Walk of Punishment

"Walk of Punishment" is the third episode of the third season of Game of Thrones. It is the twenty-third episode of the series overall. It premiered on April 14, 2013. It was written and directed by executive producers David Benioff & D.B. Weiss, marking their directorial debut for the series.

In the Seven Kingdoms
At Riverrun in the Riverlands, the castle-seat of House Tully, the funeral boat of the recently deceased Lord Hoster Tully - father of Catelyn Stark - is launched into the Red Fork of the Trident River. King Robb Stark has arrived with the main force of the Northern army, and he helps cast his maternal grandfather's funeral boat into the river, along with Hoster's younger brother Brynden "The Blackfish" Tully. Catelyn and Robb's wife Queen Talisa look on from the assembled crowd of bannermen on the dock. Hoster's youngest child, Catelyn's younger brother Edmure Tully, attempts to light the funeral boat on fire with a flaming arrow several times but fails. Just as the boat is about to disappear behind a bend of the river, Brynden pushes his nephew out of the way and skillfully makes the shot.

In Catelyn's old chamber in the castle, she mourns with her uncle Brynden over her father's death. She asks him if he made peace with his older brother, whom he had been fighting with for the past thirty years. Brynden explains that he did: on his deathbed Hoster told him to stop calling himself "the Blackfish" as it was a stupid joke created over thirty years ago by Brynden to symbolize his bad relationship with his older brother, and it wasn't very funny to begin with. Brynden choked up to say that he'd been calling himself "the Blackfish" of the Tully family for so long that he's practically forgotten his own name. Catelyn is happy that her uncle was able to make peace with her father before he passed, and is upset that she couldn't have been there. She laments that she always looked out of this very window in her childhood home when her father left on campaign, but now he won't be coming back. She also wonders if her sons Bran and Rickon looked out of the window at Winterfell for her return, but she didn't come to save them. Brynden insists that neither he nor Robb have given up hope that the boys may be alive and in hiding, and neither should she.

King Robb, Brynden, and Edmure confer in Riverrun's meeting room. The War of the Five Kings is not going well for them, as now that the Lannisters have defeated their enemies in the south and secured King's Landing from attack, as well as a marriage-alliance with House Tyrell, they have superior numbers, wealth, and strategic position. Edmure begins to boast to his nephew about the recent victory won by Tully forces under his direct command at the Battle of Stone Mill, which managed to push the Lannister army under Ser Gregor Clegane out of the Riverlands. Instead, Robb and Brynden are furious with Edmure: their grand strategy for the war was to lure Tywin and Gregor's Lannister armies into the Westerlands, where they would be vulnerable on foreign ground, and more importantly, to leave the capital city vulnerable to attack by the Baratheons (this was the entire point behind Robb's invasion of the Westerlands over the course of Season 2, i.e. his great victory at the Battle of Oxcross). Edmure's role in this was to offer token defense as a feint to lure the Lannisters back across the Red Fork of the Trident. Instead, by successfully attacking the Lannisters at Stone Mill, Edmure kept them penned in the Riverlands, and thus close enough to King's Landing that Tywin was able to rush to the defense of the city at the Battle of the Blackwater. The Starks' entire strategic position in the war has been ruined. Edmure insists that they took captives in the battle, Willem and Martyn Lannister, but Robb angrily points out that he didn't stop fighting because his sisters are held captive. Considering that Tywin didn't stop to negotiate when his own eldest son was captured, taking his younger nephews hostage will have no impact on the war. Edmure tries to at least point out that they lost only two hundred men at Stone Mill and multiple Lannisters died for every man they lost, at which Robb cuts him off and shouts that they need men more than the Lannisters do. At this point, the Lannisters are in such a good strategic position that they can afford to be patient, and grind down Robb through simple attrition.

In the prison cells at Riverrun, Queen Talisa bandages some minor wounds that Willem and Martyn Lannister have. They are boys only 15 and 14 years old. One of them asks if Robb really eats the flesh of his enemies, and Talisa says no - except on full moons, and asks a guard if it's a full moon now. The boys realize she's joking.

