Needle. Evil. Reveal.

Game of Thrones

Season 1

Episode 2

The Kingsroad

Synopsis:

Tyrion Lannister wakes up filthy and hungover in the Starks' dog kennel with his nephew Prince Joffrey Lannister standing outside mocking him. Tyrion orders Joffrey to offer his sympathies to his hosts following Bran's fall. Joffrey laughs at the idea and Tyrion slaps him, hard, several times. A speechless Joffrey rushes away.

Tyrion joins Jaime and Cersei for breakfast and tells them that he has plans to ride for the Wall. And then informs them that the maester says that Bran will live. Cersei seems concerned but Jaime rather miffed saying that he'd prefer a good clean death, rather than living as a crippled grotesque. "Speaking for the grotesques," Tyrion replies, "I'd have to disagree ... I hope the boy does wake. I'd be very interested to hear what he has to say."

Catelyn Stark keeps a protective vigil over her unconscious son. Cersei Lannister visits and tells the story of her first born son, a child lost to fever. Cersei promises to pray to the Mother for Catelyn, who unknowingly thanks the woman partly responsible for his current state.

Jon Snow is preparing to leave for the Wall when he is approached by Jaime Lannister at the forge. Jaime shakes Jon's hand and sneers while thanking him for protecting the realm against "white walkers and whatnot." Jon ignores the obvious insult and visits Arya Stark in her chambers where she is packing to leave for Kings Landing. Jon gives Arya a slender sword which she names “Needle.” He hugs his half-sister and gives her a simple piece of advice on using the sword wisely: "Stick them with the pointy end."

Jon then visits Bran in his bedchamber to say farewell to his half-brother, who may never wake up, as Catelyn openly glares at him. Ned walks in just in time to hear his wife order Jon to leave. Catelyn tells her husband that she can't bear to stay behind while he rides south again, like he did in the war. But Ned knows there's no alternative. "You can," he tells her. "You must."

Ned and Jon leave Winterfell with the king's riders and it soon becomes time for them to part ways. Jon asks if his Mother is still alive and Ned tells him, “Next time we see each other, we'll talk about your mother. I promise." That said, Ned turns and rides south with the king while Jon follows Benjen and Tyrion toward the Wall.

On the trip north, Jon meets some other Night's Watch recruits and learns that the majority of members of the brotherhood turn out to be rapers and murderers who've chosen the Wall over the gallows. Amused but sympathetic, Tyrion asks Jon if he really believes that the Watch protects the realm from "grumpkins and snarks" that live beyond the Wall. Jon Snow no longer has an answer for him.

Robb Stark and Maester Luwin visit Catelyn in Bran's room, pressing her to attend to some household business but she refuses to leave Bran's side. Robb begs his mother to leave Bran's side, but before they can finish talking, he notices a fire burning outside and rushes off to see what the trouble is. A moment later, a hooded man appears with a dagger to kill Bran. Cat fends him off, grabbing the weapon's naked blade with her unprotected fingers, but it's Bran's wolf Summer who saves them both, appearing from nowhere to leap on the assassin and tear open his throat.

After her wounds are treated and dressed, Catelyn meets with Ser Rodrik Cassel, Theon Greyjoy, Maester Luwin and Robb in Winterfell's Godswood to discuss the attempt on her life. The expensive dragonbone dagger used in the attack, along with a golden hair she's found while investigating in the tower Bran fell from, leads her to believe the Lannisters are involved. She and Rodrik decide to ride south to King's Landing to warn Ned.

Daenerys and her new Dothraki tribe are riding east across the plains of Essos, which takes a physical toll on her that she's unaccustomed to. Dehydrated and saddle-sore, Daenerys is led off and tended by her handmaidens. Once camp is set, Khal Drogo comes to Dany's tent and takes her roughly from behind.

Later, her handmaidens tend to all the small wounds she's collected while riding and tell her the various legends they've heard of dragons. Doreah, a Lysene woman, worked in the pleasure houses there. Dany asks Doreah to teach her how to make Drogo "happy," so Doreah shows her how to take control of a man. "If the khal wanted the Dothraki way," the Lysene tells her, "then why did he marry you?"

Later, when Drogo approaches her in his usual rough way, Daenerys climbs on top of him. Though he protests at first, after a few moments they find themselves making a connection and make love intimately for the first time.

Stopping for a meal along the road, Robert and Ned reminisce over their younger days and the battles and women who filled them. Robert tells Ned that he's received word that Daenerys Targaryen has wed a Dothraki horselord. Ned insists she's no threat in Essos, but Robert reminds him that Lyanna and Brandon Stark both died because of the old royal family. "I'll kill every Targaryen I get my hands on," he tells Ned.

Sansa enjoys her journey to the capital, especially one afternoon when Prince Joffrey invites her to take a walk along the Trident River. They come across Arya and Mycah, the son of a butcher, practising sword-fighting with sticks. Joffrey pulls his own sword, made of steel and holds it to the boy's cheek, taunting him. When Joffrey draws blood, Arya smacks him with her stick. The prince comes after her, swinging savagely with his sword as she dodges. Her wolf Nymeria jumps in to protect her, biting Joffrey's wrist and drawing blood. Arya throws the prince's dropped sword into the river and runs off into the forest, where she orders Nymeria away, knowing that she'll be killed for biting Joffrey.

The Lannisters' men find Arya in the forest that night and bring her to stand before the king and queen. Ned is furious that his daughter is being handled by Cersei's family but does his best to control his tone. Cersei says that Joffrey was an innocent victim, and Arya immediately protests her innocence.

The queen calls Sansa forward, and the girl lies and tells the king that she can't remember what happened. Almost satisfied, Cersei demands that the wolf be killed, but the creature is nowhere to be found. The matter is almost settled when Cersei decides Sansa's wolf, Lady, innocent and docile, should be put to the knife in Nymeria's place. Ned is shocked at the obvious injustice and looks to Robert to overturn the order, but the king walks out. Ned says he'll do the job himself. "The wolf is of the North," he says. "She deserves better than a butcher."

Outside, Ned crosses paths with the Sandor Clegane (the Hound), who is returning with Mycah's corpse slung of his horse's back. "He ran," the Hound says, "... not very fast." Disgusted, Ned finds Lady and strokes the animal's coat for a few moments before unsheathing his dagger and ending her life.

In Bran's chamber back at Winterfell, the moment the wolf dies, the injured boy opens his eyes.

REVIEW:

I would have been perfectly content to watch this and the opening episode as a two hour opening. But then again I would happily sit through all ten episodes if there was ever enough time to be had. Yes. Its that good. Watch this one and you won't be disappointed. At all.