Game of Thrones, S07E04:
“The Spoils of War”

There’s Nothing More Satisfying On TV Than Game of Thrones Finally Getting Its Mojo Back

 

Out of respect for the fact that there are too many fucking characters in this show, all of whom are to be found spread across every corner of Westeros, these reviews will be divvied up into sections. Each section will be titled after the main character(s) in each area, focussing solely on the developments therein.

 

Also, if you’re reading this and get upset at the spoilers within, I have a friend here who’d be happy to piledrive you into a lake.

 

Now that’s more fuckin’ like it! At the exact midway point of this truncated season, Game of Thrones breaks out of its terminal stasis to deliver its best episode in years, with fiery reunions aplenty and a climactic battle to rival that of “Hardhome”.

Rating: 9.5/11

 

Jaime, Bronn, Daenerys & Tyrion – On the Roseroad

There are much fewer locations this week than over the past three episodes, but the narrower focus only sharpens Game of Thrones‘ resolve. The first scene we’re treated to is Jaime and Bronn (who’s finally speaking!) on the Roseroad leading away from Highgarden. When Jaime pays Bronn for his services the two begin to bicker over, yep, the spoils of war, with Bronn angling for a castle.

To start with, it’s great to have a scene with these two characters again. For all its flaws, the best thing about the Dorne storyline in Season 5 was that it gave us an extended plot with Jaime and Bronn, who had developed a prickly sort of camaraderie in Tyrion’s absence. Of course, the whole point of their chat this week is for Bronn to remind us that he’s a sellsword, a valuable man to have on the battlefield but not really all that chuffed with friendship. Then again, this is the same man who stepped in to defend Tyrion when no one else would in a Trial by Combat at The Eyrie, all the way back in Season 1. So there’s an implied dual nature to Bronn, a man who is spurred on by material rewards but can’t help letting his latent sense of honour emerge every now and then.

Knowing this about the character makes the payoff at the end of this episode all the more satisfying but, before we get to that, let’s talk about war and its spoils. There’s the obvious meaning, being the possessions and intrinsic power gained from defeating an enemy. But think of that word, “spoil”. It literally means “to diminish or destroy the value or quality of” something. That sure seems a more appropriate reading given Dany’s actions with Drogon this episode. What’s more, the show knows how far its Khaleesi has strayed from her noble path but – in a rare showing of restraint – it doesn’t use too big of a signpost to point this out.

See, from her demeanour Dany seems to think she has found a reasonable middle ground between attacking King’s Landing and doing nothing: setting the Lannister army on fucking fire. But, as the show has quietly been reminding us of over this season, a lot of Lannister soldiers are just regular dudes. Much like the soft-spoken, Ed Sheeran-accompanying soldiers Arya came across in the first episode, we’re given a small glimpse into the sort of people that might be populating Jaime’s troops here. Dickon – son of Randyll Tarly and brother to Sam – expresses regret at having killed so many Tyrell’s last episode. Meanwhile, Jaime cautions Randyll against flogging any stragglers until they’ve had ample warning, showing a respect for his men that he may not have had a few seasons back.

Then the battle begins and, goddamn, is it worth the wait. I have no qualms in saying this is the best mass fight sequence – in terms of staging and impact – since Season 5’s “Hardhome”. This is because the episode has done the heavy lifting to get us to that sweet spot of maddening ambiguity in the midst of such a frantic squabble. We’re reminded that Jaime is, essentially, a decent man now, that Bronn is ruggedly likable and competent and that none of the men in the Lannister army really deserve to be burned alive. Then again, the thundering sound of an approaching Dothraki horde and sky-splitting screech of Drogon should give everyone watching an on-the-spot nerdgasm of the highest proportions.

It’s everything that I’ve been missing about the show, a stirring setpiece that hasn’t really been done successfully since Season 2’s “Blackwater”, when the noble Onion Knight Ser Davos Seaworth rode into battle against Tyrion Lannister’s forces. We had characters on both sides that we cared about, which made the spectacle of the battle fraught with more tension than it otherwise might have been.

