Cripples, Bastards, and Broken Things (8 May 2011)

Eddard investigates Jon Arryn's murder. Jon befriends Samwell Tarly, a coward who has come to join the Night's Watch.

Director:

Brian Kirk

Writers:

David Benioff (creator), D.B. Weiss (creator),

Stars:

Sean Bean, Mark Addy, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
Sean Bean	...	Eddard 'Ned' Stark
Mark Addy	...	Robert Baratheon
Nikolaj Coster-Waldau	...	Jaime Lannister
Michelle Fairley	...	Catelyn Stark
Lena Headey	...	Cersei Lannister
Emilia Clarke	...	Daenerys Targaryen
Iain Glen	...	Jorah Mormont
Aidan Gillen	...	Petyr 'Littlefinger' Baelish
Harry Lloyd	...	Viserys Targaryen
Kit Harington	...	Jon Snow
Sophie Turner	...	Sansa Stark
Maisie Williams	...	Arya Stark
Richard Madden	...	Robb Stark
Alfie Allen	...	Theon Greyjoy
Isaac Hempstead Wright	...	Bran Stark

Storyline

Ned begins to look into the death of his predecessor and mentor John Arryn. He learns that Arryn was interested in a particular book and also visited a local blacksmith known for making quality arms. There he meets someone quite interesting. At the northern wall, Jon befriends Samwell Tarly an overweight, bumbling young man whose father gave him the choice of joining the Night's Watch or dying in a hunting 'accident'. Sam is the object of scorn from other trainees and their instructor. Jon makes it clear that no harm will come him. Sansa is still not speaking to her father after he was forced to kill her wolf. She is preparing to become Queen someday. Her sister Arya meanwhile is taking sword fighting lessons and sees herself as a knight. Across the Narrow Sea, Daenerys defends herself when her brother Vyseris slaps her making it very clear that she too can exercise some authority.

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Plot Keywords:

abuse | queen | sword | coward | illegitimate son | 

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama | Fantasy

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Certificate:

TV-MA

Details

Language:

Russian English

Release Date:

8 May 2011 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Television 360, Grok! Studio, Generator Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

56 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

16:9 HD

Did You Know?

Trivia

The episode title is based on a quote of Tyrion Lannister: "I have a tender spot in my heart for cripples and bastards and broken things".

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Goofs

When Jon fights off the other three trainees defending Sam, one of them says that he yields, while holding his sword. In the exact next shot, his sword is on the ground several feet away from him, without sufficient time to drop it.

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Quotes

Daenerys Targaryen: [to Viserys] The next time you raise your hands at me is the last time you will have hands.

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Crazy Credits

The sun tells an important part of the series back story, on its panels. It does so in three segments. First, as the credits start up, the sun depicts how the Targaryens and their dragons conquered Westeros. The second time the sun is shown, a dragon is depicted in a mortal struggle with 3 other animals: The Stag, the Lion and the Wolf. It is a very literal way to show how Robert Beratheon and Ned Stark rebelled, with Tywin Lannister reluctantly supporting them, in the end. Finally, the third time the sun is shown, before the series title enter the scene, a lion (among other animals) is shown "kneeling" to a triumphant Stag. Just as Robert was crowned King after winning the war.

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Connections

References Dragonslayer (1981)

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Soundtracks

"Main Title"
(uncredited)
Written and Performed by Ramin Djawadi

User Reviews

A Misstep In The Kingdom

Reviews Of Unusual Size!

Re: There's a joust, some detective work, brother and sister bickering and a dwarf in a tight spot.

Outstanding: Like the previous episodes, number five has some great acting and sets. I'm consistently impressed with the King's Landing location, the grandeur with just the right amount of lived in feeling.

Unacceptable: This episode felt pretty light on plot and I think part of that was the direction. The joust was woefully short and severely lacked the grandeur and spectacle it needed.

Summary: A lot happened, but it felt like the whole episode was a waste of time. It was odd that as I watched it, I was enjoying everything but as the credits rolled, I felt like I hadn't watched anything worth remembering. The strains of a TV budget are showing a bit here and there, with the small, straggling Horde of Dothraki and the abbreviated joust.

2/5