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scifi_rewatchThis may be my least favorite episode of the season; lots of little to big inconsistencies. Including in the Winterfell storyline but again, that one really stands out as strong. Last episode’s shocking ending is resolved differently than in the book, but it (largely, except for one of those inconsistencies) makes sense for this medium. Meanwhile, there are other great scenes there, and smaller ones elsewhere.
In King’s Landing, Tyrion prepares for Stannis’s arrival, and we check in with the remaining Baratheon brother to see that he is indeed on his way to take the city. Tywin, too, is on the move, and Robb has his own problems to deal with. But perhaps even more of a link between several of these story arcs is the theme of innocents dying or suffering in another’s place. Overall, however, this episode felt disjointed and frustrating, but it leads into something next ep, which is much, much better!
Summary:
Robb’s Camp
Robb and Talisa are returning from what seems to be an uneventful trip to the Crag. They discuss his marriage to the as-of-yet nameless Frey girl in return for a bridge when Robb thought Ned could be saved. He remembers Ned telling him of the stress of ruling, but he didn’t believe it at the time. But the couple is interrupted by the news that the Kingslayer has escaped!
We next see Robb storming into his mother’s tent—she was the one who freed him. She did it for the girls, she explains, and when Lord Karstark complains about not getting his vengeance, she reminds him that Jaime’s death won’t bring his children back, but his return might save hers. Robb accuses her of going behind his back and bringing discord into his camp. He sends several men after the Kingslayer and leaves a few to guard Catelyn, essentially putting her under house arrest.
Later, with Roose, he discusses how Bolton’s bastard is only a few days from Winterfell. They haven’t had any more news from the north, eg they know of Theon hanging the burned bodies of the boys above the gates. Robb tells Roose to impart a message to his son—surrendering ironborn except for Theon can go home in peace.
Talisa enters to check on Robb and Roose goes. The king admits his sense of pain and frustration from the fact that his siblings are held by enemies, his home is taken, and he’s had to arrest his mother. Maybe this is too much for him; he wasn’t raised to be a king but a lord. Talisa imparts that she was raised to be a noble lady in Volantis but one day after a slave saved her brother from drowning, she vowed not to “waste her life” planning balls, and to never live in a slave city again. Robb admits that he doesn’t want to marry the Frey girl, and the two of them end up in a passionate, sexual embrace.
Harrenhal
Although they’ve also heard word of Theon’s betrayal, Robb doesn’t seem to be leaving the Riverlands, the Lannister men report. He might be heading further west, which concerns Tywin as much as Stannis’s descent on King’s Landing (in response to his brother, Kevan’s, suggestion that Joffrey be removed from the capital, Tywin says hell no.) As an increasingly startled Arya pours water, Tywin decides to march and surprise Robb on the field, leaving Harrenhal (and Arya herself) in the hands of the Mountain.
Outside, Arya runs into Rorge and Biter, now Lannister soldiers, who threaten her with violence when she asks about Jaqen’s whereabouts. Gendry and Hot Pie are similarly unaware of his location, except that Hot Pie saw him on patrol duty earlier. Arya helplessly watches Tywin and his men ride off. Only after he’s gone does she run into Jaqen, who says it’s impossible to kill Tywin before he gets to Robb. What if she names someone else for the final name, anyone else? Arya thinks it over and names Jaqen himself! She’ll only un-name him if he helps her, Gendry and Hot Pie escape Harrenhal. Jaqen isn’t happy as this will mean more than one death, but Arya holds her ground. He tells her to bring the boys and walk out the gates at midnight.
The threesome are a bit nervous as they hide near the gate in the dark, and Hot Pie especially does a bit of whining about the kitchen. But Arya boldly leads them forward, noting as they pass that the Lannister guards are in fact dead and nailed to the walls. They escape!
Beyond the Wall
Ygritte and her wildling companions bring Jon to the Lord of Bones, who is dressed as one might expect. :P The wildlings have another prisoner, too—none other than the Halfhand! The Lord of Bones wants to kill Jon, but Ygritte saves his life (telling him they’re now even) by imparting that he’s Ned Stark’s son so Mance Rayder will want to see him. The Halfhand explains privately that he and the others went after Jon but the wildlings found them first. The others are dead because of him, Jon realizes guiltily, but the Halfhand tells him simply “don’t let it be in vain.” Later, as they walk to Mance’s stronghold he suggests quietly that a spy in that camp would be incredibly useful to the Watch, and then he picks a public, staged fight with Jon while Ygritte looks on.
Elsewhere, Sam, Grenn, Edd and presumably the others are still at the Fist of the First Men. The boys dig in the snow, debating Jon’s chances of survival, when Grenn hits a box with his shovel! Sam recognizes the marks as belonging to the First Men so they dig it out and find, wrapped in a Night’s Watch cloak, some dragonglass (aka obsidian) and a horn. What could those ancient Night’s Watchmen mean to leave these here?
King’s Landing
Tyrion and Bronn are at terse odds as the Lannister lord pours over books trying to figure out how best to hold the city. Varys enters and lets slip how Bronn and the Gold Cloaks have been killing the known thieves, much to Tyrion’s dislike. Bronn remarks that the worst thing about a siege is infighting and starvation, and thieves tend to steal food for profit. Varys agrees with this harsh treatment, and the three of them return to tactics. Tyrion spreads out a map of the city and supposes that Stannis will come in through the weak point—the mud gate. They don’t have much to fight him off with…or do they? “Pig shit,” Tyrion wonders, referring to the name Bronn gave the highly lethal wild fire from last episode.
Cersei treats Tyrion to a nice dinner but in what seems to be the Lannister fashion, this covers up more sinister motives. :P She’s insistent that Joffrey not take part in the battle, and that just like with sending Myrcella away, her brother wants to hurt her children. Tyrion protests that as a king, Joff has a duty, but smiling Cersei has a trickster card up her sleeve. She has his “little whore!” She taunts him about it as Tyrion attempts to reveal nothing, especially when the woman the kingsguard brings in is Ros, not Shae. Cersei promises that she’ll suffer every wound Joffrey does, including a horrible death if Joff dies. Tyrion in turn promises to free Ros and then to hurt Cersei for this action. “The day will come when you think you’re safe and happy and your joy will turn to ashes in your mouth. And you’ll know the debt is paid.”
In private, Tyrion is more panicked when he goes to his chambers and finds Shae safe but in more danger than before. He says he’ll kill for her and makes her promise that she is his. And you are mine, Shae answers before they share an intimate moment.
Sometime later, Varys, Tyrion and Joffrey oversee siege preparations on the walls of the Red Keep. Joffrey seems unconcerned with Stannis’s arrival, simply spouting jibberish about giving his supposed uncle “a red smile” with his sword. He wants to go after Robb now that the Greyjoys have Winterfell, but as always he’s all talk and no action. He leaves and Varys and Tyrion discuss more serious matters. Or at least talk around them, eg what happened with Cersei finding one of Tyrion’s whores. Varys won’t give anything up; obviously their trust in one another only goes so far. But he does comment that Tyrion is better at “playing the game” than Jon Arryn or Ned Stark. They were honorable men, and looked down on the manipulations of politics. Tyrion professes enjoyment for them. He’s never really had the chance to have this power before, given his father’s disdain for him. Varys leans in with news all the way from Qarth, beyond the Red Waste, that Daenerys Targaryen lives and has dragons. Quite the bigger game changer than this upcoming siege, but Tyrion suggests they focus on one thing at a time.
The little scenes
The Dany scene leads from the one above, so why not talk about these here? I’ll also give my thoughts/reactions…basically, I don’t see the point for this scene. It’s less than a minute of Dany and Jorah, assumedly somewhere in hiding in Qarth, debating their next move. Jorah wants them to get on a ship for Astapor but Dany wants him to help her find the House of the Undying so she can get “the only children I’ll ever have” back. Why we need to have this layover in this episode rather than implied when her story picks back up in full is beyond me. Other than Varys’s comment, seeing Dany seems pretty out of place.
The other two minor scenes I like a fair bit more. The first is between Brienne and Jaime, as they run/hide from the public as the female knight fulfills her duty to Catelyn to take him to King’s Landing. The scene, which was taken from the beginning of book three, showcases the start of their relationship—snarkiness from Jaime and stoicism from Brienne, to be quick about it. Nickolaj Coster-Waldau and Gwendoline Christie have exactly the right chemistry here, so yay!
And finally the scene between Stannis and Davos (with a brief shot of Matthos looking on.) This proves, of course, that Stannis and his ships are indeed on their way to King’s Landing, expected to arrive in a day! :O It also highlights some backstory—how Stannis held Storm’s End during Robert’s Rebellion and almost starved with his household until Davos, a smuggler, was able to sneak in with onions (now his house sidgil) and other provisions. Stannis obviously prefers Davos’s loyalty to that of the lords who dislike the former commoner, and he names Davos as his Hand when he ascends the Iron Throne! Slightly different from how it went down in the book, but it fit well here and again, Stephen Dillane and Liam Cunningham have great chemistry for this interesting relationship.
Winterfell
Theon has killed all the ravens to keep the news of Bran and Rickon’s deaths from reaching Robb. Luckily, Yara has finally arrived from Deepwood Motte, but she only brings a handful of men. Certainly not enough to hold Winterfell against Robb’s counterattack. In the Great Hall amidst her men, Yara mocks and berates her brother for killing the Stark boys—“every man in the North wants to see you hanged”— and even calls them brave for trying to escape. Sure, it was Theon’s right to take Winterfell (so say the Ironborn) but expecting little boys to keep promises under duress and then butchering them? Seems to have crossed a line. Anywho, Yara is really here to escort Theon home, as Balon wants a word. Theon refuses to leave the sight of his conquest, so Yara asks for some privacy. Alone, she implores her brother not to stay here where doom is imminent, and even recounts a story of when they were children and she was able to soothe him. “Don’t die so far from the sea,” she advises curtly and leaves.
The rotting bodies still hang over the walls, though Theon seems to want to take them down. He also wants to pay the farmer from last episode for his “trouble,” but Dagmer says “his troubles are done,” aka he’s been killed along with his wife. Meanwhile, Luwin, traveling through the yard, sees none other than Osha sneaking food into the crypts! He follows her and they exchange information. Osha and company turned back for Winterfell at the farm; so far the crypts haven’t been searched. Obviously the bodies on display belong to the two orphan boys Bran sent to live with the farmer. The adults agree never to let the young lord know what’s happened, as he would blame himself, but unbeknownst to them, behind a statue, Bran is awake next to a sleeping Rickon and Hodor, and he’s heard every word.
Those killed on the show still alive in the books: None; was a low death count overall, too. Saving up for the big leagues next episode. :P
Thoughts:
Robb’s storyline this week is among my biggest disappointments. I just don’t see how the writers couldn’t recognize the glaringly obvious truth—if Catelyn hadn’t set Jaime free wouldn’t the Karstarks have killed him anyway, leaving the north in the same predicament over losing their hostage? This way at least he might be able to do some good. Granted, this is not at all how events unfolded in the book, where Catelyn releases Jaime and Robb gets inappropriate with “Talisa” aka Jeyne out of grief over Bran and Rickon. On the show, Cat’s actions seem sound and more connected to the legitimate Karstark danger from last episode than whatever Littlefinger may have told her about a trade.
Similarly I had my issues with Robb and Talisa, and Robb’s glaring immaturity. OK, so Talisa left her noble life in Volantis to fight for “the greater good” as a battlefield nurse (I’ll gloss over the fact that classes wouldn’t mingle in Volantis, so book purists say), but how does Robb forsaking a marriage benefit anyone other than the two of them and their personal relationship? Yes, Robb agreed to the marriage for “a bridge,” but it did annoy me how no one pointed out that what he really got for his trouble was far more important—he got loyalty, political and martial, from a prominent Westerosi family. This is even more important now that he’s breaking away from the south and calling himself king. “The bridge” never was the half of it.
