Spoiler note: “A girl says nothing. A girl keeps her mouth closed. No one hears.” —Girls, boys, and everyone alike, Jaqen H’ghar has spoken, so please remember: This recap is primarily for non-book readers (book fans can discuss the show here). If you’re a book reader, please avoid posting any spoilers here so as not to ruin the fun for those who don’t know what’s coming next. Thank you!
Now that I’ve jogged around my house three times to release all the pent-up energy with which that episode poisoned me, let’s take a closer look at what this week brought us.
It’s been a solid season since we last saw Bran, so it’s only fitting that he’d open the episode with one of the visions we’ve heard so much about in the off-season. He and the Three-Eyed Raven are overlooking the yard at Winterfell, reminiscent of Scrooge and his many spectral guides through the past, present, and future, although Bran generally has a better attitude. He’s certainly happier in this memory than we’ve seen him in some time, as he indulges in the sight of his father, Uncle Benjen, Aunt Lyanna, and Hodor (formerly known as Willas), all of whom are young and unburdened by the tragedies that will unfold soon enough. Much like a young Harry Potter when he first stumbles across the Mirror of Erised, Bran is so entranced by the pure goodness of the past that the Three-Eyed Raven must force him out of it.
Outside the cave in which Bran takes these trips down memory lane, Meera Reed presumably continues to grieve for Jojen, who she was forced to mercy-kill the last time we saw her. She seems to be at a loss as to what she’s supposed to do now, but one of the slightly terrifying tree children assures her that war is coming, and that Bran will need her when it does. This suggests a big-picture purpose for Bran, which is enough to intrigue me.
Elsewhere amidst the cold and the snow, another couple of murders are about to take place at Castle Black when Jon’s guard refuses to leave his body. But just as Alliser Thorne and his traitorous crew are about to break down the door, the door to the castle is taken out first, as Wun Wun the giant leads a merry band of wildlings onto the scene. Too fearful of the adorably named but intimidating Wun Wun, the Night’s Watch falls easily under the control of the wildlings, who toss Thorne and the other mutineers into the cells at Edd’s command. As Tormund is part of the “Jon Snow is actually dead” brigade, he decrees that Jon’s body is to be burned as soon as they gather enough firewood to do the deed.
Not everyone is concerned about the goings-on up North, though, as down south in King’s Landing everyone is too preoccupied listening to some dudebro peasant’s account of Cersei’s walk of shame. He brazenly claims that she took a sexual fancy to him during perhaps the most traumatic time of her life, and it’s clear I’m not alone in my incredulity as plenty of onscreen onlookers shake their heads or roll their eyes. But no matter—the reanimated Mountain proves his worth while out for a little stroll, and splatters the dudebro’s brains over the nearest wall. He returns to the Red Keep to accompany Cersei to Myrcella’s funeral, but they soon find that the dishonored queen regent won’t be going anywhere. On Tommen’s order, the guards will not allow Cersei to leave the safety of the castle, and she is resigned enough to the command that she returns to her chambers to mourn her daughter privately.
Tommen and Jaime, meanwhile, pay their respects to Myrcella in the sept, where Tommen acknowledges his power and laments his uselessness. We can only hope that means he’s going to take the action he wants to take, but as soon as he tries by demanding to see his wife, the High Sparrow refuses him. The man enters the sept, sanctimonious as ever, and the first thing he does is deny the king his wish to see the queen; as Jaime says, the High Sparrow really is a bold man.
But boldness is easy when your benefactor has proven he can be bulldozed, and Tommen has done just that. That’s why it’s so easy for the High Sparrow to stare down the end of Jaime’s sword, because even without the power that wealth and nobility can buy, he and his band of insufferable monks “can overthrow an empire.”
Hopefully not for long, though, as Tommen is starting to take the phrase “put up or shut up” more to heart. There’s a little more spark to him when he goes to Cersei and tells her, “I should have executed all of them. I should have pulled down the sept onto the High Sparrow’s head before I let them do that to you.” Well, hindsight’s 20/20, my dear baby king, but let’s hope your mother is emotionally stable enough to advise you as you’ve asked her to. My guess is that she’s not (understandably so) and this will lead to Tommen’s inevitable demise, but for now at least he’s going out swingin’.
