![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
chavalah.livejournal.com posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
scifi_rewatchPlots are set in motion this episode! While Varys and Littlefinger continue to tease Ned with information about Jon Arryn’s downfall, Arya overhears two shadowy figures talking about impending war between “the wolf and the lion.” Catelyn, after having captured Tyrion and taken him to her sister in the Eyrie, faces some reverberations for her actions. Robert has news of Daenerys’ pregnancy, and although she and the Dothraki don’t appear in this episode, the “usurper’s” predictable wrath draws schisms in his small council. Plus the end of the tourney, checking in at Winterfell, and other fun stuff.
“The wolf and the lion,” in case you don’t remember, refer to House Stark and House Lannister. Hmm…
This episode was definitely more fluid and present-based than its predecessors. A lot of that had to do with removing the Dany and Jon scenes, so we could focus exclusively on King’s Landing, the Eyrie, and just a tiny bit of Winterfell. With the exception of Winterfell, this ep was largely about present action and less about exposition and backstory.
Since there is less choppiness and pie pieces of plot from different places this review might actually be shorter than others, but I offer no promises. :P :”>
Winterfell
Still largely the land of “sit and wait.” I wasn’t sure if the Robb/Bran hunt scene would happen this ep, but considering that it’s contingent upon things that occur right before the credits rolled, I was pretty sure it’d be in six. :P
Anywho. We finally get to see Bran in a new position! He’s seated with Luwin going over lessons while Theon practices archery in front of him and Robb the Lord is probably leader-Starking somewhere. :P I gotta say…wasn’t sure how things would go if all we see of Bran is him in bed or being carried around uncomfortably by Hodor (HODOR! :P)
Luwin and Bran are going over noble house mottos and lands and such. Of course, we start with the Greyjoys on the Iron Islands. :P (I wonder how Theon would’ve responded had Bran got something wrong.) Instead, he turns around to pimp out that Greyjoys are good at lovemaking, among other things. Luwin counters that one thing they’re not good at is rebellions, lol. Though alas, I gotta feel for poor Theon here. Imagine him sitting with Luwin going over his lessons right after he was taken hostage. :P
Bran has the air of knowing all the answers but not giving enough of a hoot to participate. He particularly pauses over the Tully family words (his mother’s words): “Family, Duty, Honor.” (I love how he’s also playing with a figurine of the Tully fish sidgil.) He questions how she is protecting her family if she’s not actually here. I find this exchange interesting, particularly since Rickon is MIA as usual. Seems like maybe TV Bran is embodying the angst of both him and his brother. And it’s a fair question…poor kid misses his Mommy. :( Luwin, frankly, isn’t willing or able to provide a detailed telling of Cat’s decisions, perhaps because that would involve telling the boy how there was a (second) attack on his life while he was comatose. Still…it’s somewhat unfair that Cat-en-absentia has to take all this flack, when near everything’s she’s been doing this season is for Bran’s benefit. (He’s her favorite…sssh. :P) Isaac really nailed this scene, imho. His boyish frustrations and regrets about his injury…really made him a relatable little guy.
The conversation switches topics again to archery, something Bran pouts he can no longer do since he doesn’t have his legs (meanwhile Theon continues to strut himself. :P) Luwin counters that he should be able to learn how to use one when ahorse on Tyrion’s special saddle. It’s so great to see little Bran’s face light up, and so bittersweet to realize that Tyrion has been such a friend to him, and is now held prisoner by his mother for his attempted murder. :P Woops.
…ok, so I’ll concede that HBO adds sex scenes. :P That bit with Theon and Roz…whoa. (Alfie Allen showed us our first full-frontal penis! And here I thought that would be Jason Mamoa’s job. :P)
It’s certainly not out of character, though. Theon is once again pleased with himself, this time for sneaking a prostitute into Winterfell where she doesn’t belong (I kinda perversely wonder what Robb’s reaction would be. :P) Roz is pretty dismissive of him, saying how “ward” is really a nice word for what Theon is to the Starks. (Dude, first with Doreah and Viserys, now here…these whores must get better tips for insulting the customer. :P Although maybe Theon didn’t pay…he doesn’t want to. :P Goes back to his family ethos of “paying the iron price,” eg by conquest, not by coin. GRRM calls the Greyjoys “like Vikings.” Their words, after all, are “we do not sow.” Anywho.)
