I saved watching and reading the next part of the Game of Thrones until this weekend in order to concentrate on my new programme working on my contemporary art project. This was written a week ago with a fourth programme to watch and fifth tomorrow.
The consequence of the gap of four weeks has meant having to remind myself of the story although I have quickly become familiar with the main characters. Rather than attempt to convey the twists and turns of the story over the month I am reporting the overall progress relating to the main characters plus aspects of the story which attracted my attention from the text together with any aspects of the book not included in the TV programmes or remembered when reading the text.
I begin with Jon Snow, the illegitimate son of the Lord of the North Eddard Stark, now the King’s Hand who despite his self exile to become a member of the Black Watch, one suspects he has a major part to play as the story unfolds. He shows great promise in his training but makes himself unpopular by his support for a new recruit Samwell sent by his father because the boy was coward hearted and refused to adopt the ways expected of a warrior. Jon has protected Samwell from the other recruits and the training Master. Both have misgivings about the life, especially the lack of contact with women and the lifelong celibacy membership of the brotherhood required. Jon grows anxious when his father’s brother fails to return and in the last TV episode covered by this writing, his riderless horse returns as he and Sam keep lookout at the top of the wall. Sam is delighted when he is told he will pass the training and become a Steward assisting in the Library and Rookery. When it was Jon turn to learn of his appointment he is shocked to be told he is to become the personal Steward of the Lord High Commander, nothing more than a personal servant and he felt humiliated as was the intention, but also one suspects to be protected for some greater purpose. The young men are seen taken the oath of commitment to the Order outside the Wall being told that they go down on bended knee as boys and rise as men. As they do this his direwolf Ghost returns carrying a severed hand in its mouth. There are several vivid scenes of the ice covered wall, the harshness and bleakness of the environment and the cold which permeates every aspect of their lives, but still nothing like the extent of the cold once the era of the long Winters take over from the Summertime.
The wife of Lord Eddard Stark, Catelyn, having visited her husband (to advise of the attempt on the life of her middle son and together with her husband learned that although the knife belonged to the former young man who sought her hand, known as Littlefinger he claimed to have handed it to the Imp, Tyrion, the height challenged likeable wayward, truth telling brother of the Queen), goes to visit her sister to seek further information on the death of the her sister’s husband. While on the journey they take overnight lodgings at a simple inn where she recognises several knights on their way to the tournament being held in the capital of the Seven Kingdoms in honour of the appointment of her husband as the Kings principal adviser, The King’s Hand. She calls in their assistance to apprehend the Imp, Tyrion, when he arrives from his visit to the Wall, and unknowingly to Catelyn, his visit to her home Winterfell where he devised a frame which enabled her son to ride a horse again and regain his will to live. An action unlikely if he had indeed been behind the attempted killing.
On their way to the extraordinary castle of the House of Arryn, along what is known as the High Road they are attacked by Brigands and Tyrion is released to aid in the fight for survival. He remains a prisoner thereafter although seeds of doubt at his guilt following his professed innocence begin to nag at Catelyn. The Castle is considered impregnable because it is approach through a guarded valley and then can only be reached part way or mule followed by either foot or winched baskets by which the supplies reach the fort. A disturbing sight greets Catelyn because her younger sister has aged to the extent she now looks older and she is still suckling her son who is already of an age to walk and talk. She wants Tyrion put immediately to death because he is of the House of Lannister but Catelyn agrees to his right to trial.
He is kept in a dungeon with a difference as there is large open to the elements side from floor to ceiling, beyond which there is a sheer drop to the bottom of the mountain. The guard is a dullard and a bully, depriving him of food but who he persuades on promise of gold to take message to Catelyn on basis he wishes to confess. He confesses his past wickedness but says he is not guilty of the crime accused. This leads to trial by combat where he is represented by someone who wins and he is released with ne companion offering to go with him along the notorious High road where it is anticipated he will not survive the murdering bandits.
In the capital Eddard has failed to prevent the holding of a tournament although his attention is directed at the activities of the former King’s hand who was visiting the illegitimate children of the King, one is working as a Blacksmith’s assistant and the other a teenage girl with a baby working at a brothel who remains in love with King waiting for him to return to her. He also finds he was exploring a large dusting book on the history of the King’s family. He lowly works out that all the illegitimate children have dark hair but his son Joffrey and the other children have fair hair like his wife and other members of her family. He finally works out that her children and the heir Joffrey to whom his daughter is betrothed is not the rightful heir. Before confronting the King and Queen with his findings he is wounded by one of the men of the Queen’s brother who goes to take him hostage on learning that Tyrion has been taken prisoner by Catelyn. When he recover he makes arrangements to return home with his daughters after having a row with the king over the decision to send an assassin to kill Daenerys who has become pregnant by the Dothraki Chief, Khal Drogo.
