Editor’s note: The following is a recap of the events of Game of Thrones: Episode Two – The Lost Lords, not a review. We’ll be reviewing the full season once it’s over; the expectation with these recaps is that you’ve played the episode already and you’re here because you want to think and talk about it. This is your water cooler discussion. Expect plenty of spoilers below, since we’re here to talk about what happened. How is your Game of Thrones journey shaping up? Let us know in the comments.
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“What is dead may never die.”
House Forrester does not worship at the altar of the Drowned God, but the surviving sons and daughters of Ironrath would be wise to heed the Iron Islanders’ words — because, as episode two of Telltale’s Game of Thrones tells us, not everyone we thought we’ve lost is truly gone.
The lesson is first learned far east of Westeros, in the slums of Yunkai, where exiled Asher Forrester works as a sellsword alongside the scar-faced Beskha. Asher and Beskha are preparing for a handsome pay day for the fat, naked hostage bound and gagged in the back of their bar, but mercenaries from the Lost Legion have other plans: Kill the hostage, kill Asher and Beskha, and take their loot. All hell breaks loose, and Asher has little to no trouble dispatching the traitorous soldiers. Just as a legionnaire is about to gain the upper hand, in walks Asher’s uncle Malcolm Branfield to save the day. He has news as well: “Your brother Ethan has sent me. I’m here to bring you home.”
Little do Asher and Malcolm know that poor young Ethan Forrester is dead, felled at the hands of the bastard Ramsay Snow. But not all is lost at Ironrath: Rodrik Forrester, presumed killed in action at the Red Wedding, is actually alive, albeit mutilated. He wakes up in the back of a corpse cart, next to his father Gregor’s rotting body no less, just as it pulls into Ironrath to sell off the deceased to mourning family members. Rodrik miraculously pulls himself out of the cart and onto the sweet soil of Ironrath, looking more like a wight than a man. Half his face is torn to shreds, muscles twitching where flesh ought to be. Maester Ortengryn speculates that Rodrik might never walk normally again.
Elsewhere, Forrester family squire Gared Tuttle finally arrives at The Wall, where he was sent by his uncle Duncan to avoid the consequences of killing a soldier from rival House Whitehill. Although it appears that Gared is far away from Whitehill influence, he has new obstacles to overcome in the form of the Night’s Watch. Frostfinger, a high-ranking crow who, as his name implies, lost fingers to frostbite, knows that Gared aspires to become a ranger, thanks to letters he received from Duncan. But Frostfinger warns Gared that only one outcome is certain: “Sooner or later, the Night’s Watch will be your death. When it comes, try to make it quick.”
“Sooner or later, the Night’s Watch will be your death.”
But Rodrik remains firm, reminding these intruders that he is still “the Lord of this house … and you will move.” They obey, and Rodrik comes to meet with his mother Elissa and his advisors Duncan and Royland. All agree that they need to bolster their forces if they’re to stand a chance at reclaiming Ironrath from the Whitehills, and rescuing the abducted young Ryon Forrester from Lord Whitehill’s clutches.
It’s decided that Rodrik needs to meet with his betrothed Lady Elena, whose powerful family would be oath bound to the Forresters if their marriage goes through. Elissa writes to her daughter Mira in King’s Landing, asking her to request Margaery Tyrell’s aid in convincing Lady Elenna to marry Rodrik. But Margaery reminds Mira that the last time she asked for help, King Joffrey was not pleased with the request. Brokenhearted, Mira has the opportunity to forge a letter to Lady Elena in Margaery’s name. In the end, Mira declines, her duty to Margaery seemingly outweighing her familial obligations.
But Mira is able to help her house in other ways. She and her fellow handmaiden Sera are caught drinking some of Queen Cersei’s favorite red wine during a stroll in the royal gardens, by none other than Tyrion Lannister. The Imp recruits Mira for a scheduled meeting with two Whitehill loyalists, for no apparent reason other than messing with their heads. The sight of a Forrester angers the Whitehills, but what’s more, Mira actually convinces Tyrion, as Master of Coin, to consider letting the Forresters reclaim their status as the sole providers of the crown’s ironwood. In exchange, Mira owes Tyrion an open favor. “I will do whatever you ask,” she tells him. He replies that Mira is either very brave, or very foolish.
