Directed By: David Nutter / Written By: David Benioff & D.B. Weiss

Original Airdate: June 7, 2015

In the North, things are not going well for Stannis Baratheon and his army after an attack in the middle of the night as Melisandre urges Stannis to seek assistance from the Lord of Light. Meanwhile, Jon Snow and the survivors of the attack at Hardhome make it safely back to the Wall but the reception they receive is anything but warm. In Dorne, Doran Martell takes the diplomatic route telling Jaime Lannister that Myrcella Baratheon can return to King's Landing under certain conditions. In Braavos, Arya Stark’s mission is interrupted by the arrival of someone on her list. In Meereen, the Great Games begin as Jorah Mormont attempts another chance at redemption, but the festivities are halted with a surprise attack from the Sons of the Harpy.

main cast

castle black

Jon Snow, Tormund Giantsbane and the surviving wildlings from the Hardhome massacre arrive at the Wall, before the gates of Castle Black. For a tense moment from atop the Wall, Ser Alliser Thorne hesitates to let all of their old enemies through, but finally he gives the order to open the gate. Thousands of wildlings come through and into the courtyard of Castle Black itself, including many women and children, and even the giant Wun Wun. Many men of the Night's Watch glare at them as they cross into the Seven Kingdoms. Thorne coolly notes to the Lord Commander that he has a good heart to have saved so many people, but that it may end up getting them all killed. Indeed, as Jon looks around, he sees almost all of his brothers looking at him scornfully, among them is his squire Olly, as well as Othell Yarwyck and Bowen Marsh. Jon then reunites with Samwell Tarly, but is despondent, saying that the mission was a disaster  and they only managed to save a small fraction of the wildlings at Hardhome. Samwell, however, points to different wildlings passing by and notes that each of them would have died if he had done nothing at all, so it wasn't a complete failure.

dorne

Meanwhile, Ser Jaime Lannister is escorted into the main apartments of the Water Gardens by  Areo Hotah, to be received by Prince Doran Martell in a luxurious solar, along with Ellaria Sand, Doran's son Trystane Martell and Princess Myrcella Baratheon. Doran asks Jaime why he has snuck in to Dorne to abduct Myrcella back to King's Landing. He says he feared for her safety, explaining that they received a threat with Myrcella's pendant in the mouth of dead viper. Doran glares at Ellaria as Jaime asks if he intends to behead him. Doran says that he will not, because he wishes to avoid war and offers a toast to King Tommen Baratheon. Jaime returns the toast but Ellaria pours her wine on the floor in disgust. Doran says he cannot disobey his king - Myrcella will return to the capital and his son Trystane will go along with them, to take over the seat on the small council which the late Lord Tywin Lannister once granted to Oberyn Martell. Ellaria gets up to leave and snaps that it is no wonder that Doran cannot stand, because he has no spine. Doran threatens her on her way out saying if she talks to him that way again. Jaime then asks what fate will befall Ser Bronn, who is still imprisoned, and politely insists that Bronn was only following orders. Trystane agrees, saying he has learned the value of mercy from his father, but that he has one "condition". Afterwards, Areo escorts Bronn into the solar who then apologizes to Prince Trystane when he sees him, saying he didn't mean anything by hitting him before. Ser Jaime then gladly informs Bronn that the Martells have agreed to let Bronn go with Jaime, but on one condition. Then wordlessly, Areo delivers the “condition” by striking Bronn in the face with his elbow so hard that Bronn is knocked to the floor.

Later, in the courtyard, Areo brings Ellaria and the Sand Snakes before Prince Doran in his wheelchair. Doran gives Ellaria an ultimatum: she can either choose to swear allegiance to him or she can choose death. Restraining tears, she kneels and kisses his hand. Doran says that he believes in second chances and she is forgiven - but sternly warns her that he does not believe in third chances. Ellaria then finds Jaime in a study writing a letter back to King's Landing informing his return. Ellaria notes how odd it is that she and Oberyn were looked down on for their sexuality in the capital, and Jaime is scorned for his incestuous love for Cersei Lannister - to which he gives no acknowledgement - though a hundred years ago, if his name were  Targaryen, no one would have blinked an eye at such a relationship. Cryptically, perhaps spurred by Doran, she then says that she knows "your daughter" Myrcella had no part in what befell Oberyn, and maybe even Jaime is innocent of that, as Oberyn volunteered for the trial by combat. She exits, and Jaime is left to ponder what seems to be an apology.

