Hardhome

The title of this post is simply "Hardhome" because it's now a word and an episode that will be the reference point for television as spectacle and payoff and worldbuilding. 

And while Hardhome will be known for that part that's set at, well, Hardhome, the rest of the episode needs to get the credit it deserves.

After Hardhome, the payoff of Tyrion and Dany meeting is one we've all wanted for a long time.  And somehow, without a single dragon scale, these scenes of the new Targaryen alliance give us everything we wanted.  Tyrion reasons through all the different scenarios, and whether or not to keep his own head/exile Jorah being a case study and a sort of test for him to show Dany his worth.

One of the most memorable lines this season is from Dany - "I"m a queen, not a politician."  It's not so much a statement of fact and the relationship between monarchs and the smallfolk as it is a naive statement by Dany showing the realpolitik she lacks, and Tyrion can provide. 

If Tyrion worked in Washington, DC, he would be known as "former White House chief of staff" and for good measure, "former Treasury secretary."  He would be much sought after.  He could start his own firm, he would be paid millions of dollars for his advice.  In Westeros, his dad tried to kill him. 

Anyways, being former Hand to the King is an asset that Dany sorely lacks, as she operates on the assumption the smallfolk will rise in support of her.  The War of Five Kings can work two ways.  It can weaken the lords from being so battle worn that they are vulnerable (except the Valemen and the Dornishmen).  But on the other side, the smallfolk are warworn as well, tired of the fighting...as Jorah said in season one

the common people pray for rain, healthy children and a summer that never ends.  It is no matter to them the high lords play their game of thrones.

so they may have a "call me when you're done" sort of attitude.  They've already, in their sorrow and defeat, sought out religion as an escape, giving rise to the new power in King's Landing, the High Sparrow.

The arrival of Winter adds another element, as food becomes scarce and battle becomes diffcult.  Hard to say how this will play out until either Stannis THE MANNIS or Roose Bolton solidify the North.

Arya begins her training in earnest, further removing her from her identity.  Of the remaning Starks, two are beyond the Wall and one is beyond the narrow sea, and all three are deeply ensconced in the magical/supernatural.

Sansa and Theon have a great scene.  We get the reveal that Bran and Rickon are alive, a payoff that no one's known about since mid season two.  It goes all the way back to Robb sending Theon as emissary to Balon for his "navy".  The acting from both Sophie Turner and Alfie Allen is some of the best of the series. 

Cersei is not yet completely broken, though her game has backfired horribly.  We get some schadenfreude in her short scenes.  Not only that but she already cast off her own lifeboat, having sent Jaime to Dorne, where is also captive. 

Now, Hardhome. 
The payoff between the the series' first scene and this is stupendous.  We see the small girl from the first scene.  We see the White Walker who sits ahorse and screeched at Sam at the end of Season Two.  And we see the White Walker in Charge who converted Craster's baby into something inhuman.

It's not simply nonstop action for the sake of nonstop action, as was the Watchers on the Wall.  It's about putting aside petty differences for the greater threat.  It's the Wildlings trusting Thormund but not Jon, and that being good enough.  It's the Thenns being a pain in the ass.  It's those characters somehow raising the stakes even higher for us and making the ensuing battle mean something. 

Plus you have the stuff that's simply cool.  The giant.  The White Walker walking through fire.  Jon defeating one with Longclaw (one of two audible cheers this season from me.  The other also involved Longclaw).  The effects and the swordplay and the panic and the bravery. 

The game of thrones has changed completely.  It somehow doesn't matter what the high lords are doing in Kings Landing now.

The episode also speaks to something larger about the show in general.  I've noted before it's difficult and silly to judge a show based on a single episode, but because shows (outside of Amazon and Netflix streaming shows) air on a weekly/episodic basis, it's the way we talk about them.  But in speaking about the show at large, one cannot do anything but look at the whole picture of a season.  In ten episodes, with many storylines, the season follows with Introductions (episodes 1-2) Rising action (3-7) Climax (8-9) Denouement and leading into the next season's storylines (10).  So, to judge, for example, episode 4 as being slow compared to episode 8 is silly.  Episode 4 does what episode 4 is supposed to do and episode 8 does what episode 8 is supposed to do.  That of course doesn't mean it's not interesting, only that it's interesting in a different way. 

So when speaking to teh qualify of a show, it's impossible to make a judgement until all the bets are in. 

"High Sparrow" - Game of Thrones - 5-03

Oldest previously
Renley is stabbity stabbed by Shadow Stannis

Credits
Moat Cailin, Braavos
Still no Dorne.

I'm confused as to how Moat Caitlin fits in.  I thought the Boltons were staged at and reconstructing Winterfell.  That's certainly where they were when Sansa arrived. 

Identity
A common thread this episode is identity.  Specifically the Stark identity.  The name STARK looms large still.

• Jon considers becoming a true Stark
• Arya considers putting her Stark identity behind her
• Sansa considers how to best live up to the Stark name, move foward or bide time for vengeance.

Furthermore, Cersei struggles with her identity as queen, excuse me, Queen Mother or Dowager Queen, as Margarey so helpfully pointed out.  Which leads us to..

Margarey
This is the first time we've seen Margarey be a bit mean spirited to her enemies' faces.  She is killing Cersei with kindness, through the conduit of Tommen, in trying to get her removed back to Casterly Rock. 

When Tommen says hearing King Tommen sounds strange, and he asks Margarey if Queen Margarey sounds strange to here, there is a perfect beat where it's clear those two words are all she's thought about for the longest time. 

Margarey is Cersei from twenty years ago.  Ready to be married to the king or the heir apparent, as Tywin turned down quite a fair match from the Martells (as Oberyn told us last season) in favor of holding out for Rhagaer (in theory) and then Robert (in practice).  Margarey's been queen one way or the other since the start of Season Two with Renley, Joffrey, and now Tommen.

In press, GRRM speaks of prophecy coming true, thought not int he way one expects.  The obvious answer to the flashback prophecy is Margarey.  But there's another younger, more beautiful Queen coming to take the throne (SOMEDAY) and her name is Dany (a queen, not a politician).

Religion
Between the pope, er, High Septon getting caught in the brothel and St. Francis, er, High Sparrow, leading his own movement, there is a lot of religious activity in Westeros, specifically Kings Landing.  It stands to reason that after the land is war torn for years, and with winter coming (as Stannis noted at the Wall) the people shrink back from conflict (think isolationism after WWI) and seek solace in their guns and religion.

Relgiion is featured prominently in Braavos, as Arya learns of the one true got.  And Tyrion encounters a red priestess preaching.  Are they the same god?

Important Time Check!!!
Stannis the Mannis says two weeks until he leaves Castle Black, marching for....Winterfell. 

The North Remembers
Maybe the most important dialoge this week.  Does it signal a secret resistance movement, biding their time, like Sansa?  Twice we're reminded of the North's loyalty to the Starks.  Once when this is said to Sansa, and the other when Ramsey recounts the lord who wouldn't recognize any Warden of the North but a Stark. 

Last week, Stannis (the Mannis) got a reply as well from Bear Island, "There is but one King of the North and his name is STARK

Silvers and Coppers

• Making Thorne First Ranger.  Brilliant or horrible.  No in between.
• Jon's execution of Slynt was sweet, if not too fast.  I thought he resembled Robb more than anything though. 
• And Robb's execution of Karstark (rather than imprisonment), unbending like Stannis, is ultimately what did him in.  Not breaking the marriage vows.
• Who wore it best?
• Sansa
• Speaking of, this storyline is incredibly interesting so long as translates into Sansa maintaining her own agency, rather be the torture toy of yet another sociopath
• Brienne is just as tiresome on the screen as she is on the page
• The more book departures the better.  I love being surprised.  I am very pro different roads to the same end point, much like Brienne and Pod are taking to Winterfell.

"The Wars to Come" Game of Thrones 5-01

Oldest Previously:
Thought it was going to be Myrcella to Dorne, but we're going old school  Two administrations ago with Lancel and Robert's wine.

Credits
The Eyrie may or may not have been there last year.  All the old guys, plus Pentos, finally back.  Winterfell is on the mend.  No Dorne.  No Bravos, but I expect we'll see them next week.

Flashback
I am wondering how obvious it was to people that it was a Cersei flashback, if you hadn't read anything about it.  Maggie looks way better than expected

Confess your unpopular opinion
I do not care about R+L=J. 

I find D = E completely fascinating though because it could change the game.  I wonder if the recast of Daario had to do with casting someone who would fit an Iron Islander description better.

The real question is how does he get from Nashville to Mereen and back so quickly?

Chapter 1
Some shows are like reading a book.  Spend two episodes setting the stage and showing us what conflict will propel our characters through the season.  What obstacles they are facing.  What sort of changes they will make, or try to make and fail.  Here are some conflicts that look to play a major part:

• Deeper division between Cersei and Jaime
• Night's Watch election
• Jon Snow's over-sympathy to Wildlings is a divisive issue
• Stannis marching south to the North
• As they said, Stannis is like iron...unbendable.  And he can't bring himself to be lenient with Mance, even if it would help him immensely.  While Stannis is doing the work of the King in Westeros, he can't be so dogmatic.
• Dany can't control her dragons
• Dany's army/police force is facing an insurgency
• Surge!
• Tyrion to Dany?
• Margarey aiming high
• A younger, more beautiful queen
• Getting in with Tommen
• "Perhaps......Perhaps."  probably the best line of dialouge in the episode.  If this show does one thing well, it is economy of words and scene.  They convey so much information so succinctly.
• Sexposition
• Now, with dudes
• Birth mark looks like Dorne

Adaptation
The presence of Varys does several things.