This might be more personal preference than anything else, but what’s so wrong with feminine pursuits like holding balls? My perception from the books is that they are far from shallow affairs—it’s about boosting up alliances and puffing out egos because let’s face it, you can’t be on the battlefield all the time and when you are it pays to have friends. From a modern standpoint, I’m tired of things like fencing and jousting seeming more important than music or art. What’s so wrong with a little beauty and culture—or do you just want to be mock killing people all the time? Why don’t you try learning music theory or dance steps sometimes; it’s not just idle fun, but takes work and dedication. Maybe I should consume more female-centric television and film media. :P
On a more minor scale, Karstark would not pray to “the Father” as he’s a northerner and would pray to the Old Gods. Woops. Other than that…I like Richard Madden and Oona Chaplain as actors, and I even have sympathy for the characters as individuals. It’s just…major things aren’t adding up, as shown above. I think the showrunners really dropped the ball here.
I enjoyed Harrenhal more again due, finally, to some forward movement in the plot. We got to see a more canonical portrayal of Arya’s time as a servant, with soldiers cuffing her and Rorge threatening her. The situation with Tywin is still markedly different because she was never in close quarters with him in canon. Still, she regretted last minute that she didn’t give Jaqen his name, and she also tricked Jaqen into helping her by giving his own name (wonderfully acted, guh). In the book it was for the “weasel stew,” which freed the northern prisoners but in terms of the adaptation I don’t mind them speeding things up to facilitate Arya’s escape. Had to happen somehow and at least this makes sense for why she’d be able to sneak out unseen.
Jon’s issue isn’t so much one of consistency or continuity, but it does seem weaker than the original. In the book Jon never leaves the Night’s Watchmen, so even though they’re ultimately captured by wildlings it’s not Jon’s fault that the others died. We’ve also lost a lot of the relationship between Jon and the Halfhand and many fans are very disappointed in the rushed nature of what they’re going through now. And again: where’s Ghost?? Convenient way to keep Jon trapped.
I’m a big fan of checking back in with Sam and the others—impossible in the book since none of them were POVs—and even though it was Jon who found the horn and dragonglass in the novels, it fits well that the others found it here. Have to remember them!
Speaking of replacements, it wasn’t too surprising to most fans that Ros took the place of an uncast whore from book two—Alayaya, who worked at a brothel Tyrion frequented to use as a cover for getting to Shae. Considering the limitations of film-making this worked quite well—also because we have some history with Ros, and it proves what Littlefinger told her so long ago—she’s a commodity to him and he’d even sell her off to be tortured by the Queen.
Cersei’s paranoia is a little more understandable in the book, because Tyrion has also stashed Tommen away to far-off lands. I suppose we can see things from the Imp’s standpoint—Myrcella has a marriage duty to foster royal relationships (to be fair with a family that hates them), Tommen is heir, and they both should be protected from the siege. Joffrey, as king, has a duty to his people. But it should be noted that once Cersei threatens “Ros” Tyrion threatens Tommen, even with rape. (He also turns uncast characters into stew, etc. etc.) The show likes to whitewash Tyrion because we’re obviously meant to identify with him. Overall I’m pleased with Peter Dinklage’s performance and the nuances of his character—his newfound love for the power game, his growing infatuation with Shae, and his vengeful relationship with his sister. His final threat was spot on. (Also, somewhat related, always nice to have a Podrick sighting! :P) Only one, really minor nitpick—what’s with that snarky line about Cersei “slaving away in the kitchens” as if her nice meal is somehow reduced by her womanly laziness? She’s the freaking Queen Regent of Westeros; she’s not supposed to be in the kitchens!
I’ll start with the glaring issue at Winterfell, which is how the hell could Osha sneak around the castle without being seen? She was literally feet away from Theon and Dagmer…strains credulity. Everything else, I felt, was golden. The two highlights for me were Theon and Yara, and the ending with Bran. Concerning the Greyjoy siblings, I might be biased by spoilery material, but I was moved by the softer underbelly of their relationship. There’s a lot of competition between them and they don’t even know each other that well, but Yara obviously cares for the boy and it’s touching. (Small change from canon: their mother isn’t dead.) Props to Gemma Whelan for standing up to Alfie Allen’s acting! :P
Finally, the crypt scene is a little different since we don’t know that the boys have survived until the very end of the book. And there’s also never any indication that Bran knows that innocent boys died in his place. But so long as we’re playing things up for the tv medium, giving this character this extra burden was a wonderful move. And maybe it’s a little out there, seeing as he didn’t even have lines this episode, but Isaac Hampstead-Wright’s face said it all, man. A really striking and haunting way to end the hour.
