Game of Thrones Season 2 Episode 8 “The Prince of Winterfell”

Tyrion: I will hurt you for this. A day will come when you think you’re safe and happy and your joy will turn to ashes in your mouth. And you’ll know the debt is paid.

Director:

Alan Taylor

Writer:

David Benioff & D. B. Weiss

Story:

Theon receives a visitor. Arya asks her third and last death from Jaqen. While Stannis’ army is reaching its destination, Davos is offered a reward.

Review:  

This episode wasn’t the best episode of this season. It wasn’t all bad. But it wasn’t all good too. It was a basic episode just explaining the transition to the War at Blackwater. Though the episode wasn’t good, it was important. One major problem- Dany was there only for five minutes. She is the best female character and she isn’t in the episode.

The stories here feel a bit…um…incomplete. The Tyrion-Bronn scene was funny. But as much as I like Tyrion and his snarky comments, it doesn’t make this episode any better. I felt like they gave up some good scenes. At least we get to see some action between Lady Talisa and Robb. Also Robb arresting Cat for helping Jamie escape.

Now here’s the problem Cat letting Jamie escape happens only in the third book. She brings down the sword, but we know the reason for it only in the next book. Her instructions to Brienne to take Jamie to King’s landing to get her daughters back never happens. Also this happens at the Tully residence (If I remember right). And she offeres to go into house arrest for that. But when Robb returns, he understands for what she did such a thing. They do not bring up the topic of Lord Hoster Tully’s bad condition and him continuously saying the name “Tansy”.  But seriously WHO IS LADY TALISA???? I really want to know. And WHERE IS JEYENE??

Now to Jon Snow. At least we now see the ‘Lord of Bones’ wearing a cool skull as a mask. And Qhorin wants Jon to go undercover. Though this scene is very different that how it goes down on the book, this interpretation is also good. The scene with Tyrion and Cersei, where her thinks she has Shae, was nicely pulled off.  Tyrion’s character is so wonderfully brilliant that they actually found an Imp to play the role. It’s so diverse and un thought of that an imp can be so big (so to speak).

Arya and Tywin Lannister part ways. But the worst part is that he doesn’t say anything to her. Their chemistry is wonderful. She then uses her last wish in a very ingenious way. The name she says is, obviously, Jaqen. But he asks her for another name. She then says that, if she has to un-name him, he ha sto help her and her friends escape Harenhal. He at last agrees and they escape.

We, for once, see that Yara actually has some feelings for Theon. The scene with Dany and Jorah, having a discussion about weather, she should go to the House of The Undying Ones. She has some strong feeling for her ‘adopted’ children (the Dragons). But she was there only for five minutes or so. That really upset me.

And towards the end of the episode we see Theon trying to pay the farmer but, apparently all the loose ends have been tied up. And then Maester sees Osha. he goes to her and realises that the children hung up there aren’t Bran and Rickon. We then see the Maestor telling Osha not to tell Bran about the children. As then he’d blame himself for their deaths. That was a good end to this episode.

This episode was kind of a bridge episode. It set the stage, well.. kind of ..(You know what I mean), for the fight at Blackwater. Where things change . That’s a pivotal scene in the book series. Also as a warning, some characters who weren’t introduced in this scene, may coem in the third season. And the series is an adaptation of the whole saga and not only the second book. They didn’t want to make the second series a book-to-TV type of show. They wanted to put their own twists into it. Thus it’s better for the readers and non-readers both.

Here’s a preview for the next episode: