Game of Thrones Season 3 Shocker

[Justin Garrow]

Mike Hogan

Michael.hogan@huffingtonpost.com
 
'Game Of Thrones' Arya Stark Speaks: Maisie Williams On Season 3 Finale, Her Red Wedding Vine

Posted: 06/09/2013 10:07 pm EDT  |  Updated: 06/09/2013 10:07 pm EDT




Note: Do not read on if you have not yet seen Season 3, Episode 10 (the season finale) of HBO's "Game of Thrones," titled "Mhysa."

This was the season we learned to love Arya Stark.

The younger daughter of Ned and Catelyn Stark, Arya, who is portrayed on HBO's "Game of Thrones" by the 16-year-old English actress Maisie Williams, came into her own over the course of Season 3, falling in (and out) with the Brotherhood Without Banners, stirring up enough chemistry with her traveling pal Gendry (Joe Dempsie) to inspire a legion of Internet "shippers" and eventually joining forces, however reluctantly, with one of the men on her infamous kill list, Sandor "The Hound" Clegane (Rory McCann).

Arya wasn't present for the Red Wedding, thank heaven, but she witnessed enough to know that her life will never be the same. The sight of her brother Robb's corpse, its head replaced with that of his beloved direwolf, seems guaranteed to cure her of the clumsy do-gooderism that has so far handicapped her family in its war against the ruthless Lannisters. As the only remaining Stark who knows how to fight, Arya seems destined to become our new hero -- that is, if she can retain enough of the family virtue to keep us on her side. (As Williams herself points out, "If you want something to happen on the show, it almost certainly will not happen.")

Meanwhile, Williams, who grew up noticeably between last season and this one, has revealed herself to be an entertaining presence on social media. Her adorable Vine video in response to last week's episode gained her a new legion of followers, but she was a fan favorite long before then, thanks to such charming digital artifacts as this viral video of her dance company flash-mobbing an English plaza.

On a recent school night, HuffPost TV interrupted Williams' exam prep to grill her about Arya's recent travails, the joys of acting opposite Rory McCann and the perks of accidental social-media fame. Here are the highlights of our conversation. (Note that neither this reporter nor Williams has read ahead in the books.)

I heard that you were busy with some schoolwork tonight.
Yeah, I've got a few exams coming up for a performing arts college that I attend.

I have to ask about the Vine you posted after the Red Wedding episode. What inspired that?
I have this really bad habit of doing things on the Internet and forgetting that the whole world is going to see it. I hadn't actually watched the episode, but my phone started blowing up with all the tweets and stuff. So I was reading them for a bit, and then -- yeah, I don't know. I did one where I was just sort of giggling, and then I deleted that and did that one in my kitchen, just like, "They're dead, um … " I didn't want to tweet or anything; I didn't really know what to say. I'm a little bit awkward on Twitter, like, I'm never really sure what to say. So I just did that, and then my Vine blew up and I got loads of followers, and then Twitter went crazy and I got, like, so many followers overnight, and yeah. [Laughs.] And then Mum was like, "Maisie, you're in the Daily Mail!" I was like, "Oh my God, seriously?"

Do you enjoy having that ability to have a two-way conversation with your fans?
Yeah, I think it's fantastic. You know, there's some people that obviously abuse social networking or whatever, but I think it's a fantastic idea. I've never had any bad encounters with any of it.

Have you met any people that you admire on social media?
Yeah, Ed Sheeran. He's a British singer-songwriter. He tweeted about "Game of Thrones," and then a couple of people were like, "Oh, did you know that Ed Sheeran likes 'Game of Thrones?'" I was like, "That's really cool!" So I just tweeted him, and then he didn't tweet me back for, like, three days, and I was like, "Oh, how embarrassing is this?" And then he tweeted me back and called me a "top lass," and it was really cool. So now we're Twitter buddies, and he invited me to one of his concerts.