braavos

Arya Stark, in her "Lanna" persona, is once again pushing her cart through the canal streets of  Braavos selling various types of shellfish. She passes the "thin man" who sells insurance to sailors, having been given a mission by the Faceless Men to assassinate him with poisoned oysters. Just as she reaches him, however, she stops in her tracks and stares fixedly on a boat at the dock which has caught her full attention. Stepping out of the boat is Master of Coin Mace Tyrell - and the commander of his guards is none other than Ser Meryn Trant of the Kingsguard, one of the names on Arya's kill list which she recites as a daily prayer. Ser Meryn helped betray her father and killed her sword trainer Syrio Forel. Mace was sent by Cersei to treat with the Iron Bank of Braavos, which has started calling in the crown's massive debts. Mace is greeted at the dock by the bank's representative, Tycho Nestoris. Mace addresses Tycho politely and amiably, though he doesn't realize that his jokes aren't really funny. All the while Arya remains frozen and staring at Ser Meryn, ignoring the Thin Man's requests for some of her oysters. Arya abandons her mission to assassinate the Thin Man, and instead follows Ser Meryn as he accompanies Mace. After visiting the Iron Bank building, Ser Meryn and a few other Lannister guards depart from Lord Mace at night and go to visit a local brothel. Arya sneaks into the brothel under the guise of simply selling her oysters and clams from a hand basket. The bouncer doesn't want her in at first but a whore, one of Arya's regular customers, tells him to let her stay, as oysters are held to be an aphrodisiac. Arya sells a few and then makes her way to the back chambers where she spies on Meryn from behind some shutters. Ser Meryn catches a brief look at her at one point, and she seems vaguely familiar, but he just shrugs it off. The brothel's madam presents several girls in succession to Meryn, but he passes on each as too old. She then brings out her best and most expensive prostitute, but Meryn again dismisses her as too old. The madam slowly realizes that Ser Meryn is perversely interested in young girls who are barely teenagers - so she brings out a very young girl who Meryn accepts gruffly, bluntly stating that he expects another "fresh" one tomorrow. After he leaves the madam runs into Arya and shoos her out. Afterwards, Arya returns to the House of Black and White empty-handed, having abandoned her first mission for the Faceless Men. When Jaqen H'ghar asks what happened, she lies to him and says that the Thin Man simply wasn't hungry today and didn't order any of her oysters. Jaqen quips that “perhaps this is why he is a thin man," and Arya promises that she will follow through on the assassination tomorrow. While Jaqen seems to suspect that she is lying, he makes no outward reaction to it upon her departure.

the north

During the night, at King Stannis Baratheon's army camp in the North, Melisandre gazes intently into the flames of her tent's brazier. In the distance, several tents burst into flames and one horse screams as he runs away on fire. During the night, Ramsay Bolton and twenty men raided the camp, burning much of their food supplies, weapons and horses. Ser Davos Seaworth notes that their situation is now dire as Stannis asks how this could happen. Davos insists the Boltons know the North's terrain better than they do so it was easy for a raiding party to sneak into camp. Stannis says to slaughter the dead horses for their meat, which should at least buy them a little time. Afterwards, Stannis’ demeanor becomes grave, as he believes there is only one course of action to take. Stannis starts by ordering Davos to return to Castle Black to ask for more supplies. Davos is confused given he probably wouldn't reach them in time, and wonders why Stannis would send him instead of just a messenger. Stannis insists that it is because he needs his Hand to engage in diplomacy to win Jon over - but in reality, Stannis sends Davos away so he wouldn't be around to stop what Stannis was planning on doing next. Before Davos departs he visits Princess Shireen Baratheon and gives her a wooden stag figurine he has been carving as a present. She asks why he has been so nice to her, and he explains that he felt bad that his son Matthos Seaworth always insisted that his father learn to read and he never did. Matthos died in war and by teaching Davos to read Shireen helped him fulfill his son's wish.

Some time after Ser Davos departs towards Castle Black, King Stannis visits his daughter Shireen. He is visibly shaken but trying to speak to her kindly when asking about her reading. Shireen explains that "The Dance of the Dragons" was a great civil war between Princess Rhaenyra Targaryen and her half-brother Aegon. It was a disaster for House Targaryen, who never truly recovered. Stannis asks who she would have chosen and she says she wouldn't have chosen either as it was choosing sides that plunged Westeros into civil war. Stannis gravely responds that sometimes the world forces a man to choose even if he doesn't want to and it isn't really a choice at all. Shireen says that if there is any way she can help she will, and he says that there is. Shireen insists that she wants to, because she is Princess Shireen of House Baratheon, his daughter. They hug and he embraces her tightly and Stannis whispers "forgive me". Shireen then exits her tent as well and witnesses all of the soldiers gathered around. Coming to the front, she sees Melisandre in front of a wooden pyre and starts shouting to see her father, but is grabbed by soldiers who drag her to the pyre and tie her to the stake. Her cries ring out through the camp, but no one intervenes. Queen Selyse Baratheon then appears in the crowd. Shireen sees her mother emerge from the crowd and begs both of her parents to help, but they do nothing. Selyse insists aloud to herself that the sacrifice is what the Lord of Light wants. Melisandre then begins praying and sets the pyre on fire. As the Red Priestess explained to Stannis before, she believes that sacrificing Shireen's life - which contains the power of a king's blood - will gain R’hllor's favor, who in return will aid them by lifting the blizzard. Stannis believes that if they do nothing, they will remain snowbound and all starve to death here. Shireen continues to repeatedly cry and eventually Selyse, who only had a cold relationship with her daughter, suddenly breaks and begs to not go through with it. Soldiers restrain her, however, and she sinks to the ground crying in despair. Shireen's cries become even more frightened, but Stannis continues to watch even as Selyse sobs on the ground. As the flames begin to consume the princess, she screams in pain and eventually even Stannis cannot bear to look anymore as Shireen burns to death.