Theon is still feeling emasculated by Tyrion’s talk-me-down last week, and wants Roz to tell him basically that T-man’s dick is small (unfortunately, this doesn’t seem to be the case. :P) When Roz mocks the Greyjoy rebellion, he reacts with hair-pulling and defensiveness for his father. Roz doesn’t take him seriously. Of course I do…but I also remain fascinated and sympathetic about the difficult realities Theon has faced in his life. It is implied in here that should Balon Greyjoy rebel again, Lord Stark, who has been Theon’s guardian since he was eight, we find out, may have to put some punitive damage on the boy. :-/ Oh, you medieval conventions always continuing to mess people up.
The Eyrie
Catelyn continues to show her mettle…although she’d told people she was taking Tyrion to Winterfell, she’s in fact led him to the Eyrie. (Even Tyrion seems to congratulate her for that move. :P) However, the rest of her hypothesis is starting to bore him (as is Marillion’s singing). :P First, who would be stupid enough to give his own dagger to a hired assassin? Second…how well does Cat really know her sister, Lysa, to whom she’s taking Tyrion for his justice? Tyrion lived with her for years in King’s Landing…he assures Cat that her younger sister, though always a little off her rocker, has changed recently for the worse.
The Vale exterior and the Eyrie interior are both highly impressive, so kudos! Then we jump to the characters…littleRobert Robin, Lysa’s seven-year-old son, has her teat in his mouth! :-O This is very true to the book, but I’m shocked as all hell that it made it off the page. (Better start living what I’m preaching…breast equality, people! They’re just fat glands! :P) The looks on Cat’s and Tyrion’s faces were absolutely priceless.
Lysa is furious that Cat brought Tyrion here, and she accuses him of murdering her husband, Jon Arryn, (Tyrion reacts with sarcasm. :P) Robin has a mini-meltdown about his family’s safety and “seeing the bad man fly,” and Lysa coos at him that maybe this will be so. Cat counters with the fact that Tyrion is her prisoner and “is not to be harmed” and Lysa sends him down to the creepy dungeons without outer walls (just a 50 foot drop down a mountain. :P Looks like Tyrion can piss off the edge of the world again!) Anywho, massive love for how the whole Eyrie thing went down; Lysa and Robin, and Tyrion's and Cat’s reactions to them, are incredibly accurate to what I envisioned from the book.
The Hill tribe attack was interesting since we stayed with the “invalids”…Cat (who is actually a bit more assertive in the book,) and Tyrion. Tyrion ultimately gets her to untie him, and he’s able to save her life by brutally attacking a man’s face with his shield. (Though in the novel, she also helps him out.) Characters are difficult creatures, and I believe that Mr. Martin wrote these scenes to be frustrating. We’re inside both their heads as POVs, so we really should be empathizing with both of them.
King’s Landing
End of the Jousting…yay, no reason to fear last week. :D
Where most of the action takes place. First, we have some loose ends to tie up from last week. Ned accompanies Ser Barristan, the head of the kingsguard, to Ser Hugh’s body. He’s a bit wary about some details…how could Hugh afford his nice set of armor? And who was responsible for setting him against the mutinous “Mountain”?
Then Ser Barristan and Ned share some expository about how they were on opposite sides during the rebellion (meaning that Barristan fought for the Targaryens and was pardoned after Robert won.) Not entirely necessary, but it sounded natural. They segway into the fact that Robert wants to fight in the tourney. Ned is able to talk him down from his “wanna kill anything but I’m too fat for my armor” silliness. :P Unfortunately, this isn’t a pattern that will hold for Ned and Robert. :-/
Ned joins Sansa in the stands, and I finally get some father/daughter time between them. *swoon* Poor Ned has to play Awkward Daddy when Ser Loras (a knight from another noble house, and secretly one part of the gay couple) hands Sansa a flower. :P Having seen The Mountain drive a spike through Hugh’s neck the other day, Sansa’s worried when she sees he’s fighting Loras. She clutches to Ned, worried for her gallant knight, and Ned is finally able to comfort her. *swoon swoon swoon* Though actually, The Mountain does try to kill Loras when he’s unseated from his own horse. :-/
Littlefinger, ogling Sansa from behind, leans forward to explain to the girl that Loras knowingly picked a mare who was in heat, so that the Mountain’s stallion would react…Sansa refuses to believe that her latest gallant knight would resort to such trickery. But methinks, in accordance with Sansa’s series-wide story arc, that Littlefinger is trying to build the girl up to be more skeptical of the chivalrous world that she thinks surrounds her. (Meanwhile, Ned gives Littlefinger a Look of Win that basically says “…the fuck are you talking to my daughter for?” :P)
The Hound, introduced last eppy as The Mountain’s younger, victimized brother, steps into the ring to save Loras’s life. Joffrey gets up, shocked when his bodyguard enters the arenahey, is there some spare lance or something that could “accidentally” skewer the psycho!brat? :-“ In the book, The Hound and Loras are set to fight next, but Loras forfeits with a flowery speech about how he owes the Hound his life. …pretty much the same here, not exactly. /nitpicky. Meanwhile, Sansa is beside herself with glee again about how the Hound and Loras stopped the evil Mountain. :P Looks like Littlefinger’s skepticism lessons will need awhile to sink in. :P But I really like this scene for her, because it’s the most we’ve seen of her book!canon optimism and love of fairytale endings. Chivalry can triumph! …at least in one joust. :P
Game of Politics
To date, we’ve seen a lot of honorable (and dishonorable) people fighting for personal power through aggressive means. Today, we get to see some of the politicians scuttling behind the scenes.
