If I got a pound for every time I thought or said "I wish I could go to Comic Con" I'd be a millionaire by now. Alas, between Thursday, July 18 and Sunday, July 21 I had to sit at home and watch the goings on at Comic Con through my social media. For those who also missed out, here's a round up of my best bits. Veronica Mars Yes, we're absolutely going to start here. Ever since seeing the trailer forthe Veronica Mars film that was shown at Comic Con, I've been mainlining the television series in preparation. I thought my love for Veronica Mars had diminished, but the obsession has come back. I should never have forgotten, my relationship with Veronica Mars was epic, one for the ages.
Thor: The Dark World I love superhero films, but I'm actually not a huge Thor nerd. That all changed when Loki took to the stage at Comic Con during theMarvelpanel when they were discussing Thor: The Dark World. This was probably my favourite thing that happened, I love how into Comic Con all the actors and writers and directors are, they seem to love it as much as the fans.
Brave New Warriors What a great idea for a panel - bring together everyone's favourite male heroes from the small screen (although next time, get some kick arse women for the panel too, okay Comic Con?). I watched this for Kit Harrington from Game of Thrones and Matt Smith from Doctor Who, but there's plenty of other stuff to enjoy.
Game of Thrones I can never get enough Game of Thrones, so this of course goes in the list.
Batman/Superman This is the one everyone's talking about, and of course it's big - Batman and Superman in the same film. Woah.
EDIT: I'd like to add in the Doctor Who 50th anniversary episode trailer and the Sherlock footage, but I haven't seen it and can't find it online. Boo. What were your favourite Comic Con moments?
The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer.
It's a chance to share news, a post to recap the past week on your
blog, showcase books and things we received and share news about what is
coming up on our blog for the week ahead.
It seems I'm barely over the events of last week's episode of Game of Thrones and the season finale has arrived. Oh wait, I'm not over the events of last week's episode. To recap, lots of people I liked died, and others I liked were heartbroken. And it was just horrendous and I want to curl up in a ball and cry about it. Again. Still, I must move on. And so to the final episode of series three, which was full of revelations.
In and around the Wall Bran and the gang take shelter in one of the old castles along the Wall. Bran takes the opportunity to tell a fireside tale about the Rat Chef, a man who killed a king's son and then fed him to the king. The chef was punished by being turned into a rat, doomed to eat his own young. Only the reason he was punished wasn't for the murder or for feeding the king his son, it was disrespecting guests. And so Bran becomes the first person to talk about hospitality and the rights and rules that come with it. As the group sleep, Bran hears a noise and a scuffle ensues as the group catch an intruder. Only it's not any old intruder, it's Samwell, Gilly and the baby. Samwell recognises Bran from Jon's descriptions, and tries to persude him not to go north of the Wall. I found these scenes really touching, and it made me wish that all the good guys could just stay together and help each other, instead of constantly putting themselves in danger. Gifting the group with dragonglass daggers, Samwell and Gilly watch them walk through the tunnel and out onto the north side of the Wall, before the pair head to Castle Black. From there a message is sent out to rulers across the kingdoms about the dangers Samwell and Gilly saw (after a touching moment where Gilly reveals she will call her baby Sam). Meanwhile, somewhere near the Wall Ygritte tracks down Jon Snow, who confesses that he does love Ygritte, but that he's never hidden who he is. As he turns away from her, she shoots him, catching him with an arrow in the back. Then she shoots him again, and again, before he eventually escapes, badly injured, on horseback, and makes it to Castle Black, where the brothers of the Night's Watch take him in. The look on Ygritte's face as she sees Jon ride off is one of many heartbroken faces we see this week.
King's Landing Tyrion and Sansa are getting on quite well, joking together, when Tyrion is called to a meeting of the Small Council where a gleeful Joffrey tells him both Robb and Catelyn Stark have been killed.
Joffrey can barely contain his joy, which puts him on a collision course with Tyrion, especially when the former says he plans to serve Sansa Robb's head for dinner at his wedding feast. The little scrotum that is Joffrey doesn't seem to understand he's heading into danger when he begins to argue with Tyrion, and it's only when he turns his wrath on Tywin and accuses him of being a coward that it all comes to a head.
