Game of Thrones Season 7, Episode 2 “Stormborn”
Writer: Bryan Cogman
Director: Mark Mylod
Runtime: 59 minutes
Content Warnings: TV-MA: Adult Content, Adult Language, Graphic Violence, Nudity, Strong Sexual Content
Video Preview: Stormborn Preview, Comic Con Weeks Ahead Preview
HBO.com Synopsis: Daenerys receives an unexpected visitor. Jon faces a revolt. Sam risks his career and life. Tyrion plans the conquest of Westeros.
Tonight.
“Stormborn” premieres tonight at 9PM on @HBO. pic.twitter.com/y6GciPfprb— Game Of Thrones (@GameOfThrones) July 23, 2017
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HODOR!
Hope we see Randyll tonight.
Very much looking forward to Jon chokeslamming Baelish in the crypts…partly because I’m not too sure what he could say to provoke Jon to violence like that and also because it’ll be nice to see him get roughed up for a change.
So excited! There’s going to be a lot of good stuff on tonight’s episode!
I’m hoping we’ll get a Melisandre scene tonight.
Here we go again!
Most of all, I would really like NowTV not to freeze – sending a prayer to the Old Gods and the New!
I have read all the leaks and now I wish I did not. Waiting for season 8.
Excited to see more of Sam at the Citadel after seeing so little of him last season.
Can’t wait for Jon to choke Littlecreep. Yaaaas king!
Just here to watch Jon choke a bitch.. thats prolly the scene I am most excited for tonight 😀
So excited for tonight’s show. Go Sam!!!!
Can’t wait to see the giant she wolf and her pack! Also hope to see Jon slam Littlefinger so hard his voice goes back to normal.
This is why I don’t watch it live any more. Much better to wait a few hours and watch on demand.
No ad breaks to take me out of it either!
While we’re here, could anyone tell me whether Jon is still a ‘Snow’ or not.
He hasn’t actually been called one so far in S7 has he?
Surely he has to be Jon Stark to be head of the ruling house of Stark? It makes no sense for him to remain illegitimate and as he is now recognised by the assembled nobles as the rightful King of the North, he can surely legitimise himself – at least within the lands north of the Neck?
If Euron can send for 1000 ships from Ikea, I’m sure we could buy that Jon is what he has always wanted to be – a Stark.
My guess is so good … it could be a spoiler
Oh that Jon. Showing what an effective leader he is again.
Violator,
I’m pretty sure he is still Snow in the show. You’re right that he should be a Stark, and I’m sure he will be in the books if Robb’s will comes into play. But for now I think the show just wants to simplify things for the audience. I have a feeling the House will continue through Sansa’s children anyway. I still think she winds up as Lady of Winterfell, with Jon either dead or in Kings Landing as King/King consort.
That is true but I am not sure Jon would legitimize himself. Perhaps it goes back to what Tyrion said; Let me give you some advice bastard. Never forget what you are. The rest of the world will not. Wear it like armor, and it can never be used to hurt you.
And I am not sure Jon would just take the name for himself. If some other Stark had offered to make him a legitimate Stark it would be different, it would mean that he is accepted as an equal within the family. It is not so much the bastard name that has troubled Jon, it is the exclusion from his family, or the idea of not being worthy enough to be a Stark. Jon grew up with the idea that he wasn’t good enough to be a true Stark. Changing his name wouldn’t change the emotions behind it.
Books:
Huh. I’ve read the leaks too and I think it made me look forward to the episodes even more. Really can’t wait to see some of the scenes described play out onscreen.
I don’t think he can simply claim to be a Stark. Ramsey got legitimacy from Joffrey, the king. Ned Stark could have declared him legitimate, I think. Or gotten Robert Baratheon to do it.
But I don’t think he can do it on his own. However, Danaerys can do it. Of course it might get a bit crazy if they find out he really is her nephew. And I recollect there was some speculation on whether Rhaegar and Lyanna had actually married.
I think in this episode the visitor will be Melisandre. There are a limited number of
people who would be of interest and all are too far for a quick trip. I think the revolt comes because Jon talks of going to see Danaerys. And Tyrion, as part of planning, might just think about Jon. They got along pretty well and, frankly, there aren’t that many unallied leaders around.
I’m rooting for the big naval battle. I think there will be a few major ones this shortened year and the writers might want to space them out so no director has more than one.
Alan Taylor has only one episode, the next to last (usually the big one) and I would
guess one battle there.
And we have seen the Unsullied rushing a castle. I think that is part of another one.
So let’s hope for the naval battle.
Will Dolorous Edd, the 1000th Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch (assuming Thorne was 999th LC), have a say in Jon’s decision to man the towers with wildlings? (I was surprised the wildlings would be so willing to do so!) I guess Edd probably won’t mind. Hate to see what’s waiting at Eastwatch for Tormund and company though. Karsi and her children are coming!
Lord of Coffee,
Me too. I don’t understand this unless you were someone who had been watching the series but hadn’t read the books.
For those of us familar with books, we already knew what was going to happen for the first few seasons and yet it was still hugely enjoyable waiting to see how the show pulled things off. This is no different for me.
Did anyone ever figure out which characters Ben Fox and Mark Roper are playing in this episode? They’re both listed in the IMDB credits for this episode. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt5655178/fullcredits?ref_=tt_ov_st_sm
Any theories?
Side note:
Gah, I’ve tried, but can’t resist! Am doomed to suffer the buffer until series end 😂
thisgirlhasnoname,
Fox, no.
Roper is listed as playing a Merchant on his CV.
https://www.spotlight.com/interactive/cv/1/M13644.html
Im curious what the strong sexual content is. 🤔
SO
FUCKING
HYPEEEEE
Prediction: Tasha Yar will return as her evil twin, Ishara.
Oops, wrong site! But anywho, love you Denise Crosby!
btw just curious – whats the difference between an episode preview versus and episode open chat? Won’t the discussions be more or less the same (until the show starts, of course) Asking for a friend
Prediction: Jon Snow and Sansa Stark are the same person!
If my theory is right, Ghost is going to be so confused.
Lots to look forward to seeing in this Episode.
That ‘Painted Table” scene should be Epic with so many principal characters gathered around it.
Obviously dying to know what tics Jon off that he throws Little finger up against the wall.
… and then there’s Arya,,, ??? 😀
ash,
The former is pre-showtime and the latter is post-showtime?
Violator,
Totally agree. The spoilers I’ve gotten have mostly been from the speculation on this site of trailers and photos during the off season, and all they’ve done was whet my appetite to see just how its all pulled off. ymmv but Im looking forward to it.
The mountain and his mistress? Jk…I am assuming Missandei and GW will interact to satisfy that essential plot point. The VFX should be amazing!
ash,
I’ve sorta been spoiled for the next 2 episodes by watching that Comicon Trailer but if anything it’s heighten the expectation to see how those scenes pay out 🙂
Catspaw Assassin,
heh, yeah, thought of that, but then they run together. no matter 🙂
Any dialog which has Dany referee over Oleanna, Tyrion, Yara, and Varys will be worth the episode right there. Add in the clash of opposites in Jon and Peytr — in the Crypts below Winterfell, no less! — and we can hold the naval battle for next time.
I have read all the leaks and now I wish I did not.
Damn am I happy to have remained UnSpoiled! I really didn’t think anything could taste more satisfying than Frey pie, and then Arya served us a second course in the coldest of season opens! Delicious! Thanks again to our kindly hosts at this site for allowing a man to remain unspoiled whilst learning many ways of Westeros.
Hodors Bastard,
And Yara and Ellaria too.
Judging by the preview, my guess is Baelish and the Winterfell Crypt-Keeper have a happy fun time to the
muzakpop strains of Ed Sheeran’s “Belfast Girl.” 😉I am a spoilerphile and it definitely makes me more excited. Plus, I can watch the reaction of the people who don’t know what’s coming, which is entertaining! 😉
I also love seeing theories/speculations from the unspoiled, because once in a while they come up with something awesome that I WISH would have happened. 😊
Good point, which I totally missed because I am Absent Minded Man (streaming this fall on Netflix). 😉
Good point, which I totally missed because I Am Absent Minded Man! (streaming this fall on Netflix). 😉
Do you think Arya has changed and is acting different?
Arya seemed so cold and lifeless in Dragonstone…
Maybe D&D have mixed two characters together and created a new Arya Stark
Aw Pigeon, it’s nice of you to cheer Sam, but we know you are panting to see poor, miserable Jorah, no matter how scaly he is. I’m excited to see both of them and what happens myself –
I imagine a scenario where news buzzes through the Citadel that a female Targaryen with DRAGONS has landed in Westeros. There will be flocks of super-sonic ravens traveling in the next few episodes, relaying all the news and replies.Sams head snaps up in attention at the mention of the Dragon Queen, he runs to advise Jorah, and they plot to ditch Old Town and head west. The shit montage was to show that Sam has had enough of training, he’ll be excited to pack up Gilly and Little Sam and get out, but not before curing Jorah of the Grayscale. Maybe he’s still on the fence about leaving, but sees some of his father’s soldiers scouring Old Town looking for him and Heartsbane, and that’s what tips the scale.
That last part was pure tin-foil on my part, I have heard or read nothing that predicted such a thing, but it would make sense that crotchety old Randyll wants the sword back, and sending someone to find Sam would save him the embarrassment of having to go himself.
Flayed Potatoes,
LF should be choked every episode. In fact, it’d make a good drinking game
firstone,
Arya seeming “so cold and lifeless” is the point of her story arc, no? Not that I like story arcs, which are usually just an excuse for lazy writing. (Charlie Chaplin once said “I don’t mind coincidence in a plot, but I hate convenience.”)
I agree with the Telflon Don that Lord Beric Dondarrion may be incorporating the Lady Stoneheart plot. We’ll see!
Oh, but wasn’t that a great reveal when she stepped out of the shadows as a Romulan?
This was the deal Jon originally made with the Wildlings, Edd was there he is well aware of it.
Heck, Dany and Big D should just take a tour of Westeros and intimidate the crap out of everyone. Why wait for ravens to do the messaging?
Definitely Sam and Gilly will discover something soon.
Not sure if Jon calls himself Stark or not, but for all intents and purposes he is Jon Stark. Grey direwolf seems to be his coat of arms and he demanded Alys Karstark and Ned Umber swear allegiance to house Stark, not to him personally as the head of some weird cadet branch distinct from “regular” house Stark led by Sansa.
It seems like somebody pointed out that Edd and all the boys greeting Bran were dressed just like Jon and even styled their hair just like Jon. Little Jon Posers. I think they’ll love just about any idea proposed by Jon, and Jon did seek out Wildlings at Hardhome with the intent of getting their help for the Great War.
Oh man, Tormund’s outlook is not optimistic, is it? If he gets killed, that will put a big damper on things; he would be the first “big” death of the season. Seeing Karsi as a zombie is going to be interesting and sad, she was so strong, so spirited in life. Seeing her as a wight, just slogging along with the rest of them, will be heartbreaking. But at the end of Hardhome, they specifically showed her sitting up as a wight, so there’s a good chance we will see her that way.
I won’t include anything about what I know from the spoilers, because this doesn’t really include anything about that.
Can we assume that Yara wants to rush in and attack KL with an assault directly on the city, but Tyrion counsels against this because it would involve a huge loss of innocent life. We know that Euron will capture someone (even those of us who haven’t read spoilers can reach that conclusion) so whoever gets will only add to Dany’s problems with leading an assault on Cersei directly.
That’s pretty much what has been confirmed so far I think. Dany may have the fire power but a WMD is useless to you when you’re attacking heavily populated city and happens to be holding hostages.
Dany’s weakness is she wants to win hearts and minds and Cersei has such intention.
Ginevra,
Boudica,
Yeah, I only point that out because Jon seems to be making decisions that he should be suggesting to Edd, the new LC. I understand that Edd will support it but manning and commanding the various dilapidated towers won’t be an easy task. The folks at CB and Eastwatch should initially assume command of the other towers (like in ADwD), right, before control gets transferred? Of course, I am assuming they will have time to coordinate….probably not enough though. 🙂
I fear for anybody near the Wall at this point. It ain’t gonna be pretty without specific help….
I’m assuming that the episode description re: Sam risking his life is a reference to him having contact with a person infected with greyscale. That’s pretty fast for him to be coming up with a cure!
In his interviews, John Bradley says the poop and soup montage was to remind folks of how little time John has to fulfill the promise he made to Jon of finding out info and intel to help win the war, which is excruciatingly frustrating for him because he absolutely must follow through on that promise. So I don’t think we’ll see Sam leave until he finds out much more about dragonsteel and dragons, as well as helping Jorah with his greyscale, which might lead him to some relevant AAR prophecies! And I really think this emphasis on lack of time thing will be opening the door for Gilly’s newfound reading skills, where she has the time as she is just watching over easy Baby Sam who poops less than a single maester.
Ten Bears,
One of the best reveals ever! 😉
Every time I re watch Dragonstone I see a new clue. There is so much happening not only in every scene but they way the scenes are edited with detailed precision.
When the hound is burying the two bodies the Thoros of Myr thrust his sword into the ground and there is tiny flame that appears above the handle of the sword for the rest of the scene. The next scene immediately shows the large tower of the citadel with a flame burning on top it. It has to mean something… but what?????
If you take a snapshot of the book that Sam was reading in S7Ep1 (like AltShiftX did during his review) the words are right there. It seems that dragonglass is used in the process. It seems to be responsible for a lot of things! 🙂
More excited for this episode than last week (kinda) because stuff is going to happen! I can only guess. Winterfell has to get Bran back home – maybe John has to go get him from Castle Black. I would love to see that. And feisty Littlefinger provoking the King.? get ’em, John! But really, can Littlefinger get a redemption arc? Do characters die at the end of the arc? (Like Cleagane and Jamie)? And while I am talking crazy, if Lord Greyjoy is a pirate, then I expect a cool treasure island cave scene. But my real worry is for Sam. I hope his conflict doesn’t invoke Gilly and Little Sam. If they get hurt I will be crushed.
firstone,
Sandor = Warrior of Light
Yeah, manning the Wall might be a good thing for the king to do, but placing someone in command and assigning castles would have been more appropriate for Edd.
Aren’t Tormund and the Wildlings awesomely brave to just jump on Eastwatch without a second thought, risking their lives for a kingdom who mostly hate them?
A bit OT: If you loop the first 30 seconds of Pink Floyd’s Money during that sequence, it makes for an interesting background soundtrack… 🙂 I enjoyed that montage immensely. The great Citadel, disseminating vast knowledge and wisdom throughout the land, the ultimate treasure of Westeros, reduced to a shit, eat, read, clean, retch, shit, eat, read, clean, retch loop…! 🙂
I have read some spoilers, nothing detailed, but that in no way, takes away from my enjoyment. A TV show is an audio-visual feast (and GoT has always completely excelled in that respect), and no amount of plot leaks will convey the full awesomeness of the episode. For example, take Dragonstone. Even without leaks, we knew Daenerys and crew would reach Dragonstone. But the leaks couldn’t possibly have told me of the spectacular photography and visuals of the scene. Same with the BwB scenes, the acting, dialogue, visuals. I know some leaks about the coming episode, and that makes me look forward to certain scenes even more!
Don’t know about Mark Mylod directing this episode and I think the next. Dude has directed some of the worst episodes on the show so far.
He doesn’t seem to understand the characters and their motivations very well. Hopefully this episode is a lot more intense than last weeks.
I gave them a pass because I knew they had to set things up for every character last week. We had some awesome shots and nice cinematography, but the story really needs to start moving in this episode.
