About halfway through this week’s episode of “Game of Thrones,” I couldn’t quash the creeping thought: “this is not good.” The Jon Snow is-he-or-isn’t-he-but-of-course-he-is suspense/trolling sustained everyone from last year until last week (our long national nightmare has come to an end), but episode 3, “Oathkeeper,” really stumbled after the gasp heard ‘round the world.
The problem might be with distribution of events (big moves were made in the first two episodes, usually reserved for foundation-laying), or with the showrunners D.B. Weiss and David Benioff (who wrote this episode) taking too many liberties, stretching things too far or trying to cram too much in. “Oathkeeper” felt incredibly unwieldy, never finding a consistent tone, getting hung up on exposition, and lingering through some really groan-worthy comic material that felt more parodic than anything else. The humor on ‘GoT’ is only successful when it’s sly, feels unintentional and slips through the cracks. The jokes on this week’s episode were blue; they went over like a fart in a Small Council meeting (just ask Maester Pycelle).
In “Oathkeeper” otherworldly and supernatural events are too facile. Jon (Kit Harington) hops off the slab looking stiff but physically never been better, just a bit paler and sporting the bob he received in Melisandre’s Spa for Corpses. Other than a seriously grumpy attitude about his job, he’s good to go. Arya (Maisie Williams), too, skips through her Daredevil training in a montage, learning to fight with a bow staff and mixing up potions. A few questions and a sip of lethal well water later, and poof, eyesight restored. How can we believe in the stakes of anything or anyone when death and maiming won’t stop a Stark?
Additionally, Bran (Isaac Hempstead-Wright) is now able to warg back in time, which offers the show the ability to visualize some of the book’s mythology, but renders Bran nothing more than an exposition device. All poor Bran gets to do is stand around and exclaim “my father!” when some teenager in a ratty wig marches on screen. Thankfully, trusty mentor Three-Eyed Raven/The Old Man in the Tree (Max von Sydow) is there to tell him and us the names of the other people in the scene we won’t recognize.
This is necessary, as Benioff and Weiss march inexorably toward R+L=J. But if we don’t get there soon, it’s all going to be an overwrought over-explanation of something a lot of audience members have suspected for a long time, and which we’re constantly reminded of, thanks to the helpful previously-ons.
The positives from that flashback were a truly impressive swordfight between young Ned and Ser Arthur Dayne (Luke Roberts), aka “the greatest swordsman he ever knew,” aka The Sword of the Morning. As Bran looks on, Ned confronts Dayne and another soldier who are guarding Ned’s sister Lyanna Stark, shut up in the Tower of Joy at the behest of their deceased prince, Rhaeghar Targaryen, disposed of by the Usuper, Robert Baratheon. Ned and crew face off against the double-sword twirling kingsguard and pal, who make quick work of them. Ned only gets the drop on him when buddy Howland Reed (dad to Meera and Jojen) knifes Dayne in the back.
The direction of this scene had a lightness to it, a sense of liberation from the dark shadowy rooms that we’ve been confined to (how many damn meetings are there on this show??). Journeyman TV director Daniel Sackheim makes his ‘Thrones’ debut with the episode, and there are definitely some moments of brilliance, especially this standout duel.
As Ned makes his way to the tower from which are emerging blood-curdling screams, Bran calls out to his father, and he turns—does he hear his son, calling to him from a vision? The Old Man in the Tree takes him out of it before he can see what’s in the tower. He warns Bran again about getting sucked into the visions, and says he can only leave the root cavern when he’s learned, “everything,” NBD or anything, right?