Sansa his daughter has re-established a relationship with her betrothed after the incident with the Direwolf and Arya and the butchers boy learning sword play. However she is disappointed when after the jousting and feasting she is left in the company of an ugly and wild man to escort her back to the Castle rather than Joffrey himself. Nevertheless she is distraught by the plan of her father knowing this will deprive her of becoming Queen. The reality of life is yet to dawn on this young woman no more an adolescent girl.
I noted the description of the meal at the feast comprising a suckling pig, pigeon pie and turnips soaked in butter with a honey comb afterwards. The coincidence is that only recently I mentioned to someone at the Marriott Leisure who had been on holiday in Majorca that I had twice eaten a suckling pig at a restaurant in the city centre during my only visit to the island and the only occasion that I have eaten this meal, Pigeons which are regarded as vermin has long since been a English food as they honeycomb for those that like honey.
Arya meanwhile has been enjoying swordplay lessons from a tutor selected by her father. He has been teaching her poise by standing on one leg blindfolded on the edge of stairs and also speed by learning how to catch cats. When undertaking the latter dressed in old clothes as boy she finds herself in under castle workings and in hiding overhears two men plotting to kill her father. She then finds herself outside the Castle and has difficulties returning only to find her father displeased by her disappearance and unwilling to hear what she has overheard in detail.
When attacked by the Queen’s brother, Littlefinger had left Ned and his men ostensibly to get the city watch to prevent the very deaths which occur. Either then or subsequently he warns Ned not to trust him. At the tourney the King proposes to enter an event in which men fight together until one is left standing. There is much breaking of limbs and some bloodshedding and the King is more than determined once his wife forbids him. This is seen as a cunning ploy her part as the King always does the opposite and therefore he could easily be killed in the mêlée and his death put down as an accident. He then decides to go hunting and is badly injured by a boar and dies having become too drunk to tackle the beast on his own, having commanded the others to stand by. He sees Lord Stark in private and gets him to write a Will on dictation in which he makes Ned Lord Protector of the realm and to govern until Joffrey is of age. Eddard writes this as rightful heir thus cleverly providing to bypass Joffrey once is position is recognised.
He has already confronted the Queen with his findings about the illegitimacy of Joffrey and the other, something which far from denying she justifies saying that the family have kept the line pure this way for 300 years and that she and her brother being twins shared the same womb and have been together since they were children. She says that nevertheless she did love the King but was shattered when on their wedding night he approached her drunk and called out the name of Ned’s dead sister instead of hers. She had ended a pregnancy caused by the King and for many years had learned how to satisfy him without permitting vaginal penetration. There is a scene where they talk together and she asks if he ever lover her and he admits his was always locked with the death of Stark’s sister.
The Queen chides Lord Stark for having failed to take the crown himself when he had the opportunity all those years ago and that in the Game of Thrones you win or die. Littlefinger also attempts to make a deal with Ned pleading with him to accept Joffrey as the King but working together they will take power. When Ned is summoned to the throne room to pledge obedience to the King who wishes his coronation to take place within two weeks, he reveals the last Will of the King which the Queen mother tares to pieces. Lord Stark as the authorised Protector of the Realm orders the arrest of the Queen and her children but it is Littlefinger who takes a knife to the throat of Ned saying that he warned him no to trust him.
Meanwhile across the water Daenerys has been securing her position as the wife of the Dothraki leader having made their way to the holy city normally in by old women, their slaves and visiting merchant. Her brother has become increasingly frustrated by the lack of action to regain his father’s kingdom and at the way he is treated, especially by his sister. Having struck her at one point he was made to travel on foot and then given the option of continuing to travel on foot or in a cart along with the old, the pregnant and the sick he opts for the cart not knowing that this is a humiliations and opens him to ridicule. He becomes even more upset when Danny achieves great standing and gives proof she will have son by eating raw the heart of a chosen beast. He comments that never has anyone expressed love and appreciation in the way the people demonstrated for her on that occasion.
When he continues to complain adn threaten her because of the lack of respect and failure to regain the crown, Khal Drogo melts gold from him and then pours the molten liquid over his head thus killing him with a gold crown.
When a shipment arrives and a wine merchant offers her a special wine, her escort becomes suspicious and requests the man takes the first glass himself and when he refuses and runs off it is realised this is an attempt to kill her and the unborn child. This puts Khal Drogo into a great rage and he vows to build ships and cross the water with his men and place her on the throne of the Seven Kingdoms.
There was one other development which heralds the way the adventure series is likely to progress. The son of Lord Stark (thrown off the castle home by the Queen’s twin brother when he discovered them together) goes riding with the help of the special saddle created by Tyrion. At one point he becomes detached from the hunting party and finds himself taken prisoner by runaways for the Night Watch and others, including a young woman. He is rescued by his brother and friend and the girl is taken prisoner. She reveals she is a wildling from beyond the great ice wall but has tried to flee as far south as she could because of the impeding arrival of Winter and even more significantly the awakening of the fearful creatures who have not been seen for over a thousand years, but who it is claimed have just been sleeping. The bloodshedding has only begun.
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