Recommended music: Trevor Jones – The Gael/Promentory (from The Last of the Mohicans)
It’s #WhateverWednesday and #WesterosWednesday! Today we’re taking a look at the Funko Game of Thrones Legacy Collection Brienne of Tarth!
Introduced in the second season of HBO’s Game of Thrones series, Brienne of Tarth is a fierce, fiercely loyal warrior who defies traditional Westerosi gender roles. Seeking to prove herself, she wins a tournament and joins King Renly Baratheon’s Kingsguard. After Renly is killed by blood magic, Brienne is wrongly accused but saved by Catelyn Stark. She then pledges to serve Catelyn and promises to bring her daughters home safely.
Catelyn gives Brienne an important mission: take the captive Jaime Lannister to King’s Landing in hopes of exchanging him for Sansa and Arya. This journey is central to Brienne’s story in Seasons 3 and 4. At first, Brienne and Jaime are at odds, but they come to respect each other after facing hardships together. Brienne stands up for Jaime, and he saves her from harm more than once. Brienne’s strong sense of honor helps with Jaime’s eventual character arc.
Following Catelyn’s death in Season 4, Brienne arrives at King’s Landing. Jaime gives her a Valyrian steel sword called Oathkeeper and asks her to find the Stark girls to keep her promise. With her new squire, Podrick, Brienne searches for Arya Stark. However, Arya’s protector, Sandor “The Hound” Clegane, does not trust Brienne because of her ties to the Lannisters. This leads to a tough sword fight where Brienne defeats The Hound, but Arya slips away. The season ends with Brienne still determined to find and protect the Stark children.
When Season Four came out in 2014, Funko did something different from its usual Pop! vinyl figures. Gentle Giant sculpted the Legacy Collection of 1/12 scale figures, and the Brienne of Tarth No. 08 figure stands out for its detail, even though the proportions are a bit off.
The figure’s sculpt does a great job showing the detail in Brienne’s early-season armor. The bronze color and dark wash bring out the fine points in the paneling, chainmail, and straps. The face looks somewhat like Gwendoline Christie from certain angles, but the expression is a bit odd. Also, the torso and shoulders are too narrow, so her head looks a little too big.
She includes her standard pre-Oathkeeper broadsword, which fits into her scabbard. While Series 2 improved upon Series 1’s notoriously fragile QC issues, there is still a lot to nitpick with these figures while they do offer a highly detailed, affordable addition for Westeros collectors.
I’ll be back next Wednesday with more toys from Westeros. Happy 15th anniversary, Game of Thrones!
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