This weekend, we’re jumping to a fresh section of the Watchers on the Wall Awards – our Quotes awards! Today we’ll be opening up voting in the preliminaries for the All-Around Best Quote of the Year, celebrating the most brilliant and memorable quotes from Game of Thrones season 7! It’ll be no easy task to narrow it down to our top five, with so many worthy nominees, but a fan’s gotta go what a fan’s gotta do. Time to vote!
The standard rules: Select up to FIVE nominees from the poll. You can choose fewer if you like, but you cannot choose more than 5. (Visit the initial WotW Awards post for a complete explanation of the rules and process.)
At the end of 72 hours (Wednesday 11/08/17 at 3PM Eastern Time), whichever five quotes have the most votes will continue on to the finals. The results of the poll will be revealed when it’s time to choose the winner of Best Quote in a few weeks.
Time to vote!
Thanks to Greatjon of Slumber for tallying up the initial nominee suggestions.
Tough choices – lots of good ones here. My favorite that I couldn’t pick:
“You’re not dying today, Ser Jorah.”
Most of my votes were from the Jon/Dany post-wight boat scene. It was the best of the season.
Is missing Winter came for House Frey!
Great quotes in season 7
“When the snow falls and the white winds blow, the lone wolf dies but the pack survives.” Sansa Stark
“He’s never been a bastard. He’s the heir to the Iron Throne.” Bran Stark
“His name is Aegon Targaryen. You have to protect him. Promise me, Ned.” Lyanna Stark
“With respect, your grace, I don’t need your permission. I am a king.” – Jon Snow
“They chose you to lead them. They chose you to protect them. Isn’t their survival more important than your pride?” Daenerys Targaryen
Davos and skeleton throne.
Jon and Beric.
Brienne and ‘fuck loyalty’. Because damn!!!
Olenna “tell her it was me”, obviously.
Jorah and Jon re: Longclaw. Because the light dawns.
I would have picked Jon and Theon if it had been the part about forgiveness. Davos’ “fewer” was a great nod, and I would have voted for “Don’t mind me, I’ve only managed to live to a ripe old age!”
So many great ones..hard choice can’t wait to see top 5
Wow! That was hard!
When the snows fall and the white winds blow, the lone wolf dies but the pack survives (Sansa Stark) – I love this book quote, and I do think The Dragon and the Wolf was the appropriate time for it to make it into the show. While both Sansa and Ned (who speaks this line in A Game of Thrones) are referring to the need for House Stark to remain united and stick together in times of hardship, it really fits in an episode that explores the possibility of an alliance between the feuding families we’ve come to know over the last seven years. In the Great War, they will need to work together to survive.
Tell Cersei. I want her to know it was me (Olenna Tyrell) – This is Olenna at her best. House Tyrell may have been defeated, but she is not going down without a fight. With her last words, she unsettles Jaime and strikes back at Cersei.
Leave one wolf alive and the sheep are never safe (Arya Stark as Walder Frey) – I love this entire speech, and David Bradley was excellent in this scene as he portrayed the anger Arya felt at the wrongs done to her family. This is one of the lines that came easily to me when I was doing my initial nominations, and when I cut them down to five it was always going to make it.
He’s never been a bastard. He’s the heir to the Iron Throne (Bran Stark) – This montage was beautifully done, and I loved that at the end of seven seasons we finally have the truth about Jon Snow/Aegon Targaryen. I think this was absolutely the right moment to have this line in – we know him so well, and for all the fighting over the Iron Throne it is amazing to have it confirmed that the person with the best claim to it is someone who has never sought it. I’ve said this before, but I love the closeness of this line to the sight of the Night King getting past the Wall and how it acts as a sort of callback to Mormont’s line in Fire and Blood, the season one finale, When dead men and worse coming hunting for us in the night, do you think it matters who sits on the Iron Throne? We know now who has the best claim, but does it matter when the Night King is coming for them all?
