BWW Recap: Jon Snow Heads 'Home' in GAME OF THRONES

Episode two of Game of Thrones just aired tonight and with it, we got a lot of what we had last week, shocking deaths and violence, but we also got the answer to everyone's burning question; Is Jon Snow really dead? The episode, entitled "Home" not only was named so because of the word being dropped quite often in dialogue, but several of our primary characters dealt with their families, identities and "homes". I would say this is one of the closes instances we've gotten on this show of having the title actually play a key role in the total events of the narrative, but alas, it still struggled to remain thematically relevant, despite it's frequent usage.

This episode actually picks off all the way back where we left off in Season 4, with Bran Stark beyond the Wall. He's having a vision through the weirwood tree that the three-eyed-raven resides in. This vision isn't a look into the future however, but a look back into the past, and not just any past, but the past of another face we haven't seen in a while: Ned Stark. He's sword training with his younger bother Benjen in the practice yard of Winterfell, while presumably the eldest Stark, Brandon looks on. Little Lyanna Stark rides in on horseback, while Benjen scolds her not to show off. This whole scene seemed rather expositional, more so than these flashbacks presumably could, as book details and hints weaved into the series since the first novel are being attempted to be woven in all at once this season. Bran remarks having seen Lyanna's statue in the crypts of Winterfell, but ponders why his "father never talked about her."

Lyanna Stark is a rather interesting character that is slowly developing overtime in the novels, as we piece together her history from different perspectives. However, as she is gone before the series' beginning, and Ned is one of the few who knows the truth of it all, it's all fragments that need connecting. Lyanna and her presence here, as well as the snippet of the event known as the "Tower of Joy" in next weeks preview, strongly hint that the popular fan theory is correct and highlight her importance in the story. However, due to the containment of this information in just one season, it all is incredibly expository and even small lines like the one Bran mentions above just hit the nail on the head a little bit too much if you know what they are talking about. The writing here is not subtle or compelling, but is here rather just to tell us things rather than color the story.

There also were quite a lot of small book-to-screen changes that made themselves present in this episode, and the pattern seemed to either point to a underestimation of show-watchers or a disregard for the source material, both of which are rather disrespectful. One small change, for example, was calling Hodor Wylis in the flashback, instead of Walder as he is in the books. This was either out of fear that viewers would get confused between him and Walder Frey or to turn their nose up at the small details in the source material that don't need altering for they effect no plot. These small and unnecessary changes felt full of flippancy and contempt.

Bran is pulled out of this vision by the Three Eyed Raven, for fear that if he stays if he "stays too long, [he'll] drown." This warning echoes the warning Bran got from Jojen and Meera when he was warging into Summer, but Bran insists he isn't drowning, he's "home." Seeing as the show didn't put much focus into the danger of losing yourself while warging, that fear will probably be explored here, as Bran watches his family and father seemingly alive again, all while being able to walk again. These visions bring him life he thought he lost forever and we'll probably see him struggle as he hopes to hold on to all that he has lost while getting swept up in this non-reality.

"Home" word drop: 1

Back at the Wall, Jon Snow is still a corpse, and a well preserved corpse at that thanks to the temperature up North. It is still a wonder why Davos is all of a sudden a big Jon Snow supporter due to the lack of screen time the two had together, but he's leading the charge. With Alliser Thorne and armed men at his door, Davos decides to take up arms, grabbing Longclaw. All of this is just so nonsensical and counterintuitive. After a great deal of them saw the dead rise again at Hardhome, shedding more useless blood doesn't seem to be a good plan. Of course, Alliser Thorne seems hellbent on punishing Jon Snow supporters because Jon is a supporter of the Wildlings that Thorne himself is responsible for letting through the wall after Hardhome. Thorne is quite hypocritical, it's a wonder he got anyone to follow him other than Olly.

Speaking of the Wildlings, they burst through the door (because for some reason they weren't in the castle?) with Dolorous Edd to the rescue. Wun Wun the giant smashes one of Thorne's men across a wall and everyone lays down their arms, save for I'm-just-a-plot-device-Olly who charges. Tormund knocks his weapon away and he and the rest of the rogue Night's Watch are taken captive. It's good to have a giant on your side in a fight.

Then, in what appears to be Meereen, but is actually Kings Landing, we are greeted with a man spouting sexist chattering about Cersei's walk. (Seriously though, are we reusing a Meereese set or something? That and the wardrobe just didn't feel very reminiscent of Kings Landing.) We follow this man to where he goes to take a piss. It turns out the reason we watched this guys nonsense in the first place was just so we can see Franken-Gregor Clegane aka Robert Strong bash his head in. It was a slightly satisfying death. Robert Strong: the number one Cersei defender in Westeros.

Cersei, herself, is distraught for she is banned from Myrcella's funeral by direct order of Tommen. This is because it's taking place in the Sept of Baelor, which the Faith Militant and the Sparrows have hold of. Thus only two people attend her funeral, Jaime and Tommen. There are no other guards, be it Kingsguard or Lannister men, which seems foolish considering that the people who paraded the Queen Regent nude through the street and whom hold the current Queen in jail are in charge of the sept, but I guess they were taking their chances so we can get the cool face-off between the High Sparrow and Jaime. Tommen asks the High Sparrow why he can't see his wife, and I think that's a very good question. Why? Tommen is the king of the Seven Kingdoms. He has every power available to him to just command the Sparrows to let her go, and if they don't, he can just send an army in.

In the novel, not so much in the show, there is support all over from the small folk for the rise of the Sparrows. The Sparrows represent their faces in a war that ravaged their lands and people but cared little for who they were. However, in the show that isn't weaved in very much, so the crown taking up arms against the Sparrows doesn't seem unintelligent, especially considering the fact that holding Margaery, who we were showed is greatly loved by the people, simply for the sin of "perjury" is a ridiculous. If they really loved her as much as we were shown, they would stand with the crown against this "injustice".

Jaime faces off with the High Sparrow, played wonderfully by Jonathan Pryce, questioning what his punishment would be for all the sins he's commited. Originally, it seemed he was calling out the double standards that seem presented within the Sparrows, seeing as the punishment women (Cersei and Margaery) face for their sins is unmatched by the lack of punishment the men face (Lancel). However, he was just listing his past crimes to show the High Sparrow that he is ready and willing to shed blood, sin or not.

Tommen finally goes to see Cersei and they have a heart-to-heart, for he apparently didn't visit her since her walk. That seems a little odd considering he just told us that he has done virtually nothing but ask to see Margaery and has been putting not one plan into action, but as we are told, he was struggling with his inadequacy and toxic-masculinity. One has to wonder who is actually ruling the Kingdom, for Tommen doesn't seem to be, but we still don't get a hint of whether Kevan Lannister, who we spotted at the end of last season, is his Hand. Tommen apologizes and seeks his mother's help, continually infantilized as he maintains all of book-Tommen's characteristics despite being aged up.

The Lannisters are clearly the writers favorites, as they grow more and more sympathetic with every season. It does make their storylines less compelling however, for all of the grayness that exists, all the dimensionality is what makes them interesting is no longer present. Cersei's internalized misogyny, anger, and ego are what make her the perfect foil for Jaime, who was all of those things because he was raised to be so, and encouraged by Cersei to mirror her, but learns to see the world differently through experience. Jaime's redemption arc is one of the greatest feats of George R.R. Martin's writing, but when it comes to show Jaime, he really hasn't changed. In the very first episode, he pushes Bran out of a window, declaring "The things I do for love," and in the last episode, he proclaimed, "We're the only ones who matter." While Jaime started to develop when he was with Brienne, all of that was thrown away the minute he came back to Kings Landing.