Ginevra,
I thought the montage had the useful effect of giving us some sense of the passage of time.
That’s quite useful in a show which constantly has to squeeze a lot of things that should be happening over a longer period of time into little more than an hour an episode.
I just want to wish you all a good time watching this episode. I have to wait till tomorrow. My written review comes tomorrow (Oz’s thread), my video review on Wednesday or Thursday (video recap thread and my own forum thread). Any way, time for me to go to sleep.
Read or listen to the lyrics for the Grateful Dead song “Uncle Jo(h)n’s Band.” So many similarities to what we are seeing in the latest trailer and overall story!
I don’t recall seeing any tiny flame; will need to rewatch. What this scene did seem to evoke for me was the metaphor of beating swords into plowshares, what with Thoros sticking his sword into the ground and picking up a shovel. GRRM being of the anti-Vietnam War generation, I’m betting that his endgame will involve peacemaking.
The Free Folk like to fight. It’s part of their culture. A good stronghold where they can make a stand should be just what they’re looking for.
Another thing seen in that book: my dagger! Joffrey’s dead, so it’s mine! Mine! My precious! 😉
Lonely Cat,
It’s a buck dancer’s choice my friend,
better take my advice.
You know all the rules by now
and the fire from the ice.
Hmmm…
Violator,
No, those of us who don’t watch spoilers (heck, I don’t even watch the scenes from the next week) do not know anything about what Euron’s gift is, other than what he said.
On the speculation that Rhaegar and Lyanna were married that someone mentioned upthread, in my mind it’s all but confirmed that they were married and Jon isn’t a bastard at all.
First of all, the Targaryens historically practiced polygamy, so it doesn’t matter that Rhaegar was already married to Elia.
I think this stuff is books only so far
Thirdly, it makes narrative sense. Jon’s whole life and most of the choices he’s made have revolved around him being a bastard. He’s always thinking about Catelyn’s hatred of him and his jealousy of Robb. Whenever he finds out about his parentage, it will have even more impact if he turned out not to be a bastard after all. Plus, any potential future conflict between Jon and Dany gets way more interesting if they both have a case for being the “real” heir to the Iron Throne.
Fourth and most important, look who was guarding Jon at the ToJ. Three Kingsguard, including the best one by far, Arthur Dayne were protecting him with their lives. Meanwhile, Viserys and Dany were left in the care of a Targ loyalist who was not a KG. If Jon is a bastard, Viserys was the heir. So why no Kingsguard? Why should protecting a bastard be more important?
Sorry if that was an off topic derail from episode talk. This is just my favorite ASOIAF topic so I couldn’t resist adding my two cents.
Kay,
There’s a separate leaks discussion section in the Forums. Not here. Please.
🚱🚱🚱🚱
Here’s hoping Ser Jorah shows up again tonight! And Bronn!
Tensor the Mage, Who Admits Ignorance Sometimes Has Its Place,,
Hee, that one never came up here, so like you I was amazing and yes so satisfied (know Im not supposed to be but there it is)
Hee, I know; I love oz’s post; will never spoil anything, I just love his writing and the comments of the unsullied. And yes, sometimes there are some ideas that would be soo cool
Firannion,
For me, that scene brought back memories of the nasty “old Hound” casually boasting to Bronn before the Battle of the Blackwater about people, including some women, he.’a “put in the ground.”
I Compare that with the new, repentant Sandor’s sadness as he gently lays poor Rabbit Stew Sally in the ground.
My jaw dropped when I saw that page. Chekov’s dagger? A mountain of dragonglass? Hmm…
firstone,
Huh? not at all! Now she might
Assuming that the Grey Worm-Missandei sex scene we saw in the trailers is the “Strong Sexual Content” that the episode ratings are referring to, I’m really looking forward to that scene. Yes, really. That’s partly because I love those two together and think that they deserve a moment of personal happiness before the war (and potentially Grey Worm’s death? Hopefully not). But there’s another factor: once that scene airs, the tiresome and – to put this delicately – trollish question of “How can Grey Worm and Missandei have sex? He doesn’t have a pillar and/or stones!” can finally, finally, finally die.
I’m also pumped for Dany’s war council, Jon visiting the crypts of Winterfell (and choke-slamming Littlefinger), the return of Randyll Tarly, the sea battle, and more!
Hodors Bastard,
When I heard the line about a mountain shaped like an arrow last week, I immediately thought. “Wait, Legolas is going to show up?” All this foreshadowing has finally driven me over the edge! 😉
Dee Stark,
THIS! 🙂
Violator,
I
True which is why finding the cure will be as fast as it appers (tho LIttle Sam, who is another way of measuring time, remains about the same. He really should be independently moving about by now…ah well)
Today was a very sad day for me, but hopefully Game of Thrones will help me feel a bit better tonight! Going to be a good one.
Firannion,
Yeah, besides Tormunds comment afterwards ‘hey we get to be crows now’ sounded like a little kid eager to finally get the treat he was asking for.
Now whenever I have to run out and leave my desk a mess, I say as I rush out the door:
“If people ask you what happened here, tell them: The North remembers. Tell them: Winter came for House Ten Bears.”
Ser Broccoli McBroccoliface,
I think I know, but I ain’t saying 🙂
….the long wait begins. Ahhhhh!
Catspaw Assassin,
Hahahaha – 😀 😀 😀 LMAO
Connor,
sorry to hear that. Hoping that GOT can be a distraction for a little bit.
An old and dear friend of mine passed away this week, so I hear you Connor. I hope all is well with you otherwise.
Catspaw Assassin</strong
🙁
Ha! I can just imagine the slot machine coin dropping replacing the poop dropping… And some of the lyrics in that context are interesting.
Catspaw Assassin,
Connor,
So very sorry. Hope that an episode of GOT can provide a measure of entertainment.
Connor,
Hii Connor
It’s nice to see you back here … it has been a while.
I’m sad to hear you had a bad day
Hope GOT cheers you up a bit
Dee Stark,
Catspaw Assassin,
mariamb,
ash,
Thank you guys 🙂 and i’ve been on the site here and there, just reading some of the articles they put out. Good to be commenting again.
I’m keeping my expectations in check as this is a Mark Mylod episode. Crossing my fingers there are no flat-out ridiculous action scenes or character motivations lost in translation.
So excited ! I can’t wait see LF get choke-slammed, that is gonna be so satisfying. And Sam at the Citadel, I’m super hyped for his scenes this year. And of course Dany’s council. Gyaaa, I’m just hyped for it all.
Looking forward to the scene with Jon in the crypts, and of course him choking Littlefinger 😀
ash,
mariamb,
Connor,
(⊃｡•́‿•̀｡)⊃
Seriously cannot wait to see this scene in the crypts.
lucy,
To be fair to Mylod, character motivations are often lost in translation, not just in his episodes.
But yeah, his style is overall not that enjoyable to me. He and Podeswa are in fact responsible for my least favorite episodes in the series : “The Red Woman”, “Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken”, and “No One”.
The director line-up this year is less than impressive, though I thought Podeswa did well with “Dragonstone”.
Alan Taylor is the only director whose work I’m actively looking forward to.
Between this thread and Twitter, there is a great anticipation for the “LF gets choked” scene and deservedly so. It’s been a long time since someone slammed him into a wall with their hands around his throat.
Hmmm indeed (and of course the song is playing in my head but it could be worse…
Jared,
😀😀😀😀😀😀😀😀😀😀
I wholeheartedly agree! And I’d love to see Tyrion slap somebody around again for old times sake.
I also won’t complain if there’s a little Tormienne in tonight’s episode!
So sorry to hear, Catspaw and Connor! *awkward pigeon hugs*
Okey Dokey, I’m off to enjoy the show. I see it starts 10 minutes earlier – at 01:50 in my location. Guess that’ll be 20:50 stateside so not long to go.
I probably drop in later to put in my penny’s worth, but I know this episode is gonna be a cracker 🙂
Enjoy….
Pigeon,
🙂
If anyone needs something to tide them over for the last bit of waiting, John Bradley was on the Chelsea Handler show. Really fun interview!
Black Raven,
Ten minutes earlier? Can I come live with you for the next six weeks? 😉
For me, I enjoyed the first 4 seasons as an adaptation… but I was BLOWN AWAY by how much better it was when I didn’t know what would happen in parts of S5 and s6.
If you’ve always spoiled yourself… give not doing so a try. You might be surprised how much better it is.
I do think they are mixing the characters, and at the end of S6 I was worried she had lost her sense of humanity in her quest for revenge. I mean, the madness in her eyes as she slit Walder Frey’s throat! Genius, but scary.
She’s been through so much and everyone she counted on let her down. She’s buried the hurt along with her heart.
However, I think the scene with the Lannister soldiers was really cute, and was the first step GoT took to start the healing. I think the next step is reconnecting with a couple of certain canine and human friends (and maybe family!). I don’t think she’ll abandon the revenge-quest but I think it will find more focused purpose.
Related, I think there was also a very subtle connection made in Ep 1 about Cercei. One Stark sister told Jon that Cercie will kill him. The other Stark sister tells Lannister soldiers she plans to kill Cercie. I don’t believe this is a coincidence :).
Hope NK gets 10-20 minutes tonight.
This seems like a conversation that should have happened a while ago.
uh!
shitty episode!
Randyll is there!
QOT has been the only good part of this episode so far. Dreadful scripting. 🙈
omg!
mark mylod is just getting worse.
A lot of mixed reactions so far
Seriously- has LF moved from that wall? Exact same camera angles and smirk as last week 🙄
Am sorry ..but am just not liking this at all.
Thank you, Jon 😀
Euron is crazy and badass at the same time lol.
Decent episode though. Liked the scene with Arya and Nymeria though and watching the Sand Snakes get their asses kicked was pretty fun to watch lol.
DUCKING AMAZING
Well I certainly enjoyed that.
Oh Theon… Why? Why did you leave the ship and didn’t try to rescue your sister?
Though who knows. Made you’re saving her with that cowardly move.
Hmmm… 1st Impressions..
Some great scenes, but quite a few lacked the quality i was anticipating.
Even the Nymeria scene didn’t excited me as I was hoping, thought the wolves looked excellent.
Was disappointed with the “Painted Table” dialogue. Was glad they tackled where characters should have certain prejudices or hatreds of each other, but it could have been better with a ‘we fight together for now, but this is not over” sense of uncertainty. :o(
Sand Snakes are dead…. That is awesome!!
Next episode preview….. OMG……
A good Mylod/Cogman episode? Truly it is Christmas in July.
DANY SAID JON SNOW
Hahahahah
KILL ME NOW
“That’s not you”…so it wasn’t Nymeria?
Holy Shit! So Euron has Elaria and Yara – the SS are dead? I think Theon jumped off thinking he could later help her escape..
btw my DH said after the battle – how in the hell did they make an iron ship? Yes its the iron islands, but that takes a hell of a long longer than wood. But then again, maybe he just used iron to build his fleet since they don’t have wood. Doesn’t matter, he had more than Yara had, I guess. Wow
Haven’t read the discussion, will get there in a moment, but I absolutely loved this. Arya saw Hot Pie who told her about jon, and saw Nymeria who saved her from the wolves. And Jon will see Dany!!!!!!
ETA really, people aren’t liking this? mmm may need to rewatch, I was thinking it was fine
A filler episode, outside of the Greyjoy “battle”. Very disappointing when I also consider the shortened season.
Oh man… Awesome episode!! 😀
Dude.
That was fucking Savage!
Don’t think anyone’s gonna be cracking jokes about Euron now!!!
And WOLF PACK!!!!!!!!
Euron brought the fucking storm, the fire, and the fucking wolves.
Mother of shit that was awesome!
Hot Pie.
Omg I love Euron now lol
I liked that episode, the end especially was lot’s of good fun.
I’m just enjoying the ride folks, let’s have fun with the remaining 11 episodes of thrones and not nitpick too much.
What did Arya say to the Nymeria at the end? I saw you? It wasn’t you?
d(＾＾)ｂ
Oh Theon…that was probably not your best choice.
I enjoyed this episode. The LF choke/slam lived up to expectations. Hope Sansa is up to the task, especially with her siblings on the way.
Yay to Sam helping Jorah but that seems like a long, painful process.
Ellaria is on my last nerve. And, of course, it’s good to see Hot Pie.
Loved it – note to those complaining while the show was being broadcast – try watching the whole episode 1st.
Jesus!!!
YES. THIS.
VegoDread,
🙌🙌🙌
Jack Bauer 24,
I took it that it was Nymeria, but it wasn’t her nature to just follow back to Winterfell. She is the free spirited dire wolf if you will. I do think she will be back to help Arya though. Of course I could be way off on my assumption.
“That wasn’t you”?
Stimpy Stark,
It could because arya lefther before so she left also
Jack Bauer 24,
It means that Nymeria is no longer the wolf that Arya remembers from when they last parted. It’s also a (rather heavy-handed) metaphor for how much Arya has changed over the course of the show.
The ep got better and the sea battle was pretty good after a really shaky start. But OMG the script is horrendous. Really really bad. Still can’t take Euron seriously as a villain although he did a great job in battle. Not a great episode at all- pretty dissapointed TBH
Two of the three, right? We didn’t see Tyene die, and I think she was taken with Ellaria as “the gift,” right?
It must be, but perhaps she meant not like you…
Really excited for the next episode. It will be the moment fans have been waiting for decades tho i dont think Jon and Dany will like each other the first time they have a conversation.
PTSD,PTSD! war, torture, rape etc. does that folks!
I loved his kraken axe!
That wasn’t Yara hanging from the boat was it? Mixed reaction to that episode.
Wow what a whole lot of negativity here while the episode was airing. Apart from the GW&Missandei scene being too long, I can’t see any major flaw in this episode.
Stimpy Stark,
That scene reminded me of the scene in mereen when drogon visited Dany And he just left her and came back to save her
Parallel scene maybe
Thronetender,
No, it was Nymeria.
Ginevra,
It’s a reference to a line from Arya in S1: “That’s not me.”
Now that Euron has some prisoners, I can’t help but wonder if they’ll try to adapt some elements from The Winds of Winter chapter “The Forsaken.”
Probably not, but it would be cool to see them try and incorporate some more of his book persona into the show.
Thronetender,
I *thought* it was Yara hanging and Tyene impaled, but could definitely be wrong.
It was and Nymeria will be back.
Gee I guess Ghost has grown that large too?
RBloodworth,
Yes, exactly. Both are not who they once were.
Ginevra,
I think that Tyene survived. They clearly only showed two SS hanging from the ship.
In after the episode, they explained it as something like “Coming home to be my companion is no longer your life.”
On one hand I get it, on the other, I’m disappointed. I had tears of happiness about the reunion but now that it’s over I feel like they were simply closing a loose end instead of having it mean anything to the overall story.
I hope I end up being wrong and Nymeria makes another appearance that matters, but if that’s it…well, I guess that’s it.
don:
uh!
shitty episode!
how did you know that at 9:15?
No, you’re not, call back to Ned that Arya be a Lady, she answers “no that’s not me”
Ginevra,
His entrance was so OTT lmao
Dee Stark,
Maybe some foreshadowing as well? Arya is sort of the lone wolf, probably won’t get a happy ending when all is said and done. If Nymeria had gone along with Arya, it would have been a little too trite. They acknowledged each other (Nymeria didn’t kill Arya and her horse) and went their separate ways. It was a nice scene.
ash,
I don’t get people
So, did anyone note the ominous feeling as soon as Jon placed Sansa in charge as he took the only person loyal to him (Davos) south and Sansa looked straight to LF? I’m thinking Sansa will be QitN when Jon gets back, especially given the way that no one wanted Jon to leave in the first place. I can already hear her and LF plotting their coup d’etat as they share that look.
