The first episode of After the Thrones, HBO’s own, in-house “Epic Weekly Recap Show,” has arrived. It will be available every Monday following a Game of Thrones episode on HBO on Demand, HBO Go, HBO Now, and HBO, which claims it will provide a “lively, humorous and sophisticated look” at the previous night’s episode. I wasn’t able to pin down an exact universal posting time for After the Thrones, but I did find it loaded and ready to go on HBO Go at 11:00 a.m. PT, Monday morning.
After the Thrones was created by executive producer Bill Simmons. Its hosts are author, screenwriter, and critic Andy Greenwald, and writer/editor Chris Ryan, from Simmons’ upcoming content site, The Ringer. Andy and Chris are joined by two guests, both ‘Amateur Maesters,’ Mallory Rubin and Jason Concepcione.
Andy Greenwald
Here’s how HBO introduces us to the show:
Each week, After the Thrones recaps the latest episode, explaining the who, what, when and where, exploring the complicated politics and history of Thrones, and offering absurd and not-so-absurd theories about future episodes.
Here’s how Andy and Chris introduce us to the show:
Chris: “This is After the Thrones. Every week we are going to be bringing you analysis, jokes, the who’s, the what’s, the when’s the where’s, the wtfs of this entire Game of Thrones Season 6.”
Andy: “This is the place for hopefully smart conversation, wild speculation, I pray some Dornish wine recommendations. Think of it this way: if Game of Thrones the show is Brienne of Tarth, we are Podrick.”
Chris Ryan
Immediately the Jon Snow subject is breached, with references to Joseph Campbell’s Hero’s Journey:
Chris: “Jon Snow is dead.”
Andy: “Yes, but that is not the important question. To my mind the important question is how and when is he coming back. Now, call me a member of the Faith Militant if you must, but I am a Jon Snow truther. I remain convinced that he will be in some shape or form this season … That’s the more interesting story to me anyway, the how and the why—not the what.”
Chris: “I’m patient. Jon Snow can lay down for a while (they wonder about what the sleep number might be on his slab). I want to get to know a little bit about the world around Jon Snow . . . The characters who are going to sorta step up to the center of the stage, into the spotlight, those are some of the most interesting characters we have.”
They take a look at character locations on their big GoT map (“the chessboard”), and watch a clip of Daenerys being served up to Khal Moro, the leader of a Dothraki khalasar that appears to love humor much more than Khal Drogo and his khalasar did. After discussion of the Dothraki ‘Golden Girls’ retirement home, Chris raises an interesting point regarding Drogon:
Chris: “It might seem like happenstance that Drogon took her (Dany) where he took her . . . but what if Drogon has a plan for Daenerys? And what if he thinks—and I know I’m imbuing a lot of personality into this winged beast, but what if he knows that to get her where she needs to go, which theoretically is west, she needs those Dothraki.”
What followed was a brief discussion of each character and where they are, with notes about how Tyrion is becoming really good at middle-management, Arya begging for the redistribution of wealth in Bravos, gory regime change in Dorne, and the emboldening of Jamie and Cersei through the death of Myrcella.
A nice fiery sword graphic with a lovely metal on metal schwing marks the arrival of a new segment. The boys ran a ‘Who Won the Week?‘ segment, and selected the Onion Knight, Ser Davos Seaworth, as the episode champ, because his character is now emerging as a frontman after being an empathetic soul lurking in the background for so long. He is someone to root for.
Another segment, titled ‘Who the F!#k was That?‘ takes a look at a character who suddenly pops out of extended obscurity. This week, Chris and Andy chose the pessimistic Dolorous Ed (Eddison Tollet), who is suddenly tasked with saving the group defending Jon Snow’s body.
Chris and Andy will have ‘The Big Idea‘ segment every week. Chris says: “. . . to look at what the episode was really about. What are the themes? What are the big ideas?” This week they talk about the role of women on the show and the potential rise to power of Ellaria, as well as the newfound union of Sansa and Brienne (my personal favorite scene of the week). This discussion was given extra time and depth and I thought it was the best part of the program.
The first guest arrived at about the two-thirds mark, Mallory Rubin, their very own ‘Mother of Dragons,’ and we find out that she was ‘literally cheering out loud” at the Sansa/Brienne oath of fealty scene, and provides a recap of Sansa’s journey through the show. They then dig into what they perceive as the power moving, finally, into the hands of some very battered but capable female players.
Chris: “Are we seeing a profound shift in the world of Game of Thrones, in of which women can only really avail themselves of soft power, to one where they can avail themselves of hard power?”
Mallory: “I think so. I think we’re seeing it in two places. We’re seeing it in Dorne with Ellaria and the Sand Snakes physically removing the threat, removing the opposition, but also Brienne, who has always been the physical manifestation of a powerful, strong woman. We know she has an amazing Valyrian steel sword, but a man gave it to her; she has armor, but a man gave it to her. One thing she has really never had is a sense of belonging and self-worth, until right now.”
The next segment is titled ‘Ask the Expert,’ with guest Jason Concepcion, and here the group delves into the importance of another female character, Melisandre, with her glamour-powered necklace and her confused prophesy timeline. They raise the question: “is she for real or is she a charlatan?”
The next segment is titled ‘Preview,’ and, obviously, the four members of the show make predictions about what big questions will be answered this year, plus “what is the best area to live in Game of Thrones?” (Answer: Dorne, but . . . nowhere, kind of—it gets muddled.)
I enjoyed After the Thrones. I laughed out loud several times, and the program ran briskly. I’d say the show looks like it is going to prove to be a good, light-hearted discussion of the HBO series, which is exactly what HBO intends. The hosts are amicable and well-spoken, it has maps, shows clips, analysis, the aforementioned humor, and a nice understated set. I’d prefer that the show find places to dig deeper here and there and do I think the hosts are willing to tackle meatier subjects as they come along; they had a good start with this week’s look at the role of women on GoT thus far. This nice potential appeared in its second half where extra time allowed for more serious discussion. As minor criticisms, the premiere installment suffers some problems all first shows have, such as feeling like it’s locked a little too tightly into format, but these guys (and girl) were already loosening up as the show went on.
Via http://winteriscoming.net/2016/04/26/recap-after-the-thrones-hbos-new-epic-weekly-recap-show-episode-one/
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