ThisGame of Thronesreview contains spoilers.
Jon and Daenerys, the two that many of us speculate are the harmonizing voices in George R.R.
Martins Song of Ice and Fire, were onscreen together.
What would happen if the Stark kids ever saw each other again?
And tonight,Game of Throneswas awash in their incredibly engulfing shade.
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On the chilly side is the moment where Arya Stark finally came home to Winterfell.
So many times in her life she has been denied the chance at a family reunion.
Showrunners David Benioff and D.B.
But for Arya, the scene works because it is just one more diminished return.
Yet now she is a person who wont take no for an answer.
Down there, Sansa jokingly replies to Aryas query: Do I have to call you Lady Stark?
But Arya either ignores the humor of the response or can no longer understand it.
She seemed as removed from this house as she was in the Twins.
Intriguingly, each Stark reunion has been less heartfelt than the last.
Now, Arya and Sansa barely acknowledge each other as long lost siblings.
On its face, it is a strong choice by Benioff and Weiss, and evocative of Martin too.
Two acquaintances gathering in the dark to pay their respects to a shared loved one.
Still, there is something missing in either the direction or writing of this scene.
And yet, the writers are really trying to build to something beyond simply a big scene.
Their secrets and personal losses are so great that they instantly would appear to bond in their melancholy.
What kind of gang?
However, she does deserve credit of now being a possibly great role model for Arya.
The first one shell have had since Yoren also met the Many-Faced God of Death in season 2.
And tantalizingly, both Sansa and Petyr Baelish watch on.
Sansa is hard to read in this moment.
She is clearly troubled by learning that her sisters kill list is not one of pure fancy.
Arya moves like a Braavosi warrior that can kill like the best of them.
Is Sansa saddened to see that life has pushed her sister into the role of murderer?
Maybe even a little jealous since Sansa has grown into a politician while Arya can fight her own battles?
Petyrs face isnt hard to read.
What does that mean for his machinations?
I doubt even he knows in that exact moment.
Either way, shes now a potential tooljust as she uses his Valyrian dagger to defeat Brienne.
Arya might have a point, as we likewise saw Littlefinger have a go at wine and dine Bran.
He departs by calling Bran Lord Stark, and Bran reveals he isnt Lord Stark.
Nor does Brandon Stark consider himself a political player.
Bran then has as cold an exchange with Meera Reed as he does with Petyr.
If shippers were hoping for a love story, think again.
He tells her as much though, saying Bran Stark is gone.
Can we all just agree now that Bran has become the worst Stark?
The episode itself actually began noting just that.
Now he flinches at the idea of Lord Tarly flogging their men if they start straggling.
Fair warning, he cautions.
He also pays gold to the lovably whiny Bronn.
We doth think he protests too much.
Yes, Im sure Queen Cerseis reign will be quiet and peaceful, Bronn mocks.
Jaime far too earnestly replies, Stranger things have happened.
That Bronn articulates this demonstrates both a camaraderie and a knowing sense of cynicism on Team Lannister.
The likelihood of being prepared for winter seems remote, yet here they are still fighting.
Its inevitable that something is going to snap this season between Jaime and Cersei, and its about time.
Even so, he is still a Lannister.
Cersei and Mark Gatiss banker from Braavos are having a lovefest, toasting to eachs good health.
Methinks theyre getting ahead of themselves, albeit Gatiss is aware of this.
Our word is golden, be the motto of these dude-bros.
But theyre also actually doing something useful, like finding an entire mines worth of Dragonglass.
The scene is crucial though since more than any speech, it gives Dany pause.
Why would such a cavern of purportedly useless rocks be saved for centuries?
And then Jon shows Daenerys a mural from the Children of the Forest that dates back about 10,000 years.
Paintings of men, paintings of snow, and paintings of demons with eyes that glow.
Its a lose-lose though for the King in the North.
Remember, the Dragonglass is for the Night King and White Walkers, not the Wights they command.
Daenerys is obviously questioning it when she quickly turns on her Hand, even wondering about his allegiances.
Your family you mean, she sneers.
Perhaps you dont want to hurt them, after all.
The thing about dragons is they might eat you.
Tyrion is of course loyal and even would love to see Drogon feast on Fillet de Cersei.
But he still is thinking too much about what he wants (Casterly Rock) and PR optics.
But Aegon the Conqueror didnt take all Seven Kingdoms by cutting off his hands either.
Danys dragons are game changers.Let them fight!
This is how Dany should have handled her first salvo from the beginning.
Hearing the sounds of the Dothraki before even seeing Drogon is surreal enough.
Just ask the knights.
But then comes the dragon.
Weve seen Daenerys three children unleashed in contained quarters.
But this slaughter is closer to the Battle of Blackwater Bay and even the Battle for the Wall.
Folks you dont want to see die.
And here they are being turned into actual ash within an instant.
Ash heaps in the shape of men replace the actual bodies that once stood there.
It also gives credence to Tyrions wariness of using dragons.
But even now, its a decision that Tyrion is uneasy about.
Who do you root for?
Game of Thronesmade its bones by letting characters endure realistic repercussions for their mistakes.
Trust Littlefinger and make no strong political ties in the capital?
Off with your head, Lord Stark.
Insult a contentious ally whose support is pivotal?
Prepare to never see your child born, Robb.
Fire an ineffective weapon at a dragon?
Time to fry in the sky, Bronn.
In the meantime, it just means Dany must pluck out a flesh wound on Drogon.
So the episode ends with the Lannisters enduring a devastating defeat at the hands of simply Daenerys and Drogon.
If she unsheathed her other two dragons, she could finish the job in an afternoon.
This too, though, is to her advantage.
The Lannister forces are shattered as the weather grows gray.
If they leave Kings Landing, they will surely die in dragon fire.
Until then, Daenerys and her army of Dothraki can begin a siege on the outskirts of Kings Landing.
And their edible spoils were also spoiled in flames.
But that wont happen.
The main reason is because Benioff and Weiss want to ensure Lena Headey makes it to season 8.
Slowly but surely, the lines of the endgame are taking firmer shape.
Seven Hells, maybe theyll team up?
Still, I am going to have to take half a star off.
Martin running through its fire and blood.
Dont let that discourage you, however.
The Spoils of War was surely a feast.
The first of the endgame.
It wont be the last.
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Rating:
4.5 out of 5