The lone wolf dies but the pack survives – she was not going to leave her pack. She did however save arya.
wow everythings just moving so daim fast
it feels like i watched 2 episodes …. twice during the episode i was like daim this must be the end cuz so much has happened.
definitely loving the pace
liked the battle at sea cant say i loved it
dany and varys had me on edge
littlefinger and jon MEH slit his throat already
arya and friends both great and round was fuckin adorable and sad
cersie and qyburn has me worried
randyl might be a dick but hes got style even tywin didnt have
poor sam … and whats with this season last week i was enjoying caramel donuts when they cut to same this week it was pie . im not eating next week
the QOT was her usual sassy self but somehow less sassy in this episode
and yes as some1 else mentioned i did find some of the dialogue cringeworthy and it didnt come from the sand snakes
as for the sand snakes if only their season 5 action sequence had been as good as this we may have loved them more
finally SANSA… ive loved her from the start but im not sure i love cunning Sansa . shes playing alright but shes playing a dirty 2 faced game … either that or the poor girl has bipolar now
Chuck,
Yeah I agree
It was heartbreaking
I hope she comes back to her?
Ah. Cool!
Dee Stark,
Yeah I got that same vibe. Nymeria has been on her own now for a while, and like another poster said, is quite a metaphor to Arya herself. I definitely think she will be back at Arya’s side before long and the Drogon and Dany thing is a great comparison. Whatever the case the feels of seeing Nymeria was awesome.
Euron was the MVP. Good episode.
Catspaw Assassin,
“That’s not you” in reference back to season 1 when arya spoke with her father and he told her she would marry and have sons that would rule castles. She said, “no. That’s not me.” Her smile at the end of the scene makes me believe she understood. The wolf belongs to her pack. But best trust and believe when it comes to battle or arya being in danger, nymeria will be right there to take a bit out of crime!
Tyene is still alive.
Where is Ghost!?!
Was it not really Nymeria then? Sometimes the direwolves know it’s not time to go
With them. Remember how ghost went his own way for awhile beyond the wall with Jon. But I’m hoping this wasn’t really Nymeria and maybe Arya will still meet up one day. But how Frickin HUGE was the direwolf. That was awesome. And Aryas decision to go north or south and choosing north was a great moment. And the battle was pretty awesome. I think everyone cheered about the SS demise. But come on theon.
If you are posting negative comments about any tv show while it is still airing….
you might want to take a step back and see what is going on with your life. There is so much content out there today. Literally enough for multiple lifetimes. Pick something you do like….
With that said….. I loved the episode.
I really loved that scene with the Hound, Thoros and Beric from last week. One of my favorites. 🙂 Oh, this episode…hmm…
Transition from Jorah’s flesh to porridge had me in stitches…the food/shit/wounds shots are a total homage to GRRM’s vast descriptions of those things. Go Sam!
– Wow…ironborn vs ironborn…yay!…Euron has two gifts! (and I thought it would be Tyrion). Tyrion’s plan is shit. The female resistance just got handed a big blow
– Go Olenna! Get the game on!
– Missandei (!!!) & GW….satisfy that woman! Unnecessary but somehow titillating
– Nymeria is having none of Arya’s shit…or is she? Nice wolves though.
– Hot Pie! Arya redirect!
– Jon says don’t talk to my sister! Oooh, LF is scared…(*mopes that he didn’t get his thanks*)
So-so episode. Will watch again for comprehension.
Stimpy Stark,
I agree with you
I hope she comes back also
I thought this was great added to # 1 Sansa taken by surprise, Jon really hates LF but needs the Vale, OH LF is screwed.
The Sand Snakes actually battled well to bad they couldn’t pull it off in Dorne.
Theon getting hit with PTSD most people would see that coming.
I did think Nymeria be bigger though.
I thought the poop/ soup was bad Sam and Jorah … well I’m glad I told my wife no eclairs or puddings.
High Sparrow,
It’s the usual thing since season 5, IMO. Great production design, editing, acting, cinematography, directing, etc., but weak writing.
The conversation in the map room, for example, that was all stuff that should have been discussed well ahead of the meeting, the characters should have been aware of where they stand in relationship to one another after months at sea, and it makes no sense for them to not start planning the war until they arrive in Westeros. It’s all there for the sake of giving them something to say to each other on a specific set in a specific episode, and having some conflict in the dialogue.
Characters are where they need to be, when they need to be, all for the convenience of the writing. All sense of realism in terms of geography, passage of time, and political maneuvering has been shorne away so that they can funnel characters together to create “epic” reunions and battles. It no longer feels organic, as it did in earlier seasons (and the books).
But like I said, that’s nothing new, and I’m sure these are common complaints. For some people, that sort of… abbreviation of the plot, let’s say, in favor of building up to and emphasizing “badass” moments makes the show better.
The Bastard,
Yes!!
What have they done to my beloved material? Euron felt like a character out of a Mad Max movie.
lol at Sam randomly stumbling across a cure for Greyscale in Oldtown.
Chuck,
Hot Pie called her a survivor. She’s safe.
This is where Dany will listen to olenna and be the DRAGON!!!!!!!!!!!!
I loved Arya and Hot Pie exchanging pie secrets.
HP: The secret is to brown the butter first.
Arry: Hmm, I didn’t do that.
HP: You made PIES?!!!!!!
I like this episode.
There was a lot of dialog exchanged that I had hoped would be exchanged, especially between Dany and Varys, so long ago almost forgot.
(I thought I remembered that in S 1 Jorah got a message about the poison and I thought that was from Varys, can’t think who else it would be.)
I think that’s the first conversation Varys and Danny have had.
Didn’t notice who the other houses were besides the Tarlys ?
Man, the Red Goders should give up unless they can put a more compelling spin on the therat of The Others. Thought Melisandre would have gotten a scolding from her church!
Back to Blivt problem, a naval battle in 5 min. ! That defeat seemed way to pat, I don’t buy it.
Now that was a great episode, with a good balance between exposition and action!
2 Sand Snakes Killed by Euron.
Hodors Bastard,
I found the Dany scenes to be well done. It would be too easy to have Dany be a “good” queen and kind, forgiving etc like Margary. It would be redundant to have her turn out like her father and Viserys. She will probably be somewhere in the middle; still finding her way, occasionally brutal, but ultimately a good ruler for Westeros.
The Bastard,
And why is that any different to people who post positive comments whilst it’s airing? Are they equally invalid? I posted my comments during the ad break.
My life is just fine thank you- no need to make smart comments and attack people.
The ep was visually good but the script was awful- Ellaria Sand: foreign invasion line? Gimme a break. You’ll see on rewatch.
Hopefully Jon can convince Dany to take the threat of the night king seriously, and to just quickly dispatch Cersei and everyone following her. Right now, Jon is the only one worried about the army of the dead. And the night king just has to sit back and let everyone in westeros weaken each other.
There is a conversation just like that between Wolverine and Magneto in Days of Futures Past. Which is funny because Maisy is going to be part of that universe too.
Dee Stark,
That’s what I’m thinking too.
Nymeria ‘did’ regognise Arya but… knowing D&D’s lack of love for putting expenditure into direwolves, I won’t be surprised to never to see Nymeria again.
(maybe another horrific scene of wights killing another direwolf)
The Arya scenes were definitely the best part of this episode. Hot Pie and Nymeria! Curious to see if Nymeria is gone for good or if their proximity to each other is going to cause Arya to get her warging powers.
I know people are pissy about it being “filler” because they want every episode to be episode 9 and 10 epic, but come on. We needed a set up episode for the rest of the season. I loved seeing Dany and Olenna together. As much fun as it was seeing Jon beat up on LF a bit, it was probably not a great move on his part. LF already wants to take him out, now he really, really wants to. I still think Sansa is going to take him down though!
I think I’ll appreciate this episode more later on though. I spent the whole thing anticipating the first contact between Jon and Dany. The whole series has been building up to that and I’m excited it’s finally almost here.
Well that was bloody amazing. Better than the first one. I loved the pace. I thought the dialogue was more than alright. Probably one of the better eps out there for me. Don’t get the hate.
Nope! That look was total shock on her,she will be setting up LF even more I think.
Inside the Episode:
Chuck,
Yes! The Dany and Varys scene was well written and very neccesary in my opinion.
People act as if the show would feature all of this important battle planning in a damn ship. That seems pretty uneventful and would negate the impact of Dany actually leading in Dragonstone.
Nymeria and her pack!!!!! Gawd, I hope that isn’t the last we see of her.
OOooo That makes sense and me a bit happier 🙂
This show is 6+ seasons in. You know what you are going to get with this show at this point. If you can’t stop yourself from complaining while it is airing, the show is probably not for you.
And like I said before, there is so much content out there today that I find people’s complaints more a reflection of themselves then the actual content. I didn’t like Iron Fist. So I just stopped watching. I didn’t go on message boards to complain about the show while I was watching it.
Nymeria was hanging and Obara was impaled. Ellaria, Yara, Tyene are hostages.
YES! I’ve been waiting 20 frickin’ YEARS for Jon to meet Dany. My heart is pounding! You can bet it’s been built up in my mind waaaaaayy too much. But just can’t help it!
Interesting that Arya will apparently wind up at Winterfell soon?!
I’m officially Euron trash. Bye Jaime *pushes out the window*
mimi,
Niece and nephew (not that they know that). Will be an epic meeting I’m hoping. Also looking forward to seeing Jon and Tyrion reunite; their story in season 1 was a good mini arc.
Yeah, this has been my biggest problem with the series for the last three years. The nearly-seamless puzzle created by GRRM has, for the sake of Drama, has been turned into a pile of spaghetti, with significant illogical elements of behavior, travel, and time marring nearly every episode. At this point, we should be well past the point that we realize that we just have to suck this up, and it will continue from here to the end.
The Dany & Varys scene is one of the best of the show. I loved the back and forth.
Battling the Silence!
Yeah, thought about that too.
Sansa’s Knight,
War torture rape does the same PTSD to women as to guys, she doesn’t have to be bipolar. She also has trust issues, big time.
I agree wholeheartedly. For some reason I didn’t mention that. Dany’s scenes, especially her expressions, were quite captivating. We even got some great lore! The Dragonstone scenes were impressive but get on that dragon and do your air force thing, Queen of the Ashes!
It looks like Yara/Theon took the runt of the ironborn naval forces though. The Silence must be really silent. Total Yara fail.
+ The Nymeria scene was brief, but the excellent Maisie Williams totally sells it.
+ The closing battle was pretty cool, and Euron was genuinely threatening for the first time, even if he’s rather different from the book. Plus, he killed two of the three Sand Snakes! Euron for President!
+ The Northern scenes were on the whole well-done, except for one moment, discussed below.
+ I thought the Citadel scenes were strong as well, and I liked Sam bringing up his appreciation for the late Lord Commander.
+ Grey Worm and Missandei’s scene was very good, and I liked the attention to what a big moment this is for Grey Worm, being naked in this way. Plus, even if he doesn’t have a penis, he has a pretty nice ass (Missandei, meanwhile, remains the most attractive woman on the show).
– There are a couple of time in this episode where we get conversations that should have happened much earlier. The Varys scene is the ultimate example of this. Dany met Varys in Meereen, and then they sailed together for what must have been months, and she’s only now remembering all this stuff? Not to mention, I have no idea why the show decided to call attention to what an inconsistent character Varys is as a result of the show writers changing his motivations midway through. In particular, Dany points out the utter idiocy of scheming to replace Robert with Viserys in the name of the realm, and then that’s basically sidestepped in favour of his big monologue about how everything he does is for the realm.
– The Jon/Littlefinger scene. Much as we all enjoy seeing Littlefinger get choked again, this scene doesn’t make sense. First, what is Littlefinger trying to accomplish here? Jon is leaving, his goal is to manipulate Sansa. Second, I’m sorry, but are we to believe that Jon has never had a real conversation with Littlefinger before this point? They’ve been in the same place for what must be months, and Littlefinger, as the Lord Protector of the Vale, is the most valuable ally King Jon has (as Sansa pointed out to Brienne last episode). Said ally being the person he slams against the wall, which is not how one goes about managing such relationships, given that Jon’s whole mission of late is bringing everybody together in a huge alliance to overcome grudges and beat the White Walkers.
– If I were Dany, I would be questioning the competence of virtually all of my subordinates after this episode, apart from Missandei and Grey Worm, from grand admiral Yara who doesn’t notice a huge fleet until they’re literally right on top of them, to information-gatherer Varys who hasn’t heard anything about Jon being crowned king, which must have happened months ago, to master politician Olenna, who apparently didn’t notice that her vassals wandered off to King’s Landing to meet with Cersei (Varys didn’t notice that either). You can feel the writers’ thumbs pressing damn hard on the scale for Cersei here.
ash,
Yes ptsd for sure
If she’s playing a two face game, it’s for Jon’s and the North’s benefit, she hasn’t forgot who’s there and the Northern way won’t work on LF, he use it for his purpose, out side of Brienn,Pod she trust no one, and only Lord Royce knows how the South and LF plays besides her.
It may look shady to a lot of viewers, but this girl is Stark Steel, she die to protect Jon and the North and she make sure LF have the same fate.
The same puzzle that is so complicated that even GRRM himself can’t write himself out of? Fans like you make me laugh. The author himself can’t find a way to end the story and yet you are mad to the TV show for hurrying up timelines to get to what really matters? Pffttt……
Red Sparrow,
Do you seriously believe that this abbreviation of the plot is not 100% necessary to finish the series in 8 seasons? They (D&D) know what scenes they have to show and how fast the plot has to advance. If both things can’t mesh well… You try to make it work the best way possible. For me it’s blatantly obvious that this is the only option for the writers. And I’ve accepted this change of pace since season one, when they announced that the series would have around 7-8 seasons. It was impossible to keep the original pace and finish this huge story in less than 12 seasons.
Cersei and Daenerys…two peas in a pod. Both think the other will destroy the realm. The two should meet and have one on one battle of the queens. Throw them in a fighting cage like the mad max thunderdome.
Writing isn’t bad. Yes, it’s not as good as the first half of the series but that’s because without books they have nowhere to draw lines from. IMO the writing is more than enjoyable, GoT has become a show that transcends whatever someone may deem as bad
by its overall story and actions furthering that story. S06.09 & S06.10 aren’t considered best episodes of this series because of dialogue that’s for sure.
I think your inability to handle criticism is more a reflection of yourself. You are not the show, it is not your identity. A criticism of the show is not a criticism of you.
I criticize the show because I like it and want it to be the best that it can be. I criticize it because it is not perfect and there is merit in discussing both the things that it gets right and the things that it gets wrong.
What do you want discussion to be? Just people repeating things that happened in the episode and saying, “it was cool when this happened, and then it was cool when that happened.” “Oh, yes, I agree. It was also cool when this happened.” “Sure was!”
Why even bother discussing it in that case.
The Bastard,
I love all of your replies today lol. Reading my mind.
Oh and Sam writes ASOIAF at the end CONFIRMED!
I completely agree. The nature of television is that the pace has to quicken as you get closer to the climax. Books don’t necessarily have to do this.
We are so lucky that the show has not kept it’s insanely high quality over 6 seasons and 2 episodes. If they kept the same pace and did 12 seasons, there is no doubt the show would have suffered greatly.
