This episode picks up in the immediate aftermath of the
Purple Wedding, commencing with a shot of Joffrey’s purple face. Cersei screams
for Tyrion to be arrested and Tywin orders a lockdown of the city – “nobody
leaves the Capital!” It would seem that there is a new Kingslayer on the loose…
but who did it?
Alongside Tyrion, one of the prime suspects is Sansa, who we
see being hastily spirited away by Ser Dontos. Clearly Dontos is connected to
the murder, as he was ready to help Sansa escape the moment Joffrey started
choking, but he’s not the actual perpetrator. Having been a captive for the
best part of three seasons, Sansa finally escapes from King’s Landing. She then
comes face to face with her true rescuer, Littlefinger (or Petyr, as he insists
she call him). It’s been a while since we last saw Littlefinger, but the
episode wastes very little time in reminding everyone of how cold and ruthless
he can be. Dontos’ payment for delivering Sansa is a couple of crossbow bolts
(one of which catches him right in the face – nasty!) which will certainly keep
him silent. Littlefinger then reveals that the necklace Dontos gave to Sansa
was a worthless trinket he’d recently had made.
Charles Dance was on top form (as ever) in this episode as
fans were introduced to Tommen Baratheon – the character has appeared before
but has since been recast, and he was in last week’s episode but didn’t do much
– who is now set to become the new king. While Cersei looked on with grief and
annoyance Tywin gave Tommen a lecture on what makes a good king. This was a
very interesting and well-acted scene, and it certainly sets up a more
beneficial role for Tywin going forward, as he will effectively be the king in
all but name. Tommen is a much kinder child than Joffrey, and several
characters remarked about how he will be much easier to handle.
A very strong scene then transitioned into a highly
uncomfortable one, all in the same setting, at Joffrey’s death-bed. There is
something rather tragic about the fact that nobody (apart from Cersei) mourned
the death of the king – but then again, this is Joffrey we’re talking about. Anyway,
Jaime arrived and had the priests exit the chamber so that he could be alone
with Cersei. She ordered him to kill Tyrion, which he refused to do (this is a
little reminiscent of Much Ado About
Nothing – “Kill Claudio” “Not for the wide world”). The two of them seemed
poised to share a tender moment – or as tender as it can be considering their
relationship – but then Cersei shuddered at the touch of his artificial hand.
This angered Jaime to the point that he forced himself upon her, an
uncomfortable scene in any setting, but made even more so due to the location
(next to the recently deceased corpse of their illegitimate son). Just as fans
were coming around to start liking Jaime, something like this happens.
This motif was also present in a sequence involving Arya and
The Hound. Here we have another character whom audiences have warmed to as time
has gone by, but this episode delivers harsh reminders that they are not good
people, though they may be capable of good deeds. Arya managed to persuade a
kindly farmer to provide them with food and shelter, only to have The Hound
knock the man out and steal his silver. It’s a harsh world, and it would seem that
the only way to get by is to be just as harsh. Arya has done bad things
herself, but this scene revealed that she still has a conscience, and there is a
line that she won’t cross. The scene around the dinner table was so awkward it
was almost comical, but highly uncomfortable as well. That said it did serve a
decent purpose, pointing out the sorry state of Westeros ever since the Red
Wedding and the falls of House Stark and House Tully.
Something I had previously complained about was remedied
somewhat in this episode, as Stannis was able to demonstrate his knowledge and
strategic mind to an extent – berating Davos for his well-meaning, yet largely
ineffective support. I’m still looking forward to seeing more of Stannis as a
hard, but just commander – something that is needed in Westeros right now,
considering the elevated statuses of men like Roose Bolton and Walder Frey.
Davos then had a brainwave and decided to appeal to the Iron Bank of Braavos
for assistance towards Stannis’ cause.
Further north the Wildlings massacred a small village, cutting
short a rather corny dialogue between a father and a son, and managing to make
me transition between feeling bemused and feeling sympathetic in a matter of
seconds. Styr, the cannibalistic Thenn tribesman allowed the young boy to go
free so that he could deliver a warning message to Castle Black. The Night’s
Watch then receive the warning, and the sorry state of their forces is revealed
as Maester Aemon states that there’s barely one hundred men at The Wall, and a
lot of them aren’t fighting men either. Things aren’t looking too good for the
Night’s Watch, and they’re made even worse when Grenn and (Dolorous) Edd return
from Craster’s Keep to reveal the treachery of some of their other brothers.
Curiously nobody mentioned the fact that Commander Mormont was killed – do the
characters at The Wall already know that?
Oberyn and Eliria were seen in yet another brothel scene,
but were interrupted by Tywin, who was able to demonstrate impressive powers of
diplomacy and persuasion, supposedly coercing a potential enemy into being an
ally. Alongside Tywin and Mace Tyrell, Oberyn will act as a judge for Tyrion’s
trial.
Tyrion was then visited by Pod in his cell and learned of
the grim state of his current predicament. Tyrion is poised to face a trial on
the charge of poisoning the king, and it doesn’t seem as though he has many
people to speak on his behalf. Sansa has fled the Capital, Varys is already
speaking for the prosecution, Shae was sent away on Tyrion’s own (reluctant)
request, and Jaime is caught in between both his siblings in this instance.
Tyrion then relieved Pod of his duty as a squire, not wanting any harm to come
to one of his few truly loyal friends. The scene between the two was
surprisingly moving.
The new Daario Naharis received a chance to prove himself as
Daenerys’ chosen champion, to fight against the champion of Meereen. In a
highly unusual face-off, Daario casually brought down the Meereenese champion
in a matter of seconds. Maybe this will help audiences to take more of a shine
to the new actor. Dany then launched a barrage of wooden barrels into the city,
containing broken chains. The slaves will be freed once again, it would seem.
This episode had plenty of development, but did not quite
match the one that preceded it. It was still a very entertaining episode, but
was let down by the rape scene and also the charming-yet-clunky relationship
between Sam and Gilly. John Bradley is an immensely likeable actor, and he
brings a lot of warmth to the role of Sam, but these scenes did drag on a bit
too long. Nevertheless, the tyrannical boy-king is dead, and a much more
mild-mannered boy-king is set to take his place, Tyrion is set to face a trial
on a very high charge, Sansa has escaped King’s Landing – but has ended up in
the protection of someone very dangerous indeed, the Night’s Watch is in
serious danger, and Dany is set to conquer another city. In the wake of a huge
event various plot-lines continue to move forward. This was a transitional episode,
but as transitional episodes go it had plenty of engaging content.
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