• Much of Tyrion's action and conflict occurs inside of his head at this point in the series.  That doesn't play on television.  So he needs someone to speak to.  That person has to have an investment in his and the kingdom's future.  And he has to be an intellectual equal of Tyrion. 
• It allows Tyrion and Varys to continue their already established rapport.  Always good not not add more characters to a cast of hunrdeds if you can avoid it
• You also save time that would be needed to establish a new character
• They are in the East now.  Varys is Eastern.  They are going to seek an Eastern solution to the problems of Westeros.

Lords and Lordlings

• A POV shot worthy of Breaking Bad, Tyrion looking out from his box
• Uncle Kevan made an appearance
• Dorne dorne dorne dorne.  Let's get to it. 
• Alisair's alive?  Did not expect that.  But again, using an established character at this point is always better than creating a host of new ones. 
• I wonder if Robert got a proper funeral, like Tywin did, with all the hubbub going on when Ned Stark tried a coup.
• The image of tearing down a statue transcends any culture or medium
• Do a storyline where Robin gets bullied
• Small shout out to Oberyn when Oliver refers to his ex.

Bests of 2014: Episodes

"The Children"

Game of Thrones

A show whose episodes are more known for being the episode where one particular scene happened than for the episode as a whole.  In the few cases where an episode is known for the episode as a whole, it's a result of most or all of the episode focusing on a single event.  "The Children" is the best example of Game of Thrones so far where an episode has multiple pieces and is greater than the sum of its parts.  It manages to wrap up storylines and lead them into future seasons in Kings Landing, The Wall, beyond the Wall and with Arya...all while melding them with other heretofore minor storylines (Stannis) or seeds planted in the past (Jaquen H'gar's coin).  Much time is dedicated to the far North, but rightly so as it gives time for Snow to process Ygritte's death as well as establish the new sherriff in town.

"The Secret Fate of All Things"

True Detective

While True Detective is most often praised for its six minute one shot sequence in the previous episode, it's when we see the narrative and the flashbacks completely diverge that the show really stakes its claim.  Functionally and structurally, it answers a load of questions while closing off the first act of the show.  Artistically, the acting from the two leads joined with the editing and directing to tell a story in the best possible way.

"Burdian's Ass"

Fargo

Similar to "The Secret Fate of All Things", "Buridan's Ass" closes off a few storylines from the first part of the season and launched into the second.  Somehow, Fargo allows us to feel sympathy for a fake and bake schmuck like Don or shock at Lester's simultaneously masterful and sickening plan when he escapes the hospital.  The premeditation brings him to a level we haven't seen before and well sets up the second half of the season, all while making us wait a week in agony to learn the outcome of the snowstorm.  Worth it for the drums alone.

"End of Watch"

Elementary

An episode that would have been pulled had it been scheduled to air the following week.  Sherlock and Watson investigate a random police shooting, and then a second random police shooting.  The investigation, like most episodes, has more layers than it initially seems but does enough to distract the viewer from finding it predictable.  The other element that elevates the episode is Sherlock's concern of losing anonymity, and more importantly confidence, at NA and the lengths at which he'll go to retain it.  We've seen a few dark moments from Sherlock ("I am not nice"), so we're set up for it.  And seeing him spell out his rationale for his methods comes of as solid characterization.

Honorable Mentions

"Episode Ten"

"Episode One"

The Affair

"Guest"

"Two Boats and a Helicopter"

"The Garveys at Their Best"

The Leftovers

"Waterloo"

"The Monolith"

Mad Men

"Form and Void"

True Detective

"Grimmy - Series Finale"

The Colbert Report

The Affair

Sunday Plot Driver
Homeland and Boardwalk Empire returned to their fall spots, Boardwalk for the final time.  And while still fun to watch, the shows are more plot driven than ever.  That's great, and I don't miss an episode but from my perspective, it doesn't make for terribly interesting writing.  It's why I find it fun to vomit 1,000 words on a largely wordless three minute sequence in Game of Thrones and why the often plot-less or minimally plotted Mad Men is so easy to talk and speculate about.  Getting into the characters, their motivations, their points of view, their subtleties or passive aggressive actions or digs at other characters is what is fun to me.  It's why Boardwalk's plot driven third season was its worst while the character heavy fourth season was its best.  And to talk about Homeland and Boardwalk right now is to simply recap the days events.

Showtime kept running a commercial featuring Dominic West of Jimmy McNulty fame.  As I was in the process of rewatching the whole series of The Wire (because that's how I spend my time) I figured I'd give this show I never heard of a shot.

Literary Devices
Immediately after watching "-30-", I watched the pilot from The Affair.  If nothing else, I was pretty happy to see McNulty having a tet-e-tete with none other than Bill Rawls, only this time Rawls sipped an expensive wine on his estate overlooking the beach, passive aggressively taking digs at his son-in-law rather than bearing down on him as an angry acting police commissioner.

In a sentence, the show tells the story of an affair between a novelist/public school teacher (Noah) with a wife and kids, and a married waitress (Allison) whose child passed away.   It was apparent from the ad flashbacks would play a part.  I like flashbacks.  I like non-linear storytelling in the right hands.  Let's do this.

Halfway through the show, the show takes a twist on another literary device, point of view.  The first rendezvous between Noah and Allison is chronicled from Noah's point of view...the journey he and his family takes to their summer home where he first encounters Allison waiting tables at the restaurant.  But then it rewinds and tells us Allison's point of view for the same time period.  The first two episodes have followed this format, as each part is told in past tense to an as yet unnamed man by the respective leads.

Already we have questions:

Who is the man they are speaking to?
It could be a cop.  It could be a PI.  It could be someone from an insurance company investigating a claim on as yet unspecified event that affected both Noah and Allision.  He is a man of some kind of authority, but through two episodes he's not betrayed any conclusive evidence

Who was killed?
We find out in the second episode it's related to someone's death, a male.  But we have no idea who that is yet.  

Will the show stay with this format?
They could easily introduce other POV characters, though at this point there does not seem to be a need.  They could also flip the order at some point and show Allison's story in Part 1, followed by Noah's.

Because we're seeing events as they were viewed and are being interpreted by each of the main characters, we are not necessarily seeing the unvarnished truth.  Whether to soften their own actions, whether they incorrectly perceived an event, or whether they sincerely do not accurately remember how events occurred is foggy.  Is one telling the truth?  Is the other?  Does it lie in the middle?  Are both completely off base?

The unreliable narrator looms large in this story and is quite possibly my favorite device of all.  True Detective schooled everyone on its use.  While many will remember the unbroken six minute shot, I define the show as Rust and Marty's accounts to the cops completely diverges from what we see in the flashbacks.

Compare and Contrast
It would be easy to make a list of the differences in their accounts.  But it's more interesting to look for the subtext in those differences and wonder why they are different.

For example, Noah runs into Allison at a farmer's market where she is selling jam.  It is the first time they've met since the restaurant.

In Noah's account he buys one jar for $12 for his kid.  In Allison's she sells him five jars for $8 each totaling $40.  Noah admits he bought the jam.  However, his motivation for buying it is to please his kid who wants to eat it.  He remembers the price is high, $12.  He probably does not remember the exact amount because that would be a strange thing to remember.  Instead he remembers vaguely that it was high and $12 seems like a lot.  In reality it probably ballooned a bit in his mind, focusing more on the ridiculousness of paying that much for jam at all.  Throughout the transaction, Allison is standoffish and refuses his offer to keep the change from his $20 bill.

Allison remembers herself acting friendlier and recalls her jam sales partner commenting that Noah is showing a strong interest in one of them.  She could have insert that in there to strengthen her argument that Noah is the initiator, or she could specifically remember her friend saying that.  She remembers Noah buying multiple jars of jam, as if buying more jam would buy him more goodwill with Allison.  As the vendor, she probably correctly remembers the price of each unit ($8), but we don't know if Noah sincerely is being more forward with her or if she is trying to downplay her own role or it is some third, fourth or fifth version in the multiverse where she sincerely believes her perception of the event but a third party would view it completely differently. 

What they agree on is that Noah bought some jam and Allison was not actively engaging him, at least at that point.

Other details may seem relatively minor, like Noah's wife's dress color at the party, but are perhaps wrought with symbolism or tell us something about the POV character we haven't figured out yet.

Allison's child
We don't know yet how he died.  If we've been given foreshadowing (or backshadowing?) some possibilities include

1. drowning - Allison can't swim
2. choking  - Noah's son at the restaurant.  In her version, she knows exactly what to do to dislodge the obstruction.  Perhaps she learned after her son passed because that was how it happened.
3. broken neck or asphyxiation - based on the pre-car trip events

We also know that Allison lost her son in a public way.  She's recognized by Noah's mother in law as someone from the newspaper, related to the boys death.  That seems to point toward an accident, rather than a sickness.  Not only that but Allison is constantly reminded of her son by well-intentioned but grief inducing acquaintances.  All anyone seems to want to talk to her about is her dead son.   Allison has not been able to accept her son's death in the way her husband has.  Perhaps Coles grief is more manageable because he doesn't have everyone in his face about it constantly.

