#game of thrones s8e1

[princesssarcastia]

GOT, s8e1

WELL.  Here we are again, for the last time. Given what we’ve seen in this episode, I'm vaguely hopeful? The writing is solid, the characters are solidly in character, and no one’s been hit with the idiot stick.............yet.

ARYA WAS THE BEST PART OF THIS EPISODE.  The parallel between her in the beginning of this, and her at the beginning of the series, was so nice.  Watching her watch all these people she knew, who affected her so much, was kinda cool.  For a moment, I think she wanted Jon to look down and see her, but of course he doesn’t, and that sets the tone for their interactions, I think. Her reunion with Jon? SO NICE. she’s happy to see him, but also ready to cut a bitch if he threatens Sansa.  sisterly solidarity is my jam.

Sansa being cold to Daenerys was soooooo satisfying.  I’ve found that the longer the show goes on, the less I like Daenerys.  That line in season 6, about Daenerys being a conquerer, it was absolutely true.  She just...doesn’t work as a ruler; case in point, the thing with the food.  (Finally, Drogon burning that supply train comes back to bite her in the ass).  In my heart of hearts, I want all this political shit to stew for a couple episodes, get worse and worse, but I know thats not gonna happen.

Sansa telling Tyrion he’s a dumbass is on point, cause he is, and he's gonna pay for that shit. 

ARYA, REUNITING WITH THE HOUND AND GENDRY.  I honestly liked her reunion with the hound more than her reunion with gendry, mostly because their relationship was so complex and portraying it successfully is a better narrative feat, but I loved them both so. much.  just a little bit of flirting at the end.

Poor Sam, poor, poor sam.  Finding out the person your best bud is shacking up with burned half your family alive is rough.  His expressions, the difference in the way he took Randall versus Dickon, were incredibly satisfying. kudos!

I don’t give a flying fuck what Cersei and crazy eyes are up to, so that was boring.

But! Theon rescuing Yara immediately, and Yara immediately punching him in the face, were good moments.  Excellent moments.  Narratively sound moments, which is something the last season....lacked an abundance of. I wonder, since she’s going back to the Iron Islands and Theon is going to Winterfell; Theon has the potential to cause so much shit there with his relationships with various Starks, but beyond that: the fact that the motherfucking iron islands get to retain their independence while the Starks had to kneel will start some shit. I wanna see that shit. 

Bran is an ominous little gremlin and I love him even if he is pretending not to be a person anymore. This man waited outside all night just to catch Jamie as he came in so they could share a dramatic look.  And id really love to see him have one real human emotion about Jamie, if only because real human emotions are more satisfying to watch than an information source serving as a cheat for raven travel times. 

JAMIE.  HOLY SHIT. thats all.

okay thats not all, I want to see how he reacts now, as a person who’s grown from the incestuous piece of shit he was into a...slightly less awful incestuous piece of shit? whatever, when confronted with arguably the worst thing he’s ever done (pushing bran off a roof), which he did for a person he’s now renounced (cersei).  also, a neat comparison between his arrival s1e1 with this, as a dark rider unannounced, whose probably about to get his ass arrested.

What they did with Bron, gratuitous prostitutes aside, is excellent.  His whole thing is that he’s a sell sword who will do anything for money; now, paying him money to kill the two people he’s had the best rapport and closest thing to friendship with is a great way to explore his character, whenever we get there. 

Everyone giving Jon the cold shoulder is greaaaaat.  My man is honorable but he’s dumb as fuck, just like his real adoptive de facto uncle? like Ned.  Drag him. 

That scene with him riding dragons with Daenerys was so cool!! Animation flex, but cool, and excellent foreshadowing for...

the big reveal! Jon isn’t a bastard!  His father isn’t his father, and lied to him his entire life!  He’s the heir to the iron throne!  He’s been sexing up his aunt!, although tbh idk that he’s gotten that far yet. Jon’s emotions made that scene.  if only they’d done it in a room with better lighting!  but I know the catacombs were the place having that scene made the most narrative sense, so. 

