As the most direwolf-filled show on television continues, Nelson Mail reporters and bloggers Sarah Dunn and Adam Roberts continue their discussions about the land of Westeros.
Dear Adam,
Hodor! I’d forgotten all about Hodor until there he was right at the start of the second episode. He’s such a good guy. I still hope that somewhere in a yet-to-come plot arc, it’s revealed that the word “Hodor” is a really important clue.
Bran looks older now, and apparently he’s a bit snippy these days. I like it. Arya’s the same as ever, although I’m a little surprised the Brotherhood Without Banners made it into the series.
I was half-expecting the brotherhood to be cut because it’s quite confusing in the books, and doesn’t really add anything important to the action. We have enough different elements going on without some pseudo-socialist guerillas adding their rhetoric to the mix, but it’ll be interesting to see how the screenwriters handle it.
Jaime is another character that makes me smile every time he hits the screen. Like Tyrion, he’s refreshingly amoral, with enough swagger to sink a ship. I laughed out loud at his unquotable line about Renly and the throne.
The rapport between Jaime and Brienne seems to be rushing along fairly quickly, judging by his next comment to her: “I don’t blame him, but I don’t blame you either. We don’t get to choose who we love.”
At first I thought this seemed almost too progressive for a medieval swords-and-sorcery show, but considering Jaime’s relationship with his sister, it does fit his character’s back-story.
Criminalising homosexuality also fits with Joffrey’s fundamental insecurity, highlighted in the scene where he’s upset over flowers on his jacket.
So far the most hated boy in television is putting up a minimal fight against Margaery Tyrell’s charm offensive, although in the scene with his crossbow, he’s clearly trying to decide whether to shoot her or become less of a prat. The better option won out this time but not for long.
On another note, is it just me or is Joffrey starting to look more and more like a short-haired version of Jareth the goblin king from The Labyrinth I wish it wasn’t so, but I can’t help seeing it now.
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I knew I’d like Margaery’s grandmother Lady Olenna Tyrell immediately, and it’s true she gets all the great rants and one-liners.
Olenna uses one of the most strangely graphic metaphors in the whole episode: “Once the cow’s been milked, there’s no squirting cream back up her udder, so here we are to see things through.”
It also reflects well on Margaery’s character that she can deal with all this honesty in the face of her elaborate scheming. Margaery is a terrifyingly capable character that I will enjoy following.
It was also nice to see Sansa finally spill the beans about Joffrey to the Tyrells. It doesn’t really matter whether she does or not as that family seem quite capable of finding out what they need, but Sansa did need her moment of bravery. She makes for tense viewing.
– Sarah.
Dear Sarah,
I liked this episode. I’d heard on the tweets that it was boring, but I found most of the storylines reasonably gripping. No Daenerys either!
Jaime Lannister was, as always, devastatingly charming.
I would watch this show even if it was just him and Brienne cruising through the countryside cracking jokes, a la The Trip.
Margaery (can’t anyone in this show have a normally-spelt name) is obviously the Stringer Bell of Westeros, pretty much rolling around King’s Landing establishing her network, securing the corners and moving the product (the product in this case being her charm).
The scene with Joffrey was tense as hell, I assumed she was going to get got, but obviously if she was going to die she’d be dead already. If she is String, he is Marlo, mos def.
I did hope she would test that new crossbow on parts of Joffrey’s anatomy, but I guess that will have to wait until his inevitable unfortunate hunting accident.
In terms of new characters, how about that hipster psychic, played by that kid from Love Actually
He looks like the Westeros James Blake, and he even acted like a hipster, bragging about he’s “seen” everything. OK buddy. I half expected him to say Eddard Stark’s death rattle sounded better on vinyl.
He even had a leather satchel, presumably filled with an op-shop cardie, a moleskin, an iPhone and some wayfarers (joke courtesy of Naomi Arnold’s Saturday column).
Seriously though, his was a cool introduction, and I’m looking forward to his character showing off some of these awesome psychic moves later on.
Though if that Wildling Warg is anything to go by, his detached coolness will quickly vanish, along with his pupils.
Lady Stark has gone seriously off the rails in this episode, sitting in the road furiously weaving() and mumbling about how everything is her fault.
Honestly, I think she’s giving herself far too much credit: there is the small matter of every single family in the entire world trying to kill each other so they can sit on a throne made of iron.
Fairly sure that had something to do with how bleak everything turned out.
Since you mentioned Jon Snow last time I’ve realised I completely agree with you.
My problems with that guy begin with his name – where does he get off walking around the frozen north with a name like Jon Snow
I can imagine the Wildlings – essentially badass snow pirates – would find such a name even more problematic.
It would be like introducing yourself to Superman as Jon Krypton – not a good look. Just change it to “Smith” or something.
Line of the episode for me was an even tie between Jaime’s crack about Renley’s throne, Olenna’s line about the cow and the cream (I guess they don’t have toothpaste tubes to use for such a metaphor), and someone, I think Olenna again, saying Renly was “clean”.
Stray thoughts: I found the conclusion to the Brienne/Jaime fight made me want to yell “woo, feminism!”, and I also realised how much I like direwolves. More direwolves, please!
– Adam
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