The Small Fries

This past Sunday was the game changing finale of HBO’s hit series, Game of Thrones. Over the last few episodes the showrunners have pulled out all the stops, and in “Mother’s Mercy” they kept at it, ending with the biggest jaw dropping moment since the Red Wedding. This, of course, led to many hilarious reaction videos that have taken over the internet these last few days. If you have not watched the season finale of Game of Thrones, I suggest you stop here.

SPOILER ALERT

I don’t even know where to begin to start, because so much happened on Sunday. From Arya going blind to Cersei’s Walk of Atonement to a Julius Caesar moment at the The Wall. We caught up with all of our major characters, save a few, and saw their current storylines reaching some sort of close.

BRAAVOS

Our favorite bad ass Stark girl has been in Braavos serving the Many-Faced God. However, last week we saw a man from her past arrive in the Free Cities. Everyone knew that this was going to change everything for Arya. Ser Meryn Trant was last seen in a brothel abusing young girls. Well, Arya has decided to take matters into her own hands when she murders him after pretending to be one of these girls. Returning to her sanctuary, Arya is taught a lesson since she took a life that was not hers to take. In the end, the last we see of her, she has become blind. I bet she didn’t see that one coming.

WINTERFELL

So much has happened at Winterfell since we last saw it. Stannis, after sacrificing his daughter to the Lord of Light, has decided to march onward to the fortress. Half of his men have deserted, Queen Selyse has killed herself, and Melisandre has left him and rode for Castle Black. Still determined to become King of the Seven Kingdoms, Stannis leads his men to a massacre. The Boltons kill all of Stannis’s men, leaving him to escape in the woods. Brienne of Tarth, however finds him dying against a tree. She has come to seek revenge against the man who killed Renly Baratheon. The camera cuts away just as she swings her sword at him, leaving us to wonder if he really is dead. Honestly, I’m going to save my prayers for resurrection for a different character that “dies” later on.

Meanwhile, Sansa is trying to make an escape while Ramsay is away in battle. However, Myranda Royce (Charlotte Hope) and Reek stop her, but no fear. Today is the day I have been waiting for. Theon breaks through and kills Myranda by throwing her off the side of the wall and helps Sansa escape by jumping off the guard tower into, hopefully, a soft pile of snow. I guess we will have to find out in Season 6 if they survived.

DORNE

Jaime Lannister, Bronn, Princess Myrcella, and Prince Trystane are all headed safely back to King’s Landing after bidding King Doran, Ellaria Sand, and the rest of the Sand Snakes farewell. This would be the point where someone would normally say, “And they all lived happily ever after.” But, this is Game of Thrones, and that NEVER happens. After Myrcella has a awkward yet slightly adorable father-daughter moment with her Uncle Father Jaime, she slowly dies from poison that was unknowingly given to her by Ellaria. WAY TO RUIN A SWEET MOMENT, ELLARIA! I can only imagine that things are not going to go over well with the remaining Lannisters. By the looks of it, Ellaria wanted a war with them, and I can almost correctly guess that’s what she is about to get.

MEEREEN

Last week, Daenarys managed to escape from the Sons of the Harpys with the help of her trusty dragon, Drogon, leaving behind everyone else to fend for themselves. Daario and Jorah have set off to search for their missing queen while Tyrion, Missandei, and Grey Worm are left to rule the crumbling Meereen. Varys has also been reunited with Tyrion. I cannot wait to see where their storyline goes in the next season.

Drogon has taken Dany to the middle of nowhere. As she tries to convince him to take her back to Meereen, he ignores her and shrugs off her attempts to motivate him. So, being the smart queen that she is, Daenarys leaves her only source of protection and goes for a walk, which leads to her being surrounded by a horde of Dothraki. We have now come full circle, Daenarys. You are back where you started.

KING’S LANDING

Cersei has been imprisoned for quite some time now, and we’ve had some glimpses into her time with the Sparrows, allowing us to watch our favorite most hated character suffer and get what she deserves. Finally, the Queen Mother breaks and agrees to confess to the High Sparrow, leading to a very powerful scene. She is forced to do a Walk of Shame and Atonement from the Sept all the way to the Red Keep, naked as the day she came into this world. The crowd is all but sympathetic to her as they pelt her with rotten food and trash along with making lewd comments and gestures. Once she makes it to the Keep, she breaks down and cries. Aw, poor Cersei, I wish I cared about your feelings. She is then picked up by the new and improved Ser Gregor Clegane, who has taken a vow of silence until all of their enemies have been expelled from the kingdoms. By the look on Cersei’s face at the end of this scene, she has a few people who just made the top of her list.

CASTLE BACKSTABBING (literally)

Okay, I am so over everything in this show, thanks to the backstabbers at Castle Black. After reluctantly sending Sam and Gilly to Oldtown so he may become a Maester, Jon is left with no allies. Not even Olly, that cute little boy Jon took under his wing. NOPE. Olly tells Jon that one of the Wildlings know where his Uncle Benjen, whom we haven’t seen since Season 1, is. Quickly he follows Olly outside to a grave marker that reads “traitor.” One by one, he is stabbed by his own brothers, including Alliser Thorne, claiming this was “for the Night’s Watch.” Even Olly takes a knife and stabs Jon right in the heart, thus stabbing me right in the feels. The episode ends with Jon in the snow, surrounded by his own blood.

That is how this season ends. How am I supposed to survive the next ten months with that being the last thing I saw of my favorite bastard Stark?! The only thing I can hope for is Melisandre does some of her Lord of Light Voodoo magic and brings him back. She will go from my “To Die” List to my “Favorite” List. There are several fan theories surrounding Jon Snow’s “death” that make a lot of sense. There are too many loose ends with his story, mainly the story about his parents. I will live in denial until season six, because Jon can’t be dead, therefore, isn’t dead.

This was a very intense season finale that kept me at the edge of my seat the entire time. I was honestly dying from anticipation the whole episode, because I knew that something big was going to happen. Little did I know it was the death of Jon Snow. *insert sobbing here* Now all I can do is catch up on the books and patiently wait until next April when season 6 starts. For most of the characters’ stories, the show has caught up with its source material, A Song of Ice and Fire. If you are curious about the differences and major changes that occurred this season, check out our special feature written by our guest writer, Jeff DeGraw!

Miss season 5? Catch up on HBOGo or HBONow!

Check back for information on Season 6!

--Kasey

Welcome, welcome to a special post on the latest season of Game of Thrones! I was asked by the gracious runners of this fabulous site to write this special feature post about this latest season as a whole and how it relates to its source material: the book series A Song of Ice and Fire. What makes me worthy to write such a post? Is it the fact that I plowed through all the books (well the five that are released so far) in a matter of a couple months, that I watch the show every Sunday religiously, or the fact that I constantly find myself on fan sites that are dedicated to the show? I have no idea other than I am a sincere fan of both the books and the show. As such I will certainly try my best here. So without further ado, let’s dive right in!

This season took us on a wild ride just like the ones preceding it. It took us on a journey of the rise of many characters with their fall happening oh so quickly. Cersei went from finally being in charge to being jailed and forced to undergo a Walk of Shame and Atonement. Jon went from being elected to the Lord Commander to being stabbed in the back. Tyrion started off the season drinking his life away to ruling a second city of corruption, death, and despair in the form of Meereen. Every character in the series went through amazing transformations this season. Some more subtly than others but the thing that makes this universe so amazing to me is just that. The subtlety but rich deepness of the characters are what makes GoT and ASOIAF so popular around the world.

