Beyond the Wall: This Week on Game of Thrones (Episode 8 / May 20, 2012)

May 21st 2012, 1:28pm

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EPISODE 08: The Prince of Winterfell

THE PLOT:

The long summer is at an end, winter truly is coming and with it the cold winds of war as five self proclaimed Kings claim dominance over Westeros, but there can be only one winner when you play the game of thrones.

THE LOWDOWN:

Well you can certainly tell this season’s coming to an end (and that the next two episodes are going to be huge) as tonight’s story takes a little time to shine on all our characters. Yes, in some cases it’s much too brief, but the wheels are turning and things need to be set up for that big bang. Something that’s occurred to me is that all the things I’m waiting to see…happen next season (it’s going to be a long winter), but at least we’ll see a taste of things to come. I love the Jamie Lannister and Brienne storyline, and I’m sure you can tell by their back and forth tonight that those two are an entertaining pairing. There are questions surrounding the ease in which he escaped, but as with most of these story lines, due to him I’m assuming, the little details seem to be left out in hopes that we can use our imaginations. Which is cool and all, but it’s still nice to see what happens rather than guess.

There’s still a fair bit I want to see happen with Jon Snow and his predicament, and again, from tonight’s point of view, I’m sure you can all imagine how that’s going to turn out for him and Qhorin. (And yes, Rattleshirt looks awesome). I do like the chemistry between Jon and Ygritte though, it’s not an easy thing to make happen with such a short amount of screen time but I feel it’s working. I’m also liking Robb Stark a lot more here than I did in the books. He just felt like he was all business in the books, whereas here the guy’s got heart and you want to root for him. The scene he shares with Talisa tonight is much better than the last one. I dug their story swapping, and again, it made for some great chemistry on such short notice.

There’s a lot of Tyrion tonight (always a treat), as they prepare for Stannis’ invasion. I like the tension in King’s Landing, it’s bringing characters close even though they’re enemies. I loved all of Tyrion and Varys’ dialogue together and it’s always fun to have Bronn in the picture. Joffrey’s hilarious when he talks about giving Stannis a smile “ear to ear”. Uh huh, coming from the same guy who got beaten to tears by Arya with a stick. Theon and Yara shared moment almost makes you forget how much you hate them both, well, Theon anyway. At least family means something to the Greyjoys, immediate family that is. Still, I enjoyed their brother/sister chat about doing the right thing. Maybe his dumbass will listen for a change.

GAME OF THRONES SEASON 2’s eighth episode brings about the calm before the storm…literally. Lots of cool little things happen tonight, like the discovery of Dragon Glass by Sam and the boys, and I’m hoping we see it put to good use before season’s end. We get a short look at Dany as her and Jorah decide to take on the warlocks, and we also get the truth about Bran and Rickon. Again, where they’re going with Bran’s storyline is new, so even I’m in the dark here, but I’m hoping it pans out. I loved Arya and Jaqen’s scene together, she’s a crack up. So much for that building relationship between her and Tywin though, I really thought they were headed somewhere with it. There’s just two episodes left peeps, are you excited to see how it all turns out?

SEX/NUDITY:

Robb and Talisa get it on in the strategy room much like Stannis and Melisandre did, only they use the floor instead of the table.

VIOLENCE:

Jaqen takes out some guards and Ros gets roughed up…though you don’t see it happen.

SHARPEST QUIP:

The best line tonight comes from Theon’s sister as she teases him about his “victory” over Winterfell. Theon: “You should be proud of your brother’s achievement, I took the great castle of Winterfell with twenty men.” Yara: “You’re a great warrior, I saw the bodies above your gates. Which one gave you the tougher fight, the cripple or the six year old.”

MOST EPIC SCENE:

Tonight I felt Stannis and Davos stole the show with their talk of honor as they prepare for the coming battle. I like Stannis, Melisandre’s evil in my opinion, but Stannis is an honorable man and this theory is proven by how he treats Davos here.

FINAL VERDICT: