Game of Thrones Review: Season 6 Episode 10
If there's one rule in the Game of Thrones, it's don't mess with Cersei Lannister. Everyone who messes with Cersei ends up either dead or maimed, and this is the episode that proves the rule. Just when you thought that being burned alive by a dragon was the only thing you had to worry about on Game of Thrones, here comes Cersei Lannister -- and she has wild fire.
Quite honestly, I didn't think any episode of Game of Thrones -- or any other show that has ever existed or will ever exist -- would be better than last week's episode of Game of Thrones, but this one came pretty close. So much happened! I believe this was the longest Game of Thrones episode ever, and they certainly used the extra time well. This episode was so, so satisfying, and so much happened! Like, seriously, I'm actually having trouble remembering all the wonderful things that happened because there were so many beautiful, wonderful things. (Forgive me if I forget to mention anything important).
We started out in King's Landing with Cersei and Tommen getting ready for the trial. We got a sneak peak at Cersei's new emo goth wardrobe (did anyone notice that all the major characters wore black this week? I mean, besides Jon Snow, who wears black 24/7 anyway). To be quite honest, I wasn't super interested in/ excited about this plot. I thought it was going to be fairly anticlimactic, especially after Tommen banned trial by combat (#IDemandTrialByCombat). Obviously, I wasn't expecting wild fire. I bet the High Sparrow and Tommen wish they had let her do Trial by Combat now -- oh wait, they're DEAD. They can't wish for anything. Instead, Cersei literally firebombed the Sept of Baelor. Well played, Cersei, well played. It doesn't get much bolder or more shocking than that; in terms of killing major, important characters, this may have even have been bigger than the Red Wedding.
In retrospect, the showrunners sort of hit us over the head with all the references to wild fire in the past couple of episodes. But, in complete honesty, I had no idea what Cersei was planning. It wasn't until I saw the little boy with the torch that I was like "I don't know much, but I know that wild fire is on the way." I must say, however, that Cersei/Qyburn's plot was genius, even if it gave Lancel Lannister a longer and more dramatic death scene than he deserved. However, I still think that Grand Maester Pycelle's death wins for overall brutality (it doesn't get much worse than being stabbed to death by bunch of kids in a dark basement).
I have to admit that I was disappointed that Margaery Tyrell died so quickly and so impersonally. She was such a good plotter, a real class-A schemer. She deserved better than being burned to death in a turtleneck. In a turtleneck! It was so unfashionable! It was certainly shocking, though. I can't remember the last time an entire family was wiped out so neatly. Oh, wait, I remember, it was the The Rains of Castamere. *Cue the music*
However, I don't think anyone is going to complain that Septa Unella's death was too quick. In case you don't know her by name, Septa Unella is the horrid nun who tortured Cersei and Margaery while they were in prison. I rather enjoyed watching Cerseiwater-board wine-board her, while giving a lurid little cathartic speech about how much she enjoys having sex with her twin. But, even Septa Unella doesn't deserve whatever punishment The Mountain is going to give her. Remember that the Mountain raped and killed Elia Martell during the sack of King's Landing, then imagine what's going to happen to that poor woman. Shudder.
Of course, Tommen was the only flaw in Cersei's plan. What Cersei didn't count on was that her son is weak and emotionally damaged and is just looking for love, which he never truly gets from his mother. RIP Tommen. He was a mediocre king. He had stupid, boy-band hair. However, he named his cat Ser Pounce, which was cute. I hope we get a spin off series about what happened to Ser Pounce after Game of Thrones ends. In the mean time, I hope Cersei remembers to feed him.
However, even Tommen's death didn't work out so badly for Cersei. She's now the queen, which scares me more than Ramsay Bolton. As everyone on the internet has already pointed out, Cersei's love for her children was her only humanizing quality. Without her children, there's no telling what she's going to do next. Honestly, I can't decide if Cersei is doing a bad cosplay of Joffrey or is possessed by the ghost of The Mad King (Aerys II). I wouldn't want to stick around in King's Landing to find out. Jaime Lannister seems to be in my corner. I loved his face when he saw the Sept burning and Cersei being crowned queen. It was like "wait, what happened here? Where's Tommen? I was only away for one episode..." If Cersei is the Mad King reincarnate, maybe Jaime will king slay again and kill her. (Wouldn't that be satisfying?) We know for a fact that Jaime doesn't like it when monarchs try to use wild fire.
Anyway, on the other side of the realm (you know, the part where people are actually mildly happy), Sam and Gilly arrive in Old Town with Sam Jr. Sam Sr. doesn't get the warm welcome he expects because he's "irregular." Hopefully, we will hear more about Sam's irregularities in season 7. In the mean time, you can find Sam hanging out in the biggest library in the world (swoon). Unfortunately, for Sam Jr. and Gilly, the Maesters are anti-girl and anti-kid. #ThePatriarchy.
