*Note: This review contains spoilers for the episode and light references to the books.
Well, that’s one way to end an episode. I don’t know what I thought was going to happen on Ramsay and Sansa’s wedding night, but man it turned out to be even more brutal than I could have possibly imagined. That whole build, I was expecting Theon to intervene, or for Sansa to draw a knife, or even for Brienne to bust down the door like a superhero, but nope. That shit happened. And the tricky thing will be where they go from here. Sansa can’t go back to being the perpetual victim, she’s come too far over the course of the season. The earlier scene with Miranda was especially awesome. Miranda was trying to spook Sansa, telling her all of those horrific stories about Ramsay’s past lovers, and Sansa is just laying there, head back, all “Another betrothal to a complete psychopath? I’ve had enough of this shit.” It was brilliant, and really showed the change Sansa has made under the influence of Littlefinger. Winterfell is her home, and she won’t be run over any longer. But after that final scene, I don’t know…
There were other things that happened this week too, even though the Sansa/Ramsay stuff is all anyone is talking about. Everything added up to a really solid episode overall, and put the show in a good place as we enter the final third of the season. The least successful scene, as usual, took place in Dorne. Is the Water Garden set the only set that they have, or what? I feel like everything just happens there or in the desert. Dorne really needs some more visual variety. The Sand Snakes are still completely undefined, so it’s hard to give a crap about their side of the fight to steal Myrcella. Their motivation only goes so deep as “Our Dad is dead and we’re super mad about it.” Seeing Jaime and Bronn fight is always fun, but again, the stakes weren’t properly built. And I was really disappointed that Areo Hotah broke the fight up but didn’t get in on the action himself. He’s a huge badass in the books.
Across the Narrow Sea, we got a very touching scene between Tyrion and Ser Jorah, both speaking of their fathers. It’s easy to forget that Jorah is the son of the late Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch, so this served as a nice reminder, and a good character builder for Jorah. In the books, he never really speaks or thinks of his father, but I found this scene to add a lot of pathos to his character, especially after knowing how much favor Lord Mormont poured on Jon at Castle Black. It’s very clear that Mormont saw his son as a colossal disappointment, and that’s informed all of Jorah’s decisions up until this point. All of the different emotions we saw Jorah go through during the scene was really a pleasure to watch. But all did not end well, as both were taken by slavers, with Tyrion barely managing to talk his way out of a quick throat cutting. So Jorah is on his way to the fighting pits, and Tyrion is on his way to a Cock Merchant, which is probably the best job title a person could ever have.
And hey, I’m back on board with Arya’s storyline! The House of Black and White was such a cool setting in the books, but I haven’t felt like it’s been fully realized on the show, until this week. It’s clear that Arya isn’t truly cut out to be a Faceless Man, not just because she wasn’t willing to part with Needle, but simply because she’s too strong in her identity. But Jaqen seems keen on finding a way to utilize her talents anyway, and I’m super pumped to find out exactly what that entails. And how about that cathedral of dead faces? Pretty messed up, and completely awe-inspiring at the same time.
Things are popping off in King’s Landing as well, what with Margaery now joining her brother in jail, preparing for a trial. I can’t decide if I feel more sorry for or more frustrated with Tommen’s complete inability to rule. He’s the freaking King, and he’s afraid to stand up to his mother and the High Sparrow, who HE HIMSELF put into power just a short time ago. Come on, man. Your wife is smoking hot, don’t let her rot in a prison cell.
My final burning question for the week is what the hell is going on with Littlefinger? He’s completely impossible to read, and it’s terrifying. Does he care for Sansa at all, or has he just been using her this entire time to get what he wants? Or even worse, maybe he does care for her, but is just willing to cast her aside should a different opportunity arise? Personally, I’m inclined to believe that he was lying to Cersei. Here’s how I see his plan working out, assuming everything goes the way he wants it to (which of course it won’t): He bides his time, lets Stannis and the Boltons destroy each other over Winterfell, then he swoops in with the Knights of the Vale and defeats the winner, taking Winterfell for himself, and earning the title of Warden of the North from Tommen for wiping out two enemies of the king in one fell swoop. THEN, he secretly marries Sansa for himself, uses his background growing up in the Riverlands and new status as Warden of the North to gain support from the northern lords, and marches on King’s Landing with his Knights of the Vale and an Army of the North, taking the Iron Throne for himself. And hey, Sansa would still get to be Queen, something she probably lost her taste for a long time ago. But, knowing Game of Thrones like I do, Littlefinger is probably planning something even more dastardly and manipulative. Or maybe he’ll just die in the next episode. You just never know with this show.