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==Summary==
 
==Summary==
 
===Across the Narrow Sea===
 
===Across the Narrow Sea===
[[File:Narrow Sea.png|thumb|220x220px]]
 
 
The [[Dothraki]] ''[[khalasar]]'' led by [[Khal]] [[Drogo]] have departed [[Pentos]] and are heading east. They travel away from the [[Free Cities]] and into the [[Dothraki sea]], the long-grassed plains that the Dothraki call home. [[Viserys Targaryen]] accompanies the ''khalasar'', meaning to stay with Drogo until he fulfills his end of the bargain and provides him with an army with which to invade [[Westeros]]. Ser [[Jorah Mormont]] tells Viserys that he offended his liege lord, [[Eddard Stark]], by selling poachers into slavery. When he received word that Eddard meant to execute him for the crime (slavery has been illegal in Westeros for centuries), he fled to [[Essos]]. Viserys laughs at the notion, saying such trivialities would not be punished under his reign. For her part, [[Daenerys]] is finding adapting to her new role as ''[[khaleesi]]'' to be a huge challenge. Only Mormont offers her some solace; saying it will become easier. Daenerys is however fearful of her new husband and it is revealed that their first sexual encounter has left her slightly injured.
 
The [[Dothraki]] ''[[khalasar]]'' led by [[Khal]] [[Drogo]] have departed [[Pentos]] and are heading east. They travel away from the [[Free Cities]] and into the [[Dothraki sea]], the long-grassed plains that the Dothraki call home. [[Viserys Targaryen]] accompanies the ''khalasar'', meaning to stay with Drogo until he fulfills his end of the bargain and provides him with an army with which to invade [[Westeros]]. Ser [[Jorah Mormont]] tells Viserys that he offended his liege lord, [[Eddard Stark]], by selling poachers into slavery. When he received word that Eddard meant to execute him for the crime (slavery has been illegal in Westeros for centuries), he fled to [[Essos]]. Viserys laughs at the notion, saying such trivialities would not be punished under his reign. For her part, [[Daenerys]] is finding adapting to her new role as ''[[khaleesi]]'' to be a huge challenge. Only Mormont offers her some solace; saying it will become easier. Daenerys is however fearful of her new husband and it is revealed that their first sexual encounter has left her slightly injured.
   

Revision as of 22:58, 23 February 2015

This article is about the episode. For the actual highway, see "Kingsroad".

"The Kingsroad" is the second episode of the first season of Game of Thrones. It is the second episode of the series overall. It first aired on April 24, 2011. It was written by executive producers David Benioff & D.B. Weiss and directed by Tim Van Patten.

Plot

Kingsroad3

Jon Snow prepares to depart for the Wall.

Jon Snow and Tyrion Lannister depart Winterfell for the Wall, and along the way Jon discovers his ideas of the Night's Watch may not match the reality.

Eddard Stark and his daughters depart for King's Landing, but an incident on the Kingsroad threatens to drive a wedge between him and King Robert.

Summary

Across the Narrow Sea

The Dothraki khalasar led by Khal Drogo have departed Pentos and are heading east. They travel away from the Free Cities and into the Dothraki sea, the long-grassed plains that the Dothraki call home. Viserys Targaryen accompanies the khalasar, meaning to stay with Drogo until he fulfills his end of the bargain and provides him with an army with which to invade Westeros. Ser Jorah Mormont tells Viserys that he offended his liege lord, Eddard Stark, by selling poachers into slavery. When he received word that Eddard meant to execute him for the crime (slavery has been illegal in Westeros for centuries), he fled to Essos. Viserys laughs at the notion, saying such trivialities would not be punished under his reign. For her part, Daenerys is finding adapting to her new role as khaleesi to be a huge challenge. Only Mormont offers her some solace; saying it will become easier. Daenerys is however fearful of her new husband and it is revealed that their first sexual encounter has left her slightly injured.

Fascinated with her gift from Illyrio, Dany asks her handmaidens if they have ever heard of dragons surviving in the east. They reply no, but Doreah, a former pleasure-girl from Lys, tells her an old story about how there used to be two moons. One wandered too close to the sun and cracked like an egg, spilling out thousands of dragons into the world. Dany's Dothraki handmaidens dismiss the story, saying that the moon is a goddess, wife to the sun.

Daenerys seeks the advice of her handmaid Doreah. Doreah instructs Daenerys on how to please Drogo in bed but also how to use her skills to gain respect from him. Reminding her, "you are no slave" and should not have sex like one. Daenerys nervously puts these plans into action and is surprised to find Drogo responsive, particularly once she starts using her body in combination with the Dothraki language to speak to him.

In the Seven Kingdoms

Robb 1x02

Robb Stark says farewell to Jon.

