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Game of Thrones Memory Lane 208: The Prince of Winterfell

Posted on by Petra

Luwin

“The Prince of Winterfell,” written by David Benioff and D.B. Weiss and directed by Alan Taylor, is the last episode before the explosive Battle of the Blackwater (buh-dum ching) and it feels, appropriately, like the calm before the storm, full of quiet character moments and ending on the melancholic reveal that Bran and Rickon are still alive.

The episode opens on Yara’s arrival to Winterfell. She berates Theon for killing the Stark boys, not because it was immoral (we’re dealing with very different cultural perceptions of right and wrong, here) but because it was tactless. She announces that she hasn’t come to provide reinforcements but to bring him home. When Theon refuses (‘cause he’s got something to PROVE, gods-dammit) Yara softens and, in a tone more resigned than imploring, she tells him of a childhood memory she has of him smiling up at her as a baby. “Don’t die so far from the sea,” she tells him and leaves.

Yara

TheonPoW

Given my affinity for the Greyjoys, it should be no surprise that I really love this scene. The dialogue is expanded from their conversation in A Clash of Kings to really give us a sense of how Yara sees Theon. No matter what he does, no matter how lost he becomes inside his own broken mind, he will always be her baby brother.

Robb and Talisa continue to develop their relationship by discussing their families and ethics. They finally throw caution (and strategy, honor and victory) to the wind by consummating their doomed love.

Enjoy it while you can, guys.
Enjoy it while you can, guys.

Actually, I really do like these two together. I realize that Talisa is a divisive figure in the fandom and that Robb’s decision to break his oath to Walder Frey makes less sense when it’s the carefully made decision of a grown man rather than a 16-year old boy’s attempt to correct a mistake … but I like Talisa and, on an emotional level, I prefer getting to know the woman who costs Robb his campaign.

Arya extorts aid in escaping Harrenhal from Jaqen by naming him – condemning him to suicide – and promising to un-name him in exchange for help. “A girl lacks honor,” Jaqen observes to which Arya shrugs, diverging further from the honorable Stark path, choosing practicality over principle.

Stannis and Davos take a break from preparing for their invasion of King’s Landing to have a heart-to-burning heart about elitism and injustice. Stannis’ recollection of the siege at Storm’s End and his bitterness that Robert overlooked his sacrifice by giving the castle to Renly really brings home what he’s fighting for. He’s done his duty and put up with crap long enough. Now, “by every law of Westeros,” it’s his turn.

Tyrion shares a memorable scene with Cersei in which the two drink wine eat dinner and argue over Joffrey’s intention to fight in the battle. Tyrion seems confident that he’s going to get his way until Cersei plays her trump card: she has Tyrion’s whore and whatever befalls Joffrey in battle will befall her. When guards bring in a bruised and bloody Ros, Tyrion bluffs long enough to comfort Ros and threaten Cersei. Then he rushes to his chambers to find Shae unharmed.

It’s a tense scene that reveals the lengths that Cersei will go to, to protect her son. It also places Cersei and Tyrion’s dynamic in contrast with Yara and Theon’s. Both are tumultuous relationships between an older sister who has fought tooth and nail for the respect men take for granted and a whore mongering “baby brother” who’s never quite belonged. Yet, while we saw in Yara and Theon’s scene that underneath the annoyance and ironborn grit, the two really do care for one another, here it’s made clear that through and through there’s nothing but bile between Cersei and Tyrion.

The episode concludes back in Winterfell as Maester Luwin uncovers the truth: that Theon murdered and mutilated two peasant children and that Bran and Rickon are still alive, hiding in the crypts. Djawadi’s heart-wrenching score piece, “Winterfell,” plays us out over this final image of Bran Stark.

Bran

Retrospectively important and/or painful moments

  • Yara and Theon’s scene, considering the circumstances of their next meeting
  • Tyrion’s threat to Cersei is going to come back to bite him
  • Watching Rickard Karstark rail at Catelyn for releasing the Kingslayer, and Robb announce that he doesn’t want to marry the Frey girl, you can just about hear “The Rains of Castamere”
  • The scene in which Robb discusses what to do about Theon Greyjoy with his trusty bannerman, Roose Bolton, is either tragic or hilarious, depending on your sense of humor

Roose

Memorable quotes
Tyrion to Cersei: “I will hurt you for this. A day will come when you think you are safe and happy and your joy will turn to ashes in your mouth.”

