Trollheart

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

djchameleon

There have been differences from the books for awhile now but season six and going forward are going to be mostly the shows own creations I believe.

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Fame, fortune, power, titties. People say these are the most crucial things in life, but you can have a pocket full o' gold and it doesn't mean sh*t if you don't have someone to share that gold with. Seems simple. Yet it's an important lesson to learn. Even lone wolves run in packs sometimes.

The Batlord

Yeah that's what I meant. I know the show had some differences, but I was wondering if the show was actively creating its own plotlines yet.

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Trollheart

A massive iron gate and portcullis slowly slides up and three dour-looking men ride in silence down a long tunnel. This brings them to another, even larger and more formidable door, which slides up in front of them into what is revealed to be a massive stone wall, beyond which is blindingly white ice and snow. The men ride out from the entrance into the bleak wilderness before them.
Location: Castle Black, The Wall
Characters: Three Rangers of the Night's Watch – Ser Waymar Royce, Will and Gared
The Rangers, led by Ser Waymar Royce, move away from the massive wall and head into the forest. Snow is falling thickly, but despite the title of this episode – and the ongoing theme of running through most of the series – winter has not yet come. This is the far north, as far as a man can go and still be in what can be vaguely (and perhaps overly charitably) called civilisation, and it is always snowing here. It's always cold, hence the thick furs that the men are bundled up in. One of them, Will, comes across the scene of a massacre. Bodies, and body parts, are strewn all over the red-splashed snow, and some corpses are nailed to trees, others have their heads separated from their bodies, the former impaled on spikes in the white ground. These are wildlings, semi-civilised nomadic peoples who refuse to live in the cities and scratch a meagre existence beyond the Wall. When Will returns to tell his brothers of what he has found and they all go to investigate, the bodies are gone, gone as if they had never existed. Shortly afterwards, Will hears screams and then sees one of the dead girls walking again! He runs. Well, you would, wouldn't you? He is aware he is being stalked but has no idea by who. Or what.

A figure appears in the gloom, beheading the remaining ranger and stares down at him as he drops to his knees.

Location: Winterfell, ancestral home of House Stark
Characters: House Stark members Robb, Bran, Lord Eddard (Ned), Lady Catelyn, Arya and Sansa, Jon Snow. Ranger/Deserter Will. Theon Greyjoy.

As Jon Snow coaches young Bran in the art of archery and Lord Eddard Stark, known to most as Ned, and his wife Catelyn, Lord and Lady of Winterfell, look on, Arya and Sansa Stark, Lord Eddard's daughters, are taking an embroidery lesson, though the younger of the two, Arya, seems more interested in what's happening down below in the courtyard than in her needlework. As Bran tries, and fails, to hit the target, an arrow shoots into the bullseye, and he turns in dismay to see his sister Arya standing there, a bow in her hand, an impish grin on her face. Lord Stark is brought the news that a deserter has been captured from the Night's Watch, and goes to dispense the King's justice, taking Bran along with him as an object lesson to the lad. He also takes Theon Greyjoy and Jon Snow.
The deserter, who is of course Will from the opening scene, swears that he has seen “white walkers”, but this does not seem to mollify Ned, who ensures that he is the one to make the fatal blow. “The man who passes the sentence should swing the sword” he tells Bran. In other words, it's no use sentencing someone to death and then allowing a lackey to carry out the sentence. If you're willing to condemn a man to death, be also willing to be the one who takes his life. It's a hard lesson to learn, but life here is hard and there's no hiding from the brutal truths all around. Bran is worried about Will's contention that he saw white walkers, but whatever they are, or may have been, Ned tells him they have all been gone for thousands of years now, and Will could not have seen one.
On the way back to Winterfell, they come across a dead stag, ripped and mutilated, and shortly thereafter a dead direwolf with five cubs suckling at her inert teats. Direwolves are like the wolves we know, but bigger and fiercer. Ned is for putting the cubs out of their misery, but Jon Snow points out that there are five of them – one for each of his trueborn children – and that further, the direwolf is the sigil, or emblem of House Stark. Not a man to ignore portents or wish to anger the gods, Ned acquiesces, and the cubs are brought home with them to Winterfell. As it turns out, in fact, there are six cubs, so Jon is able to claim one for his own.
Location: King's Landing, seat of the King
Characters: Jon Arryn, former Hand of the King (dead), Cersei Lannister, wife to the King, Jaime Lannister the Kingslayer, her twin brother and head of the Kingsguard

A short scene that introduces a subplot that will come to have great significance, and which also allows two of the main players to strut onstage. Watching the death ritual being held for Jon Arryn, who had until recently served as the Hand of the King, the man to whom the King entrusts all his enforcement of laws, the man who sees the King's justice done and who protects the King, and speaks with his voice when he is away, Cersei Lannister tells her brother Jaime that it should have been him who was named Hand on Arryn's death, but Jaime laughs and says the job would not suit him. Cersei worries that Arryn may have “told someone”, and Jaime assures her that had that happened they would not now be here to talk about it. It's clear there's some plot being woven, secrets kept and protected, but we won't find out what they are just yet.

Location: Winterfell
Characters: Lady Catelyn Stark, Lord Ned Stark and all House Stark members. King Robert Baratheon, Cersei Lannister, Joffrey Baratheon, The Hound (Sandor Clegane)

A raven arrives from King's Landing. We will discover fairly shortly that this is the main mode of carrying news in this world. Like carrier pigeons were once used to convey messages, scrolls attached to the raven's claw are carried from place to place, and ravens are specially bred for this purpose. It is seldom good news they bring, leading to an old saying in this land: “Dark wings, dark words.” They are certainly dark words carried by this raven anyway, as it tells of the death of Jon Arryn, as we have just witnessed, ostensibly from a fever. Arryn, it turns out, was Ned's friend, almost a father to him, and the news of his death hits the lord of Winterfell hard. Jon Arryn was wed to Catelyn's sister, and they had a child, both of whom Ned enquires but is told they are safe. There is more news: the King himself is travelling to Winterfell, and Ned knows that if he's coming this far north then there can be only one thing he wants.
On His Grace's arrival, it's clear that his wife, Cersei Lannister, is not happy to be here and that there is no love lost between her and Ned Stark, or any Starks. Arya seems to know everyone, pointing them out quietly as they dismount or take off their helmets. Initially bowing to his King, Ned is told to rise and it's then clear that there's a very personal relationship between the two men as they embrace. Robert's first words to Ned are “You've got fat!” to which Ned does not reply, but gives the King's belly an arch look, as if to say Look who's talking!
Location: Winterfell, the Crypts
Characters: Ned Stark and His Grace the King, Robert Baratheon

As they visit the crypt, so that he can pay his respects to his dead wife, Robert asks Ned the question he has been dreading, requesting – ordering, really – that he take up the now vacant post of the Hand of the King. Ned has no real choice but to accept, though he asks for time to discuss it with his wife, and Robert reminisces about how Ned helped him win the Iron Throne, and how, if his sister had lived, he and Robert might have been bonded by blood, but it was not to be. He does suggest though that Ned marry his eldest daughter to his son, as a political alliance. Kneeling by the crypt of his dead wife, Ned's sister, he tells Ned “I kill him every night” and Ned responds “It's done. All the Targaryens are dead” to which the King snarls “Not all of them.”

Location: Winterfell, a whorehouse
Characters: Jaime Lannister, Tyrion Lannister

Having been sent by his sister to find his brother, who was not present when the King arrived and was greeted at Winterfell, Jaime goes to the nearest whorehouse, where he knows he will find Tyrion, his younger brother, who is also a dwarf. He seems to care little for court etiquette, despite actually coming from King's Landing, where he lives, but promises vaguely to be at the feast being thrown by the Starks that evening. Jaime leaves, shaking his head and grinning at his brother's legendary appetites.

