#and dooms himself a second time with his well-intended pursuit of the truth because he cannot handle what he learns

[poorlittleyaoyao]

You're doomed--may you never fathom who you are!

Oedipus Tyrannus, lines 1167-1173 (tr. Robert Fagles)

[wackygoofball]

Moodboard: Jaime x Brienne - Lord of the Rings AU

One would think that peace was finally agreed upon after the One Ring was cast into the fires from which it was born. And for a long time, Middle Earth was a place of peace and prosper. And yet, it did not last.

Lines that were believed to last a thousand years failed against the ravages of time, dried in the sand and gave rise to those driven by darker forces, by vanity, ambition, and a thirst for power.

The Targaryens assumed dominion after they discovered a way to tame one of the gravest calamities Middle Earth ever saw: dragons. They took over the city of Gondor quickly and continued their rule for many, many generations. Not all were bad kings and queens. Some were good. Some not so good. Some were worse. Far worse. And then, the Dance of the Dragons came to pass, which marked the ongoing decay of a family that had since grown too obsessed with the purity of its own blood. The dragons died, one by one, but the Targaryen’s power remained intact.

After that, the madness spread much faster, festered like an old wound, only fate deciding over it by no more than the flip of a coin, or so people started to believe.

Then Aerys Targaryen took the throne. Over time, he had his pyromancers develop an even worse weapon than the Fire of Orthanc, which once was used during the Battle of Hornburg, a green liquid soon to be known as wildfire. And Aerys, as fate would have it, used it against the people he was sworn to protect, burned them alive, just to hear them scream for a mercy that never came.

However, the Age of Dragons came to an end when a young member of the Army of Gondor, who was part of the chosen circle Aerys coined his own Kingsguard, a man by the name Jaime Lannister, drove a sword through Aerys’s back.

And where one reign ends another begins.

Robert Baratheon took the throne after him and became the new King of Gondor. Sooner rather than later, the crimes of the Mad King became no more than a whisper in the dark, stories told to children to scare them into slipping under the covers to finally go to sleep.

Though it was never just a story.

It was only the beginning of something that should keep every man, woman, and child, every elf, every dwarf, and every hobbit in all of Middle Earth wide awake.

Because history, or so it seems to be, is always on the verge of repeating itself.

However, our story begins elsewhere, in the small town called Bree, at an establishment known as The Prancing Pony.

Disgraced wizard Tyrion is sipping his second jug of ale, waiting with all patience he can muster. Not that he prides himself being on time. He found that it’s much easier to assume that he is on time for the sole reason that he will appear wherever he sees fit when he sees fit.

That doesn’t mean he likes to be kept waiting, however.

“I suppose I am right to assume that this is not your first?”

Tyrion smiles as he turns around to see the familiar bulky, blond figure stride past him, one hand always resting on the pommel of a sword.

He smiles. “It’s been a long time since we last saw one another, Lady Brienne.”

“You are not supposed to call me that in public, Wizard.”

“My pardon, Captain Galladon,” he laughs. “But rest assured, no one around here cares for who you are. The Prancing Pony is not exactly the place known for offering shelter to the most virtuous of Middle Earth. They would be fools to report to anyone. Even more so because it would be quite a ride all the way to Gondor.”

The mannish woman studies him for a long moment, but then sighs as she unbuckles her sword and sets it down next to her with a thud.

“So. Why did you have me summoned all the way to here, Wizard? You know I don’t like to leave my post for longer than is necessary.”

“Acutely aware, yes. You are very devoted to your service, of that there is no doubt.”

“What do you want?”

“I want to make you an exception offer, in fact.”

“Offer.”

“Yes, to take part in an adventure. You were chosen as one of the members of my company in pursuit of no less than saving Middle-Earth. This mission will involve a great deal of fighting. There is no guarantee of success. And no one must know about it. But of that I assure you, Captain, this is a quest of utmost honorable intentions.”

“And what is that mission supposed to be, may I ask, Wizard? I have a city to defend, and no time to undergo some adventure.”

“I need your help to gather some items across Middle-Earth. My brother over there will join us as well. And some more fellows,” Tyrion informs her. “I know he tries hard to look broody and mysterious, but he is a jolly fellow once you get to know him a bit.”

He waves at the cloaked man, who gets up slowly to stride over to the table. Brienne tilts her head as light illuminates the man’s features even under the hood, and she cannot help but gasp, “The Kingslayer?”

Jaime grimaces at the strange fellow he watched from across the room at his brother’s behest. “Is that… is that a woman?”

“Oh, I see you two will get along wonderfully! The fascination, I see, is absolutely mutual.”

“You must be joking, Wizard. Or perhaps you had some mushrooms on your way here, but I can only repeat it: I have better to do than this.”

“In fact, you do not. None of us do. The fate of Middle-Earth, I am afraid, is at stake here. Why else do you think would I bring my brother into this? Even more so since he is actually… dead.”

“For most to know,” Jaime huffs. And inside his heart, he only ever adds to himself.

Brienne remains reluctant to undertake this quest, but the Wizard is the only one, well, now one of two, who knows of her secret identity. And she cannot be revealed as anyone other than Galladon, or else all sacrifices she made to become part of the Army of Gondor will be in vain.

In the safety of Tyrion’s chamber, he reveals the details of his motivation to undertake this adventure.

“Rumors have since become more than rumors. The cast out daughter and only living heir to Aerys Targaryen, Daenerys Stormborn, is out to reclaim what she believes is her birthright.”

“She wants to be Queen of Gondor.”

“Yes. In the dead fire pits of Mordor, a new and perhaps even darker power rose in the shape of the Night King who turned to ice what once was blazing fire. I have seen the Mount Doom, I travelled there and saw that the fires died out.”

“What?”

“The Night King and Daenerys Stormborn made a contract of sort, it appears, wherein he will revive three dragon eggs from stone, her children, as she says, so she may rule in Gondor. In exchange, she is meant to help him free the armies of the fallen in Mordor so they may march westward.”

“And how do you think can that be stopped?”

“I found a scroll, an ancient text that says that there is a way to defeat the eternal ice with the aid of two magical swords made of Valyrian steel, which, combined, will form Lightbringer, a blade that may slay the Night King and thus end his reign of terror before it can even begin.”

“That still leaves one question, though: why do you want me for that quest? I can’t help you with those magical items better than any other knight with my skills could.”

“Because we need to get into Gondor, as part of what is needed to forge Lightbringer. You will well know that I am no longer… wanted there… for a number of reasons. And to make matters worse, as you will know better than anyone, there is the issue of the barricade no one without your consent will move past. And if I may add, you have proven more capable than most knights I ever came across. You have a particular set of skills I believe vital to the success of our mission, Lady Brienne.”

At last, Brienne agrees, under the pretense that they will speak the truth to one another and that the Kingslayer, a man of questionable morals to say the least, remains as far away from her as is possible.

“I am doing this for the greater good, not for either one of you.”

To disguise her identity as Galladon, she has to travel as herself, cutting short the hair she used to wear longer as Captain of the Army of Gondor, a sensation that since grew unfamiliar to Brienne, who barely recalls the girl who liked wooden swords as much as she liked to twirl in a dress around her father’s halls, unaware and childishly uncaring of how ridiculous she looked to the rest of the world.

Jaime, for his part, has to come to terms with travelling with a man, pardon, woman, of the Army of Gondor, a responsibility and honor he had to abandon in favor of his own life when he became the Kingslayer. Though no one, safe for Tyrion, would even begin to comprehend why he did it, why he slew the Mad King.

It was his finest act, but history, more often than not, will forget its heroes until its concluding chapters.

And so, the small company begins its quest in search for Lightbringer, a journey that soon proves dangerous as the undead Dothraki riders of Daenerys Targaryen start to chase them as well as the items they are so desperate to obtain.

Along the way, they meet a great many interesting characters, some friendly, others not so much, sharing, in fact, in a great adventure. Yet, the impending threat of the Dragon Queen as well as the Night King may not be the only danger ahead of them, as secrets and lies may put them apart when they must stand together.

As their success hangs by a single thread, so does the fate of the world, just about to flip the coin another time.

And one can only hope that history, for once, does not forget itself and learns from its errors, so there may be a tomorrow, so there may be light.

Note: my knowledge of the franchise is mostly limited to the movies, not the books, alongside some good old google search. No offense to LOTR fans intended in case I mess up timelines and such! Also... sorry for weird edits, I could not resist. :)

Additional Image Sources: The Lord of the Rings trilogy & The Hobbit trilogy.

[lady-griffin]

Will the Game of Thrones Ending be the same for the books?

In short, yes and no. And no and yes (a very GRRM answer).

Honestly for me, the biggest problem I have with D&D’s ending is I don’t think they put in the work nor earned that ending. It felt rushed and it felt like they wasted time on things that didn’t really matter and not so much that they left things unfinished or ambiguous for the future, but just didn’t take the time to finish their own story.

Certain endings don’t make a whole lot of sense, because we don’t know a lot of the details nor does it line up with what they’ve changed in the story or have previously set-up in the show, let-alone this current season or the final scenes themselves.

But I can imagine that the show’s endings are the bare notes for the books. Hitting the same points, but lacking the more complicated and nuance aspects to those endings. 

This turned out to be more of a rant and longer than I ever intended. 

King Bran

I don’t see D&D making Bran king, unless it’s GRRM’s ending. I just don’t. I just can’t see that.  

I don’t want to speak for them, but it’s in my opinion, that they cared very little for Bran’s story. Or at the very least, struggled with adapting it from book to screen.

I could see Book!Bran becoming King. Not for the reasons the show give us.

Saying he is the best choice because he has the best story, is complete bullshit and a terrible reason to elect someone into a leadership role. Just terrible.

Especially since Show!Bran’s story, due to D&D, was one of the weakest of the show. Since they written him out in season 5 and it seems like we barely spent time with him as an actual character, since he became the Three-Eyed Raven.

And to be fair, it’s not a clear fit for Book!Bran to become king. Right now, it’s unclear if Book!Bran will be as emotionless as Show!Bran. So, there’s that. And Bran is going down a very dark path as the Three-Eyed Raven, in the books, so him becoming King, also depends on how dark that path goes and how dark Bran gets.

There’s also the snag that within the show, Bran’s story seems incomplete.

What did warging and seeing the past and more importantly being able to affect the past have to do with Bran’s story? Or the entire story, in general? 

We don’t see Bran do anything (except warg into ravens during the battle) actively against the NK or even to get the position of king. So, what’s the point?

It feels incomplete, because Bran affecting the past has been building up to something…

1. His father heard him and turned back, but nothing more. A small ripple.

2. Bran wargs into Hodor, while he’s still connected to the past, completely damaging Hodor’s psyche to the point he can only say Hodor. This is a horrifying and traumatic event, but on an individual-level, not that big of a ripple

…These incidents are building up, so logically the third one will be a big thing….

But nothing. 

Was Hodor the culmination of Bran’s powers? Because then what’s the point? It feels like there should be a third time Bran goes to the past and affects it, either with severe consequences (Mad King Burn Them All theory) or Bran being in complete control having learned from his mistakes and does exactly what he intended to do. 

But nothing.

Bran uses his powers to see the truth about Jon, but in the show that almost barely matters. So, there’s just this big disconnect with Bran’s journey and what he does in seasons 7 & 8 and where he ends up.

Also, because we were cut off from Bran’s POV and how they executed the Rise of Bran & the Fall of Daenerys, Bran comes across as an amoral to evil mastermind, who at worst orchestrated all of this so he could be king or allowed everything (thousands and thousands of deaths) because “fate demanded it.”

Either way it’s not good. And on top of that.

Either Bran did nothing to become King, which feels unearned. Or he did a lot (or did nothing purposely) to become King, which again, is actually terrifying.

Bran’s magic may not be as overt or destructive as Daenerys’ dragons, but they’re just as all-powerful, which makes the story end on a weird note when you start to think about it and the implications and themes, particulary “power.”

We can argue that Bran doesn’t want power, like Daenerys. But he has it. And still accepted it, to be king. And indicated he knew it was going to happen...so, it’s a weird place to end when you start to think about it. 

D&D were likely not trying to make Bran come across in the end as evil or at the very least not a terrifying amoral monster, but because they basically abandoned the actual character of Bran and focused on Three-Eyed Raven creepiness, it feels sinister.

There’s also the weird hiccup, that in GRRM’s work, knowing your future or a prophesy about yourself or believing you have a prophecy entirely figured out, basically dooms you. Especially if you’re in a position of power or seeking it. 

So, it’s weird that basically the one person who kind of becomes omniscient in this world, get this coveted position of power with no doom on the horizon…that doesn’t sound like GRRM.

So, there’s a lot of snags with the idea of Bran becoming King.

But again, I just don’t see D&D making Bran king unless it’s GRRM’s ending. Like I can’t see them doing that. I see them making Tyrion King on their own or literally anyone else before Bran.

How exactly he becomes King and where the remainder of his journey takes him up to that point, we’ll have to see. 

I can definitely see GRRM making it feel more than earned and fitting. Unfortunately, I can also see GRRM naming him Bran the Broken, so there’s that.

