Game of Thrones “No One” was written by the creative team of David Benioff and DB Weiss and was directed by Mark Mylod. Every week when I watch, I always think, what a great episode when it finishes. Then as I think about an episode like this one, I think, well, there were a couple of good scenes, but not a lot really happened. Then, when I re-watch before writing this review, I realize that every single scene is beautifully crafted and each is another fabulous scene. This week, it particularly struck me that the show seems to be moving along and heading towards the really big showdowns more quickly now that the show isn’t tied to the books. Or at least not tied to specific scenes that have occurred in the books. One can assume that Martin has given broad brush strokes as to where the books will go eventually…
This episode begins with Lady Crane (Essie Davis) performing Cersei’s lament over dead Joffrey (Rob Callender). Her grief turns to anger and she swears vengeance on Sansa and Tyrion – which is exactly the advice that Arya (Maise Williams) gave her about the scene. What’s particularly interesting about this scene is how the crowd reacts. The crowd is enthralled by her performance – they are on the verge of weeping with her and are then angry with her, cheering on her declaration of vengeance.
This is a good indication of how the people of Braavos feel about the goings on in King’s Landing. It’s also how Shakespeare’s history plays helped to shape the common people’s views of the monarchy. Will this advice from Arya backfire spectacularly as common feeling swells against her own sister? Is this play ensuring that Braavos and its money sides with the Lannisters and against the Starks or Daenerys?
Lady Crane goes backstage after her performance and finds Arya hiding – and bleeding – behind some costumes. She takes her home and patches her up, attributing her skills to being a jealous woman with a penchant for bad men. She’d stab them when they cheated on her and then patch them up afterwards. She may be a talented actor, but Lady Crane is far from being a saint. When Arya asks what happened to Bianca, who had tried to have Lady Crane killed, Lady Crane tells Arya that Bianca will be hard pressed to get anymore work as an actor – because of what Lady Crane did to her face!
Lady Crane suggests that Arya could join the acting troupe – they’re down an actor after all! At first, Arya says she doesn’t think she could remember all the lines – and how ironic would it have been if Arya had been playing Sansa! When pressed, however, Arya admits that Lady Crane wouldn’t be safe – none of the troupe would be – while “she” (Faye Marsay) is after Arya. Lady Crane wonders where Arya will go. Arya says, “Essos is east and Westeros is west, but what’s west of Westeros?” Lady Crane suggests the end of the world, and Arya muses that she’d like to see it. Lady Crane insists that Arya drink the ‘milk of poppies’ that she has so that she will sleep and heal.
The scene cuts to four thugs – two younger and two older. Presumably, they are part of the Brotherhood who slaughtered the Hound’s (Rory McCann) friends last week. Gatins (Ricky Champ) is giving Riddell (Ross McKinney) and Steve (Steve Love) advice on how to kiss a woman, which is really just playing a prank on Steve, much to Gatins and Morgan’s (Ian Davies) amusement. As the four horse around, the Hound simply walks up to them and takes Steve’s head off without so much as an hello! He then puts his ax in Riddell’s chest and slits Morgan’s throat before burying his ax in Gatins’ crotch.
The Hound doesn’t care about killing the four one way or another, but he does want the guy in the yellow cloak. Gatins tells the Hound, “Fuck you!” The Hound is incredulous: “Those are your last words? Fuck you? C’mon, you can do better.” Gatins thinks – way too hard – before spitting out “Cunt” as almost a question. The Hound tells him, “You’re shit at dying.”
Meanwhile, Meereen seems to be back in business. Tyrion (Peter Dinklage) and Varys (Conleth Hill) walk through the teeming market square in which a Priestess (Melanie Liburd) is telling the people about their Queen and Savior – Daenerys (Emilia Clarke). Tyrion is gloating that he was right – his plan has resulted in the city coming back to life. Varys, however, tells him, “You made a pact with fanatics.” Tyrion doesn’t deny it. And isn’t it interesting that his sister Cersei (Lena Headey) did exactly the same thing?
