Whereas I felt the premiere did decently well to kickoff each storyline it was missing concrete events and the action that comes with it. With this being a shorter season than we're accustomed to, we should expect the plot to move quicker and be more action packed. And this episode definitely delivered on the conflicts that were promised. When was the last time we had a battle in the second episode of the season? Wow! Euron sabotaging his niece and nephew's plans was the highlight of a very strong episode in my opinion. The skirmish was like Pirates of the Caribbean: Game of Thrones edition, well choreographed and executed. Although he is without a doubt just a madman pirate captain, I found myself rooting for Euron just so those annoying Sand Snakes and their corny dialogue could finally be wiped out. The show may have failed Stannis and some other book characters, but its definitely giving Euron the justice he deserves as the merciless savage that he is made out to be. As for Theon's breakdown at the end, it just goes to show that he is still a broken man inside and I really don't know what he has left to offer the show after this episode.
The other story lines moved well in my opinion. Almost every scene featured a conflict of some sort, whether it was between two parties or internal (as in Arya's case).
Danaerys's exchange with Varys and later Olenna did well to show how her vision compares to the experiences of older, more experienced "schemers." In King's Landing, Randyll Tarly commanded respect even in the presence of Cersei and Jaime, the later of whom tried to convince him to join their side. I'm sure he will fight for the Lannisters but we'll just have to wait and see. In Winterfell, the scene where Jon tried to convince the other lords that allying with Danaerys is good for them was also well done. Once again, Jon is faced with a difficult decision that everyone else opposes but he always chooses to do what'll be right in the end. The scene between him and Littlefinger was also a good touch as it shows Jon just perceives Littefinger as a creep after Sansa and nearly chokes him to death (just like Ned did in season 1). What Littlefinger does next I'm curious to see. The Arya scenes I feel were also well done and seeing her reunite with Hot Pie, albeit for only a few minutes, was pretty cool. She now seems very conflicted about her intentions, as anyone would be in her position. The wolf scene was also a good touch although I hope its not the last time we see Nymeria (if it really was her). The dynamic between Sam and Jorah was also compelling except Sam should have brought Jorah more rum before attempting to tear his entire outer layer of skin off.
The only scene I though was unnecessary was the intimate one between Grey Worm and Missandei. We get it, they've got a thing for each other, but do we really need to see the start of what would have been a dickless sex scene? It just seemed like that part dragged out too long and was mostly unnecessary, and I'm not just saying that because it made me and the people I was watching the episode with feel slightly uncomfortable.
Overall I felt that this was a very good second episode for Season 7 as it provided many elements missing from the premiere. By the looks of it, its only going to get colder and more intense from here on, so stay tuned folks.
My actual rating: 9.6/10
The other story lines moved well in my opinion. Almost every scene featured a conflict of some sort, whether it was between two parties or internal (as in Arya's case).
Danaerys's exchange with Varys and later Olenna did well to show how her vision compares to the experiences of older, more experienced "schemers." In King's Landing, Randyll Tarly commanded respect even in the presence of Cersei and Jaime, the later of whom tried to convince him to join their side. I'm sure he will fight for the Lannisters but we'll just have to wait and see. In Winterfell, the scene where Jon tried to convince the other lords that allying with Danaerys is good for them was also well done. Once again, Jon is faced with a difficult decision that everyone else opposes but he always chooses to do what'll be right in the end. The scene between him and Littlefinger was also a good touch as it shows Jon just perceives Littefinger as a creep after Sansa and nearly chokes him to death (just like Ned did in season 1). What Littlefinger does next I'm curious to see. The Arya scenes I feel were also well done and seeing her reunite with Hot Pie, albeit for only a few minutes, was pretty cool. She now seems very conflicted about her intentions, as anyone would be in her position. The wolf scene was also a good touch although I hope its not the last time we see Nymeria (if it really was her). The dynamic between Sam and Jorah was also compelling except Sam should have brought Jorah more rum before attempting to tear his entire outer layer of skin off.
The only scene I though was unnecessary was the intimate one between Grey Worm and Missandei. We get it, they've got a thing for each other, but do we really need to see the start of what would have been a dickless sex scene? It just seemed like that part dragged out too long and was mostly unnecessary, and I'm not just saying that because it made me and the people I was watching the episode with feel slightly uncomfortable.
Overall I felt that this was a very good second episode for Season 7 as it provided many elements missing from the premiere. By the looks of it, its only going to get colder and more intense from here on, so stay tuned folks.
My actual rating: 9.6/10