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The 6 Biggest Deaths in Season One of Game of Thrones

It’s as Cersei Lannister once said: “When you play the game of thrones, you either win or you die”. Whether it was the original book series or HBO’s legendary adaptation, that statement rings true to this day. In the world of George R.R. Martin’s epic, no character, no matter how important they are, is safe from death.

With a week until the premiere of the final season of Game Of Thrones, we’re taking a look back at the best deaths for every season. For this series, there are a few ground rules: one, any deaths had to occur on screen for all to see. Two, they have to effect the plot in some significant way.

Let’s kick off the carnage at the very beginning with Season 1.

#6- Gared and Waymar Royce, “Winter is Coming“

These guys were two of the first people that we were introduced to in Westeros. They also hold the dubious distinction of being the first of hundreds of people to die in Game of Thrones. While riding beyond the Wall, they come across the grisly site of freefolk decapitated and arranged in a sacrificial circle. They are then promptly killed by a Wight and White Walker.

Considering what’s about to happen in the finale, the deaths of these two are important in the grand scheme of the show. The demise of these two members of the Night’s Watch serve as a warning, not only to an oblivious Westeros, but to the viewers: that an ancient evil is about to return.

#5- The Catspaw, “The Kingsroad“

The first person on our list was only on screen for a few minutes, but he had a big impact on the show. Hired by an unknown client to kill a comatose Bran Stark, he nearly succeeded. Thankfully, his faithful dire wolf Summer was there to rip his throat out.

Even in death, this guy had a big impact. The mystery of who hired him, or why he had a rare, valyrian steel dagger with him, would helped stoke the conflict between the Starks and Lannisters. To this day, it’s still unknown who hired him, though it’s implied that it was, in fact, Littlefinger.

#4- Lady, “The Kingsroad“

Remember how each of the Stark children had a pet direwolf? There were six at the start of the show. By Season 8, there are only two left. And Sansa’s was the first to go.

When Nymeria attacks Joffrey to defend Arya and her friend, the spoiled prince and Cersei demand that Nymeria be put down. Since Arya forced her to run away, Cersei forces Ned to kill Sansa’s direwolf in Nymeria’s place. This incident would mark the beginning of Arya Stark’s hatred for both Joffrey and Cersei Lannister, something that continues to this very day. That, in turn, led Arya down the path that she he has taken.

#3- Viserys Targaryen, “A Golden Crown“

This one is actually a personal favorite of mine. From the moment he appeared onscreen, Viserys Targaryen made everyone hate him by being a waste of space. He spent years emotionally and physically abusing Danaerys, then forced her to be married off to Khal Drogo against her will. All of this was done for his own benefit and reclaim the Seven Kingdoms he saw as his.

Viserys arrogance proved to be his undoing, as he drunkenly threatened to take back his sister and her unborn child. Luckily, Khal Drogo proved to be a protective husband, and gave Viserys a crown of molten gold as punishment.

His death, aside from the first of several jerks in the show (I keep a list), also marked an important moment in Daenerys’ character development. She began to truly see herself as a dragon, and that she would do everything that her brother could not. And by the gods, has she!

#2- Robert Baratheon, “You Win or You Die“

While it’s technically breaking the rules, we will make an exception for King Robert, considering the impact his death has on the show. After spending years drinking and indulging himself, Robert’s mortally wounded off screen by a boar, and then later dies of his injuries.

King Robert’s death is ultimately what pushes the realm into the War of the Five Kings. This leads to the extinction of several great houses, tens of thousands of people dead, and Westeros a land divided as the White Walkers prepare to invade. Closer to home, it’s revealed that Cersei orchestrated her husband’s death by getting him too drunk to fight. This would lead to Joffrey becoming king, and the chaos that followed.

#1- Ned Stark, “Baelor”

Ah, Ned Stark, the first of far too many good people to die. After being betrayed by Littlefinger and arrested on false charges of treason, Ned’s forced to lie and proclaim the bastard Joffrey as the rightful king in order to save his daughter Sansa. This does not save him, though, as Joffrey then impulsively orders him executed anyway.

Joffrey’s execution of Ned Stark makes things far worse in Westeros. The Starks now refuse to bow to the Baratheon’s or their Lannister puppet masters, setting the realm on the path to a war that nearly tears it apart.

Even back when Game of Thrones was still a book series, this moment came as a shock. Ned was the main character, and killing off the main character seemed unthinkable. His death helps the books and the show prove a point: no one, no matter how important, is safe.

Do you agree with my picks? What deaths from Season One do you think were most important?

Click here to see what I thought the big moments were for the season

Click here to see my GoT Page.

My 7 Favorite Moments from Game of Thrones Season One

We are now at less than a week before the final season of Game of Thrones premieres on TV, and I have been looking back on the show’s run. So many twists and turns since the beginning of the show. Come to think of it, There aren’t that many people from Season One that have made it all the way to the end. The survival rate on this show is incredibly low.

