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Post by Jordan on Mar 26, 2019 13:53:39 GMT 1
Three more great picks! Especially love the Hound/Brienne battle. Such a valid point about not knowing who to root for. It's one of the few instances in the show were I'm not picking a side (the only other one being the war of words between Cersei and Margaery)
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Post by greendemon on Mar 27, 2019 1:02:32 GMT 1
37. Varys’ sorcerer in a box (S3E4 - And Now His Watch Is Ended)
Coming to Game of Thrones from the books, one of my biggest surprises in the first few seasons was how much I enjoyed Varys. In many ways, he is very close to the character in the novels - enigmatic, crafty and scheming - but is also somehow a lot more likeable, if still not remotely trustworthy. His relationships with others at King’s Landing, particularly Tyrion and Littlefinger, result in some of the best conversation scenes that GoT has ever produced. This scene comes at a point when Varys is perhaps at his most likeable: he is one of the few to acknowledge Tyrion’s role in saving the city from Stannis at the end of Season 2, and in this episode we see him plotting with the Tyrells to keep Sansa Stark out of Littlefinger’s control. And yet here he is at his most sinister, having tracked down the sorcerer who castrated him as a child and had him shipped to King’s Landing in a crate, there to suffer a fate so gruesome and horrible that we never actually find out what it was…
Plot hole? Possibly, but a fortuitous one if so. This scene is all the more terrifying for it.
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Post by greendemon on Mar 27, 2019 15:32:37 GMT 1
36. “I will be your champion” (S4E7 - Mockingbird)
I’m currently mid-way through Season 4 in my pre-Season 8 rewatch, and perhaps I will regret not ranking this one higher when I come to revisit the episode in a day or two. Oberyn has one of the best introduction scenes of anyone across all of Game of Thrones - the altercation with the Lannister soldiers in Littlefinger’s brothel, establishing from the outset that he is no friend to Tywin or Cersei. But this is the scene that always gets me. It’s brilliantly acted but also beautifully written: the way a simple story from their childhood reveals both the tragedy of Tyrion’s life and his sister’s cruelty and hatred of him. “That’s not a monster, that’s just a baby”. And then what was one of the saddest scenes in the show becomes this amazing fist-pump moment between two of the most likeable characters we’ve met.
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Post by greendemon on Mar 27, 2019 15:42:19 GMT 1
35. Sansa and Tyrion’s wedding feast (S3E8 - Second Sons)
Everybody loves a Game of Thrones wedding. They’re such joyous occasions, full of light and laughter, completely free from the darkness and death that permeate the rest of the story… well, sometimes. Before the Red Wedding or the Purple Wedding, there was this one (I’m not sure that it has a colour other than whatever the colour of humiliation and shame is) which, although it may seem comparatively low-key, still managed to squeeze in threats of rape and castration. The whole thing is a tragicomic farce: every single person in this scene is miserable, with the exception of Joffrey, and even he has the smile wiped off his face before long. There are so many snort-worthy moments, but drunk Tyrion steals the show, both at the feast itself and in the bedroom scene afterwards, when he promises not to consummate the marriage until Sansa is ready: “and so my watch begins!” Hilarious and ever so slightly heartbreaking.
Side note: While I am wary of expecting or even wanting anything resembling a "and they lived happily ever after" ending for characters on GoT, part of me really wants these two to reunite. It would seem like a fitting end to what started as a nightmare scenario for both of them - and both characters could do a lot worse!
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Post by greendemon on Mar 29, 2019 13:29:07 GMT 1
My goal of getting this done before the Season 8 premiere is starting to look... optimistic Hoping to catch up a bit later today and more over the weekend, but here's one for now!
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Post by greendemon on Mar 29, 2019 13:31:08 GMT 1
We’re taking a break from the littlest Lannister after a run of three Tyrion-centric entries - but he’ll be back…
34. The Tower of Joy (S6E3 - Oathbreaker/S6E10 - The Winds of Winter)
We all knew this was coming. The revelation of Jon Snow’s true parentage must be one of the most eagerly anticipated moments in all of Game of Thrones - and didn’t the writers know it, shamelessly teasing us by dragging it out across two Season 6 episodes. It felt cheap and frustrating at the time, to be honest, but the two scenes are a lot easier to appreciate in hindsight. In truth, Jon being the son of Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark was one of the show/books’ worst-kept secrets, having been widely speculated for years, so to have confirmation of this was hugely satisfying for me, even if we had to wait until Season 7 for the finer details (including Jon’s true name). I do love the moment of the reveal, with the Stark theme in the background and the close-up of Jon's face.
The first scene of this pair is understandably often overlooked, given what follows, but it does contain a mini-reveal all of its own: that Ned Stark’s famous victory over the legendary Ser Arthur Dayne was somewhat less heroic than had often been portrayed. Dayne would have killed Ned, and more or less undone the entire plot of Game of Thrones, had he not been stabbed in the back - the same way Jaime killed the Mad King.
