Game of Thrones Retrospective: The North Remembers (Season Two, Episode One)

Directed by: Alan Taylor
Distributed by: HBO

Written by Anna Harrison

Overview

In these retrospectives, I will be looking back on “Game of Thrones” through my viewpoint as a fanatical fan of George R. R. Martin’s original book series, “A Song of Ice and Fire.” Mostly, I suspect this will be an exercise in venting my frustration about the adaptation of the books and pointing out where things went wrong in my mind—and I have a lot to work out.

For ease of reference, the show “Game of Thrones” can be abbreviated as “GOT” or “Thrones,” and the books in “A Song of Ice and Fire” can be abbreviated as “ASOIAF.” 

The books in the series are “A Game of Thrones,” “A Clash of Kings,” “A Storm of Swords,” “A Feast for Crows,” “A Dance With Dragons,” and the as-yet unpublished “The Winds of Winter” and “A Dream of Spring.” These can be abbreviated as “AGOT,” “ACOK,” “ASOS,” “AFFC,” “ADWD,” “TWOW,” and “ADOS.” 

Chapters within the book will be referred to by their point-of-view character and a Roman numeral indicating what chapter within the POV it is (ex., Catelyn I, Jaime II, Arya III, and so on), as Martin does not number his chapters nor name them besides indicating whose POV we are about to enter.

70/100

Across the sky, a red comet blazes; on the ground, figurines of the Faith of the Seven’s gods burn. In the background looms Dragonstone, shrouded in darkness but imposing in its hugeness. A woman all in red (Carice van Houten) walks among the fire, unphased, and tells us that “the night is dark and full of terrors.” Finally, after countless mentions in season one, we see Stannis Baratheon (Stephen Dillane) in all his glory, lifting a flaming sword from the pyre and looking utterly annoyed with it the whole time. The first season ended with the flames of Daenerys Targaryen’s (Emilia Clarke) funeral pyre for Khal Drogo (Jason Momoa) and birthing bed for her dragons; season two opens with a fire that is either the holiest of holies or an utter blasphemy, depending on what you believe. The woman in red, Melisandre, gazes upon the bonfire with something akin to lust; for Maester Cressen (Oliver Ford Davies) and Davos Seaworth (Liam Cunningham), the sight is alarming. 

This marks the first time the audience hears of the religion of R’hllor, the Lord of Light. After so little talk of the Seven in the first season, to have faith thrust upon the audience so quickly is unusual, but the atmosphere created on Dragonstone is so rich that intrigue quickly subsumes any surprise. The audience might not care about the Faith of the Seven, but any character introduced amidst salt and smoke is bound to catch the eye, especially with Ramin Djawadi’s eerie score in the background. The lure of this Dragonstone plot, whatever it may be, only grows as we move indoors, to where Stannis sits dictating a letter that proclaims him the rightful king of the Seven Kingdoms (which, by the laws of the realm, he is). 

What makes these scenes on Dragonstone so effective is the contrast between the cheerless, unsettling castle with its showy red priestess and Stannis himself. As George R. R. Martin writes:

Stannis Baratheon, Lord of Dragonstone and by the grace of the gods rightful heir to the Iron Throne of the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros, was broad of shoulder and sinewy of limb, with a tightness to his face and flesh that spoke of leather cured in the sun until it was as tough as steel. Hard was the word men used when they spoke of Stannis, and hard he was. Though he was not yet five-and-thirty, only a fringe of thin black hair remained on his head, circling behind his ears like the shadow of a crown. His brother, the late King Robert, had grown a beard in his final years. Maester Cressen had never seen it, but they said it was a wild thing, thick and fierce. As if in answer, Stannis kept his own whiskers cropped tight and short. They lay like a blue-black shadow across his square jaw and the bony hollows of his cheeks. His eyes were open wounds beneath his heavy brows, a blue as dark as the sea by night. His mouth would have given despair to even the drollest of fools; it was a mouth made for frowns and scowls and sharply worded commands, all thin pale lips and clenched muscles, a mouth that had forgotten how to smile and had never known how to laugh. Sometimes when the world grew very still and silent of a night, Maester Cressen fancied he could hear Lord Stannis grinding his teeth half a castle away. (Prologue, “ACOK”)