Tywin sends Joffrey to bed like the child he is, and then proceeds to tell Tyrion that he needs to get Sansa pregnant, fast, so that their child can rule in the north on behalf of the king. Tyrion has some major issues with this, rightly pointing out that Sansa is definitely not going to sleep with him now.
He's also the second person to point out that killing guests in your home is unforgiveable, and will come back to haunt you. And so Tyrion heads back to Sansa, who simply looks at him like her heart has been shattered.
Lord Varys visits Shae and offers her diamonds to leave King's Landing, so that Tyrion may have a chance to become the great ruler he can be. She refuses and tells Varys Tyrion must send her away himself. He's too busy getting drunk with Pod though, and then bonding with Cersei, who tells him that he should give Sansa a child so that she has something to take pride in.
Cersei reveals that her children are the only thing that make her happy, even Joffrey, who was a happy baby. When her brother questions how long the Lannisters must keep fighting for, Cersei's only answer is until they stop having enemies.
And then Cersei gets the surprise of her life, when Jaime walks back into her life. I can't tell if she's happy to see him or not, and I don't think she and Jaime can either, although it's clear they feel deeply for each other (in a gross, incest-y way).
Walder Frey's place/somewhere dark and dingy Walder Frey is happily munching on lunch, while chatting to Roose Bolton and watching maids clean the floor of his dining room of Stark blood.
As the pair discuss events - Blackfish got away (yay!) - it is revealed that Ramsay Snow, the creepy guy who's been torturing Theon Greyjoy, is actually Bolton's bastard son. And he's been torturing Theon because the poor boy was given up by his own men.
It's been a few weeks since we saw Theon, and as we revisit he's not really in any good state. Ramsay has cut off his manhood, and is now determined to break what little sanity Theon, or Reek as Ramsay insists on naming him, has left.
Theon's manhood, meanwhile, is mailed to his father and sister. The former could give two hoots and doesn't care about Ramsay's threat to kill Theon, but the latter has suddenly grown a conscience and takes off in a boat with 50 of the Iron Island's deadliest men to rescue her little brother. I do find Yara's change of heart a bit sudden, and I wonder what's made her suddenly sympathetic to her younger brother. Is it simply that he's blood and she can't abhor the way he's being treated? Dragonstone Pearls of wisdom come this week from Gendry, who bonds with Ser Davos Seaworth when the latter visits him in his prison cell. When Ser Davos asks why Gendry succumbed to Melisandre, Gendry answers with words that could be used as an excuse for many things that happen in Game of Thrones: "Big words, no clothes, what would you have done?"
Gendry's honesty works and later, when Stannis Baratheon orders Gendry be killed Ser Davos frees Gendry and sends him back to King's Landing. Stannis sentences Ser Davos to death instead, but the Onion Knight is wily - having learnt to read he is in possession of a note from the Night's Watch which details the horrors stirring beyond the Wall. Melisandre is quick to switch tack, advising Stannis that beyond the Wall is where the real battle lies, and so Stannis spares Ser Davos, so that the knight can help him form his army. On the road Arya and the Hound, having escaped from Walder Frey's joint (after seeing Greywind's head stitched to Robb Stark's body), are back on the road. I'm not sure where they're heading, but I'm guessing King's Landing since there's nowhere else for them to turn. On their way they pass a group of Frey's men, boasting about killing the Starks. Arya slips off the horse and heads over to the group, lulling them into a false sense of security and then repeatedly stabbing one of them to death. The Hound handles the others and then rounds on Arya, asking where she got the knife from - it's his. As the Hound tucks into food, Arya picks up the coin Jaqen H'ghar gave her and says the magic words: "Valar Morghulis." Yunkai Daenerys waits outside the gates of Yunkai with her warriors, waiting for those inside to come out. They do, and after listening to Daenerys tell them they must free themselves, the group start chanting. The word they're chanting? Mhysa. It means 'mother'. Daenerys lets her dragons fly, and then walks into the crowd, where she is picked up and greeted like a queen, like the queen we've seen her grown into. In the final scene of the series, we see a triumphant Daenerys surrounded by an army of her people, with her dragons flying overhead. And there we have it, season three of Game of Thrones is over. It's been painful, really painful, although perhaps not as painful as it has been for Theon Greyjoy. Still, despite all the pain, the final episode ended with some hope, especially for Daenerys (ever more worshipped), Jon Snow (back at home with family) and even Bran (off to conquer a new world). It even ended with a hope of sorts for Jaime Lannister, who will hopefully continue on the path Brienne has set him on and become a good man. Just a year to wait and then we'll see.
