness Joffrey squeals eagerly in the Sept where he's set to marry Margaery. Before the late Robert Baratheon led a rebellion, Daenerys' father Aerys sat the throne, reviled as the "mad king".
Slaying him is what earned Jaime Lannister the title of Kingslayer, as if slaying a mad king were an essential act of treachery coming from the Targaryen despot's own Kingsguard. As the story goes, Rhaegar Targaryen's two young children, one an infant, were murdered by some Lannister agent (one of the Clegane brothers, many think), to ensure Robert would take the throne and marry Cersei with no rival heirs from the prior house.
Intuiting that history even a little bit helps to shed yet more ambiguity on unfortunate Jaime Lannister, who is still a high-value prisoner, along with Brienne. His reputation is negative outside of Lannister allies, his talent and privilege goes widely resented long after he's lost his sword-hand, which he sees as his entire identity. Brienne seems to experience some sympathy for him, here, and pressures him out of giving himself up for dead by suggesting he's acting "like a woman" by feeling sorry for himself.
When she demands to know why he prevented her from being violated in last week's episode, he doesn't answer -- but then when we cut to Cersei confronting their father, we know why. Jaime has sympathy for how his twin sister has had far less renown than him, presumably just for being born a woman. He's not such a bad guy, this Lannister golden boy.
The Night's Watch, still installed at Craster's vile keep and helping him with chores in exchange for board and scraps, is not having a good time of it, either. Gilly returns Sam's mother's thimble, which he clumsily tried to impress on her as a romantic gesture last time he was here. Poor Sam; you can't really blame Gilly, though, busy as she is trying to spend what she thinks will be her last moments with her son before her father (also the baby's father) sacrifices him to the wights. Sam is bright, sensitive and fair, but action's what's needed here now.
Unfortunately, starvation, fear and dissent about how to handle the Craster issue culminates in a civil war of sorts among the black crows, in which both despicable Craster and beloved "Old Bear" Mormont are both killed, as Sam hustles Gilly and her baby out into the cold, dangerous night.
It looks like Ros and Varys were as confused about Pod's no-charge outing at Littlefinger's brothel last week as we were. Seems like the fact Littlefinger didn't notice the lost income was simply the catalyst for Ros to investigate Littlefinger's shipping documents as the latter heads to the Eyrie to woo Catelyn's distasteful sister Lysa into a strategic marriage.
Seems Littlefinger plans to smuggle Sansa Stark along on a visit to her aunt. Helpless Sansa is little more than a playing piece in the Game of Thrones, now, in that custody of any kind could bring the Northmen, loyal to her late Dad, to heel. Varys claims to be Littlefinger's friend -- he's everyone's friend, that Master of Whispers -- but no one wants to see a relatively low-born, dangerously cunning man gain any special advantage amid the unrest at court.
Varys tells Tyrion the grisly story of how he became a eunuch as a boy, in the service of some sorcerer's ritual -- but it's also the story about how the crafty man patiently worked his way up from the slums of Myr to the Small Council of King's Landing, patiently tending his information network over years, until he's finally able to bring the very sorcerer who harmed him to the castle in a box. The vengeance Tyrion wants for the mysterious attempt on his life during the Blackwater battle could take similar years, Varys implies.
Cersei Lannister and Olenna Redwyne discuss plans for Joffrey's likely improbably-lavish wedding to Margaery. Cersei is cold and short-sighted, and her fatal flaw is the fact she's felt she had to defer to her cruel young son to maintain her family's legacy. As Joff delights in squicky stories about the late Targaryens, whose madness emerges because of their family tendency to wed siblings, we see probably it's Cersei's secret choice of father for her child that's given pale-haired Joff the same violent, uncontrollable tendencies.
The Lannisters enjoy force and wealth; the Tyrells seem to like the simple charm of a golden rose, no matter how the family matriarch appears to disdain their non-threatening family crest. The conversation between Cersei and Olenna is excellent -- surely when the grandmother laments how hard it is to keep one's sons from the grave, it's not a threat, is it? "And yet the world belongs to them," Cersei says mournfully.
For her father's political plays she had to wed a womanizing drunk who apparently died in a hunting accident, just like the late husband Olenna scorns; she now has a son she can't control, and the one person she apparently loves is who knows how far away.
To make matters worse, a radiant, bare-armed and unguarded heroine of the common-folk seems to be better at manipulating her son than she is. When mobs start wailing outside of the Sept, we expect they want to throw more cow pies at bratty Joff -- remember how the royal family barely escaped savaging at the hands of commonfolk the last time they walked among them? But that was before charismatic Lady Margaery took over public relations.