Stannis refuses to be dragged into the theatrics of Dragonstone—he is hard, humorless, and disinterested in the type of politicking that defined so much of book and season one. Given the setting, you might expect someone with a flair for the dramatic or touched by madness; the only thing Stannis has in common with his castle is his gloominess. He is the type of man to insist that Jaime Lannister (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) be called “the Kingslayer” while, in his same breath, acknowledging him as “Ser Jaime.” He is not, it would seem, the type of man to inspire love, and yet Cressen and Davos stay with him, despite the uphill battle they face to claim the throne of Westeros. Cressen, in fact, loves him so much that he attempts to purge the influence of Melisandre, who is garbed in the only color seen in the castle, from Stannis, thinking that a murder-suicide will bring Stannis back to the Faith of the Seven and to good standing with the rest of the kingdom. “And I will serve you to the last, my sweet lord, my poor lonely son,” Cressen thinks in the prologue to “A Clash of Kings” (Prologue, “ACOK”). The show has little time to convey the depth of their relationship (something Martin can do more easily via Cressen’s internal monologue as the prologue’s point of view character), but even so, his death—and Melisandre’s immunity to the poison—is the perfect amount of intrigue to get us interested in this new cast and location. 

And yet, for some godforsaken reason, “The North Remembers” does not—as Martin’s book does—open with the intrigue of Dragonstone. 

Instead, we are plopped right back in King’s Landing, as orange and yellow as ever, with none of the fanfare you might expect from a season opener, especially one coming off the heels of a critically acclaimed first season whose twists left audiences stunned. But alas, the episode begins with King Joffrey’s (Jack Gleeson) nameday tournament, where he is enjoying tormenting anyone who dares annoy him, very much including poor, sweet Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner), whose captivity in King’s Landing has continued into season two. She manages to save the drunken Dontos Hollard (Tony Way) from death through a clever bit of flattery—and help from the Hound (Rory McCann)—but otherwise, it seems that this new season is bringing more of the same.

Not that this is a bad thing, mind you; season one was good television. But to have such a strong ending, to take such a bold swing in killing Ned Stark (Sean Bean), and then open with a scene that is only workmanlike and nothing more, is not the bravest act of artistry in the world. The only real excitement in these King’s Landing scenes occurs when Tyrion Lannister (Peter Dinklage) arrives to be temporary Hand of the King, which results in some great reaction from his sister, Cersei (Lena Headey), but is something we were told would happen at the end of last season. (Of course, Dontos will become key to ferrying Sansa out of King’s Landing in season four, but his introduction hardly merits its position as opening scene.)

In fact, most of this episode—bar the introduction of Stannis—merely follows the seeds that were planted last season. Yes, yes, that is what narrative means, but surely a season opener should sprinkle in a few more new plotlines; at the very least, opening on Dragonstone would have set the expectation that this season will be even more full of intrigue than the last, whereas Joffrey’s name day tournament feels milquetoast in comparison. Similarly, Bran Stark’s (Isaac Hempstead-Wright) attempts to keep Winterfell running smoothly—with ample help from Maester Luwin (Donald Sumpter)—are charming and sweet, but little more. There are glimpses of his warging power via his direwolf, Summer, and the red comet blazes overhead, as it does the entire episode. Bran believes it a good omen and will help his brother Robb (Richard Madden) in his fight against the Lannisters, but the wildling Osha (Natalia Tena) says it means dragons.

And in one of the cleverer edits this episode, we cut to Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke), who has been wandering the Red Waste with, you guessed it, her dragons. The red comet still shows in a cloudless sky as the sun beats down on her tiny khalasar, who believe the comet a bad omen. As a certain dark-haired bastard will later think in “A Storm of Swords,” “We look up at the same stars and see such different things” (Jon III, “ASOS”). 

After Daenerys’s command of the screen in season one, to plunge us into this dreary trek is a neat subversion of expectations. In fact, in “ACOK,” Martin withholds Daenerys from us until chapter twelve, leaving us to wonder and wait, which is a neat trick of storytelling but puts the show in somewhat of a bind. Do David Benioff and D. B. Weiss not show one of their most popular characters in the season opener, thus potentially alienating some viewers? Do they make up a plot for her? Do they faithfully adapt her travelogue from the book and simply move it earlier? In the end, her brief appearance is unmemorable but does whet the appetite and remind the audience that, yes, there are dragons now. 

