And Who Might You Be: Game of Thrones Edition

This week's character: Daario Naharis

Daario is a leading member of the mercenary company, Second Sons. In the book, he's actually a leading member of the Stormcrows, another mercenary company, but it appears as though the show has combined those two groups into one. Mercenary companies are basically big groups of sellswords (like Bronn) that will fight for whoever pays the most. Therefore, their loyalty runs only as deep as the pockets of the people they fight for. There's actually quite a few of these groups in the A Song of Ice and Fire series, and some of them are quite good at fighting and killing.

Anyway, back to Daario. Like most sellswords, honor isn't high on his trait list. He's pretty much going to do whatever he wants. Case in point, he kills the two guys in charge of the Second Sons so that he can become captain and promise the group's allegiance to Daenerys. He did the same thing in the books to the captains of the Stormcrows.

At first glance, this may seem like bad news for Danny. Why would she even want the help of a group of fighters that will seemingly change allegiances on whim? Because war is their profession*, that's why. The Unsullied are great soldiers, but they don't have the instinct or attitude necessary to truly conquer an area. In other words, they're not warriors, just fighters. They're not going to be able to offer very much strategic advice, either. Doing what their told very efficiently and effectively is their profession. The Second Sons, on the other hand, are seasoned warriors that have to be good at what they do or risk early retirement/death. They know strategy and have the instincts to act when things hit the fan and just doing what you're told is no longer practical. Plus, it's better to have them on your side for at least a little while instead of having to take them on from the start.

*Leonidas, 300

Furthermore, Daario appears to be rather infatuated with the mother of dragons, to the point that betraying her is out of the question. I don't want to give too much away, so I'll just leave it at that. I will say that Daario is going to be a part of Dany's story for at least the near future and will become another mouth for Danny to heed besides old man Selmy and creepy Jorah.

One more thing. One of the biggest differences between the books and the show is the way people look, especially outside of Westeros. Daario of the books has blue hair, a blue, thrice pronged beard, gold tips on his mustache, and a gold tooth. He also likes to dress in loud colors and carry an arakh and a Myrish stiletto. The hilts of both of those weapons are naked women made of gold. Subtlety is also not high on Daario's trait list.

Matt

Game of Thrones Power Rankings

The GoTPR will be based off of performance in the previous Sunday's episode.  It should not be considered a reflection of our belief in the character's potential or their past performance.  Scott and I will choose the top six in alternating fashion.  This week,Scott gets the first pick.

1 (Scott). Daenerys Targaryen (Last Week: 1)

Her rise to legitimate contention for the Iron Throne seems inevitable at this point.  She exudes confidence at all times, exactly what you need in a leader.  Couple that with the fact that things continually break her way and you’ve got something special happening in the desert.  Plus, her hotness can apparently single-handedly swing a battle.  Just when you thought Melisandre had the most powerful vagina in all of Westeros, a new challenger emerges for that crown.  What happens when a dragon meets a vagina smoke monster?  Let’s hope we find out.

2 (Czar). Melisandre (Last Week: 2)

The night isn't the only thing that's dark and full of terrors (nailed it).  After watching her in transit for a few episodes, Melisandre finally got to flex her corporeal powers in this week's episode.  Poor Gendry is just the latest victim of the psycho-sexual games of the Red Priestess.  In a world where all you have is whatever power you can attain, it's hard to deny Melisandre's effects in Dragonstone when she's given stuff (or people) to do

3 (Czar). Cersei Lannister* (Baratheon?  Tyrell?) (Last Week: NR)

*Editor's note: There was a snafu in the drafting.  If it makes it any better, I was going to take Cersei if Scott didn't, and Scott was going to take Tyrion if I didn't.  I guess the switch seems natural.

Cersei had speaking parts in two scenes this week.  With those two scenes she managed to put the usually unflappable Margaery Tyrell on her heels and make sure her groom-to-be know exactly who is in charge in the marriage.  She's an unapologetic female dog, but she's a somewhat sympathetic character.  Her entirely life has been dictated to her by men when she has consistently proven to be far more cunning, reliable, and intelligent than about 98% of the men in Westeros.  Maybe if her father wasn't the Worst Father in the World (a title he holds proudly), then she'd be running the show.  Alas...

4 (Scott). Tyrion Lannister (Last Week: NR)

Being consistently the best actor on a show of this magnitude (when he’s not whining to Shae) should count for something.  He does not appear to possess a lot of juice at this point in the grand scheme of things, but I suspect a rally from our diminutive pal.  He’s the smartest and quickest-thinking guy in almost every room he’s in.  He’ll come up with something.  And don’t forget his connection with Jon Snow, whom I expect big things from.

