Tag: Game of Thrones

The Greatest Dwarf Known to Man

I think we can all agree that one of the most loved characters in Game of Thrones is the dwarf, Tyrion Lannister.  The dwarf, second son of Tywin Lannister, has advanced greatly as a character in the show.  He’s gone from being a wanton little drunk, to being a wise Hand of the Queen.

The journey that Tyrion has taken has been one of trial and error and controversy.  When we meet him in Season 1, he’s plying his ‘trade’ in a brothel in Winterfell upon arrival in the pilot episode of the series.  He’s the black sheep of the Lannister family; having bad relations with his father and sister.  However, he is very close with his elder brother, Jaime Lannister, and his niece and nephew, Myrcella and Tommen Baratheon.  Nobody can fault Tyrion for not thinking of his family and putting them first.  He just also has to think of himself every once in a while.

In the first season, Tyrion is a little drunk runaround with no power, and he knew it.  That’s why he had all the time in the world to drink and sleep about.  In the second season, he is given power by Tywin Lannister, his father, to act as Hand of the King in his stead during the war.  Tyrion comes into Kings Landing with fire and brimstone; basically to clean house and control the temperamental and impulsive behavior of his nephew, Joffrey Baratheon.  Joffrey immediately takes an even greater dislike to him because Tyrion is challenging him every step of the way and basically calling him an idiot.  Tyrion takes control of Kings Landing when Stannis Baratheon lays siege to it.  They ‘win’ because of the timely arrival of Tywin and the Tyrell forces, but they really won because of Tyrion’s ingenuity.  At the end of the second season, Tyrion has been pushed to the side by his family.

In the third season, Tyrion still has a position on the small council, but it is now a minor role as Tywin is Hand of the King.  He is merely a pawn in the clutches of his family, forced to marry Sansa Stark so as to get an heir to Winterfell.  However, Tyrion takes pity on her in light of all she suffered at the hands of Joffrey previously.  He does not consummate their marriage and instead does everything he can to protect her.  However, that all changes when Joffrey is mysteriously poisoned at his wedding in the fourth season and he is accused of the crime.  Near the end of the fourth season presents Tyrion with a great betrayal: the companion, Shae, whom he was very fond of, lied about him at his trial and was in fact, sleeping with his own father.  Needless to say, the end of season three was very emotional for Tyrion.

Season 5 sees him being escorted by Varys to Slaver’s Bay, where Daenerys has taken up residence and is freeing the slaves.  However, he gets drunk and separated and is kidnapped by a banished Ser Jorah Mormont.  They journey together and run afoul of dragon scale diseased people and slavers.  That is how Tyrion eventually meets Daenerys Targaryen.  At first, they are suspicious of each other: he’s the brother of the man who killed her father; and she’s the daughter of the Mad King, who wanted to burn everyone.  They start off on rocky ground and have to work their way up to a level of respect and trust that we find them at in the latest season.  Of course, they don’t like ways the other does certain things, and they have to talk it out.  But, that’s when Drogon lands and flies off with Daenerys, leaving Tyrion in charge of a(nother) battle torn city.

And… Season 6, Tyrion is dealing with Missandei and Greyworm, both of whom think his more diplomatic approach to, well… everything, is not how Daenerys would want it.  Tyrion gets frustrated that nobody sees the benefit of his plans.  Nobody except Varys.  The Master of Whispers works with Tyrion to get sh*t done around the city in Daenerys’ absence.  And then, she returns with a hoard of Dothraki at her back and an awesome Season 6 battle finale (for Daenerys) takes place.  She now she has an armada and an army.  She also now has a Hand.  Daenerys asks Tyrion to be her top adviser and he accepts.  We don’t know his reasons until the next season.

Season 7 sees both the Queen and her Hand in difficult straights.  They land on Dragonstone easily enough, but it’s easy to take an abandoned castle.  However, doom follows them when they start to lose allies.  First, the Greyjoy fleet under Yara is destroyed by the one under Euron.  Then, the Sand Snakes are defeated and Ellaria Sand is imprisoned beneath the Red Keep per Cersei’s orders.  And… Greyworm and the Unsullied army are trapped at Casterly Rock (also Euron’s fault).  Because she was following Tyrion’s advice when all the sh*t went down, Daenerys blames him to an extent, and turns to the visiting Jon Snow.  Since Tyrion and Jon had a decent relationship when they met previously, Tyrion really doesn’t have a problem with it.  Or, does he?  He finagles the meeting between Cersei, Jon, and Daenerys.  He even convinces Cersei to join them in the fight against the Night King (even though we as the audience know that she’s really trying to stab them all in the back).  And then he sees Jon going into Daenerys’ cabin and he looks disappointed.