When after plying Joff with a lie about her appreciation for viciousness she suggests he open the doors and greet the people, we wonder whether she intends to lead him to his death. But when they cheer him for standing beside her, the stricken-mother look on Cersei's face is priceless. She doesn't just fear losing her son bodily -- she fears losing her power to this pretty young rose.
Hunted into a corner and bereft of real allies, the Lannister lady approaches her father for help. Brilliantly, this scene is designed to mirror the one in which her little brother Tyrion dared to approach their detached father Tywin for control of Casterly Rock: The brilliant strategist takes his time about important business, making no secret of the fact any number of things are more important to him than his children. He claims he doesn't disdain his daughter's wisdom, such as it is, because she's a woman, but because she's failed her most important job. Which is to be a mother. Thanks, Dad.
We've seen Theon Greyjoy liberated from torture at the Dreadfort by a mysterious groomsman who claims to've been loyal to the Ironborn family. Should have seen disaster coming as soon as the rescuer began plying Theon's ego, which is his fatal weakness. We were able to feel quite sorry for Theon last season, caught between two houses where neither patriarch was totally willing to be his father. We understand his desire to please his origin family at war with his outsider status among the honorable Starks that raised him. "All he had to do was just be," Theon laments resentfully of Robb Stark, who'd been like a brother to him.
We see Theon on the verge of redemption, realizing how he chose wrong. You could almost well up at his revelation that his real father was Ned Stark after all. And that's when we learn the desperately-needed savior was just leading him back to the torture device from which he'd unpinned him and sent him fleeing.
If this episode has a theme, it's that madness is among the most fatal wild-cards in the Game of Thrones world. I imagine they'll finally let us know who this long-awaited character is really meant to be next week, but for now we're given to understand it's a presumably-insane tormentor who liked the pleasure of letting Theon go free just so he could hunt him down and bring him back. Sick, man. Look at that expression on his face when they put Theon on the signature Bolton family X-shaped rack again.
How are we supposed to have hope enough to stay with this story? Well, that Daenerys scene is coming up. My friend wants to make that unholy choir her ringtone. But before that, we find out Varys decides to collude with Olenna Redwyne and the Tyrells to marry Sansa Stark into the Tyrell family instead, which would be a major coup for the golden roses who're quietly "growing strong" all around the Lannisters' crumbling grip on King's Landing. Margaery tells Sansa she wants to be good friends -- but Margaery is also a very good liar.
Porridge Plague? Really? Sansa's crucial failing all along is she believes whatever she is told to believe, especially if it's consistent with the glossy fiction of handsome lords and noble ladies, no matter how many times those minstrels' fictions have let her down in the past. If you ask her to believe she gets to marry Loras Tyrell and become a lady of beautiful Southron Highgarden, she very much wants to. The reason she doesn't want to confide the nature of her prayers is that all she's wanted all along is for Joffrey to die. I mean, come on. It's what we've all wanted.
We close by learning a little more, in a sense, about the fate of the Targaryen babies -- specifically that it wasn't the Hound, Sandor Clegane, who killed them. We know, because he denies being part of the pillaging violations at the Mummer's Ford, and he denies being involved in the death of children, but has no trouble accepting brave Arya's accusation that he slayed her friend Micah, the butcher's boy, mistakenly blamed in her place for injuring Joffrey in a much more innocent time of riverside play with a couple of direwolves and her sister Sansa.
The one-eyed man we see here is Beric Dondarrion, whom Ned Stark assigned to find and bring justice to the Hound's brother Gregor the Mountain. Along with the Red Priest Thoros of Myr, they continue to carry out a dead man's orders, worshipping the Lord of Light (yes, that's the same religion as Stannis' uncanny sorceress Melisandre). Though he denies being involved in his brother's crimes, the Hound will, we learn, receive the fairly-common practice of a trial by combat against Dondarrion.
Recall Tyrion escaped capture by Catelyn Stark at the Eyrie when his now dear friend Bronn agreed to act as his champion; a trial by combat seems to be a fairly overconfident approach to prosecuting serious offenders.
By the end of this episode, the spirited inspiration we need to sustain engagement comes from the rapidly-encroaching, kill-em-with-smiles Tyrell family, and from Daenerys' inspirational victory over the slavers. We even have hope that poor Sansa will finally escape King's Landing, one way or another.
The show's treatment of the Tyrell family, particularly Margaery, has been interesting; the books leave it fascinatingly ambiguous just how independently Margaery acts, how witty she is on her own, whether she has a moral agenda or simply plays along on behalf of her family, whether she has the desire to be queen.
