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===Accolades=== Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series Emilia Clarke as Daenerys Targaryen American Society of Cinematographers Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography in Regular Series

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==External links== * "Book of the Stranger" at HBO.com

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'''Rickon Stark''' is a fictional character in the ''A Song of Ice and Fire'' series of fantasy novels by American author George R. R. Martin, and its television adaptation ''Game of Thrones''. Introduced in 1996's ''A Game of Thrones'', Rickon is the youngest child of Eddard Stark, the honorable lord of Winterfell, an ancient fortress in the North of the fictional kingdom of Westeros. He subsequently appeared in Martin's ''A Clash of Kings'' (1998). The ''Publishers Weekly'' review of ''A Game of Thrones'' noted, "It is fascinating to watch Martin's characters mature and grow, particularly Stark's children, who stand at the center of the book." Rickon is portrayed by Irish actor Art Parkinson in the HBO television adaptation.

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== Character description == Rickon is the fifth and youngest child of Eddard "Ned" Stark and his wife Catelyn, and has five siblings—Robb, Sansa, Arya, Bran, and his illegitimate half-brother Jon Snow. Like his brothers and sisters, Rickon is constantly accompanied by his direwolf, Shaggydog, with whom he shares a strong connection. Martin describes Rickon as favoring his mother in appearance. He is naturally aggressive, strong-willed, and violent: traits reflected in his direwolf companion 'Shaggydog'.

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== Overview == Rickon Stark is not a point of view character in the novels and is mostly a background character. His actions are witnessed and interpreted through the eyes of his older brother Bran.

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=== ''A Game of Thrones'' === In ''A Game of Thrones'' (1996), Ned Stark departs Winterfell with his daughters to serve King Robert Baratheon in King's Landing, while his wife Catelyn remains behind with their sons, grief-stricken over their comatose son Bran. An overwhelmed young Rickon can only follow around his oldest brother Robb, crying. Upset when Robb prepares to leave himself, Rickon hides in the crypts of Winterfell. Shortly after Ned's death in King's Landing, both Bran and Rickon share a vision of their father's spirit in the crypts.

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=== ''A Clash of Kings'' === Following Ned's death, Rickon is largely unsupervised as Robb and Catelyn leave for war and his sisters are held captive at King's Landing in 1998's ''A Clash of Kings''. Alone with his crippled brother Bran, Rickon develops an unruly, often violent temper. His fear and rage are reflected in Shaggydog, who turns largely feral and attacks several people before being restrained. Several times, Bran's direwolf Summer is forced to fight Shaggydog into submission. Bran and Rickon become Theon Greyjoy's hostages when Theon takes Winterfell by force. He later manages to escape and hide in the crypts below the castle with Bran, Hodor, the Reed siblings Meera and Jojen, and the wildling woman Osha. After Winterfell is sacked and burned by Ramsay Bolton, the group emerges to find Winterfell in ruins, and a mortally wounded Maester Luwin tells them that Bran and Rickon need to be separated and taken into hiding. Osha flees with Rickon in her care, and the others accompany Bran.

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=== ''A Dance with Dragons'' === In ''A Dance with Dragons'' (2011), most of Westeros believes Rickon is dead, but Lord Wyman Manderly hears from a survivor of the sack of Winterfell that Rickon is allegedly alive and has fled with a woman to the island of Skagos. Skagos is a large, northern island in the mouth of the Bay of Seals and is subject to the rule of House Stark. In return for pledging his loyalty to Stannis Baratheon instead of the Lannisters, Manderly tasks Ser Davos Seaworth with retrieving Rickon from Skagos so that they may reveal him to the Northern lords and inspire them to rally against Roose Bolton, Ramsay Bolton, and Walder Frey for betraying the Starks.

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== TV adaptation == Rickon Stark is played by Art Parkinson in the television adaption of the book series. During an interview with Flicks and the City in 2014, Parkinson mentioned that he was not allowed by his parents to watch ''Game of Thrones'' due to its adult content, apart from a few scenes that were related to him. In a later interview published in the ''New Zealand Herald'' on 7 April 2015, Parkinson admitted that he was put off watching ''Game of Thrones'' after seeing a 3-year-old child getting his throat slit in one episode. In a later interview with IGN, he admitted that he had begun watching the series. In an interview with IGN, Parkinson spoke about his return and death, saying: "Whenever I was told that I was coming back for Season 6, before they sent me through the scripts and stuff, they sent me through a ring just to say, 'Listen, so that you don't get a shock whenever you read the scripts, just know that you die this season.'" He continued, "Whenever I came back, I was excited to come back, and the scenes all seemed pretty amazing. I was so happy to re-embrace the character." Parkinson has said that his fellow castmember Natalia Tena, who played Rickon's travelling companion Osha, helped him with his acting. He also shared what he believes Rickon went through after the death of his father Ned Stark, saying "After the death of his father, I think he became very independent and very angry, I think Rickon is a little bit more mature now. He's been away for quite a long time at this point. I think he's a bit more independent and stronger-willed. Remarking on the character's exit and death: It was sad at first, but once I realized how I was going to die in it, then it was cool. It was a cool death, and it was always going to be a good death, so at the same time, I was pretty happy.

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=== Storylines === Rickon Stark is Lord Eddard and Lady Catelyn's youngest child, naturally aggressive, and strong-willed. His black direwolf Shaggydog shares these qualities. When Theon Greyjoy captures Winterfell in Season 2, Rickon hides in the crypts with Bran, Hodor, and the Wildling woman Osha. After Theon can't seem to find where Rickon and Bran are, he has two farm boys killed and burned, to pass their charred bodies off as the Stark boys'. After Winterfell is sacked and burned, Rickon, Bran, Hodor, Osha, and the direwolves travel through the North. In Season 3 before they reach the Wall, Rickon, Osha, and Shaggydog split up from the rest of the group and head to Last Hearth, the seat house of the Umbers.

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====Season 6==== Following Lord Greatjon Umber's death, Rickon and Osha are betrayed by Greatjon's heir Smalljon and handed over to the new Warden of the North, Ramsay Bolton, in order to secure an alliance with the Boltons against the wildlings Jon Snow has let through the Wall. To prove Rickon's identity, Smalljon kills Shaggydog and presents his head to Ramsay. Ramsay kills Osha, locks Rickon in the dungeons, and sends a letter to Jon at Castle Black demanding the return of Sansa Stark (his wife) and threatening to kill Rickon if Jon does not comply. In retaliation, Jon gathers an army of Stark loyalists and marches on Winterfell, now occupied by House Bolton. As the armies prepare for battle outside Winterfell, Ramsay brings out Rickon and orders him to run to Jon in one of his sadistic "games", shooting arrows at Rickon in order to lure Jon into the open. Jon charges out to save Rickon, but Rickon is shot through the heart and dies almost instantly. In the aftermath of the ensuing battle, Rickon's body is recovered, and Jon buries him in the crypt, alongside Ned's remains. Because many Northern noble houses were plotting against the Boltons in the books, the show's decision to have them betray Rickon led to fan theories that the direwolf head Smalljon Umber showed to Ramsay was fake and the Umbers would turn on the Boltons. Parkinson dispelled the rumours, confirming the direwolf head was intended to be real. Rickon's death scene referenced his first appearance in the series pilot, where he laughs at Bran's poor archery shot before handing off arrows to the archer and running to stand by the target.

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== References ==

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"'''The Mountain and the Viper'''" is the eighth episode of the fourth season of HBO's acclaimed fantasy television series ''Game of Thrones'', and the 38th overall. The episode was written by series co-creators David Benioff and D. B. Weiss, and directed by Alex Graves. It aired on June 1, 2014. This episode marks the final appearance of Pedro Pascal (Oberyn Martell).

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===At the Wall=== Mole's Town is attacked by wildlings, but Ygritte spares Gilly and her son

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===At Moat Cailin=== Theon enters Moat Cailin and gives the terms for their surrender to Ralf Kenning. Ralf declines, but is murdered by one of his men, who agrees. However, after the Ironborn open the Moat's gates, Ramsay's army slaughters them. As a reward for retaking the Moat, Roose legitimizes Ramsay as a true Bolton. Bolton's army and Reek depart for their new seat at Winterfell.

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===In Meereen=== Barristan receives a letter with the Hand of the King's seal. The letter is Jorah's royal pardon signed by Robert for spying on Daenerys. Jorah admits his spying on Daenerys and she exiles him.

