Can you believe that we are at the halfway point of the final season of Game of Thrones? But, to paraphrase Bran (Isaac Hempstead-Wright), every episode that we have watched has led us here. And here, especially after the shocking and surprising turns of “The Last Night,” is more nebulous than ever.
At Winterfell, there is a mass burning of bodies as our characters take stock of the sheer death toll the Night King (Vladimir Furdik) imparted on them before dying at the hands of one Arya Stark (Maisie Williams). Daenerys (Emilia Clarke), in a fabulous new red outfit, raises a toast to their incredible victory and those they lost as she and the survivors take note of the death and destruction left behind. She rallies the Northern forces to go take out Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey) root and stem, in what ought to be the climactic battle before Game of Thrones arrives at its bittersweet denouement.
Over in King’s Landing, an always-smirking Cersei and Euron Greyjoy (Pilou Asbæk) overlooks a crowd of commoners crowding into the Red Keep (that can’t possibly end well for any of them, right?). Cersei’s plan to allow the Northern forces to be diminished in the Great War worked out quite well for her so far, but something tells us she’s going to have to become even nastier if she wants to hold onto the Iron Throne.
Are you excited, folks? What do you expect from Season 8, Episode 4?
I think this could end up being the weakest episode of the season.
Only 3 left 😭
Why’s that?
Nothing in particular. It’s just that the premiere was super hyped and it had some long awaited reunions, 802 ended up being a classic, and whether you liked 803 or not it was one of the biggest episodes of TV ever. Also seems like 805 will be another huge Sapochnik episode (Emilia said it is bigger then 803 and to watch it on the biggest tv that you can). Then there’s 806, which is the final episode ever and the ending to this story that started over 20 years ago. Will be the most hyped episode ever.
So…where does that leave 804? Just in a weird spot to me. Another calm before the storm like 802? Just rounding up whatever armies they can muster to head to KL? I’m already expecting the episode to end with them heading to KL…but KL hasn’t been the focal point in so long it’s not that exciting of a location anymore. How much Cersei/Euron mulling about can we sustain? Unless there’s a marriage in 804, are we just going to see another overhead shot of the Golden Company? We’ve had under 2 minutes of Strickland and the GC. They are an afterthought right now and they really need to build them up this episode.
So , it’s hard to tell, from the image, just how big is the Targ fleet now?
We know it had to land the Dothraki in Westeros, was that 20,000, 50,000 Dothraki?
More?
That would still be a lot of ships.
The Dorne and Highgarden ships were all lost at Casterly Rock ?
No idea what to expect. I imagine they’ll rally the forces quickly and try to move before Cersei gets too much of a chance to consolidate her power. Dany should try to call in assists from the Dornish and the Ironborn, her remaining supporters that should still be largely intact. I think they need to implement her original plan after Euron’s first surprise attack on Yara’s fleet: burn all of his ships with dragon fire. They know where he is at this point. If Bran is willing to help, they know everything. Even the field back up, and get ready for the counterstrike in whatever the hell they have planned for the apparently monstrous episode 5.
I would love if episode4 was a ookend to episode 2 which i think was excellent.
Do y’all think we may get some exposition about whether there was any coordination between Bran, Ayra and Jon regarding the death of the NK? Or maybe a flashback to Arya getting to the tree? Stuff they wouldn’t show before to preserve the suspense?
That’s fair reasoning.
I feel like this ep has a lot of room for some really good drama though. I can see this the ep being where the R + J truth starts spilling and becoming more and more common knowledge, including the Stark girls finding out.
I also expect some twist that throws us off balance. I have a good feeling this will be as solid as ep 2 potentially and probably better than ep1.
I have no idea what they have planned for the next 3 episodes. Will Stark/Targaryen VS Cersei/Euron drama be enough for a satisfying climax in the finale 3 episodes. Will there be any twists? Also have no idea why this episode needs 80 minutes. This will be a make or break episode for the final season.
This is a bit off topic but is there any chance the shorter seasons have been because the new contracts the cast signed? They would never admit if that were true but I think it could be. The cast all got big pay raises and I am pretty sure those go by a per episode basis. So HBO may have decided to go for shorter seasons with longer episodes in order to keep the price down.
It is nebulous now… one can only guess…
I expect Dany will take advantage of this great victory in order to cease power.
“Name me Queen in the North and we will destroy Cercei together!”
And the remaining northern lords will not dare refuse the Dragon Queen after everything they saw. And Lyanna Mormont won’t be there to oppose. The Starks won’t like that. Jon will be sulking.
After the burial they will start the journey south. There will be conflicts between the characters. (buuut they were so cute standing all together last week).
Just before the battle against Cercei’s army, at the Trident Jon will fin Rhaegar’s rubies and claim the Iron Throne as rightful king of the bloody seven kingdoms, protector of the realm and all that…
End of the episode.
I’m not sure whether or not to expect this in Ep. 4 but I think Cersei will definitely hold the commoners of KL hostage, as she did during Blackwater. However, in that same episode Varys informs Tyrion that KL was built to withstand a siege, and provide an escape if necessary (via the underground tunnels). It’s now just a matter of what tunnels are still usable after her wildfire explosion.
Also I really want Alys Karstark to have survived. I didn’t notice her among the dead in the Godswood. [Bookspoiler]: I just want her to marry her wildling husband!!
And I also fear for those who have survived The Long Night. I’m still worried Bronn will indeed kill either Jaime and/or Tyrion for the right amount, despite his adventures with each brother. Perhaps he appears in Ep. 4 and kills Tyrion in the end as a cliffhanger?
Arya will need to debate her next move. Is she needed at home in Winterfell, or can she continue with her list now and travel to check off Cersei? She is working on reclaiming a level of her humanity this season, so I’m not sure if she will immediately jump right back into checking off names from her list. I predict she will, or she will talk with Jon and offer to work together with him any way she can. Where does that leave Sansa’s story??? Will she be able to team up with Tyrion somehow, or will she just have to remain at home as Lady of Winterfell. I don’t think Bran counts as a Stark at the moment.
We can see from the preview that Arya will have another encounter with Gendry, but will that just be a quick, “I’m glad you’re alive” kiss as she gets ready to travel? I’m thinking they kept Gendry alive for a reason though. I didn’t see Arya on horseback with Jon in the preview, so perhaps she will just travel alone? Somehow the hound needs to get back to KL to face his brother, so I would love to see Arya travel with the Hound again somehow.
And what about Jaime and Brienne? Will Jaime now go back to KL? He pledged to go North to fight for the living, but the war is over. I would think Brienne stays at Winterfell to protect Sansa.
I definitely have many more questions than predictions. I am excited that Kit said it’s his favorite episode (in one of the other posts on this site).
I can say I watched episode 2 six times, and I only watched episode 3 twice so far. What made episode 3 great the first time was that I was breathless hoping everyone wasn’t going to die!!! The beginning of the battle was really heart thumping, and when the Dothraki’s flames all went out one by one, I really couldn’t breath. No matter what criticisms there are on the story, battle plans, etc, you can’t deny it was a highly emotional experience.
Bran can know all Cersei’s and Euron’s plans. Arya, with the face of Bernadette, can kill Cersei, Euron and The Mountain.
Don’t think The Golden Company will attack when Cersei and Euron are dead.
Prediction: 8.04 is where we lose the most amount of favorite lead characters.
This is unlikely I would say.
Jack Bauer 24,
I know it’s not going to happen, but it would be the most logical thing to do with the least bloodshed.
My one French vanilla fantasy item for this ep: Arya and Gendry and their traveling crew hit up The Inn and Hot Pie immediately knows something is going on between them.
I’m going to laugh at all the bloodthirsty viewers who wanted bigger deaths in The Long Night when 50% of the remaining actors bite it in the next 3 eps and they post teary reaction videos.
Yeah along with the war plans for both queens, I think this is the episode the Stark girls find out about Jon. Sansa’s reaction is unknown-either it will freak her out and sort of validate her issues about trusting him, or she’ll go Sam’s route and lean into Jon ruling so she can keep the North independent.
Jon goes through a dark night of the soul. Why am I here? What now? etc
Also we’ll see what direction Jaime is leaning in now that the dead aren’t an issue. (really really hoping it’s Braime, buddy)
Bronn shows up just in time to miss the big fight. Will he or won’t he?
Bran either gets weirder or starts to be more than “almost” a man (Honestly my vote is weirder) But I’m crossing things he and/or Sam mentions something about that dagger belonging to Rhaegar or Aegon and Arya being Lightbringer (?)-just would like some clarity there.
Definitely praying for a flashback or two. 🙂
Also hoping the Hound and Mel’s alone time after Arya left including some tidbit for him. A vision in the flames, an extra life lol-I don’t know-but he’s currently the only connection to the brotherhood/lord of light posse left at Winterfell.
Oh and Cersei doing just ridiculously horrible things, because “it feels good.” Ugh.
I have a bad feeling about that.
Right? Honestly I was one of those people that was RELIEVED that only 6 characters I knew died-Edd, Jorah, Lyanna, Theon, Mel, and Beric. 7 if you count the NK.
Still a hard night.
In fact, I’m cool if we only lose a few more *cough* Cersei *cough* and the rest survive so someone actually lives to tell the stories.
RG,
Yeah, I almost forgot about Bronn. I really think he will take Tyrion up on his offer to just pay him more. I don’t think he’ll go through with it as long as he gets a better offer! If anything I predict the crossbow may come back to haunt Cersei.
Cersei does look to be heavily featured in the episode making her plans and playing Euron. I’m much more interested in seeing how the other characters decide what comes next for them. As you said, Jon is likely to tell his sisters/cousins about his true heritage. I want to see how this is handled.
We are expecting nothing and I think this episode will surprise us.
A lot of characters think they are safe after the Great War, so I think that a major death is coming from nowhere in next episode to shock everyone.
1h18m only for council war, a short funeral and Cersei/Euron scenes? No sorry, I can’t believe. We’re at the endgame now.
This may not be a great theory… narrative wise it calls for cliche good vs bad all the time. The fact that NK is dead, now stems for why is 3ER still exist? Now this seems out of balance and I am thinking that Arya is the last person who the NK touched who gave the final blow. It may come out as a twist that Arya becomes the new NK (Night Queen) to represent Death while there’s still a 3ER, like many before Bran?
I’d like to see Meera and Howland Reed sometime this season E4 or E6
Jon’s identity was sort left hanging end of episode 2, a plot element of episode 4?
I want to believe that I can breathe a little more this episode, but I doubt that will happen. Heh. I can’t actually say I’ve missed King’s Landing!
Dany’s outfit when she’s out with Drogon is stunning.
im preemptively annoyed at jon. fully expect him to be all “we won, lets stay north now”. fortunately Sansa wont be having it. shes not safe while cerseis Alive. Nor Arya.
I am very happy that the monsters are “mainly” dead. But as long as Bran is not yet in his tree, it is hard to tell. Does he plan to just live at WF? He must have the stuff to do from here on.
I am still puzzled why anyone is upset that more people did not die in Epi 3. We are midseason, and we need enough actors up to the end. Peter, NCW and Lena should be around until Epi 6 or the final seconds on Epi 5.
Well, no sex last week, so expect some cuddling at least.
Will there be at least one big death in each the final two episodes. Maybe one in each of the final three?
Jon and Beric were the two on borrowed time. Beric has gone now. Mel is dead so I suggest that Jon take extra precautions.
I’m wondering if Arya will ask for Gendry to be legitimised and given the Baratheon title and lands as her reward for killing the Night King. Who knows? Anything could happen at this point.
Other musings: Will Sansa and the northerners be all Team Dany now that her army basically saved the north? Will the Wildings return north of the wall now? Will Bran go with them or stay at Winterfell because it has a godswood? Will Sansa stay at Winterfell to rebuild? Surely Bronn will turn up this episode to complete his mission.
The actor that portrays Bronn said in an interview that we will hate him this season.
Akash: it’s “The Long Night” not “The Last Night.”
YES! 😂
THIS TOO!
I have no predictions and no deal-breaker, must-have elements. I’m just enjoying the ride.
I hope ep. 4 starts off right were we left off, i.e. with Jon running to check on Bran. Someone mentioned above that they’d like it if a flashback could fill in a few blanks about how Arya did what she did. That would be interesting, but I’m okay with how it was depicted.
It will be something to see the reactions of other key players as they find out Arya was the one who killed the NK. I don’t think Davos, Sandor, or Brienne will be too surprised but Jon could be. I hope she handles it without getting overly confident to the point of taking unreasonable risks in the future. I want her to see what is west of Westeros.
I agree with others who see ep. 4 as being something of a companion or similar to ep. 2 where the characters get a chance to breath, be together, tend to the dead and wounded, and deal with the politics and planning for the next battle. Maybe even start the journey south.
On a lighter note, I like the idea mentioned above about Arya and Gendry running into Hot Pie at the Inn at the Crossroads on their way south. And Brienne and Pod too. Hot Pie will serve direwolf shaped bread and meat pies with delicious gravy. One must always pay attention to the gravy!
Looking forward to returning to the “Game” of Thrones this week. I have missed Littlefinger, Olenna – the Queen of Thorns, Tywin, even the angry Sand sisters. I hope Varys, Tyrion and Cersei and even Bran and Jamie get some good dialogue in this week and the expressions they show that give so much to the tale. I get the testosterone need for battles and my inner geek digs the dragons and the Red Woman’s magic,… but lets get back to some more good dialogue and acting!!!
Mango,
Thats a lot of character/side plots gone, Theon, Beric (Thoros has been gone), Melisandre (Stanis line – except Davos thank goodness is still with us) so good bye to the lord of light?, Theon though not sure we’ll ever see Yara again unless that’s her fleet in the trailer – we still have bat shi! crazy uncle Euron with us, and Jorah and the entire Dothraki horde who crossed the sea for their Khaleesi. The Night King and all his army. That’s like half the story is over. 🙁 There is no Littlefinger to muddy up the waters between the Lannisters and the Starks. No Tywin to strengthen Cersei – as she’s just her daddy’s wanna be with much less tact. The High Sparrow was just annoying. They Tyrells had so much to offer, at least their women. I can’t believe I’m actually intrigued if they can stir something that holds water to build up real suspicion as we round for home because I never bought into the Sansa v Arya or Sansa v Jon thing. Dany has shown too many times she starts off too bold but then listens to her counselors so her being mad never really played well with me either. Looking forward to how they explain her not taking the throne without pissing everyone off and killing her or Jon.
It wasn’t about quantity. It was about putting them all into a certain death situation and not following through. Episode 2 and the beginning of Episode 3 are powerful because the viewer really believes that the show will follow through. They built up a lot of credibility over the first seasons to be able to do that but they spent a lot of that cred last season and really destroyed it in Episode 3.
Anyway, onto Episode 4. For a couple seasons now they have tried to manufacture conflict in the northern plot line. They can now have a real one. After having saved humanity amidst massive losses, why should anyone from the North or the Vale give a damn who is on the Iron Throne? The White Walkers might be gone but it is still winter. Between going south with Robb, Stannis’ and the WWers it’s pretty much two generations of Northerners almost completely wiped out. They don’t have the men.
Jon is their king. Where does his loyalty really lie now? With his northern people? With Dany? With his new claim to the Iron Throne? Jon ended up kind of irrelevant in the battle but he’s the key to what happens now.
Off With Her Head,
Sounds like they are going to fuck over his character this season to create some drama.
Episode 4 seems to be the window for us to find out what Bronn decides to do. We’ve been primed to believe that he will simply ask Tyrion to pay him double what Cersei did. Maybe he will, maybe he won’t.
I wonder how much Qyburn knows of Bronn’s mostly positive relationships with the two brothers. Something tells me that Qyburn may have his own agenda, his own betrayal plan in mind. We’ve seen his aghast look when Cersei said “Good” to the news that the Wall had been breached. The writers also made a point of showing us that Qyburn is able to diagnose tertiary syphilis with a single glance at an apparently healthy whore. Maybe this was just a joke at Bronn’s expense: that he narrowly escaped contracting the pox due to the interruption. Or maybe there’s more to it – maybe they’re reminding us that Qyburn is in a better position than anyone at this point to know exactly how batshit crazy Cersei is.
The choice of Joffrey’s old crossbow – presumably the same one with which Tyrion killed Tywin, though I don’t remember that one being quite so ornamental – also seems deliberate. The question is why. We’ve heard Tyrion’s very firm opinion of how foolish someone would be to arm a hitman with a weapon that is highly identifiable and easily traced to its owner. So something is off-kilter here.
Will Bronn seek out Tyrion and Jaime, explain his assignment, ask for more money, show them the weapon Cersei chose for him? Does it have a secret compartment bearing a message from Qyburn, like the box with the false bottom that Lysa sent to Catelyn (okay, that’s books-only, but it could’ve given them an idea)? Is it booby-trapped in some way? Why this weapon? Is it related to Bronn’s expertise with the scorpion?
I’m probably overthinking this. Or maybe it’s just wishful thinking that Qyburn will turn out to be someone more complicated than a henchman.
Boojam,
Were any Dothraki held back in reserve? Did any of them survive? Im know next to nothing about military strategy but that had to be the stupidest, dim witted decsions they could have made.
Why aren’t Arya and Sansa safe ?
Cersei doesn’t care about Sansa anymore. She now knows that Olenna is the one who killed Joffrey.
I’m not sure she has any interest in going after the Stark sisters.
And it would be extremely weird if Jon were eager for another war immediately. Makes no sense. Fighting Cersei isn’t his fight. After what the North just went through, no one in their right mind would be itching for another fight.
Obviously Jon will probably be reluctant about rushing into a petty war with Cersei. It’s the only attitude that makes any sense for him to have.
Given what happened in the first episode, this seems like a pretty massive spoiler that he will end up killing Jaime or Tyrion. Which would horrible, but I guess the writers are capable of going that route.
I really wish actors wouldn’t say things like that. Now I’m going to be waiting for it, dreading it. I definitely consider such comments to be spoilers.
Is it ? We don’t really know what happens to the seasons now that the WW are gone.
I can’t really buy that idea. If the NK’s ‘magic’ that animated the dead and created other WW was destroyed when he was killed why would it be able to transfer to Arya? If it still exists why would the wights and WW not simply begin obeying Arya? I also don’t really think there has to be a balance such as a 3ER-NK. The previous one wasn’t really doing anything but sitting in a cave under a weirwood tree. If Branmotron has no purpose then maybe he just “evaporates” into the network, or maybe that power just goes away altogether… and he becomes Bran once again.
He didn’t say that. He said we might be disappointed in Bronn this season. And it was in a French magazine so who knows what might have been lost in translation.
Late to the party.
How cool would it be if some of them end up in the Eryie including Sansa and Tyrion and Bronn’s whole “gimme 10 good men and I’ll impregnate the bitch” comes full circle??
I’m curious if Sansa will stay at Winterfell when everyone to fight leaves. Always a Stark at Winterfell thing, she’s said she won’t go back to KL as long as Cersei is there, she doesn’t really have a purpose when it comes to battles… I guess I wouldn’t be surprised if we don’t have a lot of Sansa inclusion from that point until the war is over. On the back burner like Cersei has been for the last two episodes in other words. Maybe they came up with something reasonable for her to do though.
Just give us more than 2 seconds of that yummy Harry Strickland boy already! 😀
j/k… kind of
As others said, I expect episode 4 to be mostly about exposition, an episode that will be character and dialogue driven. A lot of “people finding out things and how it’s going to affect them”.