Overall: 7/10.  solid charactering, the reunions made sense, and Im hopeful and excited for the next episode.  

[rhetorical-ink]

Rhetorical Ink Reviews: Game of Thrones, Season 8 Episode 1

** PREMIERE HYPED SPOILERS BELOW **

After waiting nearly two years for this premiere...the HYPE was real! I barely watched any media about Game of Thrones’s season premiere in anticipation for this episode! And...let’s dive in!

My Top Then Thoughts on Game of Thrones: Season 8, Episode 1:

10. Right off the bat, we see Dany and Jon Snow coming back to Winterfell and it feels like such a “Bizarroworld” parallel from Season One, when the Lannister’s and King Robert visited Winterfell -- looking back at that first episode and seeing this, there is such a stark (wink wink nudge nudge) contrast, it’s actually hilarious...more on that parallel later!

Oh, and Arya’s expression when she first sees the dragon?

“Imma ride one of them...just you wait.” *Cue Hamilton soundtrack*

9. Of COURSE Sansa has to be petty and hate Danearys -- I get the reasoning behind it, though I’m not happy that she’s clearly being snobby and not trying to understand Jon’s reasoning -- even Arya, though her reunion with Jon Snow is touching -- shares in Sansa’s sentiments, in a more chilling moment. One that really has Jon Snow give that “what all have you been through while I’ve been gone” look, especially knowing how much Arya and Sansa hated each other in the earlier seasons...oh, you know nothing, Jon Snow.

More on what he doesn’t know below!

8. Euron Greyjoy may be my least favorite villain in the show -- so it’s a strange thing seeing him shack up with my favorite villain of the show.

But, the scene does lend to some interesting moments post-coitus between her and Euron. One, she is free to openly talk about having sex with Jaime with someone who’s not put off by it, and two, Euron’s talk about “putting a prince in her belly” (when dude, she’s already pregnant...can you not tell?) and Cersei’s reaction when he’s not looking, leads me to think that maybe she’s going to use the baby to wrangle Euron further into her clutches to milk more out of his service...maybe, you know, get some friggin’ elephants?

IknowyourCGIbudgetislimitedbutstillHBO

7. There is a lot of set up with these characters, the chess pieces in route.

On the one hand, while Cersei and Euron are “getting to know one another,” Theon pops in to save Yara -- I like the slight foreshadowing that if things “go south” literally at Winterfell, Jon Snow and everyone should be able to retreat to the Iron Islands, where as Yara says, “The dead cannot go.” Yeahhhhh, anyone else seeing some creepy dead pirate foreshadowing? Because I am!

Also, Qyburn sends Bronn north to supposedly murder Tyrion and Jaime...using the very crossbow that Tyrion used to kill Tywin. Obviously, we can assume Bronn’s not about to do that...but it does beg the question what that cross bow will be used for...Hmm...

6. Probably my least favorite scene in the episode is where Dany and Jon ride Drogon and Rheagal...I get that it does need to happen at some point to establish that Jon can even ride a dragon...but still, it was WAY too sappy and “Disney-esque” to match the dire and serious tone of the rest of the episode.

Plus, of COURSE they land in front of a gorgeous winter waterfall, and you can literally see Jon Snow’s flashbacks to Ygritte, especially when Dany proposes they “never leave.”

Leave it to an awkward Dragon stare to take Jon out of the mood. #thanksRhaegal

5. Speaking of awkward, there are plenty of reunions worth noting, two especially below, but we get to see Sansa show how smart she’s become to Tyrion, who seems to be extremely nervous as of late (probably with the writing on the wall he knows between Jon Snow and Dany -- which has become even more problematic given that Sir Davros’s scheme is to get them to marry one another), but especially between Arya, The Hound, and Gendry.

I really like the reunion between The Hound and Arya -- it’s clear their mutual hate/respect they have and it fits each of their characters well.

