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When I Play the Game of Thrones, I Bewilder My Friends

#VocalGOT

By Sam WijesinghePublished 5 years ago 3 min read
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It all began for me with two of my best friends and my cousin back in 2017. All three of them convincing me in their own cunning ways to start binge watching this "magnum opus" of a series. Only then, I treated it as a regular show with a small fan base backing it up with a desperate promotional campaign. Well folks… As you might have probably guessed, I decided to have a go and I WAS WRONG!

Before I begin, it is my duty to warn the reader that you sir, are about to enter spoiler territory. With that being said:

Fast forward to Summer 2019, and here I am boasting about George R.R. Martin’s epic fantasy saga, inclined to learn more about its grandiose dystopian world we all came to love. With such depth to its massive cast of characters, I was more than amused by each of their story arcs. I began to imitate some of the characters, incorporating their mouth-watering lines into my lifestyle, and watching each step they'd take, carefully as they partake in the game. The Game of Thrones.

In a show that blurs the line between heroes and villains, we all have invested in the characters we have come to love despite their good or bad. However, there’s a consensus among anyone that the Starks are usually considered to be the so-called good-hearted people; and due to that fact, many fans have been rooting for them from the very beginning. Perhaps, now it is time to question that kindheartedness in the remaining three Starks we’ve left with. Sansa has grown to Cersei 2.0. Arya is an invincible killing machine. And Bran isn’t really Bran anymore, but a collective consciousness of the Westerosi history.

To be frank, my personal favorites are the Lannisters. All the Stark lovers are going to rain down hell on me for this, but it is the Lannisters that I’ve learnt so much from. Tyrion’s witty commentary, Jaime’s personality change, Cersei and Tywin’s ruthless, authoritative prowess and manipulative nature. All these inherent traits have made them survive the game, and were hence best fitted to outlive the others.

"A Lannister always pays his debts," is the line I so often use whenever I promise my friends that I owe them. It just makes me feel better about it and reminds me of the debts I owe. Occasionally, my non-GOT fanatic friends find it annoying when I keep repeating that phrase, but oh dear... I feel bad about them for not have being sucked into this whirlpool of a fantasy. And then there’s more. I draw inspirations from Tywin and Tyrion’s clever lines that aids them in dominating every argument they are in. When Tyrion was first introduced as a character, he tells Jon about how we should use our weakness as an armor against all the odds, instead of drooling over it. I wouldn’t presume Jon to have learnt anything from it because as we all know, he knows nothing. Yes, Ygritte, you’re right. But I learnt a valuable lesson.

I learnt to overcome my many weaknesses by learning how to mold them into armor and fighting against the many burdens in my life.

Tywin’s position of authority is frightening, and often renders his audience powerless. The confidence to exercise the power you have in the rightful manner is pretty helpful when you are the leader of a team consisting of unfaithful and ignorant people. Enacting discipline like Tywin does is the magic you need to get the attention of a chaotic audience. Cersei is her father’s mirror image. She thinks like Tywin and acts like him. Cersei was playing the game very well over the whole series and she deceived us all when she lied and didn’t send her armies to the North to fight the war against the dead. Unfortunately, we realized the Night King and his thralls were a much lesser threat than Cersei herself, when invincible Arya strikes that final blow, shattering the ice demons. I would call this planning for the best possible outcome. Lastly, there’s Jaime. Well, he seems like the Lannister fool compared to his family, and yet his story arc is one of the most fascinating. His determination to keep an oath was incredible, and so have I learnt the value of an oath and to fight to keep it.

So, there you go. The Lannisters were my teachers during this epic fantasy roller-coaster. It’s sad to know that the finale has come and gone like a regular winter passing by, but I’m reading the books and I’m expecting a bittersweet ending from George R.R. Martin himself that would probably diminish the bland ending we got in Season Eight. Adios…

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About the Creator

Sam Wijesinghe

Committed to writing whatever pleases me. I let my imagination run wild. No rules. No restrictions.

instagram: @samwijesinghe

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