Game of Thrones Season 8 Episode 5 – The Bells

I saw the episode last night and I actually loved it, everything that had been teased, hinted at, came to pass. It was exceptionally well shot and the cinematography was excellent.

Emilia Clarke has progressively gotten better where her acting is concerned and her performance last night was nothing short of spectacular. She conveyed so much just through her expressions, it was amazing.

I’ve seen a lot of people who are deeply unhappy with this episode and that’s cool, you’re entitled to your opinion. Is it rushed, absolutely, but everything about Game of Thrones has been rushed since season 7 began. So now I’m used to it. Did they leave Dany’s devolution too late? Yes they did. Is it rushed? Yes it is. Does it lack in nuances, of course it does and at this point, I don’t expect subtlety and nuance from D&D, I’ve gotten myself to look beyond those faults because that’s the only way I could enjoy it. Having said that, I thoroughly enjoyed last night’s episode, for once D&D didn’t pull any punches.

Dany’s descent into darkness has been foreshadowed over the last 2 seasons, it’s been there all along. I won’t say that she’s gone insane, she hasn’t, she’s just realised that she won’t get the love and adoration that she’s craved and she decided, if not through love, then she’ll rule through fear. Her scene with Jon also highlights this. It also highlights that she’s realised where his loyalties lie. In her mind, he chose his family over her, he chose Sansa over her. She gave him a choice and he made the wrong one.

Add to that, she’s lost a great deal over the last 2/3 episodes, she lost Viserion, Jorah, Rheagal and Missandei over a very short period of time. She’s been nearly stripped of everything that made her special, she’s been stripped of people who genuinely loved her and believed in her and all of that for a war that she needn’t have been so involved in. Because, even after all of that, she still didn’t get what she wanted, the people’s love. She’s experienced nothing but loss ever since she came to Westeros and she’s done playing nice.

I also liked the way the episode was structured, we first see Dany decimate Euron’s fleet and then The Golden Company and up until that point, if you’re a Dany fan, you’re really rooting for her. It follows in the same vein as the previous encounters that we’ve seen with dragons, where she’s clearly fighting someone the audience doesn’t like. She’s taking down Euron and the sell-swords, she’s still the good guy. But then, the perspective shifts, we see what the small folk see and experience when she turns on them after the bells have been rung. She is the dragon, she doesn’t see the difference between a soldier and a civilian, they’re all cannon fodder to her. If she can’t have them through love, she’ll make sure that they’re so terrified of her, no one will ever think of defying her. We see the damage she does with one dragon, I shudder to think what she would have been done with 2.

As far Varys’ end was concerned, we all saw it coming, I just didn’t expect Tyrion to be the one to betray him. Varys saw her tyranny and acted in the interest of the realm and for that, he has my respect.

Tyrion not only betrayed Sansa when he went to Dany, he also condemned Jon. I’ve had a problem with Tyrion since season 7 and this episode just furthered that. He’s been blind and made more errors than anyone can count, he underestimated Cersei, the list goes on. Like Varys, he can see the parts of Dany that are worrisome but unlike him, he chooses to be blind.

If you had any doubts about Pol!Jon, this episode ought to put them at rest. Jon comes to Dragonstone and continues to turn down the throne and refuses to plot against Dany because he’s already involved in a plot except no one knows about it. His problem has been his own arrogance. I know that he thinks he’s playing Dany for the good of the North and his family but she’s not blinded by him any more. His refusal to confide in Sansa and Arya has now come to bite him in the ass. Dany can see that she has been manipulated by him, that when it came to choose, he did not choose her. He’s complicit in the genocide at King’s Landing. As a military man, this is the most dishonourable thing he’s done. Like Tyrion, Jon convinced himself that what he was doing was right and it was the only thing they could do and now he’s well and truly screwed.

I liked that Sandor was able to change Arya’s mind, that she chose to live instead of dying for her vengeance. She’s a child who was forced to grow up too fast but all of that was when she thought that she had lost her family forever. But now she has them back, she has Sansa and Bran (okay, he doesn’t technically count but still) she has her home back, she even has Gendry, should she choose to be with him. She has something to live for now. It was a marked change that while she had gone to KL to kill someone, she ended up trying to save people.

Sandor and Gregor were too closely linked by their hatred for each other for them to have any other conclusion. Sandor had done horrible things but had tried to change and his greatest act wasn’t killing Gregor, it was saving Arya.

Many people were disappointed with Jaime’s decision to ride South to Cersei and, actually, it made sense. The show illustrated to the audience, his capacity to do good but it was underscored by his love for Cersei. He knew she was toxic, but she was also family, he loved her and and she was the mother of his children. He was never going to abandon her. He never regretted his actions, never expressed remorse for them, he went so far as to say that he would do them all again because they were at war.

In the end, Cersei died with her dignity intact and with the audiences sympathising with her in her final moments. The writers humanised her, her terror at her impending death and with no way to stop it. But she didn’t die alone, she was with someone who had loved her through everything and had fought tooth and nail to get to her.

Sansa, sadly, did not appear in this episode but she was referred to so many times that she may as well have been present. Sansa was right all along, all of her fears and concerns were realised in this episode. Dany is a tyrant, Queen of the Ashes. They exchanged one tyrant for a more dangerous one, one with a dragon. It is possible that in the next episode, she goes after Sansa since she’s the only one who’s still defiant and the North still has to be dealt with. She makes the threat crystal clear when she’s executing Varys, “let those who betray her know what will happen to them.”

The promo for next episode only shows us a few seconds from the first few minutes of the show, it would not surprise me if Dany decides to go to Winterfell to deal with Sansa and the North. Alternatively, it is also possible that Dany has her brought to KL (against her will). She already suspected Jon when Tyrion came to her at the beginning of episode 5, it is possible that she took measures to deal with the threat Sansa presented by being proactive and having her brought South without Jon’s knowledge. It would not surprise me if Bronn still has a role to play considering that he was still in the North when Jon and his men left Winterfell to join Dany.

Game of Thrones Season 8 Episode 4 Trailer Breakdown

Judging by Cersei’s costume, we can be fairly certain that these 3 screenshots are from the same sequence. Cersei is in King’s Landing, flanked by Euron, Qyburn and Harry Strickland of the Golden Company. I think she’s making a public statement, in the first screenshot, people are coming out into the streets, I’m guessing they heard that the WW have been defeated (if they were aware of the threat at all) Cersei will probably address them and warm them about Dany coming to KL to take the Iron Throne and burn them all in the process with her dragons.

I think these are connected as well. We’ve actually seen the first 2 shots in the trailers as well. Sansa looks concerned, she knows that now that the NK has been beaten, Dany will go full steam ahead to claim the Iron Throne. Her soldiers are still in Winterfell (or what’s left of it) and Sansa knows that it essentially means that Winterfell is once again occupied by a foreign force. In the 2nd image, I can’t tell if anyone is riding those dragons.

I feel like the scene above and the Sansa shots before that could possibly be connected. Jon, Davos and Tormund appear to be going somewhere with Gilly standing behind them. In this shot, I can’t see if Sam is with them. I know a lot of people expected Jon and Dany to ride Rhegal and Drogon respectively when they go to King’s Landing but that may not happen. For one, Dany no longer trusts Jon and second, it’s reminiscent of when Dany and Jon rode into Winterfell. If they’re taking the ships to KL again, it may make sense to ride to White Harbour and join the rest of the forces. Having said that, I still don’t know why Jon, Davos and Tormund didn’t ride out with the forces if that is the case, why are they riding alone?

The episode will probably begin with this sequence, with the dead being burned, saying a final farewell to those we lost in the battle against the WW. We have Dany, Greyworm, Sam, Jon, Sansa, Arya and Tormund all wielding torches to set the pyres on fire. You can also see Ghost in the first image, just chilling…

This is where Dany says, “We have won the Great War, now we will win the last war.” It’s clear that she’s in the Great Hall at Winterfell and I think she’s addressing her forces. Noticeably absent is Tyrion, since he’s her hand, he should be standing in Varys’ position. Could it mean that his position as Dany’s hand is still precarious? Did Missandei tell Dany that Tyrion seemed quite fond of Sansa in the crypts? Or is it something else completely?

I think this will happen soon after the burning of the dead, a celebration of life. In the 2nd image, you can see Alys Carstark and Yohn Royce among others, raising their glasses to Dany’s toast. You can also see Tormund and Arya near the bottom of the frame and I think I can also spot Brienne but I could be wrong. Noticeably absent in this celebration is Sansa, the Lady of Winterfell, Jon Snow, Davis Seaworth, Tyrion Lannister, Hand of the Queen and Jaime Lannister. The absence of these characters is rather telling.

Could it be that we’ll finally get a scene with Sansa and Jon speaking after his parentage reveal? He needs to tell her the truth, the fact that Davos is missing makes me think that he’ll be present for at least some of the conversation between Jon and Sansa, a secret wedding perhaps???? (I need some Jonsa content desperately)

Maybe Dany becomes suspicious about why all of these people are missing, hence her expression, she looks worried and angry. Or perhaps, Dany thought that the Northern Lords would now be willing to recognise her authority and her claim as Queen of the Seven Kingdoms except that they don’t, they still want their independence (We know no king but the king in the North whose name is Stark and I think we all know which Stark it will be this time)

Dany looks happiest when she’s with her dragons, that’s clearly Drogon behind her and since she is looking at something in the sky, I think that it’s Rheagal coming back to her. I don’t think Jon is riding Rheagal, she stopped smiling at him after the parentage reveal. Important to note, Dany’s costumes are going to reds and greys/black, a clear reference to her House colours, she’s no longer trying to blend in, she doesn’t need to anymore. The WW have been defeated, she doesn’t trust Jon anymore and she doesn’t care about the North and their people beyond the fact that they’re her subjects now

This shot clearly parallels the end of Season 6 with Dany and her allies sailing to Dragonstone. The Targ colours are out in all their glory on the sails and I can’t actually see any other House sigils, something that we saw in the season 6 scene.

It’s telling that at no point in the trailer do we see Tyrion or Jaime, and where the hell is Bronn, wasn’t he heading to Winterfell? Also, what about Jaime’s loyalties now, are they split once again, between his house and Dany? I don’t think he’ll serve Dany, if he does stay back in the North, it will be to serve Sansa and be with Brienne. The only person whose motives I can’t pinpoint is Tyrion and that worries me…

Thoughts, agree/disagree?

Game of Thrones Season 8 Episode 3 – The Long Night

Let me start by saying that the lighting on the show really sucks. In an episode that takes place at night, in the open, it was nearly impossible to see what was happening on screen. Even with the brightness turned up to full, it wasn’t very effective.

Now, onto the episode. To be honest, I’ve never been invested in the Night King and White Walker plot. For one, they’re a boring antagonist and second, it’s a plot point that was stretched way too far. Having said that, D&D subverted a lot of hopes and that, at least, made for an interesting watch.

After watching seven seasons of Game of Thrones, we know that when the audience knows the plan, it’s going to fall apart with a fair amount of certainty and The Long Night was no exception. Jon’s carefully crafted plan began to fall apart nearly from the beginning. For a military commander, he’s not having a very good time.

The Dothraki, even armed with their arakhs on fire, had no idea what they were facing. I actually support Dany jumping into battle and not waiting for the Night King to show up. The Dothraki are her people, they swore loyalty to her and if she were to wait for Jon’s signal, more of her men would have died. If she hadn’t jumped in when she did, the death toll would have been even higher.

The battle was unadulterated chaos and I was actually relieved once we moved inside the walls of Winterfell. We’ve known for a while that Winterfell will be destroyed and that came to pass in this episode.

Sansa, Tyrion, Varys, Missandei and Gilly are all seeking shelter in the crypts. The number of times characters mentioned the crypts being the safest place in Winterfell was a huge red herring, considering that the Night King raises the dead and the crypt is full of old dead Starks. It should have come as no surprise when they rose up as White Walkers. But I did like the interaction between Sansa and Tyrion. The last time they spoke, it ended with a little bit of hostility but this time it felt like closure, for both of them. Still not sure if I trust Tyrion but I’m willing to let it go for this episode. I loved that both Sansa and Tyrion stood up to defend the remaining people from the WW armed only with Dragonglass daggers, even more commendable for Sansa, considering that she’s never wielded a weapon in her life.

As much as I like Missandei, I do wish she hadn’t butted into a private conversation that she wasn’t involved in. I get it, to an extent, she thought that they would be welcomed by the North with open arms only to meet hostility and distrust and that rankles. I’m also guessing that she’s not too fond of Sansa, someone who openly defies Dany but still.

Theon’s end in the episode was well earned. His story had come full circle, he came back to defend the family that he had betrayed, even at the very end, when he knew that he’s about to die, he chose to charge the NK instead of waiting for him to make his move. It was a good death, an honourable one.

