Game of Thrones “Book of the Stranger” was written by the team of David Benioff and DB Weiss and was directed by Daniel Sackheim. It’s hard to say what makes this episode most memorable – the opening scene in which two Starks are finally reunited or the last scene in which Daenerys (Emilia Clarke) proves again that she is the Unburnt and worthy of being a Queen. The episode itself is also beautifully written, weaving together the various threads under a common theme – the importance of memory and honoring the past. But it’s also that past that shows so many of the characters their way forward.
The episode begins with a close up of Jon’s (Kit Harington) sword, Longclaw, which has a long history itself. It’s worth remembering that the sword passed to Jon from Jeor Mormont – who had received it back from his son Jorah (Iain Glen) when Jorah fled Westeros because he was caught selling poachers into slavery which was illegal in Westeros – ironic now, right?
Ed (Ben Crompton) picks up the sword and tries to convince Jon not to abandon the Night’s Watch. Jon is determined to go – the past is hard to let go of. He did what he could, he did his best, and his own brothers killed him! It’s at that moment that the cry goes up to open the gates.
This was a terrific scene as the gates open to reveal Brienne (Gwendoline Christie), Podrick (Daniel Portman), and Sansa (Sophie Turner). There’s a beautiful shot of Tormund (Kristofer Hivju) as he catches sight of Brienne – it’s clearly love at first sight – he’s smitten! Brienne doesn’t give him a second look as she scans the courtyard for threats.
Jon appears on the balcony and Sansa turns and they see each other. I know I’m not alone in cheering on my couch as the two hugged. We next see them by the fire. Sansa has clearly cleaned up and is enjoying a bowl of soup. The two reminisce about their past, and Sansa wished they could go back to their last day together at Winterfell. She tells Jon she’s scream at herself, “Don’t go, you idiot!” Jon is a little more philosophical about it – how could they have known?
Sansa has had time to think a lot about her behavior and admits that she feels terrible about having been awful to Jon. He finally concedes, you were occasionally awful, but I wasn’t much fun “always sulking in the corner while the rest of you played.”
Sansa wants to know where Jon will go, and he corrects where will “we” go – he’s not going anywhere without her, and insists that if he doesn’t look after her, “father’s ghost will come back and murder me.” Anybody else suddenly get a yen to see Ned’s ghost? Or flash to the fact that Jon’s direwolf is Ghost? But yes please to bringing Sean Bean back!
Sansa wants to go back to Winterfell and insists that Jon should have the Wildlings fight for him – they owe him because he saved them. She insists that they have to fight for their home – it’s their legacy, their past, and their way forward. Jon doesn’t want to fight and kill anymore – that is the part of his past that he doesn’t want to be his future. It’s clear that Olly’s death weighs very heavily on him. But Sansa insist that if they don’t take back the north, they will never be safe, and she’ll do it herself if Jon won’t help her.
Davos (Liam Cunningham) wants to know what Melisandre’s (Carice van Houten) plans are. She tells him that she will do what Jon Snow commands – he is now the prince that was promised. Davos wants to know what happened, and she tells him that there was a battle and Stannis was defeated, but Davos really wants to know what happened to the Princess. It’s hard to believe that he’s going to let her live once he knows the truth.
However, Melisandre is spared by Brienne interrupting to say that she saw what happened. Brienne reminds Davos that they’ve met and where – and then she tells him that she executed Stannis for killing Renly. She tells Davos that Stannis admitted to it before she executed him, and she also intones the theme – it might be in the past, but it doesn’t mean that she forgets or forgives.
Meanwhile Petyr Baelish (Aidan Gillen) finally makes an appearance! He’s returned to check on Robin (Lino Facioli) who is still in the care of Yohn Royce (Rupert Vansittart). Robin is still as hopeless as ever – though he’s grown incredibly tall! Royce is clearly pissed at being stuck with Robin, but moreso that Baelish went and married Sansa off to Ramsey (Iwan Rheon).
Baelish keeps Royce in check with a little demonstration – when Robin sees any threat to Baelish, he’s going to squash it, and threatens to have Royce thrown out the moon door. Royce quickly sees the danger and swears to support them – Robin recommends that Royce get one more chance, and Baelish intimates that he’s going to make Royce the commander of their army. Baelish points out that Ramsey is marching on Castle Black and that Sansa is Robin’s cousin – Robin agrees, they must help her. Baelish declares, “The time has come to join the fray.
As the others gear up for war, Tyrion (Peter Dinklage) is trying to stop one. He’s invited the Masters to Meereen. Missandei (Nathalie Emmanuel) and Grey Worm (Jacob Anderson) are not happy at all. Tyrion tells them, “We make peace with our enemies, not our friends.” Grey Worm insists that he kills their enemies, and Tyrion patiently points out that that is the military approach, and he represents the diplomatic approach. Missandei insist that Tyrion doesn’t understand – even if he knows or thinks he knows what it’s like to be a slave – and I fear there is going to be some truth in that. Much is made of Tyrion still fumbling with the language – he doesn’t understand the people of Meereen and they don’t understand him.
This sequence is beautifully shot and blocked. Tyrion and Varys (Conleth Hill) go up the stairs ahead of Missandei and Grey Worm – their fortunes are ascending. In fact, Yezzan (Enzo Cilenti) comments on how their fortunes have changed, reminding Tyrion that he bought him for next to nothing just a few months ago. Razdal (George Georgiou) wants to know where Daenerys is. He came to negotiate with a Queen not a dwarf and a eunuch.
Tyrion tries to convince them that they don’t need slaves to make money – look at how rich Tyrion’s family is without slavery! He tells them that slavery will never return to Meereen, but he gives the rest of them seven years to phase it out! Missandei and Grey Worm are utterly appalled. Tyrion tells the slavers to cease their funding of the Sons of the Harpy, and when he leaves them with the parting gift of three whores, Missandei is pissed!
Tyrion then goes to the throne room to meet with the freed men of Meereen who are also pissed off. We see a reversal of the blocking of the earlier scene as Tyrion begins at the top of the stairs. He tells them that the room was built for the rulers to intimidate the ruled and he walks down the steps to be face to face with the petitioners. He tells them the he is not their ruler.
The leader tells Tyrion that they don’t know him and they don’t trust him. They know Grey Worm because they fought with him. Tyrion tells them that’s why Grey Worm was part of the negotiations. Tyrion insists that Grey Worm knows when to fight and when to make peace – but Grey Worm looks very uncomfortable. Grey Worm tells the leader, “I am a soldier, not a politician, but if there is a chance for a peace, a JUST peace, they should take it.
The leader than appeals to Missandei. She delightfully quotes Tyrion at them – “a wise man said we make peace with our enemies, not our friends.” I loved the little smile on Tyrion’s face as he turned away. He’s new friends are learning to trust him – or at least support him in public. In private, Grey Worm objects strongly to Tyrion using him “for his lies.” He points out that he is loyal to his Queen NOT Tyrion. He warns, “if you betray her work, you are my enemy.”
Missandei points out that seven years is a very long time to a slave. Tyrion agrees that slavery is a horror, but then so is war, and he can only stop one of them today! He also assures them that he doesn’t trust the Masters but he does trust their self-interest. Grey Worm insists that Tyrion simply doesn’t understand them – they don’t see them as humans – but this IS something Tyrion understands. Grey Worm says, “they look at me and see a weapon, they look at her and see a whore.” And Tyrion adds, “They look at me and see a misshapen little beast. Their contempt is their weakness.” But Grey Worm insists that Tyrion will not use them, they will use him – it’s what they do…
Daario (Michiel Huisman) and Jorah make their way to Daenerys. Daario is determined to needle Jorah about his age, and Jorah is clearly struggling physically, but it’s clearly the greyscale starting to take hold. I loved when Jorah says, “you didn’t get much discipline as a child, did you” and Daario proudly responds, “None!”
