Game of Thrones fans, don’t forget that the show is taking season 3’s only break tonight! So while we wait for “The Rains of Castamere,” let’s recap.
Only two episodes remain of Game of Thrones season 3: “The Rains of Castamere” and “Mhysa,” which will air June 2 and June 9.
And while book fans will have a pretty good idea of what is to come, we hope that showrunners D.B. Weiss and David Benioff have some surprises in store for us!
The third season of Game of Thrones roughly spans the first half of A Storm of Swords, the third book in the A Song of Ice and Fire saga by George R.R. Martin.
So far this year, we have seen the Westerosian characters deal with the fallout of the Battle of Blackwater, which in many cases have meant retreating to lick their wounds and figure out their next move.
In this post, we’ll recap the major character arcs, which have positioned them for the season’s final, shocking events.
You can also check out our (spoiler-free!) Game of Thrones podcast Game of Owns, where we discuss and analyse each new episode of season 3! In our most recent episode, we speculate about what is to come in the last two episodes of the season.
King’s Landing
In season 2, Tyrion Lannister led the crown to victory against Stannis’ invading forces, but it was his father Tywin who reaped the rewards. Now, Tyrion has been relegated to one of Tywin’s pawns, forced into a political marriage to Sansa Stark.
On their wedding night Tyrion told Sansa that he wouldn’t force her into being with him. But it can only be a matter of time before Tywin begins to demand grandchildren, so now the question is whether there is a way for them to get out of this situation, or if they will have to accept that they are husband and wife and start acting like it (and how Shae might react to such a development!).
Cersei is as trapped in her father’s games as Tyrion is. Now that Tywin is the Hand of the King, she has essentially been stripped of the power she held as Queen Regent, and is currently engaged to Loras Tyrell.
The female Lannister is also coming to realise that Joffrey’s new betrothed, Margaery Tyrell, might be playing the game better than she is.
With the help of her grandmother the Queen of Thorns, Margaery seems to be positioning the Tyrells to outwit the Lannisters – in fact, Lady Olenna seems to be trying to replicate Tywin Lannister’s own infiltration of the court, back when Robert Baratheon took the throne and he weaved Lannisters into every aspect of his life.
It remains to be seen whether Margaery will manage to wrap the increasingly psychotic Joffrey around her little finger and effectively wrestle the power from the Lannisters, or if Tywin still has something up his sleeve which will allow him to remain in control.
Winterfell
Poor Theon Greyjoy has spent the entire season so far being tortured by the mysterious character still known only as “Boy.”
It seems unlikely that he will survive much longer what with the terrible mutilations which he has been subject to, but we can’t forget that teaser shot of his sister Yara. Is she coming to rescue him? Maybe the final two episodes will answer that question.
On their way to the Wall, Bran, Osha, Rickon and Hodor have encounter the mysterious siblings Jojen and Meera Reed. Jojen seems to have prophetic dreams, and has told Bran that not only is he a warg – meaning he can enter the minds of animals – but that, “There is only one thing that matters: you.” Whatever that means…
Now, Jojen says they need to move beyond the Wall, but Osha is adamant that they mustn’t. We wonder who Bran will listen to, if they ever make it that far.
Hodor.
North of the Wall
The Night’s Watch hasn’t had an easy season. The ones that escaped the army of wights and White Walkers that attacked in the season 2 finale sought refuge at Craster’s Keep, but there they turned on each other, and Lord Commander Mormont was killed.
Sam managed to escape the bloodshed that followed, taking Craster’s daughter Gilly and her newborn baby boy with her.
In the most recent episode, Sam used dragonglass to kill a White Walker, but we doubt that’s the last of its kind they’ll encounter. Will they make it back to the Wall? Or does another fate await them?
Finally, Jon has been accepted into Mance Rayder’s wildling camp. Mance is preparing to launch an attack on the Wall to get his people into Westeros, and Jon was recently sent to scale the Wall with Ygritte, Tormund Giantsbane, and the warg Orell.
He and Ygritte have also slept together, meaning that he has forsaken his vows – but remember, he’s still loyal to the Night’s Watch… or is he?
