The Bear and the Maiden Fair (episode)

The Bear and the Maiden Fair (episode)

"The Bear and the Maiden Fair" is the seventh episode of the third season of Game of Thrones. It is the twenty-seventh episode of the series overall. It premiered on May 12, 2013. It was written by series creator George R.R. Martin and directed by Michelle MacLaren.

Template:S03E07 Synopsis

Plot

Summary

Dany meets Razdal mo Eraz. Jon Snow and Ygritte trek toward Castle Black. Sansa opens up to Margaery. Jaime saves Brienne from a bear in Harrenhal.  Robb and Talisa  talk about their coming child. Tywin floors Joffrey  and puts him in his place. Melisandre reveals to Gendry that he is the bastard son of Robert Baratheon, basically instilling in him the fact that all the other contenders for the Iron Throne are unworthy and that he has the power to make a name for himself. Theon gets a lap dance from two of the Boy's whores and then gets assaulted by him. Osha reveals her past to Bran, Rickon, Hodor, and the Reeds. Arya  runs away from the Brotherhood, thinking them traitors, and runs into The Hound, who kidnaps and possibly rapes her. Shae abandons her relationship with Tyrion, not wanting to be his personal bedslave.  Bronn tells him he could have both Sansa and Shae, but this flies over his head.

Appearances

Main: The Bear and the Maiden Fair (episode)/Appearances

Characters

First

• Razdal mo Eraz
• Myranda
• Violet
• Steelshanks
• Ser Balon Swann

Production

Cast

Starring Peter Dinklage as Tyrion Lannister Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as Ser Jaime Lannister Emilia Clarke as Queen Daenerys Targaryen Kit Harington as Jon Snow Richard Madden as King Robb Stark Iain Glen as Ser Jorah Mormont Michelle Fairley as Lady Catelyn Stark Charles Dance as Lord Tywin Lannister Natalie Dormer as Lady Margaery Tyrell Carice van Houten as Melisandre Isaac Hempstead-Wright as Prince Bran Stark Sophie Turner as Princess Sansa Stark Maisie Williams as Princess Arya Stark Alfie Allen as Prince Theon Greyjoy Oona Chaplin as Queen Talisa Stark Jack Gleeson as King Joffrey Baratheon Joe Dempsie as Gendry Sibel Kekilli as Shae Rose Leslie as Ygritte Jerome Flynn as Ser Bronn Rory McCann as Sandor Clegane

Guest starring Mackenzie Crook as Orell Gwendoline Christie as Brienne of Tarth Richard Dormer as Lord Beric Dondarrion Paul Kaye as Thoros of Myr Noah Taylor as Locke Natalia Tena as Osha Anton Lesser as Qyburn Michael McElhatton as Lord Roose Bolton Clive Russell as Ser Brynden Tully Tobias Menzies as Lord Edmure Tully Ian McElhinney as Ser Barristan Selmy Iwan Rheon as the boy Kristofer Hivju as Tormund Giantsbane Thomas Brodie-Sangster as Jojen Reed Ellie Kendrick as Meera Reed Nathalie Emmanuel as Missandei Jacob Anderson as Grey Worm Kristian Nairn as Hodor Philip McGinley as Anguy George Georgiou as Razdal mo Eraz Jamie Michie as Steelshanks Charlotte Hope as Myranda Stephanie Blacker as Violet Art Parkinson as Prince Rickon Stark Animal Performer Little Bart as the eponymous bear (credited as Bart the Bear).

Cast notes

• 21 of 28 cast members for the third season appear in this episode.
• Starring cast members Lena Headey (Cersei Lannister), Aidan Gillen (Petyr Baelish), Liam Cunningham (Davos Seaworth), Stephen Dillane (Stannis Baratheon), John Bradley (Samwell Tarly) and Conleth Hill (Varys) are not credited and do not appear in this episode.

