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Game of Thrones: Season Six, Episode 4 – “Book of the Stranger”

20 Friday May 2016

Posted by Ben Whittaker in Game of Thrones, Television Reviews

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Aidan Gillen, Alfie Allen, Art Parkinson, Arya Stark, Ben Crompton, Book of the Stranger, Braavos, Carice van Houten, Cersei Lannister, Conleth Hill, Daario Naharis, Daenerys Targaryen, Dean-Charles Chapman, Diana Rigg, Dothraki, Dragons, Emilia Clarke, Finn Jones, Game of Thrones, Game of Thrones Season Six, Gemma Whelan, George RR Martin, Grey Worm, Gwendoline Christie, Hardhome, Harry Lloyd, Harry Potter, Iain Glen, Iwan Rheon, Jacob Anderson, Joe Naufahu, Jon Snow, Jonathan Pryce, Jorah Mormont, Khal Moro, King's Landing, Kit Harington, Kristofer Hivju, Lena Headey, Lino Facioli, Littlefinger, Loras Tyrell, Maisie Williams, Margaery Tyrell, Meereen, Melisandre, Michiel Huisman, Missandei, Natalia Tena, Natalie Dormer, Nathalie Emmanuel, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Olenna Tyrell, Osha, Peter Dinklage, Ramsay Bolton, Rickon Stark, Robin Arryn, Rupert Vansittart, Sansa Stark, Slaver's Bay, Sons of the Harpy, Sophie Turner, Television, The High Sparrow, The Night's Watch, The Seven Kingdoms, The Temple of the Dosh Khaleen, The Wall, The White Walkers, Theon Greyjoy, Tommen Baratheon, Tormund Giantsbane, TV, Tyrion Lannister, Varys, Viserys Targaryen, Westeros, White Walkers, Winterfell, Yara Greyjoy, Yohn Royce

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via slashfilm.com

“Book of the Stranger” was a strong episode of “Game of Thrones”. Whilst the writers struggled to fill the holes that their minefield of rushed plot points has created, they temporarily covered them with compelling dialogue and a degree of character development. Daenerys (Emilia Clarke) proved that she can hold her own against her enemies without the need for dragons and armies, Sansa (Sophie Turner) demonstrated that she’s ready to take charge of her own destiny, and Tormund (Kristofer Hivju) showed us all that there’s a person for everyone… good luck Brienne (Gwendoline Christie).

“Book of the Stranger” predictably started at The Wall, as once again the showrunners bookended an episode with its two most exciting moments. I enjoyed this scene for a couple of reasons: 1) because seeing Jon (Kit Harington) and Sansa reunite after such a long time injected a bit of hope into the story; and 2) because Edd (Ben Crompton) said exactly what I’ve been thinking about Jon over the past week.

It seems to me that Jon riding south is pretty futile because although he’s tired of fighting, he has nowhere else to go. He has no friends in the outside world, and even if he did he knows that eventually the White Walkers will attack The Night’s Watch. Edd said as much to Jon by questioning his decision and mentioning the battle at Hardhome last season, so this was a very relieving moment from my perspective. It showed that the writers aren’t completely ignorant to issues that their handling of the story presents, and demonstrated that Jon might not be the same heroic figure as he was before he died.

The only issue I had with the opening scene was that we didn’t get to see Sansa and Jon talking to one another about what has happened since they were last together, which means that we are left to assume a lot of things. We know that they both have an idea of what the other has been doing, but it isn’t clear whether or not the specifics have been discussed.

Does Jon know that Ramsay (Iwan Rheon) raped his sister repeatedly? Does he know that Theon (Alfie Allen) helped her escape? Does Sansa know that Jon has died and been resurrected? The answer to all these questions is likely to be ‘yes’ because they talked about the issues that surround the questions, but not knowing for sure what information they have at their disposal is frustrating and leaves their motivations in a slightly confusing place. You’d think that if Jon knew that Sansa had been raped by Ramsay then he would have no problem with going to kill the bastard as soon as humanly possible… wouldn’t you? If not then why are we routing for him at all? This therefore makes his initial reluctance to act more disturbing, and changes how he should be seen as a character.

