| "The Wolf and the Lion" | |
|---|---|
| Game of Thrones episode | |
| Episode no. | Season 1 Episode 5 |
| Directed by | Brian Kirk |
| Written by | |
| Featured music | Ramin Djawadi |
| Cinematography by | Marco Pontecorvo |
| Editing by | Frances Parker |
| Original air date | May 15, 2011 |
| Running time | 54 minutes[1] |
| Guest appearances | |
| |
"The Wolf and the Lion" is the fifth episode of the first season of the HBO medieval fantasy television series Game of Thrones, first aired on May 15, 2011. It was written by series creators and executive producers David Benioff and D. B. Weiss, and directed by Brian Kirk.[2]
The events of the episode primarily deal with Lord Eddard Stark's investigations into the death of the previous Hand. In the city of King's Landing, the Tourney of the Hand comes to an end while the various factions that plot for power are revealed to the viewer. This delicate balance is undone when news arrives that Tyrion Lannister has been arrested by Catelyn Stark. The title of the episode refers to the fact that the Starks, whose sigil is a wolf, may soon be at war with the Lannisters, whose sigil is the lion.
With this episode, the season hits its halfway mark and the action picks up considerably. Despite being a topic of discussion at King's Landing, Daenerys and Jorah Mormont do not themselves appear in this episode. Jon Snow and all characters on the Wall are also absent, and Robb Stark does not appear in Winterfell scenes. Accordingly, Emilia Clarke, Iain Glen, Harry Lloyd, Richard Madden and Kit Harington all have their names omitted from the opening titles. The Eyrie appears as a new location between King's Landing and Winterfell on the opening's map.
The episode was also particularly well-received critically, with multiple critics declaring it to be the best episode of the show so far and giving large praise to the episode's pacing and the omission of the Wall and Dothraki plotlines, giving this episode a relatively more focused feel. In the United States, the episode achieved a viewership of 2.58 million in its initial broadcast.