Having looked back at seasons past, I decided to take a look at my favorite moments from each season. To start us, let’s go back and talk about the seven moments that I thought were game-changing, or in this case, game-defining in Season one of Game of Thrones.

#7- The White Walker Cometh, “Winter is Coming”

Despite being based on Medieval Europe, the world of Game of Thrones is also steeped in the supernatural, whether its inhabitants know it or not. As fans of the franchise are well aware of, the biggest threat to Westeros isn’t the Game of Thrones, but the White Walkers. The cold opening to the first episode gave fans a glimpse into the icy monsters that have been gathering in strength Beyond the Wall, and seeing them kill two of the three members of the Night’s Watch sent investigate is terrifying.

One of the big plot points of the show is the fact that few people, even in the Night’s Watch, believes that the White Walkers are real. The deserter from the Night’s Watch tries to tell Ned Stark of the threat, but even he doesn’t believe it. Westeros is now preparing to fight for its existence, but this moment was a foreshadowing of what was to come.

#6- Direwolf Puppies!, “Winter is Coming”

There were a lot of other scenes that I could have chosen, but my reasoning is simple: I love puppies; I love babies in general. Ned Stark and his sons come across the body of a dead stag and direwolf, along with her six pups. After Jon convinces him, Ned agrees to let his children adopt one of the direwolves for themselves.

Cuteness aside, I love this scene for being rife with symbolism and foreshadowing. The sight of the stag and direwolf having killed each other foreshadows the coming conflict between the Stark’s and the “Baratheon’s”. More importantly, is what this moment has to do with Jon Snow. The fact that it was Jon who persuaded Ned a subtle hint to his heritage notwithstanding, the discovery of Ghost reflects the struggles Jon went through. Without a mother in his life, he had to learn how to grow up quickly, and that made him strong, it made him who he is now, a man worthy of being a king.

#5- Tyrion’s Trial By Combat, “A Golden Crown”

Poor Tyrion went on quite a number of adventures in Season One, but I think the one I liked the most was his trial by combat in the Vale. After Catelyn Stark wrongly accuses him of pushing Bran out a window, she takes him to her sister in the Vale to punish him. Tyrion then makes the most hilarious confession before demanding a trial by combat. The battle that follows sees the mercenary Bronn defeat Lysa Arryn’s champion in combat.

Aside from Tyrion being hilarious in this scene, this moment marks the official start of the beautiful bromance between Tyrion and Bronn. They may be on opposite sides now, but it’s clear they still care about each other’s safety. Plus, Bronn’s underhanded but smart method of fighting his opponent is a big “screw you” to the idea of “fighting with honor”. When you’re fighting at a disadvantage, that’s stupid and will get you killed.

#4- A Crown for a King, “A Golden Crown”

From the moment I saw Viserys Targaryen, I knew that if he ever became King, he’d run Westeros into the ground. Everyone knew it; even Daenerys admitted it. But Viserys was too full of himself, too much like his father to see his faults. Then he had the arrogance to threaten to take back his sister, and kill her unborn child, right in front of her husband.

I personally loved this scene because it shows just how much Khal Drogo had come to love his wife. I could almost see the daggers in his eyes when Viserys threatened her and their unborn son. More importantly, it was a reminder about killing one’s enemies. A clever man does not need to use a sword to kill someone, which Viserys failed to understand.

#3- Ned Learns the Truth, “A Golden Crown”

One of the reasons that Ned Stark chose to become Hand of the King for Robert was so that he could investigate the death of their mentor, Jon Arryn. His only clues were his last words, “the seed is strong”, and a book on the history of the noble families of the Seven Kingdoms. But it’s only a passing remark by his daughter Sansa that makes Ned realize the truth: that Robert and Cersei’s children are bastards born out of incest.

The look of sheer shock on Ned’s face when he figures it out is priceless. Shock aside, this is the moment where everything changes. The revelation that Joffrey’s a bastard child is the spark that ignites the War of the Five Kings that would see most of the show’s cast die, Ned included. Hundreds of thousands dead because of a lie.

#2- Ned Stark’s Execution, “Baelor”

This was the single biggest mistake that Joffrey made, and he made a lot of mistakes in his life. After being arrested on false charges of treason, Ned Stark is forced to forgo his honor in order to protect Sansa’s life. He then proclaims that Joffrey’s the one true king, hoping that he will be exiled to the Wall. Then Joffrey stupidly orders for him to be executed anyway.

Ned Stark could be considered the main character of Season One of the show, so killing him off was just as shocking as it was in the book. Ned’s death backfires on Joffrey and sets the Seven Kingdoms against each other. Nice job breaking it, your majesty!

#1- Daenerys Reborn, “Fire and Blood”

Hands down, this was my favorite moment from the first season of the show. After being forced to put her comatose husband out of his misery, Daenerys is left with only a handful of followers. Whereas most people would give up, what does Dany do? She lights a funeral pyre for Khal Drogo, places her three dragon eggs and the woman responsible on it, and then walks into the flames. The next morning, she’s found nude and unharmed… with three baby dragons.

