Last week’s episode ended with the image of two crispy Starks on the end of a rope. Were they really the boy Lords of the North, or was Theon Greyjoy just using two peasant corpses to freak everyone out? (We think so. We didn’t sit through all of Bram’s dopey dream sequences for nothing.)
This week kicks off with Theon’s sister Yara coming up to Winterfell to put her feet up on the table , drink wine and call her brother a “dumb cunt” (repeatedly.) Apparently Father Balon is less than pleased with Theon’s decision to go rogue, that being this far from the sea is unmanageable for those with iron in their blood.
Beyond the wall, Ygritte presents Jon Snow to a bunch of grotesque dudes wearing animal skulls like hockey masks. Turns out they’ve also captured Qhorin Halfhand, the leader and last surviving member of the Black Watch away team. It doesn’t look good for either of ‘em.
Somewhere behind Robb Stark’s line, the would-be King in the North is with Talisa, talking about his desire for peace (and moping a bit about his betrothal to one of the dames from House Frey.) A messenger comes to let them know that Jaime Lannister has “escaped in the night.”
Turns out, however, that Cate Stark let him go behind Robb’s back, hoping to gain an advantage with so many of her children missing. Robb is not thrilled with the idea, and sends forty men out to “find the Kingslayer” and puts his own mother under watch. (Kids these days!)
Jaime is under the care of Brienne of Tarth, who is quick to make jokes about the blonde giantess.
At Harrenhal Tywin and his Lieutenants continue to plan their war in the presence of Arya Stark, hiding as a cup bearer. Tywin seems to be the only one who understands the mentality of a young man who hasn’t experienced defeat . “He’ll risk anything at any time,” he barks, “because he doesn’t know to be afraid.” He decides on an offensive, and Arya looks in vain for Jaqen (her assassin pal) before he leaves.
In King’s Landing, Tyrion sits with a giant text in his lap, worried about Stannis Baratheon’s approach. He nips at Bronn for cleaning his nails and not wearing a City Watch gold cloak. With some prying from Varys the eunuch, Bronn admits that the dip in thievery is due to the fact that all the known thieves have “disappeared.” With a coming siege, the biggest fear isn’t the invading army, but starvation, and with thieves around it will be impossible to maintain any order. Tyrion kinda shrugs in understanding of this fascist tactic, reminding all the Tyrion fans that – wow – even the good characters on Game of Thrones are evil.
Back North of the Wall, Samwell Tarly and another member of the Night’s Watch are digging in the ice and mud to see a stone with a symbol on it – made by “The First Men.” Underneath are Night’s Watch cloaks and weapons made of obsidian. All the Deep Space Nine fans in the audience at the utterance of that word.
At Harenhal, Arya finds Jaqen and gives Tywin’s name for her third hit. He tells her it can’t be done, so she orders him to kill himself. He won’t refuse, but, in his own tongue-twisting way, tells her, “woah, you’ve sure got a pair!” They come to the agreement that he’ll be released of his debt if he helps her escape.
Queen Regent Cersei confronts Tyrion, demanding to know why he has encouraged King Joffrey to fight in the war. She is convinced that after he sent her daughter away to get married in Dorn, he wants to kill off Joffrey. He claims that Joffrey needs to be seen fighting to keep the men inspired. Cersei has a trick up her sleeve, however – she has Shae, Tyrion’s whore/girlfriend, and she swears that if Joffrey is hurt, she’ll kill Shae.
The trick’s on Cersei, though – the woman she’s captured is someone else. Tyrion plays along, though, then runs back to find Shae okay. His actions reveal that, yes, he actually loves her and if anyone ever found this out he’d be vulnerable.
Then Robb Stark starts yapping to his nurse girlfriend again, she starts going on and on about her childhood and then something truly miraculous happened – I realized this episode is somewhat of a bore. No one had been murdered, no one has had deviant sex and other than Tyrion and Bronn joking about the pronunciation of the author of the Westeros history book, there haven’t been any memorable jokes. Eventually, Robb and his woman do get naked, but by then I already zoned out and was wondering if it was too late to order Indian.