It's been two weeks since Game of Thrones has been on our screens, and with this, the ninth episode of 10, we were bound to get something that made our jaws drop. Drop, they did - in horror. Remember that thing that happened at the end of season one with Ned Stark (I still can't talk about it)? Multiply by a thousand and you get The Rains of Castamere. This was an episode about the Starks, and just like our previous dealings with this family, tragedy is never too far away. Was The Rains of Castamere too violent? Were its final scenes gratuitous? Or should we have realised that Game of Thrones is never afraid to take the bloodiest, most difficult road?
The Wall/In the North Samwell and Gilly continue making their way to the Wall. During their walk Samwell tells Gilly all about the castle they will use to get through to the other side, stunning the girl with the knowledge he has gained from books. As the Wall finally comes into view, Gilly stares up at it in wonder, before telling her baby that Craster always said no wildling would stare upon the Wall and live. Gilly thinks Craster was wrong, but I predict these words will come back to haunt Gilly. It's an interesting little scene, but not one that was essential to this episode, and I think we could have done without it. Meanwhile Jon Snow and the wildlings decide to attack a man who breeds horses for the Night's Watch. Jon tries to persuade the wildlings not to kill the man, and when that doesn't work he makes sure the guy is alerted to the presence of the wildlings. The old man manages to get away, and leads the wildlings to an abandoned tower, inside which Bran, Rickon, Osha, Hoder, Jojen and his sister are hiding. Hoder, afraid of the thunder, starts yelling, and outside the tower Orell stares up, convinced he has heard people inside. He gets distracted when the group capture the old man, and he nominates Jon to kill him to prove he is loyal to the wildlings. Inside, Bran has quietened Hodor by getting inside his mind, and Jojen prompts him to do the same with the direwolves outside the tower, who will kill the wildlings. As Jon attacks the wildlings, and Ygritte desperately tries to fight alongside him, the direwolves attack. Jon, after killing Orell and telling him in his final moments that he was right about Jon, rides off into the storm, leaving a heartbroken and betrayed looking Ygritte behind. The worst moment was not Ygritte's sad face though, it was the knowledge than Bran, Rickon and Jon were within metres of each other, and missed seeing each other. Determined to continue on to the Wall, Bran orders Osha to take Rickon to the Umbers, while he journeys beyond the Wall.
It's worth pointing out that while the last episode of Game of Thrones was about sons, this one is very much about mothers. Osha has become a mother figure to Bran and Rickon, and Catelyn and Robb's relationship as mother and son this week is brought to the fore again, only to be completely destroyed within hours... Yunkai A few brief scenes with Daenerys this week, which, while useful, did distract from what should have stayed a Stark centred episode. Daario Naharis comes up with a plan to sack the city of Yunkai. He will access through a back gate, taking with him Jorah Mormont and the leader of the Unsullied. As the trio leave to preapre for their mission Barristan Selmy stops Jorah and says he wants to go with them. Jorah reminds Barristan that he is of the Queen's Guard, and so needs to stay with Daenerys all the time, and do whatever it takes to keep her safe. The three successfully break into Yunkai, but are set upon by around a dozen slaves from the city. After killing them, they take a moment to breathe, only for streams more men to come pouring out. Back at camp, Daenerys is getting increasingly tense. It's been a long time since we've seen her act uncertain, but she drops her guard to ask Barristan how long it takes to sack a city. As he goes to answer, Jorah and the captain of the Unsullied come back, splattered with blood. Jorah tells Daenerys that the slaves gave in and Yunkai is now theirs. For a brief moment happiness crosses Daenerys' face, but then the smile gets wiped off when she realises Daario isn't with them. It's okay, though, he's not dead! In he swans, carrying the flag of Yunkai, which he presents to Daenerys.
