The White Walkers have been dealt with, but tensions remain as the issue of power and ruling arises, and Daenerys takes her forces South.
Those remaining at Winterfell light hundreds of funeral pyres for their fallen comrades, and Jon gives a speech about how they owe each person a debt of gratitude for their enormous sacrifice.
At an awkward dinner later, the Hound teases Gendry for wondering where Arya is, and Daenerys halts the Baratheon bastard as he leaves. They talk about what their respective negative relationships with him. Pointing out there are no Baratheons left to be lord of Storm's End, Dany legitimizes Gendry as a Baratheon and declares him the new Stormland lord. Tyrion and Sansa both recognize this as a move to garner favor with the Northerners, especially the new lord, and the latter isn't happy about it. Jaime convinces Brienne to celebrate by drinking, and Tyrion convinces Davos to focus on other things when the onion knight shows bitter feelings about Melisandre and how they fought for the Lord of Light, only for the god to then disappear. Tyrion then visits Bran, commending him on his wheelchair, which the boy says is based on a Targaryen design. Though Tyrion thinks Bran's infinite knowledge will be useful as a lord, he realizes the young man doesn't want the title. Bran says he doesn't really want anything anymore, and when Tyrion expresses envy of this, Bran says he should be jealous, as the former Stark mostly lives in the past. Jon celebrates with Tormund, who proposes a toast to Dany. The dragon queen then toasts Arya, and shares a look with Jon that bothers Sansa.
While Brienne takes part in Tyrion's drinking game, Tormund praises Jon, mentioning how he came back from the dead and united his enemies. His admiration for Jon's abilities makes Dany realize everyone respects Jon more than they do her.
The drinking game becomes awkward when Tyrion declares that Brienne is a virgin. Tormund intercepts as she leaves, but Jaime stops him and follows her. As everyone shuffles away, Tormund is left staring. Tormund talks about his broken heart to the Hound, who responds annoyed, so he instead goes off with a prostitute while Clegane angrily turns down another. Sansa sits with him and asks what would make him happy; he snarls that it's his business and, pointing out how she used to struggle to look at him, brings up the pain she suffered with Ramsay. Sansa coldly states the Bolton got what he deserved, getting a laugh from Clegane when she reveals his death came from hounds. He sorrowfully mentions that she wouldn't have suffered if she could've left King's Landing with him, but she says that without Littlefinger and Ramsay, she would've remained the "little bird" all her life. Outside, Gendry finds Arya practicing her archery, and after telling her about his legitimization, asks her to marry him and be the lady of Storm's End. Shocked, she turns him down, reminding him that while he'll be a good lord, she isn't a lady. Back inside, Brienne is surprised when Jaime enters her room, and with all the subtlety of a dragon on the battlefield, he repeatedly brings up how hot the room is and strips, leading to the two having sex. Daenerys visits Jon in his room, and he gives his condolences for Jorah's death. She explains how the man loved her, but she didn't feel for him the way she does Jon. Jon grows uncomfortable as they kiss and he remembers what he learned. Wishing she never learned it, Dany brings up how everyone was looking at him. Though Jon asserts he won't press his claim to the throne, Dany says it doesn't matter how he feels, begging him to swear Sam and Bran to secrecy and never tell anyone, otherwise the people will always want him instead of her. He says he still needs to tell Sansa, but Dany feels the Lady of Winterfell is different from the girl he grew up with, and says the truth would destroy them. Jon declares his family and his queen can live together, and Daenerys, turning stonefaced, coldly says they can, only if he does what she asked.
The next day, they go over their lost forces and how Cersei now has more forces. Dany wants to strike hard, knowing Cersei will keep the people from knowing what they did, but Tyrion reminds her they need to not destroy King's Landing.