We start with Varys, who sorta changes allegiances at least twice in this eppy. :P I think, ultimately, his interest is in what’s best for the realm, not particular people in it. (Though what exactly does he take that to be? Subjective is subjective.)
Finally feeling he can trust Ned, he imparts the news that Arryn was definitely killed with poison (someone like Hugh must’ve been paid by someone with moola,) and the reason he was killed was for “asking questions.”
But later, Arya is chasing cats in the dungeons for Syrio (stumbling across the impressive dragon skulls that Viserys figured were destroyed last eppy.) And she hears a particularly disturbing conversation between Varys and…no other than Illyrio, who helped marry Dany off to Drogo! This time, Varys says that Ned is getting “too close to the truth.” The two of them worry about civil war breaking out between “the wolf and the lion” (aka Starks and Lannisters) before the Dothraki are ready and able to invade. They mention the bungled attempts on Bran’s life, and the fact that “one Hand can be replaced, but not this one.” Basically, Arya knows even less than we do about the whosa-whatsis, but she takes it to mean that Ned’s life is in danger.
After getting dirtied in the sewers she’s mistaken for a beggar boy (she still seemed so girly to me…long hair and all), but she ultimately gets her Big Girl voice on and threatens the guards to let her in to see her father, booyah. :D At first, Ned is a bit skeptical of the whole thing, but after Arya mentions overhearing about his brush with Gendry, he perks up.
Unfortunately, the two of them don’t get to talk much before they are interrupted by Yoren, the Night’s Watch dude who traveled with Tyrion until Cat captured him. Jory escorts Arya to her room, and we get a touching (and nerves-twittering scene) where Arya asks the captain of Ned’s guard if there are enough men to protect Daddy. Aww. But anyway.
Feeling bound to Ned through his Brotherhood with Benjen, Yoren lets Ned know (before the city will) that Cat captured Tyrion. Dum dum DUUM. But more of that later. :P
The most skilled members of the “game of thrones,” Varys and Littlefinger, meet to snark at each other. :P Honestly, much of the conversation about various politicians and their sexual tastes, was unneeded. The intriguing part was when they started goading each other in a far more devious way than Ned and Cersei were last eppy. Varys knows that Littlefinger may have fed Tyrion’s name to the Starks as Bran’s attacker, which would get him in trouble with the queen. Littlefinger knows infinitely more—that Varys has a secret relationship with Illyrio. Mixed feelings about how Varys’s face falls when he realizes Littlefinger has more spies than he thought; come on, V, you’re a better actor than that. :P But ultimately, he’s able to lie and pull the meeting into his favor, claiming that Illyrio came to him with news that Dany is pregnant. Sure enough, Robert is on his way to the small council meeting with the intent of Targaryen murder.
Ned is on his way to speak to the king, probably about mercy, when it comes to the whole Cat/Tyrion dilemma, or maybe to get a jumpstart on his theories concerning the Lannisters and Jon Arryn’s muder. Instead, he’s waylaid by Robert’s plans to assassinate Dany and child. Killing innocents, particularly on Jorah’s traitorous intel (Ned still wants his head for slaving,) doesn’t sit well with him. The rest of the council throws their support behind the measure, but Ned refuses to bend. Ultimately, a fuming Robert releases him from his service and tells him to go back to Winterfell (oh, if only the Starks could go back!!!! *sobs*)
Ned reminds me of Cat last week. His honor about doing The Right Thing, no matter what, gets in the way of what he needs…like right now, he needs Robert’s clemency with the Catelyn/Tyrion situation. Alas. But this is the great thing about GoT…characters do what they do because they are who they are. Yup.
