The Game of Good-byes

This is the end of a decade-long love affair with one of the most influential television shows to ever air. Game of Thrones has proved that a fantasy show based on an uncompleted series of books written by an old white guy can slay the mainstream media with ice and fire. No matter how dark an episode is or how many coffee cups they leave in the final shot or how many incestuous sex scenes grace my screen, I will always be in love with this show. Game of Thrones h as provided us with interesting story lines, relatable characters, hate-able villains, cuddly dragons, fluffy direwolf puppies, and, most of all, an intense and amazing new nerd culture. This show has brought people together from so many walks of life to both create and watch this series. Any ordinary person would say, “It’s just a TV show, Kat. Quit talking about it already.” But I won’t stop talking about it because of how much it has affected my life since the beginning. I’ve been watching Arya silently murder people, Daenerys do whatever it takes to achieve her goals, Sansa survive all of the disgusting things she’s seen and had to do, Brienne of Tarth finally become a knight, and Cersei destroy anyone who hurts her children. Whether or not you like any of these characters, they are all incredibly strong women that would’ve never been seen by the world except in the books. George R.R. Martin is a genius for creating this stunning world and characters to put in it. Since this is the final episode of the series, I’m going to leave it up to you to go watch it. I won’t be recapping this one, but I will be reviewing and making references to the episode and series as a whole, so there will still be spoilers. We’ve got a lot to talk about, so let’s get into it.

If you read my recap for “The Bells” last week, I predicted four things that I wanted to happen in the finale. Only one of my predictions came true. Sansa became Queen in the North and seceded from the Seven Kingdoms. This whole series has been building on this conclusion for the North since Ned Stark was beheaded back in season one. The only just started setting up that Sansa would be Queen in the North last season when it was revealed that Jon was Aegon Targaryen. Before that bombshell, I had my money on Jon staying King in the North, but when you’re the rightful heir to the Iron Throne, you can only rule from one fancy chair.

One of my other predictions was that Arya would be the one to kill Daenerys, but they had to give that kill to Jon considering he missed out on the Night King and had to have one major character death under his belt by the end. The whole scene between Jon and Dany in the destroyed throne room was rather poetic, but cliche because there would be no other reason for Jon to be alone with Dany other than to murder her. Realistically, Drogon should have killed Jon as soon as he saw his dead mother, but considering Jon is a Targaryen, it’s against the rules or something like that. But the burning of the Iron Throne by dragon fire was a form of rebirth for Westeros, leaving the bloody past behind to make way for a new leader.

Considering that Jon murdered Dany in cold blood, it is only fair that the Unsullied take him prisoner and demand his execution. This makes punishment mandatory for Jon, leaving him out of the potential leader pool. In contrast, Tyrion merely freed his brother to somehow save an unborn Lannister child, which should’ve had him executed on the spot as soon as he faced

Dany on the steps to the Red Keep, but he was held prisoner instead as well. This eliminates another one of my predictions that Tyrion was supposed to die at the hands of Daenerys, but, instead, our favorite imp lives to serve the Realm until his natural death.

My final prediction of Jon taking the Iron Throne was also squashed. Instead we see Bran Stark voted on by the leading lords and ladies of each major house to lead the people into an era of change. Bran names Tyrion as his hand and allows Sansa to become Queen in the North. Out of all of the Starks, Sansa is the only one that wanted any sort of major power, but also wants to do what is best for the Northern people. Bran is the unlikely but best candidate for Westeros since he knows everything that has been and will be, and can ensure the Realm is able to rebuild and reshape how it governs itself in the new age. Because of his knowledge, he names a fitting Small Council to aid him in ruling the Six Kingdoms. Tyrion as Hand to the King, Bronn as Master of Coin, Ser Daavos as Master of Ships, Sam Tarly as Grand Maester, and Brienne of Tarth as Lord Commander of the King’s Guard. We get to see the beginning of the first meeting of the new High Council which is already kind of a cluster.

But what about Jon? Well, as “punishment” Bran sends him to the Night’s Watch knowing that there is no longer any need for the wall since the Night King and Army of Undead have all been killed. When Jon arrives he reconnects with Tormund and Ghost. JON ACTUALLY PETS GHOST, and I could not have been more emotional about it. Knowing there is no reason to stay in Castle Black, Jon escorts the Freefolk north of the wall back to the wintery wilds where he will remain until his death. This is a respectable end for Jon, but death would have evoked more emotion and finality for his story.

