A Golden Crown
Encyclopedia
"A Golden Crown" is the sixth episode of the HBO medieval fantasy
television series Game of Thrones
, first aired on May 22, 2011. The teleplay was written by Jane Espenson
, David Benioff
and D.B. Weiss from a story by Benioff and Weiss, and directed by Daniel Minahan.
The episode's plot depicts the deterioration of the political balance of the seven kingdoms, with Eddard Stark having to deal with the Lannister aggressions while King Robert is away on a hunt. On the Eyrie the Imp is put on trial, and across the Narrow Sea Viserys Targaryen is determined to force Drogo to pay him his debts and get crowned as a king.
In the words of reviewer Jace Lacob, the episode "revolves around changes both great and small, about the way the scales can fall from our eyes and we can see the truth that has been standing in front of us for so long. For Ned, it's a realization of just why Jon Arryn died, of the terrible secret he had gleaned from the book of royal lineages, and just what this could mean for the throne... and for the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros. For Dany, it's the brutal truth of her brother's real nature, of his insatiable thirst for power and the twisted quality of his rampant heart."
) is awakened from one of his recurring dreams of a three-eyed crow with the pleasant surprise that the specially designed saddle that will allow him to ride has been finished. He goes to test it in the forest under the supervision of his brother Robb (Richard Madden
) and Theon Greyjoy (Alfie Allen).
While Theon is trying to convince Robb to avenge his father for the Lannister's attack, a small group of wildlings that have ventured south capture Bran. Robb and Theon manage to kill all the men and capture the woman (Natalia Tena
), but despite Theon's help, Robb chastises him for endangering Bran's life when he shot an arrow at the wildling that was holding Bran.
) is able to trick Lysa Arryn (Kate Dickie
) into summoning a court to listen to his confession which reveals he had nothing to do with the attempt on Bran's life and Lysa's husband's death. After the Imp publicly demands a trial by combat and the mercenary Bronn (Jerome Flynn
) volunteers to fight for him, she is forced to allow it. Bronn manages to defeat Lysa's champion by tiring the heavily armored knight, and Tyrion is allowed to walk free with Bronn as his escort much to the despair of the Tully sisters.
Meanwhile, Arya deals with her father's injury and losing Jory during her sword-dance lessons; Syrio tells her it's a perfect opportunity for her to learn to avoid distraction while fighting. In the Stark's common room, Sansa and Septa Mordane are interrupted by Prince Joffrey, who apologizes to Sansa for his earlier behavior and gives her a necklace. Sansa accepts the apology, unaware Joffrey has been forced into it by his mother.
While acting as King, Ned learns that Ser Gregor "The Mountain" Clegane was spotted leading brigands and attacking villages in the Riverlands. Realizing this is revenge for Tyrion's arrest, Ned orders Gregor's arrest, strips him of his lands and titles, and summons his Lord Tywin Lannister to answer for Gregor's actions. Fearing war with the Lannisters and for his daughters' lives, he orders Arya and Sansa to return to Winterfell for their safety. Sansa protests and mentions Joffrey's blond hair; Ned realizes something and re-reads the book of lineages of the Baratheon family. Doing so, he puts the pieces together: Joffrey does not have black hair like his father, his father's ancestors, and Robert's bastards whom he and Jon Arryn had been researching. Ned concludes Joffrey is not Robert's real son.
In Vaes Dothrak, Daenerys begins the ritual with the Khaleen by eating a raw heart of a stallion. After some struggle, she completes the task and stands up to proclaim her unborn son as the Khal who will unite the entire world under one banner, and she names him Rhaego. Viserys grows angry at his sister's popularity among the Dothraki, but Jorah Mormont urges patience. Viserys will have none of it, though, and sneaks away to Daenerys' tent to steal the dragon eggs to fund his army. However, Jorah confronts him and forces him to leave the eggs behind, and Viserys storms off after a tense exchange of barbed words between the two men.
Later, at a feast for Daenerys and Khal Drogo, a drunken Viserys draws his sword on his sister, threatening that if the Khal does not give him an army to take back the Seven Kingdoms, he will take back Daenerys and cut out the child from her. Khal Drogo agrees to give him the "Golden Crown" that he wants. But to Viserys' horror, the "Golden Crown" is actually molten gold to be poured onto his head. Daenerys watches her brother's death without care and coldly replies: "He was no dragon. Fire cannot kill a dragon."
, David Benioff
and D. B. Weiss
from a story by Benioff and Weiss, based on A Game of Thrones
by George R. R. Martin
. The episode includes the book's chapters 38 to 41, 44 to 45, and 47 of the book (Bran V, Tyrion V, Eddard X, Catelyn VII, Eddard XI, Sansa III, and Daenerys V). Chapter 42 (Jon V), dealing with Jon convincing Maester Aemon to allow Samwell join the Watch as a steward, was removed from the series, and chapter 43 was moved to episode 8
.
Among the scenes created specifically for the show were another training session between Arya and Syrio, an attempt by Viserys to steal Daenerys' eggs that is prevented by Ser Jorah Mormont, an apology from Joffrey to Sansa, and the Northern whore Ros leaving Winterfell.
was being considered for the role since Osha had been conceived as a hard-bitten older woman and the actress was "too young and too hot". However, when he saw the audition tapes he was convinced with the new approach: "she was sensational, and I said, 'It's gotta be her.
. With the second airing the differences were reduced, rising the total of the night to 3.2 million and only one hundred thousand viewers below the previous week's 3.3.
gave it an A-, and Maureen Ryan from AOL TV
rated it with a 70 out of 100. HitFix
's Alan Sepinwall titled his review "The rules get upended in a terrific episode". Both Elio Garcia from westeros.org and Jace Lacob from Televisionary
considered it the best episode of the series so far.
The Dothraki scenes that culminate with the "crowning" of Viserys Targaryen were acclaimed by the critics. Writing for Time
, James Poniewozik highlighted an acting of "touching self-recognition by Harry Lloyd, who did an outstanding job humanizing a villain", and Maureen Ryan congratulated the actor for his "excellent job of showing the human side of this impetuous, cruel aristocrat" and "keeping Viserys just this side of sane in all his scenes. The acting of Emilia Clarke, closing her arc initiated in the first episode from a frightened girl to an empowered woman was also praised. VanDerWerff commented on the difficulty to adapt such an evolution from page to screen, but concluded that "Clarke and Lloyd more than seal the deal here." IGN's Matt Fowler also praised Clarke and noted that Daenerys choice to watch Viserys die was "powerful" and an important shift in her character.
Another aspect of the show that was widely discussed among commentators was the moral dilemma presented in the episode between a pragmatic approach to ruling or remaining true to the ideals of justice and honor, exemplified in the scene where Eddard summons Tywin Lannister to the court to answer for the crimes of his bannerman Gregor Clegane. Poniewozik states that Eddard "doesn't seem to consider that he has options: he is left to rule in the king's place, an injustice has been committed, the law requires one path to justice and he chooses it. This makes his decision easy, but it may make his life, and others', difficult". According to The Atlantics Scott Meslow, "Ned's principles are, as always, admirable, and he's clearly interested in justice. But the sad truth is that the lack of guile that makes him honorable also makes him a pretty poor king. It's a terrible idea to order the arrest of the man who is single-handedly financing your kingdom." Myles McNutt, writing for Cultural Learnings, agrees with him and concludes that "The only thing more dangerous than a reckless man asserting their power in Westeros is an honorable man doing the same, as it threatens the delicate framework which has propped up King Robert for so long."
Medieval fantasy
Medieval fantasy is a subgenre of fantasy that encompasses medieval era high fantasy and sometimes simply represents fictitious versions of historic events. This subgenre is common among role-playing games, text-based roleplaying, and high-fantasy literature....
television series Game of Thrones
Game of Thrones (TV series)
Game of Thrones is an American medieval fantasy television series created for HBO by David Benioff and D. B. Weiss. Based on author George R. R. Martin's best-selling A Song of Ice and Fire series of fantasy novels, the first of which is called A Game of Thrones, the television series debuted in...
, first aired on May 22, 2011. The teleplay was written by Jane Espenson
Jane Espenson
Jane Espenson is an American script writer and television producer who has worked on both situation comedies and serial dramas. She had a five-year stint as a writer and producer on Buffy the Vampire Slayer and shared a Hugo Award for her writing on the episode "Conversations with Dead People"...