The Affair
With two well acted, interesting and sympathetic characters, a realistic supporting cast, an element of mystery, told through fun and dexterously handled literary devices and obviously well thought out writing make this the show I'm looking forward to on Sundays. 

Emmy nominations - Directing

The other category besides writing that is closest to a "best episode" category is direction.  The shows overlap much with the writing category with the episodes abutting their writing nominee counterparts in two cases.

Felina
One episode, Breaking Bad's "Felina" overlaps, and is the only one to do so.  Does that make it the default choice for best episode?


I won't rehash "Felina" again.  Instead, here are the other directing nominees that were featured on I Don't Own a Television.

Best Direction
"Farewell Daddy Blues"
Boardwalk Empire
When this aired, I called it possibly Boardwalk Empire's finest episode.  The Season Four finale executed a lot of what made "The Children" so good for Game of Thrones, probably because these two shows have a lot in common.


"The Watchers on the Wall"
Game of Thrones
A big, singularly focused, episode with lots of action, effects and battle sequences.  I think there is a lot more to the episode than bashing people in the head with swords and axes, which is what elevates it to a higher level.


"Who Goes There"
True Detective
This no doubt largely got the nomination for the six minute unbroken chaos shot as Rust's undercover business goes pear shaped.  There's a reason this made the Internet explode Monday morning.

Fargo
I did not post about Fargo because it was airing at the same time as Mad Men and Game of Thrones, and three shows would simply have been too much.  That said, Fargo, while it submitted in the miniseries categories, could just as easily have held its own as a regular series.  The three best seasons this year were Breaking Bad, Fargo and True Detective and there's no wrong answer as to which came out on top.

Fargo featured two in the directing category "The Crocodile's Dilemma” and "Buridan's Ass" as well as having "Crocodile's Dilemna" in writing, giving it the "Felina" overlap.  While the competition is much easier in the miniseries category (getting harder each year though) the nominations are noteworthy, much deserved and could easily have happened in the series category. 

"Crocodile's Dilemma" is the premiere and it wouldn't be right to discuss it further.  "Buridan's Ass" left me thinking immediately that this is up there with "Farewell Daddy Blues" and "Secret Fate of All Things" and "Ozymandias" as the best episode of the year.  I will forever have the snowstorm with the drums soundtrack implanted in my brain. 

Others
Also featured for writing and directing: "Chapter 14" - House of Cards (Season Two premiere)
Get real.  House of Cards is fun adn I love it, but it's pulp and it's clearly not in the top tier.

Also featured for directing:"Episode 1 - Season Four" - Downton Abbey

All that said, the Emmy voting process is rather unfair and insane

Emmy Nominations - Writing

While I lament the lack of nomination for Pedro Pascal, I am rather pleased with some of the nominations for writing and directing.  There is no Emmy for best episode, so these categories sort of combine for that honor.  Here are the nominees that have entries on here.

Writing

"The Children"
Thwunk

Game of Thrones Season Four episodes were often about moving storylines and characters into place, while punctuating it with a big scene.  The nature of drawing source material from three books, plus the content of that material, plus original material, plus breaking ten episodes made this the natural way to plot the season.  And with a cast of a billion or so, filmed across many continents, it's not surprising we don't see some characters for a week or two.  Given that, this season didn't have as many fun character development scenes like Season Two's Arya and Tywin scenes (though Tyrion's and Jaime's in the dungeon were pretty good).  "The Children" was a great blend of plot, character, source material and original material, all pulled together to move the story forward and perhaps for the first time end on an oddly hopeful note.

"Ozymandias"
Look upon my works, ye mighty and despair

I had occasion to visit Percy Bysshe Shelley's grave in May, and it says a lot my first thoughts go to Breaking Bad.  All of Walt's work, manipulating, lying, ego puffing and violence comes crashing down as gets caught, is responsible for the death of his brother in law, is rejected by his wife and son and loses most of his money to boot.

"Felina"
Blacker than night were the eyes of Felina wicked and evil while casting a spell
...
Back in El Paso my life would be worthless, everything gone in life nothing is left 
...
Maybe tomorrow a bullet may find me
Once everyone caught up on this show, it made this episode the event of the year.  The only competition would be the "Reigns of Castamere" but that would be considered the previous "season".  Walt seeks redemption to the fullest extent possible, able to put aside his ego for a minute to ensure some fraction of his money gets to his children via uber-Heisenberg methods.  Always one to hold a grudge, Walt goes to settle some scores and in his last moments before taking the bullet that would allow him to escape before the coppers ever get him, he saves the life of the show's conscious.

"The Secret Fate of All Things"
Time is a flat circle
Featuring 1995, 2002 and 2012 storylines, the episode both closes and reopens the Reggie Ledoux/Dora Lange case.  We've sensed we're not getting the whole picture and it's confirmed when Marty and Rust go full unreliable narrator as they relate the Ledoux compound firefight.  Mixing in some rambling/Nietzsche and making as good of use as one can of different literary devices, we get as many questions as answers in these sixty minutes.  Even more impressive, this follows "Who Goes There?" and delivers after expectations are raised incredibly high.

To choose is to choose a favorite child or pizza topping.

The Children - Game of Thrones - 4x10

Season Four
Season Four was probably the most difficult time time for the show.  It represented the largest change in the status quo.  With the destruction of the Starks and the Northern Army, not only had the protagonist died but the protagonists entire legion was gone and the rebellion had been summarily crushed.  And it happened fast, from episode nine and ten the landscape changed dramatically, while Season One and Two had changes take place more gradually, save for one or two characters.

It was also a time for the show to begin blending as many as three books plus a significant amount of original material, while previous seasons were largely transcribing a single book, sequentially, punctuated by a few semi-original scenes that were still drawn heavily from material in the books.

I think the best way to look at the show is not from the overall plot status but by tracking the change in the characters over the season.  The macro picture in Westeros, and in the East for that matter, is almost exactly how it ended in Season Three (Dany in Merereen, Lannisters in charge with the North defeated).  But when you look at where the characters traveled, it's a lot of change.  Specifically, the Stark children who spent the first episode together at Winterfell have stretched out so much they aren't even in the seven kingdoms anymore.

So we'll look at 1) the character's starting point 2) what happened to them 3) where they ended Season Four

Arya

1. Family's dead, oops.
2. Wandered about with the Hound, numb to killing, and getting good at it
3. With nothing keeping her in Westeros, hops a chip via Jaqen's coin, to Braavos to hopefully meet her number one assassin

Jon

1. Post-undercover job with Wildlings, stars in Horrible Bosses: The Wall
2. Leads men on a sortie to take out the mutineers, and plays a large part in the defense of Castle Black.
3. Selects himself to end the battle, willing to sacrifice himself to kill Mance, already in the good graces of Stannis

Sansa

1. Is a Lannister/wife to Tyrion/super sad and mopey just because her whole family got murdered.
2. Escapes to Eyrie
3. Gets in the game under the tutelage of Littlefinger. Wears black dress.

Bran

1. Goes past the Wall looking for Three Eyed Crow
2. Continues. Almost murdered.
3. Finds Three Eyed Crow. About to fly.

Dany

1. Frees Mereen
2. Decides to stay put and rule Mereen
3. Still in Mereen. President-ing is hard. Chainz Two dragons.  One is MIA.

Children of the Forest

1. Collects underpants
2. ...?...
3. Profit

Jaime

1. Sword-hand-less. Unable to fight. Spurned by Cersei.
2. Trains to fight. Not getting along great with Cersei.  Hangs out with Tyrion in dungeon.
3. Still not able to fight that well.  Ponders legacy.  Frees Tyrion.  Back with Cersei?

Tyrion

1. Unhappy marriage and still an object of Joffrey's torment, in the unsexy job of Master of Coin
2. Spends lots of time in dungeon for Joffrey's murder.  Curses everyone in Kings Landing.
3. Condemned.  Murders dad, whore.  Peaces out to the Free Cities.

Tywin

1. War victor.  Kingdom ruler
2. To Do: Estranging children
3. Arrowed!  Is an Ex-Tywin.

Stannis

1. Largely irrelevant
2. Gets a loan from Braavos.  Goes North
   
3. Has army, will travel.  Only person/king doing what the king should be doing.  Wears zero coats.

Catelyn Stark

1. Dead.
2. Is no more.
3. Ceased to be.

Hodor

1. Hodor.
2. Hodor.
3. Hodor.

Winter is Coming

What we always knew would happen is about to happen, we're about out of source material.  In order to tell a complete story next season for these characters, Benioff and Weiss would have to exhaust the final two books.  Bran and Dany have both poked into their stories in ADWD chapters.   The lack of a natural stopping point outside of the final chapters of each character means that B&W will have to augment with a decent amount of original material, or go into great detail of stories like Jon, Sam, Tyrion and Dany, as there simply are  not many chapters remaining of Arya and Sansa. 

This may be a case where Game of Thrones is not well served by a ten episode season.  Rather than extend the remaining material into two seasons, or cram it into one, they may wish instead to lengthen the hiatus until next season, but make it 15-16 episodes.  Or, to shorten the hiatuses and do two eight episode seasons.  With the scale involved in creating Game of Thrones, I'm sure there more logistical concerns than I can even imagine.  Shooting on multiple continents brings a host of problems.  But HBO has always been on the side of the story and may continue to go that way if Game of Thrones continues to have these earth shattering viewership numbers. Ultimately, I think it will become the Wall and Mereen show for a while.