Arya’s reunion with Gendry is fine, but it’s clear that their relationship is tense and awkward, especially with Arya not be a “little girl” anymore...although, have we ever touched on how old Arya is in this show? I’m all for Arya not being a “traditional lady” and settling down with Gendry, but hopefully we at least get some scenes with them fighting together!

4. Arguably the best scene in the episode is Dany meeting Sam -- in what should be a happy moment between Dany meeting the rescuer of Jorah, Jorah, Jorah the Explorah (and since it’s the last season, he shall be referred to as such only). Instead, it instantly goes south when Sam mentions his last name -- uhm, Jorah, Jorah (Sir), how did you NOT realize the connection? Granted, Sam looks NOTHING like his father or brother, but still. You can’t help but cringe at the realization that this was all coming to a head...

Credits to the actor playing Sam, as his reaction to the deaths of his brother and father are rightfully pained and real. Though he didn’t like them, they were family. It was such a poignant scene, and a clear slap to the face for Danearys that her actions DO have consequences, just like Tyrion warned her.

3. And it makes all the more sense why it has to be Sam to tell Jon Snow of his true lineage. Now Sam has motivation -- Jon Snow is the true king, NOT Danearys. Meaning, she has a right to make him King for the betterment of the North, not the other way around.

I absolutely love Kit Harrington’s portrayal of Jon Snow finding out the truth! It’s a perfect blend of:

* My father Ned Stark lied to me my whole life

* I’m a king and a Targaryan and the grandson of the Mad King

* Holy Crap, I’ve slept with my Aunt ... and still want to do it again

2. Tormund and the Night’s Watch make it to the House of Umber, only to find it ransacked, and I really forgot that little boy, Ned Umber, until we saw him speared to the wall -- scarily surrounded by body parts similar to those in the form of a swirl in the first episode of season one.

In true white walker fashion, the boy comes to life at the most unexpected moment and screams, causing me to nearly jump out of my seat. The stakes are here, yo. Our first death is confirmed for the season with Ned Umber.

1. Arguably, though, the reunion I was waiting for most didn’t require me to wait long. Jaime makes it to Winterfell, glorious beard and all, and quite sneakily might I add...only to be immediately stopped by the one person he probably didn’t want to run into first: Bran.

I love this for so many reasons. First, Bran’s line to Sam that he was “Waiting for an old friend,” which is why he couldn’t go and tell Jon Snow about his lineage. Is Bran truly a “friend” to Jaime, or foe? I love the almost sinister nature in which Bran says this......and second, the perfect parallel to Season One.

Our last shot of the first season was seeing Jaime shove Bran out the tower window to his seemingly imminent death.

The last show of the final season is seeing Jaime confront Bra, who is going to take him to his seemingly imminent death. (at the hands of both Danearys and Sansa).

Poetry, y’all. Poetry.

So, this episode went by SO fast, setting up many pieces and bringing so much to the table for next week. I knew it wouldn’t have any crazy twists yet, but I’m geared up for what’s to come next weekend!

[what-im-watching-now]

Game of Thrones

S8E1 “Winterfell”

Will the servers hold?

[rizahawkais]

why didn’t gendrya end up together

[stacieconrad]

jaime: *locks eyes with bran*

bran:

[ririsasy]

Jaime *Arrived on winterfell* :

Me :

Jaime locked eyes with Brandon :

Me :

[cheekbonejangles]

Arya@Gendry: i kill men for fun. Make me weapons.

Also Arya: IM A RICH GIRL AND IM CUTE AND YOU KNOW IT. LOVE ME.

[tomfoolery815]

I don’t know how much Veep/Game of Thrones fandom crossover there is here, but this is for us. :)

Source: https://www.reddit.com/r/freefolk/comments/benumu/when_two_worlds_collide/

[rhaenyrahightowers]

[peachsandaestheticlove]

After the Forge

You look good. You look good? You fucking idiot, thought Gendry as he hammered away at the anvil with frustration and self-loving.

