Episode 374 – Stormborn
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Game of Thrones season 7 returns with Stormborn. A podcast meets with a fellow podcast following its final, fiery conclusion.
Seven thanks to Ashaya of History of Westeros for gracing our podcast with her insight and knowledge of the series!
When you play the game of owns, you win or you don’t write us your favorite parts of the new episode. Let us know below!
Fuck the sand snakes
There was more I didn’t like than liked on this episode. Dany and Varys having a cat fight? Where did that come from? Varys has done a lot for her and I found her to be really ungrateful. And Tyrion having Casterly Rock attacked? Sounds like he has his own adgenda here and I’m afraid that will come back to haunt him. Then Dany asking Jon to come and bend the knee? Good luck with that. Dany needs to listen to Olenna. More on this later.
littlefinger scene didn’t make sense to me at first too. why did he do it? but then I realised that the conversation went exactly how littlefinger imagined it to go.
he tried all insults until finding out at what point and which topic jon would loose his temper. just like littlefinger expected, jon is the same as ned. he even attacked the same way as ned in season 1.
now that this little experiment done, he can proceed with his sneaky schemes.
Dany’s council meeting was everything I wanted it to be with regards to PR, though her reaction to Olenna’s advice and her threat of burning Varys alive (seems like she’s abandoned less painful methods post-Mossador?) was a little troubling. What happened to the Greyjoys & Dornish allies already does not bode well for the plan to avoid using dragonfire.
The Daenerys and Varys scene was great, and up until this point I admit I didn’t really buy that the “I serve the realm” declaration was sincere. I loved both Arya scenes, and felt that the Theon moment at the end was well-handled. You don’t get to walk away from what he went through without a lot of lasting trauma. The Missandei and Grey Worm scene was incredibly sweet, and while scenes like these are often disliked because some see no point to them, they add necessary moments of levity and weight – and often present the themes of their episodes. In this case, the vulnerabilities of various characters: Arya (her “wolf pack”, Jon, and home), Sansa (losing Jon and – based on her expression and glances – being left with LF), Daenerys (the desire to “be a dragon” despite wanting to do the right thing), Varys (the good of the common people), Theon (things that remind him of Ramsey).
I thought Littlefinger’s needling of Jon was actually characteristic of him – if he can’t find someone to ally with by finding out what they want (e.g. Ned looking for Jon Arryn’s cause of death, Margaery wanting to be queen after Renly’s death, Olenna wanting to get back at Cersei for Margaery’s detainment), he tries to find the weakness of someone he sees as a threat (e.g. Varys about his sexuality, spying on each other, and being a eunuch, and Cersei about her relationship with Jaime). When he’s taunting someone he seems to do it knowing he’s risking his wellbeing, as with Cersei and her guards, but with some assurance that he won’t be outright killed because he’s needed. Since Sansa firmly kept him from ascertaining what she wants, LF sought out Jon in an emotionally susceptible place to needle him about various things and find his vulnerability. Judging by his head tilt and the way he looked at Jon and Sansa, he was was surprised but perhaps onto something. Based on the theme of the episode, it’ll likely be important later on. Given how much people (including myself) thought he might know about Rhaegar and Lyanna, I was surprised that that doesn’t actually seem to be the case, though he may have his suspicions.
My own would go to Jon for showing how much he trusts and values Sansa in the most extra way possible: by blindsiding her with his finely tuned sense of dramatic timing. Still, it was sweet; at points it seemed like he was only reassuring her without regards to the northern lords, and has anyone ever put so much faith in her?
The north will still be really interesting going forward, especially with Bran and Arya en route! I just wish Jon could be there to reunite with them too.
Overall I liked the episode and thought the pacing was excellent. Few comments though, did Olenna sell out the dornish? I thought it was interesting that Euron knew where they were. I know Kings Landing is close to Dragonstone but that’s pinpoint accuracy. The Nymeria scene was cool but left me thinking why haven’t we seen Ghost since Jon was brought back? little less dragon money little more dire wolf money. It was also weird because if you need a “after the episode scene” to explain the line Arya says it’s a poorly thought out scene.
Nick Hartley does not sow!
Loved the podcast guys (as always) but why not more comment on the Mel hoodwinking Dany into thinking she could be Azor Ahai when it was obvious she meant either Jon or the pair of them?
The Sand Snake snipping seemed just childish at first, but it did serve a purpose. It was all underscoring Tyene is Ellaria’s only daughter. Ellaria killed Marcella, Cersei’s only daughter. And Sunday’s episode synopsis says “Cersei returns a gift.”
Sometime I feel if they hadn’t all tried to pull off Pedro’s accent, their scenes wouldn’t have come off as B-movie foreign theater. There was also the problem of not quite striking the balance between having these women who talked to each like locker room dudes, but who would cut anyone who tried to come between them.
A siege is cruel, but being burned and mutilated isn’t pretty either. Even if the dragons only targeted the Keep, wildfire is highly volatile and is still buried all over the city. Any explosion could set off a chain reaction (I wish Tyrion would’ve brought that up in the war council). It really does go back to it being easier to accept the “foreigner” if it looks to be equally as much of an internal conflict.