Even if the Winds of Winter is not published between the end of next season and the start of Season Six, we can hope that GRRM will share more information with B&W about where to point the ship.

Now, the finale...


Westeros and Essos

• Jaqen giving the coin to Arya wins this week's Oldest Previously award
• Ned Starks shadow reaches to the Wall.  Imagine if he had been there, as originally planned, for the battle.
• Stannis don't need no overcoat.
• Happy Father's Day, Tywin!
• Cersei: Will it weaken him? Qyburn: No Cersei: Why are you even asking me about this?
• Cersei threatens to burn the House down.  The one redeeming thing they've written into her character is her love and concern for her children, and now she takes on the most powerful man in the seven kingdoms on that note.  Remember how Tywin kindly led Tommen away from his mother during their early discussion on what it takes to be a great king?  He's trying to finish the job by sending her to Highgarden. 
• The weirwood is the weirwood from Bran's vision.  I can't help but think of the empty, snowy thrown room in his and Dany's visions.  Is there even going to be an Iron Throne after all this?
• I predicted the Ironmen would get about three scenes this season
• Dany sure does micromanage.  She sees every single serf in her city individually, which is great, but probably really inefficient.  She has little in the way of grand vision beyond the No Slavery policy.  Where are the public works?  Education?  Publicly funded baseball stadiums?
• The Children are exactly as I pictured
• On that note, pretty sure I saw that scene on True Blood a few seasons ago where the fairies are throwing fireballs
• If there is something that you can't remember if it changed from the books then it probably doesn't matter. 
• The music was astounding this episode.  
• EDIT: I assumed Varys was sitting on the dock after Tyrion was loaded onto the ship.  Some report he was on the ship with Tyrion.  There does not seem to be a consensus. 
• Ultimately, this season only covered a few weeks, considering the wedding happened, then Tyrions trial in a fortnight or so after, and then the duel/sentencing.
• I don't think I was alone in thinking the last shot would be something else

The Watchers on the Wall - Game of Thrones - 4x09

Nine
The ninth episode has been the "big" episode in the past fro Game of Thrones, both from a story standpoint and in describing the scale of bringing it to television.  "Baelor", "Blackwater", and "The Rains of Castamere" are all the zenith of the previous three seasons.  With so much going on this year, with the writers pulling material from, or working toward, three different novels (and an unwritten one, per our glimpse into the White Walkers) Season Four has had a different flow, with "big" moments spaced throughout, rather than follow the conventional plotting of cable dramas today.

Due to the logistics of shooting episodes using the large units on several continents*, the producers still need to make a story fit the ten episode season.  This is probably the most difficult time of the entire Ice and Fire series to transfer to a television season.  In short, Season Four tells three stories, Jon at the Wall, Sansa in the Eyrie and Tyrion in Kings Landing.  It also checks in with the North (both sides of the Wall), the East and the Riverlands, somewhat treading water until the two main stories can play out, but also providing a lot of great and informative character moments in the meantime.  It's like, if you're in the waiting room you want to use your time productively, and read or answer emails so the time isn't a loss.

* Also probably why it makes sense to shoot Dorne none at all this year and lots next year. It's a whole separate shooting location

The most complete story beyond these is Sansa's which managed to have a beginning, middle and end, and did so with somewhat limited screentime.  More than anyone, her character has changed  and she is gearing up to be a real factor in the neverending struggle for control and revenge in Westeros, a far cry from the put upon hostage/Lannister wife she began the season as.

Still, episode nine makes its case for inclusion in the pantheon of memorable Game of Thrones episodes.   It will easily be remembered as the one with the battle at The Wall, partially because it's the only locale we see, a departure from the rest of the series.  It tells the story of one night in Westeros, with a peek into the next morning.  I would not be surprised to see criticism of the episode as all style and no substance, but I would take issue with that argument.  While it's completely action packed (and you largely have to take the episode for what it is), it still manages to have a few good character moments between, or even during, the bloodshed. Its singular focus allows it to do both.  Even the credits are sparse, with Kit Harington getting top billing.  Of the previous Episode Nines, it is most similar to "Blackwater" not only because it is a large battle attacking a castle, but because the status quo is largely maintained at the end. 

While the events at the Wall have been drawn out a bit, aided by a sortie to Craster's Keep, it's been at the behest of giving Jon a larger leadership role.  The difference here is with Mormont gone, his leadership role is assumed and unofficial, rather than actually built into the hiearchy at Castle Black.  By being competent, it's natural for the other brothers to look to him for guidance, as they so often do.  When Slynt the charlatan is left it charge, it's immediately apparent he has no idea what to do, and the boys know this.  It's like Easy Company knowing they are eventually going to be toast in Europe if they stay under Captain Sobel's command*.  When they get rid of him, no one says that Jon is in charge.  Slynt does not hand command to anyone.  But everyone immediately looks to Jon for leadership.  Sometimes you get to be a leader by being a leader.  I've never been so high on Jon Snow, often wanting to fast forward his scenes north of The Wall.  But he and Sansa have undergone the biggest changes and most growth in the cast this season, and both are the better for it.**

* Another work it brings to mind is Braveheart and its battle scenes.

** Rather than think in terms of books or sequential pages, it's better to think about the storylines in terms of the arcs of the characters, picking a start and end.  Some of the characters in a holding pattern (Dany, Arya) have simply had -more- of where they ended last season.  While Tyrion has obbviously undergone a change, the real arc to track is that of King's Landing as a whole.  Joffrey and Littlefinger are gone.  Cersei is not queen, Margarey is.  Tommen is king. Tyrion is awaiting execution.  Even Jaime is largely estranged from his sister and father.  It is almost a 'throw the bums out' type thing in the capital.

I'm unclear if Ser Alister survived the battle.  I'm guessing he did not per Jon's comment about no one being around to give orders.  Alister is softened at the last minute, as he shares with Jon the burden of being in charge, and admits Jon has an I-told-you-so regarding the gate.  It makes no difference at this point so Jon doesn't rub it in, even though Alister is looking forward to him and Jon hating each other.  I think he's saying it to provide some levity and normalcy as they prepare for battle, and most likely to die, but I cannot imagine many brothers who fight together in this battle will keep their squabbles with each other.  Or at least not pick them up immediately after.  Alister rings very familiar to Major Rawls post-Kima shooting, both taking command at the crime scene so the lead detectives can work and speaking to McNulty in his own special way.  Plus Alister was fearless leading men directly into the heart of battle, not unlike Stannis.  Or how I imagine Ned and Robert were.  *

* Here's a good example of how the show conveys the same ideas from the books, but in a different manner.  Take this exchange: Bran thought about it. “Can a man still be brave if he’s afraid?”
“That is the only time a man can be brave,” his father told him. and think about it compared to how the Night's Watchmen feel with their impending doom.  There's no talk of fleeing, but they do admit how scared they are.  Specifically, look at Sam's scenes all the way back to his introduction.  He admits to being a coward then, but now, while he matter-of-factly speaks to how scared he is, he is still willing to defend the Wall and his brothers. 

Besides Jon's leadership and Alister's softening, we're also treated to Sam committing random acts of bravery, devotion to the order from people like Edd and Pyp who were originally sent to the Wall for nothing more than "crimes" and the internal, excruciatingly painful conflict of Ygritte and Jon. 


Stewards and Builders

• Sam and Jon have the strongest male friendship in the entire series
• The elevator appears to be the most advanced technology in the entire world so far
• The oldest Previously only goes back to Jon's early days with Mance 
• Speaking of, Mance doesn't actually appear in the episode, but his shadow looms large.  
• How do the top dogs always manage to find each other?  (Alister and Tormund, Jon and Styr)
• You have to appreciate how nearly all the weapons used are unique.  Both the Night's Watch and the Wildlings are a hodgepodge that use what is available.  It would get old watching limb severing after limb severing, but the different styles and weapons used keep it fresh in what would otherwise grow stale in the singularly focused 60 minutes.
• Best weapon though?  The scythe.  Bloody brilliant.

The Star Wars Expanded Universe
Star Wars novels often took a character who had a line or two, maybe none at all, and gave them whole stories and novels and sometimes series.  For example, Wedge Antilles appeared in three movies, probably had eight lines and carried about nine X-Wing novels in the Expanded Universe.  Tycho Celchu spawned from an unnamed pilot in Return of the Jedi, but in those same X-Wing novels, he was given a name and background and became one of the leading characters in the series.  Random aliens and bounty hunters appearing in the background of scenes are given whole stories in other collections like Tales from Jabba's Palace.

Game of Thrones does this in reverse.  Time doesn't allow us to get the whole story on people like Yarwyck, but we do get to see that  guy who has a lot of text devoted to him name dropped in a scene here or there.  Pyp calls for a "Hill" to join him at the gate, and while we don't know the story, we know he's a bastard from the Westerlands.  Little things like this make the show even more enjoyable.  Call it the Westeros Contracted Universe.


Isolation
It's easy to forget that communication is limited between the locales that we jump around and get to view.  Few in the seven kingdoms even acknowledge its worthwhile to defend The Wall.  Cersei views it like a skeptic may view the space program.  Oh that's still around?  And we're spending what on it?  It puts you in the shoes of the Crows and the singular focus.  It is similar to Theon in Season Three, neither he nor the viewer know where he is or what is going on.