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via observer.com

With a war between Jon’s forces and The Boltons being teased from the start of the episode, (and in the trailers), Littlefinger (Aidan Gillen) was promptly reintroduced to the story. He visited his son-in-law, Robin Arryn (Lino Facioli), bringing him a falcon as a gift to represent the fact that the boy is wrapped around his ‘little finger’ – pun very much intended. He then thrust this fact in the face of Yohn Royce (Rupert Vansittart) by accusing him of informing the Boltons of his travel arrangements, which led Robin to show everyone just how much his diplomatic skills have evolved since the series began (moon door politics for the win). Afterwards he persuaded the young lord to help Sansa in defeating her husband and his forces, which leaves Littlefinger in a good place as a loveable antihero.

We’ll have to wait and see what Sansa thinks of Littlefinger when they meet again in the next episode – she probably won’t greet him with a hug – but it seems to me that they’ll be working together for the foreseeable future. This is actually a really interesting point in Littlefinger’s story, because we don’t yet know whether or not he truly understood the extent of Ramsay’s evil, and we also don’t know what diabolical scheme he has up his sleeve should things go array. He likes to improvise when the situation calls for it but he’s always prepared, so I wouldn’t be surprised if he has a plan B which ends in him betraying Sansa. He wants to install people that he can trust in positions of power, and he does have a level of affection for Sansa which makes her the logical choice to rule Winterfell, but if she seems reluctant to trust him then there’s always the possibility that he could choose another ally.

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via fanpop.com

Elsewhere, Tyrion (Peter Dinklage) was doing some damage limitation of his own, as he tried to fix Daenerys’ mess in Slaver’s Bay. He explained to Missandei (Nathalie Emmanuel) and Grey Worm (Jacob Anderson) that he prefers the diplomatic approach over the military approach, so rather than trying to break the wheel he did the civil thing of talking to the Masters. It’s a breath of fresh air to see Tyrion speaking to these people as though they’re on his level, because Daenerys is so arrogant and talks to everyone as though they’re beneath her. Tyrion is a pragmatist – a politician – he finds a middle ground and then he does his best to make it bear fruit. He knows that slavery is an atrocity, but he also knows that trying to end the practice in the blink of an eye is something that only a blind man would believe is possible.

The most pressing issue on his mind is the possibility of revolution and the rise of the Sons of the Harpy, so like any intelligent man he deals with that issue first by hopefully cutting off their funding and leaving them powerless – this will make ruling Meereen easier, and his offer to the Masters will also buy him time to find a better solution. In this time he and Daenerys can make allies, acquire some ships, and possibly take King’s Landing. He knows that the slaves will suffer over the seven year adjustment period that he is proposing, but if Daenerys can become Queen of the Seven Kingdoms in that time then she will have the means to end the practice for good.

For the most part I liked the scenes in Meereen this week, but I have to say that I was irritated by the fact that the writers used the joke (that wasn’t funny in the first place) about Tyrion not being able to speak Valyrian again.

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via collider.com

Whilst Tyrion held down the fort, Daario (Michiel Huisman) and Jorah (Iain Glen) proceeded to bond over talk of having sex with their queen and being attached to weapons. Daario lowers the tone of the show every time he appears on screen, and I have to say that for me the fact that Daenerys is willing to keep him in her company (never mind sleep with him) brings her character down as well. I wish he’d never been introduced to the story, and so far I don’t see any reason why he was.

As for the actual scenes involving the pair in this episode… I hated them. I was frustrated by the fact that the pair were so sure that Daenerys had been brought to the Temple of the Dosh Khaleen, because she could’ve just as easily been raped and killed by a sexually charged Khal and his bloodriders. I know that Jorah has previously spent time with the Dothraki and has an understanding of their traditions, but that doesn’t make them any more predictable – they’re a fierce and violent bunch, so anything could’ve happened.

I also found the fact that Daario carried on travelling with Jorah after seeing his greyscale a little bit ridiculous, because from a practical perspective Jorah is a walking death sentence. I know that Daario is portrayed as a ‘good guy’ on the show – after all, he’s the love interest of a protagonist – but the least he could’ve done was say ‘please, for the love of god, stay away from me’. If Jorah so much as slips and touches Daario with his arm then the latter will become terminally ill and face the prospect of turning into a stone man, so I think that he has pretty good cause to leave the old man behind.

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via comingsoon.net

Moving swiftly on, (and ignoring Daenerys’ first scene in the episode because it wasn’t really worth analysing – it basically served to show that she had a plan and that she didn’t need a man to rescue her), we saw Margaery (Natalie Dormer) being held captive in a grotty dungeon. She looked amazing for a woman without any means of grooming herself, which is understandable because make-up costs money and most people won’t really notice, but for me this fact broke any immersion that the episode had created.