Varys reveals she they have the Iron Islands and Dorne, but Dany snaps that Cersei can call herself queen as long as she's on the throne, regardless of lost allies. Tyrion points out he saw the starving people rebel against Joffrey, and Jon says they can surround the city, destroying the fleet if it brings supplies, and defeat them in the field if they attack. Sansa suggests waiting until the men can recuperate, and is bewildered when Dany takes this to mean they're not going to support her. She reminds the dragon queen she is talking about her forces, too. Daenerys says her enemies grow stronger while they wait, and Jon surprises Sansa and Arya by taking Dany's side; they cast a glance at each other. Tyrion runs through a plan for how everyone will move, revealing Jaime has elected to stay in Winterfell, and Daenerys declares they've won the Great War and will now win the last one and allow the people to live peacefully under their rightful queen. Arya and Sansa request a word with Jon and go to the Godswood, where they argue about going to fight for Daenerys; Arya respects his decision to swear loyalty to her, but says they still don't trust her. Arya wants to keep outsiders out and reminds him they're the last of the Starks. He says he's not a Stark, and as he struggles to admit the truth, Bran calmly states it's his choice if he does or not. Jon decides he has to stick with his honest ways, but swears Sansa and Arya to secrecy first, begging them to do so before he'll tell the truth. Meanwhile, Tyrion is teasingly grilling Jaime about Brienne when Bronn enters with the Lannister crossbow, sick of the crazy family. As Tyrion tries to talk his way out of the situation, Bronn punches him and wards off Jaime with the crossbow. They sit again, and Bronn reveals Cersei offered him Riverrun, but admits he knew Cersei was dead when he saw the dragons, as he'd easily bet on them. He points out she can't pay him if she's dead, but mentions the odds could turn if Dany's hand and top generals start disappearing. Tyrion brings up the deal he made long ago to pay Bronn double anything another would, and offers to give double Riverrun in the form of Highgarden. Though Tyrion feels it's a better idea than being dead, Jaime is aghast, and after Bronn launches an arrow, says Highgarden will never belong to a cutthroat. Bronn counters that every house started so, even theirs, and the following generations just got softer. He demands Tyrion's word, and the latter says they could use him as an officer for their coming march. Bronn shoots this down, saying his fighting days are done, but claims he still has killing days left, telling them he'll return after the war.
Outside, the Hound is riding away and sees Arya following; he is surprised she doesn't want to bask in heroic glory, but she says she doesn't like heroes.
He says he has unfinished business in King's Landing and doesn't plan on coming back, but Arya states she's in the same boat, admitting she'll probably leave him to die again if he gets hurt. Dany checks on her dragons, and Sansa watches from a wall as Rhaegal struggles to fly due to his wing now being tattered. Tyrion arrives and wonders about her distrust of Dany; Sansa says her love of Jon doesn't mean she'd be a good queen. He brings up how a good relationship between the North and South will be good, but Sansa reminds him Jon will be warden of the North, making such a scenario easy. Tyrion points out Jon will be in the capital, and though Sansa says it's his choice, he feels she'll be the true Northern power, and begs her to let him leave as an ally. She brings up how Jon and Tyrion's queen are taking the army, so it's not a problem, and when he reminds her Dany is her queen, too, she realizes he fears the queen. He admits a leader needs to inspire some fear, and she shares her worry of how men in her family are treated at the capital. Tyrion mentions that Jon isn't really a Stark, noting a strange reaction from Sansa. He assures her of his belief in Daenerys, and after pausing, Sansa asks what the situation would be if there were someone better for the throne. Jon says goodbye to Tormund in the courtyard, planning to ride a horse while Rhaegal heals; Tormund has decided to return beyond the wall. Jon asks Tormund to take Ghost with him, having decided the direwolf belongs there, and admits he wishes he could go when Tormund says he belongs with them, too. They say goodbye and Jon moves to Sam and Gilly, realizing she's pregnant, and jokingly hopes for a girl when they express a desire to name it after him. Jon departs with Davos after a heartfelt hug to Sam and a nod to Ghost, and though everything seems fine as Dany heads for Dragonstone, there is trouble on the horizon.
Most people have been tearing this season apart so far, and this episode I definitely had my complaints, as well.