Varys points out that “If you shaved your beard with a straight razor, you’d say the razor worked. That doesn’t mean it won’t cut your throat.” Tyrion responds, “Spoken like a man who has never had to shave.” Tyrion has been in power before and had to make the hard choices – Varys has not. However, Tyrion tells Varys he’s going to miss him to which Varys responds “I know.” Did anyone else immediately think of Han and Leia in Empire Strikes Back? There is true affection between these two friends.
Tyrion is worried about Varys’ trip. Varys tells him, “If I don’t return, you’ll know I was wrong.” But when Varys sees that Tyrion is truly worried about him, he is clearly touched and adds, “We need friends in Westeros and we need ships.” Is Varys heading to the Ironborn? Can we cross our fingers that he is going to meet Yara and not Euron? Yara is after all in the same place where Tyrion was kidnapped by Jorah where Varys had lead him…
Tyrion remarks what they truly need is their Queen. Varys is convinced she’ll come back because his heart has already been broken too many times! Varys stops Tyrion from accompanying him any further: “I must go on alone. Can’t go off on a secret mission in the company of the most famous dwarf in the city!” Tyrion smiles at the compliment but yells after him, “Varys! The most famous dwarf in the world!” And it’s Varys’ turn to smile fondly. And our turn to start worrying about the fate of Varys. Euron can’t help him, and if he goes back to King’s Landing, he’s lost his little birds.
The scene goes next to the current controller of the little birds – Qyburn (Anton Lesser). He’s come to inform Cersei (Lena Headey) that several members of the Faith Militant have been permitted entry to the Red Keep. Tommen (Dean-Charles Chapman) has allowed it – and now hides in his own rooms at prayer. Cersei has no choice but to meet them – but she takes the Mountain (Hafbor Julius Bjornsson) with her.
Lancel (Eugene Simon) is there to take Cersei to speak to the High Septon – at the Great Sept. Cersei refuses, and Lancel tells her that it’s a command not a request. Cersei falters and is almost pleading as she says, “He promised me I could stay in the Red Keep until my trial.” Lancel responds that there was no such promise, and Cersei tells them to get out. It’s clear from the moment Cersei walks in that the others are terrified of the Mountain, but they all move forward with Lancel.
When the Mountain steps in front of Cersei, Lancel asks him to step aside. He says to Cersei, “Order your man to move aside, or there will be violence.” And Cersei responds, “I choose violence.”
One of the Faith Militant swings his pointed ax into the Mountain’s chest – with no effect. Behind his back Qyburn turns to Cersei and smiles – she turns toward him, but you can’t see the expression on her face because it’s hidden by the Mountain. The Mountain then picks the man up by the throat with one hand and throws him. The rest of the Faith Militant back away in a little group – clearly terrified when their numbers don’t allow them to be bullies. The Mountain rips the guy’s head off – again, with one hand. There’s a great shot of the dead guy’s hand twitching in a pool of his own blood and then the blood running down the side the side of a grate.
Cersei smiles. Her confidence returned to her, she tells Lancel, “Please tell his High Holiness, he’s always welcome to visit me here.”
The action then shifts to Riverrun. Brienne (Gwendoline Christie) and Podrick (Daniel Portman) arrive and survey the Lannister siege. Podrick remarks, “It looks like a siege, mi’Lady” to which Brienne sarcastically responds, “You have a keen military mind, Pod.” And of course, the sarcasm is lost on Pod! Brienne spots Jaime (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau), and when his soldiers ride up to them, she tells them that she wants to speak with Jaime Lannister – she has his sword.
Before we get to the Jaime/Brienne reunion, we get a little comic relief in a reunion between Pod and Bronn (Jerome Flynn). I had almost forgotten that they had both served Tyrion! Even though Bronn gives Pod a hard time – still a squire? Thought you’d be dead by now! – it’s clear that he’s happy to see him.