There are so many details that I could go into in this post and maybe I will get that chance in the future, but I am going to try to keep this as big picture as I can. The structure of this season was beautifully crafted in my opinion. Halfway through it seemed that all the action was gone, that episodes were being full of side plots and weird looking at castles…cough cough Brienne. However, as I saw these complaints happening online, I knew that something big was coming and man did it. The last three episodes gave us punch after punch of full out craziness. The showrunners did a great job of keeping the tension just under the surface with spikes of terrible acts done on our favorite characters till it just boiled over and everything went nuts.

Unlike others online, I find it difficult to pick whether I like the books or the show more. I take the words of the great George R. R. Martin to heart and see them as separate entities. They are simply two different methods of telling the same story. Understanding this allows me to be objective when discussing changes from the source material and whether they have merit or not. To me all the changes made can be summed up in one idea, especially in this one particular season. All the changes are simply moving characters to different locations to highlight the storylines that take place at said locations.

So far in the books, Jaime never goes to Dorne. However, by putting him there the audience is automatically seeing how this new place full of new characters relates to the big picture. Without Jaime there we just wouldn’t care enough about that storyline. Now we could argue about how well that storyline went and everything but the point is still made. The other blaring obvious example is Sansa. The show catches up with book Sansa’s storyline in the season premiere of seeing her at a tournament in the Vale of Arryn. That’s as far as the books go. The show then has her take the part of a super minor character by having her go to Winterfell. Now I will admit that before the season started I was super hesitant about this being a possibility. As a book reader, I knew how sadistically psychotic Ramsey is to his future wife and I sure as hell didn’t wish that upon Sansa, but that is the direction the showrunners decided to go on. And as awful as that is and how much everyone hated it, so badly that multitudes screamed that they were done with the show, one can’t argue how effective it was. Would we the audience had such a strong reaction if it was Sansa’s childhood friend in her place? I hate to say it but probably not. It also brought attention to the really tough issue of marital rape. That is the genius of the books and show. They make us think of the bigger issues out there.

Now to shift from direct changes between the two, I will give some of my thoughts on how the show took scenes from the books and how they translated on the screen. I have to say that the best book to show scene for me has to be Cersei’s Walk of Atonement. That scene was done perfectly leaving the audience with a sense of joy of seeing this character reap the consequences of her choices and total disgust of what she is put through at the hands of the crowd. By also having Cersei locked up by the Sparrows two whole episodes before the Walk and only showing small scenes of her captivity, they show a hidden depth to her quick fall from rule. It is quite an effective way of showing it, but at the same time they ended the season with a look on Cersei’s face that tells the audience she is far from being beaten. It would be insane for me to not mention the craziness of episode eight in this post. I’m sure that everyone was blown away with the Massacre of Hardhome. The really beautiful thing is that we don’t get to actually “see” it in the books! Due to the changes like I mentioned in the previous paragraph, the showrunners decided to have Jon travel to Hardhome which he doesn’t do in the books. It is way more powerful to show the massacre than have it hinted at in letters that Jon reads. I was completely blown away with the last twenty minutes of that episode. It reminded us that the end game isn’t who sits on the Iron Throne no matter how intriguing that stuff is. The end game is who will save the entire realm from the malicious evil White Walkers. We were definitely reminded of that with that episode.

Now we have to wait nine to ten months to find out the answers of all the cliffhangers in that season finale! Will Sansa and Theon survive their jump? Pause to fist bump the air for Theon’s revival! Will the misfit duo of Jorah and Daario find Dany? What will happen to Arya now that she is blind? What will Jaime do when he gets back to King’s Landing? And is Jon really dead?? The truly amazing thing is that for the first time, the book readers are basically totally caught up with the show watchers. We are all now in the dark as to what will happen to our favorite characters in the crazy world of Westeros. In the meantime, the best we can do is speculate like crazy and obsess over the season as we re-watch it multiple times over the coming months. I for one plan on doing just that!

--Jeff

Sunday was the ninth episode of Game of Thrones. Those who watch the show know that this episode is one that marks a pivotal point in the season, meaning there is a huge plot twist or someone dies. The first season’s ninth episode gave us the tragic end to Ned Stark's life. Season two, we saw the Battle of Blackwater. The following season was the game changing Red Wedding, and last season the long awaited battle at The Wall. This season, though it fell short of the high expectations set by its predecessors, was full of quite a few jaw dropping moments.

SPOILER ALERT! DO NOT READ PAST THIS POINT IF YOU ARE NOT CAUGHT UP ON GAME OF THRONES!

We last saw Jon Snow (Kit Harington) and his band of Wildlings taking to the seas in order to escape the White Walkers and their Army of the Dead. Well now they've finally made their way back to Castle Black and to several unhappy members of The Night's Watch. "You've got a good heart, Jon Snow," Alliser Thorne (Owen Teale) said, "but it’ll get us all killed." Thanks, Alliser. Jon was already feeling like a failure from the attack. Way to go, making him feel like he's failed at Lord Commander. However, thanks to Sam (John Bradley-West), Jon sees that he's saved these people from a very bitter death.

Moving to the complete opposite end of Westeros; Dorne. Doran (Alexander Siddig), current ruler of Dorne, has summoned Jamie Lannister (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) to meet with him, Ellaria Sand (Indira Varma), Prince Trystane (Toby Sebastian), and Princess Myrcella (Nell Tiger Free). Doran decides to let Jamie go back to King’s Landing with Princess Myrcella. However, her engagement to Prince Trystane was to stand, and he is to accompany them to King’s Landing and take Oberyn’s place on King Tommen’s small council. Bronn (Jerome Flynn) is released; Ellaria asks for a second chance from Doran; Everything appears to be running smoothly. Knowing what we do about the events taking place in King’s Landing, what will happen when the party reaches their destination?

Across the Narrow Sea is where we find Arya Stark (Maisie Williams) serving the Many-Faced God. She was given a task in the last episode to kill the “Thin Man,” but this gets put on the backburner when a man from her past arrives in Braavos. Meryn Trant (Ian Beattie) is escorting Lord Tyrell (Roger Ashton-Griffiths) to the Iron Bank. Ser Meryn is on Arya’s long list of people she wishes to kill one day. She follows him throughout the city and into a brothel where she sees him about to take advantage of a very young girl that works there. Giving the viewers and Arya just another reason to despise this evil character. We can only assume that Arya has something in mind for this man, and “The Thin Man” lives for another day.

I know it seems we are jumping all over the Game of Thrones world, but that’s because these next two storylines are best to kept for the end of the review. Let’s start with Stannis Baratheon (Stephen Dillane) . He is currently somewhere between Winterfell and Castle Black. Last week, Ramsay Bolton (Iwan Rheon) wanted to take twenty men and raid his camp, which turned into a successful one. They burned through their food and weapons, causing a time of hardship to fall on to Stannis’s camp. There was no saving them now. They didn’t have enough food and supplies to march back to Castle Black, and the snow was too deep to march on to Winterfell. Stannis sent Davos (Liam Cunningham) back to the Wall for supplies. Davos insisted on allowing Princess Shireen (Kerry Ingram) and Queen Selyse (Tara Fitzgerald) to accompany him. “A siege is no place for [them].” However, Stannis was stubborn. “My family stays with me.”