Jorah has a plan for them to go in as merchants and forces Daario to disarm – no weapons are allowed in the city – and in the process, Daario sees the greyscale. Naturally, Jorah’s plan doesn’t go off quite without a hitch, and Daario kills a Dothraki with the knife he smuggled in. No problem. Daario simply caves his head in with a rock – and miraculously, we see later that the Khals simply accept that’s how he died – did no one see the stab wound in his clothing?!?
Meanwhile, Daenerys is getting to know the other women. The High Priestess (Souad Faress) seems to have taken a liking to Daenerys and vice versa. However, Daenerys really seems to have taken a liking to Lhazareen (Hanna John-Kamen). She was captured at 12 and gave birth to a daughter soon after. Her Khal broke her ribs for not bearing him a son. The High Priestess tells Daenerys that while they aren’t Queens there, the Khals do at least rely on their wisdom. Their life has meaning.
Daenerys needs to get out for fresh air and to relieve herself. Lhazareen goes with her and tells her that she was 16 when her Khal died – she’s going to spend her entire life locked up in that building. As the two go into the bushes, Daario grabs Lhazereen and is about to kill her but Daenerys insists he doesn’t. She asks Lhazereen not to betray her – and she doesn’t. Daenerys, however, refuses to leave – they can do better than simply slinking off – but she’ll need their help for her plan.
Meanwhile, we see Margaery’s (Natalie Dormer) attempt to get free from her religious prison isn’t going very well. Dormer is terrific as we get only very subtle little clues as to how she is really feeling. It seems that she may be caving in to the brainwashing. She is lead to the High Sparrow (Jonathan Pryce). She seems utterly broken, but there’s just the hint of a smirk as she enters his presence – it’s not meant for him to see, and he doesn’t.
Pryce is excellent in this scene. He asks her where she would go if he released her. She tells him her brother – always Loras (Finn Jones) first! – then her husband and family. But the High Sparrow knows that is seeking out money, finery, power – seeking out her family means seeking out sin. He says he’s not maligning her. It’s what he sought himself in the past. She tells him that he used to be a cobbler and made the finest shoes. Spending hours and hours on one pair. Margaery quietly says that quality takes time. And isn’t that what she’s done with this deception!?!
She quotes the Seven Pointed Star and he’s impressed. She reminds him that Septa Unella (Hannah Waddingham) reads them AT her. He goes on to explain about his own epiphany and that he walked out of a debauched feast barefoot and just kept going. Yet, has he really changed? Does he not still try to be the king of his own domain? And to make that domain even larger. He is utterly cognizant of the power that he wields.
In a surprise move, the High Sparrow lets Margaery go to Loras. As soon as she’s alone with him, it’s clear that she hasn’t been broken – yet. But Loras has. He just wants it to stop. Margaery tells him, “they want me to help tear you down, that’s why they’re letting me see you. If either of us gives in, they win.” She wants him to be strong because he represents the future of their House. But he’s too far gone, and as Margaery hold him she looks stricken. Will she give in to help him?
Meanwhile, Cersei (Lena Headey) goes to see Tommen (Dean-Charles Chapman) to put her own House in order. She shoos Grand Maester Pycelle (Julian Glover) away from him. He scuttles off, but as usual, he’s too stupid to see that the tide is about to change in Cersei’s favor. I can’t wait to see his dismay!
Tommen tells Cersei that he’s been thinking a lot about the High Sparrow, and they need to be careful. He doesn’t want things to escalate because they can’t put Margaery at risk. Cersei flares up with look what they did to me! It’s clear she’s over her shame and just wants revenge now, but she realizes that the only emotion Tommen will feel about this is guilt. So she changes her approach – “it’s in the past. Margaery is paramount.” But like Brienne, we know that Cersei will never forget or forgive.
