Warning: Fullfor the episode follow.

"I want you to serve the realm!" Varys pleaded with Ned , wanting him, for the first time, to play thing smart instead of honorable. As you can see, it was a smart move to limit the amount of Lord Stark seen on this show since "You Win or you Die" so that we could, in a sense, let him go more easily. Still, it's a hard pill to swallow; the tragic end of Ned. And right when he was playing it smart. In order to save Sansa . But then came that total s***heel Joffrey , who decided to seize the moment and become the biggest flaming piece of turd in all the realm.And down came the sword. And up flew the birds. And down came the tear from my eye. For Arya . With Yoren telling her "Don't look." Reminding me so much of James O'Barr's The Crow and how poor Eric imagined the crow telling him not to look at the rape and murder of his fiance. "The Crow said don't look" indeed. Baelor ," simply put, was the best of the best. A shining example of what this series has to offer. And there weren't really all that many badass parts. Just many many scenes that sizzled with potency. I was just hanging on every damn word. Whether it was Maester Aemon talking to Jon about his own lineage to the the Targaryens, staring off into the air, blind of eye. Or Catelyn having to bargain with the bitter, lecherous Lord Walder Frey in order to cross his bridge. Or watching Tyrion , Bronn and Shae play a simple "take a shot game" based on presumptions of character.By the way, the relationship that Tyrion and Bronn have developed is one of pure joy. Tyrion was pretty much the wit of the series, but Bronn, as brutal as he is, has proven to be just as formidable in the slight comic-relief department. I say "slight" because there's really no indication that they're playing it for laughs. It's just that the two of them, as characters, are the most adept at being able to highlight the absurdities of their surroundings. Yes, I would totally watch a "Tyrion and Bronn Show." Coming this fall to TV Land.Still, within Tyrion's story lies a tender heart that we'd neve r r eally seen before this episode. And it was great to finally see Shae. In the flesh, as it were. Yes, nine episodes in and we're still getting introduced to new faces. And boobs. Also new to the show (as of the last episode) is the Lhazareen witch, Mirri Maz Duur, who seems to be doing way more harm than good to poor Khal Drogo , who looks like he's about to succumb to his minor flesh wound from "The Pointy End." Jorah's words - "He's already gone Khaleesi" - echoed that of Drogo's own words last week when he told Mago that he'd already killed him, even before they started fighting. It looks like Drogo might also be the second "King" to die from a festering wound in just a few weeks.With this story also comes the introduction of a new kind of magic to the series. Sure, we've seen corpses rise up and attack unsuspecting members of the Night's Watch, but Daenerys is playing around with actual spells. Spells that making horrid and monstrous groaning noises from inside tents. And as primitive as the Dothraki might be, it's pretty clear that they're right about this damn witch and her blood voodoo. Yes, it's dumb to fear salt water, but dark sorcery? I think there's cause to take pause. And how great was it to see Jorah armor-up? "No farther, Horselord," Jorah spit, unsheathing his sword. It's still hard to believe that he's the disgraced son that should have inherited Longclaw, the sword that the Watch Commander gave to Jon.It was also nice to see another Harry Potter actor pop up; that being David Bradley (Potter's Filch) as Lord Frey. And while it might not seem like that big of a sacrifice - to essentially join the Stark and Frey houses through two marriages - life at The Twins (which have now made it to the opening credit map!) seems so grimy and foul that it's a shame to sully the Stark name by ingesting those trolls into the brood. But Robb had to do what he had to do. The larger of his sacrifices, of course, was that of the two thousand man decoy army sent to attack Tywin's camp while Robb and his men attacked Jaime Lannister's army and captured the "Kingslayer."Again, "Baelor" might have strayed a teeny bit from the novel, but it was a clean and epic entry with a daring, tragic finish. Essentially, there's an admirable undercurrent of audience contempt in this story. One that would kill off (who we deemed to be) the main character of the entire series right in front of our eyes. When I wrote that it was a wise move for this show to lessen our exposure to Ned over the past few weeks, I meant that it was a smart way to open up the rest of the story. To take us out of the whole "Jon Arryn murder plot" and open up the realm, which is now at war. Ned's death was as jarring and daring on TV as it was in the book. And probably proof that it will take a different kind of honor to prosper and triumph is such a cruel world.I suppose we should seek solace in Ned's own words: "I learned how to die a long time ago." At least, as a man of stubborn honesty, he was also a man of quiet resolve. He did seem shaken when Joffrey defied Cersei and ordered his execution, but at least there was some peace to be had when he looked up and saw Arya no longer crouching at the feet of the Baelor statue. "Baelor," Ned had said to Yoren. One word that meant "save my daughter." One word that meant so much. Like the "Rolo Tomassi" of Westeros Confidential.Beware the boards as always. Spoilers be spoilin'.