Game_Of_Thrones_Season_6
Game Of Thrones Season 6
The sixth season of the fantasy drama television series Game of Thrones premiered on HBO on April 24, 2016, and concluded on June 26, 2016. It consists of ten episodes, each of approximately 50–60 minutes, largely of original content not found in George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series. Some material is adapted from the upcoming sixth novel The Winds of Winter and the fourth and fifth novels, A Feast for Crows and A Dance with Dragons.The series was adapted for television by David Benioff and D. B. Weiss. HBO ordered the season on April 8, 2014, together with the fifth season, which began filming in July 2015 primarily in Northern Ireland, Spain, Croatia, Iceland and Canada. Each episode cost over $10 million.The season follows the continuing struggle between the Starks and other noble families of Westeros for the Iron Throne. The Starks defeat the Bolton forces in battle, and Jon Snow is proclaimed the King in the North. Tyrion attempts to rule Meereen while Daenerys is held captive by a Dothraki tribe. At King's Landing, the Tyrell army attempts to liberate Margaery and Loras, but Margaery capitulates to the High Sparrow, who becomes more powerful by influencing King Tommen. At her trial, Cersei burns the Great Sept, killing her rivals, while Tommen kills himself. Unopposed, Cersei is crowned Queen of Westeros. Ellaria Sand and three of Oberyn Martell's daughters kill Doran and Trystane Martell and seize control of Dorne, and Olenna discusses an alliance with Ellaria. In Essos, Daenerys Targaryen is captured by Khal Moro who takes her before the khals; she burns them alive and takes command of the Dothraki.
Game of Thrones features a large ensemble cast, including Peter Dinklage, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Lena Headey, Emilia Clarke and Kit Harington. The season introduced new cast members, including Max von Sydow, Pilou Asbæk and James Faulkner.
Critics praised its production values, writing, plot development, and cast. Game of Thrones received most nominations for the 68th Primetime Emmy Awards, with 23 nominations, and won twelve, including that for Outstanding Drama Series for the second year in a row. U.S. viewership rose compared to the previous season, and by approximately 13% over its course, from 7.9 million to 8.9 million by the finale.
Plot
Following their escape from Winterfell, Sansa Stark journeys to the Wall, while Theon Greyjoy returns to the Iron Islands. In Winterfell, Ramsay Bolton secures his claim on the North by killing Roose and Walda Bolton and his new-born half-brother. At the Wall, Melisandre resurrects Jon Snow, who is reunited with Sansa; they gather loyalists and a battle ensues. Aided by the Knights of the Vale, the Starks defeat the Bolton forces. Sansa feeds Ramsay to his hounds and Jon is proclaimed the King in the North.At King's Landing, Jaime Lannister and the Tyrell army attempt to liberate Margaery and Loras, but Margaery capitulates to the High Sparrow and Tommen forges an alliance with the Faith. During Loras and Cersei's trial, Cersei uses wildfire to burn the Great Sept, killing the High Sparrow, Margarey, Loras, Mace, Kevan, and Lancel, while Tommen kills himself after witnessing the events. Unopposed, Cersei is crowned Queen of Westeros. Ellaria Sand and three of Oberyn Martell's daughters kill Doran and Trystane Martell and seize control of Dorne, and Olenna meets with Ellaria to discuss an alliance.
In Braavos, Arya continues her training with the Faceless Men, and soon regains her eyesight. When she refuses to accomplish a mission, the Waif is ordered to kill Arya, who kills her instead. Arya reasserts her identity as a Stark and returns to Westeros.
In the Riverlands, the Hound pursues the Brotherhood Without Banners for massacring the people who saved him. He finds Lord Beric Dondarrion executing his quarry, and is asked to join the Brotherhood traveling north. Jaime Lannister besieges Riverrun and takes the castle, killing the Blackfish after forcing Edmure Tully to order a surrender. Walder Frey celebrates the victory before being killed by Arya.
Beyond the Wall, Bran Stark trains with the Three-Eyed Raven but alerts the Night King, who launches an attack of White Walkers. Bran and Meera escape and are rescued by Benjen Stark.
Sam Tarly, Gilly, and Little Sam travel to the Citadel at Oldtown, stopping to visit Sam's family.
