There's no shortage of Game of Thrones content out there at the moment. With the new and final season of the show now on the air, it doesn't seem like there's a need for much else. All we want is the world of Westeros and the strange and wonderful characters that dwell within it. Many of the relationships that these characters have to one another have greatly developed over the years. One of the things that this final season will no doubt give to us is even more left-turns when it comes to how these individuals relate to one another. We've already seen a shift in the dynamic in the very first episode, Winterfell. But we didn't yet see much development in the rapport between the Stark sisters, Arya and Sansa.

Frankly, we're still coming to terms with what happened between them last season. Since they were young, their relationship hung on the edge of a knife and this came to a head in Season Seven. Although some conflict between the two of them was inevitable, many fans were disappointed with what went down. This is because a number of aspects between these two women haven't made sense since day one. This list will delve into the details of the somewhat poorly conceived connection between Arya and Sansa. We know that some fans will take issue with this, but hopefully, they will agree that even though this show is a masterpiece, not everything is perfect. Without further ado, here are 20 Things That Make No Sense About Sansa And Arya's Relationship.

Arya Grew, But She Didn't See That Sansa Did

One of the things we love about Game of Thrones is the fact that the vast majority of the characters go through immense change. Arya and Sansa Stark are among two of the most well-developed characters in the series. Both went through tremendous hardship and came out on the other side of it. This is something that Arya certainly recognizes within herself. She's even able to see it in others, such as The Hound. But when it came to her reunion with Sansa, she clearly was unable to acknowledge that she was a different person. Regardless of the messy storyline with their manipulation by Littlefinger, Arya showed Sansa a lack of respect, even though they had both been through so much. This really didn't make sense to the woman that Arya had become.

Sansa's Trust Of Littlefinger Over Arya

As alluded to in previous entries, how could Sansa possibly trust Littlefinger at all, let alone over her actual sister? Frankly, she had no reason to distrust Arya and every reason to distrust Littlefinger. We have come to expect greater things from this Stark. After all, she had grown immensely since her earliest days. In prior seasons, it felt like she was happily manipulating Littlefinger, meaning that she knew exactly who and what he was. And yet, she still picked him as her closest adviser when Jon left to meet with Dany. Sansa even told Brienne that Littlefinger can't be trusted and yet a subsection of her brain told her to act as if he were her true mentor and confidant.

Arya's Issue With Sansa Taking The Master Bedroom

Sansa and Arya at Winterfell in Game of Thrones.

One of the first issues that Arya had with Sansa when they reunited in Season Seven was Sansa taking the master bedroom at Winterfell. Of course, the master bedroom once belonged to Catelyn and Ned Stark, their parents. Sansa taking this bedroom made tremendous sense seeing that she was made Lady of Winterfell and was basically doing all of the leadership and logistical work after the Boltons were defeated. But Arya didn't acknowledge this. She merely thought that Sansa just "liked pretty things" and that's why she took their parents' bedroom Although this was a way to build the animosity between them, it was a silly and nonsensical thing for Arya to be mad about. Seriously, her sister is basically running the place, of course, she's going to take the leader's room.

Why Didn't They Just Get Rid Of Littlefinger?

Much of Arya and Sansa's plotline in Season Seven revolved around their relationship with Lord Petyr Baelish, AKA Littlefinger. For the longest time, he played them against one another until they decided to team up and take him out. But there wasn't any reason for them not to take him out earlier, regardless of their feelings about one another or Littlefinger's manipulations. They knew how bad he was, even if they didn't know the full details until Bran came along. Arya knew of his loyalties to the Lannisters. And Sansa certainly knew that he gave her to the Boltons. Although he had a title, he really held no power over the Vale since they were pledged to Jon and Sansa. Therefore, there was no reason why he was kept around at all.

There Was No Reason For Them To Turn On Each Other

The problems with the Littlefinger storyline continue with the motivations behind the split between Arya and Sansa. Many fans agree that the showrunners were solely focused on making the viewers feel like the Starks could fully turn on each other before revealing the major twist. But none of this felt authentic to their characters because there wasn't any real reason why Sansa and Arya would turn on each other to begin with. Sure, they may not have liked one another, but there wasn't any detailed explanation to why they found each other such an antagonist. Sansa couldn't have been too afraid of an assassin like Arya, as Sansa knows many who've taken lives (herself included). And Arya has seen firsthand what's required of a ruler. It feels like their entire conflict could have been settled by a heart-to-heart.

The Length Of Time They Pretended To Fight

Littlefinger with Sansa at the Winterfell battlements in Game of Thrones.

