Game of Thrones Season Finale Recap ‘The Winds of Winter’: Fire and Blood

In the Game of Thrones season finale recap, Cersei exacts revenge, Daenerys begins her invasion, a new King in the North is crowned and Walder Frey pays for the Red Wedding..

By Damon Martin — Editor/Lead Writer

It’s nearly impossible to encompass everything that happened on the Game of Thrones season finale in one recap, but I will certainly try my best to contain it all here.

The chilling opening to the episode featured the trial of Ser Loras Tyrell and it ended with the death of the entire Tyrell dynasty as well as the High Sparrow and all of his followers. Soon after King Tommen joined his wife by leaping out a window when the depth of his mother’s actions were more than he could bear.

All Jon Snow has ever wanted throughout his entire life was the share the same last name as his father, but despite his title reading bastard to anyone and everyone who he would ever meet in life, people will now also greet him as the King in the North.

A six-season long plan to build an army and invade Westeros is finally coming to fruition for Daenerys Targaryen, but she’s not conquering the Seven Kingdoms alone because she now has a Hand of the Queen, a fleet of ships and an awaiting force from the south after teaming up with Dorne rain fire and blood upon all of her enemies.

And of course, Arya Stark’s homecoming started at the same place and in the same room where her mother and her brother were butchered as she slit the throat of the main responsible for their deaths. If you ever wondered what was the purpose of Arya’s travel to Braavos and all of that training to become an assassin — it all paid off in this one moment as her knife slid across Walder Frey’s throat and she knew just how good vengeance tasted.

Last but not least, a long rumored secret was revealed as Bran followed his visions back to the Tower of Joy two decades earlier where a baby was born to Lyanna Stark before being handed over to her brother Ned with a promise that he would keep until his dying day. A promise to care for her son. A promise to shield him from those who wanted him dead. A promise to hide the fact that he was both a Stark and a Targaryen.

A promise to protect Jon Snow.

And with that said, let’s recap the Game of Thrones season finale for the episode titled “The Winds of Winter”….

Burn Them All

 

There was very little doubt that Cersei had no intention of showing up for her trial before the Seven where she would be judged for her crimes in front of the High Sparrow and his court of religious zealots. As she got dressed in her best finery, Loras Tyrell stood before the High Sparrow and confessed his crimes. As his father Mace Tyrell along with his sister Margaery Tyrell watching from the gallery, Loras confessed to laying with other men and lying about it. He even confessed to bedding down alongside the false king, Renly Baratheon once upon a time. Loras asked for forgiveness and if the High Sparrow would grant him mercy, he would denounce his name, his title and all of his worldly possessions to live a pious life worshipping the Seven.

High Sparrow: “Brother Loras — I ask you to dedicate your life to the Seven gods. Will you fight to defend your faith against heretics and apostates?”

Loras: “I will.”

The High Sparrow granted Loras his wish by inducting him into the Faith Militant by carving the seven-pointed star upon his head. Of course, Margaery was irate because the deal she made with the High Sparrow didn’t mention anything about scarring her brother for life or marking him in blood, but her rage would only last a few minutes once this plot started to truly unfold.

As Loras’ trial came to an end, Cersei’s trial was supposed to begin but the queen mother was nowhere to be found. Back in the Red Keep, King Tommen was finally ready to travel to the Great Sept of Baelor for the trial but before he could leave, The Mountain appeared and stopped him from going anywhere. It was clear that Cersei had no intention of showing up at her trial, much less allowing her son to attend.

The High Sparrow charges the Faith Militant to go find Cersei, but outside a child is seen fleeing from the Sept and it forces Lancel Lannister to give chase. See children are known to be “little birds” spying on all kinds of events on behalf of the spy master — in this case Qyburn — and he’s a loyal servant to Cersei.

Lancel pursues the boy until he makes it into a layer of catacombs beneath the Great Sept and there he finds the child — who then stabs him in the leg, rendering him unable to walk. The boy runs away and Lancel is left crawling through the dark muck where he sees barrels upon barrels leaking green liquid on the floor. At the end of the hallway, a pool of the liquid has gathered and Lancel realizes that he’s currently laying in a pool of wildfire and there are a few candles lit in the liquid, burning down to the wick, which will then ignite an extremely flammable and combustible explosion. This is the same wildfire that was placed in the Great Sept years earlier by “The Mad King” Aerys II Targaryen when he decided to burn all of King’s Landing to the ground rather than give up his throne to the usurper Robert Baratheon.