In Essos, Daenerys Targaryen is captured by Khal Moro who takes her before the khals; she burns them alive and takes command of the Dothraki. Tyrion Lannister brings a short-lived peace to Meereen, which is reinforced when Daenerys returns and flies her dragons into battle against the slavers. Yara and Theon arrive and pledge allegiance to Daenerys after Euron Greyjoy kills their father and usurps leadership of the Iron Islands. Jorah Mormont departs to find a cure for greyscale and Daario is left in command of Meereen, while Daenerys sails for Westeros.
Episodes
Episode 1 - The Red Woman Aired - 24th April 2016
Jon Snow's corpse is found by Ser Davos, Edd and a few other loyalists;
Davos and the others take him inside and lock themselves behind a door
with him, while Edd goes to get help. Thorne assumes command of the
Watch. At Winterfell, Ramsay mourns for Myranda, while Sansa and Theon
escape through the woods. Ramsay's men catch up with them, and are about
to take them captive, when Brienne and Pod arrive, kill the men, and
the former is accepted into Sansa's service. In King's Landing, Cersei
receives Jaime, who arrives with Myrcella's body. Jaime promises Cersei
they will take their revenge. Obara and Nymeria murder Trystane, on his
way home from King's Landing, while in Sunspear, Doran and Areo Hotah
are killed by Ellaria and Tyene, after the former learns of Myrcella's
death. In Meereen, Tyrion and Varys find all the ships burning in the
harbor. Jorah and Daario continue to track Daenerys, who is taken by the
Dothraki to Khal Moro. In Braavos, Arya lives on the streets as a
beggar, where she is beaten by the Waif. In her chamber, Melisandre
removes her bejeweled necklace as she reveals her true appearance as an
old crone.
Rating - 9.5/10.0
Episode 2 - Home Aired - 1st May 2016
Brandon visits Winterfell in a vision of the past, and sees Eddard, Benjen, and their sister Lyanna, as well as a young Hodor. Edd arrives with Tormund and a group of Wildlings, imprisoning Thorne and the other mutineers. Tommen
asks Cersei to teach him to be strong. Tyrion learns that Astapor and
Yunkai have reverted to slavery, and releases Rhaegal and Viserion from
their chains. In Braavos, Arya is attacked by the Waif before H'ghar appears and recruits her again. Walda,
Roose's wife, gives birth to a boy, prompting Ramsay to murder Roose,
her, and the baby. Brienne reveals to Sansa that Arya is still alive.
Sansa permits Theon's return to the Iron Islands, where his uncle Euron reappears and murders Balon, ascending to the throne instead of Yara,
who swears vengeance for Balon's death. Seaworth persuades Melisandre
to attempt to resurrect Jon. At first, her attempts seem to fail.
However, once everyone leaves the room, he awakens.
Rating - 9.6/10.0
Episode 3 - Oath breaker Aired 8th May 2016
On a boat on their way to Oldtown, Tarly reveals his intent to leave Gilly
and her baby with the former's family at Horn Hill while he trains to
be a Maester. In a vision of the past, Brandon sees Eddard and Howland, Meera's father, defeat a group of Kingsguard loyal to the Targaryens
at the Tower of Joy in Dorne. Varys discovers that the masters of
Astapor, Yunkai, and Volantis have been financing the Sons of the Harpy.
In King's Landing, Tommen converses with the High Sparrow while Jaime
and Cersei interrupt a small council meeting, only to be shunned by Kevan and the Tyrells. Cersei's bodyguard is revealed to be Gregor.
Arya trains rigorously with the Waif and her sight is returned to her
once she has accepted herself as "no-one". In Winterfell, Lord Umber
asks Ramsay for help in protecting the North from the Wildlings,
bringing Rickon and Osha
as a gift, along with the head of Shaggydog, Rickon's direwolf. Jon
executes Thorne, Olly and the other officers involved in his
assassination. He renounces his oath and puts Tollett in charge of the
Night's Watch.