The song of the hammer was distant today, too much was on his mind.

Gendry stopped and dipped the dragon glass into the water, steam blasted from the water pot.

He glanced around and the rolled parchment laid across the smithy tools caught his eye. He picked it up and stared long at it.

She had changed. Seven Hells she did look good, too good for a bastard like him.

But there was something about this weapon sketched out in her rough hand that focused him.

Now is not the time for falling for a girl you knew when you were fifteen. The army of the dead is coming. Arya will fight.

Gendry knew that even Jon could not stop her from that! 

Well... he would be damned if he wasn’t going to make her the best blade he had ever forged. 

He put the parchment down and set to work.

[fontiptoes]

Look, the way I see it Jon is either playing the game or has been replaced by a shape shifting alien from outer space between season 7 and season 8.

[rhaenys-targaryen]

Dany:

Bran: the night king has your dragon

Dany:

[pretty-sweet-plums]

Am a mess of emotions rn bec my Dad thinks Jonsa is a real thing and I couldn't respond when he said Sansa was so jealous when Jon rode in with Dany and when she asked him:

[boyneriver-fraser]

Useless? Pfft... 🙄

Big Picture, People!

If this man

doesn’t do this,

then this a girl

doesn’t do this!

Had the Night King remained on Viserion, might they have shared Toasted Bran for breakfast?

The Night King had to be on the ground in order for Arya to slay him.

Jon Snow useless? 🙄 My Aunt Evelyn!

Hey, I’m laughing, too, at all the Jon Is Useless posts and stories and memes. I’m able to love him and laugh at him at the same time.  @danielledreamsthedayaway Are you laughing with me? 😹😹

April 29, 2019

Gifs: Jon on Rhaegal @daenarys-stormborn Jon/Rhaegal, Daenerys/Drogon, Night King/Viserion @yocalio Arya & Jon @aryajon Arya, Bran, Night King @aryastarksource

#Game Of Thrones #GoT #STOP PICKING ON JON 😡 #😹 #Big Picture #S8E1 #Winterfell #S8E3 #The Long Night #Jon Snow #Arya Stark #Bran Stark #Daenerys Targaryen #Drogon #Rhaegal #Viserion #Night King #91 #042919

[gameofthrones-reactions]

The reunion we've all been waiting for ❤️

[lianabrooks]

GAME OF THRONES - 8 x 01

HERE BE SPOILERS

It’s time for my favorite part of GAME OF THRONES which is picking apart the clues and figuring out what is happening. 

Don’t agree? Think I missed a detail? Awesome! Let me know! I’m interested in hearing what you thought. 

1) The Red Wedding In The Opening Yes, the Red Wedding was a huge game changer for the Game of Thrones and very memorable, but why bring it up?

Well... because someone has to get married. We currently have three queens running loose controlling the world and in this world marriages are about political alliances. If Dany and Jon survive the battle with the White Walkers what will happen? Well, people are going to expect a wedding. And House Lannister will not be happy about that alliance.

There are already a lot of fan theories about Sansa being kidnapped and a betrayal at a wedding + a kidnapping would fit the Lannister MO. 

2) The Sex Scene Thankfully no one has GIF’d this but I’m confused why, if Jon and Dany are the main couple who will see everything put right, they didn’t get the sex scene in the season opener. Shouldn’t we see them being happy and loving and working together?

Two theories on this...

1) Sex scenes in the past have always ended badly. It’s almost a sure thing that the couple will break up or one of them will die (which means Grey Worm and Missandei are doomed - but we anticipated that anyway - he’s likely going to die in battle). So maybe keeping Jon and Dany away from each other this season is a way to undo Boat Sex and promise a happy future? It’s a stretch.

2) Dany and Jon aren’t a major couple and won’t last. And, I’m sorry to all the Jonyers fans out there, I really do think that’s what they are setting up. Currently Jon and Dany are running parallel to Cersei and Jaime and we all know how well that turned out. 