The High Sparrow (Jonathan Pryce) spoke to Margaery about his past as a cobbler, although his story quickly escalated into one about a playboy getting tired of orgies and fine wine. It was nice to be given some sort of insight into the life that the devout leader had led before he became a religious fanatic, although it isn’t completely clear whether or not he was telling the truth to Margaery or simply trying to manipulate her. In any case, the acting and delivery in this scene was fantastic, as Pryce and Dormer proved once again that they are two of the best actors on the show.

Once they were done talking, Margaery was allowed to see her brother, Loras (Finn Jones), presumably for the first time since the pair were taken into custody. This wasn’t a great scene, partly because I couldn’t really tell what the writers were going for and partly because it didn’t seem particularly necessary, but it was nice to see Loras again. For a moment I thought that he wanted Margaery to kill him when he said that he wanted it to stop, and I’m still a little confused as to whether or not this moment caused Margaery to give in to The High Sparrow.

In a later scene Cersei (Lena Headey) told Olenna Tyrell (Diana Rigg) that there was a walk of atonement planned for Margaery, which left me puddled as to whether or not this was a lie that The High Sparrow had told Tommen (Dean-Charles Chapman) to trick Cersei into action, or something that we were supposed to have taken from the previous scene with Margaery having confessed off-screen as a result of meeting Loras. I’m still none-the-wiser after watching the episode three times, so for now I’m going to chalk this confusion down to either poor execution on the part of the writers or intentional misdirection.

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via gameofthrones.wikia.com

Once the political battlefield that is King’s Landing was visited, attention turned to Theon and his journey towards redemption. The timeline for this storyline has become very messy, because it doesn’t seem like Theon could have reached Pyke at the same speed as Sansa reached The Wall, and it’s also a little farfetched that he could just get on a boat and walk into Yara’s (Gemma Whelan) chambers. Nevertheless, it was nice that the theme of reunion was present throughout the episode – Sansa reunited with Jon, Daenerys reunited with Daario and Jorah, as well as revisiting her past and the person that she was at the end of season one, and Theon reunited with his sister.

Yara didn’t seem too pleased to see her brother, but I think that this was a reaction to the fact that: 1) she lost good men when she tried to rescue him; and 2) his sudden re-emergence just before the kingsmoot was poorly timed. Let’s not forget that Theon is known for betraying his ‘family’, the Starks, and has been living with Ramsay who is a psychotic murderer intent on ruling the North. For all Yara knows Theon could be an assassin sent to kill her under the orders of Ramsay, or a contender to rule the Iron Islands intended to cement Ramsay’s hold on the North, so she has every right to be suspicious.

Personally, I like the Greyjoy storyline and I’m enjoying seeing more of them on screen, so for me this scene was a positive moment in the episode. The only thing that remains unclear at this point is exactly how Theon thinks that he can be of use to Yara, because the ironborn respect strength above all else. Theon is a lot of things, but right now he definitely isn’t strong physically, mentally, or emotionally.

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via viralshack.com

Sticking with the North, and sadly for fans of “Harry Potter”, Ramsay killed Osha (Natalia Tena). This wasn’t a particularly inspired scene, but it was definitely necessary for the plot given that Rickon (Art Parkinson) needs to seem as though he is in a precarious position. The writers don’t want him to have any allies in Winterfell because they want the stakes to be as high as possible, so killing Osha off quickly was probably the right thing to do. There was absolutely no reason for the show to keep her around, and I’m glad that the writers didn’t drag out the process by having her be tortured or brutalised – we’ve seen that before and I think that the majority of the audience have been thoroughly desensitised.

A more shocking moment for Ramsay’s character in this episode occurred when he wasn’t even on screen, as Jon and Sansa read the pink letter aloud in the middle of dinner. The pink letter is sent to Jon in the books before he dies and refers not to Rickon but to “Arya” – not the real Arya (Maisie Williams) for those of you who are wondering how on earth the youngest Stark girl ended up back in Winterfell. It was great to see this moment play out on screen, even if it didn’t feel as epic as I would’ve liked, and the words that were read to the audience were suitably menacing. For those of you with an imagination like mine the content of the letter was also pretty graphic, and it served as a vicious invitation from one bastard to another. The letter sets up the upcoming battle between Jon and Ramsay perfectly, as Jon knows that if he doesn’t win then the wildlings, his sister, and his youngest brother, will die painfully. The stakes are as high as they could possibly be, particularly because if the wildlings die then The Wall will be incredibly vulnerable when the White Walkers attack, so the battle is set to be one of the biggest of the series to date.

