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Game of Thrones Recap: Meet the Sand Snakes, Plus an Uncertain Fate for Grey Worm and Selmy

Keisha Castle-Hughes, Jessica Henwick, Rosabell Laurenti Sellers
The Sand Snakes, aka the warrior daughters of Oberyn Martell, made their first appearance on Game of Thrones.

Hello, Sand Snakes! Three fierce female characters got their first hotly anticipated moment of screen time on Game of Thrones‘ May 3 episode, “Sons of the Harpy.” Unrest is growing all over Westeros, and the hour even left loyal, brave Grey Worm and Selmy with a cliffhanger ending (that was ultimately spoiled by the preview for next week’s episode).

Here’s how Oberyn Martell’s daughters made their appearance, plus more of the action and plotting that went down: 

 

Say Hello to the Sand Snakes

Jaime Lannister (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) and Bronn arrive in Dorne under cover of darkness, on a mission to rescue Myrcella. (Jaime calls her his “niece,” which earns him the most epic “sure, bro” side-eye from Bronn in the history of the entire show.) Unfortunately, the two are discovered by some very angry Dornes, and it becomes clear that there’s no hope of diplomacy here. Although they manage to emerge victorious — Jaime by the skin of his teeth, when his assailant’s sword gets stuck in his gold prosthetic hand — their presence isn’t a secret.

The captain who transported them has been captured and made to talk by the daughters of Oberyn Martell, aka the Sand Snakes. And considering a) their brutal natures, and b) their beef with the Lannisters, if the Snakes find Jaime, it’s likely that he’ll be going back to King’s Landing minus all the body parts he can stand to lose.

lena headey for 503 recap
Cersei (Lena Headey) might have been taken down a peg last week on Game of Thrones, but her humbling didn’t last long.

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Cersei Finds Religion

Cersei (Lena Headey) might have been taken down a peg last week, but her humbling didn’t last long. She’s got herself a new High Septon, and he has an army: the Black Sparrows, psychotic religious fundamentalists with stars carved into their foreheads and a mission to stamp out sin, violently, wherever they find it. It doesn’t take long for someone (ahem) to tip them off to the extracurricular activities of Ser Loras Tyrell, who is kidnapped and taken prisoner by the Sparrows. Margaery (Natalie Dormer) is furious, and Tommen does his best to secure Loras’s release, but, well, Tommen isn’t actually much good at being in charge. The only question now is who will win the tug-of-war for the puppet king: his mother or his bride?

Unrest in the North

Winterfell has changed hands almost as much as the Iron Throne since “Game of Thrones” began, and it might come under new ownership again. Stannis Baratheon (Stephen Dillane) intends to invade and take it over with or without the help of Jon Snow (Kit Harington), who’s making a seriously valiant effort to stay neutral (as his position as Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch requires). Not even Melisandre (Carice Van Houten) can seduce Jon into joining the cause, which might make him the only man in Westeros who’s immune to her magic lady business.

carice van houten for 503 recap
Not even Melisandre (Carice Van Houten) can seduce Jon Snow on Game of Thrones.

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Meanwhile, Stannis’s plans aren’t a secret: Littlefinger (Aidan Gillen), having delivered Sansa (Sophie Turner) to Winterfell and a marriage agreement with Ramsay Bolton, warns her that the castle should be shortly under attack. Keeping in mind that there has always been a Stark at Winterfell, if Stannis succeeds, Sansa has a fighting chance of being named Wardeness of the North — aka the best-case outcome of the endless nightmare she’s endured. The second-best-case scenario? She has to marry Ramsay, and then use her feminine wiles to make him her loyal boy-toy. Considering how much we don’t want to see that process on-screen, ever, we’re really hoping Stannis shows up with his army soon.

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emilia clarke for 503 recap
Daenerys (Emilia Clarke) is increasingly losing her tenuous grip on Meereen on Game of Thrones.

More Trouble in Meereen

After making the unpopular decision to behead one of her council, Daenerys (Emilia Clarke) is increasingly losing her tenuous grip on Meereen. The Sons of the Harpy are back in business, this time cornering a huge group of the Unsullied — including the loyal Grey Worm (Jacob Anderson) — and slaughtering them in droves. Barristan Selmy (Ian McElhnn) happens to be on the street, and hears the commotion, getting there just in time to help a seriously wounded Grey Worm fight back against a dozen assailants. The good news: Between them, they manage to slay the Harpies. The bad news: The last time we see either man, they’ve both collapsed with multiple stab wounds and don’t look like they’ll be getting up again. But they’re major characters; surely one of them has to survive, right? Um, right?! (And, if you watched the preview for next week’s episode, you know which one makes it through.)

Tell Us: How badass were the Sand Snakes? Do you think Grey Worm and Selmy will survive?

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