Game of Thrones Season 7 begins with a bloody good cold open and then only improves.
It is a deep breath to savor before the final plunge.
ThisGame of Thronesreview contains spoilers.
It will not be the last.
And the cold open to tonightsGame of Thronesseason 7 premiere was just that.
This sequence is the concession in the premiere toward the knowledge that weve entered the endgame.
After all,Game of Thronesseason premieres are notorious for their stately and regal pacing (i.e.
some fans always complain theyre slow).
Presumably, it comes with the territory of nuking half the cast with green fire and ended contracts.
Yet for tonight at least, it is a sequence of pure delight.
The episode does not play coy.
It turns out that I was wrong since there will be no more Freys.
But screw it, they all had it coming… right?
That way Will Champion couldve also enjoyed his very own cameoingGame of Thronesdeath.
Like her, I did not recognize it, and Ser Sheeran informs us that its a new song.
Yeah, Arya, youdoneed to investigate that!
Upon sitting with Lannister men, we are informed on a few intriguing details.
Yet here she is marching toward Kings Landing.
For once, there is nary a threat of violence against Aryas body by total strangers in Westeros.
Nevertheless, Arya cant resist telling them that she still intends to kill the queen.
Surely, what kind of teenage naive would actually volunteer a penchant for treason?
But these boyos take it in better stride than protestors at a production ofJulius Caesar.
Nothing like a good workout of fencing and dismemberment.
But it wasnt to be.
Maybe thatll come next week as Aryas story continues to unfold in such bloody good ways.
In the scene, Jon rather progressively reveals he is going to draft women to fight his wars.
Thank the Seven for Lyanna Mormont.
Thats all well and good, but that feels more akin to David Benioff and D.B.
Weiss drawing heavy handed lines in their conflict, as opposed to George R.R.
Seven Hells, even Ned Stark knew to take Theon Greyjoy as hostage after the Iron Island uprising.
He wants to be king with her as his wife.
The quickest way of achieving both goals would be making Jon Snow disappear.
And she even sounds like the Lannister Queen when she condescends dripping disdain toward Petyr Baelish.
This is fairly remarkable since Euron proves to be as lousy a negotiator as he does a tactician.
Eurons retorts are charmingly hilarious for audiences.
It was getting too crowded, anyway.
She will never take another husband again, and especially one as uncouth as a Greyjoy.
Truly, these Iron Islanders will always be the also-ran, the South shall rise again!
However, theirs is the real romance, even as it bleeds out.
Theyre all thats left, and instead of drawing closer, Cersei retreats further into her delusions of power.
Speaking of doomed tracks, it looks like the Citadel of Oldtown is malfunctioning out for Samwell Tarly.
Suddenly, calling it Dragonstone has a lot more clarity, no?
This is the most crucial of the many teases for the final battles to come.
There are few more.
(Which poor, poor Tormund and the wildlings were just given thankless command over as Ice Giants arrive.
Yet the most important and obvious one is Dragonstone itself.
The Dragon, indeed.
Which is all the more remarkable since he sounded about as authentically English as John Wayne.
But Danys fun in the sand is a little bit more sedate.
She simply places her hand on the soil.
Its a simple gesture but it speaks volumes.
Daenerys Targaryen is laying hands on Westeros for the first time… and itll never be the same again.
But that transition has begun.
Benioff and Weiss are keen on underscoring this.
As Daenerys nor Tyrion have any lines before the final closing second of the episode.
Its all so much, even chatty Tyrion keeps mum as the queen has her big, quiet moment.
And poignantly, Dany strides right past her new throne and into the war room.
She has more important things to do than worry about vanities.
Daenerys now owns the worlds largest supply of Dragonglass and actual dragons.
The weapons needed to vanquish her foes, both human and dead.
She will be the arbiter of alls fate.
And then she says, Shall we begin?
Yes, Dany, we shall.
And its about damn time, at that.
As a whole, season 7 has started with confidence and bittersweet acknowledgement.
Yes, like all season premieres this erred on the side of exposition and setup.
The dragons have landed; the dead are moving; and Danys come home.
Shes never really known Westeros, and we dont know what shell do with it.
But in the final 12 episodes ofGame of Thrones, she is going to rewrite all the rules.
For that, enjoying this final episode from the old playbook is worth savoring, like fine Arbor wine.
Just double-check Aryas not the one buying.
read more: Game of Thrones Season 8 Predictions and Theories
Rating:
4.5 out of 5