Additionally, we’re not spared the grisly details of Dany’s onslaught, lest we forget that the cost of war always precedes the spoils. The grueling slow-mo shots of men set aflame by Drogon – seen through the eyes of both Jaime and his brother Tyrion, watching from afar – remind us that there’s a perversity to our enjoyment of this. Yes, the show has been promising us a balls-out action sequence with dragons for years now, but it’s also laid the groundwork for us to be unsettled by how naturally this sort of mayhem comes to Dany.

Of course, when all is said and done, it’s the characters specific to the battle that remain important, not the grand fiery epic-ness of it all. Bronn narrowly avoiding death at the hands of a Dothraki warrior before turning Qyburn’s ballista on Drogon is one thing. But the payoff, as it were, is Bronn risking his own life to save Jaime from the crisper, as Tyrion looks on helplessly.

This is why people love this show, and why I’m firmly back on board with it after all my weeks of bitching. Well played, Game of Thrones. Well fuckin’ played.

 

The Stark Children, Brienne & Littlefinger – Winterfell

I don’t want to talk about Littlefinger anymore. And, what’s more, the show seems to be trying to find a way around having to deal with him for much longer. Suffice it to say, when the three people you’ve tried hardest to convince that you are on the level can see through your bullshit (and they’re all pretty much children), you’re no longer Westeros’ most able tactician. You’re a fucking nonce.

Anyway, Bran receives the Valyrian steel dagger that someone tried to kill him with back in the show’s second episode. Arya finally(!) arrives back in Winterfell, is accosted by two hilariously inept guards (isn’t that always the way?) and hugs Sansa in the Stark crypt in front of an ungainly statue of their father. “Should’ve been carved by someone who knew his face” says Arya of the Ned Stark sculpture, before Sansa reminds her that everyone who knew their father is now dead. “We’re not”, replies Arya. A few moments later, they embrace again and each seems to mean it a little more.

It’s not right to say that you have to allow the show these sorts of moments, because that implies we don’t want to see them. Much like Tyrion and Jon’s discussion of the long road each had taken at their reunion last episode, these are words that need to be said in instances the show has earned. I know it’s earnt them because I was hugging myself like a giddy dickhead for the entire scene between Arya and Sansa, and the feeling didn’t wear off until Bran made an unwelcome appearance at that goddamn face tree.

After such an emotional scene between the Stark sisters, it’s hard not to be underwhelmed by Bran’s… well, Bran-ness when seeing Arya again. Then again, I appreciate the show’s need to operate in this manner: Bran had to show up at Winterfell first so Anya’s return would have more impact, much as his subsequent moments with his sisters acts as a counterpoint to their obviously deeper bond.

Also this week at Winterfell, we get one of the show’s best one-on-on scuffles in the form of Aryra and Brienne’s training sequence. The assurance and smooth action on display here is the earliest indication that first-time GoT director Matt Shakman has a firm grip on what makes this show pop. We’ve had a handful of fights already this season, but as they’ve either concerned secondary characters or looked as though they’ve been filmed through the tunnel of a badger’s arsehole, none of them have been all that vital. But, much like this episode’s climactic battle, the stakes here are immediately raised by involving people we give a shit about and keeping the action concise.

Even with Littlefinger and Sad Boy Bran still hanging about, it’s encouraging how marked an improvement we can see this episode just from bringing Arya back home.

 

Daenerys, Jon, Tyrion, Reek et al. – Dragonstone

The action at Dragonstone this week is the most muted part of the episode, but there’s still the sense of things picking up speed to accommodate the next three episodes that will see out the season.

Jon takes Dany spelunking, which should have set everybody’s hearts a-racing. Turns out, he just wants to give her a history lesson and not his sweet, Snow-y dick. Still, it seems to have been the right call, as Dany appears that much closer to joining forces with him after she sees the Children of the Forest’s ancient White Walker doodles.

