Spoiler note: The discussion in this post is primarily for non-book readers as well as viewers who have NOT been spoiled by leaks (book fans can discuss the show-only here). We ask that all Sullied book-readers refrain from posting spoilers in the comments here, veiled or otherwise. No spoilers, at all! This show is best viewed without knowing all the surprises beforehand or afterwards, so please be respectful of your fellow fans. Thank you!
As expected, the wi-fi in Dorne is severely lacking (similar to their plot I suppose). It is unclear when a man will even get to watch what took place in “The Door.” As a result, I have recruited our good friend Clare, a very wise Unsullied herself, to fill in as a man battles technological woes and travels northward on the Kingsroad. Please give a warm, Unsullied welcome to Clare!:
With the Great and Powerful Unsullied Recapper away I was asked to fill in once again. Of course, my first thought was “What sort of horrible thing will I have to recap this time?”
Well, considering the last episode I recapped, wherever we went wasn’t going to hurt as much. But it’s really close. I’m still trying to figure out what I just watched.
The episode opens with Sansa sewing something and receiving a letter. The seal tells us it’s from Littlefinger. She asks how far Mole’s Town is, because he wants to meet her and obviously Sansa wants to chop him up into deceitful little pieces for everything he’s put her through for his own gain and she’s not stupid enough to believe him any longer.
Sansa goes to Mole’s Town and she brings Brienne with her. Oh yes! Littlefinger is finally going to get what’s coming to him.
Damn, she’s just going to talk at him.
I actually wonder if there was a flicker of remorse in Littlefinger when Sansa was talking about the horrors Ramsay put her through. I kind of doubt it, but there’s a moment where he takes in a deep breath that makes me wonder if there is just a tiny speck of not-asshole who regrets what he did to Catelyn’s daughter.
Sansa isn’t having any of it and insists on telling Littlefinger everything. Her voice never shakes. She never cries. She is hardened against it all. There are precious few people she trusts and rightfully Littlefinger is no longer among them.
Unfortunately, Littlefinger may still be useful, as he has the troops from the Vale at his command. All Sansa has is the army of her brother. Or half-brother. What’s with that crack? It’s not like it makes the army half-effective.
Really think Brienne should just whack his head off. People letting Littlefinger walk away has been the source off way too much trouble.
In Braavos, a girl is getting her ass kicked by the Waif yet again. You would’ve thought that getting her sight back would’ve made things better for Arya. But no, she’s still getting knocked to the ground and the Waif is smug. Kind of the same thing we’ve been getting lately.
Then Arya goes in for another attack, but the Waif drops her staff. Okay, I’ll give the Waif points for style. This was pretty cool. She defeats Arya with her bare hands, using Arya’s attacks against her. The Waif mockingly calls Arya ‘Lady Stark’ and tells her that she will never be one of the Faceless Men.
Jaqen slinks in and says that the Waif has a point. He leads Arya into the Hall of Faces and explains the history of the Faceless Men. Arya’s way higher born than the original Faceless Men, who were slaves in Valyria.
When Arya asks who the first Faceless Man was, Jaqen replies “No One”. And I laugh for a good three minutes on something that isn’t even a joke. Jaqen explain that the Faceless Men founded Bravos on the industry of killing people and then using the dead’s faces to hide themselves until they themselves die and their faces are used by other Faceless Men. You know, recycling programs are important so good on them.
Arya is given another vial of poison and a new task: kill an actress. It is her last chance to prove herself to the Faceless Men. One way or another they are going to add a new face to their collection.
It turns out the actress is playing Cersei in a dramatization loosely based on the last three episodes of season one. Arya is amused by Faux-Robert’s buffoonery even in the throes of death and him smack faux-Joffrey around. This is the first time in a long time I can remember her smiling.
![GOT_MP_091015_EP605-1577[1] - Copy](http://watchersonthewall.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/GOT_MP_091015_EP605-15771-Copy-1024x682.jpg)
The smiles quickly fade when Faux Ned Stark enters and is portrayed as a power-hungry idiot. Faux-Joffrey is shown about to pardon Faux-Ned and Faux-Sansa’s request when the axeman slices off his head anyway. Faux-Tyrion then proclaims himself Hand of the King and says he will marry faux-Sansa, exposing her breasts. Arya is doing quite the good job as a Faceless Man, simply looking mildly hurt rather than burning the entire square to the ground.
As if to make up for the random and gratuitous shot of the fake Sansa’s breasts, we get a loving close-up of faux-Joffrey’s warty cock, which he is examining backstage worriedly. Arya tries to make her way backstage without being noticed. Richard E. Grant is giving Sansa’s actress a hard time about her bad acting, but she thinks she did fine for her tiny, tiny part. Cersei’s actress meanwhile flirts with Tyrion’s actor in an expository way to give Arya what she needs to know for the assassination.
Arya goes back to Jaqen and fills him in on her plan to poison the actress’ rum. She then theorizes faux-Sansa hired the Faceless Men because of her jealousy. Jaqen tells her that jealous money spends just as well and even if the actress is a good woman she has to die.
![GOT605_102615_HS__DSC2469[1]](http://watchersonthewall.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/GOT605_102615_HS__DSC24691.jpg)
Beyond the Wall, Bran is on a vision walk and since it looks like the beginning of 2001: A Space Odyssey, I think it’s at the dawn of Westeros. The Children of the Forest have a stone and… Hot damn! There is some half-naked writhing guy tied to a tree. The Children drive the stone into the guy’s chest and his eyes turn blue, like the Night’s King.
Bran wakes up from his vision and wants to know WTF. Leaf just shrugs it off, defending turning the guy into a weapon. The Children were at war. Oh, and it was with humans. But we’re still cool, right, Bran?
![GOT605_090315_HS__DSC8317[1]](http://watchersonthewall.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/GOT605_090315_HS__DSC83171-1024x681.jpg)
In the Iron Islands, the Ironborn are pretty boring because just give it to Yara and let her be awesome and have Theon go back to Westeros and redeem his traumatized ass. The Ironborn are the same misogynistic asses as the rest of Westeros and don’t want Yara to lead them. Theon tells them Yara should lead them.
Then Euron shows himself and his argument boils down to “You need a dick to rule and neither of you have one. I’ve got a big one and I’m going to use it with the Dragon Queen and wage a war.” Excuse me while I fall over laughing. That is not a sound plan. I also don’t see how throwing a guy off a bridge in the middle of the night with no one around is the ‘Iron Price.’ But I guess people like what Euron says and decide he’s going to be King. Considering how they go on about the Iron Price shouldn’t there be like a fight to the death or something?
Crowning someone in the Iron Islands is like baptism dialed up to eleven. While Euron is dunked to the point of drowning, Yara and Theon steal the best boats and sail off. Does this mean that Yara is going to seduce Dany now? I might be into that. Euron is not, and wants the Iron Islands torn down to build new boats to go after them.
In Vaes Dothrak, Dany’s managed to find herself clothing fit for the Khaleesi of All Khals. She tells Jorah that she’s sent him away twice, but he keeps coming back and saving her. So she’s not really sure what to do with him. He tells her it’s not really her choice any longer and reveals his greyscale, which shocks her. He then reveals his feelings for her, which shocks absolutely no one.
It does touch Dany and she commands he find the cure for the greyscale, so he can stand with her when she takes the Seven Kingdoms.
In Meereen, the peace seems to be holding, but Tyrion thinks more needs to be done to assure the people that it was Daenerys’ will. He has an idea as who can be spokesperson: Kinvara, High Priestess of the Red Temple in Volantis. She’s all for talking up Daenerys, because Kinvara thinks she’s the chosen one that Melisandre previously thought was Stannis and now thinks is Jon.
Varys calls her out on this. He’s previously stated to have no time for religion and Kinvara knows why. She asks about the voice Varys heard in the fire while the sorcerer burned his genitals. Varys is not only stunned, but he’s scared and holy crap Varys is scared. What am I watching?
![GOT_ep605_Cut_I_vam_20160418_00140705[1] - Copy](http://watchersonthewall.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/GOT_ep605_Cut_I_vam_20160418_001407051-Copy-1024x576.jpg)
Bran is chilling in the Twisty Tree and he touches a root near the Three-Eyed Raven. He spirit-journeys into the frost-covered world and is surrounded by thousands of wights. He walks among them and up to the Night’s King. The Night’s King slowly turns and….
HOLY SHIT.
The Night’s King just saw Bran. And now the rest of the White Walkers and wights are looking at him. Bran, get your astral out of there!
But Bran isn’t able to get out of there until after the Night’s King grabbed his arm. The White Walkers can find them now and enter the tree. The Three-Eyed Raven tells Bran it is time for him to become the Three-Eyed Raven.
![GOT605_102015_HS__DSC6775[1]](http://watchersonthewall.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/GOT605_102015_HS__DSC67751-1024x682.jpg)
The HSQ of the Beyond the Wall story is interrupted by some talky talk about alliances that can be made against the Boltons. While Davos and Jon handle a lot of the logistics, Sansa is leading the meeting. Like Yara in the Iron Islands, she is the true power in the North. She knows it and she is not afraid to yield it. Sansa wants to send Brienne to Riverrun, lying to Jon about how she discovered Uncle Blackfish had an army for them.
Brienne doesn’t want to leave Sansa alone. She still holds a grudge against Davos and Melisandre and expresses her discomfort about Tormund’s adorable creep stare at her. But Sansa insists Brienne go, saying that Jon will take care of her.
Sansa continues to show her fierce command by wearing a homemade dress, proudly proclaiming herself a daughter of the North, with a large Direwolf on the front. She also makes a cloak for Jon, mimicking the one Ned had worn. Finally, with his sister by his side, Jon leaves the Wall, hugging Edd good-bye and leaving him in command on the Night’s Watch.
![GOT605_120415_HS__DSC7778[1]](http://watchersonthewall.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/GOT605_120415_HS__DSC77781-1024x681.jpg)
Back to the far North and Meera and Hodor are having a happy chat and you know that can’t last for long, especially with where Bran left things. Meera notices her own breath and runs outside, seeing they’ve been surrounded by thousands of White Walkers, the Night’s King in the lead. He cracks the ground, beginning to collapse the cave.
Hodor frantically calls his own name, while Bran is in a vision of the past at Winterfell. The Children try to hold back the Night’s King with fire, but he passes through with no problem. The tree is swarmed by wights.
![GOT_ep605_Cut_I_vam_20160418_00155259[1]](http://watchersonthewall.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/GOT_ep605_Cut_I_vam_20160418_001552591-1024x576.jpg)
The past vision shows Bran his father leaving for the Vale. Meera calls for him to help her while the White Walkers and wights break in, fought off by the rapidly falling Children. Finally, Meera’s voice breaks through the vision. Meera tells Bran they need Hodor and Bran focuses on Wyllis, the young Hodor.
Bran wargs into Hodor in the physical world, picking up Bran’s body and dragging him away while Meera and Leaf fight off the White Walkers.
![GOT_ep605_Cut_I_vam_20160418_00160548[1]](http://watchersonthewall.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/GOT_ep605_Cut_I_vam_20160418_001605481-1024x576.jpg)
Summer leaps into the fray to defend his master, but is swarmed by wights and slaughtered. What? They’re seriously killing off another direwolf this soon? The wights chase after Bran and his friends while the Night’s King strides to the Three Eyed-Raven. In the vision of Winterfell, the Three Eyed-Raven tells Bran to leave him. As the Night’s King cuts into his body, his vision form dissolves into flying black stuff.
Bran, Hodor, Meera and Leaf continue to flee from the wights. Leaf stops and arms a magic bomb, sacrificing herself to slow down the wights. But they are not stopped, continuing after Bran, Hodor and Meera.
They reach the end of the tunnel, emerging out a door. But it can’t be locked. Hodor holds it closed with brute strength while Meera shouts “Hold the door!”
The words penetrate into the vision of Winterfell in the past. Wyllis goes rigid and wide-eyed while Bran watches. His eyes turn white as he collapses.
In the real world, Hodor pushes his full body against the door while the wights fight back.
Wyllis convulses while Old Nan asks him what’s wrong. He shouts, “Hold the Door!” over and over again.
The wights start to break through the door, grabbing at Hodor, tearing at his flesh. Meera drags Bran away while Hodor is ripped into. Wyllis can be heard yelling, “Hold the door!”
As the wights bite into Hodor, the words begin to blur together. Bran watches helplessly as Wyllis cries out “Hodor!” over and over again.
No seriously, what did I just watch?
![GOT_ep605_Cut_I_vam_20160418_00164408[1]](http://watchersonthewall.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/GOT_ep605_Cut_I_vam_20160418_001644081-1024x576.jpg)
Favorite Quotes:
“Hold the Door.”
Like I could really have any others.
Overall Thoughts:
Up until the ending this episode was a fairly standard middle of the season affair. It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t great. I am enjoying Sansa stepping up. After being a pawn and a magnet for abuse, I like that she’s gotten to the point where she’s not going to let anyone- not even her half-brother- control her. She’s going to be in on all of the decision-making. She has become a hardened woman that I could see one day ruling something all on her own.