Presented as she is, Margaery Tyrell is almost an unfairly-stacked foe for Cersei at this point, especially in a series that begs us to take pity on anti-heroes. What do you think her fatal flaw might turn out to be?
None of the series' good characters are truly good (or in the rare cases they are, as with Daenerys or Arya, we watch them grapple remarkable disadvantages). And none of its bad characters are truly bad. If you haven't figured it out, I am an incorrigible Lannister sympathizer -- what keeps you watching (or reading, if you're a book fan)? Do you wait to see the evils get their comeuppance, or their redemption? Is this the kind of story where it even makes sense to long for the good characters to win?
Please continue joining the discussion in the comments, but bear in mind we're all trying to avoid any major book spoilers whatsoever for fans who are just following along for the first time. I can't wait to see what commentor "Roose_Bolton" will be able to correct me on this time.
The Targaryen family tree is a tough thing to memorize, and the show hasn't even started talking about Dorne yet. I even wondered whether it was a good time to offer context on the Targaryen backstory, in case the show deals with it, but I erred on the side of assuming some light context that's been implied so far might be useful to people without ruining the pleasure of seeing it explored further, if that happens. Feedback is welcome!
“Margaery Tyrell is almost an unfairly-stacked foe…. ” – interesting choice of words.
At this point, I’m reading the books for the redemption arcs (especially Sandor’s), and barely interested in the political machinations…except for Varys. I’m curious to find out exactly what his angle is in all this.
I wish I could claim to’ve been making a pun, but really all the while what I think about is “game balancing.” The fiction almost seems like it’s made by a game designer, ensuring the advantages and weaknesses of every contender are always adjusted so that no one is winning, or winning for long.
GRRM is an avid RPG enthusiast. I don’t think the ASOIAF world comes from an RPG campaign, but I know his shared “Wild Cards” universe does (GURPS Supers).
I think that Varys is the only person that always speak the truth. Given his back story, if it is true he is doing what he thinks is best for the small people of the Westeros. I also have a notion that he is a Faceless Man but I have nothing to back that up.
That’s where we differ, my friend – I don’t know whether to trust Varys 100% or 0%.
I don’t think anyone should trust Varys, he will betray if he feels you are no longer needed but I don’t see that as a necessarily bad thing.
I suspect that Varys tells exactly the truth and even almost a complete truth.. Everything he has done is exactly what he has said he will do.
If they keep true to the books, it will be interesting.
I agree. He does seem to be acting in the best interest of Westeros — the only one who seems to be doing so. And yet, I utterly despise spiders. When he told Ned Stark in the dungeon that he was acting for the Realm, I want to believe him.
Acting in what is his opinion of the best for Westeros. I wonder if we will ever see a challenge, or flipside, to his vision for compare and contrast. He is presented as seeing other characters as not caring if they burn the country down, what if we got another character who cares primarily about the preservation of the country but has a totally different approach?
Ned Stark is a close example in my mind, though no close enough.
The most interesting GoT fan theory I’ve heard so far is that Varys is, in fact, a merling manipulating the humans: http://www.otcontinued.com/viewtopic.php?t=15268&p=821895
What in the actual fuck. Incredible.
You know that’s just about possible? There’s also a character in ADWD
called Godric Borrell who fits the merling profile… interesting :)
Also worth mentioning that Varys goes through child spies like crazy; it’s hinted that his child spies retire at a young age too.
I get the sense that Varys is that ultimate bureaucratic insider, the guy who’s more focused on gaining power from the larger system itself than from aligning himself with one faction or player, and by doing so with (as he implies in this episode) information rather than swords or gold.
He couches it in noble terms of “loyalty to Westeros,” but the fact is that without the over-all system running relatively smoothly he has no power (magic, by the way, is a threat to that system, which is another reason besides his personal history it repulses him). Varys was serving as spymaster under Aerys, under Robert, and now under Joffrey. He’ll likely be there for whoever takes over next (he already has an “in” with Dany via Master Mopatis).
I like how the physically weak and disadvantaged characters (or those who appear to be so to the knights and thugs), whether it’s Varys or Tyrion or the more adept female characters, are often playing a different game. something that draws readers and viewers to the characters because, if any of us were dumped in Westeros, that’s all we’d have to fall back on, too.
Great review. I’ve read the books multiple times, but it’s amazing how easy it is to lose some of the finer details in the story.
Unfortunately for me, I saw the episode 4 end-game coming a mile away. So it wasn’t as awesome as I would have liked. Maybe if Drogon had more screen time with more gory details I would feel more satisfied. So, my next guess is Jamie will be totally humbled by his horrible experience and join the human race. He will finally make it back to Kings Landing only to see what a mockery his son has made of the throne. Jamie will once again, become the king slayer and destroy his own abomination. What I don’t know is, whose army he will ultimately side with. My guess is Dany’s. will be the last one standing after the conflict with the insanity coming from the North. These are hail mary guesses obviously. We shall see.