Qyburn told Cersei weeks ago that his research into a certain matter paid dividends — this was clearly what she had him digging into.

Back in the Great Sept, Margaery attempts to warn the High Sparrow that he’s finally been outwitted and everyone inside needs to run or they will be victims of Cersei’s vengeance.

“Cersei understands the consequences of her absence and she is absent anyways, which means she does not intend to suffer these consequences.”

~ Margaery

Elsewhere in the Red Keep, one of the little birds whispers in Grand Maester Pycelle’s ear that the king needs to see him, but when he arrives in the basement, he doesn’t find Tommen. Instead he finds Qyburn and a flock of his birds armed with knives awaiting to dispatch a brutal kind of justice.

Queen Cersei never had much use for Pycelle and she has even less use for him now so he’s got to go.

“This pains me, my lord. Whatever your faults, you do not deserve to die alone in such a cold, dark place. But sometimes before we can usher in the new, the old must be put to rest.”

~ Qyburn to Pycelle

A moment later, Pycelle is stabbed to death by all the little birds who now serve their master, Qyburn.

Meanwhile, the Great Sept is still filled with people and the High Sparrow has ordered the Faith Militant to stop anyone from leaving. Even in her attempt to flee with her father, Margaery Tyrell is detained and stopped from escaping the Great Sept. Back down in the basement, Lancel attempts to reach the candles, but he’s too late and as the flame touches the wildfire, a great explosion erupts and it eats through his flesh in an instant.

Upstairs, the rumble is heard from below and in that brief moment The High Sparrow realizes that he’s either overestimated the protection of the Gods or he’s underestimated Cersei Lannister — whichever one is true doesn’t really matter because a second later, the wildfire eats through the floor before swallowing him whole. A huge explosion then levels the Great Sept of Baelor as the structure crumbles to the ground.

Everyone inside is dead. That includes Margaery Tyrell. Mace Tyrell. Loras Tyrell. Kevan Lannister, the Hand of the King. And of course, the High Sparrow.

Cersei watches from her room in the Red Keep and smirks at her victory before heading back down into the dungeons where she will enjoy her one spoil of war. Before the Great Sept was turned to ash, Cersei had Septa Unella — the woman who beat her, stripped her and followed her through the streets chanting ‘shame’ last season — kidnapped and chained down to a table. There, Cersei explains to Septa Unella what just happened and why she did it.

Because it felt good.

“I do things because they feel good. I drink because it feels good. I killed my husband because it felt good to be rid of him. I fuck my brother because it feels good to feel him inside me. I lie about fucking my brother because it feels good to keep our son safe from hateful hypocrites. I killed your High Sparrow and all his little sparrows. All his septons and all his septas. All his filthy soldiers because it felt good to watch them burn. It felt good to imagine their shock and their pain. No thought has ever given me greater joy.”

~ Cersei

A moment later, Cersei introduces Septa Unella to her good friend Ser Gregor Clegane. You see, Septa Unella welcomes death because it will unite her with the Seven gods she so desperately worships. So Cersei decides to offer her a different and much more painful fate. She will now be the personal plaything of The Mountain and whether he’s alive or dead, Ser Gregor is capable of some monstrous things.

Through all these actions, the one thing Cersei wanted to ensure was the safety and security of her son, Tommen. Cersei is a lot of things, but she is a fiercely loyal mother. But on this day when he watched his wife blown to smithereens and everybody inside the Great Sept burned to death, Tommen finally had enough. He knew his mother was behind this. There was no more hiding that she was just a deeply misunderstood woman. Cersei was everything anybody ever said about her and that was more than Tommen could handle any longer.

So he laid down his crown, stepped up onto a window and Tommen Baratheon fell to his death.

Out of all her plans and secret plots, Cersei wanted to protect her son but yet he died anyways. After discovering his body, Cersei orders Qyburn to have him burned — because he can then join his grandfather Tywin Lannister, his brother Joffrey and his sister Myrcella at the Great Sept of Baelor.