I wasn’t joking about Littlefinger. I’m really over him. I don’t think he’s added anything substantive since he pushed Lysa Arryn out the Moon Door.
I had little interest in the Ironborn, but I might be intrigued by Yara and Theon taking to the seas, especially if they go to Essos. I am ready for more stories to be interwoven.
But the real substance of the episode falls to the action in the North. We get an origin for the White Walkers; Bran loses the last of his connections to home and must take the responsibilities of the Three-Eyed Raven.
Hodor- I should say Wyllis- is such a tragic character. Game of Thrones is story of loss, but the death of Wyllis hits hard. His whole life is dedicated to the moment of his death. That one thought was locked in the back of his mind, holding onto him until the time came to sacrifice himself for the greater good.
Find Clare on Twitter.
Find Oz on Twitter.
**SPOILER NOTE: The Management of this fine site would like to remind you that spoilers (book or leak) are not allowed in Unsullied posts. This includes spoilers that may be covered by code or otherwise. Personally, I appreciate feedback from Sullied and Unsullied alike, so long as they do not include any type of hinting or conversation related to the written verse. However, spoiler coded comments do tend to lead to further Sullied conversation and for that reason, we ask that you please refrain from posting any SPOILERY content whatsoever in Unsullied posts. Thank you for the coop. -Oz
HODOR
Failed Hodor (didn’t hold the door)
Good recap OZ!
Great episode, it is easly in my top 5.
And god it’s only EP5 we still have 5 more to go!! Can’t wait for next week..
Mr Clegane,
”Hodoring” will never feel the same..
Let’s declare this THE HODOR DAY……..
Mihnea,
It’s Clare, not Oz or am I mistaken ?
……
Singedbylife,
I forgot!! So silly LOL.
This only proves what a great job you did Clare! 🙂
Hodor will never be the same
To me, I give this episode 15/10 if i could
I just don’t understand why the direwolves have to die. Why did summer have to die????? Ugh.
Dee,
He held the door, that soft kind giant did it, he held the door….
I cried when he died….
Dee,
”Summer” ends and winters comes…?
Mihnea,
I was crying a lot
A 29 year old sitting in my hotel in China watching on my tablet and crying my effing eyes out
I cried for summer for fucks sake
Mihnea,
Winter can still come
Summer didn’t have to die
Ughhhhhhhhhhhhh
OSHA shaggy dog hodor summer and let’s be honest rickon is not going to live
The original crew 🙁
Dee,
I checked Twitter a bit for some laughs… I love how we all start the episode so happy and full of hope…..and we end in depression and misery…
I cried at home…. I was alone, so I just started sobbing…
Dee,
Yeah, I’m really afraid for Rickon right now…
Sansa is totally pregnant w/ Ramsay’s baby. “I can still feel what he did to me standing here right now” (paraphrased)
Mihnea,
Hhahaha I can’t wait to see the Twitter recap as I have no access to Twitter here
Ugh I know it’s crazy what this show can do to you
alm,
Yuk hope not
House Applebee,
You can’t talk about book stuff here
But didn’t the child use dragon glass to create the walker
Mihnea,
Well I’ve already prepared myself for his death
It’s inevitable
Anyone can die at this point
If hodor can anyone can 🙁
Dee,
It did look like that. Can’t confirm anything for sure though… But it is a good explanation, if it’s true.
Dee,
Because otherwise Bran would be able to warg into him.
Mihnea,
Yeah it makes sense to me because it’s the only thing that can destroy them along with Valaryian steel
alm,
Sexual assault leaves physical scars as well that can be felt felt forever.
Dee,
Let’s ignore their remarks, please. I’ve deleted them. Definitely no book talk in here.
Sue the Fury,
Okay 🙂
So unsullied opinions on the Kingsmoot?
I loved the drowning scene and the monologue. Euron’s just as crazy and cocky as I expected him to be.
Also Alfie was fantastic when he started praising Yara! Good to see Theon slowly getting better.
Great recap!
It was a fantastic episode, but dang, they need to stop killing off the dire wolves and beloved characters!!!
RIP Summer… RIP Children of the Forest… RIP Hodor. *sniffle*
I *did* love Sansa ripping into Littlefinger, although I would have preferred that she order Brienne to cleave the conniving, slimy Stark-slayer in two. Not quite sure why she lied to Jon about the Tully army rebuilding, except to have an army loyal to her, not to her brother.
Best comic relief still belongs to Tormund… those googly eyes and Brienne’s reactions… hysterical!
I don’t think Arya will become a Faceless Man… she’s still holding on to her Stark-iness too tightly.
Euron’s “Let’s go kill them” (about Yara and Theon) was reminiscent of Tyrion’s similar comment just before the Battle of Blackwater occurred. Glad Yara and Theon made it off the Iron Islands before Euron was crowned.
Sad farewell between Dany & Jorah… even Daario knew better than to act like a jerk when Jorah confessed his love for Dany.
Kinvara’s putting the fear of Rh’llor into Varys was intriguing, to be sure. I don’t remember Varys *ever* looking rattled, but he sure did last night!
Between last night’s Game of Thrones, and Saturday night’s episode of Outlander, I’ve overfilled my quota for bawling my eyes out over fictional characters.
?’s
Who will come to Bran and Meera’s aid?
What is the significance of Bran affecting the future by going back in the past?
Will the Mother of Dragons accept Kinvara’s help?
What is LF’s end game with Sansa? (she also has sway over Robin Aryyn)
Is it strange the 2 red Priestess’s (damn that’s a lot of s’s…) each believe a different character is the promised one?
RIP Hodor and Summer…
Don’t see that Sansa controls the North over Jon.
Kristy G.,
My take on her lying to them.
She clearly trust Jon as she feels safe enough to send Brienne away.
I think he lied about LF because she feels a bit bad, refusing a entire army, right now when they need it most. She did it from pure personal reasons.
She doesn’t distrust Jon, in a bad way, it’s more like this ”I don’t trust you, to understand why I refused a entire army, right when we need it most.”
And then, tries to make it up, to them, to herself perhaps, by telling them about the Blackfish.
gnarlytarly,
My guess it’s Benjen, but it’s a pure guess….
I think they showed him in the flashback, with the purpose of reminding the viewer of him.
Great recap Clare!
One of the best episodes of the entire series and I think the most important because of the paradox created at the end. And of course the reveal of the White Walkers.
Sophie Turner was amazing in her scene with Littlefinger! And I don’t think her lying to Jon means she is going to betray him.
JJ,
It’s obvious that he will be King of the North, and Sansa will support his claim. Don’t cry about it.
Mihnea,
I’m watching it right now (rewatch)
I loved it – I used to find the iron islands boring now I find it very interesting.
