Ya gotta hand it to Game of Thrones: Even though we all knew it was coming, the last scene of the Sunday, May 1, episode was a scream-out-loud shocker.
In a perfectly paced episode titled “Home,” the HBO drama paid brief visits to nearly all its major players, setting the stage for a final moment that fans have been waiting for since last year’s finale. Catch up on everything that happened below.
Bran Is Back in Town — and in Time
After taking some much-needed time off last season to go through puberty and hone his psychic skills, Bran (Isaac Hempstead Wright) returned to Game of Thrones this week. A lot has changed for the young Stark; among other things, he’s now capable of going back in time to see his dad as a child, his aunt Lyanna as a teenager and Hodor as a strapping young man named Willis. Willis! Unfortunately, this has all been unbelievably dull for Meera (Eleanor Kendrick), who yearns to be doing … well, something. However, a fellow member of the Three-Eyed Raven gang told her that she has an important part to play in the drama to come, which should totally make up for her current boredom.
The Sparrow Infestation Continued at King’s Landing
With Margaery captive, his mother humiliated and his sister freshly dead, poor Tommen (Dean Charles-Chapman) finally realized the awful truth: He doesn’t know how to be king. This week’s episode found him seeking forgiveness and help from his mother in ridding the kingdom of its power-hungry religious fanatic Sparrow cult, while Jaime (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) faced off against the High Sparrow himself. Oh, and if anyone doubted that the new, huge, silent King’s Guardsman was the reanimated corpse of the Mountain? The Guardsman’s loyalty to Cersei (Lena Headey) and preferred killing style (read: crushing your head like a cherry tomato) should leave no doubt. That’s him, for sure.
Double Dragons!
And here’s why you always leave Tyrion (Peter Dinklage) in charge: He might drink all your wine in your absence, but he’s got great ideas. Realizing that two of their greatest assets were still locked up in catacombs beneath Meereen, Tyrion went down to unleash the beasts, and to give poor Rhaegal and Viserion some much-needed screen time. That diva Drogon has been hogging the spotlight for much too long.
Say Your Name, Say Your Name
After another humiliating stick-fight with the Regina George of the House of Black and White, Arya Stark (Maisie Williams) finally had a new visitor: Jaqen H’ghar (Tom Wlaschiha). After a series of verbal tests, he was satisfied: Arya was blind, but now she’s … well, still blind, but she’s learned her lesson. Next step: faceless manhood!
Ramsay Bolton: Still the Worst
With Sansa on the lam, this week found Roose Bolton (Michael McElhatton) and his bastard Ramsay (Iwan Rheon) ignorantly plotting to assassinate the already-dead Jon Snow. But who’s satisfied with planning just one lousy murder? Not Ramsay! When word arrived that Walda (Elizabeth Webster) had just given birth to a legitimate male heir to the Bolton empire, Ramsay went all out, killing his father and siccing the hounds on his stepmother and new baby brother. Stay tuned for next week, when Ramsay celebrates his new lordship by eating an entire basket of baby kittens.
And Yep, the Thing Happened. You Know. THE THING
The last time we saw Jon Snow (Kit Harington), he was lying dead on a table surrounded by his men, while Alliser Thorne (Owen Teale) stood outside waiting to kill every last one of ’em. Fortunately, the Wildlings came through for Jon and friends in a big way — and yes, that’s a giant pun. With a 30 foot-tall, arrow-impervious warrior on the Wildling side, the fight was over before it began. And with that settled, Davos Seaworth (Liam Cunningham) could finally ask Melisandre (Carice van Houten) the question on everyone’s mind: She is kinda magical, after all. Could she resurrect Jon Snow?
There’s just one problem: Melisandre’s faith has been badly shaken, and her answer was a bleak, “Probably not.” But she was still willing to try, and so she cleaned Jon’s wounds, cut his hair, and recited incantations over his body.
And nothing happened, and everyone was disappointed. So they left.
Which is a decision they’re gonna kick themselves over for a long, long time, because that’s when the late Jon Snow opened his eyes and breathed anew. He lives!
Tell Us: Did you see that coming a mile away? Or like Jon Snow, did you know nothing? Share your reaction in the comments!
Game of Thrones airs on HBO Sundays at 9 p.m. ET.