Speaking of which, the patriarchy is dying a slow and painful death in Westeros, as every powerful character on the show is now a woman (minus Jon Snow -- although, he is prettier than most girls). This week, we had another girl power summit in Dorne, which resulted in a Martell/Tyrell team up that will certainly make life difficult for Cersei Lannister. (Apparently, Sansa missed the memo). Even though her entire family is dead, Olenna Tyrell managed to summon up a few choice insults for the Sand Snakes ("you look like an angry little boy," and "let the grown women speak"). By the way, literally no one would have cared if we had never come back to the Dorne plot; I'm not even sure that Olenna's brilliant presence can redeem it, but her wonderful take downs of the Sand Snakes sure help.
Daenerys Targaryen is also on her way to the girl power summit, and she's bringing three dragons, the Dothraki horde, the Ironborn, the Unsullied, and Tyrion Lannister (the Hand of the Queen) with her. Props to Dany for finally leaving Essos and heading to Westeros. We've only been waiting for her for three seasons!
Anyway, while the Tyrells and Martells plot in the south, winter has finally arrived in the north. Jon and Sansa have an adorable moment on the battlements of Winterfell where they recall their father telling them that winter was coming, and, as it turned out, dad was right! Winter is here! I think that Jon and Sansa are the only two people who are remotely happy about that. Sansa also apologizes for not telling Jon that she had been hiding an army all this time (sorry bro, it slipped my mind), and Jon tells her that they need to trust each other. Sansa responds with a noncommittal shrug, which Jon doesn't seem to notice. If you ask me, Jon is making the same mistakes with Sansa that he made with Olly. He trusts that their sibling love is enough, and he isn't bothering to make sure that they're on the same page. Now, I love Sansa, and I think it would be idiotic for her betray Jon now, but that doesn't mean she won't do it -- especially if Littlefinger has anything to say about it.
One of the things I find most interesting about Sansa is that I don't really know what her end game is. Does she want power and revenge? Or, is she content with being safe at home, reunited with her family? It's not immedately clear. At times, she seems like the sweet girl she was in season one, but there's also a bit of Cersei in her. Like Cersei, she wants revenge on the people who have wronged her -- and she wants it to be slow and painful (just ask Ramsay Bolton). One thing is for sure though, she has eternally friend-zoned Littlefinger. I loved that moment when they were in the Godswood together and he went to kiss her, and she was just like "naw, I'd rather not."
I do hope that both Jon and Sansa are taking Littlefinger sufficiently seriously though. He may have weird hair and a weird accent, but he is not to be trifled with. The look between Sansa and Littlefinger during the "King in the North" scene spelled one thing: trouble. I don't know if Littlefinger is going to betray Sansa or if he's going to convince her to betray Jon, but he's certainly up to something. Whatever. That'a a problem for next season. Let us now take a minute to discuss how awesome the "King in the North" scene was.
As soon as Lyanna Mormont (who has replaced Arya as the sassiest little girl on GOT) started talking, I was like "here it comes, KING IN THE NORTH!!!!" Gah! That was such a satisfying scene. I loved everything about it. I loved Lyanna Mormont's awesome speech. I love Jon's new nickname (the White Wolf). It was just all around wonderful. In fairness, it was a bit disconcerting to watch considering that the last time someone was declared King in the North it didn't end well at all. But that's another problem for next season. Right now, I'm just going to enjoy everyone chanting "KING IN THE NORTH! KING IN THE NORTH!" Words cannot describe how happy that scene made me.
What Jon doesn't know, however, is that he actually does have royal blood. We finally got the end of the Tower of Joy scene in this episode, which everyone has been waiting for for weeks. Most book readers had already guessed that Jon Snow was Lyanna and Rhaegar's son, but it was nice to see it confirmed. Plus, baby Jon Snow is super cute. Now, we just have to hope that Dany realizes that he's her nephew (who is actually older than her -- how odd) before she cooks him alive with dragon fire.
Another Stark who couldn't make it to the let's-kill-Cersei party in Dorne was Arya (who somehow managed to sail across the Narrow Sea in approximately 30 seconds). Fortunately, she managed to keep busy by cutting Walder Frey's throat instead, which was almost as satisfying as Ramsay's death. The only thing that could have made it better would be if Arya had said "the Starks send their regards" as he bled out. Baking his sons into a pie was a nice touch though. If you're a book reader, you may have noticed the callback to The Rat Cook in that scene. On another note, with Arya back in Westeros, there is a literal line of people waiting to kill Cersei. The Tyrells, Martells, Arya, Daenerys, and maybe Jaime all want her head on a silver platter. At this point, it's not a question of if Cersei is going to die, it's a question of what's going to kill her first: dragons or needle.