Location: Pentos, across the Narrow Sea
Characters: Daenerys and Viserys Targaryen, last of their line

Looking out a window from a house in Pentos, hundreds of miles from Westeros, Daenerys Targaryen awaits her wedding. Her brother, heir to the Iron Throne, is making plans to marry her off in return for support to take back his throne. They have been living under the protection of a man called Magister Illyrio Mopatis for a year now, and they await the arrival of the groom. From the way Viserys behaves towards his sister it's clear he views her as his property, to do with as he wishes, and a pawn in his game to reseat himself on the Iron Throne. She has absolutely no say in who she marries, and her meek and submissive demeanour speaks of someone used to following orders.

As her prospective husband arrives, Daenerys sees that he is a strong, virile, proud but brutal-looking man, with a sharp smile and flashing eyes. Like all of his retinue, Khal Drogo is mounted on horseback, and he wears a leather harness with his hair in a long braid. Viserys tells his sister that when Drogo's people, the Dothraki, are defeated in combat they cut their braids to show this to the world. Drogo's braid is very long and has never once been cut. Drogo does not dismount, even when Daenerys, bid come forward, does so; he gives her a long, searching look and then he and his riders leave. Viserys is aghast, but Illyrios tells him this is a good sign.

Location: Winterfell
Characters: Lady Catelyn Stark, Sansa Stark

Having been told of her impending nuptials, Sansa worries that Prince Joffrey will not like her, and her mother tries to put her fears to rest. No doubt this is as big a shock to her as to her husband, but the King's will must be done, and anyway, it will be good for their House to be allied by marriage to the Throne. Still, Ned has not yet agreed to either be his Hand or give his daughter in marriage to Joffrey (though of course he will have to) but Sansa's head is full of romantic visions of her dashing prince, and also being a queen, and she wonders how her father could even think of saying no? Catelyn points out that not only would his acquiescence mean that he would have to leave Winterfell – and her – but that Sansa too would have to relocate to King's Landing. Sansa points out that her mother did the very same thing when she married her father and came to live with him in Winterfell.

Location: Winterfell
Characters: Jon Snow, Benjen Stark, Tyrion Lannister

Arriving from the Wall, Benjen, Jon's uncle, asks why he is not at the feast and Jon replies that LadyStark thought having their bastard at the table might insult the king. He asks Benjen to allow him to accompany him back to Castle Black when he returns, and when he sees he is serious about it, Benjen counsels him to think carefully. Men on the Wall foreswear all previous fealties – family, House, friends, even their loyalty to the King. They can never marry, never have children. They must dedicate themselves to the Night's Watch totally, and for the rest of their lives. There is no retirement from the Night's Watch; only death can break that bond, and you can't resign if you find you don't like it after all. Jon Snow says he has not much of a life here anyway, and he is sure if Benjen asks Ned the lord of Winterfell will agree.
When he has gone to the feast, Tyrion appears out of the shadows and expresses a desire to see the Wall. He tells Jon they are both bastards (though technically he is not, but he might as well be, for all the standing he has in his family), both unloved and without a place in their families, and he counsels Jon never to forget he is a bastard, and never to allow anyone to use that knowledge to hurt him.

Location: Winterfell
Characters: House Stark, the King, Cersei, Benjen Stark, Jaime Lannister

Ned talks to Benjen, mentioning that the boy he executed had spoken of white walkers, and Benjen does not laugh. There are many strange things happening out there beyond the Wall, he tells his brother. Ned and Jaime face off, and it's clear there's no love lost between the two of them, Jaime less than pleased that the King has named Ned as his Hand. Cersei remarks on how pretty Sansa is, at even though she's only thirteen has the gall to ask the child “Have you bled yet?” a question which embarrasses Sansa, annoys her mother and makes the queen smirk. She's really only concerned about Sansa giving her son one of his own, an heir to his throne when he dies.

Location: Winterfell, Ned and Catelyn's bedroom.
Characters: Ned, Catelyn, Maester Lumin

As Catelyn declares she will not let her husband go to King's Landing without a fight (though in reality she knows there is nothing she can do to stop it) a knock on the door announces Maester Lumin, who tells her that a rider arrived in the night with a note for her eyes only. It is from her sister, Lysa, who has fled to the high fortress known as the Eyrie, taking her son with her. She says that John Arynn, her husband, was murdered by the Lannisters, and fears the King himself is in trouble. Ned now knows that if he is to protect his old friend he must accept the position of Hand of the King, though Catelyn points out that if her sister is right, they murdered the last Hand, and he could be next.

Location: Pentos
Characters: Viserys, Daenerys, Magister Illyrio Mopatis, Khal Drogo and his horde. Ser Jorah Mormont.

The wedding ceremony between Khal Drogo and Daenerys takes place, and Viserys is impatient to be setting sail with his new army, but Drogo is in no hurry. Magister Mopatis tells him that the Dothraki will only go to war when the omens favour it, but Viserys is in no mood to wait. Existing almost alone in a crowd, with no help or support from her aloof and uncaring brother, Daenerys watches as the Dothraki revel, savages who couple openly and with whomever they want. Two men fight to the death over one woman, but it's not about the woman. Spirits are high, life is cheap and all women are property it would seem. Daenerys is terrified, disgusted and despairing at once, but a ray of light appears in the shape of an exiled knight from her own country, Ser Jorah Mormont, who gives her a gift of books from the Seven Kingdoms. He tells her he served her father faithfully for years, but when Arys II Targaryen was defeated by Robert Baratheon he fled Westeros.

A somewhat more awe-inspiring gift comes from the Magister, who presents Daenerys with three dragon's eggs, petrified now and surely no more than pretty rocks, but incredibly valuable nonetheless. Her new husband makes her a gift of the most valuable thing his tribe have, a horse of her own. She is overwhelmed, and perhaps beginning to see that Khal Drogo is not the mindless savage she had originally taken him for, and that her brother believes he is. When the ceremony is over though he leads her on her horse to the seashore where her worst nightmares are confirmed as he takes her despite her tears.

Location: Winterfell
Characters: Ned, Robb Stark, Jon Snow, King Robert, Theon Greyjoy, Bran Stark, Jaime Lannister, Cersei Lannister.

The King is eager to indulge in his third favourite thing, and everyone has assembled for the hunt. Ned has of course agreed to be his Hand, and Robert is truly grateful. Bran goes climbing, to find, to his dismay, at the top of the keep, Jaime Lannister and his sister going at it like rabbits. Cersei sees him, looking up in horror, and Jaime, with a smile on his face, pushes Bran out of the window.

Quotes

Ser Raymar Royce to Will (shortly before his messy death at the hands of the White Walkers): “Do the dead frighten you?”
(They should, as we'll find out, though poor Ser Royce is well beyond such worries!)

Royce to Will: “If you want to run away south, run away. Of course, they will behead you as a deserter. That is, if I don't catch you first.”
(A chilling indictment of the lot of a man of the Night's Watch. No matter the danger, no matter the fear, no matter the reason, there is no excuse for cowardice and desertion, and if Will makes it away from Castle Black he will be seen as a deserter and killed. If, somehow, as Royce asserts here, he does not make it that far, then he will be put to death by his brothers. A man's watch ends only with his death, and there is no room for the weak and the cowardly. These men rely on each other, here at essentially the end of the world, and each must know and expect that his brothers would and will give their lives for him)

Ned (about to go to execute the deserter): “Tell Bran he's coming too.”
Catelyn: “Ten is too young for a boy to see such things!”
Ned: “He won't be a boy forever, and winter is coming.”
(The first usage of the phrase that will come to define the series)

Ned: “You understand why I did it?”
Bran: “He was a deserter.”
Ned: “But you understand why it had to be me? The man who passes the sentence should swing the sword.”

Catelyn to Bran: “I want you to promise me: no more climbing.”
(Remember that...)

Robert: “Lord Eddard Stark, I would name you the Hand of the King.”
Ned (kneeling): “I am not worthy of such an honour.”
Robert: “I'm not trying to honour you. I'm trying to get you to run my kingdom while I eat, drink and whore my way to an early grave!”
Viserys: “You don't want to wake the dragon, do you?”

Viserys: “When they write the history of my reign, sweet sister, they will say it began today.”

Viserys to Daenerys: “I would let his whole tribe fuck you – all forty thousand men – and their horses too, if that was what it took.”

Magister Mopatis: “A Dothraki wedding without at least three deaths is considered a dull affair.”

Daenerys: “Ser Jorah, I don't know how to say thank you in Dothraki.”
Jorah: “There is no word for thank you in Dothraki.”

Drogo (wiping a tear from her face): "No."
Daenerys: "You speak the common tongue?"
Drogo: "No."
Daenerys: "Is no the only word you know?"
Drogo: "No."

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Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018

Trollheart

Noblesse Oblige
Being highborn is of course better than being born poor, but even for those of noble breeding there are expectations and responsibilities, much moreso than one who is of poor birth. In this section I'll be examining how the great and mighty in Game of Thrones are brought up to behave, what's expected, often demanded of them, and if, in general, they live up to these expectations.

You get a very clear idea of what's expected of even the youngest members of noble Houses very early on in this first episode. Here, in the opening scene at Winterfell, as Jon is showing little Bran how to shoot an arrow, he looks up and warns “Your father is watching”, making it obvious that it's important the boy perform well. You would think, at that age, such a thing would not matter, but no: a Stark must be at the top of his game all the time, and even if he would not show it, Lord Eddard would inwardly be disappointed if his son did not hit the target, even if he laughed it off, as he does here when Bran does miss. A tiny example, a microcosm of the world these people live in and the responsibilities that are placed on their shoulders, the burdens they are expected to carry, even from a very young age.

As Ned raises his sword to take the head off the deserter Will, Robb warns Bran not to look away - “Father will know if you do” - the implication clear: never show weakness or be unwilling to face the darkness in the world, for one day it may be you lifting this sword, and you must never show hesitation or fear.

As for Ned himself, even he is under an obligation, one of fealty to his lord and to the land he serves as Warden of the North for, so that though he knows there is danger attached to the offer – command – Robert makes him, he dare not refuse. It is his duty, and duty is a highly prized and very important part of any Stark's life. There is also, on a different level, his friendship with the King. As an old comrade-at-arms and almost a brother, Ned does not want to let his old friend down, and when he realises, reading Lysa's letter to her sister, that Robert's life may be in danger from the Lannisters, he knows he has to step in to help protect him and stop their machinations.
Catelyn, too, is bound by duty. She does not want her husband to go to King's Landing and leave her in Winterfell, but she will not try to stop him. She knows in her heart that he must do this, and though her heart turns cold inside her as she thinks of the trap Ned may be walking into, that same heart must swell, despite herself, with pride that the King would choose Ned as the only loyal retainer he could name as his Hand.

Sansa is also under an obligation, though this will not in fact happen for some time as she is yet too young to legally marry Joffrey, however unlike many of the girls in fantasy stories who are forced to marry someone they don't want to, Sansa is all for the idea. This fits in perfectly with her somewhat innocent worldview, and she sees all hearts and roses in her future. The fact that she will also one day be queen helps too. But if she didn't want to marry Cersei's son, and her father told her to, she knows she would have to obey. It's just, for her, lucky that she has already fallen in love with the golden-haired prince.

Let's not forget poor Daenerys, forced by her brother to wed (unlike Sansa) a man she has never seen, does not love and cannot even share a common language with. But though she does this partially in fear of her brother (his warning, "You don't want to wake the dragon, do you?" is a chilling indication that he will not be above hurting her if she refuses to comply) she also does it out of a sense of loyalty to her House, such as it is, and duty and responsibility. Like many young sisters in fantasy, her main role (she believes, and it would seem to be the case) is to provide her brother, who should be king, a way to regain his throne. If that means sacrificing her virginity, then so be it. No matter how terrified she is, she will do her duty for the honour of House Targaryen and the memory of parents she never even met.

Questions?

Was the death of Jon Arryn a natural one, or is there reason to suspect, and if the latter, how do Cersei and Jaime Lannister fit into that?

Did Will actually see white walkers? We saw him watch something behead his friend, but what?

Will Viserys Targaryen gets hi army? Will Khal Drogo lead his Dothraki across the Narrow Sea to help him retake his throne?

Will Jon Snow join the Night's Watch?
NSFW

The hard-hitting nature of this show is apparent from the first few minutes, when two men of the Night's Watch are brutally cut down, and we see the severed head of one thrown at Will's feet. The execution of Will himself is brutal too, though I would venture to say not too gory as it's quick and kind of filmed from a short distance away. There's a lot of violence in the show, and there's a lot of sex too. These come together in the scene where the two Dothraki are fighting over the same woman, but prior to that we see Viserys undress his sister and there's very little attempt at censorship or modesty, as nearly everything is on display. It's not necessarily full-frontal nudity, but you won't see anyone pulling sheets over themselves in bed, let's put it that way. The sex, at least in this first episode, is generally rough, with little or no love or romance involved, and to some extent that's fine, because I think we're all sick and tired of the coy way lovemaking is often represented in TV shows. Whether it's figures under a bedsheet, silhouettes, darkened rooms or just people who are quite clearly wearing underwear, it's never really been what you'd call authentic. The old novel idea of “He took her in his arms, crushed her to him. She began to melt ... Next morning blah blah.”

Game of Thrones not only does away with this, it kicks it in the head. Lovers are exposed, literally, and lovemaking (or, let's be honest about it, sex) is dragged screaming from the bedchamber and the boudoir and out into the street, where people couple furtively in alleyways, gardens, and as we see here near the end, on a cliff by the sea. It's pretty brutal for the most part, somewhat pouring cold water (so to speak) on Sansa Stark's romantic ideas of making love, and in almost all cases so far as we can see here anyway, it's always male dominated, with the woman having little or no choice in the matter and reduced more or less to an object. It's not quite rape (not yet) but it's really often rather far from consensual sex.

But that's one of the great things about this series: it really (pardon the pun) doesn't give a fuck. Fair play to HBO for not editing out the more graphic scenes (so far as I know), whether sex or violence, and as the show goes on you'll see just how down and dirty it can, and will get. Shocks aplenty, and if you're watching it for the first time don't kid yourself you can guess what's coming next, because you can't. Even the end scene here – a literal cliffhanger – takes us all by surprise the first time we see it, the moreso because we're talking about the murder of a child here. But this will be nothing compared to where the show will go in later episodes, and seasons, so make sure you've a strong stomach and an open mind, because you're going to need them!
Obviously, when you're bringing a novel to the big or small screen you can only use so much of it. When you're talking about television there is more scope, as you've more time and don't have to condense everything into two or three hours, but nevertheless it should be obvious to anyone that not every part of the book can be transferred into the television series. Even with a six (soon to be seven) season series, we're dealing with six books here so really you would be talking about approximately one per season, which is unlikely to work. Some material is bound to have been trimmed out, and perhaps some ideas changed or juggled here or there. In this section, as I read the novels for the first time, I'll be pointing out where, if at all, the novels differ from the series and if that difference impacts in any way on the series.

