Summary: Dany sends Jorah, Grey Worm and Daario to sack Yunkai and they successfully take it for her. The wildlings discover Jon's betrayal and try to kill him but he escapes. Bran tries to hide from them and accidentally uses his warg power. Bran decides he is going north to follow his destiny and he tells Osha to take Rickon to the Umbers to be safe. The Hound takes Arya to the Twins. Edmure is married to Roslin Frey who is surprisingly beautiful. The wedding goes on, but Roose Bolton has betrayed Robb and it is a trap. After Edmure is taken out, everyone in the wedding is slaughtered, including Robb, Catelyn and Talisa. Arya is taken away by The Hound.
The Good: This was unexpected. The dread had been creeping for the whole episode as Walder Frey's terms seemed surprisingly lenient and everybody was far too happy. Nothing was happening and everybody was just celebrating. The hammer had to fall at some point and that added a lot of tension to the early scenes. Things were too happy, something bad needed to happen. And yet when those final 10 minutes struck, nothing could have prepared me for what was coming. In an instance, an entire storyline of the show was wiped away in the most unexpected, brutal and upsetting fashion possible. I thought that maybe one of Catelyn and Talisa would be brutally killed for Robb to face the consequences for his decisions. But that didn't happen as Robb shockingly paid the ultimate price for betraying the Freys as his entire cause was wiped out. It was the most stunning move that "Game of Thrones" has made in its entire run, yet it was one which made sense considering the characters involved. Robb needed to face consequences, and Walder Frey, a vile old man with nothing to lose, would never waste a chance at revenge. The actual sequence was executed spectacularly. Every little moment of brutality has stuck with me and it echoes horrifyingly in my head. From watching a pregnant Talisa get viciously stabbed in the stomach to hearing Catelyn getting her throat slit after a lifeless, heartbroken scream, there was nothing but a sudden outbreak of violence and misery, and it was downright unsettling. Unsettling, yet extremely effective, as it got the most significant emotional reaction from me out of any episode of television I have seen. Because of this, I can safely say that this was one of the all-time great TV moments. Joffrey has some serious competition now on the most-hated list. This episode has made me desire to see Arya shove a sword through the skulls of both Walder Frey and Roose Bolton. Thankfully, there are still small glimmers of hope for some justice in the future, and currently the thought of Arya crossing every name off of her kill list is keeping me going. This "red wedding" proves one thing: Westeros is now changing, and my complaints have been answered. With Robb and his army dead, the Lannisters have effectively won. Roose Bolton is a traitor, giving the Lannisters significant control in the north, Stannis is severely weakened and the Ironborn really aren't much of a threat anymore. And the only remaining Starks are children who are scattered across the continent. Tywin won the war, and that is a massive development for Westeros as a whole. I'm unsure where the story goes from here and how the Lannisters can conceivably be stopped. This is the change I was wishing for last season, and I'm very glad that I got it. As for the rest of the episode, I think it was solid. The build to the red wedding was fantastic, because of both the aforementioned tension which was present throughout and the fun which was present during the wedding. Walder Frey's character led to a lot of funny moments and the genuine love from Robb and Talisa was good as always. I'm glad that Edmure was able to get a good bride who wasn't an ugly Frey, but it is unknown if he is allowed to keep her (see: The Bad). The other storylines were fine too but flawed (see: The Bad). I liked Jon's betrayal finally being revealed. The scene was exciting and climactic, and it was satisfying seeing Jon kill Orell. I also love that Orell warged into a bird in his final moments in an attempt to kill Jon, which is a wonderful little detail. The scene was also aided by Bran being present in the tower, allowing us to root for Jon to somehow meet up with him. But like Arya failing to reunite with her family, Bran isn't able to get Jon's attention before he rides away. It seems like we still have a long while to wait before any of the Starks reunite with each other. I liked the brief moment with Sam and Gilly. Sam being called a wizard is a nice little reward for everything he has done so far and is a rare moment of joy without any repercussions in this episode. The Bad: Dany taking over Yunkai so easily was a major disappointment. I was hoping the conflict would show us more about Dany as a whole, but instead it was used as a way to show us how cool Daario is, which I really don't care for at all. Their romance doesn't interest me at all. I'm also confused with how 3 men managed to sack all of Yunkai. That doesn't seem logical at all and it made sacking a city look as easy as a walk in the park. I find Bran's story really hard to get invested in. His character just doesn't interest me at all, and while it is cool to see him warging, there is no emotion to be had in his story. His farewell to Rickon was similarly flat and disappointing because I know nothing about their relationship. Of course, an episode like this is hard to watch. The relentless depression is nearly overwhelming for me, and I can imagine that a lot of people will stop watching after something as miserable as this. While this episode features one of the greatest scenes ever, I don't think it can be in contention for one of the all-time greatest TV episodes because the rest of the episode doesn't hit on the same level. Granted, this episode will still get a really high score for what it accomplished, but it isn't a fantastic episode top to bottom. This will only be remembered for its final 10 minutes, nothing else. The Unknown: What will Bran find in the north? Is Orell still alive in the bird possibly? Could it be that he can survive in another body? What happens to Arya now? The Hound still has her but he has no use for her with Robb and Catelyn dead. What will he do with her? Did Edmure and Blackfish get out of The Twins alive? They were both outside when the slaughter was happening. Did they find a way to survive? I also don't think that Edmure would have been killed since he is the heir to Riverrun which would be useful for the Freys. With Roose Bolton being confirmed as a traitor, does that mean that the man holding Theon is his bastard son? It's likely Roose just lied to Robb about Winterfell being in flames when they arrived. Best Moment: Everything after the doors closed and The Rains of Castamere started playing made me sick with dread and horror. The red wedding will be remembered as one of the most monumental scenes put on television. Character of the Episode: Arya. She remains my last hope for revenge. Conclusion: What an episode. No other TV episode has been so relentlessly brutal and unsettling. This was a painful experience, but a memorable one, and one which is far above anything else this show has done so far. The red wedding will be remembered as an all-time great sequence. Score: 85
0 Comments
Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
Leave a Reply. |
Aaron DhillonJust a university student who loves to watch TV. And analyze it way too much. Archives
March 2024
Categories
All
|