'GoT': 5 Things I Liked and 5 Things I Didn’t Like

Anyone watching last night’s Game of Thrones was in for a whirlwind of emotions. Who knew that this week would make me cry more than the epic war we endured last week? I wasn’t expecting it, and neither were my roommates watching alongside me. With such a mixed bag of things that went right and (mostly) things that went wrong for our characters, let’s take a look at some of the highs and lows.

1. I loved that goodbye.

It was appropriate to give those we’d lost last week a nice send-off. Particularly heartbreaking, for me, is Jorah. I really liked him. His loss has also left Dany all by herself. She doesn’t have that one person who she can trust and rely on to give advice indefinitely. Sure, there is Tyrion, but he’s been making some mistakes as of late. I think they devoted a good amount of time to this scene. We were shown lingering shots of all our fallen heroes and had some time to pause and mourn them. I appreciated getting to see them one last time before having the bodies burned.

2. I hate Dany feeling alone.

This episode hit hard for Daenerys Targaryen. Watching her sit alone in Winterfell’s hall while everyone praised Jon made me so sad. She’s suffered many losses this episode, which I’ll certainly get to later. This episode dives deep into what I’ve been afraid of for a while: Dany becoming a “Mad Queen.” Dany truly has the best intentions. It upsets me to see her get lost in rage, confusion, and hurt to the point where she’s now ready to burn millions of innocents in King’s Landing. Nothing has gone right for her. Next week we’ll probably see her spiral deeper. She isn’t on the same page as Jon, the people of Westeros don’t trust her, and her forces have been significantly decimated. I’m not looking forward to seeing what end her character will meet when all is said and done.

3. I will always love Tormund.

Tormund is the gem I thought would’ve been dead by now. For at least the past three seasons I’ve been convinced it was his time. Alas, he’s still here, and it looks like he’ll make it through to the finale. His funny interludes and sad pining over Brienne made me laugh this season. He has one amazing moment where he makes wordless eye contact with Podrick. It’s so delightfully awkward, and one of the few moments to make you smile this episode.

4. I hate Jon Snow.

There. I said it. I don’t really hate him, but he’s just so dumb. So, so dumb. He knows Sansa doesn’t like Dany, yet still insists on telling her the important information about his true parents anyway. Dany tells him Sansa will use it against her, and he doesn’t believe it. To no one’s surprise, Sansa tells Tyrion that same day, leading to Varys beginning to doubt Dany, and so on and so forth. Not to mention, he says, “I have to tell you something,” and then 10 seconds later turns to Bran and says, “You tell them.” He can’t even tell them himself. Amazing. He wasn’t really useful in the battle last week, and he seems to have lost his mind with how devoted he is to Daenerys right now. More on that in number six.

5. I love my Stark sisters.

They’re the real MVPs. I mean, Arya made history with her kill last week. Arya stepping in front of Jon and demanding to talk to him was such a small power move, but I loved it. I appreciate the sisters, who always fought growing up, banding together and questioning Jon’s devotion to Dany. While I like Dany, I like Sansa more. I’m kind of upset that she told Tyrion Jon’s secret after swearing she wouldn’t, but it’s also in character for her. She doesn’t trust Dany, and spreading information that would hurt her claim to the Throne makes sense. She’s been around some of the shadiest characters and knows how to play the game. She’s thinking of the North in everything she does, and I appreciate seeing her not give in to Daenerys so easily. They’re two strong female characters, and just because they don’t like each other, it doesn’t mean one is bad or wrong. They have individual storylines and that’s that. However, that being said, I wish the writers didn’t make Sansa’s trauma with Ramsay something “good” that needed to happen to make her stronger. That’s not an effective way to write about sexual assault and that line left a bad taste in my mouth.

6. I hate the way the writers are treating Ghost.

Let me tell you: Ghost deserves so much better. That poor wolf has battle scars from last week and has barely been seen in the past few seasons. Fans want more Ghost and yet we are refused every episode. It makes no sense to me. He’s literally a big white husky. They can animate large dragons, but they can’t give us a big dog? Honestly. To go along with Jon’s stupidity, he literally left Ghost without a goodbye. The wolf was standing there, staring at him and whining, and Jon just turned and left. I. Was. Furious. I get the symbolism of him leaving behind his wolf, almost leaving a bit of his Stark-ness behind, but still. Ghost is a good boy and I want to adopt him. Give me more of my favorite creature on this show please.

7. I love my duos.

It’s the Hound and Arya, travelling together again. This duo is golden. They’re funny, have some level of respect for each other, and overall are awesome fighters and characters. I’m excited to see them shake things up in King’s Landing. I’m a little worried that Arya said she wasn’t expecting to come back alive. Arya is one of the best things in this show, and killing her would make tons of fans upset. Another duo I like is Jaime and Brienne. They’re so different in many ways, but the same in many others. They both are very guarded, and it was nice to see them let their walls down this episode. I like them together. I feel like Brienne makes Jaime a better person, and he helps her loosen up at times. While I think Brienne is absolutely amazing and too good for Jaime, it’s a relationship I’m actually invested in. Speaking of Jaime…

8. I hate what’s happening to Jaime.

Oh Jaime. Jaime might be my favorite character after Sansa. He’s my problematic fav. His past is murky and awful, but I’m happy to see how far he’s come. Which is why, God help us all, seeing him leave Brienne and head back to King’s Landing tore me to pieces. I’m hoping he shows up and is able to resist Cersei. Hopefully, seeing how much more awful she’s become will knock some sense into him again. I still expect him to be the one to kill her. I’m wondering if when he told Brienne that he is hateful just as Cersei is, it was a nod to him going to finally end her horrible antics. I’m not ready to condemn his redemption arc just yet. I hope he doesn’t disappoint me.

9. I love Missandei.

This poor girl didn’t deserve what she got. She was so good. She was Dany’s best friend and one of the true allies who was with her for a majority of the series. I’m heartbroken that she died in chains. However, her final words were said with strength. She knew she was going to die, and she made it count. My roommate pointed out that Dracarys was the word that freed her way back in season three. Missandei was never a physical fighter, but she had such a strong spirit. She never lost faith in Daenerys, even to her last breath. She was easily the biggest human death this episode, and she deserves all the love and respect in the world. Shout out to Missandei, the baddest bitch from Naath.

10. I hate Euron Greyjoy.

This man. He needs to go. I had a feeling there would be death in this episode. What I wasn’t expecting was for Rhaegal to get shot out of the sky in such a brutal way. Seeing him get speared multiple times and gush out with blood was awful. I was so upset and shocked. I hate watching the dragons die. They just fall and make those sad screeching noises, and it’s really just awful to watch. In conclusion, Euron needs to pay for his crime. He needs to die a painful death and I want Yara Greyjoy to do it. Kill this man. Please.

There you have it. This was an intense episode of Game of Thrones, and there are so many thoughts I still need to digest and work through. Hopefully things get a little happier for our favorite characters next week. Then again, this is Game of Thrones. It’s all death and despair from here.