So far, apart from obvious expansion on characters and history, which is a much slower process on the screen, unless you want to be either really boring or unimaginative, the first episode seems to follow the first chapter of the first book. I see that what Will refers to as white walkers are described simply as the Others in the novel – whether Martin had not decided what to call them, thought this sounded better or whether HBO decided they wanted a more descriptive name for the evil denizens beyond the Wall I don't know, but white walkers are not mentioned in the book. Eddard Stark's sword, called Ice, is not mentioned in the series at all, it's just a sword, and even the fact that it is made of Valyrian steel is not mentioned. When he beheads Will, Theon kicks the head around playfully. Not sure whether this was regarded as bad taste, or they wanted to portray Theon as a little more sensitive and less callous, or what, but that bit was cut right out. Old Nan, who is a central, if peripheral figure in Bran's childhood, and whose stories seem to form much of the basis of what he knows, or thinks he knows, about the world, is completely absent, not mentioned at all, at least in this first episode. When they come across the dead direwolf and her pups, Jon Snow only says there are five, in the book he goes further: three male, two female. This of course is a much stronger omen to Ned Stark, and it would only have taken a moment to have Jon say, yet they left it out. Not sure why.
The godswood, again a very important place in the books, is not mentioned, though this is where Catelyn finds her husband after he has executed Will. I think they may be mentioned later, possibly in connection with the Night's Watch, but here in the first episode the one at Winterfell is not imparted any additional significance. In the book, the bark of the trees are carved into faces, faces of the gods. This is not mentioned at all. Nor indeed is his wife's House, Tully, which I believe we only find out about later. In the book, Ned talks about Benjen, saying that he has been discussing with him the declining numbers of the Night's Watch, but this is not even (yet) alluded to in this episode, nor is the fact that Will is the fourth man this year that Ned has had to execute, though the book does not make it clear whether the other three had all been deserters too. The Children of the Forest, mentioned here in the book in passing, will come into the story later but are not spoken of here at all.

Naturally, you can put a lot more exposition into a novel, so Martin is better able to give us a sense of who and what Jon Arryn was than he can in the short periods of this first episode in which he is mentioned. When he hears the news of Arryn's death in the novel, Ned urges Catelyn to go to the Eyrie, to comfort her sister, but here he says nothing beyond a quick enquiry as to their health. As for Daenerys, we're told she and her brother have been sheltered by Magister Mopatis for a year now, but the book makes it clear that her mother was still pregnant with her, and Viserys a boy of only eight, when they fled the victorious Robert's vengeance. It also tells us that both the Lannisters and the Starks – who even here we can tell are at best uneasy allies and at worst sworn enemies who barely hold themselves in check, as evidenced by both Ned's dislike for Cersei and his exchange with Jaime at the feast – have good reason to fear and hate the Targaryens, as it was Ned and Robert, with the eventual help of the Lannisters, who defeated Daenerys and Viserys's father, whom we're told was called The Mad King. We also find out that their mother died bearing Daenerys, which may go some way towards explaining Viserys's cruel and cold attitude towards his sister.

More interesting still, and allowing some doubt to rise about the relationship between Cersei and Jaime, is the fact that Targaryens, rather than frown upon it, have for centuries encouraged incest: brothers marry sisters, in order to keep the line pure, and so until she was told she would be basically sold to Khal Drogo as his bride, Daenerys had always assumed she would marry her brother when she came of age. When she meets Drogo in the book they are in a room, and the Khal is on his feet, whereas here he sits astride his horse out in the open, which I think works better. Back at Winterfell, the Imp is with the King's retinue when they arrive, whereas here he has to be dragged from a brothel by his brother; again I think this works better, given Tyrion's lack of interest in social etiquette. In the novel we learn that the “him” Robert refers to when he tells Ned “I kill him every night in my dreams” is Rhaegar Targaryen, son of the Mad King, who was responsible for his wife, Lyanna's death, and that Lysa's son, also called Robert, is to be fostered to Tywin Lannister, something that does not sit well with Ned, for obvious reasons.
Further, and rather oddly, in the novel Sansa Stark is said to be eleven years old at the time of Robert's arrival, yet here she says she is thirteen. Perhaps eleven was seen as too young to convince television viewers she might marry? Or maybe the age was changed to suit the actress, who certainly in this episode does not look eleven or anything like it, especially given that Bran is supposed to be ten, though again in the novel he's said to be only seven. At the feast given in the King's honour, it's Benjen who suggests to Jon Snow that he would be a good man to have in the Night's Watch, whereas here Jon makes the request and Benjen has to consider it. There's a line Tyrion speaks to Jon, which I think would have been good to have been left in, but it's not: he says “All dwarfs are bastards, but not all bastards need be dwarfs.” It's a very telling line, and I wish they had left it in. Anyway, Catelyn reveals in the book that she was originally promised to Ned's brother, Brandon (after whom we must assume he named his second son) but when he died Ned took her as was the custom. She also convinces him, or tries to sway his mind towards being the Hand, whereas here she is against it in just about every way.

The enmity she bears Jon Snow, though in the episode only alluded to by an icy look from her to him, is expanded upon in the novel. Catelyn doesn't blame her husband for fathering a bastard. What she does hate is that he brought him back to Winterfell and treated him as his own son. This is something she cannot forgive him for. A name is ascribed to Jon Snow's mother – Ashara Dayne – which is not mentioned in this episode or at any time since. When she hears that all of her chidren, save the youngest, Rickon, are to accompany Ned to King's Landing, Catelyn declares that Jon Snow may not remain behind, which is something that works to push Ned in the direction of agreeing to allow him to go back with Benjen to the Wall. Finally, when Bran climbs the wall in the final scene of the episode, there's a lot more conversation going on between Cersei and Jaime.

Family

Obviously, family connections, not only within each House but between Houses and other powerful families play a huge part in Game of Thrones, so as in most of my other series writeups in The Couch Potato, here I'll be looking deeply into the ties that bind, and that perhaps even sometimes blind.

(Note: like every other section here bar the above, what I write here will only be based on the TV series, not the novels)

House Lannister

Although we're only introduced briefly to the Lannisters, as compared to the Starks, we can already see a gulf between the two. House Stark (discussed later) seem to be bonded by a sense of honour and duty, and there seems to be genuine love and respect for and by each family member. This does not seem to be a house which is too concerned with intrigue and plotting, but the same cannot be said of the Lannisters, who seem to figure in some pretty major plots. Cersei and Jaime seem to be behind, or have knowledge of the real reasons behind the death of John Arynn, and Jaime has already been referred to as Kingslayer, so we have to wonder how loyal he actually is to the king he now guards? His affection for his brother seems to be genuine on the face of it, but could be informed more by a sense of pity mixed with scorn, as it does not look as if they are too close. The same can't be said for Cersei, in the case of either brother. She may love Jaime, or it may just be sex (though you would have to assume that if that was all it was she could easily have any man she wished) or even the idea of the taboo, the unattainable man. But she hates Tyrion with a passion. Is this because he is a dwarf? Possibly: it seems that Cersei is not one to favour the weak or make any allowances for them.

House Lannister is allied to House Baratheon, the royal House, through Cersei's marriage to Robert, but it's clearly a marriage of strategy and politics, as Robert despises her and she hates him (typical royal couple!) while at the same time realising the safety her marriage to the king affords her, to say nothing of the position. She must have overcome her revulsion to him though, as she has children by him. She intends for her son, Joffrey, to take the Iron Throne when Robert passes away, and will no doubt be the power behind the throne until the boy comes of age, or possibly even after that time. Where Jaime will fit in when that happens is anyone's guess, though you would have to assume she would expect/tell Joffrey to name him as his Hand, taking the position from Ned Stark, who can expect none of the loyalty and friendship from the king's son and his mother as he now enjoys from Robert.