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===In the Vale=== Petyr is interrogated by the nobility of the Vale about Lysa's death. He claims that Lysa committed suicide. Lord Yohn Royce demands to speak with Sansa, who reveals her identity, corroborates Petyr's story and convinces them of his innocence. Petyr, Sansa and Robin leave the Eyrie to tour the Vale. Sansa dyes her hair black to hide her identity. Sandor and Arya arrive at Bloody Gate, only to be informed of Lysa's death, by Donnel.

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===In King's Landing=== Tyrion's trial by combat begins. Oberyn knocks Gregor to the ground, but instead of finishing him, Oberyn screams at him to confess that Tywin gave him the order to kill Elia and her children. Gregor knocks Oberyn down, confessing to the murder of Elia and her children and crushing Oberyn's skull with his hands. Tywin sentences Tyrion to death for regicide.

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===Writing=== The episode was written by series co-creators David Benioff and D. B. Weiss. This episode contains content from three of George Martin's novels: ''A Storm of Swords'', chapters Daenerys V, Daenerys VI, and Tyrion X; ''A Feast for Crows'', chapters Alayne I and Alayne II; and ''A Dance with Dragons'', chapter Reek II.

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=== Ratings === "The Mountain and the Viper" was watched by an estimated 7.17 million people during its first airing. In the United Kingdom, the episode was viewed by 1.811 million viewers, making it the highest-rated broadcast that week. It also received 0.062 million timeshift viewers.

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=== Critical reception === The episode received high praise from critics and audiences alike, with the fight between Prince Oberyn and the Mountain being hailed as the episode's highlight. On Rotten Tomatoes it obtained a 97% score, based on 32 reviews, with an average rating of 9/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "With one of the most gruesome scenes to date, 'The Mountain and the Viper' delivers a tense, twisty final scene well worth the wait." Writing for ''The A.V. Club'', Emily VanDerWerff gave the episode an A- and praised the staging of the final fight by director Alex Graves. Erik Adams, also writing for the ''A.V. Club'' gave the episode an A. Terri Schwartz, writing for Zap2it.com, wrote the episode was "one of the strongest ''Game of Thrones'' episodes to date, and that's just the type of episode that the death of Oberyn Martell deserves."

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===Awards and nominations=== Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards Outstanding Art Direction for a Single-Camera Fantasy Series Deborah Riley, Paul Ghirardani, and Rob Cameron Outstanding Music Composition for a Series (Original Dramatic Score) ADG Excellence in Production Design Award One-Hour Single Camera Fantasy Television Series Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form David Benioff, Alex Graves, and D. B. Weiss

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"'''The Climb'''" is the sixth episode of the third season of HBO's fantasy television series ''Game of Thrones'', and the 26th episode of the series. Directed by Alik Sakharov and written by David Benioff and D. B. Weiss, it aired on May 5, 2013. The episode's title comes from climbing of the wall by Jon Snow and Ygritte, and also the references from dialogue between Lord Petyr Baelish and Lord Varys. The episode marks the final appearance of Esmé Bianco.

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===In King's Landing=== Meeting with Olenna, Tywin threatens to appoint Loras to the Kingsguard, thereby renouncing his right to inheritance and marriage and leaving House Tyrell without a male heir, and Olenna consents to Loras and Cersei's marriage. Tyrion accuses Cersei of trying to have him killed during the Battle of the Blackwater, but deduces it was Joffrey who ordered his death and Cersei tells him he is not in danger now that Tywin is the Hand. Tyrion informs Sansa that she will not wed Loras, but himself. Baelish tells Varys he has given Ros to Joffrey to kill for his pleasure. Sansa watches tearfully as Baelish departs by ship, losing her chance at leaving the capital.

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===In the Riverlands=== Arriving at the Brotherhood's hideout, Melisandre is shocked to learn of Beric's six resurrections, and takes Gendry into her custody. Arya unnerves Melisandre, who declares Arya will "shut many eyes forever" and they will meet again. At Riverrun, Robb and his advisors discuss an alliance with Lame Lothar Frey and Black Walder Rivers. Lord Walder Frey's demands include a formal apology from Robb, the castle Harrenhal, and for Edmure to marry one of his daughters.

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===At Harrenhal=== Roose Bolton agrees to send Jaime to King's Landing if Jaime assures Tywin that Bolton had nothing to do with his maiming, but keeps Brienne under arrest for abetting treason.

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===In the North=== Bran defuses tensions between Osha and Meera, and Jojen tells Bran his vision of Jon surrounded by enemies. Torturing Theon, the boy threatens to sever his finger if he cannot guess the boy's identity and their location. After his finger is flayed for several wrong guesses, Theon guesses the boy is a Karstark and he is being tortured at the Karhold for betraying Robb. The boy pretends Theon was correct before continuing to flay his finger, admitting his torture is solely for his amusement. Theon finally begs his torturer to remove his finger.

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===Beyond the Wall=== En route to the Wall, Sam shows Gilly the dragonglass dagger he found and tells her about Castle Black. Ygritte reveals she is aware Jon remains loyal to the Night's Watch, but tells him their loyalty to each other is greater. As Tormund's party climbs the wall, Ygritte inadvertently causes an avalanche that kills some wildlings and leaves her and Jon hanging by their rope. Before Orell cuts the rope, Jon secures himself to the Wall and reaches the top with Ygritte, where they embrace.

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==Production== The episode was written by series co-creators David Benioff and D. B. Weiss. "The Climb" is the sixth episode of the season written by showrunners David Benioff and D. B. Weiss, and 18th overall. It is based upon George R. R. Martin's novel ''A Storm of Swords'', namely, chapters 30, 35, 37, and 48 (Jon IV, Catelyn IV, Jaime V, and Samwell III). Gilly's baby, appearing in the fourth episode and in "The Climb"'s first scene, was played by ten months-old Arya Hasson – named after Arya Stark – from the Waterside in Derry.

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===Ratings=== "The Climb" set a new record for ''Game of Thrones'' in ratings, the fourth consecutive episode to establish a new series high. 5.5 million viewers watched the premiere airing, with 1.27 million additional viewers watching the second airing. The episode also set a new series high in viewers aged 18–49, with a rating of 2.9. In the United Kingdom, the episode was seen by 0.926 million viewers on Sky Atlantic, being the channel's highest-rated broadcast that week.

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===Critical reception=== "The Climb" was met with positive reviews from critics. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes surveyed 21 reviews of the episode and judged 90% of them to be positive with an average score of 7.9 out of 10. The website's critical consensus reads "Tywin Lannister and Olenna Tyrell steal the show with their exquisite negotiation as 'The Climb' builds towards the Wildlings' death-defying scaling of The Wall." Writing for IGN, Matt Fowler gave the episode an 8.8/10, writing "This week's Game of Thrones started off slow, but then built to a roaring crescendo." Two reviews were published by The A.V. Club. David Sims gave the episode a "B" rating for people new to the series, while Emily VanDerWerff rated the episode a "B+" for people who have read the novels.

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===Awards and nominations=== Hollywood Post Alliance Awards Outstanding Sound – Television Paula Fairfield, Brad Katona, Jed Dodge, Onnalee Blank and Mathew Waters Outstanding Compositing in a Broadcast Program Kirk Brillon, Steve Gordon, Geoff Sayer, Winston Lee Outstanding Created Environment in a Broadcast Program Patrick Zentis, Mayur Patel, Nitin Singh, Tim Alexander

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== External links ==

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"'''The Queen's Justice'''" is the third episode of the seventh season of HBO's fantasy television series ''Game of Thrones'', and the 63rd overall. The episode was written by series co-creators David Benioff and D. B. Weiss, and directed by Mark Mylod. At Dragonstone, Jon Snow and Davos Seaworth meet with Daenerys Targaryen, from whom Jon asks for aid in defeating the White Walkers, but Daenerys iterates her desire to take the Iron Throne instead. In King's Landing, Euron Greyjoy returns bearing gifts to Cersei Lannister, in the form of Ellaria Sand and Tyene Sand. At the Citadel, Samwell Tarly and Archmaester Ebrose examine a now healed Jorah Mormont. In Winterfell, Sansa Stark is reunited with her brother Bran Stark. At Casterly Rock, the Unsullied infiltrate and capture the castle, but Euron's Iron Fleet arrives, and begins destroying their ships, leaving them stranded. Meanwhile, Jaime Lannister leads the Lannister army to take Highgarden. The title of the episode refers to Cersei Lannister exacting vengeance, her own way of justice, on both the Sand Snakes and Olenna Tyrell. "The Queen's Justice" received positive reviews from critics, who considered the long-awaited meeting between Daenerys and Jon, the agonizing fates of Ellaria and Tyene Sand, Sansa and Bran's reunion, the bait-and-switch scene concerning Casterly Rock and Highgarden, and the final fates of Ollena Tyrell and Ellaria Sand as highlights of the episode. In the United States, it achieved a viewership of 9.25 million in its initial broadcast. It was also Diana Rigg's pick to support her nomination at the 70th Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Guest Actress. "The Queen's Justice" marked the final appearances of Diana Rigg (Olenna Tyrell), Rosabell Laurenti Sellers (Tyene Sand) and Indira Varma (Ellaria Sand).