As for Jerome Flynn hinting we might like Bronn less after this season… I think it’s also possible that he was simply trolling. Remember when the actor who played Rickon was telling us how his character was the wildest of the Stark children and hinting he’d behave in some unpredictable way (which, other than the failure to zigzag, never happened)? Remember when Finn Jones was hinting that there would be events which would make Loras view the Hound in a different light (I don’t remember the details, but I think he was hinting that the Hound would end up helping Loras big time)? The two characters didn’t even share any screen time after that, IIRC. And how many times has Sophie Turner trolled us all?
It may be naive of me, but I’m hoping that underneath all his cynicism, Bronn is a good guy.
Laura,
I want it to happen! Also, Brienne and Podrick have to be with them.
Regarding episode 4 (and episodes 5-6), I am clueless… I assume we are going to see a lot of Jon, Daenerys, Sansa, Tyrion, and Cersei. However, I am mostly curious about what is next for Bran, Varys, Jaime, Brienne, Sam, and perhaps, Arya and Davos.
A few questions I have after s8e3:
1) Are the White Walkers and the Army of the Dead gone for good? Can Bran or someone else recreate them? Why would they need to recreate the White Walkers?
2) Who will be the Stark in Winterfell when they march to King’s Landing? Is it still important to have a Stark in Winterfell?
3) Will we see some action in the Riverlands?
4) What is Bran’s purpose now? And Arya’s?
5) Did someone commissioned the Faceless Men to kill the Night’s King? Did the Faceless Men know/suspect that Arya could be the one responsible for destroying the Army of the Dead? (I know this is nonsense, but I can’t stop thinking of it…).
6) What is Varys agenda?
7) Is Sansa manipulating Tyrion? Is Tyrion manipulating Sansa? Are they trying to play each other?
8) Who will be the poor soul(s) governing Westeros by the end of the series? (I think this person will be very unhappy…)
9) Last but definitely not least, will Jaime and Brienne confess their love for each other? Will they play a direct/indirect role in Cersei’s downfall? How?
JamesL,
No. The decision was the showrunners. It was made some time ago
Firannion,
I think Bronn will kill tyrion before Jaime can prevent it, before jaime and brienne over power bronn and kill him. this will tip jaime into the anti cersie lobby finally. I think that bronn will toy with the idea of giving tyrion the chance to trump cersie’s offer, but in the end, cersie is the one with her hands on the lannister purse strings and not tyrion and not jaime. Bronn is a realist and knows that he didn’t get a castle from tyrion and he didn’t get a castle from jaime, it does not matter to a guy like bronn that jaime’s assertion that he really would not want highgarden in the current political climate is absolutely spot on. all that matters to a guy like bronn is that he was promised a castle and he doesn’t have it. so, tyrion first, and then… oh dear, i fucked up taking jaime out. o well, i’ll leave cersie with that little problem to clean up herself. That is how i see it going down. lol now we know that is the least likely to happen :s
the unburdened,
Christie has also inferred that she will play in a sex scene this season, that, ‘we will be seeing a lot more of brienne this season (suggestively) who will it be with, jaime or tormund?’ and, I think this is where that might happen.
and btw, that is the same xbow.
I’d have to say the chances she lived are overwhelmingly slim seeing as how Theon was the only one with Bran surrounded by wights when the NK came in. She actually might have been killed quickly and was ONE of those wights.
Jon was always about uniting people to defeat The Night King and The Army of The Dead. Now they are defeated, I wonder what his purpose in life will be. I don’t think he cares for the Iron Throne, I cannot imagine he suddenly becomes power hungry.
Also with many of the crypts emptied of their human remains, we may see exactly what was buried with Lyanna Targaryan.
My votes for Tormund! Though I was kind of hoping they’d fight in battle together.
Ep. 3 was so intense that I had to pause it a half-dozen times just to process what I was seeing (and catch my breath, since much of the time I was holding it). I was on the edge of my sofa yelling at the TV.
Watching it a second time I was able to appreciate a lot of the finer details and the gorgeous filmmaking, the pace, and the emotions. Even if you agree or disagree with some of the plot decisions, it was a masterful piece of film making.
One moment that stood out the second time around. When Arya meets up with Melisandre, she says, “I know you.” Mel looks at her intently and says “And…I know you.”
Would love this!
Not gonna lie. Would love this too. There’s a bath in Winterfell, right? 🙂 (my vote is Jaime btw)
I’ve tried to post about Bronn twice now but it didn’t go through. It had to do with the Varys riddle about power.
I know what I want him to do, but I’m really not sure what he’ll actually do.
Clob,
Well, they pretty much sidelined Arya for all of S7 while Sansa took center stage.
Then… ASNAWPTWP came off the bench in S8 to lead the team to victory in the Super Bowl.
The endgame belongs to the Super Ninja Assassin Warrior Princess that Was Promised. Let Sansa stay in WF and count grain bushels.
(⚠️Tinfoil alert: I still think Cersei may abduct Sansa, leading Jon to go full-on Valonqar and strangle her to death.)
I think it’s possible that the Night King himself might be dead, but the magic lives on somehow. But it wouldn’t make sense to me for Arya to become the Night Queen. Yes she was touched, but I always thought the NK had to have intent to turn someone. And even then, she would have been a white walker, right? And would have exploded like the other WWs.
If we’re talking possible Night Queens, my money would be on Cercei, created by her faithful sorta-Maester Qyburn. Someone else pointed out his fascination with the dead-guy hand.
Of couse if Qyburn did it she’d be grotesque and have no magical powers. 😜
Yeah, Qyburn is up to something super creepy. He made the Mountain. He’s been quietly collecting prisoners and body parts for a while now. He was really fascinated with that hand.
If he told Cersei he could make an army of Mountains that would protect her and obey her every command, there isn’t a doubt in my mind she would give him everyone in KL to experiment on.
I’m not saying they’re going there, just that I wouldn’t be surprised.
In regards to Arya and Sansa’s safety. Can you imagine this conversation?
Qyburn: Your Grace, the army of the dead and their king have been defeated at Winterfell. The king was killed by the Stark girl apparently
Cersei: Sansa?? Sansa could never kill a mouse much less a king…
Qyburn: No, your Grace, the younger sister… her name escapes me…
Cersei: (fuming) Arya. Her name is Arya.
She probably has a sense that Sansa is around just from chatter but in her mind, Arya Stark has been dead for years. This is going to shake Cersei a bit.
I still can’t believe the golden company is just there to fight for Cersey as they originally (book) came to Westeros to claim the iron throne for Aegon Targaryen, Young Griff, and he wants to marry Daenerys.
Chilli,
in my opinion he should marry daeny, take the throne with her to honor his targ lineage, and then leave daeny in the capitol to rule while he takes a leaf out of Roberts book of wisdom
He needs not to be the one to rule, he would be more effective as the one to temper daenerys. Apart from that, jon needs to be amongst the people, he needs to be swinging his sword this way and that when it is called for. I think the worst thing that you could do to jon is pin him to a throne.
I think that the first job that jon should be given once the targaryen rule is re-established in westeros is to be sent to essos and oversee all of the targaryen interests in and around mereen and slavers bay. That would get him up to speed with where the targaryen rule is at, at the moment. It would also open his eyes as to just how much daenerys was able to achieve before she even embarked for westeros. It would certainly give him an appreciation for all the work she has done.
ThisGirlHasNoName,
Yeah, I feel that tormund and brienne would be great fun, although brienne might not agree xD. But i can see tormund pulling her pig tails and droping lizards down her back rofl, they would be such fun together. tormund would wake up every morning with two black eyes, it would be hillarious.
ThisGirlHasNoName,
I don’t go along with all this balance shit. If there is a 3er there must be a nk to balance it. pfft. imo, if that were true where was the balance before the children created the nk? I think that it is far more likely that there was balance before the nk was created and that the creation of the nk was an imbalance if anything. I think now that the nk and the ww have been dealt with that bran will need to make his way to the gods eye, apparently there are still some children of the forest there. and work on getting that race up and functional again. that is just a theory that i have.
Not convinced AT ALL Dany’s speech about the “last war” and the cheering are the exact same moment. I’d rather think they are cheering sth she has just said but which is not about herself and the throne, (about Jon or northmen/women ?) a few seconds before or after the “last war” sentence. I don’t see north people getting so enthusiastic about her, even after she and her forces and dragons contributed to the vistory. Eradicating the undead and ruling the north are two very differnet causes.
And also I really HOPE that is not the case and “the north remembers” who they are.
I don’t think so. Jon didn’t have anything to do with it and Bran set the wheel in motion by giving Arya the blade and perhaps checking on her progress when she warged, but it seems like after Mel told her what she was destined to do, Arya took matters into her own hands.
Is Alys Karstark dead or alive?
I am hopeful for this episode. Sandwiched between two big battle set pieces and yet still 78 minutes long, it has the potential to return us to the scheming, power games, back-stabbing, intrigue that the earlier seasons were known for. I foresee plenty of betrayals on the horizon!
With regards to Bronn and whether he will kill one of the Lannister brothers, this was Jerome Flynn’s quote.
“I don’t know, they might not love him as much as they do right now. But I hope they still do…He is who he is and what he says, isn’t he? And he’ll do what he needs to get his castle.”
To me, this suggests he doesn’t actually manage to kill one of them because there’s no hope of anyone still loving him if he actually succeeds; he would be universally hated for betraying his friends for gold and killing one/two highly favoured characters. I think he may attempt it, but is stopped (that shot from the trailer of Tyrion looking up in earnest may be the moment he spots Bronn about to loose the crossbow at him). Possibly his attempt is intercepted, the brothers show him leniency, promise him more gold or a bigger prize and get him to play some crucial part in getting close to Cersei to bring her down? Or he is just killed in the attempt. I feel there is unfinished business with him and Drogon/Dany after her tried (and nearly succeeded) to kill them. Maybe he will be caught and dragon-roasted alive as punishment.
As for whether the North will want to defeat Cersei, if they are going to stay true to Sansa’s words in season 7 to Jon, they should be wholly behind the plan. This was the scene in 701 after Jon receives the message from Wolkan.
