Since Sunday night, I have now watched the season 7 finale twice and both times, I have enjoyed it immensely. For all of the criticisms that the previous two episodes garnered and the overall pacing of the show this season, I really thought that director Jeremy Podeswa hit this episode out of the park. This episode really screamed “vintage Game of Thrones” for me; great dialogue, call-backs to past episodes and seasons, and back-room political dealings that shaped this episode and will continue to form beyond in Season 8.
For the readers: This Episode 7 Recap will mainly focus on just that, the recap of Sunday’s episode. In the coming weeks or months (after another re-watch or two), I expect I will be writing a Season 8 outlook article to explain what might happen next for our favorite characters.
(You can discuss this on the BSL Board here.)
King’s Landing
I really enjoyed the tight-knit locations where we weren’t jumping around the World of Ice and Fire map every episode. Prior to the meeting at the Dragonpit, viewers were able to witness a multitude of reunions. Prior to all of them, Jaime and Bronn overlook the emergence and show of power of Dany’s Unsullied and Dothraki forces. As only Bronn can put it, he and Jaime reflect on the cockless and the downtrodden and how they and their leader have come to take it away from the ruling noble houses.
On Dany’s ships arriving at the King’s Landing harbor, Jon broods over the fact that one million people live in the capital, and how they could all one day be part of the Night King army if the armistice does not come to fruition. When they arrive ashore, the contingent is met by Bronn, Brienne and Podrick Payne, which leads to a host of conversations of characters who have not met in ages. These dialogues were all fantastic and really pointed to how great the show writers can be when they have the time to slow down and have characters interact.
I truly hope the rumored “movie-length episodes” for Season 8 are indeed true, because it would result in a much better, well-paced final season for the show. My favorite interaction was between the Hound and Brienne, who both have felt a sense of pride and admiration of foster parents to Arya. I’d expect all three will reunite at some point in the final season.
Cersei arrives with Qyburn, Jaime and Euron and the entire contingent sits, all except Queen Daenerys, who Cersei is none too pleased at for arriving late to the parlay. While many fans were disappointed in not seeing CleganeBowl™, the show certainly left that option on the table with Sandor telling the Mountain (or what’s left of him) that he has known all along what/who has been coming for him. After the Hound leaves to carry the wight’s box in, Dany’s arrival is as intimidating as one could hope, except for the fact that only two (of her previous three) dragons could join her, which Cersei reflects upon later on.
After some interruptions from Euron and Cersei and the rising tensions between the three completely different parties, all who have reason to kill one another, the Hound opens the box to show Cersei the reason for this dire meeting. I will be honest – for a second I believed that the wight would be dead, which would have caused Cersei to go into attack and trap mode. But quickly the wight attacks, with Cersei and Jaime horrified and Qyburn looking like a kid with a bug and a magnifying glass. Jon calmly shows the group that you can kill them with fire or dragonglass, though I was surprised that he did not mention anything about Valyrian steel.
After Euron learns that the wights cannot swim, he announces the Iron Fleet will return to the Iron Islands. Cersei calls him a coward and announces that the crown will honor the armistice so long as Jon and the North recuse themselves from either Cersei’s or Dany’s side once the Great War is won. Unbeknownst to anyone, Jon has already promised Dany his sword and he refuses to give up his word and his loyalty, ending the armistice and Cersei’s support.
A lot of people have been criticizing Jon for this decision and how he could have finalized things for good. However, Jon’s argument (and it is a good one) is that if his and everyone’s words and promises can be taken back or lied about, what good are they in the first place? Although he really isn’t Ned Stark’s son, he was his father and his teacher who molded how Jon thinks and acts as the king (this is a theme that pops up later on in the episode between Theon and Jon as well). It is admirable and it is honorable, something that Jon has always prided himself on.
Ultimately, Tyrion risks his life by going to meet Cersei one-on-one. This scene was very tense but also my favorite of the episode due to the acting job by Lena Headley and Peter Dinklage. They really brought up every conflict that the two siblings have faced since even before the show started: their mother’s death during Tyrion’s birth, Tyrion’s dealings with whores, the death of her three children, his murder of Tywin, and also his love for Cersei’s children.
In the end, despite her cruelty, Cersei is unable to kill her little brother. Tyrion soon realizes his sister is pregnant again, which will continue to be a focal point of next season. This is especially true now that many viewers expect (for good reason) that Tyrion will want the Lannister line to continue, due to his previous admiration for Cersei’s children (excluding Joffrey). Despite his hatred for his sister and father, Tyrion never wanted harm to come to the Lannister children or the House’s legacy. He uses the unborn child’s future (or lack thereof if they all die) to presumably convince Cersei to send the Lannister banners north to fight the Great War against the White Walkers.
After Dany’s and Jon’s teams return to Dragonstone, Cersei explains to a shocked Jaime that her entire backing of the plan is a trick; she won’t send the Lannister army north and Euron Greyjoy is actually heading to Essos to bring the Golden Company to Westeros where they will retake the lands in Cersei’s name. Jaime is almost enraged at the news that Cersei did all this without his input. He questions her motives and her instincts, especially considering the finite evidence of the undead army that Jon showed to them at the Dragonpit. She is almost acting childish as she is still upset that Jaime and Bronn organized a meeting with Tyrion behind her back.