The Renly/Loras ship
The event that caused the biggest amount of episode controversy—even worse than the Mountain hacking off the head of his horse. At first I was surprised to see this scene, but now I think I understand how they wanted to use it to set “kingly” plot in motion that will carry into season two. (The chest-shaving was a bit unnecessary, though. :P) Many fans claimed that this was a deviation from the books, but in fact we have authorial confirmation that it was not. Renly and Loras are never POV characters so we don’t get to see them in action…but there are a few hints and snide remarks made by others, if one looks carefully. Of course I personally appreciate the inclusion of homosexuality in the books, because…despite the beliefs of a small group of fans…some people are gay! :-O And GRRM wants to capture people honestly, so kudos.
Renly is the second brother of King Robert, and fourth in line for the throne. Loras is a lesser son of another noble house, the Tyrells. We get some Renly backstory…his brothers think him weak because he hasn’t seen combat. (Somewhat deviating from the book where Renly isn’t quite so squeamish about matters of combat.) Robert wants to take him hunting again, basically for the thrill of killing things. :P …he kind of has enough blood lust for all three Baratheon brothers, imho.
For the purpose of the show, Renly’s squeamishness makes for an interesting middle ground concerning the Dany/child murder scenario. Renly is ok with doing it, for the safety of Westeros, but he won’t take as much sadistic pleasure from the task as Robert. He'll do it quickly and quietly, yup. Why is it that power is only for corrupt people? Loras asks his lover. (Well, personally, I have theories that aren’t my own about power’s corruptive power.) Loras points out that people love Renly cos he’s a nice guy, unlike the other dudes in his family. Meanwhile, the Tyrells can back his monetary needs, kinda like the Lannisters do for Robert. Loras is good at selling things, apparently…to seal the deal, he offers a blowjob. :P Can I just say…I like the fact that, twice now, GoT has offered slurpy sounds with their oral sex. I mean come on, it’s realistic! Sex is noisy. :P
Robert and Cersei
Another “ship”…another “changed character.” Ok, even I think Benioff and Weiss are making Cersei far more likeable than she’s appeared in any of my book reading and spoilers. I’m not exactly sure why…but I also like it. I like giving Cersei that depth. It makes her far more compelling than just being “the evil queen.”
This is also a scene where we get to see more to Robert (though when Cersei asks hubby what he wants out of life, he holds up the wine glass. :P In fairness, he could have mentioned extra-marital sex, too.) It seems like he’s giving earnest thought to the repercussions of a Dothraki invasion. This killing Dany and child thing might not just be about Lyanna…he may actually be taking this king thing a little bit seriously. :-O (Although, question- would Drogo be less inclined to invade after his wife and son were killed? :P)
I’m also taken with the fact that Robert seems to talk to Cersei like she’s an advisor, being honest about his worries and fears. Maybe it’s because she has her father’s voice coming out of her. :P Still, there was tension, and obvious PTSD from years of emotional warfare.
I’ve come to believe that Robert’s “I don’t even remember what she looks like” re: Lyanna underscores how he’s made Ned’s sister into a myth and doesn’t even remember her as a person. I’m more interested in the ins and outs of Robert/Cersei than Robert’s imagined relationship with long-dead Lyanna , at least in the tv show where they had a relationship. :P We get another mention of their first dead son who didn’t survive. Cersei said she still loved him well after that fact, and asked if the two of them ever had a chance in his eyes. Sounding somewhat guilty and resigned, Robert said “no.” He asks her how she feels about that…Cersei says she feels nothing. …and I’m hooked. A pretty fascinating look into a stagnant marriage filled by broken people. (But conflicting, too, because it’s so different than the book. Book Cersei is always passionate and temperamental…unlike this Cersei who can bury her feelings deep down. Not to mention that book Cersei loved Rhaegar, not Robert, but what can you do. :P)
Ned and Jaime
Ned is on his way out the door to Winterfell with Sansa and Arya (go, Ned, go!) when Littlefinger approaches him with another enticing bit of info…the final person Arryn talked to before death. Turns out it was a recent whore of Robert’s, who has just given birth to his latest bastard. (That actress looked appropriately young, too.) Another one of Robert’s kiddies with brown hair…hint, hint, Ned. :P
Upon leaving the brothel, Ned and his men are confronted by Jaime and the Lannister guard, who have finally learned the news of Tyrion’s “capture.” Ned takes responsibility for Cat’s actions, leading fans to hate her more, I’m sure. :/ Maybe he just has faith in her judgment. Anywho. The two men snark at each other a little bit before the kingslayer orders the deaths of Ned’s men. Most of them go easy…poor Jory puts up a nice fight before Jaime stabs him through the eye. :-O (Sadism! Particularly because last ep, Jory told Jaime that he’d almost lost it in battle once. Shoulda known that was bad news.) Jaime looks so disaffected and evil here that…wow. On top of his part in Bran’s condition, it’s hard to foster sympathy for him, yup, even knowing future book spoilers. He and Ned fight, wonderfully choreographed, matched opponents. (Also unlike the book where Jaime has leagues on Ned in swordplay.) Ultimately, one of Jaime’s men stabs Ned in the leg from behind (leading Jaime to punch that dude in the face. Ser Lannister has odd bouts of honor, yes. :P ...in the book, Ned's leg was crushed under a dead horse while fighting for his men.) Jaime leaves Ned with the parting words that he wants his brother back, and then Ned collapses, unconscious. :-/ No way he and the girls are getting away from King’s Landing tonight. But can you tell the situation is about to get dire? :-/
And now we’re officially halfway through season/book one, alas!
