You Win or You Die (29 May 2011)

Robert has been injured while hunting and is dying. Jon and the others finally take their vows to the Night's Watch. A man, sent by Robert, is captured for trying to poison Daenerys. Furious, Drogo vows to attack the Seven Kingdoms.

Director:

Daniel Minahan

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
Lena Headey	...	Cersei Lannister
Emilia Clarke	...	Daenerys Targaryen
Iain Glen	...	Jorah Mormont
Aidan Gillen	...	Petyr 'Littlefinger' Baelish
Kit Harington	...	Jon Snow
Alfie Allen	...	Theon Greyjoy
Jack Gleeson	...	Joffrey Baratheon
Rory McCann	...	Sandor 'The Hound' Clegane
Donald Sumpter	...	Maester Luwin
Conleth Hill	...	Lord Varys
James Cosmo	...	Jeor Mormont
Owen Teale	...	Alliser Thorne

Storyline

Ned confronts Cersei about her children but she dismisses his allegations. The head of the Lannister clan tells his son Jaime to be a leader and sends him to rescue Tyrion. Ros, the prostitute from Winterfell begins working for Littlefinger in King's Landing. At the wall, a riderless horse belonging to Jon Snow's uncle Benjen returns to the wall. Jon takes his vows as a Night's Watchman but is disappointed to not having been named a Ranger but Sam sees it differently. King Robert is injured while out boar hunting with his brother. He knows he will not survive and names Ned Lord Regent until Joffre comes of age. Knowing that Joffre is not Robert's son, he feels Robert's brother should succeed him but Littlefinger counsel's otherwise. A wine vendor tries to poison Daenerys and Drogo promises to put their son on the throne of the Seven Kingdoms.

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Plot Keywords:

succession to the throne | girl on girl | queen | violence | spear | 

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama | Fantasy

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Certificate:

TV-MA

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

29 May 2011 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Television 360, Grok! Studio, Generator Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

58 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

16:9 HD

Did You Know?

Trivia

The episode title is part of a quote Cersei Lannister says to Eddard Stark: "When you play the game of thrones, you win or you die. There is no middle ground." This catchphrase has been frequently used during the promotion of both the novels and the TV series.

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Goofs

When Tywin Lannister is speaking to his son Jaime while butchering a deer carcass, it's obvious that the carcass has already been prepped. This is especially noticeable when he begins skinning it, as the hide around the foot of the animal is seen to peel back a little bit when he grabs hold of it and has a clean edge, showing that it's already been cut before he ever puts his knife to it.

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Quotes

Ser Jorah Mormont: I believe what my eyes and ears report. As for the rest, it was 300 years ago. Who knows what really happened?

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Crazy Credits

The cities and places featured in the opening credits change as the series progresses. For example, in the first episode, Pentos is shown whereas in later episodes, because it is not pertinent to the episode's narrative, it is not.

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Soundtracks

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

User Reviews

Modern and smart medieval fantasy

Is Game of Thrones just an other Good versus Evil battle ? I doubt it because I don't think George R. R. Martin is that naive and titling his work A Song of Ice and Fire was just a way to appeal our Manichaean reptilian brain. After all there's a reason why J. R. R. Tolkien set his fantasy writings in Middle-earth. Smoking dragons wouldn't be able to burn villages if they weren't able to fly. That's for the air. Is there a common ground for all these families ? And what if the Gods were only toying their creation from deep down the sea ? Atlantis, Greek and Norse mythologies… The perfect number for the most pivotal episode so far. Se7en wicked steps to lose it and feel alive : 1. Digest the recap to freshen up your dry memory and dive in the most wonderful opening of all title sequences. 2. Chop up an animal corpse from beginning to end in front of the camera and give a visceral lecture on family values to Jaime Lannister. 3. Let the Littlefinger talk while teaching an exotic prostitute how to please the curvy nature of a Caucasian beauty. 4. Alert Jon Snow, hint at a possible beginning of the end and unveil an intriguing destiny. Bonus : Dungeons & Dragons joke. 5. Forge A Golden Crown for Daenerys dear brother then melt Ned's fate in the most unpredictable shapes. 6. Learn Dothraki to make sure you understand what Khal Drogo says because Jason Momoa's performance was both gentle and furious ! The 7th is obvious, it's yours.