The best theory I’ve heard (I wish it were mine) about how the entire series will finally climax, involves a showdown between the white walkers and the dragons.Now that the idea’s been broached, I cant think of anything else that could compete with that.
I noticed in the opening sequence, a new location appears between Riverrun and Winterfell. It’s labeled, so I expect it will become important, but there’s no time to read it. More foreshadowing, I suppose….
What a relief it is to *finally* see Dany actually kick some butt. She’s been tough all along, but never to the point of actually having someone killed. As her army marches off into the badlands, I notice there are no wagons, no supply train. This is an army that will truly move on its stomach.
Beric Dondarrion was played by a different actor in season one, so it’s not surprising that I missed him.(so too with The Mountain) But in looking him up, I found all kinds of spoilery stuff that I shouldn’t have looked ahead to.
When I read the book that corresponds to this season, it seemed a dull, lengthy slog through a burnt-out landscape. I’m glad the TV show is able to more evenly pace the story.
Dany had the witch in S1 and the warlock in S2 killed (and it could be argued that she had her bro killed through an act of non-interference). She’s been badass all along.
That location between Riverrun and Winterfell is the towers and bridge of The Twins – seat of House Frey and the family that Robb Stark was supposed to marry into, before he met his now wife.
No new locations in the opening – it was King’s Landing, Harrenhall, Riverrun, Winterfell, The Wall, and Astapor.
I may be dense, too, but only during the final shot of this last ep did I figure out what those long chain-things were in the model of Astapor (marching lines of Unsullied). Pretty cool!
After the first Astapor episode, I took it more as representing chained coffles of slaves. Although I like your interpretation a lot.
Yes, it’s the Twins. I don’t think the show has returned to the place since the Season 1 episode “Baelor” where Robb had to negotiate with Walder Frey to get his army across the river. It’s the seat of House Frey, about halfway between King’s Landing and Winterfell.
Since Robb was at Riverrun just a while ago, the Twins are on his way either north to Winterfell or east to the Vale of Arryn. I haven’t picked up enough details about where any other armies are currently hiding out to figure where he’s headed, though.
“I noticed in the opening sequence, a new location appears between
Riverrun and Winterfell. It’s labeled, so I expect it will become
important, but there’s no time to read it. More foreshadowing, I
suppose….”
A quick freezeframe and I think you mean “The Twins”. It’s the only named place on the ‘swoop’ from Riverrun to Winterfell. There is a label on the Kings road too, but the only settlement is The Twins.
does anyone else detest the dis-jointedness of the opening? they CUT from just above cities to profile or flying around them as they “build” then CUT back out of them, but in a different f*cking place! drives my spacial senses nuts and makes it really hard to follow what cities are coming and going in the plot and where things lie, geographically. i’m sure this is budgetary and/or intended. Openings can get a huge number of viewers/loyalists. The Simpsons
Well, the whole seiers is called a song of Ice and Fire, so dragons vs ice zombies does sound quite likely, but when has GRRM ever done the obvious?
I’ve been both watching and reading (I try to keep a couple of chapters behind the show as I read the series for the first time). One of the things I’ve been enjoying is the idea that despite the brutal nature of this world there is still kindness present, and that kindness can beget kindness and in some cases even strength.
I think of the Reed siblings travelling with Bran, of Lady Smallwood at Acorn Hall (a lovely vignette in the book), or Brienne, or Syrio Forel, or even Lady Olenna or Tyrion. They’re all tough-minded and self-reliant characters, but they have a basic decency and the rare understanding that, as Meera Reed said, “some people will always need help. That doesn’t mean they’re not worth helping.”
These small gradual reveals of kindness and hospitality in a dark world are as satisfying to me as more spectacular reveals of fantasy elements.
“These small gradual reveals of kindness and hospitality in a dark world are as satisfying to me as more spectacular reveals of the magical and fantastic elements.” – in fact, given just how dark that world is, kindness and hospitality seem almost as fantastic as the magic itself.
I’ve been both watching and reading (I try to keep a couple of chapters behind the show as I read the series for the first time).
Just one word of warning; that will become more difficult when you hit books 4 and 5 – the timelines of the two books intertwine, with much of them happening simultaneously. (The two books start at about the same point in time, and both advance until they meet up a hundred or so pages before the end of book 5.)
Thanks. So far I’ve been amazed at how well the TV adapters have parallelled the books’ structure, to the point where if I stay only a little behind I know exactly when to stop to avoid spoilers. There’s some excellent writing craft going on with that show. But yeah, sounds like I’ll have to figure out a new approach for next season and the season after.
