1.08 Game of Thrones - The Pointy End

[TK-421]

Synopsis:
In the aftermath of Nedʼs capture, Syrio and Arya face off against Lannister guards, while Cersei manipulates Sansa to her own ends. Robb rallies his fatherʼs northern allies against Tywin Lannister and heads south to war. Tyrion forms an uneasy alliance with the hill tribes and reunites with his father. Jon lashes out at Ser Alliser Thorne and battles a mysterious attacker from beyond the Wall. Dany is forced to reconcile her desire to conquer Westeros with Drogoʼs savagery after the Dothraki raid a peaceful village.

Directed by: David Minahan (also directed episodes 6 and 7)

Written by: George R.R. Martin!!!!!!!!


Lots of action in this one.

 

[Boaz]

TK, thanks for putting these episode threads up for us! I'll try not to give up any real spoilers until after the show has aired. But I must comment upon this episode's title. All I can say is.... GAAAHHHH!!!!

I'm looking forward to introductions for The Greatjon, Roose, Shagga, Timmett, and Mirri... and mayhaps the late Lord Frey will be introduced as well.

 

[TK-421]

Walder Frey does appear in an episode this season.

 

[Boaz]

But then how does...? Well, how do the....? The Twins are the path to...., right? If Walder does not show, then how will we ever get to hear the Greatjon roaring his... uh, roar?

Sheesh, it is difficult to keep this thread spoiler free until the air date.

 

[svalbard]

I am hoping for loads of s...

 

[X'Nedra]

Just started watching it and I have to say - the first 2 minutes made me think of Monty Python and the Holy Grail... the long shot of them running up over and over again and then out of the blue *STAB* hee hee

 

[Wiggum]

That was just a really tight episode.

Dunno if it had to do with Martin writing it, or just hitting a sweet groove, but for all that they covered it wasn't disjointed at all.

Drogo, again, somehow stole the show. Loved it when he dropped his knives while declaring that the rain would leave nothing but his opponent's bonez.

Syrio

Good, good stuff.

 

[TK-421]

GRRM does not disappoint. That was an outstanding episode.

I especially loved Sam, Varys and Littlefinger.

He did well to show Robb trying to be the lord and not the boy. I loved the Greatjon and Rickon was there as well.

Tywin and Kevan are brilliantly done. The actress who plays Sansa did an excellent job at the court pleading for mercy for her father and Joff was good in his response. I liked the little bit with Janos Slynt and Harrenhall.

Now, I have a theory about Syrio that I will post in the spoiler thread on the GRRM forum.

I want to be Khal Drogo!!!!

 

[Mouse]

Just seen it. I'm kinda weirded out by the lack of sex.

Good episode. I didn't understand who the fat boy was at the start who runs out to Arya and she stabs him in the belly. What was that about?

Love Syrio. Love Bronn. Tyrion is starting to grate on me.

 

[TK-421]

Good episode. I didn't understand who the fat boy was at the start who runs out to Arya and she stabs him in the belly. What was that about?

He was just a stable boy. Nobody important but it was an important bit of character-building for Arya. That action will have a great impact on her. I will say no more because to do so would spoiling.

 

[Conor]

He was just a stable boy. Nobody important but it was an important bit of character-building for Arya. That action will have a great impact on her. I will say no more because to do so would spoiling.

I thought he seemed much more threatening in the book.

 

[Red 13]

Great episode! I think this episode really stayed true to the book, obviously because G.R.R Martin wrote it and it really shows.
I really enjoyed Syrio's fighting scene.

 

[Perpetual Man]

Although the previous episodes have been excellent, I think this is the first one that was totally mesmerising. We sat there through the entire show in silence, only chatting (it felt like breathing) during the commercial break.

As Mouse commented the lack of sex did not remotely detract from the episode (producers take note). A few bits that stood out were Syrio's fight, and even more was Drogo's fight, a superlative series of stunts there.

