![]() ![]() I am the shield that guards the realms of men. I shall take no wife, hold no lands, father no children. “ Night gathers, and now my watch begins. He also knew that holding the gate meant giving up on his life and he made sure to remember and remind his fellow brothers to their sole purpose as he recited the oath. He knew what would happen if the gate is breached. Grenn ended up being the ultimate hero of the story when he, against all odds (and a Giant) held the gate. There are men like Grenn, who surprisingly turned into an excellent tactician when he tricked the craven Slynt into leaving the Wall, letting the defense fall entirely onto Jon Snow, who took the opportunity to shine with open hands. There are men like Edd, who follow orders and take the hold of command amidst the chaos without question asked. Kit Harrington is getting better in this role, I’ll grant him that, but he is still Kit Harrington, a dull, pretty face with the ability to turn one of the most interesting and compelling characters into a yawn. ![]() There are men like Jon Snow, who in the hopeless, seemingly insurmountable situations find the strength to rise from inexperienced, unpopular, bastard steward to the status of Lord Commander (without having the actual title) capable of taking the charge of the defense a top the Wall. Sure, he owes a lot to Gilly, who gave him the reason not to be nothing anymore, but nevertheless, we have finally seen Samwell Tarly grow into a man. There are men like Sam, men that grow from cravens to heroes, able to inspire men around him. He is the true brother of the Night’s Watch, worthy of that name. He fights alongside his men, he is able to inspire them and lead them, and despite all of his flaws, he fights with courage and bravery. Despite all of his flaws, when pressed in the battle, Thorne prevails, and then some more. Thorne is the polar opposite of LC Mormont, he is petty, his pride stands in the way of the potential good leadership and wise decisions, he is full of resentment and, more or less, a hard character to like or root for, God forbid. In last week’s episode we saw the new side of Ser Alliser Thorne, the acting commander of the Night’s Watch (taking Jeor Mormont’s place after he had lost his life in Night’s Watch mutiny). When a man, no matter how vile or arrogant, is pressed with the immanent danger of death, tasked with fighting and protecting the realm as well as his fellow men, we see a new side of him. So many of the schemers in Game of Thrones play entirely from the shadows: Littlefinger, Varys, Cersei, the Queen of Thorns, Tywin, Lysa and so on, that rooting for Ser Alliser Throne came as a shock. ![]() Stannis, on the other hand, fought, but he lost to Tyrion’s wits.And even Tyrion went out onto the field (forced in truth but nevertheless he did) and barely made it out alive. By comparison, Renly Baratheon called himself king but did little to nothing at all to stake his claim. We cheered because the King in the North fought battles and he won them, on the battlefield, against all odds and against the much more experienced Lord Tywin Lannister. We cheered for Ned Stark who wanted to win justice with his honor. Therefore, it comes as no surprise that we actually found ourselves cheering for the similar types of characters. As we already know, so much of the power in Westeros unfortunately belongs to those who send others off to die in their stead, or those who scheme and lie…. Patience is a virtue and we have been finally rewarded. I don’t even know where to begin.Īfter so many scheming done this season the actual battle (we have anticipating since the last year) happening seemed like the breath of fresh air. The crane shots, the performance, the CGI, the music, the writing. And did I say giants?! Although this episode can easily be compared to the Blackwater (but not top it), The Watchers of the Wall is the most filmic installment of Game of Thrones to this date. The sheer scale of the fighting was more than impressive, as the action flitted between the Brothers defending the south gate and stopping more enemies from breaching The Wall. The Watchers on The Wall entirely focused on the wildlings’ double attack on Castle Black – and what a battle it was! (I had chills even on the third viewing). If some viewers, like me for example, have felt that Jon Snow and the wildlings have been neglected up until now, then fear not, this week remedied all of that. But first comes first, I think the standing ovations for the brilliance known as Neil Marshal are in order. Who ever says otherwise “knows nothing.” Granted there was no Bran but still what a magnificent episode this was, perhaps even one of the best episodes so far, which will, without a doubt, be topped by this season’s finale. Oh, and did I say The Giants?!Īnd this, my friends is why the North is the most interesting, the most thrilling storyline created by GRRM. ![]()
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