White Watchers GoT Recap: 6.6 “Blood of my Blood”

This is a recap of Game of Thrones season 6 episode 6 “Blood of my Blood.”

********Show and Book SPOILERS below**********

This episode started with Meera and Bran in the woods, still running from the White Walkers. Clearly they have at least momentarily passed Jon and Sansa as most important, because not only did the episode not start at Castle Black for the first time this season, but Jon and Sansa and those storyline-adjacent to them were not even in this episode.

But anyway, Bran (who I guess is now the Three-eyed Raven) had some more trance-flashbacks while Meera pulled him in his sleigh until she couldn’t anymore and the wights caught up. Luckily for Breera(?), Cold Hands saved their butts and faces with his twirling fire balls. And also, he’s Benjen Stark (this is particularly surprising for book readers because it’s divergent from the books, where Cold Hands is ancient but…cool).

Arya decided not to kill Lady Crane after all, and now that faceless girl who hates her is going to kill Arya instead. (Sidenote: I don’t think that girl is a very good faceless person if she has such a strong desire to kill Arya. Since they’ve been trying to stamp personal feelings out of Arya since she got there, doesn’t it seem like they’re supposed to be a little more objective about feelings, and particularly about death?) Arya reunited with Needle, though, so watch out faceless girl.

There was absolutely nothing from any of the other Starks, from Tyrion and Varys in Mereen, or from Pyke.

But we did get to see Sam this episode. Sam took Gilly to Horn Hill, where his father acted like a piece of crap, which caused Sam to decide to steal his Valyrian steel blade (Heart’s Bane) and take Gilly elsewhere so that they can stay together. (So is he going to go to Oldtown at all? Because the maesters don’t accept women…)

Down in King Lannister Land, things are changing. It looks like Margaery manipulated the High Sparrow and King Tommen into making an alliance to save her from a walk of shame. But the Lannisters and the Tyrells are not pleased with how much power this gives the High Sparrow. They would rather have been able to just kill him. To add insult to injury, Tommen banished Jaime to the Riverlands (THE RIVERLANDS. Book-readers, I’m talking to you).

Speaking of, we caught a brief glimpse of the Riverlands this episode, where Walder Frey has recently lost Riverrun to the Blackfish and continues losing control. He still holds Edmund Tully captive though, and he’s not afraid to use him.

And then there is Daenerys, who gave a speech to her khalasar atop her massive dragon. So….

Conclusion:

It was a fine episode. A bit of a dip after last week’s, but I wouldn’t call it bad. It brought in a couple threads from the books (I totally called Cold Hands) as well as a few unexpected twists (what happened at Baelor’s Sept).

I personally am really excited that it looks like we actually will be getting the Riverlands storyline, since we thought we weren’t going to get it after all that Jaime-in-Dorne crap they fed us last season. I’m also excited for Cersei’s trial by combat and Arya’s return home (knock on wood).

This episode really felt mostly like filler and set-up to me. The coolest part was definitely Cold Hands, and the rest was just not as interesting. And the ending was probably one of the least interesting of the season so far, at least for me. It didn’t change anything. Plus, I just find myself struggling to be excited about Dany because she’s just making me so nervous.

But honestly, I did like the episode. So.

I give it 3 out of 5 kings.

At least none of the direwolves died.

White Watchers GoT Recap: 6.5 “The Door”

This is a recap of Game of Thrones season 6 episode 5 “The Door.”

********Show and Book SPOILERS below**********

This episode opened with Sansa receiving a letter while sewing. It was from Baelish, who she then met in Moles Town. When he offered her his army, she confronted him about his part in her marriage to Ramsay. She refused to take his help, but she did latch onto his suggestion that she seek out her uncle the Blackfish in Riverrun. It also looks like she may have taken to heart his insinuation that she can’t fully trust her half-brother, because she chose not to tell him that she met with Baelish. Incidentally, a fair amount of time must have passed between this episode and the last if Baelish had time to travel and Sansa had time to sew cloaks for Jon and herself. I hope Rickon is still okay, as that means he’s now been with Ramsay for a substantial amount of time.

It looks like Brienne is headed to the Riverlands (and towards her book storyline?) to recruit the Tullys to the cause. Jon plans to find some Northmen to follow him, starting with smaller houses and building from there.

Arya, still in Braavos, was tasked with killing an actress, Lady Crane. She seemed a touch reluctant, but she agreed to give the gift anyway. While spying on her target, she watched a play about the Starks and the Lannisters in a call-back to the first time she saw her father beheaded in season one.

Meanwhile on Pyke, Euron won the bid for the Salt throne after promising to marry the Mother of Dragons. He also admitted that he killed Balon. Theon did a good thing and kept his promise to support his sister, which means he’s stuck with her now. Euron now wants to kill them, and the two escaped with their supporters and a fair number of Euron’s ships.

In Mereen, Tyrion met with a High Priestess of the Lord of Light who believes that Dany is The One Who Was Promised. The priestess plans to burn the unbelievers, apparently. She was also was very rude to Varys (whose past she somehow knows) when he expressed doubts against her. It looks like Tyrion is going to use her to inspire obedience in the Queen’s followers.

Dany, now the khal of a mega-khalasar, commanded Jorah to find the cure to his grayscale. At least he knows she cares.

And then there’s Bran. Bran found out that the Children created the White Walkers, but before he could ask about the children about them he went and got himself caught in a dream by the Night’s King. And then they came for him, destroying the Three-Eyed Raven, and the ancient tree, and the children, and his wolf Summer, and Hodor. Meera (who killed a White Walker, good job Meera) and Bran escaped. But the major event of the episode was the revelation of how Hodor came to be. Bran, it seems, reached out to him in the present/past to affect him in the present/future, making him hold the door of the cave so that they could escape and permanently muddling his mind. And so Hodor was born. And it was heartbreaking.

Conclusion:

There were some really engrossing moments this episode: The emotional development for Sansa and Daenerys was more than welcome; the kingsmoot was sufficiently tense even though I knew the outcome from the books; and the ending was both frightening and incredibly sad. We also got some major lore reveal when we found out that the Children created the White Walkers. So all in all, it was a great episode with an even greater impact.

I give it 4.5 out of 5 kings.

Also, #savethedirewolves2k16.

Baby’s Rear View Recap: 11.22 “We Happy Few”

This post is about Supernatural season 11 episode 22 “We Happy Few” written by Robert Berens and directed by John Badham.

*****Spoilers below*****

“The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Team Amara. Go, Amara.”

This episode opens on Casifer passive aggressively throwing shade at his father in the bunker. Sam and Dean return with the groceries to witness their bickering. When Dean reminds Lucifer that they saved him, Lucifer tries to retaliate with a snap of his fingers. But Chuck has done something to disable his powers against the Winchesters.

“This is like the worst episode of ‘Full House’ ever.”

Yes it is; Lucifer has shut himself in Sam’s room (SAM’S) and refuses to come out until such time as Chuck apologizes.

“Together, we can make Hell great again.”

Meanwhile Crowley is in hell, trying to seize the throne back from Lucifer in his absence. But the demons are uninterested in a coupe, especially in favor of Crowley.

“Okay, well, I don't know if you noticed, but a little time is not something we have. The end is freakin' nigh.”

The Winchesters beg Chuck to talk to Lucifer, but he’s too busy making them pancakes. Chuck refuses to say he’s sorry because he just isn’t.

“Not just the end of the world, Heaven and Hell -- the end of magic.”

Rowena has arrived in Louisiana to seek out an old frenemy named Clea to be her second in a spell to take them back in time. Clea, who has been seeing death in the tarot cards, agrees.

“We all know that you are God, um, but maybe could you be a-a little less Lordly?”

“But I am -- I-I'm the Lord.”