Bronn proves once again that there is more to him than meets the eye. He is an excellent judge of character and realizes that the attraction between Brienne and Jaime is more than one sided. Of course, he disguises it as vulgarly as possible and asks Pod if he thinks Jaime and Brienne are fucking in the tent. Pod is utterly shocked. But Bronn also proves that not every man views Brienne the ways she thinks they do. Bronn offers that he would fuck her – and wonders if Pod has! Again, shocking Pod – which was Bronn’s entire intention.
Bronn then goes on to complain about the way all women look at Jaime – and this won’t be the only mention of Jaime’s good looks in this episode. Even more interestingly, however, Bronn also mentions that he “preferred working with the little brother on that account.” Which brings up the question – if or perhaps when, Jaime and Tyrion are on opposite sides in the coming war, who will Bronn side with? Will it simply come down to money? Would Tyrion even have him back?
Pod tells Bronn that he’s been training with Brienne – an hour every morning and an hour every evening. When Bronn points out that he was easily able to sneak up on Pod, Pod asserts that that’s a different kind of fighting – so Bronn offers to teach him that kind. Bronn easily gets Pod – still so trusting! – to look down and punches him. Pod is pissed. Bronn tells him, “Lesson number one. Assume everyone wants to hit you. Because they do. Everyone wants to hit a fucking squire.”
Inside the tent, Brienne and Jaime catch up. She tells him that she has found Sansa, and he remarks he thought she’d be dead: “in my experience, girls like that don’t live very long.” But Brienne thinks he hasn’t met many girls like her. Sansa is very different from the girl Jaime knew. Jaime tells Brienne that he’s proud of her – she fulfilled her oath to Catelyn Stark against all odds. He then points out that Cersei wants Sansa dead as she is still a suspect in Joffrey’s murder – it’s a complication. Only one of many that seem determined to pit the two against each other in the wars to come.
For the moment Brienne, brushes that one aside – the more pressing concern is that she’s there for the Blackfish (Clive Russell). Jaime is happy for her to take him. Brienne tells Jaime that she needs the Tully army for Sansa to re-take Winterfell. And as Jaime explains that the Boltons and Freys are on his side, the two realize that they are on opposite sides. Jaime remarks that they shouldn’t argue about politics. Jaime has never wanted to make the decisions – he’s a soldier.
Brienne tells him, “You’re a knight, Sir Jaime. I know there is honor in you. I’ve seen it.” But Jaime insists, “I’m a Lannister. Don’t ask me to betray my own House.” Brienne knows that he is caught between a rock and a hard place. He can have all the honor in the world, but if his own House has no honor, what is he to do? She insists that she is not asking him to choose – she has a plan. She tells him that he can take Riverrun without any bloodshed and return south with his mission complete. She asks to be allowed into the Castle under a flag of truce so that she can persuade the Blackfish to give up Riverrun and march north with his army to help Sansa.
Jaime is all for the plan but asks her, “Have you ever met the Blackfish? He’s even more stubborn that you are!” However, Jaime hopes that while the Blackfish might not listen, his men will because “not everyone wants to die for someone else’s home.” Brienne surprises Jaime by asking for his word that they will have safe passage – but he grants her until nightfall to get it done.
The Blackfish is adamant that he will not surrender. He is convinced that the Kingslayer will try something that very night – and of course, he’s not wrong. And he’s also convinced that Jaime is Brienne’s friend. She denies it, but the Blackfish is far from an idiot. He asks who gave her permission to cross the siege lines, and more importantly, who gave her the sword with the lion on the pommel – kind of a dead giveaway that!
Brienne points out that Jaime kept his word to Catelyn. He gave Brienne the sword to protect Sansa and she tells him, “that is what I will continue to do until the day I die.” The Blackfish is finally impressed and takes the letter from Sansa from Brienne. He immediately recognizes that Sansa is exactly like her mother. But he also, somewhat reluctantly and regretfully, tells Brienne that he doesn’t have enough men to help Sansa take Winterfell. But Brienne has hope now and says that he has more men than Sansa does.
The Blackfish tells Brienne that he understands Sansa wanting her home back, but Riverrun is his home and if Jaime wants it, he’s going to have to come and take it the same as anybody else. Brienne tells Pod to find the Maester so that she can send Sansa a message. She tells Pod to write that she’s failed.
