Unsullied Recap, Game of Thrones Season 4, Episode 8 – The Mountain and the Viper

Spoiler note: The discussion in this post is primarily for non-book readers (book fans can discuss the show here). We ask that all Sullied book-readers refrain from posting spoilers in the comments here, veiled or otherwise. This show is best viewed without knowing all the surprises beforehand or afterwards, so please be respectful of your fellow fans. Thank you!

Oz of Thrones: If there was any doubt in anyone’s mind about whether or not I am truly Unsullied, please go read Sunday’s Looking Forward.  You have permission to laugh your ass off.

Greetings fellow WiC/GoT lovers.  Once again, the creator and show runners have most of us shaking our heads in disbelief and in regards to new characters, begging the question, “why even bother?”.

But we already know the answer…

As we have discussed many times before, we become invested in these personas.  The show has mostly been exceptional in getting us emotionally involved with the players in this game. Oberyn was still new enough that most of us didn’t expect to lose him, even as we are all well aware that no one is safe here.  Ever.

But this episode wasn’t just about a great battle between two experienced fighters.  It was full of turning points for many important characters, none of which needs to be overlooked.

The Burping Boob and Beer Bar (or the Triple B as the locals know it) is about what you would expect in a family friendly place like Mole’s Town.  Sam’s decision to take Gilly there looked horribly unwise at this point.  Luckily, and contrary to how many of us felt earlier in the season, Ygritte does have at least some compassion for mother and child (but not farmer fathers).   I wonder if this was an attempt by D&D to win the viewers back to caring about Ygritte because of events to come at the Wall?

Of course Sam feels understandable guilt.  But the big story is that the Wildlings are moving in quickly.

Last night, millions of men worldwide rejoiced as Missandei was depicted fully nude.  Admittedly, the sight was impressive (and I say this with the utmost respect… there should be nothing wrong with recognizing and complimenting beauty.  So I did.)  It was so impressive that even the Unsullied Grey Worm was impacted.  I’m not sure exactly what the point is of this mutual respect/admiration between Greyandei is headed.  Maybe it is to show that the Unsullied do have feelings and emotions that contradict what we were told by Kraznys and others.  We shall see.

The Ramsay pep talk with Reek before approaching the Moat was exceptional. But as good as it was, it pales to Alfie’s acting as he enters the gates and begins losing it when the garrison in charge calls BS on who he is and his intent.  The game plan of Ramsay for Theon was not exactly what I was expecting.  My thoughts were that Theon would be sent in acting as if he had an order from Balon for his men to all come home.  Then again, I guess it’s hard to hide the army of Bolton soldiers that were ready for battle if things went sour.  Regardless of the plot, and thanks to an ax to the head, the goal was attained.

Then finally, we had a Roose sighting!  I thought that Roose’s acceptance of Ramsay as no longer being a bastard was powerful, even as Iwan Rheon looked especially nutso as he bowed before his father.  But I loved the size and scale of the North being put into perspective as Roose and Ramsay stood on the hill and the numbers accompanying the Bolton army were shown.  Roose is a force to be reckoned with and Ramsay had a turning point.

Littlefinger is facing the music for the death of my dear Lysa rather quickly.  The questioning is just another chapter of Baelish being Baelish until Sansa enters.  And then, as fast as an asshole can push a sad woman out of a moon door, Sansa Stark became a player in the game.  And for the first time in recent memory, I am excited about her story line.

After Baelish is cleared, he quickly turns to making sure the other families in the Vale stand against the Lannisters and begins to plant seeds for the exit of young Robin.  It is clear that Petyr is moving forward with his plan.  Yet it is unclear exactly what his next move will be.   But the most important part is that Sansa somehow managed to become a woman in one episode.  Yes, her transformation has been evolving through all she has endured.  But tonight, Sansa Stark reached a turning point.