___
In King’s Landing, Tyrion prepares for Stannis’s arrival, and we check in with the remaining Baratheon brother to see that he is indeed on his way to take the city. Tywin, too, is on the move, and Robb has his own problems to deal with. But perhaps even more of a link between several of these story arcs is the theme of innocents dying or suffering in another’s place. Overall, however, this episode felt disjointed and frustrating, but it leads into something next ep, which is much, much better!
Summary:
Robb’s Camp
Robb and Talisa are returning from what seems to be an uneventful trip to the Crag. They discuss his marriage to the as-of-yet nameless Frey girl in return for a bridge when Robb thought Ned could be saved. He remembers Ned telling him of the stress of ruling, but he didn’t believe it at the time. But the couple is interrupted by the news that the Kingslayer has escaped!
We next see Robb storming into his mother’s tent—she was the one who freed him. She did it for the girls, she explains, and when Lord Karstark complains about not getting his vengeance, she reminds him that Jaime’s death won’t bring his children back, but his return might save hers. Robb accuses her of going behind his back and bringing discord into his camp. He sends several men after the Kingslayer and leaves a few to guard Catelyn, essentially putting her under house arrest.
Later, with Roose, he discusses how Bolton’s bastard is only a few days from Winterfell. They haven’t had any more news from the north, eg they know of Theon hanging the burned bodies of the boys above the gates. Robb tells Roose to impart a message to his son—surrendering ironborn except for Theon can go home in peace.
Talisa enters to check on Robb and Roose goes. The king admits his sense of pain and frustration from the fact that his siblings are held by enemies, his home is taken, and he’s had to arrest his mother. Maybe this is too much for him; he wasn’t raised to be a king but a lord. Talisa imparts that she was raised to be a noble lady in Volantis but one day after a slave saved her brother from drowning, she vowed not to “waste her life” planning balls, and to never live in a slave city again. Robb admits that he doesn’t want to marry the Frey girl, and the two of them end up in a passionate, sexual embrace.
Harrenhal
Although they’ve also heard word of Theon’s betrayal, Robb doesn’t seem to be leaving the Riverlands, the Lannister men report. He might be heading further west, which concerns Tywin as much as Stannis’s descent on King’s Landing (in response to his brother, Kevan’s, suggestion that Joffrey be removed from the capital, Tywin says hell no.) As an increasingly startled Arya pours water, Tywin decides to march and surprise Robb on the field, leaving Harrenhal (and Arya herself) in the hands of the Mountain.
Outside, Arya runs into Rorge and Biter, now Lannister soldiers, who threaten her with violence when she asks about Jaqen’s whereabouts. Gendry and Hot Pie are similarly unaware of his location, except that Hot Pie saw him on patrol duty earlier. Arya helplessly watches Tywin and his men ride off. Only after he’s gone does she run into Jaqen, who says it’s impossible to kill Tywin before he gets to Robb. What if she names someone else for the final name, anyone else? Arya thinks it over and names Jaqen himself! She’ll only un-name him if he helps her, Gendry and Hot Pie escape Harrenhal. Jaqen isn’t happy as this will mean more than one death, but Arya holds her ground. He tells her to bring the boys and walk out the gates at midnight.
The threesome are a bit nervous as they hide near the gate in the dark, and Hot Pie especially does a bit of whining about the kitchen. But Arya boldly leads them forward, noting as they pass that the Lannister guards are in fact dead and nailed to the walls. They escape!
Beyond the Wall
Ygritte and her wildling companions bring Jon to the Lord of Bones, who is dressed as one might expect. :P The wildlings have another prisoner, too—none other than the Halfhand! The Lord of Bones wants to kill Jon, but Ygritte saves his life (telling him they’re now even) by imparting that he’s Ned Stark’s son so Mance Rayder will want to see him. The Halfhand explains privately that he and the others went after Jon but the wildlings found them first. The others are dead because of him, Jon realizes guiltily, but the Halfhand tells him simply “don’t let it be in vain.” Later, as they walk to Mance’s stronghold he suggests quietly that a spy in that camp would be incredibly useful to the Watch, and then he picks a public, staged fight with Jon while Ygritte looks on.