Notes

• The title of the episode comes from The Bear and the Maiden Fair, a popular song in Westeros.
• Parts of this episode were filmed in Los Angeles, USA, because they involve a live actor-bear (named Little Bart) and there are various legal restrictions on international transport of large animals such as bears. As the in-episode guide explains, the sets and actors were still in Northern Ireland, and never filmed in Los Angeles. Rather, a stunt man in a green-screen suit stood in for the bear on-set in Northern Ireland so the actors would have the proper eye-line, while the actor-bear was filmed in his sanctuary in Los Angeles, while his trainer walked him through the required motions for the scene. The actor-bear's footage was then digitally integrated into the shots with the human actors.
• This episode was originally announced by George R.R. Martin on his blog in 2012, almost a year ahead of transmission. The original planned title was "Autumn Storms". In January 2013 he announced that the title had been changed to "Chains". However, due to scenes from another episode being moved into it, it was decided to retitle the episode to "The Bear and the Maiden Fair". Thus Martin himself didn't write the scenes that include the bear (which all occur in one big chunk at the end of the episode).
• This is the third episode to raise the issue of Margaery Tyrell's ambiguous virginity. The first was "What is Dead May Never Die", where Renly Baratheon said he doubted Margaery was actually a virgin. The second was in "Dark Wings, Dark Words", where Cersei got Joffrey to confront Margaery about her childless marriage to Renly. In the first case, Loras Tyrell stated she was officially a virgin, and in the second, Margaery used Renly's homosexuality as a defense. In this episode, Margaery uses Sansa's own words to deflect the conversation. Her virginity is similarly an ambiguous matter in the books.
• This episode marks the first time that Tywin Lannister has had a significant scene with his grandson King Joffrey Baratheon. They did previously appear together in the Season 2 finale, but that was a public ceremony in which everyone was reciting pre-scripted lines to each other. This marks the first time that Joffrey and Tywin have actually interacted in person - this is somewhat indicated within the story itself, as Joffrey has summoned Tywin to complain that he's leaving him out of Small Council meetings.
• This episode also indicates that a new member of the Kingsguard has taken one the openings left by the death of Ser Mandon Moore and the desertion of Sandor Clegane - which had left only three living Kingsguard in the Red Keep: Ser Meryn Trant, Ser Boros Blount, and an unnamed Kinsguard this wiki identifies as Ser Preston Greenfield - as no Kingsguard is seen dying in the Riot of King's Landing it is also assumed Ser Preston survives, unlike his book counterpart. This wiki will assume the fourth Kingsguard is Ser Balon Swann as this character has the least impact in the book plot as of A Storm of Swords.
• Word has finally reached the highest levels of the Red Keep that Daenerys Targaryen has hatched three live dragons in the distant east of Essos. Varys has been aware of this for several months, and mentioned it to Tyrion in "The Prince of Winterfell", but they decided to focus on the impending Battle of the Blackwater. Tywin was probably notified about the dragons by Varys, but Joffrey must have heard it somewhere else.
• Viserys previously described the dragon skulls kept in the throne room when he was having sex with Doreah in "Cripples, Bastards and Broken Things" - except in that episode, Viserys said that the dragon skulls were arranged so that they got progressively bigger as they got closer to the Iron Throne, while in this episode, Tywin says that the smallest skulls were near the Iron Throne and the largest were on the far side of the room. Viserys (and the books) said that the skull of the smallest one wasn't much bigger than that of a dog's skull, but Tywin says the smallest was the size of an apple. Tywin was probably exaggerating. Joffrey points out that the biggest skull was the size of a carriage, presumably the same one Arya previously saw when she wandered into the Red Keep's dungeons in "The Wolf and the Lion"; the largest dragons were said to be easily capable of swallowing a horse whole.
• Bronn mentions that Tyrion was once married to a whore, and this didn't work out well for him. Tyrion says he regrets telling him about that - Tyrion told Bronn (and Shae) about his first marriage to Tysha in "Baelor".
• This is the first time someone outside Tyrion's inner circle– Bronn, Shae and Varys– is heard complimenting him: Margaery says he is far from the worst of the Lannisters and suggests that he might be a good lover.
• Talisa reveals she is pregnant with the heir to the North. This is a departure from the books: Robb's wife Jeyne Westerling did not conceive a child prior to Edmure's wedding.

In the books

See Differences between books and TV series - Season 3#The Bear and the Maiden Fair (episode)

Image gallery

The eponymous bear, played by Little Bart the actor-bear.

The eponymous maiden-fair, Brienne of Tarth.