Unsullied Recap—Game of Thrones, Episode 603—“Oathbreaker”

Spoiler note: “A girl says nothing. A girl keeps her mouth closed. No one hears.” —Girls, boys, and everyone alike, Jaqen H’ghar has spoken, so please remember: This recap is primarily for non-book readers (book fans can discuss the show in our Book-Reader’s recap). If you’re a book reader, please avoid posting any spoilers here so as not to ruin the fun for those who don’t know what’s coming next. Thank you!

You can’t end on a resurrection without revisiting it as soon as possible, and so we open on Davos’ stunned face and the ragged breathing of the once-dead Jon Snow. Just as frightened as we last saw him, Jon touches his stab wounds with shaking hands and comes to terms with the reality of his situation—he was murdered by men sworn to be loyal to him, but the murder didn’t stick. So now what?

Melisandre, in awe of Jon’s revival and her own newfound power, has the makings of an answer: “Stannis was not the prince who was promised, but someone has to be.” There is reverence and hope in the comment; Melisandre understands its truth and believes that here, now, with Jon alive in front of her, she’s finally got it right.

At Davos’ request, Melisandre leaves him alone with her renewed source of faith, who isn’t nearly as sure of himself as his companions are. Jon is despondent over his failures, lost in the face of the fact that his honor got him killed, but Davos tells him to screw it all and “go fail again.” Despite how unthinkable it is that Jon is alive, he is, and now he has to do something with it. The impossibility of the thing doesn’t change the thing, and there’s no time to rationalize when there’s so much left to do. I’m loving this take-charge Davos; the guy’s a natural cheerleader, and he’s doing incredible things with it—he pushed both Melisandre and Jon to do what they can with what they’ve been given, with tremendous results. Davos has flipped both of their hopelessness and made them do what needs to be done, because even though Jon saw nothing in the wake of his death, he still has a life to live before death comes for him again.

Davos follows Jon out to the yard, where the collected Night’s Watchmen and wildlings are seemingly waiting for them. There are bro hugs all around and, because he is a gift to the world, Tormund cracks a joke about what Jon’s packin.’ Edd wonders aloud what has been debated amongst fans for some time: is Jon still Jon? Despite everything that Jon doesn’t know about himself now, he still knows who he is at his core, but you can’t come back from death without at least a new perspective. It will probably take the rest of the season to get a feel for Jon’s new take on life, but my broad guess is that he won’t put as much stock in honor and nobility as he once did.

Away at sea, Sam, Gilly, and the baby are en route to Oldtown—or so Gilly thinks. Sam reveals that the Citadel doesn’t admit women and he can’t leave her alone in Oldtown, so instead he’s taking her home to Hornhill to meet the parents. Or his mother and sister, anyway, who he’s sure will take good care of Gilly and little Sam, but based on what we know of Sam’s father, his reaction to his son’s return is a little more up in the air. Sam and Gilly have a touching moment in which she calls him the father of her son, and then Sam spoils it by getting seasick all over the place.

Moving on from what I absolutely did not need to see to something I can’t get enough of, we’re back in another of Bran’s visions. A young Ned Stark (who exemplifies A+ casting in the most perfect baby Sean Bean I’ve ever seen, by the way) and a collection of other soldiers ride up to a small, secluded castle that’s being guarded by members of Aerys Targaryen’s Kingsguard. When asked why they weren’t protecting the now dead Rhaegar in the final battle, Ser Arthur Dayne says that the prince “wanted us here.” Although he already seems to know precisely who’s in the tower, Ned asks after his sister and is answered with a fight. Dayne, as it turns out, is a total baller who wields two swords, and loses only when one of Ned’s men stabs him from behind, a complete contradiction to the story Bran had always been told—that Ned defeated the legendary Dayne on his own.

Bran has little time to dwell on this lie when a woman screams from the tower, but the Three-Eyed Raven is a buzzkill and sweeps Bran away before he or we can follow Ned up the steps. Bran calls out for his father at the last second, and Ned turns but sees nothing. Back in the present, Bran insists that Ned heard him, but the Three-Eyed Raven is noncommittal and instead chastises Bran for his desire to stay in the past: “Stay too long where you don’t belong and you will never return.” He assures Bran that he will leave the cave just as soon as he learns “everything,” which is a pretty tall order if Bran truly isn’t going to end up an old man in a tree. But as far as I’m concerned, the more blasts from the past we’re treated to, the better.

Across the Narrow Sea, the purportedly last Targaryen is having her family’s bad luck: Daenerys is back at Vaes Dothrak, where the other widows strip her of her necklace and give her new clothes to don. As she’s wont to do, Daenerys lists her many titles and threatens the widows, but they prove to be even less impressed than Khal Moro was in “The Red Woman.” The leader of the Dothraki Golden Girls points out that, titles notwithstanding, the widows are all the same—former wives of formerly great khals, all of them once young and foolish enough to believe that their khal would conquer the world, all of them left alone when he didn’t. The khalasars gathered at Vaes Dothrak will decide what to do with Khal Drogo’s runaway widow since she did the forbidden by moving on with her life after her husband’s death. Joining this particular girl band might not be the worst offer Daenerys has ever had, but they want to be Destiny’s Child and Daenerys just wants to be Beyoncé, so I’d bet money that she’ll find a way to escape and go solo.

Not far off in Meereen, Varys lightly threatens the prostitute who we saw slit an Unsullied’s throat last season, and whom we now learn is named Vala. In exchange for information on the Sons of the Harpy, Varys offers her and her son a bag of silver and safe passage to Pentos on the next ship out of Meereen (a visiting ship, presumably, since we saw the harbor torched two weeks ago).

