HBO greenlights A Game of Thrones pilot!

[keg in kc]

EDIT: Changed the original header to mark this as the thread where spoilers are allowed (but not necessarily recommended...). Created a new, spoiler-free thread for Ice and Fire virgins...


This is awesome...

Huge, Huge News

Nov. 11th, 2008 at 10:29 PM

HBO has given the production order.

They will be filming the pilot episode of A GAME OF THRONES.

It's just the pilot so far. They'll need to see that before they decide whether to proceed with a full season's episodes. So let's all hope the pilot will kick serious ass.

It should. David Benioff and Dan Weiss did a terrific job with the script. And yes, all of you can relax, it's very faithful. Dan and David will be the executive producers for the pilot and (we hope) the eventual series.

More details when I have 'em. The news is very fresh. HBO just issued their own press release, which should be up on their website soon, if it's not there already.

Winter is coming to HBO. Hot damn.

[Shag]

Originally Posted by kcxiv

http://insidetv.ew.com/2011/06/07/ga...rones-ratings/



Another bloody good performance for HBO’s Game of Thrones on Sunday: The 9 p.m. airing averaged 2.7 million viewers, up 22% since the series premiere. If you count the additional 900,000 people who tuned in two hours later, GOT lured 3.6 million viewers for the night. Sweet.
Season to date, GOT has an average gross audience (linear plays, DVR and HBO On Demand) of 8.3 million viewers.

Any idea how that compares to the other popular HBO shows?

[kcxiv]

nope, but when its up 22 percent from the premiere and in week 8 its still going up. that always a ****ing good thing.

[Los Pollos Hermanos]

My wife was not excited to watch GoT's. But she has done a complete 180 and she looks forward to it as much as I do.

[keg in kc]

I would imagine that's probably higher than everything except for True Blood and Boardwalk Empire, but that's just a guess.

Last I heard they were still over 8 million total viewers for the week.

(And I haven't watched the last...two (?) episodes, I'm saving up one hell of a viewing night)

[PhillyChiefFan]

I love this show and I even feel like the best parts are still ahead.

It's one of the most engaging shows I have ever watched.

[Huffmeister]

I'm really glad to see all of the hill clan leaders represented in the series. I was afraid that they would either be combined into one clan leader (Shagga) or left out completely. Shagga was great. And even though he just stood there, Timmet son of Timmet had a great hulking presence.

Tyrion: "And this is Bronn, son of..."
Bronn: "You wouldn't know him."

[Hawk]

I saw these episode summaries on another message board, and thought it might be helpful for those who are watching the show, but have not read the books.

It goes episode by episode and just provides some summaries and explanations for the benefit of non-readers. There are no spoilers in it, so no worries in that regard, but it is helpful in keeping track of all the characters.

Long, and maybe nobody will read it, but I found it helpful so I figured I'd post it just in case:

Episodes 1-3

Game of Thrones scorecard, episode 1 Edit | Reply

Several in the GOT thread indicated they were lost inside of 5 minutes. My wife was, too. Hopefully this will help some of you.

I believe there are no spoilers here for those who watched the first episode (*if you didn't watch the episode, there are definitely spoilers here*). Just a who's who, and some context for what happened in Episode 1. Also, I will state some items here as fact that will later be proven false, but we'll let that unfold with the story.

Main characters:

House Stark - Eddard Stark is the Lord of Winterfell and Warden of the North. He is a longtime friend of the king (Robert Baratheon), and in fact helped the king get his throne. He married Catelyn Tully, and they had 5 kids. Robb is the oldest, followed by Sansa (redhead), Arya (tomboy), Bran (boy who loves to climb), and Rickon. Eddard had a sister, Lyanna, who was promised to the king, and as you saw in the pilot, the king still loves her. Eddard also had a brother who died. The other young man in the family is Jon Snow. Jon is of Stark blood, but because he's a bastard in the North, he is given the surname of Snow - the custom for illegitimate children is to carry a surname that indicates what part of the country they are from (other examples - Stone, Rivers). Another Stark is Benjen, Ned's only living sibling and the First Ranger of the Night's Watch, the force that mans that giant wall you saw at the beginning of the show. The Night's Watch protects the kingdom from the "Wildlings" - who are men and women that for one reason or another abandoned the kingdom to go live beyond the Wall, and from the "White Walkers" - who many believe are myth, and who you don't need to dwell on too much at this point.

House Arryn - Jon Arryn was the Warden of the East and the Hand of the King (basically the Chief of Staff). Unfortunately, the only time you see Jon in the pilot is with painted rocks over his eyes, because he's dead of a fever. Jon was the mentor for King Robert and Eddard (aka Ned). He was married to Catelyn's sister Lysa, and they have a son. In episode 1, Lysa sent a letter to Catelyn stating that Jon was murdered.

House Lannister - this is the wealthiest and perhaps most power-hungry family in Westeros (and that's saying something). Tywin Lannister is the patriarch, though we haven't met him yet. He has three children - the twins Cersei and Jaime, and the dwarf Tyrion. While the king was off hunting, Bran witnessed Cersei and Jaime getting it on, which is why Jaime pushed Bran off the wall.

House Targaryen - this is the family that used to hold the Iron Throne. Robert, Jon Arryn, Ned and others overthrew the family. Viserys and Daenerys were spirited away as children, and Viserys is consumed with the idea of getting the family's throne back. That's why Viserys is willing to give his sister to Khal Drogo, who is the lord of the horsepeople called the Dothraki. The Dothraki aren't going to give you the cultural arts, but they eat, sleep and breathe battle.

House Baratheon - Robert the king is the head of the house. He has a couple of brothers that we'll meet soon, as well. Robert, as mentioned, loved Lyanna Stark, but with her death (and the need to continue the royal line) he was wed to Cersei Lannister. The royal children are Joffrey (blond kid that Sansa was making googly eyes at), Myrcella, and Tommen.

