Cripples, Bastards, and Broken Things
Encyclopedia
"Cripples, Bastards, and Broken Things" is the fourth episode of the HBO medieval fantasy
television series Game of Thrones
, first aired on May 8, 2011. It was written by Bryan Cogman and directed by Brian Kirk
.
The plot revolves around Eddard Stark's investigation into the sudden death of his predecessor as Hand of the King. Meanwhile, Jon Snow defends a new recruit at the Wall and Viserys feels increasingly frustrated after the Dothraki horde arrives at Vaes Dothrak.
The title comes from a quote from the original book, spoken by Tyrion Lannister after he unexpectedly helps Bran Stark by providing a saddle design that will allow him to ride despite his paraplegia: "I have a tender spot in my heart for cripples and bastards and broken things".
) begins his covert inquiry into the death of the previous Hand. Questioning Grand Maester Pycelle (Julian Glover
), who tended him in his final days, he learns that Jon Arryn's last words were "the seed is strong" and that he was reading a book titled "The Lineages and Histories of the Great Houses of the Seven Kingdoms".
Helped by Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish (Aidan Gillen
) and his net of informers, he follows up on two more clues regarding the last days of his predecessor. He questions a smith's apprentice that Jon Arryn had visited in his last days and, due to his resemblance to King Robert, he deduces that the boy is the late king's bastard son. He also tries to obtain information from Jon's former squire, but the now-knighted former squire is killed while jousting at the tourney held in Eddard's honor. The knight responsible for this is Ser Gregor Clegane (Conan Stevens), also known as "the Mountain" due to his towering size. He is a Lannister bannerman and the Hound Sandor Clegane's brother.
) is upset that Khal Drogo (Jason Momoa
) has still not given him command of an army to conquer the Seven Kingdoms as was agreed upon when Daenerys (Emilia Clarke
) married Drogo. When he misinterprets the summons of his sister as an order, he becomes angry and strikes her. For the first time, Daenerys fights back and threatens her brother that the next time he raises a hand against her will be the last time he has hands. Later, the exiled knight Jorah Mormont (Iain Glen
) tells her that Viserys' inexperience would not make him a good leader to invade Westeros
and bring them home, and despite what Viserys believes, the people of the Seven Kingdoms do not care who rules them as long as their life is good.
). Sam is fat, cowardly and clumsy, but was forced by his father to take the Black and forsake his inheritance because he considered him unworthy; else, his father would kill him and pass his death off as a hunting accident. Jon Snow (Kit Harington
) defends Sam and convinces the rest of the recruits not to harm him, much to Alliser's rage. Alliser defends his treatment as life north of the Wall is very harsh especially during Winter, and warns Jon and Sam to toughen up or they will have no chance of survival.
) stops at Winterfell as he is returning to King's Landing after his visit to the Wall. But he gets a cold welcoming by the acting Lord Robb Stark (Richard Madden
), who suspects the Lannisters are behind his younger brother's fall and subsequent murder attempt. Despite the cold reception, Tyrion shows the now crippled Bran an act of kindness by giving him blueprints for a saddle that will allow him to ride again despite his paralysis. Before he leaves Winterfell, Tyrion has a talk with Theon Greyjoy (Alfie Allen
) a ward of House Stark, and mocks him on how his family and their land, the Iron Islands attempted a rebellion but failed and the fact Theon is now a "hostage
" to the Stark family.
Further south, Tyrion and his small retinue stop to spend the night at the Inn at the Crossroads. There he recognizes Lady Catelyn Stark (Michelle Fairley
) in disguise. With her cover blown, she requests the help of her father's bannermen present at the inn to seize Tyrion, and to face a trial.
and D. B. Weiss
. The script was authored by writer Bryan Cogman, based on George R. R. Martin
's original work
.