In King’s Landing, Cersei enters the throne room. It’s packed because there is to be a Royal announcement. Kevan (Ian Gelder) stops her from ascending the dais. He’s downright rude to her and won’t let her go to Tommen. He tells her that her place is in the gallery with the rest of the “ladies” of the court. Naturally, when she goes there the others all scatter – she truly has no friends in the Red Keep. Tommen sits on the throne, looking uncomfortable. His announcement is that Lorus and Cersei are both to be tried on the first day of the Mother’s Festival.
He then adds that Trial by Combat is to be outlawed in all the seven kingdoms because it denies the gods their justice. Cersei is to be tried by seven Septons. It seems like Lancel’s visit may have prompted this – after all, who could beat the Mountain in such a trial? It seems hard to believe that Tommen is this stupid. If Cersei is tried and found guilty, Tommen will surely be revealed to be a bastard – and not the rightful King. Who then, would become King and the High Sparrow’s new puppet? Tommen is likely signing both his own and his mother’s death warrants.
Tommen leaves the throne room, carefully avoiding looking at his mother. Qyburn steps up and tells Cersei that his little birds have investigated the old rumor she asked about. It’s not a rumor – it’s much more. Is this a secret way into or out of the Keep? The High Sept? Whatever it is, it might just be Cersei’s last hope.
Back in Meereen, Tyrion is still trying to get Missandei (Nathalie Emmanuel) and Grey Worm (Jacob Anderson) to relax. He gets them to drink wine by toasting Daenerys and telling them it’s disrespecting her if they don’t drink. Grey Worm doesn’t drink because it’s against the rules – though he does take a sip and says he does not like the taste. Tyrion points out that the Masters made the rules – but when the attack begins at the end of the scene, it’s clear why not drinking is a good choice for Grey Worm.
Missandei says she didn’t like how wine made her feel, though she does like the taste. Tyrion tells her that feeling funny is how you know the wine is working. There is a brief moment as Tyrion reflects that some day he’d like to have his own vineyard. He’d call his wine The Imp’s Delight and only share it with his friends. It’s a rare pensive moment on Tyrion’s part and shows a side of him we haven’t seen in some time.
It’s hilarious as Tyrion tries to get the two to tell jokes. He begins with his story of a Stark, Martel, and Lannister walking into a bar. The story is hilarious as it paints the Lannisters as rich and thoughtless, the Martels as savage barbarians, and the Starks as backward spendthrifts. Missandei and Grey Worm miss the point and don’t find it funny. Missandei explains what a joke is to Grey Worm and then tells one of her own. Two translators are in a shipwreck. One asks the other if he can swim. The other answers no, but he can call for help in 19 languages! Tyrion laughs – though it’s pretty forced.
Grey Worm insists it was the worst joke he’s ever heard – is he jealous of Tyrion laughing with Missandei? It’s also clear that Missandei is getting tipsy. Missandei fires back that Grey Worm doesn’t even know what a joke is. This makes him even a bit angrier as he says, “I’m a soldier all my life. You think I never hear joke?” Tyrion is astounded – Grey Worm lied to them! Grey Worm explains he was making a joke and Missandei giggles, resulting in the biggest smile I think I’ve ever seen on Grey Worm’s face!
Missandei calls for more jokes, but before Tyrion can finish one, the alarm is sounded. The Masters are coming for their property and their ships fill the harbor.
Back at Riverrun, Jaime pays Edmure (Tobias Menzies) a visit. It’s dark, and the Blackfish has not surrendered. Jaime moves to Plan B. Menzies is terrific as Edmure. If you’ve watched him on Outlander, this is nothing like either character he plays on that. Edmure starts the conversation with Jaime defiantly. He tells Jaime that his Uncle will never surrender – it’s clear Jaime has already figured that out. Jaime then offers to let Edmure stay at Castely Rock – as a prisoner – but with his wife and son. He promises that Edmure’s son will be trained as a knight and even given a keep.