Other folks you met that will play increasingly important roles:
- Theon Greyjoy: he was the guy who put a knife to the wolf puppy when they first found them. He is a ward of Ned Stark.

- Jorah Mormont: he was the guy who gave Daenerys the books.

- Illyrio: He is the guy who is the go-between for Viserys/Daenerys and Khal Drogo.

- The Hound - you weren't really introduced to him, but he was the guy wearing the helmet that looked like a dog's head. He was also the guy who appeared briefly and looked like he had been partially scalped. He is the main bodyguard to Joffrey. He's a badass and a sonofabitch, but he's got nothing on his brother (not yet introduced) in either department.


So now we've got some nasty stuff brewing. Jon Arryn is dead...maybe murdered; Ned is his successor as the Hand of the King. Ned's chock full o' integrity, but King's Landing (the capital) is subtle in its politics, and Ned is a fairly straightforward guy. Jaime and Cersei are up to no good and just threw the son of the new Hand from a high place. Viserys is on the brink of raising an army of horselords that could sweep up the seven kingdoms. It's just going to get more intricate from here.

Did I miss anything from episode 1?


Game of Thrones scorecard, episode 2 Reply

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Once again, the intention of the thread is to provide a little more context than you can get in one viewing of the episode.

We're starting to see some story lines start to solidify. The tension between Stark, Lannister and Baratheon. The evolution of Daenerys from timid subservience to the flexing of power. The rebelliousness of Arya. Robert's difficulty in managing the throne and his marriage. Good stuff and very well done. Mostly true to the book, as well, except in minor ways.

Regarding the Starks: Bran is not dead after being pushed from the window. He is unconscious, and it looks as if he will live. The family is being split up, as Ned is taking Sansa and Arya with him to King's Landing; Catelyn, Robb, Bran and Rickon are staying in Winterfell, and Jon Snow is riding with his Uncle Benjen to the Wall, to be part of the Sworn Brotherhood of the Night's Watch.

Regarding the Lannisters: Jaime and Cersei are understandably uncomfortable given the news of Bran. Tyrion is a Lannister, but we're starting to see ways in which he's different, too. Slapping Joffrey around, tweaking Jaime and Cersei about the Bran news. All 3 Lannisters are VERY interesting and complex characters in the book, which I hope will be reflected in the series.

Presumably you saw the episode since you're reading this, so I won't try a blow-by-blow...just some stream of consciousness.

Sansa is VERY enamored of being Prince Joffrey's bride, and sees this as straight out of a storybook. Joffrey's a total douche and a mama's boy, of course, but Sansa doesn't see that. In her mind, because Joffrey is a prince, he MUST be gallant and noble. That helps explain why she pleaded the 5th in regard to Joffrey and Arya's scuffle - she is intensely frustrated that her sister doesn't behave like a lady, she admires the queen, she "loves" Joffrey and is pledged to marry him, but she's not a bad kid so she won't outright lie to doom her sister. She just wants everything to be nice. It also helps explain why she's the one Stark child who isn't tight with Snow. He's a bastard so he can't be gallant and noble. She's one of those people who believes the quality of a person is defined by their lineage. She's only 13, so let's cut her some slack, for now.

Catelyn was pretty harsh to Jon Snow, when Jon came to say goodbye to the unconscious Bran. Somewhat in her defense, her favorite child was struggling for his life, she'd had little sleep, and her husband was taking two more of her children away and into a snakepit of politics and danger. ** SLIGHT BOOK SPOILER ** She also very much resents Ned having Jon at Winterfell, even more than she resents him actually having a bastard child. Screwing when you're away at war is somewhat to be expected, but it's just rude to bring the product of that indiscretion home to be raised with your legitimate kids. Also (and I wish the show explained this, because I think it gives some more depth to Catelyn), she feels guilty for Bran's injury, because she had been praying to the Seven - her gods - that Bran could stay home with her instead of going to King's Landing... and in a cruel twist she got her wish. ** END of SLIGHT SPOILER**

Jon gets a slap in the face when he realizes that he's just pledged for life to be part of the Night's Watch - this deeply honorable calling that has protected the realm for 8000 years - and finds out that it's mostly the dregs and criminals that make up his new brotherhood. In some ways, he is as naive as Sansa. But a bastard can't afford to be naive. Tyrion is helping Jon understand that. I like the relationship being developed between Jon and Tyrion. By the way, you heard Jon comment to Tyrion about how Jaime killed the prior king. Jaime is one of the Kingsguard, which is essentially the Secret Service for the king. Imagine if a Secret Serviceman assassinated the President -- that's what Jaime did to the last Targaryen king.

So Jaime is screwing his sister, tries to kill a 10 year old boy, killed the last king he was sworn to protect, and mocks Jon's commitment to the Night's Watch. Quite a guy, eh? Just wait...

Ser Jorah Mormont - the exile that rides with Khal Drogo and Khaleesi Daenerys - is an exile because he caught some poachers on his land (the Mormonts are vassals to the Starks). By law and custom, he was to send those poachers to be members of the Night's Watch, but Jorah was a little short on cash, so he sold the poachers to some slavers from across the Narrow Sea. Ned Stark would have taken care of business, but Jorah fled before justice could find him.

The scene in which Bran is attacked by an assassin was very like the book. Up to that point, Catelyn was not a fan of the direwolves being part of her children's lives, but Bran's wolf changed her mind. That attack made it very clear to her that Bran's injury was not an accident, but attempted murder. She's riding to King's Landing to let Ned know that something's rotten in Denmark.

Ned HATES being in the thick of political intrigue. He'd just like to stay in the North, run Winterfell, be around his wife and kids, and have nothing to do with the Lannisters. However, although it may not be overly apparent yet, he really does love Robert Baratheon as a brother. With Jon Arryn's alleged murder, he feels like the King is in danger, and therefore he must go to King's Landing and support the King's shaky hold on the throne.

One final note - when Robert and Ned are sitting at a table in a field discussing whether to send an assassin to kill Daenerys, Robert reminds Ned that the Targaryens did bad things to his family. What were those things? **SLIGHT BOOK SPOILER** Ned was not originally supposed to inherit Winterfell. He had an older brother named Brandon, who was the heir (and who also was pledged to marry Catelyn). But the last Targaryen king executed Brandon, as well as Ned and Brandon's father. And he ordered the death of Ned and Robert, as well, but Jon Arryn defied him and thus the revolution. ** END SPOILER **

New characters that were introduced:

- Sandor Clegane. Don't know that name? That's because he goes by The Hound. He's Joffrey's bodyguard. He had one speaking line in the first episode, but was unnamed. Notice the nasty scarring on the side of his face? Hopefully we'll get to hear that story...

- Ser Rodrik Cassel - he's the guy with funky sidewhiskers that is planning to leave Winterfell to protect Catelyn on the journey to inform Ned.

- Ser Ilyn Payne - The King's Justice, aka the executioner. His tongue was ripped out by the Targaryen king. He's also sort of symbolic of the way Ned and Robert have differed in the way they handled their rise to power. Remember, Ned carries out his own executions, so that it doesn't become too easy to order someone's death.

- the three servants to Daenerys. Irri, Jhiqui, and Doreah. Irri and Jhiqui are Dothraki ("it is known"), but Doreah is not. She is the one who is teaching Daenerys how to please the Khal. Thoughts? What did I miss?


Game of Thrones scorecard, episode 3 Reply

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While this may fall under Who Gives A S*** given the news coming out tonight, several folks have asked me to keep doing this, so I will. Plus I'm waiting for the President's speech, so I need something to do while all the talking heads are babbling.

I'll section this by location this week. Please avoid putting any major spoilers in this thread.

Let's start with what's going on with the Dothraki. Daenerys is pregnant with Drogo's son - that's a big deal because Drogo's son is likely to be the next Khal. Jorah Mormont had an interesting reaction to that news, didn't he? The other news here is that Daenerys is obviously becoming more and more a Dothraki, and Viserys doesn't care much for that. He tries to take out his anger on his sister, but one of the Khal's bloodriders (bodyguards, essentially) named Jhogo lets him know that the Khaleesi is not to be handled that way. They make him walk behind the horde. For the Dothraki, to be on foot is to be less than a man.

Next, let's move to the Wall. Jorah's father is the Lord Commander of the Night's Watch, and his plea to the visiting Tyrion is to intercede with the king/queen/anyone to send more people to the Wall before winter truly arrives. The Wildlings - men who live North of the Wall - are fleeing South in great numbers, because something is stirring. Tyrion doesn't believe that anything other than men exist in those forests. Great performance by Dinklage as Tyrion, by the way. I'm also pleased with how much of the dialogue is word for word from the book. Meanwhile, Jon Snow only *thought* he had it bad at Winterfell. In the Night's Watch, he is hazed because he's a bastard and because he is humiliating the assorted trash when it comes to fighting, and his uncle Benjen won't let him ride beyond the Wall with the Rangers. He's a good kid, though, and he adapts well. Before the end of the episode, he's teaching his fighting skills to the guys who he was beating indiscriminately and mercilessly earlier. You also meet Yoren - he's the guy who goes around the Seven Kingdoms emptying the jails for recruits for the Wall.

Not a lot going on at Winterfell at this time. We briefly see Old Nan telling Bran some tales to keep him occupied, and not dwelling on his injury. Bran is paralyzed, and he can't remember why he fell. He is having trouble accepting his injury.

And finally, the snake's nest in King's Landing. Some snippets:

- the King is drunk (as usual) and taunts Jaime with being a king killer. The older gentleman in this scene is Ser Barristan Selmy - the oldest of the Kingsguard and the last link to when the Kingsguard was truly the best that Westeros had to offer - not only the best fighters, but also when they were expected to have honor and integrity.

- Arya is her usual wild self, and in a great scene Ned explains to her that they are in a dangerous place and can't afford to fight among each other. To show Arya that he understands what she wants (as he clearly does NOT understand his other daughter), he arranges for her to have sword fighting lessons from Syrio Forel, who spent 9 years as "first sword to the Sealord of Braavos". Braavos is one of the Free Cities (neither part of the Seven Kingdoms nor part of the Dothraki empire).

- Joffrey is a bloodthirsty, arrogant little prick, isn't he? Fortunately, he's being raised to value tolerance and brotherhood by Cersei. Interesting how Joffrey was starting to admit that he didn't handle himself well with Arya and Nymeria, and Cersei cut him off and told him that the truth was whatever he said it was. Cersei also lets him know that he WILL be marrying Sansa, but he can screw anyone he pleases. Seriously, the parenting awards are piling up.

- You also meet the Small Council. Ned, as the Hand of the King, leads the Small Council (as the King doesn't care to attend). Other members include Petyr Baelish (aka Littlefinger), Varys the Spider, Grand Maester Pycelle, and Renly Baratheon (one of the King's two brothers). It seems that Robert has been spending money like a drunken sailor, and the Kingdom is in deep debt...mostly to the Lannisters. That doesn't bode well.

- Littlefinger is essentially the Secretary of the Treasury. His nickname comes from the land that his family owns (the smallest of the Fingers - peninsulas about halfway between Winterfell and King's Landing). Some backstory - Littlefinger still loves the girl he grew up with - Catelyn Tully Stark. When arrangements were made for Catelyn to marry Brandon Stark, Littlefinger challenged Brandon to a duel out of desperation. Catelyn prevailed upon Brandon to not kill him. When Brandon was killed by the Mad King, Littlefinger thought he had another shot. But Ned took Brandon's place as not only the Lord of Winterfell, but also as Catelyn's groom. Catelyn does truly care for Petyr. Ned thinks he's a weasel.