Jon Snow (Kit Harington), at least, has slightly more to do, now that the great ranging has begun. We even get a slew of new supporting characters for Jon: there’s Dolorous Edd (Ben Crompton), the human version of Eeyore, as well as the wildling Craster (Robert Pugh) and his daughters… who are also his wives. Among these is Gilly (Hannah Murray), pregnant with her father’s child, who hardly registers here but will become important later. Craster offers the Night’s Watch his protection north of the Wall in exchange for weapons and goods, and while Lord Commander Jeor Mormont (James Cosmo) finds Craster’s habit of marrying his daughters and leaving his sons out in the cold to die distasteful, he lets it slide. When Jon, woke king that he is, objects to this practice, Mormont says only, “You want to lead one day? Then learn how to follow.”

This rebuke captures Jon’s season two arc in a nutshell, as he will learn to follow Qhorin Halfhand (Simon Armstrong), but he—crucially—will also begin to understand when to break rank as he joins up with the wildlings. That the Night’s Watch still treats with Craster despite his abhorrent crimes is supposed to be damning, and that Mormont dismisses any concern with the justification that the Night’s Watch needs protection, whether or not that protection is bought with the lives of innocent children, paints our Lord Commander and the institution he oversees with a deep, dark gray. 

I do sorely wish they kept this Lord Mormont quote from “ACOK”, though, as it ties nicely into his advice to Jon this episode:

Oh, well. I guess there’s always room next season to explore Jon’s conflicted loyalties and secret resentment of his siblings… right? 

It is only after checking in on King’s Landing, Essos, and north of the Wall that we finally get to the introduction of Stannis, which injects much-needed life into an otherwise average episode. While the positioning of his introduction is uninspired, it does segue nicely into our reunion with Robb Stark (Richard Madden) and Catelyn Stark (Michelle Fairley), who are neck-deep in more war preparations. They still hold Jaime Lannister (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau), who does nothing but hurl insults at anyone who gets too close (with the exception of Robb’s direwolf, Grey Wind), but Robb is feeling increasingly trapped as he wages a war against the Lannisters and, possibly, the two remaining Baratheon brothers. Thus he decides to send Theon Greyjoy (Alfie Allen) as envoy to the Iron Islands, to convince Theon’s father, Baelon, to join the fight on Robb’s behalf. 

“I’m his only living son. He’ll listen to me. I know he will,” Theon tells Robb. Fact check: False. Cat (correctly!) tries to dissuade Robb from sending Theon, but Robb’s stubborn loyalty to his father’s ward wins out, and then, in a decision that once again robs Cat of her political agency, Robb decides to send her to parlay with Renly Baratheon (Gethin Anthony). In the books, Cat herself hatches a plan to parlay with Renly and get his host to threaten Tywin Lannister (Charles Dance) so that the latter leaves Harrenhal, where his army has gathered, and thus leaves the castle open for the taking. In the show, of course, she wants to stay with Robb and is loath to be sent to Renly’s camp. 

It’s a good scene, admittedly, when Robb sends his mother away and she says, “You’ve done well. Your father would be proud.” While David Benioff and D. B. Weiss may have neutered Cat’s political mind, they certainly keep her love for her family, and Robb’s love for her. Yet it is a sharp reminder of the show’s eagerness to take away the political impulses of its female characters. Of course, the show doesn’t always do this; much of the time, this idiocy seems directed at Cat, already a divisive character in the fandom for being mean to Jon (fact check: true, but founded in understandable fears) and for starting the War of the Five Kings (fact check: false). 

Cersei, on the other hand, gets her famous (show-only) scene where she reminds Littlefinger (Aidan Gillen) that, no matter what his spies might tell him, she wields the truer power here. “Knowledge is power,” Littlefinger announces, to which Cersei orders her guards, “Seize him. Cut his throat. Stop, wait. I’ve changed my mind, let him go. Step back three paces. Turn around. Close your eyes.” Her guards follow her every word. “Power is power,” she proclaims—while not a sympathetic moment on her part, the show softens her much less than it does Cat. Only later, when Joffrey confronts Cersei on his parentage and asks if Robert Baratheon (Mark Addy) “fucked other women we he grew tired of you” does Cersei realize that she put a monster on the throne. Her own words (“power is power”) are coming back to bite her—for if power is power, then she has none at all compared to her son.