Rating - 9.5/10.0
Episode 4 - Book of the Stranger Aired - 15th April 2016
Sansa's party arrives at Castle Black as she is reunited with Jon. In
Meereen, Tyrion meets with the slave masters of Slaver's Bay to offer
peace if they will end slavery within a period of seven years, an action
that angers the former slaves. Baelish
returns to the Vale to mobilize their soldiers against Ramsay. Naharis
learns about Mormont's greyscale as they arrive in Vaes Dothrak. In
King's Landing, Margaery is permitted to visit Loras while Cersei, Jaime, Kevan and Olenna
put aside their differences and plan a defeat of the Sparrows. Theon
arrives at Pyke and explains to Yara that he will support her claim at
the Kingsmoot. In Winterfell, Osha attempts to assassinate Ramsay but is
killed by him. Ramsay sends a letter to Jon, threatening harm to Rickon
if Sansa is not returned. She convinces Jon to march south in order to
take back Winterfell. Daenerys meets with the Khals and sets the temple
of the Dosh Khaleen on fire, in the process killing Moro and the other
Khals. When she emerges unhurt, the Dothraki kneel to her.
Rating - 9.6/10.0
Episode 5 - The Door Aired - 22nd April 2016
Sansa meets Baelish, who offers the support of the Vale and tells her that Brynden, her great uncle, is gathering an army in Riverrun;
she initially refuses his help. Jon and Sansa leave Castle Black to
gather support from the other Northern houses, with her sending Brienne
to Brynden. In Braavos, Arya is given a second chance to prove her
loyalty by killing an actress. Beyond the Wall, Brandon learns that the White Walkers were created by the Children of the Forest
to protect themselves from the First Men. In the Iron Islands, Euron
wins the Kingsmoot despite confessing to killing Balon, causing Yara and
Theon to flee. In Essos, Daenerys learns about Mormont's greyscale,
ordering him to find a cure and return. In Meereen, a red priestess
named Kinvara meets Tyrion and Varys and promises to support Daenerys.
Brandon's unaccompanied vision causes him to be touched by the Night
King, making the cave vulnerable. The Night King, along with White
Walkers and hordes of wights, attack the cave, killing the Three-Eyed
Raven, several Children, Summer, and Hodor, whose younger self is shown to have been rendered mentally disabled by Brandon's interference.
Rating - 9.3/10.0
Episode 6 - Blood Of My Blood Aired - 29th May 2016
Bran and Meera are saved by Benjen,
who reveals that he was turned by the White Walkers, but was later
unturned by the Children using Dragonglass. Samwell and Gilly reach the
Tarly family estate Horn Hill. After Sam's father, Randyll, insults her for being a Wildling, Sam decides to take her with him to the Citadel, also stealing House Tarly's ancestral Valyrian steel
sword, Heartsbane. Arya warns the actress about her mission to
assassinate her, recovering the Needle. H'ghar approves of the Waif's
request to kill Arya. Jaime attempts to rescue Margaery from the Faith
Militant, only to find she has repented and Tommen has forged an
alliance with the Faith. He removes Jaime from the Kingsguard and orders
him to help Walder, who is holding Edmure
hostage, and to retake Riverrun from Brynden. Daenerys mounts Drogon,
and declares to the Dothraki that they will sail across the Narrow Sea to conquer Westeros.
Rating - 9.4/10.0
Episode 7 - The Broken Man Aired - 5th June 2016
Margaery convinces Olenna to return to Highgarden
after the High Sparrow says that he will pursue Olenna following her
attempt to engage the Faith. Jon, Sansa, and Davos recruit the Wildlings
and House Mormont to their cause, but remain outnumbered by the
Boltons. In desperation, Sansa writes a letter begging for aid. Jaime
arrives in Riverrun with Bronn,
assuming control of the siege. The former goes to parley with Brynden,
ultimately being unsuccessful. Theon and Yara spend their last night in Volantis,
deciding to sail to Meereen to ally with Daenerys. In Braavos, Arya
prepares to return to Westeros, but is attacked by the Waif. Arya is
badly wounded but escapes. Sandor
is revealed to be alive, having been saved by a Septon and his
followers. When men from the Brotherhood threaten and eventually
slaughter the group, Sandor decides to get revenge.
