I just couldn’t wait to do this blog! After the first six episodes of season 3 I knew that these last four were going to change the course of the show. These episodes have answered many questions that I have previously thought about, but it has also left me with many questions that I hope will be answered soon. For this blog I watched “The Beat and the Maiden Fair”, “Second Son”, “The Rains of Castamere”, and “Mhysa”. Currently this is the midpoint of the show that has come out so far and it seems like the show has only just begun. Westeros has gone through a lot of turmoil and it seems to be getting worse.
Some of my answers have been answered from last week. Melisandre used Gendry for his blood. Since he is the Bastard of the Late King Robert he has royal blood, the Lord of Light had a purpose for him. We also saw Ser Davos send Gendry away from Dragonstone to save his life. Robb didn’t receive the men that he wanted for the fight against Casterly Rock, he actually lost his army in a horrific blindside. This blindside came from Lord Walder Frey and it cost Robb his life and the life of his mother and Talisa. This was a turning point in the series because it destroyed one of the king’s army and diminished the amount of constants for the throne. We have seen that Theon has become a eunuch because of Ramsey Snow the bastard of Lord Bolton. His parts have been sent to the Iron Islands and Yara was moved to go save him. Sansa has married to Tyrion and they have yet to consummate their marriage. She has gained a new “friend” in Margaery. This has been helpful for Sansa because she believes that she has someone to talk to someone about her problems. Rickon and Bran have made to the wall, but Bran sent Rickon to another bannerman of the Starks for his safety. Bran and the others went through the wall with the help of Samwell.
Power Levels
Powering Up
This week it was difficult to decided who has gained power in the battle for the throne. For the second week in the row Daenerys is the top dog in the race for the throne. Within these four episodes she has gained even more power. In episode 8 “Second Son” Daenerys gained the alliance of the Second Son army that is now under the control of Darrio Naharis. With his help the city of Yankai fell. When the newly freed slaves came out from the city chanting “Mhysa” which means mother. This new force and the freed slaves are going to help Daenerys with her fight for the throne.
Another person that has powered up is Sansa Stark. Even though things have seemed very bleak for her recently she now has a guardian angel. Tyrion has told King Joffrey that she is now going to be off limits. It seems that there might be some hope for her and that she is going to feel better. It may not seem like a big boost but it is something better than what she had.
Powering Down
The most obvious person who has lost power is Robb Stark. He has lost the life of his men, wife, unborn son, mother and his own. This ends his reign as King of the North. He had a nice run as king, but his time came and he was not able to do anything. With him gone Bran is now the eldest Stark son alive and heir to Winterfell. I feel bad for Arya because she lost everyone who is close to her.
Jon Snow has also lost power. He lost the trust of the wildlings when he was not willing to kill the old man in front of everyone so Ygritte had to do it for him. This caused a major battle to take place. After this battle Jon Snow fled which caused Ygritte a lot of pain. She took the pain out on Jon by shooting him three times over his body. He was able to arrive at Castle Black but he arrived unconscious to Samwell.
Lingering Thoughts and Cliff Hangers
Moving into the next season there are many loose ends that I cannot wait to have answered. We were left seeing Bran and his party receive dragonglass from Samwell. This gives them the upper edge if they were to ever fight white walkers. Samwell made it back to Castle Black and informed Maester Aemon that the Lord Commander has been killed. He was also there when Jon Snow came back but we are not sure what that means. Yara has set sail with the best fifty men she has to get Theon free. He is her brother and she wants to make sure that he is safe out of Ramsey’s reach. Arya is with the hound and they have left the Twins on horseback. The thing that has happened is that Jamie has returned to King’s Landing and the first person that we see him go to is Cersei. Daenerys has freed the slaves from Yankai and they came out chanting Mhysa. This means mother and she is engulfed by them. This was the last scene of Season three.
Some lingering thoughts that I have at the end of the season: What is going to come of Ygritte and Jon Snow? What is going to come of the Night’s Watch now that the Lord Commander is dead? How is Ser Davos going to help rebuild Stannis’s army? What is Tywin going to say to Jamie when he sees his hand? What will come of Shae in King’s Landing? How is Lord Bolton going to do as the Warden of the North? Will Ramsey kill Theon? What is going to come of Arya now that she is on the run? What is Melisandre going to do to aid Stannis in the upcoming war? Is Tyrion going to be able to protect Sansa from King Joffrey? Will Samwell rekindle his bromance with Jon Snow? Will Jon Snow reveal that he broke his oath? How will Bran’s power aid them past the wall?
Summer Peach 
I do find Sansa’s current plotline very viewable. The blog at View from the Nate’s Watch (https://nateswatch.wordpress.com/2016/03/19/two-weddings/) had a great post that covered the significance of Tyrion’s marriage to Sansa (and the resulting lack of consummation). I like the pairing of these two misfits in King’s Landing. Sansa is learning and stronger than she once was but still clearly needs protection and assistance. (Speaking of: I get creeped out during her interactions with Margaery. Who knows what that woman is up to…) Tyrion is witty, but also needs some protection from family members that spew hatred on him. There’s a potential for give-and-take assistance here – and that’s surprising when you consider how shallow Sansa once was. (And, frankly, how shallow Tyrion was in the pilot episode).
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I think that it is not only the two misfits but the two that have the most to gain in the whole series. Thank you for pointing me to Nate’s Watch for a further in depth look at the wedding.
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Summer Peach, I am glad that you mentioned Tyrion and Sansa’s relationship. I agree. At first, I was totally shocked. After more reflection, I feel that this arrangement may do good for both of their characters, in some way.
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I feel like it is good as stated before because she is now under some sort of protection. Since Tyrion seems to be one of the few people to stand up to Joffrey. Another benefit of her marrying Tyrion is that she is now technically a Lannister and she will be able to use the name. I am not sure if she will, but it is a bonus she now has.
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Joffrey certainly powered down this week too. Tywin put him in his place directly and demonstrated his power over the King to others behind his back. I personally have no use for either character, but so long as they are busy playing each other, they have less time to spend on harming more decent people.
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I would have to agree with you that Joffrey has powered down. I think he is figuring out where Tyrion gets his guts. It is nice to see that there is a mutual disrespect from Tywin and Tyrion.
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Sansa often seems very clueless to me. She seems incapable of analyzing Margaery’s motives in befriending her. She is still dreaming about the perfect wedding to the hunky Loras–oblivious to the fact that the lad is gay. She doesn’t really have adult conversations with Tyrion even though he clearly is in pain and feels sympathetic towards her. When is the character going to stop reacting and start acting? I always prefer when the narrative cuts to Arya.
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Sansa started to get some momentum as a character but the news of her family being slaughtered really set her back. What’s so crazy about it to me is she has just married a member of the family that helped orchestrate the Red Wedding. It makes me wonder if Sansa would ever be able to believe Tyrion when he tells her that he had nothing to do with it. If I was her I don’t think I could ever get past that fact.
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I question whether Dany is the top dog in the game of thrones. She seems to be very distracted right now freeing all of the slaves. The Starks are falling one by one. Who will survive? Jon Snow leaving Ygritte broke her heart and mine. Your lingering thoughts will definitely be addressed in season 4. Looking forward to your reactions and comments.
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I question whether or not Jon Snow has lost power. He may have had to deal with the wildlings, but he is back in his home turf now. Before he had to be on his p’s and q’s as a wildling, but can now come back and let the fellow Night’s Watch brothers know about what will happen. Overall, he did take a blow, but I think he will be rising in power in no time.
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