The final character we say goodbye to is Arya. Since mentioning it a few seasons ago, Arya has wanted to travel west of Westeros to find what could be outside of the known world. Sometimes a girl needs to retire from her life of ninja assassin to follow her true dreams of traveling. For me, Arya’s story gets wrapped up with a nice bow in comparison to everyone else’s stories. This has been what she has truly strived for since she was a little girl, and as much traveling as she did as No One, she was never fulfilled until getting on that boat headed west. Who knows what she’ll find out there. She could end up finding a new world full of magic and more dragons or something else. For those of you wanting a spin off based around Arya’s travels, I would watch it for sure, but it would eliminate the sense of mystery that was meant to be felt at the end of her story.

As a huge fan of the Game of Thrones, I would like to thank the cast and crew for putting together such an amazing series. I also want to thank HBO for choosing to air it. A huge thank you to George R.R. Martin for deciding to create this wonderful land full of stories and mysteries for us all to enjoy. Finally, I thank the nerds and geeks for creating such a vibrant culture surrounding this franchise. Thank you.

I end it all by saying this: All hail King Brandon the Broken of the House Stark, the First of His Name, the Three-eyed Raven, King of the Andals, the Rhoynar, and the First Men, Lord of the Six Kingdoms, and Protector of the Realm.

-KatTheLadyNerd

#gameofthrones #seasonfinale #season8 #episode6 #theironthrone #goodbye #branthebroken #queeninthenorth #endofanera #wethegeek #kattheladynerd

P.S. They can end a show, but they can never end the memes.

P.P.S. I will be taking a small break from posting reviews and articles. I have to get caught up on other new and exciting content, but I will be back soon. Stay weird.

The Game of Fire

Yesterday’s episode of Game of Thrones was an eye opening experience for both the viewers and our favorite characters. Not only do we get to see what comes flying down from the sky at the Iron Fleet, but we also learn that no matter how depleted Daenerys Targaryen’s forces are, they will always fight harder than any of Cersei Lannister’s many shiney armies. Let’s find out if my theory of Drogon being clad in Valyrian steel armor holds up.

The fighting doesn’t start right away like in episode 2. Varys takes it upon himself to write a letter to someone about Jon Snow’s true identity as Aegon Targaryen, the rightful heir to the Iron Throne. One of his little birds discloses that Dany refuses to eat out of grief over Missandei’s death. Varys then meets Jon as he arrives on Dragon Stone to discuss his claim to the throne. Jon is still a Stark and maintains his loyalty to Dany as his queen. Tyrion watches this echange from afar and goes directly to Dany to discuss Varys’ treachery. Dany is outraged that Jon told his sisters after she explicitly told him not to, claiming that he is the true traitor. Dany knows that she doesn’t have the heart to punish her love so she decides to put Varys to death by dragon fire to send a message to anyone attempting to belittle her position as queen. At this point, Daenerys only has Tyrion and Jon left as council, and she has lost all trust in both of them.

Immediately after Varys’ execution, Jon goes to Dany as a way of trying to further convince her that he is loyal to her as queen. Dany attempts to make yet another romantic advance toward him, and Jon denies her once more because of his Stark ethics. Dany now feels rejected and embarrassed so she makes the final decision to rule with fear. Dany then holds council with Tyrion and Grey Worm in the Dragonstone throne room. Tyrion pleads to her not to burn King’s Landing during the attack, and Dany heads his plea. She then tells Tyrion that Jaime was captured attempting to make it into King’s Landing to save Cersei. Tyrion then ventures to the front lines to speak with Jaime in secret. Tyrion shares his master plan to save Cersei, Jaime, and their unborn child. He instructs his brother to leave the city through the dragon skull tunnels under the Red Keep and there would be a boat waiting for them to row to Pentos. All Tyrion requests in return is that Cersei rings the city bells indicating surrender. Jaime still has some hope that Cersei will win, but after seeing his brother betray his queen and risk his life for his unborn baby, he accepts the offer and is released.