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via ligadoemserie.com

Finally, and perhaps most importantly for fans of Daenerys, The Mother of Dragons took a leaf out of her children’s books by burning her enemies alive. She called the leaders of the Dothraki ‘small men’, which in turn led to Khal Moro (Joe Naufahu) threatening her in a way which was reminiscent of Viserys’ (Harry Lloyd) threat back in season one. Daenerys then proceeded to rain fire on him and his vulgar friends, showing that she is more than willing to kill anyone who gets in her way. She presented the men with a choice and they chose wrong – as she said in season four ‘they can live in my new world, or die in their old one’.

This was an intriguing scene for a number of reasons, most notably because it marked a significant departure from George R. R. Martin’s book series. Martin has previously stated that in the books Daenerys is not immune to fire, but that when she became The Unburnt there were special, presumably magical, circumstances in play. In the TV show it seems like things have been simplified, as it appears that Daenerys is simply impervious to fire in all its forms. I have to say that I personally prefer the direction that the television series is taking as far as this plot point goes, because to me it just makes more sense – although I’m aware that that sounds crazy.

The only issue that I had with this scene was that Khal Moro and the rest of the men inside the temple didn’t think to run towards Daenerys after she began to set the place on fire. It makes sense that one or two of them would panic – fire burns after all – but it seems pretty unlikely to me that not one of them thought it would be a good idea to kill the woman before she could cause further damage. In a life-or-death situation it’s a matter of fight or flight, and most people will choose flight in that scenario, but these men are Dothraki. They’re brutal killers who constantly engage in altercations which could end in their death, so to think they would suddenly lose their minds at the sight of a few flames is just too ridiculous for me to take seriously.

Still, it’s exciting to think about what this scene will mean for the series as a whole. Daenerys now has at her disposal: 1) three dragons; 2) the Unsullied; 3) a Dothraki horde; 4) a seasoned politician in Tyrion Lannister; and 5) what remains of Varys’ (Conleth Hill) network of spies. She has almost everything that she needs to take King’s Landing; all she’s missing is a fleet of ships.

So, on the whole I thought that “Book of the Stranger” was a great episode. It wasn’t perfect, but even the most critical of fans would have to admit that it contained some of the best moments of the season so far. Moreover, the acting was a lot better than it has been in previous episodes, and the return of Littlefinger was long overdue. The only significant negative was Daario’s inclusion, but at least Daenerys’ reaction to him was akin to the audience’s – i.e. ‘go away, I don’t need you’. I’m a lot more optimistic about where this season is headed after watching this episode, and I’m looking forward to episode five – “The Door” – next Monday.

8/10

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Game of Thrones: Season Five, Episode 5 – “Kill the Boy”

13 Wednesday May 2015

Posted by Ben Whittaker in Game of Thrones, Television Reviews

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Aidan Gillen, Alfie Allen, Barristan Selmy, Brandon Stark, Brenock O'Connor, Carice van Houten, Cersei Lannister, Charles Dance, Charlotte Hope, Cinderella, Daenerys Targaryen, Dean-Charles Chapman, Dragons, Dragonstone, Drogon, Emilia Clarke, Game of Thrones, Grey Worm, Greyscale, Hizdahr, Iain Glen, Ian McElhinney, Isaac Hempstead-Wright, Iwan Rheon, Jack Gleeson, Jacob Anderson, Jaime Lannister, Joel Fry, Joffrey Baratheon, John Bradley, Jon Snow, Jorah Mormont, Kerry Ingram, Kill The Boy, King's Landing, Kit Harington, Lena Headey, Littlefinger, Maester Aemon, Margaery Tyrell, Marvel, Meereen, Melisandre, Michael McElhatton, Missandei, Mother of Dragons, Myranda, Natalie Dormer, Nathalie Emmanuel, Ned Stark, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Old Valyria, Peter Dinklage, Peter Vaughan, Queen, Ramsay Bolton, Rhaegal, Richard Madden, Robb Stark, Roose Bolton, Rory McCann, Samwell Tarly, Sansa Stark, Sean Bean, Shireen Baratheon, Sophie Turner, Stannis Baratheon, Stephen Dillane, Stone Men, Television Review, The Hobbit, The Hound, The Night's Watch, The Red Wedding, The Seven Kingdoms, The Wall, The Witcher 3, Theon Greyjoy, Tommen Baratheon, TV, Tyrion Lannister, Tywin Lannister, Valar Morghulis, Viserion, Westeros, White Walkers, Wildlings, Winterfell

Game of Thrones episode 5

This episode of “Game of Thrones” season five was easily my favourite so far. The first two episodes had me slightly concerned that this season would be the start of a downturn in quality from the series, but since then it has gone from strength to strength. Each storyline is compelling and feels as though it has a clear direction, and every line carries with it a certain significance, whether it be a warning for episodes to come, or exposition to help the audience properly connect with what follows. “Kill the Boy” was another dialogue-heavy episode, but for me those are the best kind as long as the delivery is good and the words spoken carry some weight.