There are many discrepancies when it comes to the timeline of the big twist at the end of the Season Seven finale. None of us can be entirely sure of when the Stark sisters decided to put aside their differences and take out Littlefinger together. Some moments make us believe that they were working together the entire time; or, at least, for part of the time. This makes us question why they had to fool Littlefinger at all. On the other hand, there are scenes (as well as reactions within them) that make us believe that they didn't work together until Littlefinger's final moments. Frankly, the way this plot was laid out just causes us to question its quality.

Staging A Random Argument In Front Of No-One

If any portion of the argument between Sansa and Arya was staged, there's absolutely no reason why they'd need to continue it in private. Such a moment is when Arya reads the letter that Littlefinger wanted her to find while she and Sansa are out on the balcony of Winterfell's courtyard. There are many signs that point to the fact that the two women knew what was going on and were actually working together. The only possible reason why they might have staged a fight while alone is if they believed they were being watched. But again, there would have been no reason for them to manipulate Littlefinger at all. They could have just offed him. Contrarily, if they were actually arguing, there's no way Arya would have gone into Littlefinger's room as herself nor believed that she found the letter by accident.

Their On-Screen Chemistry Is Average

In real life, actors Sophie Turner and Maisie Williams, who play Sansa and Arya Stark respectively, are the best of friends. Anyone who follows them on social media or reads their interviews knows this. Therefore, it's odd that the pair have a lack of chemistry on-screen. Both have proven to be incredibly fine actors who can interact with the best of the best. Williams' chemistry with Rory McCann is masterful, as is Turner's with Aiden Gillan. But for some reason, the pair just don't work well together. Some of this may have to do with how robotic and slightly sociopathic Arya's character has become. But still, in the Season Eight premiere, we saw real chemistry between her and Jon, as well as with Gendry. So, why don't she and Turner's Sansa have any?

Handing Sansa The Dagger

After Sansa found Arya's bag of faces, Arya decided to give her sister a slightly threatening speech and hand her the Valyrian Steel dagger. What did this mean? If most fans are wrong and the Stark girls really were being played against one another, there doesn't seem to be an explanation for this choice. Especially since Arya gets it back soon after. If the pair were actually staging another private argument for eavesdroppers, the handing of the dagger could be a sign of good faith as she wants Sansa to protect herself from the predator that's after her. This could have been the moment that Arya finally trusted Sansa. Then again, they could have just been arguing in which case handing her the dagger really doesn't make sense at all and is there to deliberately confuse us.

Sansa Stood Back And Let Joffrey Walk All-Over Her Sister

In the earliest seasons, Sansa was easily one of the most annoying characters. She was so taken with luxury, fantasy, and romance that her moral compass and sense of reality were warped. Still, that doesn't entirely explain why she had no interest sticking by her sister and family during and after the incident with Joffrey, Micah, and Nimeria occurred. Sansa just let Joffrey attack his sister and her friend. She then decided to lie to the queen about Arya and Nimeria picking a fight with Joffrey. Although we can understand that Sansa was taken by these negative traits, we can't fully comprehend why she would do this when the chips were down and her family was on the line. After all, she did do everything she could to save her father just a couple of episodes later.

Arya Is Equally As Arrogant As Sansa

Arya Stark looks on with a dagger

Both Arya and Sansa spent a great deal of Season Seven acting on their dislike for the other. One of the many things the pair didn't like about each other was their arrogance. This was especially true for Arya, who thought her elder sister acted like she knew everything. But she couldn't see this same trait in herself. Since day one, Arya has been as arrogant as her sister, if not more so. At least Sansa showed us that she didn't know nearly as much as she claimed. Arya almost always felt like she was better than those around her. And yet, she constantly attacked Sansa for the same thing. What makes even less sense about this is the fact that most fans tend to aim their attacks at Sansa even though Arya shares many of the same negative traits.

Arya's Robotic Approach To Sansa

Arya looking indifferent at Littlefinger's trial in Game of Thrones

Arya hasn't lost her ability to communicate or connect with others. Before her arc with Sansa in Season Seven, we saw a genuine moment of connection when she ran into her old wolf in the woods. But as soon as she got back to her home, she became far more stoic and impersonal, especially with her sister. Why didn't Arya show Sansa any of the love and affection that she deserved? Why did she act like the stone-cold assassin that Sansa and Littlefinger made her out to be? Many believe that Arya is actually long gone and is The Waif in disguise. But her genuine moment of connection with Nimeria, as well as with Sansa at the end of Season Seven, mostly disproves this theory. But nothing explains her removed approach when she and Sansa first reunited.

The Genre Mix-Up Between Them

One of the aspects that would have helped Sansa and Arya's storyline in Season Seven is if the writers mastered the genre. When it came to what happened between Arya, Sansa, and Littlefinger, there wasn't a clear tone that was struck. In some moments, it felt like a political thriller with one character playing two people of power against one another. In other moments it was a domestic drama, then some sort of spy showdown, and followed by a bit of a grift. This would have been okay if the show spent more time developing this story and we felt the arc of it gently shift in tone and genre. Instead, we experienced a scene-by-scene switch that felt nausea-inducing at best.