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===On Dragonstone=== Jon and Davos arrive at Dragonstone with their soldiers. They agree Daenerys is not responsible for her father's crimes, but Daenerys denies Jon's assertion he should not be held by his ancestors' oath to hers. Jon explains the threat of the White Walkers and wights, but Daenerys wants to claim the Iron Throne before considering other threats. Jon is forced to remain at Dragonstone. Varys asks Melisandre why she hides from Jon; she admits they parted on bad terms due to her mistakes. She plans to return to Volantis, and Varys urges her to stay overseas forever, but she predicts that both of them will die in Westeros. Speaking with Jon, Tyrion concedes that Jon's willingness to meet with Daenerys has convinced him that the White Walkers are real. Tyrion explains that Daenerys' followers are loyal because Daenerys dedicates herself to protecting others from threats she understands. Tyrion relays Jon's request to mine dragonglass on Dragonstone; Daenerys accepts Tyrion's recommendation to agree as a gesture of goodwill.

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===In the Narrow Sea=== One of the few remaining ships of Yara's fleet rescue Theon. The Ironborn disbelieve his claim that he tried to rescue Yara from Euron.

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===In King's Landing=== Euron parades his captives Ellaria, Tyene, and Yara through abusive crowds in the streets of King's Landing. He presents the Sands as his gift to Cersei. Ellaria and Tyene are bound and gagged in the dungeon. Cersei kisses Tyene with the same poison Ellaria used to kill Myrcella, and tells Ellaria she will be kept alive to watch her daughter die and decompose. Tycho Nestoris of the Iron Bank comes to collect repayment of the Lannisters' loans. Cersei denigrates Daenerys as a possible investment, and secures a fortnight to pay the debt.

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===At Winterfell=== Sansa competently manages Winterfell, preparing it as an emergency refuge for all Northerners. Littlefinger counsels Sansa to "fight every battle" mentally. Bran and Meera arrive, and Sansa is reunited with her brother. In the Godswood, Sansa is confused by Bran's revelation that he is the Three-Eyed Raven, and troubled by his specific knowledge of her suffering ("Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken").

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===In Oldtown=== Archmaester Ebrose proclaims that Jorah is healed of greyscale and releases him. Jorah plans to return to Daenerys. Sam admits that he administered the forbidden treatment; Ebrose praises his skill, but punishes his disobedience with an assignment to copy a large number of old documents.

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===At Casterly Rock=== The Unsullied infiltrate Casterly Rock via its sewers, which Tyrion designed. They capture the castle, finding far fewer defenders than expected. Meanwhile, the Iron Fleet arrives and destroys Daenerys' ships, stranding Grey Worm and his army.

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===At Highgarden=== Jaime, Randyll, and their armies take Highgarden, having abandoned Casterly Rock to trick Daenerys into committing her Unsullied forces to a strategically useless position. Jaime grants Olenna the mercy of a quick and painless death by poison, over Cersei's original plans to execute her. After drinking the poison, Olenna confesses to murdering Joffrey and asks Jaime to tell Cersei. Incensed, Jaime leaves Olenna to die alone.

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==Production== The episode was written by series co-creators David Benioff and D. B. Weiss. "The Queen's Justice" was written by the series' creators, David Benioff and D. B. Weiss, and directed by Mark Mylod, his second of two episodes for this season. Mylod joined the series as a director in the fifth season, working on "High Sparrow" and "Sons of the Harpy". Indira Varma made her final appearance as Ellaria Sand. "The Queen's Justice" was the final episode for actress Indira Varma, who had played Ellaria Sand since the fourth season. "The Queen's Justice" was also the last episode for recurring cast members Diana Rigg and Rosabell Laurenti Sellers, as Olenna Tyrell and Tyene Sand were killed. The episode featured the return of Mark Gatiss as Tycho Nestoris, who was last seen in season 5's "The Dance of Dragons". Kit Harington spoke about the scene he shot with Peter Dinklage in Spain, saying "It was a beautiful location with 50 mph winds and I was wearing a cape next to a cliff—There was a danger of me being blown off! I'm not sure it's the way I would have wanted to go." Indira Varma and Rosabell Laurenti Sellers's last scene was technically difficult for the actresses, because they were shackled. The shackles were felt-lined but tight, and Varma and Sellers ended up "bruised and battered" due to the physical intensity of their acting. Varma had to be cut from the shackles at the end of the day.

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==Analysis== D. B. Weiss talked about the return of Bran to Winterfell, saying "One of the things we loved about Game of Thrones from the very first book is it's not a world where magic is the primary driver of the story, it's a world where human psychology and behavior and desire are drivers of the story. We try very hard to make sure it stays that way because that's a lot more relatable to the vast majority of the audience than magic powers—as much fun as those are. So with Bran, ideally you want to use him in a way that adds to the story and enriches the story and not in a way that's a magic bullet to conveniently deal with things that you haven't come up with a better way to deal with. So it was a balancing act to account for who Bran is now without letting that overtake the story." Isaac Hempstead Wright explained how the magical conversion has altered the characters personality, saying "It's like imagining you have all of space and time in your head—Bran is existing in thousands of planes of existence at any one time. So it's quite difficult for Bran to have any kind of semblance of personality anymore because he's really like a giant computer". He went on to add that "Bran really at this stage is not the Three-Eyed Raven. He's got the title but hasn't had thousands of years of sitting in a cave looking through time. Somebody put in front of him a massive encyclopedia of all of time and he's only opened page one. He can look stuff up but doesn't have this all-knowing all-seeing capability just yet." Indira Varma expected the seventh season would be her character's last, reasoning that a "less important character" like Ellaria would have to be phased out to make room for the story's climax. She expected audiences to be "more invested in Cersei," who had more screen time than Ellaria, but she hoped positive fan reception for Pedro Pascal as Oberyn Martell would carry over to sympathy for Ellaria. Varma had hoped for her character to die on screen, but found the fate Weiss and Benioff crafted for Ellaria to be "really clever" and beyond "every parent's worst nightmare." Weiss praised Diana Rigg's performance in her final scene as Olenna Tyrell, for contributing to the character uniquely "winning her own death scene."

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===Ratings=== "The Queen's Justice" was viewed by 9.25 million total viewers on its initial viewing on HBO, which was slightly less than the previous week's rating of 9.27 million viewers for the episode "Stormborn". The episode also acquired a 4.3 rating in the 18–49 demographic, making it the highest rated show on cable television of the night. In the United Kingdom, the episode was viewed by 3.272 million viewers on Sky Atlantic during its Simulcast, making it the highest-rated broadcast that week.

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===Critical reception=== "The Queen's Justice" received positive reactions from critics. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes surveyed 40 reviews of the episode and judged 89% of them to be positive, with an average rating of 7.9 out of 10. The website's consensus for the episode stated "'The Queens Justice' saw the much-anticipated meeting between Jon Snow and Daenerys Targaryen -- but had much larger surprises in store before its shocking end." Matt Fowler of IGN described the episode as "amazing", saying ""The Queen's Justice" did justice to the long-awaited coming together of Jon Snow and Daenerys Targaryen. With a devilishly good script and some pointed action (along with a few twists and turns), this episode contained a ton of long scenes, but no fat. - This was prime Thrones." He gave the episode a 9.5 out of 10. Shane Ryan of ''Paste Magazine'' wrote "It was, by far, the best episode of the season. I've always contended that the show does best when it pushes the drama and the narrative ahead by means of two-person scenes, and the examples in "The Queen's Justice" were phenomenal". Glen Weldon of NPR also praised the episode and Diana Rigg's performance, writing "It's a hell of a way to go out, but a character like Olenna -- and an actress like Rigg, who always let you see the danger flashing behind those eyes – deserves nothing less." Bennett Madison of ''Vanity Fair'' wrote, "''Game of Thrones'' has spent so much time building up tension and drawing out plots that many of its ongoing story lines have literally been brewing for years ... With this episode, 'The Queen's Justice', we're finally starting to see some real payoff." Andy Hartup of GamesRadar similarly gave praise to the episode for granting victories to antagonists like Cersei and Euron, while criticizing the character dynamics in scenes taking place at Winterfell and Dragonstone. Sean T. Collins of ''Rolling Stone'' wrote of the episode, "As befits its title, this week's installment asks us to consider what it means to be a ruler ... and what it means to seek justice." Kevin Yeoman of Screen Rant praised the final scene of Olenna Tyrell, writing "As much as a momentous encounter between two major characters grabbed the spotlight, ''Game of Thrones'' proved that a character's last words could be just as important as their first." Alyssa Rosenberg of ''The Washington Post'' praised the performances of Rigg, Coster-Waldau and Dinklage, but was critical of Emilia Clarke and Kit Harington's scenes together, writing that "in the Dragonstone scenes, Clarke and Harington mostly served to bring out each other's most wooden line readings". She also addressed the way the episode approached themes of female empowerment, writing that "if any show has been a cautionary tale about the difference between female empowerment and true social change, ''Game of Thrones'' has been it".