I especially loved how they talked about dany… Tying in esssos to westeros.
So euron is bad. Lol
I wonder where theon and yara are going – not sure where this is going
I really enjoyed this scene
I loved the speech as well
Shaz,
I don’t see that
She will be queen
Very good point and completely reasonable. 🙂
Mihnea,
Tell me about it! .. I was in my car watching it on my phone .. I was enjoying it until that last bit .. manly tears were shed ..
Shaz,
Who’s crying? Stating how I see it.
Mihnea,
Yeah the little Benjen scene wasn’t an accident IMO either.
My take on Sansa/Jon dynamic… Sansa is now experienced at the GOT. Jon has been at CB as a soldier and commander of men but not a player in the Game. IMO she does love and trust Jon with her life, but not as a player of the game…she is a LF/Catelyn protege
Dee,
I just think given the way the story is mapping out, Dany will be Queen of Westeros and Jon Warden/King of the North. Maybe it won’t be as linear as that but Jon will lead the North, garnering support from the Mormonts, Manderlys etc this season. Given his battle prowess, his leadership experience and of course his knowledge of the WW and the Others, they’ll support his claim.
Tbh I’d rather it be Jon, I don’t think I’d be able to tolerate the inevitable Sansa backlash if she becomes QoTN over Jon *yawn*. Sansa has a significant role to play of course, and given her courtly experience she could grow to become an advisor, Hand sort of thing.
I wonder now that Jon is out to seek support of the northern houses, will he meet Howland Reed?
YA,
Ohhhhhhhh!
Didn’t think about that!
All I can say is wow!!!! with a few tears for Hodor, Willis, Hold the door.
So some people are talking about Sansa betraying Jon? WTF??? But tbh i can’t expect much from some of these people, after all until like two seasons ago she was mostly a hated character among fandom so interesting that those old feelings somehow are showing themselves! I mean comments like “oh Arya come back ASAP cause you’re Jon’s true sister” are a little too obvious for me.
Oh my goodness i’m going to rewatch the scene when she gives him that epic fur cloak over and over, just like the one Ned wore back in first season. For the love of god she was filled with love and respect for Jon when she gave it to him and that is all that matters to me.
Also it’ll take some time for me to recover from that last scene, he was the most decent of them all, bye Hodor.
I know its all sad n stuff……but…i didnt see hodor die did u?…for all we know he could still be holding the door
I loved the episode but have a question. We get the origin of Hodor and that’s good for us viewers to see the cause of how that came to be. But the Night King is coming with a horde of dead soldiers and 3ER immediately begins showing Bran visions like he’s trying to teach/prepare him as much as he can before they arrive at the cave. So why show him a vision of the origin of Hodor if he is just going to die shortly after? Like I said, it’s cool for the viewer but for Bran it seems like unnecessary information when he could use as much training before the dead army come trying to kill everyone in the cave. Any thoughts?
Also, those Children of the Corn are to blame, I never trusted those assholes.
RIP Hodor, Summer, 3ER
I wonder if Petyr is setting Sansa up somhow. I’m not sure why she believed what he said regarding her uncle’s army. I wouldn’t rely on anything he said without verifying it first and here she’s sent Brienne away from her based on one sentence from LF. I just don’t feel good about that.
Could LF be setting Sansa and Jon up against the Boltons? Could he have written the pink letter? Weren’t there some questionable details in it (pelt versus head) that might mean Ramsey wasn’t the actual author? And if so, is he just trying to get two more armies to clash so he can get rid of further competition? Good gods … if he is, he’s doing a right good job of it.
Making the 8,
Because Bran needs to screw Hodors mind, so he can get to the 3ER…so he can screw his mind and get to him…….
Time travel man…always screws my mind.
I really loved the Dany and Meereen parts of last night. Dany and Jorah broke my heart and I really hope Jorah finds a cure so he can return to Dany. Tyrion and Varys with the new priestess was fascinating. I was very pleased that the show confronted the issue of different red priestesses prophesizing differently. And of course we have to wonder how the new priestess knew what Varys had experienced (but then again, we already saw that power when Melisandre said to Jon “you know nothing, Jon Snow”)
Arya was (as always) fantastic. Watching her response to the play was so hard to witness – to see her relive the horrible way her father died. Killing the actress playing Cersei clearly isn’t anything she wants a part of (ironic as Cersei has been on her list for so long). I’m very excited to see which way she goes with this.
And Bran… I can hardly handle the events of last night. The COTF created the WW. Okay – I can see how that would happen and it fits with a theme of the show: you can create monsters but you cannot rely on controlling them. Just as Dany struggled to control the dragons, Roose couldn’t control Ramsey, and Cersei cannot control the FM, the COTF lost control of the WW. It makes me wonder if Cersei will lose control of the Mountain. Which other monster creations have I not listed?
I also wish the show would explain more of the WW origins and how the Three Eyed Raven fits in. He said in a previous episode that he’d been in the tree for 1,000 years and I wonder how that corresponds to the time frame of the COTF creating the WW. When Old Nan told Bran her scary story, did she say how long ago it occurred? In the show, how long ago was the Long Night? Just wondering how quickly the COTF lost control of the WW and if the Long Night was part of the COTF plan or if it was after WW were acting independently. Didn’t Old Nan say that one hero went out into the world and finally found the COTF and helped end the Long Night? She was interrupted and we never got the ending of the story but I wonder who that hero was and could it have been the Three Eyed Raven? Is that why Bran must become the Three Eyed Raven? So he can help the COTF (if there are any left) defeat the WW again?
Poor Hodor. This was the saddest episode I’ve ever watched. I’m carrying such a weight on me today as I mourn the most honorable, truest man of House Stark. I don’t have words that do him justice. What a story and what an amazing job the show creators did in bringing it to the screen.
And Summer – gods, why another direwolf? I don’t understand the need to kill Summer and I wish it could’ve been done in a way that made a bit more sense. I’d like to believe Summer was intelligent enough not to run into a pack of wights. That was awful.
Such a great episode. Easily my new favorite.
I must respectfully disagree with the author regarding her thoughts about the substance of the episode before the final gut wrenching scene. Specifically, when she wrote “Up until the ending this episode was a fairly standard middle of the season affair. It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t great.”
IMHO Everything about this episode was great. Everything about this episode moved the plot forward and there many moments I tensed up -and even shed a tear – before the final scene and tragic loss of Summer and Hodor (RIP my friends – your characters’ sacrifices will never be forgotten by this viewer!)