Rating - 9.6/10.0
Episode 8 - No One Aired - 12th June 2016
Tommen abolishes trial by combat,
much to the dismay of Cersei, who planned to win using Gregor. Brienne
arrives in Riverrun and attempts to persuade Brynden to surrender,
without success. After Jaime threatens to kill Edmure's young son, he
enters the castle and orders the Tully forces to stand down, but Brynden
is killed fighting the Lannisters. Brienne and Podrick escape. Varys
departs Meereen on an unknown mission. Meereen comes under naval assault
by the slaving cities, but Daenerys returns. Sandor kills the outlaws
who sacked his village and encounters Dondarrion and Thoros,
who explain that the outlaws were renegades. They try to convince
Sandor to join the Brotherhood. Arya is taken in by the actress, who
heals her wounds. In the morning, the Waif arrives, kills the actress
and chases Arya through the streets of Braavos. Arya leads the Waif into
the catacombs and kills her. She returns the Waif's face to the House
and declares that she is Arya Stark of Winterfell and she is going home.
Rating - 9.6/10.0
Episode 9 - Battle Of the Bastards Aired - 19th June 2016
Daenerys meets with the slave masters to negotiate terms of surrender,
but they refuse it. Riding Drogon, as Rhaegal and Viserion assist,
Daenerys attacks and burns the slavers' fleet. Grey Worm kills two of
the masters, leaving one to tell of what he had witnessed. After the
battle, Theon and Yara meet with Daenerys and Tyrion and agree to an
alliance. Near Winterfell, the Stark and Bolton armies meet on the
field. Ramsay feigns setting Rickon free, but kills him with a
long-distance arrow before Jon can save him. In the battle, the Stark
forces are pinned by Bolton soldiers, but are rescued by the Knights of
the Vale. Ramsay flees inside Winterfell, but the Wildling giant Wun Wun,
having taken numerous arrows to his body, manages to break down the
gate before succumbing to his wounds. Jon brutally beats Ramsay and
takes him prisoner. Sansa later visits Ramsay's cell in the kennels and
watches as his starving hounds devour him.
Rating - 9.8/10.0
Episode 10 - The Winds of Winter Aired - 26th June 2016
Before her trial, Cersei destroys the Sept of Baelor by wildfire,
killing the High Sparrow, Margaery, Mace and Loras Tyrell, Lancel and
Kevan Lannister, along with hundreds of King's Landing nobles and the
Faith Militant, while Qyburn has Pycelle
killed. Tommen commits suicide. In Dorne, Varys meets with Olenna and
Ellaria, seeking to form an alliance between Daenerys and their houses
against the Lannisters. Seaworth confronts Melisandre over the death of Shireen;
Jon banishes her from Winterfell. The Wildlings, the Knights of the
Vale and the surviving Houses of the North pledge loyalty to Jon as the
new King in the North. Sansa stops Baelish from getting intimate with
her. Arya kills Walder Frey and his sons. Tarly and Gilly reach the
Citadel in Oldtown. Benjen tells Brandon and Reed to pass the Wall
without him. Brandon uses his powers and learns that Jon is actually the
son of Lyanna and Rhaegar, being adopted by Eddard after she died during Robert's
rebellion. Jaime returns to King's Landing to find Qyburn crowning
Cersei the new monarch of the Seven Kingdoms. Daenerys leaves Naharis
and the Second Sons to rule Meereen before she sets sail to Westeros
with her other companions, armies and dragons.
Rating - 9.8/10.0
Crew
The writing staff for the sixth season includes executive producers and showrunners David Benioff and D. B. Weiss, producer Bryan Cogman and Dave Hill. Author George R. R. Martin, who had written one episode for each of the first four seasons, did not write an episode for the sixth season, as he was working to finish writing the sixth A Song of Ice and Fire novel, The Winds of Winter. The directing staff for the sixth season was Jeremy Podeswa (episodes 1 and 2), Daniel Sackheim (episodes 3 and 4), Jack Bender (episodes 5 and 6), Mark Mylod (episodes 7 and 8), and Miguel Sapochnik (episodes 9 and 10). Sackheim and Bender were first-time Game of Thrones directors, with the rest each having directed two episodes in the previous season.Writing
With the end of the fifth season, the content of the show has reached the plot of the latest novel in Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series, A Dance with Dragons. Season 6 director Jeremy Podeswa said in August 2015: "Right now in season six, what we're shooting currently isn't based on anything in the book. It's fully based on discussions the writers have had with George Martin, because the series has now surpassed the books in terms of what's available."Actress Natalie Dormer, who plays Margaery Tyrell, later added that the show's writers "know where it’s got to go and what [George Martin]’s intentions for the characters are. But they are just filling in the gaps."The season premiere starts off right where the fifth season ended.A plot from The Winds of Winter regarding a traveling theater troupe located in Braavos that stages a play called "The Bloody Hand", about the events that have taken place in King's Landing since the beginning of the series, is included in the sixth season.