It seems like we are building up to a confrontation between the Watch and the wildlings, and in the end, we’ll have to see if Jon chooses the side of his brothers, the free men, or “his woman” (in the words of Ygritte).
Harrenhal
Robb Stark’s bannerman Roose Bolton has seized control of the fortress, and his men have captured Jaime Lannister and Brienne of Tarth, who were journeying to King’s Landing to exchange Jaime for Sansa and Arya.
While in capture, Jaime had his hand chopped off, leaving him a shell of his former self. This allowed Brienne to see a different side to him, and the pair bonded – so much so that even when Jaime was on his way to King’s Landing, he turned back to rescue her from a bear pit.
Brotherhood Without Banners HQ
Arya and Gendry separated from Hot Pie early in the season, and were then taken in by the Robin Hood-esque Brotherhood Without Banners.
There, they met Beric Dondarrion, who has been brought back to life several times by the Red Priest Thoros of Myr.
When Melisandre came to call, Beric allowed her to take Gendry away (because of his Baratheon bloodline, being the bastard son of Robert), which caused him to lose Arya’s trust. She escaped, only to be captured by the Hound.
But the Hound now claims that he’ll take her to Robb and Catelyn, who are currently at Riverrun.
Riverrun
Robb has spent most of the season planning his next move, which is to take the Lannister homestead Casterly Rock.
And for that, he needs Walder Frey – whose daughter he was supposed to marry, but then he married Talisa instead. Talisa recently announced to Robb that she is pregnant with his child.
In an attempt to win back his allegiance, Robb has agreed for his uncle Edmure Tully to marry a Frey daughter instead. We have also been introduced to Brynden “Blackfish” Tully, Catelyn’s uncle.
Catelyn, meanwhile, has still not been forgiven for letting Jaime Lannister go. We hope that her character, who has been sidelined for most of the season, will be featured more heavily in the last few episodes.
Dragonstone
Stannis Baratheon has retreated to Dragonstone following his defeat at Blackwater. We have met his wife Selyse, a very dedicated supporter of Melisandre, and his scarred daughter Shireen.
Davos Seaworth survived the battle against all odds, but when he made it back to Storm’s End, he was imprisoned for threatening Melisandre.
But when Melisandre brought Gendry to the castle and announced to Stannis that she intended to kill him, Stannis went to Davos for advice, and decided to set him free.
As we enter the last few episodes, Gendry’s fate remains unknown. Will he be sacrificed to the Red God, let go by Stannis, or perhaps escape with Davos’ help?
Across the Narrow Sea
Daenerys Targaryen has had a busy season so far. In the slavers’ city of Astapor she used her dragons to kill the slavers and free an army of 8,000 Unsullied soldiers, who proceeded to swear their allegiance to her as free men.
Now, she is laying siege on Yunkai, another city full of slaves. And while the leaders of the city refuse to cave to her demand of setting their slaves free, she seems very sure of her superiority, and has recently won the allegiance of the Second Sons mercenary company (led by the handsome Daario Naharis).
Dany has also been joined by Barristan Selmy, former commander of the Kingsguard.
What lies ahead?
With only two episodes to go, we can’t expect every storyline to reach its conclusion. Especially since season 4 will tell the second half of the same story.
Therefore, we anticipate a lot of cliffhangers, leaving us wondering about the fate of some of our characters as we enter the long hiatus.
Will Tywin and Olenna go head to head for control of King’s Landing? Will Robb march on Casterly Rock? Will Jaime make it back to King’s Landing? Will Arya be reunited with her family? Will Sam and Gilly make it to the Wall? Will Dany seize Yunkai? Will Gendry die? Will Jon turn on his brothers? So many questions!
And which character’s storyline might serve as the season ender? Last year it was Sam running from the White Walkers, and in season 1 it was Daenerys emerging from the fire with her dragons.
We’re guessing that whatever the final shot of the season will be, it’ll leave the audience talking. We can make educated guesses based on the events of A Storm of Swords, but at the risk of spoiling the unsullied viewers, we’ll only speculate that the title of the season finale, “Mhysa,” might be a clue.
Check out the promo for Game of Thrones season 3, episode 9 “The Rains of Castamere,” which airs next Sunday, June 2 at 9/8c on HBO:
