HEAVY SPOILERS

Game of Thrones S03 E04
And Now His Watch Is Ended

It was as though the writers of the Games of Thrones series personally addressed some viewers’ concerns in this episode. The second rule in watching Game of Thrones is to be patient (the first rule being do not get attached to any character), and while we all know to be patient as the series unfolds, a lot of viewers do not heed that rule, some want the big payoff right away.

Tyrion approaches Lord Varys wanting to know more information and proof regarding his sister’s involvement during the Battle of the Blackwater that intended to kill him. Varys then speaks to him (and us) about patience; he tells the horrifying tale about how he became a eunuch and was cut, while slowly opening a crate to reveal inside it is the sorcerer who “cut” him. Varys’ patience for retribution was finally rewarded, as will Tyrion’s patience eventually, and ours!

Living up to his nickname of the Spider, Varys gathers information from Ros regarding Littlefinger’s interest in Sansa and the possibility of him taking her with him when he leaves to marry Lysa in the Eyrie. He then speaks to Lady Olenna and her interest in Sansa, warning her that if Littlefinger controls the heir to the North he could obtain more power and be rather dangerous. In this odd triangle with Sansa, later Margaery tells Sansa that once she is Queen and Cersei no longer has a say in the matter, she will allow Sansa to see the Tyrell’s land of Highgarden and marry her brother Ser Loras.

Meanwhile, Margaery is still playing the ‘enamored by macabre’ role with Joffrey, seeming interested in all the horror stories he is telling her about the deaths of those who basically built Westeros. She convinces Joffrey to step outside with her and show love to the people of Kings Landing. Cersei is not pleased by this, nor by the control Margaery has over him.

Poor Jamie Lannister is a mere shell of the man he once was. The feared and revered Kingslayer steals a sword and attempts to battle his captors, but with one hand chopped off he is not as skilled as he was and, knowing that fact, he loses his proverbial smile and will to live. With a “pep talk” from Brienne he seems to gain the will to live so he gain exact revenge on Locke.

The Brotherhood Without Banners take Cleagan, Arya & Gendry to their secret hideout where we met Berric Dondarrion. Cleagane is accused of being a murderer, which of course he denies, until Arya reminds him & tells everyone in the hideout how Cleagane killed her friend in Season 1 after a tussle she had with Joffrey. Cleagane gets sentenced to trial by combat against Dondarrion.

Bran has another dream in pursuit of the three-eyed crow, but is woken abruptly by the appearance of his mother in the dream commanding him not to climb.

Theon and the cleaning boy ride to meet Theon’s sister. While in a tunnel, Theon confesses that he didn’t kill/burn Bran & Rickon Stark, but that he had one of his men kill two orphan boys to pose as the Stark boys. Once they enter a castle, the cleaning boy lights a torch to reveal that they are back in the dungeon Theon had been helped out of by the cleaning boy. The boy tells the men that Theon escaped and killed the captors pursuing him.

The Nights Watch is still seeking refuge at Crastors, but are hungry and growing agitated with the inhospitality of their host. Harsh words get thrown around by Rast, who stabs Crastor in the throat, therefore killing him. The Lord Commander attempts to fight one of the brothers of the Night Watch, but Rast stabs him in the back and repeatedly in the chest as he falls dead. Sam ran away as the fight began, taking Gilly and her newborn son with him.

In Astapor, Daenyrus arrives with her biggest dragon to give to the slaver in exchange for all the Unsullied Army, including those still in training. After completing the deal, she speaks to & commands the Unsullied in her native tongue of Valyrian, the language the slaver spoke and would repeatedly insult Daenyrus in. She orders the Unsullied to kill every slaver, free the slaves and harm no children in Asatapor, she says her magic words and the dragon burns the Unsullied slaver to death. She gives the Unsullied freedom to either join her or stay, but they all join her and leave Astapor.

See? Patience! That was the theme for the characters to learn and implement, as well as us. Tyrion and Jamie must be patient to get their revenge and redemption. Bran must be patient to discover more about the three-eyed crow. Daneyrus’ men must be patient with her and accept the fact that she knows what she is doing, her patience obviously paid off. We must be patient with the series. Yes we all want to see the dragons, but when we do see them it is worth it. We must be patient with the storytelling, this show is like a game of chess, making random moves just to get kinged wouldn’t make sense nor work, you must carefully strategize, you must make smart maneuvers, only the moves you make will get you kinged. That is what this show is, making every move by every character count that way when you get the end it will be worth the wait knowing that you have won. Checkmate.