Oliver Davis reviews the first episode of Game of Thrones Season Four…
Two Swords.
If ever a series needed a ‘Previously on [enter show title here]’ recap, it’s Game of Thrones. A lot of shizzle has gone down in and around Westeros. Political struggles in the mainland, usurping armies amassing abroad, and the small matter of an undead army invading from the North. The brief summary of seasons one through to three were thus rather welcome, even if it did sometimes feel like a @%&! you highlight reel. “This favourite character of yours…DEAD! That master-swordsman…HAD HIS HAND CUT OFF! The people you were rooting for most…KILLED IN A MASS MURDER!” Oh George, welcome back.
A year on television scheduling-wise amounts to merely a few days in Westeros time, with the Red Wedding still literally echoing through the halls of King’s Landing – once as Tywin Lannister (Charles Dance) forges two new Valyrian blades from the Stark family’s prized greatsword, Ice, with a hauntingly slow orchestral version of the Rains of Castamere (the song played during those bloody nuptials) on the soundtrack; and again, a little later on, when a Lannister guard is heard singing the tune in a brothel. “A lion still has claws, and mine are long and sharp, my Lord, as long and sharp as yours…” Not as sharp, however, as Oberyn Martell’s (Pedro Pascal), when the well-groomed bisexual prince thrusts his dagger through the man’s wrist. That’s right, we’ve got a new House in the house! Because if there’s one thing Game of Thrones lacks, it’s a vast array of characters. And there was you, all happy and stuff, for finally remembering the old lady’s name from House Tyrell. The Martells don’t much like the Lannisters, on account of Tywin’s men brutally killing Oberyn’s sister, Elia, and her children in the Usurper’s War. They’re in town for Joffrey (Jack Gleeson) and Margaery’s (Natalie Dormer) wedding, and promise to add yet another layer of tension between the major Houses in Westeros. Oberyn also brings with him the first pair of breasts in the season thus far, which took a restrained 8 minutes. The first sight of pubic hair came a few seconds after, followed by a lesbian smooch and a homosexual fondle. It’s all very sexy stuff, until you remember from whose mind this came.
Oberyn is one of the better characters that Martin introduces at this stage in the saga, and his budding bromance with Tyrion (Peter Dinklage) ranks up there with Tyrion and Bronn, Tyrion and Varys, Tyrion and Pod, Tyrion and a glass of wine, or anything else Tyrion converses with. Elsewhere, all the other major stories are touched upon, albeit barely in a scene each. The Wildlings are still planning their assault on Castle Black, now with support from a gang of Hellraiser cosplayers; Jon Snow (Kit Harrington) is preparing the Ranger Rejects in Night’s Watch Academy 3: Back in Training; and Daenerys (Emilia Clarke) still has her dragons. And what dragons. They’re much bigger, in both scale and CGI production value. Their presence feels more concrete than the scaly pixels of before. Though there’s always the concern that in half a decade, rewatching these scenes from Game of Thrones will be like revisiting the special effects in Xena and Hercules. Stuff like this unfortunately always dates. You know what doesn’t date? Farscape. Imagine how much better those dragons would look as puppets mixed in with the CGI.
The episode’s best scene, however, is its last. Maisie Williams (Arya) was Season Three’s standout actor, her scenes alongside Dance being amongst the best of the entire show. A similar format is applied here – pair her with an older actor in an unlikely buddy duo with her as the spunky upstart. Sandor Clegane (Rory McCann) is her enforced chum/kidnapper, and the two play off each other wonderfully. After their few episodes at the back-end of season three, they’re more of a team now. Re-watch the final tavern scene where Polliver talks with the Hound, and how the background chatter ceases on his “&%$! the King” line. Only the crackling of the wood fire is audible beneath their dialogue. It’s a masterclass in tension. It all bubbles over with Arya winning back the sword her bastard brother Jon Snow gave her all the way back in the first ever episode. Needle is its name, and it pierced right through Polliver’s throat on that tavern floor. And that’s how the first episode of 2014 – with a child killing a man. Oh George, it’s been too long.
