HBO wants to keep fans all but bleeding out in sheer anticipation of the Game of Thrones premiere next weekend, and true to that effort, it has released three telling new clips from the show’s mysterious sixth season.
Each of the three clips reveals a look at starkly different emotional moments from across the mystical land of Westeros (and perhaps beyond). The short, but richly-drawn scenes include an intimate conversation between Cersei and Jaime Lannister, a check-in with Sansa Stark and Reek/Theon Greyjoy, and a revealing look at Daenerys Targaryen.
Related: Get add-on subscriptions and catch all your favorite shows. Try Amazon Instant Video
Spoiler alert: If you’re not caught up through season five, or you just want to go into season six fresh, turn away now!
Clip 1
The first, and longest of the three scenes reveals Cersei (still with her humiliating new haircut) and Jaime speaking softly about their recently deceased daughter, Myrcella. We get a rare taste of humility and weakness from Cersei here, as she speaks morbidly about the death of her mother, relating her feelings to her poisoned daughter, whom Jaime has brought across the sea with him.
It’s a soft, almost touching scene of a mother’s pain, with nothing more than a hint at the storm that is likely to come when the powerful former queen seeks her revenge.
Clip 2
We get more action from the next clip, as we see Sansa and Reek/Theon still on the run after their escape from Winterfell. Set against a breathtaking frozen landscape, the two approach a river as the menacing bark of trailing hounds grows louder in the distance.
Clip 3
Finally, the last scene gives us a look at Daenerys Targaryen’s new life as a captor among the Dothraki. Set against a vast dry artery in a high desert, the scene brings us full circle to the opposing side of George R.R. Martin’s mystical world.
We’re all in the dark now that the series has outpaced the books, but it appears Daenerys has been taken all the way back to a great Dothraki kingdom, beset with giant statues of warring horses at its entrance. “Welcome home, Khaleesi,” says the new leader, who appears to be Khal Jhaqo, the next in line to take over the Dothraki throne from Daenerys’ former husband, Drago.
However, since Daenerys has done anything but live by the Dothrakis’ code in her absence, just what kind of punishment can we expect from her new captors?
While the new clips don’t do much to answer our questions, they do present gorgeous new scenes with real emotional gravity, leading up to what has been promised by showrunners as the best season yet.
Game of Thrones season six premiers April 24 on HBO.