Walder Frey's place And so it was here that much of the action of this episode took place.
The episode opened with Robb seeking advice from his mother, repairing the broken relationship the two have had for so long. She offers him some tips, but her strategy amounts to: "Kill them all." It's something that will come back to haunt everyone later.
The Starks and Tullys make their way to Walder Frey's castle, where Robb grovels before Frey and his daughters. The comedy here and throughout these scenes - Walder's inability to remember the name of one of his daughters, the line-up scenario, the names, Edmure Tully's facial expressions - only serve to heighten the tragedy that comes later. Frey forgives Robb, and tells him his men can set up camp outside, but he has room for some of his guests in the castle.
Meanwhile Arya and the Hound, after stealing a cart of pig meat, arrive outside Frey's castle. As Arya stares at it across the river, the Hound tells her she is nervous. She is so close, yet she's afraid she'll never get there. It's a premonition I didn't see coming (I guess that's the point).
And so to our second wedding in two episodes, as Edmure Tully marries Roslin Frey. Having dreaded this moment, he's pleasantly surprised to find she's actually quite pretty and in the end this wedding, unlike that of Sansa and Tyrion, actually passes off joyfully. The bride and groom seem to be enjoying each other's company at the head table, unlike Sansa and Tyrion, who were simply enduring. The joy in Edmure and Roslin's case is simply another harbinger of doom.
As the happy couple are taken off for the bedding ceremony (quite an ominous ritual), Talisa and Robb share a moment while Catelyn looks on proudly. But out of the corner of her eye she catches sight of one of Frey's men shutting the doors to the banquet hall, and then clocks that the band has started playing a sort-of funeral march - The Rains of Castamere.
You can see the cogs turning in Catelyn's mind, but it's only when she sits down next to Roose Bolton and as Frey makes a speech that she realises what is going to happen. Pulling back the sleeve of Bolton's top, she sees he is wearing chain mail underneath. It's these little moments that, again, make the horror to come all the more awful.
And then it all goes mad. In a horrific scene, a man comes out of nowhere and stabs Talisa repeatedly in the stomach, while arrows fly from one end of the hall to another, catching Robb and Catelyn, and Robb's men have their throats cut one by one. Outside, the same thing is happening.
The episode cuts between scenes inside the castle and outside, where Arya slips away from the Hound, realising something is wrong. As she watches, she sees men slaughtered, and then hears the howling of Robb's direwolf. Unable to do anything, she has to watch as a group of men shoot it dead. When she catches a glimpse of it beneath the door of its pen, she sees its eyes shut, a symbol of what has gone on inside.
Robb crawls his way over to Talisa, who is already dead, while Catelyn takes the chance to grab a knife and Frey's wife. She threatens to kill Frey's wife if he doesn't let Robb leave, and promises that if Robb goes she will stay as a hostage, and the Starks will never seek revenge on the Freys. As she talks and talks, Frey calmly sits there, until at last he says he can always find another wife. As Robb utters the word "mother", Roose Bolton stabs him in the heart, and tells him the Lannisters send their greetings.
Catelyn drops Frey's wife to the floor, slashing her neck in the process, and blood spurts everywhere. As Catelyn watches her son die, a man steps up to her and slashes her neck. And so, in one fell swoop, we've lost the oldest Starks, and the Tullys. These are the most horrific scenes we've seen on Game of Thrones, hands down. While the murders are gruesome, it's they way and why they're carried out that makes them so much more terrible - at the whim of a man who feels slighted and so wanted a little bit of revenge. Whatever you say about the Lannisters, and the Baratheons, and the Starks, and the Targaryens, they are all fighting a war and bloodshed is part of that. But at Frey's castle, the Tullys and Starks were meant to be safe, and found themselves destroyed by a man who wasn't fighting a war, he was simply fighting a loss of pride.
The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer.
It's a chance to share news, a post to recap the past week on your
blog, showcase books and things we received and share news about what is
coming up on our blog for the week ahead.
