So I may or may not be in full on “Obsessed with Game of Thrones” mode the last few weeks, which has caused me to scour YouTube for anything related to the mythology. This morning I stumbled across a video from comicbookgirl19 who gives a detailed rundown of the Targaryens history, and does so in an entertaining fashion, accompanied by her co-host Robot, who is a huge fan of Khal Drogo.
Continue reading Game of Thrones: The Epic History of the Targaryens (as told by Comicbookgirl19)
Daenerys Targaryren, congratulations, you’ve completely endeared yourself to the millions of viewers (yet again) and now have your army, all of your dragons, and the heart of the world. What do you plan to do next? Take the Iron Throne? You betcha! Game of Thrones has kicked it into high gear with special props to one of our favorite characters.
So remember how we all talked in the last few weeks how we’re about to build up into something? Well, we definitely got it and a nice reminder that the Dragon Queen is NEVER to be trifled with. Or even at least called a slut behind her back, regardless of it being in a different language. We definitely got some excitement in Game of Thrones land and we won’t hesitate in trying to explain the awesome sauce that poured from the television, especially the final part. Of course, we have other things to discuss before I bombard you with Dany GIFs so let’s roll to it then.
We can’t forget what happened the end of last week when Jamie Lannister extended his hand to help out Brienne. He ends up wearing it around his neck, despondent that his sword hand is now a vanity item that will clearly trend in all the popular jewelry stores across King’s Landing. He gives it another go to attack his captors with his other hand, but he’s weak and depressed and ends up with horse piss dribbling from his mouth and face buried on the mud. Later at the camp, Brienne rips into him (and rightfully so) because he just wants to die and not eat. She pretty much calls him a woman cause he gives up so easily. She’s clearly trying to motivate him and it works. She then also asks why he bothered to save her, even with the story about her home being a ‘Sapphire Isle’ and it being a lie, and we just get a longing look from Jamie to end the scene. Whether that’s filled with regret because he totally is a southpaw now or that he genuinely wants to help her survive, I guess we’ll have to wait to find out, but damn good work by Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, showing that he can play more than a smug incestuous asshole. Dude’s a got layers and he’s showing them off.
We also get to see some King’s Landing stuff with the rest of the Lannisters and we get a fun tidbit from Lord Varys. He loves his revenge and while it may take a while, he definitely doesn’t forget a grudge. Seeing this back and forth between him and Tyrion was fun seeing the distrust and yet the advisement from Varys that if you stick the course, you’ll soon have a sorcerer in a box to deal with as you please. Seriously, first thing that came to my head:
Anyways, Tyrion believes that his sister Cersei is behind his attempted assassination so he’s fishing for information and allies. Meanwhile, Cersei feels she’s losing the grip of controlling her son to the always charming Margaery. Her goodwill to work the system and appeal to the common folk might have been an attempt to put Joffrey into the good graces of his people once again, and of course, he’s totally digging her. Cersei goes to her father to ask for some help with House Tyrell and that Jamie’s return will be guaranteed only to be dismissed with the great line of, “I don’t distrust you because you’re a woman. I distrust you because you’re not as smart as you think”. Thanks dad.
We also see Varys interact with Lady Olenna, which was awesome. She’s vaulting up the charts as a new favorite just because of her bluntness and total disregard to acting like a ‘proper lady’. Anyways, he confronts her with information that Sansa might be sneaking off with Littlefinger in a power grab. She devises a plan to use Margaery to get close to Sansa and throw a wrench into those plans. Margaery visits Sansa while she prays and in the midst of the conversation about boys, slumber parties and pillow fights in their underwear (that’s what girls do when they get together, right?), she proposes that they become besties and never separate, good times and bad. Margaery then drops a bit of a proposal that she marry Loras, her brother, so they could be sisters. More giggling ensues and we’re pretty sure Littlefinger would not approve of his meal ticket going into another direction while he gets to deal with the crazy sister of his crush.