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===Accolades=== One-Hour Single Camera Period Or Fantasy Television Series Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series Diana Rigg as Lady Olenna Tyrell

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==External links== * "The Queen's Justice" at HBO.com

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"'''Jenny of Oldstones'''", alternatively titled "'''Jenny's Song'''", is a song appearing in the HBO TV series ''Game of Thrones''. It was included in two separate parts in the second episode of the series' eighth season, "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms". In the first instance of the song, it was performed during the episode by character Podrick Payne, portrayed by Scottish actor Daniel Portman. The song then played during the episode's end credits, performed by British indie rock band Florence and the Machine. Florence and the Machine released the song as a single the day after the episode aired, on 22 April 2019. The song was released by HBO and record label Universal Music Group.

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==Background== "Jenny of Oldstones" is an adaptation of a song mentioned in George R. R. Martin's fantasy novel series ''A Song of Ice and Fire'', on which ''Game of Thrones'' is based. In the third novel in the series, ''A Storm of Swords'', a character asks for "my Jenny's song" to be performed. Only one line of the song is quoted in the novel itself: "High in the halls of the kings who are gone, Jenny would dance with her ghosts." In the fictional history of the world of ''A Song of Ice and Fire'', the titular Jenny of Oldstones was a commoner whom a prince gave up his inheritance to marry. The song was written by German composer Ramin Djawadi, who composes the music for ''Game of Thrones'', and screenwriters D. B. Weiss and David Benioff, who added lyrics to the fragment written in ''A Song of Ice and Fire'' by Martin. Florence and the Machine's recording of it was produced by American musician Doveman and Florence and the Machine frontwoman Florence Welch. The song is a folk ballad, with influences of Celtic music. Weiss and Benioff reportedly approached Welch in 2012 to record the song "The Rains of Castamere", although she had turned down their request. Following the release of "Jenny of Oldstones", Welch stated in an interview with ''The New York Times'' that this was during her "wild years", when she was "less focused". In the episode "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms", the recording of the song by Welch was played over the closing credits. The song was however first heard performed by Daniel Portman as the character Podrick, who sang a verse in a sequence reminiscent of the scene in ''The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King'' when Pippin sang "The Edge of Night" before the battle of Minas Tirith. The version sung by Portman is a simplified in its harmonies, while the version by Welch is close to how Djawadi originally wrote it with more chord changes.

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==Commercial performance== "Jenny of Oldstones" debuted at number 75 in the UK and 64 in Ireland. It was the seventh best-selling digital song the week it was released in the United States. In Belgium, the song did not enter the Ultratop 50 or Ultratip 50, but did appear on the Flemish extra tips chart.

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==Credits and personnel== Credits adapted from YouTube, provided by Universal Music Group. * Florence Welch – lead vocals, music production * Doveman – music production, mixing, keyboards, programming * D. B. Weiss – composing, songwriting * David Benioff – composing, songwriting * Ramin Djawadi – composing, songwriting * George R. R. Martin – composing, songwriting

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==Charts== Australia Digital Tracks (ARIA) New Zealand Hot Singles (RMNZ)

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"'''Second Sons'''" is the eighth episode of the third season of HBO's fantasy television series ''Game of Thrones'', and the 28th episode of the series. The episode was written by executive producers David Benioff and D. B. Weiss, and directed by Michelle MacLaren. It aired on . The episode is centered on the wedding of Tyrion Lannister and Sansa Stark in King's Landing, Gendry's arrival at Dragonstone and Daenerys's meeting with the mercenary company of the Second Sons before the walls of Yunkai.

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===In King's Landing=== Tyrion visits Sansa to ease her apprehension at the prospect of being his wife. In the Sept of Baelor, Cersei threatens Margaery with the story of House Reyne, former Lannister vassals whom Tywin exterminated when they rebelled against him. After arriving at the Sept, Sansa is walked down the aisle by Joffrey. At their wedding feast, Tyrion gets drunk. Joffrey, after threatening to rape Sansa, calls for the traditional bedding ceremony to begin, but his plan is thwarted when Tyrion threatens to castrate an outraged Joffrey. Tywin defuses the situation. Tyrion leaves the feast with Sansa, and he tells Sansa he will not share her bed until she wants him to.

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===At Dragonstone=== Melisandre returns to Dragonstone with Gendry and takes him to see Stannis, who recognizes Gendry as one of Robert's bastards. When Gendry is taken to his chamber, Stannis and Melisandre discuss what they intend to do with him. In the dungeons, Davos continues to learn to read. Stannis visits him to discuss Melisandre's plan to sacrifice Gendry. Davos objects to the plan, but Stannis remains resolved. He then makes Davos swear to never raise his hand to Melisandre again, and frees him. Later, Melisandre visits Gendry and seduces him, tying him to a bed in the process. She lays three leeches on him to draw his royal blood. Stannis ritually burns the leeches, speaking the names of the usurpers to his throne: Robb Stark, Balon Greyjoy, and Joffrey Baratheon.

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===In the Riverlands=== Arya tries to kill the Hound while he is sleeping, but he is revealed to be awake, and thwarts her attempt on his life. They depart their camp and head for the Twins, where the Hound intends to ransom Arya to Robb.

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===At Yunkai=== Jorah tells Daenerys that Yunkai has employed a mercenary group called the Second Sons. Daenerys meets with Mero, his co-captain Prendahl na Ghezn and his lieutenant Daario Naharis. She attempts to bribe Mero to fight for her, and gives him two days to make a decision. After nightfall, Daario enters Daenerys' camp, disguised as an Unsullied soldier. He enters her tent and shows her and Missandei the severed heads of Mero and Prendahl, admitting that he is smitten by Daenerys.

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===Beyond the Wall=== Sam and Gilly continue their journey to the Wall. They stop at an abandoned hut for the night. When they hear a murder of crows cawing nearby, Sam leaves the hut to investigate. Soon after, he is attacked by a White Walker. The Walker intents on taking Gilly's son, but Sam stabs it with his dragonglass dagger, causing the Walker to disintegrate.

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===Writing=== The episode was written by series co-creators David Benioff and D. B. Weiss. "Second Sons" was written by the show creators and executive producers David Benioff and D. B. Weiss, based on material from George R. R. Martin's novel ''A Storm of Swords''. The episode adapts parts of the book's chapters 19, 29, 37, 43, 47 and 48 (Samwell I, Sansa III, Davos IV, Daenerys IV, Samwell III and Arya IX).

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===Casting=== The episode introduced the mercenary captains in service of Yunkai: Mark Killeen was cast as Mero (known as the Titan's Bastard), Ed Skrein the recurring role of Daario Naharis, and Ramon Tikaram the part of Prendahl na Ghezn. Tikaram is mistakenly credited as "Ramon Tikrum" in the closing credits.

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===Filming locations=== Most of the scenes of the episode were shot in the Belfast studios of The Paint Hall, including the wedding of Tyrion and Sansa that was filmed at the huge semicircular set of the Great Sept of Baelor in mid September 2012. For this scene, a few hundred extras were recruited.

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===Ratings=== The episode received 5.1 million viewers, an increase from the previous week, with an 18-49 demographic of 2.6. In the United Kingdom, the episode was seen by 0.907 million viewers on Sky Atlantic, being the channel's highest-rated broadcast that week.

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===Critical reception=== "Second Sons" received critical acclaim. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes surveyed 20 reviews of the episode and judged 100% of them to be positive with an average score of 8 out of 10. The website's critical consensus reads, " 'Second Sons' shines through efficient storytelling -- and a comparatively low number of storylines to keep track of this week." Writing for IGN, Matt Fowler rated the episode a 9.0/10, and wrote "This week's well-crafted and wonderfully acted Game of Thrones gave us a cold wedding, a hot bath and a blood-letting." He especially praised the scenes between Sansa and Tyrion and between Ser Davos and Stannis. David Sims and Emily VanDerWerff, both writing for The A.V. Club, gave the episode "B" ratings. Sims was frustrated by the episode's meandering pace, but praised the end of the episode, with Sam killing the white walker, as "the most crucial, fascinating, electric moment of the night". VanDerWerff praised the use of nudity in the episode, writing "...I actually think Game Of Thrones has gotten quite a bit better at utilizing nudity and sex in the midst of everything else as a method of telling its story. It’s come a long way from the 'sexposition' days of season one, when it sometimes seemed like the series would toss some breasts into the background of a scene just in case we got bored of hearing somebody talk at length."

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===Accolades=== Due to his nomination, Peter Dinklage submitted this episode for consideration for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for the 65th Primetime Emmy Awards. At the 65th Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards, the episode was nominated for Outstanding Hairstyling for a Single-Camera Series.

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The characters from the medieval fantasy television series ''Game of Thrones'' are based on their respective counterparts from author George R. R. Martin's ''A Song of Ice and Fire'' series of novels. Set in a fictional universe that has been referred to so far as "The Known World", the series follows a civil war for the Iron Throne of the continent of Westeros, fought between the rival royal and noble families and their respective supporters.

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===Main cast=== The following cast members have been credited as main cast in the opening credits: * In seasons 6–7, Ned Stark is portrayed by Sebastian Croft and Robert Aramayo in flashback scenes. * In season 5, Cersei Lannister is portrayed by Nell Williams in a flashback scene. * In season 3, Daario Naharis is portrayed by Ed Skrein. * In seasons 1–2, Tommen Baratheon is portrayed by Callum Wharry. * In season 1, Jaqen H'ghar is portrayed by an uncredited extra.

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===Recurring / Guest cast=== Additionally the following cast members have appeared in 3 or more episodes within a season while maintaining a "recurring" status: * In season 6, Hodor is portrayed by Sam Coleman (originally named Wylis) in flashback scenes. * In season 1, Gregor Clegane is portrayed by Conan Stevens and by Ian Whyte in season 2. * In seasons 1–2, Myrcella Baratheon is portrayed by Aimee Richardson. * In season 6, Rodrik Cassel is portrayed by Fergus Leathem in flashback scenes. * In season 6, Benjen Stark is portrayed by Matteo Elezi in flashback scenes. * In season 1, Rickard Karstark is portrayed by Steven Blount. * In season 1, Beric Dondarrion is portrayed by David Michael Scott. * In season 2, Selyse Florent is portrayed by uncredited extra Sarah MacKeever. * In seasons 3–5, Little Sam is portrayed by uncredited infant extras. * In season 3, Lothar Frey is portrayed by Tom Brooke. * In season 4, the Three-Eyed Raven is portrayed by Struan Rodger. * In season 4, Leaf is portrayed by Octavia Alexandru. * In seasons 4–5, the Night King is portrayed by Richard Brake. * In season 6, Dickon Tarly is portrayed by Freddie Stroma.

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====Other characters==== * Dennis McKeever as an officer of the Night's Watch * Roger Allam as Illyrio Mopatis * Jefferson Hall as Hugh of the Vale * Antonia Christophers as Mhaegen * Patrick Malahide as Balon Greyjoy * Edward Dogliani and Ross O'Hennessy as the Lord of Bones * Lucian Msamati as Salladhor Saan * Oliver Ford Davies as Maester Cressen * Tyrone McElhennon as Torrhen Karstark * Anthony Morris as the Tickler * Slavko Juraga as the Silk King * Dean-Charles Chapman as Martyn Lannister * Timothy Gibbons as Willem Lannister * Alexandra Dowling as Roslin Tully * Ramon Tikaram as Prendahl na Ghezn * Jamie Michie as Steelshanks Walton * Clifford Barry as Greizhen mo Ullhor * George Georgiou as Razdal mo Eraz * Mark Gatiss as Tycho Nestoris * Gary Oliver as Ternesio Terys * Lu Corfield as the Mole's Town madam * Lois Winstone as a Mole's Town prostitute * Alisdair Simpson as Donnel Waynwood * Paola Dionisotti as Anya Waynwood * Enzo Cilenti as Yezzan zo Qaggaz * Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje as Malko * Birgitte Hjort Sørensen as Karsi * J. J. Murphy as Denys Mallister * Oengus MacNamara as the thin man * Dean S. Jagger as Smalljon Umber * Michael Feast as Aeron Greyjoy * Souad Faress as High Priestess of the Dosh Khaleen * Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson as Lem Lemoncloak * Sean Blowers as Wyman Manderly * Samantha Spiro as Melessa Tarly * Rebecca Benson as Talla Tarly * Eddie Jackson as Belicho Paenymion * Marc Rissmann as Harry Strickland * Ian Whyte as the giant Dongo the Doomed and various White Walkers * Ross Mullan as various White Walkers * Neil Fingleton as the giant Mag Mar Tun Doh Weg * Spencer Wilding as a White Walker * Nell Williams as young Cersei Lannister * Isabella Steinbarth as Melara Hetherspoon * Sebastian Croft as child Eddard Stark * Matteo Elezi as child Benjen Stark * Cordelia Hill as child Lyanna Stark * Sam Coleman as young Wylis / Hodor * Annette Tierney as young Old Nan * Fergus Leathem as young Rodrik Cassel * Robert Aramayo as young Eddard Stark * Eddie Eyre as Gerold Hightower * Leo Woodruff as young Howland Reed * Wayne Foskett as Rickard Stark * David Rintoul as Aerys 'The Mad King' Targaryen * Aisling Franciosi as Lyanna Stark * Wilf Scolding as Rhaegar Targaryen * Tom Chadbon as High Septon Maynard

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===Eddard "Ned" Stark=== '''Ned Stark''' (seasons 1, 6–7) portrayed by Sean Bean as an adult, Sebastian Croft as a child, and Robert Aramayo as a young adult. Eddard "Ned" Stark of House Stark, Lord of Winterfell and Warden of the North, becomes the Hand of the King after Lord Jon Arryn's death. He is known for his sense of honor and justice. He took part in Robert's Rebellion after his sister Lyanna was kidnapped by Crown Prince Rhaegar Targaryen. When Ned's father and brother went south to reclaim her, the "Mad King" Aerys Targaryen burned both of them alive. Ned and Robert Baratheon led the rebellion to unseat him from the throne. As the show opens, Ned has been content to remain in the north, but after the death of Lord Jon Arryn, he is convinced that it is his duty to accept the position of Hand of the King. Ned is not interested in politics, and prefers to rule with honor and follow the law. While investigating the reason for the death of Jon Arryn, he discovers that all three of Robert's children with Queen Cersei were fathered by Cersei's twin brother Jaime. When Ned confronts Cersei about the truth, she has him imprisoned for treason after he publicly denounces Joffrey. Ned is convinced by Varys that if he goes to his death honorably, as he is prepared to do, his daughters will not suffer for it. To protect them, he sacrifices his honor and publicly declares that he was plotting to steal the throne and that Joffrey is the true king. Despite Cersei's promise that Ned would be allowed to join the Night's Watch in exile, Joffrey orders Ned's execution for his own amusement and later torments Sansa by forcing her to look at her father's head. His bones are later returned to Catelyn in the Stormlands by Petyr Baelish, who laments Ned's downfall and that he was too honorable to seize power through force, rather insisting the throne pass to Lord Stannis Baratheon, Robert's younger brother. Baelish's preferred course of action, revealed only to Ned, had been to seize Cersei and her children first and rule in Joffrey's name as Regent and Lord Protector. Ned's execution, however, is not in vain, since he notifies Stannis of the truth of Joffrey's parentage, and Stannis informs all of Westeros, which sets into motion the War of Five Kings against House Lannister.

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===Robert Baratheon=== '''Robert Baratheon''' (season 1) portrayed by Mark Addy. Robert Baratheon of House Baratheon, formerly a fierce warrior, became King of the Seven Kingdoms after leading a rebellion against Aerys II Targaryen. He was betrothed to Ned Stark's sister Lyanna and loved her deeply, but she was kidnapped by Rhaegar Targaryen. Her father and another brother were killed when they went to King's Landing to reclaim her, which resulted in Robert and Ned Stark's revolt known as Robert's Rebellion, whereupon the Targaryens were all slaughtered or routed from the Kingdoms. Since Robert's family had closer ties to the former Royal family, he was put Robert on the Iron Throne. Now, Robert has grown fat and miserable; he has no more wars to fight, is surrounded by plotters and sycophants, hates and is bored by the constant work needed to manage the Kingdoms properly, and is trapped in a political marriage to the scheming Cersei Lannister, whom he has never loved. He is unaware that none of his three children are his, but instead Jaime Lannister's. Under his reign, the realm has been bankrupted and Robert is deeply in debt to his wife's family. Killed while hunting, he unknowingly leaves no rightful heir behind. His bastards are ordered dead by Joffrey, many of whom are killed, and Gendry is subsequently forced to flee the capital.

