Valar morghulis, fellow Game of Thrones lovers!
Those familiar with the best drama on TV already know that translates to “all men must die” in High Valyrian. And there will be loads of sanguinary dying (as usual) when Game of Thrones returns for Season 4 at 8 p.m. today on HBO.
One of the hallmarks of the hugely popular series is that it’s not afraid to kill off a major (and frequently beloved) main character. Fans learned that lesson the hard way when protagonist Ned Stark (Sean Bean) was beheaded in the first season.
If there was any doubt, Ned’s execution confirmed the insane sadism of Joffrey Baratheon (Jack Gleeson), the new ruler on the Iron Throne.
Joffrey’s uncle, Tyrion (Peter Dinklage), summarized the boy king succinctly when he said, “We’ve had vicious kings, and we’ve had idiot kings, but I don’t know if we’ve ever been cursed with a vicious idiot for a king!”
And, yes, Joffrey continues on a roll in Season 4. He may just be the most vile character currently on TV, and that’s saying a lot.
I’ve already seen the first three episodes of the new season and you’ll not find any spoilers here. HBO made me swear to not reveal any major plot points. I was also admonished to not even indicate when an episode is an especially important one.
I’ll solve that by saying that, indeed, certain episodes contain seismic plot developments, but they are all important, as the action quickly shifts from King’s Landing and the Wall to across the Narrow Sea and Daenerys’ (Emilia Clarke) adventures in Essos to other locations.
Just a quick reminder of where we left off in the last episode, “Mhysa.”
That episode covered the aftermath of the Red Wedding, where the Freys surprised and massacred their allies, the Northern Army, slaughtered Robb Stark in the main hall, decapitated his corpse and paraded it around the city.
Yep - major beloved character Robb Stark (Richard Madden) and his direwolf Grey Wind, were heinously betrayed. Robb was coldly dispatched by Roose Bolton (Michael McElhatton) with the words, “The Lannisters send their regards.”
Joffrey is delighted about the news in King’s Landing and plans to serve up Robb’s head at his wedding.
Up north, the ravens are sent out to warn Westeros of the arrival of the dreaded White Walkers. And across the Narrow Sea, the liberated slaves of Yunkai hail Daenerys as their “mhysa,” translated to “mother.”
Tonight’s episode, “Two Swords,” is fast-paced and will require your full attention. I’ll allow one teaser: Dany’s dragons have grown to be most impressive. Keep a close eye on them.
Civil War series. Meanwhile, at 1:30 p.m. today on AETN, a new series debuts that even dedicated Civil War buffs should find satisfying.
Civil War: The Untold Story looks not at the more familiar battles in the east (Gettysburg, Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, etc.) but at the lesser-known engagements in the Western Theater.
It could be argued that these battles - Shiloh, Vicksburg, Chickamauga and Atlanta - were the actual turning points in winning and losing the war. They are often overshadowed by the bigger eastern battles.
Today’s episode is “Bloody Shiloh.”
The five-hour series, filmed in an ambitious cinematic style, is narrated by Downton Abbey’s Elizabeth McGovern and contains some of the best battle re-creations I’ve seen. One reason may be that the series was granted rare access to the battlegrounds and historic sites where the events took place.
The series also pays close attention to authenticity. I looked carefully and didn’t spot a single 250-pound, well-fed Confederate re-enactor in the lot. That’s always one of my pet peeves, since Southerners after 1861 were a fairly lean and wiry bunch.
Awards, y’all. The 49th annual Academy of Country Music Awards airs from 7 to 10 p.m. today on CBS. Hosts are Blake Shelton and Luke Bryan. Scheduled performers include Jason Aldean, Miranda Lambert, George Strait, Keith Urban and The Band Perry.
Canceled. ABC has canned Mind Games after a dismal five episodes. The drama starred Steve Zahn and Christian Slater and only drew 3.6 million viewers for its last episode.
Downton up. Season 4 of Downton Abbey averaged 13.2 million total viewers - up 15 percent compared with the previous season. That’s huge for a PBS series. Hey, that’s huge for a broadcast network.
Ducks down. A&E’s Duck Dynasty took a big hit this season. Ratings fell from 8.4 million for the Season 4 finale in October, to 6 million for the Season 5 finale March 26. And that’s down from the 11.8 million who watched the Season 4 premiere in August.
AMC updates. Turn, a Revolutionary War drama about a group of farmers who become America’s first spies, debuts at 8 p.m. today. Mad Men Season 7 premieres April 13 at 9 p.m.
The TV Column appears Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. Email: mstorey@arkansasonline.com
Style, Pages 48 on 04/06/2014