Edmure has not forgotten everything that’s been done to his family, but Jaime points out that they are at war. Edmure also comments on how good looking Jaime is. Jaime actually smiles at the compliment. And then Edmure asks again how he lives with himself. And Jaime looks down and does look somewhat ashamed. Edmure goes on, “We have to tell ourselves we’re decent to sleep at night. How do you tell yourself you’re decent?”
Jaime shakes his head and points out that he was Edmure’s sister’s prisoner once – she hit him on the head with a rock. Edmure wishes Catelyn had killed him. Jaime responds, “Perhaps. But she didn’t. Catelyn Stark hated me just like you hate me. But I didn’t hater her. I admired her. Far more than her husband or son.” He goes on that Catelyn “reminded me of my sister. She loved her children. But Catelyn and Cersei. There’s a fierceness you don’t often see. They’d do anything to protect their babies. Start a war. Burn cities to ash. Free their worst enemies. The things we do for love.”
Edmure doesn’t believe that Jaime came to talk about their sisters, but of course, he did – but then Cersei is much more to Jaime. He tells Edmure, “I love Cersei. You can laugh. Sneer. She needs me. And to get back to her, I have to take Riverrun.” Jaime then threatens to have Edmure’s baby brought there so that he can catapult him into the castle. Jaime threatens to kill every Tully if that’s what it takes to get back to Cersei.
Edmure, of course, caves. He approaches the gate and demands that they let him in as the rightful Lord of Riverrun – which, unfortunately, he is. Naturally, Walder Rivers (Tim Plester) and Lothar Frey (Daniel Tuite) are too stupid to realize the plan is going to work and bitch at Jaime that they’ve sjut given up their most valuable prisoner.
The Blackfish tells the Bannerman (Sam Redford) not to open the gate because it’s clearly a trap. The Bannerman insists that he’s sworn to obey the Lord of Riverrun’s commands. The Blackfish insists that “You are not obeying the Lord Edmure’s commands. You’re obeying the fucking Kingslayer’s commands.” But the Bannerman insists they must obey, and lowers the drawbridge. Edmure just looks at the Blackfish, goes to the ramparts and tells the Bannerman to command everyone to lay down their weapons and open the gate. He then tells the Bannerman – who is not happy – to find the Blackfish and put him in irons and hand him over to the Freys. The Bannerman tells his men to find the Blackfish, but he’s clearly disgusted with Edmure. On the other hand, Edmure didn’t just order the Blackfish put in irons – did he intend for him to escape?
The Blackfish gets Brienne and Pod to a boat so they can escape via the river. Brienne tries to convince the Blackfish to come with her: “Why die for pride when you can fight for your blood?” But the Blackfish ran before from the Red Wedding – he won’t do it again, and he tells Brienne that she will serve Sansa far better than he ever would. His last words to her are, “I haven’t had a roper sword fight in years. I expect I’ll make a proper fool of myself.”
The Lannister banners go up as the Tully bannisters come down. Jaime is on the ramparts when one of his soldiers (Brahm Gallagher) reports that they’ve found the Blackfish – he died fighting. I’m still hoping that the fact that we didn’t see his body may mean that he did, in fact, manage to get away and will show up with his army to help Sansa – though I doubt that is the case.
Jaime looks out and sees Brienne and Pod on the river. He thinks briefly about calling back the soldier, but instead, he raises his hand in a farewell. Brienne looks back and raises hers in acknowledgment. The two have to know that the next time they meet, it will be on opposite sides of the battlefield.
