|
|
| Monday, June 27, 2011 08:44 AM |
| On the Viewer - Game of Thrones (Episode 7 - "You Win Or You Die") |
 by Fëanor |
Spoilers dead ahead! Aaarrrggghh!
If you're reading carefully, you'll notice I didn't post a review for episode 6. That's because I saw it at a friend's house (thanks, Jill!), where it would have been rude and unseemly to liveblog it, and anyway, I didn't have the technology on hand. When I finally had the time to write a review, I didn't feel like digging up a recap and going through it all again. Suffice it to say, it was very good.
Tywin Lannister is finally introduced in the opening of episode 7 in an added scene, where he's graphically gutting a dead stag (or something) while Jaime reads Ned's bad-ass proclamation to him.
Tywin: "Attacking him was stupid. Lannisters don't act like fools. Are you gonna say something clever? Go on, say something clever."
Tywin: "A lion doesn't concern himself with the opinions of a sheep."
Tywin: "It's the family name that lives on, not your personal glory, not your honor."
Man did they get the right guy to play Tywin. Charles Dance is awesome. I love that he's gutting and skinning a huge animal with a big knife during this conversation, too. Cold-blooded butchery and menace.
Tywin makes the fact that Jaime is a knight of the Kingsguard sound like a failure. So perfect. That's Tywin all over!
The scene where Ned gives Cersei one last chance to escape (ahem. Sigh) is truly great. Cersei speaks the unvarnished truth to him for once.
Cersei: "Your sister was a corpse and I was a living girl and he loved her more than me."
Cersei: "What of my wrath, Lord Stark? You should have taken the realm for yourself. Jaime told me about the day King's Landing fell. He was sitting on the Iron Throne and you made him give it up. All you needed to do was climb the steps yourself. Such a sad mistake."
Ned: "I've made many mistakes in my life, but that wasn't one of them."
Cersei: "Oh, but it was. When you play the game of thrones, you win or you die. There is no middle ground."
So good!
We're treated to another "sexposition" scene, as Petyr teaches a couple of whores how best to make love while explaining to them the history of his obsession with Catelyn.
Whore: "And what do you want, my Lord?"
Petyr: "Oh, everything, my dear. Everything there is."
A pretty ridiculous and mostly pointless scene (except insofar as it fills in some more of Petyr's backstory and motivation), but I can't really complain. I mean... yowza.
Yet another added scene, again pounding the point home that Theon is a bastard, a pervert, and a creep. Which is sort of foreshadowing, I guess. One thing that I didn't get to say due to the non-existence of my review for episode 6 is that I really wasn't a big fan of the way Osha was introduced. Maybe I need to read her scenes again, but I don't remember her being so cringing and stupid and pathetic. I've always thought of her as a relatively strong and wise character, even if she was on the wrong track when we first met her. It is nice to see her get one up on Theon, though. I also like the bit about everyone south of the Wall being a Southerner as far as she's concerned.
Maester Luwin: "Theon Greyjoy. The lady is our guest."
Theon: "I thought she was our prisoner."
Maester Luwin: "Are the two mutually exclusive in your experience?"
Hahaha! Nice one, Maester.
Osha: "Meant to get much further south than this. As far south as south goes. Before the long night comes."
Luwin: "The things you speak of - they've been gone for thousands of years."
Osha: "They wasn't gone, old man. They was sleeping. And they ain't sleeping no more."
I have to say, I'm pretty uncomfortable with Sam constantly talking about girls.
A riderless horse returning to the Wall is slightly ominous. Worse, it's Benjen Stark's horse.
Wow, Joffrey actually looks legitimately upset sitting at his father's deathbed.
Robert: "I was never meant to be a father."
It's funny you should say that to Joffrey...
Robert: "I want everyone to taste the boar that got me."
Robert: "In the name of Robert of House Baratheon, First of... you know how it goes. Fill in the damn titles."
Robert has Ned write the proclamation that will make him regent until "my son Joffrey comes of age." Ned quietly changes the words "my son Joffrey" to "my rightful heir." Hoo boy.
Robert: "At least they'll say I did this right, this one thing. You'll rule now. You'll hate it worse than I did, but you'll do it well."
Sigh. If only.
Robert: "No one to tell me no but you. Only you."
Robert: "My memory. [laughs] King Robert Baratheon, murdered by a pig."
Varys, of Lancel Lannister: "I hope the poor lad does not blame himself."
Yeeeaaah.
Interesting added scene: when Mormont wanders off in the market alone, he gets a message from the Spider - a royal pardon. For his spying, no doubt. But of course, he was also expected to stand aside and let the assassination take place. He can't bring himself to do that now. Good stuff.
I'm slightly disappointed they skipped over the part where Jon lobbied to get Sam into the stewards. I understand why they did it, because you need to cut some stuff somewhere and it's not really that important, but I thought it showed Jon's humanity, and his... political abilities, for lack of a better word. And it made the fact that he was put in the stewards, too, extra bitter to him.
Jon: "Do you take me for a servant?"
Maester Aemon: "We took you for a man of the Night's Watch. But perhaps we were wrong in that."
I like that Jon is such an arrogant prick for so long, and it takes his new friends and new experiences to turn him into a decent man.
I'm not a huge fan of the way Renly is portrayed here. In the books he's very cool and casual. I always think of that scene in the second book where he lazily eats a peach at a council of war. This is not that Renly. He's jumpy and anxious, not cool and calm and sardonic.
Renly: "Saving the Seven Kingdoms from Cersei and delivering them to Stannis? You have odd notions about protecting the realm."
Heh.
I like that so many people in this episode are pointing out that the Kingdom doesn't always - and perhaps shouldn't - go to the person who is the "rightful heir." It goes to whoever seizes it and holds onto it tightly enough.
Renly, to Ned: "Tell me something: do you still believe good soldiers make good kings?"
Petyr, to Ned: "All of the power is yours, you need only reach out and take it."
Poor Ned. To him there's obviously only one thing he can do, but to everyone else that's obviously the worst thing he could do.
Ned: "What you suggest is treason."
Petyr: "Only if we lose."
Petyr: "We only make peace with our enemies, lord. That's why it's called making peace."
We finally get a really good shot of the face on a weirwood when Jon and Sam take their vows. Not quite as creepy as I imagined, but still, yay!
Ghost shows up with a human hand in his mouth. Yay!
Mormont talks about how Robert Baratheon will never give up trying to find and kill Dany, when we already know that not only had he given up, he's practically dead already. Delicious irony! Also deliciously ironic: it's this assassination attempt, which Robert had thought better of and wanted to take back, that finally convinces Drogo to take his khal over the sea and invade the Seven Kingdoms. His speech declaring his intentions is very bad-ass. Passionate looks are exchanged between him and Dany. And there's a quick shot of a very uncomfortable Jorah Mormont as Drogo kisses Dany. Heh.
Cersei and King Joffrey request Ned's presence in the throne room. Here we go. Poor Ned. Poor, poor Ned.
Argh! The spear through the back!
Petyr: "I did warn you not to trust me."
Such a great way to end an episode. Another excellent one. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Jim Genzano's books on Goodreads