Dragon Pit Council

I can see the Dragon Pit Council or a form of it happening. And I think it will be more fitting and more touching for the readers, especially when you consider who will be on the council in the books. And I can see those book versions wanting to stay part of the 7 or 6 kingdoms.

Arianna Martell will most likely be on that council. And she will likely feel guilt and regret and possibly traumatized for her role as a Queen Maker with Mycrella and the death that awaits her and possibly Arianna’s role with F!Aegon. It’s also highly unlikely she will be a supporter of Daenerys (due to Viserys, Quentyn, F!Aegon). She might be more than willing to work with and within this new system due to her own previous lust for power and wanting to make amends and build a better world.

Willas or Garlan Tyrell will most likely also be on the council, representing the Reach. And due to the unknown future fates of their own family due to their pursuit of the Iron Throne, the Tyrell representative might want to take a step back as well. Especially if it is a similar to the fates of the Tyrells in the show.

Asha Greyjoy (Book version of Yara) could likely be part of the council (if Theon is also dead in the books), but she is more difficult to pin down, mostly because my memory is lacking (it’s been awhile since I last read the books). But it will most likely make more sense than Yara’s whole purpose in that scene.

And most likely… Robin Arryn will represent the Vale. Edmure Tully the Riverlands.

It’s highly unlikely Gendry will be part of this, but I can potentially see Edric Storm being a part of the council and representing the Stormlands.  

I can see the council existing in the books.

It’s also possible that, in the books, the 7 Kingdoms afterwards might not be so much a single kingdom under one ruler. It might be more of the separate kingdoms working together, with the guidance of Bran. 

Overall, though I think we will definitely get into the nitty gritty of how this new kingdom will work, with some strained tension and potential conflict and future struggles of making this kingdom work. Peace isn’t easy.

The actual scene itself happening...no.

Tyrion literally tells us why no one in this scene should listen to him, half of them hate him for helping a Tyrant who slaughtered an entire city and the other half (barely) hate him for helping to kill the rightful Queen who saved them from a tyrant. So, it makes no sense that they listen to Tyrion and it’s frustrating that Tyrion has to tell them to make the choice.

Also why does Tyrion who we were told just a minute ago is a prisoner and doesn’t get to speak, but than in a hot second, he gets to make a speech and decide the future fate of Westeros. Don’t get me wrong, I can 100% see Tyrion talking his way into making the decision, but that’s not what happens. They just let him talk, because the writes need Tyrion to be clever and smarter than everyone else in that scene.

Also, it makes no sense that Davos, Gendry, and Sam do not speak up for Jon. And even less sense that Jon would have to be punished, when the majority of the named characters in this scene, had a problem with Daenerys, had no feelings in particular towards her, or distrusted her because she was a Targaryen.

Also, why didn’t the Unsullied just kill Jon once he confessed or once they discovered him in the room? Why did they even keep him as a prisoner? They don’t keep prisoners for long. So why would they keep their worse prisoner alive? Why? And there are more things that just don’t add up in that one single scene and what follows.

But I think this is a bare bones and nonsensical version of what will happen in the books or some varying degree of it. Basically, a council of the major lords of Westeros seems very likely to be part of the future government of Westeros.

Tyrion, Hand of the King

I’m on the fence of whether that’s going to be part of the books or not.

To be clear, that’s not a punishment. It’s just not. If we really wanted to believe that Jon and Tyrion were being punished, they’ve should made Tyrion join the Night’s Watch and force Jon to be the Hand of the King. The two of them would’ve hated that.

And similar, to the reason for why Bran was elected King, I don’t see the reasons Tyrion was chosen being the reasons in the books.

1. Not wanting the position

2. No longer thinking himself so clever and wise

Are not good reasons for someone being elected into a position of power, they’re just not. 

They are nice subtext and symbolic reasons for an author, but not for the actual characters of the story. One major problem I had with this last episode, was it felt way too meta.

So, it’s possible Tyrion becoming the Hand of the King will be more of an actual punishment for him or his own way of actually trying to redeem himself. (what the show was saying, but struggling with executing)

One possible fate for Tyrion (actually shown in the show) is that he won’t be remembered in the history books or the stories in the future. A tragic and unfair fate, but also a fittingly poetic sentence for a man who wants to be recognized and acknowledged.

Tyrion and Oberon discussed (I think) how it was the hands of certain kings who were the pivotal key to the future, but yet are not recognized for their accomplishments as they are attributed to the King….so that being Tyrion’s fate seems possible.