5 (Scott). Samwell Tarley (Last Week: NR)

As Old Blue Eyes found out the hard way, you don't twice pass on the opportunity to kill Samwell Tarly.  Look: he can't fight; he's a coward; he's not very intelligent; and he ran off and left Whitewalker kryptonite behind.  Essentially, he's completely worthless.  Don't expect to see Sam in this space again.  But, he did kill a Whitewalker, so respect must be given, at least for this week.   Please accept these humble kudos, Sam.

6 (Czar). Joffrey Baratheon (Last Week: NR)

I know, you all hate Joffrey.  He's the least likable person in all of television.  As far as I can tell, he's the only black and white character on the show.  He's pure evil.  I'm talking the kind of pure that gets you kidnapped by Mexican drug cartels.

That being said, it's impossible to argue his impact on the wedding this week.  He's genuinely terrifying in his dealings with Sansa Stark, and downright despicable in his interactions with his uncle.  We'll all remember Tyrion's castration threat, but I prefer the dark comedic stool pull executed by King Joffrey hours earlier.  I hate him, and I hope he gets eaten by one of Dany's dragons tomorrow, but we can't pretend he doesn't exist until then.

Your turn.  Who deserved to be in the top six this week?  Sound off in the comments below.

Game of Thrones Review "Second Sons" -- A Dwarf, A Lady, and a Handmaiden Walk Into a Bar...

Much like the previous two seasons, season 3 of Game of Thrones seems to be doing the slow build toward major happenings. Prior to the start of the third season, fans of the television series were whipped into a fervor by people who had read the books. The third book is largely considered the best by those strange people who look at the bound pieces of paper with words on them. Still, this season has spent a bit too much time dragging its feet, walking through the forest, or engaging in some old-fashioned power-laced walk and talk. It’s perfectly fine to stop and smell the flowers (or hang with the Queen of Thorns). It’s an entirely different thing to set up camp there. That being said, this episode (the eighth of the season) finally put some smaller things in motion. When the season is over, this episode will likely be viewed as the amuse-bouche of the season. The stories were largely quiet and insular, but it was a lot easier to see how these stories fit into the larger equation.

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NBC 2013-2014 Schedule Analysis

Since NBC released their fall schedule on Sunday, social media and internet websites have used a lot of different ways to basically say "What is NBC doing?" Normally, questioning the machinations of the fledgling network is warranted, but it is not warranted here. While there will always be some head scratching decisions anytime a TV schedule is released, it is relatively easy to see the logic in NBC's scheduling. It might not have the horses to compete on a regular basis, but NBC did put some thought into what they were doing.

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And Who Might You Be: Game of Thrones Edition

This Week's Character: Jojen Reed

Jojen Reed is the heir to Greywater Watch, the seat of House Reed. Greywater Watch is located somewhere in the swamps of the Neck. I say somewhere because Greywater Watch moves. Really. It's built on a floating island*. Because of that, no one, not even ravens, can find it.

*Not floating in the sense of suspended in the air, but floating like a leaf would freely float around a pond. Just in case you were wondering.

Coming from such a weird place, it's not surprising that Jojen is such a weird dude. He's barely a teenager, but people call him the "The Little Grandfather." He doesn't ever seem very happy (who does in Westeros), nor does he seem to even know how to have fun. Maybe that's because he has "greensight," which basically means he has prophetic dreams and knows a lot of things that would make anyone miserable, such as the day of his death. In short, he's not the most fun to have at parties. Or anywhere.

Right now, Jojen is traveling with Bran, Hodor, Osha, and his sister Meera to the Wall. Well, they thought they were heading to the Wall. Actually, Jojen's goal is to lead them beyond the Wall to meet up with the three-eyed crow that's been plaguing Bran's dreams. Jojen's known since before he met Bran that Bran has special abilities, and he and Bran both believe that meeting the three-eyed crow is paramount to Bran developing those abilities and achieving some great destiny that the gods have for him.

I know where the books are taking this story, but I really have no clue where the show might go with it. Much like Jojen, the journey gets pretty strange in places, and I'm not sure how far they're willing to go on the show. As a book reader, Bran's story is often among my least favorite, and I have no idea how he fits into the grand scheme of things. Since Jojen is so tightly linked to Bran, I'm not really sure what to think of him, either. Whatever happens, just know that as long as Jojen's around he's going to be influencing things because he seems to be Bran's most influential mentor.

Matt