Monday 15 April 2013

Thrones Thoughts: #303 'Walk of Punishment'

'Walk of Punishment' is quite comfortably the best installment of the season so far, with a combination of superb writing and direction, some stellar performances, sparkling dialogue and a palatable momentum to the narrative working in tandem to keep the viewer on the edge of his or her seat. It's mightily impressive that David Benioff and D.B. Weiss not only wrote the episode but directed it too, and that it didn't feel rushed or lacking at all. These guys deserve more credit than they get. Anyhow, on to the lavishing of the praise...

First and foremost, Jamie and Brienne. So beautifully written and acted. Gwendoline and Nikolaj are just made for these roles; the scene on horseback is a superb marriage of sarcasm and genuine emotion. And then, of course, there's the final sequence, which is just a delight from start to finish, brilliantly portraying the horror of the scenario while keeping everything on a knife's edge. I'm really enjoying the work of whomever's playing Noah Locke; he's expertly subtle, which just adds to his menace. And, of course, we have the hand-chopping... a moment book readers have been looking forward (or otherwise!) to for some time. And it doesn't disappoint. Yup, guys, that's his sword hand gone. Pleasant. I personally loved the segue into the Hold Steady's 'The Bear and the Maiden Fair' over the end credits but it seems fan reaction is rather mixed. Some feel it jars. I think it's a great juxtaposition. Each to his/her own.

Other 10/10 sequences: everything involving Dany. Her storyline continues to go from strength to strength. Emilia Clarke is just brilliant in her scene with Kraznys (and, yet again, the actor portraying him absolutely nails it). Kudos to Iain Glen and, er, Barristan Selmy for doing a great job with the Rhaegar material too and let's give some serious props to the actress playing Missandei. Everyone just hits a home run in these two scenes and does an incredible job of conveying this horrifyingly brutal slave society. And the walk of punishment... man oh man, so gruesome. It's the details that make this scene such a joy to watch: Benioff opens with a wide shot of the river and the city walls, a really beautiful landscape shot, and then slowly backs away to reveal the horror being inflicted within its walls. The contrast just intensifies the reaction. Oh, and while we're on Astapor, how about the Harpy, eh? That shot was fucking magnificent.

Next bout of praise: Riverrun. Wonderful to see it in the title sequence (it's about time!) and just about everything about these scenes was absolutely top drawer. Some excellent detail in the mise en scene. They've really done a superb job of bringing Riverrun to life. As expected, Clive Russell is just a joy to watch as the Blackfish and I expect him to be a major draw for future episodes (and seasons!) Tobias Menzies is also great as poor, poor Edmure, who gets something of a harder time of it than in the novels, but I'm okay with that. It gave Richard Madden a chance to flex his acting chops as much put-upon Robb Stark. And then there's the Cat/Blackfish scene, in which Michelle Fairley puts in her best work in the series to date. A genuinely moving two minutes of television.

Right... what else? The Small Council meeting. An exercise in masterful comic timing, the effectiveness of minimalist writing and the skill of the GoT cast. Everyone is brilliant in this scene, and it just illustrates the power plays and extent of Tywin's influence so well. The looks on Varys and Cersei's faces are absolutely priceless and as usual, Peter Dinklage is just a delight. Elsewhere, we have some great stuff with Arya and the Brotherhood, albeit rather fleeting, with touching exchanges with Hot Pie (an example of something that isn't in the books but is actually really well done) and of course, cracking dialogue between the Hound and Anguy. There's Theon's escape, which I don't want to touch on too much for fear of spoiling things, but suffice to say, I like where this is going and that they haven't toned down the brutality too much, and a nice glimpse of Stannis and Melisandre. There are some who have objected to Stannis's portrayal as out of sorts with the novels here but I don't agree. He's desperate and he's clinging to the only possibility he sees for victory. It would appear, though, that his strand is going to be season three's Arya/Dany season two, in that it will move away significantly from the novels. To be fair, I think this is no bad thing; Stannis doesn't actually get all that much to do in part one of ASOS and if they're doing what I think they're doing with this story, I reckon it'll make for some cracking TV (the clue is in Mel's comment that 'there are others with your blood in their veins' (or words to that effect)).

The only negative, I felt, was the whole 'Pod gets laid' sequence which, while setting up some important narrative stands in the dialogue (the Iron Bank of Braavos, Tyrion being made Master of Coin), felt somewhat gratuitous and unnecessary. Oh! I forgot some more positives: Jon/Mance was nice (especially "I'm going to light the biggest fire the North has ever seen!") but what about the Craster's Keep stuff, huh? Some beautiful, beautiful direction there. Cracking dialogue again (Craster is deliciously vicious) and wonderfully subtle script decisions that add a shit tonne to the scene: the reveal of the gender of Gilly's baby and the subsequent horror (show, don't tell), Craster being able to sense that this is a very different Night's Watch to the one who visited him last season etc. Just great, great stuff. So yeah, a solid 9/10 (with half taken off for Pod). Very encouraging. Cannot wait for next week - guys, I reckon we're in for some big moments if the novels are any guide. So stoked!

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