Game of Thrones (HBO): Season 3/Episode 3

3.3 Walk of Punishment

The surviving members of the Night’s Watch make it back to Craster’s Keep, where they are housed but insulted. Samwell witnesses Gilly give birth to a baby boy. Robb and Cat make it to Riverrun for her father’s interment, where the dead body is left to drift in the river before being set ablaze with a flaming arrow. Tyrion is named new Master of Coin despite his initial reluctance, as Petyr Baelish is to be sent to marry Cat’s sister Lysa to forge an alliance with the Arryns. He finds out that Baelish has been funding the extravagance of the capital by borrowing heavily from the Iron Bank of Braavos. Daenerys offers to buy all the 8,000 Unsullied with one of her dragons and also wants slave interpreter Missandei (Nathalie Emmanuel) as a token of appreciation for the good deal, to which the Slaver agrees. Brienne and Jaime are held as captives and she is about to be raped, until Jaime tells their captors that her father would be willing to pay them a handsome ransom given Tarth’s dominance in the sapphire trade. He then begins to negotiate his own release and is led to believe that he is effectively convincing them, until his sword hand is chopped off with a cleaver.

I do not really like Prince Charming, but when he opens his mouth, I listen. Like his baby brother Gimli, this guy actually has a well-functioning brain and also serves as a fountain of quotable quotes whenever he appears. So yeah, it was rather unnerving to see his sword hand chopped off, and no, not because it is gruesome. You see, Gimli is already known for his wits and strategy, but Prince Charming is popular for being the super swordsman, except now he no longer has a hand to handle that sword. In effect, it is as if his manhood itself has been taken away from him. Perhaps this is a good thing, because now he would feel how it is to be inutile. Perhaps this is the punishment you get for pushing an innocent child off a window. As for Gimli, it’s nice to see him in a position of power again. He is a survivor and adapts well to new challenges, so maybe he could use this as leverage against Daddy Lannister somehow. In other news, I wonder what Dragon Mama is thinking, because I know that she is not giving up one of her triplets that easily. I love her evolution. I just hope she does not do something stupid.

“I’m quite good at spending money, but a lifetime of outrageous wealth hasn’t taught me much about managing it.” –Tyrion Lannister

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