GoT writer Bryan Cogman talks “Two Swords,” Gwen Christie gets a new gig, and more

Game of Thrones writer Bryan Cogman is counting down his top 10 favorite episodes of the show over on Twitter. He already live-tweeted his number 10 episode, Season 1’s “Fire and Blood.” Now he’s weighed in on the Season 4 premiere, “Two Swords.”

I gotta agree. The show’s premieres are generally pretty good, but “Two Swords” sits at the top of the pile. It didn’t have a lot of setup to do and could run with the momentum from the end of Season 3.

Is Cogman saying that George R.R. Martin contributed that beat to the script, or only that the idea to melt down Ice was a great one? Either way, that opening rocked.

Dysfunctional families must be a scriptwriter’s dream come true.

Yeah, it worked. Thanks for ripping open that wound, Cogman.

It’s always good to hear that the producers are at least aware that the Tyrells and Martells have a rivalry on the page. Switching it up a bit worked for the show, I think.

Cogman should teach a screenwriting class.

And many fans consider Season 4 the best of the show. Coincidence?

Interesting! We could have had more Night’s Watch-Iron Throne interaction in Season 2.

Yes, let’s all give that rotten psycho his due.

He’s gotta be referring to Daenerys’ trek to Meereen here. As for the show being f**ked up…well, you said it.

Well, the Arya-Hound scene in “Two Swords” is definitely my favorite scene from the episode. The tense standoff totally gives me “western.” And while I wouldn’t have thought of Paper Moon as a point of comparison…yeah, I can see it.

“What the f**k’s a Lommy?” is one of Cogman’s favorite lines, and I imagine he’s in good company.

Fun fact: this is one of two Game of Thrones episodes that showrunners David Benioff and Dan Weiss have directed. The other was Season 3’s “Walk of Punishment.”

And now she’s in that next act, being blind and murdering people out of turn.

He speaks the truth.

The young actors on the show have done great work, but Williams is the one who’s stood out most to me. She should have a long career.

I gotta admit that I missed that exploration of the war’s fallout in Season 5.

Head here to see more of Cogman’s comments. He’ll be back in a few days to discuss his #8 pick.

We’ve got a couple more tidbits. Gwendoline Christie (Brienne) has scored a new gig on the second season of BBC2’s Top of the Lake. Between this, Thrones, and appearing in the next Star Wars movie, Christie may be the busiest of the very busy Game of Thrones cast members. And if anyone thinks that appearing in Top of the Lake means that Christie may not be returning to Thrones, we can put you at ease. The second season of the BBC show will run only six episodes, and starts filming this week. Christie should be done in plenty of time to film Game of Thrones Season 7.

Finally, Men’s Journal has a report on Kit Harington’s workout routine. Hit the link if you want specifics. For our purposes, we’ll just ask why he’s bothering to stay in such great shape if he’s not going to be running around a major film set swinging swords and performing stunts.

h/t The Guardian