There are definitely good aspects to the episode; I like how, as has been the case before with the show, we didn't just see a massive battle and forget there would be a political struggle to follow. One of the strengths I've always enjoyed with this show is that is doesn't just have its characters trying to defeat an enemy and that's it; a big focus is on what comes after. We saw the seeds of this when Sansa tried to focus on what the North would do after Dany helped them defeat the White Walkers. Now, there is tension throughout this episode, especially between Dany and Sansa, as each is wary of the other making moves against them. It would be hard for anyone to miss, with Gendry seeming to notice at the start as he searches for Arya, and Tyrion pointing them out to Davos. I previously said I found it silly that Arya believes Sansa is the smartest person she's ever met, and while it's still a stretch, Sansa is becoming a favorite character for me. All the time I've watched this series, I have found Sansa annoying, like most did, but I always thought Sophie Turner did a fantastic job and she was well-written. After she got stuck with Joffrey, I started seeing her better, realizing why she behaved the way she had at times before and thinking she had good growth. Now, she seems to be one of the few people simultaneously using actual intelligence and being bold enough to speak out against Sansa. Dany's outrage when Sansa requests the soldiers be given time to rest is completely ridiculous, and I'm surprised no one else spoke out. Dany's argument is that Cersei is getting stronger and it doesn't matter how many allies she loses, both of which make no sense. At this point, yes, Cersei has gained new forces, but there's no sign they're getting any more, meaning their strength has plateaued. Dany and the others, however, are in a weakened state that could only get better, especially if given the time to rest. Rhaegal is injured to the point he struggles to fly, and all the soldiers have just went through the most hellish night they could've imagined. Varys even points out they have support from the Iron Islands and Dorne, meaning they could probably gain new forces and supplies if they wait. Another area of the show I found questionable that irked many viewers was how casually Sansa talked about Ramsay Bolton raping her. I got what the writers were trying to go for, that Sansa came through her pain stronger, but the situation was handled poorly, and didn't feel real. As I saw another point out, it seemed ridiculous that a rape victim would be able to look at such a situation in this way. In particular, I would say, because even if Sansa has faced plenty of trauma, it can take a long time for someone to get over something as horrific as rape. Heck, the rape scene itself has already been criticized, and this feels like another point for the fans that the writers really suffered from doing their own thing without the influence of George R.R. Martin's existing books. Then of course, there's the way Jon just randomly decided to have Ghost go North with Tormund, rather than taking or leaving him. The Internet has exploded against Jon for this action, and I was one who felt it made no sense for him to make this decision. Ghost has been with Jon since the beginning, and the direwolves have always been important to their characters, though clearly more in the books. There, the Stark kids have such a bond with their wolves that Bran repeatedly wargs into Summer, as he did sometimes in the show, and it's shown Arya and Jon have some warging ability as they do so with their wolves. Ghost has always been by Jon's side, fighting for him, returning to him after wandering North, and now sustaining injuries fighting the wights. There was a point in the past Melisandre urged him to keep his wolf close, warning of "daggers in the night," and when he didn't, he was murdered. Robert Baratheon and some others commented in the past that wolves don't belong south of the wall, but the Starks have always felt differently. If even Melisandre was able to see how important Ghost is for Jon, he makes more sense he would've made a different decision. Now there were definitely aspects to this episode I enjoyed, like callbacks such as Tyrion trying to say where power resides and bringing up his deal with Bronn. Despite disliking Sansa's words about her rape, I did like how she interacted with the Hound, with him bringing back "little bird" and her recognizing the irony of telling "the Hound" that she killed her assaulter with hounds. I was enormously glad that Jon decided to tell his siblings the truth, as I've enjoyed having a character who always tries to be honest. On the flip side, I was glad Sansa broke her promise to keep the secret by telling Tyrion, as I felt this information was important and it seemed in-character for Sansa to tell Tyrion, whom she sees as an intelligent person. Robot Bran was still good fun as he beep-booped his way through conversations, though I find it frustrating how he tells just a few people of greatly important info. Jon's goodbyes to Tormund and Sam, especially compared to Ghost's, were touching, and Tormund pointing out Jon belonged North of the wall was interesting. As mentioned, Gilly was revealed as pregnant, and while I still hate that actress Hannah Murray caught negative attention, I'm happy for Gilly and Sam. Now that the Night King is gone, we're getting back to the Lannister threat in the South, and it is going to get especially violent after what Dany's forces experience.
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