Tyrion is something of an enigma. I think I originally mistakenly wrote he was a bastard. This is not true: he's a trueborn son of Tywin Lannister, as are both Jaime and Cersei, but he remarks to Jon Snow that “to fathers, all dwarfs are bastards.” We're not told at this point exactly why his father seems to hate him, though it's probably a fair bet that he's seen as an embarrassment to House Lannister. In all likelihood, were he a bastard he might not be treated as badly as he is. But Tyrion seems to have woven a shield around him to deflect the disappointment, scorn and rejection he gets from his father, and indeed from his sister. He cloaks his feelings by surrounding himself with meaningless sex, wine and other pursuits, perhaps in an attempt to prove himself a real man. He has sympathy with Snow, who he sees as a fellow outsider, and possibly wonders if life at the Wall might not be so bad after all. He's hardly happy at home.

Tyrion also has an acerbic, cutting wit, which most times is not to most people's taste, given that it is a sardonic, sarcastic style that tends to either lampoon or insult those he does not like (which is about everyone), everyone who looks down on him. He does seem to have a very keen mind, and were it not for the fact that he's a dwarf and despised by him, he could be a real asset to his father's House. As it is, he's barely tolerated.

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House Stark

Things seem to be a lot more friendly in Winterfell. Generally, everyone seems to get on with everyone else, and there's a genuine sense of love and belonging there, for most of the Starks anyway. Though she was not originally his love, Ned has clearly fallen in love with Catelyn and would do anything to protect her, and he loves all his sons and daughters equally, even if Arya sometimes acts more like a boy than a girl. Yes, even Jon Snow, to the disgust of his wife. Jon is the only fly in the ointment, as it were: his presence at Winterfell is a constant source of anger and impotent contempt to Lady Stark, who is reminded every day that her husband cheated on her. Jon has however forged a deep bond with his siblings; it is he, after all, who convinces Ned to allow the children to adopt the direwolves, and he is seen coaching Bran early on.

Honour is a sacred concept to House Stark, almost as much as it is all but foreign to House Lannister. Everything Ned and his family does is informed by honour, from taking a personal hand in the execution of criminals to adopting a boy that is not his, and without honour their House would be nothing. Their House motto should probably be something like Honour Above All, though it is in fact Winter Is Coming. Honour and duty go hand in hand, and Ned, though he has no time for Cersei and her children, agrees to allow Sansa to be betrothed to Joffrey because he knows it is the King's wish, and also he realises it will strengthen all three Houses, and perhaps heal the bad blood between them. He is under no illusions that Joffrey will not succeed to the throne on the death of Robert, and so, though he does not personally play the game of thrones, he knows that it is to his advantage to move, or allow to be moved, any pieces on the board that will help ensure the safety of his family.

But no family is perfect, and Ned deals with his own share of problems within his. Sansa and Arya, as dissimilar as can be, fight constantly, as sisters do, but Sansa must hate the fact that Arya is such a tomboy. No doubt when she was born Sansa believed that she would have someone to dress and plait her hair and talk about boys, and Arya does not want to do anything like that, more interested in swordplay and exploration and climbing, the pursuit of boys. To some degree, Lord Stark might as well have four trueborn sons, not three. The addition of Theon Greyjoy, who is only peripherally mentioned here and could be mistaken for another of Ned's children, complicates matters, as he seems not to get on with Robb. It is he who advocates the slaughter of the pups, and goes to kill one, but is stopped by Robb. “I take orders from your father,” he sneers, “not you.” No love lost there, then.

Bran's predilection towards climbing, while something expected in a young boy, is a constant source of worry to his mother, and as we see here, has very tragic consequences at the end. But at least Ned does not have to worry about any objections from his daughter about marrying Joffrey, as noted earlier, because this is something she has dreamed of. Were Arya the elder, well then we would definitely have problems, but as it stands, Sansa is happy to be betrothed to her prince, while Arya would probably be glad to see the back of her. We also learn that Ned has two brothers, one of whom is dead (Brandon) and one of whom is in the Night's Watch (Benjen). Quite what led to the latter going to Castle Black is not explained, as it's not generally a career chosen by anyone, hard and unforgiving as it is.

Machinations

Game of Thrones is built solidly on a foundation of schemes, plots and intrigue, and here we'll be looking into the various nefarious machinations of each House, or person, or group. With consummate ease, Martin will have characters switch sides and change loyalties to suit whatever the prevailing wind is, and as they change I'll note that here.

The death of Jon Arryn: Although officially this is put down to the older man taking a fever, there's obviously more to it than that, and we can assume the Lannisters are involved.

The Old Gods

Game of Thrones is also reliant on religion, or more specifically, the worship and/or remembrance of ancient gods. Most Houses seem to worship different gods, though there may be some crossover. None have been mentioned yet by name (though they will) but Ned has made it clear that House Stark follows “the old gods”, whichever ones they may be while Catelyn has remarked (I can't remember if this is in the series or the book, so forgive me if it's only in the novel but it's not like it's a plot twist or anything) that she does not worship the same gods when she tells Ned archly “Your gods, not mine.”

Alliances

And of course, any series dealing with kings and queens and kingdoms and wars survives on the alliances it makes, breaks, perhaps remakes. Like most alliances, those made in Game of Thrones shift and change like the sands of the desert, so here I'll be pointing out who's allied to whom, how, and when (if they do) those alliances alter.

Currently
House Baratheon is allied to House Lannister by marriage through Cersei
House Stark is allied to House Baratheon by loyalty; Robert and Ned fought side by side against the Mad King
House Targaryen (such as it is) is not yet allied with anyone, but is seeking alliances, specifically with the Dothraki, though this is really more in the nature of using them as an army. Nevertheless, to achieve this Daenerys has been wed to Khal Drogo by her brother, Viserys.

The Game of Thrones bodycount

I have done this with certain other series, but when you're dealing with a sweeping epic like this an accurate bodycount would be completely impossible (how many men died in that battle? What was the crew of that ship that was sunk?) so I'll only be concentrating here on actual important characters who are killed over the course of the series, or at least, ones whose deaths can be quantified. Nevertheless, expect to have to order a lot more body bags!

Note: This will not include any retrospective deaths, eg the Mad King, nor will it concern any deaths that occur in the novels but are not mentioned in the TV series

Name: Jon Arynn
Status: former Hand of the King
Mode of death: Uunconfirmed as yet
Killer, (if any): Unknown as yet

Name: Will
Status: Ranger of the Night's Watch
Mode of death: Execution by beheading
Killer: Lord Eddard Stark

Name: Ser Raymar Royce
Status: Ranger of the Night's Watch
Mode of death: Beheading
Killer: Unknown (White Walkers?)

Name: Gared
Status: Ranger of the Night's Watch
Mode of death: Unknown (takes place offscreen, scream only)
Killer: Unknown

Bodycount total: 4

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Location: The Dothraki Sea
Characters: Daenerys and Viserys Targaryen, Ser Jorah Mormont, Khal Drogo and the Dothraki horde
Seeing how difficult life already is for her, Ser Jorah Mormont approaches Daenerys and tells her things will get easier, though from the look in her eyes the girl would rather be anywhere else. The Dothraki Sea is not a sea, but a wide grass steppe that stands between them and their homeland, and they are travelling across it to get there. There is no time wasted on stragglers, even the new khaleesi is expected to keep up. Khal Drogo rides with his men, while Daenerys is left to the care of the exiled knight. Whether they prefer women not to ride with them, whether there has been some trouble between the couple since their wedding night, or whether Daenerys wishes to ride alone is not stated. When they make camp, Mormont suggests to Viserys that he might be more comfortable waiting for them back at Pentos, but the haughty king-in-waiting will have none of it. He asks the knight – more out of amusement than actual interest – what he was exiled for, and Mormont admits he sold some poachers he caught on his land to slavers. Ned Stark was not impressed and banished him.
Location: Winterfell, the kennels
Characters: Tyrion Lannister, Joffrey Baratheon and Sandor Clegane (the Hound)
After waking up from whatever he was doing the previous night and finding himself in the kennels, Tyrion tells Joffrey he must call upon Ned and Catelyn and offer his sincere condolences for their son. Joffrey clearly couldn't give a toss about Bran but repeated slaps from his uncle forcibly change his mind. The Hound, standing nearby, warns Tyrion that the young Prince will not forget this.
L:ocation: Winterfell, the dining hall
Characters: The Lannisters – Jaime, Cersei, Myrcella, Tommen and Tyrion
When he joins his family at table, Tyrion angers a smug Cersei when he reveals that the news is that Bran may not die after all. Jaime asks him if he is thinking of joining the Watch and he scoffs, saying all he wants to do is stand on the Wall. Cersei remarks that should Bran recover he will surely be a cripple, and Jaime, thinking along the same lines, backs her up, saying he'd much rather a good clean death. Considering what will happen to him later, this will end up being quite an interesting comment.
Location: Winterfell, Bran Stark's bedroom
Characters: Bran (unconscious), Lady Stark, Cersei
Cersei visits Catelyn, who is keeping vigil by her son's bed. She rises when the queen walks in but Cersei waves her back to her seat. She tells Catelyn that she lost her own first son, and prays that the gods will restore Bran to health. Of course, she doesn't mean it – that's the last thing she wants – but she manages to make her concern look sincere.

