Review Roundup: Season 6, Episode 6 “Blood of My Blood”
After a pretty eventful first half of the season, Thrones decides to chill for a bit as it prepares for the big finish—which appears to be one giant battle after another, mostly. Critics and recappers, too, were content to take the break (especially as “Blood of My Blood” aired during a three-day weekend here in the States), with discussions focused almost exclusively on Margaery Tyrell’s apparenty conversion to the Faith. Other talking points: the welcome conclusion-ish to Arya’s training at the House of Black and White, some mild intrigue about Benjen’s return in Bran’s storyline, and some love and sympathy for Gilly and Sam.
The headliner, though, was Margaery. The A.V. Club’s book-reader reviewer Myles McNutt jumped off of Laura Bogart’s recently published essay on Margaery to point out the confusion in the execution of Margaery’s role in the story this week:
"…nothing I had seen in those moments had convinced me she was close to converting, and fully accepting the gospel of the High Sparrow. What she tells Tommen here makes basic sense—that her efforts to appear as a good person in order to gain the moral high ground were false and hollow—but the fact that she would turn herself over to the Faith and so closely align with the High Sparrow strikes me as hasty."
“Hasty” was the general idea for people who bought Margaery’s speech. That number was not very high, though, as plenty of others were convinced that Marge’s conversion was indeed a feint meant to setup an eventual coup of the High Sparrow. The aforementioned Laura Bogart wrote for Salon this week in praise of Natalie Dormer’s face (which, same, Laura… same):
"Anyone who doubts that Margaery’s performance on the stairs of the sept is just that, a performance, has but to study Natalie Dormer’s face, which plays a symphony of expressions as the Lannister and Tyrell armies approach—there is surprise, but also regret[…]and genuine sadness at her grandmother’s disappointed face. And yet, there is that quicksilver brightness in her eyes, the ghost of a smirk, when she takes Tommen’s hand in hers and raises their arms up: She has finally wrested him from Cersei’s grip."
This was the prevailing train of thought among most critics, although HitFix’s Alan Sepinwall alone had the insight to suggest an empathetic sub-goal to Marge’s subterfuge:
"…the only dramatically logical and interesting answer is that she’s once again acting, at a level that her hated mother-in-law and even her father and grandmother can’t see, all to keep Loras safe and, perhaps, in a belief that she can ultimately manipulate the Sparrow like she’s tried to manipulate (with varying degrees of success) all the other powerful men in her life. (emphasis mine)"
Yes, the possibility that Marge was doing this to save her brother did not really click with anyone else. I was actually shocked.
Empathy emerged in Arya’s storyline too—partly in relief that Arya won’t be spending any more time in that dreary House, and partly because of the scene between Arya and Stage Cersei. Wired’s Laura Hudson had the most beautiful way of describing Arya’s emotional journey in this episode:
"The woman’s performance as Cersei at the Purple Wedding is so moving that even Arya is touched; it’s a fascinating moment, remarkable not only because it persuades Arya to feel empathy for one of her most despised enemies, but because it helps her crystallize her own feelings about the deaths of the people she loved.[…]She isn’t interested in death or power disconnected from justice. She isn’t interested in stripping away her identity and walking into the void. All of those things might have appealed at times over the last few years of darkness and rage, but when the moment came she was still her father’s daughter; she was someone."
This sentiment was echoed by Alyssa Rosenberg at the Washington Post:
"The act of uncovering Needle doesn’t necessarily mean that Arya’s long-muddled moral universe is entirely sorted out. But it does suggest that when the Waif (Faye Marsay) comes for her, Arya will fight to stay a Stark. She’s learned an important lesson in the House of Black and White even if it’s not the one Jaqen H’ghar (Tom Wlaschiha) intended for her: not all substitute families are worth joining."
As for the other Stark sibling in this week’s episode, there was a lot of excitement over Bran’s two major moments: the Mad King sequence hinted at by his visions, and the reveal of Benjen Stark as Coldhands. The exception was Brandon Nowalk, the A.V. Club’s Unsullied reviewer (who incidentally was also pretty frustrated with the handling of Margaery’s story):
"Before anyone can ask for details, like why he never returned to the Wall or why he hasn’t been at the tree cave, he tells Bran some more unhelpful mumbo jumbo. He says Bran has to control his power but offers no guidance in that arena. He says the Walkers will find “the world of men,” and that Bran will be there waiting for them, which, again, unhelpful. Give us some details. In general this guy who’s seen some things is not very forthcoming, which makes him just like all the other men with knowledge in Bran’s life. No wonder Bran’s drowning in magic."
In general, though, the reveal was welcomed, and with the cumulative effect of talking about the Riverlands so much, combined with Benjen’s undead return to the show, the Lady Stoneheart talk has returned in full force. (Even Myles McNutt, who seemed to have given her up, admits that it’s a very real possibility now.)
And now, let us end with the purest of the pure: Sam and Gilly. Laura Bogart (who was just [fire emoji] this week apparently) writes:
"The fate of the realm may not hinge on Sam’s decision to come back for his woman, to take Heartsbane off the hearth and claim his pride after years of abuse, but goddamn, it feels good to watch, far better than Daenerys’ battle speech to the Dothraki atop her prodigal dragon. It’s easy to sound hard-core while riding a dragon; try doing it while sneaking out of your father’s house. I wish the show had ended on Samwell and Gilly, on the message that personal power will last far longer than anything wrought through a clash of swords or a breath of fire."
"…thank goodness for Gilly, someone who has seen enough of both violence and cruelty to know the value of a kind heart. It is she who speaks up when Lord Tarly tries to write his son back into the small, demeaning role he always wrote for him; it’s she who writes a new story for Sam right there at the table, the one about how he is brave and strong and kind. Sam is used to being seen through the eyes of someone who despises him. Now, finally, he can see what he looks like through the eyes of someone who loves him."
A lot of reviewers overlooked Gilly’s role in Sam’s character arc this week, so I was grateful to see these perspectives represented among the critical evaluations of this table-setting episode. In a week where standard “ladies slay” character Daenerys was stuck with a scene that met with resounding shurgs and “giving inspirational speeches in invented languages is the role Emilia Clarke has always played best”, it was refreshing to see some lively discussion about the more marginalized female characters of the series.
But enough from me. The season’s half-over! Things are probably going to get very exciting again soon!