Game of Thrones twists in Winds of Winter
Warning: Be sure you have seen the S6 finale before reading!
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WARNING:
Make sure you have seen the Season 6 final before reading!
The season finale of Game of Thrones did not disappoint with a body count to match its preceding episode -only this time they were key characters, not extras we lost.
By the end of the episode we had lost kings and prime ministers, declared new rulers and revealed genealogy secrets.
Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark are the true parents of Jon Snow as he is declared King of the North.
Arya Stark takes revenge on Walder Frey for the murder of her mother and brother, disguising herself as a serving maid to slit his throat an feeding him a pie fit for Sweeney Todd.
But this was a Cersei episode in which she steered a commanding outcome with the 9/11 style explosion of the Sept, and along with it the death of the High Sparrow and Margaery, amongst others.
It was enough to incite the suicide of her teen son, King Tommen, in a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it leap from an open window. That led to the season’s ultimate crowning: Queen Cersei on the Iron Throne as a cautious Jaime Lannister watches on.
But Daenerys is on the way, with an army and dragons in tow…
One of the defining features of the finale was not just the massive plot moves and production, but its striking use of music, which added so much gravitas to the conclusion.
Entertainment Weekly has interviewed Lena Headey about the finale twists:
“Who do you think will end up on the Iron Throne?” What was your reaction when you read the script and realized that it’s Cersei, at least for now.
I couldn’t believe it, obviously. I was really shocked. I read it like nine times, like, “You’re joking!” Then I’m left to wonder who’s going to take her down. She may only be there for a second. You do think, “What the f— comes next?” Then we start again to play that game we all play each season, “Who’s going to be on the Iron Throne next?”
So your prediction is Cersei’s not going to reign for very long?
No. Surely not! Not a chance in hell. It’s a moment of punctuation in the madness.
The question of who’s going to take her down seems to have an obvious answer at the end of the finale…
I got goosebumps reading, “The ships are coming.” They keep teasing us every season and I don’t know what’s going to happen because nobody tells you anything. I have to assume there’s going to be one helluva battle. Who knows? It’s such a mystery.
The arrival of Dany also raises the prospect of Cersei reuniting with Tyrion.
I’m as excited as anyone to get Cersei and Tyrion back together. It just works. Those two characters are so interesting because there’s so much hate, yet slight respect too. They’d kill each other if ever given the chance.
People usually don’t leave the Iron Throne alive, though. Does that have you concerned?
No. I’ve always said that when it happens, as long as it’s kinda glorious and gory and it’s by the right person…
And who is the right person?
I think it has to be Arya or Tyrion.
Another interview has been published with Natalie Dormer (Margaery Tyrell):
And how did you feel about the way Margaery goes out in particular?
I thought it was really clever. I really did. It’s not an echo of anything you’ve seen in the last six years. It’s truly it’s own unique moment to tie up what’s been a unique storyline about what’s happened in King’s Landing over the course of season 6. I thought it was an inspired choice. And it’s really interesting that I am given a moment of some vindication at the very end, which was the perfect way for Margaery to leave the show. She’s given a platform to say that she was right, as she always is. But because the power was taken from her, she couldn’t do anything about it.
She’s been sparring with Cersei all this time, but then has to relinquish control just to survive.
The reason it all goes tits up is because Margaery wasn’t in control of the battle against Cersei. She had to hand the reins over to the High Sparrow and Cersei outplays him. By the end, Margaery is a victim of the High Sparrow’s incompetence. He underestimates Cersei and that’s something Margaery Tyrell would never do. David and Dan try to stay as close to human nature as possible.
She ended up having a really great arc, though. In the books, Margaery has a smaller role and you have to figure one reason you had so much more to do is because you were playing that part.
Margaery had a fantastic arc in comparison to what’s in the books. David and Dan stood by what they originally said they would do, which is give me stuff to get my teeth into. It’s the longest time I’ve every spent playing a character. I’ll always have a little yellow rose after my heart, and I think it was just the right length of time, to be honest. It’s time for the Westeros story to move on and it’s a perfect time for her to exit.
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6 Responses
Davos should have burnt Melissandre at the stake, I don’t care if the show needs her for longer so Ayra can tick another name off her list or to fight against the white walkers, I just want her gone. Poor Shireen.
The first 20 mins at KL was fantastic, perfect music and a great build-up. I’ll miss Margaery, I wish we knew if she had a plan up her sleeve. I think Jaime will end up killing Cersei, he’s such a ‘grey’ character – noble acts like killing the Mad King and horrendous ones like pushing Bran out the window. He’ll have to kill Cersei for the greater good, he looked shocked at the end of the ep – he killed the MK for wanting to burn KL. She’ll push him over the edge in some way and he’ll be forced to kill her, which would be the most devastating death for her as she trusts him above all others.
My favourite scene from this episode was the one in which Cersei got revenge on Septa Unella. Her long monstrous monologue in this scene was brutal and shows just how good of an actress Lena Headey is.
House Stark good old revenge
I’m all for a House Stark revenge, the last time we had a King in the North, that didn’t work out too well. I said it last week and I’ll say it again this week, if Liam Cunningham doesn’t win some sort of award for playing Ser Davos, I’m going on a one man riot.
Amazing episode, and a fantastic Season. I loved S6.