Game of Thrones
“The House of Black and White”
(HBO)
B
If you missed the vigorous spirit of one of the shows best characters, “The House of Black and White” rewarded you. Arya Stark makes it to the Free City of Braavos, which is basically a sea town. You could probably get some good sushi in this part of Westeros.
The episode explores the city with Arya as she sails up to the to dock and arrives at The House of Black and White, a structure so metaphorically in your face that it actually becomes ambiguous when trying to figure out why. (Perhaps the city harnessed the yin-yang philosophy.) Either way, it’s a cool training ground for Arya as she trains to become a Jedi … er, a Braavos.
Meanwhile, seasoned sword artist Brienne bumps into Sansa Stark with Littlefinger. Much like Arya in Season 4, Sansa denies going with Brienne, rejecting her late mother’s wish to have Brienne find and protect her daughters. This just shows that with all that brawn, Brienne once again is helpless in the absence of brute force. She has terrible negotiating skills, yet we’re reminded how bloody she can make a situation when cornered.
Speaking of bloody, the episode brings back another familiar character: Ser Bronn. In attempt to appease his sister more than anything, Jaime Lannister offers Ser Bronn what is basically a better sports contract, accompanying him to Dorne to retrieve his daughter — another great pairing. Dorne is also revealed in this episode but it doesn’t get the same presentation as Braavos. In fact, we don’t get much of a glimpse all.
Jon Snow once again gets a lot of attention in this episode. Stannis offers to finally remove his title as the Bastard of Winterfell and instate him as Lord of Winterfell, which isn’t a bad gig at all. Instead, Snow refuses and is elected in what is portrayed as, apparently, the biggest popularity contest in the world: the honor of being the 998th Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch. I wouldn’t even call it an election; the Night’s Watch votes by gathering in a mess hall and tossing names out of who should be the new Lord Commander. Then they vote based off three suggestions. Yes, suggestions. I don’t think the 998th election process proves how long the Night’s Watch has been around as much as how often Lord Commander changes. Even a high school election seems more official; at least they have campaigns.
“The House of Black and White” has a lot of moving parts, like normal, but nothing too terribly exciting. The most interesting part was the developments in Meereen. Daenerys — or, as she is now referred to by the ex-slaves of Meereen, Mhysa — performs her queenly duties to no avail. After debating with her council on how to handle the murderer of one of the Unsullied from last week’s episode, Daenerys sways back and forth with regard to how justice should be handled. In making the right decision, to have the murderer go to trial, one of her followers kills the murderer in question, which in turn gives Daenerys the chance to make a poor decision, one that was made more hastily than her first. Her decision: to publicly execute (by decapitation) the citizen of Meereen for usurping her choices. As the crowd begs their Mhysa for mercy for their countryman, Daenerys nods timidly for the execution to commence, and as soon as it’s over there is backlash as the city hisses at her like agitated snakes. This was by far the episode’s most chilling and telling moment. Daenerys is scared, knowing that she made the wrong move, which makes her as flawed as the rulers before her.
The episode ends magnificently as Daenerys’s rogue dragon shows up while she is on her balcony looking over her city at night. She is overcome with emotion as she reaches for her “child” but is surprised as the monster sniffs her hand and, much like the citizens of Meereen, rejects her and takes flight over the city. Daenerys is more vulnerable than ever before.
