Game of Throne "Battle of the Bastards" (S6 - E09) [TV Review]

Bastard Fight! Everybody there's gonna be a bastard fight!

Well this was a very hyped up episode.
Maybe it even deserved the hype.
It was a very good episode from my point of view.

This bodes badly for Mellisandre.

Wun Wun, the giant.

Let's play a game. You run over there. I'll hit you with arrows.

Shit. Shit. Shit. Shitshitshit...

Let me start again.

This review will be rather short, as I was unable to get to it right after the episode. However I did not want to skip this episode.

I'm just going to cover the high points. So here is the obligatory
SPOILER WARNING!

First off, Daenerysis back and with more of an attitude than before... and still she actually listens to Tyrion when his is being rational. She also brought a huge army and the fantasy world's only real air superiority fighters (dragons).

The Wise Master's of Yunkai are arrogant and it costs them. Well two of them... and lots of burned ships and slain Harpies. Quick brutal, but we may at last finally be leaving Meereen. I hope sincerely that we are leaving Meereen... it's been a giant plot stopping hole for far too long.

Oh, whoops. My rating.
Here you go.

4.5 out of 5 stars

And award for most surprising scene goes to... Yara and Theon
treating with, and agree to Daenerys's demands.

When one side has complete and total air superiority...

Also... I was really not expecting Yara and Theon to be at Meereen. Last we saw them was in Volantis? Sure they were in Esos... but... I dunno this surprised me. A good surprise, but a surprise nonetheless.

Then we get the big battle.

Well there is some lead up. Mostly Jon not listening to Sansa, and posturing in front of Ramsay. Some fun dialogue with Tormund and Ser Davos. Oh, and that scene where Davos finds the horse he carved for Princess Shireen amongst the burned timbers of a pyre... that will not end well.

Of course Sansa warns Jon Snow about Ramsay... but she never comes out and says that she sent a letter back in an early episode. The one Littlefinger received and then informed Lord Robert about... yeah. Sansa also tells Jon repeatedly that they need more men. It's kinda a big obvious hint that the Knights of the Vale (House Arryn) are coming... and yes they save the day.

The battle is really well done. Super chaotic, very panic filled, and bloodily brutal. Sure there are a few critiques of the battle - such as 'Mountains of bodies? Really?, but in general it was very well done. I did love the scene where Wun Wun the Giant bursts through Winterfel's gate. Sad that he died.

But damn has Sansa grown as a character. She has gone from whiny selfish stupid little girl to powerful self-aware worldly woman. She has suffered a lot, a whole lot, stuff that would break many people. But instead of letting it break her, she has grown. She's gone from one of my least favorite characters to one of my, well maybe not favorite, but certainly much more liked.

And she jumps up even further in this episode. Her vengeance against Ramsay was poetic. And she removed my second most hated character from the list. Good on her.

Remember my little list of characters I'd like to see die? Well, #2 was accomplished. I doubt we'll see #1 this season... but if we could, oh that would make me happy.

#1 High Sparrow 
#2 Ramsay Bolton
#3 Walder Frey (I still hate him even if he has not been seen very much).
#4 Cercei Lannister
#5 Euron Greyjoy (for being boring compared to what he should be)
#6 The Waif (for being an asshole).
#7 Tommen Baratheon (for sheer incompetence)

The list is getting filled in. I removed #8 because I actually thought the main actress in the crappy play redeemed herself through self awareness.

And the award for most improved character
over the entire series goes to...
Sansa!

With the list getting cleaner... it's time to check in on the death count.

Death Count for season six episode nine, Battle of the Bastards:

- Two of the Wise Master's of Yunkai
- Many Yunkish sailors
- Several Brothers of the Harpy
- Prince Rickon Stark (slain by Ramsay's arrow)
- Lord Smalljon Umber (stabbed repeatedly by Tormund)
- Thousands of Soldiers from the Wildlings, Boltons, Umbers, and more.
- Wun Wun the Giant (dozens of arrows, and finally an arrow to the eye)
- Ramsay Bolton (eaten alive by his bitches)

Previous Game of Thrones reviews:

Season 6:
- The Red Woman (Ep1)
- Home (Ep2)
- Oathbreaker (Ep3) - No Review
- Book of the Stranger (Ep4)
- The Door (Ep5)
- Blood of My Blood (Ep6)
- The Broken Man (Ep7)
- No One (Ep8)

Season 5:
- The Wars to Come (Ep1)
- The House of Black and White (Ep2)
- High Sparrow (Ep3)
- Sons of the Harpy (Ep4)
- Kill the Boy (Ep5)
- Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken (Ep6)
- The Gift (Ep7)
- Hardhome (Ep8)
- The Dance of Dragons (Ep9)
- Mother's Mercy (Ep10)

Season 4:
- Two Swords (Ep1)
- The Lion and the Rose (Ep2)
- Breaker of Chains (Ep3)
- Oathkeeper (Ep4)
- The First of His Name (Ep5)
- The Laws of Gods and Men (Ep6) 
- Mockingbird (Ep7)
- The Mountain and the Viper (Ep8)
- The Watchers on the Wall (Ep9)
- The Children (Ep10)