The episode began where the previous one had left off, letting the audience know the fates of Barristan Selmy (Ian McElhinney) and Grey Worm (Jacob Anderson), so as to not keep viewers waiting any longer than necessary after a week of anticipation. It wasn’t too big a surprise that Selmy was the one to bite the dust, because he seemed to take the worse injury and had less of a clearly defined role to play in the future. His death opens up space to have Jorah (Iain Glen) and Tyrion (Peter Dinklage) at Daenerys’ (Emilia Clarke) side, if that’s the direction that the show is going to take, so it made sense to have his story come to a close. Grey Worm on the other hand is the only Unsullied that any of the audience actually knows, so to kill him off wouldn’t make a lot of sense, because I’m sure that they’ll have battles in the future that we will presumably need to be invested in.

Grey Worm’s death also would’ve made his interactions with Missandei (Nathalie Emmanuel) in previous episodes extremely pointless – they already feel that way to me, but to have him die with no pay-off to their clear attraction to one another would’ve been a bit odd. That pay-off came in this episode, as the pair kissed for the first time, but I have to say that I don’t feel invested in either character or their relationship. It’s good to have side characters with defined motivations, but it’s not so good to take time away from a very strong episode for something which ultimately feels worthless.

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via gameofthrones.wikia.com

The scenes in Meereen have been hit and miss for me since the start of this season; there have been some interesting moments, but most of the time I find Daenerys frustrating. However, in this episode she felt more like the character that we loved in season one – a girl out of her depth, who despite everything still manages to be a badass. We want to see the Mother of Dragons and potential Queen of The Seven Kingdoms as a strong woman making her own choices, so it was nice that she finally started doing that in this episode, even if she seemed more like her infamous father than we’d like!

My suspicions regarding Hizdahr (Joel Fry) were all but confirmed by this episode, as Daenerys had him and the other heads of Meereen’s great houses taken into the chambers of her two shackled dragons. It was nice to see that Daenerys still has power over them and that they aren’t just going to hate her forever, because I think that the audience needed to know that going forward. The reason that I think Hizdahr is going to be the antagonist in Meereen is that Daenerys treats him like he’s harmless, which is never a good sign on “Game of Thrones”. In this episode she had ample opportunity to make him a tasty meal for Rhaegal and Viserion, but instead she let him live, and dropped the bombshell that she’d decided to marry him for the sake of her leadership! I just can’t see that ending well for her.

I also thought it was strange that when he faced death he said ‘valar morghulis’ because he’s been made out to be a coward all along, yet now he has the balls to face death as it comes. He isn’t all he seems, so unless there’s a different twist for his character in the works I think he’s the big bad in Meereen. The marriage between the two adds weight to that theory for me, because it’s not all that likely that Hizdahr will be riding one of the dragons to Westeros if Daenerys eventually makes a play for King’s Landing.

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via pixcelation.com

Despite the fact that Daenerys made what I take to be another crucial mistake by allowing Hizdahr to live, she showed that she’s the one with all the power – if she wasn’t a kind character then she would definitely have the capacity to be the villain on the series. She has dragons, she has an army, and she has a group of powerful men backing her in the hopes of a Targaryen restoration. Plus, she’s willing to let her enemies become dragon food if needs be!

I really wasn’t expecting that scene, and the way that Daenerys acted as her children mercilessly killed a human being was quite a surprise. She almost seemed to enjoy it, which made sense because it must’ve felt like revenge for Barristan Selmy’s death, but it was vicious from Daenerys considering that it wasn’t entirely necessary. The lighting in the scene made it all the more tense and exciting, because the flames from the dragons reflected off the walls in the dark room and made Daenerys glow, also showing sweat on the faces of her enemies as they feared for their lives. It was an awesome scene, and details like the lighting are all the more impressive when you remember that there aren’t really any dragons casting that light, it’s all being artificially produced in one way or another. This was the best Daenerys scene since the start of season three, and probably the best moment of the episode.