Speaking of sympathetic Lannisters, we make our way over to actual-Meereen, where we are greeted with the number one favorite Lannister, Tyrion. He is having a council meeting with Varys, Grey Worm, and Missandei. The show starts to thread in the fact that the rest of Slaver's Bay has regressed back into slavery, giving what is most of Daenery's struggle in A Dance With Dragons over to Tyrion. Dany's experience in Meereen was called the Meereenese knot" for there was no way to win. Everything she did had negative repercussions and all the good she was doing was BECOMING undone. With Astapor in ruins, Yunkai forces at her walls fighting against her anti-slavery movement, and the Harpy fighting her inside, she had enemies in every direction. Judging by the path they appear to be throwing Tyrion onto, however, he will most likely fix this non-fixable issue with ease as he does with everything. As he recites, he "drinks" and "knows things."

Like the Lannisters are the writer's favorite family, Tyrion is their favorite character and it's to his detriment. For, they make him utterly flawless and impeccable which makes an unchallenging story and a boring character. In fact, he is even better than Daenerys at training and talking to her dragons, for when he goes down to the dungeons to see them, he is able to go so far as to stroke them and remove their chains. The answer to training Dragons: talking. If only Quentyn Martell from the books knew that all he needed to do was to talk to the dragons, tell them a little bit about himself, then he wouldn't have gotten his face burned off. Dragons are moved by sweet stories. Ultimately, Tyrion Lannister remains invincible on this show, doing Daenery's job better than she can, and it just infantilizes and belittles her character, and holds him up on a shiny pedestal.

In fact, I think it's worth pointing out that the Lannisters, white, blond haired, and beautiful, are the show's favorite and most sympathetic characters, cheered and celebrated by the narrative constantly, while the brown people in Dorne are characterized as hot-blooded, violent, unreasonable, and overtly emotional people.

Back in present-day Winterfell, the Bolton's are having family troubles as usual, but this time, kicked up a notch. For when it is announced that Roose's wife, Walda, has given birth to a son, Ramsay goes in for a congratulatory hug and stabs his father to death. He then also goes and releases the hounds on Walda and her newborn baby. Shock. Shock. Shock. Nonsensical. This was all very shocking, yes, but it begs the question, why would any of the Bolton's men (or the recently reworked-in Karstarks) follow this bastard that no one likes, who is unpredictable and insane, and call him Lord Bolton? The show, following the Dorne plot line from last episode, seems to royal hierarchy, systems, and birth for what would be more "satisfying," but any satisfaction we would get from this clouded by questions. It's imperative to narrative to stick to the rules set up in your world. It's storytelling 101.

We then check in with our Stark sisters, briefly. We see Arya, blind and beat up once more by the Waif, only to finally be led away by Jaquen H'ghar after insisting she is "No One". It's nice to see Arya's agency in actively choosing blindness for her training come up, but I wish it had started to be weaved in when we first see her, for seeing her constantly resolved to be "No One," is more powerful than seeing it just the one time.

Sansa is in the snowy wood with Brienne, Podrick and Theon. She is discussing Brienne having seen Arya. Sansa is joyous knowing her sister could still be out there alive. It's actually quite a sweet moment between the two, especially when Brienne mentions Arya's attire and Sansa smiles at the thought of Arya dressed "unladylike". However, Theon decides it's time to go, for Brienne and Podrick can see Sansa safely to Castle Black without him. It's not exactly clear why he decides to go, seemingly due to fear of confronting Jon after all that he's done (but if it's all hopeless, at least stay with the person you said you'd die to protect), but we do know where he's headed; "Home."

"Home" word drop: 2

Then, we make our way over to the Iron Islands, or more specifically Pyke, for some much needed and much missed Greyjoy action. It was actually the most compelling stuff in the episode, but also slightly rushed. It was so good I would have loved to let it play out a little longer. It's just more point and case that everything this episode felt rather expositional. It was all just scenes that lead to more scenes that would eventually be built into something, almost like a checklist of plot points that needed to be covered rather than events having actual resonance within the narrative of the individual episode.

However, the Iron Island plot was seemingly successful. Balon is spouting on about victory and honor and makes a reference to a long running joke in the fandom; him being the only king left in the "War of Five Kings," and thus winning said war by "default." Gemma Whelan is riveting as Yara Greyjoy, and gives her scene everything, arguing much of what actually derived from her book plot line, even referencing a quote from it. She claims that all they are getting from these battles are simply "pinecones and rocks" and all they are doing is losing men and shedding more blood. It would be sad if this reference indicated that the place and reason she delivers this speech in the first place in the books is retconned, but the force with which she does it here is riveting.