JON: “Cersei of House Lannister, First of Her Name, Queen of the Andals and the First Men, Protector of the Seven Kingdoms–”
SANSA: What does she want?
JON: Come to King’s Landing. Bend the knee or suffer the fate of all traitors.
SANSA: You’ve been so consumed with the enemy to the north, you’ve forgotten about the one to the south.
JON: I’m consumed with the Night King because I’ve seen him. And believe me, you’d think of little else if you had, too.
SANSA: We still have a wall between us and the Night King. Theres nothing between us and Cersei.
JON: There’s a thousand miles between us and Cersei. Winter is here. The Lannisters are a southern army. They’ve never ranged this far north.
SANSA: You’re the military man, but I know her. If you’re her enemy, she’ll never stop until she’s destroyed you. Everyone who’s ever crossed her, she’s found a way to murder.
If they are going to stay true to their own characterisation of Sansa, then she will want Cersei defeated. Now that almost all their fighting men (and women) have been obliterated and the defensive capabilities of Winterfell have been compromised with a large section of outer and inner walls being decimated by Vision, they are even more vulnerable. If they don’t show Sansa getting behind the effort to defeat Cersei then I will be quite disappointed. I know she’s very displeased with the notion of being ruled by Dany, but Dany is definitely the lesser of the two evils. Dany sacrificed her armies in the defence of Winterfell and loves her brother. Cersei still wants her dead even though she has discovered Sansa wasn’t involved in Joffrey’s murder, I doubt she’s going to be all “We’re cool now Sansa. You can keep the north. I don’t hate you anymore.” In Cersei’s mind all the Starks are traitors because they have thrown in their lot with Dany, who she sees as a usurper.
Finally, if this is Kit’s favourite episode, maybe it’s a good one for Jon. It stands to reason that after Jon’s insignificance in the last episode (not that he didn’t do anything, but nothing he did had any positive influence on the battle – he wasn’t even the one that knocked the night king off Viserion, that was Dany on Drogon), they might appease Jon fans (of which there are many) by giving him a strong episode. I hope so!
Does anyone else think the episode is going to start with that funeral pyre scene?
It’s interesting that they have Cersei and Dany in that deep red, I wonder what they are trying to tell us?
If we are getting a Boatsex baby, it will happen in this episode I reckon. I don’t see why they don’t just get married, unless Jon really does have an issue with marrying his aunt. I can’t see anything else stopping them, the North should accept her as Queen now, so where is the drama?
Also hoping for some confirmation of Jaime’s loyalties, I’m pretty sure that Bronn’s plot is being used to sever ties between Cersei and Jaime/Tyrion once and for all. He may even make an attempt but he wont succeed. A nice Jaime/Brienne scene would be great as well.
RG,
With Jamie in the bath and Tormund interrupts? That’s be fun.
Che,
Yes I think that the episode will commence with them having the service for the departed.
So, is winter still here now that the NK is dead? The Children of the Forest used to live in a “Forest” that didn’t have snow. Everything was green in those flashbacks when they made the NK. I thought the snow covered the forest after they made the NK. While the NK was living, I don’t think the snow ever melted in summer when you went beyond the wall. Is there still winter with the NK gone???? KL never looked like it was hit by winter to me other than the one cool scene at the end of Season 7. Dany’s vision shows snowfall in KL, so I’m all confused. Can anyone who is a book reader clear up what happened to the Children of the Forest’s Forest? Was it always a green forest until they made the NK?
Those two shots of Dany with the dragons:
In the first, where she approaches about to stroke the dragon’s snout, that’s Rhaegal isn’t it? He seems green and smaller.
However, the second dragon shot with her and a dragon looking skyward and Dany is smiling, that’s her beside Drogon isn’t it?
I wonder if she has gone to check on Rhaegal, worried he may not be able to fly and he surprises her and takes wing. Or perhaps he pulls away from her and takes off – though that might not make her smile. I wonder if we will see him withdrawing from her as he has bonded with Jon now and what impact that will have on her.
Mother of a Dragon,
Your note brings back warm memories of the long sweep of GOT and the many great characters. Just think, Tywin, Ned, Oleanna, Ned, Oberyn – never even heard of the AOTD. How quickly people forget the story and expected this to become the Walking Dead III. I too look forward to the human/political drama. This will involve the Lannisters as they settle scores. I also expect Sansa to be a major player.
Leuf,
I agree we have another real northern reason conflict. I did see why Sansa would insist on independence from Daenerys – why would they want a Targ to rule them again. Now there is a second reason. They are depleted – why would they go to fight for someone else’s personal ambitions. They would just be fighting to have either Cersei or Daenerys rule them. Why do it? Actually, if they declare independence now, it is quite possible that Cersei never sends her armies north to try to subjugate them. Why bother? It becomes a sort of China-Taiwan equilibrium.
On the deaths – Jorah, Theon were important characters and they died. Beric, Edd and Lyanna also died. On a personal level, these are major losses. Unless you did not value these characters?
We never met them personally but the entire Dothraki contingent was lost and the majority of the Unsullied. These were people too!
I wonder about the impact on the Unsullied. Grey Worm should really go to Daenerys and say, “We have done more than expected. My guys want to live. Why do you not marry the guy you are currently banging, get a house with a red door and give up the throne crap! I am gone to the beach.”
On the political level, the massive losses shift the balance for Daeneyers although she still has dragons. From a story point of view, it is a better set-up as she was so overpowered when she arrived in Westeros that it was clear that she would never win the throne.
Mango,
Sansa in 701:
“You’re the military man, but I know her. If you’re her enemy, she’ll never stop until she’s destroyed you. Everyone who’s ever crossed her, she’s found a way to murder.”
Che,
I feel, it’s a sad smile, a loving good-bye-smile, as if she releases Rheagar to fly and hook up with Jon, to whom he already is/has bound…
Jenny,
Yes, I was thinking about the costume choices for the next episode as well. I believe it has a lot to do with affirming identity. Cersei is embracing Lannister red again. Dany’s silhouette looks more Targaryen than ever, she really mirrors Viserys now. And Jon…he looks every inch the head of House Stark.
“The costumes always tell stories, often hinting at loyalties and desires.” (M. Clapton, 2019)
I therefore believe the costumes reflect the paths those three characters will ultimately choose.
@ Mango, I’m sure Daenerys has only one dragon left, Rhaegar is her “child”, yes, but now bound to Jon.
Now Jon and Dany are equal in power, I think. Both have a dragon, both have a/n (decimated) army, Jon has the Wildlings and Northerners, Dany has the remaining Dothraki and the Unsullied. Great potential for conflikt, when/if they decide to become rivals in some way…
Jaime’s choices are important here. (As you all know, I think he is THE critical character on the human side of the story along with Tyrion, Sansa, Cersei. Brienne is Jaime’s mate. Davos looks to have a future with them as well).
Jaime’s has always acted in the best interest of his House (family) and of the people of Westeros. So how does he calculate his options now? As Bran and Edmure can tell you, Jaime can be a ruthless and cunning decision-maker. Tarley and Dorne can tell you he can be quite the diplomat. And he is as brave as anyone. (Yes, he is deeply good but he is no pushover)
On the family side: He knows he is not safe personally but he can live with that. But he probably knows that Brienne becomes unsafe if he marries her. And Brienne’s children will be unsafe. He thinks that another Cersei child is coming and that that child will be safe with Cersei, but does he want it fathered by Euron, he gave up paternity for the stability of Westeros before but does he want to do it again? What about House Lannister?
On the Westeros side: He had hoped that Cersei would be able to rule in peace. He knows what she is capable of but also knows her vulnerabilities. (Same as with Tyrion) As long as he could cajole and influence her it was certainly possible that she could rule peacefully. Now he knows they are completely estranged. Worse, she failed in her moral duty to protect Westeros from AOTD. He is her twin, literally her better half. At this moment, I do not think he can bear to see her continue as queen.
Options: Few. He has not bent the knee to the mad kings’ daughter and may never do so. But he asked Tyrion (a person he respects) about Daenerys. This is not a random question – he needs to decide if she is a worthy ally.
He has few options while Cersei is on the throne – Stay and live in the north; Move to Bravos with Brienne as Tarth is very southern.
His best option may be to ally with his brother and by extension with Daenerys to try to remove his sister. Can he bear to do that? A lot will depend on his discussions with Tyrion and Brienne and by extension, Sansa as she is important to both Tyrion and Brienne. He may work to remove his sister and then see what are his options after – he may then be able to move to Tarth in peace. Can he bear to see Westeros subjugated again? By the Dragon Kings/Queens again? But his brother will be Hand. I am sure he would prefer Tyrion as King but could settle for Hand given the dragon situation.
Wildcard: Bronn? Bronn may turn up at WF and his report may confirm the decisions the brothers need to take. Lannister army? Will Jaime have his army at his back again? Jon’s fate and this Rhaeger son issue given that the Targayan line of succession had ended? Will removing his sister cost him his life or Tyrion’s life or Brienne’s life?
Assets: Jaime has few. The best woman in the story is his, together they are the best knights in the story. His brother is clever when his brother works for House Lannister. Together they understand Westeros more than anyone one else. (Jon and Daenerys do not know Westeros as well.) Jaime, Tyrion, Brienne, Pod – are their own love-bound team.
I cannot wait to see how it goes.
(How did this get so damn long!)
Indeed that is true.
Tyrion should have said…”Cersei is my sister, I am her enemy. And she ain’t never killed me yet!”
Also, Cersei did not plan to kill Ned – although that was an earlier version of Cersei.
Interesting point.
Daenerys has always been very much like her brother. Maybe her costuming is making this more apparent.
Let us see.
Yes, this is an interesting set up!
Jon and Daenerys also have very different personal value systems and ambitions.
This story is so well poised at this critical point of the story.
I feel like the show owes it to Sansa to give her her time to shine. She’s been built up for a reason and it’ll be lame if her story ends now without her ever doing anything of note to the story. That would be a massive waste of screen time for a character who’s only behind Jon, Tyrion and Dany in terms of minutes. It’ll also be a huge waste of pages on GRRM part. She’s going to play a huge role imo in some way.
