Breaker of Chains was certainly a slower episode than the previous three, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. After Joffrey's death, a shocking event reminiscent of a season finale, it's evident that these next couple of episodes will be a little slower, building more plot and character to fill-in the kingship and give everyone time to move their chess pieces a little more.
There were many focuses in the episode – Sansa being rescued by Littlefinger, Cersei mourning Joffrey and being raped by Jaime, Tyrion being locked in the basement, Oberyn and Tywin discussing their history, Sam and Gilly's protection storyline, Stannis and Davos, The Hound and Arya, and finally, finishing the episode, Daenerys and her slaves.
So, while the show encompasses many of the world's characters and advances their story, the downside of focusing on so many characters is that some of the story lines are bound to fall flat. Cersei mourning and subsequently being raped by Jaime was a silly scene. Tywin's "What Makes a Good King" speech was amazing, with a great performance by Charles Dance, but Cersei had little to do but stare at her son with those silly pieces of wood with painted eyes on them. After Tywin and company leave, Jamie comes in, they have an awkward conversation, and Jamie subsequently rapes Cersei. It seems to be an unnecessary scene, and we'll see the outcome of it in future episodes, but the scene itself seemed silly and melodramatic. Why is Jaime raping Cersei? It was disappointing to see, as Jaime has developed so much as a character throughout Season 3 that I've come to like him, but then he goes and rapes Cersei, and as much as I hate her as character, it was too mean and sadistic to watch. It completely devolved Jaime's character and development. I was excited to see where his character was going, as he seemed to be disowning the Lannisters and growing into his own isolated character, but now he's back to loving Cersei and having sex with her. It's possible he was trying to hurt her, but raping your sister while laying next to your dead son's corpse was a new low for not only Jaime, but maybe even the show in general.
Another scene worth discussing is Tyrion's imprisonment in King's Landing. Tyrion, now sporting a five o'clock shadow and forced to wallow in his own poop, he has reached a new low. What is always amazing to me is how noble Tyrion is and how brave he is in regards to how other's perceive him. His scene with Podrick was a touching one, especially at the end when he tries to protect Podrick by making him leave King's Landing due to his fear of Podrick's death. Podrick is his one true ally at this time (Bronn is in questioning, too), and he allows Podrick to disappear for the safety of his own life rather than use him as a pawn in his testifying against killing Joffrey. Podrick was arguably his only remaining move for his defence, and now that he's gone, it shows not only that Tyrion is in deep trouble, but also that he's noble and selfless enough to forego his own life in exchange for a younger, more ambitious one, and I love him even more now for it.
The final scene worth discussing (this would be too long if I discussed all of them) is Daenerys'. This was another scene I was not particularly fond of. Emilia Clarke has never been the greatest actress, and her "Queen" Daenerys" scenes have always come across as kind of awkward and non-threatening. Daenerys is supposed to be young but intimidating, but Emilia Clarke's performance has never portrayed this correctly. Instead, it seems far too forced, and it makes Daenerys appear more questioning or not as confident as she should be. Another detractor from the scene is that we have seen this scene about five times in the show now. Daenerys' storyline needs to start getting a move on, and soon. Yes, her takeover of Astapor was badass and a highlight of Season 3, but now we've seen her intimidating cities two more times, and it's getting quite old. I don't need to see Daenerys building her army of slaves (sorry, free men) any more; I get it, she has a large army and she's powerful and fearful. While it may have worked in the novels, it is coming across as boring, meandering, and even repetitive in the show. What was supposed to be a badass ending to the episode instead left me yawning and wanting some more development for her story.
Many of the scenes this episode were great. Arya and The Hound had funny moments, but they're back to be antagonists again, continuing the theme that we seem to be going in circles. Sam and Gilly's storyline was also a little boring, and Sam's argument about her protection from the Night's Watch was ridiculous. In my opinion, she would actually be much safer with them, and at least there Sam could keep an eye on her personally. Stannis and Davos' scenes added nothing to discuss.
The best scene of the episode was easily Littlefinger and Sansa. It added great intrigue to the episode, it gave us a potential killer of Joffrey in the duplicitous Littlefinger, the dialogue was fantastic and dramatic, and the cinematography of the scene was spectacular, with the fog adding a sense of dread to the already near-pitch black darkness of the ship.
Overall, it was a good episode, if a little meandering and boring. I realize that now that Joffrey is dead, the show needs to lay some more groundwork for its upcoming episodes, and that's fine. I just wish it could have been done a little more entertainingly.
There were many focuses in the episode – Sansa being rescued by Littlefinger, Cersei mourning Joffrey and being raped by Jaime, Tyrion being locked in the basement, Oberyn and Tywin discussing their history, Sam and Gilly's protection storyline, Stannis and Davos, The Hound and Arya, and finally, finishing the episode, Daenerys and her slaves.
So, while the show encompasses many of the world's characters and advances their story, the downside of focusing on so many characters is that some of the story lines are bound to fall flat. Cersei mourning and subsequently being raped by Jaime was a silly scene. Tywin's "What Makes a Good King" speech was amazing, with a great performance by Charles Dance, but Cersei had little to do but stare at her son with those silly pieces of wood with painted eyes on them. After Tywin and company leave, Jamie comes in, they have an awkward conversation, and Jamie subsequently rapes Cersei. It seems to be an unnecessary scene, and we'll see the outcome of it in future episodes, but the scene itself seemed silly and melodramatic. Why is Jaime raping Cersei? It was disappointing to see, as Jaime has developed so much as a character throughout Season 3 that I've come to like him, but then he goes and rapes Cersei, and as much as I hate her as character, it was too mean and sadistic to watch. It completely devolved Jaime's character and development. I was excited to see where his character was going, as he seemed to be disowning the Lannisters and growing into his own isolated character, but now he's back to loving Cersei and having sex with her. It's possible he was trying to hurt her, but raping your sister while laying next to your dead son's corpse was a new low for not only Jaime, but maybe even the show in general.
Another scene worth discussing is Tyrion's imprisonment in King's Landing. Tyrion, now sporting a five o'clock shadow and forced to wallow in his own poop, he has reached a new low. What is always amazing to me is how noble Tyrion is and how brave he is in regards to how other's perceive him. His scene with Podrick was a touching one, especially at the end when he tries to protect Podrick by making him leave King's Landing due to his fear of Podrick's death. Podrick is his one true ally at this time (Bronn is in questioning, too), and he allows Podrick to disappear for the safety of his own life rather than use him as a pawn in his testifying against killing Joffrey. Podrick was arguably his only remaining move for his defence, and now that he's gone, it shows not only that Tyrion is in deep trouble, but also that he's noble and selfless enough to forego his own life in exchange for a younger, more ambitious one, and I love him even more now for it.
The final scene worth discussing (this would be too long if I discussed all of them) is Daenerys'. This was another scene I was not particularly fond of. Emilia Clarke has never been the greatest actress, and her "Queen" Daenerys" scenes have always come across as kind of awkward and non-threatening. Daenerys is supposed to be young but intimidating, but Emilia Clarke's performance has never portrayed this correctly. Instead, it seems far too forced, and it makes Daenerys appear more questioning or not as confident as she should be. Another detractor from the scene is that we have seen this scene about five times in the show now. Daenerys' storyline needs to start getting a move on, and soon. Yes, her takeover of Astapor was badass and a highlight of Season 3, but now we've seen her intimidating cities two more times, and it's getting quite old. I don't need to see Daenerys building her army of slaves (sorry, free men) any more; I get it, she has a large army and she's powerful and fearful. While it may have worked in the novels, it is coming across as boring, meandering, and even repetitive in the show. What was supposed to be a badass ending to the episode instead left me yawning and wanting some more development for her story.
Many of the scenes this episode were great. Arya and The Hound had funny moments, but they're back to be antagonists again, continuing the theme that we seem to be going in circles. Sam and Gilly's storyline was also a little boring, and Sam's argument about her protection from the Night's Watch was ridiculous. In my opinion, she would actually be much safer with them, and at least there Sam could keep an eye on her personally. Stannis and Davos' scenes added nothing to discuss.
The best scene of the episode was easily Littlefinger and Sansa. It added great intrigue to the episode, it gave us a potential killer of Joffrey in the duplicitous Littlefinger, the dialogue was fantastic and dramatic, and the cinematography of the scene was spectacular, with the fog adding a sense of dread to the already near-pitch black darkness of the ship.
Overall, it was a good episode, if a little meandering and boring. I realize that now that Joffrey is dead, the show needs to lay some more groundwork for its upcoming episodes, and that's fine. I just wish it could have been done a little more entertainingly.