Game of Thrones 4x10: The Children
My thoughts and opinions on various characters and developments.
Overall, I thought this ep was a weak (read: uninteresting) ending for the season. It was anticlimactic, with nothing even approaching an emotional punch or a hook for the next season. Even visually, there wasn't anything special to send the audience off with. Unexpected and disappointing, given that all previous season finales did manage a dramatic and intriguing finish that was also aesthetically remarkable, leaving viewers with a strong, emotional image.
Some character thoughts...
Jon Snow
This season has made me fear that Jon is the one who will end up the Just Ruler Beloved By All when the dust settles, mostly because the narrative insists on taking him by the hand and lovingly spoon-feeding him all those kingly lessons. Since I've been pretty sure for quite a while now that he's the son of Ned's sister and either the mad Targaryen king or his son (or - far less likely - that he's a legitimate Targaryen prince Ned rescued out of pity), he's also got Rightful Heir written all over him.
Can I just say, for the record: OH HELL NO. DO NOT WANT.
But surely this horrible fear of mine will not come to pass, since it would be too predictable and chichéd an ending..? Surely. Surely. *whimper*
Bran Stark
Yeah, still not interested in Bran. Plus, I thought the "you're All That Matters and I'll gladly sacrifice everything for you because I am not important except to Guide You Towards Your Destiny" thing was stupid and annoying from the time those plot device siblings first turned up.
What happened to the littlest Stark, BTW? Not that I'm eager to have yet another uninteresting narrative thread taking up time, but just a brief half-minute glimpse of him might have been nice, to remind us that he exists. OTOH, yeah. Not actually interested.
Kind of interesting other gods are turning up now, though. Is this going to be the Old Gods versus the Creepy One God, fighting by means of mortals (or reanimated corpses, whatever works)? If so, I sure hope they cut out all the boring mystic visions.
It occurs to me that if the old god in the tree had been staged better (more visually interesting, in other words, and with way more of a dramatic punch) and shifted to the end of the ep, he would have made a far better end to the season than Arya on a ship.
Tyrion Lannister and Shae
Seriously? So, to recap. Tyrion loved Shae so much that he tried to save her by driving her away, cruelly and ruthlessly making her believe he felt only disgust and derision for her. Tyrion is also a master schemer and manipulator, and always looking for the hidden schemes and machinations of others.
And yet, when Shae turned up at the sham of Tyrion's trial and testified against both him and Sansa, he evidently never - as I did - wondered how on earth she had happened to testify in the first place, who had arranged for it, why they had arranged it, and what kind of coercion might have been used to force her into compliance. Personally, I never for a minute thought she did it voluntarily; it doesn't fit anything we had previously seen of her character. That entire trial was a farce and a lie intended to destroy Tyrion, and Shae was not the manipulator pulling the strings behind the scenes. Why on earth would Tyrion assume she was there voluntarily? How could he assume there was no other factor at play here than Shae's entirely hypothetical wish for revenge against Tyrion?
Asking Shae what happened might have been an idea. But no, Tyrion was so hurt and shocked by the fact that Shae had seemingly betrayed him, and that she was now in Tywin's bed and calling Tywin her lion (of course she was, she's a survivor and this is one of the main strategies she employs, and you know that, Tyrion, you even claimed you loved that about her once upon a time)… that he murdered her.
Are you kidding me? Way to prove he's his father's son, after all.
Guess we're never going to learn more about Shae's Mysterious Noble Background now. Do the books go into more detail here?
Tywin Lannister
Didn't think he'd die like this, but I was sure he'd die this season, though it took him longer than I'd expected. I'm still marking him down as another correctly predicted death. ;-) As with Joffrey, I'll be sorry to see the excellent actor go, but the character's death was necessary in order to bring some much-needed movement into things at King's Landing.
Arya Stark
I was surprised to see that despite her recent travels with the Hound, Arya still hated him with as much heat as ever. Surprised, and glad, to be honest. Not glad that she has this much cruelty in her - which isn't surprising after what she's been through -, but that she sees clearly enough not to be deceived by momentary kindness, that she is ruthlessly pragmatic, and that she will not be swayed from her path. That brutal, single-minded conviction (along with all the dangers of blindness that go along with it) is something she inherited from her mother, I would say.
Also, I'm glad that she's going to Braavos, which seems to be the mysterious land of mysterious secret societies and mysterious fighting skills. She's going to need those skills. Plus I'm interested in seeing more of the faceless assassin's order and the rest of Mysterious Braavos. Might be a nice change from Westeros.
Varys
I have always liked him, and I like him more and more. I hope we get to see a lot more of him. Maybe he can be Danaerys' new right hand and adviser. ;-)
As ever, please don't spoil me! I haven't read the books and don't plan to.
Overall, I thought this ep was a weak (read: uninteresting) ending for the season. It was anticlimactic, with nothing even approaching an emotional punch or a hook for the next season. Even visually, there wasn't anything special to send the audience off with. Unexpected and disappointing, given that all previous season finales did manage a dramatic and intriguing finish that was also aesthetically remarkable, leaving viewers with a strong, emotional image.
Some character thoughts...
Jon Snow
This season has made me fear that Jon is the one who will end up the Just Ruler Beloved By All when the dust settles, mostly because the narrative insists on taking him by the hand and lovingly spoon-feeding him all those kingly lessons. Since I've been pretty sure for quite a while now that he's the son of Ned's sister and either the mad Targaryen king or his son (or - far less likely - that he's a legitimate Targaryen prince Ned rescued out of pity), he's also got Rightful Heir written all over him.
Can I just say, for the record: OH HELL NO. DO NOT WANT.
But surely this horrible fear of mine will not come to pass, since it would be too predictable and chichéd an ending..? Surely. Surely. *whimper*
Bran Stark
Yeah, still not interested in Bran. Plus, I thought the "you're All That Matters and I'll gladly sacrifice everything for you because I am not important except to Guide You Towards Your Destiny" thing was stupid and annoying from the time those plot device siblings first turned up.
What happened to the littlest Stark, BTW? Not that I'm eager to have yet another uninteresting narrative thread taking up time, but just a brief half-minute glimpse of him might have been nice, to remind us that he exists. OTOH, yeah. Not actually interested.
Kind of interesting other gods are turning up now, though. Is this going to be the Old Gods versus the Creepy One God, fighting by means of mortals (or reanimated corpses, whatever works)? If so, I sure hope they cut out all the boring mystic visions.
It occurs to me that if the old god in the tree had been staged better (more visually interesting, in other words, and with way more of a dramatic punch) and shifted to the end of the ep, he would have made a far better end to the season than Arya on a ship.
Tyrion Lannister and Shae
Seriously? So, to recap. Tyrion loved Shae so much that he tried to save her by driving her away, cruelly and ruthlessly making her believe he felt only disgust and derision for her. Tyrion is also a master schemer and manipulator, and always looking for the hidden schemes and machinations of others.
And yet, when Shae turned up at the sham of Tyrion's trial and testified against both him and Sansa, he evidently never - as I did - wondered how on earth she had happened to testify in the first place, who had arranged for it, why they had arranged it, and what kind of coercion might have been used to force her into compliance. Personally, I never for a minute thought she did it voluntarily; it doesn't fit anything we had previously seen of her character. That entire trial was a farce and a lie intended to destroy Tyrion, and Shae was not the manipulator pulling the strings behind the scenes. Why on earth would Tyrion assume she was there voluntarily? How could he assume there was no other factor at play here than Shae's entirely hypothetical wish for revenge against Tyrion?
Asking Shae what happened might have been an idea. But no, Tyrion was so hurt and shocked by the fact that Shae had seemingly betrayed him, and that she was now in Tywin's bed and calling Tywin her lion (of course she was, she's a survivor and this is one of the main strategies she employs, and you know that, Tyrion, you even claimed you loved that about her once upon a time)… that he murdered her.
Are you kidding me? Way to prove he's his father's son, after all.
Guess we're never going to learn more about Shae's Mysterious Noble Background now. Do the books go into more detail here?
Tywin Lannister
Didn't think he'd die like this, but I was sure he'd die this season, though it took him longer than I'd expected. I'm still marking him down as another correctly predicted death. ;-) As with Joffrey, I'll be sorry to see the excellent actor go, but the character's death was necessary in order to bring some much-needed movement into things at King's Landing.
Arya Stark
I was surprised to see that despite her recent travels with the Hound, Arya still hated him with as much heat as ever. Surprised, and glad, to be honest. Not glad that she has this much cruelty in her - which isn't surprising after what she's been through -, but that she sees clearly enough not to be deceived by momentary kindness, that she is ruthlessly pragmatic, and that she will not be swayed from her path. That brutal, single-minded conviction (along with all the dangers of blindness that go along with it) is something she inherited from her mother, I would say.
Also, I'm glad that she's going to Braavos, which seems to be the mysterious land of mysterious secret societies and mysterious fighting skills. She's going to need those skills. Plus I'm interested in seeing more of the faceless assassin's order and the rest of Mysterious Braavos. Might be a nice change from Westeros.
Varys
I have always liked him, and I like him more and more. I hope we get to see a lot more of him. Maybe he can be Danaerys' new right hand and adviser. ;-)
As ever, please don't spoil me! I haven't read the books and don't plan to.