“The wolf and the lion,” in case you don’t remember, refer to House Stark and House Lannister. Hmm…
This episode was definitely more fluid and present-based than its predecessors. A lot of that had to do with removing the Dany and Jon scenes, so we could focus exclusively on King’s Landing, the Eyrie, and just a tiny bit of Winterfell. With the exception of Winterfell, this ep was largely about present action and less about exposition and backstory.
Since there is less choppiness and pie pieces of plot from different places this review might actually be shorter than others, but I offer no promises. :P :”>
Winterfell
Still largely the land of “sit and wait.” I wasn’t sure if the Robb/Bran hunt scene would happen this ep, but considering that it’s contingent upon things that occur right before the credits rolled, I was pretty sure it’d be in six. :P
Anywho. We finally get to see Bran in a new position! He’s seated with Luwin going over lessons while Theon practices archery in front of him and Robb the Lord is probably leader-Starking somewhere. :P I gotta say…wasn’t sure how things would go if all we see of Bran is him in bed or being carried around uncomfortably by Hodor (HODOR! :P)
Luwin and Bran are going over noble house mottos and lands and such. Of course, we start with the Greyjoys on the Iron Islands. :P (I wonder how Theon would’ve responded had Bran got something wrong.) Instead, he turns around to pimp out that Greyjoys are good at lovemaking, among other things. Luwin counters that one thing they’re not good at is rebellions, lol. Though alas, I gotta feel for poor Theon here. Imagine him sitting with Luwin going over his lessons right after he was taken hostage. :P
Bran has the air of knowing all the answers but not giving enough of a hoot to participate. He particularly pauses over the Tully family words (his mother’s words): “Family, Duty, Honor.” (I love how he’s also playing with a figurine of the Tully fish sidgil.) He questions how she is protecting her family if she’s not actually here. I find this exchange interesting, particularly since Rickon is MIA as usual. Seems like maybe TV Bran is embodying the angst of both him and his brother. And it’s a fair question…poor kid misses his Mommy. :( Luwin, frankly, isn’t willing or able to provide a detailed telling of Cat’s decisions, perhaps because that would involve telling the boy how there was a (second) attack on his life while he was comatose. Still…it’s somewhat unfair that Cat-en-absentia has to take all this flack, when near everything’s she’s been doing this season is for Bran’s benefit. (He’s her favorite…sssh. :P) Isaac really nailed this scene, imho. His boyish frustrations and regrets about his injury…really made him a relatable little guy.
The conversation switches topics again to archery, something Bran pouts he can no longer do since he doesn’t have his legs (meanwhile Theon continues to strut himself. :P) Luwin counters that he should be able to learn how to use one when ahorse on Tyrion’s special saddle. It’s so great to see little Bran’s face light up, and so bittersweet to realize that Tyrion has been such a friend to him, and is now held prisoner by his mother for his attempted murder. :P Woops.
…ok, so I’ll concede that HBO adds sex scenes. :P That bit with Theon and Roz…whoa. (Alfie Allen showed us our first full-frontal penis! And here I thought that would be Jason Mamoa’s job. :P)
It’s certainly not out of character, though. Theon is once again pleased with himself, this time for sneaking a prostitute into Winterfell where she doesn’t belong (I kinda perversely wonder what Robb’s reaction would be. :P) Roz is pretty dismissive of him, saying how “ward” is really a nice word for what Theon is to the Starks. (Dude, first with Doreah and Viserys, now here…these whores must get better tips for insulting the customer. :P Although maybe Theon didn’t pay…he doesn’t want to. :P Goes back to his family ethos of “paying the iron price,” eg by conquest, not by coin. GRRM calls the Greyjoys “like Vikings.” Their words, after all, are “we do not sow.” Anywho.)
Theon is still feeling emasculated by Tyrion’s talk-me-down last week, and wants Roz to tell him basically that T-man’s dick is small (unfortunately, this doesn’t seem to be the case. :P) When Roz mocks the Greyjoy rebellion, he reacts with hair-pulling and defensiveness for his father. Roz doesn’t take him seriously. Of course I do…but I also remain fascinated and sympathetic about the difficult realities Theon has faced in his life. It is implied in here that should Balon Greyjoy rebel again, Lord Stark, who has been Theon’s guardian since he was eight, we find out, may have to put some punitive damage on the boy. :-/ Oh, you medieval conventions always continuing to mess people up.
The Eyrie
Catelyn continues to show her mettle…although she’d told people she was taking Tyrion to Winterfell, she’s in fact led him to the Eyrie. (Even Tyrion seems to congratulate her for that move. :P) However, the rest of her hypothesis is starting to bore him (as is Marillion’s singing). :P First, who would be stupid enough to give his own dagger to a hired assassin? Second…how well does Cat really know her sister, Lysa, to whom she’s taking Tyrion for his justice? Tyrion lived with her for years in King’s Landing…he assures Cat that her younger sister, though always a little off her rocker, has changed recently for the worse.
The Vale exterior and the Eyrie interior are both highly impressive, so kudos! Then we jump to the characters…little
Lysa is furious that Cat brought Tyrion here, and she accuses him of murdering her husband, Jon Arryn, (Tyrion reacts with sarcasm. :P) Robin has a mini-meltdown about his family’s safety and “seeing the bad man fly,” and Lysa coos at him that maybe this will be so. Cat counters with the fact that Tyrion is her prisoner and “is not to be harmed” and Lysa sends him down to the creepy dungeons without outer walls (just a 50 foot drop down a mountain. :P Looks like Tyrion can piss off the edge of the world again!) Anywho, massive love for how the whole Eyrie thing went down; Lysa and Robin, and Tyrion's and Cat’s reactions to them, are incredibly accurate to what I envisioned from the book.
The Hill tribe attack was interesting since we stayed with the “invalids”…Cat (who is actually a bit more assertive in the book,) and Tyrion. Tyrion ultimately gets her to untie him, and he’s able to save her life by brutally attacking a man’s face with his shield. (Though in the novel, she also helps him out.) Characters are difficult creatures, and I believe that Mr. Martin wrote these scenes to be frustrating. We’re inside both their heads as POVs, so we really should be empathizing with both of them.
King’s Landing
End of the Jousting…yay, no reason to fear last week. :D
Where most of the action takes place. First, we have some loose ends to tie up from last week. Ned accompanies Ser Barristan, the head of the kingsguard, to Ser Hugh’s body. He’s a bit wary about some details…how could Hugh afford his nice set of armor? And who was responsible for setting him against the mutinous “Mountain”?
Then Ser Barristan and Ned share some expository about how they were on opposite sides during the rebellion (meaning that Barristan fought for the Targaryens and was pardoned after Robert won.) Not entirely necessary, but it sounded natural. They segway into the fact that Robert wants to fight in the tourney. Ned is able to talk him down from his “wanna kill anything but I’m too fat for my armor” silliness. :P Unfortunately, this isn’t a pattern that will hold for Ned and Robert. :-/
Ned joins Sansa in the stands, and I finally get some father/daughter time between them. *swoon* Poor Ned has to play Awkward Daddy when Ser Loras (a knight from another noble house, and secretly one part of the gay couple) hands Sansa a flower. :P Having seen The Mountain drive a spike through Hugh’s neck the other day, Sansa’s worried when she sees he’s fighting Loras. She clutches to Ned, worried for her gallant knight, and Ned is finally able to comfort her. *swoon swoon swoon* Though actually, The Mountain does try to kill Loras when he’s unseated from his own horse. :-/
Littlefinger, ogling Sansa from behind, leans forward to explain to the girl that Loras knowingly picked a mare who was in heat, so that the Mountain’s stallion would react…Sansa refuses to believe that her latest gallant knight would resort to such trickery. But methinks, in accordance with Sansa’s series-wide story arc, that Littlefinger is trying to build the girl up to be more skeptical of the chivalrous world that she thinks surrounds her. (Meanwhile, Ned gives Littlefinger a Look of Win that basically says “…the fuck are you talking to my daughter for?” :P)
The Hound, introduced last eppy as The Mountain’s younger, victimized brother, steps into the ring to save Loras’s life. Joffrey gets up, shocked when his bodyguard enters the arena
Game of Politics
To date, we’ve seen a lot of honorable (and dishonorable) people fighting for personal power through aggressive means. Today, we get to see some of the politicians scuttling behind the scenes.