Arya killing the NK was not as big a surprise as it should have been, especially since they chose to spoon feed the audience, as soon as Mel said blue eyes, I had a feeling that she was headed to kill the NK.

I loved that while everyone expected either Dany, Jon or Bran to kill the NK, it was actually Arya who was the one to do it. She saved Bran using the very dagger that was meant to have killed him. So much for prophecies and the prince that was promised.

Jorah running into battle to protect Dany and dying in the process was also a worthy end for him. He died protecting the woman he loved and I don’t think he would have wanted it any other way. It was heartbreaking from Dany’s pov because she lost someone who had been with her since the beginning, someone she genuinely and deeply cared about.

Watching Jaime and Brienne fight side by side and constantly protecting each other was satisfying. I’m glad that Gendry, Pod, Tormund, Missandei and Greyworm all made it out alive.

By far, the most useless character in this episode was Jon. His plan failed immediately but I’ll let that slide for the time being. He did nothing of consequence. His sole mission was to protect Bran and he couldn’t even get to him. I’m not saying that I hate the guy, I’m just saying that perhaps he should recognise the fact that he can’t do everything himself, he needs to lean on people who care about him, namely Arya, Sansa and Sam. He has a pack, he doesn’t need to be the lone wolf any more.

Honourable Mentions: Lyanna Mormont, Dolores Edd, Beric Dondarrion, Melissandre, feel free to add more…

Game of Throne Season 8 Episode 2 – A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms

We’re two episodes down and still being set-up for episode 3, the battle between the dead and the living. As far as episodes go, this one was better than the first, in that, the characters and their dynamic are more clearly defined.

Quick stuff:

I loved Brienne and Jaime in this episode. I also liked Tormund and I hope all three make it out alive (unrealistic, I know) One of the absolute highlights of the episode was Brienne being knighted by Jaime. You could see how much it meant to her.

Missandei and Greyworm are most certainly doomed. They’re probably the healthiest ship on the show. They are both devoted to D@ny and fiercely loyal but for the first time, we saw them contemplate a future just for themselves. Neither is happy at Winterfell, they aren’t accepted and they can see it. They want a life for themselves, away from the Seven Kingdoms.

The scene in the great hall where Podrick was singing, was oddly reminiscent of Lord of the Rings where Pippin was singing. The two scenes are vastly different in terms of treatment and mood but the songs were very similar.

Arya and Gendry. Okay, I know that a lot of people were uncomfortable with the scene but I actually liked it. It was Arya taking control, deciding what she wanted. In that regard, it was one of the more healthy love-making scenes on the show.

And since, we’re talking about couples, Arya and Gendry’s feelings are largely conveyed through looks and banter and D&D managed to do that in two episodes. Now compare that with Jon and D@ny and their dynamic, while one can see that D@ny is clearly invested, it’s hard to get a glimpse of Jon where he doesn’t look constipated. The Arya and Gendry scenes further illustrate that the writers and directors do know how to write and direct romantic couples, so the fact that Jon and D@ny don’t look like one, is likely done on purpose to let the audiences know that there’s something not quite right between these two.

Now, onto Jon, Sansa and D@ny.

Jon wasn’t present for much of the episode and even when he was, he didn’t actually contribute a lot. He spent most of the time avoiding D@ny and only met her when she found him in the crypts.

This episode made it abundantly clear just how much of an outsider D@ny is. She is way out of her depth and she has no clue how to navigate these waters. It’s downhill for her from the very beginning of the episode. It also sets up Sansa as her clear adversary, she is everything than D@ny isn’t.

Let’s look at the Jaime scene. D@ny is bent upon roasting him alive and doesn’t listen to Tyrion when he says that if Jaime rode all the way North, knowing full well about his reception and still chose to do so, means that he can be trusted. D@ny refuses to listen to him and actually berates him, her own Hand.

Now, contrast that with Brienne standing up for Jaime. Sansa has cause to hate Jaime and yet when Brienne defends him, she agrees to trust him because Brienne does. Her advisors opinions are important to her and she actually listens to them. I loved that once decided, Sansa just gets up and leaves, not waiting to be dismissed and not caring what anyone else got up to. It’s a power move and I loved the attitude.

This even comes up when D@ny comes to meet Sansa later and wishes that she could trust her advisors the way Sansa trusts hers. Also, I love Yohn Royce for staying until dismissed by Sansa, he doesn’t give 2 shits about D@ny, he doesn’t move till Sansa nods to let him know that it’s okay.

