Game of Thrones, episode 2 – “The Kingsroad”

Jaime Lannister may have pushed young Bran from the tower, but the boy lives. He lingers in a coma, with his mother standing constant vigil at his bedside.

Jaime: “But even if the boy lives, he’ll be a cripple. Grotesque. Give me a good clean death, any day.”
Tyrion: “Speaking for the grotesques, I’ll have to disagree. Death is so final, whereas life . . . life is full of possiblities. I hope the boy does wake. I’ll be very interested to hear what he has to say.”
Jaime: “My dear brother at times you make me wonder whose side you’re on.”

Queen Cersei sits for a while with Catelyn and talks about what it’s like to lose a child. It’s a very uncomfortable thing to watch, knowing the subtext, knowing that Cersei has to be frightened of what might happen if Bran wakes up.

Jon, Ned Stark’s bastard son sets off to join the Night’s Watch, but before he leaves he visits his half sister Arya and gifts her a sword. When he visits Bran’s bedside Catelyn is . . . not nice. I can understand her being upset about the fact that Ned ever fathered a bastard son in the first place, but both here and in the book I find her treatment of Jon . . . let’s just say that there are some things I really don’t like about her character, but that’s actually one of the things I really love about Game of Thrones. The characters aren’t all caricatures. There’s bad with the good, and good with the bad. Nothing is simple. It makes things more complicated, and far more interesting. Jon asks Ned about his mother before he leaves, and Ned promises him that the next time they speak he’ll tell him about his mother.

Tyrion decides to go with Jon and visit the wall. Not because he wants to join the Night’s Watch. He just wants to see the wall. Tyrion wants to stand on top of it and piss of the edge of the world.

Ned accepts the position of hand of the King from King Robert. Ned departs for Kings Landing with Robert. Ned brings his daughters, Sansa and Arya with him. In the book Bran was supposed to come with him too, but clearly that can’t happen. Robert and Ned talk about the fact that Daenerys has married Khal Drogo. Ned thinks they should let her be, that she’s still a child. Robert says he won’t sleep easily until every Targaryen is dead.

As the King and everyone are heading south on the Kingsroad someone sets a fire in Winterfell, and while people are distracted someone comes into Bran’s room and tries to kill him. Catelyn tries to fend the man off and then suddenly Bran’s dire wolf pounces on the man and rips his throat out. And suddenly Catelyn has a very good reason to believe that what happened to Bran was anything but an accident.

Catelyn: “I would stake my life the Lannisters are involved. We already have reason to suspect their loyalty to the crown.”
Man: Did you notice the dagger the killer used. It’s too fine a weapon for such a man. The blade is Valarian steel. The handle dragon bone. Someone gave it to him.
Robb: “They come into our home and try to murder my brother. If it’s war they want . . .”
Theon: “If it comes to that you know I’ll stand behind you.”
“War? Is there going to be a battle in the Godswood? Huh? Too easily words of war become acts of war. We don’t know the truth yet.”

Catelyn decides to head to Kings Landing to tell Ned directly about what has happened, and what they suspect.

Daenerys has one of her servant girls teach her how to take control of her relationship with Drogo. Drogo seems quite happy to let Daenerys take the lead. I do have to say I really like the girl who plays Daenarys. I thought she was a little too much of a wallflower in the first episode. It’s nice to see her come past that.

On the path south along the Kingsroad Sansa and Prince Joffrey come across Arya practicing sword play with sticks with the butcher’s boy. Joffrey, it turns out, is quite an impressive asshole. He decides to “punish” the boy by cutting his face with the tip of his sword for daring to hit Arya. Arya being who she is hits Joffrey and then Joffrey goes after the unarmed girl with his sword. Arya’s dire wolf attacks him. Arya picks up his dropped sword and stands over him. Joffrey whimpers like a little bitch. She then tosses the sword in the river and runs off.

Arya is brought before the king. Joffrey says that Arya and the butcher boy attacked him and Arya set her wolf on him. King Robert’s judgement is simply that kids will be kids. Kids fight. I do have to say I was incredibly amused when Robert looked at Joffrey and was like “You let that little girl disarm you?” Robert asks Sansa what happened. Sansa pussys out and says she can’t remember. Can I tell you how much I really don’t like Sansa? I mean grow a fucking spine, and the way she pines after Joffrey. I’d almost say the two of them deserve each other but nobody deserves that little prick.

Cersei, unhappy about the verdict, presses about punishing the wolf. Arya, knowing this was coming has chased her wolf off. Cersei suggests that they still have another wolf. Sansa’s wolf. Robert says to kill it. Sansa is upset. It serves her right. Should have spoken up bitch.

King Robert: “A dire wolf’s no pet. Get her a dog. She’ll be happier for it.”

If the wolf must be killed, Ned does the job himself.

And back in Winterfell, Bran wakes up . . .

Oh, I do have to say that Tyrion gets extra points in this episode for slapping around Prince Joffrey. Little bitch had it coming, and all he did in response was whine that he’d tell his mother.

As always, comments are welcome.