With Davos gone, there is no one to stop what will happen next. Stannis, whom we saw earlier in the season bonding with his daughter and being a great father, has won Worst Father of the Year Award. He has handed Shireen over to Melisandre (Carice van Houten) to sacrifice to the Lord of Light, basically burning her at the stake. Shireen’s bloodcurdling screams are too much Selyse, who attempts to save her daughter but is stopped by the guards. I hope your sacrifice was freaking worth it Stannis! It’s not completely out of character for him to pull a ruthless move like this, but you’d think he’d show SOME restraint against burning his only daughter alive. I was shocked at the thought of him following through with it, but then again, it is Stannis. He all but told Shireen he was going to sacrifice her when they had a moment discussing destiny. As much as I want him to storm Winterfell and take down the Boltons, he went about it the wrong way.

Finally, in the episode, we end in Meereen in the fighting arena. Daenerys is overseeing a large competition of fighters with Hizdahr zo Loraq (Joel Fry), Daario Naharis (Michiel Huisman), Tyrion Lannister (Peter Dinklage), and Missandei (Nathalie Emmanuel). Much to Dany’s surprise, Ser Jorah (Iain Glen) is competing and wins by the skin of his teeth. While having a silent moment with her from the arena, he quickly picks up a spear and throws it at her, piercing a Son of the Harpy in the chest. This leads to a huge attack where hundreds, if not more, Sons of the Harpy attacking people in the arena, making their way to Daenerys. Jorah and Daario help get her to safety, Hizdahr is stabbed multiple times, and Tyrion saves Missandei. With the group of survivors trapped in the middle of the arena by several of the Sons, they have nowhere to turn and the battle appears to be lost. That is, until Drogon appears. That’s right, he has come to save his mother. Setting many of her attackers aflame and ripping through several others in a very Jurassic Park-esque way, he saves her. She climbs on to his back, and we finally see the Mother of Dragons take flight.

The episode definitely ended on higher note than the other famous ninth episodes. Shireen’s sacrifice is the darkest this season has gone, and with one episode left of the season and so much to wrap up. Things could get even darker. We still have to see what happens to Cersei, Sansa, and the Wildlings on top of what Daenerys will do next and the trip back to King’s Landing for Jamie. We also have the battle over Winterfell and the North between Stannis and the Boltons. So far this season has been lacking in action, as compared to the earlier seasons, but that doesn’t mean it has been any less intense or suspenseful. It has set up great story lines for our characters and is letting Karma do it’s job to the flat out evil character(s). Now to patiently wait for the finale to wrap everything up and leave us with a cliffhanger that will cause us to suffer for the next ten months.

Catch the season five finale June 14th at 9ET.

Miss season five, or seasons one through four? Catch up on HBOGo and tune in to HBO Sundays at 9ET.

--Kasey

Sing me a song of a lass that is gone, say could that lass be I?

It’s finally here and gone. The Outlander season one finale, “To Ransom a Man’s Soul,” premiered on Starz this weekend, and no amount of preparation will help you cope with such an intense episode. Each actor did an outstanding job in their performances, especially Sam Heughan, who portrays the dashing James Fraser. The finale was full of graphic and emotional scenes for both the characters and the viewers. I will warn you now, if you have not watched it yet or read the books, do not read any more. SPOILER ALERT!

Last week Claire was forced to leave Wentworth Prison, leaving Jamie in the clutches of Black Jack Randall. She devised a plan to save him, and luckily was successful. Murtagh and company ran through the halls of Wentworth Prison with a herd of Angus in front of them, trampling Black Jack in the midst. Though they may have saved Jamie’s body, his soul was still in danger. During his time in the prison, Jamie was tortured and raped by Black Jack himself. Eventually he was broken and ashamed of everything Randall did to him, including branding his initials onto Jamie’s side.

Allow me to clear up a common misconception about Randall; he is not homosexual. According to the author of the series, Diana Gabaldon, he is a sadist. He feels a sense of sexual pleasure from causing pain to others. This explains why he calls Jamie’s scars on his back a beautiful work of art. Randall is obsessed with bringing pain to anything he finds attractive, because it gives him pleasure and power over his victims. One thing he wants from Jamie is for him to break and succumb to his will, which Randall succeeds in doing. He uses Jamie’s deep love for Claire against him, as we see in one of the most heartbreaking scenes in the entire episode.

Jamie is keeping all of this from Claire, because he is ashamed of what he let Randall do to him. He believes that she won’t forgive him, considering Randall broke him using Claire against him. He tells this to Murtagh in a scene when the two are conversing in Gaelic. We see Murtagh grow angry with Jamie, and we later learn it is because Jamie wants to kill himself. I think throughout the entire episode, on top of everyone else’s feelings about the situation, Murtagh is overshadowed. He loves Jamie just as much as everyone else and canna stand to see him go through this pain and torture. He even tells Claire that he loves Jamie, but “I’ll not watch Jamie waste away. Die like an animal in the woods with his foot caught in a trap, and if it comes the time where he’s past the point of healing…” we assume he means to help Jamie.

Claire fights for Jamie though. After going easy on him the first few days, she becomes infuriated when she learns that he wants to give up and die. She goes in and forces the truth out of him. However, Jamie tries to convince her to let him go. “I lie here feeling I will die without your touch, but when you do touch me, I want to vomit with shame,” he tells her, “I canna be your husband any longer, and I will not be less to you.”

Of course, our hard-headed Sassenach does not give up that easy. “Randall had your body, but I will be damned if he has your soul as well.” Claire tells him that she knows they’re meant to be together and nothing will ever change that. This entire scene shows the viewers just how powerful their love for each other is. If they can overcome this, they are definitely going to be able to overcome what the future has in store for them. She continues to get it through Jamie’s head that she is not going anywhere despite what Randall has done, and if he takes that away from her, she will die with him. As broken as Jamie is he asks her, “How can you love me like this?” To which she replies, “I’ll have you anyway I can. Always.”

With the Frasers on the mend and now fleeing for France, they make plans to stop the Jacobite Revolt in the not so distant future. Bonny Prince Charlie just so happens to be in France, and they plan to start with stopping him. Hopefully they get there in time to stop him from crossing into Scotland, otherwise it will be the end of Highlander life as they know it, which is not a world they want to raise their little baby Fraser in.

Caitriona Balfe and Sam Heughan, along with Tobias Menzies, gave phenomenal performances in the season finale. Heughan’s performance, in particular, was the strongest of the three. He had to play a tortured and broken Jamie, one that we have never seen before. Menzies gives us the same Black Jack Randall, but bares all of the darkness that is in him. We see him as the sadist he truly is. Heughan actually brought tears to my eyes each time he was on the screen. I could feel how broken Jamie was and could see into his tortured soul. The flashback scenes between Randall and Jamie were not only extremely graphic but also highly emotional as we see Jamie begging Randall to kill him on top of Randall coercing Jamie into branding himself with the letters “JR.” It brings forth subjects that the media tends to overlook -- the violence of rape. We read and hear about terrible things that happen similar to this, but never have viewers been shown such violence. Outlander broke down some of those barriers people tend to put up when thinking or talking about such violent acts.

Of course, rape in television has been a highly discussed topic for quite sometime, especially considering the amount of rape that occurs in the hit TV series, Game of Thrones. It bothers many people to see rape occur so often in a show that it appears to be a social norm and people in Westeros tend to overlook it. So, naturally, as a book reader and knowing what to expect, I worried how this pivotal scene in Outlander would go over with viewers. I feel that the show did not use rape the same way GoT does. It showed the violence in the act and how it can truly damage a person to their core, to their soul. Jamie was a broken man who needed someone to follow him into the darkness and lead him back to the light.

