HBO Game of Thrones Recap: The Dance of Dragons

"I believe in second chances. I don't believe in third chances."
Well I think it's safe to say that Stannis is out of the running for Father of The Year. More on that in a minute. First we open up in the North where Melisandre, apparently unbothered by the cold as she is wearing her normal plunging neckline gown, (heh-heh) seemingly senses something awry and walks out of her tent. She sees what is probably one of Ramsay's men scurrying away. Then fire breaks out across the camp. Tents, horses, and men are all set ablaze. It's chaos and near panic. The next morning Davos gives the grim report to Stannis. We see what Ramsay wanted those twenty men to do. Much of the food stores and all of the siege engines have been burned. Stannis' army has also lost horses, Going forward just became even more difficult. Even if they reach Winterfell they have no way to besiege it now. Stannis is, needless to say, more than a bit perturbed. He can't understand how twenty men can infiltrate his camp so easily. This lack of security around a ruler will be bookended in the episode's final scenes. Stannis is not mollified by Davos' excuse that the southerners are unused to the grim North and don't know the terrain. Not raising the alarm while you're on guard duty means that you're either incompetent or you're a traitor. Stannis has no use for either; he orders the guards hanged. His march looks like it's dead in the water...or rather dead in the snow I guess.

Later on Stannis summons Davos to undertake a new mission. He is to return to Castle Black to ask for food and supplies with the promise that once Stannis becomes King, he will ensure that the Night's Watch is provisioned and manned far beyond the skeleton crew it currently has. Stannis doesn't seem to care that this request would require the Night's Watch to break the neutrality it's supposed to maintain. And he cares even less that, as Davos angrily points out, that this message could and should be carried to the Night's Watch by someone far less senior than Davos, the King's Hand. But orders are orders. Right. Before he leaves Davos visits Shireen. He has carved her a  beautiful wooden stag. A stag is of course the Baratheon sigil. It's a gift to her for not giving up on him, and for teaching him to read. There's some very obvious subtext here as to why Stannis wants Davos temporarily gone. You probably know what it is too. Davos may even sense it which is why he gave Shireen the gift. Just in case you're really thick, we see Stannis give a meaningful look at Melisandre. And I don't think he's checking out her womanly goodies though probably everyone else is.

Jon Snow and his ragtag alliance of Night's Watch men and wildlings make it back to the Wall. After a brief staredown, Alliser Thorne gives a disgusted look and opens the gate. Alliser says Jon has a good heart but that Jon will get them all killed. Jon admits to Sam that he thinks the mission was a failure but Sam points out all the people he saved. For the first time Jon looks around and really seems to notice that his fellow Night's Watch brothers not only don't seem happy with his decisions to let the wildlings in, they also seem downright upset. Nobody tells him good job, or glad to see you made it back or asks him how things went. There are just sullen looks and silence as the group of wildlings, including the giant, enter Castle Black. Hmm. In Dorne Areo Hotah leads Jaime to see Prince Doran, who is sitting with Ellaria, Myrcella, and Trystane. Doran asks Jaime why all the sneaking around? It's insulting and unnecessary. Jaime tells everyone about the implied threat of Myrcella's necklace received in a viper's jaws. Myrcella says that's the necklace that was stolen. Everyone looks at Ellaria who shrugs. Doran says that if his loyal ruler King Tommen, demands that Myrcella return to King's Landing then of course he will comply. He just insists that Trystane accompany his betrothed back to King's Landing and take a seat on the Small Council. That settled everyone toasts, well everyone except Ellaria, who ostentatiously refuses to do so. There's the small matter of punishment for Bronn, who struck Trystane. Although Doran is seemingly in a forgiving mood, he's not fond of people smacking his heir. That stuff won't fly. But he leaves the matter up to his son. Trystane will be running things one day. He might as well get some executive experience now. 

Bronn is retrieved from his cell. Nearby the Sand Snakes are playing a slapping game. Bronn makes sure to respond affirmatively to Tyene's parting query of who is the most beautiful woman in the world. Taken before Doran and Jaime, Bronn is pleased to learn from Jaime that he will be set free. But there is one condition. At a nod from Trystane, Areo gives a quick brutal elbow to Bronn's face. Pow. Right in the kisser. Right to the moon!!!! Afterwards, as the manacled Sand Snakes look on sadly, Doran quietly and angrily explains to Ellaria that, family or not, he's done playing with her. Her disrespect and rebellion ends now. Or she dies. It really is that simple. After she kneels and kisses the ring, Ellaria goes to visit Jaime, who is trying to write left-handed. He's not very good at it. She lets him know that she knows all about his incest, but does not judge. After all the Targaryens famously wed brother to sister, uncle to niece, aunt to nephew. Love comes in many forms. She also claims she would not have hurt Myrcella. What's her game?

In Braavos, it's time for Arya to take out the corrupt insurance agent. She is about to do so, in her guise as a seafood vendor when she sees something that makes her forget all about her mission. She walks past her target, who is actually desirous of purchasing her wares. It's Ser Meryn Trant, with Mace Tyrell. If you recall Tyrell was sent to Braavos by Cersei in order to get him out of the way while she went after his children. But the cover story, which Tyrell was too dim to see through, was that he needed to renegotiate terms with the Iron Bank. But if you recall back further in the story, Ser Meryn Trant is the one who killed Syrio, Arya's sword instructor. Also, though Arya doesn't know this, Trant also beat and stripped Sansa Stark. Anyhow he's on Arya's list. She follows him and Tyrell as Tyrell ineptly (does he do things any other way?) tries and fails to charm the head banker, Tycho. At the day's end Arya follows Trant and two of his companions to a brothel. Arya uses her cover as an oyster seller to get inside. Oysters have zinc. So they are famously supposed to help put lead in a man's pencil. So a few of the ladies of the night want to buy some oysters. We see that Trant is a pedophile. He doesn't want older women. He doesn't even want young attractive women. He wants young girls. Arya's cover is almost blown when the house madam catches her spying and Trant seems taken aback by her face. But never mind. As he takes his child prostitute to the room, Trant reminds the madam he'll want someone new tomorrow. As she is kicked out, you can see the wheels turning in Arya's mind.  When she returns to the House of Black and White she lies to Jaqen H'ghar by telling him that the insurance agent wasn't hungry today. Jaquen doesn't slap her. So maybe he believed the lie? Or maybe he didn't? But as we know, Arya is not no one. She is still Arya of House Stark, Princess of Winterfell.

As Shireen plays with the stag which Davos gave her, Stannis comes to see his daughter. She has been reading about the Targaryen civil war known as the Dance of Dragons. Stannis is trying to decide whether to sacrifice his daughter. This is a pretty powerful scene. Stannis speaks obliquely about some of the problems he's having. Happy to see her Daddy and having no idea of what he's really talking about, Shireen says she would be happy to help. After all, as she reminds Stannis, using the same line he told her a few episodes back, she is Princess Shireen of the House Baratheon, and she is his daughter. Stannis tells her that actually she can her. Stannis embraces Shireen and mutters "forgive me." Cut away to Shireen being led to the pyre by soldiers. She's calling for her daddy. She's still holding the stag. At every point you think that someone is going to intervene because a few of the soldiers appear disgusted. Melisandre appears and tells Shireen that it will all be over soon. Stannis and Selyse are watching and holding on to each other. Shireen screams for their help. Selyse tells the shaking Stannis that this is the right thing. But as Melisandre lights the stake, it's actually Selyse, not Stannis, who reveals there's a drop of parental love still left inside. She runs to the stake, but soldiers catch her. Selyse collapses and sobs as Shireen screams for her parents and ultimately just screams. Still want Stannis to take Winterfell?

In Meereen Daenerys watchs the opening of the fighting pits. On stage she is joined by Hizdahr,Tyrion, Missandei and Daario. Hizdahr and Daario like each other about as much as you would expect, which is to say not at all. Daario can't stop boasting about his own time in the fighting pits and showing off his skills with daggers and short swords. He's doing this right in Hizdahr's face so it's less passive-aggressive and more "I don't like you one bit, pretty boy!"  Daario and Tyrion are a bit taken aback when Hizdahr correctly predicts the outcome of the first match. Daario and Daenerys  can't stop themselves from needling Hizdahr about his own lack of fighting experience. Hizdahr shrugs that off. He gives a very pragmatic defense of violence, saying that good or bad, everything that is accomplished relies ultimately on the threat of force. Daenerys is kidding herself if she believes otherwise. This prompts Tyrion to mutter that Tywin would have liked Hizdahr. Hizdahr is probably unaware that the sardonic Tyrion means this as an insult.  Daenerys doesn't like the fighting. She is disturbed by how into it the crowd is. People are cheering for blood. But philosophical discussions and poorly hidden sexual rivalries will have to wait for later. The next match is about to start and wouldn't you know it's Lord Friendzone again, back for more. Yes good old Jorah Mormont is there to show these easterners how a Westerosi knight does things. The crowd boos him lustily, preferring their home town favorites. After a pause Daenerys gives permission for the melee to proceed.

Although he's not the quickest, youngest or largest opponent, Jorah does have the advantage of good protection, experience and a weapon (longsword) that if used correctly is one hit, one kill. He's last man standing, to the crowd's severe displeasure. Suddenly he grabs a spear and with surprising accuracy throws it right at Daenerys! Well of course he didn't throw it at Daenerys. He threw it at the Son of the Harpy who had somehow gained access to Daenerys' stage and was just about to kill her. Again, where's that security? Or perhaps the Sons of the Harpy were security. Suddenly there are Sons of the Harpy everywhere in the stadium. Some have swords and daggers, others have spears. And they aim to misbehave. It's the perfect kill zone. Their enemy is trapped and outnumbered. Hizdahr is killed. Daario, Jorah and the Unsullied make a shield wall around Daenerys. Or they would if they had the numbers. They don't. Still this is not a situation where surrender is an option. The butchery commences. Daenerys and Missandei think they'll be dead soon. Things don't look good for Team Targaryen. But wait. Look at the skies! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's Drogon! You don't tug on Superman's cape. You don't spit in the wind. You don't pull the mask off the Lone Ranger. And you don't mess with Drogon's mama. Drogon starts slicing, dicing and burning people. However he's apparently not at full growth and is still vulnerable to spears. Well what mother can stand to see her children harmed? Selyse ultimately couldn't. And neither can Daenerys. She yanks spears from Drogon's hide. She mounts Drogon and flies out of the pit. To where we do not know.

What I liked

• Dillane's acting as Stannis is something that needs to be recognized.
• Arya's recognition of Trant and her refusal to forget herself.
• Davos' gift to Shireen (and his request to take Shireen with him). He had to know something was up. This will really set up a conflict between Davos' morality and his sense of loyalty.
• It appears that Daenerys is linked telepathically to Drogon (and her other dragons?)
• The attack on Daenerys. Who knows if Hizdahr was in on it or not. But it was a perfect set up. Or it would have been if not for Drogon.
• The sight of soldiers dragging Shireen raised some general questions. Any sovereign can give orders. But why do people obey? What would happen if soldiers refused to obey criminal orders. That question may not be answered unless we see Davos in the finale but very few people can wreak havoc without the active support of others. Just something to ponder.

What I didn't like

• I don't know if this ultimately came from Martin or not but I didn't think Stannis' sacrifice of Shireen made sense for the Stannis character. The book mythical hero whom Stannis is emulating had a similar moment with his wife but I just don't think the Stannis who loved his daughter so much would have watched her burn. It feels like shock for shock's sake.
• I thought Drogon should have been a bit larger but that's just a small nitpick.
• Dorne continues to be a waste of resources and time. 
• There was a bit too much foreshadowing.

*This post is written for discussion of this episode and previous episodes.  If you have book based knowledge of future events or have seen future leaked episodes please be kind enough not to discuss that here.  NO SPOILERS. NO BOOK DERIVED HINTS ABOUT FUTURE EVENTS. Most of my blog partners have not read the books and would take spoilers most unkindly. Heads, spikes, well you get the idea....

Cop Assaults Teen Girl in McKinney Texas

All of the facts leading up to this incident are still up for debate. What's not up for debate are the apparently unprofessional, thuggish and dangerous actions of one of the police officers who responded. Knowing how police generally behave and their differing perceptions of threat based on race I'm not really too surprised by anything in the video, though I am angered. I really don't have a whole lot to add about this other than incidents such as these are precisely the reason that police officers ought to be better trained. But if someone is racist and hateful the level of training is meaningless. This is in many ways the historical and apparently current black experience in America in a nutshell. Blackness is considered criminal by definition when it's outside of its "place". In our (not so) post-racial America, black children, white children and hispanic children are apparently having a good time at a pool party. Apparently some white adults are put off by the numbers of black invitees or question whether they are all invitees.  A security guard (white?) starts to evict the black children who were apparently invited. One white woman, who evidently feels that black children should not be at that particular pool party, starts hurling racist insults. When she is called out on this by another black woman, she apparently initiates a physical assault. The police are called. Like most black people, young or old, would do, many of the black children decide that now would be a good time to depart the premises. After all the police are quite comfortable beating or shooting black people. Everyone knows that. What the video seems to show is that one police officer, upset at having fallen down chasing someone, decides to unload his bile on any black teen in the vicinity. He curses and insults them and then takes down a young teen girl, grinding her face in the ground and sitting on her. He also pulls his gun and points it at the children when they protest. These children were treated as if they had just slaughtered nine people. Oh wait, no they weren't. The bikers who actually killed people and exchanged gunshots with the police were treated better than unarmed children committing the felony crime of being black in an area where being black is illegal. The officer has been placed on administrative leave...

WASHINGTON -- When Miles Jai Thomas arrived at a party at the Craig Ranch North Community Pool in McKinney, Texas, on Friday night, the pool was open to everyone -- until a security guard showed up and removed black partygoers from the area. “Then he started making up rules to keep us out,” Thomas, 15, told The Huffington Post.

A white woman at the pool started making racist comments, Thomas said, such as telling black teens at the party to get used to the bars outside the pool because that’s all they were going to see. Grace Stone, 14, who is white, told BuzzFeed News that she and friends objected to an adult woman making racist comments to other teens at the party and that the woman turned violent. This is when, according to Thomas, a 19-year-old black woman told the belligerent white woman to stop fighting with the teenagers. The white woman called the black woman a “young b***h,” then walked up to her. After the young woman said her age out loud, the older woman punched her in the face. Another unidentified white woman jumped in as well before Thomas, who was recording the incident, and his friends went to break it up.

It was after this incident that the cops showed up and “started cursing and yelling at us,” Thomas said. He described an officer manhandling a young girl, as shown in this video embedded above. “So a cop grabbed her arm and flipped her to the ground after she and him were arguing about him cursing at us,” Thomas said. When two teens went toward the cop to help the girl, they were accused of sneaking up on the cop to attack. “So a cop yelled 'get those motherf*****s' and they chased [us] with guns out. That's why in the video I started running,” Thomas said. "I was scared because all I could think was, 'Don't shoot me,'" he said.

LINK

There are a few takeaways here, besides the obvious one that white police officers are often very quick to resort to force or the threat of force with black citizens of any age. If you haven't been living in a cave your whole life you already knew that. The really sad infuriating thing on display here is what the black children learned. They learned that just being in a "white" area when someone thinks you shouldn't be there can be hazardous to your health. They learned that the police really don't care about their constitutional right to assemble or use free speech. Being polite and respectable won't prevent you from being detained or arrested. And the children also learned that no adult will come to their aid. That last thing is a horrible lesson to learn. I don't see where the young woman committed any crime. And I certainly don't see where it was necessary for the cop to body slam her and sit on her. What would you do if that was your daughter, your sister, your wife, your mother, your girlfriend? 
Could you live with yourself if you did nothing? Or if you were the young woman being so treated could you ever look the same way again at the men in your life if they didn't do something? Of course the police would be very happy to shoot anyone they believed was even thinking about "interfering".  It's comforting to imagine that your loved ones would never be in that situation but that is not only foolish, but downright delusional. It's also tempting to believe that this is only a Texas problem but it's not. It's nationwide. But maybe I'm all wrong. Maybe the police were all in fear of their lives from the black kids (and apparently only the black kids), who after all may have had rifles and hand grenades stuffed in their swimwear. Of course, once again I look at the Cliven Bundy situation where police, faced with numerous men who had their own guns and weren't afraid to shoot back, somehow managed to show some restraint. There's probably a lesson to be learned there. 

Movie Reviews: Supremacy, The Gambler

Supremacy

directed by Deon Taylor

This movie was supposedly based in part on a real life story. So then I can't get too upset if it dragged at times because that could very well be how it all went down. Still there are some directorial techniques which might have been put to better use in order to keep the film moving. Watching this film I also got the distinct impression that there was more than usual in terms of scenes or writing that was cut from this theatrical release. Some character motivations and frustrations are severely lacking. Perhaps another ten minutes or so would have been worthwhile adding? Or perhaps ten minutes trimmed from other scenes to let you know why some people were so upset could have been useful. I don't know. I just watch movies. I don't make them. Still this film features Danny Glover (it is difficult for me to watch the actor who famously groused in the Lethal Weapon series that he was getting too old for this s*** actually become someone who is old) so I was positively inclined to watching it. Glover carries the movie despite the fact that he must act and look every bit of his 68 years on this planet. Although Glover stands a commanding 6'4", his role in this film mostly requires him to downplay his height, physicality and baritone. Here he's an old and often bitter man who, armed with nothing more besides reason and words, must try to protect his family. Nevertheless Glover gives the film gravitas though the frantic energy is brought to the table by the other lead actor. As do most movies of this kind this film made me think twice about people from times past, whether they found themselves on a plantation in Mississippi or a death camp in Poland, who did what they had to do in order to survive. It's all very easy to look back and talk big about what you would have done or how you wouldn't have stood for this or that. Bottom line if someone has a gun to your head or to that of a loved one, you may decide that death before dishonor is not really a code to live by. Not everyone is ready to die right this minute, though we obviously remember and cherish those who are.

After a number of years in prison for armed robbery and assault one Tully (Joe Anderson) is finally released. Tully is, to put it mildly, a white supremacist. He's covered in racist tattoos. He will not speak three sentences without a reference to how much he hates black people. Tully is a man of some importance in the Aryan Brotherhood. He has big plans for his after prison life, serious plans. He expects to be treated with respect and awe by Brotherhood members on the outside. So he's more than a little peeved when he's picked up from prison not by an honor guard of his Aryan brothers but by Doreen (Dawn Oliveri) a hardbitten woman of easy virtue and definite drug habits with a thang for Aryan Brotherhood members. In fact Tully is so upset that he can't or won't even do the obvious with the initially deferential and horny Doreen. He claims a race warrior such as himself must remain pure for the cause and not sully himself with someone like Doreen. Insulted, Doreen wonders aloud if Mr. Big Bad Race Warrior liked prison so much that he now prefers the company of men. And their fragile relationship such as it is deteriorates from there. It's only Doreen's close links to higher ranking Aryan Brotherhood members that keeps Tully from ditching her or worse.

Well criminals commit crime, right? It's what they do. So no one should be surprised when Tully as much for racial reasons as economic ones, robs a convenience store (he's irritated by the presence of a clerk with apparent South Asian ancestry). And shortly afterwards when Doreen and Tully are stopped by a black police officer who may or may not be responding to the store robbery, Tully decides to add cop-killing to the night's misdeeds. Fleeing the ensuing manhunt the depraved duo force their way into the first home they find off the beaten path, which just happens to be owned by Mr. Walker (Glover) and his wife (Lela Rochon). Some of their children and grandchildren are also with them. Although the movie makes a desultory attempt at making you wonder if any of the adults in the home will try to physically resist the armed white racists, the film's meat is Walker's insight into what makes Tully tick. He will try to use that to protect his family. Walker claims to be an ex-con himself. Walker's family has its own fault lines which will become apparent as the hostage situation continues. I could accept that a man of Walker's age is probably not going to try to physically resist intruders but there were some scenes where I wondered if someone shouldn't have made a move. Again though unless and until you're ready to die it's hard to say what you'd do. The film thinks it knows why racists are the way they are but its answer was too pat for me. I did like the film's easy acceptance of the idea that racism isn't specific to men alone. Doreen is just as dangerous as Tully, more so in some ways because she, unlike Tully, can almost effectively fake empathy. Still, this film drags a bit in the middle. The tension dissipates somewhat. So it's not a must see movie. It's an okay film, just not a great one. Derek Luke has a small role as Walker's estranged/absent son. Anson Mount brings it as the imprisoned Aryan Brotherhood leader. Supremacy uses flashback to tell a lot of its story, a technique which I thought it relied upon once too often. TRAILER

The Gambler

directed by Rupert Wyatt

This is an excellent example of why they call it acting. Mark Wahlberg shed a great deal of weight and muscle as well as most of his usual trademark character cockiness to play the role of Jim Bennett, a depressed and gaunt college literature professor and writer, who when he's not ranting at his students about the meaningless of everything and their general mediocrity, can be found throwing away thousands of dollars gambling at both legal and illegal casinos and card games. Although this film was not directed by Scorsese, it was produced by long time Scorsese associate Irwin Winkler. So it may not be an accident that this film has a lot of the lush look and meaningful soundtrack that you might otherwise identify with Scorsese. There is actually some evidence that beyond a surprisingly low amount of household income that happiness doesn't increase all that much with more money. Other studies dispute that figure or to be more precise claim that the measurement is not really capturing happiness over time. I can't call it. More income and wealth would definitely make me happier but on the other hand the things I require most in life are not things money can grant.That might be a subject of a future post but the reason I brought it up here is that Bennett is a walking example of how material goods can't bring happiness. They really can't. Can they? How much joy does money bring into your life? Is it the making of the money that you like or the things you can do with money?

Jim Bennett is the scion of an extremely wealthy old money banking family. Although his grandfather has just passed away Bennett's mother (Jessica Lange in a taut performance) now controls the family fortune. The mother-son relationship is not super strong. And although Bennett is not exactly a best selling author or a household name, he is published and apparently tenured. So money is not what drives him. He doesn't need to waste his time or money (well a lot of it is Mama's money) playing blackjack, roulette or other games of chance.  Because he's a compulsive gambler who takes dumb chances Bennett finds himself in deep debt to both casino owner Lee (Alvin Ing) and entrepreneurial loan shark Neville (Michael K. Williams). Each of these men have very well deserved reputations as exactly the sort of people to whom you do not want to owe money. Though Lee is quiet and Neville is affable, both of them have put people in the ground. They will have no problem doing the same to Bennett. Their problem however is that it's not really clear that Bennett cares about living or dying any more. How do you intimidate someone who doesn't give a flying Fibber McGee about anything or at least pretends that he doesn't. One thing that Bennett might care about though is his relationship with three of his students, a rich tennis player who is about to go pro, a bored basketball player who is on the verge of making the same decision and Amy (Brie Larson), an attractive young woman who just happens to work in the same illegal casino where Bennett plays. Bennett thinks that virtually alone among his students Amy has real writing skill, interest in literature and the ability to do more with her talent. He's angry that she won't engage intellectually in class more.  Amy might be interested in engaging parts of Bennett besides his brain. When things get a little rougher than Bennett can handle he has to go to his mother and to another loan shark, Frank (John Goodman). I liked Goodman in this role. He's avuncular and downright engaging. But if you don't pay him back he will, like any other man in his position, hurt you very very badly. I actually bought the menace that Frank represented though it's mostly unspoken. Goodman had some very good dialogue in this film, which rose above the cliched thanks almost entirely to his convincing delivery and world weariness.

Ultimately the problem with the film is that you're never quite able to penetrate Wahlberg's excellent acting job to understand why it is that he is so self-loathing. There are plenty of people who have it all and throw it away but in order for me to care about them it would be useful to get some insight into their character or their life story to see what went wrong and why they just don't care anymore. Bennett's classroom rants hint at the reasons behind his alienation but on the whole they seem to be more symptom than explanation. So this movie is a good film to see Wahlberg step away from his normal type characters but I didn't find the writing strong enough to put this movie over the top. This is a remake of a 1974 film of the same name which starred another famous cinematic tough guy, James Caan. Wahlberg and Caan are friends. They discussed the lead role. Perhaps, as with Caan, the idea of playing a character that was defined by moral /physical weakness and acuity appealed to Wahlberg, who usually gets tough guy roles.
TRAILER

HBO Game of Thrones Recap: Hardhome

Just two episodes left. What have your impressions been of the season so far?
Anyhow this episode opened up with Daenerys trying to decide what to do with Tyrion and Jorah. She wonders openly as to why she shouldn't just kill them both. Tyrion being Tyrion snarks that it's too early for him to decide if Daenerys would be a good ruler or not but he is impressed and intrigued that someone who was sold to a warlord as a wife and later lost her husband has managed to rise to a position of power and leadership. However as Tyrion sees it she needs an adviser like him because of his intelligence and political acumen. As a test Daenerys asks Tyrion what would he do with Jorah. After all she did order Jorah not to return on pain of death. Who will take her seriously if she doesn't follow through. Tyrion agrees that keeping your word is important. But it's also important to inspire devotion. You can't do that if you kill a man who is obviously devoted to you and also in love with you. Tyrion counsels exile. So once again Jorah is banished. Only this time he has greyscale. Life is just not working out for Mr. Mormont. But a man will do anything for love. Jorah sells himself back into slavery for the chance to fight in the pits and once again sneak back on Daenerys' radar. A faint heart never won a fair lady. But then again this lady has dragons. She's denied Jorah twice already. I hope Jorah knows what he's doing. Two's company but three's a crowd. Now that Jorah is out of the picture Daenerys and Tyrion relax and share guarded stories about their fathers, or in Daenerys' case stories she's heard about her father as she never knew him. Tyrion cautions her that it might not necessarily be a good idea for her to invade Westeros as Daenerys has no base of support. Why not just stay in Meereen? Daenerys says the common people of Westeros will support her. Politely declining to inform her that she might be a tad deluded on that front, Tyrion points out that none of the leading families of Westeros will rally to her banners. It's not in their interest. Politics in Westeros is just a spinning wheel that goes around and around and around. Daenerys gives her "I will break the wheel" speech. Daenerys doesn't lack for confidence, that's for sure.

In Braavos, Arya has received her first formal undercover mission from Jaqen H'ghar despite the worries of the other woman that Arya is not ready. Arya is to pose as a seller of fresh oysters so that she can watch and interact with a corrupt merchant/insurance agent. This man has accepted premiums for life insurance contracts for ship captains but has refused to pay the policy to the family of a deceased captain. Once she gets the man's trust, Arya is to poison him. In King's Landing Cersei, like Margaery ,is stripped of gowns and robes and shoes. She resides in a filthy cell where a large septa urges her to confess her crimes. Cersei is not about to do that and as a result gets smacked around and denied water. Qyburn visits Cersei. He confirms that she will be tried for murder, treason, adultery and incest. He warns Cersei that the Faith is not really bound by enlightenment era standards of proof. Qyburn tells Cersei that King Tommen is depressed and inactive. He refuses to see anyone. There's no news from Dorne. Pycelle has called Kevan Lannister back to be the Hand. But so far Kevan has refused to interfere. Qyburn obliquely suggests that confession might be the smart move here. He also lets her know that his secret project is continuing. Cersei still refuses to confess anything. She still sneers about the horrible acts of revenge she will order upon all those who have wronged her. But she is so thirsty that she will drink from the cracks in the floor. My how the mighty are fallen.
Up North, Sansa, with as much contempt as she can muster in her current condition wants to know why Reek Theon ratted her out. Theon claims that he was helping her because there is no escape from Ramsay.Trying to escape will only bring more pain. Theon starts to go into detail about all the horrors he suffered from Ramsay but obviously Sansa is not very sympathetic to the man who murdered her kid brothers. She says she would have done the same or worse to Theon. This apparently gets through because Theon lets it slip that he did not kill Bran and Rickon, but the miller's boys instead. Sansa is shocked and wants more information but fearing he's said too much Reek flees. Team Evil Bolton is planning its response to Stannis' invasion. Roose says the smart play is to stay behind the Winterfell walls where they can break Stannis and watch his small army fall apart in the snow. Ramsay disagrees. He thinks that a true Northman rides out to meet his enemies. Roose scoffs at doing battle in the snow. Ramsay replies calmly that he doesn't need an army. Give him twenty good men and he'll settle this.