Yara to Theon: “You were a terrible baby do you know that? Bawling all the time, never sleeping. And one night you just wouldn’t shut up. Screaming like a dying pig. I walked over to your crib. I looked down at you. I wanted to strangle you. And you looked up at me and you stopped screaming. You smiled at me. Don’t die so far from the sea.”

Daenerys: “They are my children and they are the only children I will ever have”

Talisa & Robb: “What kind [of king] do you want to be?” “I don’t know. The good kind.”

Bronn: “Have you ever been in a city under siege? Maybe this part’s not in your books. See, it’s not the fighting that kills most people. It’s the starving. Food’s worth more than gold.”

Varys to Tyrion: “Jon Arryn & Ned Stark were good men. Honorable men. But they disdained the game and those who played. You enjoy the game.”

Tyrion to Varys: “The lord of light wants his enemies burnt, the drowned god wants them drowned. Why are all the gods such vicious cunts? Where’s the god of tits and wine?”

Brienne to Jaime: “All my life men like you’ve sneered at me and all my life I’ve been knocking men like you into the dust.”

Creative Fandom

ActualPrinceofWinterfell

From the Beautiful Death series by Robert M. Ball.

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Petra

42 Comments

  3. When Rob is confronting Cat about letting Jamie go, Lord Karstark says to her “I would carve out my heart and offer it to the Father if it would make my sons wake from their graves.” I found this odd since the Karstark certainly would follow the Old Gods and not the Seven.

  4. I love Yara so much. I don’t even care. Best Greyjoy (the rest can hang, sorry OP). Her scenes with Theon were really great in this. Loved the episode title as well (great reference) and the Winterfell scenes in general.

    I like seeing how Tyrion enjoys being Hand and playing all these games. I totally agree about the Robb/Roose scene; I don’t know if I want to laugh or cry (great acting too).

  6. I wonder if there is more to the story of Sam, etc finding the dragonglass (and horn). Like who left it there? Is the horn magical (as like the dragonglass) or just an ordinary horn. Just an intriguing find.

  7. I loved the “Don’t die so far from the sea” conversation. Really like Whelan’s Yara, and sadly it was the last time she’s been connected with another storyline effectively.

    Hopefully this season will be a return to casually sauntering into places and acting like she owns them.

  12. Stannis’ speech about the siege of Storm’s End and how they progressively consumed all the animals, including the dogs (“good animals, loyal”), is my favourite show-only dialogue. I don’t think the show should have waited this long to provide this backstory to Stannis and Davos’ relationship, but it’s a nice scene.

  13. Sean C.,

    Hear hear. It’s so darkly funny: “Cats. Fine. I never liked cats.”

    It also adds to Stannis’ decision making in S5, when faced with starvation. A scene of some of his men killing a horse for food or other devastation in his camp would have helped call back to this.

  14. The god of tits and wine would probably give people cancer as punishment.

    Anyway. Still on Season 2? I may actually see Blackwater tomorrow, see how GRRM’s characters don’t fit their usual characters on the show. I’m glad he stopped writing for it, I usually prefer the show versions.

  16. Great essay. I really like Whelan and Oona.

    “Clegane, you’ll maintain a garrison here at Harrenhal”….”The girl has proven herself a good servant. She’ll stay on with you. See that he doesn’t get drunk in the evenings. He’s poor company when he’s sober, but he’s better at his work.”
    And people say Tywin doesn’t have a sense of humor 🙂

  19. The Stannis bit about the animals is truly great. Here it is:

    “First we ate the horses–we weren’t riding anywhere, not with the castle surrounded. We couldn’t feed them, so, fine, the horses. Then the cats–never liked cats, so, fine. I do like dogs–good animals, loyal–but we ate them. Then the rats. The night before you slipped through I thought my wife was dying–she couldn’t speak anymore, she was so frail.”

    As for the “swear on the Father” bit by Rickard Karstark, I think one of them – D & D or Cogman – admitted that one is a mistake. He’d have to be old gods, no matter what.

    And because I love it, the whole bit about the Archmaester is great.

    “An History of the Great Sieges of Westeros” by Archmaester…’Shevelathin.’

    “Shevelatesh.”

    “Chevalteesh.”

    Varys, a minute or two later: Thrilling subject. Shame Archmaester Ch’vyalthan wasn’t a better writer.

    (And Tyrion’s great head nod to Bronn, essentially saying, ‘Of course that’s how you say it.’)

  20. I’ll lead off with my usual disclaimer that I genuinely love every episode of Game of Thrones. I always thoroughly enjoy re-watching them, finding moments that I’ve adored for years and others that have taken on new resonance over time as this great story has progressed.

    With that said, I’ll admit that “The Prince of Winterfell” is a bottom-five episode for me. With a few exceptions, it’s the pacing that’s the problem more than the material. The episode bounces all over the world (which isn’t unusual, obviously), but there are a lot of short check-in scenes that feel like they wound up here because they had to go somewhere (Jaime and Brienne is one, although admittedly we needed a follow-up to the cliffhanger from the previous episode. Sam, Grenn, and Edd finding the dragonglass is another).

    Furthermore, almost every storyline feels like it’s treading water before “Blackwater”. It’s the calm before the storm, obviously, but that calm is a bit less smooth than I would like. It’s more noticeable because this episode is sandwiched between two great hours in “A Man Without Honor” (which is a personal favorite of mine) and “Blackwater” (which is a series highlight for almost everyone, myself included).

    But as always, there is much to love in the episode, starting in Winterfell. The scene between Theon and Yara has really grown on me over the years, especially in light of how their paths cross later. The way that Gemma Whalen says “Don’t die so far from the sea” speaks volumes.

    The final scene, revealing that Bran and Rickon are still alive, doesn’t have quite the impact that one might hope for under ideal circumstances. Fake deaths (and fake identities) are a hard thing to pull off, which is why I’m glad the show has mostly dispensed with them (The books, sadly, haven’t learned that lesson quite yet). Yet the final shot of Bran sitting in the dark, sleepless as Rickon and Hodor doze beside him, does still carry weight. As Petra says, Ramin Djawdi’s mournful “Winterfell” theme is just beautiful.

  21. Joffrey’s Cunt: holy shit we are getting some White walker action!!!

    Is the wight breaking through the branches at :55 from Hardhome like the images towards the end are? There was a similar wight I remember, but it looks more like branches than that wooden wall.

  23. Robb and Talisa have two very nice scenes in this episode, both of which illustrate why I like them together and count myself as a fan of Talisa in general. Their discussion about Ned and the responsibilities that come with both lordship and fatherhood is a nice character moment for both of them. It also presages Talisa offering to name their child ‘Eddard’ later.

    I also appreciate that the line “How can a man be brave if he’s afraid? That is the only time a man can be brave, he told me” was included. It’s great in the book, and here as well.

    Later, Oona Chaplin nails the monologue about growing up in Volantis and the slave who saved her brother’s life. When I watched her deliver it for the first time, I was as enraptured as Robb was. There’s so much death and misery in the show – seeing two very attractive people fall in love and have consensual sex is a nice respite. And they lived happily ever after, close curtains! Nothing else to see here. 😉

    The shadow hanging over both of them takes the form of Roose Bolton, even as he continues to act Robb’s primary advisor in this episode, and appears to be doing so in good faith (though Ramsay, as he says later, has his own way of doing things). It’s clear that he’s got an opinion on this burgeoning relationship, albeit not one he’d like to share with the class right now.

  27. Odds and ends. I really like the scene between Stannis and Davos. It’s an excellent way to bring in that piece of backstory, and Stephen Dillane’s curt delivery is perfect.

    Alas, Arya and Tywin’s time together ends here as they both leave Harrenhal, albeit one in bloodier fashion than the other. I absolutely love the moment when Jaqen says “A girl lacks honor” and Arya responds with a little shrug. She’s learning! Great bit of acting from Maisie Williams there.