- Varys is the head of the CIA. He has a massive network of spies, and seems to know almost everything. He's also a eunuch.

- Catelyn has brought the knife that the assassin tried to use on Bran. In a nice twist, it is revealed first that the knife is Littlefinger's, but that he lost it by betting on Jaime to win the last tournament. However, Loras Tyrell - the Knight of Flowers - unseated Jaime in the finals, so Littlefinger had to give his knife...to Tyrion Lannister.

[Hawk]

Episodes 4-6


Game of Thrones scorecard, episode 4 Reply

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As those far younger than I are fond of saying - sh^t's about to get real.

Ned Stark is blundering around trying to find out whether/why Jon Arryn was murdered. He speaks with Grand Maester Pycelle and discovers that, just prior to his death, Arryn was interested in the genealogies of the great houses. Pycelle also mentions that Arryn's dying words were "the seed is strong". From Petyr Baelish (aka Littlefinger), Ned learns that Arryn had been a frequent visitor to a local armorer. Ned *should* have learned a bit of subtlety from Baelish as well, but as I said in the episode 1 recap, Ned is too straightforward and impatient to hide his motivations and intentions. There was a great exchange there, right? The essence of the conversation:

Baelish: Do you have someone in your service whom you trust completely?

Ned: Yes.

Baelish: The wiser answer was "no", milord. Have this paragon visit Ser Hugh of the Vale discreetly.

Ned: Perhaps I was wrong to mistrust you, Lord Baelish.

Baelish: Mistrusting me was the smartest thing you've done since you got down off of your horse, milord.

So Ned visits the armorer and meets Gendry, whom Ned is convinced is King Robert's bastard son. As an aside that I don't believe spoils anything, the helmet Gendry made for himself has bull horns on it - an "f you" to the people who tell him he's bull-headed. You get that sense of his personality when he flat out tells the Hand of the King that his helmet isn't for sale.

Things are starting to become clearer for Ned. Ned gets a visit from Cersei, who tries to point out to Ned that he's got a thankless task in trying to clean up after Robert. When Ned responds that if that's the job, then so be it, the exchange that follows couldn't have been more threatening without actual steel being drawn. Cersei and Ned are "on the record" so to speak, as declared enemies.

Meanwhile, Arya is working very hard to improve her fighting skills. She has no interest in a typical woman's role in the kingdom. She wants to rely on herself for her protection.

Sansa is still in Disneyland, smiling at the Prince and very excited about seeing a tournament, with all its pageantry. That belief in the nobility and chivalry of this life takes another hit, when the aforementioned Ser Hugh takes a splintered lance through his throat from Ser Gregor Clegane - The Mountain That Rides. Gregor is a bannerman to the Lannisters, by the way. He's also the brother of the Hound (Sandor Clegane), but it's not a loving relationship. It appears that Sandor got that nasty burn scar from his brother when as a six year old he had the audacity to play with his older brother's toy. Gregor's measured response was to shove his brother's face into the coals of the fire. This is actually not that different than my brother's reaction to finding me reading his comics...but I digress. In the TV show, it's Baelish that tells Sansa the story of the Hound and the Mountain. In the book, it's a drunken Hound that tells Sansa...and then threatens her about ever telling anyone.

The King, meanwhile, is showing he's not such a great guy. He's drunk at the tournament. He is entertaining whores by the dozen, deliberately doing so while his brother-in-law Jaime in on guard duty at the door.

In Winterfell, Tyrion has stopped by after his visit to the Wall. His reception this time is far more hostile than before, as Robb is in charge and not very diplomatic. Robb heard his mother say that the Lannisters were behind the assault on Bran, and he greets Tyrion accordingly. Tyrion, for his part, has gone to the effort to design a saddle for Bran that will keep him in the saddle and allow him some mobility. As he said, he has a soft spot for cripples, dwarves and bastards. (In another excellent exchange, Bran states "I'm not a cripple", to which Tyrion replies "Then I'm not a dwarf. My father will be pleased.") By the way, Bran is being carried around Winterfell by Hodor, a simple-minded giant. He has the name "Hodor" because that's all he can apparently say. Hodor is related in some way to Old Nan, but either I can't remember the exact relationship, or they never definitively say. Before we leave Winterfell, we should also talk about Theon Greyjoy. He's appeared in each episode, but didn't have much of a presence. But now we discover that he's the son of Balon Greyjoy, who rebelled against the Starks and got put in his place. Theon is essentially a hostage against further rebellion, but he does admire Ned Stark and thinks of him as a second father. Ned, for his part, has treated Theon well. There's a scene in King's Landing in which Jaime and Jory talk about putting down Greyjoy's rebellion.

Looking in on the Dothraki - Viserys is getting more and more agitated that Drogo is not giving him his army yet. He's treating people poorly. He's used to having no consequences for that, as he was raised to believe that he was an invincible king. The invincible king got taken to the cleaners by his little sister though: "the next time you raise a hand to me, you will no longer have hands" she tells him. Daenerys is starting to feel comfortable with her power. She also demonstrates further movement out of Viserys' shadow when she confesses to Jorah that she thinks her brother would be a crappy king. Jorah, for his part, confesses that he got into trouble with the Starks because he was trying to buy the affection of his very demanding wife, and needed money. Jorah dreams of being able to go home again.

