Lasting legacies

"I have long feared that my sins would return to visit me, and the cost is more than I can bear." — Benjamin Martin, "The Patriot"

"Game of Thrones" is a fascinating and engrossing show. Based on the densely written story of the books from George R.R. Martin, there is a lot to absorb. I have read the first book, but as I enjoy the show, I have held back diving into the books so each week's episode can still be a surprise.

One of the things people complain about with the show is the pace. Sometimes there isn't a lot of action — in terms of battles on the field, in the back rooms, or between the sheets. But for me, it's in the quieter episodes that you get a sense of the larger issues of faith, character, and worry that make these characters human.

Sunday night's episode was one of those times. For a while now, Cat Stark has been a somewhat unlikeable character. It's been hard, at times, to understand her motivations and actions. Still, you sensed there was something bigger at work.

During the most beautiful moment of the second episode of this third season — "Dark Wings, Dark Words" — Cat was offered a chance to provide some insight into her mind. She told the story of a time when she prayed that the Gods would spare a sick young boy. She had wished that boy to die — of course that boy was Jon Snow. She felt terrible when he contracted an illness that nearly killed him, and in that grief and anguish she cried out to God. She promised to love him as her own if only his life was spared.

His life was spared but, as she noted, she couldn't live up to her promise. Her heart hardened, and she failed to show the love to Jon Snow she swore she would. That broken promise haunted her as she looked at how her life had spun away.

Winterfell, their home, had been burned. Her young sons — one of whom had already been crippled — were missing and feared dead. Her husband had been executed as a traitor. Her daughters are in captivity — at least she believes so — and her oldest son is leading them into war against a superior foe. And she's been put in irons by her son because she choose to free a prisoner on the off chance it would bring her girls back to her.

There's a lot of pain and not much hope for Cat Stark, and that's before you consider her other family. Her sister is crazy, her brother is fighting in the same war, and her father is dead. And in her grief and pain, she blames herself.

It was a moment of naked emotion that provided amazing insight into the character, her motivations, and the demons that still haunt her.

Some may love the lavish battle sequences, the witty quips, and the other trappings that make the fantasy world of "Game of Thrones" so rich. I enjoy all that too. But what I love best are the moments that make these characters real. Sunday featured such a moment, and it was the best part of the season so far.