According to his interview with Elio Garcia posted at Westeros.org, Cogman worked on Game of Thrones pilot as a writing assistant and was contracted for the full series as script-editor and the unofficial "keeper of the mythos" for the show, entrusted with the task of writing the series bible outlining character and background information, and making sure that the world-building remained consistent. In this capacity, he was approached by Benioff and Weiss, who asked him to write a treatment for the fourth episode. Believing it was only an exercise that would be completely rewritten by another professional writer, he completed the script that ended up being episode 4.
The chapters of the book covered in this episode are Bran IV (less the first few pages that were included in the previous episode
), Eddard V, Jon IV, Eddard VI, Catelyn V, Sansa II, Daenerys IV (chapters 25-30 and 37). Among the scenes created for the show, there are the conversations between Theon and Tyrion, Sansa and Septa Mordane, Doreah and Viserys, Jory Cassel and Jaime, Jon and Samwell and Eddard Stark and Cersei. The character of Alliser Thorne is given some more depth by justifying his harshness towards the new recruits, and a more subdued version of Bran's dream is included.
. The scene used in the auditions belonged to "Cripples, Bastards, and Broken Things", with Sam explaining to Jon how his father forced him to take the black. According to author and executive producer George R. R. Martin, Bradley delivered "a heartbreaking performance".
Australian actor Conan Stevens, whose official website lists his height as 214 cm (7' 1/4" ft), first appears as the gigantic knight Gregor Clegane, known as "the Mountain". Conan Stevens had sought to join the production since HBO started developing Game of Thrones. Since the character of Gregor Clegane, the role he believed he was most fitted for, did not appear in the pilot he auditioned for the role of Khal Drogo instead in the hopes of getting noticed by the casting team. Indeed, although Khal Drogo's role went to Jason Momoa, Stevens was ultimately chosen for the part of the oldest Clegane brother.
Other recurring roles making their first appearance in the episode include Dominic Carter as Janos Slynt, Jerome Flynn
as sellsword Bronn, and Joe Dempsie as the smith's apprentice Gendry. The character of Gendry was made older for the series than he appears in the books.
: The scenes taking place at the grounds of Castle Black continued to be filmed at the large exterior set built on the abandoned quarry of Magheramorne
, the grounds of the ruined Shane's Castle
were used as the location of the tournament, and the area known as the Sandy Brae, at the foot of the Mourne Mountains, was used for the entrance to Vaes Dothrak.
. Author George R. R. Martin once ranked the film the fifth best fantasy movie of all time, and called Vermithrax "the best dragon ever put on film", and the one with "the coolest dragon name as well".
In the UK, the viewership increased significantly, rising to 628,000 viewers from 510,000 the previous week.
rated it with a 70 out of 100.
VanDerWerff stated this was his favorite episode of the show so far, "an hour that simultaneously feels more propulsive and more relaxed than the last three". He admitted that the better part of it was given to exposition, with many monologues by the characters to expose their motivations and background. In his opinion, though, it was done skillfully and efficiently. IGN's Matt Fowler wrote that it was another great, exposition-heavy episode and that the best, most unexpected scene, happened between Viserys and Doreah in the bath was not in the novel.
Out of the different storylines, many critics singled out the scenes on the Wall as the best. Myles McNutt from Cultural Learnings wrote that "Jon Snow’s time at the Wall is maybe my favorite central location of those introduced early in the series, and it is in large part due to the work done in this episode",
and Maureen Ryan stated that "they're exceptionally well acted and written. John Bradley is a great addition as Samwell Tarley, and I continue to be very impressed with Kit Harington's quietly charismatic performance as Jon." Besides the acting and the writing, both agreed that one of the reasons the Night's Watch scenes worked for them is that it was easy to connect with the story of a group of raw recruits bonding under a hard-nosed trainer who tries to prepare them to face great danger.
The closing scene was praised by HitFix's Alan Sepinwall, highlighting Michelle Fairley's acting as Catelyn gathers new allies to arrest Tyrion.