To date, this is the only time we’ve seen Howland Reed, but one of the fan theories floating around that I keep seeing again and again is that he might make an appearance in the final season. As of Season 7, he is no longer the only person who knows the truth of Jon’s birth, but he is the last living witness to the Tower of Joy who could confirm Bran’s vision.
(A note for anyone watching the videos with these: the one I’ve included above has both two Tower of Joy scenes spliced together, followed by the one at Winterfell that follows from that close-up of Jon’s face, where he is proclaimed King in the North).
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Post by greendemon on Mar 30, 2019 16:50:12 GMT 1
33. “Help was not promised, lovely girl. Only death.” (S2E8 - The Prince of Winterfell)
Once upon a time, in the days before all the nonsense that happened in Braavos, a man was not the leader of the Faceless Men, merely a charming yet sinister version of the genie from Aladdin. A woman knows which one was more enjoyable to watch. His interactions with Arya in Harrenhal, which serve to introduce the concept of the Faceless Men that will become so important to her storyline, are some of the best of the whole season. All are all brilliant and worthy of consideration, but this one - where she tricks him into helping her escape by offering his own name for assassination - is the best. It’s a joy to watch his expression change after she names him; he even drifts into the first person.
Sometimes, a woman wishes a man had not reappeared in Season 5 - while it was probably deemed necessary to present Arya with a, ahem, “friendly face” on her joining the House of Black and White, it takes away something of the mystique of the character and, to be brutally honest, kind of ruins him a bit.
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Post by greendemon on Mar 30, 2019 16:52:40 GMT 1
32. “I dreamed that I was old” (S5E7 - The Gift)
So many people die in all manner of brutal, grotesque and frankly unfair ways in Game of Thrones. And yet when a very old man dies in his bed, watched over by someone who genuinely cared for him, it results in one of the most heartbreaking scenes in the whole series. Maester Aemon is, if I’m not mistaken, one of only two characters in the series so far to die of natural causes (the other, Hoster Tully, we never actually see until his funeral). He doesn’t appear all that often but is one of my absolute favourite minor characters, a constant source of wisdom, kindness and support for Jon and Sam throughout the first few seasons. His death is a hugely significant moment, both for them and for the Night’s Watch.
RIP to the brilliant Peter Vaughan, who passed away in December 2016 - a little over a year after Season 5 aired. A magnificent actor.
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Post by greendemon on Mar 30, 2019 17:12:18 GMT 1
31. Jon Snow and Ygritte (S2-S3)
This is probably my biggest “cheat” in the list. I absolutely love Jon Snow and Ygritte as a couple; they have great chemistry and are one of the few on-screen relationships that actually feels genuine and convincing (notwithstanding the fact that the actors fell in love off-screen and are now married!). In the end I just couldn’t limit myself to including just one or two of their scenes together, so this entry represents more or less their entire relationship, from the roasting she puts him through, the cave scene in “Kissed By Fire”, them climbing the Wall together, to him riding back to Castle Black with one of her arrows six inches from his heart.
My appreciation of Jon and Ygritte has grown over the course of my various re-watches - particularly since Jon and Dany became a thing in Season 7. While I understand that the sheer weight of narrative and destiny basically demands they end up together at some stage, I really don't buy them as a couple at all - and I'm not at all convinced things will turn out for them the way many seem to expect.
Here are a few selected highlights…
Ygritte leads Jon to the Free Folk (S2E7 - A Man Without Honor)
Cave scene (S3E5 - Kissed By Fire)
Jon returns to Castle Black (S3E10 - Mhysa)
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Post by greendemon on Mar 31, 2019 11:28:58 GMT 1
Into the top 30! We're halfway there! Just posting one for now, but hoping to be back later this evening with a few more.
30. Varys and Littlefinger (S1E5 - The Lion and the Wolf)
Whenever someone (i.e. me) goes on about how amazing the dialogue and small-scene writing was in the earlier seasons of Game of Thrones, it’s most likely in reference to scenes like this one. Some of the very best dialogue-writing in the show was done for scenes between these two characters as they (very politely) try to undermine and manipulate each other. This is the first of three conversations they have in the Great Hall, and it’s a brilliant extended introduction to their relationship, which is built on mutual respect and total distrust. Varys has some wonderfully witty one-liners.
One more of their conversations to come. As unpleasant as Littlefinger was, I’m slightly saddened that these two will never meet again.