Here’s a good suggestion of how to read both books as a combined whole (and honestly, they’re both improved by it): http://boiledleather.com/post/25902554148/a-new-reader-friendly-combined-reading-order-for-a
Very interesting -will deffo give this a try – thanks!
Wow, that’s very cool! I wish I’d had something like that last time I read LOTR- it can be a slog.
“He’s not such a bad guy, this Lannister golden boy.”
I find it easy to rein in my sympathy for Jaime when I remember that he callously tried to kill (but only maimed) a young boy who accidentally walked in on him and his sister boinking.
In Jamie’s defense he actually SAVED the boy first, as his natural reaction, before his sister reminded him that he’d seen them, implying the result of the king-with-a-bad-temper killing her, him, their children, and maybe even starting a war with the rest of the family.
This. It was either (attempt to) kill Bran and thus ensure his silence, or risk a war between Baratheon and Lannister. Jaime has had to make a good few choices where it’s either (a) do this, and be thought a dishonourable prick, or (b) do this, and be thought a dishonourable prick. His smug, haughty nature is just armour worn against those who don’t know this about him, and who likely wouldn’t care if they did.
I have to remind myself the same thing as the show tries to elicit sympathy for him. In fact, he and his sister were the catalyst for everything that’s happening now (killing the previous King’s Hand, framing Tyrion, even killing the mad king and starting Dany on her path). I feel like eventually we’ll find out he’s the reason the Wight Walkers exist!
They killed Jon Arryn, did they?
Oh god, is there another theory? To Google I must go.
Took me a minute. I totally forgot about this.
No.
We were meant to think they did—Ned deduced his death was over his discovery that none of the “Baratheon” kids were black of hair as they should have been.
At this stage in the proceedings though, we’re meant to have forgotten all about it…
I don’t really watch to see the good guys win; everything about the story and the way it’s told are meant to shatter such naive expectations. But I enjoy seeing the reasons behind the villainy, to see which characters are redeemable, and to see what they get done before it all catches up with them. And once in a long while, someone might actually achieve something decent or noble before they die.
It’s funny; I read the Ice & Fire books all in a row and then immediately read the Hunger Games trilogy as well. And while there are few direct lines where you can compare the two, I was struck by how much more depressing the tone of the Hunger Games was, despite it dwelling significantly less on specific sorts of horrible brutality. At first I thought the big difference was the in I&F, at least some of the main characters were enjoying themselves–Katniss and Tyrion both have pretty unpleasant lives, but at least one of them gets a good party in now and then.
But the more I think about it, the more I realize the real bleakness comes from how they treat the concept of evil in their characters. Ice & Fire goes out of its way to show us why its characters came to have their attitudes & priorities and what they hope to achieve with their actions. Moreover, these characters often change and try to seek redemption. But in the Hunger Games, it’s simply that power corrupts everyone, usually irredeemably – the only way to avoid it is to give up power, and the only resort once it takes hold is death or despair.
In that way, I find the Ice & Fire books (and of course, the TV show), to be a strangely uplifting show. Unlike most fantasy stories, it acknowledges that the world is messy, unpleasant, and often cruel–and it doesn’t present that evil as an inexplicable or incurable condition.
Who are the “good guys?”
Any two readers could have an argument for ten pages over that. Which is why I don’t watch/read the series to see good guys win.
I’m gonna guess that bastard’s Ramsey.
Also, if Dany’s victory at Astaport seemed easy, it’s gonna have a price. She’s just entirely destabilized a region where all the elites are slavers.
I wonder how fast this news will travel to Westeros. Varys will surely hear through his spies of Dany acquiring an army and know what this will mean for Westeros.
But does Varys like that she has an army or not?
One of my fav things about the books is the twist in perspective. You go from loving the protagonists and hating the villains, to thinking that most of the protagonists are inflexible honor-bound planks of wood, and the villains, while not good, certainly have solid reasons for their actions, and not a lot of good choices. I enjoy that the show has been mostly following the books. At least well enough that I’m not distracted by the changes.
Gracchus, thanks for the reminder of the good in the land. I often think to myself that if I lived there, I would probably kill myself because no one’s lives look pleasant at all. I don’t know what “the small folk” hope for other than to be killed quickly and not raped before. I’m very glad the “Lollys” side-plot was apparently cut from the show. The “half a hundred” rapes bit was way too much.
A lot of that is George RR Martin subverting the standard high fantasy trope that being noble and honour-bound automatically makes a character “good” and paves the way for his ultimate triumph or at least survival. It didn’t work out that way in our own Western medieval period, and more often than not it leads to doom in a miserable place like Westeros.
