Jon begins his training with the Night's Watch; Ned confronts his past and future at King's Landing; Daenerys finds herself at odds with Viserys.Jon begins his training with the Night's Watch; Ned confronts his past and future at King's Landing; Daenerys finds herself at odds with Viserys.Jon begins his training with the Night's Watch; Ned confronts his past and future at King's Landing; Daenerys finds herself at odds with Viserys.
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThis is the first episode of the series without any deaths of any kind, and remains the only one until The Bear and the Maiden Fair (2013).
- GoofsWhen Daenerys and Drogo are lying in bed naked, imprints from a bra are clearly visible on her body.
- Quotes
Tyrion Lannister: So... you roam the Seven Kingdoms collaring pickpockets and horse thieves and bring them here as eager recruits.
Yoren: Aye. Well, it's not all of 'em's done bad things. Some of 'em's just poor lads looking for steady feed. Some of 'em's highborn lads looking for glory.
Tyrion Lannister: Better chance of finding feed than glory.
Benjen Stark: [walks in] The Night's Watch is a joke to you, is it? Is that what we are, Lannister? An army of jesters in black?
Tyrion Lannister: You don't have enough men to be an army, and aside from Yoren here, none of you are particularly funny.
Benjen Stark: I hope we provided you with some good stories to tell when you're back in King's Landing. That's something to think about when you're drinking your wine down there, enjoying your brothels. Half the boys you've seen training will die north of the Wall. Might be a wildling's axe that gets them. Might be sickness. Might just be the cold. They die in pain... and they do it so plump little lords like you can enjoy their summer afternoons in peace and comfort.
Tyrion Lannister: [to Yoren] Do you think I'm plump?
[Yoren smiles and looks away]
Tyrion Lannister: Listen, Benjen - may I call you Benjen?
Benjen Stark: Call me what you like.
Tyrion Lannister: I'm not sure what I've done to offend you. I have great admiration for the Night's Watch. I have great admiration for you as First Ranger...
Benjen Stark: You know, my brother once told me that nothing someone says before the word "but" really counts.
Tyrion Lannister: But... I don't believe that giants and ghouls and white walkers are lurking beyond the Wall. I believe that the only difference between us and the wildlings is that when that Wall went up, our ancestors happened to live on the right side of it.
Benjen Stark: You're right. The wildlings are no different from us. A little rougher, maybe. But they're made of meat and bone. I know how to track 'em and I know how to kill 'em. It's not the wildlings giving me sleepless nights. You've never been north of the Wall, so don't tell me what's out there.
[Benjen turns to leave]
Yoren: You going below?
[Yoren and Benjen shake hands]
Yoren: Keep well, keep warm.
Benjen Stark: Enjoy the capital, brother.
Yoren: Oh, I always do.
[Benjen walks out]
Tyrion Lannister: I think he's starting to like me.
- Crazy creditsThe sun tells an important part of the series back story, on its panels. It does so in three segments. First, as the credits start up, the sun depicts how the Targaryens and their dragons conquered Westeros. The second time the sun is shown, a dragon is depicted in a mortal struggle with 3 other animals: The Stag, the Lion and the Wolf. It is a very literal way to show how Robert Beratheon and Ned Stark rebelled, with Tywin Lannister reluctantly supporting them, in the end. Finally, the third time the sun is shown, before the series title enter the scene, a lion (among other animals) is shown "kneeling" to a triumphant Stag. Just as Robert was crowned King after winning the war.
- ConnectionsReferenced in Game of Thrones: Walk of Punishment (2013)
Jon Snow takes the honor of the titular character. As we know from the first few episodes, he will be travelling to join the Night's Watch at the Wall, which separates the kingdom of Westeros and the cold, wintry North where the wildings live. Snow begins his training, but he is in for a rude awakening. He is being trained by Ser Allister, who makes Snow's life miserable. I guess that is what happens when a character is being trained to move from an arrogant rookie to a fearless leader. There is insight about how cruel life can be at the Wall. Luckily, we get another week of Tyrion at the wall. The name "Lannister" alone is enough to command respect of others. We see his scheming and we are left to wonder, what is his motivations? Is he in the league with Cersei and Jaime or does he have his own agenda? Peter Dinklage has been the standout of all the cast members so far and this episode is further proof. I really love his sarcastic demeanor, and I also liked how he subtly trains Snow. I also dig his bathroom off the wall routine.
Let's go back to King's Landing. Ned Stark and his daughters arrive and Ned is put to work right away trying to figure out the murder of the previous Hand of the King. There are excellent character moments between Ned and Arya, played beautifully by Maisie Williams. Arya wants to be a warrior and she begins here with her sword master, Syrio Forel. The swordfighting display is a thing of beauty. I do love the interactions that Arya had with her father in this episode. The look in Ned Stark's eyes when he realizes that eventually his daughter will be a true warrior, not learning these techniques for the fun of it. Catelyn Stark also makes an appearance here. She travels to Kings Landing in secret to solve the attempt on Bran's life. There is where she runs into one of the king's advisors, Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish (played wonderfully by Aidan Gillen). Cat was Baelish's crush before she got married. They end up reuniting and Baelish tells her that the knife from the attempt was his.....until it was won off him in a game of cards by a certain a Lannister. Because of this event, things will start developing as we move forward with the season. We also meet Lord Varys, an eunuch played by Conleth Hill and Grand Master Pycelle played by Julian Glover.
Speaking of Lannisters, they certainly got good lines here. Cersei is grooming her petulant son of hers to be the next king and she drives the point home in such an odd way. She gives an odd, though rather indulgent way of telling her son he is going to be king. Jaime Lannister is given more to do and is developed more here. We learn that he killed the Mad King and also has some rather chewy lines. I loved his bantering with Ned Stark as we see The Iron Throne for the first time.
Finally, we head across the Narrow Sea to follow the arc of Daenary's. Daenary finally shows some qualities about why she should not be messed with. Let's just say this. Her stupid, controlling brother, Visery is going to get what he deserves. His character I completely loathe. It is nice for a change that we do not get to focus on nudity this episode. She is given nuance and she began to show why she could be a capable leader. I also like that we learn more about the Dothraki people as a whole.
Overall, this is a great episode that features lots of intrigue. There may be limited action, but the tension remains on high alert. If you like political stuff, this episode will be right up your alley!
My Grade: A-
- gab-14712
- Apr 30, 2019
Details
- Runtime58 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.78 : 1