Game of Thrones: Season Six Preview – Part One

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Aidan Gillen, Alfie Allen, Arthur Dayne, Arya Stark, Azor Ahai, Beric Dondarrion, Braavos, Bran Stark, Brienne of Tarth, Bronn, Carice van Houten, Catelyn Stark, Cersei Lannister, Cleganebowl, Daario Naharis, Daenerys Targaryen, Daniel Portman, David Bradley, Dean-Charles Chapman, Dorne, Dragons, Drogon, Game of Thrones, Game of Thrones Premiere, Game of Thrones Season Five, Game of Thrones Season Six, Game of Thrones Season Six Preview, Ghost, Gwendoline Christie, Hardhome, Ian Beattie, Is Jon Snow Dead?, Isaac Hempstead-Wright, Iwan Rheon, Jaime Lannister, Jaqen H'ghar, Jerome Flynn, John Bradley, Jon Snow, Jon Snow Dead?, Jon Snow Death, Jon Snow Resurrection, Jonathan Pryce, King's Landing, Kingsguard, Kit Harington, Kristofer Hivju, Lady Stoneheart, Lena Headey, Liam Cunningham, Littlefinger, Lyanna Stark, Maester Aemon, Maisie Williams, Margaery Tyrell, Max von Sydow, Meereen, Melisandre, Meryn Trant, Michael McElhatton, Michelle Fairley, Michiel Huisman, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, No One, Oathbreaker, Paul Kaye, Peter Dinklage, Peter Vaughan, Podrick Payne, R + L = J, Ramsay Bolton, Rhaegar Targaryen, Richard Dormer, Richard Madden, Rickon Stark, Robb Stark, Roose Bolton, Samwell Tarly, Sansa Stark, Ser Davos, Sophie Turner, Stannis Baratheon, Stephen Dillane, Television, Television Review, The Boltons, The Dothraki, The Gravedigger Theory, The Greyjoys, The High Sparrow, The Hound, The Iron Throne, The Mad King, The Night's King, The Night's Watch, The Red Wedding, The Red Woman, The Three-Eyed-Raven, The Tower of Joy, The Wall, The Wildlings, Theon Greyjoy, Thoros of Myr, Tom Wlaschiha, Tormund Giantsbane, TV, TV Review, Walder Frey, White Walkers, Winter Is Coming, Winterfell

This preview will contain spoilers for everything that’s happened on the show so far, as well as a couple of fan theories and some book plot points which are yet to appear on the show.

On the 25^th of April “Game of Thrones” returns to our screens. After months of speculation we’ll finally discover the fate of Jon Snow (Kit Harington), the Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch who was mercilessly left in a puddle of his own blood in the season five finale, as well as a few other things that fans have basically ignored over the last few months.

Jon Snow

via mtv.com

I should start with the elephant in the room… will Jon Snow be brought back from the dead? His death has been the focus of multiple fan theories since the season five finale, with many book readers stating that he will be resurrected; this has led to denials from several cast members and indeed Kit Harington himself. Personally, I would love it if Jon Snow didn’t come back this year simply because of the collective outrage that there would be, but it seems very unlikely. In my opinion, it would be quite ridiculous to put so much work into developing the character, placing him at the forefront of the story, just to kill him off.

This has happened before on “Game of Thrones”, but there’s an important difference when it comes to our favourite bastard. The problem with Jon Snow not coming back is that it would significantly weaken the show’s narrative and the work that has been done so far, because not only has the character himself been given a lot of screen time, but other characters have spoken on several occasions about his parentage and the mythical Azor Ahai. There have been references to the fact that Jon Snow could in fact be a Targaryen ever since the show began, and there have also been many mentions of a possible death and resurrection involving the character – remember when Maester Aemon (Peter Vaughan) said ‘kill the boy Jon Snow, let the man be born’ last season? These aren’t just throw-away lines of dialogue written for dramatic effect; they have a purpose and they foreshadow what is to come.

We know that Jon Snow’s return is possible in this universe because of Beric Dondarrion’s (Richard Dormer) resurrection at the hands of Thoros of Myr (Paul Kaye) back in season three, and there’s no coincidence in the fact that Melisandre (Carice van Houten) – who spoke to Thoros directly during season three about such things – finds herself at The Wall at the start of season six. She’s lost her reason for existence now that Stannis (Stephen Dillane) is dead, and she will be looking for a new person to lead the realms of men against the White Walkers, with the obvious choice being Jon.

It’s been too easy in the build up to this season for the actors to say things like ‘Jon Snow isn’t coming back’, ‘Jon Snow is dead’, and ‘Kit Harington has been seen on set because he’ll be playing a corpse’, because all of these things are true. Nobody has to lie to say any of those things because Jon really was killed at the end of season five, he will be a corpse at the start of this one, and he may not come back as the exact same character.

In any case, I don’t think that Jon Snow will come back straight away. Pacing will be of the upmost importance when it comes to this storyline because the writers will want to keep people guessing for as long as possible, so we may have to sit back and theorise a little while longer.

As a side-note, I’d like to mention the fact that the Night’s Watch mutineers didn’t burn the body immediately after killing Jon Snow, which is something that you would’ve expected them to do when they had the chance. For me, this is a significant plot hole which speaks to the possibility that he will be resurrected, because it really doesn’t make sense that men of the Night’s Watch would leave a dead body out in the open when they know that it could be reanimated as a wight, unless this would somehow serve the story. Of course, I can’t be 100% sure that they don’t intend to burn the body before something stops them (maybe Ghost, the wildlings, or Davos (Liam Cunningham)), but the marketing team has edited the trailer in such a way that it does seem as though the body has simply been left to decay.

The Boltons vs. Sansa, Theon, Davos, Tormund, and the Northern Lords

via screenrant.com

Sticking to the North; Ramsay (Iwan Rheon) ended last season on a high, defeating Stannis’ army and partaking in his favourite pastime (murder). However, he isn’t going to be quite so happy when he returns from the battlefield at the start of this season to find that his prized asset has escaped from Winterfell. Sansa (Sophie Turner) and Theon (Alfie Allen) took the long dive down into the snow from the castle walls in the season finale last year to get away from Ramsay, so it’s likely that his first priority will be to get them back when we see him again.

There’s also the small matter of the fact that his lover died at the hands of those same escapees, so I dread to think what torture he will have in store for them if he actually finds them.

Despite the fact that Ramsay has lost his toys, this season wouldn’t be the same if he wasn’t playing the role of the show’s most hateable villain. With that in mind, I think the most obvious course of action for him would be to kill his future half-brother and mother-in-law so that Roose (Michael McElhatton) doesn’t have a legitimate heir – this would be suitably evil because Roose’s wife seems pretty harmless, and killing an unborn baby is frowned upon even in the “Game of Thrones” universe. I’d also like this moment to be followed up with Roose confronting Ramsay, only for Ramsay to say something along the lines of – ‘I learnt it from you’ – given the fact that Roose killed Robb Stark‘s (Richard Madden) unborn child at the Red Wedding. In a dream scenario this would then be followed by Ramsay killing his father, or vice versa – but let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

A plot point like this would be shocking and maintain the character’s persona, whilst also giving him something to do whilst Sansa is away. It would also make sense given the nature of Roose as a character, because he’s definitely going to reprimand Ramsay for giving Sansa a reason to run away and this will frustrate the young Lord to a point where he may feel that he’s left with no option but to take drastic action.

The most interesting aspect of this storyline from my perspective is the reason why Tormund (Kristofer Hivju) and the wildlings seem to be fighting against the Boltons in the footage from the trailers. We know from experience that the wildlings don’t like to get involved in power disputes in what they see as the South, so there has to be some outside reason why they are willing to fight, other than the fact that Ramsay is an absolute bastard despite his legitimisation.

One possibility here is that they have been forced away from The Wall after Jon Snow’s death, which would be interesting because Winterfell is the obvious place to go for protection. It’s been said on the show that 50 men could defend Winterfell against 500, so there’s every chance that they could see the castle as their next best option after The Wall.

It looks like the wildlings could rally around Ser Davos, who will most likely try to persuade the Northern Lords to help him in fighting the White Walkers, so there’s a chance that he could seek Roose’s help along the way. Maybe Roose refuses to help, and thus Davos agrees to join the other lords to defeat him in return for their aid against the Walkers? It’s just a thought, but it could be interesting. A simpler explanation would be that Jon Snow is resurrected, finds out what Ramsay did to Sansa, and decides to get some lovely revenge. This would fit with the theme of the season, as many cast members have spoken about how vengeance will be a key aspect of “Game of Thrones” this year.

Bran vs. The White Walkers

I think we can all agree that Bran (Isaac Hempstead-Wright) is one of the least memorable and least likeable characters on “Game of Thrones”, which is why no one noticed his absence in season five. However, hopefully we can also agree that one of the best moments from the season six trailer is when Bran turns around to see The Night’s King standing behind him.

This scene probably has a lot of people wetting their pants at the exciting possibility of Bran exiting the show for good, but let’s be clear – Bran can’t walk. In that scene he’s clearly standing up, so it’s obvious that this moment is either a vision or a dream. We know that off-screen Bran has been going through a tedious training montage with the Three-Eyed-Raven (Max von Sydow), learning all about greensight and how to make the most out of his powers, so it’s probably a vision. Still, there’s a good chance that Bran will come face to face with the White Walkers for real at some point over the course of this season, because they are clearly seen causing damage on the trailer. They’ve already taken Hardhome, so there’s a high probability that their next stop will be either the lair of the Three-Eyed-Raven, or The Wall.

Isaac Hempstead-Wright has spoken publicly in the build-up to season six about how his character will have visions of the past, present, and future this year, with the past probably being the most documented as it appears extremely likely that Bran will provide our insight into Jon Snow’s true parentage, with the Tower of Joy all but confirmed. For those of you who can’t remember, this is where Rhaegar Targaryen took Lyanna Stark after he (allegedly) kidnapped her. The flashback will show Ned Stark and his men taking on Arthur Dayne and two other members of the Mad King’s Kingsguard, in what is sure to be one of the best moments yet on “Game of Thrones”, answering a question which fans of the books have been asking for twenty years.

Arya

The last Stark on my to-do-list for this preview is that charming blind assassin known as Arya (Maisie Williams). At the end of last season Arya brutally killed Meryn Trant (Ian Beattie), as revenge for the murder of her ‘dance teacher’ Syrio Forel (Miltos Yerolemou) in season one. This act cost her her eyesight, as Jaqen H’ghar (Tom Wlaschiha) punished her for taking a life which was not hers to take. She will be blind at the start of the season and for the foreseeable future, so I expect to see her adapting to this new difficultly whist also trying to serve the Many-Faced God.

Nevertheless, I don’t think that she’ll be blind for the entirety of the season. I’m hoping that she finally moves on from Braavos and becomes the person that she’s meant to be before season six finishes, because I think that the majority of the audience is getting tired of how her story has stagnated recently. She was my favourite character in season four but she’s become something of an afterthought after last season, so I hope that she’ll decide that being No One is someone else’s calling. How this will come about is anyone’s guess, but there’s only so many times that a girl can get slapped and be called No One before she slaps back.

Littlefinger

via whatculture.com

There’s not a lot to be said about Littlefinger (Aiden Gillen) right now, other than that he seems to be losing control. He’s had a plan from the beginning, and it seems like he’s always been one step ahead, but last season he was juggling a lot of powerful people and he made a couple of stupid mistakes. He’s always got a trick up his sleeve, but it’s unlikely that Sansa will be happy about the situation that he left her in last year, and I don’t think that Cersei (Lena Headey) will be very pleased if she finds out that he had a hand in delivering her to The High Sparrow (Jonathan Pryce).

I had a sneaky suspicion that Littlefinger’s time might be up on “Game of Thrones” until very recently, because it doesn’t seem like he has a place in this world if the White Walkers get past The Wall. However, in a recent interview, when asked about what she’d like to see happen on “Game of Thrones”, Sophie Turner said that she wanted to see Littlefinger on the Iron Throne. This would be incredibly difficult if he happened to be dead before the end of season six.

