The second episode of Game of Thrones Season 6 didn’t lack for incident. Stewardship of House Bolton changed hands, Tyrion unchained Daenerys’ dragons, and Jon Snow finally came back to life after what seemed like years of waiting. What were the episode’s strengths? What were its weaknesses? What do we think it means for the rest of the season? The Small Council is in session.
Rate the episode at the bottom of the post, and then tell us what you thought!
DAN: Game of Thrones continues to barrel ahead. I remember this time last year, when people were complaining that Season 5 was moving too slowly. It’d be hard to make that complaint about Season 6. If anything, “Home” was too packed with incident, and a couple of big moments were underserved. But mostly, the momentum worked in the episode’s favor. It’s always a good sign when an hour of television passes in an instant.
Obviously, the resurrection of Jon Snow was a highlight. Beyond the fact of the resurrection itself, I loved how much time the show spent on the set-up. Melisandre clearly had an idea of what she wanted to do (did Thoros tell her to wash the body and clip off the hair before asking the Lord of Light for this favor?), but she didn’t let us, or the other people in the room with her, in on it. That gave the scene a portentous mood. It was clear that something important was going to happen.
But my favorite scene may have been Tyrion in the dungeon with the dragons. First of all, the special effects department kicked things up another notch, and they were already notched very high. But it wasn’t just that Rhaegal and Viserion looked tremendous—it’s that they behaved like characters rather than props. We knew that the dragons were at least intelligent enough to follow Daenerys’ commands, but I wasn’t expecting Viserion to bend over and offer his clamped neck to Tyrion. This opens up a whole bunch of new possibilities for these guys. And by referencing Tyrion’s childhood fascination with dragons, writer Dave Hill gave the scene a powerful emotional core. This was just splendid all around.
Because I’ve seen a few people say things against it, I also want to say that I loved the Arya scene. I think the show spent exactly the right amount of time on this part of her journey. Arya was angrier fighting the Waif than she was in the premiere, which told me the two of them had been dancing this dance for a while, and she had a breakthrough of sorts when she refused Jaqen H’ghar’s offer to restore her sight. The scene was short, but it made the most of the time it had, and I didn’t need to spend half a season with Arya as a blind beggar.
There were a couple of missteps, although nothing near as bad as the Dornish business from last week. The main offender has to be Ramsay’s murder of Roose and Walda Bolton. Like the final scene with Jon Snow, I think we all knew something like this was coming, but while the production clearly spent a lot of time trying to strike the right tone for Jon’s resurrection, Ramsay’s killing spree felt like business as usual. I wanted something more; more texture, more mood, more detail, something more worthy of what Roose Bolton meant to the show.
But I can take one sour grape in a pack of sweet ones. “Home” was an excellent episode, and hopefully the start of a streak.
COREY: When discussing Season 6 thus far, I’ve likened my criticisms of the season as questioning a few brush strokes on the Mona Lisa. I like the overall picture, but I believe here or there things could have been done better. Overall, the strengths of “Home” far outweigh its faults.
Getting it right out of the way, Jon’s resurrection was handled very well. Even though we knew it was coming, the show did an excellent job of building the tension. They let us believe that perhaps Melisandre had failed, and Jon’s first breath might have to wait until another episode. I know every spoiler there is to know short of reading an official production outline from HBO, and even I didn’t know for certain that Jon would be returning in “Home” until Ghost stirred below his master’s body. That’s excellent storytelling.
On the flip side, I believe certain aspects of the episode, and the season thus far, feel rushed. Roose Bolton’s death is a prime example. We all knew Roose’s days were numbered—I mean his son enjoyed feeding people to starving dogs. But I felt like the tension between father and son could have been built up a little more. Show us Ramsay’s jealousy at his father’s new, trueborn son. Show us Ramsay repeatedly failing and being chastised by his father. Instead, Ramsay murders his father the moment his baby brother is born. The whole thing felt very inorganic to me.
Also, we finally get to see House Karstark again after its lord was executed by Robb Stark back in Season 3, and apparently the new leader was in on the plan to murder Roose. Okay?
My favorite part of the episode? Pilou Asbæk’s portrayal of the mad Euron Greyjoy. Pilou played Euron with just the right bit of mania and charisma to have me excited about where the Ironborn stroyline will go. Let’s hope it doesn’t end like the Dornish storyline.
Tyrion’s scene with the dragons was excellent, but also struck me as inserting a fan favorite character into a scene in which he had no place. Missandei or Grey Worm would have made much more sense in that scene, having history with the dragons. Again, not entirely complaining, as I would literally watch Peter Dinklage read the encyclopedia at this point, but a small quibble nonetheless.
Ultimately, I wish that Seasons 5 and 6 would have been combined to form a much more even narrative. Season 5 felt sluggish and boring until the last four episodes, and Season 6 feels like we can barely catch our breath. A little bit more attention to detail might have helped each season find the balance struck in Season 4. Once the season is over though, we will have to see where the episodes ultimately stack up.