Mango,
Maybe so, but the quote was to point out that Sansa fears Cersei and she knows Cersei will not leave the north be if they stay out of the wars citing “independence”. Cersei wants to be queen of the seven kingdoms, she’s not going to sit back and let the north remain independent. If she beats Dany, she’ll come for them. Whether it’s now, or in a few years after winter has passed. Either way, the north won’t be safe and have just had a large number of their soldiers decimated. Jon says the Lannisters have never ranged so far north. No, not while the north was a threat, but now the north is injured, weak. It’ll take more than a few years to replenish their stock of fighting men (and women).
I think it is now unlikely that Arya will kill Cersei (I originally thought that would happen but having offed the NK it seems too much).
I think this may be the beginnings of all the betrayals the cast talked about in early interviews. I can see Euron betraying Cersei but Cersei already being wise to it and getting there first.
Qyburn interests me that he is still around and I’m starting wonder what Cersei’s ‘plan’ for Daenerys is. Complete tinfoil, but I’m wondering if Dany or maybe one of the dragons using the scorpion become poisoned by a psychotic, which would lead to KL being burned down and/or igniting wildfire. In many ways, making Dany look like a ‘Mad Queen’ when she isn’t. I can’t see her losing control on her own. It would, of course, be truly tragic for Dany’s character (I like Dany, I think sometimes she is too black and white but she isn’t evil). Of course, for Dany to be poisoned it would require a traitor and I’m not sold on Tyrion betraying her (or even Varys) for Cersei.
I know episode 5 is supposed to be huge but I’m wondering if the ‘battle’ will be more sneaky than ‘The Long Night’. I can see Cersei getting a ‘win’ but surely she has to be gone by the end of the series?
Yes, I can see how it can work out like that.
However, Sansa would also be subjugated by Daenerys.
The North’s best option is to remain neutral in the rest of the fighting and join up with whoever wins.
Fog:
5) Did someone commissioned the Faceless Men to kill the Night’s King? Did the Faceless Men know/suspect that Arya could be the one responsible for destroying the Army of the Dead? (I know this is nonsense, but I can’t stop thinking of it…).
Even since Arya killed the Waif and “graduated” from the FM academy, I’ve wondered why Jaqen seemed pleased when she declared that she was Arya Stark of Winterfell and that she was going home. After The Long Night I’m convinced he somehow knew he was programming the weapon that would take out the NK and I hope we find out “how” he knew.
Ice Hunter,
I doubt that. D & D admitted they made the choice for Arya to kill the NK 3 years ago, so basically the start of season 7. So Arya’s arc up to that point wasn’t anything to do with the NK.
Actually, if they hadn’t admitted that I think fewer people would be as annoyed.
Maybe. But the problem with a crossbow is that it takes time for the quarrel to fly. And it takes far, far longer for it to fly in the air in a TV show than it does IRL.
Just enough time for a shot aimed at Tyrion or Jaime to hit Daenerys, or Arya, Jon, Sansa, Brienne, Pod, — whomever — instead.
The writers have shown us the gun. We know it is likely to be used. We do not know who that gun is going to kill. With GoT, D&D (as distinct from GRRM) are all about the Setup>Expected Dramatic Payoff>The Twist.
Bottom Line: there will be a twist.
The twist is either that it doesn’t get used, or it ends up hitting a target we were not expecting.
But this ignores the fact that If Cersei wins, she will undoubtedly murder all the Starks. The Starks need Cersei to be defeated or they will be next. There will be no joining up with her. They need to join Dany to defeat Cersei or face certain death because their best chance of succeeding is joining what remains of their night to hers. The question of northern independence can surely be dealt with afterwards?The important thing now is to eliminate the next severe threat: Cersei. Without Dany, her dragons and any army she is about to muster, the north have no way of being in any way an even match for Cesei’s army. It’s now or never: band together to fight the mad queen or sit back and hope Dany wins. Either way, they are better off with Dany on the throne because she doesn’t want to murder them.
Remind me, why would Cersei murder the Starks?
She knows Sansa did not kill Joffy. She has never met Bran and barely saw Arya in KL.
Jon is a Targ-Stark – so she may have problems with him assuming he joins in the war against her. Cersei did not even want to kill Ned. She asked Jon to remain neutral which he should have done.
Because they’re her enemies.
Now, of course, if the show was being consistent with its own established world, the Starks should be perfectly safe behind Moat Cailin, but the writers have been ignoring Moat Cailin’s existence since Season 6.
Mango,
Do you think Cersei is a rational being who is going to be okay with Sansa now because she found out Olena killed Joffrey?
“No one walks away from me.” Yet Sansa did. She escaped Cersei’s clutches, as did Arya.
Aside from the fact that Cersei is clearly unhinged and entirely driven by murderous vengeance, the Starks are currently rebelling against the crown by claiming northern independence and to make it worse, Jon has said the north stands behind Daenerys. Is Cersei going to absolve Sansa, Arya and Bran from Jon’s decision? Of course not.
The Starks are also currently harbouring her treasonous brothers whom she has actually sent someone to kill. She would kill Jaime for walking away from her; what will she do to the children of Ned Stark, who tried to destroy her children’s claim to the throne, the girls that got away from her and sided with her enemies?
If Sansa knows that Cersei wants her dead, I think it’s odd for you to argue that she doesn’t. Sansa is the smartest person in the world after all.
D&D were asked if the White Walkers are gone and they wouldn’t answer – I mean they could easily not be coy about that
Is it possible, I wonder, if it wasn’t as easy as “kill the Night King, kill them all.” I might just be hoping for that because I can’t let go of the AOTD as a main plot point just yet lol.
Dany’s vision of the throne room destroyed in snow – wonder if that will come back? Or if it already has come true in that Jon Snow’s claim has been revealed.
thank you for this! when i saw the Q/B scene, i wrote a comment saying sth like “gods, that was useless”. to be honest, i don’t even remember in which thread i wrote it, or at least what my exact point was then.
anyway, shortly after commenting i had another idea about the Q/B parlour. Qyburn told Bronn that Cersei would always pay in advance. and there’d be a wagon(!) with some gold waiting outside…
let’s ask an expert: does Cersei always pay in advance? “i gave her ships, an army and some Dornish girls to play with – and still i had to remind her of her part of the deal …” (Euron Greyjoy, expert)
there’s no need for boxes full of gold waiting on an effing wagon in KL if the happy recipient of these boxes plans to or is supposed to stay there, right? it could have been brought to Bronn’s apartment by some workers.
when Qyburn mentions the queen’s “sense for poetic justice”, did he really have a killing of her brothers in mind? wouldn’t Cersei being shot with that crossbow by Tyrion or Jamie be some sort of poetic justice too?
i hate how these thoughts burn down my “Qyburn is the rightful owner of the Mountain, and Cersei’s just the dogsitter” ideas, but i think after Cersei’s delirious “good”-comment on the news of the wall being breached, Qyburn is just planning his escape from KL. with the best bodyguard he can find, which is Bronn.
BeardedOnion,
D&D have shown themselves to have a great sense of how to keep us on edge and engaged. I have read many comments that suggest some fairly wild twists, none of which is probably going to happen – but I feel pretty sure it won’t be just dead air. I don’t have the sense of dread that i had about Ep 3, but am immensely curious.
death by chickenfire,
I actually wondered if Cersei hatched the plan, or was it Qyburn, pretending it was Cersei?
Che,
I am not arguing either way. I am asking you if you could remind why you think so.
I see she sent Bronn to kill her brothers because she knows they went North to WF. Sansa is harboring them? Maybe Cersei should have paid Bronn to kill Sansa as well? That would make it clearer.
Cersei is just another ambitious power hungry character with competing interest – she is not a raving lunatic.
Sean C.,
Remind me what she has said about the Starks since Jaime told her Sansa was innocent. She knows Sansa did not kill Joffy. Has she ever mentioned Bran or Arya? I suppose since Robb rebellion the North has been enemy territory and I think Jon’s alliance with Daeneyers has exposed the Starks to Cersei hostility. Arya is Cersei’s enemy but I do not know if she knows Arya is alive.
Yes, precisely. Cersei claims to rule all of Westeros. The Starks claim otherwise.
If they wish to be independent (despite Jon!) it also makes Daenerys the enemy of the Starks – for exactly the same reason.
cos alpha,
it could be anything really, but, my initial feeling was that rhaegal is missing initially, and daeny is fussing over drogon and fretting about rhaegals fate when he drops in to say, ‘hey! i’m ok, don’t know how i did it but i some how made it. must have been that pussy human that was on my back. for some reason he took up all of unviserions attention and gave me the opportunity to give him a face and partial body reconstruction. unviserion was snapping at him left right and centre and somehow didn’t get him. crazy!’
I think this has potential to be the best episode of the season so far, if done right. The potential is unlimited. We are finally in the end game. I believe this will be the beginning of the endings GRRM told D&D about all those years ago.
The R+L=J bombshell should drop this episode and become known to all. How will they all react? I’ve been thinking a lot on the point of Jon since the last episode. What is his ultimate purpose? Is he there for GRRM to subvert all of the fantasy tropes that Jon represents? At least in the show, the hero trope has already been subverted with him. Now comes the secret identity/chosen one trope. I can’t help but feel like his true identity will wind up being a terrible thing for Jon, and wind up with tragic consequences.
Sansa I believe still has a move or two that she will make that could cause some trouble. Sophie Turner had a few quotes about what Sansa is up to in a pre-season interview that I’m not sure has happened yet.
And also:
To me, those quotes lead in to my speculation that
All bets are off now. We are on almost fair Ground, where the pieces can be moved anew. From the Trailer, I would suggest, that there will be tension between Jon an Dany. The News he broke to her might sink in and she starts to work against him or is trying to use him on her way to Claim the throne for herself. The way she speaks “Now we will win the last war” seems off. The odd look in her eyes, the almost fake smile she wears while toasting to the remaining alleys. She now knows that she isn’t the rightful heir, Maybe even tries to kick Jon out of this equation.