“He should be with his grandfather, his brother, his sister. Burn him. Bury his ashes where the sept once stood.”

~ Cersei

Tywin, Joffrey and Myrcella were all buried at the Great Sept except for one problem — the Great Sept is now ashes. So having Tommen burned and buried there only makes sense. It certainly sounds like Cersei is becoming infatuated with burning things these days, doesn’t it?. Who else was infatuated with burning anything and everything around him? More on that later…

The Starks Send Their Regards

Back at the Twins, Lord Walder Frey is celebrating another victory as his family has taken back Riverrun and killed The Blackfish. Edmure Tully is back in a cell — despite Jamie Lannister’s promise to send him to Casterly Rock where he could live with his wife and child. Of course, Walder Frey is overjoyed because he’s conquered another kingdom without his men really doing any of the planning, plotting or execution.

Remember, the Red Wedding was orchestrated by Tywin Lannister and it required Roose Bolton to turn on his king. Walder Frey played a part, but it was never his idea. This time around when the Frey family couldn’t get rid of The Blackfish, it once again required a Lannister to play a part in recovering the stolen land.

In fact, Jamie Lannister reminds Walder just how little he’s actually done to deserve all these gifts he’s received as the new Lord of the Riverlands.

“They don’t fear the Freys, though, they fear the Lannisters. We gave you the Riverlands to hold the Riverlands. If we have to ride north and take them back for you every time you lose them, why do we need you?

~ Jamie Lannister

Throughout the dinner, Bronn is still very much annoyed that Jamie has women throwing themselves at him for no other reason that his name is Jamie Lannister. He notices one woman in particular — a serving girl — who has her eye on Jamie throughout the dinner.

Later that night after Jamie, Bronn and the rest of the Lannister forces have exited the Twins and departed for King’s Landing, the serving girl returns while Lord Walder Frey eats alone in his great hall. Walder wonders why his sons — Black Walder and Lothar — haven’t joined him in the hall. He does all this while pawing at the serving girl, who is cutting up a piece of pie and putting it on Walder’s plate.

Walder asks again — where are my sons?

The serving girl finally answers — they are right here.

She lifts up a piece of the crust and shows Lord Walder a toe that’s been baked into the pie. Walder Frey has been eating his sons this entire time.

Now this scene should remind you about a story Bran Stark told just before he went north of the Wall a few seasons ago. He was sitting with Meera and Jojen Reed inside the Nightfort just before they met Samwell Tarly and he told them a story that had been passed down to him from Old Nan, the Stark “nanny” who cared for him as a little boy.

According to Old Nan, the Nightfort was the scene of a great injustice that was done hundreds of years ago. An unknown king rode north and was granted the guest’s right to stay at the Nightfort. While he was there, the king somehow offended the Nightfort’s cook and that offense ended with the death of his son. The cook killed the king’s child, baked him in a pie and served him to his father, who famously even asked for seconds during the meal.

The Old Gods took a great offense to this action — not because the cook had killed the king’s son and not even because the cook served the king his child back to him as a meal. It’s because the king was granted guest rights and to betray those rights, is a great offense. So the cook was turned into a giant rat and he could only feed his own offspring and that’s where “the rat cook” where stay for eternity inside the Nightfort.

So years later this story took hold once again as Walder Frey sat at his table, eating a pie filled with pieces of his sons. A second later, the serving girl removes her face and reveals that this is Arya Stark.

“My name is Arya Stark. I want you to know that. The last thing you’re ever going to see is a Stark smiling down at you as you die.”

~ Arya

Walder attempts to escape, but he’s old and fragile and it takes Arya only a second to grab him by the hair, sit him back down before slitting his throat. Walder Frey bleeds out while staring up at Arya, who smirks at him before he expires.

Arya Stark spent months training with the Faceless Men and while she never ended up as one of them, she learned all the ways to become an assassin. And now she’s exacted vengeance against one of the men who helped to kill her mother and her brother. Another name off the list and Arya is now headed home.

The King in the North

At Winterfell, Jon Snow is starting to settle back at home when he has to make a decision right away that will test his judgment. Davos comes forward with proof that the Lady Melisandre burned Shireen Baratheon alive, all for the sake of a sacrifice to her Lord of Light.