Tommen knows that Cersei doesn’t like Margaery, but Cersei is and always has been able to divorce her feelings from a situation for the end game. Margaery as a person ultimately doesn’t matter – but as a symbol of the power of the crown, of Queens, she is the thing that Cersei loves most above all else – likely even her children. Tommen tells her what the High Sparrow told him. Which begs the question has Tommen been to see him more than once, or did the High Sparrow simply expect that letting Margaery see her brother would break her and was so sure he told Tommen before she’d actually given in…
Cersei and Jaime (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) go to see Olenna (Diana Rigg) and Kevan (Ian Gelder). Nothing says securing the future with the past like the legacy of a House. Olenna is clearly in charge and tells Cersei “You have been stripped of your dignity and your authority.” Jaime points out that Cersei is still the King’s mother and as such has his ear and his trust, and then he tells them that the High Sparrow has talked to Tommen about Margaery and Lorus. At mention of her legacy, Olenna looks interested. Rigg is simply fantastic and the shift in her face is subtle.
Cersei points out how shrewd the High Sparrow is: the High Sparrow “seized power knowing we’d bicker amongst ourselves. Well done us.” And then they tell Olenna that Margaery is about to make her own walk of atonement, and Olenna replies, “Oh no. That can never happen.” She cares about Margaery, but more importantly, she knows what that would do to the seat of power in the crown and her own legacy.
Jaime then turns to Kevan, who has the second largest army in Westeros. He wants him to bring it into the city to stop Queen Margaery’s humiliation and take her back. Kevan digs his heels in. The King has told him to take no action against the Faith Militant in fear of the Queen’s safety. And does he fear for his own son’s safety in the event of a battle? But Jaime doesn’t want him to fight. When the Tyrell army arrives, Kevan is to stand down. It the Tyrell army the biggest in Westeros then? Kevan is still worried about what will happen if the King calls on him, but Jaime assures him it will all happen too quickly for that to happen.
Cersei then enters the discussion. She knows Kevan hates the fanatics as much as she does for what they did to his son – doesn’t he want his son back? Kevan admits he does want his son back. Cersei tells him to “stand back and let the people who took from you be destroyed.” It’s clear here that Olenna really likes what she sees. Cersei is still a powerful ally. It remains to be seen if they can remain allies afterwards, however. Kevan is still worried. It will be Civil War if it doesn’t go as planned – many will die. Olenna finally weighs in: “Many will die no matter what we do. Better them than us.”
There is yet another family reunion in this episode as Theon (Alfie Allen) finally makes it back to his home. Yara (Gemma Whelan) is far from happy to see him. She berates him for the men that died trying to rescue him and assumes that Ramsey has simply let him go. Theon tells her that he escaped and keeps apologizing to her. Ultimately, she thinks he’s come after hearing of their father’s death and that he wants to take the throne. But of course, that’s the furthest thing from Theon’s mind! I feel sorry for both he and Jon that they must clearly keep fighting. Theon, however, surprises Yara – and hopefully softens her a little bit by tell her that what he wants is that she should rule the Iron Islands. He tells her, “Let me help you.” All he wants to do is serve. Nothing like having bits – the important bits mind you! – cut off to take away your desire to lead…
Ramsey has Osha (Natalia Tena) brought to him. Did anyone believe that this was going to end well or that Osha had actually turned against the Starks? The only mercy is in how quickly Ramsey dispatched her. I was definitely sad to see Tena go – and it’s doubly hard considering how long it’s been since she was even on the show. Once again, I have to give a shout out to Rheon for his ability to play a socio/psychopath so brilliantly. The utterly devoid of emotion face as he eats his apple and watches Osha draw her last breath is chilling.
Meanwhile, back at Castle Black, it’s dinner time. This is a brilliant scene as there is no dialogue. Sans is not impressed by her dinner. Brienne is also not eating. But Tormund is staring at Brienne over the leg he’s chewing on, and it’s clear he’s very interested in her. Brienne is utterly discomfited! Will she be able to see what a diamond in the rough he is? Hopefully, once she sees him on the battlefield, he can push Jaime from her mind.
Ed meanwhile is watching all and is highly amused. He apologizes to Sansa for the food, but she is focused on the more important things. Taking back her family’s past, their legacy, Winterfell. A letter arrives from House Bolton for the Lord Commander and at first Jon won’t take it. I loved that the soldier just stood there until he did. Tough Jon. You’re still Lord Commander to them!
