Game of Thrones, Season 7, Episode 7: The Wolf and the Dragon

Ok… I’m actually kind of disappointed by this season finale… in much the same way I have been by this whole season. Because there have been moments of epic and moments of awesome but then you into a moment of sheer blithering stupidity and I’m just “WHY IS THIS HERE?!” This is season 7 in microcosm - awesome and silly mixed together

The good parts are the big epic meet up as everyone gathers at the old arena where the Targaryens used to keep their dragons (something Daenerys disapproved on since she thinks this is what made the dragons weak and, in turn, made the Targaryens themselves weak). There we have another moment where Bronn and Jaime look at the sheer number of Unsullied and Dorthraki (who are terrifyingly well co-ordinated together) and say “oh shit we’re screwed”. Bronn also puts all war down to cocks. Which I’m choosing to interpret as a reference to narrow patriarchal structures of violence, control, competition and ownership constantly leading to conflict

This is also Jon’s first visit to Kings Landing introducing him to a city with 1,000,000 people in it - more than in the entire North. While Jon is playing countryboy, Cersei is giving instructions on who to kill while Jaime looks on all disapproving

Time for reunions! Pod and Tyrion is awesome. Brienne and the Hound kind of fun since last time they tried to kill each other. He wonders who is protecting Arya. Brienne laughs that Arya is pretty much someone you need protecting from now. We have Tyrion and Bronn bantering back and forth and a brief attempt for Tyrion to try and recruit Bron

Until we get to the arena where everyone makes Significant Eyes at each other. Brienne and Jaime. Euron and Theon. Cersei and Tyrion. The Hound even has a stand off with his monstrous mountainous brother.

Daenerys arrives late. On dragonback. This is the first time Cersei and Euron have seen her dragons and are visibly… concerned.

Time for formal proceedings, but first Euron has to stand up and be pretty much an arse to everyone. He ignores Jaime and Cersei when they tell him to sit down - it’s only when he’s threatened with the Mountain that he obeys. Again, this is why the Lannisters cannot ever rule - no-one respects them. They only ever have fear, no allies, no friends, no respect; their reign could never be stable

That taken care of it’s time for Jon to make an epic speech about the living and the dead - and to show off the Wight. Which nearly eats Cersei and shows everyone just how horrifying and awful it is. It’s very convincing. Cersei is shaken. And when Daenerys confirms there’s at least 100,000 of them Jaime is completely terrified.

Euron checks if they can swim and learning they can’t he officially declares “fuck that” and heads off to his island with his fleet. He’ll be back next Summer.

Cersei seems to actually be convinced and says yup, she’s totally in for the truce. So long as Jon promises when he finishes fighting in the north he stays there and doesn’t get involved in the war afterwards. Jon says actually he can’t because he’s totally sworn to Daenerys, sorry and he’s never heard of the concept of lying. Cersei storms off.

What nonsense is this?!

HOW MANY STARKS HAVE TO LIE BEFORE THEY FIGURE OUT LYING ISN’T  TERRIBLE?

Ye gods Jon’s repeated refrain for the whole season is “killing the dead matters more than anything else” that includes your own stupid honour, Jon! It is not noble, it is deeply selfish to put your own integrity over the survival of the human race

Game of Thrones, Season 7, Episode 6: Beyond the Wall

This episode was interesting in that we had major events happen but it didn’t feel rushed or packed and we didn’t have a gazillion storylines everywhere. We even only used a little plot bending (honestly, my main issue this season is how the plot broke itself to make it work -between Cersei’s prescient army, High Garden, the fleet of ships apparently made by Santa’s Elves and last episode’s ability to teleport the length and breadth of the entire continent in a few days is beginning to really annoy me).

So on that note let’s begin with the most annoying storyline - Winterfell. Where Arya and Sansa begin reminiscing about their childhood, their beloved father and Arya’s wish to step outside of the constraints that society put on her and which her father supported her through. This shows her childhood disdain for Sansa as well as her devotion to her father and Jon

She taunts Sansa about the letter she wrote as a child and considers it a betrayal, adding what the northern lords (and, more importantly, Lyanna Mormont) would think.

What strikes me most about this scene is that while Arya has learned many skills and become tough and hard and unforgiving she’s also been isolated. We talk a lot about how much everyone has grown and changed but here we see that in many ways she IS still a child. Her condemnation of Sansa is childish - it shows a complete unwillingness to deal with greater political realities, a complete naivety over what you can actually do and what is a smart answer.

Sansa tries to point this out - and rejects any idea she’s a coward or weak because of what she has endured and survived. Sadly Sansa, in an act that is utterly bemusing, turns to Littlefinger (who, of course, doesn’t reveal that he’s the one who led to Arya finding the letter anyway) who tries to drive more a rift between them and even suggests he use Brienne as a bodyguard

Sansa doesn’t do that because she has an invite from Cersei… yeah no. Sansa is not having that. Brienne can go and rely on the sexual tension between her and Jaime to keep things safe. Brienne wants to stay to protect Sansa. Not from Arya - but from everyone, because as long as Littlefinger’s around everyone can have their loyalty manipulated. She’s not wrong - but Sansa won’t hear it

Later she does discover Arya’s stash of faces and Arya menacingly explains what they all mean in a not-quite-overtly-threatening-but-the-threat-is-there manner.

Game of Thrones, Season 7, Episode 5: Eastwatch

This episode I am reminded of the action pack awesomeness of last episode - and also how quickly things need to move, especially since there are only 2 episodes left this season

I see this and then I see Ser Jorah and Gendrey and Sam and I have to fight the urge to tell them all to go away. You’re distractions. You’re not needed!

The Lannisters, Daenerys and Great Big Lizards

So we have a whole lot of dead soldiers after the dragons had the most overcooked BBQ since your dad’s last cook out. Tyrion is there and rather traumatised by the horror of it all. And then things get a little more worrisome…

Because Daenerys demands everyone bend the knee or die. The Tarly’s (Sam’s father and brother) refuse. Tyrion pleas for mercy from Daenerys, pleas for the Tarly’s to bend (since they just betrayed Olenna so they’re not THAT loyal). But both are inflexible… and Daenerys has them both burned alive. Oh, yes, Dracarys is fine.

This makes everyone else kneel.

Really, it’s not that far from what Daenerys has pulled before - brutal deaths for the disloyal and those who challenge her are pretty much par the course with Daenerys. Tyrion knows this - did he think she’d adopt new rules now she’s in “civilised” lands? Did he think she’d change when in “proper” countries of Westeros?

Of course I can definitely see the worry that while pleading repeatedly for Daenerys to be a gentle, merciful leader - the very reason why so many follow her (apparently) because she is kind (to people who are super loyal to her anyway). At the same time burning people alive is exactly what her father,  The Mad King Arys loved to burn people alive.

On the other hand - they betrayed Olenna.

Varys and Tyrion talk about this- both drinking and both clearly shaken. Tyrion, spin-master to the end, tries to downplay Daenerys burning people to death. Varys is very shaken -he served the Mad King, his spies dug out people the Mad King then burned to death. He has a truly haunting recounting of how he tried to deny he was responsible while clearly feeling very guilty for that. And now he’s seeing Daenerys heading down the same path and dragging them with him.

But she’s not the Mad King. Yet. That yet is their mission.

They’ve also received a sealed message for Jon

Tyrion: Have you read it

Varys: It’s a sealed message for the king in the North!

Tyrion: So what does it say?

Because you know Varys has read it. Of course he has. He probably read it before Bran even wrote it.

Daenerys also introduces Jon to Dracarys - and Dracarys bonds with his new step-daddy (I’m going to put this down to Jon’s Targaryen blood). And Daenerys discusses how she regards them as her children. Jon is discomforted by all the killing but Daenerys points out Jon’s wars to liberate Winterfel have hardly been bloodless: it’s fine to protect the people but you need to be in a position of strength in which to do it. She’s not exactly wrong - and nor is death by dragon any less dead than, say, death by sword.

He also downplays the whole coming back from the dead thing, just in time for Ser Jorah to come back and re-pledge himself to Daenerys. I get that I said this is a distraction but I really expected a more dramatic reunion here.

Game of Thrones, Season 7, Episode 4: The Spoils of War

Well, that happened: the inevitable awesome burning action happened and we knew it was coming but it was still very awesome

But first let us join a much quieter but still very awesome and poignant moment in Winterfell

Three of the Stark sibling have now been reunited - Bran, Sansa and Arya. And I think this whole episode really powerfully shows us how much the siblings have changed. Bran has become almost robotic - completely emotionless even as Meera, a woman who has fought desperately to keep him alive, has carried him literally, watched Hodor die for him, watched her brother die for him, says goodbye. He shows no emotion even as she is devastated by this.

When he sees Arya and Sansa he is equally dispassionate with added levels of creepy and spooky. Sansa has heard about his visions and clearly didn’t believe them - until his talking about Arya’s list and journey makes it clear he isn’t just seeing things.

Another person taken aback by Bran’s spookiness is Littlefinger who tries to schmooze Bran with pretty words and the shiny knife that started this whole chaos - the knife that near murdered him, a murder and a knife which cause Catelyn Stark to imprison Tyrion and start the whole war going in an utter disaster

Bran is indifferent (he gives the knife to Arya) but he does mention “Chaos is a ladder” which is pretty much Petyr’s watchword. This freaks Petyr out severely (the Stark kids are rattling him good) while also suggesting that, yes, Littlefinger was the one behind all of this.

We’ve seen Sansa mature and become the incredibly strong, cunning woman she is today and now realising her young siblings have grown in the same time period. Especially poignant is her and Arya reflecting on their mutual difficult, painful stories- but Arya’s determined “this isn’t the end of their story” and it is beautiful to see Arya actually hope now.

Sansa originally laughs over Arya’s list only to have Bran’s visions confirm it - and then see Arya match Brienne (who towers over her) in a sparring match.

And I feel for Brienne - seeing the Stark children reunited as she promised Catelyn she would while acknowledging she did pretty much nothing to make it happen. The Starks are doing it for themselves.

To Dragonstone where Daenerys and Jon Snow are beginning to show more chemistry before their inevitable marriage (and Davos definitely noticing) and Jon showing Daenerys the shiny cave of dragonglass he found complete with cave paintings from the Children of the Forest showing their alliance with the First Men to face off against the super creepy white Walkers.

This is his not so subtle message that they should stand together and Daenerys throws back that she’ll support him if he bends the knee. Yup, she’s broken record. He points out that his people will rebel. She says nope, he’s their king, he doesn’t say “lady, you have not met Lyanna Mormont” but he really should have.

He does speak to Missendei who tells some of her history for some nice characterisation but is really much much more about how totally awesome Daenerys is. And, y’know, it’s nice to confirm that everyone who follows Daenerys does it because they respect and love her and what she’s done and absolutely none of them give a shit about who her daddy was or what noble lineage she has. Which is good because it removes her entitlement to rule just because of her noble name which is a hard sell and full of (very historical accurate) entitlement

The bad side is basically the fact she’s selling herself as the Greatest of White Saviours. The whole Mhysa storyline was a hot hot mess and this being her selling point is just cringeworthy

Also no mention of dragons. I mean “we love her. Also she has burny lizards that kill people. And a legion of angry horsewarriors who think she’s a fire goddess and kill people. Oh and an army of people who’ve been slaves since birth and may not even know they’re free because did anyone actually check? Seriously most of the time Daenerys doesn’t even speak in a language most of them don’t understand, shouldn’t we do a survey or something?”

Game of Thrones, Season 7, Episode 3: The Queen's Justice

Dragonstone

It’s the moment many have been waiting for - Jon Snow meets with Daenerys’ Targaryen at the Dragonstone

RING THE WEDDING BELLS

There’s also the excellent reunion between Jon and Tyrion as they both acknowledge their respect and knowledge for each other with extra acknowledgement that Sansa is smart and one to watch. Jon also gets to see the shiny dragons.

He is introduced to Daenerys with Tyrion reciting all her titles. While Davos just says “Jon Snow, king in the north” which I have to applaud. That was powerful

Actual negotiations are fraught. Jon wants help to kill the King of the Night and he’s really dramatic about that - but ultimately there’s not much reason for Daenerys to believe this and take her army north when she’s already in the middle of a war. Similarly while Daenerys demands Jon bend the knee he’s very clear that that’s really not going to happen for both the sake of the lords of the north and also simple reason: why? Why should he kneel?

The whole debate back and forther is good though because there is definite resect between them even though they’re in clear disagreement. Daenerys acknowledges that her father did evil, terrible things and she apologises for them. He acknowledges he shouldn’t judge her based on his record - but that doesn’t mean he actually has a reason to follow her.

It comes with lots of epic speeches - including one from Daenerys about all she has managed to endure and still keep going because of her great faith in herself. And another where Davos almost goes too far, both excellent describing why she should respect Jon Snow because of how, with no heritage, he has managed to unite the wildlings and the lords of the north. Of course he also mentions how he was stabbed in the heart and got up again

Though they do know about Mellisandre - who isn’t there because she knows Jon isn’t a fan and also because Varys is dropping not-too-subtle I’ll totally kill you hints.