And there is Bronn still outside, waiting. I guess he will shot someone in the end of this Episode Maybe even both Brothers, which will have a huge Impact.
First on Dany, she looses another advisor who keeps her in line to get no “Burn them all” attitude AND Arya would get a good chance to get a certain face in her hands, to use it…. Who knows, but Bronn will play a role in this.
cos alpha,
I agree. It is interesting to note however, that rhaegal and drogon are flying together when the fleet sail south. one can only conclude that jon is onboard that fleet. i do not think that this theory will be proved or disproved conclusively in episode 4.
If the north turns on Daenerys as their enemy after she gave up both her armies for Winterfell then they truly have lost the right to be called honourable. Also, as their former king and new warden of the north, you can’t “despite” Jon. He is an important figure in their power structure that they can’t just sideline, or they would have done so already. When news of his parentage is revealed, that will make for some interesting conversations. Would they be happy to remain in the 7 Kingdoms with a half Stark/half Targ? Who knows at this point. I’m sure we’re bound to find out soon enough.
But will the northern lords suddenly turn on Dany as their enemy? After what she sacrificed and did? I don’t see that happening. I see Sansa going behind people’s backs in true Littlefinger style (we are yet to see the full extent his mentoring has had on her) to try to manipulate the situation once she learns of Jon’s parentage, to propel him towards being king as that would suit their interests. Sophie Turner said that this season Sansa will go behind people’s backs – so I suppose we will see just how much she learnt from her mentor and how smart she really is.
Mango,
Jaime doesn’t give a fig about the people of westeros. He only cares about his loves, namely, his woman and his offspring. His own recent statement is ‘fuck everyone, just you and me.’ I think that you may have painted jaime to be something that he is not.
I don’t see Bronn killing Tyrion. At least not yet. Tyrion is at a low and needs to redeem himself. To go out on a low would be awful.
Jamie could be Bronn’s target. Qyburn told Bronn it was Jamie who kept screwing him over. Jamie’s arc seems somewhat complete.
Speaking of arcs and lows… Varys needs a comeback too. He hasn’t done anything all season, and has around 5 lines?
I’m still intrigued by the s8 trailer when Arya is voicing over. They switch to Varys just as Arya says “he has many faces” (although she is speaking about Death).
Dany/Jon. While Jon may not want to head south to fight, Dany will most likely say that she helped him fight his war, now he needs to help her fight hers.
The lack of troop numbers is frustrating… we never really know what the north had/has although we know Cersei’s numbers.
I would love for the Iron Bank to screw over Cersei somehow. Take away her military advantage and leave her more vulnerable.
I still go back to Dany’s HotU vision where she approaches the Iron throne but doesn’t touch it but instead heads for the dragon cries. Choosing love over the throne?
the unburdened,
Viserion did manage to claw blood from Rhaegal’s body (chest, I think), which -I imagine- didn’t feel too great during Rhaegal’s crash landing. We learned last season about the dragons’ self healing capabilities, which George R.R. has also stated himself.
It would be interesting to know how far Cersei’s reach spreads. Ruling means that your subjects follow your edicts and, very importantly, pay their taxes. Who does that with regard to the Iron Throne now? North, Vale, and Dorne definitely not. Riverlands? Maybe, though they are likely still leaderless with every lord basically calling his own shots. Stormlands? Probably. After Blackwater and Stannis’s Northern march, I’d think most of their nobles are either dead or powerless. Reach? Even after Highgarden, their various lords are still force to be reckoned with. I can’t imagine them simply rolling over to Cersei. So the question remains: what is Cersei really queen of?
Mango,
Cersie regards the starks as enemies. She said as much when she was going over her map with jaime.
Ghostgirl,
I respectfully disagree, in that Arya’s arc led directly to her killing the NK, although it may have taken D&D a while to notice. Still, it’s Jaqen’s beaming eyes and slight smile that made me wonder….
Nadia,
The reason D&D were like that in the interview is that they needed to set an example for the rest of the cast and crew. They have been absolutely hammering the cast for over a year now regarding the necessity to not leak any spoilers. and, they needed to set an example of showing how it is done by answering everything with possibly. I mean, even when jimmy asked if aquaman saved the day, dan said possibly. so it is obvious what their motivations are there.
Ice Hunter,
While I see Arya’s skills were very useful in defeating the NK it has never been her story. The fact that D & D admit it was for shock value tells us this. Everything for Arya up to the end of season 6 was about her own list. She hadn’t even heard about the dead until she returned to Winterfell in season 7 when they had made the decision for her to kill the NK and Bran gave her the knife.
I saw Jaqen’s smile as a knowing one. He knew she was ready to enact her revenge on those who had hurt her and her family. He wasn’t related to the WW and NK in anyway, so I really can’t see it I’m afraid.
The fact that D & D admit that they didn’t make that decision until after season 6 means looking for clues in the first six seasons are pointless. The re-wording of what Mel said to Arya made that obvious to me.
Sorry but you’ll never convince me that was her purpose in the whole story. We’ll have to agree to disagree. 🙂
Actually, in her mind she is the rightful heir. To be fair to Daenerys, she still needs concrete proof (besides Jon’s brother and best friend) to accept the truth about Jon. After all, in her view, Bran and Sam could just be lying about this. Hopefully in the next episode Daenerys will get proof that convinces her about Jon’s claim to the throne. It will be interesting to see what she does after acknowledging this information. I am hoping that she will accept it and move on, either by forming a pact with Jon (i.e. marriage) or leaving for Essos to rule as the rightful queen over there. If it doesn’t work out with Jon, she still has Daario!
Ghostgirl,
hmm, just because they decided that was the way they were going to go when writing season 7 doesn’t mean that they wern’t toying with the ideas for some time before that and writing it in a way as to keep their options open for when they did decide.
I could not disagree more.
He surrendered his honor to save Kingslanding. He jumped in front of a bear to protect his former captor, Brienne. He defied his father and Cersei and the gods to free Tyrion. He left Cersei to go north to fight the AOTD when he had only one hand and faced almost certain death and hostility from Daenyrs and the Starks after he reported the bad news. He sent Brienne to protect Sansa even though he knew Cersei was trying to hurt her. He sent Trystane back in the ship although he knew that Cersei would want to harm him after Mycella’s death. And to his credit/discredit, he could not stand Joffy.
Of course, in the book, he had completely left Cersei.
For me, he is the most astounding character in GOT. He is a good 75% of the reason I watch this series. (I do not watch very much TV generally!)
Thanks! I only vaguely remember that scene. This is a useful answer – it goes to the question that I asked.
Yes, it will be interesting how this turns out.
It is very good that at this point the series still has so many interesting issues.
Having Jon kill the NK would have made these issues less interesting by making him a superhero….so I really like that they went with Arya. Even though some of Jon’s fans seem to be upset.
the unburdened,
Perhaps but I don’t feel they were. If just off-hand, Arya had heard a conversation by some merchants who had delivered supplies to the Wall or something along those lines, talking about the Northerners for being idiots in thinking the WW were coming, then that would have left the possibility open.
To me, it felt like they did everything to keep the other characters who were more involved in that storyline away rather than foreshadowing her doing it. Even just a small scene with her and maybe Sansa (not to make it too obvious) looking in the library about WW etc. would have just shown her interest. Her conversation with Gendry about it didn’t really tell her anything.
Nadia,
What does AOTD stand for? Lol I can’t figure it out
Mango,
I think, as a Jon fan, I’m not so annoyed that Arya got the final blow but that Jon seemed to do nothing in a battle he has preparing for from the beginning. It just makes his story feel hollow. If he’d managed to kill Viserion it but still couldn’t get there in time to save Bran then it wouldn’t have felt so anticlimactic. Jon really did nothing. I don’t expect Jon to be a main fighter in Dany’s war against Cersei but he should have done more in this one. It’s like Dany taking a backseat in her fight. That’s how it felt at, at least to me.
Aj,
Army of the Dead.
Ghostgirl,
Agreeing to disagree is never a bad thing and we have only two weeks and a day until the end of the series. For me, Arya’s killing of the NK was the key to understanding Jaqen’s reaction to her words, but if D&D did not intend that, so be it. It’s not like we don’t read things into the show that are not proven out in the end. Gods know I’m one of the worst when it comes to fandom theories.
If your avatar’s name is for Ghost, I asssume we are both holding our breath as he fights alongside Jon in the coming episodes. I can handle almost any human death, and even the dragons, but Ghost? That cute albino runt of the litter? No. Ghost survives. That or D&D will need to join the witness protection plan.
Ice Hunter,
I love Ghost! I have to admit his absence in season 7 was annoying to me. From what I heard there was meant to be a scene with Jon before he left Winterfell but they cut it. Still wondering why Jon hasn’t said hello to his direwolf or why Ghost was on the frontlines! Honestly thought that was it, until I saw him in the trailer! Yeah, I can handle Jon dead, Dany dead, Arya dead, Tormund dead, Sam dead etc. but Ghost? He better live or I will cry my eyes out for a week! I can even take the dragons dying but not the direwolves!!!
I think you may be right about D & D as it won’t only be us searching for them! LOL!
You’re right, it was not her purpose in the whole story. However, it can be her purpose now, starting when the writers chose Arya three years ago. So, the next three episodes can definitely tie in with the Faceless Men/Many Faced God knowing that Arya was the one who would defeat the Night King.
Oh, no…… Well, there goes my theory that he won’t be able to do it.
I understand.
Jon is still a big hero. He raised the alarm and got the army together. Excellent job! He got a lot of different people to fight together.
Mango,
Good post. I always love reading about Jaime, who in my opinion is one of the most interesting characters. I would love for Tyrion to tell him how Cersei was sleeping with Lancel Lannister while he was chained up in mud and his won sh*t. That would make his decision easier.