However, Balon, not completely uncharacteristically, patronizes Yara before leaving, claiming that if she does not obey him, he will produce another heir to sit the Salt Throne (The Seastone Chair in the books. Again, why is this change necessary?) before he dies. It's still rather frustrating for as horrible as Balon was, and as set in his ways as he could be, his support of Yara succeeding him was unwavering. She was the son he never had, for Theon became a Stark and he lost his others. I wonder if the fact that their last moment was a moment of contention is going to be explored, but her support of him in the next scene seems to suggest not.

These actors are all just so exciting to watch and make whatever is going on believable and compelling. In their mannerisims alone, they manage to convey a culture and a way-of-life that the Iron-born pride themselves on. They should be applauded for setting up beyond what is in the writing.

Balon Greyjoy soon becomes the fifth and final king to die when he is greeted by his brother Euron Greyjoy on the precarious bridge that links Pyke's halls. Euron, portrayed by the exciting talent that is Pilou Asbæk, was believed dead by Balon and mocks his brother. Balon dismisses him, claiming that an Iron-born does not cower in the face of a storm. Euron declares"I am the storm, brother. The first storm, and the last. And you're in my way," which prompts Balon to attack him with a small knife. The knife only cuts him slightly and Euron throws Balon over the bridge, to his death in the stormy rocky seas below. Having the death blow be a response to Balon's initial attack is an interesting turn of events, as it begins to make a case against Euron's kinslaying, hopefully not being a hint at turning someone horrible, like Euron, into a more sympathetic figure. For, he is what characterizes a lot of the Iron Island mantra and what makes it so toxic. Seeing an actor like Asbæk begin to possibly tackle that, however, is very exciting.

At Balon's funeral, Yara makes a remark about finding out who had killed him (Wasn't it meant to look accidental?). She talks about taking the Salt Throne and her intentions in ruling the Iron Islands. However, it is made plain to her, that despite Balon's wishes, she is but a woman and only a Kingsmoot can decide who is king. Apparently, a Kingsmoot is the law, and not a ploy by Aeron Greyjoy (not ever named in the show) to combat Euron's claimaint. Again, not including Euron sitting the throne immediately after Balon's "mysterious" death, seems to buffer away the immediate negativity and hesitance you are meant to associate with his character, potentially in attempt to avoid the inability to sympathize with him. Though, Asbæk throws Euron's madness at you with full force so he still doesn't allow us to rest easy when we think of him.

Last but not least, Davos goes and recruits Melisandre to help in resurrecting Jon. Why he thinks this is an option is a mystery, as well as why they are suddenly so chummy. Nevertheless, in a rather messy scene, he basically convinces her to use her powers to bring Jon back (for he is the number on Jon supporter, we can't forget!) by telling her to forget the Gods, but use some of that Godly magic?

Melisandre, wrapped in a blanket characterizing her loss of faith as she's meant to never feel cold, finally agrees and in what was probably the smallest internal crisis, she immediately tries to resurrect Jon. At first, it appears to not be working, and she goes through a spell which resembles getting a haircut, but once everyone leaves the room, exasperated, it happens. Kit Harrington and the rest of the crew are going to have to issue a lot of apologies, for Ghost seems to sense something and suddenly, Jon Snow opens his eyes and gasps for air, arisen.

This episode was more focused than last week, for sure, but still felt like a mark meant to be hit than present compelling narrative. However, it confirmed what we all knew would happen this season and put to rest the question that everyone would not cease asking. As we look to next week, the number one question is what will this newly resurrected Jon Snow do? Has he changed? Has he come back any different than he was? We'll find out in a jam-packed episode three where Dany arrives at Vaes Dothrak and Bran's next vision appears to be the all-too-famous and speculative "Tower of Joy."

Check out the preview of next week's episode below and be sure to share your thoughts and reactions to this weeks episode in the comments!

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