How do I know this was a good episode? My roommate (who started watching on demand 6 months ago) ran downstairs just to curse me out when it was over! She’s legit upset about needing to wait a week for the next one. I couldn’t stop laughing!
That said, I really loved this episode. Jon vs Petyr was amazing. Sam treating Jorah was super gross, but thank the Seven he did it! Poor Theon, he just wants to be safe, damn it! Stop putting him in battles! I really hope the Sansa vs Jon peeps are happy, he left her the North while he tries to convince Dany that White Walkers are an actual thing.
Finally, ALL HAIL LADY OLENNA!
And it looks like she’s heading in Bronn’s direction. (¬‿¬)
Sean C.,
I agree about the Jon/LF scene…not sure I understood the purpose there. I was wondering if they were going to have LF reveal Jon’s lineage (nod to the scene with LF and Sansa in the same crypt a couple seasons ago). I don’t think the scene was necessary, other than Jon showing his respect for Ned.
Soooooo, that was Nymeria? I was a little thrown by Arya’s ” That’s not you”
I hope we see her and her pack again.
Flayed Potatoes,
“I’m officially Euron trash. Bye Jaime *pushes out the window*”
HAHA! 🙂
“Stay away from my sister”…???? Really, KitN 2.0? No juicy tidbits from LF? No insights to exploit? Ridiculously nonsensical scene. Ranks up there with the Loras and Sansa garden scene.
Totally Agree!
This is an open forum last time I checked, and just because I didn’t like one episode, doesn’t mean I don’t like the show and doesn’t mean I don’t have the right to watch the show (or express my opinions)
Some people 🙄
My review after first watch:
Overall rating a B-. Lots to like but too many missed opportunities.
Oleanna was the best thing about the war council. The back-and-forth between Dany and Varys was excellent. The rest of the dialogue was uninspiring. Melisandre’s bit was merely staging for the Jon Snow visit, with useless prattle about princes and princesses. Could have had more power/depth/gravitas without making it any longer.
I loved the love scene between Greyworm and Missandei. Beautiful and moving.
Cercei/Jaime/Tarlys: Eh, what happened there? I forgot. Oh yeah, filler to show that some people will back Cercei. The writing was forgettable as was both Cercei and Jaime.
Jon Snow/War Room: I didn’t feel like Jon made a strong case to leave. The words were there but they weren’t convincing, and the delivery could have sounded more desperate. Now that Sansa has what she wanted all along, let’s see if she’s as smart as she thinks she is.
Jon/LF: A scene that could have been meaningful to the story but in the end only established that they don’t like each other. Still, seeing LF get clotheslined into a stone wall was immensely gratifying.
Arya/Hot Pie: Seemed…mechanical…until Hot Pie tells Arya about Jon. I LOVED when Arya had to make a choice between the two roads (and cheered when she picked the right one!) We should get a reunion next episode…either w/ Jon on the road or Sansa at Winterfell :). The little joke about the pies was cute too.
Arya/Nymeria: I was in tears. Until Nymeria turned away. As I mentioned in another comment…was this simply tying a loose end? If so, then I’m totally disappointed. If it’s just re-establishing Nymeria in the storyline for better things later, I’ll take it.
Yara/Theon/Euron etc: I’m glad 2/3 of the sand snakes are dead. They should never have lived. The rest of the battle was visually cool and the twist of Theon was classic. Great way to not give us what we want but yet stay true to the character. I was sure Theon was going to die, and his cowardice probably saved both of their lives.
Summary: I don’t think the showrunners are using time wisely. Given the short season and shorter S8, every second counts. We spend a lot of time on Sam wandering around trying to convince the Arch-Maester of this and that, Yara and head-sand-snake-lady uselessly flirting, and sub-characters filling in minor details. At the same time, the big plotlines almost feel like they’re happening too fast and not as well developed.
Still, I love the show and I love every episode they give us. Can’t wait til next week! Now off to watch it again and see what I missed.
ramses,
Maybe it was actually Ghost using Nymeria’s face 😉
How did Euron know that Ellaria was on Yara’s ship? I am curiuous to know if there is a mole in Daeny’s team? Is one of the little birds actually reporting to Qyburn?? or was Daeny’s talk to Varys setting up something?
Clever advice:
I can see why some are not liking the writing and some conversations. I personally have really enjoyed most of it. I think the issue is that even when the show veered from the written books, actually, quite often, they still had the roadmap. With the book series unfinished there is nothing really to compare to or use. I know GRRM is still heavily involved with the show, but his own words are not yet written so we lack the comparison or his take. This leaves the conversations and current writing to stand on its own and since it’s all new and not it a book already it’s hard to relate if this is truly Martin’s vision. I have to give some big respect to the show runners, it has to be tough finishing someone else’s story before they have. I imagine they are winging some, collaborating with Martin on some, and also being asked to hold some back from Martin. It’s a strange situation. I do still firmly believe this is one of the greatest shows ever. It’s a shame the books aren’t finished so they had the completed roadmap, but we’re still able to veer when they saw fit for a tv adaptation. In a perfect world, but right now I’m looking at it as its own thing and I really love that thing.
Ginevra,
I loved that too. Arya learns a bit from everyone she meets, and I’m confident she’ll remember than next time she needs to bake her enemies into a pie 🙂
@Thronetender pretty sure it was the two sand snake daughters that daddy Euron slayed with his big war axe
Exactly my reaction…hopefully he is writing with Gilly and Little Sam at his side. (and yes, I am hoping for a happy ending for them.)
Ginevra,
Thanks, I forgot to watch that.
In the episode 3 preview, is Jaime in KL or at CR?
Wow thanks for the laugh dude! ‘Nearly seamless puzzle’!!! HaHaHa! The last thing GRRM’s unfinished mess of a narrative should ever be called is ‘nearly seamless’. GRRM sycophants have become such a joke.
Deduction. Important people on important ships.
That’s fine. As long as it’s not like the Roseanne finale and we learn that Sam’s been rearranging things to suit his desires. I’ll be very annoyed if suddenly Gilly buys a winning Powerball ticket…
My inability to handle criticism? Hmmm…. Nobody is criticizing me, so why would I not be able to handle it?
I specifically stated I have a problem with people posting criticisms WHILE watching the show.
You criticize it because you want it to be better? This show isn’t going to change. It is in it’s 7th seasons. It is exactly what it is has been. Right now is just to “payoff” to the first 6 seasons.
This is without question the best show in the history of television. Every episode right now is like a mini-movie. If you really have that much to complain about, nothing will please you.
Jack Bauer 24,
It was Ned’s spirit inside of Nymeria
Chuck,
😆 Crafty wolf🐺
The last scene with Jon and Sansa reminded me of something proposed in the latest Game of Owns:
I got the feeling that something had been resolved between them before Jon skedaddled.
Team arya,
I love when the show gets circular like that both in dialogue and action.
You’re just sort of making my point for me, though. They’re making the writing less organic because they’re trying to fit more stuff into fewer episodes. That is damaging the quality of the show.
No, this is not the only option. They could have made a nine season show, or a ten season show, or a 14 season show. They could have reigned in the budget to shoot 20 more episodes instead of 13 episodes, which might have meant less epic battle scenes but would have meant more time for character development and interpersonal drama.
This is the most popular, highest budget show in television history. They basically have carte blanche to make whatever they want. Trust me when I say that there is nobody at HBO going, “Man, this show, we really need to bring it to a swift end. It’s really profitable, but eight seasons, man, that’s the maximum.” Likewise, the audience wants more and more.
The reality is that D&D want the show to be over because they want to work on their own project. And the reality is that they’re not as good at writing a show as they are at adapting a book.
Of course, like I said, there are certainly plenty of people who would prefer the politics, geography, and complex web of characters to be trimmed for the sake of more badass moments. And that’s basically what we’re getting now. An abridged season with all of the budget funneled into the impressive setpieces.
Sean C.,
I just want to say, while I loved the episode (and am just a positive guy in general), and I don’t agree with all of your criticisms, I think you explained them very well, and I can definitely respect your opinion. This is the kind of critical analysis I can get behind – Fairly judging and explaining what you liked and what you didn’t, and coming to a verdict based on that.
And honestly, your criticisms are all valid points. I guess I just don’t really pay attention to stuff like that, so they don’t bother me…
A great episode, other than the pointless waste of screen time on Grey Worm and Missandei. Like we aren’t racing headlong into the end of the story, and they give us … that?
Jeez o’Pete. It was nice seeing Varys and Littlefinger get slapped around, <
spoiler> too.Can we start an Emmy campaign for Alfie Allen right now? Because dude was just amazing tonight.
Can’t wait for the rest of Theon’s season 7 story… because tonight his started with a bang!
GhostCR,
I’m sure Euron knows which is the Captains ship (Yaras)
The rest is just to give his men orders to capture anyone worth of value if seen on any ship.
Btw really loved that episode
I teared up twice this episode:
1) When Arya stopped eating and stood up as soon as she heard Hot Pie tell her that Jon had taken WF and he’s KITN now. I knew Jon would be the one to “bring her back home”.
2) When Arya and Nymeria faced each other. (Was so sad and disappointed when Nymeria turned away.)
Then, a few scenes after Jon declared he’s going south. I was like, “Oh no!” I’m still holding out hope that they’d meet on the road but that’s a really loooong shot. Perhaps the much anticipated Jon-Arya reunion will have to wait for now. 🙁
Red Sparrow,
14 season show? Stop. Just stop. You sound like a fool.
Nymeria returns! Jon is on his way to Dany! Euron on the warpath! Grey Worm and Missandei! Hell yes to ALL of it!
Every scene on Dragonstone this week – Dany and Varys, Dany and Olenna, Grey Worm and Missandei – was straight fire. I love all it!
And while Sam Tarly may not be abiding by conventional medical ethics in undertaking such a procedure, in the dire case of Ser Jorah, I’ll make an exception.
But before I articulate the rest of my thoughts about this episode, there’s one potential burgeoning “controversy” on which I want to make sure that my position is clear: Theon jumping ship rather than trying to save Yara. From tangential reaction on social media, I can already see this will be the Internet’s absolutely asinine, utterly bullshit fixation for the upcoming week. And I’m already enraged about the unequivocally garbage takes this action will inspire (to be clear, the anger is directed at the hot takers, not the show).
Theon Greyjoy is a trauma victim. He went through unspeakable horrors at the hands of Ramsay. I understand that for the casual crowd, it’s cute to say “Oh, when is he going to man up? When is he going to stop being a little bitch? That shit with Ramsay was three whole seasons ago! He lost his dick, and now he’s being a dickless little coward. HAHAHAHA. Theon Greyjoy, man. To hell with him. He’s hopeless.”
Bullshit. Absolute, unequivocal, bullshit. Theon went through near-unimaginable trauma. That just doesn’t vanish for the convenience of the weekend warriors. I know that the decision to show Theon’s torture wasn’t popular for many, but the show did it for a reason: to show what happens when a person is utterly broken by the horrors inflicted upon them by the world.
Yes, Theon fought his way back. Yes, he helped Sansa escape. Yes, Yara gave him the pick-me-up speech in Volantis. All of this is true. But what’s also true is that the scars that Ramsay left on Theon will never, ever go away. And when he saw his fellow Ironborn cut down, his ship burning, his sister being held captive by a cackling, sadistic lunatic, his experience was triggered. Through cinematic craft and visual storytelling, the show made this explicitly clear, and anyone who didn’t pick up on it is a fool. And so, Theon went overboard. Disappointing in the moment. Completely understandable from the perspective of anyone who thinks about it on more than a superficial level.
On a pure narrative level, am I disappointed that Theon didn’t try to save Yara? Of course I am. I love Yara as a character. I don’t want her to fall into Euron and Cersei’s clutches. But character-wise, I understand why Theon went overboard. In his current state, he wasn’t ready to face Euron – a man who bears more than a cursory resemblance to Ramsay Bolton. He’ll regret this to be certain, and one day, he may well find a way to face what happened to him. But that day wasn’t today.
This is not the end of Theon’s story. He may yet find peace, and narrative redemption. But in this moment, the show was true to Theon’s experience. And that’s what matters.
excellent episode!!!
-loved the Crypt scene. Jon is not usually that open about disliking someone (and our KiTN can be downright SNOTTY when he wants to be lol!) LF was prolly having Ned flashbacks there. Speaking of LF.. how did he convince himself that little conversation was gonna end well?? He was shook at the end though…LF is SCARED ya’ll ..love it!
-That sea battle was awesome! lovin Euron this season and Theon tore my heart out at the end when he jumped ship…(to be fair to him, I am not sure even season 1 Theon would have gone for that bait either…he wouldnt have been as obvious maybe, but the end result would have been the same)
-Dany and Varys going toe to toe was great..and I love that we can already see a “different” Dany after being around Tryion for just the small amount of time she has been. QoT ,Mamma SS and Yara all trying to get her hyped but Varys and Tryion (who we know are giving her the right advice) keeping her on course, so far at least
Missy/GW scene was sweet..but I did have to snort and say “yeah, so male virgins in GOT universe come pre- programed for THAT” and then “wonder if GW was as good as Jon was at it” hehehe
Imma quit watching citadel scenes…two weeks in a row they got me with yucky “stuff” turning into food!! and Sam needed to bring ALOT more rum..or just smack him on the head and knock him out..i better see some skin smooth as a babys butt next episode after watching that!
the Ayra/Nimera scene was all right.. in the books that will be AMAZING because GRRM has built the Stark/wolves relationships up but the show has pretty much negated all that so it whatever..I would have much preferred they spent “wolf budget” on Ghost as Jon is the only Stark still WITH his
DANY /JON NEXT WEEK!!!! YEEEESSSS
The Bastard,
If you scroll to the top of the page it says “open chat”. Do you understand the meaning?
It’s not “open chat except when the episode is on so shut your damn mouths motherf#ckers”!
So we have every right to comment when we choose to, Such as during a damn ad break.
We don’t need your permission.
Jack Bauer 24,
Arya meant that the wildness was not part of her life going forward.
Sean C.,
I see what you are saying – and yeah in Meereen they should have talked that through. But when Varys left for Dorne, I don’t think Dany thought he’d be back with ships, and she needed them. Now that she’s in her place, she can talk about this. As far as the strategy session, like they said on the ‘inside got’ portion, it was way cool having all these incredbly strong intelligent woman at the table, literally. Whether it could have been written better is another story.
I too am looking forward to jon seeing Tyrion as well as Dany. And he’ll see Varys – does he know Jon’s parentage?
Sorry folks, but a simple fly around by Dany and Big D once they got near Dragonstone would have spotted the ironborn armada and other threats. Air force reconnaissance first then ground/naval forces. Stupid invasion tactics thus far.
Wow thanks for the laugh dude! ‘Nearly seamless puzzle’!!! HaHaHa! The last thing GRRM’s unfinished mess of a narrative should ever be called is ‘nearly seamless’. GRRM sycophants have become such a joke always spouting nonsense like this.
Jared,
Wonderful analysis. 100% agree.
Ginevra,
Thanks for posting it. Couldn’t find the last one.
You guyssssss
I loved this episode I cantttt
Ahhh, Ghost. Where are you? Please come back!!!
In the books, one of my favorite parts were the interactions between Jon and Ghost. And one of the things that endeared the Starks to me was their relationships/connections with their direwolves. Too bad these can’t be captured that much on the show as doing CGI on direwolves is too expensive.
Sean C.,
Yeah, now that you mention it…..wonder if they were doing 10 episodes if they would have written it that way – I suspect they would have had conversations that built up to that one. And re the group of Schultz’s (I see nothing I hear nothing…..) those were definitely holes that needed to be filled, and no real excuse for that.