, David Benioff
David Benioff
-Early life:Born David Friedman in New York City, he changed his name to David Benioff, his mother's maiden name. He is the youngest of three children....
and D.B. Weiss from a story by Benioff and Weiss, and directed by Daniel Minahan.
The episode's plot depicts the deterioration of the political balance of the seven kingdoms, with Eddard Stark having to deal with the Lannister aggressions while King Robert is away on a hunt. On the Eyrie the Imp is put on trial, and across the Narrow Sea Viserys Targaryen is determined to force Drogo to pay him his debts and get crowned as a king.
In the words of reviewer Jace Lacob, the episode "revolves around changes both great and small, about the way the scales can fall from our eyes and we can see the truth that has been standing in front of us for so long. For Ned, it's a realization of just why Jon Arryn died, of the terrible secret he had gleaned from the book of royal lineages, and just what this could mean for the throne... and for the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros. For Dany, it's the brutal truth of her brother's real nature, of his insatiable thirst for power and the twisted quality of his rampant heart."
In the North
Bran Stark (Isaac Hempstead-WrightIsaac Hempstead-Wright
Isaac Hempstead-Wright is an English child actor. He is known for his role as Bran Stark in the HBO series Game of Thrones.- Filmography :- External links :...
) is awakened from one of his recurring dreams of a three-eyed crow with the pleasant surprise that the specially designed saddle that will allow him to ride has been finished. He goes to test it in the forest under the supervision of his brother Robb (Richard Madden
Richard Madden
Richard Madden is a Scottish stage, film, and television actor, known for his work in theatre and for his roles in both film and television.- Background :...
) and Theon Greyjoy (Alfie Allen).
While Theon is trying to convince Robb to avenge his father for the Lannister's attack, a small group of wildlings that have ventured south capture Bran. Robb and Theon manage to kill all the men and capture the woman (Natalia Tena
Natalia Tena
Natalia Gastiain Tena is a British actress and musician. She sings and plays the accordion in the band Molotov Jukebox. In her acting career, Tena is best known for playing Nymphadora Tonks in the Harry Potter film series, and Ellie in the movie About a Boy.-Life and career:Tena was born in...
), but despite Theon's help, Robb chastises him for endangering Bran's life when he shot an arrow at the wildling that was holding Bran.
In the Vale
Tyrion (Peter DinklagePeter Dinklage
Peter Dinklage is an American film, television and theater actor. Since his breakout role in the 2003 film The Station Agent, he has acted in Elf, Underdog, Find Me Guilty, the 2007 film Death at a Funeral and its 2010 remake, and The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian...
) is able to trick Lysa Arryn (Kate Dickie
Kate Dickie
Kate Dickie is a Scottish actress who has appeared in television series, stage plays and films. She is best-known for her portrayal as the security camera operative Jackie in her starring debut Red Road, directed by Andrea Arnold, and for which she was given several awards as best actress, among...
) into summoning a court to listen to his confession which reveals he had nothing to do with the attempt on Bran's life and Lysa's husband's death. After the Imp publicly demands a trial by combat and the mercenary Bronn (Jerome Flynn
Jerome Flynn
Jerome Flynn is an English actor best known for his role as Corporal Paddy Garvey of the King's Fusiliers in the ITV series Soldier Soldier....
) volunteers to fight for him, she is forced to allow it. Bronn manages to defeat Lysa's champion by tiring the heavily armored knight, and Tyrion is allowed to walk free with Bronn as his escort much to the despair of the Tully sisters.
At King's Landing
Ned awakes in his chambers with Robert and Cersei watching over him. Cersei accuses Ned of kidnapping her brother, Tyrion, and claims he was drunk and attacked Jaime first, but she is silenced by a slap from Robert. After she leaves, Robert tells Ned that he cannot rule the kingdoms if the Lannisters and Starks are at war and insists that Ned remain the Hand of the King, or else he will give the position to Jaime. He also informs Ned that he will be the acting King while he is on a hunting trip.Meanwhile, Arya deals with her father's injury and losing Jory during her sword-dance lessons; Syrio tells her it's a perfect opportunity for her to learn to avoid distraction while fighting. In the Stark's common room, Sansa and Septa Mordane are interrupted by Prince Joffrey, who apologizes to Sansa for his earlier behavior and gives her a necklace. Sansa accepts the apology, unaware Joffrey has been forced into it by his mother.