Elsewhere, Sam, Grenn, Edd and presumably the others are still at the Fist of the First Men. The boys dig in the snow, debating Jon’s chances of survival, when Grenn hits a box with his shovel! Sam recognizes the marks as belonging to the First Men so they dig it out and find, wrapped in a Night’s Watch cloak, some dragonglass (aka obsidian) and a horn. What could those ancient Night’s Watchmen mean to leave these here?
King’s Landing
Tyrion and Bronn are at terse odds as the Lannister lord pours over books trying to figure out how best to hold the city. Varys enters and lets slip how Bronn and the Gold Cloaks have been killing the known thieves, much to Tyrion’s dislike. Bronn remarks that the worst thing about a siege is infighting and starvation, and thieves tend to steal food for profit. Varys agrees with this harsh treatment, and the three of them return to tactics. Tyrion spreads out a map of the city and supposes that Stannis will come in through the weak point—the mud gate. They don’t have much to fight him off with…or do they? “Pig shit,” Tyrion wonders, referring to the name Bronn gave the highly lethal wild fire from last episode.
Cersei treats Tyrion to a nice dinner but in what seems to be the Lannister fashion, this covers up more sinister motives. :P She’s insistent that Joffrey not take part in the battle, and that just like with sending Myrcella away, her brother wants to hurt her children. Tyrion protests that as a king, Joff has a duty, but smiling Cersei has a trickster card up her sleeve. She has his “little whore!” She taunts him about it as Tyrion attempts to reveal nothing, especially when the woman the kingsguard brings in is Ros, not Shae. Cersei promises that she’ll suffer every wound Joffrey does, including a horrible death if Joff dies. Tyrion in turn promises to free Ros and then to hurt Cersei for this action. “The day will come when you think you’re safe and happy and your joy will turn to ashes in your mouth. And you’ll know the debt is paid.”
In private, Tyrion is more panicked when he goes to his chambers and finds Shae safe but in more danger than before. He says he’ll kill for her and makes her promise that she is his. And you are mine, Shae answers before they share an intimate moment.
Sometime later, Varys, Tyrion and Joffrey oversee siege preparations on the walls of the Red Keep. Joffrey seems unconcerned with Stannis’s arrival, simply spouting jibberish about giving his supposed uncle “a red smile” with his sword. He wants to go after Robb now that the Greyjoys have Winterfell, but as always he’s all talk and no action. He leaves and Varys and Tyrion discuss more serious matters. Or at least talk around them, eg what happened with Cersei finding one of Tyrion’s whores. Varys won’t give anything up; obviously their trust in one another only goes so far. But he does comment that Tyrion is better at “playing the game” than Jon Arryn or Ned Stark. They were honorable men, and looked down on the manipulations of politics. Tyrion professes enjoyment for them. He’s never really had the chance to have this power before, given his father’s disdain for him. Varys leans in with news all the way from Qarth, beyond the Red Waste, that Daenerys Targaryen lives and has dragons. Quite the bigger game changer than this upcoming siege, but Tyrion suggests they focus on one thing at a time.
The little scenes
The Dany scene leads from the one above, so why not talk about these here? I’ll also give my thoughts/reactions…basically, I don’t see the point for this scene. It’s less than a minute of Dany and Jorah, assumedly somewhere in hiding in Qarth, debating their next move. Jorah wants them to get on a ship for Astapor but Dany wants him to help her find the House of the Undying so she can get “the only children I’ll ever have” back. Why we need to have this layover in this episode rather than implied when her story picks back up in full is beyond me. Other than Varys’s comment, seeing Dany seems pretty out of place.
The other two minor scenes I like a fair bit more. The first is between Brienne and Jaime, as they run/hide from the public as the female knight fulfills her duty to Catelyn to take him to King’s Landing. The scene, which was taken from the beginning of book three, showcases the start of their relationship—snarkiness from Jaime and stoicism from Brienne, to be quick about it. Nickolaj Coster-Waldau and Gwendoline Christie have exactly the right chemistry here, so yay!