How do you think Arya is feeling, given the events of the last two episodes?
When she lost Gendry and Hot Pie, we kind of saw her start to put up these walls, I think. And it seems like she's getting a lot of bad luck all at once. She's starting to get this sort of love-hate thing with the Hound. She doesn't really like him, but she knows that he's a good guy to be with, because she's not going to get in trouble [while he's protecting her]. But I think now she's really put up this barrier and she's not willing to trust anyone fully anymore. And I think she really did struggle with that anyway, properly trusting people. She's really kind of kept herself to herself. I think now she's not really sure what she's going to do. She doesn't really have a goal anymore.

Because her goal had been to go back home?
Yes, to go home and see her family, and now I think she thinks, "Well, maybe home isn't safe anymore. And if they're here, then who's at home?" And she saw all these Stark guards getting killed straight in front of her, and I think it was kind of a wake-up call, where she was like, "Home doesn't mean you're going to be safe." At the moment, she's completely numbed by the whole thing, but I think in the long term she has a bit of a struggle to see where she's going to go.

I interviewed Michelle Fairley (Catelyn Stark) last week, and she said that the Starks are "too honorable" and that the kids are going to have to learn to adapt and maybe even become more like the Lannisters. Do you think that that's gonna happen to Arya?
Yeah, I think Arya is always doing the right thing, and it might not be the best thing. I can see her really now kind of changing and realizing, "No one else is going to do anything for me, and no one's actually here to help me." I think we're going to see a darker side to her, and maybe not the honorable Stark that we know already. I think it's maybe going to start getting a bit more nasty and brutal from here on in.

Tell me about acting opposite Rory McCann. You guys really went at each other in the second-to-last episode. What was that like?
We were having a great time! That was a fantastic day. I was riding on the horse for a bit that day, and it was lovely weather, and I just remember having such a relaxing day. I met Rory in the pilot episode, and he's just a really, really nice guy. In that scene, we'd done a few rehearsals before with [director] David Nutter, just to see how everything was gonna go. So by the time we started shooting, we were quite confident. There weren't many hiccups, apart from I kind of fell off the horse and my foot got caught in the reins.

Oh, really?
Yeah, it was really funny, actually. My leg was, like, caught up by my ear, and I was like, "Oh, brilliant." [Laughs.]

I love the fact that you and Rory don't pull any punches with each other. The fact that he's a very large adult man and that you're a teenager doesn't seem to be an issue.
Yeah, I think the Hound kind of admires Arya and the fact that she can really upset someone just by using words. They're usually two very violent characters, and you're used to seeing them just getting their sword out and getting all violent on each other. But here they're just sitting down and spiteful.

Were you there when they shot the Red Wedding scene?
No, and I was kind of sad, because I was like, "Oh my God, I'm gonna be in a scene with Michelle and Richard [Madden (Robb)] again, and I'm gonna be in a scene with Oona [Chaplin (Talisa Maegyr)]," and then they filmed it on separate days. So we did all of our night shoots, me and Rory, outside, and then they went and did all the inside stuff.

Did you get a chance to say goodbye to them?
I did. I recently saw them both in America. We did some press out there when Season 3 premiered, so I've seen them recently. So I have said goodbye, but not on set, which was sad.

I know there are a lot of people who want Gendry and Arya to get together, and I know you've said that you might even be one of them. How did you feel watching that scene where Melisandre seduces Gendry and then extracts his blood with leeches?
I thought it was quite a cool scene. I didn't read that in the script, so that was a bit of a shock to me. When I was on set with Joe [Dempsie], he was saying that his mum wanted to come out and watch him on set, and he was just praying that she didn't pick Episode 8. He was like, "Oh man, that would be the most awkward thing ever." [Laughs.] So I knew obviously there was something embarrassing happening. But yeah, I think it was kind of stupid of Gendry to stay with the Brotherhood, because he got taken. From Arya's perspective, she's kind of like, "Dude, why didn't you listen to me! We could have been in this together." [Laughs.]