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Post by greendemon on Apr 2, 2019 0:26:31 GMT 1
29. Opening scene (S1E1 - Winter is Coming)
I often wonder how people completely new to the Song of Ice and Fire universe reacted to this scene, and particularly whether that reaction has changed as the show has gone on and the White Walkers have become more immediate as a threat. For me, it’s a brilliant scene; beautifully shot and genuinely scary, it’s easily one of the most startling first scenes to any TV show I’ve ever watched. It does, however, set rather a different tone to much of what follows, and I can’t blame anyone who felt misled by what was essentially a straight horror opening to an epic fantasy drama. Aside from the wight that attacks the Lord Commander, this is the last we see of the Army of the Dead for quite a while. But actually, when you rewatch the whole thing from the beginning, the first two seasons are full of references to the White Walkers: Old Nan’s chilling bedtime story, Ser Alliser’s monologue about winter (which I highlighted earlier), Sam’s discovery at the Fist of the First Men - all of which is nicely book-ended by this scene and the ending of Season 2, the moment when they finally become a real threat.*
* I may have complained earlier about Sam being left alive by the White Walker, but of course Will is also left alive here, presumably for the same reason: to warn humanity that winter is truly coming.
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Post by greendemon on Apr 2, 2019 0:45:52 GMT 1
28. Brienne and Jaime in the baths (S3E5 - Kissed by Fire)
It’s handy, albeit entirely coincidental, that the major beats in Jaime’s arc are appearing on this list in chronological order. This one was always going to feature highly in this list, being as it is one of the most memorable and powerful scenes that either character has been in so far. The transformation of Jaime’s character in Season 3 is one of the things that Game of Thrones’ writing has been, and will be best remembered for, and it really all hinges on this scene. Still recovering from his devastating injury (and possibly a little delirious from the infection in the stump), he turns from his customary habit of insulting Brienne to this impassioned “confession” of how he really became known as the Kingslayer. He’s alluded to this before, but only when goading others; this is the first time the whole truth is revealed, along with the uncomfortable realisation that Ned Stark played a role in condemning Jaime: “by what right does the wolf judge the lion?”. It’s difficult to ignore the religious symbolism here, particularly the cleansing powers of the bath and the allusion to baptism and rebirth; neither character emerges quite the same as they were.
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Post by greendemon on Apr 2, 2019 17:15:40 GMT 1
27. Stannis sacrifices Princess Shireen (S5E9 - The Dance of Dragons)
In the entry for the fighting pits of Meereen (number 52), I alluded to a scene immediately preceding it that was so shocking that it made what followed difficult to appreciate. That scene is, of course, this one, which remains one of the most horrifying moments of the show’s run so far. Although it was a departure from the book, it was signposted pretty heavily in the events leading up to this, and Melisandre actually suggests sacrificing Shireen a couple of episodes earlier. And yet, somehow it was inconceivable that they would Go There - right up until the moment they did. If there were to be any red lines in a show renowned for its shocking deaths, the idea that a father could choose to have his own child burned alive should surely have been one of them. Or so I thought. It’s a horrible, heartbreaking and frankly rage-inducing scene that still affects me every time I rewatch the series - so what is it doing in this list?
Even more than the death of Ned Stark, the burning of Shireen is a great example of the way in which this story plays with our perceptions of what should or shouldn’t happen by making us feel that a character should be “safe” before snatching them away; often, as is the case here, in the cruellest of circumstances. I’d argue that what really makes this scene so horrible and so shocking is everything that’s gone before: the effort that goes into building Shireen up as such a lovable character, who only sees the good in people and teaches both Davos and Gilly to read. Conventional narrative standards of right and wrong demand that someone like Shireen - not only a child, but that rarest of things in Westeros, a wholly good person - should have been safe. But the minute that Game of Thrones makes a habit of obeying conventional narrative standards, it loses one of the things that has made it such a groundbreaking series.
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Post by greendemon on Apr 2, 2019 17:19:28 GMT 1
26. “The Queen mustn’t know” (S2E3 - What is Dead May Never Die)
Season 2 isn’t most people’s favourite but pretty much all of the scenes involving Tyrion’s short-lived stint as Hand of the King are an absolute joy. The sequence in which he plays the Small Council off against each other in order to out Cersei’s spy is the pick of the bunch for me, and is nothing short of marvellous, both for the acting and also for the way the editing cleverly merges three separate conversations. Varys, Littlefinger and Pycelle are dangerous opponents, but Tyrion demonstrates how brilliant he is at playing “the game”, outwitting them all by giving each the task of securing a different marriage for Princess Myrcella - behind Cersei’s back. All he has to do is wait for her outrage when one of the proposals inevitably reaches her. There are some great follow-up scenes to this as well: the one where he confronts Pycelle mid-whoring session with Shagga in tow is excellent, and I also particularly enjoy the one with a grovelling Ser Lancel Lannister having recently found out that Tyrion knows of his affair with Cersei.
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Post by Jordan on Apr 3, 2019 17:23:18 GMT 1
^ Totally agree about Tyrion's genius being one of the highlights from season 2. It was genius and so well done by the show.
