I didn’t
plan to do weekly posts about Game of Thrones,
but here I am, writing about the newest episode for the second straight week.
This time, we’ll be going over “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms,” the second
episode of the final season. This was a setup episode. In terms of plot, not
much happened until the final minutes, but this episode featured a number of
probable send-offs and commiserations about various characters’ most likely
biting it in the next episode.
Let’s
start with my girl Arya. Probably my favorite character and one of the
characters that has gone through one of the rougher journeys (Although no one
has had it easy). There’s a scene early in the episode where she and Gendry banter/flirt/
discuss the impending peril. This was a fun little scene as the two have an
easy chemistry, but it was also excellent setup for Arya coming to terms with
the idea that this might actually be the end. Later in the episode, after
leaving Beric and the Hound on a battlement with a flask of wine, Arya is
practicing her archery when Gendry comes in to deliver the spear she had
requested. It’s at this point that Arya clearly realizes that neither of them
may make it to sunrise. So, she asks Gendry about his sexual history and, after
a frank and trusting conversation, the two sleep together. Arya stating that
she just wants to know what it’s like before she dies is probably the most open
the character has been in years. Even more so than her reunion with Jon last
episode. Gendry, for his part, did not take much convincing. Probably because
he once told her, “You wouldn't be my family. You'd be my lady.” That was some
years ago at this point, but it is at the heart of this moment. These two have been
crushing on each other for years and the payoff was a well-earned moment for
both characters.
The
other moment that brought me true delight was Lady Brienne becoming Ser
Brienne. This scene is one of the few this season that has truly had room to
breathe. Tyrion, Jaime, Davos, Pod, Brienne, and Tormund sit around a fire and
contemplate their pasts and futures and if they will even have futures. When
the discussion turns to the fact that Brienne is not a knight because women can’t
be knights, Tormund correctly states, “Fuck tradition.” Jaime then steps in to
say that any knight can knight another. So, he has Brienne kneel before him and
knights her. Ser Brienne of Tarth rises and has the most amazing smile on her
face. She has finally accomplished her lifelong goal. She is a knight of the
realm. And she will surely die protecting it in the morning. In the span of
about five seconds, I was extremely happy for her and then incredibly sad
because I realized this is probably her send-off. Don’t get me wrong, Ser
Brienne will die a heroic death, probably protecting Sansa and fulfilling both her
promises to Catelyn and Sansa. It will wreck me.
 |
| This is the face of a woman about to die. |
In a
separate scene in the same location and with the same crew that saw Brienne
knighted, Tyrion asks if anyone knows a song they can sing. It’s Podrick that
pipes up. Daniel Portman can SING y’all. As with pretty
much any song on Game of Thrones, “Jenny’s
Song” seemed to foreshadow events to come and this was made extremely plain by
the Florence + the Machine cover that played over the end credits. I am not
going to analyze the song because much smarter and knowledgeable people on the
internet have done so already. I do want to talk about how I believe this will
be Pod’s send-off though. It is his big focal moment after a scene earlier in
the episode where Brienne and Jaime discuss how far he has come. And he has
grown quite a bit from the unsure and naïve squire we were introduced to early
on. Here’s hoping he gets to go out as a hero.
The
largest plot progression comes in the closing of the episode. Daenerys finds
Jon in the crypts staring at Lyanna’s tomb. He then proceeds to tell Dany about
his true parentage. She reacts, unsurprisingly, poorly. Dany’s first thought is
that Jon has a better claim to the Iron Throne than her. Jon doesn’t seem to
care about that though. He just needed to tell her because he’s a stand-up dude.
They do not get to truly discuss the ramifications of this reveal because the
horns go off. The army of the dead has arrived. So, they won’t have a chance to
discuss for a while, assuming they both survive the battle (They will).
The
other bit of plot progression comes early. Around a war table, many of the primary
characters discuss their battle strategy. Those that can’t fight will hide in
the definitely-not-as-safe-as-they-think crypts. Most fighters will be
stationed at the gates of Winterfell to protect them. Theon and his Ironborn
will be just outside the godswood, where Bran will sit as bait for the Night
King. Because the Night King wants to kill Bran and has for quite some time. We
finally learn why (Kinda). Sam posits that Bran is the memory of the world.
That’s why he can see the past. And the Night King wants him gone because death
is just a loss of memories. You forget and are forgotten. And the Night King is
Death incarnate as far as the show seems to be concerned. Killing Bran will
lead to the final deaths of those from the past, which seems to be a large part
of his motives.
 |
| Nice of you to join us, Ghost. |
This
episode was very cathartic, but also has me more worried for some of my
favorites than I have been in quite some time. Ser Brienne, Pod, Davos (They
kept mentioning how he has not combat ability), Ghost (Finally returning to
make sure we know he exists), Jorah (Sam gave his family’s Valyrian sword to
him), and maybe Gendry because Arya can’t be happy. Also, Theon will probably
die, but no one will care. I can’t wait for next week. After Captain America’s probable
death in Avengers: Endgame this week,
I will be out of tears so Game of Thrones
can’t hurt me. Unless Arya dies. Then I might not be able to type next week.
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