Up North at the Wall, Jon Snow is taking on something of a leadership role among the trainees. We meet Samwell Tarly. The Tarlys are bannermen to Mace Tyrell, who is the Warden of the South. Sam's dad is quite a peach, as he tells his son he can either take the black (and join the Night's Watch) or die in an unfortunate hunting accident. Sam's dad is a little unhappy that he has an heir who is a fat coward, so when he has another son (who displays more martial tendencies), he needs the eldest to abdicate his inheritance. Sam is pathetic, but Jon makes it clear to his fellow recruits that Sam is not to be bullied. One guy dissents, but after a visit from a snarling Ghost, he caves. Ser Alliser Thorne, the drill sergeant, gives his speech about how when Winter comes, the Night's Watch won't be able to afford Sam's weakness, nor Jon's mercy. One other interesting exchange is that Jon confesses to Sam that he's a virgin. He had an opportunity with a whore named Roz (a woman also mentioned by Tyrion and Theon), but balked when he realized that he might be dooming a child to the same life he had - growing up as a bastard.

And then, to close out this episode, Catelyn and Rodrik are on their way back to Winterfell. They stop at an inn which Catelyn frequented during her youth. They meet Tyrion coming South from Winterfell, and Catelyn can't help herself - her outrage over the Lannisters' alleged role in her son's paralysis causes her to accuse Tyrion. But Catelyn is not quite as direct as her husband. She first calls out a variety of her father's bannermen and confirms their loyalty to him ("him" is Hoster Tully, the Lord of Riverrun) before demanding that they arrest Tyrion and escort him to Winterfell. You will also hopefully find out next episode that Catelyn can be very tricksy.

Game of Thrones scorecard, episode 5 Reply

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Catelyn Tully Stark showed her craftiness and her irrational nature at the end of last week. Irrational, because how could she NOT know that there would be repercussions from kidnapping Tyrion Lannister? Craftiness, because she told everyone at the inn that she was taking Tyrion to Winterfell...but she's not. Instead of going North to Winterfell, she flees East to the Vale. To get to the Vale, they have to pass through some lands that are increasingly threatened by hill tribes. During an encounter on the road, Catelyn is forced to untie Tyrion, who then saves Catelyn by bashing a tribesman's head in with a shield. You may have noticed that the scruffy guy with the group fought very well. His name is Bronn, and he's a mercenary. Having defeated the hillsmen, the group move on to the Vale, which is ruled by Catelyn's nephew (named Robin - Robert in the book, but I guess that would confuse) now that his dad Jon Arryn is dead, but Catelyn's sister Lysa is the regent. Lysa is cuckoo, in case you didn't realize that from the fact that she's breastfeeding her way-too-old-to-be-breastfeeding son in front of the court. You should also know a couple more names. Ser Vardis is the knight who meets them and leads them to the Eyrie (the castle that commands the Vale). Mord is the jailer who puts Tyrion in the sky cell. Catelyn now has a bit of a quandary - Tyrion is Cat's prisoner, but her sister Lysa has a pretty big grievance against the Lannisters of her own.

Not much happening in Winterfell. We see two more characters rubbing Theon's face in his father's failed rebellion.

No scenes of the Wall at all, nor of the Dothraki.

So everything else is at King's Landing, and there are all kinds of balls in the air there.

Varys warns Ned that Jon Arryn was poisoned with the Tears of Lys. Petyr and Varys have a spy-off, in which they both point out that they have all kinds of dirt on each other.

Renly Baratheon, the king's youngest brother, is having a homosexual affair with Ser Loras Tyrell - the Knight of Flowers (who defeated Gregor Clegane - the Mountain - in the joust, in part by choosing a mare in heat to ride against the Mountain's stallion). Loras encourages Renly to consider being king himself, bankrolled by Loras' father Mace Tyrell, the Warden of the South.

Arya is chasing cats as a way of improving her quickness (like Rocky chasing chickens in an alleyway). She winds up in the dungeons, where the dragon skulls that used to decorate the Targaryen throne room are housed. She overhears Varys and Illyrio (you remember him - he is the one who brokered the marriage between Daenerys and Khal Drogo) discussing the seemingly imminent war between Stark and Lannister, and concluding that this would be untimely - if one Hand could die, why not another? They aren't ready for the war yet because Khal Drogo is waiting on his son to be born. Alas, Arya is not sure who she saw, and isn't quite clear on the import of the words. Arya is trying to explain it to Ned, but they are interrupted by Yoren of the Night's Watch. Yoren was there at the inn when Catelyn nabbed Tyrion, and he relates this information to Ned.

Meanwhile, Robert actually attends a meeting of the Small Council. Jorah Mormont has notified the Council that Daenerys is pregnant (remember how Jorah reacted oddly to the news, and decided that he needed to take a detour on the road to the Dothraki city? Now you know why.). Robert demands an assassination, and the Council supports that...except for Ned. Ned's not a perfect guy, but he's willing to put his balls on the chopping block to protect his honor. He has scathing words for Robert, and ends up resigning his position as Hand rather than have his name on the order to kill Daenerys and her unborn child.

This, oddly enough, might help protect Ned, since some are scheming to remove the Hand. Now that he's not the Hand, do they still need to remove him? Ned knows he needs to get out of town, though, since the king is unhappy with him. Before Ned can bail, though, Petyr offers him the opportunity to speak to the last person to speak to Jon Arryn. It turns out that person is a whore, who has a bastard daughter by the king. Ned is a bit puzzled still as to why Jon Arryn was tracking down all of Robert's bastard children. As he, Petyr, and Jorry Cassel (along with two other Stark guardsmen) leave the whorehouse, they are confronted by Jaime Lannister and a large Lannister force. Jaime is in a tizzy, as he has learned of Catelyn's taking of his brother Tyrion. Ned chivalrously proclaims that it was on his orders. Jaime threatens Ned's life. Oops! Ned is not the Hand anymore, so he's comparatively fair game. Ned states that if he is killed, then Catelyn will surely kill Tyrion. So Jaime orders the death of Ned's guardsmen...including Jory, who gets a Lannister dagger in the eye. Ned and Jaime clash, and Ned is very much holding his own until an exuberant Lannister guardsman spears him in the back of the leg.