When Tyrion and Jon have mutual moping session Tyrion does what he does best - point out that what Jon’s asking IS unreasonable. Sure he believes Jon, but he can’t expect other people who don’t know him to do so. So what DOES Jon want which is reasonable and achievable?

He also goes to Daenerys and points out why he believes Jon - because Jon has come to Dragonstone. And this is silly - Tyrion wouldn’t have done it, all of his advisors would have said no, but Jon came anyway. It must be because he truly wants something.

When Jon and Daenerys meet again, with Tyrion greasing the wheels, Daenerys offers Jon he resources and people to mine dragonglass. After all, it’s something he wants, something she really doesn’t care about and is a really easy way to build a relationship

This is reasonable diplomacy. Going from complete strangers to “Allies/serve me/let’s get married and have incest babies!” is a long path.

Which will be needed because everything is going wrong - to such an extent that Daenerys just wants to get on her dragons and go flying to burn everything.

Game of Thrones, Season 7, Episode 2: Stormborn

Time for the epic

Beginning with Dragonstone with everyone making the super dramatic speeches around Daenerys and planning her conquest of the world

First point which comes quickly from Tyrion and is picked up by Daenerys is that they don’t want to launch an all right assault, unleash the dragons and reduce everything to ashes. She actually wants to have a people to rule after this and not a whole load of more massacres.

Which brings us to what for me, was the most awesome part of the entire show: Varys and Daenerys. And I am waving the Varys flag here.

See there’s some unresolved issues between Daenerys and Varys. Varys served her father - and then betrayed him and served Robert Baratheon. And then was behind her marriage to Khal Drogo to try and set up Viserys as king (betraying Robert) and then tried to kill Daenerys at Robert’s command

They have history. While Tyrion repeatedly tries to speak in Varys’s defence, Daenerys points out that Varys has a major loyalty problem. What kind of servant is that?

“The kind of servant the kingdom needs. Incompetence should not be rewarded with blind loyalty”

And that’s just his opening line because Varys is on a role - yes he will betray the king because he is loyal to the people. And if you’re a cruel and terrible king (like her father) or an incompetent indifferent king (like Robert) then he will replace you for the sake of the people and the Realm. He’s not a noble or aristocrat, he grew up in the gutter and it is to the people he is loyal

You have Varys’s loyalty when you deserve it. And a knife in the back the second you don’t.

Daenerys seems to accept this - making him swear if he ever thinks she is not serving the people that he should say it to her face… but I notice she doesn’t promise to take note and she does promise to burn him alive if he betrays her.

Still team Varys. Hail Varys.

We also get the return of the Red Priestess Melisandre, still spouting prophecy but not aas confidently as before. She advises a big pinch of salt after her debacle of Stannis (though while Varys tries to rub her nose in it Daenerys notes that she’s decided to “pardon those who serve the wrong king” with extra royal side eye. Royal side eye is an important skill for any monarch)

Her prophecy is about a promised ruler (since the noun is non gendered in Valaryian) who will “bring the dawn” and also links her (and her dragons and dragon glass) with Jon Snow. I wonder how.

She decides to send a letter after Tyrion also speaks up for Jon (and wants to be best man). She also demands he bend the knee.

No not like that.

She gathers her advisors - all of them. This includes Yara from the Iron Isles, Ellaria from Dorne and her supreme awesomeness, Olenna from Highgarden. There is much snarking (Olenna is in the room) but ultimately everyone is impressed with her plan: the Tyrells and Dornish siege Kings Landing therefore dispelling the idea that scary, dark-skinned, savage foreign types are invading, with Yara using her ships to transport the Dornish. While Grey Worm takes the Unsullied and brings down Castlery Rock, smashing the Lannister’s power. It’s extra powerful that Tyrion describes this plan helping to assuage any doubts people may have about his loyalty (though he and Ellaria have issues over Mycella’s death)

It’s a good plan and gets lots of approval - though Olenna does hang back to add her own advice: people are stupid, she’s outlived all the smart men, and aristocrat or commoner, they need to fear her, she needs to be the dragon. I don’t know how much of this is wisdom and how much of this is bitterness because Margaery did play the game of being the most popular monarch around - and still died.

Confederate: The Show We Do Not Need

David Benioff; D.B Weiss (Credit: AP/Vince Bucci)

If there was any doubt that we are not living in a post racial world, surely the election of that orange shit stain should have made it clear to all the doubters by now.  In a world in which many have even dropped the pretense of using coded language to attack Black people, for some ungodly reason, HBO has decided that what we need is a show called Confederate, whose premise is to question what would have happened if the south had won the civil war.  From the imagination of the creators of Game of Thrones, we will be treated to a program in which African-Americans are still slaves.