Despite his Kingslayer title, Jaime has always considered loyalty important, not just to one person, but to the masses and to the realm. In a scene that almost identically resembled the previous one with Tyrion and Cersei, Jaime challenges Cersei to end his life right there, but she is unable to do so. He then leaves King’s Landing and realizes that winter is about to hit the capital. This scene, with Ramin Dijawadi’s slow-tempo’d intro music playing in the background, was fascinating to watch, as the gentle snow (that will soon turn harsh and deadly) descends upon King’s Landing. I really liked Jaime covering his golden hand, seemingly as a nod to the end of his relationship with Cersei as he looks to join the fight for humanity in the North.
Winterfell and Dragonstone
After their assumed victory in the capital, Jon and Dany return to Dragonstone to discuss plans to defend the North. After a bit of back and forth, Jon convinces Dany that they should arrive in the North by boat to show a true join alliance between the Wolf and the Dragon. Once the decision is made, Theon and Jon have a long conversation about who they really are, with Jon being able to convince that Theon is both a Greyjoy and a Stark because he lived with and learned from Ned through his adolescent years.
I think this scene, in addition to his conversation with Tyrion about King’s Landing being a terrible place to live (compared to the quiet, less populated North) and his continued allegiance to Dany at the Dragonpit really sets up well for next season when Jon may continue to bend the knee and let Dany rule in his stead. He can explain that, despite his true name, he was raised as a Stark and always has been a proud, honorable man of the North. Theon then proclaims that he has to go free Yara from Euron’s imprisonment, much like she attempted to do for him when he was Ramsey Bolton’s captive.
His confrontation with the remaining Greyjoy forces is easily my least favorite scene of the show. While I admire the character development of Theon, it really is hard to care about his rescue mission for Yara when the majority of the cast will be fighting for the fate of humanity just a few hundred miles north. At least now, he has a dozen or two backers after he took down an Iron Born that eerily (and I assume, purposely) looked and sounded like his uncle. I have to imagine that might be foreshadowing for Season 8. I still expect Theon has a large role to play in the final episodes.
At this point, we head to Winterfell, where Sansa commands her guard to bring Arya into the great hall for trial, as Bran, Littlefinger, and the Northern and Vale forces look on. When Sansa listed the crimes and finished her declaration by accusing Lord Baelish, I was absolutely pumped, especially for how much I hated the Sansa-Arya storyline this season. It was a classic switcheroo and one that was applauded by almost all viewers eager to see the end of the most conniving man in Westeros. I still feel like we could have used one or two more ambiguous scenes between the sisters (in previous episodes), but I feel like the show-writers were going for more of the shock appeal of accusing Littlefinger of all of his machinations. You almost forgot how influential or completely guilty he is of so many crimes and murders that decimated the Stark and Arryn families.
Sansa uses Littlefinger’s personal game of faces to realize that he is trying to manipulate everything for his personal gain. She knows that Arya has never wanted, nor will ever want to be the ruling lady of Winterfell. Despite Littlefinger’s consistent begging that he has loved Sansa (despite his ultimate selling of her to the enemy Boltons), it is clear to Sansa that Littlefinger has only loved one person in his life: himself. It is rare to find relief and pride when someone’s throat is slit, but that is how I felt when Arya and Sansa ended Baelish’s life. I am equally happy that the Stark Family is on a united front; they will need to be in the War for Dawn that is coming.
After the trial and execution, we find that Sam and Gilly have made their way north. Sam is relieved to see Bran alive, but a bit perplexed about how much the young Stark he encountered at the Wall has changed. With the knowdlege that both have, they are able to piece together that Jon is not the bastard son of Ned, but rather the trueborn son of Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark, named Aegon Targaryen. (I have a bit of a nitpick with the Aegon name choice but that is neither here nor there.) I thought this scene worked really well as it jumped back and forth between Bran and Sam, Bran’s visions, and Jon and Dany.
Setting aside incest for a minute, it was really great to see the romance all season between Jon and Dany come to a culmination on the boat. Their love for one another, coupled with the true history of Jon, will certainly be a focal point of next season.
Tyrion’s behavior outside of their chambers will also be, as many critics have already been wondering if Tyrion has switched sides. I personally believe that this is more of a sign that Tyrion’s advice and strategies will be less influential to Dany, as she will seek Jon’s guidance more and more. Tyrion is worried that their love for one another might result in political and emotional issues down the road, as it is difficult to protect the masses if you had such sincere feelings for an individual or a family. It really circles back to the Night’s Watch and how they must disregard all past family relationships and bear no children.
Eastwatch
I was not surprised that the season ended with the Wall coming down and the White Walkers’ forces pushing further south. However, the scene was still incredibly visually. The army approached the Wall as the Night King rode Viserion, who unleashes blue fire (Ice? Cold? Sheer energy? I’m still not 100% sure) which causes the Wall to erupt and crumble. Did anyone also notice how fast that dragon was flying and also could almost unleash hell without stopping? We don’t see Beric and Tormund actually die and because of that, I expect them to remain alive next season, against all odds. The tens of thousands march south through the remnants of the Wall, with their great undead dragon weapon and the Night King leading the way, leaving viewers to wonder how the living will combat and defeat the dead.
A graduate of Xavier University, Chris began his writing career as a Xavier Musketeers Athletic Communications Intern where he wrote previews and post-game recaps for men’s basketball, women’s basketball and other Olympic sports. He has worked in the sports industry in various capacities for over 5 years. Chris is a fan of the Xavier Musketeers, the Baltimore Ravens and the Baltimore Orioles. Other hobbies and passions includes Game of Thrones and, as an Eagle Scout, volunteering as a Boy Scout Troop Assistant Scoutmaster. Chris was born in Baltimore, raised in Baltimore County and currently resides in Canton.