In Winterfell, Bran Stark lies unconscious and badly wounded, his mother by his side. Tyrion Lannister insists that his nephew Joffrey pay his respects to Lord and Lady Stark, since his absence has been noted. When Joffrey refuses, saying the boy means nothing to him, Tyrion slaps him three times until he accepts his uncle's suggestion. Tyrion then breakfasts with his other family members, informing them of his decision to journey north to see the Wall before returning to King's Landing. He also tells them that Bran is expected to live and notes Cersei and Jaime's guarded reactions.

Cersei visits Catelyn Stark, sitting by her son's side, and tells her that her first child, a beautiful, black-haired boy, died of a fever. She and Robert were grief-stricken and her prayers and tears were for naught. She offers to pray for Bran's survival, hoping that this time the gods will listen.

Jon Snow has Winterfell's blacksmith, Mikken, forge a light sword for his sister, Arya. Arya is excited by the gift and names it Needle. Jon also gives her advice on how to best use the weapon: "Stick them with the pointy end." Jon urges Arya to practice every chance she gets. Jon then says goodbye to the comatose Bran, before departing at his stepmother's cold request. Eddard then says his goodbyes to his son and to Catelyn, who is angered at his departure while Bran remains ill.

Distant Winterfell

The two parties depart Winterfell.

The parties depart Winterfell: Jon, Tyrion and Benjen Stark to the Wall; Eddard, Arya, Sansa and the royal party south to King's Landing. At their parting Eddard tells Jon that, though he does not have Eddard's name, he has his blood. He also promises Jon to tell him about his mother the next time they meet.

Eddard and Jon

Eddard Stark says goodbye to his bastard son.

Days later, on the Kingsroad south to the capital, King Robert Baratheon calls a halt to discuss with Eddard some dire news that has just arrived. Robert's spies have learned of Daenerys Targaryen's marriage to Khal Drogo, whose khalasar is reported to number over one hundred thousand warriors. Eddard points out that the Dothraki cannot cross the Narrow Sea, as they have no ships, but Robert is concerned that the Seven Kingdoms will soon face another war. A curious Robert asks Eddard about Wylla, the mother of his bastard son, but Eddard refuses to enlighten him. Robert reminds him that they were in the middle of a war and no one knew if they would ever return to their families.

In Winterfell, Catelyn's refusal to leave Bran's side is starting to cause problems for the smooth running of the castle. Robb offers to work with Maester Luwin to put the castle to rights. There is then a fire in part of the castle, but this proves to be a distraction to allow an assassin to attempt to finish off Bran. Catelyn holds the assassin off long enough for Bran's direwolf to enter the chamber and tear out the assassin's throat.

Kingsroad1

Jon and Tyrion discussing matters.

Traveling north, Jon and Tyrion talk and Tyrion reveals that he reads books to sharpen his mind, his greatest asset and weapon. Several new recruits join the party as it travels north, rapists who chose to take the black rather than face the knife. Tyrion tells Jon that the Night's Watch is not a noble institution of glorious knights defending the realm against the horrors lurking beyond the Wall, but a dumping ground for the unwanted and for criminals.

In Winterfell, Catelyn goes to the tower from where Bran fell and finds a blonde strand of hair on the floor. She summons Robb, Theon, Luwin and the castle master at arms, Ser Rodrik Cassel and tells them that she suspects that the Lannisters tried to kill Bran and that maybe he saw something in the tower. Robb and Theon are all for making war, but Luwin schools them to caution. Catelyn decides that Ned must know the truth and resolves to travel south to King's Landing and meet him there. Ser Rodrik will go as escort, while Robb will take charge of the castle in her absence.

The Wall from the south

The Wall, as seen by Jon's party.

Jon's party crests a rise and sees the Wall before them. Benjen welcomes them, and Tyrion seems impressed by the Wall's sheer size.

On the Kingsroad, the royal party reaches the Crossroads Inn, a noted waystop on the way south to the capital. Prince Joffrey's bodyguard, Sandor Clegane, known as "the Hound", a man with half his face burned in a mysterious accident, introduces Sansa to Ser Ilyn Payne, the king's headsman, a frightening-looking man who had his tongue torn out on the orders of the Mad King many years ago. Joffrey saves Sansa from this unpleasantness and takes her for a walk along the riverbank. They find Arya practicing her sword work with the son of the party's butcher, Mycah. Joffrey pretends to take offense at Mycah using a sword on his betrothed's sister and starts to gleefully cut his face with his sword, but an outraged Arya hits him round the head with a stick. Joffrey quickly becomes violent and threatens Arya at sword point, but before he can hurt her, Arya's direwolf, Nymeria, attacks Joffrey, biting at his arm. Mycah runs off and Arya throws Joffrey's sword in the river before running off herself. Sansa tries to help Joffrey, but he spitefully tells her to leave him alone and go for help.