With the whole episode taking place at the Wall our attention gets devoted to it an only it, just as the Night's Watch view it.  None of the nonsense plaguing the kingdoms below matters, and neither do any squabbles between the brothers.  They say there are no atheists in a foxhole.  In this case, there are no Houses at the Wall. 

The Viper and the Mountain - Game of Thrones - 4x08

The Mountain and the Viper
This is going to be a lot of Oberyn fandom so just know that going into it

What were the bookies setting the line at when Tyrion demanded a trial by combat?  It was probably well predicted Cersei would choose the Mountain to stand for her.  Even with Tyrion's champion unnamed, the line probably opened at about 10-15:1, with some chance that Bronn or a maimed Jaime may take up against Clegane.  But when they didn't immediately volunteer as tribute, the line must have gone up above 20, and then even higher when for a hot minute it seemed like Tyrion was going to have to kill the Mountain himself.  Which would probably mean the bookmakers would just refund everyone's bets as there was no way to make any money.  Or bettors would have to wager such an enormous amount of money to get any return that they would just be better off buying bonds from the Iron Bank.

But when Oberyn volunteers, I imagine it comes back down to about 10:1 or maybe a little higher, with some big bettors wagering enough after studying Oberyn to move the line significantly.  I bet it came all the way down to 5:1 and then back up again by a few coppers at the last minute.

I've mentioned before that in 5,000 pages of Ice and Fire, this is my favorite scene and the one I most looked forward to.  It's a powerful scene that makes someone like the scene when their favorite character bites it.  A while back I mentioned the reason Pedro Pascal was perfect to play Oberyn is because of his big scene as a skilled but arrogant pugilist in Lights Out.  Originally spoiler tagged, the story is that he dominates a fight, but draws it out longer than it should have been and loses on a knockout from a bolo punch.  In trial by combat, Oberyn still tries to play to the crowd while extracting the confession and lets his guard down just enough.

You raped her.  You murdered her.  You killed her children.

His refrain is the best since Princess Bride.

Back to the bettors.  The guys who waited for Oberyn to be named as combatant then got the bets in before the line moved to much are the ones who did some quick analysis and realized this is like one of those games in March Madness where a superior team loses to a lower seed because of match ups.  Clegane would probably take on and beat any sort of classic Westeros knight.  In an earlier episode Jaime mentioned only a few knights in Westeros could take him on.  One was Ned Stark, which we saw in practice.  One was probably the Mountain.  Which means there's only a handful of guys you could give a chance in Seven Hells against him.  The Hound?  Loras?  That's about it and they aren't super inclined to help out Tyrion.  Plus the Hound would then be taken into custody and executed.  Or given his own trial.  Again.

Oberyn matches up well with the Mountain.  After seeing him hang in Kings Landing, trading barbs with Lannisters and lazing about the capital, it's apparent he's perhaps the only character who can fight as well as he plays the game.  While Clegane is "quick for someone his size" as Bronn pointed out, Oberyn has some Wushu Master skill(*) going on which just puts him in another plane of existence(**).  The reach of the spear, which just happens to be Oberyn's best weapon, takes away the brute strength of the Mountain as he cannot get to the Viper.  Plus, there's the intangibles.  Robb described Clegan as a mad dog without a strategic bone in his body.  Despite pregaming with wine rather than Gatorade, it's clear that Oberyn put a lot of thought into what his approach was going to be, while the Moutain planned to hack away.  Plus it didn't seem like he was practicing very hard, executing a bunch of untrained prisoners when Cersei came to see him, rather than developing a new skill or honing an existing one.  It's like beating the computer with offsides turned off. And Oberyn has both the underdog and revenge thing going for him.  The Upset Special?

(*) This is all awesome but 1:40 specifically looks like it inspired Pascal's performance.

(**) It appears he did these stunts himself in an empty apartment.  Which brings to mind Peter Quinn, the other giant badass of the television universe, and television MVP two years ago.

The reactions in the crowd are great.  The Lannister clan has to remain regal and poised, but each give just enough of an expression betray their rooting interests, except for maybe Tywin (*).  Cersei has to still act queenly despite her open hatred of Tyrion.  But Jaime's delight at seeing exactly what Oberyn is capable of is incredibly well done.  He's thinking, hey this guy has a chance then what do you know he's about to win.

* Tywin has shown contempt for the gods before, chastising Cersei for praying as a child, so you have to love his dismissal of the Grand Maester's long introduction of each of the seven gods.  It probably didn't help that he clearly finds the GM  annoying as well, shown in this deleted Season Three scene. 

Similar to the Purple Wedding, the scene follows the desciption in Storm of Swords with great precision.  The only surprising thing was how fast it all happened.  I figured this would be the last scene of the episode, taking part all without a cut to another scene.  It was more of a surprise how thoroughly Oberyn dominated the fight until the last seconds.   And he does it with ease, either taunting the Mountain or smiling the entire time.  Which has to be hard enough just while completing those moves, but with all that going on it's even more impressive.  Again all until the rage takes over.

With pieces of his head covering a diameter of about six feet, Oberyn is dead, and the performance of guest star Pedro Pascal is finished.  But I think he lived up to the billing of the series most awesome character.  He was able to play it cool, lustful (with the girls and the guys), vengeful toward the Lanniseters, strategic in his positioning, passively disrespectful to Tywin, actively challengeing Tywin, sharp and skeptical in the trial, cocky in a good way, athletic and full of rage...all until his pride before the fall.

Back to Tywin...is there anyone else in the Seven Kingdoms who can, in front of everyone, and with veracity and anger, point to Tywin Lannister, the richest, most powerful man in Westeros, Hand to three Kings, crusher of rebellions and and defacto ruler in chief, and call him a murderer?  Oberyn can.  Well, could.

Is there another character in Game of Thrones, on all of television that has this range, as well as an actor to execute it?

There was a high potential for failure with such high expectations but Guest Star in a Drama Series has to go to this guy, but my guess is it will go to the Bert Cooper swan song.

Coppers and Silvers

• Jorah's spying for the small council in Season One gets the win for earliest "previously"
• Moat Cailin is added to the credits
• Sansa has caught on to the game.  She highlighted to Lysa just how bad of a liar she was, but now she's been able to convince the lords of the Vale that Lysa killed herself and the Littlefinger is not so bad a guy.
• If 2013 was won by Stan's fringe jacket on Mad Men then 2014 will be won by Sansa the Black Swan toward the end of this episode.  Like A Boss.
• Littlefinger lauds Ned and badmouths Tywin, conveniently leaving out the part where he ensured Ned's capture and Joffrey's seizure of the Iron Throne
• Because of the POV of the books, little is scene from the smallfolk.  Or slaves.  We get some perspective of regular people in Mole's Town and former slaves in Dany's army.  They all just want to guess the song the wench is burping and as Jorah said "The common people pray for rain, healthy children, and a summer that never ends. It is no matter to them if the high lords play their game of thrones, so long as they are left in peace. They never are."
• And so the Wildlings butcher them.  Bummer.
• Selmy takes the Ned Stark approach of telling his rival how he's going to use the information he has against them. 
• Tyyyyywin!  You're blowing up my spot!
• Roose Bolton's wardenship of the North has sure kept him busy.  He gets the title and the honor of doing Tywin's dirty work, just as they will be expected to be the first and possibly only line of defense against whatevers coming from Beyond the Wall.
•  "If you're found in Mereen after break of day, I'll have your head thrown into Slaver's Bay"
• If you want to sound uber threatening and authoritative, maybe don't make your threats rhyme?
• Is Cersei ever not drinking?
• Arya has just lost it.  Of Course! her one living relative is now dead.
• I'd kill Joffrey with a chicken bone if I had to.
• Oberyn believes in himself.  That's putting it mildly
• The rapport between Tyrion and Jaime is great.  They are always the one the other is talking to when in distress.
• Also turns out the maesters a bit more like priests than even the septons.

Mockingbird - Game of Thrones - 4x07

Tyrion, son of Tywin, you will have three visitors.  One in helplessness, one in pragmatism and one in revenge.  Jaime, his originally name champion from his trial at the Eyrie, is incapacitated due to his hand.  Bronn is rather straightforward with Tyrion about how it makes little sense for Bronn as a sellsword to turn down riches and title for a better than 50 percent chance of being hacked to bits.  So if not for gold or family, someone needs a different motivation to kill The Mountain*/defend Tyrion.  Hmmmm, who doesn't like The Mountain and has a rapport with Tyrion?

In 5,000 pages of Ice and Fire my favorite character is Oberyn** and my favorite scene is coming next week. 

(*) If the Targaryen words are Fire and Blood then Cersei and The Mountain are gonig by "Blood and Guts"

(**) Benefit of the doubt is rewarded based on the performance so far.

Horrible Bosses 2: The Wall
Jon's entries into the suggestion box are tossed aside at the weekly staff meeting.  Which wouldn't be so bad except their all probably going to die thanks to Captain Edward Smith leading them into the abyss.