Following these scenes at Meereen we made the long journey to The Wall. The political landscape at the Night’s Watch is intriguing right now, as Jon Snow (Kit Harington) attempts to broker a Wildling-Crow alliance in order to give both parties a better chance of survival, once winter finally arrives. The dilemma for Jon is a serious and complicated one, because if he leaves the Wildlings to fend for themselves North of The Wall then it’s likely that they will be added to the army of the dead, which will make the eventual battle between the Night’s Watch and the White Walkers all the more difficult. However, if he allows the Wildlings to take shelter at The Wall, or gives them land, he’ll be helping the people that killed his friends. There’s no easy decision to be made, but one choice is about sentiment and the other is about survival, and Jon is more interested in the latter.

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via collider.com

One of my favourite moments in the episode was when Jon sought advice from Maester Aemon (Peter Vaughan). He’s had a lot of great monologues since the start of the series, particularly in the first season when it was revealed to the audience that he was a Targaryen, but this was probably my favourite so far. The episode is entitled “Kill the Boy”, and when I saw that title I was expecting some crazy plot twist regarding Tommen (Dean-Charles Chapman) and an assassination plot, or something of that ilk, but instead it relates to Maester Aemon telling Jon to become a man and do the thing which is best for his people. Whether or not Jon will be able to kill the boy inside of him and become the leader that The Watch needs remains to be seen, but I think it could perhaps also be a foreboding nod for what’s to come – beware of Olly (Brenock O’Connor). Either way, this was a brilliant scene, well-acted and well-written – I am loving The Wall in season five.

Stannis (Stephen Dillane) began his journey to Winterfell in this episode, which while exciting, makes me slightly sad because he’s been such a great addition to The Wall so far this season. I think the blow will be eased by the fact that Jon is going to go to Hardhome with the Wildlings, because we probably won’t see much of The Wall in the next few episodes anyway, but I do wish we could’ve had as much time seeing Jon and Stannis interact as we did seeing Stannis twiddle his thumbs in previous seasons.

Before leaving Stannis managed to have one more memorable scene at The Wall, as he spoke to Samwell (John Bradley-West) about his escapades beyond The Wall, and displayed what felt like respect for his efforts. He seemed to value the fact that Sam was trying to learn more about his enemy, which I wasn’t expecting because Stannis is such a fierce character, but when I think about it he also puts a lot of thought into how he can overcome his foes in battle, so it made sense that he’d appreciate what Sam was up to. To be a great war commander you have to understand the worth of those people who research your enemy, because it’s their efforts which ultimately allow fighters to get the upper hand.

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via entertainment-focus.com

So far this season Stannis’ focus has been on the Boltons, as he needs to take the North in order to stake his claim for the Iron Throne, but there are other things to worry about, so it was good to see that whilst the throne is his primary aim, he hasn’t forgotten about the enemy that lurks beyond The Wall. It was also really interesting to hear that they have dragonglass (obsidian) at Dragonstone, because that would seem to suggest that Stannis could get hold of some and make weapons for the Night’s Watch. This scene more than any other so far has led me to believe that Stannis might be along for the long haul on this series, which I was previously unsure of because of how much they’re pushing his character this season prior to meeting the Boltons in combat.

On “Game of Thrones” when you are becoming likeable and being given more screen time it’s likely that your head is edging closer to the chopping block, so recently I’ve felt concerned for Stannis as the showrunners have endeavoured to demonstrate that he’s both a good leader and an honourable man. However, this scene has renewed my hope that he will face a fate that is at least better than death – of course, the writers could still just be placing the rug beneath us, so as to pull it away when we’re getting comfortable.

Stannis faces a formidable foe in Roose Bolton (Michael McElhatton), which the writers tried to portray in this episode by revealing that Ramsay (Iwan Rheon) was conceived through rape. Roose thinks back to this event with fondness as he reveals it to Ramsay; he doesn’t show any shame or remorse, instead he revels in the pain that he’s caused. He shows us all that he isn’t just an opportunist willing to stab a friend in the back; he’s a cruel and vicious man down to his core. Up till now Roose was just the man who killed Robb Stark (Richard Madden) to further his own agenda, which doesn’t make him a villain on this show. Jaime (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) threw Bran (Isaac Hempstead-Wright) out of a window in the first episode of this series, and he did so in order to preserve the incestuous relationship he had with his sister, which in turn produced one of the most brutal kings The Seven Kingdoms had ever known! Is Jaime a villain because of those actions? I’d guess that many would say no, so Roose’s actions at The Red Wedding don’t make him a villain.

