‘Game of Thrones’ Mini-Recap: Rise of the Firestarter
UPDATE: Read Price Peterson’s full recap HERE.
Warning: This mini-recap for the “Book of the Stranger” episode of Game of Thrones contains spoilers.
Sometimes the best way to prove a point is to light everyone in the room on fire, and it’s a point even better made when you yourself emerge naked from the flames unscathed. In the famous final scene of Season 1, Daenerys proved to the Dothraki that she was both flame-retardant and ready to lead, and this week she was like, “Why change what works?” So, “Book of the Stranger” ended with an almost identical scene! But, in this case, she managed to massacre all the preexisting Dothraki leadership before asserting herself as their new leader. Sometimes having dragon DNA really pays off.
Probably the second most amazing event of “Book of the Stranger” was Sansa’s long-awaited reunion with her brother Jon Snow. Though it was nothing less than weird to see Sansa smiling, the reunion was joyous and satisfying. It also led to the wonderful scenario of Brienne and Melisandre having to awkwardly bond over the fact that each had murdered the other’s fave Baratheon. But ultimately this Stark reunion at Castle Black had at least one important payoff: Jon and Sansa are now dead-set on freeing Rickon from Ramsay Bolton (and murdering Ramsay for good measure). Which: YES, PLEASE. It can’t be a Season 6 episode without Ramsay doing something truly reprehensible, and this week it was murdering Osha! (Which, aw, poor Osha. She was great.)
Related: ‘Game of Thrones’: A New ‘Winds of Winter’ Chapter Reveals Who (and What) Is Missing
Calls for overthrow weren’t limited to Winterfell; it would appear the Lannisters had officially had it with the Sparrows, and Cersei initiated a team-up between her family and the Tyrells to finally rid the city of these religious fanatics. Although this was a major no-duh moment for all of them, the pleasure of seeing Cersei working alongside Lady Olenna cannot be denied. Now that is a team-up. And it comes not a moment too soon, as Margaery and Loras are both looking pretty depressed and grubby in their jail cells these days.
That flaming finale aside, “Book of the Stranger” was heavy on scheming as characters continue to consolidate power and strike deals with allies. But the episode was yet another riveting one for an increasingly amazing season.
Check back soon for our full photo recap!
Game of Thrones airs Sundays at 9 p.m. on HBO.
(Photos: HBO)