Balfe’s performance made Claire a bit self-centered albeit powerful. However, I can’t blame Balfe for this, because she had to work with the story changes. Now, here is where I am going to pull the “I read the book and that is NOT what happened” card. In the scene where Claire saves Jamie from himself, she basically gives him an ultimatum that is impossible for him. She is basically asking him to get better and be apart of their marriage again, or she will die. As emotional as the scene was, I was highly disappointed in how the show handled it. It made it more about Claire instead of Jamie.

In the book, the scene is much MUCH different and more powerful. SKIP PAST THIS PARAGRAPH IF YOU PLAN ON READING THE BOOK. Claire actually dresses up like Randall and basically reenacts the rape with Jamie, but he is allowed to fight back this time. And boy does he fight back; he almost kills Claire. But this, along with pretending to be Jamie’s mother in this horrific but powerful role playing, allows Jamie to slowly heal from his wounds that Randall inflicted on him. Which then leads to a beautiful reunion between husband and wife, where she reveals that she is pregnant, thus showing the Frasers are going to be alright. Honestly, this could not have been something they could easily film for the show, so I applaud showrunner, Ronald D. Moore, for trying. This scene between Claire and Jamie could have been so much more.

With that being said, Balfe did do a great job portraying Claire’s pain that she was going through as well. Not only is Jamie suffering from his personal demons, but Claire is having to watch her husband suffer; she can’t do anything to save him. Balfe worked will with the script she was given for the tough scenes between her and Heughan. I just wish it was more true to the beautiful ending of the first book.

One actor who also did an outstanding job was one I briefly mentioned earlier. Duncan Lacroix plays Murtagh, and his character has been with Jamie and Claire every step of the way. He helped Jamie acquire the means to marry Claire; helped Claire search and ultimately rescue Jamie from Wentworth Prison; and now he is with Claire, watching Jamie suffer. He loves Jamie like a son and watches over him, protects him. Lacroix plays the Murtagh that I wish I got to know in the books. Show Murtagh compared to Book Murtagh is very different, and that is because of the talent Lacroix. As much as I loved this character in the first book, I grew to love him even more in the show, because his characteristics were more prominent on screen. His clever one-liners from the book come across just as sassy in the show, but Lacroix takes this character and brings him to a new level. He gives the character even more depth, and in this episode in particular, shows how important Jamie is to his godfather.

I did love this episode and found it to be one of the most powerful episodes on television I have seen. The performances by the actors shows how talented they are and how much they trust one another while filming these very graphic and emotional scenes. Heughan is by far the best James Fraser out there, and based on this episode alone, is a very talented and versatile actor. He has given such strong performances all season, but in these scenes he has given his best so far. I cannot wait to see what he brings to the table in the seasons to come, and that goes for all of the actors and writers. They have set the standard bar fairly high with this season, and I hope they can match it or exceed it next season.

Miss this season of Outlander? Catch up at http://www.starz.com/originals/outlander/featured

Don’t forget to catch up with the Frasers in book 2 of the series, Dragonfly in Amber.

--Kasey

Death is only the beginning...

Last night’s episode of Game of Thrones was the episode I have been waiting for all season. It was the most action packed episode of the season, and I hope in the next few episodes we see more of that. So much has gone on in the last few episodes that I haven’t had the chance to review, but this episode topped them all.

Tyrion and Jorah are finally at their destination; Cersei is getting what she deserves; Sansa and “Reek” finally have a conversation long overdue; Arya is “No One”; and Jon Snow makes his case to the rest of the Wildlings. Things that have been set up all season are finally coming together, leading to an increase in the body count and characters’ paths finally crossing.

Tyrion and Jorah facing the Queen

Tyrion (Peter Dinklage), after much convincing, becomes an advisor to Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke) all while saving Jorah’s (Iain Glen) life. He ends up returning to the fighting pits to fight for her. However, it looks like Tyrion will be serving as “Hand of the Queen” now. He tries to convince Dany to stay in Essos, because she is making a difference there. However, our Dragon Queen thinks otherwise. “Lannister. Baratheon. Stark. Tyrell. They’re all just spokes on a wheel...I’m not going to just stop the wheel. I’m going to break the wheel.” This is by far one of the most powerful quotes in the entire series, and from what we know of Her Grace, I predict she will indeed break the wheel.

One of the spokes on the wheel is falling, and fast. I am talking about the Lannister house. Tywin is dead, and Tyrion is a fugitive. All that is left of the major players of House Lannister are Jaime and Cersei. With Jaime in Dorne, Cersei (Lena Headey) has no allies to help her now. She is FINALLY getting everything she deserves. Cersei has been arrested by the High Sparrow with three charges being held against her: treason, incest, and adultery. We saw her arrest at the end of the last episode, so this episode focuses on her imprisonment. Everyone keeps telling her the only way to be free is to confess her “sins.” We all know Cersei, and she is entirely too proud to admit to anything. She’s certain that people will come to her aid. Well, none of her family is coming to help. Tommen (Dean-Charles Chapman) won’t see anyone, because he is distraught with not only her arrest but also Queen Margaery’s (Natalie Dormer) as well. I can only hope that whatever takes place at the trial will bring everything full circle for Cersei, and Karma hits her where it hurts. Sorry, not sorry, Cersei, but I just love to hate you.

Sansa confronting "Reek" about him betraying her to Ramsay

 We see glimpses of our two favorite Stark sisters for a brief moment, because the majority of the episode is dedicated to their bastard brother, Jon Snow. Sansa (Sophie Turner) has a confrontation with “Reek,” (Alfie Allen) where he finally explains that he did not kill Bran and Rickon. I can only hope that “Reek” finally breaks and Theon is somehow reborn. With being married to Ramsay (Iwen Rheon), Sansa could really use a friend right about now. However, it seems Ramsay may be leaving to lead an attack on Stannis Baratheon’s army that is just north of Winterfell. Meanwhile, Arya (Maisie Williams) is becoming a true servant to the Many-Faced God. JaQen H'ghar (Thomas Wlaschiha) has tasked her with watching and then ultimately killing “the thin man,” a terrible man who makes bets that his crew will fail, only to screw those who win the bet out of money in the end. We will have to wait and see if Arya is ready for this task.

Arya growing accustomed to Braavosi life

Now, the most exciting part of the whole episode was the last twenty minutes. Jon Snow (Kit Harington) and Tormund (Kristofer Hivju), along with several other Night’s Watch, have made their way to Hardhome. After lengthy discussions and a few threats, Snow and Tormund convince most of the Wildlings to ban together with the Night’s Watch, because “Winter is Coming” and only together can they defeat it. Everything sounds so promising, right? They’re all going to just hop on a boat, sail down to Castle Black, and prepare together for the Army of the Dead. Yeah, if only.

The Wildling settlement, Hardhome, under seige

While Wildlings are being boated to the ships in the bay, the Army of the Dead attacks, forcing them to close the gates, leaving thousands of the Wildlings unprotected on the other side. This, then, makes the Army even larger as they crash through the gates and attack those safely on the other side. Tormund and Jon try to fend off as many as possible. However, the White Walkers arrive and change everything. Jon faces off against one of these creatures, and with a swing of his sword, defeats it. Now, I thought only Dragons’s Glass could defeat a White Walker...hmmmmm. I guess there’s more to learn about the Walkers than we thought. Jon and Tormund make it back to a boat, all while a White Walker comes forward with the ultimate “come at me bro” (or should it be “come at me crow?”) gesture, as it raises the dead to join its army.