As Gilly tends to Sam's wounds, Olly enters to talk to Sam. Olly can't accept that Lord Commander Snow is trying to make peace with the wildlings. Again, remember that Ygritte and her group murdered Olly's parents and his entire village. Olly doesn't want to trust or ally with such people. Sam says that he trusts Jon. Sometimes a man must do difficult things for the greater good. Olly appears unmoved by Sam's rock solid faith in Jon. Speaking of Jon, he and Tormund along with a small group of wildlings and Night's Watch men have arrived at Hardhome. They don't exactly receive a warm welcome. Everyone is confused to see that neither Jon nor Tormund is a prisoner of the other. Let's not forget that just as the Night's Watch has lost people fighting the wildlings or Free Folk as they call themselves, so has the Free Folk. The wildling leader Rattleshirt is particularly unimpressed with Jon's plan to move the wildlings onto the ships and south of the Wall. He vehemently expresses his disdain to both Jon and Tormund in the most profane of ways. However he evidently crosses the line when he casts aspersions on Tormund's sexuality. Tormund grabs Rattleshirt's staff and beats him over the head with it until Rattleshirt lies on the ground, bleeding and unmoving. That's always a clear way to settle disputes.

The other wildling leaders are careful not to suggest anything untoward about Tormund,(they don't want to end up bleeding on the ground) but they will not easily let go of their hatred and distrust of the Night's Watch. This is amplified when Jon, in typical blunt Stark fashion, casually reveals that he killed Mance Rayder without also pointing out that it was an act of mercy. It's up to Tormund to do that. People still don't trust or like Jon or his people but if Tormund says Jon is okay they will trust Tormund. They are however still a little worried about what happens if they get on the ships but Jon doesn't make it. Will the Night's Watch still honor his commitment?  Jon says all those concerns can be addressed later but right now they have to move. He shares the dragonglass (obsidian) and explains how it can be used. The Thenn leader and a few others still refuse to trust Jon or leave but most of the other wildlings start to make preparations to depart. But just as they do in what I thought was the episode's best scene, cliched though it was, the guard dogs start to give off frantic warnings. Winter really is coming. From the hills overlooking Hardhome, cold and mists and snow start to flow down to the camp. Everyone knows what that means. People redouble their efforts to leave but for many of them it will be too late. 

There's an attack by the wights. The humans close the gate to the camp but there are so many wights that a wooden gate won't hold them for long. They tunnel below the wall or climb over it. Ultimately they force it down through sheer force of numbers.  A desperate battle breaks out. But it's all very chaotic. There are no battle lines or anything like that. It's just the dead vs. the living. Things are starting to look grim. When Jon sees the White Walkers looking down on the melee he decides that now might be a good time to go get the dragonglass. He's assisted by the Thenn leader who doubted him before. But they are prevented from reaching their goal by a White Walker. As you might expect this creature is inhumanly fast. The Thenn's sword shatters on the White Walker's ice spear. The White Walker kills the Thenn. Now it's Jon's turn to dance. He can't match the White Walker's speed. However once he regains his sword Longclaw he's able to parry his opponent's blows. Longclaw does not shatter. There might be just a hint of surprise in the creature's cold blue eyes. You may get yours but brother don't let me get mine. Jon's strike hits home. The White Walker explodes into a million pieces of ice. Valyrian Steel. Never leave home without it. The White Walker Night King orders his entire wight army into the battle. There is no way for the humans to stay and fight any longer. It's the get to the choppa moment. As Jon and team are rowing away to the ships, the Night King saunters to the edge of the water and seems to rest his gaze on Jon. If he were human you might even think he was smirking. Never taking his eyes off Jon, the Night King casually spreads his arms and slowly raises them. All of the dead suddenly open their eyes (now solid blue) and rise from the ground, wildling and Night's Watch alike. There is no sound. It's a very creepy and effective end to the episode.

What I liked

• The battle at Hardhome was not as epic as the Battle of The Blackwater but felt just as desperate. Well done.
• The reveal that Valyrian Steel is unaffected by the White Walker's nature.
• The meeting between Daenerys and Tyrion. Daenerys is still naive about Westeros but has matured enough to know she needs advisers.
• Olly seeking out someone else he knew and trusted to share his misgivings about Jon's course of action.

What I didn't like

• That I knew the wildling mother/leader was going to die as soon as she told her children she'd be on the next boat behind them.

*This post is written for discussion of this episode and previous episodes.  If you have book based knowledge of future events or have seen future leaked episodes please be kind enough not to discuss that here.  NO SPOILERS. NO BOOK DERIVED HINTS ABOUT FUTURE EVENTS. Most of my blog partners have not read the books and would take spoilers most unkindly. Heads, spikes, well you get the idea....

Book Reviews: The Turner House

The Turner House
by Angela Flournoy

Every now and then you run across a first time novelist that writes something so true to life that you are surprised that this is their first novel. Angela Flournoy is such a writer. The Turner House flows very easily and doesn't take a long time to read. It has a huge cast but some people are more closely or lovingly detailed than others. But even the people who just pop in and out without saying or doing much are still well crafted. There are people like that in life of course. An aunt's nephew whom you only see at weddings and funerals turns out to be a rising film producer. A peripatetic cousin who married someone overseas comes back with three kids and no place to stay. Say you're not doing anything with your finished basement are you? Or maybe a younger sibling moves halfway across the country. Although they're always polite they make it crystal clear that they would just as not be caught up in any family business and refuse to discuss their own. Don't call them and they certainly won't call you. The other interesting thing about family is that as much as our gender and sexuality and whatever specific combination of genes we got from Mom and Dad influence us, so does our birth order, early responsibilities and old jealousies and resentments. People can reach adulthood and remain, by choice or not, trapped in these roles. The older siblings may feel greater levels of responsibility for everyone, whether or not they're truly capable of bearing those burdens. The younger siblings may have come along at a time when the parents had mellowed out in terms of discipline and so have had an easier time of it. Or the younger siblings may be seething with resentment at having been constantly compared to their older brothers or sisters. The younger ones may reject being told what to do. They could become embittered at people automatically assuming that they need help or oversight. People enter these roles and often embrace them as part of their identity, even if they are harmful. The family rebel, often younger, may spend decades needlessly struggling against restrictions or expectations simply because that's what she does. The older brother might worry himself into life threatening problems with hypertension or cardiac disease because he's always trying to ensure that everyone else has their stuff together. Or maybe the older siblings are not actually more reliable people but rather instead are serious control freaks who really get off on exercising authority. It all depends on your perspective. Of course families also provide a sense of love and protection. A healthy family is the first place that we learn to love and get along with people, even when they may work our last nerve from time to time. That sense of affection and contentment is critical. Who else but an older sister might safely call her precociously developed younger sister "Jug-a-lug" and affectionately tease her about not being able to run high school track for fear of putting her eyes out? Years later when the nickname is shortened to "J", curious nieces and nephews might innocently ask why everyone calls their aunt "Aunt J" when her given name doesn't even have a "J" in it.



And there are times when an uncle or aunt, not limited by the parental role, can provide some good advice to a niece or nephew, advice a parent might never give. An aunt or uncle can be a good sounding board when you have some things you'd rather not share with your parents. On the other hand there are some aunts and uncles you're better off not knowing.