Next we see Arya Stark and her pals ready to leave Harenhall (and she’s telling that fat kid to shut up – a natural leader!)
On Stannis Baratheon’s ship, the would-be King tells Davos Seaworth that he will be the first crabber’s son to be the King’s Hand. Stannis has got a lot of anger in him – still burned up that his older brother Robert disrespected him in favor of Renly. Even with both of them dead, it would appear that Stannis has something to prove. Don’t count this man out.
In the capitol, Varys and Tyrion jaw a bit about Lannister family history. Varys admits that Tyrion plays “the game” well and Tyrion admits that he enjoys it. The Eunuch also mentions that there is rumor from over in Qarth that Daenerys Targaryen is alive and that she has three dragons. “One game at a time. . .” Tyrion demurs.
In Qarth, however, the Khaleesi is scheming to get her dragons back from the House of the Undying. Jorrah tries telling her that despite the moniker “Mother of Dragons,” they are not, in fact, her children. She doesn’t respond that well, I can assure you. I don’t know why Qarth’s new King Xaro Xhoan Daxos is keeping her from seeing the dragons. Weren’t they all pals at the end of last week’s episode?
Back in Winterfell, Maester Luwin catches a glimpse of Osha the Wildling – as I suspected she’s got the Stark boys tucked away safely. The cajun children at the gates are, indeed, the farmer’s boys, but Osha says they’ll never know the truth, “the boys have suffered enough.”
So have we, wasting fifty-seven minutes on an episode where pretty much next to nothing happened. With only two episodes left in the season, this all felt like a vamping to me.
GAME OF THRONES "A MAN WITHOUT HONOR RECAPSeason 2, Episode 7 !
There are only three more episodes left in the second season of Game of Thrones, and this week's episode feels like it's ramping up for an intense last few installments. But there's still a lot to talk about from this week, including a particularly nightmarish end scene and some hilarious banter between Jon Snow and his prisoner Ygritte.
The title of the episode, "A Man Without Honor," certainly feels apt, though I'd say there's definitely more than one man who shows his lack of honor this week. I'm ready to break down the big moments of the episode, though, so to see which scenes I can't stop thinking about, just keep reading.
The Queen is a little less hate-able: Dare I say that Cersei is sympathetic this week? Well, almost. First, she's more gentle than expected when Sansa gets her period and panics about how it means she's ready to bear Joffrey's children (a fate more disgusting than death). Then when Cersei talks with Tyrion, she basically admits that Joffrey is the worst, conceding that maybe having her brother's kid wasn't the best idea she'd ever had. (I loved how she says that Joffrey looks like Jaime sometimes . . . but only in a certain light.) Tyrion even looks like he's close to hugging her, but he can't bring himself to. Understandable.
The Kingslayer speaks: Jaime has a few scenes this week, and they're generally to show how terrible he is. He has a protracted speech about how much he loves being on the battlefield (which I found kind of boring, but it did make me realize how beautiful Nikolaj Coster-Waldau's voice is), then murders his own relative and a guard. But it's possible that he's said his last nasty words, because after he has a good ol' time taunting Catelyn about Ned's infidelity, Catelyn asks for Brienne's sword. What's she going to do with that? Cut out his tongue? Kill him?
Sex and the single Snow: Jon Snow's anger with Ygritte's teasing about sex is pretty hilarious because it's so uncomfortable for him. I know she's wily and just trying to figure out how to get away from him, but I'm also pretty sure she means what she says when she's trying to get Jon to have sex with her. Especially since he looks straight-up hot this week.
It's time to get the hell out of Qarth: Dany's trying to get her dragons back after they were snatched last week, but things get worse than just missing pets. Pyat Pree, the elder who looks like a reanimated corpse, slits the throat of everyone in the Thirteen, except for Xaro Xhoan Daxos (which makes him King of Qarth). Time to say thanks for the hospitality, Qarth, but I'm out.
Theon's gone to the dark side: And the nightmare moment of the week goes to the final scene, when Theon unveils the burned corpses of two boys, whom he passes off as the young Stark brothers. I think it's obvious that Bran and Rickon are fine and Theon killed two other kids (probably the Winterfell orphans Bran talks about), but aside from that, wow. His execution of Rodrik last week is shocking and traumatic, but the killing of two innocent children is mind-blowing. I took his mildly confused expression to mean that he (hopefully) realizes who he has become.