What did I say? "Come at me, Bro."

With Jon safely on his way back to Castle Black, we are left with the question, “Now what?” What’s to come with the inevitable face off at the Wall? What about Stannis and his attack on Winterfell? Winter is coming, and the people of Westeros are hardly prepared. They have been too concerned with who sits on the Iron Throne to bother worrying about the Long Night that is upon them. The ninth episode of a season is famously known as the episode where a major battle or plot twist occurs. Seeing as that is the next episode, I don’t know what to expect. This episode was very jaw dropping and full of several nail-biting moments. I have the statement from the beginning of the season “this will be the bloodiest season yet” playing in the back of my mind. Seeing as the body count is just now starting to climb and there are only two episodes left, I am now sufficiently worried about many of my favorite characters.

Jon Snow defeating a White Walker

Dear GoT Producers and GRRM,

 Please show some mercy.

 Sincerely,

 Can’t Take The Feels

 P.S. I know this message is futile, but it’s worth a shot.

Tune in to Game of Thrones Sundays on HBO at 9ET or on HBOGo.

-Kasey

Jon Snow, Lord Commander and Brother of the Night's Watch

Last night was the mid-season episode of Game of Thrones. Yes, season five is halfway over. "Kill the Boy" was a very intense episode with tensions even higher than before and a death to start the episode off. Several things happened last night that are going to set the rest of the season down a bloody path. SPOILER ALERT: IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN LAST NIGHT'S EPISODE, DO NOT READ PAST THIS POINT. Unless you want spoilers...

For starters, Ser Barristan Selmy died at the end of the last week’s episode during an ambush by the Sons of the Harpies. Now, Daenerys is out for vengeance. She has decided to punish the heads of the major families in Meereen by arresting them and taking them to her dragons. After threatening them and feeding one to her two “children,” she has then escorted back to their cells. She doesn’t want to “overfeed” her dragons. I think she has made her point not to mess with the Mother of Dragons. Missandei councils the queen and convinces her to reopen the fighting pits. Dany agrees to this on top of marrying a head of one of the prestigious families in Meereen, Hizdahr zo Loraq (Joel Fry). This can’t go over well with her current bedwarmer, Daario Naharis.

Mother of Dragons doesn't mess around when threatening the wealthy families of Meereen

Meanwhile in Westeros, Jon Snow is struggling with the fact half of the Night’s Watch hate him and the rest will follow soon with his newest decision. Before we learn what that is, Maester Aemon advises Jon to “Kill the boy and let the man be born.” Basically he’s say Jon needs to man up and just make the hard decisions, despite how popular he will be in the long run. This tough decision is teaming up with the Wildlings in the fight against the White Walkers and their Army of the Dead. Jon has basically elected a new leader of the Wildlings, Tormund Giantsbane (Kristofer Hivju), and has asked him to recruit the rest of the Wildlings north of the wall. Tormund only agrees to do so if Jon accompanies him. When Jon shares his plan with the rest of his brothers, we see that it does not go over well, even among his supporters.

In the midst of all this at Castle Black, Stannis has decided that his time at the Wall has finally come to an end. He has packed up his family and they’re moving South. I guess it was too cold for the Lord of Light. He is bringing everyone with him to march on Winterfell to face the upcoming battle I suspect we will see soon. That probably won’t end well for someone in that party, or all of them. Who knows? It is Game of Thrones.

The Princess, Shireen Baratheon, portrayed by Kerry Ingram

Speaking of Winterfell, we see more of Sansa Stark and what her life will most likely be like after she marries Ramsay Bolton. For starters, the more I see of Ramsay the more I realize he is a whack-job. Brienne of Tarth has a message sent to Sansa in order to tell her she still has friends in the North, and that is the last we see of Brienne and Podrick. The rest of the time we are in Winterfell, we follow around the Boltons.

We first see Ramsay having a spat with his lover and he threatens her when she begins to bore him. However, Miranda is just as crazy as Ramsay. They truly belong together. Anyway, after they do whatever it is that crazy people do, we see Miranda follow Sansa to the broken tower (where Bran fell from in Season 1). She takes our new Lady Stark to the kennels where she is reunited with her family’s ward, Theon Greyjoy turned Reek. Of course, Ramsay’s brainwashed puppet tells his master that Sansa saw him. So naturally, Ramsay turns the tables for his benefit. Ramsay parades Theon in front of Sansa constantly reminding her that she has no family; they’re all dead. He makes Theon apologize for killing Bran and Rickon, but the look on Theon’s face tells me that he’s going to find a way to tell Sansa the truth; her brothers are still alive. I hope something goes right for Sansa, because Ramsay is about the worst thing that could have happened to her next to Joffrey.

Theon Greyjoy, or Reek, serving Lady Sansa

Tyrion is still the hostage of Ser Jorah Mormont, who plans on handing the Imp over to Daenerys in the hopes she will pardon him for his “crimes.” They are sailing through the fallen civilization of Valeriya, where we hear the tale of the Doom as they sail through the ruins. A dragon, what we assume to be Drogon, appears in the sky, distracting our duo. Suddenly, they are attacked by the Stone Men, men infected with the highly contagious disease Grayscale. Jorah warns Tyrion to not let them touch him, and we find out why once they have made it safely to a beach not far from the ruins. Jorah was touched by one of the Stone Men and has now been infected with the disfiguring and deadly disease.

Tyrion being attacked by a Stone Man of Valeriya

This is where the episode leaves us. Wondering and worrying about each character’s fate. Book readers probably have some idea what to expect, as for viewers like me who are behind on the books, I sit here each week at the edge of my seat waiting for the other shoe to drop. This season has done a fantastic job, so far, setting up the story arcs for each character and leaving the viewers hungry for more and fearing for our favorite characters. We are exactly halfway through the fifth season and with at least one wedding and battle most likely to occur soon, things are bound to turn very bloody very soon. I’ve already made a bet with myself that the Attack on Winterfell is going to happen in the ninth episode, following in the footsteps of all major battles before it. Now, to wait ever so impatiently for the next episode to air. Valar Morghulis.

Catch Game of Thrones every Sunday 9ET on HBO.

--Kasey

I was elated to see Orphan Black return to my television last weekend. It’s definitely one of the most unique shows on television. Last season, Sarah Manning and her fellow clones (all played by the incredible Tatiana Maslany) found out that they are not the only set of clones out there. The season ended with the revelation of Project Castor, a set of male clones developed by the Armed Forces.

The season premiere deals with the revelation of these new clones and how it affects the Project Leda ladies, an arc that will probably last the entire season. No one is quite sure what their motivations are, but one thing is for certain: no one is safe. The Castor clones were bred to be perfect soldiers, making them quite the force to be reckoned with. Sarah agrees to work with Delphine, who is now leading the Dyad, to see what the male clones want in exchange for help in finding Helena. Sarah confronts one of the captive clones to question him, but he essentially laughs in her face. Shortly afterwards, the captive clone’s brother breaks him out of captivity and they escape together. The unhinged performance of Ari Millen as all of the Castor clones is very noteworthy. I’m excited to see where these characters go.