meereen

In Meereen, Queen Daenerys Targaryen sits in the royal box in the Great Pit of Daznak alongside Tyrion Lannister, Missandei, and Daario Naharis. Her husband-to-be Hizdahr zo Loraq arrives late, claiming to have been putting the final touches on the arrangements for the fight. Daario verbally spars with Hizdahr for much of the first match, drawing Daenerys' attention from the spectacle in front of her. Hizdahr is somewhat intimidated by Daario, who is obviously jealous of his recent betrothal to Daenerys. Daario insists that the smaller and more agile fighter is worth betting on, though Hizdahr assures Daenerys that kings and queens do not bet on the games. However, he then notes to Daario that he’s spent much of his life as a spectator inside the arena and would not bet against the larger opponent. As the first melee finishes with a brutal beheading, Hizdahr wins the bet against Daario over which fighter will prevail. Daenerys then questions Hizdahr’s comments regarding the Great Games, asking him: “that is greatness?” Hizdahr defends his convictions to Daenerys, stating that the fighting pits are a vital part of Meereen which existed long before themselves, and will remain standing long after they return to the dirt. Tyrion then muses that his late father Tywin Lannister would have liked Hizdahr, though he notes that while Hizdahr may be an eloquent man, in his experience: “eloquent men are right every bit as often as imbeciles.” Showing appreciation in defending her, Daenerys smirks at Tyrion, however, her attention returns to the arena when hearing a familiar voice from below. As the second contest is about to commence, Daenerys is surprised to witness Ser Jorah Mormont, who never left the city after all, giving the traditional dedication to her when declaring that he will fight and die for her glory. After a long pause, Daenerys then signals for the next contest to begin, commencing with six fighters and with Ser Jorah paired up against a Norvosi long-axe fighter. The Norvosi is able to land several blows against Jorah, eventually knocking him to the ground, however Jorah is able to bring out his dagger and eventually bury it in the Norvosi's chest after a brief melee. Jorah then finds himself hopelessly outmatched by a Braavosi water dancer and suffers many cuts from his opponent's rapier. During the fight, a Meerenese pit fighter is able to lance his opponent in the chest. The water dancer, whose technique is the same as Arya Stark’s sword trainer Syrio, eventually knocks Jorah to the ground, causing Daenerys to grow concern for her former advisor. Out of fear for Jorah’s demise, Tyrion asserts to Daenerys that she can end this match, though Hizdahr insists that she cannot. The Braavosi fighter is about to deliver a killing blow to Jorah but fails to notice the pit fighter who comes up from behind and swiftly kills him, much to Daenerys’ relief. Jorah then battles the evenly-matched pit fighter and eventually kills him, leaving Jorah as the last fighter standing, which garners mixed reactions from the crowd.

Following his victory, Ser Jorah then stares for a few moments at Daenerys, however, he suddenly then grabs a spear and hurls it towards the royal box – embedding itself in the chest of a Son of the Harpy who was sneaking up behind Daario. The Sons of the Harpy then reveal themselves on every level of the arena and begin slaughtering slave masters and freedmen alike. Hizdahr quickly attempts to lead Daenerys to safety, but is then stabbed repeatedly in the chest by four members of the Sons of the Harpy, implying that he had been loyal to Daenerys after all and Daario's theory of him being involved with the Sons of the Harpy was in fact, false. Having to leave Hizdahr behind to bleed out to his death, Ser Jorah and Daario then quickly evacuate Daenerys from the royal box, while Tyrion rescues Missandei from a separate attack. Finding the exits blocked, the group then make a stand in the center of the pit alongside the remainder of the Unsullied defenders. Understanding that they are hopelessly outnumbered, Daenerys eventually takes Missandei's hand and closes her eyes, preparing herself to face death. At that moment, however, a loud screech pierces the air, as Drogon suddenly descends upon the arena, flying out of a giant burst of flames. Many of the Harpies scatter in terror as Daenerys’ missing dragon bites, crushes and mercilessly burns the nearest ones to death. The Harpies then rally enough to start attacking Drogon with spears, embedding them in his tough hide, which begins to slow down the fearsome dragon. Amidst the chaos, Daenerys hastily makes an effort to remove the spears, prompting the wounded Drogon to turn on her with a huge roar. He stops short of attacking Daenerys and eventually calms before her. Attempting to get Drogon out of range from further attacks, Daenerys climbs on top of his back and bids him to fly, successfully becoming the first Targaryen dragon-rider in over a century. With the Harpies now retreating from the Great Pit, Tyrion, Jorah, Daario and Missandei stand in the center of the arena and witness in astonishment, as Drogon soars away from the city with his mother.

*Episode descriptions from GOT Wiki