With the finale of Game Of Thrones just a few short weeks away, there’s likely no better time to dive back into the series roots. From the introduction of the mysterious and lethal White Walkers to a rather mysterious Valyrian Steel Dagger, there’s plenty of important details that hold clues to what’s left to come. So before the fight for the Iron Throne comes to a bittersweet conclusion, let’s see what hints of the future we can glean by looking into the past. Back when winter was still just a distant nightmare.
The Symbols Left By The White Walkers
From the very first scene of the very first season, the audience is meant to understand immediately the type of overbearing threat the White Walkers are. In the opening minutes of the first episode, viewers are shown a truly horrific scene painted with dismembered body parts arranged into cryptic symbols along with the final moments of some unlucky crows. While the series opens with these symbols, they’ve never quite been explained. They may appear in the first episode but it’s hardly the last time we see the Whites use severed body parts like dry macaroni in a kindergarten art project. They appear to be mocking the Children of the Forest, but is there anything more to the cryptic symbols? Will viewers ever get an in-series answer to this riddle?
The Things Jaime Does For Love
During the course of the last seven seasons, Jaime Lannister has come a long way. He’s gone from a man with two hands willing to push a small child out of a high window, to a man with only one hand...probably still willing to push a small child out of a window under the right circumstances. But beyond that, Jaime has grown so much as a character. The loss of his hand and the war with the Starks, along with some tough lessons learned alongside Lady Brienne, have found a way to humble Jaime. It is through this humility that Jaime has been able to grow in a way that his twin and lover, Cersei, just hasn’t been able to. While Jaime may have changed quite a bit from season one, the lengths he’ll go to for love have not.
Clegane Sibling Rivalry/ Clegane Bowl
Season seven left off with Cersei preparing her forces and the golden army to betray the forces in the north who are to be fighting off the forces of the night king. Cersei seems all but prepared to take her victory in the north after the night king has done his damage.
While that battle is sure to be something to look forward to, there’s one battle long-time fans have been looking forward to even more than that. Assuming the Hound survives long enough, it’s very possible he could be heading south or The Mountain might be heading North with the rest of Cersei’s forces, which can only mean one thing: the long-awaited, Clegane Bowl.
The Crypts Of Winterfell
Time and time again throughout the course of the first seven, and likely in the eighth as well, viewers, as well as many characters in the show's history, have visited the crypts of Winterfell. Many important conversations have taken place in the crypts beneath Winterfell. They were also featured quite heavily in the promotional material for season eight, so they’re definitely important. The question is when it comes time for whatever secrets are held beneath Winterfell to be unleashed, who will be left standing to face them? And how will they fare?
Mirri Maz Duur
“When the sun rises in the west and sets in the east. When the seas go dry and the mountains blow in the wind. When your womb quickens again, and you bear a living child. Then he will return, and not before.” That is the answer given to a heartbroken Daenerys by the witch called Mirri Maz Duur when asked when Khal Drogo would return. While some may take this to simply mean Dany will never get Drogo back, others may interpret it as a prophecy detailing the events that lead to the end of Dany’s life. The sun symbolizing Dany and her journey from Essos to Westeros. The mountains blowing in the wind possibly referencing the destruction of the wall by the Night King. The rest is pretty self-explanatory. If Cersei has taught viewers anything, it’s that prophecies in Game of Thrones are not to be taken lightly.
The Mysterious Valyrian Dagger “Catspaw”
The mysterious and deadly (in the right hands) Valyrian steel dagger, Catspaw, has switched hands throughout the series so often that it’s hard to keep track. The first time fans caught a glimpse of it, Catspaw was in the hands of an all too unworthy assassin fumbling to kill the recently crippled and comatose Bran Stark. Bran would eventually give it to Arya, who still carries it, but between those events, it has changed hands multiple times.
Fans don’t yet know who the dagger originally belonged to or why it’s so important, but there’s definitely more than meets the eye when it comes to this Valyrian blade.
Daenerys The Unburnt
Time and time again fans of Game Of Thrones have watched as armies have laid siege to King’s Landing. We’ve seen rebellions rise up from within King’s Crossing own walls. With each new threat, it seems that Wildfire has been the answer. Siege on the waterfront? Fill that water with Wildfire. Are a few pesky priests and the Tyrells getting a little too familiar with the Iron Throne and all the power therein?
Fill the Sept of Baelor with Wildfire and send them all to their burning emerald graves. Wildfire seems like the one size fits all solution for when it comes time to defend King’s Landing and The Red Keep. It makes one wonder just how exactly those tactics might fare against the Mother of Dragons. Daenerys Targaryen, The Unburnt.
“When You Play The Game Of Thrones, You Either Win Or You Die.”
These words were spoken fairly early on in the series’ freshman season, but heading into the series finale, fans may be starting to wonder whether this threat to Ned Stark may have foreshadowed much more than just his death. Fans have known for a long time that every character on the show could expire at any moment, but the question left on fans minds going into this final season is likely, “Who will be left standing?” It’s expected that many fan-favorite characters will meet their end by the time the final credits roll, but is it possible that before that happens all but one of the key players will be left alive? Maybe it’s time to change those dead pool bets.