This entire season of Game of Thrones has been a roller coaster of sorts; it has had its peaks and it has had its lows. Thinking over all the episodes of this past season, I am faced with ambivalence. Some of the episodes did wonders towards progressing the story while others felt stale and didn’t seem to offer much. And to the many of us yearning for a bloody battle, our hunger was satiated last week. Though, with such a penultimate set of events occurring in the ‘Battle of Bastards’, how would a season finale even follow suite. Well, it turns out all it had to do was simply give us two things – death and revelations. And also, a really good soundtrack.
King’s Landing
As the bell from the Sept clangs ominously in the background, we see scenes of Margaery, Cersei, High Sparrow, and Tommen getting outfitted as it is the day of the Loras’s and Cersei’s trial. As the trial goes underway, Loras confesses to all his “crimes” and asks to be made one of the Sparrows so as to be a living example of the grace bestowed upon him by the Seven Gods. This is where it gets bit cringe-worthy, as the High Sparrow agrees to his wishes, and then proceeds to have that the symbol of the Faith Militant carved into his forehead in front of everybody. After this brutish spectacle, everyone waits patiently for both Tommen and Cersei, with neither showing up. The High Sparrow sends Lancel and some members of the Faith Militant to pick her up from the Red Keep. As they walk out of the Sept, they come across a little boy running down the stairs, and for some unknown instinctive reason, Lancel decides to pursue after this boy. Parallel to this, we see Grand Maester Pycelle being lured by one of Qyburn’s little birds. And this is where we see Cersei’s plan unfold.
Pycelle is brutally murdered, almost in a Caesar-like manner as he’s lured into Qyburn’s lair and stabbed a hundred times by the little birds. Lancel pursues the little boy into a dark underground catacomb (of sorts), only to be cut across the back of the leg and left for dead. He somehow manages to survive the stab wound but finds himself in the midst of barrels filled with Wildfire. He crawls towards a light in the distance only to find out that it’s a small pool of wildfire with candles in the centre. He drags himself towards the candles as fast as he can but in the usual Game of Thrones fashion, it was too late. A massive explosion engulfs and burns everyone in the Sept and a bit of the surrounding area. Tommen, who is prevented from leaving his room by The Mountain, watches from his bedroom window as he sees the fire rage and spread, and hears the echoes of screams and cries. Racked with guilt and knowing that the deaths of thousands lay on his shoulders, including that of Margaery, he promptly takes off his crown and jumps out the window to his death.
Cersei won. She did away with all those who stood in her path and in the most devastating manner possible. One could argue it was a pyrrhic victory for she lost her son, indirectly by her own hands, but even when she views his corpse she seems unperturbed. Throughout the seasons, we always knew Cersei to be viciously ambitious and headstrong when it came to gaining control of the Iron Throne, but not to this extent. We see a new side to her — a darker side. This is made all the more prominent when Jaime returns from capturing Riverrun, and he sees her ascend the throne. They share glances but it isn’t one of longing endearment; rather it is of visceral hate. Cersei has taken the throne and everything else is either a part of the plan or collateral damage, and Jaime knows that. This will definitely affect their dynamics and it’s going to be interesting to see how their relationship unfolds due to these events
The Riverlands
We see the Freys celebrate the return of Riverrun with a glorious feast. Walder Frey and Jaime exchange words (this is before he returned to King’s Landing), with Walder trying to insinuate that in some way that they are alike. Jaime, angered by this, retorts by stating that people fear the Lannisters more and what good are the Freys to the Lannisters if they always have to go and fight the Frey’s battles. Shortly after, the Lannister troops head back to King’s Landing.
Soon after, we are shown that Walder is all alone in that large hall with no one to keep his company. But like the bitter human being he is, he doesn’t care and asks the serving girl to bring him food as well as to tell his twins to join him. He’s brought a plate of meat pie, and as the serving girl gives him a slice, he asks again where are his twins. The girl replies they are there, and points to the pie. An addled Wadler is met with even a greater surprise as the girl peels off her face to reveal that she is Arya Stark. And in a morbid ironic moment, we see Walder’s throat sliced open, in the same manner that Catelyn was killed. What’s truly disturbing is to see the dead look Arya has in her eyes while doing all of this, and even the final moments where it almost feels like she wants to wants to smile but holds back. We see what the training throughout the season has done to here, and this scene was a showcase of the killer that Arya has always wanted to be and now is.
Bran’s Visions
Benjen drops off Bran and Meera as far as he can, for he states that The Wall is infused with magic and doesn’t allow the dead to get too close to, or cross, it. Coincidentally, he happens to drop them off near a Weirwood tree, and Bran being the obstinate person he is, decides to give the whole vision gimmick another shot on his own. He is transported back to the Tower of Joy and he witnesses a young Ned Stark make his way up the tower, and finally clarifying the one theory that most of the Game of Thrones fandom had pegged from a while ago. R+L=J. As Ned enters the tower’s room, he finds his sister, Lyanna, on a bed with her clothes and bed sheets drenched in blood — her blood. She’s alive but not for long and she is more than happy to see Ned in her last moments. She’s dying from childbirth but she needs Ned to take care of the baby. As Ned leans over, she whispers “His name is…” and begs him to ensure that Robert never finds out about the baby.
To those of you unfamiliar with the R+L=J theory, it’s a notion that Jon Snow is the child Lyanna and Rhaegar Targaryen. The reason she doesn’t want Robert to find out is because Robert slayed Rhaegar in the Battle of Trident, and that Robert would have anyone who was directly related to Rhaegar killed. The theory also states that Rhaegar never kidnapped and left Lyanna in the Tower of Joy but rather that they eloped together. And also, since the Targaryens were the ones on the throne at the time of the Robert’s Rebellion, this would have made Jon all the more the rightful heir to the Iron Throne, which would be a definite no-no for Robert.
Now, the really dumb part of the whole scene was that they kind of didn’t reveal it completely but hinted at it in the least subtle way possible. Basically, they show a close-up of the baby’s face, and they slowly zoom in, and then the screen fades to Jon’s sitting in the Winterfell Castle. I really don’t get why they couldn’t just blatantly state it, but then again Game of Thrones is anything but direct. Another thing I found incredibly annoying was the whole bit in which Lyanna is whispering to Ned, and for some reason, Bran decides to NOT go closer and hear what she was saying to Ned. Ah, plot conveniences.
Winterfell
The scene starts off with Melisandre and Jon exchanging a few words and reminiscing a little bit about Jon’s childhood. The nostalgia is cut short as Davos strides into the room and confronts Melisandre about burning Princess Shireen. The Red Priestess doesn’t deny it, and Davos wants her executed for murder. Melisandre retorts that she isn’t afraid to die but that Jon needs her in the fight against the White Walkers. She mentions that it was through the Lord of Light’s doing that she was able to resurrect Jon. Davos, with anger in his voice and rage masking his face, replies that any god that needs little girls burnt is not a righteous god. It’s at this point we, the viewers, see the duality of Melisandre and the mysticism that’s prominent throughout the series. That sometimes the very thing that favours the good guys isn’t necessarily on the side of good.
We see Jon stuck at a crossroad. On one hand, he should have her executed for such a dastardly crime, but on the other hand, Melisandre is a person who truly believes in her magic and it’s worked before (case in point – Jon Snow), and to execute her after all she has done for them, this would not be the best way to show gratitude. So Jon finds a middle ground, he banishes her. He tells her to ride South and that if she ever returns North, she will be executed instantly; Davos even remarks that the deed would be by his own hands.
Following up from this, we see everyone seated in the hall of Winterfell. Loud discourse bellows through the hall as the various houses and Wildlings argue over what to do now. And this is where we see the badassery of Lady Mormont shine the most. It would be the greatest disservice to even describe the next scene for it is something that needs to be seen first-hand. As the knights and lords bicker among themselves, Lady Mormont stands up and cuts through the bickering with a powerful speech. She admonishes Lord Glover and Lord Manderly for not giving Jon the help he needed even after they swore allegiance to the Starks. She proceeds to tell everyone in that room, that regardless of whether Jon is a bastard or not, he will always be the true king of the North.
Silence cloaks the air as everyone looks at each other, for they got schooled by a little girl who probably has more gall than all of them combined. It is then that both Manderly and Glover ask for forgiveness and claim that Jon is the king of the North. And next thing you know, the whole room is filled with unsheathed swords being thrust into the air with the chant ‘KING OF THE NORTH’ roaring from each person’s mouth. It was a truly goosebump-inducing moment. It’s not often you see scenes like this in Game of Thrones but when they do happen, it is nothing less than inspiring.
Bay of Dragons
Before beginning the long voyage to Westeros, Daenerys has a word with Daario. She needs him to stay back at the Slaver city and ensure the peace lasts. Of course, Daario is none too happy about this but after a few exchanging of words, he understands that his presence would be a liability for what lies ahead for her in Westeros. Shortly after, she makes Tyrion the Official Hand of the Queen. We then see hundreds and hundreds of ships outfitted with the Targaryen flags and mounts sail across the ocean. Daenerys is at the helm and a great battle awaits her but she is nothing short of allies and resources. She has the Greyjoy naval forces. She has the Dothraki army. She also has the assistance of the Sand Snakes and the Tyrells, all made possible with the diplomatic prowess of Varys. And most of all, she has three dragons at her beck and call. There is a war coming and Daenerys is nothing short of battle-ready.
As I said in the beginning of this recap, this episode was filled to the brim with various plots, and it’s going to be an absolute delight to witness how they all intersect in the coming seasons. And more than plot points, I’m more excited to see how the characters develop and adapt to their new situations; especially Cersei and Arya. Both of them have become what they needed to be but the question is – will the cost of doing so ever catch up to them? And let’s not forget, there’s still the case of the White Walkers, and their presence is bound to change the way the other houses and factions decide who their imminent threat is.
The script writing for this episode was on point but none of it would have been as gripping if not for the creative direction style of Miguel Sapochnik. He directed the Battle of Bastards episode, and we all know how epic that was. It’s one thing to make a battle look like a masterpiece but it’s pure skill when you can make each scene in a whole episode engaging. Especially with the way he used particular soundtracks to accentuate the momentum of some scenes; this is most noticeable for the whole lead up to the Wildfire explosion. I’ve never been one to pay attention to the score but this is the first time I’ve actually been drawn in and it is nothing less than mesmerising.
When writing this recap, I genuinely was confused how to go about it. And even as I write this conclusion, I still am. How do I do justice to such an episode? I can merely put my thoughts to words but even that doesn’t drive home the point about how grandiose this finale was. That’s what this finale did, it left me lost for words. The writers and Miguel were able to conclude a rocky season in the best way possible, with plenty to see in the coming years. If you haven’t seen the episode yet, and if you’re reading this, I still implore you to watch it because, more than the reveals, it was the execution of it all that brought it together.
“The true enemy won’t wait out the storm, he will bring the storm.” – Jon Snow