Location: Winterfell, the Keep
Characters: Jon Snow, Jaime Lannister
Jaime teases Snow about his decision to join the Night's Watch. Not quite sure why he does this, other than that Jon is the closest he can come I guess to insulting a Stark without provoking major reaction, but it's pretty heartless the way he jeers the kid, then going on to point out that Jon has never killed or even wounded anyone, the clear implication being that he doesn't know what he's getting into. Jon reveals that the Night's Watch has been in existence for over eight thousand years (so presumably, so has the Wall – can't guard something that isn't there) and hints that there are vows to be taken before he can join. Jaime reminds him that he is taking on a lifetime commitment.
Location: Winterfell, Arya's bedroom
Characters: Arya Stark, Nymeria her direwolf, Jon Snow
Arya is packing to leave, as both she and Sansa are required in King's Landing alongside their father (although this has not been mentioned, whereas it makes it clear in the book). She is not in a good mood, but Jon visits her and presents her with a sword of her own. She names it Needle, and he makes her promise to practice with it every day.
Location: Winterfell, Bran's bedroom
Characters: Bran, Catelyn, Jon Snow, later Ned Stark
Jon goes to say goodbye to Bran, as he is leaving to go to the Wall with his uncle Benjen. The tension crackles in the room; Catelyn's hatred is not masked in her eyes, but Jon makes sure to say goodbye properly to his sibling. Ned walks in as Jon is leaving, and when he has gone the lord of Winterfell talks to his wife, who accuses him of choosing Robert over her, and their son. With Bran in a coma, Ned is still leaving: he has to. Robert will not take no for an answer, and even if he did, the danger (real or imagined) to him remains. Ned owes it to him, both as a vassal and as a friend, to keep his word. Catelyn takes the opportunity to stick the knife in about Jon Snow, but he lets it pass. There's nothing he can say anyway.

Location: Winterfell
Characters: Ned, Jon Snow
Ned is joining Robert at King's Landing, while Jon is going with Benjen to Castle Black. Ned tells Jon that he is proud of what he is doing, and tells him he is a Stark in all but name. Jon asks about his mother and Ned promises he will talk about her when he next sees Jon. The two separate. Ned and the king discuss their youth while they take a break, and Robert hints at the subject of Jon Snow's parentage, but Ned will not speak of the woman he calls Lyla. The talk then turns to Daenerys. A note has come overnight to advise of the wedding, and Robert is not happy. Any remaining Targaryens are a threat to his throne, and he does not intend to suffer threats, no matter how distant they may be. He worries that Viserys may muster enough support here to validate his claim, and turn the people against him. He tells Ned “There are still those who call me Usurper.” Ned points out that Targaryen and the Dothraki hordes are across the Narrow Sea, and they have no ships. Robert is not mollified. He knows trouble is brewing.
Location: The Kingsroad
Characters: Jon Snow, Tyrion Lannister, Benjen Stark and other prospective members of the Night's Watch
As they make camp for the night, Jon asks Tyrion why he reads so much, and the dwarf tells him he needs to feed his mind, which is his greatest, perhaps only weapon. Jon remarks that Jaime Lannister killed the old king, and Tyrion does not deny it. He says life is full of little ironies, and reading between the lines, is it just possible that Jaime killed the Mad King in order that Robert would gain the throne and take Cersei as his wife? Was the death of his prospective bride, Lyanna Stark, arranged by the Lannisters in order to place one of their House in a position of power from which she could one day reach the throne though her heir? Stranger things....

Location: Winterfell, Bran's bedroom
Characters: Bran, Catelyn, Maester Luwin and later Robb
The Maester advises Lady Stark that with much of the castle staff gone with Ned to King's Landing, there are new appointments that have to be made, but she snaps that she is not interested. Her only concern is for her son. Robb enters and sends Luwin away, tackling his mother about the inordinate amount of time she has been spending here. She has not had any proper sleep, nor eaten much. In the midst of his arguing with her he walks to the window, looks out and sees ... fire! He rushes off, and while he is gone a stranger appears in the room, knife in hand. “You're not supposed to be here” he tells Catelyn, and goes to kill Bran. She grabs him, tearing her hands on his knife, but she is no match for the big man, who shrugs her off and approaches Bran. Suddenly, out of nowhere Bran's direwolf appears and takes the intruder down, ripping out his throat.

Location: The Dothraki Sea
Characters: Daenerys
A much more serene and in control Daenerys asks her handmaidens if there are any dragons left in the world, while her eyes fix upon the dragon's eggs. They tell her all the dragons were killed long ago. She asks one of her maids, Doreah, who is also a foreigner here, to teach her how to please Drogo.

Location: Winterfell, the godwood
Characters: Catelyn, Robb Stark, Theon Greyjoy, Maester Luwin, Ser Roderick Cassell
Lady Stark calls Robb and Theon as well as Master-at-Arms Roderick Cassell, and Maester Luwin to tell them that she suspects that Bran's fall was no accident. She has recovered a blonde hair from the spot where he fell, and there is only one blonde woman she can think of who might have had a reason to be there. It's flimsy, certainly circumstantial evidence, nothing she could act on, or accuse Cersei of, but it has planted the seed of doubt in her mind. She believes now that her son was pushed from the wall in an attempt to kill him because of something he saw, though she admits she has no idea what that might have been. She does expect that the Lannisters will be behind it, and realises she has to warn her husband. Not trusting such news to a raven, she knows she must carry the message herself, and will set out tomorrow for King's Landing.
Location: The Dothraki Sea
Characters: Daenerys, Doreah and later Khal Drogo
Daenerys asks Doreah to show he how to be a better wife to Drogo, and the young slave advises her to refuse to have sex from behind, as is Drogo's custom, but to ensure she faces him, looks into his eyes. She says the eyes can be the sexiest part of a woman, and when Drogo comes to Daenerys that night, she does just this. Though he resists at first, not understanding, thinking she wishes not to have sex with him at all, she is able to speak enough Dothraki now to tell him she wants to look at him, and they make love in what is for Drogo a whole new way. Sex is now less like rape or possession and more like consensual and loving.
Location: An Inn on the road to King's Landing
Characters: Sansa Stark, the Hound, Ser Ilyn Payne, Joffrey Baratheon
After Sansa accidentally bumps into the royal executioner, Joffrey takes her for a walk and they come across Arya and her friend using sticks to play at swordfighting. Amused, Joffrey tries to force her friend, Mycah, the butcher's boy, to fight him, but of course he won't: it would be an uneven fight on all fronts. When he then starts cutting the boy, Arya hits him with her stick, and he, enraged, pushes her to the ground, standing over her with his sword, screaming abuse at her. Suddenly her direwolf launches herself at Joffrey, goring his hand and knocking him to the ground. Through all of this, Sansa stands screeching at Arya “You're ruining everything!” as if it were his sister's fault that her “golden prince” is a sadistic, arrogant little cunt. It's worth watching as Joffrey lies on the ground and Arya stands over him with his sword which she has picked up that he whines for his life. Only a tough man when the odds are in his favour, then.