Did you hear from fans who were upset that he was at least vaguely betraying Arya?
I got a few tweets and stuff. People were like, "Oh, you're so stupid, why did you let him go?" Everyone always thinks it's Arya kind of leading it, but I think it was kind of rude of Gendry to leave this little girl on her own, you know?

So do you think the Arya/Gendry shippers are going to end up being disappointed?
I think so, yeah. [Laughs.] It's just too cliché, I think. [Author] George R.R. Martin would never do that. If you want something to happen on the show, it almost certainly will not happen. It's always gonna go the other way. And personally, I also see Arya being on her own in the end and doing quite well. She's one of the only characters that could actually do it on her own and survive. Robb without his army would be nothing -- well, now he's nothing. [Laughs.] So I never really saw her being in love and whatever. I see her as a bit more of a killer and a fighter than that.

Speaking of fighting, has your dance training helped you learn all those combat moves?
Yeah, it's helped me so much. I think when I started the water dancing, the fighting, I realized it was just like choreography, just with a sword. There were still obviously difficult parts to it. I was doing it with my left hand, and my arm got tired more quickly than it would have if I had been using my right hand. So there were added difficulties that I gave myself, stupidly. [Laughs.]

I know Arya is left-handed in the books and you're right-handed, but did they let you choose which hand to use?
Yeah, that's the stupid thing, that it was completely my choice. I remember reading on the Internet, people were like, "But that person's horse is supposed to be brown, and it's white!" And I was like, "Oh God, these guys are really --" So I was like, "OK! I'll do it left-handed." And now I'm like, "This is really difficult. Why did I do this?" [Laughs.]

I love that flash-mob video your dance company made.
Oh, thanks. We did that to promote Susan Hill Dance School, the local dance school I attend. When I'm dancing, I don't know where the confidence comes from, but I just pretend I'm someone else, I think, and then I go out and dance. And then it went viral on the Internet, and the whole world saw me being really ... attitude. [Laughs.] So, yeah.

[Justin Garrow]

Maisie Williams 8d ago

*spoiler ep9*

[Justin Garrow]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-UQ9VEL1-E&feature=player_embedded#t=0s


In the Season 3 finale, Arya sees Robb's body with his direwolf's head stitched to his neck. What was it like filming that?
When I was doing my reaction, it was just a guy riding a horse -- there wasn't the big head and the gory bits. But I stayed behind afterwards to watch them actually film the gory bit. Me and Mum, we just sat there in the freezing cold. [Laughs.]

And what about the scene where Arya brutally murders one of Walder Frey's soldiers?
Yeah, that's Arya's epic finish for this year. It was a really long day, but it went really well. I was on the horse for a lot of it, in a really awkward position on the neck, so my legs were kind of jelly by the end of it.

It's a change for Arya to be murdering people in a rage, isn't it?
Yeah. And it's different. She's usually very graceful with her sword, but just basically hacks at his neck. It's horrible.

How emotional was it, ending the season with such intense and violent scenes?
Well, this was the first season that I didn't actually cry on my wrap. I usually cry, and I didn't and I don't know why. I was really happy, actually. I had a really, really good year, and I didn't want to cry. I have a stunt double and a body double, and we all had our picture together, all in the same outfit with the same hair, and it was just really nice. It was emotional, but I didn't cry. I really wanted to end on a high note.

[Justin Garrow]

Mike Hogan

Executive Arts and Entertainment Editor, The Huffington Post Media Group
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'Game Of Thrones' Finale Recap, Season 3: This Changes Everything
Posted: 06/10/2013 12:14 am
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michael-hogan/game-of-thrones-finale-recap_b_3412994.html?utm_hp_ref=mostpopular

Note: Do not read on if you have not yet seen the Season 3 finale of HBO's "Game of Thrones," titled "Mhysa."