We start with Varys, who sorta changes allegiances at least twice in this eppy. :P I think, ultimately, his interest is in what’s best for the realm, not particular people in it. (Though what exactly does he take that to be? Subjective is subjective.)
Finally feeling he can trust Ned, he imparts the news that Arryn was definitely killed with poison (someone like Hugh must’ve been paid by someone with moola,) and the reason he was killed was for “asking questions.”
But later, Arya is chasing cats in the dungeons for Syrio (stumbling across the impressive dragon skulls that Viserys figured were destroyed last eppy.) And she hears a particularly disturbing conversation between Varys and…no other than Illyrio, who helped marry Dany off to Drogo! This time, Varys says that Ned is getting “too close to the truth.” The two of them worry about civil war breaking out between “the wolf and the lion” (aka Starks and Lannisters) before the Dothraki are ready and able to invade. They mention the bungled attempts on Bran’s life, and the fact that “one Hand can be replaced, but not this one.” Basically, Arya knows even less than we do about the whosa-whatsis, but she takes it to mean that Ned’s life is in danger.
After getting dirtied in the sewers she’s mistaken for a beggar boy (she still seemed so girly to me…long hair and all), but she ultimately gets her Big Girl voice on and threatens the guards to let her in to see her father, booyah. :D At first, Ned is a bit skeptical of the whole thing, but after Arya mentions overhearing about his brush with Gendry, he perks up.
Unfortunately, the two of them don’t get to talk much before they are interrupted by Yoren, the Night’s Watch dude who traveled with Tyrion until Cat captured him. Jory escorts Arya to her room, and we get a touching (and nerves-twittering scene) where Arya asks the captain of Ned’s guard if there are enough men to protect Daddy. Aww. But anyway.
Feeling bound to Ned through his Brotherhood with Benjen, Yoren lets Ned know (before the city will) that Cat captured Tyrion. Dum dum DUUM. But more of that later. :P
The most skilled members of the “game of thrones,” Varys and Littlefinger, meet to snark at each other. :P Honestly, much of the conversation about various politicians and their sexual tastes, was unneeded. The intriguing part was when they started goading each other in a far more devious way than Ned and Cersei were last eppy. Varys knows that Littlefinger may have fed Tyrion’s name to the Starks as Bran’s attacker, which would get him in trouble with the queen. Littlefinger knows infinitely more—that Varys has a secret relationship with Illyrio. Mixed feelings about how Varys’s face falls when he realizes Littlefinger has more spies than he thought; come on, V, you’re a better actor than that. :P But ultimately, he’s able to lie and pull the meeting into his favor, claiming that Illyrio came to him with news that Dany is pregnant. Sure enough, Robert is on his way to the small council meeting with the intent of Targaryen murder.
Ned is on his way to speak to the king, probably about mercy, when it comes to the whole Cat/Tyrion dilemma, or maybe to get a jumpstart on his theories concerning the Lannisters and Jon Arryn’s muder. Instead, he’s waylaid by Robert’s plans to assassinate Dany and child. Killing innocents, particularly on Jorah’s traitorous intel (Ned still wants his head for slaving,) doesn’t sit well with him. The rest of the council throws their support behind the measure, but Ned refuses to bend. Ultimately, a fuming Robert releases him from his service and tells him to go back to Winterfell (oh, if only the Starks could go back!!!! *sobs*)
Ned reminds me of Cat last week. His honor about doing The Right Thing, no matter what, gets in the way of what he needs…like right now, he needs Robert’s clemency with the Catelyn/Tyrion situation. Alas. But this is the great thing about GoT…characters do what they do because they are who they are. Yup.
The Renly/Loras ship
The event that caused the biggest amount of episode controversy—even worse than the Mountain hacking off the head of his horse. At first I was surprised to see this scene, but now I think I understand how they wanted to use it to set “kingly” plot in motion that will carry into season two. (The chest-shaving was a bit unnecessary, though. :P) Many fans claimed that this was a deviation from the books, but in fact we have authorial confirmation that it was not. Renly and Loras are never POV characters so we don’t get to see them in action…but there are a few hints and snide remarks made by others, if one looks carefully. Of course I personally appreciate the inclusion of homosexuality in the books, because…despite the beliefs of a small group of fans…some people are gay! :-O And GRRM wants to capture people honestly, so kudos.
Renly is the second brother of King Robert, and fourth in line for the throne. Loras is a lesser son of another noble house, the Tyrells. We get some Renly backstory…his brothers think him weak because he hasn’t seen combat. (Somewhat deviating from the book where Renly isn’t quite so squeamish about matters of combat.) Robert wants to take him hunting again, basically for the thrill of killing things. :P …he kind of has enough blood lust for all three Baratheon brothers, imho.