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===Jaime Lannister=== '''Jaime Lannister''' portrayed by Nikolaj Coster-Waldau. Ser Jaime Lannister of House Lannister is a member of the Kingsguard and an exceptionally skilled swordsman. He is the Queen's twin brother and has carried on an incestuous love affair with her all his life, fathering all three of her living children. He truly does love his sister and will do anything, no matter how rash, to stay close to her. He is nicknamed "Kingslayer" for killing the previous King, Aerys II, whom he was sworn to protect. He was allowed to keep his post in the current Kingsguard as he and his influential father helped Robert win the war, but no one feels he deserves this post, which frustrates Jaime. Despite Eddard Stark's animosity against him for forsaking his oath to protect the King during Robert's Rebellion, Jaime has great respect for Eddard, whom he considers a great warrior and his equal. Unlike his father and sister, Jaime cares deeply about his younger brother Tyrion.

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===Catelyn Stark=== '''Catelyn Stark''' (seasons 1–3) portrayed by Michelle Fairley. Catelyn Stark of House Stark and House Tully (née Tully), Lady of Winterfell, is the wife of Lord Eddard Stark. Born to the Lord and Lady of the Riverlands, she is the elder sister of Lysa Arryn, Lady of the Vale and Mistress of the Eyrie, and Lord Edmure Tully, Lord of Riverrun.

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===Cersei Lannister=== '''Cersei Lannister''' portrayed by Lena Headey as an adult and Nell Williams as a child. Cersei Lannister of House Lannister and House Baratheon, Queen of the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros, is the wife of King Robert Baratheon. Her father arranged the marriage when she was a teenager, initiating himself as a political counselor for King Robert. The Lannisters are the richest family in Westeros, which is why Robert was interested in a marriage between them. Cersei has a twin brother, Jaime, with whom she has been involved in an incestuous affair from early childhood. All three of Cersei's children are Jaime's. Cersei's main character attribute is her desire for power and her deep loyalty to her father, children, and brother Jaime. Cersei learns that her husband Robert is in danger of finding out that the children he sees as his heirs to the throne are not his. Robert meets his end as the result of a boar attack on a hunting trip, before Ned Stark tells him of the truth about his children. Cersei works quickly to instate her oldest son, Joffrey, on the throne, with her as his chief political advisor and Queen Regent.

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===Daenerys Targaryen=== '''Daenerys Targaryen''' portrayed by Emilia Clarke. Daenerys Targaryen is the exiled princess of the Targaryen dynasty. Also called "the Stormborn", she and her brother Viserys were smuggled to Essos during the end of Robert's Rebellion. For seventeen years, she has been under the care of Viserys, whom she fears, as he is abusive to her whenever she displeases him. In exchange for an army, Viserys marries her to the powerful Dothraki warlord Khal Drogo, making her a Khaleesi, a queen of the Dothraki.

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===Jorah Mormont=== '''Jorah Mormont''' portrayed by Iain Glen. Ser Jorah Mormont of House Mormont is an exiled knight in the service of Daenerys Targaryen and the son of Jeor Mormont of the Night's Watch. To fund his wife's extravagant lifestyle, he sold poachers on his land to slave traders, which is illegal in the Seven Kingdoms. Rather than face punishment by Lord Stark, he fled to Essos and learned the lifestyle of the Dothraki who embrace him as one of their own and know him as "Jorah The Andal". Jorah serves as an adviser to the Targaryens on both political and cultural matters of both the Seven Kingdoms and Essos. Jorah is actually spying on the Targaryens for Lord Varys in exchange for a pardon on his crimes. But after learning more about Daenerys, Jorah falls in love with her and decides to protect her and help her regain the Iron Throne. After she is widowed, he remains with her and becomes the first knight of her Queensguard.

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===Viserys Targaryen=== '''Viserys Targaryen''' (season 1) portrayed by Harry Lloyd. Viserys Targaryen is the exiled prince and heir of the Targaryen dynasty. Known as "the Beggar King" for his search for an army to recapture his throne. A narcissist, he is arrogant and self-centered, caring only about himself and looking down on others, especially his sister Daenerys. In exchange for an army to help regain the Iron Throne, Viserys marries off his sister to the powerful Dothraki warlord Khal Drogo and follows his horde's journey to the Dothraki capital to ensure Drogo will keep his end of the bargain. But as they journey, it becomes evident that Viserys does not have leadership skills to reclaim the throne and his arrogance and disrespect for the Dothraki does not win him any hearts. Furthermore, Daenerys, who he has always threatened throughout his life, starts to stand up to him. Realizing that Daenerys is loved by the Dothraki and her and Drogo's unborn son is prophesized to unite the world, Viserys realizes that it is not he, but Daenerys who will reclaim the Iron Throne. In a fit of drunken rage, he threatens Drogo to give him his army now or he will kill his unborn son. Having enough of his behavior, Drogo kills Viserys by giving him a "Golden Crown"; molten gold poured over his head. Daenerys later names one of her dragons Viserion, as a tribute to Viserys.

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===Jon Snow=== '''Jon Snow''' portrayed by Kit Harington. Kit Harington Jon Snow of House Stark and the Night's Watch is the secret son of Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark, though raised as the bastard son of Lyanna's brother, Ned Stark. In the first season, Jon joins the Night's Watch. Jon is a talented fighter, but his sense of compassion and justice brings him into conflict with his harsh surroundings. Ned claims that Jon's mother was a wet nurse named Wylla. His dire wolf is called Ghost due to his albinism and quiet nature. Jon soon learns that the Watch is no longer a glorious order, but is now composed mostly of society's rejects, including criminals and exiles. Initially, he has only contempt for his low-born brothers of the Watch, but he puts aside his prejudices and befriends his fellow recruits, especially Samwell Tarly, after they unite against the cruel master-at-arms, Ser Alliser Thorne.

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===Sansa Stark=== '''Sansa Stark''' portrayed by Sophie Turner. Sansa Stark of House Stark is the first daughter and second child of Eddard and Catelyn Stark. She was also the future bride of Prince Joffrey, and thus the future Queen of the Seven Kingdoms as well. She names her direwolf Lady; she is the smallest of the pack and the first to die, sentenced to death by Cersei after Arya's direwolf, Nymeria, bit a violent Joffrey.

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===Arya Stark=== '''Arya Stark''' portrayed by Maisie Williams. Arya Stark of House Stark is the younger daughter and third child of Lord Eddard and Catelyn Stark of Winterfell. Ever the tomboy, Arya would rather be training to use weapons than sewing with a needle. She names her direwolf Nymeria, after a legendary warrior queen.

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===Robb Stark=== '''Robb Stark''' (seasons 1–3) portrayed by Richard Madden. Robb Stark of House Stark is the eldest son of Eddard and Catelyn Stark and the heir to Winterfell. His dire wolf is called Grey Wind. Robb becomes involved in the war against the Lannisters after his father, Ned Stark, is arrested for treason. Robb summons his bannermen for war against House Lannister and marches to the Riverlands. Eventually, crossing the river at the Twins becomes strategically necessary. To win permission to cross, Robb agrees to marry a daughter of Walder Frey, Lord of the Twins. Robb leads the war effort against the Lannisters and successfully captures Jaime. After Ned is executed, the North and the Riverlands declare their independence from the Seven Kingdoms and proclaim Robb as their new King, "the King in the North". He wins a succession of battles in Season 2, earning him the nickname the Young Wolf. However, he feels that he botched the political aspects of war. He sends Theon to the Iron Islands hoping that he can broker an alliance with Balon Greyjoy, Theon's father. In exchange for Greyjoy support, Robb as King in the North will recognize the Iron Islands' independence. He also sends his mother Catelyn to deal with Stannis Baratheon and Renly Baratheon, both of whom are fighting to be the rightful king. Theon and Catelyn fail in their missions, and Balon launches an invasion of the North. Robb falls in love with Talisa Maegyr, a healer from Volantis due to her kindness and spirit. Despite his mother's protest, Robb breaks his engagement with the Freys and marries Talisa in the 2nd-season finale. On news of his grandfather, Lord Hoster Tully's, death, Robb and his party travel north to Riverrun for the funeral, where the young king is reunited with his great-uncle, Ser Brynden "Blackfish" Tully, and his uncle, Edmure Tully, the new lord of Riverrun. While at Riverrun, Robb makes the decision to execute Lord Rickard Karstark for the murders of two teenage squires related to the Lannisters, a decision that loses the support of the Karstarks and leads Robb to make the ultimately fatal decision to ask the Freys for their alliance. He is killed in the Red Wedding Massacre, after witnessing the murder of his pregnant wife and their child. Lord Bolton personally executes Robb, stabbing him through the heart while taunting that "the Lannisters send their regards", in fact a promise made to Jaime (who had no knowledge of Bolton's impending treason) when leaving for the Twins. His corpse is later decapitated and Grey Wind's head is sewn on and paraded around as the Stark forces are slaughtered by the Boltons and Freys

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===Theon Greyjoy=== '''Theon Greyjoy''' portrayed by Alfie Allen. Theon Greyjoy of House Greyjoy is the youngest son of Lord Balon Greyjoy of the Iron Islands. He is the hostage and ward of Lord Eddard Stark, stemming from the failed Greyjoy Rebellion. Despite his position, he remains loyal to Eddard and is good friends with his sons Robb and Jon. In Season 8, he dies protecting Bran Stark, now the Three-Eyed Raven, from the Night King.