I see some are upset he wasn’t the one to do it. I also see quite a few, who like me, are upset that he was just so damned useless in the climax of the AOTD story, but are okay with Arya getting the kill. I got on board with the Arya twist pretty much immediately (though I wish she’d just jumped out the damned tree instead of flying), but I do wish Jon had made an impact on the battle. As it was, he achieved absolutely nothing, which is gutting after all he went through with the zombies and the zombie king. Hopefully it will have meaning for the rest of his arc – his uselessness may change him in ways for the better. If he realises that he wasn’t brought back to kill the NK, he may start to think he was brought back for something else. He may see the absolute chaos that has spread to every corner of the realm and have a sudden desire to seek the throne to unify the peoples who have all suffered so much during the long years of war. And then probably die trying knowing GOT! A girl can dream though!
Interesting! I can see something like this happening, and it would give a compelling reason for Tyrion or Jaime (or someone else) to go after Cersei.
Interesting. I wonder if all the reanimated bones from the WF crypts will need to be cremated now. The NK corrupted the content. Perhaps everything there is null and void and needs to be discarded. Sort of a sad dilemma.
Yes, and the deaths of Lyanna and Theon were the most powerful moments of the episode for me. Jorah’s was so drawn out passed the point where it was obvious what was happening that it lost its impact to me.
Yet the casualty rate for all those good people without names had to be at least 90%. But all of our named characters, especially the ones who were out on the front line, had maybe 10% casualties. We saw the entire Dothraki force get wiped out in a minute but when the horde reaches humanity’s front line in a wave that literally crashes over the top of where all our heroes are standing only Edd dies. I’m not saying they all should have died, for the sake of the remaining story. I’m saying if it was going to be that bad then don’t put them all standing there because it’s not believable that they didn’t all die.
I think, most importantly, none of the deaths that did happen really change the direction of the story for the characters that are left. Ned, Renly, The Red Wedding, Joffrey, etc… these were deaths that changed the course of events. But no one here died with any unfinished business. Beric and Melisandre fulfilled the roles the Lord of Light had for them. Theon found redemption. Jorah went down saving his Khaleesi, knowing she had better advisers the guide her than he could do himself. Lyanna was mostly irrelevant.
Dany’s army is significantly weakened, of course. How significantly remains to be seen. We saw the Night’s Watch have 150% casualties in the attack on Castle Black and still have guys left after so it’s anyone’s guess. But for this to really matter it has to do more than that. The experience of surviving it needs to have a real impact on the characters. If that happens then I can forgive the lack of mortal consequences.
Leuf,
Yes, I think I understand what you are getting at…but there are so few characters left and half a season to go.
I have not thought this thru much but if I made a quick try:
For practical purposes – NCW and Peter and Lena have to be kept as long as possible. They are the most talented actors still in it. This is not free TV!
In terms of changing the story – Daenerys dying would have been the most impactful and changed the story. Jon dying would also have been impactful (that would have been bad for Jon’s fans).
Jaime and Tyrion have business with Bronn, Cersei and Euron. Jaime with Brienne as well – this is a love story started in Episode 2.. Hound has business with his brother ( this is mostly fan service though). Hound should have died here.
Sam dying may not have changed much. Davos dying either. Gendry dying would not have made a difference. Pod neither. (And we need people to die in Episode 5)
Bran? Why not Bran? I still think there may be some weirdness from Bran.
Sansa and Tyrion were in the crypts and able to kill the few that rose up down there. I suppose both could have died but it would have been odd to have them die and others outside did not. Very GOT though.
Brienne, Jaime, and Pod were fighting together as a team and of all those outside were most likely to make it. And Brienne and Jaime (even with one hand) are great fighters.
Greyworm could have been killed but that would reduce the POC that have speaking roles by 50%.
Arya was killing NK and I suppose she could have dropped dead after…from pneumonia?.
Hmmm. I think it may have been better for Jon’s fans that no-one else died.
You may be onto something! I’m trying to recall whether Qyburn said the wagon was already waiting, or would be ready at a specified time. Maybe under the chests of gold will be a coffin full of live Qyburn, sneaking out of the city? Will he first take the time, as his final duty as Cersei’s OB/GYN, to swap an abortifacient draught for her usual daily pregnancy tea?
We were promised betrayals this season. Why should they all have to be betrayals of the good guys? Wouldn’t it be fun to see Cersei get shafted by one of the very few people she trusts?
His “own” sh*t.
There should barely be any comments and reactions to the next episode since a good portion of the fan base said that they quit the show this week. I hope that’s the case so there can be some positive & productive conversations regarding the story. The toxicity from a vocal minority of fans has been out of control.
I keep reading this from you, you don’t think it is possible that Arya couldn’t have made a running jump that was 2 or 3ft in the air tops? Arya is in her prime and very athletic, was was doing par-core moves in Bravos – we know she can run fast, jump high, and goes all out physically. I’m not much taller than Maisie and in grade school (middle-high) when I was more athletic (not great) I remember messing around with friends on the basketball courts trying to touch the net or the backboard before games – I could reach the net if I did a running jump, make lay-ups. Girls taller and much more athletic than me could touch the backboard – both higher up than the NK is tall… it isn’t beyond my experience to see this in sports or even something like the ninja warrior show where athletic people make all kinds of amazing difficult leaps and jumps.
Arya is an athlete, she has been for the entire show… her making a running jump which gives her a couple extra feet in the air in the so she can increase her driving force to plunge the dagger into the NK makes reasonable sense to me. She didn’t need to fall out of a tree.
If she did fall out of the tree… people would be scoffing at how she managed to get up that tree unseen by everyone … not only would that mean she left Theon to fight all the wights alone risking Bran’s death if Theon failed (yeah, right) … but that she also managed to find a spot in the tree directly above the NK where she would be in the right position to attack, yet still go unnoticed (if you have ever climbed a tree, they are rarely that accommodating, it can be difficult to find good spots to rest) the bottom of the tree is rather bare, no real cover difficult to hide … really that is really much less plausible a scenario than athletic girl runs fast and make a running leap, fueled by the adrenaline of the moment. Much less explanation needed. IMO
LOL, initially I felt that way too – I wanted/expected more deaths, especially a ‘BIG’ death – one of the reasons it was so nerve wracking while watching the episode – I anticipated/expected, yet didn’t get a lot
Now that so many have managed to live, I kinda don’t want a lot more deaths… I expect a couple if ‘BIG’ deaths, for drama – but I feel like the support characters that managed to make it this far deserve to live to the end.
I thought Grey Worm or Missandi were goners, at least 1 – nope both lived, and have plans for the future, and damn it now I want them to be able to live in the future!
Podrick, he is a support character for a support character! If anyone could have died it would have been him, but now I feel he should live to be knighted himself by the last episode.
Gilly and little Sam – nope, they must live!
Gendry – he is the last Baratheon, so he should be legitimized for arming the entire army… he has at least earned that much
Davos – someone with a level head and a kind heart needs to live
Brienne, Yara – they have earned their retirement plans too
Tormund – I could see as Lord Tormund with his own castle, wouldn’t that be funny – maybe last hearth
Sandor – not sure, I want him to live and find peace – but he is going to fight his brother so…
I don’t want the support cast treated like easy expendable deaths for future battles… fingers crossed
If that were true, then they should have just killed Bran/3ER and then the NK would have died too, if they were indeed linked that way. I think the 3ER existed ‘always’ a living memory of mankind, he isn’t connected to the NK’s life force, they didn’t exist because of the other. Nothing supports that.
Doing a NK/Arya twist seem like it would draw too much story focus, they just don’t have that kind of time. Arya has had her moment, I’m sure she will still be active – romancing Gendry, assisting the Hound with the Mountain (also on her list), but it is now moving the story focus to Jon vs Dany vs Tyrion vs Cercei. Of course other major characters will play a role, but the main characters (show and text) have always been Jon, Dany, and Tyrion – and their main antagonist is Cersei (at least for now)
Also, the NK touched her, but he still needs to ‘activate’ his powers – the dead don’t rise until he decides to raise them. Just touching her would’t automatically do anything… although, maybe like Bran she will bare some marks from the touch? or not, again depends on whether the NK wanted to do something to her and had enough time to do it. The scene was in slow-motion, so the time-frame wouldn’t necessarily be that slow-paced in real-time.
1) Hmm, Bran does have the knowledge of how the NK was created, but it also involved the Children of the Forest ‘magic’ so without the children, probably not… but then Qyburn was extremely interested in the wight, and he has re-animated people, so perhaps he has discovered something – they haven’t been dropping hints of his secret experiments for nothing… I hope 🙂
2) Probably not, there was a long stretch of time when Theon and then the Bolton’s were in charge and nothing seems to happen with no Stark in resident… at least I don’t recall anything.
3) Hmm, to me it would make sense for raven communications to happen to cover places like the Riverlands (Edmure), Vale, etc… we don’t necessarily need to visit those locations… they will want to keep the number of locations manageable and not have people teleporting everywhere. I expect Varys has been in communication with all his contacts – out of everyone, Varys is really the most knowledgeable and experienced in governing. He has been doing it the longest, and it was his job to communicate and gather information, he must have contacts at all levels major and minor houses, so even if the heads of houses are gone, he probably knows who the stewards/vassals are … I expect his role to increase in the next episodes at least when it comes to gathering intel and communicating and telling us how the lay of the land stands in the war meetings.
4) Bran’s purpose… well he can gather intel through his raven network, and it was VERY important to him that Jon KNEW his true parentage… that must be important, if days before the big battle with the dead, he insisted Sam tell Jon the truth. So I guess there must be something there. Bran’s will probably do as much as he did in the first half. Arya, I think her story will revolve around Gendry and Sandor, as all of her significant scene were with them.
5) Probably never know, can’t say it makes much sense to me. In the books the FM have a history with the Valarians (Targs) and they don’t like them, so perhaps they will send someone after Daenarys? Or maybe Cersei hired one for Daenarys? Qyburn did mention that Cersei had other plans to take care of her – but then maybe he just meant the scorpion machines?
