Game of Thrones, Ep. 4.02: “The Lion and the Rose” grandly conceived, brilliantly executed
It would be an insult to say the “The Lion and the Rose” merely lives up to its hype; it utterly destroys the meaning of hype. Alex Graves directs an extraordinary instalment, grandly conceived, brilliantly executed and incredibly entertaining. It has passion, raw emotion, true terror, and a palpable sense of evil. Despite knowing George R. R. Martin insists on ending each wedding with a gruesome death, as a non-book reader, I was shocked with the end result. It’s also worth mentioning that Martin himself wrote this particular episode, only the third after “Blackwater” and “The Bear and the Maiden Fair.” This time around, he’s given us a royal wedding and and in doing so, kills King Joffrey, His grace, Lord of the Seven Kingdoms, and Protector of the Realm. Martin’s teleplays are so well structured, constantly subverting fantasy tropes and switching things up, I can’t help but wish he wrote more.