Unsullied Recap, Game of Thrones Season 6 Episode 1: The Red Woman

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OH my… the night is dark and full of barers.

Finally, the long dark night has come to an end and the wait is over. Season 6’s opener brought us a few answers, a few odd inquiries, a couple of shockers, and a non-animated version of what someone might look like that is experiencing the Rapunzel effect.

Sit back and take a breath. The next wait is a manageable six days, and we got some recappin’ to do…

Welcome all to the Unsullied recap. In this peculiar day and age, Unsullied not only refers to non-book readers, but also encompasses those who have chosen not to seek out spoilers and leaks during the off-season. Once again, your virgin eyes and ears shall remain unmolested in the posts of Oz.

I am seeing the episode the same time as most of you are… on Sunday nights, accompanied only by Ozzette and an adult beverage.

So let’s hit it.

The Wall

As it should, The Red Woman opens with Jon still lying in the snow as the howls of Ghost echo in the background. This alerts Davos who finds Jon and quickly gets him to a room with the help of Edd and a few other supporting Crows. Davos seems to see something in the blood in the snow, but he could have been simply recognizing how much blood Jon had lost and that he is likely gone.

Red Velvet enters the room like a woman who has lost the will to live. Her confusion as to the fate of Stannis seems to be enhanced by the death of Jon as she mentions that she witnessed him in the flames fighting at Winterfell,

Meanwhile, Thorne holds a meeting with the remainder of the Crows to explain his actions and to garner support for what he and the other officers have done. And it seems to be effective.

Edd and Davos discuss how to avenge their friend. Realizing they don’t have the numbers to fight the remaining crows, Edd sets out to rally the support of the Wildlings.

Winterfell

A few miles south, Ramsay frets over the death of Myranda and for a brief moment seems genuinely disturbed over her demise. Of course, his true colors are once again displayed as he recommends that she be used as Puppy Chow for the hungry hounds instead of a proper burial or pyre.

A meeting with Roose ensues where Ramsay is praised for his help in defeating Stannis. But in true Bolton form, Roose turns the praise into condemnation for the escape of Theon and Sansa and tells Ramsay that if he doesn’t have a wife, he won’t have an heir. But most importantly, the Boltons won’t have the backing of the North. Again, Roose brings up the fact that Fat Walda is expected to have a boy.

The question that comes to my mind from this exchange is could Ramsay feel threatened enough to murder Roose in order to protect his claim?

You’re damn right he could.

But for a moment, it didn’t look like it would be a factor as the Bolton men pursue Theon and Sansa into the river and through the woods and corner them. Then, Ozzette’s first burst off the couch of the season occurred as Brienne and Pod appear for the save. I was more impressed that Pod made a kill than anything.

After the melee is concluded, Brienne once again vows to protect Sansa, only this time, Sansa wisely accepts.

Where do they go now? Going to the Wall to see Jon seems to be the right answer to them. But as we know, that’s wrong.

King’s Landing

Jaime arrives back in KL with the body of Myrcella. Somewhat surprisingly, Cersei does not send Jaime to a Flea Bottom doghouse instead citing the prophecy passed to her by the witch at the beginning of Season 5. Considering everything else from the witch has come to fruition, the future of Tommen doesn’t look to promising.

Judging by the words she said to Jaime, Cersei’s plight seems to have transformed her demeanor and is yet another testament to the acting skills of Lena Headey to be able to sell it.

Jaime exclaims that they will take back everything that they have lost foreshadowing a clash between them and the faith militant.

Meanwhile, Margaery inquires about the well-being of her brother as she continues to reside in a cell at the High Sparrow Inn. Of course, she gets no info as only a confession will get her release and the information she seeks.

I have to say this for Marg: she seems to be handling the incarceration incredibly well and markedly better than Cersei. I think this implies that Marg is a very strong-minded, resilient woman even though she admits that she is not without sin to the High Sparrow.

Dorne

We head back to everyone’s favorite show destination to see what’s happening with Doran, Ellaria, and the Sand Snakes and find all to be in a pretty good disposition until the maester drops a written bomb. At this point, Ellaria surely knows that it’s either her ass or Doran’s and takes action. As a result, our first notable character deaths are logged for Season 6.

The quick deaths of Doran and Areo were not necessarily shocking as much as they were unexpected this early on in Ep. 1. Trystane on the other hand…

So, I can only assume that Trystane was left on the boat most likely to give Jaime time to break the bad news to Cersei before making the awkward introductions. But then two of the snakes magically appear on the boat. Obviously, I understand the importance of killing the heir to Dorne. I guess they jumped on a boat that followed Jaime all the way to Kings Landing?