Dee Stark,
Dee! Glad you enjoyed it. I did too. Of all the scenes, I loved those with Arya and Dany. But of course, any scene with our Jon is “perfect”, as always. LOL! 🙂
Watching at a quarter speed via the settings wheel and pausing often, we can almost make out Yara, leashed to Euron as he trots her out:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z2pRLR6Ns5I
That quote reminds me of a certain Twitter braggart! It was HYUUUGE!
Jon and Davos, lead in by Tyrion, Missandei, and some Dothraki!!!!
Euron in the throne room, again, presumably to present his gift of Ellaria and Tyene…
Sansa looking queenly in Winterfell…
Team Dany invading Casterly Rock…
Where is Jaime? What courtyard is that?
The Bastard,
If you think this is the best show in television history, I think you probably haven’t watched enough good television.
Having the budget of a mini-movie in each episode doesn’t mean the show is automatically good. It means they can spend a ton of money on cameras, FX, sets, and costumes. And sure, maybe this is the best looking show in television history. I won’t deny that; the quality of production design on this show is the main reason I still watch it.
But, do you know what doesn’t cost that much money to produce? A script. And there are countless television shows with lower budgets that are written far better than Game of Thrones has been for the last several seasons.
I would easily put Fargo, American Gods, Twin Peaks, and Better Call Saul ahead of Game of Thrones for the best shows currently airing, based on just the first two episodes of the season of course. Frankly, I would probably give the title to Better Call Saul, a show with no battles and no dragons, which relies almost entirely on the quality of its writing. It is absolutely stellar.
Hodors Bastard,
I’m pretty sure Euron attacked them while they were going down to Sunspear, there is no way for Dany or anyone on Dragonstone to know about that because they weren’t close to Dragonstone.
I’m definitely among the minority but…..
I fucking adored this episode. Special shoutouts for the Dany and Varys scene. Her cross examination of him showed how much she’s vicariously learning from Tyrion’s counsel. She doesn’t want any loose threads in her forces. Admirable.
The naval battle was a wonderful ending. The cinematgraphy was exceptional and it really highlighted Euron’s prowess for sea combat. It’s great to see that he’s not just all talk. Oh and Theon made the right call. Had he tried to save Yara she would no doubt be murdered. AND the guy freaking has PTSD! Theon needs to survive so that he can rebound and launch a rescue attack with a newfound sense of resolve. And next time, hopefully win.
Correct. You don’t need my permission. You absolutely can post on an open chat. When have I said you couldn’t?
What I have said is that if you feel the need to post negative comments while watching such an established show during the middle of it…. you might want to find another show to watch. There is SO MUCH content out there. Find something you do enjoy.
Honestly, if you can’t help yourself from hating on a show so much that you have to post a negative comment while it is airing…. it reflects more on the viewer then it does on the actual show.
Overall, a pretty good episode. Nowhere near as impactful as last week’s but still good. A lot of setup for storylines to come.
Varys and Daenerys’s speech about blind allegiance… Bloody brilliant ! Rulers should demand frankness and criticism from their advisors, not comfort or reassurance.
However, I still do not believe Varys is that interested in the common people. A Dothraki invasion in season 1 would have devastated Westerosi civilians, regardless of which Targaryen was the heir at the time.
Side note : Daenerys wants Jon to bend the knee. How utterly unsurprising !
Cersei is quite nailing this queen thing in regards to negociations, I must say . The way she described the risks, both objective and fantasised, of Daenerys’s invasion was magnificent : precise, detailed, full of brutal and vivid imagery. Superbly efficient ! And Jaime pulled his own weight too ; his head-to-head with Tarly was pretty convincing. The reveal of the anti-dragon WMD was great too. Qyburn is a smart and useful cookie. I love him.
I was a bit surprised at first that so many lords of the Reach could have gone to King’s Landing without Olenna’s knowledge but, given Lady Tyrell’s mindset as revealed by her conversation with Daenerys, I no longer find it astonishing.
Daenerys’s small council is completely disfunctional. For a brief week, I actually believed the Mother of Dragons was the one monarch in Westeros with an operational government and this episode proved me wrong. Tyrion knows the Sands killed his niece, the Sands hate all Lannisters (him included), the Ironborn have no reason to be here (really) and seem vaguely incompetent, as for Olenna, she just wants Cersei to die and gives remarkably bad advice to her queen for the sole sake of her revenge. Tyrion’s invasion plan is sound, PR-wise, but given the queen of thorne’s intervention, I have a feeling it may not going to be followed.
The Citadel : Jim Broadbent is a wonder ! Gruffy, scruffy, wise but old-fashioned… The perfect foil for fresh-faced but talented Sam who, by the by, is a sneaky and brilliant fellow. The scene with Jorah was both viscerally disgusting and hilarious. Loved it ! Who does not like a physician who needs a stiff drink before he can do his job ? ^^
Arya… Her exchange with Hot Pie was heartbreaking because, for the most part, she barely looked at him. She was entirely detached and indifferent to him until he mentioned Winterfell. Only then did she connect. (On a sidenote : yeah Hot Pie ! ^^)
As for her scene with Nymeria, it was tragic but predictable. The direwolf has not seen her former owner in six years ; of course, she does not remember who Arya is. The moment was incredibly truthful to what I tend to consider to be the bottomline of Arya’s narrative arc : what is lost is lost forever.
The North… I enjoyed the political storyline and Jon undoubtedly made the right decision but what the hell ? Is he allergic to talking to his close circle before making big public proclamations ? Does he love the theatrics so much he wants to surprise everyone, even the very people he should warn beforehand ? That is the second occurrence in a row now. It is not a sound form of government !
Lyanna, for the very first time, disagreed with Jon and that is not a good sign. From the beginning, she has operated as the voice of the Northern nobility. She is solely responsible for crowning Jon and has always been vocally and decisively supportive. Her opposition announces trouble.
Perhaps, talking to her in private before the public meeting and hearing out her arguments to counter them directly and in detail would have helped. Just sayin’…
In regards to the Stark siblings, I really did like their interaction ; they are clearly dedicated to each other’s welfare. She is terrified he may fall into a trap and wants him safe and he gets angry when Littlefinger mentions her.
Which brings us neatly to… The choke 2.0. I have always loathed the cliché of the guy getting all worked-up and overbearing when it comes to his female relative’s “sexuality”, either real or imagined : the father who freaks out about his daughter’s getting a boyfriend, the brother who becomes angry at his sister’s date… I associate this with awful teenage “comedies” from the 1980s. I understand and accept that Jon does have reasons to be particularly sensitive to this topic in regards to Sansa, given what he knows Ramsay did to her, and he has every right to detest Baelish but still… It was so caveman-ish and over-the-top, almost comical in its disproportion which, I would guess, was the goal. When Ned choked Littlefinger, it was over a similar matter (Baelish telling Ned he had hidden Catelyn in a brothel). Stark men really have to relax a bit. Sit down, have a drink and breathe.
Littlefinger : his gleeful micro-reaction to Lyanna’s opposition and the King’s decision to name Sansa as his replacement was a sight to behold. I honestly giggled when he told Jon he and Ned “had (their) disagreements”. I suppose that is one way to put it. ^^
Baelish’s decision to taunt Jon was dangerous but not unsound. One of his main trades is finding people’s weaknesses, their soft spots, so he can later use them to his advantage. He talked about Ned and Jon managed to keep his cool ; he mentioned Catelyn and Jon remained stoic ; he alluded to Bran, Rickon and Robb and Jon kept it together ; he said something about the Great War to come and Jon was unmoved ; he referred to Sansa and… Jon exploded. Now, Littlefinger knows for certain. That should be interesting !
Euron : It is official, I actually enjoy what he brings to the story. He is certifiably insane and fills the “resident sadist” spot left vacant by Ramsay.
I wish I cared more about the Sands’ fate but, regardless of my relative indifference, it was still pretty brutal to see them interact like normal sisters one minute and be massacred the next;
Theon… Poor broken man ! He clearly has PTSD and the brutality on display during the battle reminded him of his former torturer so he did what he did at Winterfell, he jumped to escape.
Red Sparrow,
Too be fair yes the show can be made to 13 seasons and add and fit more layers upon layers of storyline George created. However, for a show that’s exhausting. For the actors and crew as well if they want to move on and do bigger things and not held back by contracts and timing.
As much as I love the show and story there’s no denying I’m ready for the end game already.
Can’t keep the White Walkers behind that wall for 13 seasons that’s insane! the show has a TV audience that’s bigger than those of us that are book readers
Edward,
Nah, you aren’t in the minority. This place just has some people who just want the attention by posting negative stuff. The general consensus of this show in general has always been much higher then some of the overly negative posters on here.
Agreed. And how shitty is Yara as a naval commander? Her entire fleet taken by surprise? They just rolled over. Maybe instead of bumping donuts with Ellira she should have been concerned about an attack or having a better picket line and some recon. What a dumb asss.
I really liked the episode. I came here after watching and I was a little bit surprised by some negative impressions. I think the editing was amazing as it was in ep 1. I loved the transitions for the initial scenes in Dragonstone, Winterfell and King’s Landing. I also liked the way that Hot Pie told about the Battle of the Bastards to Arya without mentioning the essential support of the Lords of the Vale. I guess they would tell this history differently in Old Town.
It was a great episode, I’m loving all of Arya’s scenes for the first time since the beginning of season 5 and that makes me happy. And that flagship vs. flagship fight! So good!
This episode has turned the tables massively. Dany no longer has the Greyjoy fleet, Dorne is leaderless and unlikely to mobilise, and Cersei has wrestled the Tarlys and half the other vassels from Olenna.
I’d also like to point out that in the books Euron got his fleet to sneak up on the Shield Islands without them knowing too using his super sailing skills
The Bastard,
The people who post positive stuff get more attention.
Bran has yet to contact winterfell yet jon is making it to dragonstone? Daeny sales past Dorne to … go back and swap soldiers? Euron is apparently more of a fire wielder than 3 dragons?
Plus Hot Pie, Nym, miss n grey and Sam equals a yes for me simon
Something said in the interviews – can’t recall the exact phrasing – makes me think that Theon will go after Yara just as Yara went after him. Hopefully he’ll be more successful than she, but I agree that this isn’t the end of Theon’s story. I thought jumping overboard, especially giving the buildup with his amazing facial expressions, was spot on.
The Bastard,
You’re right I’m definitely noticing the influx of bad comments are usually as the episode is airing or right after the episode is done. In my opinion a show like Game of Thrones needs a bit of time to process. There’s always so much going on in each scene and the dialogue, while some may argue weak, still packs a considerable punch when it wants to. I usually watch a second time before delivering any concrete judgements. But as of now, I really enjoyed it.
I understand what you mean. While I enjoyed watching Jon choking LF to almost-death, a part of me wished there was a scene instead between the siblings saying good-bye or giving wise words to each other… like, “don’t let the dragons burn you” or “don’t let Littlefinger deceive you”. You know, some very obvious advice. 🙂 I kid. But yeah, having a tender moment before they parted ways (like the Jon-Robb or Jon-Arya good-byes) would have been nice. Come to think of it, those were the scenes (the “tug at your heartstrings” scenes) that made me fall in love with this show. They don’t happen that often now though.
Ok…if that’s how you accept it. If there was a major timeshift between scenes, maybe. But did you watch last week’s episode? Every frickin’ ironborn ship was in Blackwater Bay! Clear skies. Yara had to know that Euron was nearby and should have been ready. Simple daily recon. Dany, get on your damn horse and have a look-see.
Hodors Bastard,
Yep, I agree.
Red Sparrow,
Why are you even here with posts like this? Go watch shows you actually enjoy. Are you a masochist? I can never understand people who watch GoT (for seven years!) when they obviously hate it.
So —
Jon refuses to bend the knee. Dany goes Mad-Queen and orders him burnt at the stake for his treason.
Jon’s funeral pyre is set up before the assembled characters. The Red Woman is there.
Strangely, the flames don’t consume Jon. He remains “unburnt” at the end, which confirms his Targ heritage. Everyone stares aghast.
The “prince who was promised” (which also now means “princess”) is redefined to mean both prince and princess. Jon marries Dany, and they become allies.
The numbers for likability ratings actually typically fall as time progresses. Dragonstone is at 8.8, which isn’t that high from a GoT premiere at one week in, since this number often continues to fall. And the current episode is 8.6, which is especially low for the night-of rating. Since the numbers usually drop at least a few tenths from the night-of, we might be looking at one of the lowest five rated episodes, which isn’t to say it wasn’t wonderful, but it wasn’t an especially wonderful episode for Game of Thrones. I had no specific issues, just fewer specific thrills than normal. Of course, with variability and so few ratings thus far, it is possible for that Stormborn number to rise.
http://graphtv.kevinformatics.com/tt0944947
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt5655178/?ref_=tt_ep_nx
Yeah weird that Bran hasn’t contacted Jon yet but Dany and Sam did.
Hodors Bastard,
I’m truly underwhelmed with that LF scene. But, I had a feeling it would end up being something like that so it’s not too surprising. I just got through watching, have been reading through some of the comments, and don’t feel like saying much right now except that overall, as someone else stated in their impressions, I don’t feel the gravitas if you will, when it should be there. It’s like Jon and Melisandre were just going through the motions. Was it lacking music, tone, the right camera angles? I dunno.
The way I figured it, Yara didn’t know that Euron was allied with Cersei, so she had no reason to even suspect an attack. As far as she knew, he was still at the Iron Islands, or over in Essos finding out that Dany had already left.
Arya comparing pie baking techniques with Hot Pie? !
Good enough for me. 🍰
Hodors Bastard,
Yeah I agree, I think the pace is a lot faster now. We see in this ep Dany sends a letter to Jon, and the next scene is after Jon has already read it. The poor job the lookouts did could be explained by the raging storm that Euron ”brought”. I had a hard time seeing stuff in that last sequence as well admittedly. And for the sake of this story moving towards its climax quicker than before I think you should overlook stuff like that and understand that they are choosing to show main plot points like this in rapid succession for the sake of getting on with the story rather than focusing on the intricate planning that could have taken place before Euron’s attack.
Red Sparrow,
In D&D’s defense I do think it’s much more of a challenge to conjure up an ending to cherished source material than simply creating a new narrative from virtually scratch (yes I’m aware that BCS is a prequel). Fantasy stories are exceedingly hard to right. That’s why so many within the genre are terribly mediocre and bad. That’s why I’ll never be too hard on D&D. They’re doing something even the wonderful GRRM is having trouble doing.
Oh my dear Olenna! if she knew she doesn’t have an army anymore… I love “you’re a dragon, be a dragon”.
They didn´t want to use rigth away the unsulled and the dothraki, now they have to.
Red Sparrow,
Yes, you DO seriously believe it. I’m sorry for you, but this was expected since a long time ago (at least 6 years). If you didn’t see it, or didn’t want to see it, well, you can’t blame anyone except you for it.
You can repeat something as much as you want, but that doesn’t make it true. They couldn’t have done 12 or 14 seasons, because they, unlike you, know how TV series work. They know that you can’t maintain a high level of quality during so many years, and they know that people would get bored if they stretched the plot too much. I’m sure that you will be able to tell me lots of examples of 9+ seasons-TV series that didn’t lose viewership and/or overall quality during their airing time lapse.