KATIE: I’m certainly glad to see that Jon’s back, mostly because the lies were tiresome from the start, and now he’ll have something to do other than drench the air around him with melancholy and the stench of death. The only thing shocking about Jon’s resurrection was that it happened so early on in the season. We all knew it was coming, but I didn’t expect HBO to give in so soon. Then again, there’s only so many times we can see a corpse and wonder why it isn’t totally gross yet. Either way, he has risen, and the world is right again.
Regarding Ramsay’s scenes this week, I see where Dan and Corey are coming from but, personally, nothing shocked me more than that particular patricide. I had a different reading of Ramsay—that regardless of everything else we know about him, the driving force behind his actions was an irrepressible urge to please his father and gain his favor. Now, I agree with Corey that the murders would have perhaps been more striking had we seen Ramsay struggle with his new role as second fiddle to a trueborn son, but we’re getting too close to the end to mess around. Roose had to go, because Ramsay’s going to have to go; the big baddies have to be eliminated to make room for the real enemy, the White Walkers. And at this point in Ramsay’s arc, I’m not that interested in his emotional journey, anyway.
I am, however, captivated by Arya’s arc this year. While we’ve only gotten a couple of minutes from her in the two episodes thus far, “Home” makes it clear that her mental fortitude is buffing up. Arya has always been quick-tempered and wont to say whatever pops into her head (most of which was bound to get her into serious trouble), but she’s learning the merits of saying what she needs to in order to survive. An Arya who possesses her usual physical skills as well as mental control is very nearly unstoppable, and I’m excited to see where this newfound strength will take her.
In my never-ending love parade for the Starks, I also have to touch upon Bran’s vision—what do the details uncovered mean for the show’s endgame? Hodor’s history, for one, seems to be a bigger puzzle piece than I ever imagined, and overall I enjoyed this little foray into the past so much that I wouldn’t say no to a prequel (but then, I’m a sucker for prequels). I’m definitely looking forward to more of Bran looking back, and what he can do with what he learns.
CAMERON: I’m #TeamBran this year for sure. Gimme the flashbacks, gimme the weirwood internet (I forgot what it’s usually called), GIMME IT ALL! Otherwise, I think my reactions fell more in line with some of the critics in that I’m more interested in the possible directions of Jon Snow’s storyline than the mere fact of his resurrection, which came to us as pretty much a foregone conclusion. I also retain my fears that the Iron Islands storyline will be Dorne Pt. 2—in that it will be a diversion from the mainland stories that serves no purpose. It’s even more worrying for me because in the books, the Dorne and Iron Island storylines dovetail with a Greyjoy and a Martell sailing to Meereen to court Daenerys; in the show, we’ve already lost Arianne and Quentyn Martell, and the simplest version of the Iron Islands storyline would eradicate Victarion as well. (Not helping things: is Theon going “home” as in Pyke or “home” as in Winterfell?)
I continue to be a fan of Peter Dinklage doing just about anything on this show, but let’s at least take a moment to acknowledge how incredible it is that Dinklage continues to be a steady rock against the sea of changes that is the plot and adaptation choices of Game of Thrones.
ANI: I’ve already gone on and on this week about Tyrion and the Dragons, but I’m going to do it again, because I keep being stunned by the fact that I’m so emotionally moved by things that literally aren’t there. The reverence with which Peter Dinklage laid his hand on Rhaegal’s neck before steeling his nerves and pulling the pin that chained him—so good. It’s too bad that I am also 150% certain that letting them out will turn the entire Meereenese population against Tyrion’s rule.
I feel like, in the rush to discuss Jon, Bran’s vision, and the nostalgia that rose up at the sight of a Stark-ruled Winterfell, has not been given the attention it deserves, especially when you compare it to how dull and grey and sad the Winterfell courtyard is now with the Boltons in charge. I could have watched entire episodes of that. I want to get to know Lyanna Stark, and Wyllis, and see what shaped young Ned into the self-righteous man he became. Bran was right: our time with them was too short. And there’s nothing else to do up north but sit and dream anyway…either that or be like Meera and stare off at the sunset.
Speaking of Winterfell, one of the things I had not expected to see this season was the blooming of all the poisoned seeds that were laid in the North after Robb’s failed rebellion against the Lannisters. Will the Karstarks ever again side with the Stark family? Will Rickon Stark be the “gift” we see the Umbers bringing Ramsay in the next episode? (That would explain why Ramsay would suddenly have no need to continue to pursue Sansa Stark/Lannister/Bolton—she would no longer be the “key to the north.”) Even if Jon adopts the Stark surname and tries to rally the North and defeat the Boltons, are there any who would join him after being alienated by Robb’s foolishness?
RAZOR: How could you not love Wun Wun smashing through the gates of Castle Black? Finally, after seasons of oppressive behavior from Ser Alliser Thorne, justice was served, Wun Wun style! And it was done with a wink and a nod to book-readers! I was overjoyed with that scene, and as much as I sometimes complain that the showrunners sometimes gloss over major plot points from the books, I was thankful they showed Wun Wun grabbing a Night’s Watchmen and smashing him into the wall of Castle Black. I just wish his name was Ser Patrek of King’s Mountain…oh well, a man can dream.