Stay tuned for next season to find out.
Valar dohaeris
Quite honestly, I didn't think any episode of Game of Thrones -- or any other show that has ever existed or will ever exist -- would be better than last week's episode of Game of Thrones, but this one came pretty close. So much happened! I believe this was the longest Game of Thrones episode ever, and they certainly used the extra time well. This episode was so, so satisfying, and so much happened! Like, seriously, I'm actually having trouble remembering all the wonderful things that happened because there were so many beautiful, wonderful things. (Forgive me if I forget to mention anything important).
We started out in King's Landing with Cersei and Tommen getting ready for the trial. We got a sneak peak at Cersei's new emo goth wardrobe (did anyone notice that all the major characters wore black this week? I mean, besides Jon Snow, who wears black 24/7 anyway). To be quite honest, I wasn't super interested in/ excited about this plot. I thought it was going to be fairly anticlimactic, especially after Tommen banned trial by combat (#IDemandTrialByCombat). Obviously, I wasn't expecting wild fire. I bet the High Sparrow and Tommen wish they had let her do Trial by Combat now -- oh wait, they're DEAD. They can't wish for anything. Instead, Cersei literally firebombed the Sept of Baelor. Well played, Cersei, well played. It doesn't get much bolder or more shocking than that; in terms of killing major, important characters, this may have even have been bigger than the Red Wedding.
In retrospect, the showrunners sort of hit us over the head with all the references to wild fire in the past couple of episodes. But, in complete honesty, I had no idea what Cersei was planning. It wasn't until I saw the little boy with the torch that I was like "I don't know much, but I know that wild fire is on the way." I must say, however, that Cersei/Qyburn's plot was genius, even if it gave Lancel Lannister a longer and more dramatic death scene than he deserved. However, I still think that Grand Maester Pycelle's death wins for overall brutality (it doesn't get much worse than being stabbed to death by bunch of kids in a dark basement).
I have to admit that I was disappointed that Margaery Tyrell died so quickly and so impersonally. She was such a good plotter, a real class-A schemer. She deserved better than being burned to death in a turtleneck. In a turtleneck! It was so unfashionable! It was certainly shocking, though. I can't remember the last time an entire family was wiped out so neatly. Oh, wait, I remember, it was the The Rains of Castamere. *Cue the music*
However, I don't think anyone is going to complain that Septa Unella's death was too quick. In case you don't know her by name, Septa Unella is the horrid nun who tortured Cersei and Margaery while they were in prison. I rather enjoyed watching Cersei
Of course, Tommen was the only flaw in Cersei's plan. What Cersei didn't count on was that her son is weak and emotionally damaged and is just looking for love, which he never truly gets from his mother. RIP Tommen. He was a mediocre king. He had stupid, boy-band hair. However, he named his cat Ser Pounce, which was cute. I hope we get a spin off series about what happened to Ser Pounce after Game of Thrones ends. In the mean time, I hope Cersei remembers to feed him.
However, even Tommen's death didn't work out so badly for Cersei. She's now the queen, which scares me more than Ramsay Bolton. As everyone on the internet has already pointed out, Cersei's love for her children was her only humanizing quality. Without her children, there's no telling what she's going to do next. Honestly, I can't decide if Cersei is doing a bad cosplay of Joffrey or is possessed by the ghost of The Mad King (Aerys II). I wouldn't want to stick around in King's Landing to find out. Jaime Lannister seems to be in my corner. I loved his face when he saw the Sept burning and Cersei being crowned queen. It was like "wait, what happened here? Where's Tommen? I was only away for one episode..." If Cersei is the Mad King reincarnate, maybe Jaime will king slay again and kill her. (Wouldn't that be satisfying?) We know for a fact that Jaime doesn't like it when monarchs try to use wild fire.
Anyway, on the other side of the realm (you know, the part where people are actually mildly happy), Sam and Gilly arrive in Old Town with Sam Jr. Sam Sr. doesn't get the warm welcome he expects because he's "irregular." Hopefully, we will hear more about Sam's irregularities in season 7. In the mean time, you can find Sam hanging out in the biggest library in the world (swoon). Unfortunately, for Sam Jr. and Gilly, the Maesters are anti-girl and anti-kid. #ThePatriarchy.