Political upheaval continues its reign all the way across the Narrow Sea in Meereen, where Tyrion, Varys, Missandei, and Grey Worm hold council. We learn that the surrounding cities that Daenerys had conquered and liberated have fallen back into old habits: the masters have once again risen to power, and slavery has been reestablished. This really hasn’t been Dany’s year so far, but it’s early yet, and Tyrion decides to hit the accelerator on their success because he drinks and he knows things, and what he knows is that it’s time to let loose the dragons.
Varys leads him to the catacombs, where Tyrion introduces himself to Rhaegal and Viserion as “a friend of your mother’s” like an awkward new boyfriend to suspicious children. He regales the dragons with an emotional story about how badly he wanted one as a boy, despite the rumors that they were dead and gone, and releases them from their chains (sans Drogon, of course, who’s already free and running amok on what I can only assume is some sort of dragon Rumspringa). Visibly shaken after the encounter, Tyrion tells Varys, “Next time I have an idea like that, punch me in the face,” which I find even more relatable than his drinking and knowing things, because that’s what I say to my friends whenever my most recent relationship ends.
Meanwhile, in Braavos, Arya really is getting punched in the face during another duel with busted Kimmy Gibbler. Because she’s no cyclops, she isn’t convinced by Arya’s Odysseus impression when she insists she’s “no one,” which ends in a stick to the face and the gut. But when White Jesus impersonator Jaqen H’ghar shows up to tempt Arya with shelter, food, and sight, if only she would tell him her name, she is steadfast and strong and tells him that “a girl has no name.” Seemingly pleased, Jaqen bids that she accompany him away from the streets she was forced to beg on, and we can only hope that Arya’s burgeoning mental fortitude will prove just as life-saving as her physical strength always has.
Things may be looking up for Arya Stark, but her family’s enemies are floundering up North. Ramsay is clearly embarrassed that Sansa and Theon escaped his clutches once more, leaving his proclaimed “best men” all dead in the snow. And when Ramsay suggests they storm Castle Black and kill Jon Snow to recapture Sansa, Roose balks and claims that murdering the Lord Commander would unite the entire North against them—as if the North isn’t already.
But it seems that the North remembers in more ways than one, as the new Lord Karstark pledges his house’s loyalty to the Boltons in light of the fact that Robb Stark beheaded Rickard Karstark back in Season 3. I certainly understand why the Karstarks no longer have love for the Starks, but Ramsay names two other houses loyal to their cause as well, and you have to wonder what their deal is. This is especially concerning because one of the families Ramsay mentions is House Umber and—as my friend Sarah pointed out to me—isn’t… that… where… Rickon… is…?
There’s little time to mull over that in the moment, though, as the maester comes to announce that Lady Walda has just given birth to a boy. Ramsay embraces his father in faux-congratulations, and nothing proves its fauxness like the knife in Roose’s chest. I, for one, screamed like I’d been the one stabbed; I did not see that coming. Roose was the only person who could exercise control over Ramsay, and it seemed that that control was finite. But I guess when the stakes got too high for Ramsay to handle, he just threw his hands up in the air and said, “hey-oh, gotta kill my daddy-oh.”
Ramsay being Ramsay, he doesn’t stop there. He leads Walda and her newborn into the kennels, where she begs for mercy in an impressively dignified way, all things considered, but Ramsay lets loose a menacing whistle and sets the dogs on her and her son. While not as unexpected as Ramsay gutting his father, all I can say is, poor Walda. She came from a bad family, but all she ever tried to do was make the best of her situation, and Ramsay led her into one that she couldn’t win. It’s not the first infanticide we’ve seen on the show, either, but it’s as horrific as all the rest. When Ramsay falls, gods be good, he’ll fall hard.