I'm starting to have a good (perhaps bad) reaction to some of the characters - I want to slap Sansa, punch Cesei and set Khal Drogo on Joffrey which is all close to what I felt when reading the book, so the writer of this episode was certainly pressing all the right buttons (he must be very familiar with the source material )

Really can't wait for the final two episodes now!

 

[Brian G Turner]

Another good episode:

- no gratuitous sex/nudity - good!

But:

- Arya's scene with the stable boy didn't show him as threatening in the books
- Sansa's finish felt a bit weak, perhaps needed another line

Otherwise really good.

In terms of story, it struck me strange how Dany pitied the lamb women, yet as was stated, they were collecting slaves to collect gold to buy ships to make war on Westeros, and yet she's being squeamish of war. And that the Dothraki had no healers of their own.

 

[xLORDSNOWx]

And that the Dothraki had no healers of their own.

I openly questioned this as well. With GRRM writing this I would have thought that this would have been more realistic. Battle hardened men like the Dothraki should have definitely had their own healers. The arrow from the enemy would have been a better way to handle this injury as was done in the book. Not to mention those like Drogo who never lost a fight, surely would have gotten a wound worse than this in the past while performing his Matrix fighting style. (which was freaking awesome by the way)

The altered scene in which they find the "dead" bodies, and the subsequent Jon fire scene was done well though.

Ghost barking is starting to drive me crazy.

No sex? Well I'm sure the other writers will make up for this somehow.

Very good episode overall!

Sorry, slightly off topic: With GRRM currently writing the "Blackwater" scene, does anyone no when Season 2 starts back up? Will it be a full year from the time this one started? Are they filming yet?

 

[Culhwch]

Haven't heard anything regarding air dates or filming of the second season.

This was a very solid episode. I wish Martin had written more. I agree that the stable boy scene was a little awkwardly written, filmed and acted, and I'm with Mouse about Tyrion starting to grate. I don't what it is about him - perhaps it's just that his so brilliantly characterised in the books, Dinklage has his work cut out, and is just falling short. Don't know.

Drogo's fight scene was the best yet. I liked the scene with Selmy being disgrace - I'm not sure of the actor's name, but he did a great job. The girl playing Sansa, on the other hand, is pretty weak compared to those around her. I know she's young, but the girl playing Arya is doing a far better job. Lucky Sansa's meant to be annoying. I also thought all Robb's scenes were solid, though the Greatjon was a little underwhelming.

I'll be interested to see them ramp it up in final two episodes. Glad to see there was no sex in this one - I can't see where they could really shoehorm it in in the next two, either. With any kind of luck the producers are done titillating to capture their audience, and from here on out and in season two, we won't get see as much flesh as we have been.

 

[Brian G Turner]

Sorry, slightly off topic: With GRRM currently writing the "Blackwater" scene, does anyone no when Season 2 starts back up? Will it be a full year from the time this one started? Are they filming yet?

Season 2 was commissioned a few weeks ago, so I figure there will be a wait for season 2 - though probably less wait than for 1 due to the fact they've got the production wheels and cast all oiled up ready.

 

[Perpetual Man]

This was a very solid episode. I wish Martin had written more.

Of course if he wrote more episode, which I would love, it might slow him down on the books.

More.

 

[TK-421]

Season 2 has not started filming yet. They are still casting some major characters like Stannis, Brienne, Asha, Davos and Melissandre.

I suspect we will see it late in 2011 or very early in 2012. HBO has not been know to keep fans waiting too long between seasons and they've invested quite a bit in this series.

 

[digs]

Wow. HoooDOR!

My brain also just made a connection: is Osha Tonks?

Tyrion is starting to grate on me.

Agreed. I found my attention began to wander whenever we cut to him. Syrio and Barristan were grand. Pretty much everyone in Robb's camp and at the Wall is great (though even having read the books I can't get a handle on Theon's character). I find Sansa a bit weak too, though I don't know if that's just because she's a bit of a one-note character at the moment.

Good to see Ghost, Grey Wind and Rickon (I wonder if any non-book-readers had a clue who Rickon was).