However, the team of Sarah and Delphine continues throughout the episode. A higher-up named Ferdinand comes to visit at the worst time possible. With Rachel recovering from a pencil through the eye, Delphine calls on Sarah to play Rachel. During a rough BDSM session with Ferdinand, Sarah-as-Rachel discovers his and Rachel’s plan called Helsinki to have the clones killed. Sarah and Delphine successfully shut the plan down.

Tatiana Maslany as Sarah and Ari Millen as Rudy

Afterwards, Sarah confronts Mrs. S about selling out Helena in exchange for her and Kira’s safety. Mrs. S called it “a wartime decision”. Sarah is infuriated, saying it wasn’t her call to make. Meanwhile, Helena is released from a crate into the army base where the Castor clones are located.

The second episode of the season sheds a little more light onto two of the Castor clones, Rudy and Seth. The episode opens with them assaulting a drunken girl, which puts Art on the case to find the clones. However, adding some backstory to the male clones does not interfere with the diverging storylines of Sarah, Helena, Cosima, and Alison.

Meanwhile, Cosima shows Scott the genome sequence hidden inside of the book Duncan gave Kira. Together they ask the doctor to see if he is aware that the sequence is out there. He supposedly doesn’t know, but I suspect that there’s more beneath the surface of this mysterious new doctor.

After deciding to run for school board, Alison finds out that her husband Donny lost his job. She comes up with the plan of buying a local drug dealer’s supply off of him both to supply income and guarantee voters. This storyline will presumably bring a few laughs this season. The dynamic between Alison and Donny is so entertaining, especially when they are up to no good.

Ari Millen as Rudy

Sarah is given a brief moment of happiness in this episode when Cal buys a house for them. A game of stickball is interrupted by a call from Art regarding the Castor clones. She goes to him to see what he has found and to hopefully get closer to finding Helena. As a viewer, it is so heartbreaking to see those moments of happiness for Sarah, knowing that they are temporary given her situation. Later on, Kira is yet again held hostage, this time by Rudy. Sarah attempts to bargain with him, but it is only when he hears Seth’s screams that he lets Kira go. Rudy then mercifully kills Seth to make him stop “glitching”. The remorse shown by Rudy after he kills Seth illustrates the closeness of the brothers. After the incident, Sarah decides to let Kira and Cal leave the country for their safety.

Helena is being tortured and experimented on by the military in an unknown location. She is being waterboarded until the newly-introduced Dr. Coady tells the soldiers to stop because Helena is pregnant. What is impressive about this scene is that Tatiana Maslany was actually being waterboarded. Talk about commitment to your craft! The tests being done to Helena are the same sort of tests administered to the Castor men. Down the line this might explain why some of the Castor boys glitching.

All in all the first two episodes of Orphan Black have been dizzying. There are so many new plotlines and characters being introduced so rapidly that I’m sure I’ve forgotten something. However, the breakneck speed of this show is part of the reason why it’s so enjoyable to watch.

Catch Orphan Black Saturdays on BBC America 8/7c

--Julie

Winter is Coming...

Last night’s episode of Game of Thrones, "High Sparrow," featured many of the main characters of the series and their nail-biting story lines. Arya is at The House of Black and White, Jon is the new Lord Commander, Cersei is now Queen Mother, Sansa has returned to Winterfell, and Tyrion has been captured. A lot has happened in Westeros in these last three episodes and by the looks of it, things are going to get even worse for our favorites and least favorites. Who would expect anything different on a show that is notorious for putting the lives of the majority of its lead characters in danger?

The last we saw of Arya Stark, she was being welcomed into The House of Black and White. She is where she wants to be, but “a girl” is most unhappy. For days she has been sweeping the same floors and has learned nothing about the Faceless Men. She has expressed her unhappiness, but as we learn later, Jaqen H’gar (Thomas Wlaschiha) says she’s not ready. “A girl” is still Arya Stark. In an attempt to adapt, Arya sheds all of her clothes and belongings, except for Needle. She can’t part with the small sword her brother, Jon, gave her the day she left Winterfell. Instead, she hides it in a pile of rocks before returning to The House. Next thing we know, Arya has been tasked with a girl who previously picked on her to wash a dead body. She asks questions about what she is doing and why, but we receive no answers as to the meaning of this scene.

Arya Stark and her Needle

Jon Snow, the new Lord Commander of the Watchers on the Wall, has finally decided to give Stannis Baratheon an answer to his proposition. Jon feels his place is at The Wall and not at Winterfell. Though he has always wanted to be a Stark, his vow forces him to sever all ties with the politics of the realm. Much to Stannis’s dismay, he understands Jon’s decision and instead requests for Wildlings to be sent South to reclaim Winterfell, which is being held by Roose and Ramsay Bolton. Jon’s time as Lord Commander has already been off to an interesting start just by defeating Alliser Thorne in the elections. He decides to name his opponent as his First Ranger. Janos Slynt, former Commander of the City Watch in King’s Landing and rival of Jon’s, has been tasked with rebuilding the Night’s Watch post in Greygard. Janos, played by Dominic Carter, loudly refuses and is soon executed by the Lord Commander himself, even after his pleas for mercy.

Jon carrying out his first execution as Lord Commander

In King’s Landing, a wedding has taken place. Surprisingly enough, no one died at this wedding. Margaery and Tommen are finally married, making her the new queen of Westeros. Of course, Cersei is even more unhappy about that. Slowly, she is losing her grip on the kingdom as she is now the Queen Mother. She still has some sway and power, considering she sits on the King’s Small Council. The High Septon runs to her for help as The Sparrows have publically ridiculed him for being in Littlefinger’s brothel. This is considered a terrible sin in the Faith of the Seven. He has asked she seek out the High Sparrow Jonathan Pryce, and have him executed. Cersei, instead, sends him to the dungeons in the Red Keep and seeks out the High Sparrow as an ally.

Cersei finding an ally in the High Sparrow (Jonathan Pryce)

Our poor, poor Sansa is travelling to an unknown destination with Littlefinger. We learned in the previous episode that he had extended a marriage proposal to her, but now we learn it wasn’t from him. Sansa has returned to Winterfell and unhappily accepted Ramsay Bolton’s offer of marriage. With their union, Bolton’s hold on the North will be solidified. However, when Sansa had earlier learned of the proposal, she was outraged. She did not want to be apart of the family that killed her mother and brother, Lady Catelyn and Robb Stark respectively.Sansa makes her way to her old room, and an elderly maid tells her, “Welcome home, Lady Stark. The North remembers.” I sure hope it does. 

Sansa making her way to Winterfell with Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish

Seeing Bolton in Winterfell makes my stomach turn. Sansa is putting up with way more than she bargained for. All she wanted was for everyone to get along and to marry the king at the beginning of season one, and now she is being forced to marry Ramsay “bat-shit crazy” Bolton in order to hold the North. Help is not far though. Brienne and Podrick are on their way to Winterfell; I just hope they can make it in time to help Sansa.

Lord Roose Bolton (Michael McElhatton) and Ramsay Bolton (Iwan Rheon)

Lastly we see Lord Tyrion still trapped in a box on his way to Volantis. He has all but lost his mind and leaves the box to walk around. His relationship with Varys is the comedic relief we need in the show, especially since Tyrion has been going crazy after being trapped in a box with him for so long. He explores the lower parts of Volantis, where slaves work and are sold. We hear one slave preaching about the Lord of Light and learn they believe Daenerys to be their Savior. Tyrion finds his way to a brothel, no that I am surprised, and finds it hard to find pleasures with the company of one of the whores. He takes a walk, only to be captured by Jorah Mormont. He is taking him to see the Queen. We can only assume that he means Daenerys.