I will ignore again your condescendent last paragraph. If you think that D&D are trying to cather to the more “simple-minded” audience, you have a perfect place to open a thread and talk about it, it’s called westeros.org. By the way, maybe it’s shocking for you, but I really like watching this show and reading books, and the latter doesn’t make me feel the need of going to the Internet to hate on the adaptations of books that I’ve read. I don’t feel superior to non-readers neither. It’s funny to think how sometimes reading books closes people’s minds, instead of opening them.
Grail King,
I have no doubt that the Sansa voiceover heard in the original trailer is a foreshadowing of her true allegiance: “when the cold winds blow the lone wolf dies and the pack survives”.
She may play Littlefinger, but she’s learned his game. She’ll be his demise, too.
I like how you put that. It was interesting that Theon and Yara fought side by side valiantly and with bravado, no confidence issues, but when Yara became the victim, Theon reverted to his former traumatized self (or did he?)…his support mechanism was compromised. Interesting. I do hope that Theon-goes-after-Yara idea works out.
Jewels,
Danearys hears tale of bastard turned king Jon Snow and the shit he faced yet all she can say is summon him, to bend the knee. Screw her. King Jon don’t you dare kneel!
That episode sucked.
Arya went from a cold blooded icelady to a wimp. (The wolf will back when she needs it but she shouldn’t have pleaded, she should have ordered).
Sailing ships would stalk each other for days trying to get the advantage of the wind gauge, NFW EUON ambushes the opposing fleet in the middle of the night.
Theon turns back into Reek.
Greyworm turns into Tom Cruise in Born of the 4th of July.
And what is this Cersei complaining about being so persecuted. Eveybody is picking on her, the murdering whores Sansa, Lady Tyrell, and Tyrion, Give me a break. Who in Westeros does not already know she is an egotistical lying narcissist. Who is going to believe her whining, Maybe she should dump GOT and run for POTUS.
And Daenyrus sails across the sea to do what? Send the Tyrells and Dorne to take King’s Landing. And they didn’t even send the Dothroki anywhere. What are they the Secret Service, guarding Danny at Dragonstone, after she gives that stupid speech to Varys.
I think this was the wurstest episode evah.
Prediction at some point a Dragon Breathes Fire on Jon Snow and they find he too has the Blood of the Dragon. (It may not be a dragon’s breath, but something like that.)
THIS!!! I still can’t believe this is happening this season. I’ve always thought that will be an event for the final season or the finale this season. I’ve always thought it’s Dany who will ride north (to fight in the great war) and that’s how the two will meet. Boy, am I wrong. Gosh, I still haven’t processed this! 😀
The scene in the trailer of Jon meeting Dany, who’s sitting regally on her throne, looked amazing.
Grail King,
Sansa had expressions I’ve never seen from her. Softer, she lost that smug look for the scene where Jon makes his plea going south. I Like her so far, and Sophie’s acting as well.
I haven’t seen it yet cause I’m in the middle of nowhere but goodbye blue filter of hell.See you never.I mean I will probably see you later but whatever lol.I want to see Arya’s face when she hears of Jon.And I want to see the choke that was promised.Did Jon look at Lyanna’s statue?
Okay I just rewatched and I thought Yara was alive, but if so, who is hanging under Obara on the prow of the ship?
Is Yara dead?
West Texas Wind,
I don’t know whether I want to actually conjure up a serious reply or just laugh at the wall of text that totally misunderstood the entire episode.
It’s one of the things I’ve been squawking about all year. Dany must do air recon first if she is to succeed. Yes, I’ll suspend my disbelief about the timeshift but if you are also saying the weather is also a negative in Dany’s recon and force security plan then I must assert that Dany is indeed doomed!
King Podrick,
Don’t bother. He doesn’t want to accept even the most obvious things like those. He just wants to enjoy hating the show and fantasizing about how good it could have been if it had followed 100% the books. Doesn’t matter if he hasn’t (and never will) read the books that this season is adapting, though.
Hahaha! BTW did they establish that Arya knew that was Hot Pie? I knew it was, but DH got a little confused till i reminded him about the conversation with Brienne.
Oh the scene with GW and M was just lovely, all of it.I think probably one of the best sex scenes they’ve done on the show.
Hodors Bastard,
Don’t know the exact timing of arrival of both fleets so Euron could have been days or weeks ahead of Dany so they might not have seen it
Jack Bauer 24,
Bran has sadly been relegated to a minor character on the show.
Sorry, I was talking out my ass! It was aired at the normal time – 9pm eastern stateside and 2am where I live. I misread the time as I was on Sky Atlantic+1 hour and on that channel it said 02:50 – so I was wrong on both accounts!
I want them to be allies, but I’m with you. NO knee bending!
Dee Stark,
haha that’s right…I guess it didn’t make an impression on me so much because I’ve heard Emilia say the name lots of times in interviews.
It was Nymeria.
One of the rare screw ups this show has done is the Martell/Dorne plot.So much potential but the writers actually made these characters boring and not good enough to feel bad when they die. Sadly the one ethnic great House of Westeros on the show is probably the worst and now ruined*smh*
I like Arya’s acting…so aloof about everything…no emotion with Hot Pie…just a killing machine.
But mention of Jon sparked her…maybe something left of her to save? Get her feeling some emotions again just in time for something bad to happen I guess?
Could Bran not get a raven sent to Jon before Dany’s?
“Hey Bro, I’m alive! I trip balls and I know things! No biggie but you’re half Targ!”
Also, how is peeling off the infected tissue and applying ointment not the first thing anyone tried when addressing Greyscale?
Who told you to put a balm on?
Very convenient that there’s no news of Bran in Winterfell which unrealistic given that enough time has passed that news from the massacre at The Twins is of public , the arrival of Danaerys, the comunications between Dragonstone, Oldtown, King’s Landing and Winterfell.
Of course, if news of Bran return would have get to Winterfell there wouldn’t be anyway to justify naming Sansa as regent of the North.
While Jon’s lack of an inner cabinet, so to speak, feels very amateurish, I do like that the current Northern court is the first time in the series anywhere where a royal court has really felt like a real court to me, in terms of having a sizeable number of identifiable vassal lords, between Mormont, Glover, Royce, etc. None of them are big or important characters, but they add a lot to the setting.
Jack Bauer 24,
In the inside the episode they explain it’s a callback to Arya telling Ned ‘that’s not me’ in season one. It is Nymeria but she is not domesticated. That confused me to.
And the internet says that’s not Yara. I think it’s Nymeria Sand.
Am I the only person on this forum who was surprised to learn they cared about Obara?
Holy shit. Shitty Sand Snake banter aside, that was one of the best episodes in a very long time.
Euron is freaking terrifying.
thisgirlhasnoname,
After all she is not queen of anything in Westeros yet, she should view him as an equal, after all, he was elected, she never was, except in her own mind.
rhymeswithweak,
The super-special greyscale cure is pretty wonky.
Maester Broadbent says that it’s not used because it’s dangerous, but if you have a cure for greyscale, you can just treat any physicians who become infected while administering it using the same cure, no?
First thoughts
HOT PIE! NYMERIA!
Okay so Arya’s scenes were all fantastic. She did such a good job being mentally absent and focused on Cersei killing until Hot Pie mentioned Jon. Then seeing the wolf pack after waiting so long? I might have teared up.
Varys speech to Dany was fantastic-and so was her reaction.
Jon and Dany both learning about each other and mentioning each other’s names? Historic episode. SO EXCITED.
Also? Sam is officially a badass. He saved a baby, killed a white walker and a Thenn, stole his father’s valyrian sword, kept a woman on the side while training to be a maester and already a sworn brother AND he went into Jorah’s room and said “I knew your dad, you aren’t dying on my watch”
Maybe the soup/poop montage was meant to prepare him for this procedure because old craven Sam might have passed out.
I LOVE Sam and Jorah together!! Really underscores how vital this alliance with Jon and Dany will be imo.
As to Jon and Sansa episode 2? They were right-THIS MUST BE A PLAN. It has to be. Jon wouldn’t NOT tell her his decision before he gathered the lords, not after experiencing her reactions on multiple occasions and knowing she would be against it. I’m voting for a plan to draw LF into a trap. Just for my own sanity.
Euron is the best evil pirate ever. With two good hands. Cersei is going to send Jaime away again and marry that lunatic. And then hopefully he’ll kill her.
Also I’ve never cheered so much at other people dying. Freys…sand snakes… lol
Cannot wait for next episode!!! Jon and Dany and Tyrion and Dragons-AT THE SAME TIME
…still wondering where Ghost is
Grayven Reyne,
Filler ? How on Earth was any of that “filler” ?
Jenny,
No not that I could tell. It wasn’t, at least imo, set up to be as reflective a scene as the promo pics suggested.
Jared,
This..
Hodors Bastard,
Yeah I had a big problem with that too. i know it was night time, but a thousand iron ships would have been coming into view long before sunset. Made me think of that naval ship that got run into by a container ship? Was no one watching?
mariamb,
No both Nymeria and Obara were killed. It is Nymeria hanging on the bow of Euron’s ship with her own whip. Obara was lifted in the air impaled on a spear which may have been hers?
Not sure about Tyene, she may had been captured along with Elleria and Yara.
It was an interesting episode, the battle did absolutely nothing for me. I wish they would spent more time on some scenes, or some scenes felt as if they needed time to breath a bit more. Especially the Dany and Jon’s scenes.
– The timing of the Dany and Varys chat wasn’t good, but I really enjoyed their conversation.
– Littlefinger is becoming an idiot, what could he possibly hope to gain by telling Jon that he loves Sansa. Did he think Jon would happily marry Sansa off to him or something? I am glad Jon told him that he doesn’t belong in the crypts, I thought the same thing the last he was in the crypts.
– It was great to see Arya realise that her family is home and that she can go home to Jon. Such a shame they will not have a reunion. I like the fact that it wasn’t played up as a difficult decision for Arya as soon as she heard Jon was at Winterfell, she wanted to leave immediately. Her scene with Nymeria was also good. Arya’s scenes were quite emotional, probably the most emotional from the episode. The other emotional scene was Jon sadly appealing to the Northern Lords. He doesn’t really want to leave Winterfell, but must try to gather allies. And Sansa did exactly the same thing she did last week.
– It was nice to see a discussion between Dany and Olenna, although I feel Olenna’s great advice wasn’t all that great.
– Tyrion saying that for decades Casterly Rock has been the real seat of power in Westeros doesn’t really ring true.
– Cersei’s campaign is pretty good, she does a good job. But won’t anyone wonder if she herself is mad after blowing up the Sept.
– The Greyworm and Missandei scene was well done but it seems unnecessary.
Completely agree!! I think there are parallels between Arya’s detachment and indifference to Hot Pie and Nymeria’s to Arya… As you rightfuly said: what is lost is lost forever.
Agreed on everythins else. After the virtual destruction of Dany’s fleet, is Olenna’s advice that terrible though?
Except that didn’t work out so well for the guy who invented that cure and then died of greyscale. Yes, I think it will work out for Sam, but I see why it is banned.
Sean C.,
Yeah, I was hoping for some fancy wildfire concoction or something…
Who cared about Obara? And yes, it was Nymeria not Yara.
Sunfyre,
Maybe some people enjoyed most of the previous seasons but just aren’t liking the new pace, tone whatever you want to call it. Even some of the actors said this season feels like a different show. Everyone’s entitled to change their opinion here and there.
I told you Euron was a fucking boss. I told you! Pilou, you Beautiful man, you have not let me down. ❤ Bye Obara! Bye Nymeria (only one I didn’t mind, dammit)!
Speaking of which….i still find it hilarious that they had to rename Asha to Yara because of Osha being another character. But Nymeria the Snek and Nymeria the wolf, same episode even, that’s fine. Surprised she wasn’t called PuppyDogWolfFace. Robb/Robert/Robyn, Jon/Jon Aryn, etc.
I don’t think that’s the last we’ve seen of wolf Nymeria. Beautiful.
Theon could not have hoped to save Yara, both would be dead. I imagine he will rally, and might just end up saving her in the end. I hope.
Cersei’s gonna love her present.
ygritte,
We cannot say we weren’t warned. Time and time again, Daenerys has said she intends to be Queen of the Seven Kingdoms. The writers laid it on as thick as they humanly could. ^^
Furthermore, why would she be impressed by Tyrion’s recap of Jon’s career ? She probably thinks that she has overcome and accomplished as much, if not more.
Also, as far as I can tell, Jon is at a clear disadvantage here. The North has virtually nothing to offer the Mother of Dragons aside from its submission. Conversely, Daenerys has a lot to offer the North, mostly three dragons and the mines of dragonglass she has in her backyard. The meeting should be interesting, to say the least.
I had not noticed but you are entirely right : the parallel between Arya’s indifference to Hot Pie and Nymeria’s indifference to Arya is terribly strong and hurtful for the younger Stark sister, once she is on the receiving end of it.
In regards to Olenna’s advice, I suppose it depends on how Daenerys wishes to be perceived. Twice, she has stated she does not want to be known as the “queen of the ashes” (hello, Baelish reference ^^). If she attacks with her dragons, there is a strong possibility this is precisely the reputation she will earn. Could she decide that the throne is worth a “bad” public image ? Perhaps. However, her advisors or, to be more accurate, her “disciples”, the people who view her as their last hope for redemption (Tyrion, Varys, possibly Misandei and Grey Worm as well) might find that harder to stomach and be tempted to question their loyalty.
ygritte,
The actors weren’t using the accelerating pacing as a jab to the quality though. They just remarked that this season commences the endgame and thus the urgency to get from point A to B is more rapid. Excuse me if I didn’t get your point though.
RG,
This. 👌
Boudica,
Tyrion saying that for decades Casterly Rock has been the real seat of power in Westeros doesn’t really ring true.
Yeah, when he said that right away I’m thinking our sly imp has ulterior motive for allying with Dany, wanting to clear out and be lord of Casterly rock.
Yeah, but that’s my point. The only issue Broadbent raised was that you can get infected by administering it, but if they have an ointment to treat a super-serious infection like the one Jorah has, then it shouldn’t be that hard to treat any symptoms immediately upon manifestation. So what’s the problem?
Edward,
I thought they meant it in such a way that it’s filmed differently as well. Though I could have comprehended it wrong at the time.
I haven’t seen the episode so far either. I am surprised at the number of negative comments. Based on the leaks I read, it sounds like a decent episode lol.
Arya hearing about Jon is what I look forward to see the most!
I’ve been waiting 5 years for Jorah to take his shirt off. I’ll take it!
ygritte,
The only thing they did differently as far as filming was wait until it was actually winter so it could boost the aesthetic of GoT’s “winter introduction”. They shot for an even longer period of time than they normally would on a regular sized season. I am aware of the actors that stated this season was different. That you are correct about. But I think they were more or less alluding to how fast the plot progression is going to be compared to the prior seasons.
ACME,
I was hoping so much LF would say our favorites words (“Starks, quick temper, slow minds”) after Jon chocked him…
Many people don’t see the point of that scene but I agree with you: LF was studying Jon, checking for his soft spot (as Baelish usually does.) Funny that Jon never thanked Baelish for his intervention with the Vale’s armó at the BotB.
ghost of winterfell,
Contrary to this site, the episode has been pretty well received from the general public and critics. I think it’s mostly book fans, as usual, who have a more skewed opinion of the show’s current condition. Although I’m not entirely directing the blame on book readers.
I believe you guys will enjoy the episode.
Haven’t seen the ep yet, but couldn’t resist reading reactions. I’d like to point out that there might not be anyone at the Night’s Watch anymore who can both read and write decently, and who also knows how to handle the message ravens. Let’s not forget that the person in charge of all of that (Maester Aemon) died of old age. The only other person who was probably qualified enough to replace him was Sam, but he’s now at the Citadel. Just a thought.