Arya, knowing that Nymeria will be punished for injuring the prince, forces the direwolf to flee by throwing a rock at her. She is then taken before the King, who is angered that a minor fracas has become a major incident with his wife and new Hand blaming one another's children. He decides to let Ned discipline Arya while he will do the same to Joffrey, but to appease his Queen agrees that the direwolf must be executed. When Nymeria cannot be found, Robert commands that Sansa's wolf Lady must be killed instead.

Furious, Eddard attends to the matter himself, passing the Hound arriving with Mycah's bloodied corpse. Eddard is shocked and disgusted, and when he asks if the Hound ran Mycah down, the Hound responds "He ran, but not very fast." Eddard kills Lady with a dagger, and hundreds of miles away Bran awakens.

Recap

Main: The Kingsroad recap

A detailed recap of the episode scene by scene.

Appearances

Main: The Kingsroad/Appearances

Characters

First

Deaths

Cast

Starring

Also Starring

Guest starring

Uncredited

Cast notes

  • Starring cast member Aidan Gillen (Petyr Baelish) is not credited and does not appear in this episode.
  • Jason Momoa (Khal Drogo) is credited as 'also starring' during the closing credits of this episode.
  • Wilko Johnson is a noted British guitarist who has played with bands including Dr. Feelgood and The Blockheads. The series marks his first acting role.

Notes

  • The episode takes its name from the Kingsroad, a massive road which runs from the Wall to Storm's End.
  • A notable change from the books is that the events at the Crossroads Inn actually happen at Castle Darry, a small holdfast south of the river. Renly Baratheon and Ser Barristan Selmy also first appear here in the books, journeying north with Ser Ilyn Payne to meet the King's party. In the TV series only Ser Ilyn appears, and the other two remain in King's Landing until the third episode.
  • First mention of Wylla, the alleged mother of Jon Snow.
  • The title sequence changes in this episode, dropping Pentos from the map and incorporating Vaes Dothrak, although it will be several episodes until Daenerys and the Dothraki get there. The title sequence is the first time that Vaes Dothrak and the surrounding region has been depicted on a map, being absent from both the maps in the novels and also on the HBO website. The location of Vaes Dothrak in the sequence is erroneous though as later maps show the city lying in farther in the east of Essos, while the title sequence map shows it much closer to the center of the Dothraki sea.
  • According to episode writer Bryan Cogman, episodes of Game of Thrones are only named late into their production, after principal photography is completed. The first title that Cogman pitched to David Benioff for this episode was "A Direwolf is No Pet" (which is a quote from the episode). Benioff responded by making Cogman promise that if he were ever to suddenly die, Cogman would never under any circumstances use the title "A Direwolf is No Pet" for any episodes of the entire series. Ultimately Cogmam came up with "The Kingsroad" as the name for this episode.[1]
  • In the novels, Cersei never gave birth to a child of Robert. She told Eddard Stark that she was once pregnant with a child of Robert, but had the child aborted out of hatred for him. Robert was unaware to both the pregnancy and the abortion. Cersei isn't simply lying in this episode to manipulate Catelyn, as in a later episode (The Wolf and the Lion) she discusses with Robert their first child, who was "black of hair" like Robert.
  • Tyrion says that his father Tywin was Hand of the King for twenty years, to which Jon responds "Until your brother killed that king", which Tyrion acknowledges. This is actually a condensed version of what happened: Tywin was Hand for twenty years, but he resigned in protest a few years before the rebellion started, so he wasn't actually Hand when Aerys died. This is not a difference between the books and TV series, the characters are just speaking loosely: other references to these events in the TV continuity specify that Tywin resigned just before the rebellion.
  • When Joffrey offers Sansa more wine, she says that she shouldn't, as her father only lets his children have a cup of wine at special feasts. In the books, during the feast at Winterfell (which happened last episode), Jon Snow is the POV narrator, and he notes that Ned Stark does indeed only let his children have a single cup of wine at feasts. In the book version, Jon isn't sent out of the hall because of his bastard status, but he is sent to the far end of the great hall to eat alongside the common folk. Jon doesn't mind (apart from the usual hurt at being rejected by Catelyn), because as he is left unsupervised far away from his father's table, he can drink as much wine as he wants, and indeed gets rather drunk.

Commentary

Actors Mark Addy, Lena Heady and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau provide a commentary for the episode on Blu-ray and DVD (Mark and Lena together in London, Nikolaj on a video link from Copenhagen). This commentary is more humorous then the producers' commentary for the previous episode.