Despite one major plot point, this episode isn't my favorite; it seems like we may have hit a bit of a midseason lull, but we're getting set up for a lot of impending action. To recap the moments that did make an impression, just read more.
Did Renly just get killed by the rubber man from American Horror Story? After Ned's death, I know I should be prepared for anything when it comes to this show, but I was still shocked to see Renly Baratheon meet his maker so quickly. I was all ready for a big brother-on-brother showdown between him and Stannis, but Melisandre's creepy black death monster takes on the form of a shadowy man and stabs him within the first few minutes of the episode. Something about the moment just felt sort of anticlimactic to me, but maybe it's because I didn't think I'd have to deal with deadly smoke monsters after Lost ended.
Arya learns the power of three. Arya — I mean Arry — I mean Arya — is in a bit of a pickle right now, what with Tywin Lannister breathing down her neck and asking her hard-hitting questions and all. However, she does fall into a place of power with Jaqen H'ghar, the prisoner whom she rescued a few episodes back. Now that he's back in civilization, he's ready to repay his debt, and to the third power. Arya basically gets to name three people she wants dead and Jaqen promises to make it happen. Her first victim is the "tickler," the local torturer around town. Now the question is: who will she choose next?
Dany gets a decent proposal. Dany's only been in Quarth for a few days, but she's already freshly scrubbed, braided, and back to her khaleesi self. She's ready to move forward with her plans to take the iron throne, too, though we'll have to wait and see at what cost. Xaro Xhoan Daxos wastes no time making her an offer to help her with her goal, if she's willing to marry him. It seems like a legitimate power move to me, though Jorah feels differently about the situation. Is Dany ready to move on from her sun and stars, or will she be unwilling to share the power?
Catelyn and Brienne combine their girl power. Catelyn's been a bit of a wayward sheep this season, doing her best to make peace between the Baratheons, bring her girls home, and keep Robb at bay. She hasn't been able to make much of a difference just yet, and she ends up in the wrong place at the wrong time when Renly is attacked. Brienne is also part of the situation, and it doesn't take long before all of Westeros is linking their names with Renly's death. I was happy to see them make an alliance, since these are two of the most loyal and true characters on the show, so it's a bond we can actually believe in. Something tells me it won't be long before Cat may require Brienne's protection.
GAME OF THRONES "GARDEN OF BONES"
Game of Thrones The Old And The New Season 2 Episode 6 Recap
As this season of "Game of Thrones" hits its midpoint, we're finally knees-deep in a war so brutal and unflinching that nothing seems off-limits. Take for instance the opening scenes of this week's episode, which finds an almost hilariously inept Theon Greyjoy taking command of his former home. The unassuming people of Winterfell are invaded by Theon's skeleton crew, who sneak in and wreak havoc amongst a group of people who know him as the puny ward of their dead lord. When Theon rouses Bran from sleep to let him know he's infiltrated and is the new Lord of Winterfell, Bran practically yawns in his face. Yeah right.
Unfortunately, Theon isn't joking. After the townspeople laugh down at him and Rodrik Cassel spits in his face, things take a nasty spin towards the gruesome. Theon's first mate lets him know that he'll never gain any respect if he lets people disrespect him, and so, with a blunt sword, he decapitates Cassel in front of the people, despite Bran's tear-fueled protests. It takes a few hacks, but the bloody deed is done. That it isn't a clean or easy killing is symbolic of Theon's new path. He hasn't stepped into his lordly role with any definition, and his nearly mournful display of cruelty shows that he's not cut from the same cloth as his brother in arms, Robb.
Theon also has the misfortune of thinking with his penis instead of his brain. He's dimwitted enough to let Bran's friend, Osha, into his bed later that evening. As he snores away post-coitus, she sneaks Bran, Rickon and Hodor out of Winterfell. Score one for the Wildlings.