While acting as King, Ned learns that Ser Gregor "The Mountain" Clegane was spotted leading brigands and attacking villages in the Riverlands. Realizing this is revenge for Tyrion's arrest, Ned orders Gregor's arrest, strips him of his lands and titles, and summons his Lord Tywin Lannister to answer for Gregor's actions. Fearing war with the Lannisters and for his daughters' lives, he orders Arya and Sansa to return to Winterfell for their safety. Sansa protests and mentions Joffrey's blond hair; Ned realizes something and re-reads the book of lineages of the Baratheon family. Doing so, he puts the pieces together: Joffrey does not have black hair like his father, his father's ancestors, and Robert's bastards whom he and Jon Arryn had been researching. Ned concludes Joffrey is not Robert's real son.
Across the Narrow Sea
Daenerys takes one of the dragon eggs and places it on a glowing-hot brazier. She reaches in and picks the blisteringly hot egg up. Her handmaiden rushes in to take the hot egg from her hands, burning herself in the process. Daenerys' hands are unscathed.In Vaes Dothrak, Daenerys begins the ritual with the Khaleen by eating a raw heart of a stallion. After some struggle, she completes the task and stands up to proclaim her unborn son as the Khal who will unite the entire world under one banner, and she names him Rhaego. Viserys grows angry at his sister's popularity among the Dothraki, but Jorah Mormont urges patience. Viserys will have none of it, though, and sneaks away to Daenerys' tent to steal the dragon eggs to fund his army. However, Jorah confronts him and forces him to leave the eggs behind, and Viserys storms off after a tense exchange of barbed words between the two men.
Later, at a feast for Daenerys and Khal Drogo, a drunken Viserys draws his sword on his sister, threatening that if the Khal does not give him an army to take back the Seven Kingdoms, he will take back Daenerys and cut out the child from her. Khal Drogo agrees to give him the "Golden Crown" that he wants. But to Viserys' horror, the "Golden Crown" is actually molten gold to be poured onto his head. Daenerys watches her brother's death without care and coldly replies: "He was no dragon. Fire cannot kill a dragon."
Production
Writing
The teleplay for "A Golden Crown" was written by Jane EspensonJane Espenson
Jane Espenson is an American script writer and television producer who has worked on both situation comedies and serial dramas. She had a five-year stint as a writer and producer on Buffy the Vampire Slayer and shared a Hugo Award for her writing on the episode "Conversations with Dead People"...
, David Benioff
David Benioff
-Early life:Born David Friedman in New York City, he changed his name to David Benioff, his mother's maiden name. He is the youngest of three children....
and D. B. Weiss
D. B. Weiss
Daniel B. Weiss is an American author. His debut novel Lucky Wander Boy was themed around video games and has since been linked with the screen adaptations of various science-fiction and fantasy stories...
from a story by Benioff and Weiss, based on A Game of Thrones
A Game of Thrones
A Game of Thrones is the first book in A Song of Ice and Fire, a series of epic fantasy novels by American author George R. R. Martin. It was first published on 6 August 1996. The novel won the 1997 Locus Award, and was nominated for both the 1998 Nebula Award and the 1997 World Fantasy Award...
by George R. R. Martin
George R. R. Martin
George Raymond Richard Martin , sometimes referred to as GRRM, is an American author and screenwriter of fantasy, horror, and science fiction. He is best known for A Song of Ice and Fire, his bestselling series of epic fantasy novels that HBO adapted for their dramatic pay-cable series Game of...
. The episode includes the book's chapters 38 to 41, 44 to 45, and 47 of the book (Bran V, Tyrion V, Eddard X, Catelyn VII, Eddard XI, Sansa III, and Daenerys V). Chapter 42 (Jon V), dealing with Jon convincing Maester Aemon to allow Samwell join the Watch as a steward, was removed from the series, and chapter 43 was moved to episode 8
The Pointy End
"The Pointy End" is the eighth episode of the HBO medieval fantasy television series Game of Thrones, first aired on June 5, 2011. The episode is significant in that it was written by George R. R. Martin, the author of the book series the tv show is based on. It was directed by Daniel Minahan.The...
.
Among the scenes created specifically for the show were another training session between Arya and Syrio, an attempt by Viserys to steal Daenerys' eggs that is prevented by Ser Jorah Mormont, an apology from Joffrey to Sansa, and the Northern whore Ros leaving Winterfell.
