Game of Moans: Unbowed, Unbent and Utterly Fictitious

Game of Thrones Episode 6 - Ending Leaves Season 5 Watchers Divided

*SPOILER ALERT: if you are currently behind on Season 5, do not read ahead as this post may contain a major spoiler or 5...*

Spend half your time on the internet doing absolutely nothing worth telling the grand-kids about and you'll soon get a fine eye for seeing that if there's one thing people love using social media for, other than to post pictures of their babies and cats, it's moaning. And it's not even the kind of moaning that could potentially start a revolutionary petition that will one day have the power to overthrow a government. Obviously it has to be that insufferable, migraine-inducing moaning that literally does nothing other than make said moaner look like a small, insufferable, migraine-inducing, whining child. And in all honesty, what could possibly be more irritating than a small, whining child? Well, let me enlighten you; small whining children that watch adult television shows, unable to grow up and act like the responsible adult that the particular TV show is targeting as its audience.

Basically, to cut a long story short; the unfortunate people I'm trying to emphasise on are an (exceedingly) large handful of Game of Thrones fans. If you're a fan of the series then you'll no doubt have noticed that episode 6 had a rather controversial twist to the ending, even with Alfie Allen (Theon Greyjoy) warning us back in April about a scene halfway through season 5 which will inevitably be “hard to watch”. With the first half of the season being pretty bland in regards to the guts, gore and seemingly gross torture that we have so eagerly come to adore in previous seasons, excluding the Mereenese chap that became dragon dinner to Daenerys' babies and the other guy buried to his neck in sand while scorpions danced on his head, “Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken” provided the most shocking scene of the season, seeing in Sansa Stark's (Sophie Turner) wedding night on her return to Winterfell. Her intended being none other than the dispicable bastard of Lord Roose Bolton, Ramsay (Iwan Rheon).

However in the aftermath of the episode, the thousands of posts on social media (specifically Twitter) weren't teeming with sympathetic thoughts for Sansa having been handed over to Ramsay, nor for the unfortunate situation Theon found himself in. Instead they were posts of anger, disapproval and boycott against the series for the insinuated rape of Sansa Stark.

This isn't the first time the topic of rape has been implied surrounding Sansa's character, back in season two she was chased down and almost gang raped during a riot at King's Landing where she was ultimately saved by The Hound. It's also not the first time that GRR Martin has had to defend the choice of scenes in the series, specifically of the sexual kind. Despite the briefness, lack of nudity and the camera cutting away to the tearful and extremely helpless expression on Theon's face, this specific scene still earned itself a hefty backlash from season five watchers.

Whilst rape and rape culture is never a subject to be taken lightly and of course there will never be a place for it in society, I can't help but think that the people crying out over this sinister twist in Sansa's characterisation are being extremely stupid and ignorant. Of course it's always unsettling having to watch someone being forced to do something they don't want to do however the scene between Sansa and Ramsay was extremely tame compared to what happens in the book. Although Sansa is not the designated victim in the book, Ramsay's newly wed (Sansa's childhood friend) Jeyne Poole takes the brunt of his sadistic behaviour with Theon being forced to participate in the act. Compared to the book, the televised scene yet brutal still, is far more tame than the happenings in the novel.

This, of course, is where things start to annoy me. If the ending to Monday's (Sunday if you're in the U.S) episode was really so unnecessary, why aren't people getting angry about how it plays out in the book? Surely the insinuation of rape is utterly unnecessary no matter what form it is written in? It seems people are too ignorant to do their research though because many watchers of the TV series probably haven't even picked up the first book in the series, let alone read any others.

Okay so we're well aware of what a cruel, insufferable and unspeakably sadistic character Ramsay is so why are we only now disproving of his behaviour? Did we not witness him mutilate Theon's genitals and send them neatly packed in a box back to his father and sister on the Iron Islands? So that's acceptable, but the rape of Sansa Stark isn't? Isn't the hideous torture, torment and destruction of Theon Greyjoy not just as unsettling to watch as Ramsay's demeaning behaviour on his wedding night? Not to mention that this is a medieval-type series where torture, rape, guts, gore and gross things were all massively prevalent during those times. So strictly speaking, the show is sticking true to historical influence.

Oh and just one more thing. In season one, do you remember when Viserys Targaryen sold his sister to the Dothraki Khal Drogo in return for an army. His own sister, who was barely a woman (13 years old in the book). And do you remember what happened on her wedding night? No? She was raped. In fact she was raped over and over again. Was that not also extremely unnecessary?

Never to worry though, Sansa's almost certainly got some kind of sassy vengeance hidden up that enormous wedding gown of hers. It's just a matter of time before her vendetta becomes incredibly personal.

Of course rape is not something a lot of us like to see on television but let me tell you now, Game of Thrones is not the only TV show to contain a rape scene. It's also quite sad that a lot of people on social media are more outraged by the rape of a fictional character as part of a completely fictitious plot, than the actual rape, torture and genital mutilation that goes on throughout the world, EVERY. SINGLE. DAY.