Still, this isn’t proof that he survives the season – far from it – because Turner has also stated that this year she hasn’t read parts of the script which don’t relate to her character so that she can watch the show as a fan. This does suggest that Littlefinger could die in an upcoming episode without her knowing, but I still believe that it would be quite difficult for Sophie Turner to remain ignorant of Littlefinger’s fate when he seems to appear in the North on the trailer. It was my contention that if Littlefinger was to die then Sansa would have to have a hand in it, or that it would at least come to her attention, so maybe we can put thoughts of Littlefinger’s demise on ice for now. On the other hand, if Lady Stoneheart appears and Littlefinger is in the North then it is definitely squeaky-bum-time.

Brienne, Jaime, and Lady Stoneheart

via variety.com

(SPOILER ALERT) Speaking of Lady Stoneheart… whether or not the resurrected and very angry Catelyn Stark (Michelle Fairley) will make an appearance in season six is another aspect of the story which remains unclear, but it has been reported that Beric Dondarrion and Thoros of Myr will return, which leaves me feeling very suspicious. If Lady Stoneheart does turn up then Brienne’s (Gwendoline Christie) head will be on the chopping block for failing to protect the Stark children, as will Jaime’s (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) for crippling Bran back in episode one.

It seems like Jaime, Pod (Daniel Portman), Bronn (Jerome Flynn), and Brienne will meet up again at some point this season, because it looks like Pod is grabbed in the trailer by Bronn, so they will all be in one place if our least favourite dead Stark comes back from the dead.

There are a lot of theories going around suggesting that Jaime will help Brienne to get revenge on the Freys on behalf of the Stark children, which would be interesting and could save his skin, but I think it’s a tough one to call. If Jaime is going to stand at the head of the Lannister army, which the trailers suggest that he will, then I don’t think it would be a very sensible decision to go after Walder Frey (David Bradley), even if Jaime feels he has an oath to keep.

That’s it for Part One – Part Two will focus on King’s Landing, Meereen, The Greyjoys, and Daenerys’ troubles with the Dothraki. I’ll also go into detail about a fan theory relating to The Hound and the possibility that seasons seven and eight will be shortened to eight episodes each. Thanks for reading!

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Game of Thrones: Season Five

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Aidan Gillen, Alexander Siddig, Alfie Allen, Alliser Thorne, Arya Stark, Braavos, Bran Stark, Carice van Houten, Cersei Lannister, Charles Dance, Ciaran Hinds, Daario Naharis, Daenerys Targaryen, Dean-Charles Chapman, Dominic Carter, Dorne, Dothraki, Dragons, Drogon, Emilia Clarke, Game of Thrones, Gwendoline Christie, Hardhome, Hizdahr, Iain Glen, Ian Beattie, Isaac Hempstead-Wright, Iwan Rheon, Jaime Lannister, Janos Slynt, Jaqen H'ghar, Joel Fry, Jon Snow, Jonathan Pryce, Jorah Mormont, Kerry Ingram, King's Landing, Kit Harington, Lena Headey, Maisie Williams, Mance Rayder, Margaery Tyrell, Meereen, Melisandre, Meryn Trant, Mother's Mercy, Myrcella Baratheon, Natalie Dormer, Nell Tiger Free, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Owen Teale, Peter Dinklage, Ramsay Bolton, Rhaegal, Rickon Stark, Rory McCann, Sons of the Harpy, Stannis Baratheon, Stephen Dillane, Television, The High Sparrow, The Hound, The Night's Watch, The Red Wedding, The Sand Snakes, The Wall, The Wars to Come, Theon Greyjoy, Tom Wlaschiha, Tommen Baratheon, TV, Tyrion Lannister, Tywin Lannister, Viserion, White Walkers

via bgr.com

For years now “Game of Thrones” has been my favourite show on television, but this year’s season has been a mixed bag. I didn’t hate what I saw, and there have certainly been some exceptional episodes, but it wasn’t up to the standard that we’ve come to expect. The series spent far too much time building storylines and developing characters like Stannis (Stephen Dillane) and Hizdahr (Joel Fry) only to conclude their arcs in dissatisfying and lazy ways. The standout episode of the series, “Hardhome”, promised an epic conclusion given that it was episode eight, and we often see the best that “Game of Thrones” has to offer in episodes nine and ten, but the series failed to build on the spectacle that occurred as the White Walkers made their grand entrance.

Of all the storylines this season only one managed to have a compelling beginning, middle, and end. Jon Snow’s (Kit Harington) arc over the course of this season was pretty great, even if it ended in a disappointing fashion for me. Jon began as a merciful killer, ending Mance Rayder’s (Ciaran Hinds) life so as to save him from the pain of Melisandre’s (Carice van Houten) fire. He then became commander at The Wall due to his popularity with his brothers, and cemented that position by taking the head of Janos Slynt (Dominic Carter). He learnt from Stannis and staved off Melisandre’s sexual advances, as well as surviving the White Walker onslaught at Hardhome, saving hundreds of lives in the process. Throughout the season he tried to do what was best for everyone, and almost all of his scenes were satisfying… except the last one.

(SPOILER ALERT) At the end of the season, Jon’s kindness and sympathy for the Wildlings got him killed, as Alliser Thorne (Owen Teale) led a band of his brothers in a mutiny that they claimed was ‘for The Watch’. This should’ve been shocking, but instead felt slightly lacklustre, because the writers have worked so hard to give him a way back. It wasn’t a grand betrayal like The Red Wedding, or even a particularly bloody one, and it was far too obvious. I have to ask everyone who reads this – do you really believe that Jon is gone? Personally, I don’t think they set up Melisandre’s interest in him or the R + L = J theory to have him killed off. How he’ll survive is unclear, perhaps ‘survive’ is the wrong word, but Melisandre’s magic could save him with minimal fuss.

via watchersonthewall.com

Other storylines had their promise, particularly Daenerys’ (Emilia Clarke) as she had to navigate the treacherous political landscape in Meereen. A lot of good moments came out of Meereen this season, like Tyrion’s (Peter Dinklage) conversations with our favourite Dragon Queen in episode eight, and when Daenerys fed one of the Masters to Rhaegal and Viserion in episode five. However, the content surrounding these moments was far too inconsistent, and in the end the season finale took everything that was great about Daenerys’ arc and spat on it. I hate the fact that Daenerys is now right back where she started. There’s no way that the showrunners can make me believe that she could survive that horde – they’d rape her and kill her, as we saw in season one with every expendable extra that the Dothraki’s came across.

