The Wars to Come 

Cersei and Jaime adjust to a world without Tywin. Tyrion and Varys arrive at Pentos. In Meereen, a new enemy emerges. Jon is caught between two kings.

Director:

Michael Slovis

Writers:

George R.R. Martin (based on "A Song of Ice and Fire" by), David Benioff (created by)

Stars:

Peter Dinklage, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Lena Headey

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
Peter Dinklage	...	Tyrion Lannister
Nikolaj Coster-Waldau	...	Jaime Lannister
Lena Headey	...	Cersei Lannister
Emilia Clarke	...	Daenerys Targaryen
Kit Harington	...	Jon Snow
Aidan Gillen	...	Petyr 'Littlefinger' Baelish
Charles Dance	...	Tywin Lannister
Natalie Dormer	...	Margaery Tyrell
Stephen Dillane	...	Stannis Baratheon
Liam Cunningham	...	Davos Seaworth
Carice van Houten	...	Melisandre (as Carice Van Houten)
John Bradley	...	Samwell Tarly
Sophie Turner	...	Sansa Stark
Kristofer Hivju	...	Tormund Giantsbane
Hannah Murray	...	Gilly

Storyline

Cersei comes to the funeral of her father Tywin Lannister and blames her brother Jaime for his death. Tyrion arrives at his destination transported in a wooden box and Lord Varys discloses that Jaime had asked him to save his brother. White Rat is murdered in a brothel and Daenerys asks Grey Worm to find the killer. She visits her dragons in the dungeons but they do not respect her. Jon Snow is training a teenager, but Melisandre brings him to talk to Stannis Baratheon. He assigns Snow to convince Mance Rayder to bend his knees for him and make his people fight with his army. Will Mance accept the deal?

---

Plot Keywords:

funeral | public execution | shot with an arrow | female executioner | fire breathing dragon | 

---

Genres:

Action | Adventure | Drama | Fantasy | Romance

---

Certificate:

TV-MA

Details

Release Date:

12 April 2015 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Northern Ireland, UK

Box Office

Budget:

£6,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Television 360,Startling,Bighead Littlehead

Technical Specs

Runtime:

53 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital Dolby Atmos (Blu-ray release)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The first time that Daenerys' dragons Viserion and Rhaegal are mentioned by name on screen. Drogon's name was first mentioned in Game of Thrones: The Children (2014).

---

Goofs

Stannis says, "Once the North is won, I'll declare them [the Wildlings] citizens of the realm." Since Westeros is a monarchy rather than nation-state, the correct term is "subjects".

---

Quotes

Jaime Lannister: [to Cersei about their father Tywin] They're going to try to take it away, all of it, all of them out there, our enemies. They're waiting in line to make sure he's really dead and as soon as they see the stones on his eyes they'll set to work on tearing us apart.

---

Crazy Credits

Starting with the first episode of season 5, the opening sequence with the map shows Winterfell in smoke. The castle tower now shows the rotating heraldic of House Bolton, the flayed man (it was the Stark's shadow wolf before). The heraldic of House Stark, the shadow wolf, however, can be seen lying next to the tower on the ground (right side of the tower). After Sansa and Jon recapture Winterfell, the Stark Wolf returns onto the tower.

---

Connections

Referenced in Saturday Night Live: Taraji P. Henson/Mumford & Sons (2015)

---

Soundtracks

Game of Thrones - Main Title
(uncredited)
Written by Ramin Djawadi

User Reviews

Sets up what is to come quite effectively

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 Wars to Come", while not living up to the previous season's finale "The Children", is a very promising start for Season 5. It is not the most dramatic, action-packed, story-advancing or most emotion-filled of episodes, instead going the slower, more reflective and intimate approach. This is not a problem because, although some may disagree, 'Game of Thrones' has shown numerous times that it does these types of episodes excellently.

Some characters are better developed than others, Tyrion continues to have plenty of meat to him and is getting more fascinating with each episode. Am also really appreciating Cersei getting more development and becoming more prominent. Sansa is rather bland though.

The episode does a great job beginning where the previous season left off, reminding us of what happened and sets things up for what is to follow. There is not a massive amount in terms of character progression however, though it's certainly evident if not quite deep enough, and other episodes have done better in moving things forward.

'Game of Thrones' has always been strong when it comes to acting and "The Wars to Come" is not an exception. Peter Dinklage can do no wrong, he is a fan favourite for great reason, and Lena Headey, Aidan Gillen and Emilia Clarke also do a huge amount with their characters.

Visually, "The Wars to Come" looks amazing, as one would expect for 'Game of Thrones'. 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 Wars to Come" 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. The story is still riveting, even with the quieter and slower approach to the storytelling, and has enough passion and sensitivity.

Overall, promising start to Season 5. 8/10 Bethany Cox