Starting with Sansa discussing the emotional and physical trauma she suffered by Ramsay. It was such a moving scene and any survivor of abuse (or advocate like myself) knows how important that moment was. She not only confronted Littlefinger forcing him to hear what had happened since he left her with the Boltons, but she also admitted to herself (and Brieanne – remember Sansa couldn’t discuss it with her in episode 2 of this season) the true horror of what happened. Sansa took control of her story and this to me is an incredible important and poignant moment for her character.
Arya’s story also moved forward when she was confronted not only with her past vis–à–vis the play but also the origins and purpose of the Faceless Men. If she truly wants to devote herself to being a servant (aka assassin) of the Faceless God she not only must give up her Stark identity but also her morality. I don’t want Arya to do this. I want her to remember she is and always will be a Stark and start checking those names off the list again.
Even in Meereen the plot got interesting. Tyron’s decision to invite religion into the Dragon Queen’s inner circle could have disastrous results (remember what happened when Cersei used religion for her cause in KL – yah didn’t go so well). Also Varys, the man with all the knowledge, was confronted with something he doesn’t know. Who was the voice that spoke out to him?
Dany and Jorah scene was also incredibly touching. IMO Dany sorta kinda admitted she loved her devoted Knight. She couldn’t let him go this time and she knew by sending him to “find the cure and come back to her” he would go to great lengths to fulfill his Queen’s wishes. I hope we see him again. He has been one of my favorite characters on the show since season 1.
Kingsmoot was wonderful too! I admittedly cried when Theon finally stood up, all proud and loyal, for his sister. His words were moving and if I was in the Ironborn populace she would have my vote. But alas, this is GOT and democracy works differently. Euron was kinda the Trump of the Kingsmoot, hailing insults at his opponents and openly admitting to being a terrible person who has no problem killing his family (Ugh I won’t comment more on the Trump/Euron relation). BUT that scene where Yara and Theon escape with loyal Ironborn and the best ships while Euron was being drowned and crowned was brilliant! I mean major props to the director. I can’t wait to see where this goes.
Finally, I completely agree with the author on her thoughts about the Bran scenes. This episode truly solidified in my mind (and my broken heart) that Hodor was truly the real hero of GOT. Think about it, Hodor knew this entire time what was going to happen to him. He knew he would have to “Hold the Door” and would sacrifice his life to do so. Yet he lived his life humbly and took care of those he loved. The ink was dry but Hodor kept on Hodoring and I love him for that. Plus, despite being devastated by the loss of Summer, in a way it was the most noble way for the loyal direwolf to go. Summer defended Bran in episode 2 of season 1 when the Lannister assassin tried to murder him and he defended Bran when winter finally came. Plus Bran has to become the 3ER now and shed himself of the Stark identity. Summer is part of this identity and Winter is here now. Bran’s character is clearly important and what happened in last night’s episode is seriously a game changer. I had some problems understanding this time space continuum but this article kinda helped me get a grasp on the situation. For those interested link is here http://www.vox.com/2016/5/22/11722146/game-of-thrones-season-6-recap-hodor-dies-bran-time-travel
Overall probably one of the best hour of television I ever watched. Plus the Inside the episode was enlightening and I would encourage fans to check it out. Explains a lot and broke my heart a little more knowing that GRRM always planned this end for Hodor. That brilliant SOB is brutal but we kinda know what we are signing up for when we watch this show. “If you think this has a happy ending, you haven’t been paying attention.” – Ramsay
Goodbye Hodor, Summer, the 3ER and the Children of the Forrest. Winter has truly come.
Nice recap Clare, even if, overall, i found the episode to be the best this season and a good contender for best episode of the show.
One nitpick :
“I also don’t see how throwing a guy off a bridge in the middle of the night with no one around is the ‘Iron Price.’ But I guess people like what Euron says and decide he’s going to be King. Considering how they go on about the Iron Price shouldn’t there be like a fight to the death or something?”
The Iron price is taking someone else’s possessions by fighting or killing him. What Euron has done is kind of exactly that : he kills his brother to take his seat/rule.
If there was a fight between contenders it wouldn’t be the iron price because the prize doesn’t come from the looser.
Hold the door 2016. Never forget.
For what I understood, Bran warged both Hodors, past and present one, so Wyllis could feel his own death, and that’s how he lost his mind. So fucking sad. Bran will feel so guilty. I think that’s why Meera is sorry next episode. Bran never wanted anyone to die for him, but Jojen, Hodor, Summer, 3er and the children of the forest all did.
Ha Ha ha!
Good recap Clare 🙂
I LOVE THIS! Please please please let this happen.
Lol
Look forward to “Game of Thrones O’Clock” for days but then i usually take days to “get over it” and process it all
Really makes you feel it – especially the Direwolves funnily enough as much as the human characters
Ashley,
Nicely written.
And great article, thanks for sharing!!
Seriously mourning for poor Hodor.
this was NOT ok
Ashley,
I agree with this thorough comment. 🙂
Mihnea,
Why thank you Mihnea! I always look forward to reading your comments about the episodes. You really help explain things in a simple and clear cut way 🙂
Hopefully, I wasn’t too wordy in my comment and showed my respect for Clare and her work. She did a wonderful job explaining a complex episode. Thank you Clare 🙂
It does appear obvious what the title of the episode was referring to now.
Bran may have too much on his plate now to re-visit ToJ with his visions. If there is a R+L=J reveal it may come from a Jon/HR meeting as someone above supposed.
I hope Arya stays a girl who has no name long enough to kick that waifs ass properly, but I think her arc is about to leave Braavos as Arya Stark.
Singedbylife,
Thank you Singedbylife! I usually try not to post comments that are so lengthy but last night’s episode warranted it. I’m still processing what happened but it makes me happy to know that fellow WotW commentators are here to support each other 🙂
Because showing Bran the vision is what causes Wyllis to become Hodor. It’s a loop, a circle and that circle has to complete itself. They need Hodor to be Hodor, and hold the door for Bran to escape.
Why was my comment removed ? lmao
Never will thine ears hear the sweet calling of Hodor again…this makes me sad. ?
Faux Tyrion pays off the headsmen to kill Ned after Joff offers him mercy
Great episode and great recap. Thanks WoTW again for a great site we can come to and talk bout the show.
So a series of q’s.
1. Since it has been hinted at in the show that Sansa will have control over Robin more so than LF, do we think she will use Robin to kill LF or just do it herself? I mean the karma would be sweet since LF was instrumental in the killing of her family (Red Wedding) and prob Ned Stark as well. Im curious as to how his fate is going to end. At her hands (literally or figuratively) would be best in my eyes.
2. Since Kinvara was introduced as THE 1st High priestess she must be older then Mel and have considerably much more powers than Mel. So since she implied that Dany was TPTWP Im wondering how many feel about that? Is she the true PTWP?