In isolation this isn’t a huge problem. But there are a couple of other telling things that hint at an unhappy ending for the favorite power couple in Game Of Thrones.

3) The Frozen Waterfall I know, I know... it should be so romantic. Jon came back to the place he first fell in love with the woman he’s now with.

*record scratch*

Wait. What?

That’s heckin’ creepy, man! Like taking your date to the place you had your first date with your ex. Jonny Boy, Dany is not a replacement Ygritte. So either this is a big YOU KNOW NOTHING ABOUT DATING, JON SNOW! moment or there’s some symbolism happening here. 

First off, the cave is a stark contrast to the last time he was here. With Ygritte the colors were vivid and bright. There’s was a beautiful sunset and he looked genuinely happy and in love (and since he married Rose Leslie some of that was real - but Kit isn’t a bad actor and he can look like he’s in love when he wants to). With Dany the scene is faded out with the white and blue (Night Walker) colors dominating the background. Jon’s black cloak is the major contrast with accents from the red on Dany’s dress.

3.5 Colors!) Game of Thrones has been *amazing* at coloring and color theory and color matching and all those little visual cues that signal that Person A belongs with or sides with Person B. It’s seen best in Sansa and Cersei’s dresses that change color to reflect their moods and alliances. Dany (since coming to power) has stood out in her color choices. But in this scene she’s not matching her lover, she’s matching the Night Walkers.  (Notice how Jon and Ygritte are dressed to match in their kissing scene? There’s even red in his hair from the light. This is important.)

In fact, all of Dany’s color choices since the first teasers came out had me scratching my head. She isn’t wearing her trademark blue and she isn’t wearing Stark black. She isn’t even in the white and black coat she wore to rescue Jon (which would have made sense). 

Red on Dany is ALWAYS a warning color. Her costumes have it when some act of violence is about to happen or just happened (the scene after the dragons hatch is mostly shades of white and the red of the dragon - the color scheme is white and red when she burns the Dothraki). 

Blue is the color of Happy Dany. 

Black and white are the colors of Commanding Dany (black for when she feels threatened and white when she doesn’t).

Red is the color of Dany + Violence. 

But that’s not all there is at the waterfall...

Assuming Jon isn’t an idiot who can’t plan a date, the waterfall is a reminder of a specific relationship: Jon and Ygritte.

And we all know what happened to Ygritte. 

That plus the red makes me think this love is doomed. 

4) What do dragons eat? This is actually where the politics of leadership come into play and it’s a defining moment. 

Sansa Stark, Lady of Winterfell and de facto Queen of the North, says she planned on feeding her people through winter, not the Dothraki, Unsullied, and dragons. 

Daenerys Stormborn of the House Targaryen,First of Her Name, the Unburnt, Queen of the Andals and the First Men, Khaleesi of the Great Grass Sea,Breaker of Chains, and Mother of Dragons replies that dragons eat whatever they want.

The problem here is that what Dany needed to say was WE BROUGHT FOOD FOR OUR TROOPS, NO WORRIES. 

Because a good leader would have thought of that problem. 

If you look at the leaders who didn’t survive the Iron Throne (Robert, Joffery, Tommen, the Mad King, ect ect ect) you notice one of the major flaws is not planning ahead. The Mad King didn’t. Robert was busy hunting and one of the big problems the Starks had back in Season 1 was convincing people to prepare for this inevitable ice war. Jofferey was too busy killing people to reign. Cersei tried, bless her heart, but didn’t do a good job.

The overarching thesis of leadership in GOT is that GOOD LEADERS PLAN FOR THE FUTURE.

Dany, for all her many virtues, is a conqueror not a queen. Queen of the Andals. Khaleesi of the Great Grass Sea. Breaker of Chains... but for some reason she’s not prepping those areas she’s in Winterfell where they literally have the worst chance of successfully holding back an army? 

Winterfell is in the plains. It’s not at a pinch point. Strategically... it’s just not a good place to hold a battle.