The only other thing to mention is that Robert and Cersei have a discussion in which Cersei states that she once had feelings for Robert, but those went away when it became clear that a dead Lyanna Stark still held Robert's heart.

What did I forget? Thoughts?


Game of Thrones scorecard, episode 6 Edit | Reply

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This week, a few questions are answered, and several more are raised.

In King's Landing:

Robert Baratheon reinstates Ned Stark as the Hand of the King. He orders that Ned put his differences with the Lannisters aside. This means that Ned must order Catelyn to release Tyrion. It also means that Ned doesn't get to pursue justice vis-a-vis Jaime and his murdering of Ned's guardsmen.

(By the way, while I don't advocate wife beating, that was a hell of a line Robert gave to Cersei after he smacked her - her: I shall wear it as a badge of honor. him: wear it in silence, or I'll honor you again.)

Meanwhile, Arya is still fierce as ever. She continues to be trained in "dancing", and her swordwork is very much improved.

The king goes hunting, and leaves Ned in charge. Ned hears some villagers from the Riverrun area talk about a huge man who led some brigands in a raping and pillaging expedition in their village. Riverrun is the birthplace of Catelyn, who has abducted Tyrion. Ser Gregor Clegane, the Mountain That Rides, is a bannerman to Tyrion's father, and fits the description of the lead pillager. Ned once again proves that a strength, taken to the extreme, becomes a weakness. Ned's strength is his sense of honor. He orders Beric Dondarrion (yes, yet another character you have to remember) to take 100 men and bring the Mountain to justice. He also orders Grand Maester Pycelle to send a raven to Casterly Rock (home of the Lannisters) summoning Tywin Lannister (father-in-law to the King) to the capital to answer for his bannerman's actions. The same Tywin Lannister who holds $3MM of the kingdom's debt, and whose children are powerful and merciless in their own right, but are a pale shadow of him. Ned has put the king in an awkward position, no matter how "right" he is.

Meanwhile, Prince Joffrey visits Sansa to charm her out of her socks, give her a gift, and hold up her imminent queendom in front of her like a very obvious bribe. Very obvious, that is, to someone who is not a teen girl who believes in fairy tales.

Ned breaks the news to Arya and Sansa that he is sending them back to Winterfell. Sansa acts like a spoiled teen at the news - she's going to have Joffrey's babies, so how could Ned be so heartless? Then she says something that finally jars Ned's brain - she says that Joffrey is "nothing like that old, drunk king". Ned peruses his book of lineages, and notes that all of the Baratheons listed have black hair...but not Joffrey. Remember Jon Arryn's dying words? "The seed is strong". Clearly, he was not talking about his own son.

In Vaes Dothrak:

Daenerys puts her dragon egg on hot coals, and is unharmed when she pulls it out of the coals. She also has to eat the heart of a stallion in front of the "nobility" of the Dothraki. It's important that she eat it all without throwing up. The Dothraki believe that doing this will ensure that her son will be born strong. The crones of Vaes Dothrak proclaim that her son will be The Stallion That Mounts The World, and will unite all of the various Dothraki tribes. Daeny names her son Rhaego, after her older brother Rhaegar (who was killed by Robert during the rebellion 17 years ago).

Her living brother, Viserys, decides to abscond with Daeny's dragon eggs, in order to sell them and buy an army to take to the Seven Kingdoms to fight Robert and reinstall the Targaryen dynasty. Jorah Mormont prevents him from doing so.

Later, a drunken Viserys shows up to demand that he get the crown that was promised him in the bargain for Daenerys. He threatens to cut the baby out of Daeny's belly if he doesn't get his crown. Drogo gives him his crown by pouring molten gold over Viserys' head. Daeny watches it without tears, stating that Viserys was no true dragon, else the heat wouldn't have harmed him.

In Winterfell:

Bran has his 3-eyed crow dream again. He also has a new saddle (of Tyrion's devising) that allows him to ride around on a horse, despite being paralyzed from the waist down. While riding, he is beset by Wildlings fleeing south from the Wall (fleeing the White Walkers). Robb Stark puts paid to two of them, and Theon Greyjoy shows off his archery skills in killing the last Wildling. The woman with the group is spared. I should also mention that there is an additional reminder to Theon that he's not part of the Stark family, this time delivered by Robb.

In the Eyrie:

Tyrion is going a bit crazy hanging out in a Sky Cell. He bribes his jailer Mord to take a message to Lysa, Catelyn's crazy sister and regent of the Eyrie until Robin Arryn comes of age.

The message? He wants to confess his sins. But Tyrion is a wily fella, and he decides the time is right for a desperate gamble. He knows Lysa will have the whole court there to hear his confession (in the book, Catelyn urges her sister to hear the confession in private - she's smart enough not to trust Tyrion's sudden desire to confess), but he uses the opportunity to demand a trial by combat in front of everyone, which is a right of the accused. He has backed Lysa into a corner. She HAS to consent to the trial. Ser Vardis doesn't want to fight a dwarf, but he does agree to fight a dwarf's champion. Bronn, the sellsword, consents to fight for Tyrion, presumably for the twin reasons of liking Tyrion's moxie and also liking the size of his purse. Vardis is a highly trained knight, and Bronn is a baseborn mercenary. It shouldn't be much of a contest - and it isn't. Vardis is heavily armored, and Bronn won't stand still and fight. He wears Vardis out, and then dispatches him. Tyrion is free to go...back across the lands ruled by the hill tribes and shadowcats. Still, a small chance is better than none.

What did I miss?

[Hawk]

Episodes 7 and 8:


Game of Thrones scorecard, episode 7 Edit | Reply

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A great episode this week, despite the fact that there were no appearances by Tyrion and Arya, two of my favorite characters. Also, no Robb or Bran.