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via theverge.com

Nevertheless, the way that Roose talks to Ramsay in this episode does show that he’s a villain – words might seem a lot less sharp than daggers, but the mark they leave on an audience can be just as deep. Roose is a man who enjoys being bad, he feels nothing for the people he has harmed and doesn’t need a good reason to cause pain and anguish; he’s manipulating his son to do the things that he can’t do, because if he was flaying people alive left, right, and centre, he’d probably seem overzealous and unpleasant. He might be the man who killed Robb Stark, but he isn’t a tyrant yet – better to have Ramsay do his dirty work because everyone already knows how deranged he is.

The way that the writers are setting things up is intelligent, because they want us to hate Roose as we begin to like Stannis; they want there to be a clear fan favourite when it comes to the clash for Winterfell. What’s clear is that the stakes are high for that battle, because Roose isn’t going to show mercy to his enemies, and Ramsay would do terrible things to characters that the show wants us to like, such as Shireen (Kerry Ingram). A lot of people I’ve heard talking about Shireen’s character seem to think that Melisandre (Carice van Houten) has unholy plans for her, which could well be the case given the power of the royal blood which runs through her veins, but I could just as easily see her being killed by Ramsay, which would be harsh even for this show.

Probably my favourite scene at Winterfell in this episode was the one in which Ramsay struggled to keep Myranda (Charlotte Hope) in check. We didn’t know a lot about her prior to this episode, but this scene did a great job of quickly introducing her motivations and her dynamic with Ramsay, so that she could be a key antagonist in the rest of the season. The writers are clearly trying to make it seem like Myranda is just as evil as Ramsay, which is intriguing because it puts Sansa (Sophie Turner) in a lot of danger and gives us one more reason to feel concerned about her in episodes to come.

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via winteriscoming.net

The writers did a good job of making Ramsay seem like the bad guy in the interaction between himself and Myranda, because he was very blasé about their relationship but also very controlling at the same time, but what was intriguing was that it also seemed like Myranda was playing him to a certain degree. She wanted him to be angry and she could give as good as she got; she enticed him by biting his lip and made him reaffirm how he felt for her by threatening that she would marry someone else – she has sway over him, at least on some level. Of course, that could backfire badly for her if she gets too cocky, but for now it’s exciting to guess what she’ll do next, given how unstable she seems to be, and I’m hoping she can get away with quite a lot of mischief before she gets her comeuppance.

Myranda’s primary role in this episode was simply to make Sansa seem in even more trouble than we already knew she was, but she also did something very significant by reintroducing Theon (Alfie Allen), a.k.a. Reek, to Sansa. After we were taken full circle, seeing the Broken/Burned Tower where this series really began, Myranda took Sansa to the kennels for a ‘surprise’. That surprise wasn’t presents and cake, instead, it was revealed to Sansa that the supposed murderer of her two brothers was sleeping with the dogs as Ramsay’s personal slave/servant. It’s been so long since the two last saw one another that there was almost a sense of relief behind Sansa’s disgust, because as Ramsay pointed out, Theon is the closest thing that Sansa has to family at Winterfell, but I could definitely see Sansa seeking revenge at some point.

Seeing the two be reunited, even in their dire circumstances, was a great moment in the episode, as it served to show just how much Jaime’s actions in season one changed the course of history and ultimately made the show what it is today. If that had never happened then Sansa might’ve been Queen, which wouldn’t have been great for her, but perhaps it would’ve been better if Ned (Sean Bean) was still alive. If Jaime hadn’t hurt Bran then perhaps Ned wouldn’t have snooped around so much, so he never would’ve realised the truth about the Lannister’s dirty secret, and he could’ve simply been adviser to Joffrey (Jack Gleeson) in King’s Landing. As for Theon, he would’ve been adviser to Robb at Winterfell, helping him decide how to best deal with winter and probably living a fairly mundane life – so Jaime really did make things worse for everyone.

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via gameofthrones.wikia.com

A lot of people were disappointed by the scenes at Winterfell, because it’s been said that Sansa is still acting like a pawn, and that her dialogue isn’t as pragmatic and nuanced as we should expect given that she’s been learning how to play this game for so long. She’s seen Littlefinger (Aidan Gillen), Cersei (Lena Headey), Ned, Tyrion, Tywin (Charles Dance) and even Margaery (Natalie Dormer) playing the game as they see fit, so a lot of people are disappointed that those experiences don’t show when she talks to people like Ramsay and Roose.