Understandably, the announcement about Confederate created quite a backlash. Certainly, HBO needs to fill in the gaping hole that Game of Thrones is going to leave but why fill that in with a White supremacists wet dream?  If Confederate is going to aptly depict slavery, it will most certainly come with scenes of absolute brutality and rape, rising to a level of torture porn and broken Black bodies for the sake of entertainment.  It’s bad enough that we have been subjected to the deaths of Philando Castille, Eric Garner, and Alton Sterling on repeat. Thanks to our 24 hour news cycle when African-Americans are murdered by the cops it’s all that seems to be reported on for days on end. In our hyper connected world, social media adds to the trauma with videos automatically playing on Facebook. Black death is now appropriate for the consumption of the masses.  It is absolutely important to recognise the brutality of these deaths yet it’s clear that the very frequency and availability of the footage is already leaving far too many people desensitized to the pain and suffering. Is it any wonder that David Benioff and D.B. Weiss feel emboldened enough to pitch a series about Black suffering?

HBO absolutely could have gone another way if it wanted to share a slave narrative, especially given the fan outcry when Underground was canceled by WGN when the network was purchased by the hyper conservative Sinclair Broadcast Group. Certainly, Underground didn't have the audience that Game of Thrones does but it did feature a narrative of Black empowerment.  Rather than focusing solely on Black suffering, Underground showed the courageousness of those who chose to follow ol’ Moses and liberate themselves. Underground fits quite better with Black Lives Matter, and the push to tear down civil war statues. Is it any wonder that Black liberation suddenly doesn’t have a place on television?

Even as Black people are trying to disassemble hallmarks of the former confederacy, White supremacy seems quite determined to not only celebrate it as though it represents a golden era but to return us to it. We don’t need Confederate to tell us how bad slavery was, there are plenty of first hand account slave narratives still in existence.  We don’t need Confederate to create some fantasy about African-American suffering because the extra judicial slaughter of Black men and women, combined with the housing crises which targeted Black people regardless of credit,  the cancelling of television shows with large casts of colour, the prison industrial complex and the lack of generational wealth all tell the story for anyone who has common sense enough to connect the dots.  This isn’t about education, this about subjugation. This is about reminding Black people that we are still very much viewed as second class citizens despite, the vast accomplishments in the face of white oppression.

Game of Thrones, Season 7, Episode 1: Dragonstone

It’s back! And it has a previously?

On Game of Thrones? We may be here for several hours. Or it could be very short “he’s dead and him and him and definitely her and him and him and him”.

My a lot has happened on this show. And a whole lot have died.

ARYA

And many more are going to if Arya has her way. Because we open with Walder Frey who gathered his whole very very very very very big family to celebrate how they defeated the Starks. A toast to Victory! A toast to murdering pregnant women, and mothers of children, and guests you’ve offered safety to… at which point the gathered family realise they’re something up because it’s a very dubious toast. And then they all die to poison - except Walder Frey’s young wife who Walder stopped drinking

Walder then takes off his face and reveals, Arya. Oh yes, she just massacred the entire Frey family. Arya’s learning of Faceless Man skills has made her deeply terrifying

“Tell them the north remembers. Tell them winter came for House Frey”

And with a nifty flare for the dramatic.

Still to temper the ruthlessness as she leaves she runs into Ed Sheeren doing a cameo and a bunch of Lannister soldiers who are almost impossibly nice; reminding us that while kings and queens fight and kill and plot and scheme, the ordinary people on every side just want to live their lives and not fight these endless pointless wars. It’s a nice break of normality among the endless violence

The North

We also have a scene of the marching horde of White Walkers, reminding us what’s coming. It’s almost as a scary as Arya

Bran and Meera have finally made it to the wall, bringing some ominous prophecy with them. This could be interesting because technically Bran has a stronger claim to the throne than Jon does.

Jon has gathered his followers and is an inspirational and passionate ruler. He has them gathering dragonglass to kill white walkers, has Tormund have the Wildlings defending the wall and the castles, he wants everyone over the age of 10 to learn how to fight: including women

Some object. But Lyanna Mormont agrees women should also learn to fight. I’d also back her against a white walker giant any day.

Of course, not one man dare speak against her because she’s Lyanna Mormont and can slay dragons with her withering stare.