As usual, Varys is persuasive and brings the information to Tyrion, who is starved for intellectual conversation, and Grey Worm and Missandei, who don’t get any of Tyrion’s jokes. Despite their vastly different senses of humor, the trio is able to tactfully plan what to do now that Varys has revealed that the Sons of the Harpy are being funded by the masters in Astapor, Yunkai, and Volantis, all of whom want to bring down Daenerys. We don’t get the details of the plan, but Tyrion bids Varys have his little birds send a message to the masters, which Missandei and Grey Worm are far more satisfied with than I am. What’s your game, Tyrion?

In King’s Landing, Maester Frankenstein is gaining the trust of his own legion of little birds: a band of street children to whom he promises sweets and favors in exchange for “whispers.” But Cersei doesn’t just want birds in the capital—she wants them all across the Seven Kingdoms, so she can have her enemies destroyed as assuredly as Ser Gregor will destroy whatever Faith Militant he’ll face when Cersei demands a trial by combat. I have to wonder if the High Sparrow will allow her to exercise that right, but we shall see what we shall see.

Although the reanimated Mountain has already proven his loyalty to Cersei, he poses a threat to everyone else, as Maester Pycelle argues during the Small Council meeting headed by Kevan Lannister and attended by Mace and Olenna Tyrell. As Lord Commander of the Kingsguard, Jaime demands his rightful seat amongst them, but it seems that everyone has tired of Jaime and Cersei’s power plays and would prefer to keep them out of their political strategies. It looks as though Cersei will have to prove herself beyond her desire for revenge, but until then it seems that the mighty have indeed fallen.

Even Tommen, who has hardly ever been mighty at all, can’t seem to scramble to the top no matter how he tries. He confronts the High Sparrow on Cersei’s behalf, but it only takes the man a few minutes and some more self-righteous guff to win Tommen over, and the Lannisters are at the bottom once more.

Arya is still blind but back at the House of Black and White, where she’s honing her remaining senses and getting walloped some more by busted Kimmy Gibbler. Kimmy wields that staff like Mulan at the closing chorus of “I’ll Make a Man Out of You” and interrogates Arya to within an inch of her life: Who are you now, who were you before? Who was Arya Stark’s family? Why did she leave the Hound to die, and who else does she want dead? We learn that Arya wanted the Hound neither dead nor alive, and that perhaps she’ll never know for sure herself; she can’t afford to know now, because now she is No One.

Or so it seems, as she finally bests Kimmy and proves her mental fortitude to White Jesus Jaqen H’ghar, who rewards her by restoring her eyesight.

Again, I have to commend Arya on her self-control. It’s what I’ve always admired about Sansa—her ability to know how to keep herself alive, what to say and how to say it, staying true to herself while putting on a face for anyone watching. I can only hope this serves Arya as well as it’s always served her sister.

Back at Arya’s lost home, Lord Umber dashes his house’s loyalty to the Starks because they don’t have enough men to fight the wildlings that Jon let beyond the Wall. He drops an F-bomb after every other word in an attempt to be likable, calls Roose a “c*nt” as if Ramsay is any less so, and overall tries to be cool but in the end proves himself a sniveling traitor. He refuses to pledge his banners to the Boltons by the traditional bended knee, but he will hand over Osha and Rickon, and proves that Rickon is a Stark by dumping Shaggydog’s severed head at Ramsay’s feet. Personally, I was hoping that Rickon’s legitimacy would be proven by Rickon himself hocking a loogie in Ramsay’s face but, hey, we’ve got seven more episodes and plenty of time. The North may fail to remember, but the Starks won’t.

But kudos to you, Lord Umber, for sacrificing the son of the family you loved in your efforts to fight the wildlings when they probably won’t come looking for a fight at all. The Night’s Watchmen found their feud with the wildlings unnecessary and ultimately dangerous, and I can only hope the Umbers fare just as poorly.

Back at Castle Black, the conspirators against Jon are about to reap their reward at the gallows. Four of the men stand with nooses around their necks, while Jon allows them their last words. The first says that it’s not right for Jon to be alive, the second wishes for his mother to be notified of his death, Alliser Thorne goes out as condescending as ever, and Olly refuses to do anything but look haughty and hateful as usual. Jon is heartbroken by Olly alone, but all the same he cuts the rope and the mutineers hang. That’s it for the conspirators, and that’s it for Jon, too—he hands the Lord Commander’s cloak and control of Castle Black over to Edd, declares his watch ended, and walks away.

It’s a powerful moment for Jon, and the first in what will likely be a series of game-changing characteristics. For as long as he’s wanted to prove that he’s a fair, honorable man, suddenly those things mean nothing, and Jon is free to do what he wants without the restrictions the Night’s Watch and his own sense of good imparted upon him. I can’t imagine what he’ll do next, but I can guarantee it’s going to make a difference. Get it, Lord Snow.

What say you, fellow Unsullied? Now that Jon’s watch has ended, what’s his next move—will he leave Castle Black before Sansa arrives, or will he stay long enough to join forces with her? What will the khalasars decide to do with Daenerys, and how will she combat their decision? Now that Arya’s sight is back, what’s next in her training? How will Lord Tarly receive the son he banished to the Wall? Will Ramsay use Rickon in an attempt to lure Sansa back so he can make a legitimate Stark heir, or does he have other plans? And who else wants to see Tormund lob off Lord Umber’s head in the inevitable showdown between the wildlings and Ramsay’s band of losers?

Remember—speculation is encouraged, spoilers aren’t! Please refrain from posting book spoilers here! Feel free to discuss the episode in the comments or Tweet me @kattymaj, but don’t ruin any surprises for the viewers who haven’t read the books. While the show has largely diverged from its source material, you never know what details will crop up later. Thanks, and see you next week!