Game of Thrones has returned, thank the gods, old and new.

The third season premiered to a slow start, picking up where season two left off but had some promising moments for things to look forward in future episodes.

In the far North, the white walkers are now heading towards the Wall – the only thing separating the mummy-like creatures from the Seven Kingdoms. Jon Snow has decided to join with Mance Rayder, leader of a large army of wildlings in Westeros, in order to fight for the living.

Back in King’s Landing, Joffrey continues to reign over the Seven Kingdoms. In the last season, he became betrothed to Margaery Tyrell – widow of King Renly Baratheon. Margaery is making an effort to appeal to the lower-class citizens in Landing and, in what could be an ulterior motive to get to the crown, shows both the citizens and Joffrey a compassionate side.

During the hiatus, I realized I wasn’t a Game of Thrones fan until I found myself saying “I miss Joffrey.” He was more reserved during this episode but I hope to see more of his epic temper-tantrums this season.

Tyrion, who is learning to cope with both mental and physical scars from last season’s Battle of Blackwater Bay, asks his father for more responsibility and wants to take over Casterly Rock.

Tyrion became a fan favorite for his witty remarks in the previous seasons and demonstrated his battle wounds won’t slow his quick remarks. Early in the episode, his sister Cersei tells him he’s not as clever as he thinks he is, to which he replies “still makes me more clever than you.”

At sea, Daenerys Targaryen is reunited with her three growing dragons. She sails to Slaver’s Bay to help build a strong army. There she finds soldiers who are not afraid of some nipple mutilation. Daenerys is nearly murdered by a Warlock disguised as a little girl, but is saved by Barristan Selmy who asks to join her guard and protect her.

The season premiere focused on establishing each character within their own continuing storylines. Because of the show’s extensive cast list, not every character got screen time this week. We still don’t know what happened to Jaime or where Arya is, at this point.

However, we can see the dynamic between certain characters developing, such as the entertaining chemistry between Jon Snow and his captor Ygritte.

While not the most exciting episode, I think we can expect more family drama, bloody battles, mythical creatures and jaw-dropping twists in this season compared to the previous two.