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===Brandon "Bran" Stark=== '''Bran Stark''' (seasons 1–4, 6–8) portrayed by Isaac Hempstead Wright. Brandon "Bran" Stark of House Stark is the second son and fourth child of Eddard and Catelyn Stark. He was named after his deceased uncle, Brandon. His dire wolf is called Summer. During the King's visit to Winterfell, he accidentally came across Cersei and Jaime Lannister engaging in sex, following which Bran is shoved from the window by Jaime, permanently crippling his legs.

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===Joffrey Baratheon=== '''Joffrey Baratheon''' (seasons 1–4) portrayed by Jack Gleeson. Joffrey Baratheon of House Baratheon is the Crown Prince of the Seven Kingdoms. He is the eldest of Cersei Lannister's children and heir to the Iron Throne. Vicious and cruel, he has a short temper and believes he can do anything he wants. He is also a coward when confronted by those who aren't afraid of him. Joffrey is also unaware that King Robert is not his real father – who, in reality, is Jaime Lannister. After Robert's death, the Lannisters make Joffrey the King against his father's will, and Joffrey becomes a cruel ruler and a Puppet King used by his mother.

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===Sandor Clegane=== '''Sandor Clegane''' (seasons 1–4, 6–8) portrayed by Rory McCann. Sandor Clegane, nicknamed "the Hound", for his savage nature, is the younger brother of Ser Gregor Clegane and a retainer to House Lannister. He is also Joffrey Baratheon's personal bodyguard. The right side of his face was grievously burned when he was only a boy after his brother accused him of stealing one of his toys and pushed Sandor's face into a brazier, leaving the right side of his face hideously scarred, and a lifelong fear of fire. He is taciturn and brutal, but not without compassion. He is protective towards Sansa after she is captured by the Lannisters. After Joffrey becomes King, Sandor is made a member of the Kingsguard. Although he is still faithful to Joffrey, he frequently defends Sansa from Joffrey's attempts to shame and physically abuse her.

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===Tyrion Lannister=== '''Tyrion Lannister''' portrayed by Peter Dinklage. Nicknamed "the Imp" or "Halfman", Tyrion Lannister of House Lannister is the younger brother of Cersei and Jaime Lannister. He is a dwarf; and his mother died during his birth, for which his father, Tywin Lannister, blames him. While not physically powerful, Tyrion has a cunning mind and often uses to his advantage the fact that others constantly underestimate him.

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===Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish=== '''Petyr Baelish''' (seasons 1–7) portrayed by Aidan Gillen. Lord Petyr Baelish, nicknamed "Littlefinger", is the Master of Coin in King Robert Baratheon's Small Council. He grew up with Catelyn Tully and fought Ned's brother Brandon for her hand. Petyr is a master manipulator who knows the ongoing affairs within the Seven Kingdoms thanks to his spies. While Petyr at first is assumed to be an ally of Ned, he secretly resents him for marrying Catelyn and so he betrayed him when he tried to arrest Joffrey and Cersei. Despite that, Petyr aims to take the Iron Throne to punish the powerful nobles who used to look down on him.

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===Davos Seaworth=== '''Davos Seaworth''' (seasons 2–8) portrayed by Liam Cunningham. Ser Davos Seaworth, also known as "the Onion Knight", is a former smuggler and knight in the service of Stannis Baratheon; he serves as one of Stannis's most trusted advisers. In his smuggling days, he was said to handle a ship at night better than anyone. Before the events of the series, he earned his knighthood by smuggling fish and onions to the besieged Stannis Baratheon and his army during Robert Baratheon's rebellion. Before knighting him, Stannis removed the last joints from four fingers on his right hand as punishment for his years of smuggling; believing these joints bought his family a better future, Davos keeps them in a pouch around his neck for luck.

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===Samwell Tarly=== '''Samwell Tarly''' portrayed by John Bradley. Samwell Tarly of House Tarly and the Night's Watch is the eldest son and former heir of Lord Randyll Tarly, is a new recruit to the Night's Watch. He was sent to the Wall by his father, who disowned him for his cowardice. He becomes Jon's best friend after Jon conspires with the others in their trainee class to go easy on him. While not a warrior, he is very smart and insightful. He is inducted into the Stewards and assigned to Maester Aemon.

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===Stannis Baratheon=== '''Stannis Baratheon''' (seasons 2–5) portrayed by Stephen Dillane. Stannis Baratheon of House Baratheon, Lord of Dragonstone, is the elder of Robert Baratheon's younger brothers. A brooding, humorless man known for a hard and unyielding sense of justice, he is obsessed with slights real and imagined. With Robert dying, Ned sends him a letter appointing him as the legitimate heir and becomes another challenger for the Iron Throne after his alleged nephew Joffrey becomes King.

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===Melisandre=== '''Melisandre''' (seasons 2–8) portrayed by Carice van Houten. Also known as "the Red Woman", a priestess of R'hllor in service to Stannis Baratheon. Melisandre has prophetic powers that give her partial knowledge of future events. Unlike many other people in Westeros with access to prophecy, Melisandre has absolute faith in her own interpretation, even though she is sometimes wrong. Melisandre believes Stannis is the chosen one who will convert the people of Westeros into followers of R'hllor.

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===Jeor Mormont=== '''Jeor Mormont''' (seasons 1–3) portrayed by James Cosmo. Jeor Mormont, the 997th Lord Commander of the Night's Watch, is the estranged father of Ser Jorah. He gave up his lands to serve the Night's Watch. His son's shaming of their house weighs heavily on him. He personally requests that Jon Snow be made his personal steward, and gives him the Hand-and-a-Half sword (also known as a bastard sword) of their house, Longclaw. He has the pommel reshaped into a wolf's head. To investigate the return of wights, the disappearance of several Rangers, and rumors of a wildling army, Jeor leads an expeditionary force beyond the Wall in Season 2. In Season 3, after returning to Craster's Keep, he is slain by Rast in the ensuing mutiny, but manages to strangle him before succumbing to his wounds. His death ignites Maester Aemon's call for the lords of Westeros to aid the Night's Watch, which convinces Stannis Baratheon the time is ripe to fight the onslaught of the White Walkers. His corpse is apparently desecrated afterwards, as in season 4, Karl Tanner is shown drinking wine from a skull he claims is Jeor's.

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===Bronn=== '''Bronn''' portrayed by Jerome Flynn. Bronn is a sellsword with a sardonic sense of humor. He initially serves under Catelyn Stark and aids her in arresting Tyrion Lannister and taking him to the Vale to stand trial for the murder of Jon Arryn and attempted murder of Bran Stark. During the trial, Bronn realises that Tyrion will most likely be executed by the insane Lysa Arryn despite the impossibility of his guilt, and volunteers to fight for Tyrion when he demands a trial by combat. Bronn defeats Lysa Arryn's champion and becomes Tyrion's companion and protector, accompanying him back to King's Landing.

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===Varys=== '''Varys''' portrayed by Conleth Hill. Varys, sometimes called The Spider, is a major character in the second, third, fourth and fifth seasons. He initially appeared as a recurring character in the first season and debuted in "Lord Snow". Varys is bald and tends towards fat, due to his castration. He is the Master of Whisperers, the King's foremost spymaster and intelligence agent. He holds no inherited title, castle or lands in Westeros, but is called "Lord" as a courtesy due to his position on the council, which traditionally is made up of high lords. He is a skilled manipulator and commands a network of informants across two continents. He often puts on the public persona of being nothing more than a pudgy man well suited to the pleasantries of court life; humble, obsequious, fawning, and a little effeminate. This is simply a facade that Varys has developed, which often leads those who do not know him well to underestimate him as a cheerful and vapid flatterer. In reality he is a cunning and ruthless manipulator of court politics, on-par with Master of Coin Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish, with whom he frequently spars.