What does annulment mean? Maynard says here that he issued an annulment for a Prince Ragger and remarried him to someone else at the same time in a secret ceremony in Dorne. Is that a common thing in the south? (Gilly) – I may or may not (yeah, I totally did) have squealed when Gilly uttered this line. To her, it is an interesting piece of historical fact and the life of High Septon Maynard. To the audience, it is confirmation of what many have suspected for a very long time – Lyanna was Rhaegar’s wife. This entire scene was lovely, and although Sam found his time at the Citadel to be of little use in fighting the Great War, I think that Gilly was able to thrive in this place of learning.
Honorable Mention: His name is Aegon Targaryen. You have to protect him. Promise me, Ned (Lyanna Stark) – Having picked two other RLJ quotes, I didn’t think I could manage a third and after supporting Promise me, Ned so much last year, I went with Bran and Gilly’s lines. I know many of us (me included) favored other names (I was among those attached to Aemon) but on reflection I can see that Aegon does make sense in many ways. To hear the name the dying Lyanna gave her infant son is heartbreaking, and it is understandable Ned really, really had to change it up! I don’t think Jon Snow will ever feel like Aegon Targaryen is his name (at most, I think he might allow himself to be referred to as Jon of the Houses Stark and Targaryen) but to hear it spoken aloud took my breath away a little bit.
No “the north remembers. Winter came for House Frey”?!?!
He’s never been a bastard… Bran
I don’t plan on knitting by the fire men others fight for me… Lyanna M
Nothing fucks you harder than time… Davos
Leave one wolf alive and the sheep are never safe. Arya/Walder
There’s only one war that matters… Jon
I would have chosen the Lone Wolf dies speech, but it’s Ned’s and it should have been clear Sansa was only quoting him.
“Nothing fucks you harder than time.”
TheFourEyedRaven,
Yeah, I too thought Arya’s line would be here:
“If people ask you what happened here, tell them: The North remembers. Tell them: Winter came for House Frey.”
That would’ve been my #1 choice. I guess not enough people nominated it… 🤔
Winners in the past
S1
“There is only one god and his name is Death. And there is only one thing we say to death: not today.” – Syrio Forel
S2
“Fuck the Kingsguard. Fuck the city. And fuck the king.” – The Hound
S3
“If you think this has a happy ending, you haven’t been paying attention.” -Ramsay Snow
S4
“You raped her! You murdered her! You killed her children!” – Oberyn Martell
S5
“You will find little joy in your command, but with luck you will find the strength to do what needs to be done. Kill the boy, Jon Snow. Winter is almost upon us. Kill the boy, and let the man be born.” – Maester Aemon
S6
“Hold the door!” – Meera and Hodor
Once again it’s kind of bewildering to look back on all of the quotes from season 7 only to find that there is a treasure trove of great lines. This season had some really poignant dialogue. Season 7 is definitely best enjoyed on a repeat viewing. Catching little things I didn’t during the initial viewing is always cool.
I loved Dany’s speech about hope to Jon during their first meeting. Cersei’s speech to Ellaria before poisoning Nymeria. And I always really enjoyed Dany and Varys’ conversation in Stormborn.
Same. That was the quote of the season for me.
Stacy,
That’s part of a speech, which will be part of Best Speech.
mau,
Thank you kindly again, mau
Edward,
“Season 7 is definitely best enjoyed on a repeat viewing. Catching little things I didn’t during the initial viewing is always cool.”
——————
Absolutely! I missed so much during initial viewing.
mau,
“S6
“Hold the door!” – Meera and Hodor”
————————
Still…too soon. 😥
Well I guess that’s what happened to my nomination of Jon’s quote:
“I’m not gonna swear an oath I can’t uphold. Talk about my father if you want, tell me that’s the attitude that got him killed. But when enough people make false promises, words stop meaning anything. Then there are no more answers, only better and better lies. And lies won’t help us in this fight.” – Jon
I don’t know that it was nominated for ‘best speech’ though. There are a couple of other longer quotes in this list so I don’t know… My speech nomination was a similar length Daenerys quote.
Clob,
Davos’s “Fewer” made the poll. I should’ve nominated Arya’s “One or two.” (S7e2, scene with Hot Pie).
Ten Bears,
Glad you agree!! Spending that extra time reviewing a season always breeds more enjoyment because you’re watching for ancillary details.