So is Tyrion just going to be the real power manipulating Bran?

Bran barely matters in the Small Council scene…actually he doesn’t, so that begs the position, what’s the point of Bran being King? Tyrion making the decisions and Bran being nothing but a figurehead is weird and rather pointlessly frustrating. 

I can’t see Tyrion “manipulating” the closest person to be omniscient in this world. And the show is ending on an optimistic note. So, we can safely assume future nefarious deeds of Tyrion (intentional or not) aren’t been indicated by the creators in those finale scenes.

Tyrion’s fate still feels largely undecided for the books. 

Show and book Tyrion are more than a bit different at this point, to say the least.

So, it’s possible that GRRM’s own ending for the character is more than a bit dark and twisted for this lighter and far more sympathetic version of Tyrion and D&D didn’t feel like they could do that to Tyrion. Particularly with Dark Dany. And with Peter Dinklage just being a break-out star and fan favorite.

The difficulty I have with Tyrion being hand, is I don’t see Tyrion being in a position of respect or power in the end. Tyrion is quite the tragic character. He has been unfairly vilified and hated for being a dwarf and has never been accepted by the masses.

While we may want them to recognize Tyrion for all the good he has done, that doesn’t feel likely. With Tyrion being suspected of killing Joffrey, actually killing his father (+ Shae) and possibly bringing Daenerys to Westeros or being on her side when she arrives and unintentionally sowing the seeds of rift between F!Aegon and Daenerys, it seems doubtful the people of Westeros would ever accept Tyrion. And I think there is a debate to be had whether they should or not.

There are actual reasons why people shouldn’t trust or forgive Tyrion, but rarely are those people’s actual reasons. So, Tyrion, since the moment we’ve known him has been unfairly judged and cast aside. And then Tyrion wants revenge and as he seeks justice for the way he’s been treated, leading him to some terrible and awful choices and to a dark place. 

All of that only adds to the fuel of the vilified image of him that already existed, before he even did anything (since he was born).

Tyrion’s fate feels very up in the air and relies very much  on what he’ll do in these next two books. So, him being Hand of the King in the end, doesn’t quite match up with where we see Tyrion currently in the story, but I can’t say it would never happen. 

However, to be clear, the way it happened in the show was just complete bullshit.

Three Stark Endings

I’m not all that mad with Arya, Jon and Sansa’s endings. I can see those being possible endings for all those characters. 

My problem is again, I don’t feel like D&D put the effort into said endings, so it feels rather hollow and beyond rushed. 

It feels weird to end on Arya, Jon, and Sansa in that epilogue sequence. Because other than the Crypt teaser, the three haven’t really been framed together like that.

Bran, Arya and Sansa have been showed together way more than Jon, Arya and Sansa.

It’s one thing that the rest of the show doesn’t allude to that final sequence, but it’s even more out of place that this current season doesn’t have it. This finale seems very separate from the rest of the season and it’s so weird.

It just feels weird to end on Arya, Sansa and Jon when we didn’t even get Sansa and Arya’s immediate reaction to Jon Snow’s true parentage. So, it feels like an out of place ending for them.

Also, side note, it’s weird and so imbalance how we get so many different reactions of people learning about Bran being the Three-Eyed Raven or you know, just is that way now (despite how funny those are) and Jon being a secret Targaryen and heir to the Iron Throne (AND COMING BACK FROM THE DEAD) has become this interesting tidbit, that doesn’t really matter.

We really have been cut off from the Stark’s overall POV for this last season. And seeing the Starks go off on their own, separate from one another, is less sad and rather emotionally pointless, since we never really saw the pack work together as a unit.

Tyrion, Jaime and Cersei have more of an emotional connection and dynamic together. Which is fine and enjoyable to watch, but it’s weird that the STARKS who are supposed to be the HEART of the story, don’t honestly get the same kind of treatment.

And then there is just logical and emotional fallacies in this finale.

I’m not upset that the Starks are going their separate ways, but more so that we never honestly saw them together or even working together to get their “endings.” They’re also working individually, even screwing one another over by accident. 

Their endings seemed to fall into place for them, which is kind of disappointing. Or in Bran’s case, kind of sinister, especially with the implications of what happens to Jon.

Arya Exploring Lands Unknown

I can this happening or a version of it in the books. I do have a problem with Arya repeatedly saying she was never going to return North, though. I don’t know why they kept having her say that.

Also, clearly Arya had to get her Stark sails and Stark ship (with direwolf carved in) from somewhere. Did she just stay in King’s landing? Or did she return to Winterfell and leave the day before Sansa’s coronation? 

That’s not really important, but maybe if the emotions matched with what we’ve been given, I wouldn’t have these small nitpicks. 

Also, Arya not getting a pack in the end, her literal family or not, is just beyond disappointing and feels empty. Arya fully embracing the lone wolf idea, is just so bitter. 

Sansa, Queen in the North

Sansa becoming QITN honestly feels like the must genuinely bittersweet ending.

 The North is independent and she is queen and respected (sweet), but she’s alone (bitter). It’s hard to imagine Book!Sansa’s family, not being there for her big day, though. 

Why wouldn’t Arya wait to leave after her sister’s coronation? Why wouldn’t Jon be there to visit?

And in the books, if this scene or something akin were to happen, we might be able to picture some Northern faces. Such as the Manderlys, the Mormonts, the Karstarks, the Umbers and Glovers and the Reeds present, so it might feel less isolating. But in the show it’s pretty lonesome. 

And on the Jonsa narrative, the two haven’t been brought together in the books…so it’s hard to say what will happen or if anything at all. I still stand by the fact that their scenes in the show are really weird if the show was going for platonic siblings. Really, really weird. But one line from the books, sticks out to me…

“No one will ever marry me for love” (ASOS, Sansa VI)

Perhaps Sansa is right. Perhaps the one person who does genuinely love her and want to be with her, will never actually marry her. That seems very bittersweet to me and quite the tragic love story.

Sansa’s ending feels like it could be her ending in the books. But again, like everything else it doesn’t quite line up for Sansa either.

Jon living on the Wall/Beyond the Wall

Possible.

I am a big fan of giving a character what they always wanted, in a tragic way. And it brings Jon full circle. Back to where he wanted to be in the beginning, back to where he struggled to be, back to where he became who he is today, back to where he wanted to leave.

Why exactly he goes back to the NW is where the problem really begins (let alone there suddenly being one again). Jon being punished to appease the likes of the council (despite most of them not caring for Daenerys in the actual show) and the Unsullied, seems really just forced.

It does seem in-character for Jon to do it as a self-inflicted punishment, though. Or similar to Aemon Targaryen, giving up his right to the throne/7K to allow his younger brother to create a hopefully better place. Or perhaps, punishment for breaking his vows to the NW.  

But it’s not even up to Jon in the show. His agency in his own story is barely there (as it’s been for the past season). He’s not even there when the decision is made and the person who tells him is Tyrion, not his family, nor Davos his closest advisor nor Sam is supposed best friend.

The Council scene is all about Tyrion, despite the fact a good portion of the council likes Jon, is his family, he’s the true born son of Rhaegar Targaryen and he’s the one who killed Daenerys.

Don’t get me wrong, I feel like Jon’s “destiny and super specialness for being a Targaryen” will be undercut in the books, but in the show they not only undercut it despite going overboard with it explaining how Jon is the trueborn son of Rhaegar and Lyanna, but also undercut Jon’s own arc.

Jon will likely be the last official Targaryen, finally putting the dynasty and family to rest. And him rejoining the NW or going to live beyond-the-wall with the Free Folk is a way to do that.

But of course, there’s a lot more going on in Jon’s story in the books.

There is so much King emphasis for Jon in the books, so I’m not convinced. 

But perhaps Jon is the rightful King, but won’t be The King in the end by choice. 

Jon shouldn’t be the king because he’s the son of Rhaegar, but time and time again, Jon has shown he is a more than capable leader willing to make the difficult choice.

In the show’s own narrative, he killed his love for his duty to the realm. And he’s punished for it.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s not like GRRM doesn’t have this world punish people for doing the right thing, but this just doesn’t add up.

There’s a lot of talk and videos about how the show’s ending does fit into the prophecies (book & show) and Jon was the only one capable of killing Daenerys, because he’s a Targaryen (Drogon letting him pass). But that is a terrible take away. Jon shouldn’t be special or be the only one capable to save the world from Daenerys because of who he is genetically, it should be because of who Jon is as a person.

And in regards to a Jonsa narrative. Similar to Sansa’s ending, Jon and Sansa have yet to reunite in the books so it’s hard to say. But let’s say some feelings and so on do develop in the books, this time, him returning to NW might be with a much heavier heart. Now he knows what he’s giving up and losing, now he knows what he’ll never have. That’s tragic and an ending to talk and cry about.  

I can see Jon getting this ending or one akin to it in the books. But how GRRM goes about it is everything. Though honestly, just having Jon choose would be a huge improvement.

How they went about it in the show and Jon’s overall passiveness to his own narrative, just ruined it. He literally has to be convinced by Tyrion (and Arya) that Daenerys is a threat, despite already seemingly coming to that conclusion the previous few episodes.

Again, I know I’m repeating myself. The final montage of Jon isn’t the problem it’s how the narrative got there.  

Daenerys’ Death/Mad Queen

Probably won’t go down like it did in the show, but it will happen in the books. 

I’ve seen a couple of Essays and Videos of how to fix the final season, mostly with making NK being the big bad and Daenerys the true Queen of Westeros.

Which I think just shows how much people love Daenerys and how badly rushed Mad/Dark Dany was in the final season and I would argue how it felt like even the narrative wasn’t fully believing it.

Mostly with how Jon seemed to be frustrated, horrified and upset with Daenerys one moment and then in the next moment he’s willing to justify her actions and still somehow believe that Sansa and Arya would bend the knee or that Daenerys would allow Sansa to live after Sansa purposely told Tyrion the truth about Jon.

The build-up for Dark!Dany is there, people can’t just say it wasn’t. Daenerys has struggled with her two sides for quite some time. But, at the same time, if you need a whole meta conversation to explain and justify to your audience why this makes sense (Tyrion and Jon scene), you didn’t do a great job in sticking the landing.

The problem is that the show, in my opinion, has been building up to a different kind of Mad Queen. One who was absolutely ruthless, but wasn’t self-aware and starting to see any dislike or criticism as an act of treason. Getting increasingly frustrated, everytime she does the right thing or doesn’t use her dragons, she isn’t rewarded for it. And when she does use them, she gets her way (so why shouldn’t she use them?)

And to be fair, we did kind of get this…but also we didn’t. They kept “justifying” Daenerys’ actions. Or blame her ruthlessness on her mental state or recent events, but then they also back track on that. 

So, it just seems like the showrunners weren’t entirely sure with which Mad Queen they wanted.

They go all the way with it, but then they take several steps back, but that just leads to more problems. For showrunners and a show that really does love GRRM for those gut-wrenching twists (Ned’s execution, Red Wedding, Hold the Door), they seemed to be so nervous and hesitant with the big and final gut-wrenching “twist.”

When Tyrion is a prisoner, his and Jon’s scene just doesn’t work. In my opinion, it might’ve worked better if Tyrion was the speaker for the audience and Jon wasn’t.

Tyrion has been trying to justify Daenerys time and time again and has felt like that audience view point for quite some time. But honestly that scene just doesn’t really work. Neither of them at that point should need convincing.

Daenerys death will likely be tragic and sympathetic in the books as well be done by Jon. She is a tragic character. 

Unlike some of the other villains of the show, Jaime and Cersei for instance, where we first see them as villains and then with their POVs (and others) we see the humanity they’ve always had. They aren’t monsters, but complicated and messed up people who are more than capable of monstrous acts.

Daenerys is the reverse of that. We always had her POV, we always had access to her humanity. We see her as this sympathetic and abused princess at first and we see her grown to being this complicated character, who is genuine and well-intentioned, but also rather ruthless and is hardening herself for the Iron Throne.

We will likely see her as a ruthless villain in the end, maybe even mad, but I think GRRM’s intention is for us to also remember Daenerys when we first met her and see how far gone she is and also think of what could’ve been.

The throne room works and doesn’t work. 

I love the House of Undying coming true and us realizing what it means or getting confirmation for it means. See that’s how you tie your show back the previous seasons, you don’t just reference previous lines in current scenes, to make it seem like you had this all planned out. 

We see Daenerys as vulnerable and open, but also batshit crazy. She’s elated and happy she’s won, but completely oblivious to the death and destruction and villainy she just committed and had committed in her name. It works. 

But it doesn’t, because it’s also a different kind of mad queen to the one that they’ve building up to and also even a different one from “The Bells.”

And Daenerys being thrilled and happy to see Jon could’ve also work. 

Daenerys is so elated and happy she’s won now, that Jon’s claim doesn’t even matter to her, because she feels invincible So she’s more than willing to “rule together.” That could’ve worked… It really could’ve and shown how far gone Daenerys is.

But it doesn’t quite, mostly because Arya and Tyrion literally in the same episode tell Jon that he’s going to be next, because Daenerys will see him as a threat. Hell, Daenerys and Jon have a (not sexy) tensed filled moment, after her speech to her army. 

Forget the rest of the season (you shouldn’t as this should all feel like one whole story) but all the scenes in the finale should definitely feel cohesive and consistent to the narrative. But it still feels like they are trying to do multiple things and they can’t, they don’t have the time. 

Jon & Dany

I think their relationship will be complicated to say the very least in the books.

Daenerys with her desire for a true family and a true companion battling with her ever growing paranoia and lust for power and the Iron Throne. And more than likely her having encounter F!Aegon before Jon, which will likely go very bad, so her meeting another Secret Targaryen after that is just rife for conflict.  

And Jon, I actually see Jon turning a blind-eye or ignoring some red flags about Daenerys, not necessarily because he loves her, but because he thinks he needs those dragons to defeat the Others.

Only for him to realize that they weren’t the key to defeating the Others like he thought and him realizing what he’s given power to, was all for naught. 

The show has shades of that, but kind of just abandons it. 

Jon might struggle with killing Daenerys in the books, as well. Killing isn’t easy and we shouldn’t’ want our heroes to be able to kill easily.

And Jon might also love Daenerys in the books or see her as a sympathetic human who is not quite the villain others make her out to be, but certainly not innocent. 

Him seemingly flip-flopping from seeing her as ruthless Tyrant to the love of his life, from scene to scene, not so much.

I don’t see Jon killing Daenerys because of his love for her, if Book!Jon does love her, it will be despite it (what they were going for in the show, but not really succeeding with).

To be fair, their final scene is honestly the most romantic scene (stabbing aside) of these two. I believe that they both do love one another and it’s 100% doomed. If they had this level of feelings and consistency for all their previous scenes together, insead of Jon side-eyeing Daenerys and looking frustrated and unable to saying anything about her other than the vague “she’s our queen/she’ll be a good queen”, I would fully believe this tragic love.

Just to be clear, a fictional couple’s most romantic and believable scene being the very same one where of them kills the other is very bad.

But I think, Jon killing Daenerys in the books, is less “despite his love for her”, and more for the love of his (other) family, to protect them. Because that love is stronger. I think that will be more explicit in the books, than in the show.

Jon killing Daenerys not necessarily due to his feelings or lack of feelings for her, but because of his love for the Starks. It’s not so much about Daenerys (which is quite tragic), but the threat she poses to Jon’s family.  

Daenerys will be betrayed for love. Meaning the person will do it out of love, most likely not out of love for her.

Cersei and Jaime’s Death

Highly unlikely.

Book!Cersei is a lot more mad and more incompetent than Show!Cersei and I think will be far more desperate in the end. I do think Jaime will return to Cersei in the books. Even to save her in the end, but depending on where Cersei is mentally at the point, she might be 100% willing to set the entire city on fire with Wildfire.

I think if you combined the Throne Room scene of Jon and Daenerys (X) with the Jaime/Cersei scene in the dungeons/caves, you basically get show!Valonquar scene, which might be the case in the books. 

But it’s hard to say. 

Cersei is definitely going to die. Jaime is more up for debate.

This was a lot longer than I ever intended and far more of a rambling rant and tangent, so I apologize (in case anyone ever reads this far down). 

It’s not like some of these ending don’t or can’t work for the characters, it just feels like D&D didn’t put the effort into them and it feels like they learned that this was going to be the ending right before they shot the final episode. 

It shouldn’t feel like that. Other seasons aside (we shouldn’t, but let’s give them the best chance), this final season should be one consistent and cohesive story narratively. The characters changing their minds and perspetives on things, should make sense.

Sansa in season 1 goes from loving Joffrey to willing to do anything to stay with him, to fully willing to push him off a ledge. And it works. Because Joffrey beheaded her father. It makes sense.

Cersei in season 8, goes from apparently sending Bronn to kill Jaime and Tyrion to being so happy to see Jaime and scared that Jaime is hurt when she reunites with him. And I’m not saying, what Cersei is witnessing at that moment (burning of King’s Landing, castle crumbling down) won’t change her perspective, but it still feels very jarring and sudden. 

Daenerys goes from feeling threatened by Jon’s parentage to begging him (and implied threatening him) to keep it a secret no matter the cost to Jon and we have several characters repeat that she’s not going to want to rule with him, to her final scene being so happy to be with Jon and willing to rule together. And again, maybe her winning the throne makes her feel invincible even to Jon’s claim, but it feels sudden and jarring. 

And Jon...just all over the place. 

Okay I’m done.