Monday 14 April 2014

Game of Thrones The Lion and the Rose Review - Remind me never to go to a Lannister wedding




So this week was the much anticipated wedding of everyone's hated king Joffery and his new beautiful wife Margery something that has been led up to for the whole of last season. It's something that was very much looked forward to by people that have read the books so before we start talking about the events of the episode if you haven't watched it stop reading now. Go watch it then come back and read this. 

MASSIVE SPOILERS

So if your still with me then we can all open the champagne and celebrate or cry depending on if your Cersei or just into evil little F****rs Joffery died this week. So I haven't actually read the books but did know that Jofferys death was due sometime during this season but I certainly wasn't expecting it two episodes in. It was a shock for me and as it was for many other people that haven't read the books that it happened so soon into the season but what a way to end the episodes. Those last 15 minutes were absolutley amazing weren't they some of the best I have seen from this show. It didn't quite hit the mark as I feel last weeks episode did with Arya and the Hound but it was still fantastic to watch. Tryion was the brunt of Joffreys wickedness this week as he always is well was now and managed to keep his cool as much as he could as he was made a fool of by his nephew. What was brilliant about this episode is that I found that it was very much Tyrion focused as he becomes much mor distant for his family. It started with a talk between him and Jamie where he still showed himself to respect his brother even when he did miss his hand. They showed that brotherly love between them and respect between them that they both don't have with the rest of the family anymore. This was also very obvious later on in the episode as Jamie watched from a distance what his son and king did to his brother. Peter Dinkalge (Tyrion) manages to pull of this charm and wit even in the most tense of situations.

What was obvious about this episode is that it was the start of change and new things to come as massive changes and tragedy hit Kings Landing it will effect everyone that lives there. Then we also see Bran this week who while I don't feel that he was very much needed this week with the wedding that was going on it did signify that change is coming. So while I haven't read the books so I don't know what this vision he had was all about its obvious that he's being sent on a mission for what reason they haven't clarified as of yet. At this point those Bran and his group are my least faviroute out of any of the characters and they felt like the wilding in the first episode it just felt out of place and didn't hit the mark. But I do love Hodor those can't help but love a bit of Hodor just watching that simple man speak his name something quite sweet about it really. But I would have preferred to have the, jjst left him out of this episode till next week as the wedding was a massive part of this episode and quite important. I would guess bulking it out with other characters so that we weren't just a full hour of wedding was important for them because I think we would have complained more if it was just the wedding. I certainly couldn't have watched a full hour of the lannisters back stabbing each other. 

The episode started this week with something that I wasn't expecting Theon or well what's left of him as he is now nothing more then a dog who's mind is all but broken. I apologise if I just call a few of these characters by appearance because I can't remember their names mostly because They haven't been in the show long enough as of yet for me to take note of their name. So this was a scene that I actually found quite brilliant to watch really because up to now I really didn't have any respect for Theon or really even like him as a person. But I felt really sorry for him because he's nothing more then a broken man now which I guess comes with having your man hood chopped off and sent to your father. It was also the first time that Theon had heard of Rob Starks death so seeing that pain on his face really did make me feel for him quite a lot and feel quite bad for him. If I had been him I would have just killed him when I had that razor against his throat but he is very much under his thumb now through complete fear. But I have fallen in love with the bastard child's character who is properly evil and twisted and a bit crazy as well but there's just something so likeable about him. I think part of of it is because he has brought Theon back down to earth and made him realise that he's no better then the rest of them. 

The other character that we saw a return of this week was Baratheon and the rest of the cult of the lords of light and the red women as I like to call her who I have this weird love for. I know that she's evil and there's just something not right about her and that she is very twisted and just evil  it there's something quite strangely weird about her I can't help but love her character. She's cool and knows what she wants and follows Baratheon controlling him like a puppet on a string. She also had this great scene this week with his daughter who you can't help but feel sorry for being left locked up in that room of hers because she's diffrent. They lock her up but then let the woman that gave birth to a weird little black smoke monster baby walk around free where's the justice in that. But back to the scene she had some great dialogue with the child teaching her about The Lord of light and how there is only one hell and that's the living world they live in now. Which I guess you could say is able to be translated to today's living that their religion is no diffrent from many modern day religions. But it was a great scene and while I can't stand Baratheon I do love to watch him a bit like Joffery in a way because you just love to moan about them that's why thier brilliant characters in the show. It felt like the only scren outside of Kings Landing that worked for the episode. What I found with this episode is that it was all about the wedding but they used it as a chance to talk about the side characters. Break up the bulk of the wedding with some of the smaller less important characters of the story so that we can see where they are now. Which if anyone thinks that Hodor, Bran or Theon are really main cast at this time I would say your mistaken especially with everything going on in Kings Landing. 

