Postcards from Westeros Volume 6
When you play the game of thrones you win or you die. But it's hard to tell what winning looks like anymore.
The third episode of Season 7 was a reminder that no one on 'Game of Thrones' is infallible, not even the great Daenerys Targaryen, Mother of Dragons, Breaker of Chains, and all the other titles that are increasingly meaningless. All of Dany's great names won't win her battles. Tyrion's smarts won't work against a brother who actually knows him. Three dragons aren't that much use if you can't fly them.
Jon Snow accused Dany (and in absentia, Cersei) of being children playing games, and, when you think about it, petty lords who treat the lives of their subjects as pawns in a "game of thrones" aren't really that much better. He and Davos see the series from the audience's vantage point, understanding that the true threat comes from without, not within.
"The Queen's Justice" was a surprising and surprisingly humorous episode that gave fans the long-awaited meeting between Jon Snow and Daenerys, "ice" and "fire" as Melisandre so unsubtly pointed out (the book series on which the show is based is called 'A Song of Ice and Fire,' if you recall). The significance of having those two characters in the same room, and of Bran's return to Winterfell with the knowledge of Jon's birth, the White Walkers' origin and so much more, undercuts the seemingly large chess moves that Cersei made in her and Dany's war. A much bigger game is being played. It may still be a game, but the stakes are a lot higher. And losing is a lot colder.
At this late hour, in Westeros and in the show, winning doesn't necessarily mean sitting on the Iron Throne. It doesn't even mean survival, for some. Olenna was never after survival, not after Cersei destroyed her family. She told Ellaria that much in the Season 6 finale. She wanted vengeance, and she got it by confessing to Joffrey's murder with her final breaths.
If only winning was that easy for everyone else. Read more of Kelly Lawler's recap from Episode 3 here. (Have questions or feedback? Tweet us @usatodaylife)
In other news:
-Before Season 7 started, we asked Thrones’ stars who they'd most like their characters to meet before the Emmy-winning drama ends. Here are some answers.
-68 photos from Season 7? Count us in.
-The Atlantic's Megan Garber explains how "tagline-friendly feminism" is on display in 'GOT.'
-Gizmodo's Beth Elderkin chats with an artist from Algeria who has released a unique illustration of the failed reunion between Arya Stark and her direwolf Nymeria.