Meanwhile, at Craster’s Keep, a full on mutiny is about to go down. There’s no food, they are at Craster’s where they are demeaned and surrounded by the results of his evilness and disgusting nature. Sam is still trying to cozy up to Gilly and her son but she just doesn’t want to deal with anyone knowing the fate of her baby. However, things inside are about to get nasty. Apparently Craster HATES being called a bastard and the rest of the hungry watch egg him on. The result? Craster bites it and unfortunately, so does the Lord Commander when he tries to restore order in the house. Sam takes this time to get Gilly and her baby and run out before we hear the nice parting message of, “Run fast Piggy!” I bet he misses Jon Snow right about now…
Theon Greyjoy is sneaking about to get back to his other family and we get treated to a great poignant scene where he realizes that he pulled a Gob Bluth and made a huge mistake. Just before he encounters his sister, and before his rescuer says that Theon’s father knew that he was being tortured, we get Theon breaking down. He knows he could never be a Stark but no one else could ever have done the job of being his family other than the Starks. He confesses that he ordered the killing and burning of orphans and he’s paid the Iron Price for Winterfell. He knows he chose incorrectly and he has no choice but to carry that with him.
Courtesy of asmiladycommands.tumblr.com
Unfortunately, he’s carrying that burden into the same torture chamber he just escaped out of. Apparently it was all a ruse and his “rescuer” pins the blame of the murdered chasers on him and that he is where he belongs. Totally cool betrayal scene that catches people off guard, especially after the “confession” of Theon.
We also get to visit with Arya and the Hound as he is about to receive judgement from his actions. The band of travelers is the Brotherhood Without Banners, deserters from all walks of life and loyalty and they now gather in a cave. Their leader is Beric and they worship the Lord of Light. If they sounds familiar, it’s the same thing the Melisandre worships so come to your own conclusions. They are actually looking for the Hound’s brother for murder, but Arya remembers that he did murder a young boy way back in season 1 so he’s going to get a trial by combat. They may not have the right guy but Arya definitely gave them a reason to hold him responsible for vile actions. This is a bit of a short scene but I like that Arya is labeled as the bravest one there. It’s probably true in the group of deserters but he still gets to fight Beric next week so we definitely have that to look forward to. A lot definitely happened this episode but since everyone should be caught up on the comings and goings of the others in Westeros, I can finally get to the scene that everyone is talking about…
You’re most definitely right Dany, a dragon is NOT a slave. We are treated to the best scene of the season and the perfect ending to a wonderful episode. Stuff went down and to bookend it is Daenerys looking as sharp as ever. She is about to claim her slave army in exchange for her dragon. She takes the symbolic whip from the slave master Kraznys and holds it while he clutches the dragon, trying to revel in his new pet. He provides the line of, “The bitch has her army,” and we’re to think that he got what he wants and Dany loses a foothold because of her sacrifice of her dragon and seemingly bad negotiation skills. But guess what, Daenerys has another card up her sleeve. She goes out to her new army and then address them in Valyrian. That’s right boys and girls, she totally knew the language and that this jackass was dogging her the whole time. This is the show’s “Oh snap!” moment. Emilia Clarke steals this show here with the way she takes hold and delivers her dialogue and her actions. For those that didn’t read the books, she played the audience as well as Kraznys.
She takes command and declares that line of her dragon not being a slave. She commands the slave masters killed and all the slaves set free and to leave the children unharmed. Kraznys yells for his guards to kill her but she has other plans. She calls to her dragon Dracarys, which apparently signals to burn that dude alive. Everyone is stunned in the aftermath. Yes, she was always acting too big for her britches and declaring what she wants and she will get everything despite having no resources to get them. But look at her now, standing her ground, playing people like a fiddle, leaving her mark wherever she goes…she is the true Dragon Queen and no one should mess with her. She has the army to back her up and she has freed everyone. She wants them to march in her favor, but only as free men. She wins them over just like she won us over. Annnnnnddd….scene.
This is easily the best episode of the year. Getting text messages from people declaring their love for Daenerys and that something actually went down in the episode shows that everyone else in the world probably loved it too. We got the next preview of the upcoming episode of Game of Thrones in another post so check that out and as always, come back and share some love of Game of Thrones. Also, I love Daenerys Targaryen and she definitely raised her game up and got the season moving at full speed once again.
After a thrilling episode this week, perhaps the best so far, HBO has so graciously given us a little tidbit of what to expect from next week’s episode titled “Kissed By Fire”. I realize that every show does this every week but for whatever reason, with Game of Thrones it seems a wee bit more special. Probably because they leave you on the edge of your seat wanting more not unlike being stranded in the desert and some kind soul offers you a drop of water. Yes, I did liken waiting a week for a new episode to dying of thirst in the Sahara. I have a feeling that GoT fans won’t argue with me.
Enough talking, here’s the promo!
BURN IN HELL!!
Oooohhhh, intrigue. I do have to take the desert thing a bit further because this promo doesn’t do much to alleviate the thirst, just makes us want more.
In the meantime, let’s all join together and laugh at this.