We finally meet Tywin, the patriarch of the Lannister clan. He has taken the field with 60,000 warriors, although it's unclear at this point what his intent is. Mostly, we get to see him cleaning a stag (I assume for two reasons - to show how workmanlike he is around cutting out guts, and for the symbolism, since the stag is the symbol of House Baratheon) and berating his son Jaime for not being more than he is.

At the Wall, Jon Snow is ready to take his vows to become a brother of the Night's Watch. Once he takes that vow, he can never go back to his prior life. No women, no family...nothing but standing watch, this night and all nights in the future. On the eve of this event, Benjen Stark's horse comes back to the Wall, riderless. Jon is sure he's going to be assigned to the Rangers, and then he can ride North of the Wall to search for his uncle. Jon is the best swordsman and the best horseman - why wouldn't he be assigned to the Rangers? However, Ser Alliser Thorne is mindful of how Jon has rallied the recruits to defy him (for example, in the bullying of Sam Tarly), and so Jon is assigned to the Stewards. He is outraged, and sees it as Thorne's revenge. Sam, however, points out that Jon isn't to be a Steward to just anyone, but to Commander Mormont himself. In Sam's view, this means that Mormont is grooming Jon for command. Sam and Jon say their vows, and while they're celebrating their milestone, Ghost comes out of the woods with a severed hand. Whose hand is it?

In Winterfell, Theon is questioning Osha, the Wildling that was taken prisoner in the attack on Bran. Osha warns that the White Walkers are stirring at night, and with Winter coming, the long night is near. Ruh roh.

Daenerys is now brotherless, with the "crowning" of Viserys at the end of last week's episode. She is really coming into being a queen of sorts, although she has been unsuccessful in convincing Khal Drogo that there is value in crossing the "poison water" (i.e. ocean) to take the Iron Throne. But back when Ned was the Hand of the King, part I, he resigned over Robert's insistence on sending assassins to kill Viserys and Daenerys. Jorah Mormont was the informant letting Varys know that Daenerys was pregnant, but now he has a change of heart, and he foils the plot to kill Daeny via poisoned wine. Now Drogo is pissed, and he vows that he will gift his son with the Seven Kingdoms.

In King's Landing, we get a glimpse into Petyr Baelish's motivations. While teaching his whores how to screw with false sincerity (hey, there's Roz from Winterfell!), Petyr essentially admits that he still loves Catelyn, and that since he's not much of a warrior, he has learned how to screw people with false sincerity. And there are no limits to his ambition - he wants everything.

Meanwhile, Robert is dying. He was mortally wounded by a boar, because he was s-faced on wine supplied by his squire, Lancel Lannister, and got sloppy on his spear thrust. On his deathbed, Robert names Ned the Regent until his son Joffrey comes of age. Ned, of course, knows that Joffrey is not Robert's son, so he changes the wording from "Joffrey" to "the rightful heir".

Ned keeps doing what he feels is right. Isn't he a fascinating character? He is a fair and just lord, he treats his retainers well, he is willing to take the son of an enemy and raise him almost as his own. He loves his wife and his kids. He has a very clear set of values, and he believes that his values are more important than his own safety. There is much to admire.

And yet I would wager that the majority of AGOT viewers think of him as anywhere from naive (to be kind) to outright stupid.

Let's enumerate:

- gave Cersei plenty of warning that he intended to kick her and her kids out of power. Remember, at this point he is aware that she was behind the death of Jon Arryn. And to further the question of what does it take to give Ned an a-ha moment, Cersei states that when you play the Game of Thrones, you win or you die. Does that sound like someone willing to retire quietly?

- after Robert's injury, ignores Renly's advice to seize Joffrey as hostage for Cersei's good behavior.

- ignores Littlefinger's urging to make peace with the Lannisters and thereby retain power and bide his time to boot Joffrey.

- stubbornly clings to naming Stannis Baratheon the heir to Robert, despite sure knowledge (by everyone, including Ned) that Stannis would make a poor king.

With Robert's death, Ned feels that he has a distasteful task ahead of him, but he has no doubt he can get it done. He does have a little bit of understanding of the situation, though, as the brilliant interchange between Ned and Petyr demonstrates. Ned, through Petyr, will control the Gold Cloaks - which is the slang term for the City Watch, 3000 men led by Janos Slynt.

Ned's luck continues its downward slide, however. Renly has fled the city, along with his 100 swords. And it seems that Petyr feels Ned just doesn't get it, so instead of helping Ned name Stannis the heir, he betrays Ned by turning the Gold Cloaks against House Stark. Notice in that scene, by the way, that Barristan Selmy - the Lord Commander of the Kingsguard, is very much cut from the same cloth as Ned...he can scarcely believe that Cersei would rip up Robert's final orders.

So now we have Ned in Cersei's control, Joffrey on the throne, Drogo and Daenerys promising a whipping for Westeros, Tywin Lannister's army lurking, and mysterious doings North of the Wall.

And believe it or not, it's going to get a lot hairier.
Game of Thrones scorecard, episode 8 Edit | Reply

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When last we left Ned Stark, his guardsmen were getting the old spear-through-the-belly treatment from the treacherous Janos Slynt and the City Watch, on the orders of the treacherous Petyr Baelish. This week, all of his retainers follow suit. Cersei has declared an all-you-can-kill Stark special, and the Lannisters ably demonstrate their appetite for such fare.

One who lives is Sansa. She is kept alive, but only to be a tool of the Queen, it seems (and perhaps a hostage). She willingly writes notes declaring Ned's treason and entreating her family to bend the knee to King Joffrey. When last we see Sansa, she is promising to the whole court on Ned's behalf that he will recant his treason and name Joffrey the true king. Joffrey, for his part, promises mercy in return.