The season also crushed my dreams for Daenerys’ dragons, particularly Drogon, because he struggled to fend off the Sons of the Harpy and was then too tired to help Daenerys, begging the question of how he will ever be able to carry her to King’s Landing. He just seemed so weak, so average, so small. I thought that the dragons were Daenerys’ trump card, her ace in the hole, because she doesn’t offer much in terms of political understanding or physical strength, but right now they seem like a decent asset and nothing more.

Whilst Daenerys’ arc this season was mediocre, Jaime’s (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) and Arya’s (Maisie Williams) were plain awful. Arya’s storyline in Braavos did have its moments, as we saw her change her face and kill Meryn Trant (Ian Beattie) in the finale, but none of her scenes lived up to what we’ve seen from her before, and she felt far too disconnected from the rest of the story. She didn’t have The Hound (Rory McCann) or Tywin Lannister (Charles Dance) to play off, and with Jaqen H’ghar (Tom Wlaschiha) being a pretty boring character, her scenes lacked the depth that we’ve become accustomed to.

via nerdist.com

Jaime’s scenes this season were all terrible, in fact, everything that came out of Dorne was woeful. Nothing interesting happened until our interest had died out completely – yes, Myrcella (Nell Tiger Free) was killed off, but does anyone really care? I know that I don’t. The whole story felt like Jaime’s final redemption, as he proved his worth as a father by saving his daughter from the perils of a foreign land, but that didn’t feel relevant on a show filled with people who rarely do nice things. We didn’t need to see Jaime become a pseudo-hero, we know that he’s a backstabbing Kingslayer who sleeps with his sister, and we’re fine with that. Of course, I’m being a bit silly because we all like character development, but Jaime’s had his evolution already, so I don’t see why this story was needed. My hope is that he’ll lose it a bit and start a war with Dorne, because he has Trystane (Toby Sebastian) at his mercy, but we shall see.

The Sand Snakes weren’t developed at all, I couldn’t even tell you which one was which, and Ellaria (Indira Varma) is completely one-dimensional. The only character that captured my interest in Dorne was Prince Doran (Alexander Siddig), because he does feel as though he has a plan, but we spent barely any time at all getting to know him.

I touched on Tyrion when I said my piece on Daenerys, and I don’t have much more to add. His arc this season was very much tied to Daenerys, and it did give us their fantastic first interactions, but he spent a little bit too much time getting to Meereen and his journey was full of frustrating conveniences. The writers took away his faith in the world last season, so his story this year was very much focused on rebuilding hope. He believes in the world again now, having seen Daenerys ride Drogon to what he assumes is safety, so the story fit its purpose despite its underwhelming nature.

via theverge.com

My favourite arc of the season was Stannis’ until his disappointing failure in the finale. Brienne (Gwendoline Christie) looks to have killed him, although I have my reservations on that front, and after a season of building up to an epic battle between the Boltons and his army I found his story very anticlimactic. He made his ugly and difficult decision in episode nine, and I wanted to see the pain of that decision etched on his face as he lost his final battle, but instead he was apathetic, accepting his fate as Brienne drew back her blade. I don’t fully understand what the writers were going for here, and I feel like my time was wasted in previous episodes getting to know the character, given that his only role seems to have been to give Melisandre a reason to save Jon Snow.

Sansa’s new found agency was deployed, but it didn’t get her very far, and although I thought her scenes were well-executed throughout the season I can’t really say that I enjoyed them. I don’t agree with those who say that she reverted back to her old ways, being the pawn in an evil ruler’s game, but that doesn’t mean that I’m going to praise her scenes either. She did have agency – she chose to go to Winterfell, she chose to marry Ramsay (Iwan Rheon) being fully aware of the repercussions, and even in the finale she chose to escape – but nothing she did was very exciting. I don’t feel like she gained anything by going back to Winterfell, because her marriage was a complete waste of time. The only thing to come out of her story this year was Theon’s (Alfie Allen) act of heroism and the knowledge that Bran (Isaac Hempstead-Wright) and Rickon (Art Parkinson) are alive.

Finally, I did like a lot of the scenes in King’s Landing, despite the slightly dull ending. I thought that Jonathan Pryce was great as The High Sparrow and it was interesting to see Cersei (Lena Headey) outplayed at deception. However, her punishment bored me and I couldn’t connect to her plight. I would’ve liked her suffering to have come slightly sooner, because it didn’t feel worthy of the finale, and I think it would’ve been a lot more fun to see her plan her revenge before the start of next season. Furthermore, the fact that Tommen (Dean-Charles Chapman) and Margaery (Natalie Dormer) were omitted in the last few episodes felt a bit strange, and I missed having all the major characters on screen, as we were given no indication as to how they were getting on or reacting to Cersei’s torment.

via bustle.com

This season of “Game of Thrones” was the worst of the lot, it pains me to say it, but it’s true. It wasn’t terrible, but many of the heavily set-up character arcs fizzled out in episode ten, and even the more shocking scenes felt insignificant because of plot devices and loopholes that are in place for the start of season six. Characters have been forever changed, but the transitions they’ve gone through haven’t been consistently entertaining, with too much time being spent building storylines that were in actual fact pointless. The series felt disjointed and we never had the opportunity to truly connect to any one storyline. “Game of Thrones” season five promised to be so much more at various junctures, but in the end it failed to live up to my high expectations and took momentum from the sails of the series going forward.

6.5/10

Game of Thrones: Season Five Finale – “Mother’s Mercy”

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Aidan Gillen, Alfie Allen, Alliser Thorne, Arya Stark, Benjen Stark, Beric Dondarrion, Braavos, Bran Stark, Brenock O'Connor, Carice van Houten, Cersei Lannister, Conleth Hill, Daario Naharis, Daenerys Targaryen, Dean-Charles Chapman, Dorne, Dothraki, Dragons, Drogon, Emilia Clarke, Game of Thrones, Grey Worm, Gwendoline Christie, Hafthor Julius Bjornsson, Iain Glen, Ian Beattie, Isaac Hempstead-Wright, Iwan Rheon, Jacob Anderson, Jaime Lannister, Jon Snow, Jonathan Pryce, Jorah Mormont, Joseph Mawle, Kerry Ingram, King's Landing, Kit Harington, Lady Stoneheart, Lena Headey, Maisie Williams, Meereen, Melisandre, Meryn Trant, Michiel Huisman, Missandei, Mother's Mercy, Myrcella Baratheon, Nathalie Emmanuel, Nell Tiger Free, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Olly, Peter Dinklage, Ramsay Bolton, Richard Dormer, Richard Madden, Robb Stark, Sansa Stark, Shireen Baratheon, Sky, Sophie Turner, Stannis Baratheon, Stephen Dillane, Television, The High Sparrow, The Mountain, The Night's King, The Night's Watch, The Wall, Theon Greyjoy, Tommen Baratheon, TV, Tyrion Lannister, Varys, Westeros, White Walkers, Winterfell

Game of Thrones, Series 5, Episode 10, Mother’s Mercy, Sky Atlantic, Drogon.

This review contains spoilers for the episode and the series.

The “Game of Thrones” season five finale was really disappointing. Lots happened, with plenty of cliffhangers to keep fans guessing, but because the showrunners were so intent on leaving things open-ended each storyline felt insignificant. Characters died, but the show can’t surprise us like it used to, and the big name casualties like Stannis (Stephen Dillane) and Jon Snow (Kit Harington) don’t really feel gone. Maybe they are, maybe they aren’t, but the way that those scenes were handled left their deaths feeling less permanent than say Robb Stark’s (Richard Madden) at the Red Wedding. The episode ended up ruining the story arcs that were enjoyable across the course of the season, and although it did a good job of capturing my interest in Dorne and Braavos, it just didn’t live up to expectations. Too many storylines needed resolving, too much had to happen, and in the end everything felt extremely rushed.

The season began at a meandering pace, as character arcs were set up in an excruciatingly slow fashion. This strategic positioning took up far too much of the season’s time, meaning that the final episode collapsed under its own weight as too many of the character’s storylines required satisfying endings. None of the storylines were afforded enough time to develop over the course of the season or in this episode, so when they concluded they felt hollow. Never before have I felt so disconnected to the fates of Jon Snow, Arya (Maisie Williams), or Sansa (Sophie Turner), characters who I previously loved as though they were a part of my own social circle.

As we flittered around Westeros I couldn’t help but feel frustrated at the fact that we didn’t spend a prolonged period of time with any one character. The longest continuous stretch of time spent with a single character was in King’s Landing, as we watched Cersei’s (Lena Headey) humiliation at the hands of The High Sparrow (Jonathan Pryce). We looked on as Cersei transitioned from a proud Queen to a snivelling peasant, which demonstrated just how quickly the tide can change on “Game of Thrones”.

However, that scene itself wasn’t particularly entertaining. Cersei is an arrogant and hateful antagonist and the source of a lot of pain for fans of the series, so it was impossible to care about her torment in this episode. I wasn’t able to empathise with her because a part of me knows that she deserves everything she gets, but I was also unable to revel in her suffering because her punishment came in such a vile and rotten form. As a result, the scene was dull and took any sense of urgency away from the episode. I enjoyed seeing The Mountain (Hafthór Júlíus Björnsson) back on the show as a zombie-like servant to Cersei, but apart from that I found King’s Landing to be a dull destination in “Mother’s Mercy”.

The storylines that have really impressed me over the course of this season finished in infuriatingly anti-climactic ways. Stannis, Daenerys (Emilia Clarke), and Jon Snow all found themselves in dire straits, but by the time the credits rolled we had no idea where their stories were going, or if they’d even make it to season six. Stannis is presumed dead but we didn’t see his body, Jon is in a similar predicament but Melisandre is at The Wall, and Daenerys is right back where she started, at the mercy of a Dothraki horde, with a dragon that may as well still be in its egg at her side!

I would expect Stannis to be dead, because Brienne (Gwendoline Christie) did swing her sword directly at his head, but you never know on this show. We’ve seen Beric Dondarrion (Richard Dormer) die and be resurrected as a result of magic, so we could see something similar given what happened to Shireen (Kerry Ingram) last week. I’d like to think that Stannis isn’t gone, because he had a decent arc this year and I thought Stephen Dillane was doing a really good job. It seems a shame that his life should end so abruptly after he finally got interesting, but that does happen a lot on “Game of Thrones”.

Brienne got her revenge on Stannis, which should’ve been enjoyable to watch, but she didn’t take enough satisfaction in the moment to excite me. It was a lacklustre scene that should’ve had a lot more impact. The point of Stannis’ defeat was to show that he isn’t a saviour on the show – he isn’t going to save the world from the White Walkers – but because of how clear they tried to make that (by making his defeat emphatic) the scene shattered the positives of his story over the course of the season.

The fact that Brienne missed Sansa’s candle seems quite significant to me, because she isn’t going to know that Sansa escaped Winterfell in the commotion; as far as she’s concerned the situation hasn’t changed, so her role is going to largely stay the same. I’m still holding out for a Lady Stoneheart appearance, because Brienne is culpable if anything bad happens to Sansa now, and it seems like she’s just going to be wandering around in the North for the foreseeable future.

Moving on to Sansa’s escape… I didn’t like it. Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad that she’s escaped Ramsay’s (Iwan Rheon) torment and that she’ll be doing something different next year, but I thought her scenes were quite poor. Sansa picked a lock (where did she learnt that?), then she was saved by Theon’s (Alfie Allen) bravery, which didn’t make a lot of sense because he’s had ample opportunity to help her in the past from equally tragic circumstances, and finally she jumped a life-threatening distance into a pile of snow. It was all incredibly convenient and frustrated me greatly – it could’ve happened in a much better way.