At King's Landing, Tywin Lannister calls the first meeting of the Small Council since he arrived in the city and assumed his position as Hand of the King. He has the meeting place changed to a room next to his own quarters, asserting his dominance. Tywin arrives early and has all of the council members called in at once, with seats on only one side of the table, as a non-verbal test to see how each of them reacts around him. Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish ambitiously pushes his way past everyone else to be the one who sits closest to Tywin. Varys rolls his eyes at Littlefinger's naked ambition and lets him pass, content to sit in the second-closest seat (for now). Grand Maester Pycelle, who is most focused on survival by avoiding direct conflict, doesn't try to fight over a better seat with either of them, instead quietly taking the third seat away from Tywin. Tywin's daughter Cersei arrives to find the seats are all occupied, but now wanting to play that game and be relegated to a lowly position, she pulls up a chair so she is sitting at Tywin's right hand, opposite Littlefinger. Tyrion is the only one who even mildly stands up to Tywin's posturing, by not even trying to sit closest to Tywin: instead he takes a new chair and makes a point of noisily dragging it across the ground until it is positioned at the exact opposite end of the table from his father.

Tywin is upset with the three advisors, noting that between them, they possess the greatest number of spies in the world, yet none of them can locate his son Jaime, even though the entire Northern army has heard of his escape. Varys says they are trying but he simply cannot be found. Tywin asks what news there is of the war, and Varys reports that Robb has taken the bulk of his army to Riverrun for his grandfather's funeral, while leaving Lord Roose Bolton in command of Harrenhal. Varys makes a jab at Littlefinger's recent, titular promotion as Lord of Harrenhal, noting that this makes Roose Bolton the current Lord of Harrenhal in practice if not in name. However, Tywin says that Roose can keep it, because the title alone is enough to give Littlefinger the social standing to be a suitor to Lady Lysa Arryn. Littlefinger states that they have known each other since childhood, and Lysa has always adored him, and thus she will soon remarry to him. Pycelle notes that this will make Littlefinger the acting Lord Paramount of the Vale, an even more important position (Baelish is even wearing a more expensive tunic than usual, laced with gold, to reflect his new status). Tywin states that this will confirm that the Vale of Arryn, which has been neutral in the war up to this point, will not support Robb Stark, who is increasingly being hemmed in by enemies (other marriage alliances, with House Tyrell of the Reach and House Martell of Dorne, combined with the crushing of the Baratheons, have in turn secured the rest of southern Westeros under Lannister control). Tyrion points out that if Baelish leaves for the Vale that leaves a vacancy on the Small Council, and Tywin reveals that he has appointed Tyrion as the new Master of Coin to replace him. While this may seem like giving Tyrion a position of relative power again, Tyrion quickly points out that he has no prior experience in finance. With backhanded compliments, Cersei makes it clear that this promotion is really intended to give him an opportunity to make mistakes he will be blamed for.

After the meeting, Tyrion, Podrick Payne, and Ser Bronn drop by Littlefinger's office in his brothel, where he keeps all of his financial record books. Pod loads them all into a cart as Ros flirts with him. Littlefinger says it was the safest place to keep such records, but Tyrion notes that his brothel hasn't been the safest place for bastards. Baelish says he hopes Tyrion does well in the position, as he owes him for securing the release of Ros (after Cersei arrested her, mistaking her for Shae) but Tyrion says it was just a misunderstanding. Tyrion and Bronn then lead Pod into another room of the brothel, where Tyrion says that he wants to reward him for saving his live during the Battle of the Blackwater: he has paid for Podrick (who has never had sex with a woman) to enjoy the services of not one, but three prostitutes:  Jenna, Mirelle, and a contortionist named Kayle (one of only four women between King's Landing and Volantis who can properly perform a "Myreenese knot").

Later, Tyrion is reading through the financial records, and explains to Bronn that not all is as Baelish would like the court to think. Bronn asks if he thinks Littlefinger has been embezzling all the money, but Tyrion says the problem is more that he's been borrowing all of it. Littlefinger always acted like he was a financial genius who could raise money seemingly out of nowhere, but in reality the Iron Throne is heavily in debt, and Littlefinger procured enough money to balance the books every year by borrowing massive sums of money from foreign banks. In particular, much of their debt is owed to the Iron Bank of Braavos, and Tyrion warns Bronn that when debtors to the Iron Bank cannot repay their loans, the Iron Bank will first refuse to give out new loans, and ultimately support rebellions against them. Tyrion fears that if they can't repay the debt, the Iron Bank will eventually cut them off and start supporting Robb Stark or Stannis Baratheon. Podrick then returns, with the money Tyrion gave him to pay the prostitutes. Tyrion is concerned that he lost heart an fled, but Pod innocently says he did all sorts of things with the prostitutes - they just didn't feel like he needed to pay. Impressed, Tyrion and Bronn ask him to explain in detail what he did, so they can take "copious notes".