Speaking of which, the patriarchy is dying a slow and painful death in Westeros, as every powerful character on the show is now a woman (minus Jon Snow -- although, he is prettier than most girls). This week, we had another girl power summit in Dorne, which resulted in a Martell/Tyrell team up that will certainly make life difficult for Cersei Lannister. (Apparently, Sansa missed the memo). Even though her entire family is dead, Olenna Tyrell managed to summon up a few choice insults for the Sand Snakes ("you look like an angry little boy," and "let the grown women speak"). By the way, literally no one would have cared if we had never come back to the Dorne plot; I'm not even sure that Olenna's brilliant presence can redeem it, but her wonderful take downs of the Sand Snakes sure help.
Daenerys Targaryen is also on her way to the girl power summit, and she's bringing three dragons, the Dothraki horde, the Ironborn, the Unsullied, and Tyrion Lannister (the Hand of the Queen) with her. Props to Dany for finally leaving Essos and heading to Westeros. We've only been waiting for her for three seasons!
Anyway, while the Tyrells and Martells plot in the south, winter has finally arrived in the north. Jon and Sansa have an adorable moment on the battlements of Winterfell where they recall their father telling them that winter was coming, and, as it turned out, dad was right! Winter is here! I think that Jon and Sansa are the only two people who are remotely happy about that. Sansa also apologizes for not telling Jon that she had been hiding an army all this time (sorry bro, it slipped my mind), and Jon tells her that they need to trust each other. Sansa responds with a noncommittal shrug, which Jon doesn't seem to notice. If you ask me, Jon is making the same mistakes with Sansa that he made with Olly. He trusts that their sibling love is enough, and he isn't bothering to make sure that they're on the same page. Now, I love Sansa, and I think it would be idiotic for her betray Jon now, but that doesn't mean she won't do it -- especially if Littlefinger has anything to say about it.
One of the things I find most interesting about Sansa is that I don't really know what her end game is. Does she want power and revenge? Or, is she content with being safe at home, reunited with her family? It's not immedately clear. At times, she seems like the sweet girl she was in season one, but there's also a bit of Cersei in her. Like Cersei, she wants revenge on the people who have wronged her -- and she wants it to be slow and painful (just ask Ramsay Bolton). One thing is for sure though, she has eternally friend-zoned Littlefinger. I loved that moment when they were in the Godswood together and he went to kiss her, and she was just like "naw, I'd rather not."
I do hope that both Jon and Sansa are taking Littlefinger sufficiently seriously though. He may have weird hair and a weird accent, but he is not to be trifled with. The look between Sansa and Littlefinger during the "King in the North" scene spelled one thing: trouble. I don't know if Littlefinger is going to betray Sansa or if he's going to convince her to betray Jon, but he's certainly up to something. Whatever. That'a a problem for next season. Let us now take a minute to discuss how awesome the "King in the North" scene was.
As soon as Lyanna Mormont (who has replaced Arya as the sassiest little girl on GOT) started talking, I was like "here it comes, KING IN THE NORTH!!!!" Gah! That was such a satisfying scene. I loved everything about it. I loved Lyanna Mormont's awesome speech. I love Jon's new nickname (the White Wolf). It was just all around wonderful. In fairness, it was a bit disconcerting to watch considering that the last time someone was declared King in the North it didn't end well at all. But that's another problem for next season. Right now, I'm just going to enjoy everyone chanting "KING IN THE NORTH! KING IN THE NORTH!" Words cannot describe how happy that scene made me.
What Jon doesn't know, however, is that he actually does have royal blood. We finally got the end of the Tower of Joy scene in this episode, which everyone has been waiting for for weeks. Most book readers had already guessed that Jon Snow was Lyanna and Rhaegar's son, but it was nice to see it confirmed. Plus, baby Jon Snow is super cute. Now, we just have to hope that Dany realizes that he's her nephew (who is actually older than her -- how odd) before she cooks him alive with dragon fire.
Another Stark who couldn't make it to the let's-kill-Cersei party in Dorne was Arya (who somehow managed to sail across the Narrow Sea in approximately 30 seconds). Fortunately, she managed to keep busy by cutting Walder Frey's throat instead, which was almost as satisfying as Ramsay's death. The only thing that could have made it better would be if Arya had said "the Starks send their regards" as he bled out. Baking his sons into a pie was a nice touch though. If you're a book reader, you may have noticed the callback to The Rat Cook in that scene. On another note, with Arya back in Westeros, there is a literal line of people waiting to kill Cersei. The Tyrells, Martells, Arya, Daenerys, and maybe Jaime all want her head on a silver platter. At this point, it's not a question of if Cersei is going to die, it's a question of what's going to kill her first: dragons or needle.
Stay tuned for next season to find out.
Valar dohaeris
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