Where Sansa will go is exciting – she could go to find Bran (Isaac Hempstead-Wright), but she doesn’t really know where he is, or she could go to The Wall because she knows about Jon. Another possibility is that Theon could take her to his family, but I don’t know why she’d agree to that given what she knows about Theon’s family and how he acted the last time he returned home. My money is on The Wall, but I’m open to suggestions.

Game of Thrones, Series 5, Episode 10, Mother’s Mercy, Sky Atlantic, Williams, Maisie; Beattie, Ian as Arya Stark; Meryn Trant.

Events in Dorne and Braavos were more exciting this week than they have been in the past, as Myrcella (Nell Tiger Free) met what is likely to be her end, and Arya lost her sight. I loved Arya’s mutilation of Meryn Trant (Ian Beattie) and I also thought that the effects were great when faces were being changed. However, the fact that Arya’s story this season has been so slow meant that I didn’t actually care about her misfortune in the Hall of Faces. All I want is for Arya to move on and cross names off her list, which for now seems pretty unlikely.

My least favourite moments in the episode revolved around Daenerys and Meereen, as Daenerys’ allies miraculously survived the aftermath of their Queen’s escape and argued about how they should proceed. My advice would’ve been to get the hell outta Dodge, but instead Tyrion (Peter Dinklage), Grey Worm (Jacob Anderson), Missandei (Nathalie Emmanuel), and Varys (Conleth Hill) will be ruling over Meereen whilst Jorah (Iain Glen) and Daario (Michiel Huisman) go in search of Daenerys. With this set up in place I’m very apprehensive about these arcs moving forward. I don’t care about Meereen and I’m not interested in the Jorah and Daario dynamic – there’ve been better double acts before and I presume that most of their scenes will be a series of fights in which they try to one-up one another to prove their love for Daenerys. Why should I care about that?

There are a couple of theories going around about Varys and his role in Meereen, with some people believing that he could be The Harpy. That would certainly spice things up a bit, but I don’t know why he’d have lied to Tyrion about his motives if that is the case. Tyrion wouldn’t have argued if Varys had told him that he wanted to oust Daenerys, so I don’t think these theories are true.

via polygon.com

Finally, the big moment of season five came and went, as the Night’s Watch lost its commander in an act of mutiny. I thought this scene was alright, and it would’ve been a shock for casual viewers, but for me it was too obvious that it was coming. I’ve been cautious of Olly (Brenock O’Connor) all season and Alliser (Owen Teale) was clearly up to something, so this wasn’t much of a surprise. I liked that Alliser used Benjen (Joseph Mawle) as the ploy by which to get Jon out in the open, but apart from that I thought the scene lacked a bit of impact. I wanted the scene to be a bit more brutal, and Brenock O’Connor’s acting when he dealt the final blow was a bit weak.

I don’t think that Jon is gone, and I’m certainly not alone on that front, but I’m not sure exactly how his resurrection will occur. He’s dead, I don’t think there’s any doubt about that – no one is going to stop him succumbing to his wounds. Still, with Melisandre (Carice van Houten) at The Wall it seems as though there’s a return on the cards. She needs a new champion for The Lord of Light, and if she knows about his parentage he might be the perfect candidate – this is cool, but it makes the entirety of Stannis’ story feel like a device to get exposition across for Jon’s future role.

Another possibility is that he’ll be resurrected by The Night’s King – that would certainly give us an inside look at the White Walkers – but whether or not that would work remains to be seen. The next book is called “The Winds of Winter” though, so clearly the White Walkers will play a big part in the narrative. Having Jon on the side of the Walkers would be incredible, so I wouldn’t mind, and it would also make it a lot easier for the showrunners to have The Wall brought down.

Although I enjoy speculating about the future of the series, and this episode did open the floor up to such a discussion, it didn’t resolve anything and felt anticlimactic. All in all, “Mother’s Mercy” was a bland and frustrating “Game of Thrones” finale, capping off a season that has failed to live up to my high expectations. There were cliffhangers and character deaths galore, but nothing was properly concluded and many of the character’s fates were left up in the air, leaving me with a very sour taste in my mouth.

5.5/10

Game of Thrones: Season Five, Episode 9 – “The Dance of Dragons”

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Alexander Siddig, Alliser Thorne, Arya Stark, Braavos, Carice van Houten, Cersei Lannister, CGI, Daario Naharis, Daenerys Targaryen, Doran Martell, Dorne, Dragons, Drogon, Ellaria Sand, Emilia Clarke, Game of Thrones, Gwendoline Christie, Hizdahr, Iain Glen, Ian Beattie, Indira Varma, Iwan Rheon, Jaime Lannister, Joel Fry, Jon Snow, Jorah Mormont, Kerry Ingram, King's Landing, Lady Stoneheart, Lena Headey, Maisie Williams, Meereen, Melisandre, Meryn Trant, Michiel Huisman, Myrcella Baratheon, Nell Tiger Free, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Owen Teale, Peter Dinklage, Ramsay Bolton, Sansa Stark, Shireen Baratheon, Sons of the Harpy, Sophie Turner, Stannis Baratheon, Stephen Dillane, Television, The Dance of Dragons, The Iron Throne, The Lord of Light, The Many-Faced God, The Night's Watch, The Red God, The Wall, The Wildlings, Toby Sebastain, Trystane Martell, TV, Tyrion Lannister

via winteriscoming.net

“The Dance of Dragons” was a decent episode, but it was slightly disappointing considering how late on we are in the season. For the majority of its run time it was dark and cold, but it ended with a moment of hope in which Daenerys (Emilia Clarke) really felt like this series’ protagonist again. However, this part of the episode was actually pretty weak for me, not because of the special effects, but because the dialogue and action sequences were sloppily executed.

