Game of Thrones: “Blood of My Blood”—Thematic Analysis

Strange that tonight’s episode was called “Blood of my Blood.” Family was everywhere, but in most places, people were rejecting their family. Sam rejected his father and his overbearing nonsense. Margaery’s grandmother came to rescue her grandaughter, only to discover too late that Margaery was rejecting any help given. Tommen fired his uncle/father from the Kingsguard and deliberately moved to separate him and Cersei. And Arya rejected the family who took her in when she had nowhere else to go—the Faceless Men—for a new one.

"Jaime: “Will I be walking naked in the streets? Or will I spend a few months in the dungeons first to teach me about the Gods’ mercy?”"

In fact, the only family reunion we had in Westeros was once again in the Stark family. Ironically, after forcing and keeping this family apart for seasons after season, the one family that is getting back together are the clan that once ruled Winterfell. This week’s reunion didn’t involve Jon or Sansa, though. It involved Bran reuniting with his Uncle Benjen.

It’s been a long time coming, but the character book readers know as Coldhands finally showed up this week. The show cut him at every turn for the last couple of seasons, only to bring him in right when Bran and Meera could no longer survive without him. Moreover, it cut right to the chase with him. As with Euron, the show didn’t dillydally over who might have stood on what bridge and pushed whom. Bookreaders have wondered for ages if Coldhands was Benjen. The show answered the question in short order: yes, it’s Benjen, and the Children of the Forest and their dragonglass-to-the-heart happy ways are how he’s managed not quite become a full-fledged wight. But he’s not quite a man, either.

"Benjen: “One way or another he will find his way to the world of men. And when he does, you will be there waiting for him.”"

Unlike the one between Jon and Sansa, this was not a huggy reunion full of feels and tears. After his revival, Benjen connected with the Three-Eyed Raven, and clearly plans to explain to this whole traveling-up-and-down-the-timestream thing to Bran in terms the audience can understand. I’m sure it’ll approve.

A lot of this evening hinged on people doing the unexpected (or, in Arya’s case, the very expected.) Margaery shocked her family by taking matters into her own hands, effectively robbing them all of power. Arya saddened her Faceless Men family by discovering that assassination wasn’t the only way one could pretend to be someone else, and that play acting, even with the dramatics of the director, and the backstabbing of the actors and actresses, was more fun. Still, Needle is not going to be much protection against the Waif when she comes to show Arya no mercy.

"Lady Crane: “Wonderful eyebrows. Do you like pretending to be other people?”"

That look of disappointment on Jaqen H’ghar’s face was echoed twice more. It appeared on Olenna’s face as she stood in the audience for the play Margaery and the High Sparrow were producing for the common people. It appeared on Jaime’s when he stood in the audience as Tommen put on his own power play, one that Margaery and the High Sparrow wrote and directed. Make no mistake: Mace Tyrell may have given the rousing (if slightly incoherent) speech to the assembled troops, and Jaime may have looked the role of the head of the Lannister army, riding up those steps on his white steed. But Olenna was 100% in charge of that show—note that she nodded before Mace gave the order to stand down after the High Sparrow said Margaery wouldn’t be walking. Olenna is used to being the one in the background pulling the strings, and she clearly has thought all this time that Margaery would always fall in line behind her.

But Margaery does not want to be The Queen who Answers to Grandmother. She wants to be The Queen. And in her move to cut out any chance of Cersei having power, she has also cut out Olenna. Her playacting with Tommen was quite clear, from the same face she put on for him throughout all of Season 5, to the clean gown she’d been given to wear, and the clean hair that had been brushed and redone. By letting the High Sparrow think he’d won, she gained equal power with him—they can both direct Tommen now. How sour Jaime looked as Tommen took his Kingsguard position away. (I couldn’t help but think of Barristan in the same position back in Season 1.) How much more sour he was to be deliberately separated from Cersei like this. But Cersei still believes she can win this fight. Perhaps someone should tell her that Margaery already checked whatever moves she was thinking of making. The only question is how Margaery deals with an angry Olenna. Will she let her grandmother see behind the act, and let her get in on the string pulling action? Or will she force her to continue to stand in the audience and watch the play like everyone else?

"Sam: “Get your things.”Gilly: “I don’t have any things.”"

One actor who got tired of his role in the play? Sam. Talk about “You can’t go home again.” But he tried. He tried to show he had become a son his father might want. (The son his father wanted, by the way, is a totally vapid twat. “Do they hunt at the Wall” indeed.) Gilly played along, putting on the dress, struggling with the heels, and lying about where she came from. It was all for naught. Sam’s racist, moronic, shortsighted fool of a father flipped his lack of a wig when he learned that Gilly was a wildling, and although Sam didn’t stand up to him there at the table, it didn’t take long before he realized how stupid it would be to leave Gilly there alone. His mother and sister might be nice to her, but they won’t stop that terrible man from forcing Gilly into the kitchens. He should take her with him. And while he’s at it, take the family sword. Someone’s going to need it, and it’s not Randyll Tarly.

The episode started off with a reunion between Benjen and Bran (even though it wasn’t clear that’s what was happening until nearly the end of the episode.) The episode ended with the other family reunion, this time on Essos—Dany reuniting with her first born son, her pride, her joy, her Drogon. Watching her exchange her silver mare for a much faster, much sexier ride was a joy to behold. But note that Daario, who has until now thought that he, like Olenna, was part of the show, was left, with the rest of the Dothraki, in the audience. Dany rides alone now. He is not her equal. He never was. It is his lot to watch her from afar, as she leads her army to Meereen to take back whatever might be left of what is her’s there, before amassing every ship ever made and sailing them all across the Narrow Sea.

Just one more book-reader question: who’s going to ride her other two dragons on the trip over?