Game of Thrones
GAME OF THRONES S03E07 “The Bear and the Maiden Fair”
A review of GAME OF THRONES 3×07, “The Bear and the Maiden Fair,” written by George R. R. Martin, directed by Michelle MacLaren. Continue reading
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GAME OF THRONES S03E06 “The Climb”
A review of GAME OF THRONES 3×06, “The Climb,” written by David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, directed by Alik Sakharov. Continue reading
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GAME OF THRONES S03E05 “Kissed by Fire”
A review of GAME OF THRONES 3×05, “Kissed by Fire,” written by Bryan Cogman, directed by Alex Graves. Continue reading
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GAME OF THRONES S03E04 “And Now His Watch Is Ended”
A review of GAME OF THRONES 3×04, “And Now His Watch Is Ended,” written by David Benioff and D. B. Weiss, directed by Alex Graves. Continue reading
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GAME OF THRONES S03E03 “Walk of Punishment”
A review of GAME OF THRONES Episode 3×03, “Walk of Punishment” Continue reading
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GAME OF THRONES S03E02 (TV Review)“Dark Wings, Dark Words”
In my reviews of Game of Thrones, one of my touchstone phrases—which I’ve used so often you’re no doubt sick of it—is “cripples, bastards, and broken things.” It was the title of Episode Four of the first season, in which Tyrion expresses … Continue reading
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GAME OF THRONES S03E01 “Valar Dohaeris”
Welcome back to Game of Thrones, and brace yourself. Continue reading
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GAME OF THRONES S02E10 “Valar Morghulis”
Horseshit is the foundation, glue, and currency of this entire society. For all the talk about honor in the Seven Kingdoms, it’s lies that really carry weight: they have the power to form alliances, to grant kingships, to topple lords, and to move entire armies into battle. Continue reading
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GAME OF THRONES S02E09 “Blackwater”
As the penultimate episode of Season Two of Game of Thrones,“Blackwater” doesn’t just meet expectations: it blows them out of the water. Continue reading
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GAME OF THRONES S02E08 “The Prince of Winterfell”
The only people who can consistently make smart decisions are those who don’t give a damn about anyone else; for everyone else—fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, brothers and sisters, and those foolish enough to dabble in romance—love leads to stupidity and vulnerability, treason and dishonor, ill-advised decisions and ill-timed bouts of mercy. Continue reading
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GAME OF THRONES S02E07 “A Man Without Honor”
“A Man Without Honor” is an interlude, of sorts, but it’s the kind of interlude that lends color and depth to this entire season of Game of Thrones. Continue reading
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GAME OF THRONES S02E06 “The Old Gods and the New”
This season, the social order is crumbling, the wall that protects civilization is under siege, and the wild things that live within us all are refusing to be tamed. Continue reading
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GAME OF THRONES S02E05 “The Ghost of Harrenhal”
As of this week, we’re one king down, and the remaining leaders may find that their claims to power ride less on their strength and more on the loyalty they are able to inspire from their allies. Continue reading
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GAME OF THRONES S02E04 “Garden of Bones”
As we see this week, some people are born evil, some are willing to do evil things for the greater good, and some—if they’re not careful—may go through life with the best of intentions but still leave evil in their wake. Continue reading
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GAME OF THRONES S02E03 “What Is Dead May Never Die”
“What is Dead May Never Die” is another episode that focuses on these misfit toys of the Seven Kingdoms, and specifically on the men who do not quite fit this society’s harsh definition of manhood. We see them struggle to maintain their untraditional roles and peculiar souls in a world where nearly everyone is asked to bend the knee. We see them fight to hold onto their hearts, in a culture where a heart is largely seen as a weakness. Continue reading
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GAME OF THRONES S02E02 “The Night Lands”
Game of Thrones does a remarkable job of uniting all the unwieldy subplots of each episode into a cohesive thematic whole. “The Night Lands” is largely about the role of women in this male-dominated world. Continue reading
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GAME OF THRONES S02E01 “The North Remembers”
The old gods are burning, and there’s a king in every corner. A red comet streaks the sky, portending ambiguous doom, while a white raven has been sent to the capital, signifying that the long, kind summer is officially over. The wildlings are on the move in the north, armies clash in the south, and across the Narrow Sea the dragons have returned. Winter is coming, and power is power; the night is dark and full of terrors, and a Lannister always, always pays his debts. In other words, shit is getting real. Welcome back to Game of Thrones: we’ve got a lot to talk about. Continue reading
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GAME OF THRONES S01E10 “Fire and Blood”
“Fire and Blood,” the 2011 finale of Game of Thrones, and the thrilling conclusion to one of the most extraordinary seasons of television ever produced, gives us a brutal dividing line between the prologue of history and an uncertain future. We begin in blood and we end in fire: both symbols of death, but also symbols of life, of rebirth, of purgation of everything that has come before. In Game of Thrones, as in life, the only certainty is change. Continue reading
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GAME OF THRONES S01E09 “Baelor”
More than honor, more than justice, more than strategy, what shapes and reshapes the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros is emotion. But is this a bad thing? Given a choice between love and honor, wouldn’t we pick love every time? And, by that logic, can something be dishonorable and still be right? Continue reading
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GAME OF THRONES S01E08 “The Pointy End”
Though I didn’t enjoy “The Pointy End” as much as others, I’ve realized that it’s appropriate that this episode is a little chaotic, a little disjointed. It should be: the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros have been shattered. The slender threads that held this world together have all snapped, and Westeros is quickly falling back into chaos. Continue reading
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GAME OF THRONES S01E07 “You Win or You Die”
As we learn this week on Game of Thrones, all politics is personal. Continue reading
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GAME OF THRONES S01E06 “A Golden Crown”
“A Golden Crown” is all about justice; it’s filled with characters—from Ned to Sansa to Tyrion to Viserys—all protesting, “It’s not fair!” But justice, as we see this week, is very much a work-in-progress in Game of Thrones. Continue reading
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GAME OF THRONES S01E05 “The Wolf and the Lion”
Of all the shows on television that could feature a guy getting a knife through the eyeball, a bludgeoning dwarf, a breast-feeding 7-year-old, a spontaneous equine decapitation, and a discussion of the economics of cadaver fucking—all in the same episode—Game of Thrones has definitely become my favorite. Continue reading
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GAME OF THRONES S01E04 “Cripples, Bastards, and Broken Things”
“Cripples, Bastards, and Broken Things” is a relatively uneventful episode—it’s weighted with exposition, and busy positioning everyone for the midgame—but it’s also, thematically, the strongest entry so far. Its mission statement is summed up in that title: in such a heavily structured society, with a strong clan mentality, what happens to the outcasts, the cast-offs, the people who just don’t fit? Continue reading
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GAME OF THRONES S01E01–3 Winter is Coming, The King’s Road, Lord Snow
I needed a new television addiction like I needed an ice-cold broadsword up the ass. Continue reading
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