The following morning, Euron Greyjoy has all of his scorpions locked and loaded, Arya and Sandor head for the Red Keep, Jaime weaves through the frantic city crowds, and both armies face each other ready for battle at the main gate. The suspense builds until we finally see what Dany has in store for the Iron Fleet. Out of the clouds comes not a bird, not a plane, but…a singular, unarmed Drogon? Well, I was expecting a bigger reveal than just basic Drogon, but at least Dany is nose diving at top speed right at Euron’s ships. As Dany demolishes the entire Iron Fleet in Blackwater Bay without taking a single hit from the scorpions, the Golden Company at the gate have no idea what is headed their way. Dany clears the back wall of King’s Landing fro scorpions then tears through the sky blowing out the front gate allowing the Unsullied and

Dothraki soldiers to make their way into the city. Jon and his Northmen follow close behind taking out any Lannister soldiers that resist. As Dany clears the walls of any scorpions, Cersei is showing her first feelings of fear since the lost her son, Tommen. Qyburn tells her that the Iron Fleet is burning and she still believes her men will continue to fight for her. Unfortunately, she is wrong. The Lannister soldiers lay down their weapons in front of Jon as Dany lands with Drogon on a tall city building near the outer wall. The city bells are rung indicating the surrender of Queen Cersei. Dany stares at the Red Keep from atop Drogon and the wrath and rage well in her eyes as she hears the ringing bells. She succumbs to the Targaryen madness without even knowing and begins burning the city to ashes. Civilians are burned alive, slaughtered, and raped by the Dothraki and Northmen as Dany sweeps fire over the entire city making her way to the Red Keep. Jon finally sees just who Dany really is and realizes that she cannot be allowed to rule Westeros because she has become what she hates most: a tyrant.

Meanwhile, Jaime took the long way around and ended up on the beach with the boat for his and Cersei’s escape. Euron Greyjoy crawls out of the ocean only to fight Jaime to keep Cersei. Euron is able to get two good stabs in before Jaime runs him through with his sword. Jaime knows he is a dead man but still goes after Cersei to see her one last time. Qyburn and the Undead Mountain take Cersei and flea the tallest tower of the Red Keep as Dany tears down the outer towers with dragon fire. Everyone is attempting to leave the Red Keep as Sandor and Arya get pretty close to their targets. Sandor commands Arya to turn back stating that Cersei will most likely die from some other cause and that she should consider her own life above all else. Arya thanks Sandor for his friendship and leaves the Red Keep as Sandor trek’s further in the collapsing castle. The Hound finds his brother on a partially destroyed staircase and challenges his old nemesis to the final battle. The Mountain kills Qyburn for getting in the way and The Hound allows Cersei to pass and continue to make her escape. The Hound strikes his brother and knocks his helmet off to reveal a swollen rotting corpse.

Cersei eventually makes it to a courtyard and finds Jaime. The two take off for the underground tunnels following Tyrion’s plan. The Mountain and The Hound continue their family feud and The Hound realizes the only way to kill his brother is by tackling him off the destroyed staircase into a fiery pit of rubble below. Arya makes it out of the Red Keep only to find crowds of scared people running from their imminent death at the hands of the woman she once called queen. Jon decides enough is enough and takes as many troops as he can and falls back out of the city. Arya is trampled by people, crushed by rubble, and surrounded by fire. She tries to help as many civilians as she can but is unable to save anyone as Dany flies overhead spewing fire across the already destroyed homes.

Somehow, Jaime and Cersei are able to make it down to the tunnels only to have all the exit tunnels blocked with debris. With no escape, Jaime comforts his sister and love in their last moments together as the ceiling caves in on top of them, leaving the Red Keep completely demolished. Arya has yet again evaded death only to find a city burning and utterly dead. As if a hallucination, a white horse covered in blood and ash stands several feet from her, waiting for her. She approached the very real horse and rides out of the city, toward her new goal. Arya,

like Jon, realizes Daenerys Targaryen is not the queen they thought she was. The only name left on Arya’s list now is Queen Daenerys Targaryen.

Wow. Just wow. As a viewer, I saw Dany start to slip seasons ago, but if the burning of King’s Landing doesn’t solidify that fact, then I don’t know what will. We lost yet more main characters this episode including Varys, Sandor Clegane, Gregor Clegane, Qyburn, Euron Greyjoy, Cersei Lannister, and Jaime Lannister. We also lost the old Daenerys that we grew to love and want as queen. I have a feeling that she’s going to face the music in the final episode and she won’t be on the Iron Throne for that long. This whole season has built up that Jon is Aegon Targaryen and that he is the rightful heir. This is one of the only instances where the rightful heir doesn’t want the position, is a decent person, and is the one that Westeros wants to rule. My final predictions for this wonderful series as the last episode come upon us are the following: Tyrion will die by Dany’s hands, Arya will kill Dany, Jon will take the Iron Throne, and Sansa will be allowed to rule the North independent from the Seven Kingdoms. Winter has finally reached King’s Landing both literally and metaphorically in the form of Jon Snow.

-KatTheLadyNerd

#gameofthrones #thebells #season8 #episode5 #wethegeek #kattheladynerd