Tuesday, 17 May 2016

Game of Thrones: Book of the Stranger

"You will not serve - you will die."

Hello everyone!

It's back to Game of Thrones for the week, and BOY was it a whooper of an episode this Sunday! 

Naturally, most of the episodes in this series are the likes of, you know, oh my God who's going to die and who lives?! kind of thing, but really, some of them stand out even further along the already amazing stuff we see on screen.

What I'm most thrilled about is the fact that we are now seriously past the action of the books, because they've come to a stalemate and I think I even remember Martin saying he probably won't finish Winds of Winter this calendar year either. Which is just bleh in my opinion since honestly, drawing it out so much? That isn't stringing fans along anymore, that's losing them.

Anyway.

As the show moves into its own territory, I agree with some that certain aspects are probably slightly more erratic than in the books, but for the most part? Yes, PLEASE, don't follow anything written down anymore!

How about we start up North tonight? Seeing as most of the action happens up there, it seems only right and proper.


And while we're talking about the North, let's go to the heart of it, to its seat of power: Winterfell. And Ramsay Bolton being his usual charming self, although Osha was an idiot and paid for it with her life, so now Rickon has no one to defend him and he's stuck with a sadistic bastard. (Side-note, however: I loved how calm Osha was while talking about flaying. She just deadpaned 'If you don't eat your enemies after, then I've seen worse, and seeing as we know who eats man flesh, yeah, she has!).


Continuing with that, a letter is dispatched to the Wall to Jon Snow, who is debating where to head off as he feels like he has given his life to the Night's Watch and can now leave, when Sansa and Brienne arrive, and the two kids reunite after ... gosh, years. And while Brienne happily informs Stannis and the Red Woman she killed Stannis, Ramsay's happy little letter arrives, threatening Rickon with bodily harm, and Sansa pretty much grows the rest of her backbone and orders Jon that he needs to attack, and get back their ancestral home.

All I was waiting for was 'There must always be a Stark at Winterfell.'

While those happy thoughts about family reunions take place, at another Northern part, the Vale to be exact (I had to double check the opening reel to make sure I got it right), Littlefinger is finally back in the fray! Man, have I missed the man. He and Tyrion are the only two who actually play the game so that they come out on top ... most of the time, that is. And right now, Petyr is manipulating pieces into place to march against the Boltons, which could end very well for the wildlings who're also going to head south under Jon's command. It should be epic.


Moving on from the north to south, and to the capital, things are coming to a head in King's Landing: Margaery is taken to meet her brother Loras, while on the other side, Cersei, Jamie, Olena and the Lannister uncle whose name I can never remember are planning on bringing an army into the city to dispose of the High Sparrow.

About freaking time, if you ask me. Although I think Cersei might still have something to do about her daughter-in-law, but it's just a hunch.

Moving slowly into the maritime territory, Theon arrives at the Iron Isles and pledges his support to his sister Yara, crying while he does so ... and as much as I want to hate him, I wanted to hug him a little, too. Because ... yeah, he's had it rough.

That being said, however, it's a lot more interesting in Meereen where Tyrion is playing devil's advocate and trying to keep the city in his hands, but neither Missandei nor Grey Worm appreciate his tactics (and while their reasons are sound, okay, neither of them realize they've tried it differently before and it didn't work, plus, they're not skillful politicians). I half wondered if Varys would have a thing or two to say, but, nope.


And finally, to the most important part of the whole episode: Vaes Dothrak!

Where Jorah and Daario catch up with Dany (after Daario pledged, pretty much, to kill Jorah because of the greyscale disease), who isn't running from the Dothraki, ever (her own words), and instead ... lights the bastards on fire when they're trying to tell her what to do.

Naturally, they all burn, and she survives, as is the name of the game.

All hail Khaleesi.

The end.

I. Freaking. Loved this. SO MUCH. I can't even explain. But I've been SO FRUSTRATED with Dany in the third and fifth books you wouldn't believe me, so to see her actually DOING something in the show is such a relief and a sight for sore eyes! Plus, I mean, she's badass. Let's not forget about it. And if the producers won't run that other ridiculous Targaryen storyline, I'll be entirely too happy about it as well.

Can Dany please just go west across the sea soon though? Please?

And if Ramsay gets his butt kicked by Jon and Sansa soon, it will never be too soon. For real.

xx
*images not mine

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