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Post by greendemon on Apr 4, 2019 0:19:10 GMT 1
From something the Queen mustn’t know, to...
25. “Tell Cersei. I want her to know it was me.” (S7E3 - The Queen’s Justice)
If you have to die in Game of Thrones (which, let's face it, you probably do), you may as well do it in style. Daenerys’ great alliance of queens crumbles disappointingly quickly in Season 7, and after she has witnessed the extinction of her entire family and the fall of Highgarden, the Queen of Thorns' days are numbered - but she has one final card left to play. Jaime, who clearly respects her both as an opponent and a leader of a once-great house, honourably spares her the pain and humiliation Cersei wanted to give her, and she just cuts through all that by delivering a knockout blow of her own, safe in the knowledge that he cannot hurt her any more. It’s a truly majestic exit. Diana Rigg as Olenna was magnificent: I only wish she’d stayed around a little longer.
Three more entries to come from Season 7 in the top 25!
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Post by greendemon on Apr 4, 2019 1:04:25 GMT 1
Spoiler alert: there’s a lot of death left in this countdown...
24. The Mountain and the Viper (S4E8 - The Mountain and the Viper)
From a brilliant death to an utterly horrific one, even though it happened entirely within the remit of the law (though I think somebody forgot to tell the Sand Snakes about that particular detail). Game of Thrones loves a good trial by combat, but even more than that, it loves using them to illustrate the harsh and often unfair reality in which these characters live. We’ve seen this same point made already in both Tyrion’s first trial in the Eyrie and the Hound’s trial against Beric; neither of these fights go quite as one might expect. This one, though, feels so much crueller than either of them. Oberyn is such a sympathetic character that even knowing how deadly the Mountain is, you both want him to triumph and almost expect that he will - especially when he literally has his opponent flat on his back (was anyone else screaming at the TV at this point?!) - but he just has to have his Inigo Montoya moment. The romantic idea that David might actually beat Goliath, that the hero of the season might just kill the bad guy and save Tyrion is literally obliterated, in the most gruesome way imaginable.
Five left from Season 4...
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Post by greendemon on Apr 5, 2019 2:12:31 GMT 1
23. “Love is the death of duty” (S1E9 - Baelor)
I’m willing to bet that a sizeable number of Game of Thrones fans will have forgotten about this scene, which is fair enough; it does tend to get lost amid the big events of the first couple of seasons. This is, of course, the moment when Jon discovers that Castle Black's venerable Maester Aemon is none other than Aemon Targaryen, uncle to the Mad King, who refused the throne and was already old when his family were butchered during Robert’s Rebellion. Jon, who seems to be under the mistaken belief that he is the first Night’s Watchman in history to have to choose between his duty to his family and to the Watch, is put in his place - though, as we know, it doesn’t stop him almost deserting once he hears that Joffrey has taken his father’s head. The idea of love being the death of duty is one that comes up time and time again, not just for Jon Snow and Sam (with whom Aemon has a related conversation in Season 4), but for other characters; Jaime perhaps being the clearest example. There’s an added bittersweet note to this scene now we know that Jon was a Targaryen all along without either of them realising - and not only that, but he was named Aegon after Aemon's beloved little brother - but I’ve always loved it. You have to wonder how differently things might have turned out had he not refused the Iron Throne; one of the great "what if's" of the story. Peter Vaughan’s finest moment in the whole series for me, and it gives me goosebumps every time.
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Post by greendemon on Apr 7, 2019 15:18:58 GMT 1
I've been a little busy over the last couple of days, but now that's out of the way, let's crack on. Incredibly we now have just over a week to go until the Season 8 premiere The aim is to rattle through entries 22-11 relatively quickly over the next two or three days, then slow down again as I get into the business end of things...
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Post by greendemon on Apr 7, 2019 15:21:00 GMT 1
Unlike the previous entry, here is another moment from “Baelor” which you almost certainly will not have forgotten... 22. Execution of Ned Stark (S1E9 - Baelor)At last we come to That Scene, possibly the most iconic of the entire series so far. To anyone who hadn’t read the books, the ruthless execution of an honourable, likeable character who many considered to be the hero of the piece probably came as a massive shock (even if the casting of Sean Bean should have been a giveaway!). This scene marked the moment when Game of Thrones gained its reputation as a show that could easily kill off any one of its characters at almost any moment - you could even say, this is when Game of Thrones as we know it truly arrived. Ned’s execution is perhaps a bit lower than might have been expected for me; largely because I knew it was coming. Nevertheless, as well as being a hugely significant moment - kicking off as it does the overall plot for at least the next few seasons - the whole sequence is also beautifully done, and is an example of how good the show is at creating such a powerful scene with relatively few special effects. On that note, here’s a recent video with Alan Taylor, director of the episode, explaining how this moment was brought to life - well worth a watch if you have a few minutes
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