  • Lena Headey and Mark Addy observe that the opening title sequence does a good job of orientating people within the world of Westeros. Lena proceeds to give an impersonation of locations that could be used by a Westeros-based satnav device.
  • None of the three actors were involved in any of the shooting on Malta or the scenes involving the Dothraki, so were fascinated to see how Daenerys's story unfolded.
  • Lena Headey finds the relationship between Ser Jorah and Daenerys fascinating.
  • Lena Headey suggests that Mark Addy could return in future seasons as Robert Baratheon's ghost.
  • All three actors find Peter Dinklage 'irritatingly great'.
  • The scene where Cersei talks about her dying first son was Lena Headey's audition piece. Lena's take on Cersei is that when she was very young she was not unlike Sansa.
  • Nikolaj Coster-Waldau mis-identifies Mikken as being played by Tommy Dunne, when in fact he is played by Boyd Rankin. Mark Addy then mentions Boyd Rankin's behind-the-scenes role on the show. Nikolaj's take on Jaime Lannister's view of Jon Snow and the Night's Watch is that he is completely baffled by the very idea of the organization.
  • All three actors think the difficult relationship between Jon Snow and Catelyn to be extremely well-played.
  • Mark Addy and Sean Bean were previously acquainted from drama school (though they were in different years), as well as working on the Red Riding TV movie trilogy a couple of years earlier.
  • Sean Bean was noted on set for stealing other people's sandwiches.
  • Jaime Lannister was supposed to be present in the background of the scene where Eddard and Robert discuss Jon Snow's mother and Daenerys's wedding, but the schedule didn't allow for it. The scene between Jaime and Jory was written to make up for Nikolaj Coster-Waldau's reduction in screentime in this scene.
  • The three actors agree that Eddard Stark's storyline is one of constantly making bad decisions.
  • Nikolaj Coster-Waldau notes the irony of Jon Snow's disapproval of Jaime breaking his oath to kill the Mad King (in his discussion with Tyrion in the woods) given his later decision to break his oath to the Night's Watch in the final episode of the season.
  • The wolves had a tendency to wake up the actors early in the morning with a chorus of howling.
  • Lena Headey considers the costumes to be brilliant, but finds some of the helmets to be veering a little towards Monty Python.
  • Lena Headey and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau love the phrase 'twincest', which fans coined some years earlier to describe Cersei and Jaime's relationship.
  • Nikolaj Coster-Waldau expands on the scene from the first episode where Jon, Theon and Robb were shaved. Apparently Alfie Allen refused to eat for two days prior to the scene to ensure he looked as good as possible.
  • During the scene where Doreah tutors Daenerys in the arts of love, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau observes the accuracy of the fan term 'sexposition' to describe such scenes. The three actors then debate whether Daenerys is indeed suffering from a form of Stockholm Syndrome in her relationship with Khal Drogo.
  • Lena Headey is a fan of the character development of Sansa throughout the first season, particularly her movement from being 'wet' to being stronger in her scenes with Joffrey in the final episode of the season.
  • The actors note how the fact that there were so many storylines progressing which they were not involved in, it was hard to see how the whole thing would come together until they saw the finished series.

In the books

See: Differences between books and TV series - Season 1#The Kingsroad
  • The episode is adapted from the following chapters of A Game of Thrones:
    • Chapter 9, Tyrion I.
    • Chapter 10, Jon II.
    • Chapter 12, Eddard II.
    • Chapter 13, Tyrion II.
    • Chapter 14, Catelyn III.
    • Chapter 15, Sansa I.
    • Chapter 16, Eddard III.
    • Chapter 17, Bran III.
    • Chapter 19, Jon III.
    • Chapter 23, Daenerys III.

Memorable quotes

Eddard Stark: (to Jon Snow) "There's great honor serving in the Night's Watch. The Starks have manned the Wall for thousands of years, and you are a Stark. You may not have my name, but you have my blood."


Jaime Lannister: "But even if the boy lives, he would be a cripple, a grotesque. Give me a good, clean death any day."

Tyrion Lannister: "Speaking for the grotesques, I have to disagree. Death is so final, yet life is full of possibilities. I hope the boy does wake. I'd be very interested to hear what he has to say."
Jaime: "My dear brother, there are times you make me wonder whose side you're on."
Tyrion: "My dear brother, you wound me. You know how much I love my family."


Jon Snow: "Stick 'em with the pointy end."

Arya Stark: "I know which end to use."


Joffrey Baratheon: "I won't hurt him...much."


Robert Baratheon: "A direwolf's no pet. Get her a dog, she'll be happier for it."


Eddard Stark: "The wolf is of the North. She deserves better than a butcher."


Sandor Clegane: "He ran. Not very fast."

Image gallery

References

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