Score two comes over the Wall, where Jon Snow finally gets a shining moment after a season of blowing snow and incest babies. He and his ranger team find a group of Wildlings on the side of a mountain and slay them pretty hastily. The final survivor is a woman – a pretty redheaded woman named Ygritte, to be precise – and Jon is tasked with finishing her off while his men go ahead to make camp. Turns out, Jon isn't much of a lady killer. He slams his sword into a nearby rock instead of chopping her head, and she flees. He catches her again and takes her prisoner, but loses his men in the process. Now he's alone in a foreign wilderness, freezing to death, with nothing but the warm body of a woman to keep him safe. I think we can all see where this one's going.
Back in King's Landing, things aren't going well for Joffrey and the Lannisters. After Myrcella is sent to Dorne, leaving her family heartbroken, an angry crowd starts rioting the streets, throwing cow dung in Joffrey's face and unleashing retribution for the war he started. Turns out, a king's word means little these days, since a true king Joffrey is not. It's nice to see the people finally recognizing this and lashing out. What's not nice is the way a few of the men chase poor Sansa into a corner and try to rape her, or the way bystanders are grabbed from the streets and ripped to shreds. As the chaos goes from shouts and throws to an all-out rampage, we see Tyrion truly lose his cool. He slaps Joffrey and reminds him that this is his mess, and a cow pie in the face is a small price to pay for his misdeeds.
Luckily, the Hound is able to stop Sansa's attackers before they can carry out their deed. When Tyrion thanks him for protecting Joffrey's bethrothed, the Hound lets him know "I didn't do it for you," which shows his love for the "Little Bird" is growing. A fascinating development, since Sansa's own hubby-to-be (and the Hound's master) wanted to leave her to die.
We also check in with Arya over in Harrenhaal. Arya's learning more and more about her captor, Tywin, including his backstory as the son of an old, weak father. The dynamic between these two is the most interesting thread the show is weaving this season. Are they forging an unusual alliance, or is Tywin playing her, saving her reveal for the right moment? It's difficult to say at this point, but her anonymity is a fun game for now. Watching her avoid a visiting Littlefinger was great, and seeing her employ Jaquen for another gifted death before Tywin's right-hand man can turn her in was a nice touch.
Another nice touch is the burgeoning romance between Robb Stark and his lady nurse, which seems to amuse Catelyn. But those soft moments are underscored with the news of Theon's attack and the disappearance of Bran and Rickon. One step forward and two steps back for the Starks, it would appear.
Meanwhile in Qarth, Dany continues to have difficulty securing boats that will allow her to cross the Narrow Sea and reclaim her throne. Not that it was ever truly her throne, as she is reminded by the Spice King, who sets up a grand procession of his people before denying her his fleet. Dany tries to prove her specialness – she isn't like other women because her "dreams come true" – but the gift of magic isn't interesting in Qarth, where magic seems as commonplace as stone and rubies.
The episode ends on another cliffhanger: Dany returns to her spot in the city to find her men slain and her dragons missing. After all the chatting she's done about her pets, it was only a matter of time before they were taken from her. But will the loyalty of dragons prove a mightier force than we've seen yet? So far, the dragons have been nothing but cute little toys. It's about time for some fire-breathing action.
GAME OF THRONES "THE GHOST OF HARRENHAL Season 2, Episode 5 Recap
There's a major game-changer on this week's Game of Thrones, as the many kings of Westeros continue to prepare for the next battle. Melisandre's recent birth has some major consequences and even Bran becomes part of rallying the troops. Things also take an interesting turn for Arya, and Catelyn makes an unexpected alliance.
Despite one major plot point, this episode isn't my favorite; it seems like we may have hit a bit of a midseason lull, but we're getting set up for a lot of impending action. To recap the moments that did make an impression, just read more.
Did Renly just get killed by the rubber man from American Horror Story? After Ned's death, I know I should be prepared for anything when it comes to this show, but I was still shocked to see Renly Baratheon meet his maker so quickly. I was all ready for a big brother-on-brother showdown between him and Stannis, but Melisandre's creepy black death monster takes on the form of a shadowy man and stabs him within the first few minutes of the episode. Something about the moment just felt sort of anticlimactic to me, but maybe it's because I didn't think I'd have to deal with deadly smoke monsters after Lost ended.