Sam and Dean have managed to get Chuck and Lucifer in the same room again, and they’re back to arguing. Lucifer lambasts Chuck for betraying him and Chuck explains that he did what he had to. “The mark didn’t change you,” he explains, “it just made you more of what you already were.” Finally (after Dean tells him he doesn’t have to mean it) Chuck apologizes (sort of), saying he gave Lucifer the mark because he loved him the most and thought he could handle it, and that he was devastated when Lucifer couldn’t. The two agree to work together, and Chuck explains that he plans to put Amara back in the cage. Apparently Amara can’t die because it would disturb the “balance.”

“So what do you need to win?”

“What do you got?”

Dean suggests they recruit Crowley and goes to collect him. Casifer goes back to heaven and Lucifer and Castiel both give the angels a talking to. Sam heads after Rowena—luckily Clea is still there and convinces Rowena to join up. The others agree as well and the God Squad is ready to go. Only one thing, Dean insists they should kill Amara instead of trapping her. Sam thinks they should just trust in God, and Dean finally decides to just go with it. Meanwhile, Amara has found Donatello and eaten his soul, which somehow gives her the knowledge of where the bunker is.

“All right, no flirting, and no fighting.”

As Amara goes through Dean’s stuff in the bunker (including pictures of his mother), the leaders of the God Squad are in some abandoned building getting ready to fight. Mostly with each other. Chuck gives a pep talk while everyone else argues about what’s about to happen. It turns out that Sam has agreed with Chuck to take on the mark. Dean doesn’t want to let him, but he finally agrees to honor Sam’s choice.

“Welcome to the end.”

Rowena pretends to make a deal with Amara and betray God, but Amara knows it’s a trap. She shows up anyway, and Rowena hits her with the combined power of five witches. She retaliates, killing all the witches but Rowena. The demons (somehow) hit her in their smoke forms, and Crowley joins them. Then the angels smite her. She’s hurting but she makes it inside to confront Chuck. And then Casifer stabs her in the back with the spear of destiny. Chuck stops Lucifer from continuing so he can talk with Amara. She accuses him of locking her away and creating other beings out of selfishness, so that he could seem great. He explains that there was more, a need for creation that just was, like them. Amara is ready to die, but she refuses to go back into the cage. When Chuck starts to transfer the mark to Sam, Amara begins to fight back. She attacks God, Casifer, and Dean, and takes the mark back from Sam. Lucifer has been expelled from Cas’s body and God is dying, although apparently slowly. Amara wants him to watch his creations die before he fades away into nothing. After sharing this with them, she disappears. Meanwhile Rowena wakes up to a bright light outside.

Questions:

Do God and Lucifer need to eat? I’m pretty sure the answer is no based on what we know about angels, but Chuck obviously likes to eat anyway.

Why is Sam not more upset about LUCIFER being in HIS ROOM? THIS. IS. NOT. FUNNY. Even though Lucifer doesn’t have his powers, so much of his torture was mental and emotional abuse anyway, so shouldn’t Sam be terrified no matter what? And especially before he knows Lucifer’s powers are gone. I guess he just has THAT MUCH trust in God? Just… couldn’t they have shown Sam at least… talking about it?

Was that apology really enough for Lucifer? Did he really believe Chuck? Is Chuck telling the truth?

Why can’t Chuck bring back the other archangels? Can’t he stop time or something to get them so that he can face Amara with an actual shot at beating her?

IS CASTIEL’S VESSEL BURNING UP? In Hell’s Angel, he seemed fine. And he isn’t showing any signs of outward distress like Nick did. So was he lying to the angels or is he really in much worse shape than we thought?

So… is Donatello dead or just soulless? Why didn’t the Winchesters keep him in the bunker? If they could use him to find Amara, shouldn’t they have realized that she could use him to find them? And that that put him in danger? What happened to saving people? I mean, if God and Lucifer are staying in the bunker, what’s one more? Especially since they needed all the help they could get.

Also, Donatello says he’s been a prophet for three days, which doesn’t seem to make sense in the timeline. Right? What exactly is the timeline for the last three episodes?