This scene is my favorite because it’s symbolic on multiple levels. Watching Daenerys walk into the flames and emerged naked but fine reminds me of the legend of the Phoenix: they burn themselves in flames before being reborn in the ashes. Gone was the timid girl we were introduced to in the first episode. In her place stood a young woman fit to be a queen.

This moment is also symbolic of the rebirth of House Targaryen. The world had thought that House Targaryen was finished: no armies, no allies in sight, and only one member known to be alive. But when I saw Dany emerge with her baby dragons, I heard a voice in my head, telling me that House Targaryen was not finished yet. And that Game of Thrones was truly destined for greatness.

Do you agree with my picks? Check out my six favorite deaths from the first season here!

Click here to see my GoT Page.

Sword Art Online: Alicization, Episode’s 8 and 9 Review/Recap

Two weeks ago, an issue with broadcasting led to the dubbed premiere of an episode of Sword Art Online: Alicization to freeze mid-broadcast. As such, they had to re-air the episode last week to make up for it. Which is why I had no review for it last week.

To make up for it (and possibly to fill out the time slot for Megalo Box), last night gave us a double dose of SAO: Alicization. So, I’m doing the same. It’s a good thing, too, since the plot’s split into these two episodes. TWO FOR TWO, PEOPLE! LINK START!

Recap

“Swordcraft Academy”

It’s been two years now since Kirito and Eugeo left Rulid Village. Together, they’ve journeyed to Centoria and entered the Swordcraft Academy, spending their days training to become swordsmen in order to join the Integrity Knights and find Alice. They’re both serving as apprentices to elite swordsmen, and, of course, Kirito’s mentor is a girl, Sortiliena Serlut

Sortiliena’s the second-ranked student at the Academy, and she’s going to graduate once the semester ends. She’s been practicing with Kirito every day to get better, because she wants to beat the top student, Volo Levantein. Meanwhile, Kirito gets a brand new sword, forged from the branches of the Gigas Cedar.

Kirito’s so excited that he can’t wait to test it out. That turns out to be a bad idea, because he ends up getting dirt on the top student’s uniform.

As punishment for staining his uniform, but really just an excuse to fight him, Volo challenges Kirito to a duel for the entire Academy to bear witness to. Despite his mentor’s advice, Kirito refuses to back down from this challenge, and accepts the terms: first person to get a hit wins.

“Swordsman’s Pride”

The duel between Kirito and Volo is so epic, instead of saying anything, I’ll just show you what happens.

The main thing that Kirito take from this fight is the notion that in Underworld, people can use the power of their will and imagination to make things that would be otherwise impossible possible. Sort of like what he did when he beat Kayaba all those years ago.

Kirito’s pride at fighting the top student to a standstill is cut short, though, when its discovered two pompous noblemen students had wrecked his gift for
Sortiliena: a rare type of flower she loves that normally can’t be grown in the north

Kirito gets really upset, not only because he can’t give his mentor her gift, but because he saw himself in the flowers: things living in a foreign land, just like him. Just when he starts crying, a voice tells him to use the power of his will and imagination to save the flowers

Thanks to that, Kirito is able to save his flowers. Not long afterwards,
Sortiliena beats Volo to graduate as the top student at Swordcraft Academy, with Kirito giving her his gift on her graduation day. Kirito and Eugeo thus advance to become Elite Disciples, meaning they’re the fifth and sixth top students in the academy, with valets of their own: Tiese Shtolienen and Ronye Arabel.

DO I HEAR SEVEN GIRLS?!?

Review

When I first saw these episodes last week, I thought that it was a nice treat to get two episodes of SAO in one night. After watching them again, I still think that. Though, to be honest, I think it seems silly for Kirito to have to be in a school about being a swordsman. He’s already one of the best swordsmen there is. Is what I used to think.

Watching him train at the Academy, though, made me realize that Kirito still has a lot left to learn about being a swordsman, especially in Underworld. The one thing that I really like about these two episodes, though, were the visuals in Volo and Kirito’s fight. The image of Volo’s ancestors using their will to strengthen his own sword was pretty cool to watch. I haven’t seen the rest of the show in sub form, but I hope that they do more of this stuff.

Granted, I am aware how corny the idea of using “imagination” to strengthen one’s attacks in Underworld sounds. If the Abridged series ever gets to it, they’ll probably make fun of it. I take it as a sign of how the will of a person can influence a virtual world. Someone with a good enough understanding of how a virtual reality works would pretty much become a god. Add on the will and creativity of the human condition, and that’s a recipe for something amazing to happen.

Wait…. this feels familiar. Am I thinking of what’s going to happen ahead of time? Ah, well.

Next week, we are going to deal with the inevitably controversial episode of the season. Buckle up, people. We’re going to need to steel ourselves.

I give “Swordcraft Academy” and “Swordsman’s Pride” 3.5/5 and 4/5, each.

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