Game of Thrones: First of His Name

Before I get started on the episode, I need to apologize to anyone that I may have spoiled anything for in recent posts.  I am sorry if you are not caught up.  I do not think about how these posts will show up on facebook or something and if you happened to see a picture that gave something away, I am sincerely sorry.

This does bring up a bit of a dilemma for me.  I like writing about the shows I watch.  I cannot control how things show up on whatever platform you use to read my site.  I will try to do a better job with not posting images that spoil things, but when big things happen, those pictures tend to drive traffic.  More traffic equals more money.  I know that is a shitty thing to say, but hey, it’s cool to get a paycheck for writing this stuff.

I used to utilize the “jump to” page breaks, but I found out that no one even knew I was using it because of how they get to my site.  If they use facebook, then they just click the previewed page and it jumps straight to the full page.  Does that make sense?

Okay, sorry about going off on a wild tangent.  I hate to say this, but the episode was not all that great.  It was good and some of the reviews I have read make it sound like it was awesome, but aside from the battle at Craster’s Keep, not a lot of action.

Instead, this episode sets up a ton of stuff.  This means there was a lot of talking.  It also looks like my post about what they could cut out was promptly ignored since the first thing out of Daenerys mouth is that she needs to stay in Slaver’s Bay and learn to rule.

I was a little confused by the scene between Cersei and Margaery.  In the books, you know that Cersei absolutely hates Margaery and even though she is civil around her, she always makes pointed barbs to try and goad the girl, but Margaery never takes the bait.  In this episode, Cersei almost seems like she could like the girl, telling her about loving a child and whatnot.  Then Margaery gives the great line about not knowing what their relationship will be if she marries Tommen and Cersei marries Loras…obviously that pissed Cersei off.

There was also a great scene of Arya and the Hound.  She recites her list and he just keeps making fun of her and telling her to shut up.  Then he demands that she finish the list, which always ends with him.  The next morning he finds her practicing her water dancing.  The way he laughs at the stuff about Syrio was hilarious.  And then his lesson to her about fancy swordplay was great.

After a few weeks of setting up Locke as some bad guy for Bran (or maybe for Jon), he shows off his fighting skills at the Keep and then is killed by Hodor.  Well okay, technically it is Bran, warging control of Hodor, he breaks his chains and snaps Locke’s neck. 

The fight between Jon and Karl was fantastic.  Karl definitely lived up to his bragging about being an expert with a knife.  It looked like Jon was about to die, but then he is saved by one of Craster’s women.  Then he stabs Karl through the back of the head.  See Jon, those years practicing with a wooden post paid off.  Just as long as someone is there to stab the wooden post if it fights back.

I am very happy that they are speeding the Littlefinger/Sansa/Lysa story along.  I feel like it took forever in the book and something tells me they will reach the crescendo of that story in like one more episode.  Just as long as we can avoid more of those hardcore sex scenes.  That was awkward.

Looking back at the novels, it seems to me that so much of the stuff that took forever was just long descriptions of clothing, castles, terrain, etc.  In a show though, multiple pages describing the Eyrie and the bloody gate can be shown in a few seconds.  Maybe there is not as much need to get rid of stories. 

Author: Ngewo