The Wolf and the Lion 

Catelyn has captured Tyrion and plans to bring him to her sister, Lysa Arryn, at the Vale, to be tried for his, supposed, crimes against Bran. Robert plans to have Daenerys killed, but Eddard refuses to be a part of it and quits.

Director:

Brian Kirk

Writers:

David Benioff (created by), D.B. Weiss (created by)

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
Aidan Gillen	...	Petyr 'Littlefinger' Baelish
Sophie Turner	...	Sansa Stark
Maisie Williams	...	Arya Stark
Alfie Allen	...	Theon Greyjoy
Isaac Hempstead Wright	...	Bran Stark
Jack Gleeson	...	Joffrey Baratheon
Rory McCann	...	Sandor 'The Hound' Clegane
Peter Dinklage	...	Tyrion Lannister
Donald Sumpter	...	Maester Luwin
Conleth Hill	...	Lord Varys

Storyline

When King Robert learns that Daenerys and the Dothrakis are preparing for war, he decides to attack first. Ned is against the idea saying they should go slowly and learn more but the King calls him a weakling and dismisses him as the King's Hand. Playing in the dungeons, Arya overhears two men plotting against her father. She tells him what she heard and he decides the time has come for him to return to Winterfell. He delays his departure when given the opportunity to speak to the last person his predecessor spoke to, a whore who gave Robert another illegitimate son. The delay is costly however and leads to a serious injury. Catelyn meanwhile takes Tyrion to her sister Lysa, who also happens to be the John Arryn's widow.

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Plot Keywords:

illegitimate child | cat | female nudity | male rear nudity | male nudity | 

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Drama | Fantasy | Romance

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Certificate:

TV-MA

Details

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 May 2011 (USA)

Box Office

Budget:

£6,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Television 360, Grok! Studio, Generator Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

55 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital Dolby Atmos (Blu-ray release)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the novels, the homosexual relationship between Renly and Loras is only implied, while in the show it is openly depicted.

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Goofs

Maester Luwin tells Bran that his mother had sat by his bed for three weeks while he was unconscious. In Game of Thrones: The Kingsroad, Catelyn tells Robb that she had prayed for Bran to the Seven for more than a month.

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Quotes

Robert Baratheon: So here we sit, seventeen years later, holding it all together. Don't you get tired?
Cersei Lannister: Every day.
Robert Baratheon: How long can hate hold a thing together?
Cersei Lannister: Seventeen years is quite a long time.
Robert Baratheon: Yes, it is.
Cersei Lannister: Yes, it is.
[they drink from their cups]
Cersei Lannister: What was she like?
Robert Baratheon: [slightly puzzled] You've never asked about her, not once. Why now?
Cersei Lannister: At first, just saying her name even in private felt like I was breathing life back into her. I thought if I didn't talk about her, she'd just fade away for you. When I realized that ...
[...]

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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

Referenced in Game of Thrones: Stormborn (2017)

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Soundtracks

Main Title
(uncredited)
Written and Performed by Ramin Djawadi

User Reviews

Simply phenomenal

Came to 'Game of Thrones' fairly late in the game and due to being so busy the binge-watching was gradual. Have found myself truly loving the show, very quickly becoming one of my favourites. It totally lives up to the hype and not only does it do the brilliant source material justice (a rarity in television) it is on its own merits one of the finest, most addictive and consistently compelling shows in recent years and quality-wise it puts a lot of films in recent years to shame.

"The Wolf and the Lion" is one of the best episodes of the first season, is classic 'Game of Thrones' and there is the agreement that it is the best episode since "Winter is Coming". Actually loved the quieter and heavier in exposition episodes in between, but things feel more focused and tighter here and things are more action-packed in a way that's exciting and intriguing and there is also plenty of character development that is rich and layered, Sean Bean and Mark Addy's scenes are particularly note-worthy.

It has been commented by critics that the omission of the Night Watch and Dothraki scenes was a good move that made the story more focused and succinct and that the changes from the source material, mainly additions, were bold and made things feel more rounded. Have to completely agree with this. As well as some of the most exciting action scenes and best effects and visuals of the whole show, it was those aspects that were particularly striking about "The Wolf and the Lion". The dragon skulls and the Eyrie were standouts.

Visually, "The Wolf and the Lion" looks amazing. The scenery is throughout spectacular, the sets are hugely atmospheric and beautiful on the eyes with a real meticulous eye for detail and the costumes suit the characters to a tee. The make-up is beautifully done. The visual effects are some of the best of any television programme and are not overused or abused, the scale, the detail and how they actually have character and soul are better than those in a lot of the big-budget blockbusters. As well the cinematography and editing, which are cinematic quality as well.

One cannot talk about the episode without mentioning the thematically, orchestrally and atmospherically multi-layered music scoring and the unforgettable main theme. Again, worthy of a high-budget fantasy/action/drama film.

It is hard not to be bowled over by the quality of the writing, outstanding isn't a strong enough adjective to describe how good the writing is once again. It always has a natural flow, is layered and thought-provoking and demonstrates a wide range of emotions such as suspenseful tension, poignant pathos and witty humour. The monologues and exchanges all add hugely to the character development. The story is paced beautifully, structured with such nuance and attention to coherence, a high emotional level and is done with intelligence, passion and sensitivity.

Helped by the superb character and multi-layered writing throughout, although the acting is uniformly good across the board Sean Bean, Nikolaj Coaster-Waldau and Mark Addy are knockouts.

Overall, phenomenal and what 'Game of Thrones' is all about. 10/10 Bethany Cox