    I’ve already given my thoughts on Qhorin Halfhand. This episode is actually the low point for him, in my opinion. I do quite like the Lord of Bones’ introduction, however. And the scenery is beautiful – shooting on that frozen lake had to be a technical nightmare, but it looks gorgeous.

    I really like the scene with Dany and Jorah. You can see how much Jorah loves his Queen when Dany asks him if she remembers her stepping into the fire and he responds “Until my last breath I will remember. After I’ve forgotten my mother’s face.” (Obligatory plug about how great Iain Glen is here). However, it does feel like it perhaps this scene should have been in the finale instead. Maybe that was the original plan, and the scene was moved to this episode for time reasons (this episode is 54 minutes, “Valar Morghulis” is 64 minutes).

    Good episode for Peter Dinklage – when is it not? He gets to play comedy while Tyrion is planning the siege with Bronn, and through the first half of his dinner with Cersei. The switch to drama comes when Cersei brings out the woman she believes is his whore (poor Ros really goes through the ringer) and Tyrion delivers the vow of revenge that will come back to haunt both of them. The follow-up scene when he runs to Shae is actually incredibly sweet and romantic, if sad, given what we know is coming. But when is romance on this show not tinged with melancholy?

    “Where is the god of tits and wine?” Probably palling around with the god of tits and dragons, would be my guess. 🙂

    Something I only noticed on rewatch – how surreptitiously Varys brings up Daenerys to Tyrion. He starts out by giving a quick look around before leaning in and saying, seemingly out of the blue “This morning, I heard a song. All the way from Qarth, beyond the Red Waste. Daenerys Targaryen lives.” In light of Vary’s secret Targaryen allegiance being revealed in Season 5, this could be interpreted as Varys attempting to ascertain Tyrion’s feelings on Dany, and gauge him as a possible ally for their future campaign. When Tyrion is dismissive, Varys senses that the time isn’t right and quickly pulls back, couching it all in rumor. Yet another piece of elegant and fortuitous foreshadowing to pick up on.

  29. Jared:

    Agreed completely. As always there’s some lovely and well acted scenes, but this feels more like a lull in the pacing than usual. It’s more functional in it’s plot, you can see the seams. It’s the epitome of Season 2’s tendency to drop in on every single storyline in my mind.

    The Yara scene is great in particular though.

  31. I think that we should reconsider the trailer scene with Brann and the NK if the 3ERs cave is vulnerable to White Walker attacks. Maybe it is just wights that cannot come in…

  32. Jared,

    I completely agree with your review. This episode is my second least favorite of season 2 and the second least favorite overall. It reminds me of Lord Snow in some way (my least favorite of season 1 and third least favorite overall) but contray to Lord Snow, this episode does not introduce many new characters, only Lord of Bones. I liked the bits about Stannis and Theon and the atmosphere in this episode is very peaceful, which is unusual for GoT. Also, it is one of the few episodes with no deaths and no on-screen violence (except for Harrenhal).

  33. dothrakian raven,

    The scene of the trailer still certainly a vision, since Bran is standing.

    But I’m suspicious (and the video seems to increase these possibilities) that WW may invade the cave (and the wights too, since there is a shot with a wight trying to get in through the roots). I think something will break the protection of the cave and they will invade and kill Bloodraven, forcing Bran running away from there.

  35. Selina,

    That sounds pretty likely. Well, except for the running part, but I know what you mean

    [ spoiler ] And not to be morbid, but Max Van Sydow is getting on in years. It would make sense to have him as a pivotal character for this season and then kill him off by season’s end when Bran’s training is complete. [ / spoiler]

  36. Selina,

    There was sth in the posture of the two that makes me doubt if it is a vision. And then why would it be a vision? In any case it seems that the cave will be invaded and maybe this is related with the other scene in the trailer with the rider and the rolling flame…

  41. A great episode (as they all are). Can’t say I’ve seen a poor one, perhaps the exceptions being those shown in Dorne.

    I just love the stuff that Tyrion comes out with casually in general conversion with Varys… “Why are all the gods such vicious cunts? Where’s the god of tits and wine?”

    Was another moment when I was having my evening meal and nearly choked laughing 🙂

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