[S1E5] The Wolf And The Lion
The events of the episode primarily deal with Lord Eddard Stark's investigations into the death of the previous Hand. In the city of King's Landing, the Tourney of the Hand comes to an end while the various factions that plot for power are revealed to the viewer. This delicate balance is undone when news arrives that Tyrion Lannister has been arrested by Catelyn Stark. The title of the episode refers to the fact that the Starks, whose sigil is a wolf, may soon be at war with the Lannisters, whose sigil is the lion.
[S1E5] The Wolf and the Lion
The episode was also particularly well-received critically, with multiple critics praising the omission of the Wall and Dothraki plotlines giving this episode a relatively more focused feel. In the United States, the episode achieved a viewership of 2.58 million in its initial broadcast.
After Ned Stark convinces King Robert not to join the tourney, the crowd watches the fearsome Ser Gregor "The Mountain" Clegane joust with Ser Loras Tyrell, the "Knight of Flowers", who wins by riding a mare in heat, distracting Clegane's stallion. Clegane beheads his horse and attempts to kill Loras, but Sandor "The Hound" Clegane intervenes.
The episode's viewership increased to 2.58 million for its first airing,[13] continuing the increasing trend of the last weeks. Combined with its encore, the show was up to 3.3 million viewers for the night.[14]
Lord Eddard Stark arrives at the tourney ground to speak to Lord Commander Barristan Selmy about the death of Ser Hugh of the Vale. Barristan notes that he had no family or friends so he stood the knight's vigil himself for Ser Hugh. Eddard is suspicious of Ser Hugh's death, wanting to know how he could afford a new set of armor so soon after being made a knight. Barristan reflects on the irony of them being on opposite sides of the war during Robert's Rebellion and now they are working together.
The first tilt of the day is between the fearsome Ser Gregor Clegane, the Mountain, and the popular 'Knight of the Flowers', Ser Loras Tyrell. Loras gives a beautiful flower to Sansa Stark, while Littlefinger and Lord Renly make a wager on who will win with Renly betting on Loras. Loras is riding a mare that is in heat, which agitates and excites the Mountain's stallion, causing him to throw his rider.
Later, Arya is chasing cats in accordance with her sword training. She chases one into the dungeons under the castle, where she finds the great dragon skulls of the Targaryens in storage. She hears two men talking: Varys and Magister Illyrio Mopatis of Pentos. Varys says that events have been set in motion and the lion and the wolf will soon be at each other's throats. War is almost upon the Seven Kingdoms, as they planned, but it has come too soon. Khal Drogo will not invade Westeros until his son is born and pronounced healthy, which is still many months away. Illyrio suggests assassinating Eddard to forestall the war, but Varys refuses.
At the tourney, Ned sits with Sansa Stark as Ser Loras Tyrell prepares to tilt against The Mountain. Littlefinger makes a bet with Lord Renly Baratheon - who is obviously very fond of Loras - right before the two riders charge each other. The Mountain's horse, however, is acting strangely because Loras' mare is in heat, and when his stallion staggers and falls, The Mountain is enraged. He calls for his sword and nearly slices the animal's head clean off. He then attacks Loras - until his brother Sandor Clegane, known as The Hound, steps in. The two brothers hack at each other until Robert roars a command for order. Loras thanks The Hound for saving his life and raises the burned man's hand in victory.
The next tilt shown is between Ser Gregor Clegane against Ser Loras Tyrell, called "The Knight of Flowers", by universal acclaim the prettiest knight in the Seven Kingdoms. He wins by riding a mare in heat, causing Clegane to have trouble controlling his stallion. Whilst Littlefinger and Sansa debate whether this makes Loras a Combat Pragmatist or a cheater, The Mountain, turning out to be a massively Sore Loser, deals with his recalcitrant horse by hacking off its head and then going after his opponent. He is stopped only by the intervention of his brother The Hound, and then the booming commands of his king. For his decisive action, Sandor Clegane is proclaimed the hero of the day.
On the eastern road, Tyrion is unhooded and discovers that Catelyn is taking him to the Eyrie, ruling seat of her sister, Jon Arryn's widow Lysa, despite having announced ("often, and loudly") that they were making for Winterfell. The ragged party, including a sellsword named Bronn and the singer from earlier, Marillion, are almost immediately waylaid by one of the Mountain Clans of the Vale, and Tyrion first shows his Badass Bookworm side by beating one of them to death with a shield. Tyrion ends the battle in much better state than he began: no longer tied up, a bit of rapport with Bronn, and doubts planted in Catelyn's mind after he points out, correctly, that had he sent a mercenary after Bran, he would not have armed the man with his own blade.
Whilst Ned packs furiously, Robert and Cersei fret over what to do if the Dothraki do invade, and the absolute PR disaster it would be. They then have a startlingly heart-felt conversation, toasting each other and 17 years' mutual resentment, and wonder whether they ever had a chance at making their marriage work. (The verdict: Lyanna says no.) As for Ned, he's distracted when Littlefinger offers to take him to "the last person Jon Arryn spoke with before falling ill." It's a whore, barely more than a child, who has borne Robert Baratheon's bastard baby. "She looks like him, don't she, m'lord? She has his nose, his black hair." Jon Arryn, when he came to visit, merely inquired into the health of the child; Littlefinger doesn't know why. But as they leave, a new problem emerges: the Kingslayer rides up with a score of Lannister guardsmen and demands the return of the Imp. While Littlefinger runs to summon the gold cloaks, Jaime has Ned's three guardsmen killed. Wil and Hewett go down on the instant; Jory gives a good account of himself, but he's no match for the Kingslayer. But Ned Stark is, and the wolf and the lion go at it in a furious Sword Fight that ends only when one of the Lannister guardsmen, on his own initiative, stabs Ned through the thigh. Jaime smacks him to the ground with the hilt of his sword for interfering, then the Lannister contingent rides away, leaving Eddard Stark in the street with his dead.Tropes in this episode include:
VAYRS: The gods alone know. The fools tried to kill his son. What's worse -- they botched it. (Varys closes and locks the corridor gate.) The wolf and the lion will be at each other's throats. We will be at war soon, my friend.
Scott seems torn. He also seems to think the Alpha would just let him tap out of killer werewolf tag because he wants to graduate high school. Cute. Derek wants to teach Scott about wolf stuff so they can find the Alpha together.
Kate gives Allison a family heirloom a silver necklace for her birthday. Allison loves it and Kate tells her to look up more info on it on the Internet. Kate and two guys that are werewolf hunters visit Derek at the old house in the woods. Kate taunts Derek and she stuns him with a very high powered stun gun.
There's another animal attack involving Lydia and Jackson, raising more questions about wild animals. Meanwhile, Scott and Allison skip school and Derek must deal with the werewolf hunters on his own.
Back at his place, Derek explains that he needs Scott to find The Alpha and also that he will need his help killing The Alpha, but first, Scott must learn to endure pain and remain in his wolf form. The next day, Kate apologizes to Allison for giving Scott a difficult time, and gives Allison a family heirloom as a birthday gift. It's a silver medallion with a snarling, large wolf on the front. Kate then tells her to look up her family history. 041b061a72