GAME OF THRONES “The Kingsroad” Season 1 Episode 2 – Last week the characters were established. This week some of the characters were developed, and a whole lot more were established. Game of Thrones is very awkward to adapt into a television series mainly because with so many plot threads and so many characters it’s difficult to latch on to a single person. Luckily, George RR Martin’s characters are, for the most part, layered and interesting. Unfortunately, because they’re so interesting, and because the book has a place for every character, a role for every character to fulfil, Game of Thrones does not have a lot of time to let the characters and the world breathe.
Take, for instance, the direwolfs. We saw them grow in the stables with Tyrion’s drunken body lying among them. This is great for showing the passing of time, but it certainly encroaches on the relationship built between the direwolfs and their respective Starks: Sansa’s distress at Lady’s sentence of execution is sad not because we’ve seen how much they mean to each other, but because Lady is simply a beautiful creature. The monumental sacrifice Arya makes by throwing rocks at her beloved Nymeria does not feel so monumental. These are relatively small issues on the grand scale, but I hope that, a few episodes in, the world will be established enough so that things like the direwolfs won’t be passed over.
But this is a minor problem, and for now the series is, for the most part, off to an excellent start. By the end of this episode the characters have all gone their separate ways, so from next week things will hopefully get smoother as far as development goes.
The relationship between Ned Stark and King Robert Baratheon is one of the best parts of the series, thanks to Sean Bean and Mark Addy’s chummy chemistry. The earlier scene in the country where they reflect upon the good days of their youth contrasts gravely with the later scene, where Robert turns from friend to king and orders the execution of Sansa’s direwolf. Mark Addy, particularly in the final scene, gave a performance where you could actually see the toll the changing roles have taken on him: husband, father, friend, fiend, king, executioner. They were all there, on his haggard face.
Daenerys decides to change her fortune and take command of her new husband in the bedroom. Why not? Things could hardly get worse for her, between her rather uncommunicative new hubby and her scrub of a brother. Her new teacher in all things lesbian is less of a character, more of a five second clip for a trailer, but what the hell. Danys eyes constantly flitter to the dragon eggs, which seem to promise more value than mere pretty ornaments.
The best scene of thi episode of Game of Thrones was the encounter at the riverside between Sansa, Joffrey, the butcher boy and Arya. Jack Gleeson is delightfully nasty as the bratty Prince Joffrey. The daughters of the Hand and the son of a king have no idea how much power they wield when their little spats can churn the emotions of two powerful families and get a common boy brutally slaughtered. I wonder how many people go more upset over the death of Lady than the death of the butcher boy. The series is subtlety clear about this point: it’s better to be the pet of a lord than to be the son of a butcher’s.
Random Thoughts:
Last week I commented that Sophie Turner was a weak link as Sansa Stark. This week I would like to eat my words. From the line “You’re ruining everything!” she had me convinced that she may be a disloyal biatch, but she’s a biatch with a scheme and Turner, given a few substantial scenes, is more than capable of delivering.
Catelyn grabbing the assassin’s blade: ouch!
Peter Dinklage as Tyrion managed to handle some awfully clunky dialogue, between his encounter with his brother Jaime and his scene with Jon Snow, where he recounts the history of the Seven Kingdoms.
In the books Daenarys is 13. Here HBO upped her age to 17. Ick. Also: her lesbian lover was a prostitute from the age of nine? Oh, wait, not, she spent three years learning how to satisfy men, she only started in on the hooker trade when she was about 12. Phew. That’s so much better!
Between some gorgeous vistas-the Wall!-great plot developments and some awesome acting, Game of Thrones second episode does not disappoint in the slightest. It builds on the promise of the first episode and, despite minor issues with pacing which just need time for the series to hit its stride, this is shaping up to be a pretty amazing television show.
What did you think of this episode? Sound off in the comments below.
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