How awesome is that? I might have laughed like a hyena in Lion King (not the Whoopi Goldberg one) when I saw that. Awww, poor Samwell Tarly.
Finally! Daenerys Targaryen is getting her due. Love it. Speaking of Daenerys, if you are a “behind the scenes” fan like myself, then you are sure to enjoy this “Anatomy of a Scene”.
So what are you looking forward to in episode 5? Let us know in the comments!
Hey, how about that? We finally advanced the plot in Game of Thrones! I say that somewhat jokingly but we all have to admit that it’s been pretty quiet with all the introductions of new characters and the reintroduction of everyone’s storylines, so when we finally see things happening, it’s a bit of a jolt to the senses. “Walk of Punishment” starts delving into some good stuff and is a great watch as we see Rob Stark get some great scenes, as well as Jamie Lannister and Tyrion. Hell, we even got a rock song version of “The Bear and The Maiden Fair”, which caught me off guard. Granted, the end of the episode helped with that as well but we’ll talk about that later…
The episode begins with the funeral of Rob Stark’s grandfather and a bunch of botched attempts from his Uncle Edmund Tully in lighting the funeral pyre. Obviously after a few attempts, Rob can’t contain himself despite the fact it’s a funeral. Granted, it’s one of the few smiles we’ve seen of him so he deserves a bit of a break here. We also (finally) get an introduction to Blackfish Tully, who (was in the first book) definitely hits the mark on the boat. I feel it has something to do with him being a badass. Anyways, with the smiles gone, we also get Rob finally taking control and acting like a king in reprimanding Edmund for screwing with his plans in trying to win battles as opposed to the war. A great scene for Richard Madden in where he grapples for control and we needed more Rob Stark. He’s the friggin’ King of the North so we needed more of him than random check ups. Regardless, at Riverrun, we also get Catelyn and Blackfish reminisce about her dear old stubborn father. She then gets sad as she remembers waiting for him to come back from battle and relates it to the fact she might never see any of her kids as they wait for her and Rob. Blackfish acknowledges her grief but then basically tells her to man up, because she has to be strong and show that faith remains that everyone is alright. Otherwise, what would Rob Stark be fighting so hard for? Again, good scene although we get it at this point, Catelyn is not holding up well and it’s starting to show.
We also get an update at King’s Landing with Tywin, Cersei, Tyrion, and the rest of the Small Council. Everyone has a place at the table as they move into position to be closer to Tywin. Cersei moves to the right of her father as the rest of the council moves into position in order to establish themselves, not like kids fighting for attention from their dad. And Tyrion? He knows what he’s doing as he sits across from the long table and makes a commotion dragging his chair from one side of the room to the other. He is less impressed in making a play to get the attention of the father that has shunned him. I thought this was the best scene of the episode as it typifies the constant chess match that Game of Thrones has been known for. Constant power struggles and positioning made this scene extremely entertaining with the lack of dialogue and action for a few minutes and it worked to perfection. At least Cersei thought so too.
Anyways, Littlefinger gets the wonderful task of marrying Lysa, the crazy breast-feeding sister of Catelyn, in order to draw support away from Rob Stark and his forces. Granted it also means Littlefinger has to deal with the mayor of crazytown, but if it means he gets to be an actual Lord, he’ll just about hold her kid up for the meal himself. That also means that Tyrion draws Littlefinger’s old job as Master of Coin. Pretty much a thankless job in managing the books that brings zero joy to one’s own self-worth. Just like a real accounting job. As Tyrion gathers the books, he finally gives his squire the best present of his life. Or any heterosexual teenage male’s life for that matter.
Three prostitutes for saving his life? It makes me want to scour Michigan to find a little person in trouble and save them to see what happens. Anyways, Tyrion pays his way and comes to find out that the kid didn’t need the money and that they accepted him and deflowered for free. This piques Tyrion’s interest and immediately asks for details. Hilarious I must add as him and his protector as confused and just want to know more on how this could actually happen.
Anyways, we also get an update from the Jon Snow group, which gets a nice little Godfather introduction with some horse’s heads and a few body parts as well. Mance Rayder splits the group off to attack the wall and Jon Snow will be the way in. Looks like loyalties will be tested pretty soon. Speaking of conundrums, we get an update from what’s left of the King’s Watch group as they arrive at Craster’s Keep. Sam gets made fun of for his portly shape as we hear a woman’s screams in the background. Giving birth tends to do that and as Sam goes to investigates, he commits the cardinal sin of witness and watching the birthing occur. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m pretty sure that when a part of bringing a baby in the world, it would be a marvelous experience but crap, I would be scarred for life if I was anywhere but behind my wife because that would ruin all the happy thoughts in my head. But he witnesses a future crime about to happen as the baby turns out to be a boy…and we all know what happens to boys at Craster’s Keep.
