This week I have been feeling a bit empathetic to Arya. Girlfriend, I have been feeling on the verge of death this week too. Okay, I was not stabbed but some kind of terrible bug set up camp these past few days. I finally starting to feel functional again. Hopefully Arya will be feeling herself again next Sunday as well.

Because my body is still disallowing my brain from performing with any long term coherence (thank sickness!), I have decided to step away from my usual method of finding a theme on which to expand and, instead, I will just give a few general thoughts on the latest episode. Therefore this blog is brought to you in three parts.


Part 1: Clegane-bowl(?!?)
As anyone who took the time to watch knows, this episode was heavy on The Hound. Book fans probably are aware that there is much speculation within the fan community that The Hound is also still alive in the book series. The fact that the show never actually showed The Hound die on-screen has caused many fans to believe that he would, in fact, be back. All of this makes me wonder wether the show is buttering up the audience for the long-speculated Clegane-Bowl. The fact that the TV show had The Hound serving - or at least living among - followers of The Seven makes me wonder if the show will use this association to bring The Hound to King's Landing to continue to serve there. If this happens it stands to reason that Cersei will probably request a trial by combat that will pit her champion (the resurrected Mountain) up against the champion of the faith militant (likely, The Hound).


Part 2: Lady Stone-Heart
The Brotherhood Without Banners was also a return presence in this episode. Although they appear to be the force behind the pillaging and massacre of the convent in which The Hound found refuge, I must ponder the purpose of their reemergence. The return of the brotherhood in a season that has been so keen on character returns makes me wonder if the show-runners won't use this opportunity to bring back Lady Stoneheart (a.k.a. Catelyn Stark). My fingers are definitely crossed!


Part 3: Margaery Tyrell
I think that one of the biggest twists this week came in the form of a small hand drawn rose delivered to Grandma Tyrell from her granddaughter Margaery. Although I have not completely figured out what Margaery's end game is, I was greatly suspicious that she was, in fact, not as devout as she was making herself out to be. I am curious how this is going to play out as it pertains to Tommen. Is he aware of Margaery's disingenuousness? The way in which he is interacting with the Faith suggests to me that he is not necessarily aware at all. I am curious if this whole scenario will play into Tommen's death which I feel will probably happen at some point in the next episodes (or early next season).

Hopefully my faculties will be restored before the next episode so that I might be able to offer something of more substance next week.
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Although I released a post last night addressing Game of Thrones season 6, episode 2 (which aired last night), I needed a bit more time to prepare myself to talk in more depth about Jon Snow's resurrection. There was just something about this particular scene that warranted a bit more time, a period with which to understand and connect with it on a deeper level. Perhaps this is exactly the point that the showrunners/director wanted to get across to the viewer by shooting and editing this scene in such a particular way; that there is something excruciatingly satisfying in the delayed arrival of a long anticipated moment.

I think that this particular scene was expertly shot and edited. Clearly Jon Snow's death was a symbol to many characters of the loss of something significant (even though that "something significant" would likely be defined differently depending on the character or fan you ask). For some it was the end of hope against the whitewalkers, for some the end of order on the wall, and for some, perhaps, the virtual end of the honorable House Stark. For all of the meaning it may have had, I believe there was a general consensus among the fan community that death would not be the end for Jon Snow. I, for one, have been waiting with bated breath and an unhealthy feeling of anxiety throughout both of the last two episodes just waiting to know how and when Jon would be resurrected.


In the age of the internet where binge watching makes no one wait and the answers to just about any questions are hiding behind our smartphone screen, the writers and director of this episode certainly made the fans "sweat it." This episode certainly brought it back to the fine art of delayed gratification, where every passing second made the reveal just that much more sweet. I am not going to lie, with every departure from that room and every millisecond that passed between Melisandre's completion of her sorcery and the moment Jon's eyes finally gaped open, I found myself yearning more and more for the satisfaction of Kit Harrington delivering any expression or sign of life in exponentially frantic fashion. It was almost as though I was playing a game of "are we there yet?" except my questions were, "Is he alive? Is this happening? Is he alive? Is this HAPPENING?...."


The directors and show-runners were clearly and easily playing with the emotions of a generation of viewers that are not  obliged to wait for anything. Until the last second I was wholly convinced that Melisandre was not the answer to the return of Jon Snow, that he would cease to be resurrected (at least for another episode), and I would have to rest my hopes on another resurrection possibility. But I must say the delayed gratification of this moment made the entirety of the event that much more sweet. I am sure that my poor neighbors could hear my exultation through the walls when it finally happened.


Perhaps after so much anticipation for Jon Snow's return, we the audience have been served a sweet lesson in the art of waiting. Although I do not anticipate ending my unhealthy binge-watching habit anytime soon, I am certainly convinced that stepping back from the constant onslaught of immediate satisfaction from time to time, taking a moment to enjoy the moment, and allowing a bit more time to build toward a more satisfying end might, in fact, be worth every excruciating second of the wait.

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