However, I disagree with this line of thought, because the smartest thing for Sansa to do right now is be obedient and quiet. She’s stayed alive by doing that so far, so maybe the best thing for her to do is bide her time and to know which lessons apply to which situations. If she suddenly decides to be a smart-arse with the Boltons then she has no one in the immediate vicinity to rescue her – The Hound (Rory McCann) isn’t going to swoop in and save the day this time. She’s alone, so she has to be careful, and that’s how I view these scenes. At any moment things could go array, and I think it’s in these moments that we’ll see if Sansa has truly changed, not at the dinner table surrounded by crazy men. If Sansa has the guts to end a life then she’s changed, and I can definitely see her getting that triumphant moment in the future.

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via vanityfair.com

The episode ended with Tyrion and Jorah, as they continued their journey to meet Daenerys – although it’s probably not the best time to be a traitor or a Lannister on your way to Meereen! I haven’t said much about Tyrion in recent weeks, but that’s mostly because he hasn’t been up to much, and to be honest I haven’t enjoyed his scenes. He’s in a place as a character that Daenerys often has been, whereby we like him and want to keep track of his movements, but nothing compelling is really happening while he’s on screen. That changed this week, as Tyrion and Jorah finally faced some adversity to spice up their journey.

Jorah and Tyrion travelled through the ruins of old Valyria, which had many a fan in awe, because there’s never really been a description of what it would look like in the books, and it’s also new terrain on the show. It looked beautiful, and it was very quaint for a few moments as Tyrion and Jorah delivered some poignant lines, but this was merely the calm before the storm. First, the scene we’d all been waiting for since the season five poster was revealed finally arrived, as Tyrion saw Drogon soaring above him, looking as powerful and graceful as you would expect him to in the open air. This was a great moment for the show, because up until now Tyrion has never seen a dragon – now that he has, he shouldn’t need quite as much motivation to want to side with Daenerys!

Second, as Drogon flew out of the shot and into the distance, a shadowy figure in the background fell into the water below. That scene was very cool, because the creature just seemed to let himself fall without a care in the world. It seemed like something straight out of a horror film, and I actually rewound immediately in order to get a better look at what had fallen before letting things play out. I was a bit disappointed in the appearance of the Stone Men once they were up close, because they did just look like middle-aged men with make-up on, but the stakes were still high and the scene itself was quite well choreographed. Thinking back, it was nice that in a couple of episodes before this one we had greyscale properly explained to us, because that saved time in this episode so that the characters didn’t have too much exposition to get through whilst they faced the prospect of death (something which bogs down a lot of film and television – particularly the “Hobbit” movies, and every Marvel film).

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via entertainment-focus.com

When the dust settled and Tyrion had been saved from a watery grave by Jorah, things never felt right. Both characters said that they hadn’t been touched by the Stone Men, but it ended up that both had! It wasn’t clear if Tyrion had lied for a reason, but I don’t think he has greyscale, I think he just said no because none of the men actually touched his skin and he wanted to be left alone. The reveal at the end that Jorah had contracted greyscale was an interesting way to end the episode, because it could potentially spell the end for him, and it will likely add an extra layer of intrigue to the trip to Meereen, which now seems as though it will take even longer.

I don’t know what this means for Jorah as a character, but my best guess would be that this will be the reason that he ends up in the fighting pits. In the trailer a person that looks like Jorah seems to be fighting there, which makes a lot more sense now that Jorah has basically been handed a death sentence, because to prove himself to Daenerys he could fight for her against an enemy, or perhaps he could do something really interesting like fight on behalf of Tyrion – a third trial by combat isn’t completely out of the question! He could even be fighting for himself in that case, because as Tyrion pointed out in the previous episode, Jorah is just as likely to face execution as he is.

This episode of “Game of Thrones” was full of intrigue and promises much for the future. Not a great deal happened again, it has to be said, but I have no particular qualms with that because the pieces are there if you’re truly interested and want to put them together, and the fact that not a lot has been achieved so far just means that they’ve got a lot left to give in the season. We’re halfway through right now, and the episodes are only getting better, which bodes well for the second half of the season. There’s plenty of potential for another crazy ninth episode as well, as we could see Daenerys’ troubles in the fighting pits, a White Walker showdown with the Wildlings (and Jon Snow), or perhaps even Stannis’ battle with the Boltons (although I don’t think that’s on the horizon just yet). The only issue I had with the episode is how many characters it missed out, because we don’t want the show to have a fractured timeline and feel disjointed, but that’s something which can’t be criticised properly without first seeing how next week fares.

9/10

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