Tyrion and Varys observing the business at a local Volantis brothel

Several things have happened this episode that has allowed the story to unfold even more for each character. We are learning a little more about the secret society in Braavos, Cersei is no longer as powerful as she thought, and we are finally reunited from the banished Jorah Mormont. However, this episode has only left me with more questions: What is in store for everyone involved? We have yet to see how Dorne will react or if they will to Oberyn’s death, and what about Tyrion? What will Daenerys do when she sees Tyrion Lannister? There have already been several deaths this season, and this is only the third episode. The rumors have already proven true: This is the bloodiest season yet.

King Tommen and Queen Margaery Barathoen

Catch Game of Thrones every Sunday night on HBO at 9ET.

Seasons 1-4 on HBOGo and on Sale now!

--Kasey

...all that was good, all that was fair/ all that was me is gone...

SPOILER ALERT! DO NOT READ PAST HERE IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THIS WEEK'S OUTLANDER!

Laird Broch Turach has finally returned! Jamie and Claire made their way home to Lallybroch in the latest episode of Outlander. However, this place harbors many dark memories for Jamie. The last time he was home, Black Jack Randall was flogging him and then was attempting to rape his sister. I’m just going to say what we are all thinking: Randall is just a terrible person.

Laird Broch Turach collecting rent from his tennants

Jamie is nervous about seeing Jenny, his sister, after hearing the rumors about her floating around. Apparently, Randall did rape her and she gave birth to his bastard. These rumors are all but confirmed when we see Jenny and her son, Wee Jamie. Of course, our Jamie flies off the handle when he sees the young lad and his pregnant sister, automatically thinking her to be a whore. Everything is put to ease when Ian Murray, Jamie’s childhood friend, limps forth and says the children are his.

Laura Donnelly as Jenny and Steven Cree as Ian

Throughout the episode, Jamie and his sister butt heads, and Jenny seems to hold some type of resentment towards Claire for the better half of the episode. Jamie is trying to be his father when he was Laird of Lallybroch instead of becoming his own man, and knowing our dear Sassenach, that doesn’t sit well with her. The atmosphere between characters is very tense while they are getting used to one another and adjusting to the drastic changes that are occurring at Lallybroch.

At one point, while Jamie is reminiscing on his father’s turn as Laird, we learn more about his time as Randall’s prisoner. Jamie’s father, Brian, was at Fort William pleading on his son’s behalf for mercy. He doesn’t want to see Jamie flogged again. However, when Randall tells Jamie that his father’s plea didn’t work, it is obvious he has something else in mind for the Highlander. He wants Jamie to submit his body for Randall’s pleasure. Yep, Randall likes the Scottish lads, and since Jamie denied him, he was flogged...again. Black Jack flogged him until he had passed out. Little did Jamie know, his father witnessed this flogging and then collapsed in the courtyard. He didn’t know at the time that Brian Fraser had died.

Randall giving Jamie an ultimatum

Though Jamie has escaped the English, he still has a price on his head. So, while he is fixing the mill, Jenny and Claire cover for him when an English patrol rides by. Jamie is underwater trying to free the clogged gears. Kudos to Jamie for being able to stay underwater for that long. However, he ends up downstream in the nude, when Jenny and Claire rush to find him after the patrol moves on. Outlander: always entertaining.

A very upset James Fraser after the English Patrol.

Jamie, instead of being grateful, is upset that Jenny even came up to the millhouse in her condition. Later that night, Claire gives him what for by yanking him out of bed in the middle of the night. She finally has his attention and says, “I did not marry the Laird of Lallybroch. I married Jamie, but I haven’t seen much him since we walked through the gates of this place.” She is right. The Jamie we know and love hasn’t been around much this episode, but she finally knocks some much needed sense into him.

Jamie in the doghouse while Claire is screwing his head on straight.

He takes her advice into consideration and visits his father’s grave for the first time the next day, and has a moment with Jenny. She blames herself for everything that happened, and Jamie blames himself. However, he is troubled by the thought that Jenny would sacrifice her virtue for his life by going with Randall. Jenny argues, “If your life is a suitable exchange for my honor, tell me why my honor is not a suitable exchange for your life?” With that, the siblings have made up and all differences have been put aside.

As the episode winds down, we see Claire and Jamie in the Laird’s Chambers where she admits feeling like she’s where she belongs. This scene is very intimate, and trust me, you will feel all the feels. Jamie tells Claire about the first time he fell in love with her. “I loved you when you first wept in my arms that first night at Leoch. But now I wake up everyday and I find that I love you more than I did the day before.” Okay, James Fraser, thank you for making me set my standards entirely too high...bloody perfect Scotsman.

Jamie telling Claire when he first fell in love with her

Now, knowing how this show works, we shouldn’t expect that to be the end. Well, it’s not. Claire wakes the next morning to find Jamie missing from bed. She gets ready and prepares for a normal day, until she walks in on her husband at gunpoint and surrounded by three men. One of them is giving Jamie instructions to stay silent or “this lovely lass is going to be scrubbing your brains off the floor.”

An intruder holding Jamie at gunpoint

This episode gives us a quick glimpse into Jamie’s family and his marriage to Claire post-Craig na Dune. We learn that the Frasers are all alike: stubborn and hot-headed. But Jamie and Jenny are truly the ultimate siblings. They were both willing to give anything to save the other. Despite their fights, they do it all for love. Jamie and Claire are definitely more comfortable with one another since Claire has FINALLY confided in him the truth of her past. However, their comfort is about to be tested.

The rest of this season is going to be the most gut-wrenching and heartbreaking program to watch. I love this part, because it shows just how strong Jamie and Claire’s connection is, but it is also a very painful milestone they will have to cross. Stock up on your kleenex, bottles of Rhenish (wine), and maybe a box or two of chocolate. You’re going to need all the comfort you can get.

Catch Outlander every Saturday night on Starz at 9ET.

Outlander Season 1, Part 1 is on sale now.

Don't forget to check out the book series!

--Kasey

...billow and breeze, islands and seas / mountains of rain and sun...

Last week we were left with Claire and Geillis being arrested for witch craft, thanks to Laoghaire. The trial over their charges is the centerpiece of this episode. Claire and Geillis have been thrown into the thieves’ hole to await their trial; each blaming the other for their current situation. They sleep in the freezing pit overnight, until they are abruptly awakened by screaming villagers and their escorts across town. Despite the severity of the situation, the whole first half of this episode just reminds me of the Witch Trial from Monty Python and the Holy Grail. I was just waiting for someone to shout, “She turned me into a newt!” SPOILER ALERT BEYOND THIS POINT!

The Witch Trial from Monty Python and the Holy Grail

Anyway, as the trial begins, Ned Gowan comes to the rescue and offers to serve as both Claire and Geillis’s legal representative, to which the church agrees. During the first half of the trial we go through three witnesses: one, Geillis’s parlor maid; two, a weeping mother; three, a bystander who witnessed Geillis’s witch craft.

The maid swears that Geillis was a witch and used her magic to kill her husband. She was known to make potions and charms for various customers without hesitation. She was often seen with Claire picking herbs and even concocting potions with her. She even explains how Geillis would go into the fields at night to perform ceremonies to her master, like the one Claire witnessed in the previous episode.