Selmy receives a letter from the Hand of the King and this episode ends up being the one that Jorah fans have been dreading for some time.  I’ve got mixed emotions on the scene where he goes to face the charges with Dany.  First off, I think it was one of Emilia’s better acting scenes.  It didn’t feel over-acted or forced as she is sometimes prone to do.

Having said that, I found it somewhat unlikely that as much as Jorah has done for her in the past, she wouldn’t give him more a of a chance to explain exactly how all of the events transpired.  This is the guy who was her most trusted adviser since the beginning and she wasted no time in sending him packing.  We could also argue that he was lucky to walk out with his head still attached, and such an argument would be justified.  Still, it came across to me at least a little abrupt.

Jorah most definitely reached a turning point, and for him, now what?

I got one wish from my Looking Forward post.  The Stark and the Hound finally make it to a destination only to find out that Aunt Lysa is gone.  And Arya loses it, and Ozzette and I lost it with her and laughed through half of the Tyrion and Jaime scene.  I do hope that Arya and Sandor don’t simply just turn around and leave.  But this wouldn’t be the first time Arya has been this close to family and fails to reunite with one of them.  I think the only thing that could have made this scene better is if the Hound started laughing uncontrollably.

Following the aforementioned and potentially last brotherhood scene between Tyrion and Jaime, it was combat time. And the underdog got too cocky.  As I mentioned yesterday, the hardest concept for me to grasp is how this show and story often times bring in these phenomenal characters that are so well written and translated on screen only to have them die horrible, untimely deaths.  I felt this way even more so about Oberyn.

GoT continues to do what it does so well… it makes us believe that these intriguing entertaining characters will survive at least a reasonable amount of time before meeting their demise.  Yes, we should know better by now.  But it still doesn’t minimize the shock.

The battle scene lived up to the hype (although I would have been fine with it lasting a little longer).  They did a great job selling the point that the Mountain was finished, for if it were any other man they surely would have been.  But this is the Mountain, and as bad as Oberyn wanted Gregor to admit his guilt concerning the rape and murder of his sister, it goes without saying he would have been much better off twisting the spear a few times and seeing some guts exposed.

But damn… this may have easily been the most gruesome scene in the series and the only one that Ozzette hasn’t witnessed (she still has her eyes covered).

Also a bit odd was the fact that the show finally referred to him as the Red Viper on the same episode he was exterminated.

This Holy Shit moment brought to you in part by the “Game of Thrones Death Company”.  Nobody kills you better than we do. 

Episode 408 Personal Awards

Favorite Scene:  Loved the whole episode. It will be remembered for the battle scene, but there were many here that should not be forgotten.
Favorite Quote #1:  “You’re going to fight that?”

Favorite Quote #2:   “I’m going to kill that.”

Ow, That Shit Hurts Award:  The remains of Oberyn’s head (although the first fully flayed man we’ve seen at the hand of the Boltons deserves mention).

Final Thoughts:  Needless to say, it did not go down as a man expected.  But in Thrones it hardly ever does.  The obvious question now is does Tyrion somehow survive his sentence?  I mentioned yesterday that I just couldn’t envision the show taking out both Tyrion and Oberyn.  I courteously request that this statement be retracted.  For without doubt, a man has been wrong before.

How did you guys feel about it?  Sound off and let’s chat it up.

Holla…. Everyone is welcome.

BUT NO SPOILERS HERE!  NO HINTS! NO BOOK RELATED DISCUSSION! 

Look me up in the twittersphere @ozofthrones where we can discuss crushed heads of cool people and all things Thrones related (or anything else interesting that might pop).

I’ll be back Friday or Saturday for Looking Forward and the tradition of the Epic 9’s. For now, I’m headed to the Triple B for cocktails.

Until then, have a great week, and may there always be peace in your realm. –Oz

“Unbowed.  Unbent.  Unsullied.”

PLEASE BE MINDFUL OF THE UNSULLIED… Do not post spoilers in this comment thread!

• Published on 06/02/2014 at 9:00 AM CDT
• Last updated on 10/21/2016 at 12:41 PM CDT