Edward,
I miss a lot of the dialogue the first time around. Sometimes I’ll mute the volume during rewatch and read the closed-captioning.
My Favorite Five:
[1] “…If we don’t put aside our enmities and band together, we will die. And then it doesn’t matter whose skeleton sits on the Iron Throne…” ~Davos Seaworth
[2] “…There’s only one war that matters. The Great War… And it is here…” ~Jon Snow
[3] “…When the Snows Fall and the White Winds Blow, the Lone Wolf Dies, but the Pack Survives…” ~Sansa Stark
[4] “…When people ask you what happened here, tell them ‘The North Remembers’. Tell them ‘Winter Came for House Frey’…” ~Arya Stark (I have to say I am surprised that this quote didn’t make it but the Leave one wolf alive quote, did)
[5] “…Shall We Begin…” ~Daenerys Targaryen
Thanks for doing this…it’s awesome!
Maester Aemon’s “Kill the Boy” quote may be the best of the series for me…so far.
To many good ones to choose from!
“Leave one wolf alive, and the sheep are never safe.” Walder Frey – A true masterpiece.
“Tell Cersei. I want her to know it was me.” Olenna Tyrell – Growing strong under any circumstances.
“Chaos is a ladder.” Bran Stark – The moment when Petyr Baelish lost.
“Nothing fucks you harder than time.” Davos Seaworth – He’s wisdom personified!
“Death is the enemy – the first enemy and the last. The enemy always wins, but we still need to fight him.” Beric Dondarrion – Chilling preview of the end game.
I hope my favourite mic drop of the show will be included in some other category:
“Oh, I will return, dear Spider. One last time. I have to die in this strange country. Just like you.” Melisandre to Varys – Burned! 😀
Well, since others have said it–I too think “Tell them the North remembers. Tell them Winter came for House Frey” should have been on the list. We started the whole season with that chiller. Winter came for House Baelish too. Unfortunately, Winter is coming for all the houses, and Winter is now south of the wall!
“Death is the enemy- the first enemy and the last. The enemy always wins, and we still need to fight him.” – Beric Dondarrion (This one is in the running for my favorite quote of the entire series. My man Beric basically laid down a thesis statement for the entire show.)
“Robert’s Rebellion was built on a lie. Rhaegar didn’t kidnap my aunt, or rape her. He loved her, and she loved him.” – Bran Stark (The way that these words played over both Rhaegar & Lyanna and Jon & Dany was perfect).
“If we hadn’t gone, I wouldn’t have seen. You have to see it to know. Now I know.” – Daenerys Targaryen
“When the snows fall and the white winds blow, the lone wolf dies but the pack survives.” – Sansa Stark
“If we don’t put aside our enmities and band together, we will die, and then it doesn’t matter whose skeleton sits on the Iron Throne.” – Davos Seaworth
Honorable Mentions:
“She protects people from monsters, just as you do. It’s why she came here.” – Tyrion Lannister
“Leave one wolf alive, and the sheep are never safe.” – Walder Frey (Arya)
“There’s only one war that matters. The great war. And it is here.” – Jon Snow
“Shall we begin?” – Daenerys Targaryen
“Give us common folk one taste of power, we’re like the lion who tasted man. Nothing is ever so sweet again.” – Varys
“That’s not you.” – Arya to Nymeria
And far too many others to list them all. Season 7 was packed with great quotes!
Not an easy choice.
1 – “If we don’t put aside our enmities and band together, we will die, and then it doesn’t matter whose skeleton sits on the Iron Throne.” Davos Seaworth
2 – There’s only one war that matters. The great war. And it is here.” Jon Snow
These two for me were key moments. First with Davos and Dany and then with Jon and Cersei trying to convince them the ‘Real War’ will be with the White Walkers and their army of the undead.
3 – “You stand accused of murder. You stand accused of treason. How do you answers these charges…Lord Baelish?” Sansa Stark
No way did Littlefinger see that coming 😉
4 – “His name is Aegon Targaryen. You have to protect him. Promise me, Ned.” Lyanna Stark
The final confirmation of the R+L=J theory that fans have been speculating about for years.
