What an episode! What a Show! So much to cover! Once again Game of Thrones marches on with its blend of superbly structured story-telling, captivating and unusual characters and spectacular set pieces which sets it apart from anything else on telly at the moment. This week was more of the same. We saw Ned Stark confront Cersei about her incestuous affair with her brother Jaime and the spawning of their inbred children. Her tells her that he knows all about their sordid secret, despite it being the reason that Jon Arryn was killed and Bran was almost killed. That takes a lot of guts. Whereas any other hero of a fantasy epic would plot to have Cersei and her spawn arrested or killed, Ned is bound by duty and honour and thus instead confronts her himself and gives her an ultimatum: leave King's Landing and take her children with her, thus giving Cersei time to think of a plan and act. Maybe old Ned Stark just don't give a fuck no more. He's not a typical hero, he's an ordinary nobleman whose loyal to the King, something which will prove his undoing. This series is all about subverting archetypes. Ned isn't a typical protagonist, and the Lannisters aren't typical antagonists. Speaking of the Lannisters, we finally meet the patriarch of the clan, Tywin Lannister. He's only in one scene in which he nonchalantly scolds Jaime for starting a war with the Starks while defending the Lannister name and telling him they have to take power. He does this while skinning a deer, of course, this being his first scene in a show where there are many character-defining first scenes. When we first saw The Mountain he was shanking a poor knight; Tyrion was first seen lancing a whore; Lysa's first scene saw her breastfeeding her eight year old son. His first scene depicted Tywin as both a butcher and a chess master, a ruthless power monger and a proud father. Great characters can be summed up in a few exchanges of dialogue. This is a great character.
Back to the story, and fortunately for Cersei, King Robert is mortally wounded from a hunting accident off screen and as he prepares to die, he appoints Ned as keeper of the realm until Joffrey, the next in line, comes of age. Renly offers Ned one hundred men to perform a coup d'etat to seize the crown for him (Renly) and arrest the Lannisters, while Ned refuses, instead sending word that Renly's older brother is to take the throne since he's next in line. Next, Ned confides in Baelish that Joffrey is in fact Jaime's son. Then it's reported that Robert has died (off screen) and that Joffrey has taken the throne. This leads to the climax in the throne room between Ned and Cersei, where Ned (too late, mind you) reveals the King's dying wish for Ned to be Lord of the Realm, which Cersei ignores. When Ned orders his men to arrest Joffrey and Cersei, the knights turn on Ned and his kill his men. Baelish holds a knife to Ned's throat, he has betrayed his trust.
The "bound by duty" aspect of Ned's character is apparent here. He refuses Renly's offer of help despite all the allies he needs. He tells Baelish, a man obsessed with Catelyn and looking for revenge, Cersei's secret. Lastly, he refuses to have Lord Banniston killed since "he's a good man". As Baelish, or Renly, points out, Ned has the power, but has failed to grasp it. Despite all the signs and signals, Ned has fallen into an avoidable trap because of his character. He has failed to act like the Hand to the King despite Rob's urging, and now he's facing certain death. The moment where Baelish revealed his true colours, first in that scene with the two whores and the then in the final scene, sent chills down my spine and made me sympathise with Ned, who's already wary of everyone and everything as it is. Baelish came across as a near psychotic snake, which was weird since I had taken a liking to his character. His scene with Varys a few episodes ago was a red herring it seems, and his betrayal of Ned struck a chord with me.
Speaking of which, across the seas, the assassination attempt on Dany is made, but Mormant, a spy with a change of heart, intervenes and saves her. The assassination attempt starts a chain reaction to Khal Drogo making the badass speech everyone's been waiting for. This was a great moment in the episode and solidifies Drogo as someone not to be messed with. I cannot wait until the Dothraki start fucking shit up, and I personally hope Drogo shanks Joffrey in the heart.
Finally, Jon Snow and company become Men of the Black Watch. After throwing a hissy fit when he isn't assigned as a ranger, but instead a steward, Snow takes the vow and learns that Benjen might be dead, killed by the White Walkers, yet another threat. Lannisters, Dothraki, Starks, White Walkers. Shit is about to get real.
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