Halfway through the second season of this HBO's epic fantasy series, it's sure many people are saving their hate for the evil king Joffrey to make some room for Theon Greyjoy.

The Stark's adoptive ward has earned deservedly earned scorn in the episode reserved for him. "A Man Without Honor" saw him reach another violent feat after his folly allowed Bran and Rickon to escape. He set off a team of hounds to find the brothers. He later emerged with two burnt bodies of two boys, thus ultimately branding his reputation as an evil ingrate.

The episode also saw the onscreen return of Jamie "King Slayer" Lannister, the incestuous half of Cersei. He was shown attempting to escape - a subtle reminder of George R. R. Martin's recurring motifs that people no matter how captive will try hard to escape and regain power.

The episode opened on Jon Snow returning from beyond the wall, by his side his wildling captive. A romantic relationship was obviously warming as the two spent some time together in the cold, but the series writer's wisely nipped the bud, leaving the consequence to reader's imagination.

We also learned about the enigmatic "King Beyond the Wall", another shadow of power emerging alongside others as the clash for the Iron Throne heats up. Meanwhile, in King's Landing, poor captive Sansa Stark "bled" for the first time, a morbid symbolism for her "obligation" to much-hated King Joffrey. We saw her waking up from a bad dream - wherein some people were trying to rape her - only to wake up that she had her first period.

The episode also saw Tyrion and Cersei discussing "strategy" as they prepared for Stannis Baratheon's impending invasion of the Kingdom, while somewhere far away, Danaerys saw her revenge plans suffer a hiccup as her dragons were kidnapped.

Elsewhere, vagabond Arya Stark was discovering the outside world with newfound mentor Tywin.

There are still no signs of Stannis and his right-hand, the crimson-clad Melisandre? What could they be planning this time? Stay tuned because the next episode could hold more surprises.