Theon finally breaks out and despite having what must be an infection in his mangled foot, he gets to riding in order to escape his captors. Naturally they catch up to him and we get a pretty cool and intense chase scene and he catches a morning star directly to the chest which definitely knocks him the hell down. He does get saved through from Legolas. Okay, not Legolas but from his savior friend (Iwan Rheon) from the keep. Also, is it just me but have archers dominated this season? I blame Katniss Everdeen. But it looks like Theon has an angel overlooking him and his black cloud. He just happens to be an angel from Misfits.
We also see Dany back in Astapor as she navigates the streets of the slave city and debates what it must take in order to win the Iron Throne back. The sacrifices of innocents and using an army of slaves in order to get what she wants. Ser Jorah and Ser Barristan go back and forth between what is right and what is wrong, as well as what it takes to win and the casualties, whether innocent or guilty, that will pile up along the way. Knowing Game of Thrones, there’s going to be a lot of both parties as Dany struggles with the right decision. She ends up going for the 8000 strong slave army but the cost is so exorbitant, it requires one of her dragons, which she gives up despite the objections of Ser Jorah. She also gets the translator woman (who did manage to clean up the translation so as not to get fileted by the dragons by insulting the Dragon Queen) and they look to become fast friends as she wants to protect the people who come along with her, probably something slaves aren’t used to.
This brings us to Jamie Lannister and Brienne. Jamie knows that once they make camp, the men are going to make a run at her and tells her not to resist but of course, what woman wouldn’t resist if going through such a vile act. Despite the differences, you feel Jamie respects her, probably moreso after she beats him in a sword fight earlier. When the awful time comes, Jamie bargains with his captors for her escaping that fate, riches upon riches if they let them be. Jamie thinks he has it in the bag but it looks like they are well versed on his verbal charisma and are having none of it. We then get treated to his punishment and if that wasn’t disorienting enough, we get a rock version of “The Bear and the Maiden Fair” from The Hold Steady. Like I said, that just threw me the heck off but I loved this episode. A lot of stuff happened and we were treated to some great scenes. Of course, we have the song below and a preview of the next episode and some exclusive stills that looks familiar as Game of Thrones pays homage to another great show. Enjoy my friends.
Naturally there are going to be some critics out there that watched ‘Dark Wings, Dark Words’ that will come off as less impressed than others. In fact, there were some that came out of the woodwork after the first episode, claiming the pacing was off or that nothing truly happened. Well guess what? There are several characters that didn’t get a turn to reintroduce themselves to the adoring public so you can expect a bit more exposition to set the rest of the season up. So while some people will complain to get on with the show (seriously, I’ve already seen some people over my Facebook feed), I think this will pay major dividends later on in the season when it all comes together. I’m glad that every character will get their time to shine while still introducing new characters that will fit into the future as well so I don’t mind the deliberate pace of the show so far this year. Yeah, it might be slow again for the second week in a row but I’ll take a week like this over most of the crap that is shown from the scores of mediocre shows that flood our cable box each evening.
Continue reading HBO’s Game of Thrones: 302 – ‘Dark Wings, Dark Words’
Hello boys and girls, welcome to season 3 of Game of Thrones. I have been tasked with attempting to explain the excellence that is this series. This season will be comprised of half the book of A Storm of Swords, while season 4 will take on the other half. The title is Valar Dohaeris, which means “all men must serve”. It becomes obvious that it references the last episode of last season, Valar Morghulis, which means “all men must die” but also sets the stage as to where loyalties must lie and who is behind which true king (or queen) of the throne. I’ll try not to recap too much, because you seriously need to watch the episode instead of me spouting it back to you, but I can tell you this, while slow due to setting the table for the season, this was still a damn good way to begin the third year.
The episode starts with Samwell running for his dear life in the thick grasp of winter north of the wall. He just saw a White Walker army last season and that gave great reason to run. Unfortunately he is all alone as he runs into what used to be his good buddy. He gets rescued by the Night’s Watch (or more accurately Ghost – Jon Snow’s Direwolf) and they are now tasked with warning the citizens of the south before everyone pretty much dies. Meanwhile, Jon Snow gets acquainted with a giant and the Wildlings and their leader, Mance Rayder (Ciarán Hinds). Snow does manage get a great welcome with a few stones thrown his way, but that will soon change as he is welcomed once he manages to relate himself to Rayder. Can I also add that Hinds is a great addition and he is awesome in everything he does, with Rome being the first thing that comes to mind. They definitely deserve an A+ in casting him.
