- How Podrick's song reveals clues to the ending
of Game of Thrones.
Another Sunday has come and gone, and with it,
another episode of Game of Thrones.
With only four installments left for the HBO blockbuster,
the clock is running down for all
of our favorite characters of Westeros.
Obviously we are about to get into some crazy spoilers
for today's episode of Nerdist News, so if you haven't seen
the second episode of Game of Thrones this season,
ya might wanna jump off this dragon before it crushes you
with its knowledge.
- The big woman still here?
- As we were saying, with so few episodes left in the season
the clock is ticking for everyone's favorite characters,
so it's interesting, and welcome, that the showrunners would
use this second episode to slam on the brakes
and just spend it on character moments.
We saw Jamie pledge to fight for Brienne,
and later knight her.
We got more of Sansa and Daeny exchanging barbs,
and of course, we also got more Tyrion
doing what he does best, getting drunk and quoting himself.
But the best moment of the night came when Tormund explained
how he got his name.
(guzzles drink)
- Maybe I will have that drink.
- Mm, not exactly that, but kind of.
It is when everybody sidles up by the fire for a nice
pregame before the battle, chatting with each other
and generally enjoying one another's company.
However, there was one moment towards the end of the episode
that caught our eyes, or rather, our ears,
and it might have foreshadowed how the series could end,
and it is when Podrick Payne sings Jenny's Song.
In that scene, the group, including Tyrion, Tormund,
Brienne, Podrick, Davos, and Jamie are getting drunk
around the fire, and Tyrion asks if anyone knows a song.
After a few (beep) no's from Sir Davos and Brienne,
Podrick decides to bust out a tune called Jenny's Song.
In the books, the ballad is about a girl named Jenny
and how she sings and dances with ghosts of the ones
that she had loved.
And besides Pod's rendition, it was also covered
by Florence + The Machine and played over the credits
with the title, Jenny of Oldstones.
Given that they play the song twice, let's make sure
and look over those lyrics.
On the surface they seem pretty simple and straightforward.
However, they do appear to be hiding some critical
information about the fate of Westeros and The Iron Throne.
High in the halls of the kings who are gone Jenny would
dance with her ghosts.
The ones she had lost and the ones she had found
and the ones who had loved her the most.
Now according to the books, Jenny of Oldstones
was in a relationship with a prince named Duncan Targaryen.
Duncan ended up dying in a fire at Summer Hall,
a Targaryen castle which is referenced in the lyric,
high in the halls of the kings who are gone.
Duncan is also one of the ghosts that Jenny is dancing with.
But of course there is still much more
to Duncan and Jenny's story.
Per the lore, Duncan Targaryen was betrothed to a Baratheon,
but threw away the engagement when he became enamored
with Jenny, a woman who was descended from the First Men,
the sort of precursors of the Northerners.
So where have we seen something like this before?
Oh yeah, how about Rhaegar Targaryen,
who fell in love with Lyanna Stark, a Northerner
who threw away her engagement to Robert Baratheon,
which eventually led to Robert's rebellion.
And as we know, George R.R. Martin
loves history to repeat itself.
Now it's worth noting that for the show,
changes were made to Duncan's character,
making him the mad King Aerys's brother, which also makes
him technically Daeny's uncle, and with Duncan going against
the will of his family, he gave up his claim
on The Iron Throne, which led to Aerys becoming the king.
So what does Jenny's Song mean for Daenerys and Jon Snow?
Well, stick with us for a second here.
As we stated above, the love story between
Duncan Targaryen and Jenny seems to mirror the one
between Jon Snow's real parents,
Lyanna Stark and Rhaegar Targaryan.
But it also could mirror what is to come
between Daenerys and Jon.
If you remember from last week, Tyrion brought up the notion
of Westeros being ruled by a king and queen.
But now that Daeny knows Jon's true heritage,
and considering her tendency to get protective
about her claim, it doesn't seem likely that Daeny will give
up any ground for a new Targaryen claim into the throne.
Jon, on the other hand, is much more noble and
self-sacrificing, for better or worse, and we could see him
pulling a Duncan and giving up his claim for love
or the greater good.
Now this is all assuming both of them survive the Battle
of Winterfell to even have this drama play out,
however, if the show follows George R.R. Martin's
tendency towards everything repeating and being cyclical,
the song seems to imply that Daeny will end up on the throne
after Jon gives it up to her and/or is killed.
Either way, there is just four episodes left, so we're
excited to see how it all plays out.
But what do you guys think?
Do you think Jenny's Song predicts
the end of Game of Thrones?
What was your favorite pregame moment
from the second episode?
And if you were at Winterfell, would you drink wine
or giant's milk?
- Maybe I will have that drink.
- Let's discuss.
Thanks for watching.
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And if this isn't enough Game of Thrones for you,
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on Nerdist YouTube and GeekandSundry's Twitch.
And if you missed the episode live, you can always check it
out on demand on GeekandSundry's Twitch.
(techno music)