According to the groundhog (and despite all evidence to the contrary provided by recent weather patterns…), winter is supposedly on its way out and we will soon be diving headfirst into spring. I can assure you, however, this is false. Winter is coming. If you are already a follower of the epic HBO masterpiece “Game of Thrones,” then you know and are eagerly anticipating the dark cloud of doom that is set to rain hellfire on the kingdoms of Westeros and beyond. And if you are not a fan and have no idea what I’m talking about, well, I henceforth may have to unleash dragons upon you.
The awesome, insanely grim show (which even makes “Breaking Bad” seem like a comedy of zany mishaps that befall a wacky science teacher) premieres its third season March 31 on HBO. And thanks to the numerous chatty stars and creators of the fantasy world, there are quite a few sneak peeks and tidbits of info to chew over until then. Here’s some of what we can look forward to: (*SPOILER ALERT! If you have not watched the first two seasons, spoilers abound!)
The self-proclaimed King of the North and eldest son of the dearly departed Ned Stark, Robb, may have ended season 2 lucky in love, but the continued fighting and war against the Lannisters will take its toll. “He’s got all sorts of plans in place in order to actually win this war, but he’s running on empty at the moment,” says actor Richard Madden. “His own men are kind of revolting. So they’re exhausted, they’re starving and he’s at the end of his tether.” Also, will his illicit marriage to kind nurse Talisa have repercussions since he was betrothed to another?
Since this is the land of no happy endings, ever, I’m going to go with a big, fat yes…
As for one of the other unfortunate Stark children, young Arya (Maisie Williams) has been fighting battles of a different sort, having ended last season by escaping the captivity of Harrenhal with co-horts Gendry and Hot Pie. After so much time being locked away and taking orders, it seems we’ll finally see the brave little Stark taking command of the situation. According to Williams, “She’s starting to stand up for herself and take control of her life…This season there’s a lot more happening. She meets a lot more people and there’s a lot more twists and turns.” Perhaps she’ll bump into her younger brother Bran, who himself is on the run after the sacking of Winterfell?
And what about the most reviled teen-ager to ever grace our television screens? Well, it seems King Joffrey (Jack Gleeson) will be up to his usual, devious cruelty and his primary target, Sansa, hasn’t changed. Season 3 will see him walking Sansa down the aisle (while she may have dodged a bullet in marrying the King herself, who IS she marrying?), and as Gleeson puts it, Sansa is “a little plaything with which he can amuse himself.” And since we know Joffrey runs like the coward he is from battle, perhaps he’ll have a bit more luck in council affairs: “He wants to mature more as a king and engage more with administrative duties.” Hmmm. Yeah. Good luck with that.
There are oh-so many questions to be devoured in the days leading up to the premiere. Will Daenerys and her dragons get closer to reclaiming the iron throne? Will Tyrion (a.k.a. the best character of all time) find his way now that dear old dad Tywin is back at King’s Landing? Will the Starks ever be in the same room again? What of Jon Snow and his wildling gal pal? Does anybody in this universe even deserve the throne? Questions to ponder, and hopefully to be answered, when “Thrones” returns this Sunday.