Filming
Like the previous seasons, a large amount of production took place in Northern Ireland, mainly in Belfast and on the Causeway Coast, including film locations in the Binevenagh, Magilligan area which was used to film scenes for the Dothraki Grasslands, and Larrybane Quarry and Ballintoy Harbour, both used for scenes in the Iron Islands. The small village of Corbet was also used, for the siege of Riverrun. As in previous seasons, some of Castle Black was set at the abandoned Magheramorne quarry.
From September 3 to October 23, 2015 the show also filmed in Spain, specifically in Girona, Navarre, Peniscola, and Almería. Some filming locations in Spain included the Castle of Zafra in Guadalajara, the Bardenas Reales Natural Park in Navarre, the Alcazaba in Almería, and the Castle of Santa Florentina in Canet de Mar.
In August 2015, HBO announced that for the first time since season 1, the show would not be filming any scenes in Croatia. The Croatian city of Dubrovnik has stood in for King's Landing since the beginning of season 2; nearby cities such as Klis, Split and Šibenik have been used to depict various other locations.Contradicting the statement by HBO, cast of the show were seen in costume in Dubrovnik in October 2015.
Only a very small portion of the season was filmed in Canada (north of Calgary, Alberta): the scenes featuring Jon Snow's wolf Ghost (played by animal actor Quigly). However, some of the special effects were created at Montreal's Rodeo FX studios which has won Emmy Awards previously for its work on the series.
Casting
Across the Narrow Sea, Melanie Liburd plays a Red priestess from Asshai who is in R'hllor's service.At the Reach, House Tarly is introduced, with Freddie Stroma joining the cast as Samwell Tarly's brother Dickon Tarly, a character who was mentioned in the novels but has yet to appear in them.Other members of House Tarly that were introduced were Randyll Tarly, played by James Faulkner; Melessa Tarly, played by Samantha Spiro and Talla Tarly, who was portrayed by Rebecca Benson.
Veteran actor Max von Sydow was cast to play the Three-Eyed-Raven, who is training Bran.The character was previously played by Struan Rodger in the fourth season finale "The Children". David Bradley confirmed in August 2015, that he would be returning to the show as Walder Frey after last appearing in the third season finale "Mhysa", but he did not confirm when he would be returning. After the second official trailer was released, it was confirmed that Bradley would appear in the sixth season. Danish actor Pilou Asbæk joins the show as Theon Greyjoy's uncle, pirate captain Euron Greyjoy. Members of the Icelandic band Of Monsters and Men made cameo appearances. Ricky Champ played Gatins, an outlaw who is a part of a band using religion to justify extorting the people of the countryside. A young Ned Stark was portrayed by Sebastian Croft in a flashback scene.
The sixth season also included a traveling theater troupe located in Braavos that stages a play called "The Bloody Hand", about the events that have taken place in King's Landing since the beginning of the series. Essie Davis and Kevin Eldon joined the cast in this theater troupe, portraying actors playing Cersei Lannister and Ned Stark, respectively, while Richard E. Grant was cast as the troupe's manager. Members of Icelandic indie band Of Monsters and Men appear as the musicians of the Braavos theatre group.