Why is House Baratheon’s Sigil still on King’s Landing in the opening credits? Shouldn’t it be House Lannister since Cersei is Queen?
ygritte,
I don’t know-Tyrion has a point that might not be about self-interest. Tywin was the Mad King’s hand for like 20 years and basically ran everything. Then when Robert took the throne Tywin had Cersei marry him so all her children would be heirs to the throne. Most of the money of the kingdom was Lannister gold, most of the military might and the majority of the political power for over 3 decades. And since Lann the Clever, the heavily fortified Casterly Rock has never been breached.
Until recently they were the family the Iron Bank backed because they had all the power.
That’s why Robb wanted to take it. Take Casterly Rock, deal a HUGE blow to the Lannisters.
Succubint,
The only other person who was probably qualified enough to replace him was Sam, but he’s now at the Citadel.
counterpoint: Bran
The Bastard,
It was a good scene, but Varys as a character makes no sense, sadly.
Robert wasn’t interested in ruling, so Varys and Illyrio (two random foreigners) decided that Viserys and an army of Dothraki were the solution ? Varys even admits he knew nothing about Viserys or Dany, yet for some reason he still thought anyone was better than Robert. Why ? Viserys certainly wouldn’t have been better.
Robert may have been a drunk, but the kingdom prospered for 20 years under his rule, thanks to Jon Arryn and Stannis. They kept the realm together, and save for the Greyjoy rebellion, those 20 years were pretty freaking good.
Varys’ arbitrary selection of Viserys, and later Daenerys, as a replacement for Robert is silly. Oh, and he’s so concerned about the realm and the common people but he orchestrated a Dothraki invasion ? Pretty fucked up logic.
And of course, why two Essosi men such as Varys and Illyrio are so invested in the Iron Throne remains a mystery.
No logic to Varys’ character. But yeah, the scene was well acted.
Wow! So much content in that episode, so densely packed! Some very long overdue scenes, some spectacular battle scenes, and a few clunkers.
First, a totally unnecessary and WTF scene: Ellaria and Yara. I mean: WTF?
The Daenerys-Varys scene was so awesome and long needed. It was edge of the seat stuff, with Tyrion trying and failing to intervene. I even liked the Mel scene. The war council scene could have been a bit more exciting, but the last Daenery-Olenna scene was great and quite full of portent. I have the uneasy feeling that Tyrion will screw up. 🙁 OTOH, why has Varys become so terribly useless? He with his powerful network of spies, should simply send a quiet assassin to take Cersei out, and then there would be no danger of her blowing up KL! Why is no one thinking of eliminating Cersei?
Winterfell scenes were great! Poor LF – he was pretty shocked that Jon didn’t fall for his wiles. And now for the meeting with Daenerys next episode! (And Royce saying to a Targaryen, i.e., Jon, that a Targaryen cannot be trusted, was all kinds of relish irony!)
Jaime continues to disappoint, recruiting good men for his crazy sister-lover.
I found the GW-Missandei scene to be surprisingly loving, tender and poignant.
All in all, an excellent episode, with some minor clunkers.
Not sure why the Baratheon sigil is still shown at King’s Landing during the opening credits.
Hope Bran is there to help Sam write Asoiaf
I just was hoping that LF would throw in a little zinger that would make Jon think about his Vale support, Sansa, Ned’s clumsiness in KL, or Lyanna and Rhaegar kissing in a Laughing Tree while the KitN 2.0 traveled to Dragonstone. Instead it was just blah, blah, blah I want your sister, where’s my thanks. Damn, LF, you’re better than that! Make Jon stew about stuff during his journey!
By the way, is the Vale defended by SweetRobin now? Who is watching the Vale? 🙂
Sean C.,
As usual, you nail it.
I really enjoy reading your analyses.
COMPLETELY agree with this! Sam the badass!
a dont get how some people here, 2 i found, dind t like it. lot of things and moving the history
-Dany meets melissandre and warn varys of treason
-Cersei talk to a lot of lords about the war to come, preparing for it
-Jaime try to get Randyll in their side.
-Quiburn shows cersei a weapon that can damage dagron rally bad
-Dany plan his war moves with the concill and tyrion badass
-The kids are already traning forready for the war
-jon put sansa in charge of winterffel
-Jon goes to Dragonstone and put LF in his place
-greywarm e missandei finally do it
-Arya meet hotpie and decide to go to WF.
-Arya see nymeria again
-Sam start to try to cure jorah
-Euron destroys the grejoys fleet, kill 2 sandsnakes and yara, elaria an tyene are now prisoners.
Someone said this was a filler episode, like WTF. episode 9/10
Grail King,
He will make his way back to dragonstone
Sunfyre,
What makes you think that I hate it?
There is a whole spectrum of opinions between “it’s the best thing ever made” and “I hate it.”
It has brilliant production design, great cinematography, an excellent score, and for the most part a really solid cast. All of those things make it worth watching. The writing has just become substandard.
I’m not going to pretend like this show has the best writing on television, and I’m not going to pretend that a show with a faltering story and poor character development is “the best show ever.” But that doesn’t mean I think the show is devoid of merit.
Aguero,
I agree, I thought this much stronger than episode 1. Moves have begun to be made
Ginevra,
I kept waiting for some of the puss to squirt in sam’s eye
Hodors Bastard,
It would be awesome if SweetRobin come riding in all grown up looking like a stud muffin and asking for Sansa’s hand in marriage. Or something lol. But the crypt scene dialogue of LF just seemed out of character for him. Did he really think Jon wants to hear he loved Cat and now his sister, like he’d give his blessing? He’s usually more sly with his words. Talking more in riddles, trying to feel people out. What was his purpose, to gauge how Jon feels about him I suppose. Bad way to start out lol.
It’s odd, because I don’t think LF loves Sansa whatsoever. He loves what she could potentially do for him, but LF is probably the most non-sexual character on the show. He wants power. Loves the game, and manipulation. I never really thought he loved Cat either, so much as he wanted to be the one SHE loved.
Thronetender,
That was really well thought out! ❤
RBloodworth,
Acme
Jack Bauer 24
Adrian
I have a ritual of re-watching the episode on HBO-GO after watching live on regular HBO. After re-watching the scene I totally got what Arya meant, and some of you already mentioned this. She meant “that’s not you” just like Jack Bauer 24 said. It’s not in her nature. She’s not domesticated. Arya went from being sad to a very slight smile of understanding. This was totally confirmed in the inside the episode that they show on HBO-GO. It draws the parallel with Arya when she said being a lady wasn’t her when she had her talk with her Dad Ned in season 1. I know someone wrote tonight that it’s not that interesting to say how awesome everything is, but the wolf scene was awesome, and Euron’s scenes were powerful to setup his character, and it made it that Theon isn’t there yet and is still damaged. if you haven’t seen the inside the episode yet, it’s one of the best I’ve seen. it really confirmed alot of what I am happy I caught by watching the second time.
Liked the actual science in the Citadel — Maester Broadbent lecturing Sam on the difference between rates of greyscale advance in children and adults was great.
Of course Sam found the greyscale cure quickly, because it involves dragon glass, and dragon glass is one of the topics he is specifically there to research.
The tactic of using ramming prows to turn a sea battle into a land battle was used by the Romans against Carthage. Legend has it the Romans were in such a hurry to defeat Carthage with this tactic, they used green wood in their ships. (Maybe that helps to explain where Euron got his fleet.)
The very idea of Ellaria Sand falling into the hands of Cersei Lannister made the episode for me. Two characters who richly deserve each other, they are. They share a never-ending focus on revenge for real or imagined slights.
During the naval battle, I mused, “Mainland Westeros rejoices as Ironborn attack each other on the high seas!” At the end, I joked, “GoT fandom rejoices as two of the three Sand Snakes die in combat against someone who uses practical weapons.” Dorne was never a good idea, all the way back to the books, and as someone here once noted, once a writing team has saddled themselves with three sexy female fighters, it’s unlikely to end well. Seeing Ellaria, she of the fire-eating rhetoric, taken without a fight also felt good. As mentioned above, she and Cersei truly deserve each other. All talk, no guts.
Well, that was a fun episode! Looking forward to Euron delivering his gift to Cersei.
I shared your hope and was a tad disappointed when he did not. However, given the face he made after Jon exited the crypts, it is highly probable he thought it. Very much so ^^
As for Jon not thanking Baelish, I am not surprised. He loathes Littlefinger because of what Sansa told him about him so, if he had to express his gratitude to anyone from the Vale, he would probably choose Lord Royce.
Baelish only mentioned Jon’s lack of thanks in order to test whether the Battle of the Bastards (and what could have been its horrific outcome) was a sore spot for the KitN, I believe. Since that topic failed to rile Jon up, Littlefinger moved onto his next target. And so on and so forth, until he found something that made Jon murderous.
No one is going to mention Qyburn’s huge arrow through Balerian’s skull? Good old Qyburn comes through again. While I applaud his planning, I have fears for the dragons. I thought they were pretty much invincible, but this does not bode well for either Daenerys or Drogon or the smaller dragons. Cersei actually made sense in her discussion with the Lords. Randyll threw a little shade Jaime’s way, which I enjoyed, Yet, for all his talk of honor, his snottiness was his weakness and Jaime knew right where to probe – as someone predicted during the week, his loathing of “savages” got him to sign on with Cersei.
Everyone is all happy that Jon choked Littlefinger, I must admit I enjoyed it for a second, BUT … Lord Petyr fucking Baelish is an angry, slippery, vengeful little man. I knew he’d be looking for wild gratitude and recognition from everyone for turning the tide of the BoB, yet he gets disdain and dismissal, especially from Sansa. He’s going to make her pay for that somehow, he cannot abide what he feels as “treachery” from any female. (remember Ros) I’ve pointed out numerous times that one of his favorite pasttimes is putting high-born ladies into embarrassing, compromising conditions. He was still rubbing his neck with a pained expression as he stared at Sansa. Not good.
Arya is now on the right track back to Winterfell! – on first viewing I thought she was a little cold to Hot Pie (Hot Pie!) but second viewing showed she was probably day-dreaming about killing Cersei and about dragons being in Westeros, as she listened to the two merchants sitting behind her. Nymeria – on first sight of the size of the dire wolf, my reaction was holy shit! But that WAS Arya’s pretty puppy, I remember the eyes from the old pics. If she was CGI, it was amazing, because that wolf looked real. If that’s the last time we see the wolf, I will be upset. Yet, yet, I can picture Arya on the road and Nymeria following at a distance. I hope that’s it.
Daenerys is not a little girl fishing around for the right approach anymore. She’s self-assured and straight-forward, as a queen should be. She’s beautiful. Varys was wise to say so, and for the very first time that I remember, he actually got angry and a bit indignant at her questioning. It was good to see actually, and he handled himself very well, imho. Was I the only one who wanted to smack Ellaria? Am I the only one who wanted to tell Olenna to stfu? Love Diana Rigg, but Olenna going to go out running her big mouth.
Tyene Sand
Apparently, Euron knows that she is Ellaria’s own daughter—the other SSs he captured were fathered by Oberyn with other women. So maybe he spared her so Cercei could “return the gift” (viper/necklace) to inflict the same death on Tyene as Ellaria did to Myrcella.
Raven Logistics?
Dany has no maester (she has never heard of maesters?), and therefore no raven trainer/caretaker. There has been no maester at DS since Mel survived Cressen’s attempt to poison her back in S2.
So how did Tyrion manage to dispatch a “come and bend the knee” message to Jon and presumably all Westeros lords? What happened to Stannis’s ravens?
It is a s-t-r-e-t-c-h to imagine that someone hung around DS to care for them after Stannis’s fleet sailed to Eastwich-by-the-Sea to rescue CB when attacked by Wildings.
I’m still wondering what happened to Stannis’s ships and their crews after that victory.
Plot Holes? Maybe I should work on my “disbelief suspension” skills a bit harder, huh?
Whatever… I LUV every episode cuz I care only about the STORY— NADA about critic reviews, popularity ratings, cast interviews or (other) Pop Culture in general.
P.S. I was hoping that Nymeria Sand’s presence in this episode would parallel an Arya/Nymeria direwolf reunion (per her chat with Tywin Lannister at Harrenhal). Oh well… Maybe this “bittersweet” closure is a preview of Things to Come…
I loved the episode! I think we would all be happier if they would air all episodes at once like Netflix. Having to wait each week is torture.
The Battle of the Ironborn (or whatever the official sea battle will be called) was amazing. Euron entered that scene like a rockstar on his see saw doohicky. We are going to love to hate him this season.
Poor Theon. I knew as soon as they showed the guy getting his teeth yanked out that Theon was going to jump. I’m hopeful that he will go for help and attempt a rescue.
How about Samwell and his back alley clinic, Scabs R Us…he rolled into that room like a boss with his little cart of horrors. Kind of like when you’re in the hospital and the vampires show up at 3am to draw blood.
Super excited for Jon and Dani…that’s going to be fun. Can’t wait to see Jon and Davos react when they see the dragons for the first time!
That laugh though!
A Dornish Tyrell,
Sansa telling Jon that Littlefinger “sold” her to the Boltons we know was a lie, but Jon still believes it. I guess even after the reaming he got from Sansa last season he didn’t realize Sansa might have painted him in a very unfavorable light to Jon, and the fact he probably believes that Jon was in on sending for his army, LF probably thinks he’s mostly forgiven. Otherwise, why would he want to provoke Jon? He didn’t smirk after so I’m guessing he was not just trying to get under his skin purposely.
ash – ‘don’ I reckon is a pseudonym of Linda Antonsson 😉
The sort of thing she would say! Perhaps Linda has surreptitiously nipped over to WotW to stir the shit and make some vitriolic comments – hehe 😀
you liked my tinfoil theories? OOO but poor Jorah’s body, omg. I loved the chemistry between Sam and Jorah. I’m looking forward to more of their conversations. I hope more have been written for them. There will have to be more, because they don’t know about Dan landing yet. Was Maester Ebrose suggesting that Jorah take the extra day he was given to commit suicide? There was that meaningful glance at Jorah’s sword against the wall. But that could also be foreshadowing a conversation about Longclaw, too.
Edward,
Eh, you’re probably right. It most likely feels different to me because the characters are now in different circumstances. Dany landed in DS and surrounded by various other personalities, Jon being a king, Sam at the Citadel, etc.
Here is my guess… Arya was planning on going to Kings Landing and then talks to Hot Pie and finds out about Jon being the King in the North… So Arya decides on the spot to go back to Winterfell instead of Kings Landing. Arya has stopped to camp for the night and she is very cold in the middle of no where…
Nymeria finds Arya and instead of staying with Arya Nymeria leaves maybe in the direction of Kings Landing. Maybe it’s a way for Nymeria to tell Arya to go to Kings Landing… Nymeria was like the Oueen with her pack following her leading the pack and hopefully Arya in the right direction…. to Kings Landing
There’s my theory.. guess
He sure did make Lysa scream though… 🙂
Great analogy. That news was cringe worthy, especially if you analyze the path taken by that huge container ship. Given the reactions I’m reading though, I’m just going accept Yara’s failure as a naval captain and nonsensical underestimation of Euron.
Did they lose all the ironborn ships? So is the Dornish army going to have to march now? 🙂
Augh I know, my poor bear. ☹ Sam was so forthright, I just loved it. I wouldn’t have thought of those 2 as hitting it off, but I really liked the chemistry there too! Awfulness of the disease aside, it was great to see that connection. Jeor would be proud of Sam, I think.