So I had a car accident last week, and am a bit sore, and a bit sleepy from the tablets I'm taking, which isn't conducive to reading. Therefore, once again, it's a surprise week ahead.
This is, I'm predicting, the calm before the storm. A relatively sedate episode, we didn't see some of our key characters, includiing Jaime Lannister and Robb Stark (first sons). I predict they'll be back next week, and it won't all be pretty. Instead, in Second Sons, we were introduced to the band of fighters who go by that name, as well as spent time with second sons including Tyrion and Stannis. King's Landing King's Landing was the site of much of the action of this episode, although it was light on action and heavy on setting up characters for future falls (I think). Sansa gets ready for her wedding to Tyrion, who pays her a visit before the ceremony, reminding her he won't hurt her and that she shouldn't be afraid. It's a sweet moment, and well worth remembering that Tyrion has always treated Sansa well and stood up for her, even against Joffrey. Speaking of Joffrey, he decides to walk Sansa down the aisle, and then takes away Tyrion's step stool, making the moment Tyrion has to place a cloak around Sansa's shoulder very, very awkward. As the guests titter and Tywin looks at them disapprovingly, Tyrion finally manages to get the deed done, and lo, Tyrion and Sansa are wed. The rest of the celebrations go about as well as can be expected, which is to say not well at all. Tyrion gets rip roaring drunk in order to forget about the fact that Sansa is really, really young (ages mean something different in the Seven Kingdoms than they do in our world), and that his real love Shae hates him. Meanwhile, Joffrey corners Sansa and threatens to rape her (that's what I got from that scene) before saying that she and Tyrion must perform some sort of bedroom ritual, which Tyrion drunkenly refuses i.e. by telling Joffrey he's a little s***. Silence reigns, before Tywin steps in and sends Tyrion and Sansa off to the bedroom. Where Sansa proceeds to start undressing (after taking a fortifying drink of wine). Thankfully Tyrion stops her. Even in his drunkeness, he's still noble, and tells Sansa he won't sleep with her until she wants him to. And then he falls into a drunken slumber on the chaise lounge. It's there that Shae wakes him in the morning, her displeasure quickly allayed when she strips the bed and finds it completely clean - there's no sign of Sansa having lost her virginity the night before.
One down, two to go - Cersei and Loras, and Joffrey and Margaery are still to wed. While Sansa and Tyrion are busy being miserable, Cersei and Margaery are locked in a power play, and, much as I hate to say it, Cersei wins this time, threatening to kill Margaery if she calls Cersei sister again. She's not the only Tyrell Cersei bests - Loras is also put in his place by Cersei when he tries to make conversation with her. It seems the Tyrells aren't doing so well this week.
Dragonstone Melisandre returns to Dragonstone, accompanied by Gendry. She introduces him briefly to Stannis before sending him off to make himself comfortable. When Stannis asks why she doesn't just kill Gendry, Melisandre tells him it's better to do it with stealth.
Or, you know, nakedness. Visiting Gendry, Melisandre first gives him wine, before stripping him and starting to have sex with him. It's all a ploy though, and within moments Gendry is tied to the bed, and Melisandre is sticking leeches on him, with one in a really uncomfortable place.
Meanwhile Stannis has freed the Onion Knight (who's been learning to read). Davos Seaworth confronts Stannis, saying he knows the would-be king only freed him so he could provide a balance to Melisandre's madness.
He doesn't succeed in this episode. Stannis and Davos head to Gendry's room, where Melisandre takes the leeches off Gendry (his blood will ruin kings), and Stannis then proceeds to chuck them in the fire. There's one for each usurper (in Stannis's opinion) king - Robb, Joffrey and Balon Greyjoy.
