Game of Thrones fifth episode, “Kill the Boy,†sets up what will sure to be some great storylines to come. Jon Snow is taking charge as Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch, and who knows, winter may actually come soon. Things sure are heating up in the realms with marriages, babies, and wars to come.
Daenerys Targaryen is having trouble keeping command in Meereen. After the slaughter caused by the Sons of the Harpy, she must make a choice on how to punish the leaders and those involved. She asks for all of the leaders of the great families to be brought to her. She takes them in front of her dragons in their dungeon and makes them step forward. She presents her two dragons with one of the leaders. They gobble him up, Mortal Kombat style, by lighting him on fire then ripping him apart to share. She spares the remaining leaders but keeps them locked up until she decides who’s guilty.
Daenerys is clearly confused as to what she should do with the leaders in Meereen. She doesn’t want to slaughter them all because they she will have no one to rule the city. She asks Missandei for advice. Missandei doesn’t think she is worthy to give advice, so instead, she reminds Dany that she should trust herself and make her own choice. Dany goes to one of the leaders, Hizdahr zo Loraq, and tells him that she was wrong about traditions. She will reopen the fighting pits to free men only, and she will marry the leader of a suitable family, presumably Loraq. I can only wonder how Daario Naharis will take this news. At least we can breathe a sigh of relief knowing that Grey Worm is still alive.
Podrick and Brienne are on the outskirts of Winterfell. Podrick wonders if Sansa is better off at home, but Brienne knows that Sansa is not safe with the boltons whether or not she knows it. She wants to get a message to Sansa. Meanwhile, Sansa is finding friends in Winterfell. The maiden taking care of her room assures Sansa that she still has friends in the North, and she is not alone.
Ramsay Bolton continues to show just how terrible of a person he is. He is in bed with Myranda, the kennelmaster’s daughter. Myranda is jealous of Ramsay’s betrothal to Sansa and goes so far as to ask if Ramsay thinks that Sansa is pretty. Ramsay replies, “Of course. I’m not blind.†Ramsay always knows the right thing to say. He reminds Myranda that now that he is a Bolton he must marry Sansa. He warns Myranda not to bore him, for she knows what happens to those who do.
Myranda doesn’t seem to take this news very well since she makes sure to run into Sansa in Winterfell. She takes Sansa to the kennels and shows her Theon Greyjoy in his own cage at the back of the kennel. Sansa recognizes him then runs away. Sadly, since Theon is completely under Ramsay’s control, he tells Ramsay that Sansa saw him. Later, Ramsay parades Reek around at dinner. He shows Sansa what he has done to Theon and even has Theon apologize to Sansa for “killing her brothers.†Ramsay, for some sick reason, thinks that it would be a good idea to have Theon give Sansa away at their wedding, since he is the closest thing to kin she has left.
Later during their dinner, Roose Bolton and his wife have news of their own. They are having a baby, and the maester is sure that it will be a boy. This put Ramsay in his place as he is now worried about his place in the Bolton family. He believes that he will only be heir to the Boltons until someone more worthy comes along. Roose Bolton then reveals how he met Ramsay’s mother. Roose had Ramsay’s mother’s husband hanged and then raped his mother underneath the swinging body. After that horrifying story, Roose asks Ramsay to work with him to defeat Stannis and defend the North.
At the Wall, Jon Snow is preparing for winter, should it ever come. When speaking with Maester Aemon, he says to Jon, “Kill the boy, Jon Snow. Winter is almost upon us. Kill the boy, and let the man take hold.†Using this advice, Jon frees Tormund Giantsbane and asks for his help. In order to fight the White Walkers and their army of the dead, the free folk and the Night’s Watch must come together when the time comes. Tormund won’t go talk with his people without Jon’s presence. He knows that the free folk won’t believe that the Night’s Watch is truly trying to make peace without Jon’s sworn word.
Meanwhile, Stannis approaches Samwell Tarly. Stannis knew of Sam’s father. He reminisces about how his father beat Robert Baratheon in battle, the only battle Robert ever lost. Stannis asks how Sam killed the White Walker. Sam lets him know that he used a dagger made of Dragon Glass. They both know that when the time comes, they need to be prepared to kill the army of the dead. Stannis decides that the time has come to take back the North. He rounds up his men, along with his wife and daughter, and begin their trek to Winterfell. I’m sure a brutal battle will ensue within the remaining episodes this season.
We end the episode with Jorah Mormont and his prisoner Tyrion Lannister. On their way to Meereen, Jorah takes them through Valyria. Drogon makes a nice cameo by flying high above their small boat. Both Tyrion and Jorah seem in awe of the mostly unseen dragon. Tyrion and Jorah recite some sort of story about the ruins that were once Valyria. They speak of “The Doom†that still rules the city, but Jorah assures Tyrion that he is not afraid. Then, we see these monsters that start attacking the boat. Jorah calls them Stone Men, men who have been poisoned with grey scale. While they are fighting, Tyrion goes overboard with one of the Stone Men dragging him down. He comes to on the shore with Jorah standing over him. Luckily, Tyrion escaped unscathed, but Jorah wasn’t so lucky. While he hid it from Tyrion, we see that Jorah was in fact touched by one of the Stone Men; he now has grey scale starting on the inside of his wrist. Hopefully, they can hurry to Meereen before it takes over Jorah completely.
