After a short and sometimes meandering seventh season, Game of Thrones’ extra-long finale left us with a veritable avalanche of feelings to deal with on Sunday August 27, as a long-awaited meeting between the hottest power-hungry blondes in Westeros finally came to pass. Bonds were forged, blood was spilled, loyalties were tested — and the biggest reveals and deadliest battles are still around the corner. Here’s everything you need to know about the episode titled “The Dragon and the Wolf.”
The Queens Confab
The big meet between houses of Lannister and Targaryen finally happened in this episode, in a mega-reunion at which everyone present wanted to hug, screw or murder everyone else … or in some cases, all of the above. (We’re looking at you, Brienne and Jaime.) Despite high tensions and sharp words, it was mission accomplished on all fronts: after the Hound (Rory McCann) unveiled their captured wight, hacking it into undead pieces to demonstrate the awesome power of the Night King’s army, Cersei (Lena Headey) was convinced to call a truce and march her armies north to help defend humanity — a promise you can definitely trust since Cersei is not at all known to be a conniving power-grabbing psychopath with no sense of decency whatsoever.
Trouble at Winterfell
Things got tense in the north when Sansa (Sophie Turner) received word that Jon Snow (Kit Harington) had sworn loyalty to Daenerys (Emilia Clarke), which only seemed to help Littlefinger’s (Aidan Gillen) continued attempts to poison Sansa against her remaining family — including Arya (Maisie Williams). But if Sansa was once the most naïve and manipulable young lady in Westeros, her trials over the course of seven seasons have taught her to spot a snake in the grass … or the Eyrie. With a little help from Bran (Isaac Hempstead Wright) and his psychic hindsight, Sansa was swift to point her own little finger at Lord Baelish, whose whining begging pleas for mercy were cut ignominiously short by Arya the Executioner.
Theon’s Redemption
Although he’s been tangential to the action for awhile now, Theon Greyjoy (Alfie Allen) might just be the closest thing to a hero this particular episode had, after he resolved to return to the Iron Islands and demand Yara’s (Gemma Whelan) freedom — and after he used his, er, unique physical assets to win a fight against a guy who likes to kick people in the junk. When life gives you lemons, eh, Theon?
The Dragon and the … Dragon
Meanwhile, Sam Tarly (John Bradley-West) and Bran Stark finally got a chance to compare notes back at Winterfell and made plain what we’ve suspected since last week: Jon Snow is not only a Targaryen, he’s a legitimate Targaryen, and hence the heir to the Iron Throne. Unfortunately (or not, depending on whether you like that sort of thing), Jon won’t find out the truth about his lineage in time to stop him from banging his Aunt Daenerys. Because he did that.
The Dead Come Marching
Oh, and remember that armistice Cersei promised? Yeah, that was a load of B.S. “Let the monsters kill each other,” she sneered, explaining that while everyone else fought the dead, she intended to fortify her position with an army of paid men from Essos. But this is one power play she’ll be making alone; Jaime (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau), horrified by Cersei’s shameless self-interest, abandoned her and rode north as snowflakes began to fall on King’s Landing. And hopefully, he’ll bring at least a few good men along with him — because the Night King and his electric ice dragon just knocked down the Wall, and the last major obstacle standing between him and the living, in one fell swoop.