Coppers and Silvers

• The oldest "previously" is Arya and Jaqen
• Arya and Dany have both spent four seasons powering up.  
• We get to poop on Ser Meryn again.  I wonder if the rest of his fellow Kingsguard hate him as much as everyone else.   
• Just as the Hound wipes his blade off, so does Arya.
• I've always wondered why Tywin gives Tyrion access to the credit card.  For how much he hates him, I figured he'd have cut off funds long ago.
• Melisandre does the naked power move. Other variations of this include the senator peeing in from of Frank Underwood or more recently Malvo taking a dump in from of Stavos' henchmen.
• The ghost of Ned Stark continues to linger, even across the Narrow Sea in Jorah's advisement of Dany

The Laws of Gods and Men - 4x06

Kangaroo Court

Did you ever have your dad umpire in Little League?  Some dads, the ones who really pushed their kids and thought they were all the next Griffey would obviously cheat for their offspring.  They'd give them the benefit of the doubt constantly.  However, most of us were terrible and our dads knew that and just wanted to get through the game.  They were also worried about being seen as biased toward their own kid, so they called balls and strikes harder on their own kids than on anyone.  You'd have to swing at pitches above your head or rolling on the ground if dad was the umpire.

With Tywin judging Tyrion, with Mace and Oberyn, take that balls and strikes factor.  Then compound it by the fact that  Tywin really really hates Tyrion due to his small strike zone, than you start to get an idea of how effed in the a Tyrion is.

As lax Oberyn appears, such as not bothering to stand when Tywin enters the Small Council chamber, he seems genuinely invested in the trial, asking sincere questions.  He makes a point about Lannisters paying debts...

Though, Tyrion is family.  And Tywin does view him partly the way you view your racist uncle, where you kind of roll your eyes and avoid killing him.  In this case, it appears it actually is Tywin's plan to not kill him but send him to the Wall, which would put him back in touch with his friend Janos Slynt and the acting LC Alistair.  Jaime proposes the idea to Tywin (using similar logic to what we discussed) and is even willing to give up his Kingsguard appointment and go back to Casterly Rock to raise little Lannisters.  He doesn't seem suspicious that he should have driven a harder bargain though, because by the speed at which Tywin accepted this arrangement, he probably planned to do it all along. Which literally means that Tyrion is facing death or exile.  Or perhaps death...by exile.*

Tough for Tyrion to top his confession at the Eyrie.  But he still rolls the dice.  Jaime is caught in the middle, and would he be able to fight for him anyways?  Will Bronn pick up the mantle again?

* The single funniest line in all three Batmans. Even if it's GRITTY and DARK you can still find humor.

Braavos
...is added to the opening credits, featuring a large Boba Fett standing at the entrance to their port.  Mycroft Holmes* has taken a profession as a banker.  Few people shown from the East are white.  Basically, Mycroft and Illyrio so far.  It brings to mind John Adams asking for money from the Dutch in the effort against the British.  I find the international relations between the West and the East to be fascinating and I hope we continue to see interactions like these.  The bank has been touched on multiple times this season and now Stannis' campaign has a shot in the arm, able to reload against the Lannisters.  It also means the Iron Bank is probably not going provide much help to the Crown.  Nor will it stop at one loan with Stannis.  If he makes any decent progress, it means he'll get more money.

* The Elementary version of Mycroft has played a large part in the end of season arc over there

Dany's One Thing
Much like Ava had one thing to do each episode, Dany follows that pattern this season.  Today she sits in a throne room dealing out patronage.  Her dragons are out and about having barbeques.  Let me save you a thousand pages of reading and sum up the Dany/Hizdahr interation.

Hizdahr: Please?
Dany: No
Hizdahr:  But, tradition.  And things.
Dany: Ugh, fine.

Ser Not Appearing in this Film
Arya/Hound, Littlefinger/Sansa, Snow and the Wall, Bran & Co.  So basically, all the living Starks.  Huh...


Silvers and Coppers

• Unfortunately, in the battle between Ironborn and Bolton men, there are survivors.
• I always pictured Hizdar looking like how Xaro looked in the show
• Mace Tyrell, Master of Gophering.  He calls out that he is master of ships, the way a little kid would claim that he gets a particular game piece, or that he gets to be Han Solo when the kids play Star Wars
• Cersei's title is Master of Discounting things
• Tywin is 67, which puts him a little under 50 during Robert's Rebellion
• I found it significant intelligence dug something up about Sansa and Dontos, as well as the necklace
• "Every excuse to dance these blues away.....I ain't comin home"

First of his Name - Game of Thrones - 4x05

What?!
What is the word for all your worldly assumptions being completely undercut?

Lysa's admission/exposition/reveal that it was she who poisoned Jon Arryn, at the behest of Littlefinger, and causing all the events in the series to take place is a bomb.  It was never stated but widely assumed the Lannisters were responsible.  Not only that but Lysa purposely misled her sister and brother in law about the culprit.  I suppose we should have realized Lysa is not the most reliable person when we met her in Season One and saw she was bonkers.

The series' inciting incident has changed so everything else has to be looked at differently.  So Ned's assumption that Jon Arryn was murdered for being too close to the truth about Robert's heirs is false.  Jon dying left a hole for Robert to move Ned into.  Knowing Ned would fail (partly due to his own contirubtions) Littlefinger unleashed chaos in the North.  The claims to the throne are almost just a happy coincidence at that point as Stannis and Renley are prepared to rip the country apart as well.

All so Littlefinger could marry Lysa?  Well, all so Littlefinger could gain a kingdom (and an army, which we know Varys fears).  Who knows?  This was a mystery we weren't even sure was a mystery.

Jon Snow's Parentage
One of the other mysteries introduced early in the show is Jon Snow's parentage.  Undercutting the Jon Arryn assumption makes me think that the clues that lend to Jon Snow's true mother (and possibly father) are going to be completely undercut as well.

Craster's
Speaking of Jon, I like the detour to Craster's.  It allows Jon to make some more bones and gain more respect and leadership skills before the coming battle.  Had it gone another episode, it would have been too much, but this was just right.

How to Fight
We're back at the Eyrie, the place Bronn beat Ser Honorable in a proxy fight between getting things done and getting things done on the high road.  The surviving Starks are learning a thing or two about getting things done.  Jon doesn't mind stabbing Dirk or whatever through the back of the head.  Arya's going to process the Hound's advice on what armor and a big sword* do when against agility, and Bran doesn't think twice before inhabiting his friend and human wheelchair to snap the neck/life out of a threat.  Get it, Starks.

* Meryn Trant?  Meryn Fucking Trant?!

The Formula
If Game of Thrones or ASOIAF have a formula it is either take a fish out of water, or to put two characters together who don't get along then have them slowly gravitate toward each other.  Pod and Brienne...this may be the start of a beautiful friendship.

Coppers and Silvers

• At least the Lannisters have the good taste to know your second wedding shouldn't be as extravagant as your first
• Mace is just bumbling about.  Perfect pick to be a judge.
• Lysa was surprisingly welcoming, but it didn't take long for crazy to win out
• Margarey called Cersei "sister" but with a question mark.  Does that qualify as stepping to Cersei's previous threat about calling her that?
• The mines are dry.  Despite Tywin chastising the New Money Tyrells at the wedding, the Old Money in fact has No Money.
• The Iron Bank continues to loom like that paper you don't want to write
•  Why even bother to tell Robyn the secret about Sansa?
• Please don't get married.  That'd be a genetic disaster
•  Locke will be viewed with honor as a Night's Watchmen who died in the line
• It occurred to me....where was Craster getting all this food and booze?
• Disappointed to see Arya's added Thoros and Beric to her list.  But she is pretty pissed about the whole Gendry thing.
• Digging the visions of the Great Deku Tree.  These are intersting parts of the book that seem they would be difficult to adapt to the series, and the road the show is taking is encouraging.
• If you want to understand GRRM, watch this video where he describes the geography that protects the Eeyrie.  You'd never know it doesn't actually exist.  Imaaaginnaaaaaaatiooooon!  Imaginaaaatioooon.   
• We continue to ignore the Ironmen (yes!) and get more mentions of Dorne (Oberyn's daughters!)
• The plays into my theory that the Ironmen story will get three scenes this season to expedite things.  It also gives us hope that we are going to see a lot of stuff from Dorne in Season Four.  Tell me this guy shouldn't be Doran Martell. He's in everything but I remember him from Heroes and the Pakistani ambassador on West Wing

Oathkeeper - Game of Thrones - 4x04

The Book Was Better!
Don't be that guy.  The one who read the book of the movie and proudly proclaims immediately while walking out of a theatre that the book was better.  Often this same person will claim "I don't own a television."  Game of Thrones has its own version of that.

There's nothing more pedantic or pedestrian than the simple lists that excuse themselves for writing, documenting the differences between the shows and the books.  There is, amazingly, still an enormous amount of shock that the show is not a 1:1 transcription of these five, 1,000 page books.  It's even more surprising considering that the scenes spun of whole cloth are among the best in the show.  I'd rather simply talk about those scenes and what they add.

Grey Worm *   gets to show Daenareys' liberation mission from the perspective of current and former slaves.  Daenareys freeing of slaves has largely existed in the abstract until recently.  We get to actually see the slaves talking to each other, debating whether or not to take up arms against the masters.  With some urging from Grey Worm, Mereen falls from the inside thanks to a slightly more successful John Brown uprising.  It helps her story resonate a bit more while we wait for her dragons to grow and to finally get on a ship and head to Westeros.

* Of the Summer Isles, which means he has no imagination, which is a hilarious regional stereotype, because it makes no sense.  It's like saying "People from the Reach are all left handed!"

In that vein, the episode ends with another group that we haven't seen operate in a private moment yet.  Surprisingly, the White Walkers appear to be an organized society, with procedures, if not rituals.  They think and respond to things consciously, rather than simply out of instinct as previously appeared to be the case.  Taking the baby to the Stonehenge-esque and transforming him into a White Walker was a moment to be marked.  Craster had 100 sons so that means there's at least 100 of those buggers out there.  If the Realm falls because of Craster's sperm then it deserves to fall though.

