We’re heading into the home stretch, our last week of Watchers on the Wall Awards voting. Since we have the Emmys tonight, where Game of Thrones is well-represented with nominations, it seems like a good time to roll out another category for our own awards show voting. Today we’ll begin our final round discussion of a category that celebrates Game of Thrones’ smartly crafted words combined with the skilled performance of the actors bringing them to life: Best Speech of Season 6.
Getting right to it, the finalists for Best Speech are:
Brother Ray (Ian McShane) tells his story and encourages his followers with the message that it’s never too late to change. From “The Broken Man,” written by Bryan Cogman, and directed by Mark Mylod:
Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey) shares her honest confession with Septa Unella after the wildfire explosion. From “The Winds of Winter,” written by David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, and directed by Miguel Sapochnik:
Davos Seaworth (Liam Cunningham) persuades the lady of Bear Island to join their cause. From “The Broken Man,” written by Bryan Cogman, and directed by Mark Mylod:
Lyanna Mormont (Bella Ramsey) reminds the Northern lords of their duty and declares Jon Snow her king. From “The Winds of Winter,” written by David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, and directed by Miguel Sapochnik:
Tyrion Lannister (Peter Dinklage) shares a childhood story while unchaining the dragons. From “Home,” written by Dave Hill and directed by Jeremy Podeswa:
You can see how all the speeches did in our preliminary round voting HERE.
Unsurprisingly, the speeches are so lengthy that not all of the words fit in the poll slots; watch the videos if you want to refresh your memory of the speeches!
Final round rules: Cast your vote for the winner in our Best Speech poll. In the finals, unlike the preliminaries, fans have one vote to cast in each category. At the end of 72 hours (Wednesday 9/21/16 at 3PM EDT), the speech with the most votes will be the winner! The results of the poll will be revealed during the live Watchers on the Wall Awards ceremony, which will take place in early October. Specific date to be announced in the near future!
Just imagine that Lyanna Stark’s personality was the combination of Arya and Lyanna Mormont damn.
I had to go with Cersei. Lena was terrifying.
Cersei’s speech.
First of all great speeches all of them.Had to go with Lyanna.Took the words out of my mouth.Well not really I would have gone on much longer lol.
Very difficult choice!
Love Davos speech, love Cersei’s as well. And Tyrion and the dragons… LOVE it.
It didn’t make the final cut, but I loved Yara’s “little talk” with Theon as well.
But nothing can beat Lyanna Mormont’s KITN speech, n’est-ce pas?
Well, sadly my nominee (Kinvara’s speech) did not make it into the finals, so I am voting for my second choice: Cersei’s confession.
Tyrion
Davos
Baby Bear!!!
Lyanna Mormont all the way.
Upon watching the entire scene again, I feel that Lyanna’s speech is incomplete without the words added by Manderly and Glover, so I won’t vote for it. Out of the others, Cersei’s speech is the one that stuck with me most, so I say Confess Confess Confess!
Davos for me! That character’s plainspokenness and lack of pretension elevate this very important piece of persuasion to a level of heartfelt eloquence that, for me, far surpasses any imaginable high-flown oratory by some king or aristocrat. And Liam Cunningham is so perfectly cast to deliver it, giving us a true hero for the masses.
Had they kept the Broken Man speech from the book intact, or at least offered a somewhat shorter reasonable facsimile of it, I probably would have voted for that instead. The rambly, watered-down version they gave us was definitely not an improvement. I think that, as writers, Benioff and Weiss direly need someone else in the room with them to bounce ideas off, instead of just one another. I get the feeling that their opinions of their own deathless prose are a trifle exaggerated; and it really showed this season, with far less source material to inspire them. They could take a lesson in humility from the Onion Knight!
I picked Davos, because he put it in context: The dead are coming. Time to put aside differences and fight the apocalypse.
Cersei was good, too.
I can still hear her voice in my head when I read that. Especially “…you refused the call”.
The King in the North!
I go with the broken men speech. But I am surprised that Daenerys’ speech to the dothraki raiders in episode 6 got so few votes. Not my favorite speech but I expected it to make it to the finale.
