A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms Thoughts

Published April 23, 2019 · Updated July 6, 2022

Hi All,

I hope that you all are enjoying the show as much as I am!

I had some thoughts about the episode and the coming battle.

I forget which one of you guys mentioned it (maybe king B) but the concept of dying in the most fitting way based on the way they lived seems like it will be front and center during the battle.

Specifically Brienne. Although she was just knighted this past episode her character has been the embodiment of knighthood throughout the show and the books as well.

In a feast for crows she says” Old or young, a true knight is sworn to protect those who are weaker than himself, or die in the attempt.” The reason I bring this up is because of who she will be fighting side by side with in the coming battle, Jamie. Although he used to be one of the best swordsmen in Westeros, he is a shadow of his former self. In the few battles sequences we have observed since he lost his hand his fighting has been clunky and relied on a bit of luck to make it through. I know it might seem obvious, but I think that during the conflict with the dead, Jamie will get himself in a situation that seems hopeless. It will then be Brienne who (likely dying in the process), saves Jamie. I think that this final act on her part will show Jamie that his honor is worth something and will be the last major part to his redemption arc of being the knight he always dreamed of becoming.

Separately I think its really interesting how they have set up the potential conflict between Jon and Danny, keeping in the context of the song at the end of the episode. I agree completely with you guys that Jon would likely give up the throne for his love of Danny, however based on the ending of that scene she might not see it that way. Rather than being shocked that they are related she immediately processes him as a potential threat. While I don’t think that she would be so bold to try and take Jon out during the conflict, I could envision a situation where Jon needs her help and she does nothing. Maybe Jon even notices this and we see the look of sadness in his face. This would be bittersweet in the sense that Danny would likely have no major obstacle in front of her, but she would lose the man she claims to now love. It is further bitter because had she been more open it would have been clear that Jon wouldn’t care about the throne. They have been doing a nice job of showing the differences between Danny and Sansa for how they show their emotions. Sansa fully embraces Theon when he returns, and we can tell that she is not a one dimensional character. We rarely see this sort of compassionate side of Danny (or at least its not as convincing to me as Sansa).

As for the complaint that the episode was dragging, I don’t agree with this at all. A really successful show like GOT, makes you sit on the edge of your seat with just the suspense of dialogue between characters. For example the fireside chat and knighting of Brienne, showed us exactly how far all these characters have come. The slow way that Jamie knights her is absolutely perfect, with them delivering the dialogue with the exact right amount of pause after each part of the oath. It really highlights for example how far someone like Brienne has come, who normally would have never trusted someone like Jamie not to just be messing with her. These kinds of scenes also really nicely set the stakes for the battle to come.

And as always I love them incorporating Lyanna Mormont being a total badass.

Keep up the good work guys and I wish you good fortune in the conflicts to come.

-Mike M

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