While Bran recovers from his fall, Ned takes only his daughters to King's Landing. Jon Snow goes with his uncle Benjen to the Wall. Tyrion joins them.While Bran recovers from his fall, Ned takes only his daughters to King's Landing. Jon Snow goes with his uncle Benjen to the Wall. Tyrion joins them.While Bran recovers from his fall, Ned takes only his daughters to King's Landing. Jon Snow goes with his uncle Benjen to the Wall. Tyrion joins them.
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAccording to the novels, Cersei never gave birth to a child of Robert. As she revealed to Eddard, 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.
- GoofsJon's beard changes in the last shot of the scene where he talks to Jaime.
- Quotes
Jon Snow: Why do you read so much?
Tyrion Lannister: Look at me and tell me what you see.
Jon Snow: Is this a trick?
Tyrion Lannister: What you see is a dwarf. If I had been born a peasant, they might have left me out in the woods to die. Alas, I was born a Lannister of Casterly Rock. Things are expected of me. My father was the Hand of the King for twenty years.
Jon Snow: Until your brother killed that king.
Tyrion Lannister: Yes. Until my brother killed him. Life is full of these little ironies. My sister married the new king, and my repulsive nephew will be king after him. I must do my part for the honor of my house; wouldn't you agree? But how? Well, my brother has his sword, and I have my mind. And a mind needs books like a sword needs a whetstone. That's why I read so much, Jon Snow.
- Crazy creditsThe sun tells an important part of the series back story, on its panels. It does so in three segments. First, as the credits start up, the sun depicts how the Targaryens and their dragons conquered Westeros. The second time the sun is shown, a dragon is depicted in a mortal struggle with 3 other animals: The Stag, the Lion and the Wolf. It is a very literal way to show how Robert Beratheon and Ned Stark rebelled, with Tywin Lannister reluctantly supporting them, in the end. Finally, the third time the sun is shown, before the series title enter the scene, a lion (among other animals) is shown "kneeling" to a triumphant Stag. Just as Robert was crowned King after winning the war.
- ConnectionsFeatured in WatchMojo: Top 10 Saddest Game of Thrones Moments (2017)
"The Kingsroad" is only the second episode and, while the pilot "Winter is Coming" is marginally superior, the quality is just as brilliant as before. Not many shows have their overall quality, tones, themes and characterisations so spot on and well-established when it first starts, but 'Game of Thrones' is one of the strongest exceptions. Really appreciated the more reflective tone here, and actually didn't mind at all that the story was not quite as eventful and slower in pace because the characterisation and overall quality is just so well done.
Visually, "The Kingsroad" looks amazing. The scenery is throughout spectacular, the sets are hugely atmospheric and beautiful on the eyes with a real meticulous eye for detail and the costumes suit the characters to a tee. The make-up is beautifully done. The visual effects are some of the best of any television programme and are not overused or abused, the scale, the detail and how they actually have character and soul are better than those in a lot of the big-budget blockbusters. As well the cinematography and editing, which are cinematic quality as well.
One cannot talk about "The Kingsroad" without mentioning the thematically, orchestrally and atmospherically multi-layered music scoring and the unforgettable main theme. Again, worthy of a high-budget fantasy/action/drama film.
It is hard not to be bowled over by the quality of the writing, outstanding isn't a strong enough adjective to describe how good the writing is. It always has a natural flow, is layered and thought-provoking and demonstrates a wide range of emotions such as suspenseful tension, poignant pathos and witty humour. The story is paced so beautifully, structured with such nuance and attention to coherence, a high emotional level and is done with intelligence and sensitivity. The ending is a genuine shocker, and in a good way.
Not only are the more action-oriented/more dramatic moments done with a lot epic scale, superb staging, excitement and dramatic tension but underneath all the scale and flashy attention to detail there is a lot of heart and a multi-layered one.
"The Kingsroad" is so early on and already the characters are so well developed and as close to real life as one can get despite being in a fantasy world. These characters are not hero and villain archetypes (excepting Joffrey and he is an extremely interesting villain) and have both strengths and flaws and one can understand why they act the way they do.
Sean Bean and Kit Harrington both give some of their best ever work consistently in 'Game of Thrones', that can be seen here. Maisie Williams and Emilia Clarke are affecting, Lena Headey is deliciously manipulative and Peter Dinklage continues to be one of 'Game of Thrones' biggest pleasures. Can't not mention Jack Gleeson, whose Joffrey so early on is one of television's nastiest pieces of work, which Gleeson relishes to perfection, and he's not even at his most evil yet.
In conclusion, brilliant if not quite as good. 10/10 Bethany Cox
- TheLittleSongbird
- Nov 12, 2017
Details
- Runtime56 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.78 : 1