Kings landing the place that no one wants to drink the wine from any time soon especially if your having it handed to you by a dwarf I would especially avoid drinking it. This whole episode this week just felt like they were building up to that last 15 minutes where they would really hit the mark and make a punch. The rest of the episode just felt like simple dialogue and side character updates while we get to what everyone had been waiting for the wedding. Those last 15-20 minutes were as I stated before some of the best that I have seen from this show it was dark and evil and it's so etching that's I am very much going to miss the Joffery character for. I don't think it's something you so much think about when you start watching it but it's when you think after that you realise just how much you are going to miss him in the show. As soon as the tale of the 5 kings started and you watched as Joffery laughed and made a mockery of the dead lords all baiscally by his hand I could help but go god I hate you so much. You could also see that on everyone else's face well apart from Cersei she can't see it all she sees is a perfect young man that will make a great king. 

Well so I thought that is Cersei had some great dialogue this episode as you saw a woman that wasn't so ready and eager to give up her power just yet. She is still a very strong and proud woman that feels she had power over people which I guess being the former queen you would do. It wouldn't have surprised me that if she was able to she would marry Joffery I mean her ex lover is her brother after all so nothing would put it past her at this point. But I love Cersei more and more and come to love her character more and more she's just a bitch to put it frankly there isn't any nice way of putting it is there. She's just an absoloute bitch and couldn't care less what people think of her. This was apparent when speaking to Brienne and the patronising tone she spoke in to her and those eyes make you feel like a little child being told off. Watching and waiting for an answer from Brienne as to whether she loves Jamie or not you just wanted Brienne to turn round and punch her. Smash her to the ground and deal with her get rid of two evil members of the Lannister family in one day. 

But what ever you had to say about Joffery he stole the show in those final 15 minutes as he showed just why we had come to hate him as much as we have. He was evil, wicked, patronising and just really gave you a good look at that face you just wanna slap. Which I have to apologise to the actor because I love the actor think he's brilliant but Joffery really does just make you want to hit him at times. Which makes me miss his character now that I know that he's gone because we haven't got that character that all fans hated with a passion anymore. We only have characters that some fans hate while others enjoy them now. I love Cersei while others may find her to just be to bitchy for thier liking and hate her with a passion as much as they hated Joffery. 

So let's end this talking about the big shock finale of the episode Jofferys death which I have been reading and watching peoples reactions and thoughts on it and it's been mixed. Some people loved it and others just felt like it was two easy that he deserved great punishment for what he's done. But while that is true it's how he dies in the book death by poison so you have to respect that because it wouldn't meet to what the fans of the books expect otherwise. We should expect riots in the streets if they were to kill him in any other way but at the same time I feel this is how he deserved to die. Why give him the torque let him die surrounded by the people that he had hurt and destroyed and watch as they all just watch him die. It makes for a greater suffering in my opinion watching as your own family apart from his mother and Jamie watch him die in some what relief really I would imagine. It makes for a fitting end of a character that no matter what you thought of him has been brilliant to watch on the show. I know that some people feel that the way that we were made to feel sorry for him as he turned into a scared child almost lying in his mothers arms wasn't to to their liking. But you have to remember Joffery was a child at the end of the day behind that persona that he put on to scare the people of kings landing he was still a child. He was a spoilt little boy that had been given all the power in the world and wanted to rebel against the old ways and bring in his new ones. But then when things got scary he would become the real person behind the mask a scared little child that didn't want to lose everything that he had or die basically. 

Overall again this show never fails to impress me the fact that you had me missing a chapter that I universally hated and everyone hated as well was impressive to say the least. While some parts of the episode didn't hit the mark and I feel could have been left out for a later episode it didn't take away from what was a brilliant second episode to a new season. The last 15 minutes were outstanding and we got the death that we had all been waiting for and finally were shown the real Joffery underneath that crown. A scared young boy that just yearned to please his mother and show that he was a powerful and strong king. 



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