5 – “When the snows fall and the white winds blow, the lone wolf dies but the pack survives.” Sansa Stark
Sansa reminding Arya of an expression that their father Ned used to say. Finally we see the surviving members of the Stark family reunited 🙂
More importantly Ned tells it to Arya and it is something that she remembers frequently and and is a major part of her book story. Still bitter about what they did to Arya’s character last season.
That was tough. Lessons from failure. You must be a very wise man, the Queen of Thorns, sharpest tongue in Westeros to the very last.
“Death is the enemy- the first enemy and the last. The enemy always wins, but we still need to fight him.” Beric Dondarrion
“Leave one wolf alive, and the sheep are never safe.” Walder Frey (Arya)
“Are you a sheep? No. You’re a dragon. Be a dragon.” Olenna Tyrell
“When the snows fall and the white winds blow, the lone wolf dies but the pack survives.” Sansa Stark
“There’s no divine justice, you dumb cunt. If there were, you’d be dead, and that girl be alive.” The Hound
These are the lines that gave me chills. Honorable mentions would be:
“You stand accused of murder. You stand accused of treason. How do you answers these charges…Lord Baelish?” Sansa Stark
“Give us common folk one taste of power, we’re like the lion who tasted man. Nothing is ever so sweet again.” Varys
“You’re not dying today, Ser Jorah.” – Samwell Tarly
So much great stuff from which to choose. It is indeed an embar… oh, never mind. It’s a joyous abundance of memorable quotes.
Tell Cersei. I want her to know it was me. If any line epitomizes the Game of Thrones, this one does. Not only did Olenna proudly own up to her part in the game, she probably set in motion the actions which lead to the ultimate defeat of Cersei, which means that even after death, Olenna is still a player.
Cersei started brutally demoralizing Jaime, calling him stupid and clueless, in the belief that she has all her bases well covered, and she no longer needs him. Imho, she has totally underestimated how much she relied on his, ahem, moral support, and is going to start to crumble without it. Olenna’s quiet tirade to Jaime about what a scourge Cersei has been is what laid the groundwork for his departure. Perfect line.
Then I decided to pick lines that could reflect on anyone’s life, then or now.
Nothing fucks you harder than time. Um, yeah, sadly true.
Death is the enemy … but we still need to fight him. Preach, Brother Beric, I hope you and Tormund aren’t buried under tons of ice right now.
With respect your grace, I don’t need your permission … I am a king. I actually cheered. Jon finally came to terms with who he is. No more Aw, shucks, sweet but overdone humility. Humility has its place, but it doesn’t always get things done the way they must be done. It seems he has struck the perfect balance of having pride in his position without becoming egomanical about it. We need more of that.
If I hadn’t gone, I wouldn’t have seen … Now I know.
I loved this because it’s a turning point – at last someone who hasn’t spent time in the North believes the threat, and knows first-hand what it is.
To me the BEST quotes are ones that could be used even out of context and still work – that is how quotes live ‘forever’ they are applicable to many different situations… thus, my choices were:
“Leave one wolf alive, and the sheep are never safe.” Walder Frey (Arya)
>> Why Walder Frey? He is dead, it IS Arya saying these words…
“Give us common folk one taste of power, we’re like the lion who tasted man. Nothing is ever so sweet again.” Varys
Jaime: “There are always lessons in failures.” Olenna: “You must be very wise by now.”
Thoros: “Why are you always in such a foul mood?” The Hound: “Experience.”
“She’s a disease. I regret my role in spreading it. You will too.” Olenna Tyrell
…
I still think “Shame, Shame, Shame” was robbed 🙂 so quotable!
Surely, “the lone wolf dies but the pack survives” should win this hands down!
Oops, forgot this is GOT, and there are plenty of other great quotes… though my favorite is the one above.
It still gives me chills, just reading it. There have been so many other great ones though that for me it is impossible, blasphemous even, choosing just one.
“You’re a Greyjoy, and you’re a Stark.” -Jon Snow to Theon Greyjoy (Theon’s reaction to this is what really sells it.)
“Tell Cersei. I want her to know it was me.” -Olenna Tyrell (‘Nuff said for this one.)