It was inevitable that the Season 3 finale of "Game of Thrones" would feel anticlimactic, not just because last week's Red Wedding was so traumatic, but also because there were so many loose ends to tie up. Yes, Arya and the Hound needed to escape and the Lannisters and Baratheons needed to digest the news that Robb Stark had been killed, but, this being "Game of Thrones," there were also about 12 unrelated story lines that needed advancing.

We needed to know who has been tormenting Theon Greyjoy (answer: Roose Bolton's bastard son) and whether there's any hope at all for the wayward Ironborn lord (there is, now that his sister is setting sail); how Bran and his band of freaks were going to make it past The Wall; what would become of Sam and Gilly once they made it to Castle Black; how Tyrion, Sansa and Shae are managing their ultra-awkward menage a trois; whether Gendry was going to end up donating any more blood to Melisandre's campaign of black magic; what would happen to Jaime and Brienne when they returned to King's Landing; what fresh atrocities have been fermenting in Joffrey's diseased imagination; how the residents of Yunkai were going to respond to Daenerys' non-violent occupation; and, of course, whether Ygritte would make good on her threats when she caught up with Jon Snow (answer: he's lucky he can still reproduce).

Did I leave anything out? Probably. It was that kind of episode. But it wasn't without its overarching themes: familial obligations, resentment of the highborn, the tension between doing the shrewd thing and the right thing, the liberating power of going with your gut. There was also an overarching warning. As Melisandre put it, "This war of five kings means nothing. The true war lies to the north, my king. Death marches on The Wall."

Boy, does it ever. And we're beginning to see how pieces of the puzzle as far afield as Yunkai and Castle Black could someday snap together. If dragonsglass is the only substance that can kill White Walkers, then the armies of the Seven Kingdoms are going to need a lot of it. And if dragons really do play a part in the production of dragonsglass, then Daenerys could prove vital in the struggle against the Others.

But that's just speculation. Let's take a closer look at what happened in tonight's finale.

Who can resist Sandor Clegane's slightly panicked puppy-dog eyes as he navigates the burning encampments outside Walder Frey's castle? The Stark forces are getting crushed and there's nothing to do but haul Arya out of there as fast as possible. Unfortunately, before they escape, Arya is treated to the site of her brother's body being paraded through the camps, his head replaced by that of his beloved dire wolf. "King of the North," the armies chant, jeeringly.

We don't have to imagine what kind of effect this will have on Arya, who, after all, was present for her father's execution not so long ago. When she and Sandor come across a band of Frey soldiers bragging about their participation in the slaughter and subsequent desecration of Robb's corpse, she uses her "Valar Morghulis" coin to lull them into complacency, then brutally stabs the desecrator to death with a knife she lifted from Sandor.

This is new territory for Arya. We saw her ice a stable boy way back when, but that was effectively self-defense. This is a straight-up revenge killing, driven by anger to be sure, but executed with cold-blooded cunning. At least it was done on behalf of her family, and not to achieve some calculated end.

Speaking of calculated, back in King's Landing Arya's sister, Sansa, and her husband, Tyrion, are debating ways to take vengeance on the people who laugh at them. Sansa's idea of "sheep-shifting" them seems pretty tame -- especially when it becomes apparent that she thinks "shift" means "****" -- but at least the married couple is communicating. What they're not doing is consummating, which is of grave concern to Tywin. I absolutely loved the scene where Tywin sent Joffrey to bed without his supper, as Tyrion put it, and I was relieved to see the whole King's Council recoil at Joffrey's warped fantasy of serving Robb's head to Sansa at his wedding. At this point, even Cersei can't muster the energy to defend her son, though she's holding tight to her memory of him as a happy baby who made her feel as if she had someone just for her.