Lotte Verbeek as Geillis and Caitriona Balfe as Claire at the Witch Trial

The weeping mother claims to have witnessed Claire casting spells over her sick child she left on the faerie hill; the changeling child that was to be switched by the faeries for the healthy human child. She said that Claire killed the baby and now her own child is lost to the faeries forever. I am thinking the entire time, “So faeries are okay, but witches are out?” Makes sense, peasants. Gotta love their logic.

Ned Gowan manages to thwart these accusations by blaming the maid’s testimony on being a disgruntled house maid. He brings up the fact she was looking for work in Leoch because she felt underpaid and underappreciated in the Duncan house. He also consoles the grieving mother by saying Claire merely helped take the changeling away, and now her baby will live a healthy life with the faeries. Instead of condemning her, they should be thanking her for saving the baby.

Everything seems to be going smoothly and working in their favor, that is until the last witness of the day testifies. He is a townsman that claims to have seen Geillis in the middle of a storm commanding the lightening and sprouting wings to take flight into the chaos of the storm. Claire and Geillis share an amused look, and honestly I lost it myself. Picturing Geillis Duncan sprouting wings and taking flight like a bat in the night cracked me up, but villagers aren’t known to be reasonable when on a witch hunt.

Geillis and Claire being led to their trial

The trial ends for the day, and our witches are escorted back to their hole. They share a flask and sit patiently waiting until the following morning. Claire learns that Geillis is a Jacobite that has been stealing money from her now deceased husband for years and giving it to Dougal, proving she is actually in love with Dougal McKenzie.

The next morning, the pair are escorted back through the Monty Python scene to begin the second half of their trial, where things take a turn for the worse. Laoghaire is our first witness of the day (ode to joy). She doesn’t attack Geillis so much as she does Claire. She explains that Claire gave her a potion to persuade Jamie to love her, but instead bewitched Jamie herself and stole him away. Claire tires to defend herself, but is silenced when Laoghaire continues. She says that she struck her for trying to seduce Jamie. Claire explained that Laoghaire placed an ill-wish under their bed and had every right to confront the young girl about her actions. Claire defending herself makes everything worse as Laoghaire starts crying. Ned tries to defend Claire by saying Laoghaire is just a jealous, broken-hearted woman.

That is completely overlooked when Father Bain approaches as the final witness. For those of us who have seen the first half of the season and/or read the book, we know that Father Bain completely despises Claire and has called her a witch from the beginning. He gives a very “heartwarming” court room performance by claiming how wrong he was about Claire, because she was able to determine a young boy at a poisonous plant, whereas he believed it was the work of the devil. He states he is going to leave the priesthood, because he has failed the citizens of Crainesmur and isn’t fit to serve God.

Nell Hudson as Laoghaire testifying against Claire

This, of course, enrages the villagers. Many are shouting that it takes a witch to make a man of God turn his back on Him. As Father Bain takes his seat next to Laoghaire, he gives the witches a smirk of satisfaction. Seeing the trial taking a turn for the worst, Ned calls for a recess.

He gives Claire and Geillis a new plan. Since he is certain they are going to burn, he wants Claire to forsake everything and claim Geillis had her under her control the whole time without her knowledge. To which, Claire will repent her sins and be forgiven. Ned leaves to tame the crowd while the women discuss, and with Geillis contemplating on following through with the plan, she asks Claire for the truth. She knows that Claire is lying about why she is at Leoch. Claire doesn’t divulge everything, but Geillis knows she is not from this time. She, somehow, understands. Claire ends up not following through with the plan, but instead screams and damns every villager to hell. Leading to her being whipped. Before she is being taken to the center of the room, Geillis keeps telling her “1968! 1968.”

Geillis confessing her "sins"

Claire is dragged kicking and screaming to the middle of the room and is whipped for her outburst, but a very angry Jamie bursts through the room, swords drawn, ready to protect his wife exclaiming, “I swore an oath on the altar of God to protect this woman! And if you’re telling me you’re considering your authority to be greater than that of the Almighty, then I must inform you that I am not of that opinion myself. The first man forward will be the first man down.” All I can say is, Praise the good Lord for Jamie Fraser!

Geillis being led to her fate

Geillis takes this moment to condemn herself and save Claire. She says she placed the poor Sassenach under her spell and controlled her. She shows her small-pox vaccine scar and claims it to be a mark of the devil. That’s when Claire, along with the viewers, realizes Geillis is from 1968. Geillis continues to stir the crowd by revealing her pregnant body and claiming her child is the child of Satan. The villagers seize her and take her to the pyre to burn. Claire and Jamie then make a quick escape and leave Leoch for good.

Jamie stops in the woods to help care for Claire’s wounds while also asking her for the honest truth. He’s seen the same mark on Claire’s arm. Finally, Claire tells him the whole truth, and Jamie believes her. He says he asked for the truth, and he can tell she is not lying to him; no matter how outlandish it sounds. Jamie wants her to tell him everything about her time and how she came to the stones, and Claire does just that. He realizes that he beat Claire for running away the day she was trying to make it back to the stones, and he hates himself for that.

Claire confessing everything to Sam Heughan as Jamie Fraser

As they continue on their journey away from Leoch, Jamie talks of Lallybroch and the life they could have together, but little does Claire know, he is taking her to Craig na Dune. *start crying here* They finally reach the stones, and the uncertainty is written all over her face. Who will she choose? Right when she is about to touch the stones, he stops her. Only to apologize and say he wasn’t ready. *sobs* Jamie tells her to go, saying, “There’s nothing for you on this side. Nothing except violence and danger.” He leaves her at the rocks to pass through to her own time, but says he will stay at the campsite until he knows she is safely across. “Goodbye, Sassenach.”

Goodbye, Sassenach. *still crying*

*sobs even more* Claire turns to the rocks with her hands outstretched and everything goes black. Only to focus on Jamie asleep by a fire and…

“On your feet, soldier,” a voice calls. It’s Claire! “Take me home to Lallybroch.”

This ending destroyed my emotions. I knew what was going to happen, but just like it did in the book, it made curl into a ball and sob. Claire and Jamie’s story is both gut-wrenching and heartwarming. The chemistry between Caitriona Balfe and Sam Heughan can be felt through the screen, especially in these emotionally intimate scenes. They work well together, conveying the raw emotion behind each character’s actions. Jamie takes Claire to Craig na Dune to save her from the dangers of 1746 Scotland. He loves her that much to send her away. Heughan does a phenomenal job convincing viewers how in love Jamie really is. When Geillis asks Claire is she loves Jamie, Balfe is able to show the gears turning in Claire’s mind as she comes to realize she just may be in love with James Fraser.

During the trial, Lotte Verbeek has her final shining moment in the show. Her very dramatic sacrifice was a major high point in Saturday’s episode. Despite the obvious fear she has of burning at the stake, she displays a very convincing performance that she is indeed the witch the villagers claim she is. “The Devil’s Mark” was full of breathtaking dramatic performances from the leads to the minor characters at the trial. It really showed the versatility of the show and the true talent of the cast. I can hardly wait until this Saturday’s episode, where we finally make our way to Lallybroch!

Watch Outlander Saturday nights on Starz 9ET.

Outlander Season one part one is now on sale!

Check out the Outlander series at your local book store.

--Kasey