Soon, Mira’s bravery is put to the test when she returns to her quarters, and finds that her room has been ransacked. On her bed, a note left by the apparent intruder reads: “I have information that will aid you with the Imp. Meet me in the gardens at midnight.” Mira complies, but she finds that it’s a foe, not a friend, who planted the letter: Daemon of the City Watch attempts to murder Mira, promising that he’ll make it as quick and painless as possible.
Instead, it’s Daemon who suffers fatal injuries, when Mira’s mysterious ally Tom the coal boy comes to her aid. As Tom and Daemon wrestle, Mira picks up Daemon’s fallen sword and kills her attacker. Tom promises to hide Daemon’s body in the depths of Fleabottom, while Mira runs like Seven Hells away from the sound of coming guards. In the heat of the moment, she’s faced with a choice: Keep Daemon’s sword, or throw it in the bushes. The blood-covered Mira keeps the blade, and slips off into the night.
North, Gared finds himself in a similarly brutal situation, when he’s caught in the middle of a fight between two fellow Night’s Watch trainees: Finn, an arrogant brute, and Cutter, an accomplished thief. Cutter snatches Finn’s precious knife, and when Finn figures it out, Gared steps in to keep the two from fighting. His attempt at peace is rewarded with a fist in the face, and Gared returns the favor in kind. Their fight is broken up by an unimpressed Frostfinger, as well as another prominent member of the Night’s Watch: Jon Snow.
Ned Stark’s bastard son takes it upon himself to remove Gared from the situation, and show him the view of wildling territory from atop The Wall. Jon, having heard about Gared’s presence at the Red Wedding, wants to know about his brother Robb Stark’s death. The two commiserate over their conflicting loyalties to family and the Watch, but Jon draws the line in the sand: “Whatever I once thought, my place is here.” Impressed, Gared agrees, pledging to Jon that he’ll view all of the men of the Watch as his brothers, no matter how much they loathe him, and no matter how much he feels the same.
“Whatever I once thought, my place is here.”
Making matters worse, Lord Whitehill storms into the great hall of Ironrath and taunts Rodrik in front of all onlookers. When he commands Rodrik to bend the knee and kiss his ring, Rodrik bitterly refuses, demanding that he leave at once. In response to the insult, Whitehill refuses the Forresters’ request to allow young Ryon to attend the upcoming funerals of the late lords Gregor and Ethan.
“My men have a nickname for you,” Whitehill calls as he leaves. “Rodrik the Ruined.”
After Whitehill leaves, a fuming Rodrik offers a solemn promise: “I’m going to kill that man.” He’ll have to get in line, because Uncle Malcolm has convinced Asher Forrester to return to Westeros. But first, they will need an army to combat the Whitehills. Asher and Malcolm agree to travel to Meereen to enlist mercenaries to their cause. Asher’s partner Beskha warns that she has unpleasant personal business in Meereen, but Asher pays it no mind; they’ll deal with it together. For now, it’s a long trip between Yunkai and Meereen on foot. “I guess we’ll see if I’m up for it,” Asher tells Malcolm.
While House Forrester celebrates a mini-reunion between Asher and Malcolm in Essos, it’s a much more somber affair back home in the Seven Kingdoms, as Rodrik presides over his father and brother’s funeral. Although Lord Whitehill forbids Ryon from joining his family at the funeral, his daughter Gwyn Whitehill shows up to pay her respects — and to warn Rodrik about Ryon’s condition.
Gwyn reports that Whitehill is filling Ryon’s impressionable young head with lies about his father, decrying Lord Gregor as a coward. Rodrik, wounded on every level, makes Gwyn swear that she’ll help Ryon through the hard times. Gwyn was once in love with the exiled Asher, and it seems that she has lingering loyalty to the Forresters, despite her horrible family.
After Gwyn leaves, Rodrik turns his attention to the matter at hand. “He was the bravest man I ever knew,” the new Lord of House Forrester says before lighting his father’s funeral pyre. He does the same for his brother, praising Ethan for saving twin sister Talia’s life with his final breath. As the family mourns together, Talia steps forward to sing one final tribute to her fallen family members.
“Iron grows anew,” she sings, and as her music fills the air, Rodrik the Ruined stands firm, frowning at the fires consuming his lost lords. One can imagine Talia’s lyrics welling within his soul, joined by the words of his house — “Iron from Ice” — and his pledge to end Lord Whitehill still stirring in his bones.