3. Now that Bran has been “marked” by the NK. How is he ever going to really get away? I mean now that he can be “tracked”? Im just wondering how that is going to all play out? If Bran goes back to the wall he’s dooming the Wall to fall… curious as to what you all think on that.
4. Further on Bran and the NK… if Bran and the NK were connected through the CoTF then how is that going to play out since they are dead now? Or was that just a few of them that are dead?
5. Since Jaqen says over and over again that its all one God… is this really what it’s going to boil down to? There is only one God and that “he/she” is just being called different names by the different ethnic groups? Simplified version.
6. And finally… as a humorous side note.. did D&D just troll us on the dick with warts scene? I mean was that our “bone” they threw at us to show more DICKS and balls?? LMAO.. I just found that hilarious.
Interested in feedback …. thanks and great reading everyone’s comments..
thank you for sharing that interpretation of why Summer had to die. It makes so much sense and relieves a great deal of frustration I had after watching the episode. Summer’s death was the only thing that left me complaining but what you wrote is so good, I’m not frustrated anymore. I can just mourn Summer…
Ashley,
Well thought out and well written. I agree with all of your thoughts. I too understand why Summer’s life had to end at this moment but didn’t like it all the same. For me The Door episode will always be my favorite until something more incredible comes along. I think it did an amazing job of explaining things as quickly as they could. Just very well done.
Excellent recap Clare. Unsullied are always so much fun to read, because they take the show on face value, and can’t compare it to the books. Great to read your thoughts.
The final scene will undoubtedly go down as one of the most heartbreaking scenes in the show ever, which is no small feat bearing in mind how heartbreaking this show is almost every week.
AND true to the cast’s predictions this year has been the MOST EPIC in my eyes. I am so hyped for next week..
Thanks Sue I get that part of it, closing the loop makes total sense. I guess my specific nitpick is since Hodor is from Winterfell and has been there for many life altering events and conversations throughout his years there, I am sure the 3ER could have had Bran witness something more important than young Ned leaving for the Vale and Hodor still be present to be warged and effected. I am really loving Bran’s visions and maybe I wrongly think they should all have tons of info packed into them. Just my greed but I loved the way it was done. I just figured I missed something else in that scene.
gnarlytarly,
When talking about the language of “High Valyrian” it’s almost impossible to distinguish what’s singular or plural. “The prince that was promised” could very easily be “prince’s/princess ‘ that was promised”. After all the dragon has THREE HEADS not just one.
My sister made me think that LF is trolling Sansa and that he made up the whole blackfish river run story. That worries me I never thought of that
The blackfish escaped…
I love it when rose bolton says that to frey
Ashley,
Thank you!
I always worry that people may not really understand, what I truly want to say, because of my English. But it’s good to hear that is not the case!!
Also want to share my appreciation to Clare who wrote a very good recap, I may not agree on all points, but that doesn’t mean it’s not good!
Nice detail, i didn’t get it. Will have to rewatch when i’m back from work.
wolfswood,
Ice Spider,
Thank you both for the kind words and I’m glad you enjoyed my comments on the episode. I was SO UPSET when Summer died last night but this morning I realized it had to happen for Bran’s story to move forward. Unlike Shaggydog’s death, we saw what exactly happened to Summer and we knew that he died trying to save Bran. It was tragic and heroic at the same time. RIP Shaggydog, Summer, Lady and Grey Wind. Its all up to Ghost and Nymeria now.
One of my favorite scenes of the entire series is in the first episode when the direwolf puppies are found by Ned and the crew. Since that episode I’ve been so attached to the direwolves. I rewatched that scene this morning and cried (again). Clearly I’m a glutton for punishment 🙁
Making the 8,
I took it to mean that the 3ER was showing Bran what the ramifications can be if you try to affect the past for your own personal use. But that’s just me…
That was just too sad for words. Hodor and Summer. In the space of five minutes. Awful.
Throw us a bone, D&D. Let Meera survive, at least.
Inquisitor1961,
It says clearly in the post, twice, that this is a post for the Unsullied, non-book-readers. Spoilers are not permitted in any fashion. Your entire post was covered in spoiler coding. That is not allowed in the Unsullied recap. Please post in the regular Recap post instead. Thanks!
Dee,
I hope your sister is wrong, if not it may be the Moon Door for Brienne. LF is definitely a snake he has every reason to want Brienne out of the picture…
That’s definitely curious, and has been a little overlooked thanks to the big finale of the episode.
Is Melisandre in fact little more than a renegade/heretic; or does she have the right of it? Is there a general schism in that faith, or just Melisandre?
What we think about the R’Hllor worshippers / Lord of Light has been seen entirely through Mel’s eyes to this point, so what if she’s completely wrong?
First time poster here, was wondering about the conversation Jon and Sansa had off screen.Would she tell him she agreed to marry Ramsay?About plotting/working with Little Finger?If not that would explain the lying about where she got the information about her UNcle from,kinda hard to break it that you voluntarily married a Bolton after the Red wedding…though she could have gone for a simular story as Little finger with the little lord.
Sansa lied for Little Finger before in the Vale but then the reasons she gave afterwards were well explained,she didn’t know or trust the Lords in the Vale.
Hoping this time will be the same
Making the 8,
He chose that moment for Bran to witness and affect Hodor because THAT is the moment when it happens. The Raven can’t choose a different moment- it’s when it happened before. It’s like pre-destiny.
Ice Spider,
Good questions!
1. I think that yes, Sansa will be somehow responsible for LFs demise. How, I don’t know. IMO he is responsible for all that has happened to the Starks. Directly and indirectly.
2. Yes she is probably older than Mel. And regarding the “Prince(ss) that was Promised”, I am reminded of the Matrix movies where The Oracle says “The path of the One is made by the many”. I think that there are multiple PTWP. Every character has a part to play. Look at Hodor.
3. Yes when Bran goes back through the Wall that will lift the spells that created the Wall. It will be destroyed then. That mistake he made will more and bigger consequenses than what happened to Wyllis.
4. Dont know.
5. Maybe.
6. Hihi yes, probably
Did Davos leave the Wall? I saw Jon, Sansa, Mel, Brienne, Tormund, and Pod. No Davos though.
Yet her command seemed very unsteady in the strategy meeting, as if the writers are too keen to show her as still a work-in-progress as a Westeros Machiavelli. Davos, beneficiary of long years of war and politicking, seems to have the edge on her at every turn.
Jon: “We need more men.”
Sansa: “Hey, we could get the Karstarks.”
Davos: “The Karstarks know a Stark beheaded their father. Don’t think they’re likely to forget that.”
