Ben Adams, Peter Fenzel, John Perich, Jordan Stokes and Matthew Wrather recap the Game of Thrones Season 5 Premiere, “The Wars to Come.”
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Great recap. A few questions:
If we’re still considering Podrick primarily as a sexual Tyrannosaur, what does that make Brienne? The watchful but unafraid sexual-Gallimimus?
http://www.simonstalenhag.se/bilderbig/paleo/tyrannosaurus.jpg
Or just a mathematician with a road flare?
https://youtu.be/v5Co3A3fLBo?t=1m36s
In regards to Jon Snow’s actions in Mance Rayder’s execution- Yes, it’s an important part of the show’s considerations of mercy, and the political aspect of it is interesting (although in a much more subtle way relative the books,) But I primarily viewed it as a part of this episode’s consideration of how to deal with the death of a father figure. Obviously the Lannister kids all gave their interpretations this week, while with Sandor, Arya made the reciprocal of Jon’s choice. Jon, of course, has been dealing with this same question for nearly 5 seasons now, and seems pretty satisfied with his solution: His institutional duty to the Night’s Watch is more important than any personal animus he feels due to all those deaths of various men he respects. Even if that means that he doesn’t get to avenge Ned by shoving Longclaw through various and sundry Boltons. That duty does NOT, however, prevent him from the occasional well timed act of mercy.
Brienne is a sexual blue whale – in that she’s awesome and amazing and imposing and makes the hunger of others look trivial next to her glory, but for reasons nobody entirely seems to understand, is no carnivore.
And also, sapphires.
Mance had an ontological problem: he was the King-Beyond-the-Wall, but he was no longer beyond the wall. In fact, he was ill-fated from the beginning.
He was the King-Beyond-the-Wall because he managed to convince the Free Folk that if they did not follow him south, they would die to the White Walkers. He and the rest of the Free Folk existed in a liminal state, unable to return to their free lands, but refusing to settle into the Seven Kingdoms as kneelers. While the Free Folk can wait out the winter and go back beyond the wall when spring comes, when the White Walkers no longer threaten, Mance no longer has his reason to be king. Given the resistance of the Free Folk to authority, it is unlikely that Mance would be able to make his status as King of the Free Folk sticky enough to survive the lack of existential threat come spring.
Given that he cannot continue to be the leader of the Free Folk south of the Wall, and he cannot go back north of the Wall and continue to be the leader of the Free Folk, Mance actually stopped being Mance Rayder, King-Beyond-the-Wall as soon as he succeeded in bringing the Free Folk south of the wall. Narratively, he was already dead; burning (or shooting) him was just a formality.
dragonqueen : dragons :: beyondthewallking : wallbeyondness