Game of Thrones Recap: Home
A not so surprising twist, and the death of two uninteresting and forgettable characters. That pretty much sums up the second episode in the new season. I’ll save the twist for last.
First to the East:
The cities of Slaver’s Bay are not living in a golden age of liberty. Without the Breaker of Chains and a lot of help from the unsullied, the slaves are pacified and the masters regain control. Tyrion unchained the dragons, which was incredibly stupid. Other than that, no change here.
Her struggles and inability to liberate Slaver Bay supports the arguments against nation-building and regime change. Americans are pretty supportive of this notion, despite our utter disgust at slavery and the horrible cultural practices in Meereen and elsewhere. Can we look away as these cities continue to fall back into their old backward ways? Should Queen Daenerys simply say “fuck it” and let them be miserable? Only now she has no fleet… Guess she’s stuck there. It also means she needs to find a way to put an end to this cycle and ensure her rule remains stable. No easy solutions here but a lot of potential for drama in this great challenge.
As expected Arya is welcomed back into the House of Black and White. Seriously, did anyone else think she’d be on the street for long? Another predictable plot point.
King Tommen apologized to his mother and acknowledged his weakness in the face of the Sparrows. The conflict between royalty and religion, is an interesting take on our tradition of separating church and state. Prior to the Sparrows, the throne and the High Sept worked together, sharing power and supporting one another. Religious tenets were bent and broken by royalty, while the faith did their best to encourage the peasants to accept bad government. The throne supported and protected the High Septon in return. Now that alliance is gone and we may see a religious war take place in King’s Landing.
Cersei and Jaime are definitely in favor of moving against the Sparrows. They have the manpower and will, but need to restore the old priesthood into power. There is risk the peasants may not stand back and let their temple fall. Of course, the commoners of King’s Landing do not appear to be the pious type. I think King Tommen and his parents can accomplish this with little trouble.
What to do with the Tyrells? To ensure the throne, Cersei must drop her feud with Queen Marjaery. Ser Loras must be freed as well, and will return to Highgarden in all likelihood. How to ensure the security of the alliance and that Cersei cannot do that again? Destroy the Sparrows is a good start but I would think the Tyrells will want more assurance. Another possibility, once Marjaery and Loras are free the alliance exists in name only. Efforts will be made to kill Tommen and end the alliance through marriage. Either that or have the marriage annulled somehow.
Cersei doesn’t drop feuds easily. Plus the most obvious way to proceed is for her to marry Ser Loras. Not likely.
We got nothing new from Dorne. I expect They will have to make move soon. There is no Lord there as of now, plus they are responsible for the death of the king’s sister.
Balon Greyjoy is dead, murdered by his brother. Who cares? Also Roose Bolton is murdered by his son Ramsey. Whoop-de-do. That puts the North squarely in his hands. He has no heir and his wife has fled to Castle Black. Theon heads for the Iron Islands where we may see a tearful reunion and alliance with his sister Asha. One has cause to rejoice in their father’s death while another seeks revenge.
Overall, I do not think any of the characters in this story line are of interest anymore. Good luck getting fans to care.
And oh yeah, Jon Snow is alive!!!
The prayer from the Red Priestess worked. As we saw in the Brotherhood Without Banners, you can bring people back from the dead by saying the right words. This magical inclusion comes with some plot complications if it is a power without limits. With the backing of the Wildlings and Ser Davos, Castle Black is now returned to him. The threat of the white walkers lingers.
There are two possible sources of conflict going forward: (1) Ser Davos learns the Red Priestess encouraged the sacrifice of Stannis’s daughter and (2) Ser Davos learns Brienne executed Stannis. All three are on death watch.
So, that is all I got for this update. Not much going on except two irrelevant deaths and a predictable resurrection.
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