The Turner House brings all of this and more into the story. Ultimately it's a slice of life story about a large extended family which is based in Detroit. It jumps back and forth in time between the 1930s/1940s when Francis Turner moves to Detroit from Arkansas before bringing his wife Viola with him and 2008 when Francis has long since died. By this point Viola is sickly. She's had strokes. Her mental and physical capacity is declining noticeably. Being finally unable to care for herself she has moved in with her oldest son Charles (everyone calls him Cha-Cha) and Charles' wife Tina. Viola is not really happy about this situation. Born in 1944, Charles has entered senior citizen status. He's always been the most responsible one in the family, who helped look after his twelve younger brothers and sisters, sometimes whether they wanted his guidance or not. Now Cha-Cha and the rest of his siblings, many of whom are spread out across the country, must decide what to do with the family home. It's still in their mother's name though Cha-Cha has power of attorney. Thanks to bad advice from another daughter Viola refinanced the east side home and now owes $40,000 on a house that's worth $4,000 at most. Meanwhile the youngest child, the daughter Lelah, born in 1967, is struggling with a gambling addiction and has lost her job and home. Unwilling to ask her daughter, her ex, or her siblings, nieces or nephews for help and with no place else to go, Lelah moves into the abandoned family home. Lelah really doesn't want to impose on her daughter and thus lose her relationship with her grandson. Reading the description of the decline of some neighborhoods interspersed with the occasional optimism of those people still living there was very true to life.  

The book focuses primarily on Lelah and Cha-Cha and their different perspectives and problems. There's a hint of the supernatural as Cha-Cha is convinced he's seeing ghosts or "haints" as he would put it. He saw a haint or claimed to have done so as a young boy in the family home. But anyone he mentions it to now thinks Cha-Cha just needs to man up and/or get some rest. "Encouraged" by his employer to go see a psychiatrist he finds that that choice might open up a different can of problems. Another prominent sibling is Troy, an ambitious police officer and youngest son. Troy has big plans for the family home and is frustrated that no one, especially Cha-Cha, seems to take him seriously. From what I've seen in some families this is a common complaint of the youngest siblings but as oldest I have little sympathy for that sort of pointless whining.

This story book is matter of fact about whether we like it or not, everything must change. One day you will find yourself needing help or looking back over the years and wondering where all the time went. This book is also a love letter to the city of Detroit and to family. It examines how for good and bad the past continues to influence how we perceive ourselves and how we relate to others. You will probably recognize some of your own family or friends in this story, no matter where you were raised or how you grew up. That said it is very rooted in the Black Detroit experience. It shows that experience as universal. I am very happy to have read this book.

HBO Game of Thrones Recap: The Gift

"All rulers are either butchers or meat."

We'll we're back after last week's controversy. There were some people on these here interwebs who pontificated that strictly speaking what happened between Ramsay Bolton and Sansa Stark Bolton was not technically rape as it is expected for a wife to have sex with her husband on the wedding night. That may well be but it is hardly expected for a husband to lock his wife in her room and visit her only to slake his lusts and terrorize her. Sansa was raped last week and has been raped daily since then as we see her bloody and bruised, cowering in a low cut nightgown when Theon Reek goes to bring her food and drink. Sansa refuses to call Theon "Reek" but reminds him of his Greyjoy heritage. She asks Theon for help, saying to Theon that things can't get any worse. Theon responds, as only someone who's been castrated can know, things can always get worse. However Sansa is able to break through to Theon and get him to go light the candle in the highest room of the broken tower. Isn't that the spot where Jaime threw Bran out the window? In an impressive bit of camera work we see Theon grimly climb the steps with the candle, looking out for Bolton soldiers all the time. He finally makes it to the highest point. But when he opens the door who should be there to greet him but Ramsay, who is snidely curious as to what Reek is doing there. It turns out that Reek wasn't climbing up the steps of the broken tower at all, but rather Ramsay's tower. The fear is strong in that one. Although the misdirect was very nicely done we probably shouldn't have been too surprised. Theon is a broken man who has been degraded beyond all belief. He bit his own sister rather than be rescued. It will take something more than Sansa's first pleas to get him to reject Ramsay's conditioning.

Sansa is summoned to see Ramsay, who is chillingly calm and polite. He tells Sansa that the coming battle will not go well for Stannis as his men are not northerners and are unused to the harsh long winters. When Ramsay says that one day he will be Lord of Winterfell and Warden of the North, Sansa reminds him of Walda Frey's pregnancy and of his younger brother's trueborn status as opposed to Ramsay's bastard one. What if Roose disinherits Ramsay for his legitimate son?  Ramsay counters that he was legitimized by King Tommen but Sansa calls him a bastard as well. Ramsay lets Sansa know that her bastard brother Jon Snow is Lord Commander of the Night's Watch so apparently illegitimate status isn't the handicap it used to be. It's a new day in the North. But enough of all this family values talk. This isn't a political convention. Ramsay invited Sansa to the Winterfell courtyard to see the tortured, crucified and flayed body of the woman who gave her the candle. His serenity thus restored, Ramsay has Sansa taken back to her room. In many ways a calm Ramsay is an even more frightening Ramsay. I guess Reek was right. Things really can get worse.

At the Wall, Jon Snow leaves for Hardhome with Tormund but evidently without Ghost. Sam gives Jon a gift of dragonglass (obsidian). Alliser Thorne again lets Jon know that he thinks Jon is making a mistake. And judging by the sullen closed faces of many of the Night's Watch members, Thorne isn't just speaking for himself. Maester Aemon is close to death and delirious. He's seeing his brother Aegon (Egg), who became king. Maester Aemon urges Gilly to get her child south before it's too late. When the maester dies, Sam leads the funeral incantation but as head-crow-in-charge it's Alliser who burns the body. Alliser takes the opportunity to remind Sam that he's losing all of his friends.  It's not clear if this was a threat or a simple observation but I guess either way Sam had better watch his back. This scene had really beautiful swelling string music. Quite compelling. When Stannis left Castle Black he prudently took Melisandre, Shireen and Selsye with him, reasoning they'd be safer in or around battle than being the only females around a bunch of sex starved males with low moral standards.  We see that was a wise choice on Stannis' part as Gilly is first sexually harassed and later threatened with rape while she's about her chores. Sam comes to her aid but gets the beatdown of the century.  But Sam is not so easily deterred. Despite his utter lack of fighting abilities, he pops up again and refuses to back down in the face of death. He really really really likes Gilly. Suddenly the menacing Ghost appears and scares off the would be rapists. Dogs (and direwolves) always are pretty clear on who they like and who they don't. Ghost doesn't like rapists. Afterwards while Gilly is tending to Sam she decides to show him the proper way to make a lady smile. And Sam, like Jon before him, breaks an oath. Oh dear.

Stannis and his men are suffering through the storm. It wasn't exactly the opportune time to march on Winterfell. Davos reports that their supply lines are down, horses are dying and they're starting to have deserters. And winter is just getting started. He strongly advises returning to Castle Black to wait out the winter. Stannis, being Stannis, rejects that idea both because of his pride and because given how long winters can last, he doubts if he would ever get a chance to march on Winterfell again. They must either win everything or lose everything on this gamble right now. Stannis is going all in. You can follow him or step off but he's not stopping. Not any more. Davos has more to say but clearly Stannis has made up his mind. Davos leaves. One person who is apparently not bothered by the cold or snow is Melisandre, hanging out in Stannis' tent wearing her normal fetching low cut gown. Stannis wants to know if she is sure of his victory. Melisandre reminds him that she's seen a victory in the snow and the Bolton banners lowered. Stannis decides he wants some of Melisandre's good thing but she declines. She suggests (without saying the name) that Stannis sacrifice Shireen to ensure victory. Shireen does after all have king's blood. His blood running cold, Stannis angrily rejects that idea and orders Melisandre out of his tent. He didn't bring his daughter along from danger at Castle Black just to kill her on the road.