I thought it was interesting that the episode opened with fire raining down on Stannis (Stephen Dillane), because he uses fire to his advantage so often and worships his god by utilising it. Also, Stannis’ arc in this episode ended with fire as he put his own daughter to the torch, which brought things around full circle – I’ll dig into that scene in more detail, but for now I’ll just say that I enjoyed how it was signposted at the start of the episode, and how Ramsay’s (Iwan Rheon) actions inadvertently caused Shireen’s (Kerry Ingram) death.

I liked all the scenes in The North this week, because the scenery looked beautiful and everything had the same bleak atmosphere. Jon Snow’s (Kit Harington) return to The Wall was very tense, as he appealed to Alliser Thorne (Owen Teale) for entry through the gates. I was surprised that Alliser was so quick to allow Jon through said gates, because I thought that moment could’ve been drawn out for a little bit longer, as we know that most of Jon’s brothers don’t want to live amongst the Wildlings. Right now things are very precarious for Jon, he’s making friends of his enemies and enemies of his friends, and he can’t trust either party.

via tyrionlannister.net

Another group that weren’t very happy this week was the Baratheon army. Stannis’ appearance this week was haunting, and his actions were absolutely horrific. To see Shireen die in such a horrible way, at the hands of her father, was very distressing and destroyed any notion of heroism that we might attach to Stannis. It wasn’t as bad as some people have made out, because we’ve seen this sort of thing before and we shouldn’t be so selective about when it’s disturbing, but when something so nasty happens to a child it is hard to watch.

The reason that people have been so affected by this scene is that the writers have worked hard to position Stannis as a possible protagonist this year; they’ve also done a similar level of work in attempting to create a positive relationship between the audience and Shireen. In my opinion, those who are complaining about this scene are actually complementing everyone involved, because they’re basically telling the showrunners that their plans have worked and Stannis’ scenes have had their desired effect.

Of all the character arcs this season I think that Stannis’ has been the best, so I was conflicted when I saw this scene – was it in keeping with the Stannis that we’ve grown attached to during season five? Well, no… but that’s not to say that character continuity has been broken.

Over the course of the last nine episodes Stannis has come across in a more positive light because he’s been fighting for what seemed to be a just cause, to take the Iron Throne (which rightfully belongs to him) and protect the world from a White Walker invasion. Plus, he’s been friendly (in his own way) with one of the most beloved characters on the show, Jon Snow, so by extension he’s been more likeable. However, this doesn’t change what Stannis really is – brutal, aggressive, and cold. It seems like over the course of this season we’ve forgotten about the terrible things that Stannis has done previously, and we’ve also overlooked the fact that he burned another important character alive at the start of the season.

via hbo.com

Stannis is a worshipper of dark magic and a murderer, so his actions in this episode make complete sense with his character as established on the show. Killing his own daughter might’ve been a level above the horrendous crimes he’s committed thus far, but his situation is also more dire; he finds himself hungry, freezing, and walking into battle unprepared, so his actions reflect that. He believes that if he succumbs to the Boltons and fails to take the throne then the whole world will be under threat – in his mind only he can save it from the White Walkers, he’s a god on earth. He’s a slave to his own ego, to the legacy that he believes is his right, and he truly believes he has no choice as far as Shireen is concerned.

Dillane’s performance was once again fantastic here – the way he sluggishly closed his eyes whilst blinking and let his head fall every now and again made everything he did appear incredibly laboured. He looked so tired and distant, a shell of the man that had left The Wall, and that was exactly what was required of him in order to convey to the audience that Stannis had reached the point of no return. Stannis’ confidence was drained and so was his spirit, which Dillane portrayed perfectly.

via denofgeek.com

Speculation is ripe regarding the repercussions of Shireen’s death, with a few different theories floating around. Shireen’s death is supposed to give Stannis an advantage, so most theories are going down that route; if that’s the way things are going to play out then there are a couple of avenues that the narrative could take:

• Things don’t have to be tangible for Stannis to gain an advantage; it could just be that his men feel rejuvenated, or that the weather becomes less harsh. Personally, I don’t think that time would’ve been wasted killing off Shireen if there wasn’t going to be an exciting pay-off, but my point is that although the Lord of Light should be on Stannis’ side, that doesn’t mean that something massive has to happen on screen.

• (SPOILER ALERT) There’s a chance that certain characters from the books will be revived as a result of the magic, characters that would inadvertently help Stannis in his war against the Boltons. One possibility here is that Lady Stoneheart will be introduced. I won’t go into too much detail about the character, because there’s a chance that people could stumble on this paragraph without reading the spoiler warning, but let’s just say that she’d have a big problem with how Sansa (Sophie Turner) has been treated this year. People wanted her to be in the finale last year, so the writers might’ve worked her into the story this time around, which I think would work really nicely given where Brienne (Gwendoline Christie) is at the moment.

Things could also work against Stannis, because despite the fact that he’s pleased the Red God there’s no assurance that he’ll be helped. I’m actually hoping that Ramsay will come out on top now, because this would hurt Stannis so much, and I believe that it would make for some fantastic scenes.

What I really want from this story is for Melisandre to betray Stannis – I keep getting that kind of vibe from her, so I’d like the twist in this story to be that she’s working against him for another cause. I thought that she’d sacrifice Shireen without Stannis’ consent after he initially balked at her plan, but now I’m hoping that she’s using her magic to solve an unrelated problem she’s seen in the fire.

(SPOILER ALERT FOR THE FINALE AND THE BOOKS) I don’t want to be overly specific, because what I’m writing about might not happen in the finale, and it really shouldn’t be spoilt, so let’s just say that by the end of the season Jon Snow might need some dark magic. If he does, this could be the real reason that Melisandre wanted to sacrifice Shireen.