And finally the scene between Stannis and Davos (with a brief shot of Matthos looking on.) This proves, of course, that Stannis and his ships are indeed on their way to King’s Landing, expected to arrive in a day! :O It also highlights some backstory—how Stannis held Storm’s End during Robert’s Rebellion and almost starved with his household until Davos, a smuggler, was able to sneak in with onions (now his house sidgil) and other provisions. Stannis obviously prefers Davos’s loyalty to that of the lords who dislike the former commoner, and he names Davos as his Hand when he ascends the Iron Throne! Slightly different from how it went down in the book, but it fit well here and again, Stephen Dillane and Liam Cunningham have great chemistry for this interesting relationship.
Winterfell
Theon has killed all the ravens to keep the news of Bran and Rickon’s deaths from reaching Robb. Luckily, Yara has finally arrived from Deepwood Motte, but she only brings a handful of men. Certainly not enough to hold Winterfell against Robb’s counterattack. In the Great Hall amidst her men, Yara mocks and berates her brother for killing the Stark boys—“every man in the North wants to see you hanged”— and even calls them brave for trying to escape. Sure, it was Theon’s right to take Winterfell (so say the Ironborn) but expecting little boys to keep promises under duress and then butchering them? Seems to have crossed a line. Anywho, Yara is really here to escort Theon home, as Balon wants a word. Theon refuses to leave the sight of his conquest, so Yara asks for some privacy. Alone, she implores her brother not to stay here where doom is imminent, and even recounts a story of when they were children and she was able to soothe him. “Don’t die so far from the sea,” she advises curtly and leaves.
The rotting bodies still hang over the walls, though Theon seems to want to take them down. He also wants to pay the farmer from last episode for his “trouble,” but Dagmer says “his troubles are done,” aka he’s been killed along with his wife. Meanwhile, Luwin, traveling through the yard, sees none other than Osha sneaking food into the crypts! He follows her and they exchange information. Osha and company turned back for Winterfell at the farm; so far the crypts haven’t been searched. Obviously the bodies on display belong to the two orphan boys Bran sent to live with the farmer. The adults agree never to let the young lord know what’s happened, as he would blame himself, but unbeknownst to them, behind a statue, Bran is awake next to a sleeping Rickon and Hodor, and he’s heard every word.
Those killed on the show still alive in the books: None; was a low death count overall, too. Saving up for the big leagues next episode. :P
Thoughts:
Robb’s storyline this week is among my biggest disappointments. I just don’t see how the writers couldn’t recognize the glaringly obvious truth—if Catelyn hadn’t set Jaime free wouldn’t the Karstarks have killed him anyway, leaving the north in the same predicament over losing their hostage? This way at least he might be able to do some good. Granted, this is not at all how events unfolded in the book, where Catelyn releases Jaime and Robb gets inappropriate with “Talisa” aka Jeyne out of grief over Bran and Rickon. On the show, Cat’s actions seem sound and more connected to the legitimate Karstark danger from last episode than whatever Littlefinger may have told her about a trade.
Similarly I had my issues with Robb and Talisa, and Robb’s glaring immaturity. OK, so Talisa left her noble life in Volantis to fight for “the greater good” as a battlefield nurse (I’ll gloss over the fact that classes wouldn’t mingle in Volantis, so book purists say), but how does Robb forsaking a marriage benefit anyone other than the two of them and their personal relationship? Yes, Robb agreed to the marriage for “a bridge,” but it did annoy me how no one pointed out that what he really got for his trouble was far more important—he got loyalty, political and martial, from a prominent Westerosi family. This is even more important now that he’s breaking away from the south and calling himself king. “The bridge” never was the half of it.
This might be more personal preference than anything else, but what’s so wrong with feminine pursuits like holding balls? My perception from the books is that they are far from shallow affairs—it’s about boosting up alliances and puffing out egos because let’s face it, you can’t be on the battlefield all the time and when you are it pays to have friends. From a modern standpoint, I’m tired of things like fencing and jousting seeming more important than music or art. What’s so wrong with a little beauty and culture—or do you just want to be mock killing people all the time? Why don’t you try learning music theory or dance steps sometimes; it’s not just idle fun, but takes work and dedication. Maybe I should consume more female-centric television and film media. :P
On a more minor scale, Karstark would not pray to “the Father” as he’s a northerner and would pray to the Old Gods. Woops. Other than that…I like Richard Madden and Oona Chaplain as actors, and I even have sympathy for the characters as individuals. It’s just…major things aren’t adding up, as shown above. I think the showrunners really dropped the ball here.