Arya learns the power of three. Arya — I mean Arry — I mean Arya — is in a bit of a pickle right now, what with Tywin Lannister breathing down her neck and asking her hard-hitting questions and all. However, she does fall into a place of power with Jaqen H'ghar, the prisoner whom she rescued a few episodes back. Now that he's back in civilization, he's ready to repay his debt, and to the third power. Arya basically gets to name three people she wants dead and Jaqen promises to make it happen. Her first victim is the "tickler," the local torturer around town. Now the question is: who will she choose next?
Dany gets a decent proposal. Dany's only been in Quarth for a few days, but she's already freshly scrubbed, braided, and back to her khaleesi self. She's ready to move forward with her plans to take the iron throne, too, though we'll have to wait and see at what cost. Xaro Xhoan Daxos wastes no time making her an offer to help her with her goal, if she's willing to marry him. It seems like a legitimate power move to me, though Jorah feels differently about the situation. Is Dany ready to move on from her sun and stars, or will she be unwilling to share the power?
Catelyn and Brienne combine their girl power. Catelyn's been a bit of a wayward sheep this season, doing her best to make peace between the Baratheons, bring her girls home, and keep Robb at bay. She hasn't been able to make much of a difference just yet, and she ends up in the wrong place at the wrong time when Renly is attacked. Brienne is also part of the situation, and it doesn't take long before all of Westeros is linking their names with Renly's death. I was happy to see them make an alliance, since these are two of the most loyal and true characters on the show, so it's a bond we can actually believe in. Something tells me it won't be long before Cat may require Brienne's protection.
GAME OF THRONES "GARDEN OF BONES"
Season 2, Episode 4 Recap.
While this week's episode may have been tough to watch, the many awful things give us a lot to talk about today. Let's talk about what's still haunting me after the jump.
The madness of King Joffrey: How far is Joffrey's perversion going to go? First, he humiliates and hurts Sansa at court (or rather, has a knight do it) until Tyrion steps in to stop it. But it gets more disturbing when Tyrion decides that Joffrey's just sexually frustrated, so he sends two prostitutes in to "relieve" his tensions. Hearing that Tyrion sent them, he sends his own message back to Tyrion, forcing Ros to repeatedly strike her friend with varying levels of tools, amid her shrieks.
Playing footsie: Good for Robb Stark for getting a love interest on the battlefield. Not good for us that we have to meet her while she's cutting a wounded soldier's foot off.
Oh, rats: Arya and Gendry are close to being tortured by King Joffrey's men, but mercifully, they narrowly miss being given the full rat treatment, thanks to Tywin. But when he comes upon the scene, he immediately outs Arya as a girl, so now I'm even more worried about her.
The body: Littlefinger confesses his love to Cat, admitting his hope that since Ned's dead, he just thought, you know, Cat would be ready to go steady with him. Being that Littlefinger's a creep and that Cat is grieving the death of her husband and worried sick about all her children, she's not really amenable to anything romantic. Finally, he's able to mollify her a little when he presents her with the body of Ned as a sign of goodwill so she'll consider the trade of Arya and Sansa for Jaime.
She's having a baby: Melisandre's birth scene is terrifying from start to finish. I mean, I was already freaked out when she pulls her robe off to reveal a fully developed pregnant belly because I didn't want to see a graphic childbirth scene, period. And then a smoky monster emerges from her birth canal. Well, I know what I'll be seeing in my nightmares for the next year.
GAME OF THRONES, "WHAT IS DEAD MAY NEVER DIE
Season 2, Episode 4 Recap.
This week's Game of Thrones introduces us to a few new characters, while giving a bit of the spotlight to Tyrion, Theon, and Renly, and happily, there's no Joffrey again this week (though we get a good bit of Sansa). Renly is on a throne with a new wife, Theon makes a decision about where his loyalty lies, and Tyrion masterfully orchestrates a ruse. Oh, and as usual, there is a ton of blood courtesy of some very stabby soldiers
We're missing scenes with Dany and Robb, but lots of action goes down in Westeros this week. Ready to recap? Just keep reading.
