GOT 8x02
imo Bryan Cogman expressed his admiration for GRRM’s complex work beautifully in his last episode.
Why did Sansa bring up the North’s Independence to D? In the beginning of the convo, imo Sansa really believes Jon loves D and Sansa is too upset for strategy. I agree D’s “who manipulated whom?” was a pivotal point. Until then, D saw Sansa’s truth: Sansa had been treating D coldly bc she was jealous of D/J. Now understanding Jon has been playing the game, Sansa recovers herself for the 1st time in S8. Until that point, her jealousy and anger had made Sansa stupid & Sansa realizes how badly SHE had been playing the game. The brain switch goes on & Littlefinger’s lessons again play in Sansa’s mind. Cogman writes Sansa like LF after this point in the scene.
Freed from her anger, Sansa gets to work. Be nice. Disarm. Size her up. Sansa acts like D’s gal pal talking boys & bonding over their tough roles. That act makes sense, but suddenly & firmly bringing up Northern Independence seemed amateurish initially, but upon reflection, it accomplished 2 things. Sansa now knows how open D would be to releasing the North after the AotD fight and she’s given D a different explanation for Sansa’s extreme hostility other than jealousy which Sansa foolishly made so obvious. As her jealousy jeopardized Jon’s strategy, Sansa plays up ire over politics to cover it up. It’s true, but not the whole truth which is the best way to deceive someone.
Why didn’t the Starks say good bye to each other? - Cogman wrote the Starks saying good bye to their individual pasts rather than the ppl they care about most. I don’t know how Cogman would describe it, but the thread I saw was Jon, Sansa, Arya & Bran dealing with the parts of their journeys they experienced apart from each other. Jon & the Nights Watch & the Wildings. Sansa & Theon as Survivors of Ramsay. Arya & the Hound & the Brotherhood w/out Banners, Bran & his fall & Theon’s betrayal of Bran that led to his flight from home. I feel like it was Cogman tying up that chapter of their separate lives bc going forward will be about being part of the pack. That’s why I didn’t see Sansa & Theon as romantic. Yes, Theon arrived to Winterfell for Sansa the way Jaime came for Brienne & Gendry for Arya. And maybe like Jaime & Gendry, Theon did it out of a romantic love, idk, but I didn’t see that on Sansa’s end. On her end, I felt, it was like Jon w/Sam, Edd and Tormund or Arya & the Hound - the Starks showing gratitude for loyalty & help.
The soup, I thought was nourishment for Sansa and Theon’s souls the same way Sansa & Jon’s soup by the fire represented nourishment for their souls they gave each other. Sansa was surely overwhelmed w/gratitude. Brienne reminded her that she owed her life to her mother sending Brienne to find her, but she also owes it to Theon who stepped up to help her and now, Theon came back for her. The risk he is taking is not lost on Sansa and Sansa has been let down by SOOOO many, it is a blessing she’s sure to appreciate when someone comes thru for her.
Why did Jon tell D about his parentage? - I think Jon has been using D for her military aid,but finding out about his parentage has played with his emotions. D is now his family, too. He may be torn & feeling horrible guilt bc now he has to second guess his actions. How would it be right for him to manipulate & use D to benefit his other family if SHE is also his family? What about his loyalty to her as a Targaryen. The Starks have each other. D is all alone and as Maester Aemon said, that is a terrible loneliness that Jon understands. I think Jon decided to tell D, not bc he is in love with her, but bc he wanted to give her a chance to be his family, to see how she’d react, to try to create a REAL connection and bring her into his “circle of trust” to use a “Meet the Parents” phrase. I think Jon felt he OWED D that chance. It’s frustrating bc just as Sansa seems to have realized Jon’s secret strategy, his position is changing due to information Sansa doesn’t know about. The lack of confidence/secret sharing btw them, could be dangerous going forward.
Who is going to die? - I think a LOT of ppl are going to die in Episode 3. Spec based on filming spoilers under the cut.