6) Varys is a good question… he is for ‘the people’, and I could see him making savy moves to ensure the person he believes is right to win the throne. He is sneaky and devious, and he is also meant to die before the end, so a betrayal seems the most likely way for him to be caught and terminated.
7) I don’t think so, at least not in e3 – I feel that was genuine fear/emotion… but that doesn’t mean Sansa won’t use that connection to try and manipulate Tyrion in future episodes… I could see her doing this more so than Tyrion. He has a ‘blind spot’ for beautiful ladies after all, and Sansa isn’t going to be manipulated by a man easily again, not any time soon anyway.
8) Yeah, I think that is the bittersweet part of the story. People like to think that being the King/Queen is the ultimate prize and makes them the BIG winner, but the reality is it is a lonely life, filled with responsibilities, and always being in pulled in several directions. It is a thankless job that never ends. If you want your favorite to be happy, you shouldn’t wish the throne on them 🙂 IMHO
9) who knows? I feel that anything we get with them will be fanservice, which I am fine with 🙂 but I don’t know if I expect it to happen. But then again, I’m not really invested in ‘they need to get together and have babies’… so I’m good either way they play it out.
Che,
“If he realises that he wasn’t brought back to kill the NK, he may start to think he was brought back for something else”
Yeah, but this “something else” Will it be something we like? Something that divides the fandom will happen. Just not sure it involves Jon Snow.
I agree, at this moment Sansa should understand that once Dany and her troops leave, Winterfell will be vulnerable (unless the Vale can spare more men). She should remember (or Bran!) when Robb left, Theon was able to take the castle with a few men… Cersei could send a small army. Even if Sansa doesn’t like the choice, she should still make the play to back Dany and then worry about the Northern independence later (or if Sophie is to be trusted, go behind a few backs and make her play in secret).
If not, then if Cersei sends an army, Sansa deserves to be ‘kidnapped’ or taken prisoner. I really don’t like this fan theory, but it keeps coming up that I worry that this is how they will keep Sansa more prominent in the story line, cause it really doesn’t make sense for her to leave Winterfell when so much needs to be done… and she isn’t a fighter or invested in Dany’s winning the throne. I don’t know – it will depend on how things play out, but i’m worried that the ‘kidnapping’ might happen, and Cersei isn’t going to be ‘nice’ to Sansa this time around. Cersei wasn’t really mean/evil the first time, she was rather indifferent to Sansa, it was Joffery that was cruel. But, if she gets Sansa now… well I’m sure Qyburn has room for one more test subject… ugh! … I don’t want to think about it… please don’t play out that way.
True, Cersei will want all the Starks dead, because they are with Dany and traitors not to be trusted… hell, she would be after them even without Dany, as they declared independence when they named Jon King. Cersei isn’t going to let some of her territory go, not when she can afford to fight.
I think the episode will start with a montage of them ‘cleaning up.’ Moving the bodies, seeing people wounded, recovering, making repairs, etc… showing the passage of time a bit, until they are ready for the funeral scene…
It will be interesting to see their reasons for not just having Jon and Dany marry. It has already been mentioned as a possibility and if not for love, it could just be for political reasons. I’m assuming it will be because of Jon, and this will make Dany even more suspicious of his motives, as I think she would be willing, especially if she really believe she loves him.
I don’t know, Bronn has never missed before. IF he does try to kill one of them, I think he will succeed… My money is on Jamie, as Tyrion needs his big clever plan moment – his intellect, extensive reading and general cleverness needs to play a large role, he is one, if not the main POV character (in the books) so his part should match that investment and development. He has been on a loosing streak the last couple of seasons, he need a big win moment.
Also, I think Jamie will leave the bigger impact. Even though Cersei hired the hit, I still think she will feel regret/sorrow if it happens, more than she thinks she will anyway. Tyrion will be affected and Brienne as well… if it was Tyrion, well Jamie will be devastated, but who else will? Cersei ecstatic (she has always wanted him dead), but everyone else would probably just feel sad, but he really hasn’t made a deeper connection with others for a while now… that hint with Sansa was a small glimmer, but not really enough to call meaningful yet.
Qyburn is a wildcard. I don’t really see why he would turn on Cersei, as she has given him everything he has ever wanted to continue his experiments without hassle or judgement, hell even approval… But it wouldn’t surprise me if he kept an out for himself just in case… I really look forward to what they do with him.
That would make the most sense, although how? Sending ravens to everyone, kinda like Stannis did to spread the Cersei/Jamie rumor that all her kids were not true Baratheons? Sansa doesn’t really have any close relationships to anyone other than the people at Winterfell and the Vale, who would be inclined to believe her – even with some sort of proof… which really couldn’t be sent by raven… but I guess a rumor can also do some damage. I really don’t see her traveling around trying to persuade people, we never meet to join Jon. Maybe she works on Varys and he uses his contacts? Like I mentioned before, Varys is the main governing official left, with an extensive network of contacts and information gathers. He is a key element to ‘winning’ the people over, he has developed the relationships and trust (at least I would assume so) over his many decades as a servant to the crown/people.
I am really curious to how(if) the show will handle all the other territories and whether they will play any significant role – since so many of the characters that represented those areas are gone, it will be difficult to incorporate it, other than by just telling us and having banners flying in the battlefield.
I don’t know if Arya is destined to deliver the killing blow to the NK, if there is one in the books – but she is one of the original main characters, and I never felt we traveled along with her just so she could learn assassin/spy skills, and a touch of magic (warging, skinchanging, changing faces) just so she could finish off her list… most of the people on her list are already dead by other hands, or most likely will be by the time she is ready for action… and other than Cersei, none are really that important, a lot of lowlife thugs who worked for the Mountain and did a lot of horrible things. Her list is a motivator to keep for focused on getting stronger and also not forgetting who she is, which is where she is in the books at present (tying becoming no one).
The FM don’t care about her kill list, they weren’t getting her ready to help her exact her revenge, it is actually the exact opposite – they are opposed to killing for personal reasons… for them it is impersonal, a dictate from their god (or more likely money exchanging hands).. and they avoid sending out agents that have any personal connections to the target.
I don’t know what her endgame is, but it will be more significant than killing a bunch of low hanging fruit, and it just isn’t as emotionally satisfying for her to kill Cersei. They really have no built up personal history to heighten the drama of a moment like that… Cersei will go out in a dramatic way.
Do you remember the reason Cersei is on Arya’s list? It is because she ordered Sansa’s direwolf Lady killed. That is it. She wants revenge against Cersei for killing her sister’s beloved (and innocent) direwolf. Arya was 9 at the time, so … still, not really a big enough reason to have her do all this training to take out the biggest name on her list. At least IMHO.
Oooh I like that! After all, Jon has already half strangled someone to death when it came to Sansa haha 😉
Che,
BeardedOnion,
I agree. I don’t know what’s gonna happen next but Sansa can’t stay in WF while all the others are elsewhere. Her character didn’t come so far to just remain far from the place where the final Game of thrones plays out. As I said before, the GoT is her arena.
As for ep4, she and Arya will probably learn about Jon’s parentage. It’s about damn time we get some private Stark family scene!
Oh my god I’ve spent hours this weekend reading all the articles and comments published this week, finally got here thinking it’s the live chat and it’s only the preview! Looking forward to the live chat and hoping it will be posted soon.
Yes, I have the same feeling. Expecting it to be largely shifting the board for the battle at Kings Landing next season with little to big moments. Hopefully they give us some idea what happens about Jon’s heritage and we may well get Bronn show up and try to take out the Lannister brothers but not sure beyond that what could go down.
A major death in this episode feels super unlikely unless Bronn kills one of the Lannister brothers or Cersei sends in the Golden Company to Winterfell to wipe out the survivors. Episode 5 on the other hand is definitely going to have some deaths.
Jon Snowed,
Bronn was set the task of eliminating Tyrion and/or Jaime back in episode 1, and we have an 80 minute episode between battles to fill with drama so I think if one of the Lannister brothers is to die by his hand then now is the time.
https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/gameofthrones/images/f/f3/803_Arya_Jump_Gif.png/revision/latest?cb=20190429233941
Nothing we have seen of Arya’s training so far has shown her leaping to this inhuman height from ground-level. We’ve seen her jump off things in the waif chase, but this was from ground level. Just look at the height in that picture. Do you really think Arya can jump that high? Can you imagine how much speed and how much distance she would have to run to even get close to that height? Yet she did it in perfect silent stealth through a ring of wights and, more importantly, white walkers (who aren’t the robotic automatons that the wights are)?
I’m sorry, but even prime athletes cannot leap from ground level as high as Arya is leaping in that picture. I love to watch Sergei Polunin’s dance videos (the ‘bad boy’ of ballet), that man can fly! He’s unbelievable. Even he can’t jump this high and he’s a lot taller than Arya.
Didn’t you see that tree stump that Arya made a running leap off of?
I didn’t either, but I’m sure it was there. 😉
Any guesses for the title of this “shakespearean” episode tonight? If it deals with Jon struggling with whether he would even want to be king-
To Be or Not To Be
Sam dying might not change the story we see, but it could change Westeros for the time after what we see. I would expect him to either become Maester of Winterfell or Grandmaester if Jon ends up on the iron throne.
Gilly dying wouldn’t change the world, except that it might take Sam out of the story which could change the world. After Sam sent Gilly to “safety” in Molestown and that didn’t work out so well he promised to stay with her. Everyone told him to go to the crypts but he didn’t listen and was useless in the battle, pretty much getting Edd killed having to look out for him. There were no consequences for Team Humanity for failing to recognize that the crypts were not a safe place to be against a necromancer and no consequences for Sam being stupid. If they weren’t willing to kill Sansa or Tyrion, that would have at least been a meaningful death.
Renly’s Peach,
And p.s. You’re right. “No One” could leap that high.