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.
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.Written by
garykmcd
Maester Luwin, Ros and Theon mention the Greyjoy's Rebellion that took place nine years before the beginning of the series. The rebellion was crushed and Balon Greyjoy (Theon's father) was forced to surrender to Robert Baratheon. As penalty for the uprising, Theon was taken from him by the Starks as a ward, which explains why multiple characters keep reminding him that he is not a Stark. Robert also mentions the rebellion indirectly by stating "We haven't had a real fight in nine years". See more »
Goofs
In the scene when Maester Luwin is quizzing Bran on the noble houses and their words, the 2-person pan shot shows Bran with bangs, but when it zooms to him, his hair is split in the middle. See more »
Quotes
Lord Varys:
How is your son, my lord?
Eddard Stark:
He'll never walk again.
Lord Varys:
But his mind is sound?
Eddard Stark:
So they say.
Lord Varys:
A blessing, then. I suffered an early mutilation myself. Some doors close forever, others open in most unexpected places.
[Varys points to a chair]
Lord Varys:
May I?
[Ned nods]
Lord Varys:
If the wrong ears heard what I'm about to tell you, off comes my head. And who would mourn poor Varys then? North or south, they sing no songs for spiders. But there are things you must know. You are the King's Hand and the king is a fool. Your friend, I ...
[...] See more »
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. See more »
With this episode, we hit the halfway point of the first season. We get more new characters and a new location. As a result, we do not see either the Dothraki or the Wall in this episode.
We get a good scene between Ned and Ser Barrister Selmy (Ian McElhinney) Tyrion and a nameless character played by Jerome Flynn (yes him from Robson & Jerome) enjoy some post battle banter, the high point of the episode is a spectacular confrontation between The Hound and his brother The Mountain. There is a brilliant exchange between Varys and Littlefinger too, an then of course we have the ending. Another great ending.
This is an episode that really shows Sean Bean's gift both for the physical side of acting and the emotional side. His Eddard carrying the weight of his disappointments and his honour to do his duty on his shoulders.
Then there is his fight against Jaime Lannister. I need to praise Bean and Coaster-Waldau for their performance here; Coaster-Waldau especially carries off Jaime's cockiness and his rage when a fair single combat is disrupted.
But Mark Addy? I've not been a fan of him in this show, however there is Brilliant acting on his part. Especially his rage at Ned.
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With this episode, we hit the halfway point of the first season. We get more new characters and a new location. As a result, we do not see either the Dothraki or the Wall in this episode.
We get a good scene between Ned and Ser Barrister Selmy (Ian McElhinney) Tyrion and a nameless character played by Jerome Flynn (yes him from Robson & Jerome) enjoy some post battle banter, the high point of the episode is a spectacular confrontation between The Hound and his brother The Mountain. There is a brilliant exchange between Varys and Littlefinger too, an then of course we have the ending. Another great ending.
This is an episode that really shows Sean Bean's gift both for the physical side of acting and the emotional side. His Eddard carrying the weight of his disappointments and his honour to do his duty on his shoulders.
Then there is his fight against Jaime Lannister. I need to praise Bean and Coaster-Waldau for their performance here; Coaster-Waldau especially carries off Jaime's cockiness and his rage when a fair single combat is disrupted.
But Mark Addy? I've not been a fan of him in this show, however there is Brilliant acting on his part. Especially his rage at Ned.