“Death is the enemy- the first enemy and the last. The enemy always wins, but we still need to fight him.” -Beric Dondarrion (Very thematically succinct and quite GRRM-like.)
“There’s no divine justice, you dumb cunt. If there were, you’d be dead, and that girl would be alive.” -The Hound (This one is arguably my personal favorite of the season, and the delivery was great.)
“Do you have any idea what you did when you fired that crossbow? You left us open. You laid us bare for the vultures, and the vultures came and tore us apart. You may not have killed Joffrey, but you killed Myrcella. You killed Tommen. No one would have touched them if Father was here. No one would have dared.” -Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey at her best. She SLAYED this with her delivery. Cersei has had a lot of strong, well-written dialogue in general, but this is up there.)
Honorable Mentions:
“Robert’s Rebellion was built on a lie. Rhaegar didn’t kidnap my aunt, or rape her. He loved her, and she loved him.” -Bran Stark
“You died in that cave.” -Meera Reed
“Give us common folk one taste of power, we’re like the lion who tasted man. Nothing is ever so sweet again.” -Varys
Lots of love for “Sansa’s” quote about the lone wolf and the pack. That’s exactly what ruined it for me, as a book reader. That was Ned Stark’s quote, said to Arya. In the book, it’s likely Sansa never heard those words, and her (book) character so far would seem to confirm that. It’s just bitter to have Sansa get the credit.
Well, enough about me.
Stark Raven’ Rad,
I would have to research the scene aga8n, but I think they do make clear they are quoting Ned? Sans a gives the line, Arya says “Father,” and then the scene ends with them talking about how much they miss him.
That was extra hard.
I went for a double Davos (the skeleton & fucking time), the Bran Stark cover of the infamous “Chaos is a Ladder” (one of the top picks for all-seasons-best), the beautiful pack of wolves by the lovely Sansa (or her cover of her dad’s one) and Jon’s “I am a king, so with all respect, f@ck you”.
It was very tough though – I was so tempted by Olenna Tyrrel, for instance.
And I was surprised not to see “Winter has come for House Frey”.
Hodor Targaryen,
It was obvious they were quoting Ned. It was the other way around though. Arya quotes, “In Winter we must protect ourselves… look after one another,” to which Sansa replies, “Father,” and continues with, “When the snows fall and the white winds blow, the lone wolf dies but the pack survives.”
Then it gets sad with Arya saying “I miss him” and Sansa saying “me too.” I personally loved how they wrapped their season after being a little disappointed with how they wrote much of Arya’s Winterfell portions.
Erica,
Bizarrely, I would go for Ramsay Snow. With Syrio at #2. I imagine there will be a poll to chose among all seasons at the end.
“Tell Cersei. I want her to know it was me.” is a fantastic quote that spawned many internet memes.
However, the most thrilling quote of S7 wasn’t included for voting. It was momentous in E3 when Melisandre said “I’ve done my part. I’ve brought together ice and fire.” That referenced the book series title and proclaimed that Jon and Daenerys are the most important characters in this story. Everything in prior seasons led up to the King in the North and Mother of Dragons (and the last Targaryens) finally meeting and joining forces to save their world. It made me so excited for all the climactic moments of the remaining episodes!
I’d have to go with Syrio: “There is only one god and his name is Death. And there is only one thing we say to death: not today.”
Maybe because his line came up again during his heroic death…
Arya: “Come with me! Run!”
Syrio: “The First Sword of Braavos does not run.”
****
Syrio: “What do we say to the God of Death?”
Arya (meekly): “Not today.”
Syrio: “Go…”
[PS I find it best to re-watch this S1 scene with poor terrified Arya, right before the S5 scene in which she pokes MFT full of holes “for killing Syrio Forel. Remember him?”]
Am I the only one whose favorite line of the season was ‘Didn’t they teach you that in Fancy Lad School?’
Too bad I missed the nomination round.
Ten Bears,
For such a small part, Syrio sure had some pretty good lines.
Firannion,
Man, I ALWAYS miss the nominations. Each and every year. Don’t know how I manage.
I’m pretty sure that will be included in the ‘funniest quote’ category. I know I was just one of several that nominated it.
Just so.
Self-fulfilling prophecy, huh Ramsay? Speak for yourself, the remaining Starks are making it out alive. So Ha. Thanks Mau, for digging these up.
And, as Sue has said many times, many thanks to Greatjon of Slumber for tallying these. Going through everyone’s posts had to be something akin to a hair-pulling version of Sam’s poop and soup montage, “this one’s good, that one is shit,” etc. Or however he did it, this is a fun part of off-season. So, when these are done, we only have until April of 2018 to get to? Oh… wait … damn …
Clob,
Ah, thank you for the correction. I’m glad they ended up sharing the line. I agree, nice last scene, even if their storyline wasn’t prefect this year.
This was tough as usual!
I decided not to vote for quotes that appeared in previous seasons (i.e., “chaos is ladder” or “when the snows fall and the long night…”). Those are great, but they are not from season 7.
There is a bunch of quotes that I find them very funny but not significant enough for overall quotes. These include any exchanges between the Hound and Thoros that made the list, as well as Jaimie’s and Bronn’s and Olenna and Jaimie about the leasons drawn from mistakes. All these are honorable mentions for me.
Three other honorable mentions: Lyanna Mormont’s badass quote (she doesn’t plan on knitting the whole winter away), Cersei’s killing order for The Mountain and Arya’s “that’s not you” because it was one of the most memorable and discussed quotes from the season.
However, my 5 picks were:
-Beric Dondarion: “Death is the enemy” because it was instrumental for Jon understanding he mission.
– Cersei to Jaimie: “So we fight and die or we submit and die…” Cersei manipulating at her best.
– Walder (Arya): “Leave one wolf alive and…” I think it was an excellent season opener. The way he said it made you realize he was Arya…
– Davos: “Nothing fucks you harder than time”… I was like… “yep” when he said that.
– Brienne: “Oh fuck loyalty…” because I feel this was instrumental for pushing Jaimie in the right direction. Even the oathkeeper, super loyal telling him that is not what matters at that point.
I also missed the nominations this year so… and there is one quote I use a lot now. I know it was said in S1 (by Benjen) but at that time i was not paying attention to all the quotable things…
“Everything before the word ‘but’ is horseshit”
The two best quote of the season aren’t listed…
Arya: “When people ask what happened here, tell them The North Remembers. Tell them winter came for house Frey”
Archmaester Marwyn: “When Robert’s Rebellion was raging, people thought the end was near, ‘The end of the Targaryen dynasty! How will we survive?!’ When Aegon Targaryen turned his eye westward and flew his dragons to Blackwater . . . ‘The end is near! How will we survive!?’ Thousands of years before that, during the long night, we can forgive them for thinking it truly was the end. But it wasn’t. None of it was. The Wall has stood through it all. And every Winter that ever came has ended.”
I loved this one. Team Sansa!!!! ❤
“So there’s no punishment for treason and no reward for loyalty?”
ThroneDorne,
I love that one too! I would have voted for it.
This was very hard! They were all great. Since I had to choose….
1. “Nothing fucks you harder than time.” Davos
2. “He’s never been a bastard. He’s the heir to the Iron Throne.” Bran Stark
3. “…There’s only one war that matters. The Great War… And it is here…” Jon Snow
4. “Leave one wolf alive, and the sheep are never safe.” Walder Frey (Arya)
5. “When the snows fall and the white winds blow, the lone wolf dies but the pack survives.” Sansa Stark
Honorable mentions:
Arya: “When people ask what happened here, tell them The North Remembers. Tell them winter came for House Frey.” (I wish it had been an option)
“I’ve done my part. I’ve brought together ice and fire.” (I wish it had been an option)
“Death is the enemy- the first enemy and the last. The enemy always wins, but we still need to fight him.” Beric Dondarrion
Stacy,
Yup. I kept looking for the quote. Doesent how many times I hear it, I love it as much the first time she said it
ThroneDorne,
As Sue explained early in the thread, the first is part of a speech and will be nominated in the Best Speech category. The same will presumably be true of the second.