But no amount of good Cersei scenes can undo what the show does to Cat or, more egregiously, its unnamed prostitutes. Oh, yes, it’s another round of “let’s have women topless and practicing sex, complete with moaning and panting, for absolutely no reason other than to make sure our stupid male audience doesn’t let their minds wander” as Joffrey begins to execute his father’s bastards with a viciousness that even Cersei couldn’t match. (Oh, but wait—did I just compliment the show for not softening Cersei? It’s Cersei who orders the bastards killed in the books, not Joffrey. Hm. I take back what I said.) Since some of these children wound up in brothels, the only logical thing is to add an extended scene of naked women making sexy sounds for men before cutting to child murder. “Game of Thrones” is so back, baby.

Fun Facts, Tidbits, and Future Events:

• Several of Robert’s bastards never make an appearance in the show despite being varying degrees of importance. Mya Stone’s loss in particular is a tough one, as she is a really delightful presence to the Vale. Edric Storm will get combined with Gendry (Joe Dempsie), which is a decently smart change. Bella is a young prostitute whom Arya and Gendry meet in their travels, and she very nearly sleeps with her half-brother as neither knows of the other’s parentage.
• Dany’s silver mare is very much alive in the books, by the way. I think it was rude to kill her off in this episode. I don’t care how much horse actors cost. 
• Also, why on earth is Dany in heeled boots as she walks around the Red Waste? That seems very absurd. But I guess it’s eye-catching, given that her bloodrider Rakharo (Elyes Gabel) makes bedroom eyes at her for some reason?
• Once again, despite the abundance of Tullys at this point in the books, we have yet to see Hoster (Chris Newman), Brynden (Clive Russell), or Edmure (Tobias Menzies) on the screen, which is a tragedy. Where is Riverrun? Why are we not at Riverrun?
• Alton Lannister (Karl Davies) is a show-only creation and takes the place of poor old Cleos Frey, who is captured alongside Jaime at the Battle of the Whispering Wood (versus Alton’s role as spy who is captured). I truly cannot wrap my mind around why they would take all the effort to make a new character unless the showrunners don’t trust that viewers can keep the family trees separate: Cleos has the last name of Frey, but his mother is Genna Lannister, Tywin’s sister, and he aligns himself with his mother’s family during the war. (Genna, sadly, never appears in the show, but is a treasure.) 
• “It must be odd for you, to be the disappointing child,” Tyrion tells Cersei. Unfortunately, Cersei was a disappointment when she was born a girl. More on that later! She does get a nice budget upgrade with her costumes this episode, though, and looks fantastic, though any semblance of the Lannisters all being blonde has absolutely died.
• In addition to the lovely scene in the brothel, Shae (Sibel Kekilli) and Tyrion have a scene that is almost entirely about cum. Awesome.
• Sarah Mac Keever appears very briefly as Selyse, Stannis’s wife, though she will be recast with Tara Fitzgerald starting in season three. Shireen, their daughter, won’t appear until next season either.
• Lightbringer and Mance Rayder (Ciarán Hinds) get some lore here.
• Another book character who never appears in the show is Patchface, Stannis’s creepy fool who was brought over by Stannis’s parents, Steffon and Cassana, in an effort to make their middle child laugh more. Instead, the ship crashed upon the rocks below Storm’s End as Robert and Stannis watched. Patchface washed up afterwards and has a habit of making prophecies instead of cracking jokes. In fact, he even predicts the Red Wedding: “Fool’s blood [Jinglebell Frey, not in the show], king’s blood [Robb’s blood], blood on the maiden’s thigh [Roslin Frey as she loses her virginity], but chains for the guests [the Starks and their allies] and chains for the bridegroom [Edmure Tully], aye, aye, aye” (Davos I, “ACOK”). He really adds to the whole wretched vibe of Dragonstone and it’s a shame we miss him here.

“Game of Thrones” Season Two Trailer

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