In the penultimate episode of the first season of Game of Thrones things have gone slightly mad. War has officially begun and the goings on at the capital have even gone past Varys the Spider. Things are just as crazy across the sea where magic seems to not have disappeared completely from this world.
Wow. So that just happened. Ned Stark no longer has a head. The man that I've been viewing as a co-main character along with Daenerys is dead. After Joffrey made his proclamation, for a split second I thought about how he could possibly get out of this one before realizing that that is not the kind of show this is, Ned really was going to die. A friend of mine said she stopped reading the books because all the characters you care about end up dying. I've got to say, for me at least, it makes me even more invested in what happens next, because if Ned can die, anyone can die. Maybe Jamie doesn't survive his capture, maybe Tyrion isn't knocked out and fights and dies in the next battle, maybe Robb's war goes horribly wrong and everyone is slaughtered, maybe Joffrey's rule as king only lasts a few days, maybe Daenerys won't survive child birth. Makes thing more exciting.
That final scene was so beautifully shot. First a great roar and mass confusion after Joffrey sentenced Ned. Varys running over, Sansa pleading, even Cersei looking flabbergasted. Then a hush falls for the audience as Ned realizes that this is it. He finally decides to forsake his honor in hopes it will save his and his daughters' life, maybe it will still buy his daughters' life. We hear his breathing, just as the opening shot in the dungeon. One last look over to the statue to see if Arya was still watching, at least she won't see this. Finally a look at his exposed neck as the blade comes down, cutting off a split second before we see it done. I've watched the sequence five or six times now and it still gets me.
While Ned was only in the first and last scene (I will miss his dungeon chats with Varys), his son was moving forward with his war against the crown, and taking his place as the head Stark in Westeros and the show. While Ned's mercy may have killed the king, Robb's mercy was all part of a greater plan to make Tywin believe he was marching his full force against him and not Jaime at Riverrun. First, though, they need to cross the river and that will mean a toll to the very old and creepy Lord Frey. Frey is a man only out for himself, maybe even more so than Littlefinger or Varys. His family now being tied to the Starks can only end up being a bad thing. Robb does end up capturing Jaime, so now he has a bargaining chip for his sisters' and he thinks his father's life.
At the wall, Jon is rightfully rewarded for saving the Lord Commander and possibly the entire Castle Black. Happiness does not last long in this world, though, for he also finds out that his brother is marching toward war. Jon may have been a bastard, but he still considers the Starks his family. A talk with Maester Aemon may well have changed his mind. Aemon, who hasn't had much to do since the second episode, really has a nice scene here where we find out that Daenerys is not the last Targaryen left. Aemon was faced with the same choice as Jon when Robert rebelled against his nephew, the Mad King.
Across the Narrow sea, Drogo's wounds have festered and nothing but magic can keep him alive now. His followers are very against that idea. The discontent that was brewing last episode comes to a head with Ser Jorah having to kill one of the Khal's bloodriders. Daenerys is desperate to save him by any means necessary, but the cost may be too high. Especially when she is forced to enter the tent to deliver the baby when the healer woman expressly said no one should enter.
And the Tyrion-Bronn comedy duo continues to add levity to a very dark episode. Tyrion being hit with the hammer and then waking up after the battle was one the funniest things this show has done. Even this duo, though, is not without its dark spots. The story of Tyrion's wife illustrates a lot about why Tyrion acts the way he does and confirms every bad thing we've thought about Tywin. The ruthlessness of his punishment for Tyrion is astounding. The hill people did well, but it was a battle they were supposed to win. What will Tywin do now that the enemy has the only son he cares about?
I can't believe there is only one episode left, and I can't wait to see it.
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