We all know Melisandre's blood-magic has worked before, so it's not looking too good for those Stannis has named. On the road Arya wakes up and spots the Hound is still asleep. Taking a big rock, she's about to hit him with it when he tells her that she'd better kill him with that one hit, otherwise he's going to hurt her. It's not the best start to this buddy comedy, and isn't much competition for Tyrion/Bronn or Jaime/Brienne. Still, it picks up when the two are traversing across the land on a horse, and Arya asks where they're heading. She's sure they're going to King's Landing, but the Hound informs her he's taking her back to Robb and Catelyn, who will no doubt pay him handsomely for Arya's safe return. In that moment, the smallest of smiles appears on Arya's face, as she realises she might just see her brother and mum again. And the Hound puts the pair in the running for funniest twosome on the show by making a quip about how if Arya doesn't try to kill him again they might get to their destination faster. Yunkai In her attempt to take Yunkai Daenerys tries to enlist the help of the Second Sons, a mercenary army ruled by two men - Mero and Prendahl na Ghezn - and their sidekick Daario Naharis. Mero attempts to seduce Daenerys by threatening her, and she offers the trio a deal to fight with her. They head back to their camp, where they do the equivalent of picking straws to work out which of the three will kill Daenerys. The short straw falls to Daario, who sneaks into Daenerys' tent while she's having a bath, and then reveals he's killed Mero and Prendahl na Ghezn - by dumping their heads on the floor. Nice. Seems he's not just a pretty face. Daenerys climbs out of the bath, and Daario proceeds to swear allegiance to her, and to her heart. An interesting point on nudity here. So often the female bodies in Game of Thrones are looked upon as objects of lust. This time, there's an element of that, but Daenerys uses her femininity and her body, and her lack of shame over it, to show how in control she is. She doesn't rush to cover up, instead she uses her body as a symbol of her power. Somewhere dark and dingy No Theon Greyjoy this week, but no doubt he's still being horribly tortured. Beyond the Wall Yes, I know this usually comes at the beginning of my recaps, and it'll be back there next week, but since the episode closed beyond the Wall, I thought I'd put it at the end. Samwell Tarly and Gilly are still making their way to the Wall, and find shelter in an abandoned hut, where Samwell attempts in vain to make a fire, while persuading Gilly to give her baby a name. He cycles through various names, balking at Gilly's suggestion of Craster - in her sheltered world Gilly never got the chance to learn many boys' names, and is unaware of the etiquette with forenames and surnames. There are a few really important things about Gilly and Samwell's scenes together, even though they may be brief.
Gender has always been a really important part of Game of Thrones, and the show constantly throws traditional gender roles and imbalance out of the window, even though its characters live in a very traditional world in some ways.
Here, we see Gilly going from a weak woman under the control of an overtly "manly" man (Craster) to taking on some of the traditional male qualities in her relationship with Samwell (lighter of fire, less sentimental about names). Meanwhile Samwell takes on more traditionally female roles and behaviours (showing deep affection for the baby, letting Gilly guide him on obtaining warmth and shelter). It's a role reversal that continues the Games of Thrones tradition of strong women, but it's a slightly tampered down version of that tradition.
We do see Samwell briefly take on the "manly" role of being a fighter (although we've seen female fighters including Arya and Daenerys so this is not a purely male domain) when he kills the White Walker. Soon, though, Samwell is back to acting less traditionally masculine, as his solution after killing the White Walker is to run away. Samwell also brings up the importance of names, arguing that giving the baby a name will make him easier to refer to. Names carry a lot of weight in the Seven Kingdoms. People are referred to by their family names more often than not, and just a name can tell you a lot about a person - a Lannister is out for themselves, a Stark is noble, a Baratheon a fighter are just some of the roles associated with certain names. And of course, your lineage is also dictated by your name, just ask Jon Snow. Usually, names are bestowed through the family line, but here, Gilly and Samwell get to choose the baby's name from scratch. Samwell is determined not to name the baby anything bad (or to curse him with the name of the father), so throws out suggestions of Craster and of using his own father's name. What's in a name? That's what Shakespeare once asked. Characters in Game of Thrones would probably say: "A heck of a lot."
The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer.
It's a chance to share news, a post to recap the past week on your
blog, showcase books and things we received and share news about what is
coming up on our blog for the week ahead.
After last week's arduous episode in which our characters had to work and fight and work and fight, this week Game of Thrones took us back to basics in an episode penned by George R. R. Martin himself and which featured some great character exposition and lots of feelings. Oh, the feelings. But don't worry, there was still plenty of action.