For the purpose of the show, Renly’s squeamishness makes for an interesting middle ground concerning the Dany/child murder scenario. Renly is ok with doing it, for the safety of Westeros, but he won’t take as much sadistic pleasure from the task as Robert. He'll do it quickly and quietly, yup. Why is it that power is only for corrupt people? Loras asks his lover. (Well, personally, I have theories that aren’t my own about power’s corruptive power.) Loras points out that people love Renly cos he’s a nice guy, unlike the other dudes in his family. Meanwhile, the Tyrells can back his monetary needs, kinda like the Lannisters do for Robert. Loras is good at selling things, apparently…to seal the deal, he offers a blowjob. :P Can I just say…I like the fact that, twice now, GoT has offered slurpy sounds with their oral sex. I mean come on, it’s realistic! Sex is noisy. :P
Robert and Cersei
Another “ship”…another “changed character.” Ok, even I think Benioff and Weiss are making Cersei far more likeable than she’s appeared in any of my book reading and spoilers. I’m not exactly sure why…but I also like it. I like giving Cersei that depth. It makes her far more compelling than just being “the evil queen.”
This is also a scene where we get to see more to Robert (though when Cersei asks hubby what he wants out of life, he holds up the wine glass. :P In fairness, he could have mentioned extra-marital sex, too.) It seems like he’s giving earnest thought to the repercussions of a Dothraki invasion. This killing Dany and child thing might not just be about Lyanna…he may actually be taking this king thing a little bit seriously. :-O (Although, question- would Drogo be less inclined to invade after his wife and son were killed? :P)
I’m also taken with the fact that Robert seems to talk to Cersei like she’s an advisor, being honest about his worries and fears. Maybe it’s because she has her father’s voice coming out of her. :P Still, there was tension, and obvious PTSD from years of emotional warfare.
I’ve come to believe that Robert’s “I don’t even remember what she looks like” re: Lyanna underscores how he’s made Ned’s sister into a myth and doesn’t even remember her as a person. I’m more interested in the ins and outs of Robert/Cersei than Robert’s imagined relationship with long-dead Lyanna , at least in the tv show where they had a relationship. :P We get another mention of their first dead son who didn’t survive. Cersei said she still loved him well after that fact, and asked if the two of them ever had a chance in his eyes. Sounding somewhat guilty and resigned, Robert said “no.” He asks her how she feels about that…Cersei says she feels nothing. …and I’m hooked. A pretty fascinating look into a stagnant marriage filled by broken people. (But conflicting, too, because it’s so different than the book. Book Cersei is always passionate and temperamental…unlike this Cersei who can bury her feelings deep down. Not to mention that book Cersei loved Rhaegar, not Robert, but what can you do. :P)
Ned and Jaime
Ned is on his way out the door to Winterfell with Sansa and Arya (go, Ned, go!) when Littlefinger approaches him with another enticing bit of info…the final person Arryn talked to before death. Turns out it was a recent whore of Robert’s, who has just given birth to his latest bastard. (That actress looked appropriately young, too.) Another one of Robert’s kiddies with brown hair…hint, hint, Ned. :P
Upon leaving the brothel, Ned and his men are confronted by Jaime and the Lannister guard, who have finally learned the news of Tyrion’s “capture.” Ned takes responsibility for Cat’s actions, leading fans to hate her more, I’m sure. :/ Maybe he just has faith in her judgment. Anywho. The two men snark at each other a little bit before the kingslayer orders the deaths of Ned’s men. Most of them go easy…poor Jory puts up a nice fight before Jaime stabs him through the eye. :-O (Sadism! Particularly because last ep, Jory told Jaime that he’d almost lost it in battle once. Shoulda known that was bad news.) Jaime looks so disaffected and evil here that…wow. On top of his part in Bran’s condition, it’s hard to foster sympathy for him, yup, even knowing future book spoilers. He and Ned fight, wonderfully choreographed, matched opponents. (Also unlike the book where Jaime has leagues on Ned in swordplay.) Ultimately, one of Jaime’s men stabs Ned in the leg from behind (leading Jaime to punch that dude in the face. Ser Lannister has odd bouts of honor, yes. :P ...in the book, Ned's leg was crushed under a dead horse while fighting for his men.) Jaime leaves Ned with the parting words that he wants his brother back, and then Ned collapses, unconscious. :-/ No way he and the girls are getting away from King’s Landing tonight. But can you tell the situation is about to get dire? :-/
And now we’re officially halfway through season/book one, alas!
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}