Jon reads the letter. Ramsey calls him a traitor for letting the Wildlings in and tells him that he has Winterfell now. And then he drops the bomb that Rickon is in his dungeon. Power means nothing to Jon Snow, but family? That is everything – and why his brothers killing him was so devastating. Not being a true part of the Stark family is the past that Jon carries forward into his future – that need for family… and just wait til he finds out who his true family is!
Ramsey goes on to say that Rickon’s direwolf’s skin is on his floor and he demands his bride back. He tells Jon, “Keep her and I will slaughter every Wildling living under your protection” and that’s it for Tormund. He’s pissed and he’s in. Ramsey punctuates the letter with come and see or you will see, so that he can end it by telling Jon that at the end, he will gouge his eyes out with a spoon – and is that a lovely shout out to Alan Rickman’s Sheriff of Nottingham? I hope so.
Jon stops reading, and Sansa takes the letter from him and continues. Ramsey threatens to have all of his soldiers rape Sansa. When Sansa reads that he’s signed it Warden of the North, they know that Roose is dead – and that Ramsey killed him. Sansa tells them that she overheard him say he has 5,000 men. Tormund only has 2,000. Sansa tells Jon that he is the son of the last true heir of the North (or is he?) and that northern families are loyal. They will follow Jon against Ramsey if he asks them to. Jon still doesn’t want to fight or claim his birthright. But Sansa grabs his hand and tells him, “A monster has taken our home and our brother! We have to go and save both.” And finally, reluctantly, Jon agrees. His past has decided his future.
In the final scene, Daenerys is brought before the Khals. We learn that the Maesters of Yunkai, far from expecting to meet with Daenerys, know exactly where she is and offered the Dothraki 10,000 horses in exchange for her. Looks like Grey Work and Missandei were right to warn Tyrion – this is a history he is unequipped to deal with.
Daenerys listens to the Khals discuss her and then serenely breaks in asking if they want to know what she thinks. Her dismissal of them is the final straw for Khal Moro (Joseph Naufahu). He tells her she has no voice there – and then she reminds him of her history in that very building. She walks as she talks and ends up on the dais with burning braziers.
She tells them that they are small men and unfit to lead the Dothraki – but she is. She smiles. And says she will. The Khals all laugh at her. And Khal Moro is livid. She simply smiles at him as she puts one hand on the iron brazier, and she’s had her ring returned to her from Jorah. She inherited this ring from her mother – is it what gives her the power of the mother of dragons, her power to be unburnt? Regardless, as soon as she serenely grabs the brazier, Khal Moro knows he’s in trouble. She tips them all over and the building and the Khals – and Daenerys clothing are all consumed in the flames.
Naturally such a large fire captures everyone’s attention and the building is surrounded by the entire city by the time Daenerys appears out of the flames. She rekindled her passion – sorry – not sorry! Everyone kneels, and it was one of the most effective uses of female nudity I’ve ever seen in a television series or movie. It perfectly parallels Cersei’s walk of shame – and demonstrates the power of Daenerys. She needs no clothing to command the respect and awe of those waiting outside. Jorah and Daario walk through the crowd and kneel at the front. Jorah simply acknowledges his devotion to her again, but Daario? I loved the look on his face. He had NO idea of Daenerys’ true power.
Another fabulous episode, weaving the themes of family and reclaiming the past to point the way to the future throughout. What did you think of the episode? Will Jon be a contender for the Iron Throne? Will he want to? Is anyone going to be able to defeat Daenerys? And how angry is she going to be with Tyrion? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!
About the Author - Lisa Macklem
I do interviews and write articles for the site in addition to reviewing a number of shows, including Supernatural, Arrow, Agents of Shield, Agent Carter, The Walking Dead, Game of Thrones, The X-Files, Defiance, Bitten, Killjoys, and a few others! I'm active on the Con scene when I have the time. When I'm not writing about television shows, I'm often writing about entertainment and media law in my capacity as a legal scholar. I also work in theatre when the opportunity arises. I'm an avid runner and rider, currently training in dressage.
