I think we need to talk about last night's episode of Game of Thrones, which was called "Home." Ser Davos finally voiced what I was wanting to say if I could talk to Melisandre. "Does Jon Snow have to stay that way or can you do something about it?" This pot has been simmering for many years now. The groundwork for a resurrection was laid with Ser Thoros of Myr who brought back Beric Dondarrion on six different occasions, albeit, with a caveat that each time it was done Beric lost something. And Thoros and Melisandre have something in common now: Thoros (when he performed his first resurrection) said that he didn't even believe in the Lord of Light anymore. Well Melisandre reached that point and bam, she brought Jon Snow back. I gotta say that I think it was handled perfectly in the sense that Melisandre truly seemed to have given up hope. I think that must be some kind of prerequisite to have access to powers like resurrection.
Resurrecting Jon would have been a great episode into and of itself. However the show writers of Game of Thrones gave us other gifts as well. Over in Mereen, Tyrion of all people went and freed Dany's dragons. I was worried that we were about to lose Tyrion, and I was pleased that he was right in that the dragons are intelligent and would understand what he was saying to them.
Over in Pyke, Balon Greyjoy was deposed by Yara's uncle, Euron Greyjoy. I think that's an interesting turn of events as the Greyjoys seem to have been marginalized pretty badly in the War of Five Kings. I'm not exactly sure how the Greyjoys are going to get back into the Game of Thrones, but the books have a hint: sailing to the far east to steal one of Dany's dragons with a magical horn that can control dragons.
And in Winterfell, we have Ramsay Bolton killing his father Roose Bolton and then feeding Walda Frey and her newborn baby to a bunch of dogs. This was an interesting turn of events, however, I was really surprised that Roose Bolton allowed himself to be killed by his bastard son. He was always so careful before. But it's not like he didn't deserve it.
I think the best scene of the night though belongs to the giant who burst through the gate and then killed the guy that shot him with an arrow in spectacular "squish" fashion ultimately causing all of the Night's Watch to throw down their weapons.
So now that Jon is back, I think he's no longer a part of the Night's Watch. His oaths are fulfilled now. And I think with the vision given to Bran from the three-eyed raven (played by Max Von Sydow) that we're about to see some really important revelations about Lyanna Stark. For not being a major character in the story, Lyanna is extremely important to everything that's going on (and perhaps to finally answer the question: is Jon Snow a Targaryen?) I think he most certainly is.
I can't wait until next week's episode. Sigh.
By the way, I'm taking a blog break until next Monday. Have a good week.
I was much happier with this episode than last week's premiere, and not just because of the Jon Snow thing. (I think he most certainly is, too.)
ReplyDeleteEnjoy your blogging break!
Yes, it was a compelling episode right up to the amazing end. Looking forward to your visit.
ReplyDeleteI liked the episode for the most part (Wun Wun!) but a few things bugged me.
ReplyDeleteDid it feel right that Davos was the one to convince Melisandre to resurrect Jon? Davos never has liked her magic and will want to kill her if he ever finds out about Shireen. I expected Melisandre to push for this herself without prodding.
I also didn't like the scene with Ramsey and Roose. It felt rushed and made Ramsey into a cartoonish villain. I'm not saying people like that didn't exist but when you add the Sand Snakes, there really isn't much gray area for the people we are supposed to hate and that's something that GRRM always has gone out of his way to muddle.
I think the biggest problem for the writers is how many stories are going on vs the earlier seasons which has forced them to cut corners. Book 3 was just under 1000 pages and they split it into 2 seasons. Books 4, 5, and 6 are even more dense but only given 2+ seasons to tell the tale. Scenes like Ramsey's would have more weight if we could have spent more time in Winterfell.
The other thing that bugs me is how obvious the ending seems right now. Next week's previews are about R+L=J. Meanwhile across the sea all the boats have been burnt while a prodigal son returns to the sea faring Ironborn. Much of this feels convenient for the sake of getting people in the right place for the final coalition.
I'm sure they are setting us up in some way but I wish HBO gave the writers more episodes to finish the tale as I bet the compromises make this story a stark contrast to the story GRRM eventually tells.
I haven't watched it yet so I'm not going to read your post.
ReplyDeleteSigh. This post was one big (and no doubt brilliantly written) spoiler, so I had to skip it. But I'm catching up on the earlier episodes of GOT.
ReplyDeleteI agree, Jon is most definitely Lyanna and Rhaegar's son. Ned was right to keep that a secret.
ReplyDeleteI missed the episode, but came here in hopes you would "spoiler" it for me so I don't feel left out. I'm on the road this week and next (in SLC on May 10, hoping to see you) so I don't know when I'll get to catch up. I was sure Melisandre would resurrect Jon; but I'm still only half way through book 3.
Have a great week.
I can't wait until the next week either. So excited for this season! Seems like it might be the best one yet. Of course, I'm a die-hard Jon Snow lover so I can't deny I am biased.
ReplyDelete