That entire interaction is so telling. For the first time, D@ny is trying to make an effort, clearly because Jorah advised her to and it still doesn’t go her way. It’s important to watch Sansa in this scene. She is unmoved and unimpressed when D@ny starts listing all their similarities. When D@ny asks why they’re at odds with another, Sansa opens her mouth to respond but D@ny cuts her off and says Jon. And this is where the scene shifts. There is a disdain in Sansa’s voice when she says that men do stupid things for women, when they’re in love, they’re easily manipulated. D@ny replies that she gave up her active quest for the Iron Throne and came North to fight the AotD. You can see Sansa’s face, her entire expression shifts, there is a relief, a lightness there that wasn’t present earlier. This, in my opinion, is our most clear clue that Pol!Jon is real and that Sansa realises that not only did Jon heed her advice but he also learned to be smarter. It also makes it obvious to me that Jon and Sansa do harbour feelings for each other.

What we see after that exchange is Sansa putting on a front. She laughs to dispel the tension and put D@ny at ease. Not for long though, the tension is back and thicker than before when D@ny essentially says North will no longer be independent. Even after hearing how hard fought their freedom was.

They’re interrupted by Theon’s arrival, another scene that further demonstrates that while D@ny may be “queen”, Sansa is the one most people look to. D@ny‘s expression when Sansa and Theon greet is heartbreaking actually. She yearns for admiration and love from those around her and doesn’t get it. And here is Sansa, not a queen, not even a regent, she’s not special in any form and yet those around her are loyal to her not out of fear but out of love and respect.

In the crypts, when Jon tells D@ny that he’s Aegon Targaryen, she immediately thinks of Jon’s claim to the Iron Throne. It doesn’t matter that just a few minutes ago, she was madly in love with this man and trusted him. She doesn’t take the news well at all.

The scene where they’re discussing battle strategies, Sansa and Jon are framed next to each other, Arya is right next to Jon, it would not have been hard to include her in the frame and then you could say that they were framed as a family unit and yet that didn’t happen. It’s worth noting that Brienne and Jaime are also framed as a couple. This is no accident. It was also telling that Jon didn’t interact once with Sansa. In fact, he can’t bring himself to look at her and makes sure to seat D@ny in the middle, almost as if he’s putting space between him and Sansa. Now, why would he do that if all he felt for her was brotherly love?

GAME OF THRONES SEASON 8 TRAILER ANALYSIS

The trailer is finally out and it’s… underwhelming. I can understand why though.

Okay, analysis time:

I am certain that pretty much everything we see is from the first half of the season, specifically till episode 3, the episode where the Battle for Winterfell takes place.

The trailer even starts with what a scene from episode 3 with Arya running through Winterfell. The makers have been so incredibly tight-lipped about the show’s final season that I’m half surprised that we even got a trailer for it. Not surprisingly, it gives us nothing that we didn’t already know would happen.

Jon and D riding towards Winterfell with the forces on their horses. They should look regal but don’t.

It’s stunning how there’s no chemistry between them, no sense of familiarity or comfort. If one didn’t know better, one could think that they were strangers who had only just met. We see them together, in one more scene, in the crypts, and even there, Jon is stiff and don’t look at her. He seems to do that a lot. They look as stiff and incompatible as ever. The promo photographs didn’t do them any favours and neither does the trailer.

We also see Sansa, on the battlements as she sees the dragons fly over Winterfell and while she does look awed and impressed, she doesn’t look scared. I’d be inclined to think that both shots of her in the trailer are from the same episode, but her costume has tiny differences.

The ascot is missing in the first still. She looks contemplative in the 2nd, as if looking at something in the distance and lost in thought. (Also, Sophie Turner looks stunning)

It is some measure of good news to see that Tormund, Edd and Beric survive the demolition of the wall. They also appear to back at Winterfell which means that Jon and Co know, not only that the wall was destroyed but that it was destroyed by a dragon. I’m sure that went down well.

We see Sam and Bran, deep in conversation, presumably in the very first episode, still mulling over their discovery and how to deal with it. We also see Jaime and I’m certain he’s at Winterfell. We see him fighting at Winterfell. His dialogue is also telling, “I promised to fight for the living, I intend to keep that promise.” It’s possible he’s speaking those lines Jon, considering that their families have been trying to kill each other for some time now. It also mirrors what he told Cersei when he told her that he would be riding North.

The others featured in the trailer are the following: Missandei, Greyworm, Varys, Tyrion, Jorah Mormont, Davos, Podrick and Brienne. Missandei and Greyworm kiss and look very much in love. I also think it spells their doom. I fear that neither is long for the world.

I’m actually surprised that Tyrion was featured in the trailer only once and had no dialogue.

The two people completely missing from the trailer are Theon and Euron and that is no accident. I think neither will be involved in the Battle for Winterfell. Theon is on his way to King’s Landing to rescue Yara and Euron is on his way to secure the Golden Company for Cersei.

The one person who really worries me is Cersei. Her scenes featured in the trailer are the most mystifying. She has a smug smile on her face when she’s standing with Qyburn and her teary-eyed smile later, i think that might be one of the few scenes from an episode after ep3. I am even more convinced about the Kidnap plot.

Then there’s this scene:

I brightened it up and I can still barely see who’s in it. Cersei is clearly seated on the throne, Qyburn is standing on the right with the Mountain on the left. The person below the throne, appears to be dressed in gold or something that reflects the light, with their hands tied behind their back. It also appears to be a man, judging by the trousers that are also visible. The person next to that guy is the one I can’t be sure of. At first, I thought it was Varys, standing with his arms folded behind his back. But the silhouette isn’t right. There are people theorizing that it’s Sansa. But if that’s the case, she would standing right in front of Cersei and not off to the side and the hair also appears to be different. The placement doesn’t seem right to me.

The person in front of her, could also be the person who managed to get Sansa out of Winterfell and deliver her into Cersei’s clutches but even then, it doesn’t make sense for Sansa to stand to the side, if that is indeed Sansa to begin with. Don’t get me wrong, I believe that the Kidnap plot will come to pass, I’m just not convinced that’s Sansa.

The trailer does a great job of showing us just enough without spoiling anything.That has to be a first. I’m also surprised by how little we had of Jon and D. It is also telling that the trailer showed us NO scenes of Jon interacting with Arya, Bran or Sansa, or even Sam for that matter. That’s not realistic. He only just found out that not only are Arya and Bran both alive but that they’re also at Winterfell, there’s no way he doesn’t go to see them. He loves Sam like a brother, so also, why not a reunion scene. And we know that he does run into Sansa’s arms as soon as he enters through the gates of Winterfell so why not put that into the trailer?

To be honest, this trailer raises more questions than it answers them…

Game of Thrones Season 8 Speculation

I’ve been thinking about this for a while and something struck me. This is in relation to those leaked set images that show Jon kneeling to Cersei Lannister. Most people are assuming that he does this because she kidnaps Sansa and he’s forced to travel south and bend the knee to make sure that Sansa is safe.

However, this assumption throws up some questions, for instance, how did Cersei manage to kidnap Sansa from Winterfell? Sansa is the Lady of Winterfell and currently Queen in the North and furthermore, her people respect and admire her. Add to that, Arya is back at Winterfell, before long Brienne will reach her as well. And even though Jon is travelling with Dany, we know just how much he prizes Sansa’s safety. So when she’s surrounded by so many people who are more than capable of keeping her safe, how will Cersei manage to kidnap her?

I think this is where Tyrion will come into play. We’ve seen him get pushed to the sidelines by Dany now that she’s agreed to help Jon and his cause. We’ve also seen him look less-than-pleased by the turn of events (boatbang) Holding the camera on his expression was a deliberate choice and it lasts too long to not have some significance. Once their convoy reaches Winterfell, we will see Tyrion’s dissatisfaction grow even more. Most GA like Tyrion and ShowTyrion is way more likeable than BookTyrion (for the sake of clarity I will be only be talking about ShowTyrion in this post) Prior to joining Dany, Tyrion had hit rock bottom, he had just killed his father and Shae and was a fugitive on the run.

Tyrion also has a few very key weak spots. One is that he’s scared of being expendable and not being of any consequence, and he likes having power. Now, he’s not power-mad like Cersei and a certain other queen who loves titles, but he does have a taste for it. And despite being unwanted by his father, he’s grown up with power at his disposal. He won’t like that he’s been set aside in favour of someone else, someone he never imagined would come to have so much influence over Dany. And he resents that loss of power.

Tyrion also has a soft-spot for his family and unlike Cersei, he gets blind-sided by it. Cersei hates Tyrion and she embraces it, she makes no bones about it. But it’s not so clear cut for Tyrion. He may have hated Joffrey but he felt genuine affection for Tommen and Myrcella. And now that Cersei is pregnant again, she plays into his weak-spot. We don’t see how their conversation concludes and it was too important to have been just cut-off like that. If we didn’t see it conclude then we can safely assume that it will have some influence on future events.

So, resenting his loss of station and whatever it is that he and Cersei decided will lead him to kidnap Sansa. Also keep in mind, Sansa trusts him, she thinks that he won’t hurt her. But like her, he too has changed and is no longer as noble as he’d like to think. He is the only person I think who could kidnap Sansa and get her out of Winterfell.

Now, onto Jon bending the knee to Cersei in King’s Landing. That too looks like a misdirect. Sansa tells Jon time and again that Jon must make smarter choices. Their father’s honour will not help them in the wars to come and I think we can safely assume that Jon is following that advice (Political!Jon) The other thing she tries to stress is just how dangerous Cersei is and that they can’t afford to underestimate her. I think Jon believes her. When he realises that Sansa has been taken, his first impulse will be to ride south. But that’s precisely what he did when he saw Rickon on the battlefield (Battle of the Bastards) and almost died and lost his entire army. Sansa had told him then as well that they won’t get Rickon back, he ignored her and nearly died. He won’t make that same mistake again.

This is where Brienne and Jaime come in. Jaime has been trying to live a more honourable existence and season 7 finally saw breaking away from the toxic relationship he shares with Cersei. Brienne is sworn to protect Sansa and Jamie will not let her go into King’s Landing alone, considering that he knows that place far better than she does. I think the Hound will play some part in this as well, and this is how he will finally face his brother and kill him once and for all. I have a feeling that Arya will have to stay at Winterfell, they can’t have almost all the Starks so deep in enemy territory.

So while, Jon makes sure that all of Cersei’s attention is focused on him, Jaime, Brienne and the Hound will infiltrate King’s Landing and rescue Sansa.

Realising that Sansa has been taken could also be how Jon finally faces his feelings for her, accepts them for what they are and will act on them when he gets her back.

Sansa Stark vs Cersie Lannister – Part 2

I’ve already written one meta about Cersie and Sansa which you can read here.

Having seen all of Season 7, I have to say I am even more convinced that the final showdown must be between Sansa and Cersie for a number of reasons.

First off, there are parallels, both Sansa and Cersie are usually overlooked and underestimated by those around them. Dany doesn’t suffer from this because of her dragons, but neither of these two women have that luxury. They are both ordinary (and I use that term very loosely) women who have nothing but their wits to keep them alive. They have had to become smart in order to survive. Cersie had to do it because she was stuck in a love-less marriage with Robert, a man who never really had any ambition to be king and was therefore not as careful as one might have been had they cared about the position. Cersie also knew what had happened to Rhaegar’s wife and children and would not let that happen to herself or her children. In the earlier seasons, her entire focus is on the survival of her family and all her actions lead to that. Sansa, on the other hand, had to learn because her very survival depended on it. She had no alternatives, no protectors, no one to speak up for her.

There was something else that struck me as I was starting this meta, in a way, Cersie was a surrogate mother to Sansa. It makes sense, Sansa was twelve when she went to KL and her mother did not accompany the two young girls, which in itself if quite strange. And before Ned lost his head, Cersie made herself into a mother figure for Sansa. Sansa looked up to her and admired her, wanted to be like her. After Ned’s death, Sansa’s life became a living nightmare but, in a weird way, she still had Cersie who would occasionally advise her, in a way a mother would (albeit it was otten harshly delivered, but that did not lessen the importance of the advice itself). It was Cersie who told Sansa that she could try to love Joffrey, implying that he was already a monster and even Cersie could not always control him. In her most formative years, it wasn’t Ned or Catelyn who were with Sansa, it was Cersie. I’ve also stated that, in those early years, she did care for Sansa, in her own twisted way. This gives Sansa an insight into the kind of women she really is which is why there is a part of Sansa that does admire her, because she’s survived where other, more able players have not.

Game of Thrones has been setting up Tyrion as a master strategist and this season just served to illustrate that that reputation may have been premature. He pledged to serve Dany and help her become queen of the Seven Kingdoms and was outmaneuvered time and again by Cersie. In the beginning when Dany’s war council were going over plans of taking KL, it seemed like a great plan, using Westerosi forces to take KL and the Unsullied to take Casterly Rock but while he was feeling smug, he forgot that he was dealing with Cersie. Cersie who learned from her father who was indeed a great strategist. Even at the end, she played both her brothers, especially Tyrion. That entire conversation is a very finely staged performance on Cersie’s part. Every action and word was carefully chosen. When she placed her hand on her stomach, it felt so out-of-character for her. This is Tyrion, she doesn’t trust him, she doesn’t even like him but she does have him figured out. She knew that he did genuinely love Tommen and Myrcella and he does regret that they died. Here’s another thing to consider, Tyrion does have a blindspot where his family is concerned. He hates his sister but she is his sister, there will always be a part of him that sees her through the lenses of a younger brother. Cersie has no such concerns, she would burn the world down and happily watch it burn.

Which brings us to Sansa. We spent the entire season worried sick over whether Sansa would indeed betray her family. Of course, the makers never gave any proof to set up that betrayal but that’s besides the point. If Tyrion was Cersie adversary, LF was Sansa’s. As we found out at the end, Sansa’s problems from the beginning were the handiwork of LF, if not for him Robert would not have come North and would not have betrothed Sansa and Joffrey. The Starks would have stayed home, healthy and whole. But LF’s hunger for power got the entire plot going. He then betrayed Ned and then used and abused Sansa. Sansa suffered some of the worst abuse at the hand of the Boltons and that match was arranged by none other than LF. Like Tyrion (and mind you I love him) LF also has too high an opinion of himself, he’s started believing his own publicity. Throughout this season, he tried to sow the seeds to dissent, first between Jon and Sansa and then between Sansa and Arya. And it would have worked except all season, LF was telling Sansa to think about the bigger picture, to view everyone with suspicion and always play out scenarios in her head so that nothing ever surprises her. This was great advice, except LF thought that for some reason, he was exempt from all these scenarios. Killing him would have been easy but to do so without losing the support of the Knights of the Vale, that was going to be exceedingly tricky. That scene where LF finally meets his end, that too is very carefully constructed, it’s the Knights of Vale who line the Great Hall with Lord Royce present, who already didn’t like him very much but couldn’t openly oppose him for fear of Sweet Robin. She sets him up perfectly, so much so that he never sees it coming.

So Season 7 saw both Cersie and Sansa outplay men who thought themselves to be smarter than the women they were trying to manipulate..

It also set them up in contrast to each other. In Season 6, Cersie burned down the Sept with all those people inside, not to mention all the collateral damage. Whereas Sansa was more worried whether they had enough food to make sure that everyone would be fed and they could take in refugees when the fight against the WW really came. She takes a personal interest when she really doesn’t need to and her people see this. This is evident when Arya comes to Winterfell and the two sentries don’t want to bother Lady Sansa, not because they’re scared but because, in a strange way, they’re protective of her.

Season 7 has so far established 3 main groups, Dany and her quest for the IT, Cersie and her quest for who-knows-what and the North that just wants its own independence and also survive both the WW and Cersie. I’ve stated multiple times that I don’t see Jon retain his crown in Season 8 which makes Sansa the QitN. Jaime recently left Cersie and rode North to fight against the WW and while there he will join Sansa and not Dany. Dany burned his men alive, he doesn’t like her and he doesn’t trust her. Jaime redemption arc started when he was paired with Brienne and tasked with getting the Stark girls safely delivered to their family. Plus he knows Sansa, he knew her father and mother and while he may not have liked them very much, I believe he does respect them. I personally can’t wait for him to meet Sansa and see the capable woman that she’s grown into. Jaime is often blinded by his love for Cersie but he’s starting to see that most of it may have been one-sided. When it is time to make a final choice as to who he will support, I believe he will pick Sansa, simply because she’s the better candidate. The fight against the WW will end with the elimination of one of the groups and I don’t believe it will be the Starks. They’re the protagonists of the series. I believe that Cersie will make it out alive as well with Dany sacrificing herself in the fight against the WW.

In the Starks vs Cersie battle, there will be one key difference from the BotB, Jon will seek out and heed Sansa’s counsel when it comes to how best deal with Cersie.

Anyway, that’s what I think and this post got way longer than I thought it would, but I hope it makes sense.