Kings Landing seems to remain awesome as we open with the gratuitous nude scene that has become the hallmark of the series. Of course, it seems to be in stark contrast with Tyrion’s current condition, as he has been banished to a small room with his broken ego and scar. He gets a nice visit from his sister, Cersei and he’s naturally fearful because he lost the title of the King’s Hand to his father and he feels he is ripe to be taken out. Can we say that Dinklage is the man? He is brilliant as Tyrion and they way he owns the screen and lets each word sink in shows how brilliant an actor he is and that the main billing on the title card is well deserved. His one on one with Headey shows the brilliant casting of the series and they play well off of one another with little jabs here and there. Tyrion gets his meeting with his father, his replacement as the King’s Hand. It’s a heartwarming talk between father and son. Tyrion wants some land, Casterly Rock to be precise, which happens to be the Lannister stronghold, but Tywin isn’t having it. He still holds his ‘imp’ responsible for the death of his wife and a disgrace to the family name, what with all the whores that Tyrion deals with. Dinklage and Charles Dance have a great exchange. Again, casting goes a long way and although we have a plethora of characters we must keep track of, each of the actors makes everyone memorable. We also get a Sansa update, as Littlefinger approaches her with a proposal for the young Stark girl. She might just finally get away from King Joffrey.
Speaking of that bastard, Joffrey makes an appearance in this episode as he makes his way through the city, under heavy guard so as to not incite yet another attack from the lower class. He then notices in a separate caravan that Lady Margaery (Natalie Dormer) has exited her protective shell and has made her way to an orphanage through the disgusting and dirty slums of Kings Landing. Apparently she already does the political part of playing the Queen quite well as she visits with the children and gives them hope for the future. This leads to a great exchange between her, Joffrey and Cersei at dinner concerning the poor and how she went out of her way to make sure they felt welcome. Apparently Joffrey is starting to warm up and stands up to his mother in aid of his future Queen’s actions. Obviously this doesn’t sit so well with Cersei.
We also learn that Stannis is licking his wounds with his redhead mistress Melisandre. Apparently she definitely has his ear as he avoids everyone else. His former advisor Davos has survived the Battle of Blackwater Bay is determined to take her out, thinking that Stannis has been led astray. Apparently burning bodies alive makes her out to be one not to be trifled with. Meanwhile, Robb Stark runs into a slaughtered Harrenhal where the dead deliver a message to the King of the North. They find one survivor is Qyburn, who ‘lucks’ out of being amongst the dead. Robb also throws his mother in a cell for her releasing the Kingslayer Jamie Lannister in order to get his sisters, her daughters, back in exchange. The morale is low with his bannerman’s homeland being sacked and witnessing this scene and throwing his mother in a cell probably shows his desperation in trying to get a grasp on his footing in the war he fights. On both fronts of Stark and Baratheon, it looks like they are struggling to figure out what the next move is.
Hey, guess what? Dragons can fish. They can also grill a mean fish on the spot too. They are grown up and pretty badass. Daenerys has her ship, her growing dragons, and she just needs her army. She’s a bit impatient in getting what she feels is rightfully hers. Daenerys gets to shopping for her army in the slave city of Astapor. She finds a seller of an army of 8,000 but of course, the owner is a bit of a douche apparently. He goes out of his way to show that men don’t need nipples. Also damn, he is one disrespectful person to the rightful heir of the Iron Throne. Daenerys starts to have second thoughts about getting her army this way, especially upon learning that their rite of passage happens to be baby killing. The idea of slaves sickens her, but she knows it might be a means to an end and that her treatment of them might reverse the cycle. She also becomes a target that needs protection in this city as a small child of the warlocks has decided make a play for her life. However, an old friend shows his face as he swears to protect her. Naturally I won’t tell you but damn, that’s a great way to end the episode and tease it, right?
Overall, this was a great episode to set the stage for the upcoming season. Yeah, it can be a lot of exposition but being the first episode, we still get enough elements suspense, drama, a bit of horror and great acting amongst the cast. It is going to set up for an exciting season of Game of Thrones as we make the march towards the battle for the Iron Throne.
Grizzly Bomb 