Don't save the date: Sansa is spared this week from Joffrey's torture, but not his mother's. Cersei delights in a dinnertime conversation in which she talks about the possibility of Joffrey killing Robb — and how Sansa will have to respect it. I felt as sick as Sansa looks when Myrcella asks about her wedding (let's hope this is a long engagement). Meanwhile, an opportunity presents itself when Shae complains to Tyrion that she's tired of being kept in his room, so he arranges for her to become Sansa's handmaiden. They have a rough start, but hopefully it's only a matter of time before hair brushing leads to them being confidantes. That girl needs a friend.
Like a dog: Theon confronts his sister about how she didn't tell him who she was before he had his hands in her pants in last week's episode, and she explains that she wanted to find out who he was as a person first, and she did. Ouch. That and the conversation he has with his father about how he'd been given away "like a dog" when he was a boy (my favorite Theon Greyjoy scene of the series thus far) leads to Theon pledging to forsake his "other family," the Starks, to prove his devotion to his own clan.
Sex and the king: When we catch up with Renly Baratheon, he's crowned himself king and he promises Catelyn that he'll gladly have Joffrey's head on a stick. He also has a new lady by his side, Margaery, who is Loras's sister — pretty funny considering that Renly only has eyes for Loras. When Margaery tries to seduce her husband, he blames the wine for why he's not physically up to it, but she's smarter than that. She casually suggests that her brother comes in and helps out, and though Renly acts shocked, Margaery expresses that she doesn't care — he just needs to impregnate her with an heir.
A game of cat and mouse: Tyrion roots out a mole when he pretends to broker a deal to marry off Myrcella, and tells Littlefinger, Pycelle, and Varys a different groom so he'll know who blabs to Cersei. Cersei goes ballistic over the arrangement for her only daughter, and Tyrion discovers that Pycelle is the one who's been leaking everything to Cersei. Pycelle loses his beard and his freedom.
Snowfall: Poor Jon Snow's pretty face. We don't get to see a lot of him this week, and when we do, he's bruised and bloodied from Craster's attack, and he still doesn't know what picked up the baby in the woods. Sam, still nursing a crush on Craster's daughter, gives her a token he got from his mother. While I love Sam and think this scene is very sweet, I worry that his feelings will somehow put Jon Snow in danger again, and I am not cool with that.
Clever girl: Arya loses her guardian of sorts, Yoren, when Joffrey's soldiers raid their camp and slaughter many of the inhabitants. They ruthlessly kill a young boy who's complaining of his injury (my vote for this week's goriest moment), and when the soldiers demand that they give up Gendry, a quick-thinking Arya tells the soldiers that they've already gotten Gendry, indicating the boy they had just killed.
I'm excited about the other character we meet, the female soldier Brienne of Tarth, and though we just get a brief introduction, you can sense that there are big things coming from her. What else did you like about this week's Game of Thrones?
GAME OF THRONES "THE NIGHT LANDS": Season 2, Episode 2 Recap.
This week's Game of Thrones is blessedly free of Joffrey, but there's still plenty of other things that are pretty gross. From decapitated heads to surprise incest, things are intense as the houses continue to get ready for impending war. Thankfully, there's also some levity in Westeros, mostly from Tyrion's one-liners and a charming scene between Gendry and Arya.
I definitely missed the characters we don't see this week (well, maybe not Joffrey), like Sansa, Robb, and Jaime, and those we only visit with briefly, like Daenerys. But like each episode of Game of Thrones, there's still a ton to talk about. Let's break it down after the jump.
Tyrion talks back: I'm glad someone in the Lannister family is up in arms over last week's killing spree. It's Tyrion of course, who takes such issue with Joffrey's slaughter of Robert's illegitimate children that he exiles the Watchman who carried out the order and confronts Cersei about it. Obviously things are going to stay bad as long as Joffrey is king, but I'm still relieved that Tyrion is tasked to be Hand for now.
The loneliest ride: There's not enough Dany in this episode, but the scene we do get of her is a pretty gory one. Khal Drogo's brother returns — well, I should say, only his head returns. His horse trots back with the macabre cargo, but I'm actually a little more disturbed by how bloody and lacerated the horse is.