Meanwhile, Meereen is getting pummeled by fire – and that is a little ironic considering there are two dragons in the pyramid. Tyrion admits he was wrong, but Grey Worm angrily cuts him off when he starts offering an opinion about what the army should do. Grey Worm insists that they will stay in the Pyramid as the only defensible position they have. Something lands on the roof, however, and they all brace for attack. As they open the doors, the soldiers at the front go down on their knees – it’s Daenerys, once again making a pretty dramatic entrance! I really hope that Drogon wasn’t simply flying away, but was on his way to set fire to the ships…
The Hound wants his revenge, but Beric insists it’s the Brotherhood’s good name that they’ve dragged through the dirt. Beric allows the Hound can kill one, the Hound settles for two. However, they won’t let him chop them up and make them suffer, so he ultimately settles for kicking the stumps out from under them. They don’t so much hang as suffocate – which is far from fast. Lem Lermoncloak (Johannes Haukur Johannesson) even has to watch as the Hound removes his boats and puts them on his own feet!
Beric invites the Hound to join them. The Hound says he tried joining and it didn’t go so well. Thoros insists that they are here for a reason – Beric was brought back for a reason. They are part of something larger than themselves. The Hound maintains that “a lot of horrible shit gets done in this world for something larger than ourselves.” Beric maintains that “cold winds are rising in the north” – and the title of the last episode this season is “The Winds of Winter”…
Beric again asks the Hound to join them. The Hound says the last time they met, Beric wanted to execute him. Beric remarks that the Lord of Light gave the Hound the power to defeat him and then asks why? The Hound maintains that he beat Beric because he was better than him – and still is. Beric tells him, “You’re a fighter. You were born a fighter. You walked away from the fight. How did that go?” The Hound looks thoughtful, and Beric goes on, “Good and bad, young and old, the things we’re fighting will destroy them all. You can still help a lot more than you’ve harmed. It’s not too late for you.” And that is exactly what Brother Ray told the Hound last week.
In Braavos, Arya is sleeping. Lady Crane gently strokes her face before climbing on a stool to get more medicine for her. There is a terrific shot as we see a blurry figure in the background. The size and shape are right, but when she turns, Lady Crane sees a young man. It’s enough of a distraction for Waif to kill her. Arya wakes to the thump and finds Lady Crane dead and Waif waiting for her.
Waif tells Arya, “If you had done your job, she would have died painlessly.” The many faced god was promised a name and no one can change that. Or is he simply promised a life, a face? That is what Jaqen (Tom Wlashiha) told Arya – the god would have a new face. Regardless, Waif once again refers to herself in the first person – she has clearly missed some of the “no one” lessons – and it’s clear that Arya is a person vendetta for her too. We get a terrific chase scene.
It seems that Arya is doomed after she begins bleeding after a hard fall. Yet is her staggering and leaving a blood trail all a ruse to lead Waif to where she’s stashed Needle? It’s perfect when Waif shows up at the door and closes it, saying, “It will all be over soon. On your knees or on your feet?” Even after Arya pulls out Needle, Waif under estimates her, telling her “That won’t help you” but Arya is relying on her other training now. She assumes on guard, closes her eyes – being blind has given her an advantage – and she takes out the candle – and yes, that wouldn’t necessarily douse the candle, but go with it because it’s cool!
Jaqen sees a trail of blood and follows it into the Hall of the Dead. He follows it right up to the new face – that of Waif. Arya is behind him with Needle. She says, “You told her to kill me.” Jaqen is unfazed: “Yes. But here you are. And there she is.” Anybody else flash to The Wizard of Oz after Dorothy drops the house on the Wicked Witch of the East? Jaqen leans into the blade, daring Arya to kill him. He tells her, “Finally, a girl is no one.” But Arya begs to differ, and says, “A girl is Arya Stark of Winterfell. And I am going home.” Jaqen smiles. Was his intention all along simply to teach her how to survive?
Like every episode, this one is, as I’ve said, beautifully structured. We begin and end with Arya with the Hound scenes bookending those, bookended by Tyrion. It seems the sides are getting more closely drawn and we are moving toward some of the conflicts we’ve been waiting for. Will Varys sail into Meereen on Yara’s ships to save Daenerys from the Masters? Will Daenerys use her Dothraki to take back the city? Will Sansa and Jon get reenforcements from an unexpected quarter? Will Jaime get back to King’s Landing in time to help save Cersei? What does Margaery have up her sleeve to help her brother? So many questions!!! Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!