Game of Thrones: High Sparrow Review

There was a lot going on in “High Sparrow”, moreso than in the previous two episodes. Although some might consider this episode to be too busy, there wasn’t a dull moment to be had. Things are heating up in season 5, so let’s break down what it means to our favorite characters.

Sansa Stark
Out of everything that happened in this episode, this was the most confusing. Why in the world would Sansa ever accept a marriage to a Bolton after the Red Wedding? It seems preposterous. The fact that it’s Ramsay Bolton is all the more perplexing. I’m no fan of Sansa, but Ramsay is a completely sadistic monster. I am also perplexed by Little Finger setting the marriage up. I was certain that he wanted to keep Sansa for himself. Does he realize just how psychopathic Ramsay is? It’s obvious Little Finger is power hungry, but his one weakness always seemed to be Catelyn and then Sansa after her death.

Arya Stark
Not a whole lot seems to happen in the House of Black and White, but Arya certainly manages to keep it clean. After all of the tragedy Arya has gone through, it appears that she is looking for more out of life and hopes the Faceless Men can provide it to her, although Jaqen H’ghar won’t give her what she’s looking for unless she let’s go of her past. That happens when Arya tosses her clothes and coins into the river. When this was going on, I was yelling at the television screen to convince her not to get rid of Needle. She did exactly what I would have done—hide it in a safe place where no one can find it, but have it available in case she needs it again.

Brienne
Brienne showed a little more humanity in this episode in her conversation with Pod and how she came into Renly’s service. I liked this exchange between the two characters, and it gave me more reason to care about her after her poor performance in recent episodes.

Cersei Lannister
I was quite amused with the gamesmanship between Cersei and her new daughter-in-law, Margaery, who are battling it out for control of Tommen, the new king. Tommen is the polar opposite of Joffrey, who was a kindred spirit to Ramsay Bolton. Cersei is trying to control Tommen through sentiment, and Margaery is trying to control him through sex. Sorry Cersei, you’re fighting a seriously losing battle. And what’s up with the wedding between Maergery and Tommen? Nobody died? How utterly disappointing.

Jon Snow
Jon Snow showed what kind of bad ass leader he’s going to be. First he stands up to King Stannis, showing that he’s going to be his own man and will not bend to the will of the king. Then when Janos Slynt defied his order, Jon beheaded the bastard. This was the first semi-shocking moment of the season. Just when I thought Jon was going to show him mercy after Janos was begging for it, he chopped off his head with one swipe. That was a great Game of Thrones moment.

Tyrion Lannister
Oh, Tyrion. Why didn’t you just listen to Varys? Of course, somebody was going to recognize him. In this case, it was a totally down and out Jorah Mormont. My guess is that Tyrion will convince Jorah that if he brings him to Daenarys, that she will take him back into her inner circle. Tyrion will outbattle Jorah in a battle of wits any day, so I’m guessing he gets himself out of this little mess.

Good episode. This one found me wanting more.