Miss last night’s episode? Here’s what you need to know about GAME OF THRONES’ “The North Remembers”
AIRDATE: 4/01/12 WRITERS:: David Benioff & D.B. Weiss DIRECTOR: Alan Taylor SYNOPSIS: While residents of King’s Landing adjust to life under the King Joffrey regime (Spoiler Alert: It’s not fun), those outside the Palace perimeter continue efforts to usurp him. As Robb Stark ramps up his campaign against the Lannisters, Stannis Baratheon announces plans to claim his deceased brother’s throne while across the Narrow Sea the newly-widowed Daenerys attempts to survive after much of the Dothraki leave her — and her three adorable dragons — in the desert to die. INTRODUCED: A dizzying array of new characters including but not limited to last season’s most talked about no-show Stannis Baratheon, his red-haired-possibly-power-mad companion Melisandre, the Northern regions creepiest resident Craster who thanks to his 19 wives and daughters has future TLC reality show star written all over him, and a new Fool (that’s THRONES’ speak for ‘Jester’) for Joffrey. NOTABLE QUOTABLE: “”What a man sows on his name day, he reaps throughout the year.” Or at least that’s how bride-to-be Sansa, alongside Joffrey’s ever-so-scary bodyguard “Hound” convinces him from going through with yet another meaningless courtyard kill. LESSON LEARNED: You mean aside from the fact that the night is dark and full of terrors? Well, it’s official, we absolutely never tire of seeing King Joffrey slapped. CRITIQUE: Jam-packed with everything that has transformed GAME OF THRONES from a fairly successful set of fantasy novels into a cultural phenomenon, co-creators Benioff and Weiss get serious credit for infusing last night’s much-anticipated second season premiere with everything audiences have come to know and love about the series. Unfortunately, there is one downside to being able to pull off a tight fifty-three minutes that successfully introduces a slew of new characters into an already established world while still managing to pepper in pivotal scenes reinforcing Tyrion’s smarts, Robb Stark’s bravery, Cersei’s cunning, Daenerys’ desperation and Joffrey’s immeasurable cruelty in ordering the death of every-single Baratheon bastard. Simply put, we couldn’t help but feel as the credit’s rolled on “The North Remembers” that the story was just getting started. GRADE: B+
GAME OF THRONES airs Sundays at 9PM on HBO (HBO Canada) Catch up on past episodes you may have missed for free online at clicktowatch.tv