Sickening siblings: And the ewwww moment of the week goes to Theon Greyjoy and his sister. When Theon heads home to greet his father after years, he's treated to an array of indignities, starting with his father insulting his clothes and accusing him of getting too close to the Starks. However, the worst is when the woman who'd given him a horseback ride home — and whom he'd felt up rather eagerly on the way — strides in the room to reveal she's his sister. It's gross, but I also feel like it could have been avoided if Theon wasn't such a pervy horndog.
Rising son: I'm getting nervous about the hunt for Gendry, especially now that I'm becoming completely invested in him. My affection for him comes from scenes like the one he shares with Arya, when she confesses who her family is. Gendry is endearing as he first apologizes for swearing in front of her, and then launches into full-on teasing as she loses her temper.
Jon Snow's heroism goes awry: Sam gets a puppydog crush on one of the daughter-wives of the crazy Wilding Craster, and he wants to help her escape when he finds out she's pregnant because she's afraid of what her father-husband (ugh) will do if it's a boy. We find out exactly what he'll do, because Jon Snow (who'd tried to talk Sam out of helping the girl) watches as Craster takes a baby and places it in the woods. Before he can rescue the infant, someone (or something) picks up the child — right as Craster bashes Jon over the head.
Stannis gets it on: Stannis seems to be completely business-minded as he plots his overthrow of Joffrey — until the flame-haired priestess Melisandre seduces him by promising to give him a son. There's lots of sex this week on Game of Thrones, but this scene is the least sexy.
Game of Thrones The North Remembers Season 2, Episode 1 Recap.
After a year of waiting for the aftermath of Ned Stark's beheading, Daenerys Targaryen's dragons hatching, and war brewing in Westeros, Game of Thrones made its triumphant return this week, and the season two premiere did not disappoint. I was thrilled to catch up with the likes of Tyrion Lannister and Jon Snow, though less-than-enthused to be reunited with Joffrey and his evil ways
I don't want to give too much away for those of you that haven't seen it yet, but there are plenty of new developments (and characters) to break down — as well as a few omissions from the episode. Let's talk about the major moments we're still dissecting when you read more.
Is Tyrion Lannister the new Ned Stark? With Ned (Sean Bean) gone, it seems that Tyrion (Peter Dinklage) may have replaced him, as far as screen time goes. And with good reason — Tyrion has the best lines as usual, and I ate up every scene as he settles into King's Landing as the new Hand of the King.
Joffrey is becoming more infuriating by the minute. Maybe it was the long hiatus, but I wasn't prepared for quite how evil Joffrey is coming out the gate in this episode. His lack of sympathy for Sansa is expected, but his cruelty has gotten worse than ever. Watching him try to drown someone with wine is hard enough, but the murder spree on Robert's bastards in the closing moments of the episode is shocking and heartbreaking.
Jon Snow's Big Love moment. I'm happy to see Jon Snow off the Wall (I'm happy to see him anywhere, really), and his ventures into the North get interesting really fast. We thought the Lannister incest storyline was bad, but the Wildling and his long line of wives/daughters makes Jaime and Cersei look like saints.
More Arya, please. I've been dying to find out what will happen to Arya now that she's posing as a boy and is riding with the Night's Watch, but she's only in the episode for a very brief moment. Hopefully that will change next week, as we see what will become of Gendry, Robert's only remaining illegitimate child.
Robb and Jaime's showdown. Ned may be gone, but Robb's growing nicely into his new role as the head of House Stark. He already seems light years more confident with three major wins under his belt, and it all builds up to his tête-à-tête with Jaime. Jaime's still got a sharp tongue for a prisoner, but he fails to shake Robb's swagger. (It probably helps that Robb has a now-extraordinarily-large wolf on his side.)
The dragons. The Stark family direwolves aren't the only animals in Westeros — Dany's dragons are in full effect, though they aren't exactly as fierce as one might think. For now, they're more like accessories that add to Dany's khaleesi garb. Cute, yes? Imposing? Not so much.
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