And what now? Is Dorne declaring war? Or was this simply payback and now Ellaria and the Snakes live out the rest of their lives in exotic bliss never to be seen again?

Meereen

Tyrion and Varys tour the city to assess the environment that remains since the Harpy attack at Daznak’s pit and now that the Queen is missing. In short, it’s not promising and the duo look to have their hands full while Dany is away. I believe this will eventually lead to Tyrion at least making an attempt to free the dragons as a last resort as conditions continue to deteriorate. Will the person we see behind the door that overheard their conversation come back to haunt them?

Oh, and someone torched the fleet all but guaranteeing that Dany and the Dragoneers won’t be headed to Westeros any time soon.

Meanwhile, Jorah and Daario rummage the countryside looking for their Queen and find that she has been taken by a Dothraki Horde.

Dany finds herself as a slave entering into a Dothraki camp to meet Khal Moro. Her situation seems dire until the Khal discovers that she was married to Khal Drogo. But when Dany asks to be escorted back to Meereen, she is informed that Khal widows are made to stay in Vaes Dothrak at some type of exotic widow’s convent.

If you’ve watched the trailers, you know that at some point a dragon shadow is seen flying over what is likely Vaes Dothrak. Hopefully, Dany’s presumed escape amounts to a little more than Drogon setting everyone on fire.

Braavos

In a brief scene, we find blind Arya begging on the street and still punished with blindness. She is approached by the Waif who challenges her to a duel.  It is unknown how long this punishment will persist, but Arya is once again put in a situation that will potentially make her a better fighter as she learns to use her other senses in order to survive.

The Wall

We end up back where we started as Thorne commands Davos and the supporting Crows to surrender or promising bloodshed.

Finally, we find Melisandre in her chambers and unsurprisingly disrobing. But when the necklace comes off, we discover that Red Velvet is more of a Red Crepe. I can only assume this was inserted to demonstrate the power of the Lord of Light. At first, Ozzette and I both thought she was laying down to die. But the more I think about it, this is probably just the nightly ritual of Melisandre, even in her dispirited state. And after all that she has been through, this poor old lady deserves a nap.

Episode 601 Personal Awards

Favorite Action Sequence: Pod kills a Bolton soldier!

Favorite Quotes:

“Buried? Burned? She’s good meat. Feed her to the hounds.” –Ramsay

“From her first breath, she was so sweet. I don’t know where she came from. She was nothing like me.” –Cersei on Myrcella

“Your mother is a brilliant woman, you know that?” -Doran

“It’s a good thing you’re not a boy anymore. Because you have no cock.” -Tyrion

Favorite Sentimental Moment: Theon’s hug and comforting of Sansa.

Ow, That Shit Hurts Award: Damn, Trystane got the mother of all sinus cleanses with the sword through the nostrils. Maybe nasal irrigation isn’t so bad after all.

Jackass Award: Tough call, but I’ll go with the all-time leader in Jackass award nominees, Alliser Thorne, for being a damn good persuader to the Crows and running Davos off with the promise of mutton and the Red Crepe (if he wants her).

Overall Thoughts: Solid first episode with some good story arc continuation and decent action sequences.

Unfortunately, Dorne seems to have also picked up where it left off. I thought the acting from the Dorne players was actually improved. But that’s a big man who seemed to go down hard with such a small dagger. Doran lasted longer than Areo did, and that was with Ellaria acting like she was gutting a fish.

My only other major complaint was with a synopsis I saw that said, “The fate of Jon Snow is revealed.”

Was it? If his fate is that he is dead and he remains dead, then I suppose it is a true statement. Otherwise, no.

A man is also not sure why the episode ended the way it did, but hell, it’s the first episode. And it was better than ending with a Dorne death.

That’s a wrap for me today, Ladies and Sers! We’re giving away a WotW prize package and you still have time to enter. So go do it.

Until next week, hang out and stay awhile. Invite an Unsullied to join us. If you’ve never commented, there’s no time like the present. Tell me your thoughts, and may there always be peace in your realm. –Oz

Find Oz on Twitter.

**SPOILER NOTE: The Management of this fine site would like to remind you that spoilers (book or leak) are not allowed in Unsullied posts. This includes spoilers that may be covered by code or otherwise. Personally, I appreciate feedback from Sullied and Unsullied alike, so long as they do not include any type of hinting or conversation related to the written verse. However, spoiler coded comments do tend to lead to further Sullied conversation and for that reason, we ask that you please refrain from posting any SPOILERY content whatsoever in Unsullied posts. Thank you for the coop. -Oz

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