Fates of key characters
After the fifth season finale "Mother's Mercy", the fates of several key characters, such as Sansa Stark, Theon Greyjoy, Stannis Baratheon, Myrcella Baratheon and Jon Snow were left unknown. It was later confirmed at the 2015 San Diego Comic-Con that Sophie Turner and Alfie Allen would return for the sixth season, implying that their characters Sansa and Theon/Reek survived the jump from the castle walls of Winterfell. The director of "Mother's Mercy", David Nutter, said later in an interview that Stannis' death was intended by the episode's script. Showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss also confirmed that Myrcella died after being poisoned by Ellaria Sand.Although Weiss had stated that Jon Snow is indeed dead, photos of Kit Harington, the actor playing Jon Snow, arriving in Belfast surfaced in July 2015. Since the season 6 script read-throughs were being held in Belfast, these photos fueled speculation that his character might not be dead after all. However, Joanna Robinson of Vanity Fair pointed out that Charles Dance was seen at Belfast the previous year, and his character Tywin Lannister only appeared in the first episode of the subsequent season and only as a corpse, although Dance himself confirmed the nature of his role shortly after the announcement.Another photo, showing Harington on set in Belfast in a costume that varied from the Night's Watch outfit, was published on September 25, 2015. There has been considerable fan speculation regarding how Jon might have survived, including spiritually possessing his direwolf's body and being brought back to life by Melisandre. In February 2016, actor Nikolaj Coster-Waldau revealed that the opening scene of the sixth season will "kind of reveal that Jon Snow is ...dead." In March 2016, Harington confirmed in an interview that he did in fact film new scenes for the sixth season as a corpse, and that he knows for how long his character is to remain that way.
Promotion
On November 23, 2015, a teaser poster displaying Jon Snow was released on the official Game of Thrones Twitter account. A 41-second teaser trailer was released on December 3, featuring Jon Snow from the fifth season episode "Hardhome", as well as many of the previous seasons' highlights, and a voice-over from Max von Sydow as the Three-Eyed Raven and Isaac Hempstead Wright as Bran Stark. The first footage from the season was revealed in a new promotional video released by HBO highlighting its new and returning original shows for the coming year on December 6, 2015, showcasing scenes involving Daenerys Targaryen, Ramsay Bolton, Cersei Lannister, and Tommen Baratheon. On December 28, 2015, Entertainment Weekly released its "Exclusive First Look" issue, featuring an image of Bran Stark, who was noticeably older from his last appearance in season four, and with shorter hair.On January 22, 2016, three teaser trailers were released, with each teaser depicting the banners of the houses Targaryen, Lannister and Stark, and included voice-overs by Iwan Rheon as Ramsay Bolton, Jonathan Pryce as The High Sparrow and an unknown character speaking in Dothraki. On February 11, 2016, HBO released 28 exclusive photos from the sixth season, picturing several of the main characters during the season and confirming the fates of Theon, Sansa and Myrcella, while Jon Snow was notably absent.HBO released a teaser trailer on February 14, 2016, that shows the faces of a number of living as well as deceased characters such as Ned Stark, Robb Stark, Catelyn Stark, Joffrey Baratheon, Tywin Lannister, Stannis Baratheon, Ygritte and, controversially, Jon Snow in the House of Black and White.On February 24, 2016, HBO released 16 character posters of both deceased and alive characters, and two official posters featuring various characters.
A behind-the-scenes video of the sixth season was released on February 29, 2016, focusing on camera operators working on the show. The first official trailer for season 6 was released on March 8, 2016.Another behind-the-scenes video was released on March 22, 2016, focusing on the creative process of prosthetics, specifically the White Walkers. The video also contained new footage of White Walkers from the sixth season. On March 24, Entertainment Weekly revealed a series of new issues titled "Dame of Thrones", featuring six of the female lead characters from the series and focus on the sixth season.On March 26, 2016, new photos from season six, in addition to a new promo named "March Madness" with new footage, was released by HBO. After the screening of the season premiere "The Red Woman", HBO released a second official trailer. As well, in July 2016, HBO released a "blooper reel" online, a video of outtakes from season 6.
Music
The soundtrack for the season was released digitally on June 24, 2016, and will be on CD on July 29, 2016. The album reached No. 27 on Billboard 200, No. 1 on Soundtrack chart, and No. 79 on the Canadian Albums chart on its digital release, with the track from the season finale "Light of the Seven" reaching No. 1 on Billboard's Spotify Viral 50 chart.After the Thrones
After the Thrones, a live aftershow in which hosts Andy Greenwald and Chris Ryan discuss episodes of the series, airs on the stand-alone streaming service HBO Now on the Monday following each episode of the show's sixth season.
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