Medieval fantasy
Medieval fantasy is a subgenre of fantasy that encompasses medieval era high fantasy and sometimes simply represents fictitious versions of historic events. This subgenre is common among role-playing games, text-based roleplaying, and high-fantasy literature....
television series Game of Thrones
Game of Thrones (TV series)
Game of Thrones is an American medieval fantasy television series created for HBO by David Benioff and D. B. Weiss. Based on author George R. R. Martin's best-selling A Song of Ice and Fire series of fantasy novels, the first of which is called A Game of Thrones, the television series debuted in...
, first aired on May 8, 2011. It was written by Bryan Cogman and directed by Brian Kirk
Brian Kirk
Brian Kirk is an Irish television director who has most recently directed episodes of Game of Thrones, FX's The Riches and Showtime's Brotherhood and The Tudors...
.
The plot revolves around Eddard Stark's investigation into the sudden death of his predecessor as Hand of the King. Meanwhile, Jon Snow defends a new recruit at the Wall and Viserys feels increasingly frustrated after the Dothraki horde arrives at Vaes Dothrak.
The title comes from a quote from the original book, spoken by Tyrion Lannister after he unexpectedly helps Bran Stark by providing a saddle design that will allow him to ride despite his paraplegia: "I have a tender spot in my heart for cripples and bastards and broken things".
At King's Landing
Lord Eddard Stark (Sean BeanSean Bean
Shaun Mark "Sean" Bean is an English film and stage actor. Bean is best known for playing Boromir in The Lord of the Rings Trilogy and, previously, British Colonel Richard Sharpe in the ITV television series Sharpe...
) begins his covert inquiry into the death of the previous Hand. Questioning Grand Maester Pycelle (Julian Glover
Julian Glover
Julian Wyatt Glover is a British actor best known for such roles as General Maximilian Veers in Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back, the Bond villain Aristotle Kristatos in For Your Eyes Only, and Walter Donovan in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.-Personal life:Glover was born in...
), who tended him in his final days, he learns that Jon Arryn's last words were "the seed is strong" and that he was reading a book titled "The Lineages and Histories of the Great Houses of the Seven Kingdoms".
Helped by Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish (Aidan Gillen
Aidan Gillen
Aidan Gillen is an Irish stage and screen actor and television presenter. He is known in Ireland for his role in Love/Hate, in the UK for his role in Queer as Folk and in the US for his role in HBO's television series The Wire in which he plays Tommy Carcetti and for his role in Game of Thrones as...
) and his net of informers, he follows up on two more clues regarding the last days of his predecessor. He questions a smith's apprentice that Jon Arryn had visited in his last days and, due to his resemblance to King Robert, he deduces that the boy is the late king's bastard son. He also tries to obtain information from Jon's former squire, but the now-knighted former squire is killed while jousting at the tourney held in Eddard's honor. The knight responsible for this is Ser Gregor Clegane (Conan Stevens), also known as "the Mountain" due to his towering size. He is a Lannister bannerman and the Hound Sandor Clegane's brother.
Across the Narrow Sea
The Dothraki horde arrives at the city of Vaes Dothrak. Viserys Targaryen (Harry LloydHarry Lloyd
Harry Lloyd is an English actor. He played Will Scarlet in the first two seasons of the BBC drama Robin Hood which began in 2006...
) is upset that Khal Drogo (Jason Momoa
Jason Momoa
Jason Momoa is an American actor and model.He is known for his role as Ronon Dex on military science fiction television series Stargate: Atlantis . Most recently, he became recognized for his role as the title character in the sword and sorcery film Conan the Barbarian...
) has still not given him command of an army to conquer the Seven Kingdoms as was agreed upon when Daenerys (Emilia Clarke
Emilia Clarke
Emilia Clarke is an English actress best known for the role of Daenerys Targaryen in the HBO medieval-fantasy series Game of Thrones.-Biography:...