Still on the run from his boundless cruelty, Sansa receives good news from Brienne: Arya is alive and well, and just as much herself as she’s ever been. It’s a rather mighty contradiction of Arya’s situation as we know it, but the knowledge that her younger siblings are within reach will likely fuel Sansa to her victory; she wants her family back, and that’s attainable as long as she knows they’re still out there. Brienne then shakes Sansa’s relief by asking her what happened at Winterfell, a factoid I mention only based on Gwendoline Christie’s and Sophie Turner’s performance during those few seconds. They say nothing after Brienne’s question, but their expressions tell the story that they can’t speak aloud; it’s a heartbreaking silence, but there’s so much strength and hopefulness in the mere fact that Sansa has survived, and there’s something immensely gratifying in that. Christie and Turner knock these emotional scenes out of the park in ways that linger long after the credits roll.
While Brienne forges this bond and vow to protect Sansa, Theon takes a step back from her. Although they have survived great traumas together, Theon still grieves over his crimes against the Starks, and he announces that he will leave Sansa in Brienne and Pod’s care—he would have died to see her to safety, but they can protect her better than he can—but it’s time for him to go home.
Theon’s home is faring none-too-well, as we learn that the Iron Islands have lost all their mainland strongholds, and the rift between Lord Balon Greyjoy and his daughter Yara widens due to their combatting feelings for Theon. Following what is surely the dozenth argument on the subject, Balon takes an ill-advised walk on a bridge in the middle of a storm, where he meets a cloaked figure who turns out to be his brother—one Euron Greyjoy, as we know from the show’s official casting. They have some unfriendly banter in which Euron calls himself “the drowned god” and “the storm,” all of which seems kind of blasphemous in regards to their religion, but then Euron stabs his brother and tosses him, assisted-somersault style, over the edge of the bridge, so clearly this guy isn’t playing with a full deck of morals.
Later, during Balon’s funeral, Yara swears that she will avenge him—as soon as she finds the culprit behind his death—but she’s told by the old geezer who presided over the ceremony that it’s not her place unless she wins the “salt throne.” As if these people need another throne to fight over. So much familial discord, so little time, but I do hope Yara comes out on top in this case.
We’re brought back to Castle Black for the final stretch, and what a stretch it is. Despite Melisandre’s newfound lack of faith in everything she once believed, Davos convinces her to attempt Jon’s resurrection. She claims that she doesn’t have the power, that everything she thought the Lord of Light told her was a lie, and it’s truly disillusioning to see Melisandre at her lowest point. We know her as confidant and unshakeable, but her latest appearances have proven that, though magical she may be, she’s just as human and breakable as anyone else. The Lord of Light failed her, but Davos says to hell with it. He’s not asking the Lord of Light for help—he’s asking her.
And so, with the final vestiges of her faith, Melisandre attempts what she’s never attempted before, what she thought she never had the power to do: restore life. But as invigorating as a nice wash and head massage can be, even accompanied by the chanting of a magical priestess, the process appears to do nothing to tempt Jon Snow’s lost soul back into the land of the living. Tormund loses faith first, followed by Melisandre herself, then Edd, and finally by Davos, who closes the door behind their retreating backs.
All is quiet, save for the flickering firelight and Ghost’s questioning whimper, and then—BAM! Jon’s eyes shoot open and he’s gasping for air like he’s just been saved from drowning. The credits roll, and we all invented new celebratory swear words and broke the internet in our jubilation.
How’s your heart rate, my Unsullied friends? Is Jon’s resurrection everything you’d hoped it would be, or did you have a different idea of how it would go down? Considering Cersei’s unraveling emotional state, will she able to properly counsel her son? Who knew there was more to Hodor than just “Hodor,” and what will Bran’s visions reveal next? Now that Balon Greyjoy is dead, what will Theon’s homecoming look like? Will the North remember the Starks, or will Sansa have to force them to do so? Will the dragons react favorably to their new freedom, or does Tyrion really need that punch to the face?
Remember—speculation is encouraged, spoilers aren’t! Please refrain from posting book spoilers here! Feel free to discuss the episode in the comments or Tweet me @kattymaj, but don’t ruin any surprises for the viewers who haven’t read the books. While the show has largely diverged from its source material, you never know what details will crop up later. Thanks, and see you next week!
Via http://winteriscoming.net/2016/05/02/unsullied-recap-game-of-thrones-episode-602-home/
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