correct me if i'm wrong, but she has no clue that the Waif was spying on her, and does not know that the "hit" has been put on her. she probably thinks that once she gets on that ship at dawn, all will be well.
You're wrong. Jaqen straight out told her that if she fails to kill the actress, it will be Arya's face added the wall. She knows that the Faceless Men can change their faces. Her guard should've been up. If this isn't part of some scheme by Arya (and her getting stabbed certainly would indicate that it is not), then the Waif getting the drop on her so effortlessly makes her come off as a bit of a dumbass.
At any rate, I am mixed on this episode. I enjoyed it quite a bit. I liked the change in format and the interweaving of story lines.
I am mixed on The Hound's return IN THIS CONTEXT. It would be one thing if he were brought ought as a champion of the Faith to fight against his brother (and that may be the end game). But to introduce some nameless Septon, this late in the game, only to [blackout]kill him off (and kinda waste Ian McShane)[/blackout] and set the Hound on a quest for revenge against the Brotherhood Without Banners...it just seems a bit pointless.
With one or two seasons left (so at most 23 episodes, and if the rumors are to be believed more like 15 or 16), this is the point where story lines should be converging and the plot should be becoming more streamlined (which is mostly happening...Arya is on her way back to Westeros, the Stark children are slowly but surely reuniting, Dany is having all kinds of Westerosi characters seek her out with the hope to expedite her return, Kings Landing characters are dropping like flies, Jamie and Brienne are on a collision course, etc). That makes The Hound's story feel all the more out of place. A random quest for revenge that does not seem to be tied to anything or have much potential to tie up any loose ends/advance the plot in a meaningful way just feels superfluous.
Of course, the behavior of the Brotherhood (which is very different from when we last saw them and have taken to hanging people...a tactic of their new leader perhaps?), the timing of their reintroduction, and the other clues scattered throughout the past few episodes certainly indicates that the Hound is about to enter into conflict with Lady Stoneheart. But if that is the case, why? What is the end game? You have all of the principles of that story line in Riverrun; Jamie, Brienne, Podrick, the Brotherhood. Why bring the Hound into it? The only justification I can see for reintroducing the Hound as a reformed man is to kill him at the hands of Stoneheart. It would make sense. Rather than hanging faceless, meaningless Lannister and Frey bannermen, we see her hang the Hound...a character that the audience not only knows, but also knows has reformed. It would have an emotional impact, pull at the viewer's heartstrings and show, due to his reformed nature, the monster that Catelyn has become. Plus killing someone as formidable as the Hound would certainly up her threat level. It would also feel very Game of Thrones-esque to reintroduce a popular character with an entire episode devoted to him being convinced that he still has a purpose, set him on a badass quest for vengeance, only to kill him a few episodes later would be very fitting of the show. It would also have a nice circular nature to it. The Brotherhood spared the Hound because the Gods demanded it (through him winning trial by combat). For Lady Stoneheart to say "to hell with the Gods" and kill him anyway...its all fitting.
I dunno, I am spitballing...but it is the only meaningful impact I can see the Hound having at this point, based on the trajectory he is on.
I think Stoneheart's return is inevitable. Not to become a Stoneheart conspiracy theorist, but last night we saw the Brotherhood Without Banners hang a man. A self-proclaimed former soldier who committed atrocities in war (including killing a boy in front of his mother...seems like the type of thing that would spark an interest from a revenge driven mother). We don't know what house he fought for, but I will bet it was the Freys, the Boltons, or the Lannisters.
t:
