With “No One” now having aired all the way around the world, and the all-important ninth episode of the season upon us, it’s time to dive into the trailer that debuted at the end of it. Let’s watch it together and break it all down.
HBO did put out a press release today about this episode, but although it confirmed the title, airdate, and length, it deliberately did not include a synopsis. But keeping in mind HBO’s penchant for vagueness, if there was a synopsis we’re guessing it would look a little something like this: “Jon Snow finds himself in a dust-up involving Ramsay.”
To the battlefield!
Next: Snowbowl
Here’s a little bit of what we know about this episode: it took longer to film the central battle sequence it took to film anything else the show has done before. That’s why, despite the rumors that there will be multiple locations next week, I am highly doubtful that the trailer is misleading us here. I think we’ll be in the North the whole time.
Also, Kit Harington said that he’d filmed more material this year than ever before…and he hasn’t been on camera all that much this season. So the bulk of his work must be in this episode and the finale.
If there’s one thing the trailer is designed to do here, it’s to make sure we understand how impressive this battle is going to look.
The next three shots are our main combatants: Ramsay…
…Sansa…
…and Jon. For the record, it’s striking how frustrated Sansa sound here, like she’s disappointed to discover that Jon is just another in a line of men who underestimate how sick and cruel Ramsay Bolton is.
And finally, what I believe will be our “B” plot point-of-view for the battle, like Karsi was at Hardhome: Davos, who is in the midst of discovering what happened to Shireen.
And he doesn’t look happy.
Again, scaled for maximum impressiveness.
Next: Bastardbowl
The good guy, looking handsome and thoughtful.
The bad guy, looking evil and cocky. That just about sums this whole thing up, no?
Oh, and just so we’re clear, this is Jon Snow asking Melisandre not to bring him back a second time (unlike what Thoros of Myr does to Beric). Everyone is taking this as proof Jon will win, since killing him twice in 10 episodes seems downright silly.
Wun Wun isn’t part of a wildling division. He *is* a wildling division.
Davos draws his sword and prepares to fight.
Get ready for a lot of shots like this. If the trailer is any indication, this episode may be a medieval cavalry warfare nerd’s wet dream.
Unlock up your women and your horses….
Sorry, I think of that Hamilton line every time they show this clip (which was featured in more than one pre-season trailer).
Ready….
Notch….
LOOSE!
Next: The Battle of the Bastards
Arrows fly in the sky…
I can fall half as high…
Take a look, it’s in a book…
Sansa looks stoic, like she’s staring into the face of certain defeat here.
Maybe she should watch Wun Wun instead.
By the way, battles are dirty work. Let’s hope everyone got a nice bath after this.
And that they gave their swords a good cleaning.
These last three shots are also from several of the pre-season trailers. But just when all hope was lost…
We’ll have to wait and find out what, if anything, saves our heroes when the episode arrives on Sunday.