Photo: gameofthrones.wikia.com
Throughout the first season of Game of Thrones, with the rise and fall of House Stark, we were frequently told that “Winter is Coming.”
In season 2, it was still not quite winter but something else ominous was on the horizon, and fans were warned before the season premiere ever aired:
This was one of HBO’s teaser posters released in advance of season 2. (The official key poster art featured a similar theme, but with the stag crown and a dramatic hand. Some of us in the fandom took to calling it the Triumphant Jesus poster.) The message was simple: War is Coming. Be ready.
The unstable new king of Westeros is the product of incest, and his mother helped murder the previous king. In the North, Robb has been crowned, while across the Narrow Sea, Daenerys rises from the ashes of her husband’s pyre with three baby dragons. On Dragonstone, we meet Stannis Baratheon, Robert’s younger brother and true heir, along with a fire-bearing priestess who burns the gods. And in the skies above them all is a red comet, a burning omen that takes on varying significance for many of them.
Between the dragons, the comet, and the Red god, you almost forget to worry about the White Walkers for a while.
In “The North Remembers,” after the TV-history-making execution of Ned Stark, Game of Thrones now had to move forward without Sean Bean’s steady protagonist at its center. Joffrey’s impetuous action led to a seismic shift in Westeros and in the story. The young king doesn’t have the strength of his (presumed-in-the-public-eye) father Robert, and soon the nobles of the continent are tearing one another apart and taking sides in a battle for the throne.
In this episode, written by David Benioff and D.B. Weiss and directed by Alan Taylor, the characters and we the audience have to adapt to a post-Ned world. And that’s when the political story really begins. With the scattering of House Stark, we begin to see the first season was really just a prologue. Now, we’re off and running.
The premiere features several characters adjusting to their new roles in regards to power. Tyrion Lannister, assigned by his father to play Hand of the King, finds the part to his liking. Joffrey redecorates the Throne Room and abuses his position as a king at his nameday celebration, nearly killing a drunken knight until Sansa’s wits save the man. Bran’s gifts continue to develop as he experiences a wolf dream. Robb has a decision to make, whether or not to use his Kingslayer captive to trade for his sisters. Daenerys must become a leader and look after her remaining followers as they travel through the dangerous Red Waste. Cersei reminds Littlefinger very bluntly about the definition of power, shaking up the usually confident player.
The new characters we meet on Dragonstone are involved in a fascinating internal power struggle that structures the episode. Loyal old Maester Cressen is afraid of the priestess and her influence over Stannis; her burning of the Seven on the beach has unnerved him and Davos Seaworth both. That Melisandre has power seems obvious- but will it bring Stannis greatness or ruin?
The maester makes a fatal move, vastly underestimating what Melisandre is capable of. Davos Seaworth witnesses her drink the poison along with Cressen. The maester dies, and Melisandre is unhurt. This incident sets the stage for their conflict over Stannis that will recur until the king dies in season 5, with Melisandre’s vision for him unfulfilled. She has great power, but there are flaws in the application and interpretation of it, as we’ll learn.
The examination of power- its benefits, joys, conflicts and costs- is one of the show’s main themes, and “The North Remembers” is a strong meditation on the subject.
One final thought: a major question for everyone going into the second season: without the leading character of Ned at the center, would fans still be along for the ride?
The answer of course was yes. Killing the man on the poster in season 1 (the heart of the story, we thought) was brilliant. Readers were hooked when George R.R. Martin did it, and viewers, however outraged, couldn’t help but be sucked in even more after the show carried it out.
Introductions: the Dragonstone gang including Stannis Baratheon, Melisandre, Davos Seaworth and his son Matthos. Jaime’s ill-fated cousin Alton Lannister turns up here. Craster and his daughter-wife Gilly are introduced when Jon and Sam go beyond the Wall, and we see Dolorous Edd for the first time. Ser Dontos Hollard makes a splash at the nameday party. Kovarro pops up in Dany’s khalasar. Daisy joins the brothel gang- it’s not going to end well for her.
Also joining the show this year: Iceland and Croatia! The breathtaking snowy lands of the far North that Jon and Sam come across are genuine sights in Iceland. Croatia was added to the location roster, stepping in for Malta. Dubrovnik’s Old Town is very recognizable as King’s Landing, and many cities and sites throughout the country have become a part of Westeros and Essos since season 2.
Deaths: Poor Maester Cressen, played wonderfully by Oliver Ford Davies. Davies is very well known for his theater work, and for playing Sio Bibble in the Star Wars prequels. Summer departed in this episode- summer as in the season. The maesters send word that summer is over. Silver, Dany’s horse gifted from Drogo dies in the Red Waste. This is also the last we will see of Rakharo alive. In the next episode, all that appears is a head. In a shocking finale, all of Robert’s bastards in King’s Landing that can be located are murdered.
Maester Cressen’s poisonous Beautiful Death:
We were all stoked to see Stannis in season 2. And some people (a lot of people) were very ready for him. Right, Bex?
The episode title, as well as being something of a reference to Tyrion saying ‘The Northerners will never forget,” is a famous quote from the books. The phrase was featured on a pre-season teaser poster. It’s an expression we’ll see called back again on the show in season 5:
A Season 2 premiere-era favorite of mine: “Celebrity Story Time: Game of Thrones Author George R. R. Martin Reads Children’s Stories” (No, not really GRRM but damned accurate.)
The post Game of Thrones Memory Lane 201: The North Remembers appeared first on Watchers on the Wall.
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