Meanwhile, when news of the assault on Highgarden reaches her, Dany lashes out at Tyrion and his shitty tactics. It’s strangely satisfying because, as she says, “You’re strategy has lost us Dorne, the Iron Islands and the Reach!” He’s a little more engaging now than he’s been in a year, but Tyrion definitely deserves to get called out for sucking at his job. Maybe he should take up drinking again. Jus’ sayin’.

And, though less significant than Arya and Sansa’s reunion, there’s something to be said for the unpredictability that tinges the first few moments on the beach between Reek and Jon. Though their reunion comes to something of an unshaky resolution, it’s yet another example of this episode finding more ways to keep us on our toes across 50 minutes than Game of Thrones has managed in its entirety for the last two years.

Last week, I confessed to being cautiously optimistic about the show once more. I’m now prepared to say that, should the next three episodes continue the trend set by “The Spoils of War”, then we are in for one hell of a comeback. Don’t fuck this up, GoT.

 

Quotes, Random Thoughts & Housemate Contributions

 

• Housemate Contribution #1 – [During any given scene] “When are those two gonna fuck? Well, not those two… although I guess they totally could!”

 

• Also, there’s the briefest of brief scenes with Cersei at King’s Landing, as she impresses the head of the Iron Bank once more by repaying her family’s sizable debts and then mentions that she is soon to be in leagues with the Golden Company. Good stuff, Cers. Keep it up, I am legitimately rooting for you.

 

• “Chaos is a ladder…” What the fuck are you even saying anymore, Brandon? [Note: After publishing, a little research informed me that this is something Littlefinger said to Varys back in Season 3. [Deep sigh] Fine.]

 

• So, are we just gonna ignore the fact that Sansa’s two majestically incompetent gatekeepers are basically stand-ins for Steve Bannon and Jared Kushner?

 

• “Bran has… visions…” Sansa sounds like a sister having to explain her brother’s weird behaviour at dinner, knowing full well that he’s just getting high all the time.

 

• Bran pulling out a dagger mid-conversation apropos of nothing and the other two acting like it’s a totally normal thing to do was the only unintentional laugh of the episode for me. Fuck, that kid’s weird.

 

• Podrick continues to be the best, stroking Brienne’s ego but then barely containing a smirk when Arya proves to be her equal in combat.

 

• Housemate Contribution #2 – [When Jon shows Daenerys inside the cave] “What’s the chance that Jon’s just gone in there and drawn these like five minutes earlier? Like, ‘Oooh, look Daenerys, cave paintings!‘”

 

• “I saw the Night King, Davos. I looked into his eyes!” Jesus Christ, Jon, we get it, you and the Night King have got a thing goin’ on. Seriously, dude, you’ve gotta stop bringing this up.

 

• Is it the soldier correcting Jaime by saying his name is “Dickon” that’s funny, or Bronn’s hearty guffaw afterwards? Either way, that’s a choice bit of levity before the grisly warfare.

 

• Can’t overstate this enough (though I’m gonna give it my best shot): Matt Shakman’s direction of that final battle was fucking masterful. Just look at the way he frames Jaime from Tyrion’s point of view, then shows us a dolly shot of Tyrion to emphasis him watching Jaime’s attempted attack on Dany: “You idiot. You fucking idiot!” Fuck me, this is how you build tension!

 

• Just as a stray aside: I’ll be the first to admit that – while I think it was a colossal cockup of a miscalculation – Sheeran’s cameo in the first episode of this season has been blown out of proportion. I don’t like the guy, so I’m biased to think that whatever flak he and the show copped was deserved, but we can all just leave it alone now, right? Having said that, his appearance as an innocent Lannister soldier is the one thing that undoes my theory about humanising the army, because I would’ve killed to see Sheeran engulfed in flames this episode. Seriously, where’s that cameo?!