) married Drogo. When he misinterprets the summons of his sister as an order, he becomes angry and strikes her. For the first time, Daenerys fights back and threatens her brother that the next time he raises a hand against her will be the last time he has hands. Later, the exiled knight Jorah Mormont (Iain Glen
Iain Glen
Iain Glen is a Scottish film and stage actor.Iain Glen was born in Edinburgh, Scotland and trained at RADA where he won the Bancroft Gold Medal. He was married to Susannah Harker from 1993 to 2004; they have one son, Finlay...
) tells her that Viserys' inexperience would not make him a good leader to invade Westeros
Westeros
The fictional world in which the A Song of Ice and Fire novels by George R. R. Martin take place is divided into several continents. Most of the story takes place on the continent Westeros, which consists of the Seven Kingdoms and an unmapped area to the north, separated by a massive wall of...
and bring them home, and despite what Viserys believes, the people of the Seven Kingdoms do not care who rules them as long as their life is good.
At the Wall
The Night's Watch receives Samwell Tarly (John Bradley), a new recruit who rapidly becomes the center of bullying of the master-at-arms Ser Alliser Thorne (Owen TealeOwen Teale
Owen Teale is a Welsh actor.Trained at the Guildford School of Acting, Teale made his television debut in The Mimosa Boys in 1984. He later appeared in Knights of God , Great Expectations , Waterfront Beat and Boon before being cast as Will Scarlet in the 1991 TV movie Robin Hood...
). Sam is fat, cowardly and clumsy, but was forced by his father to take the Black and forsake his inheritance because he considered him unworthy; else, his father would kill him and pass his death off as a hunting accident. Jon Snow (Kit Harington
Kit Harington
Christopher "Kit" Harington is an English film, television and theatre actor.-Early life and education:Harington attended Southfield Primary School between 1992 and 1998. Harington then went on to attend the Chantry High School, in Martley between 1998 and 2003...
) defends Sam and convinces the rest of the recruits not to harm him, much to Alliser's rage. Alliser defends his treatment as life north of the Wall is very harsh especially during Winter, and warns Jon and Sam to toughen up or they will have no chance of survival.
In the North
Tyrion (Peter DinklagePeter Dinklage
Peter Dinklage is an American film, television and theater actor. Since his breakout role in the 2003 film The Station Agent, he has acted in Elf, Underdog, Find Me Guilty, the 2007 film Death at a Funeral and its 2010 remake, and The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian...
) stops at Winterfell as he is returning to King's Landing after his visit to the Wall. But he gets a cold welcoming by the acting Lord Robb Stark (Richard Madden
Richard Madden
Richard Madden is a Scottish stage, film, and television actor, known for his work in theatre and for his roles in both film and television.- Background :...
), who suspects the Lannisters are behind his younger brother's fall and subsequent murder attempt. Despite the cold reception, Tyrion shows the now crippled Bran an act of kindness by giving him blueprints for a saddle that will allow him to ride again despite his paralysis. Before he leaves Winterfell, Tyrion has a talk with Theon Greyjoy (Alfie Allen
Alfie Owen-Allen
Alfie Evan Allen is an English actor. Allen recently changed his name to incorporate Owen. All of his acting roles are credited as Alfie Allen.-Personal life:...
) a ward of House Stark, and mocks him on how his family and their land, the Iron Islands attempted a rebellion but failed and the fact Theon is now a "hostage
Hostage
A hostage is a person or entity which is held by a captor. The original definition meant that this was handed over by one of two belligerent parties to the other or seized as security for the carrying out of an agreement, or as a preventive measure against certain acts of war...
" to the Stark family.
Further south, Tyrion and his small retinue stop to spend the night at the Inn at the Crossroads. There he recognizes Lady Catelyn Stark (Michelle Fairley
Michelle Fairley
Michelle Fairley is an Northern Irish actress of film, stage and television.-Life and career:Born in Coleraine, Northern Ireland to well known publicans Teresa and Brian Fairley, she grew up in Ballycastle, Northern Ireland she appeared in a range of British television shows including The Bill,...