In bed Daenerys and Daario take a break from playing hide the dragon to discuss Daenerys' upcoming marriage. Obviously Daario doesn't like it and wonders if the Sons of the Harpy are being quiet because one of their own is about to marry Daenerys. Daenerys insists that the marriage will just be political (does this mean she does not intend to consummate it) but Daario still doesn't like it and advises her to kill all the former masters. Jorah and Tyrion are sold together (Tyrion running his mouth and atypically beating up his guard to convince his new master of his martial abilities) to a slaver who intends to use them in the fighting pits of Meereen. There is a practice match at which it just so happens that Daenerys and Hizdahr are the honored guests. Although he is not in the first batch of fighters, when he spies his one true love on the stage Lord Friendzone grabs his weapons and gear and runs out to wreak havoc. There's nothing like love to motivate a man. Killing or incapacitating every other gladiator, Jorah takes off his helm to reveal himself only to have his hopes and dreams crushed when Daenerys orders him to be removed from her sight. Cold as ice. Tyrion appears in the pit to confirm that Jorah really did bring him as a gift. Isn't that cute?

In Dorne, Jaime, as befits his highborn status is in a comfortable apartment where his niece/daughter Myrcella visits him and throws a tantrum. She says she's not leaving Dorne and that's that. So she doesn't even know why he came. Bronn and the Sand Snakes are ensconced in adjoining cells which are a tiny bit less elaborate than Jaime's. Their cells actually have bars you know. Bronn is singing "The Dornishman's Wife". The Sand Snakes ask him how he's feeling. Tyene Sand in particular wants to know if Bronn is doing okay and if she's the most beautiful woman Bronn has ever seen. Bronn says he's doing fine and has seen plenty of beautiful women. Tyene Sand starts to do a striptease as Bronn's condition worsens. As she reveals herself she also lets Bronn know that during their fight she cut him with a poisoned blade. He doesn't have long to live. By the way she has the antidote so who's the most beautiful woman Bronn has ever seen again? Starting to bleed and choke Bronn agrees that Tyene is the most beautiful woman he's ever seen and gets the antidote. Okay.

In King's Landing, The Queen of Thorns, Lady Olenna Tyrell, confronts the High Sparrow over his imprisonment of her grandchildren. She accuses him of doing Cersei's dirty work. The High Sparrow, who is busy cleaning up (symbolic of how he sees himself and his role) says her grandchildren broke laws. It's nothing personal as far as the High Sparrow is concerned. Whether someone is rich or poor the High Sparrow thinks everyone is equal before the Seven. He intends to bring everyone to task on their moral failings. He can't be bought off or intimidated by Lady Olenna's threats. He says that Lady Olenna, the Tyrells or any other high lords and ladies don't do the work that makes society run. The poor do that. And the poor significantly outnumber the rich. So what happens when the poor no longer fear the rich. He's an enigmatic man that High Sparrow. Lady Olenna mutters that there are many people who have broken laws. She receives a message from Littlefinger. She and Littlefinger meet in one of his shuttered and wrecked brothels. Littlefinger is not happy looking at his losses. Lady Olenna reminds Littlefinger of their past work together and warns him that if if she and her family go down so does he. And if she has any "accidents", she's taken steps to ensure Littlefinger will definitely get his shortly afterwards. Thus properly motivated, Littlefinger assures Lady Olenna that he will give her the same sort of gift he gave Cersei, an introduction to a young man. King Tommen is apparently regretting his decision to stand down from confrontation with the Church. He's talking about killing everyone to get Margaery back. Not wanting Margaery released, obviously, Cersei convinces Tommen to let her go talk to the High Sparrow for him. Cersei first stops by to see gloat over Margaery. She pretends horror and sympathy. She's brought Margaery some food, which she takes pains to remind Margaery is leftovers. Margaery is not happy or fooled by Cersei's alleged sympathy. She calls Cersei out of her name, throws the food at her and orders her out. 

Staying calm, with a smirk firmly planted on her face, Cersei goes to see the High Sparrow. She asks what will happen to the Tyrell grandchildren. The High Sparrow says that seven septons will judge them but that confessions will likely bring mercy. The High Sparrow then launches into a history lesson about the sept he's restoring, pointing out that the builders did not leave their names because their vanity wasn't the point of their creation. He says that faith and vanity don't really go together. He muses about what would they find if they stripped away Cersei's vanity. Not liking the sudden turn of this conversation Cersei readies herself to leave but is stopped by a sister of the faith. Lancel enters. The High Sparrow explains that Lancel has unburdened himself of quite a lot regarding Cersei. Cersei is dragged away and thrown into a cell similar to Margaery's.

What I liked

• Jonathan Pryce's work as the High Sparrow. His economy of movement,  reasonable nature and smooth unexcited speech really undersell his danger. The only hint of his power and fanaticism is seen in his unblinking stare. He was very well cast. Nicely done.
• Theon's inability to break through Ramsay's conditioning.
• The reappearance of at least one direwolf. It's about time.
• Tyene Sand (heh-heh)
• Religion is often used as "an opiate for the masses". But what happens when religion, rather than supporting the status quo, actively seeks to destroy it. The High Sparrow has arrested the Queen, the Queen's brother, and the Queen Mother. He seems to be playing to resentments of the upper classes. But how long can the upper classes and the military tolerate this? If Tommen was already regretting not intervening to save his wife will he sit still when people lay their hands on his mama?
• Sansa picked up something on the Winterfell battlements. What was it? We don't know but we do know that Sansa is still trying to fight back with whatever weapon she can find.
• Although Cersei hates the Tyrells for relatively petty reasons it is important to remember that they did in fact kill her son. They are just as dangerous and as amoral as the Lannisters. They just have better public relations.
• Gilly initiating sex with Sam. Given Sam's shyness and fears that was the only way it was ever going to happen.

What I didn't like

• The implication that Littlefinger or Lady Olenna set off Lancel to talk about Cersei's crimes whatever they might be (incest with Jaime? incest with Lancel? adultery with both of them? murder of Robert Baratheon?). The whole point of the Faith Militant is that they're supposed to be unreasonable unyielding fanatics who can't be dealt with by the normal lures of the material world. Whenever Lancel decided to come clean about Cersei I doubt that he would have done so on Littlefinger's  word. He would have done so for his own internal reasons.
• The Tyene Sand scene with Bronn was silly though the actress is quite attractive.
• Tommen's fit of anger came across as a three year old having a tantrum in a store although maybe that was the point. He's still young and unsure of himself.

*This post is written for discussion of this episode and previous episodes.  If you have book based knowledge of future events or have seen future leaked episodes please be kind enough not to discuss that here.  NO SPOILERS. NO BOOK DERIVED HINTS ABOUT FUTURE EVENTS. Most of my blog partners have not read the books and would take spoilers most unkindly. Heads, spikes, well you get the idea....

