Game of Thrones Episode 2 Recap “Stormborn”

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Game of Thrones Recap

“Stormborn” (Se: 7 Ep: 2)

Craig Koshkin

This week’s Game of Thrones Episode gave us a much stronger entry than the premier’s set-up feel, but it still seems the show has not yet hit it’s stride which isn’t uncommon this early in a GoT season. I wrote a preview for the episode (see it here) last week and while I had a good feel of what this episode would bring us, there is one glaring error I made which we touch on later.  Without further ado, let’s get into it.

Dragonstone

A stormy night in Dragonstone begins with an interesting back and forth between Varys and Daenerys Stormborn, Queen of the Andals, Brekaer of Chains; dear Lord that gets tiresome.

Daeny accuses Varys of being disloyal. Varys says he’s in it for the people and won’t be blindly loyal. Daenerys wants to know who arranged for her to be killed. Daeny forgives Varys and wants his honesty in addition to his loyalty or she’ll burn him alive. Good times were had by all.

Enter Melisandre. The last time she was at Dragonstone she was serving Stannis Boratheon, having his evil shadow babies, and having little brother Renly murdered by said evil shadow baby.  The discussion centers on “The Prince who was Promised” and whether it is a gender-neutral pronoun or not. Ill save you the grammar lesson, but Missandei points out that it could be “The Princess who was promised” as well. Daenerys quite likes that.  Tyrion advises Daeny on just how useful Jon Snow could be in their alliance and she decides to summon The King of the North.

Winterfell

Kids train to fight and Jon Snow receives Tyrion’s raven. Davos points out that they have dragons and fire kills wights. This scene really would have been better if included with the upcoming Winterfell seen. It seems really out of place here.

King’s Landing

Cersei, sitting on the Iron Throne, meets with some Lords loyal to House Tyrell and tries to sway them to join the Crown’s cause. She plays up the fear of a “foreign army” invading and twists Daeny’s freeing of the slaves in Essos into the deaths of Lords on the continent. At least they didn’t hit us over the head with the modern day political allegory. Oh wait…

Jamie seeks out Lord Tarley (Sam’s father) as he’s the most influential Lord there. Jamie wants him to be the new General. A bunch of talk about loyalty and oaths ensues. More “nationalist” talk from Jamie and Lord Tarley has some thinking to do.

The Citadel

Sir Jorah better watch out of this Greyscale thing may really become a problem.  The Arch Maester gives him 6 months before his brain is consumed by the disease and despite Sam’s knowledge of a banned procedure, the Arch Maester can’t do anything for him.

Back in King’s Landing

Dragon skulls!!!!! Qyburn is about to show Cersei how they can kill dragons. His big reveal comes and…. Giant crossbows (cue the Price is Right loser’s music). Color me unimpressed with this “revolutionary” air defense system. It seems lazy but the arrow does crush the biggest dragon skull. I guess all 3 dragons aren’t making it through the great battle.

Dragonstone (again)

The writers have tried so hard to make Ellaria Sand a badass and I just don’t buy it. Sure she hates Lannisters but who doesn’t? She killed a Lannister girl with poison (not even by her own hand), what a badass. Take a number and stop annoying me. Everyone debates the best way to take King’s Landing. The most impulsive want it quick and bloody. Tyrion knows better and hatches a plan. The Greyjoy, Tyrell, and Dorne armies will lay siege to King’s Landing while the Dothraki and Unsullied will take Casterly Rock; effectively cutting off the head of the Lannisters. Tyrion is very aware of Cersei’s only hand to play, the fear of a foreign army. It seems too good to be true which means it probably is. Everyone buys in. Hooray!

Cersei seeks counsel with Lady Olenna about peace. Olenna points out that peace doesn’t exist in Westeros and tries to drive a wedge between Tyrion and Daenerys by claiming he’s a clever man but nonetheless a sheep. She wants Daeny to “be a Dragon.”

Then we get a stupid, unnecessary scene where Missandei and Grey Worm have sex. How does that work exactly since, you know, Grey Worm doesn’t have anything there? At least we get to see Missandei naked.

The Citadel

I’ll save you the description of the boring library scene. Sam gets books to study. That’s it. But Sam goes to Jorah’s room and attempts the banned procedure to rid his greyscale. Clearing greyscale looks like the most disgusting YouTube black head popping video ever. Puss everywhere and Joran can’t even scream or else they are both F.U.B.A.R.

The Riverlands

Arya returns to the tavern where she left Hot Pie and rekindles their friendship. How is Arya just now hearing that Jon Snow is King of the North and the Starks are back in Winterfell? Arya now has a choice to make; her list or her family. She chooses family and heads north.

Arya stops to make camp for the night and is surrounded by a pack of wolves led by one dire wolf. Nymeria? Arya tries to get her old friend to come to Winterfell with her but the wolves just leave. Arya is going to get in trouble at some point along her ride and Nymeria will be back to save her.

Winterfell (again)

If you read the preview article, I finally got something very right.  Jon receives Sam’s raven about dragon glass at Dragonstone and knows he must head to meet Daenerys and Tyrion. Shocking, none of the Northern Lords think Jon should trust the Dragon Queen and her Lannister Hand. Ho hum, Sansa undermines Jon’s decisions. Water is wet. Jon is going anyway and leaves Sansa in charge.

Down in the crypts, Littlefinger makes the grave mistake of talking to Jon as if they’re friends. Jon knows he sold his sister to Ramsay Bolton. Then he has the nerve to talk about loving Sansa? How did he think that was going to work out? Jon chokes out Littlefinger (got that one right too!) and threatens Littlefinger’s life if he ever touches Sansa. Jon Snow rides for the harbor to sail to Dragonstone. Littlefinger creepily looks on to Sansa.

On the Seas

Ok, we can’t be right all of the time and this is where I got it wrong. I didn’t think we’d get a showdown between Euron and his niece and nephew so soon. Euron ambushes them, on the sea, at night. If there was ever a reason to hate Euron, it is the fact that this attack stopped Yara and Ellaria from hooking up. Talk about bad timing. Euron’s fleet ransacks his opponents, the Sandsnakes die (thank goodness), and Euron captures Yara and Ellaria. As for Theon, he goes in Reek-mode at the sight of the carnage and abandons ship. It’s a setup. He will eventually kill Euron and get redemption, just not tonight. Euron has his gift for Cersei, the woman who killed her daughter, Ellaria Sand.