Appearances

 * Main: Walk of Punishment/Appearances

First

 * Hoster Tully (in his funeral boat)
 * Brynden "The Blackfish" Tully
 * Edmure Tully
 * Martyn Lannister
 * Willem Lannister
 * Marei
 * Gilly's baby

Deaths

 * Skinner

Cast
Starring
 * Peter Dinklage as Tyrion Lannister
 * Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as Ser Jaime Lannister
 * Lena Headey as Queen Cersei Lannister
 * Emilia Clarke as Khaleesi Daenerys Targaryen
 * Kit Harington as Jon Snow
 * Richard Madden as King Robb Stark
 * Iain Glen as Ser Jorah Mormont
 * Michelle Fairley as Lady Catelyn Stark
 * Aidan Gillen as Lord Petyr Baelish
 * Charles Dance as Lord Tywin Lannister
 * Stephen Dillane as King Stannis Baratheon
 * Carice van Houten as Melisandre
 * Alfie Allen as Prince Theon Greyjoy
 * John Bradley as Samwell Tarly
 * Maisie Williams as Princess Arya Stark
 * Oona Chaplin as Queen Talisa Stark
 * Joe Dempsie as Gendry
 * Rose Leslie as Ygritte
 * James Cosmo as Lord Commander Jeor Mormont
 * Conleth Hill as Lord Varys
 * Jerome Flynn as Ser Bronn
 * Rory McCann as Sandor Clegane

Guest starring
 * Ciarán Hinds as Mance Rayder
 * Robert Pugh as Craster
 * Ian McElhinney as Ser Barristan Selmy
 * Gwendoline Christie as Brienne of Tarth
 * Mackenzie Crook as Orell
 * Paul Kaye as Thoros of Myr
 * Clive Russell as Ser Brynden Tully
 * Tobias Menzies as Lord Edmure Tully
 * Kristofer Hivju as Tormund Giantsbane
 * Julian Glover as Grand Maester Pycelle
 * Iwan Rheon as Boy
 * Noah Taylor as Locke
 * Mark Stanley as Grenn
 * Ben Crompton as Eddison Tollett
 * Burn Gorman
 * Hannah Murray as Gilly
 * Ben Hawkey as Hot Pie
 * Esme Bianco as Ros
 * Daniel Portman as Podrick Payne
 * Philip McGinley as Anguy
 * Dan Hildebrand as Kraznys mo Nakloz
 * Nathalie Emmanuel as Missandei
 * Michael Shelford as Skinner
 * Clifford Barry as Greizhen
 * Gary Lightbody as Bolton soldier
 * Michelle Costello
 * Lisa Walsh
 * Josephine Gillan
 * Kylie Harris
 * Pixie Le Knot
 * Dean-Charles Chapman as Martyn Lannister
 * Timothy Gibbons
 * Mark Drake as Tortured slave

Cast notes

 * 22 of 28 cast members for the third season appear in this episode.
 * Starring cast members Liam Cunningham (Davos Seaworth), Natalie Dormer (Margaery Tyrell), Jack Gleeson (Joffrey Baratheon), Isaac Hempstead-Wright (Bran Stark), Sibel Kekilli (Shae), and Sophie Turner (Sansa Stark) are not credited and do not appear in this episode.

In the books

 * See Differences between books and TV series - Season 3


 * This episode is adapted from the following chapters of A Storm of Swords:
 * Chapter 15, Jon II: The wildling host arrives at the Fist of the First Men. Mance Rayder sends Jon Snow with a small party to climb the Wall and attack Castle Black.
 * Chapter 17, Arya II: The Brotherhood Without Banners departs the Inn at the Crossroads; Hot Pie remains behind to work at the inn.
 * Chapter 19, Tyrion III: The Small Council convenes, Lord Petyr Baelish agrees to travel to the Eyrie to woo Lysa Arryn and form an alliance against the Starks.
 * Chapter 21, Jaime III: Jaime tries to spare Brienne from being raped and killed by telling his captor that she comes from a rich house, but gets his hand cut off as a lesson.
 * Chapter 23, Daenerys II: Daenerys debates with Jorah Mormont and Barristan Selmy on whether to purchase the Unsullied, and wonders what her brother Rhaegar would have done.
 * Chapter 27, Daenerys III: Daenerys agrees to buy all of the Unsullied in Astapor for one of her dragons, and purchases Missandei from the Good Masters.
 * Chapter 33, Samwell II: The Night's Watch survivors arrive at Craster's Keep.
 * Chapter 35, Catelyn IV: The Tullys honor Lord Hoster with a traditional funeral. Robb Stark learns of a strategic blunder by Edmure.