Arya in fact takes his sword and throws it into the lake, then runs off while Sansa goes to get help for the prince. Knowing that her direwolf will be killed if caught, Arya makes the animal run off, and then afraid to go home, remains in the woods, until a search party comes looking for her as night falls. Ned, leading the party, is told she has been found, but has been taken before the king.

Location: The Inn
Characters: Robert Baratheon, Arya Stark, Ned Stark, Cersei Lannister, Joffrey Baratheon
On arriving at the makeshift court Ned beseeches Robert to let the matter drop. He's inclined to, but of course Cersei will not: her poor boy has been injured, and someone must pay. Joffrey claims that Mycah and Arya set upon him without provocation, and that Arya sicced her direwolf on him. She knows this is a lie, but when Sansa is brought forward to corroborate her sister's story, she folds completely, unwilling to drop the prince in it. Things turn against her though, as with Arya's direwolf having run off, Cersei sweetly suggests “There is another wolf.” Sansa can't believe it. Maybe she should have supported her sister then, and told the truth.
Location: The Inn again
Characters: Ned, The Hound, Lady the direwolf
As he goes to perform his onerous duty, the death of Sansa's direwolf decreed by the Queen and supported by the King, Ned passes the Hound on his way into the courtyard, the body of Mycah the butcher's boy slung over his horse. Ned has been unwilling to let Cersei have her way and have the direwolf butchered by Ilyn Payne, declaring that he will do it if it must be done. While the girls sleep and cry over what has happened, Ned, his heart heavy and anger in his eyes for the casual cruelty of the Queen and her son, pets the direwolf before carrying out his duty.

Location: Winterfell
Character: Bran Stark
As Lady dies, Bran wakes up from his coma, as if he has heard the animal's plaintive last cry.

Quotes

Jaime: “Tell me you're not thinking of taking the Black?”
Tyrion: “And go celibate? The whores would go begging from Dorne to Casterly Rock! No, I just want to stand on top of the Wall and piss off the edge of the world!”

Jaime, to Jon Snow: “Strange thing the first time you cut a man: you realise we're all just sacks of meat, blood, some bone to keep it all standing.”

Jon Snow, to Arya: “First lesson: stick them with the pointy end.”

Ned to Jon: “The Starks have manned the Wall for thousands of years. And you are a Stark. You may not have my name, but you have my blood.”

Robert: “There's a war coming, Ned. I don't know when, I don't know who we'll be fighting, but it's coming.”

Tyrion: “My brother has his sword and I have my mind, and a mind needs books like a sword needs a whetstone.”

Sansa: “Why won't he (Payne) talk to me?”
The Hound: “He hasn't been very talkative these last twenty years. Not since the Mad King had his tongue ripped out with hot pincers.”

Ned: “The wolf is of the north. She deserves better than a butcher.”

Ned (seeing Micah's corpse slung over the Hound's horse): “The butcher's boy. You rode him down.”
The Hound: “He ran. Not very fast.”
Family

Cersei Lannister
We see a somewhat softer side – and the side we will see more often, the harder, ruthless one – in two linked scenes here at the start. When she hears that Bran is expected to recover Cersei's face falls, and her eyes go hard, worrying what the boy will tell his parents when he awakes. Then, when she visits him, she speaks to Catelyn about the loss of her own first child with the king, and betrays a tender, almost matronly side, just for a short moment. She's back to her cold, cruel and callous self though later, when, Joffrey having been mauled by Arya's direwolf, she demands satisfaction by having the other wolf put to death. The smile on her face speaks not of joy at having the animal killed, but at being able to wound both Sansa and Arya so deeply. She truly is the superbitch of this series.

Tyrion Lannister
How ironic that the shortest man in Westeros should turn out to be, in terms of morality and decency, taller than his nephew, who easily towers over him (as does just about everyone, bar children). After he has displayed, in the previous episode, his dislike for procedure and etiquette, playing to his own rules and seeming, basically, something of a drunken fool, it is Tyrion who tells Joffrey to go offer his condolences to the Starks. He may not like them, but the dwarf knows where his duty, and that of his House, lies. In this he proves himself so much more of a man than Joffrey, who scoffs at the idea.

We learn here that Tyrion's father was the Hand of the King for twenty years, and that Jaime killed the man he served, hence his name. We find that among his other distractions Tyrion likes to read. A lot. He has a keen mind, and one hungry for new experiences, knowledge and stimulation.

Daenerys Targaryen
There's an interesting but short scene here, if you blink you might miss it. I think I did, first time around. Daenerys and Drogo are in the warlord's tent, doing what you might expect would occur in a warlord's tent between him and his bride, and the girl is distraught, not quite crying but not far from it: this is one big man! Then she catches sight of the three dragon eggs, surrounded by candles, and a strange look passes over her face. It settles. It becomes harder, firmer, more resolute. You can see the acceptance of her situation settling on her features, almost as if she's told herself This is your life now, stop whining like a child and get used to it. In that one, brief moment, I believe Daenerys Targaryen has ceased being a girl and has become a woman, and more: a true khaleesi.

NSFW
The scenes where Doreah shows Daenerys how to pleasure a man properly have seriously smoking and obviously lesbian overtones; Daenerys looks uncomfortable at one point, and it seems pretty clear that Doreah is trying to seduce her.

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Nobless Obige
Even though they are in Winterfell, and even though she is basically the hostess, Sansa has enough grace to ask forgiveness when she accidentally bumps into Ilyn Payne, the king's executioner. Some noble women would demand he get out of their way, cause a scene. But Sansa is at heart meek and submissive, and only wishes not to cause offence. She is also keenly aware that any discord caused here will come to the ears of her father, and may weaken his position with the king.

Ned too has to swallow his anger and pride when ordered to kill Lady. He knows the order comes from Cersei, even though her husband supports it, and hates her for what she is doing, this casual cruelty against his children. But he dare not refuse an order from his King, and faces up to his responsibilities, discharging them even though it makes him sick to his stomach.
Joffrey, on the other hand, wouldn't even understand the term “noblesse oblige”, and would laugh if you were to explain it to him. The nobility – royalty! - having a responsibility to the common people? To each other? He demonstrates his contempt of such ideas firstly when he laughs at Tyrion's advice, then insistence (reinforced with a few slaps, which is just what the little fuck needs) that he pay his respects to Lord and Lady Stark, and later, when he quite glibly lies about the encounter with Arya and her friend, placing all the blame on them and making himself the innocent party. Robert does however castigate him for having allowed a girl to disarm him: in the King's eyes, no female, no matter how skilled with a sword she may be, should be able to overcome a prince who has (presumably) trained in the weapons arts for all his life. His scorn does not go unnoticed by the boy, and if looks could kill...
Even when he has a chance to redeem himself somewhat, and accept defeat honourably (even if it is a girl who has bested him) he does not; he cries and whimpers like the child he is, terrified that he is going to be killed, begging for his life. What a prince!


Questions?
I'm going to include all previous questions here in this and future episodes. They will only be removed when I can provide answers for them, or if it becomes clear they will never be answered. I'll update the status as I go. Questions yet to be resolved will be shown in Red, those answered (before they're removed) in Green and those which look unlikely ever to be answered, or whose resolution we will have to wait a long time for, in blue.