I enjoyed Harrenhal more again due, finally, to some forward movement in the plot. We got to see a more canonical portrayal of Arya’s time as a servant, with soldiers cuffing her and Rorge threatening her. The situation with Tywin is still markedly different because she was never in close quarters with him in canon. Still, she regretted last minute that she didn’t give Jaqen his name, and she also tricked Jaqen into helping her by giving his own name (wonderfully acted, guh). In the book it was for the “weasel stew,” which freed the northern prisoners but in terms of the adaptation I don’t mind them speeding things up to facilitate Arya’s escape. Had to happen somehow and at least this makes sense for why she’d be able to sneak out unseen.
Jon’s issue isn’t so much one of consistency or continuity, but it does seem weaker than the original. In the book Jon never leaves the Night’s Watchmen, so even though they’re ultimately captured by wildlings it’s not Jon’s fault that the others died. We’ve also lost a lot of the relationship between Jon and the Halfhand and many fans are very disappointed in the rushed nature of what they’re going through now. And again: where’s Ghost?? Convenient way to keep Jon trapped.
I’m a big fan of checking back in with Sam and the others—impossible in the book since none of them were POVs—and even though it was Jon who found the horn and dragonglass in the novels, it fits well that the others found it here. Have to remember them!
Speaking of replacements, it wasn’t too surprising to most fans that Ros took the place of an uncast whore from book two—Alayaya, who worked at a brothel Tyrion frequented to use as a cover for getting to Shae. Considering the limitations of film-making this worked quite well—also because we have some history with Ros, and it proves what Littlefinger told her so long ago—she’s a commodity to him and he’d even sell her off to be tortured by the Queen.
Cersei’s paranoia is a little more understandable in the book, because Tyrion has also stashed Tommen away to far-off lands. I suppose we can see things from the Imp’s standpoint—Myrcella has a marriage duty to foster royal relationships (to be fair with a family that hates them), Tommen is heir, and they both should be protected from the siege. Joffrey, as king, has a duty to his people. But it should be noted that once Cersei threatens “Ros” Tyrion threatens Tommen, even with rape. (He also turns uncast characters into stew, etc. etc.) The show likes to whitewash Tyrion because we’re obviously meant to identify with him. Overall I’m pleased with Peter Dinklage’s performance and the nuances of his character—his newfound love for the power game, his growing infatuation with Shae, and his vengeful relationship with his sister. His final threat was spot on. (Also, somewhat related, always nice to have a Podrick sighting! :P) Only one, really minor nitpick—what’s with that snarky line about Cersei “slaving away in the kitchens” as if her nice meal is somehow reduced by her womanly laziness? She’s the freaking Queen Regent of Westeros; she’s not supposed to be in the kitchens!
I’ll start with the glaring issue at Winterfell, which is how the hell could Osha sneak around the castle without being seen? She was literally feet away from Theon and Dagmer…strains credulity. Everything else, I felt, was golden. The two highlights for me were Theon and Yara, and the ending with Bran. Concerning the Greyjoy siblings, I might be biased by spoilery material, but I was moved by the softer underbelly of their relationship. There’s a lot of competition between them and they don’t even know each other that well, but Yara obviously cares for the boy and it’s touching. (Small change from canon: their mother isn’t dead.) Props to Gemma Whelan for standing up to Alfie Allen’s acting! :P
Finally, the crypt scene is a little different since we don’t know that the boys have survived until the very end of the book. And there’s also never any indication that Bran knows that innocent boys died in his place. But so long as we’re playing things up for the tv medium, giving this character this extra burden was a wonderful move. And maybe it’s a little out there, seeing as he didn’t even have lines this episode, but Isaac Hampstead-Wright’s face said it all, man. A really striking and haunting way to end the hour.
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