Casting
The episode introduces the recurring character of the wildling Osha. The writer of the original books, George R. R. Martin, admitted that this is the casting that is more different from the idea he had of the character. As he explains, he was surprised to see that actress Natalia TenaNatalia Tena
Natalia Gastiain Tena is a British actress and musician. She sings and plays the accordion in the band Molotov Jukebox. In her acting career, Tena is best known for playing Nymphadora Tonks in the Harry Potter film series, and Ellie in the movie About a Boy.-Life and career:Tena was born in...
was being considered for the role since Osha had been conceived as a hard-bitten older woman and the actress was "too young and too hot". However, when he saw the audition tapes he was convinced with the new approach: "she was sensational, and I said, 'It's gotta be her.
Ratings
For the first time since the premiere of the shows the ratings decreased in relation to the previous weeks. The first airing brought 2.4 million viewers, compared to the 2.6 million gathered by the previous episodeThe Wolf and the Lion
"The Wolf and the Lion" is the fifth episode of the HBO medieval fantasy television series Game of Thrones, first aired on May 15, 2011. It was written by the show creators and executive producers David Benioff and D. B. Weiss, and directed by Brian Kirk....
. With the second airing the differences were reduced, rising the total of the night to 3.2 million and only one hundred thousand viewers below the previous week's 3.3.
Critical response
"A Golden Crown" received many positive reviews from critics. Todd VanDerWerff from the A.V. ClubThe A.V. Club
The A.V. Club is an entertainment newspaper and website published by The Onion. Its features include reviews of new films, music, television, books, games and DVDs, as well as interviews and other regular offerings examining both new and classic media and other elements of pop culture. Unlike its...
gave it an A-, and Maureen Ryan from AOL TV
AOL TV
AOL TV was the name of both a thin client which uses a television for display , and the online service that supports it, both of which were launched in June 2000 to compete with WebTV....
rated it with a 70 out of 100. HitFix
HitFix
HitFix, or the HitFix.com is an entertainment news website that launched in December 2008 specializing in breaking entertainment news, insider information and providing reviews and critiques of film, music and television...
's Alan Sepinwall titled his review "The rules get upended in a terrific episode". Both Elio Garcia from westeros.org and Jace Lacob from Televisionary
Televisionary
The concept of a ‘Televisionary’ is being used to describe television and communications network operators who are developing services that provide consumers with more control over when, where and how they consume video and other multimedia content...
considered it the best episode of the series so far.
The Dothraki scenes that culminate with the "crowning" of Viserys Targaryen were acclaimed by the critics. Writing for Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
, James Poniewozik highlighted an acting of "touching self-recognition by Harry Lloyd, who did an outstanding job humanizing a villain", and Maureen Ryan congratulated the actor for his "excellent job of showing the human side of this impetuous, cruel aristocrat" and "keeping Viserys just this side of sane in all his scenes. The acting of Emilia Clarke, closing her arc initiated in the first episode from a frightened girl to an empowered woman was also praised. VanDerWerff commented on the difficulty to adapt such an evolution from page to screen, but concluded that "Clarke and Lloyd more than seal the deal here." IGN's Matt Fowler also praised Clarke and noted that Daenerys choice to watch Viserys die was "powerful" and an important shift in her character.
Another aspect of the show that was widely discussed among commentators was the moral dilemma presented in the episode between a pragmatic approach to ruling or remaining true to the ideals of justice and honor, exemplified in the scene where Eddard summons Tywin Lannister to the court to answer for the crimes of his bannerman Gregor Clegane. Poniewozik states that Eddard "doesn't seem to consider that he has options: he is left to rule in the king's place, an injustice has been committed, the law requires one path to justice and he chooses it. This makes his decision easy, but it may make his life, and others', difficult". According to The Atlantics Scott Meslow, "Ned's principles are, as always, admirable, and he's clearly interested in justice. But the sad truth is that the lack of guile that makes him honorable also makes him a pretty poor king. It's a terrible idea to order the arrest of the man who is single-handedly financing your kingdom." Myles McNutt, writing for Cultural Learnings, agrees with him and concludes that "The only thing more dangerous than a reckless man asserting their power in Westeros is an honorable man doing the same, as it threatens the delicate framework which has propped up King Robert for so long."