This is one of those episodes that advances a lot of story arcs, not in some incremental fashion, but in firm, confident steps.  And yet somehow, there was a sense that the writers still managed to spend more time in certain scenes than should have been possible, given how much mattered progressed.  It’s only in reflection, really, that the full amount of progress is realized. 

I’m going to skip right to the end, because it’s the moment that will linger the most in viewers’ minds: the apparent death of Ser Barristan.  In the source material, Ser Barristan was exiled along with Ser Jorah, so his very presence in Meereen represented a deviation for his character’s journey; as such, it’s not all that surprising that his character arc was coming to a close.  In classical fashion, the wise advisor to the young hero(ine) must inevitably fall, if only to force growth.



I love the fact that he went down as a warrior, clearly demonstrating that age didn’t mean a thing when it came to kicking ass and taking names.  He didn’t get ambushed; he purposefully ran towards the danger and very nearly managed to take down those Sons of the Harpy single-handedly.  But numbers are numbers, whether Ser Barristan or Unsullied.  And this also manages to compress a lot of the build-up of the resistance within Meereen into a single attack, thus quickly putting Dany on the defensive.

It’s a great counterpoint to the nastiness emerging in King’s Landing, where the zealotry and mass killings are state-sanctioned.  It’s telling that Cersei doesn’t show up at all when the violence starts and King Tommen is openly disrespected by both the Sparrows and the populace.  She’s more or less getting what she wanted, even if she doesn’t realize how quickly it’s going to turn on her.  If the Sparrows are willing to enforce some very ugly homophobia, then how quickly are they going to deem themselves ready to act against the “crimes against the Gods” that Cersei ostensibly has committed?  The Tyrells might be the Boleyns of Westeros, but Cersei might want to see how many other nobles fared before the Targaryens stripped power away from religious militants!



All of this is happening while Cersei is slowly but surely reducing the Small Council down to Qyburn, and that cannot possibly end well.  Qyburn is already known for defying the maesters by conducting experiments “against the laws of nature”, and one can just imagine how that will play against Cersei once the High Sparrow starts looking into things!







Up at the Wall, Stannis gets some important moments of humanity as he expresses love to his daughter for what might be the first time in years.  It’s a clever enough way to also drop some exposition about the “stone men” in the ruins of Old Valyria, which I have to imagine is more than just name-dropping.  He’s also preparing to rally his forces to attack the Boltons at Winterfell, which is critical to his attempt to rekindle his claim to the Iron Throne.  And he’s on a timetable; if winter snows begin before he reaches Winterfell, it could very well end his bid for the throne right then and there.



Meanwhile, Melisandre has well and truly turned her attentions to Jon Snow, who shows a lot more resolve than most men would do if offered yet another gorgeous and willing ginger.  Jon may “know nothing”, but he certainly has gained enough wisdom to realize that Melisandre’s offer came with strings attached.  One might wonder if Melisandre is still backing Stannis, considering how much she has been eyeing Jon since she arrived at the Wall.







In Winterfell, Littlefinger outlines his motivations to Sansa so openly that I continue to wonder how this guy managed to gain a reputation for being clever.  His backing of Stannis, if true, is also a revelation that goes far beyond his stated motives in the source material to date.  On the other hand, it makes a certain amount of sense; Petyr has been banking on setting up the North for a little while now, and the only contender to the throne in the North right now is Stannis.  If he sees Sansa as the only remaining Stark worthy of Winterfell (and the position of Wardeness), then he’s likely seeing Jon’s presence at the Wall as part of the picture.  And if there is any part of Westeros that should have massive tracts of land in need of a new noble to maintain, it’s the North.  If Petyr sees himself as a potential Small Council member for Stannis, perhaps even a political suitor for Shireen, then this all makes a great deal of sense.  (Especially with his rival Varys backing Dany.)



It’s worth noting, however, that with Sansa logically learning to be more and more like Littlefinger this season, especially if she must survive Ramsey’s attentions, there is a growing sense that Littlefinger is setting himself up for a fall.  This is especially true if he is overplaying his hand by returning to King’s Landing.  Cersei is eliminating enemies with little or no concern for future consequences, so why would she hesitate to execute Littlefinger?  Assuming, of course, that she doesn’t suddenly see a need for someone like Littlefinger to help her get out of trouble, should the Sparrows turn their attentions to her.



There was also the slight side-story told by Petyr regarding Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark.  Taken along with Ser Barristan’s glowing endorsement of Rhaegar while talking with Dany later in the episode, it seems rather telling.  And then there’s the look on Petyr’s face when Sansa accuses Rhaegar of kidnapping and raping Lyanna.  Petyr certainly suspects that it was something very different, which feeds right into the popular theory that Jon Snow is, in fact, the son of Rhaegar and Lyanna.







While a good deal of time was spent covering Jamie and Bronn’s arrival in Dorne, the more important element of that was the introduction of the Sand Snakes: the illegitimate and gorgeous offspring of the Martells, who have been crafted into deadly assassins by Oberyn (well, before his unfortunate demise).  That’s not to say the introduction was particularly well done; it was a lot of exposition and telling rather than showing, but there will be plenty of time to flesh out the Sand Snakes in future episodes.  



Meanwhile, Jorah and Tyrion continue on their journey, which is indeed to Meereen.  That’s hardly a shock, since Jorah wants her regard and affection very badly, and thinks giving her a Lannister to kill is a solid display of penance.  Methinks he underestimates Tyrion and Dany in equal measure, and things are far more likely to go against expectations.  After all, Dany wants to be Queen of Westeros, and if nothing else, Tyrion has a very good reputation as a capable Hand.