) in disguise. With her cover blown, she requests the help of her father's bannermen present at the inn to seize Tyrion, and to face a trial.
Writing
"Cripples, Bastards, and Broken Things" is the first episode of the series that was not written by the show creators and executive producers David BenioffDavid Benioff
-Early life:Born David Friedman in New York City, he changed his name to David Benioff, his mother's maiden name. He is the youngest of three children....
and D. B. Weiss
D. B. Weiss
Daniel B. Weiss is an American author. His debut novel Lucky Wander Boy was themed around video games and has since been linked with the screen adaptations of various science-fiction and fantasy stories...
. The script was authored by writer Bryan Cogman, based on George R. R. Martin
George R. R. Martin
George Raymond Richard Martin , sometimes referred to as GRRM, is an American author and screenwriter of fantasy, horror, and science fiction. He is best known for A Song of Ice and Fire, his bestselling series of epic fantasy novels that HBO adapted for their dramatic pay-cable series Game of...
's original work
A Game of Thrones
A Game of Thrones is the first book in A Song of Ice and Fire, a series of epic fantasy novels by American author George R. R. Martin. It was first published on 6 August 1996. The novel won the 1997 Locus Award, and was nominated for both the 1998 Nebula Award and the 1997 World Fantasy Award...
.
According to his interview with Elio Garcia posted at Westeros.org, Cogman worked on Game of Thrones pilot as a writing assistant and was contracted for the full series as script-editor and the unofficial "keeper of the mythos" for the show, entrusted with the task of writing the series bible outlining character and background information, and making sure that the world-building remained consistent. In this capacity, he was approached by Benioff and Weiss, who asked him to write a treatment for the fourth episode. Believing it was only an exercise that would be completely rewritten by another professional writer, he completed the script that ended up being episode 4.
The chapters of the book covered in this episode are Bran IV (less the first few pages that were included in the previous episode
Lord Snow
"Lord Snow" is the third episode of the HBO medieval fantasy television series Game of Thrones. It first aired on May 1, 2011. It was written by the show creators David Benioff and D. B. Weiss, and directed by series regular Brian Kirk...
), Eddard V, Jon IV, Eddard VI, Catelyn V, Sansa II, Daenerys IV (chapters 25-30 and 37). Among the scenes created for the show, there are the conversations between Theon and Tyrion, Sansa and Septa Mordane, Doreah and Viserys, Jory Cassel and Jaime, Jon and Samwell and Eddard Stark and Cersei. The character of Alliser Thorne is given some more depth by justifying his harshness towards the new recruits, and a more subdued version of Bran's dream is included.
Casting
This episode introduces the character of Samwell Tarly, the new recruit of the Night's Watch, self-described as a coward. The part was cast with John Bradley, as the actor's first professional casting after graduating from the Manchester Metropolitan School of TheatreThe Manchester Metropolitan School of Theatre
The Manchester Metropolitan School of Theatre is a drama school, situated in the city of Manchester, UK. It is part of The Manchester Metropolitan University. The school is one of the 22 members of the Conference of Drama Schools...
. The scene used in the auditions belonged to "Cripples, Bastards, and Broken Things", with Sam explaining to Jon how his father forced him to take the black. According to author and executive producer George R. R. Martin, Bradley delivered "a heartbreaking performance".
Australian actor Conan Stevens, whose official website lists his height as 214 cm (7' 1/4" ft), first appears as the gigantic knight Gregor Clegane, known as "the Mountain". Conan Stevens had sought to join the production since HBO started developing Game of Thrones. Since the character of Gregor Clegane, the role he believed he was most fitted for, did not appear in the pilot he auditioned for the role of Khal Drogo instead in the hopes of getting noticed by the casting team. Indeed, although Khal Drogo's role went to Jason Momoa, Stevens was ultimately chosen for the part of the oldest Clegane brother.