The Wall We're nolonger beyond the wall now, as Jon Snow and Mance Rayder's men make their way to Castle Black.
You might have thought last week was the tough bit, with the seemingly neverending climb up the sheet of ice that is the Wall, but now that the gang are on the other side, it seems things are only getting more difficult.
Back in his own territory, Jon is finding himself even more conflicted about his relationship with Mance Rayder's men and his loyalty to his family, Winterfell and the world he grew up in.
Added to that, Orell draws clear battle lines with Jon, predictably over Ygritte. It seems the warg has a thing for Ygritte, and he's not too happy about the relationship she's formed with Jon. Jon gives as good as he gets though, warning Orell off. One of this pair is clearly going to suffer at the hands of the other.
Meanwhile, Ygritte is charmed by the world this side of the Wall. Coming upon a windmill, she thinks it's a castle, and her sighting leads to a really charming scene between her and Jon, which is also full of both their personalities. Jon teases Ygritte about swooning and silk dresses, but it's Ygritte who gets the upper hand, telling Jon she'll give him a black eye if he tears her silk dress off her. I like that Ygritte is a pretty independent woman, and it appears that Jon does too.
Still, within moments Jon and Ygritte are at odds, as Jon reveals that Mance Rayder's army will never win against the people of the Seven Kingdoms - history has decreed it so. He makes a mistake by saying telling Ygritte that all of her people will be defeated - and she points out that Jon is included in that.
Ygritte reiterates her words of the last episode, that Ygritte and Jon belong to each other and must be loyal to each other. Their relationship has turned serious very, very fast, butit's also realistic - the pressured situation they are in allows deep bonds to be formed quickly. The only trouble is, deep bonds formed so quickly also result in the largest amount of damage when they break.
King's Landing Oh, you thought crying Sansa was a thing of the past? No such luck. Having found out last episode that she is to marry Tyrion, Sansa this week weeps to Margaery, who tries to reassure her. The pair's conversation throws a light on just how different the two women are - Margaery is world wise while Sansa, despite all she's been through, is still a naive little girl.
Game of Thrones has no shortage of strong female characters, and this week's episode showcased them even more than usual. It all starts with Margaery's discussion of women and sex, and the inequalities around men and women when it comes to sexual relations - usually to the detriment of the woman.
Not so in the case of Shae and Tyrion, where Shae holds all the power. After a discussion with Bron, Tyrion attempts to placate Shae with a gift, and then persuade her to be his mistress once he is married to Sansa. Shae is not to be bought though, despite calling herself a whore. She knows her position in Tyrion's life, and refuses to be relegated. Shae's love for Tyrion, his love for her, and the power she wields over him by using sex are not the only things that show us Shae is one up on Tyrion - her words also cause damage. While Tyrion tries to explain his upcoming marriage to Sansa as one of duty, Shae is quick to put the boot in and ask why Tyrion won't stand up to his father Tywin. Good question, Shae.
Still, it seems Tywin isn't having the best of times either at the moment. Summoned by Joffrey to the throne room, Tywin is then told off for moving meetings of the Small Council to the chambers of the Hand. Watching Joffrey try to act the king is amusing, especially considering his fear of the dragons Daenerys is rumoured to have (well founded for one), and although Tywin does manage to subtly tell him off, I just wander why Tywin can't smack Joffrey silly, a bit like Tyrion did in season one. Remember that moment? Here's a reminder.
Dragonstone No Stannis this week, although Melisandre and Gendry get within sight of the ancestral home of the Baratheons, and Melisandre drops the bombshell that Gendry is the son of Robert Baratheon. Dun, dun, dun... Dramatic as it was, it was far from the most dramatic moment of the episode.
On the road Arya is still upset that the Brotherhood without Banners let Gendry go with Melisandre, and gets even more angry when the group decide to detour and fight some Lannister men. So what does Arya do? She runs away. It would all be okay, if only she hadn't run straight into the arms of the Hound, who's obviously been stalking through the forest since the Brotherhood freed him.