Sansa's The Smartest Person Arya Knows

In the Season Eight premiere, Winterfell, there's a scene where Arya and Jon reunited and spoke about the new situation they are now in. Jon was worried that Sansa would cause conflict for his new queen and expected Arya to come to his aide, but Arya didn't. It makes sense that Arya would now trust her sister more than Dany, but what didn't make sense was Arya calling Sansa, "the smartest person she knows." Really? "The smartest"? That seems like a bit of a stretch. For the longest time, Arya saw Sansa being easily manipulated by Littlefinger. It was only recently that Sansa came to her senses. Arya has also been surrounded by brilliant characters like Tywin Lannister and Jaqen H'Gar. But she thinks Sansa is the brightest? That's hard to believe.

Sansa Letting Arya Be The One To Take Out Littlefinger

Game of Thrones - Arya Kills Littlefinger

There was a moment in The Battle of the Jon And Ramsay where Jon stepped aside to let Sansa take her revenge on Ramsay Bolton because he knew she deserved that right. This gave us one of the most rewarding final scenes for a character in the show's history. Well, it's arguable that Littlefinger put Sansa in more complicated scenarios than any other character including Ramsay. This makes us think that Sansa should have been the one to end Littlefinger. Although she passed the sentence, she didn't swing the sword herself. She sat back and let her sister do it. Arya didn't deserve this character moment, making this entire scene far less rewarding than it should have been.

Not Reliving Positive Memories

With the exception of a brief moment in the crypts and their final scene in Season Seven, Sansa and Arya didn't share any of their fondest memories with one another after several years of being apart. When Sansa finally reunited with Jon Snow at Castle Black, the pair spent a scene or two thinking about their family and some of the laughs they once shared even in the darkest of times. But when Arya showed up at Winterfell, things started to get bad pretty swiftly. There wasn't a moment of levity or any real connection between them. Instead, there was just competition, uncertainty, and distrust. This really doesn't make any sense. Both sisters wanted to reconnect with the overly removed Bran, but not with each other.

They Off Littlefinger With No Hard Evidence

We all know that Littlefinger was guilty of everything Sansa accused him of in the Season Seven finale, but there was no hard evidence presented at his moment of confession. Although everyone in the room was totally behind the Lady of Winterfell and her assassin sister, the Northerners should have demanded that hard evidence be presented at a fair trial; Littlefinger was a Lord, after all. This is also the way of their people, something that Sansa should have known and represented herself. But what Sansa and Arya ended up doing was more in line with what Dany would do. That's somewhat ironic given that Sansa and Arya aren't too thrilled with the Dragon Queen.

The Connection Between Sansa And Catelyn

Catelyn Stark threatens Littlefinger on Game of Thrones

Although Arya and Catelyn shared very little screen-time together, there didn't seem to be much animosity between them. In fact, it felt like Arya truly loved her mother, even though we all know she had a very close relationship with her father, Ned. So, we can imagine that Arya would probably respect the qualities that her mother had, even if she didn't want them for herself. Given that Sansa has grown into a wiser version of their mother, Arya should have recognized these traits in her sister and cut her some slack. She didn't have to agree with everything Sansa did, but she should have seen that she had an important role to play much as their mother did.

Did Arya And Sansa Even Miss Each Other?

Sansa and Arya Stark in Game of Thrones

It was very rare that the two Stark sisters even spoke about one another while on their respective journies. Before reuniting in Season 7, the pair of them mostly recalled the good times they had with their parents and brothers while traveling Westeros and Essos, they did not, however, speak too kindly about one another. When they did mention one another, it was usually slightly begrudgingly, as if they cared but didn't want to tell anyone that they did. Clearly, the animosity they had for one another during their childhoods pervaded their thoughts after they were separated. But given how loyal they both are to their family, one would think that they'd have been more vocal about the safety whereabouts of their sister.

No More Trusting For Either Of Them

As we saw in the first episode of Season 8, Winterfell, the Stark sisters have come to the point where they trust nobody except one another. This calls in line with what Maisie Williams said in an interview with TVLine about their relationship in the final season; “We’re done trusting people. We’re done with being pushed over. We finally managed to scrape our family back together somewhat, minus Jon.”

On one level, this makes sense. After all, trusting anybody in Game of Thrones is usually a mistake. But there has been good that has come from trusting some outsiders. Both Arya and Sansa have seemingly learned this throughout the series. But suddenly, their newly formed alliance has erased these lessons.

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What do you think makes the least sense about Sansa and Arya's relationship? Let us know in comments below!