Another who lives is Arya. She is "dancing" with Syrio Forel when the deal goes down. Another great sequence here, where Forel calls out his attacks and Arya deftly deflects them...until he calls out his attack and does the opposite. When Arya protests, he tells her "Watching is not seeing, dead girl". Unfortunately, their practice is interrupted by one of the Kingsguard (Meryn Trant, I believe) and a few Lannister guardsmen. Forel orders Arya to run, and gives her the time she needs to make good her escape. Arya discovers all of the dead retainers, then manages to find her sword Needle in the wreckage. When a stablehand finds her and orders her to come with him to the Lannisters, she sticks him with the pointy end. The last we see of Arya is her running off to hide.

The other item of note in King's Landing this week is that Ser Barristan Selmy, the Lord Commander of the Kingsguard, is unceremoniously retired by Joffrey. You'll never guess it, but the new Lord Commander is to be none other than Jaime Lannister. Stunning, I know. Selmy shows some feistiness in his old age, and basically tells the Lannisters to bite the wax tadpole. He storms off.

In Winterfell, Robb calls the Stark bannermen. While nervous at leading men who have far more experience, Robb has studied hard under Ned, and he defeats the challenges thrown his way through leadership and chutzpah. Greatjon Umber, one of those bannermen, is a guy who can laugh about getting a couple of fingers chewed off by a direwolf, so he's a good one to have on your side. Also in Winterfell, Bran has a conversation with Osha regarding the old gods, giants in the North, and the need for the Stark armies to go North, not South. Robb is leading the army South, of course.

One of the key issues Robb and the Stark army faces is that Tywin Lannister leads one massive army, moving to engage Robb...meanwhile, Jaime has another large crew laying siege to Riverrun (where Catelyn's dad is lord). The Starks need to cross the river at The Twins in order to attempt to life the siege and join forces with the Tullys, but the river crossing is controlled by the Frey family, who have built very defensible and mutually supportable castles on either side of the river (thus, The Twins). The Freys, though nominally bannermen to Hoster Tully, are apparently not too trustworthy.

Catelyn has left the Vale, where her sister has made it clear that no army will be marching to support the Starks.

Tyrion, likewise, has made it back safely to the Lannister camp, thanks in large part to his silver tongue. He has managed to unite the hill tribes (the Burned Men, the Stone Crows, and so forth) by promising them riches and good weapons and armor.

North at the Wall, the Night's Watch have found the bodies of two men who went ranging with Benjen Stark. Dead for awhile but unrotted, the bodies of these men are to be burned, but not before they've had a chance to examine them. Meanwhile, Jon Snow is informed of Ned's imprisonment by Lord Commander Mormont. Jon wishes to go South to help Ned, rescue his sisters, join Robb's army...whatever he can do to help. There's this ****ling little oath he took to be a brother of the Night's Watch, however, and Commander Mormont reminds him of it. When Alliser Thorne is able to goad Jon to violence in defense of the Stark name, Jon is confined to quarters. But the direwolf Ghost starts to go berserk in the night, and Jon, investigating, finds that a Wes Craven flick has broken out. One of the bodies of the dead men is up and walking around, and swords don't seem to harm it. Fire does, though, and a quick thinking Snow grabs the lantern from Mormont and starts a zombie bonfire.

In Dothrakiville, Drogo's army has attacked an encampment of people in order to collect slaves (in order to get money, in order to buy ships, in order to win the Iron Throne for the Khaleesi and her son). Daenerys takes exception to rape, and takes possession of many women who would otherwise become ridden as hard as Dothraki horses. One of the Dothraki protests to Drogo, but Drogo is besotted with Daeny and tells the guy to shut up. A fight breaks out. Drogo is injured, but he rips the guy's tongue from his slashed throat after pumping himself up at another guttural pep rally... (by the way, I think Cookie Monster can speak Dothraki). It turns out that one of the rescued women, Mirri Maz Duur, claims to be a healer, so Daenerys asks her to treat Drogo's wound.

Only two more episodes to go this season.

[Red Brooklyn]

Originally Posted by KC Fish

I thought the sword fighting and the choreography in the last episode was top notch. The action through the entire episode was impressive. Momoa did an awesome job in his rage fueled ass-kicking. And Syrio was pretty bad ass as well. Overall, this was probably the most enjoyable episode yet...

I quite agree.

And it makes perfect sense to me that the episode Martin wrote himself is the one I like the most. This one felt the most like the books to me (in terms of tone and pace and characterization). Some of the plot stuff was different, but nothing that really bugged me. The changes made sense given the restrictions of tv.

Great series so far. Again, each episodes exceeds my expectations. Wish it was longer than 10 episodes.

[vailpass]

Thanks Hawk, those summaries are indeed helpful.

[KcMizzou]

Finished the first book tonight. There are a lot of sad moments, and a lot of awesome moments left to fit into two episodes. These last two are going to be epic. Hope they don't have to leave too much out.

[Shag]

Originally Posted by Hawk

Yeah, the guy was not a bloodrider, just one of the members of his khalasar. I think they did it that way to establish Dany as more and more of a queen with her telling the guy that she does rule him, but also just to give Drogo a chance to be a bad ass in single combat. Martin wrote this episode himself, so hard to complain about any difference from the books.

I'm going to have to go back and watch it again, but you're probably right. I believe in the book that it's one of the bloodriders that Dany has pulled of of Mirri Maz Dur, and that is later complaining to Drogo...

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by Shag

I'm going to have to go back and watch it again, but you're probably right. I believe in the book that it's one of the bloodriders that Dany has pulled of of Mirri Maz Dur, and that is later complaining to Drogo...

Nah, because Drogo flat murders that guy (like one swing, no more head).

He wouldn't have done that to a blood rider and a blood rider damn skippy wouldn't have argued with him.

[Baby Lee]

Originally Posted by KcMizzou

Finished the first book tonight. There are a lot of sad moments, and a lot of awesome moments left to fit into two episodes. These last two are going to be epic. Hope they don't have to leave too much out.

Hey! We got Hodor's schvantz.