Stark Contrast: Episode 5 “Kill the Boy” • Television

After last week’s more transitional episode, “Kill The Boy” lives up to Game of Thrones‘ midseason tradition of breathtaking cliffhangers. In Meereen, Daenerys (Emilia Clarke) finally puts her foot down on the actions of the Sons of the Harpy and the old families. At The Wall, Jon (Kit Harington) tells the Night’s Watch that allying with the Free Folk is necessary if they’re ever meant to defeat the White Walkers. And at Winterfell, Sansa has learnt that Reek (Alfie Allen) – formerly Theon – is lurking about the keep.

J and I delve into Daenerys’s storyline first. We haven’t been overly enamored with her plot for the past two seasons; too many of her scenes have seen her sitting on her throne as townspeople come to lodge complaints. It’s akin to watching Judge Judy, but without the cutting and dramatization to keep things interesting. We also learn that Grey Worm (Jacob Anderson) has survived the attack from last episode, although Ser Barristan (Ian McElhinney) did not.

At Winterfell, the Boltons make Sansa feel at home in the worst possible way. Ramsay demonstrates how entirely he’s broken Reek, forcing him to apologize for the supposed murder of Bran and Rickon. Meanwhile Brienne (Gwendoline Christie) and Podrick (Daniel Portman) have managed to relay through a Stark-loyal network that they and others are there to protect Sansa (Sophie Turner) should she need it, setting themselves up for an inevitable showdown at the castle.

At The Wall, we get a couple of great scenes where Jon continues to prove himself as Lord Commander – perhaps a contrast to Dany’s lack of leadership ability? – as he makes tough decisions under the advice of Aemon Targaryen (Peter Vaughan). Stannis (Stephen Dillane) has a few great moments as he reminds us of his predilections for proper grammar. He also discusses the White Walkers with Sam (John Bradley-West) before leaving with his army to assault Winterfell and, eventually, King’s Landing.

In the last part of our discussion, we discuss Tyrion (Peter Dinklage) and Jorah Mormont’s (Iain Glen) daring move through Old Valyria – a gorgeously rendered environment new to Game of Thrones. J discusses Gregory Middleton’s cinematography and I focus on Crispin Green’s editing around Tyrion’s blackout. As the podcast comes to an end, we begin to predict how Jorah’s greyscale might affect his companion and the rest of the world.

~ Søren

Note that this podcast contains spoilers for Game of Thrones up to and including “Kill the Boy.” As always, you can subscribe to Stark Contrast using iTunes. Alternatively, you can check out the episode online or download it here. Happy listening!