[rating=7.00] “The Broken Man”
As Game of Thrones seems to have found comfort in its season-long routine that its spent six years carving out, this week was one where more pieces move across the board, but as you step back, you can see the larger puzzle start to take shape. Jon Snow and company try to rally the north, forgetting their best selling points (they have both a giant and dark magic on their side — the kind that brought Jon Snow back from the freaking dead), Jamie Lannister and The Blackfish get to chew some scenery before settling back into what’s expected to be a long standoff, and a fan-favorite makes his way back into the fold.
“Then why haven’t they punished me?”
Okay, so opening up on an unidentified blacksmith was a great way to get peoples’ hopes up that Gendry had finally managed to make his way out of that rowboat. Instead, we got the return of another character who was presumed dead seasons ago: Sandor Clegane, better known around Westeros (and living rooms on Sunday nights) as The Hound. Turns out, he’d been rescued by Brother Ray, who aside from having the least-interesting name in all the seven kingdoms was played by Deadwood bad guy Ian McShane with almost no variation whatsoever from his surly saloon owner. Brother Ray wears a Seven-Pointed Star around his neck, but spends his opening monologue explaining that he isn’t devout to any one faith, but instead uses his life to help others. Which all but indicates his character run will not be a long one.
“The desires that drove me no longer do.”
Pretty much everyone hates The High Sparrow at this point, and him creepily giving sex advice to Margaery, who is really hamming up her recently found faith, much to the Faith’s delight. As she begs/advises her grandmother, Lady Olenna, to return to Highgarden, she does manage to slip her a crude drawing of a rose, the symbol of House Tyrell. The gesture is enough to clue Olenna into the larger plan at work, and manages to pick up her spirits long enough to deliver a severe diss toward Cersei afterwards.
“Remember Mance’s camp? It stretched all the way to the horizon.”
Jon, having led the Wildlings south of The Wall for the coming war with the dead now has to come back around and ask for their allegiance in his fight against Ramsay Bolton in order for House Stark to reclaim the north. He makes a solid case, and with Tormund reminding everyone of his resurrection is enough to seal the deal. Especially after the giant says “Snow,” because who in their right mind is going to argue with a giant?
“As long as I’m standing, the war is not over.”
Jamie heads to the Riverlands to take over the siege of the castle, fortified by Brynden Tully, uncle to Catelyn Stark, and better known around Westeros as The Blackfish. It’s the last remaining battleground left from The War of the Five Kings, and, overall, the siege seems to be going… very poorly. Jamie does his best to speed things along, which doesn’t seem to go much better, particularly after The Blackfish’s readily admitting they’ve got two years worth of supplies and are in it for the long haul. But, hey, at least Bronn’s back, right?
“We wept when we heard of your father’s death.”
As Jon Snow, Sansa, and Davos go door-to-door to all the smaller houses in the north who haven’t pledged loyalty to the House Bolton. Despite these Houses boasting ‘centuries’ of loyalty to once-mighty House Stark, their results prove to be a mixed bag. House Glover, whose symbol is inexplicably either the sign for Black Power or the little fist emoji, denies the their army, fearing Ramsay’s wrath. They do better at House Mormont, where Ser Davos manages to prove his negotiation skills once again. Though the Iron Bank proved to be pushovers compared to the show’s latest fan-favorite Lyanna Mormont, the 10-year-old badass who’s left in charge of the House, and ends up promising them their 62 soldiers.
Once again, I can’t help to think that maybe mentioning the fact that Jon Snow came back from the freaking dead to fight this battle might have helped their cause. Though Sansa seems to have a plan of her own in mind, and sends a raven asking for reinforcements, presumably to The Veil, which would set them up for a cinematic entrance into a grand battle, much like how Tywin Lannister stormed the Battle of Blackwater just in time to save the day. Or Stannis during the Battle of Castle Black. Or…
“Fuck justice, then. We’ll get revenge.”
Yara really knows how to spend her last night ashore. Her plan to sail to Meereen seems rather abrupt, but it does solve a number of problems. It gives Daenerys a fleet, and gives the Greyjoy kids a chance at reclaiming their homeland from their uncle.
“Oh, girl.”
Jesus Christ, Arya. You’ve got a city founded by faceless assassins that you’ve betrayed (for a second time), and you stroll about a crowded marketplace, flaunting your loot, and take some time to daydream on a bridge. All this ends up with her being stabbed by the waif disguised as a creepy old lady (didn’t see that one coming) before she manages to escape via the waterway. She comes out in a different crowded area, soaking wet and bleeding profusely from the stomach. This better be part of some larger master plan.
“Fighting is a disease. You don’t cure a disease by spreading it around to more people.”
RIP, Brother Swearengen Ray. We hardly knew ye.
(While I elect to ignore how The Hound missed the massacre of a camp of people given the fact he was in earshot the entire time.)