I felt the same about the ‘extra day’. Go out with some semblance of a knight’s honour? Fall on one’s sword?
*plugs ears* “LALALALALALALALALALALA!!!” 😜
ygritte,
I am not entirely certain that after, as you very rightly put it, the “reaming” he got from Sansa last season, he would assume she had said anything even remotely positive about him to Jon. Added to the fact that apparently the King in the North has been actively avoiding Baelish since the very first day they all arrived at Winterfell, the Mocking Bird has no reason to believe Jon has forgiven him anything.
Also, the manner in which he breached the topic of the Battle of the Bastards was not quite friendly : had he assumed Jon had no particular problem with him, I doubt he would have approached him with, in essence, “remember that time I saved your sorry arse ? Where’re my fruit basket and thank you note ? “. 🙂
The other side of the Narrow Sea remembers.
You are probably right. For the most part, Yara has no reason to be a good naval captain; as far as I can tell, she spent virtually her entire life on Pyke with her father. Not much opportunity to hone those navigation skills.
Chuck,
Or it could be the polar opposite: Nymeria now leads a pack, and is not interested in being anyone’s pet or second of any sort. Might Arya lead House Stark when all is said and done (pardon the cliché)?
ygritte,
I agree! The characters have always, for the most part, been separated and given their own plot. Things are converging so seeing characters interact is very exciting and new.
Sean C.,
I was going to write a short essay about all the episode’s shortcomings, but since you covered everything… I’ll just pour the rest of the Arbor gold into my glass and relax.
Tycho Nestoris,
Good point. However, different threads are happening at different times, not necessarily concurrently, this has been confirmed already by people creating the show. Any communication from Bran will likely occur when it’s dramatically *suitable* for it to happen in order to build the stakes. I confess that I haven’t paid a lot of attention to that plotline right now, has he expressed interest in contacting his kin as soon as possible? Does he know Jon’s alive and at Winterfell? Perhaps the Raven will arrive after he’s gone and so Sansa will have to deal with the info?
Demon Monkey,
You wanted her to ride away on a whale, didn’t you? 😉
Thronetender,
Am I the only one who wanted to tell Olenna to stfu?
I personally enjoy everything that comes out of her mouth lol.
Tron79,
Euron doesn’t interest me in the slightest. I wish he did, because obviously the man is going to be a big part of the end game.
Succubint,
This occurred to me as well. Bran and Meera might have to write their own messages…
Edit: Just saw the comment by
Tycho Nestoris.
https://twitter.com/b_cogman/status/889380832963567616
Hopefully we see it in the S7 deleted scenes on the blu ray.
That doohicky was called a corvus (‘crow’) by the Romans, who supposedly invented it. It’s a brilliantly simple machine: a long heavy plank secured to the deck by a rope hinge at the bottom end, with heavy iron spikes protruding out of the top end. It’s hauled upright by a winch line and secured against a mast while not in use, so it’s out of the sailors’ way. In battle, they just unfasten the stays that are holding it to the mast, pivot it out over the other ship and let it drop so that the weight of the spikes crash through the decking and hold the two ships together. Normally someone wouldn’t be riding it down, though!
Crikey, am I relieved! It was good and nowhere near the cock-up I expected from Mylod. Even the sea battle was convincing. Sir Francis Drake would be proud. Euron finally lived up to his billing , and while it’s disappointing that Reek re-emerged, the removal of two annoying Sand Snakes was worth it. Other meet-ups were gratifying, especially that 1-on-1 between Dany and the QoT. Dany confronting Varys for his shifts in loyalty was very gutsy of her, and for once even Melisandre seemed more reasonable priestess than smug fanatic. Sansa ignored Jon’s ‘no undermining’ command from last week, but was almost comic with her U-turn from whinging about Jon’s trip to realising she would finally finally be in charge (gods help us). Jon impressed me with making the tough decision, putting Littlefinger in his place, and especially admitting he was a Northerner through and through. What a tyke!
My favorite scenes were the heart-tuggers. The extent of Jorah’s greyscale and his prognosis were worrying, but Sam’s loyalty, inventiveness, and willingness to cut thru red tape in Westeros’s most bureaucratic institution were perfect. Watching Sam operate sans anaesthesia and the surprising transition from gore to gooey food being consumed by a traveler was daring. Eavesdropping on his chatter about Daenerys was Arya, greedily wolfing down food AND ale as though she hadn’t eaten in days. Ignoring her Hound-influenced table manners, Hot Pie exchanged pleasantries and pie-making techniques with her. But when he mentioned Jon ruling Winterfell, her life changed. Newly energised, she immediately left for the North. But not before he paid her a compliment (!) and said what I hope is foreshadowing: that like him, she is a survivor.
You’ve all covered the Nymeria reunion superbly. I was thrilled they included the pack, showed Nymeria to be massive, and ended it the way they did. IMO it would have been unrealistic and sappy for Nymeria to go with Arya, though I think and hope she’ll reappear maybe next season. Arya realises that Nymeria is sticking with her pack, and and that her own pack is at Winterfell. She says “That’s not you” out of respect for Nymeria’s decision to be what she is, like she had said “That’s not me,” hoping for Ned’s similar respect back in S1. Maisie is a past-master of facial acting, but I think these in these two scenes she has exceeded herself.
Jared,
Agree 100% about Theon, someone who has that amount of trauma and PTSD is bound to have episodes which Theon did. War Trauma victims, have countless episodes, nightmares, therapy to help them combat them so Theon isn’t just gonna be fixed just like that because he saved Sansa, it will take years and a lot of help for him to recover. I could see his face and his reactions to the crazy ass look on Euron’s face that probably reminded him of Ramsay and he was watching people tear apart each other’s faces it was natural for him to have a episode because of it, it goes to show what a awesome actor Alfie Allen is that he was able to convey so much on his face.
Stark Raven’ Rad,
Yeah considering it is CGI Maisie did great in the Nymeria scenes.
I think the scene is a good nod and a reminder from season 1 that she’s alive, but it’s good thematically in Arya realising who she is, as is the case with the Wolf Dreams in the book
In this case though, I suspect it’s a case of they’ve moved closer as she’s decided to head to Winterfell, but not until she has fully re-claimed her Stark identity and relinquished the mass murdering “no one” who worships “death” will they be more fully re-united, which I expect in season 8
Should probably mention, Euron using these fire tactics plus ramming in this way would damage his own ships as the fire spreads from Yara’s ships to his connected ships, hence the need for suicide fire ships, but I can understand why the TV show did it, eg had to show he does something unconventional which I expect in the books (really dig Prestons Kraken-drawing blood theory), don’t have time to show a big Naval battle with tactics, eg fire ships breaking Yara’s formation and the Boarding ships picking off the stray ships etc because of the budget + desire to give that “surprise attack” and intense character focus
The only logical explanation I can think of (besides the possibility that they don’t care) is that we’ll also see Casterly Rock in the credits, and it’ll have the Lannister sigil. One could argue that this would be too confusing to the (non-fanboy/girl) audience.
Lyannabanna,
I was just wondering why Tyene was spared, but yeah, I can totally see that
Thronetender,
Yeah that was my thought when I saw that.
I think I see what they mean by the season going fast – unfortunately so fast that some of the writing does have holes. The bit with Jon telling the Lords that he wanted to leave would have been handled differently if there were more episodes. I get that it was not possible, but as disappointed as I am with GRRM, I really wish he was writing some of these episodes.
Vaccines aren’t 100%. Cancer treatments may not even be 50% effective. I suspect this treatment is similarly not 100% effective.
Firannion,
Is the mast its attached to called ‘crows nest’? If not it should be!
It could all be in the way the line was delivered, too. LF could have been much more pervy and sinister. Perhaps this is my Mylod prejudice coming through, but I’m thinking many of the scenes could have been better delivered, except for the battle closeups which were very nearly perfection.
Ha! I told my eldest that he needed lab goggles, so we’re very much on the same page.
I believe that being spurned by her is what has driven him to seek power in such a maddening way, because he thinks that she rejected him because he didn’t have enough.
That’s most certainly what he was suggesting! And Jorah was in the middle of writing his suicide letter to Khaleesi when Sam rolled in, right?
Jared,
love this…
that is exactly how I took it.
Sam,
YES
I abosultely loved this epiosode.
Top scenes obviously were with Dany, loved all the conversations she had, Arya and hot pie and Arya and nym 🙁 , and Jon in the council room, his moment with Sansa ( <3) and then with LF OMG He wasooooooo amazing in that scene
Maisie is killlllllllllllllling it this year.
Edward,
YESSSSSS
HOW ARE WE IN THE MINORITY? LOL
Sam,
YOU GUYSSSSSSSSSS
IS IT ACTUALLY HAPPENING??? hahahahah I skipped the trailer for next week anddddddd I haven’t ready any leaks.
Just wanted to make this comment cause I HAVE NO CLUE OMG
So no confirmations. Haha
ygritte,
Euron didn’t interest me either (last season or episode 1 this season). This episode at least put him on the map for me. It would be great if Theon eventually was able to take him down at the end of this season. However, I would have rather seen more screen time given to other characters such as Bran and Meera. After all that sled pushing and pulling I think Meera definitely earned some extra screen time! I have to say the Greyjoy sea battle was well done. Ramin Djawadi’s score was pounding.
ygritte,
it was hugeeeeee for me. My head exploded.
Stark Raven’ Rad,
There is an article on EW with Maisie and Bryan, and it was confirmed that was Nymeria… but the way they speak in the interview makes me think we aren’t going to see Nymeria anymore. I am sad about that.
What I Loved:
-All of the strategy scenes in Dragonstone, King’s Landing, and the North
-Greyworm and Missandei
-Jon giving the North to Sansa
-Arya’s failed reunion with Nymeria
-Coward Theon
What I Liked:
-Jorah and Sam
-Ship battle
What I Disliked:
-Arya Hot Pie scene
-Cersei’s solution to dragons
What I Hated:
–
Overall, it was an excellent episode and my favorite since The Broken Man of last season. An episode that is more along the lines of the glory days of the series as opposed to the opener which more reminded me of what I disliked about S6.
I actually didn’t mind the idea of the Arya Hot Pie scene I just thought it was rushed and came across weird (Hot Pie’s reaction to seeing Arya for the first time in years felt glossed over).
Also, Cersei’s new weapon is lame and wish they would’ve gone with something else, maybe a relic that could be discovered by Euron.
I should add, while you guys are going on about how Sansa is going to betray Jon, I was one who called it that Jon and Sansa would be banging and that looks like it’s more coming into fruition. I’m happy they’re going in this direction, the Jon and Sansa feud never made sense to me.
Also, regarding Arya and Nymeria, this scene was great but would’ve been more powerful had they made Arya a little darker, i.e. even Nymeria doesn’t recognize her. As it was, it was still good.
LatrineDiggerBrian,
‘Banging’ as in you think they’re going to sleep with each other?
Flayed Potatoes,
Yessir.
Oh I gotta add too, another criticism of Arya / Hot Pie scene was no mention of Gendry. Or did he? Hot Pie said Yory I believe, was that referring to Gendry?
LatrineDiggerBrian,
I don’t see it tbh
Flayed Potatoes,
Yeah cause you already know what’s going to happen cause you’re a spoiler fiend. You probably know every script of every remaining episode from front to back, so I hope you’re not basing that on any information you know.
LatrineDiggerBrian,
Nymeria did recognize Arya. But she is telling her that it is not her anymore to be her pet and go home with her.
Its a symbolic scene for Arya
Dee Stark,
I didn’t mean literally. Nymeria recognizes her, but senses she’s changed and walks away.
LatrineDiggerBrian,
Um I don’t see it either and I don’t read any spoilers
Whoever sees a romantic/sexual relationship between Sansa and Jon are not understanding the dynamic there. lol come on people
LatrineDiggerBrian,
thanks for clarifying!
Dee Stark,
Jon and Sansa are perfect for each other when you think about it. And who is Jon going to end up with if not Sansa, and vice versa? Dany is not into dudes like Jon, she likes bad boys. Sansa doesn’t have any prospects currently. Maybe it’s not a given that either will end up with anyone at all, but I’m calling it and you’re going to be eating some big time crow Dee.
EDIT: Only other person I could see Sansa ending up with (if she doesn’t die) is Tyrion.
LatrineDiggerBrian,
This show is not about main characters finding their true loves
Sometimes, you have awesome comments, but some times, I don’t think you understand this show well lol
Youll be the one eating crow 😉
Glad you liked the episode for once 🙂
COME ON OZ give us that recap!!!!!!!!!!!
LatrineDiggerBrian,
I’m basing that on the actors being absolutely disgusted by the thought of their characters sleeping together (and filming a hookup scene too). I also base this on the fact that the show cast an underage actress when it started. If Jon and Sansa were meant to hook up, then the showrunners would have aged up her character more and cast someone older.
I know there will be a post on this later, but Bryan and Maisie discuss the Nymeria scene
I think that’s the last we will get of Nymeria
Bittersweet, but acceptable
http://ew.com/tv/2017/07/23/game-of-thrones-maisie-williams-direwolf-nymeria/
Flayed Potatoes,
Why would it be disgusting? So what, they’re cousins and in this world incestuous relations is more of a thing. I don’t think the age is relevant, both actors are age appropriate to have a relationship.
Dee Stark,
I didn’t say either had to find a true love. It’s not guaranteed that either will be alive by the end of this thing either. What I’m saying is that right now they’re the best prospects for each other if it were to happen. Just not seeing Jon and Dany and Sansa is prospect less unless maybe Tyrion or the Hound jump into the picture later.
LatrineDiggerBrian,
In the world of ASOIAF it wouldn’t be weird. But for Kit and Sophie it would be. The way basically everyone in the cast (plus D&D iirc) reacted to a fan asking them last year if Jon and Sansa would hook up also told me it’s not happening. That’s what I meant.
You called it, Brian! We’ll let you own this one completely.
Dee Stark,
Ooops, I’m so sorry for mentioning it! I’ve been avoiding the sneak peeks too but couldn’t stop myself this time. It looks like next episode will be epic, is all I’ll say. Arggghh, the wait!
Dee Stark,
I have a feeling she’ll get nominated again for Emmy next year. Her acting is so nuanced. I love it! 🙂
Sam,
No worries 🙂 I AM HYPE
Sam,
Agrreeeeeeed
thisgirlhasnoname,
I thinkle the Melisandre scene might have a greater significance than simply bringing Jon into Dany’s orbit, though that is definitely a plot device. I have been noticing all the references to Dawn, from the scenes at the Tower of Joy and now it’s mentioned in the discussion regarding the translation of the prophecy. Arthur Dane’s sword is LightBringer? Maybe? And when the R+L=J is revealed, perhaps Jon gets the sword? I think Mel is being careful not to reveal that she is sure Jon is Ahor Ahai. Dany needs her ego stroked so she doesn’t see Jon as a rival.
Only person I ship for Sansa isn’t in the show, and only minor part in the books.
Eddrick “NED Dayne!
Sam:
Dany looked perfectly cray.
It was Nym that was hanging from her whip and Obara speared to the prow.
ash,
Easy he decided before he watched it!
I disagree. Until now Casterly Rock has only felt pressure from Robb Stark as he pressed his attack all the way to the Crag. Like the Reach and the Vale of Aaryn they are the freshest forces in play. Taking out Casterly Rock will cutoff the supply of Lannister reinforcements just when they need to secure more and more land area.
Conversely, I think it is clear that Jaimie will be forced to raid the reach for supplies in order to field the army he already has.