Disappointed because he loves her.  Daenerys seems to have that effect on men.  The only problem is, she seems to be oblivious to ones that will really make her happy.  Not saying Jon is a bad guy by any means; he’s just not the guy for her.  Both her and Tyrion are rulers, and I personally believe that they should rule together.

And on that note, it’s been real!

Game of Reviews

Warning: SOME SPOILERS!

I’ve mentioned Game of Thrones before, but I’ve never really talked about it in detail.  I decided that the time is now.  Everyone who even has an interest in pop culture, knows about Game of Thrones.  Actually, the oddest of people know about Game of Thrones.  I was very surprised when it was revealed that my doctor watched it, and we started talking about it, and now it’s something we can chat about whenever we want to.  However, that’s not what this post is going to be about.

Recap… and… go!  In my honest opinion, the show started off strong, but has since gotten stronger.  They needed to get rid of certain characters in order to not only advance the story, but to advance the show.  Yes, there is a difference.  Joffrey was alright as the little twat of a character he was, but, he did not feel like a villain.  He felt more like the spoiled child character that hangs around far too long.  Thankfully, he was removed from the picture in a fitting and gruesome manner.  He only hung around for four seasons (thank God).  He just wasn’t a fascinating enough character anymore.  After we found out he was the product of incest, we lost all interest.

After Joffrey, the Stark children started advancing.  We had Sansa finally learning (through many a difficult trial) how to properly play the game.  And she started to see who she could trust and who she couldn’t.  But, she decided to follow the old philosophy: keep your friends close and your enemies closer.  Sansa basically had Petyr Baelish on a leash before his end.  Now, she just needs to get a few others to heel, and she’ll be all set.

Arya has grown from a pup into a feral wolf, which is equal parts good and bad.  It’s good in that she seems to be able to assassinate whomever she wants; and it’s bad in that she doesn’t understand the importance of playing the game.  Arya wants to storm ahead on her path of revenge, and damnation to any who try to stop her.  So, she is an asset, as long as she learns how to control her emotions/listen to other people.

Bran is a little confusing, and that is only because of all the fan theories surrounding him.  Some people say that he is actually the Night King, so, anything we do say about him, is speculation.  He is the Three-Eyed Raven, meaning that he has the gift of sight.  His gift certainly came in handy when dealing with Baelish, but what will Bran do now to ensure his cousin’s victory in the war to come?  And again, people are hypothesizing about Bran being the Night King.  I am not saying anything with regards to those theories.  It would be difficult to explain how Bran is the Night King, while at the same time warning everybody about it.  Eh.  Mind games can only go so far.

With Jon, we see the biggest step of all being taken.  He is the King in the North, and now, a sworn banner to Daenerys Targaryen; while at the same time, being Aegon Targaryen, the heir to the Iron Throne.  And the beautiful thing about it is: he won’t want it!  The moment Bran and Sam tell him the news and show him the paper, he will deny his august right in favor of Daenerys.  This will try everyone once the word gets out.  Sansa will want him to remain in the North instead of going South to rule because she more than likely feels that he is on her side whatever happens.  Arya will want him to go South, if only so that she can go with him to kill Cersei.  Bran will play Devil’s Advocate and say the pros and cons of both sides.  Daenerys will not like Jon’s claim to the throne at first.  Unless/until she suggests they wed to stop any fuss.  Tyrion will be against it (because he likes her himself), and many others will point out the familial ties.  Jon will more than likely say no (despite having already slept with her) because of it, but Daenerys will not let it stop her.  That will be one of many conundrums the next and final season.

And then, we see the redemption of Jaime Lannister.  He started out as the quintessential *sshole, but he transformed.  He learned humility when he lost his hand, and learned to have feelings for somebody other than Cersei (in a romantic way) with Brienne.  Of course, Cersei has seen her again in the dragon pits and knows that she now works for the Starks.  She’ll have her cold eyes on her now.   But, at the end of the previous season, Jaime turned his back on Cersei and decided to ride North to help the Dragon Queen and the Starks fight against the Wight Walker Army.  He decided to keep the promise he made and leave his sister, who is now pregnant with his fourth child.  Congratulations, Jaime!  You are a character that has almost come full circle!

Well, there are many GOT theories and thoughts and wishes that fly around, but not all of them (or any, depending on the writers) will come to fruition.  We shall see in the eighth and final season many things that will make us cry, laugh, cheer, and gaze in awe.  I hope that we will not be disappointed.

And on that note, it’s been real!