There was talk of conversations between Benioff&Weiss and GRRM about "broad strokes" and "laying groundwork" so I'm betting this will come into play significantly. 

But guess what?  The big thing is, from this point on, you know nothing, Jon Sn-, er, book readers.

The Queen of Thorns
Besides making the funniest remark of the episode, commenting on the Betrayl Garden, which makes me thing Benioff and Weiss are fans of South Park.  I'm hoping she sticks around because in a single breath she talks about the old days, admits to murdering the king, and tells Margarey how to make sure she gets her claws into Tommen while keeping an eye out for Cersei.

Jaime and Cersei and Tyrion
Cersei's in pretty much the same bad mood she's been in since Jaime returned.   Only now it's compounded because her psycho little bastard son is dead.  She makes a request is Jaime to which Jaime thinks "Okay I will do the opposite of that" and her formal addressing of him as "Lord Commander" is both in response to his saying "Your Grace" and a way to dismiss their former bond.

Ends and Odds

• Stop hitting yourself, Jaime, stop hitting yourself
• Horrible Bosses continues at The Wall, only now Alistair wants to murder Snow.
• Snow is getting a reputation.  First hanging with the Wildlings, killing the Halfhand.  Now heading to Craster's to kill former Crows
• Surprised that Locke is willing to go as far as saying his vows at The Wall.  I guess  the Warden of the North can pardon that?
• Please don't kill Ghost and Summer.  After Lady and Grey Wind, no more Michael Vick-ing these pets. 
• Sansa, someone too naive to live much longer in Kings Landing, quickly comes to grips with what happened in the Purple Wedding

Breaker of Chains - Game of Thrones

Episode 4-03
"Breaker of Chains"

Taking a page from True Blood or Alias, the episode picks up on the same frame from last week, Joffrey's beautiful purple dead face.  And boy is Tywin mad!  Sansa makes a break for it, doing her best Melisandre impresssion of a redhead wearing a hooded cloak at night.

The Reign of King Tommen I (i.e. Tywin's in charge)
Tommen is already thirty steps ahead of Joffrey in terms of being a king.  It's been a day and he hasn't chopped anyone's head off, so that's quite a good start.  Tywin reminds me of Ganondorf from Ocarina of Time.   He gives a professorial talk to Tommen about what it is to be king asking him what it takes to be a good king.  And Tommen even names a few good qualities (holiness, justice, strength) that it takes.  He leaves out being a psychopath and sadist.  While Tywin doesn't lead him all through the Triforce (courage, power, wisdom) it is close.  He gets to wisdom and it's apparent that his entire talk is framed to make it so Tommen does whatever Tywin says.  It is like when Don Draper gives advice and his advice always boils down to "Be more like Don Draper."  Basically, listen to Tywin when you are young, and then you may as well listen to Tywin when you are old as well.

Interestingly, he refers to "King Robert" rather than "your father" as though Robert was some sort of abstract figure who he never met.  I imagine that's not far off from the truth, but still...there are times when the Lannisters aren't even pretending like they have a legitimate claim.  Tywin ends the talk doing something all sides can agree is a good thing, he pulls Tommen away from his mother.

Later, Tywin also acknowledges the real threat of Wildlings in the North and the dragons in the East, as well as the Greyjoys who are probably the least of their worries at the moment, as he'll allow Roose Bolton to deal with that as his reward for betraying the Starks.  

The Faith of the Seven
This episode more than any other in the series has a religious overtone, and maybe that's not by accident this Easter Sunday (also Orthodox Easter).  Tywin and Tommen discuss Baelor's holiness.  The Sept provides a setting.  The Riverlands family that takes in the Hound and Arya are devout and say an excruciatingly long grace before chow.  There's talk of the gods and their vengeance.  Besides the Faith, there's more talk of the Red God and even Davos is acknowledging its power.

Braavos
Braavos got a mention earlier this season.  This episode saw a few more.  There's talk of the Iron Bank again.  And Arya and the Hound both discuss going there.  Perhaps to make it a little more real in our minds, and bring back some memory of it, Davos mentions he was almost beheaded by the First Sword of Braavos...our friend from Season One, Syrio Forel (who I refuse to believe is dead despite Meryn Trant still talking about).  Most significantly, Davos sends a letter to the Bank on behalf of Stannis after his boss rings him out for not rallying enough people to his cause.

"The Iron Bank will have it's due" is kind of a relation to "A Lannister always pays his debts" (no mention of a female Lannister paying back debts though).  The Bank gets paid one way or the other, either from the loan recipient, for by funding the enemies of the deadbeat debtor.

Oberyn
If Oberyn didn't already hate the Lannisters, he sure would now after they keep barging in on his whorehouse time.  Ellaria is discussed for a third week in a row.  One of the things that makes Oberyn so awesome/dangerous are the zero shits he gives about everything coupled with the restraint he's able convey.  It is so much more dangerous than someone like the Mountain who Robb Stark described as "a mad dog without a strategic thought in his head" as Oberyn is probably one of the few people in the Seven Kingdoms who could hang with the intrigue of Kings Landing and fight as a warrior.


Daario
The New Daario is a sellsword much closer to Bronn, fighting dirty, than whatever they were going for last season.  The wink was a bit much, but that seems more of a directing choice than an acting one.  Anytime you can win a duel in the vein of Indiana Jones though, you have something working.

Sir Not Appearing in this Film

• Brandon Stark, righful Lord of Winterfell (and company)
• Brienne 
• Ironmen, still not found in Season Four which is quite all right
• Roose & Bastard

Come to think of it, this episode packs quite a lot of characters and settings in.  Hound/Arya, Jaime/Cersei, Tywin, Tyrion, Oberyn, Stannis (and Davos) making his first appearance, the Wildlings and the Wall, all punctuated by the East.

Heads chopped off this week: 1

The Lion and the Rose - Game of Thrones

Episode 4-02
"The Lion and the Rose"

Written by GRRM

Directed by Alex Graves

Scenes Made for Television
I want to talk about what the medium of television adds to the show beyond the books. While we don't get the same background, from characters or geopolitically, that we do from the books, we do get a lot of scenese that are either occurred "off screen" in the book or are added out of whole cloth.  Often they are speechless scenes, as in "Walk of Punishment" with the Small Council scene or that episode's opening scene with the Tully funeral and the Edmure/Blackfish dynamic.  The thing these scenes have in common is that they use the screen to add depth to the characters involved. 

Tyrion and Jamie
Tyrion and Jamie have the most healthy relationship in the entire Lannister family.  They are much closer than one would expect considering their relationships with other family members. Jamie is understandably insecure about his fighting ability and confides this in Tyrion.  This despite his bravado and bluster when speaking about it last episode with Tywin, Cersei and nephewson Joffrey.  And it's Tyrion who counsels him on further training, as well as finds a sparring partner who is both ably skilled and compelled to keep his mouth shut.  Bronn has also been a great aspect of the show with his role expanded to that of the City Watch commander and Addam Marbrand, one of the more honorable Westerland knights.  Even better that Bronn smacks the sword out of his hand, like Syrio would.

Edit 4/17:
Adding to their already established relationship is that Tyrion and Jamie both share a handicap now.  Oddly enough, Tyrion is the one with experience in this area and can help Jamie through it.  Connecting him with Bronn in training his left hand not only helps with discretion, but with the manner in which he's going to have to train.  Jamie needs to get up to speed as fast as possible, and he needs to do that any way he can.  Bronn's not someone who was trained by a master of arms in a castle, or got private swordfighting lessons.  He is probably largely self taught and with that comes a manner of fighting that would not be described as "classic".  We saw this in Bronn's fight at the Eyrie, where he employs the old adage "speed kills" and while he does not fight with honor, according to Lysa, he is still the one standing there at the end.  And this is why he's the one to get Jamie up to speed, quick and dirty.

Lady Oleanna

• Mace Tyrell appears, only to be shooed away immediately by his mother.  Another thing that says so much in a quick second.
• "The Iron Bank with have its due"  With the crown's debts looming, perhaps this is some foreshadowing?  Perhaps Mycroft Holmes will pay a visit?
• "Killing a man at a wedding...horrid."

Tywin also seems to have some sort of old money/new money rivalry with the Tyrells, as though he doesn't respect them (despite them saving Kings Landing against Stannis) because of how they spend their money (due to them being 'new' to having it).  The Lannisters are an ancient family of Westeros and the Tyrells are the overlords of the Reach for "only" the last 300 years, so I suppose that qualifies them as "new money" in Tywin's eyes.