Further north Bran and Jojen are talking when Osha get (more) ticked off (than she usually is). At first it might seem like Osha is just being her usual obstructive self, desperate for Bran to only confide in her, but the story she tells shows us so much about her character.
Osha reveals that when she lived beyond the Wall she was in love. One day, her lover disappeared, but he came back. Unfortunately, he came back as a White Walker, and Osha was forced to stab him in the heart and kill him. Up to now, Osha's always been a stubborn, cold character, but as she tells this story the heartbreak is clear to read on her face. It's no wonder she wants to protect Bran and refuses to take him beyond the Wall.
Meanwhile, in a tent somewhere, the King in the North Robb Stark is having a discussion with his mother, uncle and grand-uncle (is that the right term?) about the Freys and the deal that has been made with them. Edmure's still not happy at having to marry one of Walder Frey's daughters, and no one's really convinced about Walder's intentions, but needs must.
The mood in the tent changes once everyone leaves Robb and Talisa alone, and in the candlelight Talisa reveals that she's pregnant. I don't know about you, but I saw this coming a mile off. While Robb and Talisa are ecstatic, I'm a little more cautious. Pregnancies don't exactly tend to end well in the Seven Kingdoms. Let's recap:
Danaerys lost her baby.
Melisandre gave birth to a weird smoke baby.
Stannis Baratheon's wife keeps giving birth to stillborn babies.
Craster has all his male children killed right after they're born.
And Gilly is wandering around a freezing forest somewhere with her newborn baby and Samwell Tarly.
So you'll have to excuse me if I think this pregnancy isn't going to end happily.
The aforementioned Daenerys is on the move again this week, heading to the town of Yunkai. There, she meets with a slavemaster and tries to persuade him to free all his slaves. He's not so cooperative, and Daenerys lets him go, with the message that he and his town will be destroyed.
The imagery here is really powerful - Daenerys, sitting on a what could basically be a throne, surrounded by her dragons. She holds herself tall, her words are clear, her actions betray no fear. And she's on a mission to free slaves across the land, slaves who will then come and fight for her if they wish, which they will. There is no denying how queenly Daenerys has become. In fact, I'd go further, she's far stronger than all of the kings and would be kings we've currently got in the Seven Kingdoms - Stannis, Joffrey and even Robb. Daenerys tops the list of strong women in Game of Thrones.
Well, she's tied first, in my opinion, with Brienne, who I have grown to really love as a character over this season.
Jaime is dispatched to King's Landing by Roose Bolton, but not before he says an emotional goodbye to Brienne. Well, as emotional as you can get when neither Brienne nor Jaime touch each other, when they're standing 10ft apart and when there's no sign of tears, or declarations of love or friendship. Still, you can see that the bond these two share is now deep.
So deep that Jaime decides to go back for Brienne after realising that Locke will punish her. And no, Brienne isn't being raped when Jaime gets back, she's being made to fight a bear with only a wooden sword in her hand. And she's doing that while wearing a dress. A dress.
The old, cocky season one and two Jaime would never have come back for Brienne, let alone jumped into the bear pit with her, which is exactly what he does. Together, they manage to escape, and Jaime lets Locke know that Brienne will be going with him to King's Landing.
It'll be interesting to see what happens when Jaime gets back to his family. He's no longer the Jaime they knew - I don't think this is a Jaime that Cersei, or Tywin, will be happy with. Jaime is now compassionate, and feels guilt and loyalty to someone who doesn't have the surname Lannister. This Jaime is altogether more grown up, and it's unlikely that he'll be able to slot into the roles that Tywin and Cersei are no doubt holding vacant for him in King's Landing.
Somewhere dark and dingy Oh, Theon Greyjoy, what a mess you've got yourself in.
Freed by two women, Theon continues to show fear, convinced that they have been sent by his torturer to goad him further. Soon though, his body takes over and he finds himself caught up as the two whores strip off (women in power again).
Alas, he should have stuck with his first instinct, because Ramsay Snow heads back into the torture chamber blowing his horn (haha, the imagery really works here), and then proceeds to tell Theon he's going to cut his privates off. The fear comes off Theon in waves, so much so that I felt it through a television screen.
