I have been pro-House Targaryen since season one. That has always been the house I chose to swear my fealty to (with House Stark a very close – almost insignificantly so – second). Which means I have been staunchly Team Daenerys for as long as this show has been on the air. I have wanted her to reclaim the Iron Throne for years. I have loved her and I have cheered her on and dismissed claims from other fans about her being an egomaniac. But not anymore.
By the gods she was an insufferable tw*t for a lot of this episode. Hell, she’d been so (for me) since she said that Jon needed to come to Dragonstone and bend the knee. I’m pretty sure that the only reason I’ve come to notice this about her was because she was doing it to Jon, whose been my favourite character since Ned was executed.
I was so annoyed with her when she had the audience with Jon. Purposely calling him “my lord” and not “your grace”, asking him why he was there if he hadn’t come to bend the knee, rolling her eyes and making faces at basically everything he said, pointing out her dragons and the presence of the Dothraki as if to say she’s untouchable…She needs to be taken down several pegs.
Which is why I’m glad that both Jon and Davos put her in her place. Jon told her about her father, called her a child and threw her line about not being judged for the sins of her father in her face! Then Davos threw her “birth right” in her face by pointing out that Jon – a bastard with no rights to anything – has become a powerful leader in his own right by proving his worth and because his people believe in and love him.
Granted, she herself has earned the love and devotion of the people who follow her, but still. I loved that Jon brushed off her oft repeated line “I was born to rule the Seven Kingdoms and I will.” Her arrogance is largely due to the fact that she’s too accustomed to wining. So I’m happy that she’s losing the war right now. She needs to be humbled. To truly do that one of her dragons has to – needs to – die. She needs to realise she is not invulnerable just because she has dragons. Has she not been told of the Dance of Dragons?
All of that being said, it was nice finally seeing Jon and Daenerys meet and interact with each other. And warm up to each other a little by the time they spoke again (the fangirl in me really wants them to become a thing; wouldn’t it be great if that antagonism and tension turned into passion and that passion turned into…well…you know…). Bonding over dead brothers is a little macabre. I found myself once again asking how Daenerys knows something that she would not have heard of. How does she know that he has two dead brothers?
As much as I love that Daenerys is losing, I hate that Cersei is winning. Mad Queen Cersei is fun and all, but she needs to be taken off of the Iron Throne. I was very confused as to why the small folk were cheering on Euron. Even the nobles gathered in the throne room. They were afraid of her just a few weeks ago but here they are celebrating her victory?
Cersei has no intention of marrying Euron and I would like to think he’s smart enough to realise that. Delaying their “marriage” until after the war ends is a clear indication of her intentions. It won’t stop him from trying to woo her though. Euron is just that kind of guy. I love him and his whole character and persona, but he’s just as terrible a person as Cersei so he needs to be gotten rid of too. Jamie would be very glad if he was because he is having none of his taunting. He absolutely hates Euron. I’m sure it’s a mixture of jealousy and recognition that he’s a loose cannon and not trustworthy at all. Also, how did Euron know how Myrcella died?
Cersei’s revenge against Ellaria was for more subdued than I thought it would be. When I saw Gregor in the cell with her I expected Ellaria and Tyene to suffer the same fate that Septa Unella did. Instead, she did to Tyene what Ellaria did to Myrcella; give her a kiss with her poisoned lips. It’s 110% a plot convenience that the poison can take up to weeks to work and kill it’s victim. Myrcella died in under an hour and Ellaria started to get nose bleeds in the same amount of time. It’s one of the most glaring and obvious examples of the writers doing something for the plot in the history of the series.
I can’t be the only one who was concerned for Jamie when Cersei kissed him and then went down on him right after wiping the poison from her lips. I hope she got it all even though I’m not so fond of Jamie anymore. All of the progression he made when he was a captive with Brienne has all but disappeared at this point. I still believe that he will be the valonqar and kill her, but I feel like she really, truly has to do something else that is beyond reprehensible for him to finally get to that point. So I expect that she will be doing something far worse than the Sept.
Jamie has sort of proven that he is a better battle commander than Tyrion. Which makes sense because, unlike Tyrion, he’s a seasoned warrior. Borrowing Robb’s tactics was a smart move, but I think that perhaps by referencing Robb and having Jamie follow his actions, the writers are signalling that the Lannisters will meet the same fate that Robb and his army did; that they will win the battles but not the war.
Olenna went out like the Queen that she is. No matter what position she is in, the woman always wins in some way. She insulted Jamie, she insulted Joffrey and ultimately one upped Cersei by confessing to being his murderer. By saying that she played a part in making Cersei the monster that she has become, I think that Olenna was acknowledging that her killing Joffrey is what led them to where they are now. I’m not sure that Jamie actually will tell Cersei that it was Olenna, though, there isn’t much point to it.
Jorah is cured! At last, one of Game of Thrones’ favourite punching bags had something good happen to him. I still don’t think that Sam used dragonglass in his treatment, however. Nothing has concretely pointed to that, which makes the easter egg about it having healing properties very confusing. Despite achieving the impossible, Sam is still doing the grunt work. Archmaester Marwyn could have given him a link for his maester’s chain for it. Instead he has to copy down old, dusty, deteriorating books and scrolls. That may just be a blessing in disguise, however. Being so old that they’re almost dust probably means that they have some knowledge about White Walkers?
Sansa’s actually doing a very good job as Lady of Winterfell. She’s making very sensible decisions with reasonable logic behind them. Littlefinger is still giving her unsolicited advice, despite her brushing him off every single time. The man is persistent. He’s thankfully interrupted by an unexpected Stark reunion. Bran returned to Winterfell. I want whatever he is smoking because he is super chill. And creepy. To be fair, Bran has seen all the things. Even his sister getting raped apparently. Anyone who’d seen as much as Bran has, likely would be the same way if they’d managed to survive it. He did a terrible job of explaining what it means to be the Three-Eyed Raven. I love that his first order of business was seeing Jon.
Random thoughts:
- Missandei is not having any of Davos’ small talk.
- Melisandre looks so tired. Smart of her to hide from Jon.
- You know why Ellaria killed Myrcella, Cersei.
- Now all of the Sand Snakes are dead. Tyene was the worst; “Bad p***y” was stupid and cringey. Bye Felicia.
- We know how Cersei pays her debts.
- Jon and Daenerys are so stubborn. It’s cute. Now kith.
- But why is Cersei paying back the Iron Bank…just to borrow more money from them? She hasn’t gotten herself out of debt.
- One of these dragons is going to die next week.
Game of Thrones airs Sundays at 9 PM on HBO.
