Game of Thrones Episode 10: Fire and Blood

Ned Stark’s death drives the episode’s events: Arya is secretly taken out of King’s Landing, Robb is declared **King in the North**, Jon abandons his attempt to desert and recommits to the Night’s Watch, and Daenerys makes a devastating choice that leads to the birth of dragons.

At King’s Landing, the crowd celebrates while Ned’s severed head is displayed to the city, and Sansa is forced to look upon it. Joffrey orders the singer Marillion punished, then takes Sansa to the battlements and cruelly shows her the heads of Septa Mordane and Ned Stark. When Sansa cannot hide her grief the way he wants, Joffrey threatens her further and has Ser Meryn Trant strike her. Elsewhere in the city, Yoren rescues Arya from the chaos, cuts her hair, and disguises her as a boy named **Arry** so she can travel with Night’s Watch recruits headed north.

In the North, Robb and Catelyn receive the news of Ned’s execution and grieve deeply. Robb gathers his bannermen, prepares for war against the Lannisters, and is proclaimed **King in the North** by his followers. Catelyn later visits Jaime Lannister as a prisoner and speaks with him about Ned’s death; Jaime admits that he pushed Bran from the tower window, though he does not explain why. Tywin, angered by Jaime’s capture, withdraws to Harrenhal and sends Tyrion south to serve as Hand of the King in his place. Tyrion leaves with Shae, despite being told to leave women behind.

At the Wall, Jon is furious about Ned’s death and nearly deserts to join Robb, but his friends stop him. He decides to remain with the Night’s Watch after learning the danger beyond the Wall is still serious, and he joins an expedition led by the Lord Commander to search for Benjen Stark north of the Wall.

In Winterfell, Bran has a dream that leads him into the crypts, where he sees his father. He and Rickon are drawn there by their dreams, and Osha brings Bran to meet Rickon and the direwolf Shaggydog. After they leave the crypts, Maester Luwin tells Bran the news of Ned’s death. Catelyn later finds Robb in the forest, where he is venting his grief and anger by hacking at a tree with a sword.

Across the Narrow Sea, Daenerys is forced to confront the consequences of the blood magic used to save Drogo. Her unborn child is dead, and Drogo is left alive but in a hopeless, unresponsive state. Daenerys smothers Drogo to end his suffering, then builds a funeral pyre with his body, the witch who betrayed her, and the dragon eggs. She enters the flames herself, and by the next morning she emerges unharmed while three baby dragons cling to her body. Jorah and the remaining Dothraki kneel before her.