As I mentioned a few weeks ago, Jon Snow may have royal blood, and I doubt that this was hinted at earlier in the season if it wasn’t going to count for something by the end. What if Melisandre wanted to keep Jon safe, so had Shireen killed to protect him? I think this would be amazing to see in the finale, because Stannis could fail in his battle against the Boltons and then we could cut to Jon Snow’s last scene, somehow aware of Melisandre’s scheme. It would be a crazy way to end the season, and I think this kind of twist is what’s needed to elevate the season to another level.

via winteriscoming.net

In Braavos, Arya’s (Maisie Williams) story was connected to events elsewhere by the inclusion of Meryn Trant (Ian Beattie). His appearance in this episode has given things a bit of impetus in Braavos, because we couldn’t really hate the thin man that Arya was tasked to kill. We don’t know a lot about him, and frankly we don’t have time to find out who he is – Arya’s arc needs to kick on and get out of first gear, so fleshing out side characters just won’t do right now (the finale is next week after all). By bringing a disgusting character into the story, a man that Arya personally hates, it creates friction between the duties that she has to the Many-Faced God and her own desires, and also gives the audience a reason to care about her actions.

I did enjoy Arya’s scenes this week, and I really do want to see Trant get what he deserves following his clear villainy in the brothel. At least now I’m somewhat invested in how things will play out in Braavos, but I’m still not excited for those moments – does anyone really believe that Trant will get the better of Arya?

Events in Dorne once again took away from the episode, as previous actions in the region were spat on, and it was revealed that nothing that’s happened so far will have any significance whatsoever. After nine episodes the storyline has barely moved – everything that’s happened in Dorne could’ve taken place in one episode! The stakes feel so low that it’s almost laughable; Jaime (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) wasn’t harmed for his conspiracy to kidnap Myrcella (Nell Tiger Free), and likewise Ellaria (Indira Varma) was given a pass despite her intention to murder the Princess. Jaime is now going to leave with exactly what he wanted, which basically means that he should’ve walked up to Doran (Alexander Siddig) and asked for Myrcella’s release.

Of course, Doran may have an ulterior motive, in fact it’s likely that he does given the fact that he sent Trystane (Toby Sebastian) back to King’s Landing, but that doesn’t make things feel any more exciting for the time being. Whatever plan Doran has is likely to be put on the backburner whilst Cersei’s (Lena Headey) life hangs in the balance, so we’re going to have to wait for the Dorne storyline to pick up, presuming it ever will.

via indiewire.com

I’ve yet to discuss what I assume was meant to be the iconic episode nine moment, namely Daenerys’ escape from the fighting pits on the back of her dragon Drogon, so I suppose I’d better get into it. I loved the conversations that were taking place between Hizdahr (Joel Fry), Tyrion (Peter Dinklage), Daario (Michiel Huisman), and Daenerys, but I thought the last ten minutes were quite poor. That might not be a popular opinion, but I’m not just trying to go against the crowd or nit-pick, I truly didn’t like what I was watching.

First of all, I should say that my issue isn’t with the CGI. I didn’t like the moment at which Daenerys climbed atop Drogon, because I thought the way that it was designed was a bit silly – it was far too clear that what we were watching was computer generated, and it really didn’t have to be, because the camera didn’t need to linger on Daenerys so much. However, I want to stress that I didn’t think it was terrible, I can forgive thirty seconds of dodgy CGI, especially given that it was preceded by some pretty good CGI, and a lot of the budget must’ve been spent on episode eight.

What I took issue with in the last ten minutes was the fact that a lot of what happened was just plain unbelievable, and the characters relied more on dumb luck than on their wit. I have two main problems, and although they concern the finer details, I believe that they are quite damning. The first is that Jorah (Iain Glen) threw his spear at Daenerys… DIRECTLY at her! He didn’t throw it just to the side or inches above her, he relied on her moving out of the way in order to hit the Harpy assassin, yet he couldn’t be certain that she’d be able to move. He could’ve killed her easily yet he just threw it!

via indiewire.com

My second problem is that Daenerys’ moment with Drogon allowed far too much time for someone to stab her to death, or for her to be impaled by a spear. The Harpy’s were all around the arena, they could’ve attacked from any angle, so I’m yet to understand why Daenerys thought she had time to stand still and look into her child’s eyes. In this heartfelt moment she should’ve died 100 times over! Not only that, but someone decided it would be a good idea to run up to Drogon and stab him with a spear when his back was turned, even though Daenerys was right there behind him! That was the perfect moment to kill her and liberate Meereen from her leadership, yet he wasted it giving the dragon a pointless scratch. (Oh, and if you’re going to say that Drogon was shielding Daenerys then I just plain disagree. Daario threw something at a Harpy in the exact direction that a spear could’ve flown towards Daenerys – she wasn’t attacked because the story didn’t dictate that she should be).

As a moment on the show it will serve a useful purpose, because now Daenerys might do something about the Meereen problem; she could leave and let things revert back to how they were before, or she could have all those who oppose her burnt alive, but she can’t carry on doing what she was doing before. I don’t really care what she does as long as her story doesn’t stagnate any further – I just want her to move on.

I should also quickly note that there was a line of dialogue which I’m 99.9% certain was written or read incorrectly. Tyrion said to Hizdahr, ‘you’re an eloquent man, doesn’t mean you’re wrong’… forgive me if I’m the one who is wrong, but shouldn’t it have been ‘doesn’t mean you’re right’? How did that get past editing?

One thing I haven’t touched on is Hizdahr’s stabbing at the hands of the Harpy. This was a genuine surprise for me, because I truly believed that he was their leader. Everything was in place for another Red Wedding moment; Hizdahr had his chance to be the one to kill Daenerys, and it would’ve been fascinating to see him try. If he’s really dead then I don’t know why he didn’t try to kill her, because he could’ve easily pulled out a dagger and thus been the one that Jorah threw his spear towards. That reveal would’ve had a greater impact than a random Harpy being killed, so I have to assume that in reality Hizdahr has survived.

Overall, this was a disappointing episode considering the record that “Game of Thrones” has when it comes to their penultimate episodes. I still think that Dorne has been wasted this season, and scenes in Braavos carry less weight than those scenes happening elsewhere. In my opinion Stannis’ scenes in this episode made it more memorable than its overall quality gave it any right to be, and I don’t think that one character’s decent arc is enough to make an episode great on the whole. The fighting pits finale was an important scene and it did a lot for Daenerys’ story, but personally I didn’t think it was done very well, so it left a slightly sour taste in my mouth.

6/10