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===Shae=== '''Shae''' (seasons 1–4) portrayed by Sibel Kekilli. Shae is a young camp follower in whom Tyrion Lannister takes particular interest. She is from Lorath, one of the Free Cities across the Narrow Sea. Tyrion falls in love with her and in order to hide her from his father, Tyrion appoints Shae to be Sansa's handmaiden. As her handmaiden, Shae is the only person Sansa trusts and confides to her about her problems and what she really thinks about the Lannisters. In turn, Shae becomes protective of Sansa and attempts to help her in any way she can. In Season 3, she becomes jealous of Tyrion after his marriage to Sansa and is confronted by Varys, who urges her to leave the Seven Kingdoms, which she refuses to do, thinking that Tyrion has something to do with Varys talking to her. In Season 4, Tyrion is forced to send Shae away from King's Landing on a ship after her presence is discovered by Cersei and his father is told, insulting her in the process. Shae, however, does not leave King's Landing, and resurfaces at Tyrion's trial for murdering Joffrey, where she falsely claims that both Tyrion and Sansa were responsible for Joffrey's death. It is revealed, however, that Shae was having an affair with Tywin. After Tyrion is freed by Jaime, he finds Shae sleeping in Tywin's bed, making him realise the horrible truth. Shae attempts to kill Tyrion with a knife, but he strangles her to death both in self-defense and out of anger for her betrayal.

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===Margaery Tyrell=== '''Margaery Tyrell''' (seasons 2–6) portrayed by Natalie Dormer. Margaery of House Tyrell is the only daughter of Lord Mace Tyrell, and has recently married the late King Robert's brother, Renly Baratheon, as part of House Tyrell's support for his bid to seize the Iron Throne from King Joffrey. Somewhere in her mid to late twenties, she is surprisingly canny and cunning. She is aware of her husband's homosexual orientation and inclinations towards her brother. Despite her knowledge of this, she actively attempts to become pregnant as to secure the alliance between their families. When Renly is killed, the Tyrells ally with House Lannister and she is planned to marry to King Joffrey. In a departure from her characterization in the novels, where her personal motivations are unclear, Margaery's naked ambition is made obvious.

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===Tywin Lannister=== '''Tywin Lannister''' (seasons 1–5) portrayed by Charles Dance. Lord of Casterly Rock, Shield of Lannisport and Warden of the West, Tywin of House Lannister is a calculating, ruthless, and controlling man. He is also the former Hand of King Aerys II. He is the father of Cersei, Jaime, and Tyrion. After Eddard Stark's arrest, Joffrey names him Hand of the King once more, but after Jaime is taken captive by the Starks, Eddard is unexpectedly executed by Joffrey, and Renly and Stannis Baratheon challenge Joffrey's claim to the throne; Tywin elects to remain in the field commanding his forces until he wins his war, and in the meantime gives the position of Hand of the King to Tyrion.

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===Talisa Maegyr=== '''Talisa Stark''' (seasons 2–3) portrayed by Oona Chaplin. Talisa Maegyr is a healer working on the battlefields of the War of the Five Kings. She claims to be from the Free City of Volantis. No character named Talisa appears in the books. Oona Chaplin was originally announced to play a character called Jeyne, which many thought to mean she would play Jeyne Westerling, a character from the books. Talisa follows Robb Stark's army camp as it moves. One day as they talk they are interrupted by news that Catelyn has released Robb's key prisoner Jaime Lannister. Talisa later goes to comfort Robb. After she reveals more of her past to him, they admit their shared feelings for one another and sleep together. Talisa and Robb marry in secret before a septon and she becomes a Stark. In season 3, Talisa reveals that she is pregnant, although she and her unborn child are stabbed to death by Lothar Frey in the Red Wedding Massacre, the first in the hall to be attacked.

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===Ygritte=== '''Ygritte''' (seasons 2–4) portrayed by Rose Leslie. A Wildling girl with red hair ("kissed by fire", a sign of luck among the Wildlings) and a follower of Mance Rayder. In Season 2, she is captured in the Skirling Pass by Jon Snow and Qhorin Halfhand. She manages to escape, but is recaptured by Jon, separating him from his brothers in the process. Later she leads him into Rattleshirt's ambush. After this they lead Jon to Mance Rayder's wildling camp, where he pretends to defect to the Wildlings to discover their plans. She then travels with him to the wall, and during this journey she seduces him. However, when confronted with killing an innocent horse farmer for the watch who scaled the wall, Jon escapes the wildling's clutches on horseback. But while resting, Ygritte manages to catch up with Jon at which point she confesses her love for him and then, blinded by tears, shoots him multiple times while he escapes towards the wall. In Season 4, Ygritte starts raiding villages south of the wall with her group, clearly thirsting for vengeance against Jon, although Tormund suspects she let him go. When the wildlings attack Mole's Town, Ygritte slaughters all the women present, but notices Gilly hiding with her baby son, and spares her life. When the wildlings finally reach Castle Black and attack, Ygritte kills many Night's Watch brothers with her archery skills, among them Pyp. When confronted by Jon, however, she cannot bring herself to shoot him, and is shot in the back by Olly, a boy whose father Ygritte previously killed. Ygritte subsequently dies in Jon's arms, and her body is later burned by Jon himself, separately from the other soldiers, in her homeland, north of the Wall.

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===Gendry=== '''Gendry''' (seasons 1–3, 7–8) portrayed by Joe Dempsie. Gendry is an apprentice blacksmith in King's Landing and an unacknowledged bastard of King Robert. Gendry shows promise as a smith and makes a helmet in the shape of a bull's head; Eddard compliments the helmet, offering to purchase it. Gendry refuses, to the shame of the master smith. After Eddard Stark's fall and eventual execution, arrangements are made for Yoren of the Night's Watch to take Gendry to the Wall with him; he travels North with Yoren and other recruits, including Arry, Lommy Greenhands, Hot Pie and Jaqen H'ghar. During their journey, they are stopped by the Goldcloaks, who demand that Yoren give up Gendry as King Joffrey wants all of his father's bastards killed but are forced to leave by Yoren. Later, Gendry reveals to Arry that he knows she is a girl disguised as a boy all along and is surprised to learn she is Arya, Ned Stark's daughter. After the Goldcloaks get help from Ser Amory Lorch and his men who kill Yoren, Gendry's life is saved by Arya when she lies to the Goldcloaks that Lommy, who was killed during the attack, was Gendry. Gendry and the rest of recruits are sent to Harrenhal where Ser Gregor Clegane arbitrarily has many of the prisoners tortured and killed. Gendry was about to suffer this fate but is saved by the arrival of Lord Tywin Lannister, who chides Clegane's men for their reckless behavior. Thanks to Jaqen, Arya, Gendry and Hot Pie are able to escape Harrenhal. As they head towards the Riverlands, the group encounters the Brotherhood Without Banners, a group of Outlaws that defend the weak. Inspired, he decides to join the Brotherhood but is betrayed by them when they sell him to Lady Melisandre as ordered by the Lord of Light. Melisandre later reveals to Gendry that King Robert was his father and she is bringing him to meet his uncle, King Stannis. But in truth, Melisandre and Stannis planned to use him for her blood magic where Stannis uses his nephew's blood to make a death curse on the usurpers to his throne, Joffrey, Robb, and Balon Greyjoy. Before they can use him as a sacrifice, Davos Seaworth helps Gendry escape and puts him on a boat to King's Landing. Unable to swim or row, Gendry is nevertheless convinced that the Red Woman has a surer death in store for him, and Davos asks him to "have a bowl'o brown for me" when returning to Flea Bottom. In Season 7 Davos, on a clandestine visit to King's Landing, seeks out Gendry and finds him working as a smith. Gendry needs no persuading to go with Davos to Dragonstone. There he meets Jon Snow and volunteers to go with Jon on a mission north of the Wall to capture a wight. During the mission, he is sent back to the Wall to summon help. He gets word to Daenerys and later leaves with the others on the Targaryen ship.

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===Tormund Giantsbane=== '''Tormund Giantsbane''' (seasons 3–8) portrayed by Kristofer Hivju. A wildling raider known for his many titles, "Giantsbane" being foremost. Loud and gregarious, he is one of Mance's top generals, fierce and terrible in combat. Tormund takes a liking to Jon after he joins them and even gives him advice over his relationship with Ygritte.

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