The Wall is down, the smart move would be to line the armies up along the line between The Cape of Eagles and The Bite using Greywatch Tower as a base of operations and the coast and islands as an emergency retreat zone. 

I know it isn’t wonderful to lose Winterfell or not have that be the site of the big battle, but it would be the strategically intelligent thing to do. And, if Dany were looking at the big picture, she’d realize that.

I expect Jon and the people of the north to defend Winterfell because it’s HOME. 

Dany is (in name at least) ruler of an epic amount of land and people. The Night King is coming there for ... reasons? Narrative?

I assume in the book Bran’s presence draws the Night King, but in the show it’s a bit sketchy. Why is the Night King headed to Winterfell when he could walk around? Seriously WHY? 

George and I need to have a chat about maps and where forts should be built. 

But let’s let that go for a the time being.

The end problem here is the same, Dany thinks in the heat of the moment. She thinks in terms of ego, pride, and people recognizing her greatness. She is an amazing General and a great conqueror and a breaker of chains. She is the Mother of Dragons. But she is not a good ruler by all the guidelines set by GAME OF THRONES.

Who does rule well?  Quite a few people actually. Tyrion could rule easily. Cersei and Jaime at least know how to handle politics. Sansa makes a great ruler. Jon ... would be okay with someone smart helping him out (Tyrion or Sansa for preference). Brienne could rule. So could Tormund. Bran would be okay (again with help). Arya could figure it out and so could Gendry. 

But Dany? She has to learn how to plan and rule so her encounter with Sansa, and the animosity there, can only break two ways.

1) Dany realizes quickly that she made an error and then gets a lesson on how to rule. She makes Sansa one of her advisers ASAP and goes to The School Of Queens. She makes plans, gets food, and actually becomes the queen she wants to be.

2) Dany falls on the worst traits of House Targaryen, feeds her ego and pride, and we see her tragic downfall. Hubris is the cause of tragedy. Her pride will kill her if she doesn’t learn fast. 

5) The Happy Reunions Tyrion and Sansa are reunited!

I have mixed feelings about this because Tyrion - objectively - is a terrible human being. He’s smart and funny, but he’s also terrible to the women around him and the only reason anyone likes him is that, compared to Cersei, he’s amazing. But Cersei is a nightmare and Tyrion is still the guy who considered having sex with a 15yo girl (or was she still 14? she was YOUNG). 

Still, I think they compliment each other in many ways. They are both intelligent and both aware of what’s happening enough to be good friends. It will be interesting to see what happens with them.

BUT!!! Back to point 1.... Tyrion and Sansa mention another tragic wedding.

If I were betting money on this season I would not put any cash down on someone getting a joyful wedding. If you hear wedding bells just go ahead and cry because someone is going to DIE. 

Gendry and Arya! Arya and Jon! Jon and Bran!

So many more happy reunions!

I sincerely hope Gendry and Arya will be able to fulfill the promise of Robert and Ned (You have a son. I have a daughter...) Could they rule the kingdoms together? Yes, they could, but I don’t think that is where this is headed. I’m not even certain the Iron Throne will exist by the end of the series, but looking at Gendry and Arya’s arcs I don’t believe they are destined to rule much more than themselves and their family. 

Bran and Jamie!

The best part about this is the narrative arc that’s here and how everything is coming full circle (this is also the best reason to forgive George for having a big battle in Winterfell - this is ultimately a story about House Stark, not anyone else). I like the continuity here and I think it means we will see echoes of Season 1 throughout this.

S1E1 we had Robert and Cersei arrive with a promised wedding...  S8E1 we have Jon and Dany arrive with a hope of a wedding...

Jaime pushed Bran off a tower. Jaime will likely die saving Bran. 

TODAY’S TAKE AWAY - weddings are bad for your health (duh) - Dany is in a very dangerous situation (a dragon alone is a terrible thing) - not learning from past mistakes gets you killed - the White Walkers are not the biggest threat to the future, bad leadership is