I’m not distracted by the changes, either. It’s an extra treat to read the book after and see how the source material handles it and what the TV writers tightened up. Everything has been appropriate: for example, replacing the Bloody Mummers with Bolton’s men.
I am curious how the TV show will present the story (or stories) of the Tournament at Harrenhal approx. 20 years earlier, where it seems a lot of seeds were planted for the events we’re seeing now. Will it be a story like Meera’s, a flashback episode, or will it be done another way?
For a minute, I thought that you were talking about Sex and the City.
You have to go to the books for evidence that Varys is a FM. He sleeps on a slab (c.f. The House of B&W) and his disguises are ridiculously good, to the point where Ned feels his stubble.
I did enjoy this episode very much and it all had to do with the conversation between Varys and Tyrion- Varys is in my opinion the only true redeeming character mainly because he does not seek power in a world where every consequence is based on power- victims and villains alike fall prey to it, that’s why the iron throne is at the center of it all. You could even explain that the misogynistic prejudice would be too strong for him that even if he did seek power, he would never be able to hold on to it due to the fact he’s an eunuch (no man will follow his lead, no woman would bear his heir) – that alone redirects his effort back to himself, he is free from the whims of the game and such can manipulate the outcome of it even if his actions are cruel and deplorable, he is the master of balance and from what he told the Queen of Thorns about enjoying little finger but hating his motives and blind ambition i.e. “I think he would see this land burn if he could be king of its ashes” -leads me to believe we should root for him for he is one of the few people that is free to act according to his true nature, free of guilt, upbringing, misfortune, sense of justice, etc…
One thing you need to see more clearly about Varys is that he and Littlefinger are like two sides of the same coin; they are both schemers and spymasters and have MUCH more power (and willingness to exert it) than others think they do. However, where Littlefinger has great public ambitions, Varys is content to work from the shadows. Unlike Littlefinger, Varys realizes that the Iron Throne is like a magnet for misfortune – Varys doesn’t want to be king because it’s too dangerous, and it’s unnecessary as he already has as much power as the king does, anyway. (If you control the flow of information, you control what others perceive as reality. Varys knows this and uses it to manipulate everyone, king included, to his ends.)
I think this series resonates with me because I get the feeling
that the “good” guys DON’T win in the end, at least not to any greater degree than do the “bad” guys. I get the sense that the story being played out now is essentially the same one that happened to characters’ ancestors, and one that will happen again and again to their descendants. “The sins of the fathers…” is a very apt saying for a number of these characters.
“We see Theon on the verge of redemption, realizing how he chose wrong. You could almost well up at his revelation that his real father was Ned Stark after all”
I took this to mean that Ned Stark was more of a father to Theon than Balon Greyjoy, not that his biological father was Ned.
Yes, you are absolutely right, but “true” fatherhood isn’t always biological. We are quite certain that Theon was born to the Greyjoys.
OR WAS HE!?
Guys, can you remind me, why was Theon a prisoner at Dreadfort again? I must have missed something along the way. Thanks.
Robb’s advisor, Lord Bolton, told him that he would be proud if Robb would give him leave to send his bastard to capture him for (supposedly) sacking WInterfell and killing Bran and Rickon.
I wonder how they will handle that (supposed) information later on.
Last Season Finale has his own Ironborn selling him out to Bolton in exchange for safe passage. No word on whether they got it (all signs point to No)
I think Margaery definitely wants to be Queen on her own. The scene last season where she said she “doesn’t want to be A Queen, she wants to be THE Queen”, it didn’t come across as if she was just doing as her male family members would have her do. She’s got her own motivation,too.
The discussion of the Tyrell crest got me thinking hard about it,too. It is a pretty flower, but one that lures you with a lovely bloom, but comes equipped with thorns,too. I think that’s our Margaery, beautiful, sweet, soft, when that serves her, but prepared to be prickly when that serves her,too.
I agree. I really like Margaery’s character.
The subtle hints of Margaery’s less savory aspects are so well played. Those sideways looks! Her eyes!
i always felt that Jamie starts to soften about Brienne not because he feels sorry for competent women in their society, but because he starts to find himself falling for her. he starts to realize that there’s more to love than just looks & lust. also, a minor quibble: he saved her from being brutally raped — i think “violated” really doesn’t do justice to the danger she was in.
You’re right, but I’m often cautious about discussing rape explicitly because it’s a sensitive topic for many. We discussed it with a trigger warning last week.
I do not believe Jamie falls for Brienne, I think he comes to respect her, almost above all others. To Jamie, his ability is everything. He dreamed of being able to fight Ned Stark due to Ned’s legendary prowess. He completely abandoned a fight and killed one of his own bannerman for wounding Ned during that fight. Brienne has just bested Jamie in a fight. Some may say he won’t see the fight as fair because he was handicapped, but so he points out was she; she couldn’t finish him off or seriously wound him. Jamie deeply respects Brienne’s ability and comes to find her as a friend.
I don’t remember much sexual tension between them in the books, though I remember many belittling comments about her sex.
Jamie is coming to realize that Brienne is the most honourable person he’s ever met/will ever meet; much more so than the so-called ‘heroic’ and ‘honourable’ knights that he’s always been associated with.
Jaime has no attraction to Brienne; he’s sort of a one-woman kind of guy, or in their case you might say narcissistic.
Wow. I’m always amazed at what people come up with. Thanks for the link.
I really wanted to scream, THIS IS SPARTAAAAAAA…
I wanted to go with THIS IS …not actually Sparta.
Why the h-e-c-k did that young gentleman free Theon only to take him back? What a little scamp.
I’ve always kinda liked Jamie even though be’s been a bit of an arse and I’m really liking the stuff with him and Brienne and thats what keep me watching I guess, that and my monumental crush on Catelyn.-as a brief aside does anyone else think that the actor playing jon snow has improved this season, he was a monumental chifferobe in season 1.
Two things:
I think it is pretty definite that Gregor Clegane is commonly known to have killed the two Targaeryn children.
Also I don’t think Craster feeds his boys to the Wights. I think he feeds them to the White Walkers. Small difference, and really we don’t really know what the hell the White Walkers do with the kids.
Great point about Jamie’s respect for Brienne being related to his sister; I did not pick up on how Jamie and Brienne were juxtaposed against Tywin and Cersei.
Do we think Arya is fully good? Girl has a serious dark streak, he primary goal is to gain the ability to murder people with impunity.
The merits of trial by combat will come up in season 4 too. I can’t wait.
Notice not only how Tywin waited for Cersei to lay all her cards on the table, but also note how much love the camera was giving to those letters he was writing. Who knows, maybe he was writing wedding invitations.
It is going to be seriously crazy how many more characters are going to be added to the mix.
You get the sense Craster’s boys get fed to the white walkers? I think they’re being taken and turned into other white walkers, myself.
I’m honestly not sure, I like your theory better; it makes more sense. Plus if the Walkers eat humans, why bother ever turning them into wights?
Regarding Arya’s dark streak, it’s not hammered home in the TV series as often as in the books. Remember, in almost every Arya chapter she utters her “Prayer”, where she rattles off her shopping list of people she intends to kill.
I’m really looking forward to how they explore Beric Dondarrion’s character. There’s physical hints of his story all over the character in this episode. He’s one of my favourite characters in the books, being one of the most noble people throughout, and the man knows the meaning of sacrifice. He and the Thoros the Red Priest, as hinted at by Leigh, also provide another view of the religion centred on the Lord of Light.
It’s also interesting how they’re combining chapters from the later books with the third one this time around, and leads me to believe that they’ll do similar things with books 4 and 5, seeing as how they’re supposed to be parallel stories. It would definitely tighten things up, and I don’t think a TV audience would accept being in the dark regarding certain characters for an entire series.
Agreed that they have only hinted at her dark streak. I imagine the prayer will come more in to focus in either this season or the next. I remember it being a regular fixture around the third book.
they showed her repeating the names while being held in the pig pen in Harrenhal in season 2
Definitely, but I mean it really becomes a constant thing later with her.
I got the impression that the point of Theon being released and recaptured was that he inadvertently revealed that he didn’t kill the 2 Stark boys. And now they know – or did they know anyway? I can’t remember!
I believe they did not know that the Stark boys lived. Now House Bolton does.
First of all, I just want to compliment the above commenters on these recaps, it’s so refreshing to see a feed not hijacked by rudeness, belittling and snarking.
I’ve been looking forward to seeing the look on the slavers face when Dany says “Dracaris” ever since reading this last year and I thought it was brilliantly done.
Just wanted to throw a Varys/Littlefinger comparison into the mix, both come from humble origins to rise to a position of power, both have ulterior motives. Their differences are highlighted by their treatment of Ned Stark, help with Varys and betrayal by Littlefinger.
Varys always insists that he only wants to help the realm, maybe this is the ultimate double bluff?
As I mentioned above, I’m completely in the dark as to Varys’ true motives. To me, his helping Ned (but not freeing him, mind you) reveals a lot. I’m fairly certain he’s actively working to destabilize the realm (bad) so he can bring back the Targaryens (in the form of Dany, which is good), so he can continue to exert his influence (unknown).
In Season One, Arya overheard Varys talking with Illyrio (the man who harbored Dany and Viserys in Pentos) in the caverns under King’s Landing. Though that meeting could be interpreted in many ways – and Littlefinger confronted Varys letting the latter know that the meeting had not gone unnoticed – one could assume that Varys is playing the long con, waiting for Dany to return.
Yup, but he’s playing the con past Dany’s return. To what end? We shall see.
And what does Varys gain by bringing Dany back? So Aerys was deposed because he was (supposedly) insane. It is said that every time a Targaeryn is born the gods flip a coin; so Varys is betting on the house with a 50% of homicidal pyrolust? What about the Mummer’s dragon? Is that solely to be Illyrio’s plan or just a fulfilling part of the dragon’s heads? (Trying my best to obfuscate spoilers)
We’ve don’t even have much evidence that Varys didn’t know of the Lannister ace in the pocket against Aerys. As Roose_Bolton emphasizes, Varys is playing it very close to his chest.
A Song of Ice and Fire is one of those stories in which bad guys get what they deserve… and good guys also get what bad guys deserve.
Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised if the series ends with the white walkers going over the Wall and killing everyone.
“unholy choir”? meaning the chanting that runs during “That Daenerys Scene” and atop the credits?
When I first watched GoT I didnt think it was much kop, but rewatching it and reading these articles and comment has made me realise how great it is.
And I’m not stupid, I read and all that carry on, but following an episode and keeping track of all the characters with all the funny names is a right head scratcher dont you think? These recaps help a lot! Sorry for this outburst amidst all the intelligent analysis.
Part of the reason the books are taking so long is that it’s not easy to write a story with that amount of detail without continuity errors creeping in. At last count there were over a thousand named characters.
George Martin himself admits that he has had to ask fans for details he’s lost track of. Luckily there are people whose knowledge of Westeros is far greater than his!
(Incidentally, things don’t get easier as the books go on. New but fundamentally important characters just keep turning up, which makes guessing how everything’s going to turn out somewhat futile.)
“…Daenerys’ inspirational victory over the slavers.”
“…she gets to have an army of freed men who serve her by choice…”
Once again George Porgy’s super special favourite Dani gets Mary Sue treatment. She freed all the slaves (sotto voce: to serve her) and ordered the Astapoori butchered (being sure to keep her own hands clean, of course).
A bunch of Mameluke manques are suddenly told that they’re “free men” by the person who purchased them. Do these masterfully brainwashed pseudo-Janissaries even understand *how* to be free? All they know — training, indoctrination, the customs of Astapoor (that delightful Walk of Crucified Slaves springs to mind) — tells them to Obey. Freed men can only _choose_ to serve when they are actually aware
that they have other options open to them. Anything less is just
enslavement to a new tyrant.
“Yes, I am free. Command me how to be free.”
Dani in Astapoor is a parody of an actual liberation lifted straight out of Life of Brian:
“Just fek off!”
“How shall we fek off, oh Lord?”
I am sure you could have made your point without the snarky insults but I doubt it would have been as entertaining. I do agree with you, there is something to be said about telling a man raised as a slave and bred to live and die for warfare that he is to fulfill that same role but this time they would do so under the pretense of his choice. The unsullied lost certain rights as soon as they were born and Danny’s victory only serve to show two things, she can wield power differently than men (compared to the two choices given to her by Selmy and Mormont) and she was able to manipulate the slavers and slaves to achieve her goals without sacrificing any of her own ideals. All this talk of free men does display a certain sense of naivety. I think it was during the second season that I mentioned to my girlfriend that I believe Daenerys had a god complex and ever since the dragon reawakening incident she sees herself imbued with a purpose, think about it, she speaks in absolutes, seeks to rule based on the sole reason of her ancestral legacy, and allows people to call her mother of dragons. If anything GOT has taught me there are no rightful cause only power, wielded softly or harshly.
I do say though this show is enthralling because it allows us to have such existential debates- we start asking ourselves why we agree with certain actions and frown on others, why do we root for the “good” guys or “bad” guys.
Interesting points and I do see where you’re coming from. Slavery vs freedom can be a tricky abstract distinction that isn’t as self-evident as many would assume, and I don’t think the irony is lost on Daenerys. At the end of the day though, she went there for an army, and that she managed to get one without compromising her ideals is commendable.
And as was discussed with Mormont a few episodes back, she would treat them fairly and not mutilate them to make a point, so there’s no question they’re better off serving her, whether it be as slaves or as free men. In this case, it’s the latter.
What do you think she should have done?