The Rape of Sansa Stark and Feminist Outrage

If you believe that HBO Game of Thrones creators David Benioff and Daniel Weiss or A Song of Ice and Fire author George R.R.Martin are despicable misogynists who enjoy creating rape scenes then I don't know how to change your mind. I don't find enough evidence to justify the misogynist claim in their televised or written creations. I don't think that Weiss, Benioff or Martin hate women. That's a pretty strong accusation to make. Last week's Game of Thrones scene depicting the rape of Sansa Stark, eldest daughter of Ned Stark and Catelyn Tully and in-universe last publicly known Stark heir to Winterfell, was hard to watch. But rapes should be hard to watch should they not? I don't think that there's a universe of people out there who are eagerly tuning in to HBO each Sunday at 9 PM EST to enjoy watching a woman get raped. And if there are people like that I don't know them. I think some of the outrage over the Sansa rape is understandable (I hated the scene) but is definitely misplaced. I will explain this below but it will inevitably involve some mild spoilers/discussion from the books. So if you can't tolerate one scintilla of book knowledge then you know what to do. And if you have read the books, please don't take this as permission to blab all over the place about what's yet to occur in the story (not least because it may not occur on screen) or discuss or link to other book theories or future events. Although the amount of published source material yet to be adapted for the show is shrinking ever more rapidly there are still other moderators or commenters on this blog who would strongly prefer to see events play out on screen as they have not read the books and are unlikely to do so before the series completes.

I wrote before that the "controversy" over rape in Game of Thrones seemed ginned up. Rape is horrible but it's not as bad as murder. Death is the worst event because death removes all future possibilities. I don't want to rewrite the previous post but it's very important to remember that numerous people of both genders have been murdered, harmed or mutilated in all sorts of horrific ways. For example, Show!Theon Greyjoy has been threatened with homosexual rape, raped by women, beaten, tortured, mutilated, flayed, starved, forced to live as an animal, enslaved, made to reject his own identity and ultimately castrated. This was all shown in great detail. I don't seem to recall too much twitter outrage over this. Certainly there weren't many (any?) feminists stating that "That's it. I'm boycotting the show!" after Theon was unmanned and later taunted with sausages by Ramsay. Theon's ordeals weren't quite as explicit in the books. There are some textual hints that Ramsay raped Theon. In either medium, book or show, Ramsay is over the top. He's pushed Theon into insanity. Ramsay doesn't care which gender he hurts. Ramsay killed his own soldiers for fun. Ramsay flayed a noble and his wife in front of their son and hung the skinned corpses on the Winterfell walls. So Ramsay is an evil disturbed sick SOB. Sansa, on the other hand, is a "little dove". She's not a leader like her older brothers Jon and Robb, an action girl who dislikes proscribed gender roles like her younger sister Arya, or a budding magician like her younger brother Bran. Her primary achievement to date has been to survive. That's not something that readily translates as heroic or active but in fact it can be heroic and is indeed a necessary part of human success. Sansa's continued survival could hold the key to the Stark Restoration, if indeed one is to occur.

In the books, Littlefinger is still in The Vale grooming Sansa Stark. Sansa is unaware that Littlefinger betrayed her father Ned Stark and likely suggested to Joffrey that Ned be executed. Sansa doesn't realize that her Aunt Lysa's last words implicated Littlefinger in the murder of Sansa's uncle Jon Arryn. She doesn't know that Littlefinger set up the war which brought about her family's near destruction. She has not revealed herself as "Sansa Stark" to anyone in The Vale, though some may have suspicions. Sansa's current roles include listening dutifully as Littlefinger reveals (or does he?) small portions of his plans, watching over Sweet Robin and not getting creeped out when Littlefinger touches her or speaks inappropriately about her mother Catelyn.

This would not make dramatic television. In both books and show, the Boltons seek legitimacy as Wardens of the North. The traditional way of doing this is to be a Stark. As all the Starks are missing or murdered the Book!Boltons decide to marry a fake Stark. The Boltons force Sansa Stark's friend, Jeyne Poole, to pose as Arya Stark. They make Theon vouch for her identity though he obviously knows she isn't Arya. After the marriage ceremony, Ramsay rapes Jeyne. He also forces Theon to watch and degrade himself by participating. The book scene was FAR worse than the television scene. It made me put the book down for a while. What's worse is the reminder that it was Littlefinger who initially enslaved Jeyne as a child prostitute and later sold or gifted her to the Boltons. So the book and show share common elements. Littlefinger provides a "Stark" to the Boltons. Ramsay marries a "Stark". Ramsay rapes and degrades his wife. Ramsay humiliates and degrades Theon in the process. The showrunners swapped out Jeyne Poole for Sansa Stark. We always care about main characters more than we care about secondary ones even though Jeyne has so far suffered more than Sansa. Her treatment at Ramsay's hands was not the first time Jeyne was raped. This change from book to show greatly raised the dramatic stakes for Sansa. Some people outraged over Sansa's rape are mistaking their emotional investment in Sansa Stark's wellbeing for moral rectitude. It's not. It's just that they like and care about the character, which means the show writers and actress have done their jobs. 

The reason I didn't like the scene was not just because I sympathize with Sansa. I disliked the scene, emotionally powerful though it was, because it was senseless for Sansa to marry willingly into the family whose Lord had murdered her brother and usurped her family home. What's next, Bran Stark reappears and asks Roose for a job as maester? In King's Landing Sansa had no choice. When the opportunity arose to leave King's Landing (with someone she thought was safe) she took it. But Sansa wouldn't want to live with her family's murderers. She's been there and done that already. In order to increase the dramatic stakes and emotional investment that we have in a main character the show runners make Sansa act as if she's learned nothing over the past four seasons. THAT'S the real mistake here. There are people in the North and in the Vale who would be willing to fight and die for Sansa Stark against the Boltons or the Crown. I thought it would have made much more sense for Sansa to ally herself with one of those factions rather than submit to the Boltons, especially as the powers in the Vale know who she is. That would have shown increased political acumen and ability to play the game. The North Remembers. And having Sansa do that also dovetails nicely with another book subplot. There were some people who thought that the scene's shift away from Sansa to the broken Theon crying was somehow sexist because it made Sansa's rape all about the impact on a man. I think that's a silly criticism. There are numerous film graphic scenes in which the director tells us what's happening primarily by the reactions of witnesses because to actually show us is considered to be too horrific. The ending of Braveheart is the first thing that comes to mind, closely followed by the rape scene in The Messenger, but I'm sure you can think of many other such scenes. If the showrunners had chosen instead to focus on Sansa's face or heaven forbid, body, many of the same people blasting them for cutting to Theon's tears would be harping on the showrunners for reducing Sansa to an voyeuristic object of rape. Guaranteed. Also remember that the showrunners know the ending and the fates of major characters. We don't. For all we know Martin might write a scene where Littlefinger rapes Sansa.

If you are a person who is sensitive to any and all depictions of violence then yes I understand how rape scenes or torture scenes or murder scenes would bother you. You might indeed decide that this show isn't for you. You might even skip over certain segments. I understand and respect those decisions. We've all seen movies or read books where we realized that certain things weren't our cup of tea. But if you were silent when Joffrey had Marillion's tongue ripped out, had nothing to say when Theon hanged the burned bodies of the miller's boys, or yawned when Ramsay cut off Theon's family jewels, feel free to get upset but please don't pretend moral outrage when Sansa Stark is raped. Your outrage is not moral. It's just that your particular emotional redline has been crossed.