 Storms & Swords

• Roose Bolton has the North but does not hold it.  It's like a car with no gas
• For just a moment, we think Joffrey may have grown up, taking a cue from Tywin at his side when Tyrion presents his gift.  His human reaction to Tyrion's book is clearly suspicious to everyone there and it only takes another 60 seconds for Joffrey to revert back and hack the book to pieces.
• Last week, seeing Ice melted down was like watching Ned die all over again.  This week Joffrey mentioned every time he uses the new sword it will be like cuttiing off Ned's head again...as if Joffrey had done it himself.  His view of himself was completely encapsulated in that hilarious statute last week.
• On that note I wonder how they are going to incorporate Kevan Lannister or a composite equivalent
• Tyrion has to "White Fang" Shae, something Arya had to do to her actual wolf in Season One
• The wedding is a mix of Naboo from Star Wars, the Castle from Ocarina of Time, and EPCOT.
• Margarey would make both Pippa and Kate stop in their tracks.
• Cersei's new title is Tattletale Reagent
• Oberyn loves to dig into the Lannisters.  Unsure who else can speak to them that way and get away with it.  Probably him and Lady Oleanna.  Just keep driving in that knife though.  We have no Stark army, but we can root for the frenemies of their enemies.  Especially if they are super cool
• Joffrey cannot watch anything for more than a second before he wants to inflict pain on someone.
• Varys got bopped on the head by one of the dwarves during the performance
• The cultural differences between different kingdoms of Westeros have been slight, save for the North which largely operated as a separate entity and was set apart more by their different religion.  The direct interaction between Northerners and Southerners only took place for a limited period of time.  Now we have another geographic outlier, Dorne from the South, with cultural differences highlighted in every interaction.
• We know how many people gave a fluff about Joffrey by the number of people who rushed to help him.  The little pyscho couldn't even open the cake without killing things.
• Tywin, in a grandfatherly moment, holds Tommen, having him look away from his brother. 
• We finally get a good moment.  After Ned, Robb, Cat.  After Arya being imprisoned  and Sansa held hostage and Bran and Rickon forced to flee and Winterfell being burned to the ground.  And it's tainted by Tyrion being arrested. 
• The GOP needs a new standard bearer.  

Bran's vision, which appears to be a mix of a flash back and flash forward includes Ned in the dungeons, his execution, Dany's walk through the throne room via the House of the Undying, the Three Eyed Raven who actually seems to speak to him and a shadow of a dragon.  A quite large dragon.

One of the things about the Theon//Reek scenes with the Bastard of Bolton is that we, like those being hunted/tortured/psychologically abused have no idea what is going on or why it is happening, which makes it all the more unsettling.

Cersei's battle with Margarey continues.  Anything Margarey is in favor of, she is against.  Rather than pull the people of Kings Landing into the fold per Lady Di of Westeros, she feeds the leftovers to the dogs out of spite.  This does a few things.  1) Undermine Margarey.  2) Shows she can still threaten members of the small council 3) Continue her contempt for the small folk

"Lannister" is always inserted more with Joffrey, who it is easy to forget is a Baratheon in name.  He has to keep that name so they keep their claim to the throne, but the Baratheon's have zero presence in Kings Landing.   For example, behind Joffrey and Margarey, there are stags and lions (no roses) but also a big "L" pattern.  This despite that if Joffrey actually only has Lannister heritage, which he does, he has no claim to the throne.  That truth seems widely acknowledged and ignored. 

Imagine the most awkward toast, father of the bride or best man speech you've heard at a wedding.  Multiply that by a thousand for the reactions to Joffrey scolding Tyrion.  So everyone is sitting there listening to the child who they know is not the rightful king make everyting super awkward and tantrumy, all the way until he is made dead.

Two Swords - Game of Thrones

"Two Swords"
Episode 4-01

Written by showrunners Benioff & Weiss.

Directed by Weiss.

Lots to do kids, and there's one less worthwhile voice out there to talk about it, so let's get to it.

• The first episode is good for one scene for each character, maybe two.  We're spending a week, maybe two, establishing where everyone is a mere several weeks after the Red Wedding, both physically and their state of mind.
• HBO, particularly Game of Thrones, does great "previouslies" and there are a lot of chickens coming home to roots, some things you may not have thought about in quite a while.
• Ruthlessly pragmatic Tywin thinks Ice is big to a silly extent, so he makes the titular "Two Swords".  It's a bit like killing Ned all over again seeing the Stark family Great Sword melted down and turned into, of all things, a new Lannister heirloom.  Actually, it's more like Sansa becoming a Lannister via marriage.
• Though, what did Tywin throw on there at the end?  A pig?
• I love Tywin because everything he does is grounded in pragmatism, and he has no aspirations or pretension of his actions being anything other than effective. 
• As much as Tywin talks about his/the Lannister legacy and name (starting a war for the "least of" them), when he kicks it one day, he essentially has no heir.  He won't give Casterly Rock to Tyrion (but pragmatically gives him Winterfell), Jamie still forsakes his claim, and he has no faith in Cersei who also happens to be a girl.  Maybe Tommen can get it (even though he's technically a bastard) with Myrcella, also a girl, enjoying Dorne.  But they are short on options.  
• On second thought, maybe the two swords are "Ice" and "Needle" rather than the two Lannister swords.  The Stark swords bookend the episode after all.  Maybe I am just refusing to pick the obvious choice here though.
• Dreadfort is added to the always epic credits, as is Mereen.
• "Can you read the sigils?" "Yellow balls?"
• Jamie's wave...perfect.
• Oberyn steals the show, as expected.  With all the Starks dead, there's a lot fewer people to root for.  So we're pretty much reduced to rooting for enemies of their enemies.  Probably not ideal foreign policy
• Passing his hand over the candle says more in a half second than the rest of it combined 
• Tyrion's indifference to Oberyn stabbing the Lannister soldier is quite hilarious
• Doran Martell gets a mention and I ponder who they will cast for him next year 
• The best way to describe Oberyn is as a honey badger, giving zero shits. 
• It is somewhat impressively how quickly and seamlessly they integrate the exposition of the Martells beef 
• Funny how everyone screamed bloody murder at this casting.  Turns out its going to be okay
• Alisair Thorne ascending to acting commander is just the ultimate version of getting stuck with a horrible boss following a good boss.  It is basically Jason Sudeikis' part in Horrible Bosses
• The Gold Cloaks commander showing up at the Wall is one of those chickens coming home to roost.  It appears he's weaseled himself into some sort of leadership position, despite goldbricking it and not actually going north of the Wall yet
• Was that a statue of Joffrey?  It looks like something Calvin would imagine
• "Reigns of Castamere" times heard: 2
• Sansa Lannister gets a bird to roost as well via Ser Dontos
• Looking forward to seeing the result of Pedro Pascal's Wushu master training
• The Hound quotes Omar "A man's got to have a code"
• Arya's scene at the inn mirrors the new, just published chapter of The Winds of Winter
• Chickens roosting!
• It's impressive that the first episode of a season actually has many payoffs, rather than the traditional structure of building over the season and having payoffs towards the season end
  
• I didn't think the old Daario was particularly bad, but the new one is obviously better and living up to more of the potential
• "The king is safe"
• Three seeds planted.  The dragons can't be tamed, Oberyn is looking for trouble, and the jig is up on Tyrion and Shae 
• Sir-Not-Appearing-In-This-Episode
• Stannis (and Melisandre and Davos), Roose Bolton, Bran & Co., the Ironmen.  Was Varys in there?
• Still dead: Most of the Starks.  Most of the Targaryens. Robert. Renley.

The War of Two of the Five Kings

I wonder how things would've played out between Stannis and Robb, had he lived.  Robb went from rescue mission, to vengeance to war for independence.  Stannis had no love for him and would've fought into the North just to be ornery if one or both of them had taken Kings Landing.

Pragmatically, Robb could've accepted his terms and gone back to being Lord of Winterfell under Stannis as Ned was under Robert.  Not sure his lords would've been keen on it though, spilling that blood to not rescue Ned and not be independent.  It may work if they did get the chance to kill all the Lannisters and Joffrey though.  I feel like a good compromise may have been something like a semi-autonomous republic, like Crimea.  But Stannis, being "iron" would probably not bend to that.

The two kingdoms at the peripheries of Westeros are both a bit like that, looking at themselves as their own deal.  Dorne even calls its lords "princes".

Two Characters

Sansa Lannister nee Stark
The episode spent an impressive amount of time  showing her grieving and hitting a lot of the right notes.  Sansa's never been one for actively taking out her anger, unless she is mad at her father or sister.  And she is still as polite as ever to her husband whose family murdered her whole family.  Not wanting to eat or sleep, Sansa's only retreat is the Godswood. 

Just like I was thinking about how Robb-Stannis would play out, it's interesting to think what would've happened with Sansa if Joffrey had been even the least bit not sociopathic.  Her ability to play along with everything is impressive and takes a certain temperment.  She also showed how she could handle queen-ly duties when they hid in the Red Keep as Stannis stood siege, while the actual queen drank and exuded contempt for everyone there.

Part of her grieving is her saying what she's heard about the Red Wedding, including how deep the cut was to her mother's throat.  

Arya Stark aka Arry aka Boy aka Girl
Without giving anything away, I'll say very generally that the show has deviated from the exact scenes that take place.  This of course causes some people to scream bloody murder over the Internets.  However, the one thing the they've stuck very closesly to is conveying the ideas in each of those scenes, as well as Arya's state of mind.  Simply put, there is more than one way to skin a cat and the way some things have been handled, while deviating from the original material, make the show all the more impressive.

For example, the scenes between Arya and Tywin are some of the best in the show.  However, they do not exist in book land.  It gave a lot of insight to both characters, as well as allowed us to spend time with two favorites. 

Arya's story so far is her trying to go somewhere and then being interrupted and taken somewhere else.  Yoren tries to take her to Winterfell via the Night's Watch route, she's interrupted and taken to Harrenhall.  She escapes and tries to go to Riverrun, but is taken to the Brotherhood Without Banners.  She's supposed to go to the Twins, but can't.  Now the Hound is taking her to Eyrie...