Next on the agenda is the castles of the Umbers and the Karstarks who betrayed House Stark. Sir Royce wants to tear them down for being traitors - he has a sense of honour and stupidity to make him a Stark, without the compassion. Sansa points out castles have done nothing wrong and are useful things to have. There follows a very public argument between Sansa and Jon: Sansa says give them to loyal houses as a reward and to punish traitors while Jon says the house has been loyal for generations and you can’t punish the current house leaders (who are little more than children) for the sins of their fathers. They argue and in the end Jon lays down the law and insists - before making a big charismatic speech which everyone cheers as they accept his new vassals.

Afterwards Jon is super pouty with Sansa for “undermining” him but she isn’t going to meekly take it. She, rather brutally but extremely accurately, says he has to be smarter than their dad and than Rob - and she’s not wrong. He asks if smarter means “listening to you” and she says that wouldn’t be so bad. She points out that Joffrey was a king who wouldn’t listen to people criticising or commenting either: Jon takes exception to the comparison but she says he’s nothing like Joffrey - and that’s not entirely a compliment: because whatever else he was, Joffrey was vicious to his enemies. She also has a level of admiration for Cersei who “taught her a lot”

This argument wasn’t resolved but I can see it rumbling for some time.

She also recognises (we also see how Jon, a northerner, cannot be buttered up) how sheltered she was before - and how unhelpful and useless that was.

I actually think they work well together - Sansa is smarter, more politically savvy and more ruthless while Jon is charismatic and impressed and good and noble (i.e. he’s a damn stupid Stark whose Stupid Good Alignment will get him both loved and killed, while she has honed a sufficient dose of Kings Landing ruthless politicking to keep him alive). And as for openly arguing - again, after several dictatorial rulers a bit of open descent and questioning isn’t a bad thing: especially since Sansa publically putting in a world will also touch on anyone a little wavery about Jon being a Bastard. Also, Northerners aren’t like Kings Landing - they speak out.

I want to see how this dynamic develops t

Game of Thrones, Season 6, Episode 10: Winds of Winter

It’s the last episode so we know it’s time to return to Kings Landing where the trial is finally happening. All the Kings Landing dignitaries are gathered for the trial… except Cersei and Tommen. Cersei because she decides not to attend – and Tommen because Cersei’s undead knight is blocking his way

Pycelle, the High Septon, Margaery, Mace et al are all gathered along with the great and the good (presumably). Loras is finally dug out of his plot box long enough for us to continue his homophobic persecution (his one and only plot line… which even then wasn’t really his as much as his sister’s). Margaery and Mace are pretty infuriated but Margaery really should have had something better planned – or something planned – for this eventuality.

It’s the prelude before the main event though… Cersei’s trial. Margaery is the first to realise something is wrong but because no-one else has her mind, the High Septon refuses to let people leave when she yells at everyone to leave the September

Oh he should have listened. After both Lancel and Pycelle are killed by Qyburn’s incredibly spooky mobs of knife wielding children (uckies uckies no words for how creepy that is) we see the huge stacks of wildfire Cersei has planted under the Sept.

Which explodes… everyone within and anyone in the same neighbourhood is decimated by the incredible explosion. In one act, Cersei has killed Margaery, Mace, Pycelle, her uncle and the High Septon.

But not the Septa who tortured her. Oh no, Cersei has kept her, waterboards her with wine and then gives her to her zombie knight to torture while she leaves chanting “shame shame shame”

I said for a while that that Septa was definitely going to get it

Seeing the horrendous explosion and likely realising who caused it – and that the High Septon and Margaery are dead, Tommen, Cersei’s last child, jumps out a window to his death.

Ok so that happened?

Am I surprised? Not really – it has been increasingly clear as more of Cersei’s children died, as she was increasingly sidelined, increasing denied the power she felt was due her, the respect and honour she felt was due her. As she was repeatedly lessened, humiliated and generally gone from being the most powerful woman in the kingdom to a reviled, powerless being, not even able to influence her own family. This is not the act of a woman trying to regain power. This is not the act of a woman trying to get revenge even. This is the act of a woman who has SNAPPED. And I think the choice of Dragonfire is especially deliberate – because this is what the ”Mad King” Aerys tried to do to the city as well. I think we can see the definite parallel – especially when Jaime comes home from the Riverlands and sees what his sister has done. Remember, this is exactly why he killed Aerys in the first place. Him coming home to find his sister crowned queen while part of the city burns is not a cause of celebration for him – even aside from his son being dead.