And Amara says, “Kansas” after eating Donatello’s soul. How did she not know they were in Kansas? Shouldn’t she be able to at least track them to that vicinity? Charlie tracked them to within 20 miles of the bunker. And Amara has sort of been to the bunker—she actually sent visions to Dean IN the bunker. Did Dean meet her outside Kansas during Casifer’s rescue? How did he do that if Sam had the car? How long did that take him? WHAT IS THE TIMELINE?

Also, if Dean is so special, why does Amara want to eat his soul? That’s just… exactly what she does to everyone else? This has been bugging me for a while.

When did they decide to have the witches go first? I thought it was the demons. I guess the writers were just trying to trick us into thinking Rowena was betraying God? Only I never thought that? Plus, witches should have gone last, because then she may not have had the energy to kill them all. (I’m assuming they’re dead, but are they?) I liked Clea. Also, why did they die when Rowena didn’t? They should have been safer than her, being further away and one step removed and all. Did Rowena die, and just bring herself back again? I don’t think so, because the other witches had their eyes burned out and Rowena didn’t.

Where did Crowley end up? The last thing we saw was him smoking out of his meatsuit to sucker punch Amara.  And then we didn’t see him smoke back in… He doesn’t seem to be there when Rowena wakes up, so where is he?

Is there someone/something bigger than God and Amara out there? It seems like that was what Chuck’s monologue was hinting at…

Is Lucifer dead? Sent away?

Amara was able to hurt Dean. Does that mean their bond is broken? Can Dean hurt her now too?

Conclusions:

I have to say, I really honestly hated this episode the first time I watched it. I still think most of it was poorly formed, but there are a few things I appreciate about it too.

I liked some of the things that Lucifer brought up in arguing with Chuck, such as Chuck’s controlling nature, entitlement, selfishness. But, I found their scenes more uncomfortable than anything. I just didn’t feel like they fit for some reason. I couldn’t figure out if they were meant to be funny, but I definitely thought that they fell flat.

The recruiting part was funny, but it took up time that the rest of the episode needed. It was also an odd feeling for such a tense episode. I felt it relied on the gimmick of its Ocean’s 11-ness instead of bringing its own humor and although I liked it, it just wasn’t worth the time.

Over all I just felt like the tone of this episode was all over the place. And it was just SO rushed. I think it’s fair to say that the fans would prefer to see big character moments over plot, humor, and reveals, and I think this episode tried and failed to do the last three while basically ignoring the first. Why didn’t we get to see Sam have an important conversation with Chuck? Why was he smashed up against his abuser repeatedly, made to agree with him, without his emotions being addressed? Why did Dean get to have his emotional moment talking about AMARA and Sam didn’t get anything?

And I just have to say, what in the world was that part where Dean was saying they should kill Amara? Like what was the point if Chuck already said that would destroy the universe? When Lucifer said “that got weird” at the end of that scene I like to think he was representing all of us. What was this discussion about? I didn’t make sense, didn’t further the plot, took up really important time, and didn’t even give us anything new. The only good part of it was the end where Sam showed the extent of his trust in God. But like, we could have just had that part instead of having the first part at all?

But anyway. I liked the end much more than the beginning. I liked having lots of recurring characters together for once, although I’m not sure they got the most out of the situation. On the one hand, I loved Rowena coming face to face with Lucifer after he killed her. She is QUEEN. On the other hand, I hated the rest of their interactions. Lucifer arguing with Crowley and Rowena about whose army was more powerful was a waste of time, IMO. Again, one of those things that I think was supposed to be funny but wasn’t, and then didn’t even lead anywhere.

I did like Amara and Chuck’s conversation. Again, it felt rushed, but it also brought up a lot of things that helped us understand both of them. It was also the only time in the episode that something actually happened.

I was pretty mad at the ending, but in a good way, I think. I’m desperate to see what will happen in the finale. Desperately afraid, that is.