Sansa: “Uh, well, Northern men are different. More loyal. Etc.”
Davos: ” Men are not that different. They’re not keen to see their families skinned alive for a lost cause.”
Sansa: “The North remembers. People will still risk everything for the Starks.”
Davos: “Yeah, but Jon doesn’t have the Stark name.”
Sansa: “But I do!” [Everyone stares at her.] Now sensing she needs to dig out another trump card, she throws out the one Littlefinger gave her. “The Tullys are loyal! And they just took Riverrun!”
Jon: “How the heck do you know that?”
Sansa: [Trundles out a lie, with a very pleased look on her face.]
Of course, Sansa has no way of knowing how true Littlefinger’s statement is, or even if it is, whether the Tullys are still willing to support her cause.
Sansa has definitely grown, but in this scene, it’s like she’s largely reverted to Immature Sansa, seeing her society through rose-colored glasses.
Jon will win this war, but one senses it will be mostly due to some great oratory and hard spade work by Jon and Davos – and a timely intervention by a scheming but guilt-ridden Littlefinger.
Ice Spider,
I don’t analyze this story as much as some do but I love reading different perspectives whether they are in depth, comical, or just from a different point of view from my own. That being said, here is my 2 cents:
1. Sansa will order LF be executed after she takes control of his Vale army acquiring more power and alliances. She will not kill him herself a la Ned
2. Kinvara is basically the High Sparrow of her religion and that in itself should scare the piss out of everyone. Religion and prophecy are open to interpretation though and she admitted that men and women make mistakes so who knows who will be TPtwP
3. You make a really good point about Bran possibly leading the WW south to The Wall since Bran has been marked. I agree that wherever he goes they will be close behind
4. I don’t think the CotF are all dead and I think they still have a part to play in the story. Bran is now directly connected to the NK via the frostbite on his arm.
5. Interesting that the many faced God be the same as all the others just separated by small differences regionally. Sounds familiar.
6. Haha. I am male and enjoy the T&A moments we are often treated and I find it interesting that women are often vocal about seeing more male anatomy on screen.So I think it’s pretty comical that when you finally get to see some it has genital warts! Be careful what you wish for huh?
Im akin to thinking Mel has her heart in the right place but let’s her exuberance or (perhaps power hunger) get the best of her. Like a lot of “religious” folks she thinks she hears from “God” but in reality it’s her own voices or thoughts or perhaps desires that leads her visions. Its a paradox that I find interesting. I believe Kinvara is the REAL DEAL and that she is going to shed a LOT of light on this whole R’holla God.
I think Summer also served as a dramatic device to make us that much more emotionally vulnerable to Hold the Door. One heartbreak to take down our defenses for the next one.
Moon Tea, anyone?
Where is the rest of White Walkers. we saw 14 in season 4 when little kid was being sacrificed and made into White Walker and Craster had 99 sons=White Walkers. They killed three by Meera, Sam and Jon. We saw 3 plus Night’s King. Is that they’re somewhere else or simply no need for more than 3?
Ice Spider,
Love your first comment. LF needs to be thrown out the Moon Door! The vengeance of Oz for the Lysakiller!
It got me thinking about House Tully. The Blackfish is not the head of House Tully, Edmure is, and he’s married to a Frey. The Freys murdered Cat, Robb and Tulisa. How true is LF’s claim?
We know Jamie shows up at Riverrun too. The Lannisters were backing the Freys under Tywin.
I’m not convinced Sansa is going to end up with backing from this quarter at all yet.
Is Brienne walking into a lion’s den?
I cried for Summer and then I cried even more when Hodor died 🙁
Geralt of Rivia,
I am wondering the same thing. Where are the rest of them?
Jack Bauer 24,
I’m sure he did.
Lol. Yes now wouldn’t that be poetic justice!!
Because 3ER has probably seen everything happen in his visions. And he knew that it was vital for Bran’s (and possibly Westeros’s) survival that Wylis become Hodor. So when the NK’s arrival was imminent, 3ER immediately took Bran to the vision that would set up the events that led to Hodor.
Because if Hodor didn’t “hold the door” then Bran would’ve died, and couldn’t become the next 3ER.
Great episode and great recap!
While Hodor’s honorable death is absolutely tragic, has no one else considered the even greater tragedy that would befall us all if Hodor is turned into a Wight? Can you imagine? An undead Hodor hunting down Bran and Meera? /shudder.
I think there could be more. The words Ned´s father and Bran’s grandfather said: if you have to fight, win. They were important too IMO.
Lyanna_Targaryen,
True. But in certain scenes she also looks like she has a bit of a baby bump. Plus she’s making new dresses that happen to be roomier. Just my personal theory.
Connor,
Actually what got me more than anything was the look on Bran’s face when he realized what he has done, and the horror and guilt he feels. Even tho he realistically had no choice, that choice will haunt him the rest of his life
Oh yes, let’s please stop hodoring. I am mourning.
This is one more episode I will never ever watch again. Like Oberyn Martell’s death and Hardhome.
But he will, it is inevitable. I just hope they will spare us from watching that.
Haha, true, but to me a penis is on a different level than boobs. It’s not like they’ve shown a lot of vaginas. I mean we’ve seen Theon’s cock, Hodor’s cock, the former High Septon’s cock, Faux Joffrey’s cock, random guy’s cock at the Cersei Walk and the pissing guy’s cock before Robert Strong smashes his head. It seems like the cock to vagina ratio is strongly in favor of cocks right now.
My biggest hope is we’re still underestimating both Varys and Little Finger in terms of ambition and deceitfulness.
Little Finger – I really hope he still has his greatest trick to pull and gets one up on Ramsay, Jon and Sansa and grabs control of the North. I hope he has set up Sansa and Jon with misinformation to make loads of mistakes and also controls Robin to his own ends.
Varys – I also hope that if not exactly evil Varys is about as selfish and machiavellian as LF. I hope all his scheming grabs him control of the South and he gets ne up on the Lannisters, Dany and all the rest of them.
Then I’d like to see the two clash. This probably won’t happen but it’s what I want – evil to have its day in the sun before the remaining rag tag of goodies inevitably rally.
My oh my, what an ending to that episode!!! Such a mult-layered story arc for Wyllis/Hodor – what seemed like the most simple of characters turned out to be one of the most complex and tragic. Of course everybody expected that there was more to Hodor’s past, but who could have guessed it was really his future that had come back to haunt him? As the credits rolled, my thoughts went “Only GRRM…“. From now on, my honourary title for Wyllis/Hodor will be “Heldor”, because, well… no need to explain, right?
As usual I’m not getting into unsullied or sullied theories (hence skipped many comments), but one thing I will say is that I didn’t really enjoy the Iron Island plot. It all seemed too rushed to me, and I’m not a big fan of the actor that plays Euron. I’ll be happy to have my mind changed by future episodes though.
Hold the door, and always support the bottom!
Hmm, this sure was a huge episode.
I’m glad we finally meet an equally seducing Red Priestess (High Priestess in this case) that might have disagreements with Melisandre. And Varys is a pleasure to watch when paired with almost anyone.
I’m glad the Iron Islands storyline ties into the larger plot again (after the initial role in the war of the five kings). –> That however brings an inquisitive question: Now we know why Meereen’s fleet had to burn in DnD’s minds, but will we get an in-story reason please?
I’m also glad we know more about the White Walkers, so a typical weapon made out of despair that becomes uncontrollable. The important point here is that they obviously considered the 3-Eyed Raven, children of the forest and Bran a threat, now why exactly yet remains to be seen.
Now the details that have me worried/sad/disappointed/…
Another Direwolf dead, however it might have been necessary for the story progression, it felt stupid and pointless in its execution. And given I care for the wolves probably more than for the Starks…
The Blackfish. I’d love for him to A) still be alive; B) massing an army; C) joining forces with Sansa, Jon, Davos, Brienne, Melisandre, … But Littlefinger’s word is such a lousy source of information that I fear a setup for Sansa (if the case, she marvelously manoeuvred herself in it by declaring Blackfish is fine and ready to help).
Last and definitely not the least, the tragedy of Wyllis becoming Hodor. Wyllis was seemingly an innocent boy that became a tool for our important character. Same as Bran used Hodor to kill that Bolton hand-cutter (sorry can’t recall his name right now), Bran used Hodor as a stopdoor not to mention making Hodor from Wyllis in the first place.
This definitely makes me as wary of Bran’s future as I’ve been from Stannis from the moment we saw him with Melisandre. Both did use individuals for the greater good – I’m not necessarily arguing that’s inacceptable right now – and that sure makes me pause and consider what they may really be up to.
Well done, Clare, thanks for stepping up. Cannot unsee warty cock – “be careful what you wish for” comes to mind. The theatre sequence reminds me of a similar one in the “Avatar: The Last Airbender” series, where team Avatar attends a play about themselves, that ends up being a parody in the same vein. A play within a play.
Respect to Ellie Kendrick for nailing it in her tiny bit of screen time.
RIP Hodor, most beautiful, and painful to see death, so far.
Because winter is here.
Civil unrest has no reason. Things are destroyed just for existing.
wolfswood,
On the contrary I think Summer did it deliberately so they could get away
Ice Spider,
.
I always thought the only God was Death – thats what I think is told to Arya,or at least nferred
Sou,
You didn’t watch hardhome again?????
OMG I’ve seen it like ten times haha
I already watched the door twice
Hodor no more ;_(
True, but when it has so convenient results, I expect from a show like GoT to come up with something better than random destruction (that would actually work in the case of the fire engulfing a part of Meereen itself and – just as collateral damage – also incinerating a large part of harbored ships).
Oh, and i forgot to add to my last post that not only Bran used Hodor which led to his death but that it was Bran’s lack of patience and discipline that allowed the White Walkers to even get to them in the first place. Seriously this episode was Bran screwing everything he even thought about. Summer, Hodor, 3-Eyed Raven and the numerous Children of the Forest might all just have been killed because Bran like Pippin and the Palantir in LotR couldn’t keep his curiosity in check.
Ah, probably because HBO want to cut back on CGI expenses!
Sort of ironic that the original idea that GRRM had to write ASOIF was the discovery of the direwolf pups by the Starks and then the story was built on from that. Now only Ghost (and perhaps Nymeria) are all that remain. Those adopted by Jon and Ayra.
hexonx,
If you really want to keep the tally, do not forget the wine merchant/wannabe assassin in S1.
He is intelligent. He did it on purpose. The same way Leaf sacrificed herself to buy Meera, Bran and Hodor more time.
Dee,
Hon, you are NOT alone…we all cried I think. Horrible, fantastic episode…horrible because we said good-bye to so many characters, fantastic because it was over the top good!
Making the 8,
I would say he knew ahead of time that Bran would have to warg into Hodor to have him actually become Hodor. So the 3ER knew all along that Hodor had become what he was because Bran would ultimately affect the change via the warging into him to begin with.
Damn that sounded a lot more logical in my head. Anyways, the 3ER knew in order for Bran/Meera to survive they needed to warg back to the time when Hodor became Hodor. That’s what I was trying to say.
“All Sansa has is the army of her brother. Or half-brother. What’s with that crack? It’s not like it makes the army half-effective.”
It’s an insinuation about Jon’s trustworthiness, rather than the army’s effectiveness.
I wouldn’t say ‘trustworthiness’. It’s just that Jon might have slightly different goals than Sansa and also has a different idea of Wildlings.
Ramsay’s 20th Good Man,
Sansa = New Cersei
I thought the whole ‘paradox’ situation with Hodor was pretty simple.
3ER initiated the Greensight vision with Bran to make Bran the next 3ER. The reason Bran may have been able to hear Meera is because he is still partially conscious to the present time, the 3ER in the vision was able to hear Meera through Bran.
Because Bran was in the vision initiated by the 3ER he was able to warg into Hodor in the present time, Hodors eyes go white at this point, Wylis’ eyes don’t.
Finally when the NK kills the 3ER the transition between the 3ER and Bran becoming the next 3ER is made. At this point 3ER turns to smoke in the vision and the vision becomes Bran’s.
With Bran currently warged into Hodor in the present a link is made between Hodor and Wylis, this is when Wylis eyes go white as if he is being warged into.
This sudden change of events is what allows Wylis to hear Meera saying ‘hold the door’.
By remaining in this state potentially Wylis mind would have completely died through the link between present Hodor when he eventually dies. Instead Bran leaves the vision with Wylis, but by this time Wylis has become the Hodor that we see in the series, only being able to say Hodor.
Also first ever post so go easy on me 🙂
Clare,
Sorry, I didn’t mean to imply Summer wasn’t intentional. He did sacrifice himself to buy the others more time. I would have liked Summer to have been more successful – who’s kidding who, I didn’t want him to die at all – but if he’s got to go, I wish he could’ve lasted a bit longer.
Also, I should’ve thanked you for the recap. Your recap was the first time I’ve ever posted on the site (except for one ‘Hodor’). So, thanks!
Sue the Fury,
You’re right and Summer’s sacrifice was noble. Maybe there were just too many wights to even try and attack from the side or put up more of a defense. I just hate saying goodbye to another dire wolf.