Sunday night’s episode of Game of Thrones was a bit of a slower affair than what we’ve become accustomed to this season.
It was also an episode all about the number two—or, more specifically, about pairs of characters facing off, often in a subtle (or not so subtle) display of power.
Tywin Lannister looms over his insolent grandson, King Joffrey. The former looks grand and kingly in his black suit; the latter looks anything but grand sitting shrunken in the Iron Throne.
Tyrion Lannister pleads first with Bron and then with Shae, insisting to each that he never asked to marry Sansa and certainly has no interest in her beyond “doing his duty.” The juxtaposition is interesting. Bron the sellsword and Shae the whore—Tyrion’s company is bought and paid for, and neither fails to remind him of this. Sex, violence, and Lannister gold.
Then there’s Sansa and Margaery talking about men and sex. We’re reminded of how innocent Sansa is, and how Margaery is anything but.
Jon Snow and Ygritte pair off, though again very little comes of it beyond Jon’s warning that the wildlings will never succeed in taking the North.
And finally there’s King Robb and his exotic queen, in a long scene designed, I suspect, in making audiences care as much about this young (now pregnant) couple as we possibly can, as they make their way to Lord Frey’s keep, and Edmure Tully’s wedding there. Lord Roose Bolton has also left Harrenhal, we learn, as he makes his way to the same event.
So many pairs. Some lovers, some friends, others family or enemies—or both. This was an episode built to move chess pieces and to flesh out little bits of character development. As such, it wasn’t quite the tour de force we’ve seen in some of the recent episodes.
Other moments—Osha’s chastising of Jojen Reed, for instance, or the snippets of conversation between Jon/Ygritte and the wildling skinchanger—lacked the oomph we’ve come to associate with most of this season.
Dany’s decision to sack another city in Slaver’s Bay—Yunkai, the “Yellow City”—reminds me yet again how hapless her plot becomes as she languishes in the East, mired down by politics I really don’t care about when she ought to really be sailing on those Yunkai ships for the shores of her homeland as fast as the wind will take her. Still, I’m always glad to get another scene with the dragons, especially when they’re angry.
However slow or foot-dragging some of these scenes were (Robb’s scene seemed especially slow) the climax was terrific. Jaime and Brienne continue to have a much more interesting relationship than basically any other couple in the show (and yes, I realize they’re not a couple.) I’m certainly far more interested in these two than with Jon and Ygritte.
And Jaime racing back to Harrenhal to save Brienne, and then leaping into the bear pit to do so, unarmed with just one hand, well that’s just great television. It’s also almost identical to the book (barring some character changes and a dream.) Jaime’s transformation from carefree and rather awful to brave and selfless—dare I say chivalrous?—continues and everything between these two remains magnificent.
We got a little less of Arya and the Brotherhood this week than I would have liked, and I’m not entirely sure Arya’s escape worked as well as it could have. Could all these grown men really not run her down? And the Hound seemed awfully well-positioned for the capture. Perhaps that’s just a quibble, though. A symptom of my irritation with the scene’s brevity.
(Last week many people disputed my claim that Arya “escaped” the Brotherhood before being captured by the Hound, but I’ve looked into this and it’s true. Arya sneaks off, feeling she can’t trust the Brotherhood since they plan to ransom her to Robb. She sneaks off and the Hound, who has been following them, snags her. I think her anger over Gendry is more believable.)
One final thought: enough already with the Theon Greyjoy torture. I’m quite happy we’ve established Ramsay Snow as a sadistic villain. I’m very much looking forward to the revelation that this is Roose Bolton’s bastard, and that Roose himself is something of a bastard (though more of the cold-calculating type than the psychotic torturer type.) But enough is enough.
We could have done with three or four episodes total dealing with Theon’s plight, establishing a new villain, and then moving on. Instead, we’re having a bit of a repeat of the problem Season 2 had with Littlefinger’s brothel, and Sunday night’s episode seemed determined to bring the brothel to the torture chamber. Maybe my stomach just isn’t stern enough, but I’m beginning to find it all a bit gratuitous at this point, if only for its regularity.
I also think that this season needs to do a better job reminding us that there’s a war going on. Robb is never marching to battle. Tywin is stuck in King’s Landing. Stannis is trapped between a crazy red priestess and an even crazier wife. Nobody’s marching or fighting, though certainly marching and fighting must still be going on. I realize that we’re in a bit of a lull as everyone licks their wounds and tries to recover from the previous season’s battles, but some nod to the still-at-war reality would be nice. Even the chance to see the Brotherhood bring bloody death down on to the heads of a Lannister raiding party has been spoiled.
Still, while I didn’t think this was the strongest episode of the season at all and felt a little bored here and there for the first time since the Season Premiere, I still enjoyed watching all the pieces line up. I have that sinking feeling in my gut watching poor Robb Stark and his retinue pin all their hopes on Walder Frey.
Everything is going to get so much worse, and it’s already pretty bad.
by Erik Kain