Other recurring roles making their first appearance in the episode include Dominic Carter as Janos Slynt, Jerome Flynn
Jerome Flynn
Jerome Flynn is an English actor best known for his role as Corporal Paddy Garvey of the King's Fusiliers in the ITV series Soldier Soldier....
as sellsword Bronn, and Joe Dempsie as the smith's apprentice Gendry. The character of Gendry was made older for the series than he appears in the books.
Filming locations
The episode was shot at Belfast's studio The Paint Hall and on location through Northern IrelandNorthern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
: The scenes taking place at the grounds of Castle Black continued to be filmed at the large exterior set built on the abandoned quarry of Magheramorne
Magheramorne
Magheramorne is a hamlet in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is about 5 miles south of Larne on the shores of Larne Lough. It had a population of 75 people in the 2001 Census. It is within the Larne Borough Council area....
, the grounds of the ruined Shane's Castle
Shane's Castle
Shane's Castle is a ruined castle near Randalstown in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. The castle is on the north-east shores of Lough Neagh. Built in 1345 by a member of the O'Neill dynasty, it was originally called Eden-duff-carrick...
were used as the location of the tournament, and the area known as the Sandy Brae, at the foot of the Mourne Mountains, was used for the entrance to Vaes Dothrak.
Other
During the scene in the bathtub where Viserys recalls the old Targaryen dragons, he lists names taken from the books (Balerion, Meraxes and Vhagar) and others invented for the show. Among them a dragon called Vermithrax is mentioned, which is an homage to Vermithrax Pejorative from the 1981 film DragonslayerDragonslayer
Dragonslayer is a 1981 fantasy movie set in a fictional medieval kingdom, following a young wizard who experiences danger and opposition as he attempts to defeat a dragon....
. Author George R. R. Martin once ranked the film the fifth best fantasy movie of all time, and called Vermithrax "the best dragon ever put on film", and the one with "the coolest dragon name as well".
Ratings
"Cripples, Bastards, and Broken Things"'s first airing was seen by 2.5 million viewers, a slight increase from the previous episode's 2.4 million. Including the repeat, the night's viewers totalled 3.1 million, which was also in line with the previous week's ratings.In the UK, the viewership increased significantly, rising to 628,000 viewers from 510,000 the previous week.
Critical response
"Cripples, Bastards, and Broken Things" was received positively by critics. Todd VanDerWerff from the A.V. Club gave it an A-, and Maureen Ryan from AOL TVAOL TV
AOL TV was the name of both a thin client which uses a television for display , and the online service that supports it, both of which were launched in June 2000 to compete with WebTV....
rated it with a 70 out of 100.
VanDerWerff stated this was his favorite episode of the show so far, "an hour that simultaneously feels more propulsive and more relaxed than the last three". He admitted that the better part of it was given to exposition, with many monologues by the characters to expose their motivations and background. In his opinion, though, it was done skillfully and efficiently. IGN's Matt Fowler wrote that it was another great, exposition-heavy episode and that the best, most unexpected scene, happened between Viserys and Doreah in the bath was not in the novel.
Out of the different storylines, many critics singled out the scenes on the Wall as the best. Myles McNutt from Cultural Learnings wrote that "Jon Snow’s time at the Wall is maybe my favorite central location of those introduced early in the series, and it is in large part due to the work done in this episode",
and Maureen Ryan stated that "they're exceptionally well acted and written. John Bradley is a great addition as Samwell Tarley, and I continue to be very impressed with Kit Harington's quietly charismatic performance as Jon." Besides the acting and the writing, both agreed that one of the reasons the Night's Watch scenes worked for them is that it was easy to connect with the story of a group of raw recruits bonding under a hard-nosed trainer who tries to prepare them to face great danger.
The closing scene was praised by HitFix's Alan Sepinwall, highlighting Michelle Fairley's acting as Catelyn gathers new allies to arrest Tyrion.