Tyrion is marching through the remains of King's Landing. It looks like a nuclear bomb went off. Charred corpses and rubble litter the landscape. It's a hellish scene and the pain it's causing him is written across his face. He's also haunted by the fact that what was left of his family is lying dead beneath the Red Keep.
Along side him marches Jon Snow and Ser Davos Seaworth. Both are horrified that the queen they chose to follow was capable of such wanton destruction. They come across Greyworm and the Unsullied indulging in summary executions of the King's Guard survivors. Jon tries to stop the violence to no avail.
Bravely climbing into the ruins of the Red Keep is Tyrion and eventually he finds what he was looking for. The bodies of his brother Jaime and his sister Cersei. Crushed beneath the rubble in an embrace. As close in death as they were in life. It's a brutal moment as we watch poor Tyrion collapse in sadness.
On the edge of the city Arya is searching for Jon and finds him among Daenerys' army. Her surviving Dothraki and Unsullied are waiting for her to return to claim her Throne while Jon is dreading the prospect of seeing her again. As if on cue Drogon swoops down from the clouds and a victorious Daenerys Targaryen appears.
The hypocritical yoke then proceeds to speak about how she will continue her mission to free all the slaves of Westeros from her position as it's new leader. If she cares so much about the common folk then why did she kill so many of them. She's a broken person capable of seeing the atrocity she dealt out as nothing to worry about.
As her speech finishes a weary and broken Tyrion steps into her line of sight and turns his back on her. He'll no longer be her right hand man. He's had enough. Her razing of King's Landing was the final straw. She knows he freed Jaime and so has him taken prisoner and locked up. To no doubt be burned like Varys was.
She turns to Jon Snow and looks at him like he's dogshit on her shoe. Her victory has just left a sour taste in her mouth. Then Jon realises Arya is beside him. He assumed she was in Winterfell. She's bloodied and bruised but she's alive and she warns Jon that Sansa will never accept Daenerys as a Queen of the north.
She also warns Jon that Daenerys will always see him as a threat to her leadership. Arya knows people and can spot a killer from a mile away. Jon is warned to be very wary. Listen to her!!
Jon visits Tyrion in his cell and finds a man very accepting of his impending doom. Tyrion pleads with Jon to accept his fate as the next in line to the Throne but gullible Jon stubbornly sticks with his view that Daenerys is queen.He's troubled though and radiating the sense that he's not quite sure what he believes.
Tyrion asks Jon would he have done the same thing had he been on a dragon above King's Landing. He says he doesn't know but we all do. He would have done the right thing. Tyrion's words are clawing their way into his brain. Let's hope he doesn't ignore them.
Daenerys has found the throne room. She's finally here. She's finally going to sit in the chair she's been aiming towards all her life. A chair she does not deserve. A chair stained by the spilled blood of thousands of innocents.
Jon finds her in there after he passes by Drogon waiting for her below. The dragon lets him pass when he recognises Jon. He can smell the Targaryen blood pumping in his veins.
Oddly she's pleased to see Jon this time. Maybe the buzz of the throne room has changed her temperament. Maybe she's thinking of the vision she once had of this room in the House of the Undying all the way back in season 2. Whatever it is she's a content looking lady.
Jon pleads with her to forgive Tyrion but she's having none of it. She's sticking to her guns. She's made up her mind to rule using fear. Jon wants her to rule using love but it's at this moment he realises that she is truly the wrong person for the job.
They kiss and he knifes her in the heart. She dies painlessly in his arms. This was his mercy to her. To let her go easily and save the 7 kingdoms from her rule. As she dies something inside him breaks that may never heal.
Drogon senses the woman who raised him is dead and flies up to find her lying in a pool of blood. An angry dragon is a sight to behold. Seeing the sword in her chest he takes out his rage on the throne of swords before him. The throne melts as he carries the body of his queen into the sky. An unharmed Jon is left to face the music.
She deserved that death. After last week there was no coming back for her and this was the best way she was going to go out.Her story had come full circle. A Targaryen leader had followed through on a promise to torch the city, just like her father had tried to do years before.
Weeks later Tyrion is freed from his captivity and brought before a meeting of the heads of Westeros's leaders. Sansa is there with Arya & Bran. Gendry represents Storm's End. Brienne of Tarth is there. Sam of the Tarley's and even freaky Robin Arryn is alongside Yara Greyjoy & Ser Davos.
Sansa wants Jon Snow freed but the Unsullied and Yara Greyjoy want his head. Tyrion mentions that only a King or Queen can decide Jon's fate. But there isn't a King or Queen anymore. Tyrion suggests Bran as king. As the son of Ned Stark he has a right. And as the Three Eyed Raven aka the repository of all knowledge he'd be a great ruler.
He's a popular pick. Everyone agrees apart from Sansa who'll give him the nod if the North can become it's own kingdom. He agrees, she gives his rule her blessing and just like that little Bran Stark becomes the new King of Westeros. Bran the broken is in charge. He'll be a benevolent leader. Westero is in for a big ol' dose of peace.
Bran's first decree is to make Tyrion the new Hand Of The King. It's a position Tyrion does not want but Bran basically blackmails him into it. A furious Greyworm is the only one who doesn't agree and so the Unsullied won't have a part to play in Westeros going forward.
Jon's punishment is to be sent back to the Night's Watch. He's heading back North. The place where he felt most at home. He's still torn over killing Daenerys but his guilt will eventually fade when he realises how many people were saved by his act of violence.
Before he leaves to head North he says goodbye to his Stark family once again. It's a bittersweet moment. They all survived but all 4 are going their separate ways. Jon to the wall. Sansa to Winterfell. Bran is staying in King's Landing and Arya has decided to head west to see what lies across the water from Westeros.
In my head they'll all meet up in the future. This won't be the last time they are all together. They'll all be ok. They'll all thrive. Each will be a success in their own way. We won't see it but it will happen.
Ser Brienne's first act as the new head of the King's Guard is to record Jaime Lannister's memory into the city scrolls. This time he'll be remembered as a hero instead of a kingslayer. It's her little way of saying thank you to the man she loved.
Bran's next act as King is to go warging and find out what happened to Drogon. If he can control him they will someday be able to use him as a force of good. To help him he has Podrick Payne, now Ser Podrick of the King's Guard. I'm so happy for Pod. He was one of the true good guys.
Tyrion's first act as the head of the small council is to fix King's Landing. He'll need help and he gets it from Brienne, Sam who's the new Grand Maester, Bronn, who has somehow become the city's master of coin and Ser Davos who's the new master of ships. I have no doubt that together they'll get shit done. It will get messy of course!
As Arya sets sail west, Jon arrives at Castle Black to the reunited with his friend Tormund Giantsbane and his direwolf Ghost. In the meanwhile Sansa is crowned Queen of the North and you can see she's going to be a very popular leader. She's truly earned her title. I'm delighted for her.
In the final scene we see Jon and Tormund leading a massive group of Wildlings beyond the wall. Once again he's abandoning the Night's Watch. As they march out we see plants sprouting from the snow. Winter is coming to an end and Jon is back where he belongs. He's going to live a long and happy life with the free folk.
Fade to black.
I loved this finale. A lot more low key than i expected but very satisfying. Loose ends were tied up and everyone ended up where they belonged. It felt right. Things felt earned. So long Game Of Thrones. We'll probably never see a show like you again.
Series 1 - 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Series 2 - 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Series 3 - 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Series 4 - 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Series 5 - 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Series 6 - 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Series 7 - 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Series 8 - 1 2 3 4 5
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