The Dornish

Things are shaky down in Dorne. A messenger brings Prince Doran news of of Myrcella's death. I was 100% certain that Ellaria Sand was a goner, but nope. She and her daughter stage a coup and stab the ruler to death. "Elia Martell, raped and murdered and you did nothing," Ellaria says, echoing her lover's last words. "Oberyn Martell butchered, and you did nothing." Doran asks about his son. "Weak men will never rule Dorne again," she replies.

As promised, the scene cuts to the remaining Sand Snakes attacking Trystane. With a well-placed spear to the head, the Dornish dynasty ends. TBH, I saw none of this coming, but given the calls for revenge coming from both sides, a war between the Lannisters and Dorne seems all but inevitable.

Tyrion & Varys

We first spy our favorite duo on a walk through Meereen, because as Tyrion puts it, you can't rule people from an 800-foot pyramid. This is why they put him in charge.

Meereen is not a happy city. With their savior gone, the former slaves are restless. (Back-alley graffiti shows that "Kill the Masters" has been replaced with "Mhysa is a master." Mysa means mother, as in "of dragons.") Interestingly enough, it looks like those former slaves might be filling the void with the Lord of Light. Will Khaleesi follow in Stannis' footsteps?

Tyrion and Varys' delightful banter is interrupted by a horde of civilians running from something. Turns out it's the harbor, where every single ship has caught (or been set?) on fire. Uh-oh.

Jorah & Daario

Jorah and Daario's bro trip to rescue their lady love is going well. They've found the remains of a lamb, burnt to a crisp, indicating dragon activity.

Jorah's greyscale is getting worse. Coming across a weird circular pattern in the grass, he recognizes the tell-tale signs of a khalasar. In the middle: Daenerys' ring.

"They have her," he says. They sure do.

Daenerys

Daenerys has fallen a long way since her last encounter with the Dothraki. She is being led — on foot, the ultimate Dothraki insult — toward her captor, a new khal. Her guards casually joke about raping her. She stays silent, even though we know she understands them.

That is, until the new khal tries to touch her. Slapping his hand away, she explains that she is Daenerys Stormborn of House Targaryen, the Unburnt, Mother of Dragons, Queen of Mereen, and so on and so forth (she has so many titles by now, it's hard to keep track). Her many exploits fail to impress the khal; she is forced to name-drop Drogo.

That works. Apparently, it is forbidden to lie with a khal's widow. Chastened, the khal promises not to "lie with her." Instead, he wants to ship off to Vaes Dothrak, to live out her days with the rest of the widowed wives of expired khals. It is known.

Arya

Our Arya is in bad shape. Still blind, she has to resort to begging on the street for coins. Her hearing is getting sharper, though. Could this be part of her training?

The Faceless Man's blond apprentice girl sneaks up on her and hands Arya a stick. Time to fight. Arya loses. "See you tomorrow," the apprentice says, leaving Arya to bleed and beg.

That girl really likes to beat up Arya, but this seems more Mr. Miyagi than aimless bullying.

Melisandre

There's no shortage of surprising moments in this episode. This is Game of Thrones, after all. Shock and awe is the name of the proverbial game. But nothing, nothing, is as horrifying as the sight of Melisandre undressing in front of a mirror.

Here lies the meaning of the episode's name. Her beliefs led to Stannis' downfall. The Lord of Light, to whom she so devoutly pledged her faith, has failed her. After a long pause, she removes her bejeweled necklace and looks back at her reflection: The Red Woman is no longer. In her place, an old crone stares hauntingly back.

Like Alliser Thorne, she has made a terrible choice. And the gods only know where it will lead.

Holy shit, guys, Game of Thrones is back.