Family reunions are often joyful occasions, though they have a penchant for becoming awkward. This is especially true when someone brings a new significant other… and even more so when that significant other forces your family to abdicate its sovereignty as the army of the dead approaches.
For the first time since season one, all the (living) Starks are back in Winterfell. While these reunions certainly serve their purpose as table setting, these moments also pack a significant emotional punch given how much each of these characters have been through since they went their separate ways. Jon’s encounter with Arya (Maisie Williams) is especially touching in light of their history as family outcasts. Even the hug shared by Jon and Bran (Isaac Hempstead Wright) is tender before everyone’s favorite Three-Eyed Raven says something creepy and sits awkwardly in the middle of the courtyard for the rest of the episode.
Speaking of uncomfortable affairs, discount Jai Courtney (Pilou Asbæk) is back and still making aggressive advances toward Cersei. Euron remains one of the show’s weakest characters, a villain so cartoonish that he may as well twirl his mustache and cackle his way through every scene. Given Cersei’s history, I find it surprising (and unfortunate) that she didn’t kill him on the spot and take his forces for her own. Cersei is the shrewdest player in the show and is no doubt playing the long game, but her tolerance of Euron feels out of character.
For a much more welcome romance (if you ignore the incest), we’d have to turn to Daenerys and Jon. Though I was not entirely sold on their chemistry last season, Emilia Clarke and Kit Harington appear to have more consistent rapport in “Winterfell.” The How to Train Your Dragon sequence will likely be the most visually memorable scene from this episode and is easily a series standout. Harrington rarely has opportunities to cast Jon in a humorous light, but he nails the comedic moments he’s afforded. Likewise, Emilia Clarke brings such wry energy to the scene that it’s impossible not to laugh. Given how well the actors sell the scene, it’s disappointing the CGI doesn’t quite holdup when the dragons share the screen with the actors. If you’re able to forgive the technological/budgetary limits, though, the sequence is quite majestic.
Despite the grandeur and energy of that scene, Jon and Sam’s conversation in the crypts undoubtedly steals the show. John Bradley is this episode’s surprise MVP; the emotion he conveys during Sam’s meeting with Dany is incredible and heartbreaking. From there, having Sam reunite with his best friend, share his grief, and deliver the biggest bombshell in the show’s history is no small task, but both Bradley and Harrington rise to the occasion. Setting the revelation in the crypts beneath Winterfell under the gaze of the Stark statues was an inspired decision by the show’s creative team. Adding to the topnotch acting and writing, the atmosphere provides the perfect backdrop to one of the series’ most important scenes.
While “Winterfell” does a lot of the season’s heavy lifting, the episode never feels utilitarian. Even the less impactful reunions (Sansa and Tyrion, Yara and Theon, Gendry and Arya, The Hound and Arya) serve as dramatic reminders of how far these characters have come and how much they influenced one another. As the beginning of the end, this final season premiere appropriately balances reflection with anticipation of things to come.
RATING: 8.5 OUT OF 10