Firannion,
The changed version of the Broken Man speech (which I believe Cogman wrote, actually) makes sense to me. In the book, Meribald’s speech is delivered in front of Brienne. Brienne’s material in that book was about the after effects of war, so a speech about the “Broken men” of war was very in keeping with her storyline. But in the show, it is the Hound who is receiving the speech. And the episode is not about him seeing the costs of war, it is about his potential redemption. Emphasizing and elaborating on the septon’s dark past, with the lesson that “it’s never too late to turn back,” is far more relevant to the Hound’s character arc than an unchanged version of the Ninepenny King’s speech would have been. Since the speeches serve two different purposes, it made sense that they would be two different speeches.
As much as I loved Tyrion’s speech to the little dragons and Brother Ray’s spech to the villagers, this award simply MUST go to Lady Lyanna Mormont!
In the last few days, I’ve been a bit inactive on the site but here I am again.
I’ve been deciding between Brother Ray and Lyanna Mormont and I chose the latter one. That scene still gives me chills.
Brother Ray… all the way.
Lyanna’s speech is what I voted for I love it and it is a powerful scene.
The only vote Lady Mormont gets from me…
My Vote: Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey) shares her honest confession with Septa Unella after the wildfire explosion.
Powerfully written, chillingly insightful, and masterfully delivered by Lena Headey. This monologue provides a dark window into the state of Cersei’s mind as she destroys her enemies and ascends to the Iron Throne. And this is before she loses her last child …
Also Considered:
-Lyanna Mormont (Bella Ramsey) reminds the Northern lords of their duty and declares Jon Snow her king. (This one was very, very close).
-Brother Ray (Ian McShane) tells his story and encourages his followers with the message that it’s never too late to change.
To be honest, I’d be happy with any of these nominees. Davos and Tyrion were great as well.
Hodor Targaryen,
Well said! I agree completely.
From that perspective, yes, I can see why they would change the emphasis. But to me, the original Broken Men speech is the irreducible core of the author’s philosophical theme for the entire book series: that armed conflict accomplishes nothing positive and that the smallfolk are always the ones who ultimately pay its price. Without it, much of his message is lost. So I mourn its absence: ASoIaF’s raison d’etre sacrificed for the sake of a narrative decision based on cinematic pacing and character placement. I hope that we do not get to the end of the series without witnessing some equally powerful indictment of the costs of war – and not just on noble families deprived of their perceived birthrights.
I was a soldier once…
All great but Lyanna’s king of the north speech was the best thing ever! Shhhiii… if I had a sword I might’ve pledged fidelity right there in my living room hahahaha lol
Lyanna, period.
Davos comes in second.
I do respect and admire and even love Lena’s performance, but I just really hate Cersei and don’t want her to win anything really 🙂
All so good, I loved Cercei and Lyanna Mormont too but I was literally holding my breath as tyrion communicated with the dragons for the first time-a combination of his awe and fear – magical scene.
Not sure all of these are speeches. Monologues yes but speeches no.
I voted for Lyanna Mormont’s speech. Pretty impressive for a 10 year old 😉
Best Speech: Cersei to Septa Unella.
Honorable Mention: Brother Ray’s revised “broken man” speech.
It was always between these two.
Argh….Brother Ray or Davos? This is awful. Love Lyanna’s speech but I’ve voted for her in other categories. I’ve become tired of Cersei and her hubris. Tyrion’s “It could be little….like me” gave my heart a good yank.
Brother Ray’s speech was different from the books, and both in their setting were wonderful. I thought it was well done, and condensed a lot of our beloved Hound’s return story and potentially short lived reform.
But Davos’ speech wins for me. He saw Jon attempt to win her over with fond remembrances, and Sansa appeal to her vanity, to be met with the stinkeye. So he laid it out, humbly and kindly, but without mincing words and the harsh truth, and best of all, giving her respect in a non-patronizing fashion. The man gets it.
Best Speech: Davos Seaworth persuades the lady of Bear Island to join their cause.
There were some amazing speeches this season, and I came close to picking another couple of those that made the final five. The Broken Man speech that Brother Ray gives may not be the speech of the books, but it fitted so well with the character that had been created. It spoke to the Hound, to the general group gathered around Brother Ray, and to the audience – it spoke of the violence that the show has portrayed since season one and the dehumanizing quality of such violence.
Throughout all six seasons, the writers have repeatedly given great speeches to Tyrion – and the monologue he delivers while unchaining Viserion and Rhaegal was no exception. It was stunningly written and picked back up on the love for, and fascination with, dragons that we know Tyrion has.
Ultimately, I found myself choosing between the speeches given by Davos, Lyanna and Cersei. Lena delivered that speech perfectly, and her performance in 610 generally was chilling. That speech was just vividly and wonderfully Cersei; it was all about who she is and the fact that henceforth she will unapologetically be herself.
Lyanna Mormont’s King in the North speech was fantastic – and one delivered with just the right pacing and tone. It calls back to both her letter to Stannis that was read out in 502 and referred to again in 607, and to the remark Ned makes to Jon in 102 about him having his blood – and it blends in the idea that Northerners remember, something we have been told over and over again for seasons. And it was so fitting that in the first scene we see the present-day Jon in after the Tower of Joy reveal, it is a girl named after his mother that is fighting his corner.
I ended up choosing the speech that Davos gives to Lyanna in 607 in part, I think, because it sums up the entire story in some ways – as well as calling back to 110, in which Jeor Mormont speaks to Jon about the Iron Throne being of little significance when the White Walkers come for them. The real war is coming south, and Jon Snow is the one leading the fight for the living. I also feel that Davos’s reference to his heritage speaks to the fact that White Walkers don’t distinguish between rank and houses (a similar point to the one Jon makes at Hardhome) and there is a need to work together to fight effectively.
No question: KITN!
OT: Just saw the girl from Stranger Things on the red carpet. She and Maisie have to get together! Their personalities are similar.
I loved them all (tho surprised Tyrion made the cut) but ultimately chose the one that directly influenced Lyanna and lead to her speech later on, the one I was going to vote for. So I chose Davos
Lyanna Mormont’s speech with Cersei’s very close. In writing. Cersei’s is better in my opinion, but as a scene Mormont’s is far more significant and impactful. Not only because it is a Lyanna opening a new chapter in Jon’s life, but because it sets in motion many thing a that will, in turn, have an impact in the story
The Cersei part is the best thing I’ve ever read in these comments. Hahaha. Ditto.
Hello fellow Watchers. Was off the grid for two weeks; visiting family in Germany. I chose not to bring my cell phone. It was rather refreshing, but I had a lot of catching up to do on all the posts today.
I voted for Baby Bear.
Lyanna Mormont, she is 10 but thinks like a queen
The Onion Knight.
Brother Ray for me, without a doubt. It does seem like that speech will fare poorly with many book readers who seem determined to hold it only in comparison.
Cersei.
It’s the combination of the unprecedented honesty and the care she took with her words. As if every one was a sweet and she wanted to savour them carefully. I barely breathed listening to her.
Tyrion!
So emotional, but clearly Lyanna Mormont is going to win. I’m happy with that, but it was funny as opposed to stirring. I was blown away in the moment at how amazing PD’s acting was, as he was saying his lines to a tennis ball (or however they do it).
Anyhoo. Great scene.
simon,
I think of speeches as communicating to another person or persons. I think of monologues as thinking outloud to yourself. So for me, these were all speeches.
Firannion,
Totally agree about the core of Martin’s philosophy; its such a powerful speech, probably my fav in the books. Unfortunately, it is long, too long for most people to sit for in a show like this. I think the show did a good job giving us the meat of it; plus the speech was punctuated in the show by the massacre of the villagers. The point was well made, despite the brevity of the speech
Yes to Davos, who had to engage Lyanna’s commitment by relating her circumstances to his own experiences and then persuade people to believe incredible facts not seen by them. The other people’s speeches just elaborated on their own experiences.
Yes to your assessment of the writers’ limitations and hubris in truncating the Broken Man speech. IMO if most of the original Broken Man speech had been rendered, it would have been the most powerful scene of the entire GoT. Some would say the Broken Man speech sums up ASoIaF and is its message. And D&D cut it up and lessened its power and drama. Shame shame shame.
I went with Tyrion because Mr Dinklage had to work with tennis balls on sticks for his scene. My initial instinct was to vote for Cersei, however.
Brother Ray. His speech was beautiful. It summed up two of the main underlying themes of this show, remorse and redemption absolutely perfectly.
Brother Ray.
Cersei. This was an incredibly powerful callout of the hypocrisy of a certain type of religious-driven people. There are many sadists such as the High Sparrow and Unella hiding behind religions… I had my misfortune to meet several in my life, so this speech was very, very cathartic to me.
“Confess. Confess. Confess. Confess. It felt good. Beating me, starving me, frightening me, humiliating me. You didn’t do it because you cared about my atonement; you did it because it felt good. I understand. I do things because they feel good. I drink because it feels good. I killed my husband because it felt good to be rid of him. I fuck my brother because it feels good to feel him inside me. I lie about fucking my brother because it feels good to keep our son safe from hateful hypocrites. I killed your High Sparrow, and all his little sparrows, all his septons, all his septas, all his filthy soldiers because it felt good to watch them burn. It felt good to imagine their shock and their pain. No thought has ever given me greater joy. Even confessing feels good under the right circumstances.” – Cersei Lannister
“I watch Game of Thrones because it feels good” – firstone
Lyanna Mormont! (for President)…
Voted for Davos, too! Nobody on this show delivers emotional punch like Liam Cunningham. It was timely, thoughtful and even a bit emotional.
I agree about the speech in “The Broken Man”. It was beautifully delivered and the message crystal clear but as big fans of the books, I was really surprised D&D didn’t use some variation of the original text. Or I guess I should say, more of it because it did have a similar message. The rest of the dialogue between Ian and Rory was fantastic. Gave us the how Sandor ended up with them, what this peaceful group is about and an awakening of sorts into who Sandor has become but I was waiting for the speech. Waiting…and waiting. I don’t know what D&D thought writing it but sometimes they do mess with things that would really work well on the show (Wyman, for one). Just my opinion, of course.
I saw the title of this vote, and was ready to immediately vote for brother Rays’ speech without looking at the other nominees. It was a powerful speech in it’s own right, very well delivered, too, and what it lacked from the books in words, it made up for by showing the massacre. As much as I loved the speech of the books, this one worked in the frame of the show.
But then I went n read the other nominees anyway. Cerseis speech gave me the chills, and jumped out as ‘new’ – as well as the others were acted, I’ve seen Tyrion approach dragons before, a likeable character hail a Stark King in the North before, Davos promote the case of the lord he’s hitched his star to with a heartfelt plea, before (Iron Bank/Stannis).
So that made it harder. Reading the text at the voting boxes, though – the last (punch)line of one leaves me with despair, the other with a chuckle.
Voting for Cersei – because it feels good.
r-hard,
God, if that was the case it was probably a good thing she died before those two were born. I’m not sure the realm would survive the three of them together. But it would have been hilarious to watch as an outsider^.^
Firannion,
Marlana,
Forgive me for sounding a bit harsh, but I don’t think casual show watchers would give a sh*t about “broken men” speech. I am a book reader and prior to joining this site (September 2015) I barely even remembered the speech (despite the fact that I read AFFC 5 times), let alone considered it powerful. For me, it was a nice addition to world-building and nothing more and I was really really surprised how praised the speech is among the book readers, considering that I barely got through chapter. The show already tries to avoid long monologues if they do not advance the story. And I don’t think the book speech would work in contex with the Hound.
Lyanna Mormont.
Lord Parramandas,
Hodor Targaryen,
Completely agreed.
A bit surprised how few votes High Sparrow’s story got.
And for me, Cersei’s confession was the strongest speech.
Lyanna, no doubts about it.
My second choice would have been Brother Ray just because I love Ian McShane. He could have read his grocery list and I would still consider voting for him.
Kind of disappointed about High Sparrow too.
Lady Mormont. Her speech was, and still is spine-tingling. Yes, the scene of naming Jon KITN was done with the help of other contributors, but most of the speeches were. And, her speech was powerful enough to shame these well experienced fighters & nobles into opening their eyes and admitting their mistakes. I would imagine that for men like that, admitting a mistake in front of your peers, after a young girl had more balls than you – to not only have her men fight, but to also be able to see Jon for what he is and give a rousing speech about it to said peers – would be a tough pill to swallow.
That is why her speech still gives me goosebumps. She is wise beyond her years, has more courage than most of the men in the room, and she made them realize it in her short, but powerful speech.
All hail Lady Mormont!
Nerevanin,
Her speech didn’t make it because she just repeated what Khal Drogo said in season 1.