But I keep waiting in vain for Tywin to take note of Tyrion's shrewd analyses and start treating him with a modicum of respect. I think Tyrion's holding out hope, too, but it ends in humiliation every single time. You can see why Varys thinks the black sheep of House Lannister is the best hope for the Seven Kingdoms, though. Even if he weren't Robb's brother-in-law, Tyrion surely would have chosen to dispatch him in a manner less offensive -- and less liable to spawn a new generation of mortal enemies -- than the Red Wedding massacre.

I enjoyed the scene between Varys and Shae. Ultimately, Varys is probably right that Shae's presence is a danger to Tyrion's well-being, but good for her for refusing to be swept aside. As Daenerys will later tell the Yunkai'i, only you can claim your own freedom. Right?

For all his warg prowess, Bran remains blissfully ignorant of the fate that befell his brother and mother -- and yet the story he told about the Rat Cook certainly suggested that Walder Frey and Roose Bolton are in for a serious karmic reprisal. If you ask me, the Boltons are beginning to rival the Lannisters for the title of Most Repulsive Family in Westeros. Roose isn't kidding when he tells Frey that his bastard has his own way of doing things. Let's hope those ways don't catch on anywhere else. Taunting Theon with that pork sausage, renaming him "Reek," sending that bizarre threat to his father -- the guy's a complete psycho. (Also, whose idea was it to have him use the jarringly clinical term "phantom limb"?)

How priceless were Balon and Yara Greyjoy's faces when they re-enacted "Dick in a Box" with Theon's severed manhood? Also, remind me that I never want to meet George R. R. Martin's father. This dude has daddy issues out the wazoo -- and I'm just glad Yara finally decides to defy her papa's heartless indifference and set out to rescue her brother, however little he may deserve it.

Like Yara, Ser Davos decides to do the right thing and set Gendry free, after bonding with the unwitting Baratheon heir over their fond memories of **** streams in Flea Bottom. Gendry helps Davos see that his loyal service to the highborn Stannis hasn't served him so well after all, but it's the message from Castle Black that empowers him to save the boy's life. Even Melisandre has to admit that Stannis will need Davos in the coming war against the White Walkers.

News of that war, which promises to reshape every aspect of life in the Seven Kingdoms, comes from a modest source indeed: Samwell Tarly, who is so unassuming that he actually didn't violate his celibacy oath while squiring fertile young Gilly to safety. But even Sam isn't impressed by Bran and his crew of oddballs. If the president of the chess club told you he was going to take down Hitler's army, you'd sound about as confident as Sam does when he asks, "You're gonna stop them?"

Who knows? Maybe they will. In the meantime, Sam will be busy nursing his old friend Jon back to health. Jon is rinsing the talon wounds on his face in a stream when Ygritte catches up with him, and you can tell he's a Stark from the way he reacts. I know I love you. I know you love me. Blah blah blah, wait, why are you shooting arrows at me? Dude, any other show and you'd have been completely safe, but did you see the first season? Or the last episode? Get on your horse and get the hell out of there!

The nice thing about "Game of Thrones," at least, is that arrows aren't enough to kill main characters. So I'm pretty sure Jon will recover from his wounds, even if those scars may linger, Tyrion-style. I'm even confident that he and Ygritte will reunite, maybe after he's expelled from the Night's Watch. God knows he'll never do anything as sensible as lying to the Maester about his sexual history.

I think that brings us to Daenerys, doesn't it? Her tableau outside the gates of Yunkai felt a little over-choreographed, but then she and Ser Jorah are the types to arrange things just so, aren't they? I don't know how many more scenes of liberation this show can get away with, but this one worked for me. I didn't love the crowd-surfing, but I enjoyed the chanting: "Mhysa! Mhysa!" (Pro-tip: this show makes 100-percent more sense when you turn on the closed captioning.) And the aerial view at the end gave me that tingly feeling I look for from "Game of Thrones."

So that's it. The Mother of Dragons marches onward. Winter is coming. But we'll have to wait until next season to see what comes next. It's been a pleasure and a privilege recapping the show with you guys -- thanks for reading and sharing your comments.