Was the death of Jon Arryn a natural one, or is there reason to suspect, and if the latter, how do Cersei and Jaime Lannister fit into that? Status: Unproven as yet

Did Will actually see white walkers? We saw him watch something behead his friend, but what? Status: Unproven as yet

Will Viserys Targaryen gets his army? Will Khal Drogo lead his Dothraki across the Narrow Sea to help him retake his throne? Status: Yet to be resolved

Will Jon Snow join the Night's Watch? Status: Yes, he has decided to do so and is now on his way to the Wall.

Who is behind the attempted assassination of Bran? Status: Yet to be resolved

Will Bran remember what he saw, and if so, will he tell anyone? Status: Yet to be resolved

Will Tyrion, in fact, piss over the Wall? Status: Yet to be resolved

Will Lady Stark arrive at King's Landing in time to warn her husband of her suspicions about the Lannisters? Status: Yet to be resolved

So, how does this second episode measure up to the account in the novel? Well, first of all there's a semi-plan between Joffrey and the Hound to kill one of the direwolves, as the noise of their howling is disturbing the poor delicate little prince. “Send a hound to kill a hound!” he exclaims in childish joy, but Tyrion dissuades him, telling him “The Starks can count beyond six” adding “Unlike some princes I could name.” Nice one. Also, when Tyrion appears the Hound makes a rare joke, proclaiming that his is a voice out of nowhere, as he can't see him, Tyrion being so small. This, perhaps, was removed because they didn't want to give the Hound any sort of jocularity at this point, and have him being a threatening, brooding, looming figure, and nothing else. There's also reference made to the fact that Jaime Lannister tends to take little seriously, painting him as something of a clown, which might be inaccurate and certainly a dangerous assumption to make. Cersei also voices her dislike of the direwolves, declaring she will have none of them come with them to King's Landing. At the end of the episode, she gets her wish then, doesn't she? Not that the encounter with Arya could have been set up by her, but she certainly takes full advantage of the opportunity it affords her. One direwolf run off, one dead, leaves none to come to King's Landing.
There's a much harsher exchange between Catelyn and Jon Snow as he takes his leave of Bran. She admits, in a moment of weakness, that she blames herself for her son's condition, saying that she had prayed to the gods that he could be left here and not have to go to King's Landing with his father, and Jon tries to comfort her but she snarls “I need none of your absolution, bastard.” Well, fuck you too then! She also tells him, before he leaves, that it should have been him who is lying in the bed, close to death. Not quite sure how she figured that one out. Bran was the climber, and Jon wasn't anywhere near the tower. Obviously she just means that if she has to lose a son, she would rather it was him than Bran. His confrontation, as such, with Jaime before he leaves, where the Lannister man sneers at the very idea of the Night's Watch, is not in the book at all. As for Daenerys, she has a dream, before her wedding, of Viserys pursuing her, hurting her, and then suddenly a dragon appears. There's more information about Ned's being unfaithful to his wife: we learn that at the time Jon Snow was conceived, Catelyn was pregnant. We assume this to be Robb, as he is their eldest and Ned says “she was carrying my child”, making it pretty clear that it was his first. We also hear our first mention of Varys, the King's spymaster, who will come into the story soon enough, but has not done as yet.

There is extended information about Jorah Mormont; we're told he is working as a spy for Varys, sending information back to him on the Targaryens, and Robert discusses having Daernerys killed to remove the threat of any uprising. Ned is shocked; she is only a child. They touch on this very briefly in the episode, but here it's discussed more deeply. It's also revealed that when Robert had defeated Rhaegar Targaryen, he slew their children – one a mere baby - and Ned considered this a dishonourable act. When Ned tries to get Robert to name his nephew as Warden of the East, the King says that Arryn is a sickly child, and finally admits he has already promised the position to Jaime Lannister. We're told, too, that Jaime's father, Tywin Lannister, is already Warden of the West, and Ned worries that when Tywin dies, Jaime will then hold both the East and the West: too much power, he says, for one man.

The true extent of the Lannisters' treachery is made evident in the book, and one of the reasons why Ned hates them so much is cleared up. After ignoring calls to join Robert until the day was almost won, the Lannisters pretended to swear allegiance to the Mad King, who opened the gates of his city and was defeated when they turned on him. Ned does not like treachery or deceit: honour above all things is his way. And he knows that if the Lannisters changed sides once, they can easily do so again if it suits them. He is not happy they have such power in Robert's realm. Tyrion's fascination with dragons is explored here, though not yet in the series, not till much later. We're told his ancestors had experienced the terror of dragons firsthand when they stood against the Mad King, who unleashed the fearsome beasts upon them, destroying thousands of their men. Jon Snow's direwolf is called Ghost, but we don't find that out yet, and here, in the book, Ghost attacks Tyrion when he mistakenly takes a friendly approach for an assault. The introduction of Ser Barristan Selmy and Renly Baratheon is in the book, and Joffrey tells Sansa his sword is called Lion's Tooth.

In the court, Arya gives her version of the story, which she is not permitted to do (or at least, we don't see her doing: she's already before the King when Ned arrives) in the series. Cersei offers a king's ransom for the pelt of Nymeria, which she doesn't do on the show, and Ned tells Robert he should kill the direwolf himself (The man who passes the sentence should swing the sword) but he refuses and walks off. When Ned has despatched Lady, he orders her pelt be carried north to be buried, denying Cersei the pleasure of having her pelt. Bran's dream, whcih he has in the coma, in which he is able to fly, is not shown. In the book, he wakes and tells Robb the name of his direwolf, which is Summer, but his waking is not linked to the killing of Lady.


The Old Gods
Although no gods have as yet been named, we do hear Cersei tell Catelyn that she “prays to the Mother”, though I suppose what she tells Lady Stark she prays for, and what she actually does ask the goddess for are two separate and very different things. Nevertheless, we hear at least that one of the gods is called or known as The Mother, and that Cersei ostensibly prays to her. Whether this is a Lannister or Baratheon god, or something more general we at this point don't know.

Machinations

Just a small one this time, but Joffrey's plan to get back at Arya (and possibly Sansa, whom his twisted, cowardly little mind probably blames for not dealing with her sister and allowing her to attack him) is the stuff of evil itself. Whether he has realised that Lady will pay the price for Nymeria's attack on him or not is not clear, but it probably doesn't matter. Joffrey is not the sort to like animals, except on his dining table, and I'm sure he'd be happy that at least one of the Stark girls' pets is to die. His completely made-up version of events, however, which puts him in the right and everyone else as the aggressors, would fall apart if Sansa only had the balls to stand up to him and do her duty, speak the truth, but here she forgets her honour and instead opts for the easy way out, not supporting him but not denying his version either: the classic “I don't remember” strategy. She pays for this, to her horror, with the putting down of her own direwolf, and you'd have to wonder, if she had known in advance that this would be the outcome, would she have been so quick to step aside and take no sides?

As far as plots go, it's not one but Lady Stark plans to go to King's Landing, to warn Ned of the intrigues being plotted there, and the danger he may be in.

Then there's the plot to kill Bran. Surely orchestrated by Cersei and Jaime, who are both at table and equally aghast when Tyrion informs them that the boy will live.

And of course, Viserys Targaryen's ongoing scheme to bring a Dothraki army across the Narrow Sea and fight to take his crown back. This does not seem to be going as smoothly as he had originally hoped, and you have to start wondering if he even understands how badly his plan is foundering now.


The Game of Thrones Bodycount

Name: Mycah
Status: Butcher's boy
Mode of death: Execution
Killer: The Hound

Name: Lady
Status: Direwolf
Mode of death: Execution
Killer: Lord Stark

Name: Unknown
Status: Assassin
Mode of death: Throat torn out
Killer: Summer

Bodycount total: 7

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innerspaceboy

Sesame Street did a nice GoT sketch recently. Worth watching even if only for the Peter Dinklage muppet.

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