Confronted with the truth, Melisandre confesses to the crime while also pointing out that the same Lord of Light who she believes wanted Shireen burned as a sacrifice also brought Jon Snow back to life. Before she can say another word, Jon Snow orders Lady Melisandre to leave Winterfell immediately and tells her never to return.

“Ride south today. If you return to the north, I’ll have you hanged as a murderer”

~ Jon Snow

As Melisandre leaves the castle on horseback, Jon visits with his sister Sansa where they discuss the events of The Battle of the Bastards.

Jon and Sansa clearly have trust issues, especially after the past few days unfolded. Jon failed to trust Sansa’s judgment when it came to fighting Ramsay and she didn’t trust him enough to reveal the meeting she had with Petyr Baelish or the raven she flew to ask him for support from the Knights of the Vale. Jon actually apologizes for his hubris and explains that he wouldn’t be alive right now without Sansa’s deception so for that he can easily forgive her.

But going forward, Jon warns Sansa that the two of them must trust each other if they are going to rule the north. They may have dispatched the Bolton’s but there are plenty of other houses from around the Seven Kingdoms who will not be happy to see the Stark banner flying back at Winterfell.

“We need to trust each other. We can’t fight a war amongst ourselves with so many enemies now.”

~ Jon Snow

Sansa agrees with her brother and also tells him that despite her plea for help, she still doesn’t Lord Baelish because anyone would be a fool to trust Littlefinger. It doesn’t take long for Sansa to test this theory because as she sits outside by a weirwood tree, Baelish arrives and begins to tell her about a dream he’s had for many years.

“Every time I’m faced with a decision, I close my eyes and see the same picture. Whatever I consider, I actually ask myself ‘will this action help to make this picture a reality?’. Pull it out of my mind and into the world and I only act if the answer is yes. A picture of me on the Iron Throne — and you by my side.”

~ Petyr Baelish

Ever since we first met Petyr Baelish back in season one, his goal has always been power. He once famously said ‘chaos is a ladder’ — and in his world, Baelish is a master of creating chaos and then benefitting from it. He orchestrated Lysa Arryn murdering her husband Jon, all for the sake of throwing Robert Baratheon’s kingdom into upheaval. That action then drew Ned Stark into the fray and before long he was dead — betrayed by Petyr Baelish if you remember — and then beheaded, which then set off the War of the Five Kings.

Baelish is a master manipulator and over the course of six seasons he’s managed to rise up from being a brothel keeper to becoming the master of coin to being crowned the Lord of Harrenhal to the Lord Protector over the Vale with one more goal still in mind. He wants to sit on the Iron Throne. He wants to be king and he wants Sansa to be his queen.

But Sansa declines his offer.

It’s a wonderful fantasy, but it’s a dream Sansa doesn’t want to indulge in — at least for now.

Later that day, Jon Snow is attempting to build his power base for the upcoming war against the dead. A white raven arrived from the Citadel earlier in the day declaring that summer is over and winter has finally come. Ned Stark promised six seasons ago that winter was coming and now it’s finally here.

That means a cold wave is about to wash over Westeros and with the snow will come ice and with the ice will come death and with death comes the White Walkers.

“The war is not over. And I promise you friend, the true enemy won’t wait out the storm. He brings the storm.”

~ Jon Snow

Despite Jon’s best intentions, the Lords from various houses are still arguing amongst themselves as far as what comes next. Lord Royce from the Vale argues that this isn’t even really his war. But from the arguing comes a voice of reason — and it’s Lyanna Mormont — the 10-year old bad ass from Bear Island.

She not only stands by Jon Snow but she calls out the other houses in the North who refused his call when he tried to gather forces to eradicate the Bolton’s from Winterfell.

“Your son was butchered at the Red Wedding, Lord Manderly, but you refused the call. You swore allegiance to House Stark, Lord Glover, but in their hour of greatest need, you refused the call. And you, Lord Kerwin, your father was skinned alive by Ramsay Bolton, still you refused the call. But House Mormont remembers. The North remembers. We know no king but the king in the North whose name is Stark. I don’t care if he’s a bastard. Ned Stark’s blood runs through his veins. He’s my king from this day until his last day.”

~ Lyanna Mormont

A moment later, Lord Wyman Manderly stands from his seated position, head held low, almost as if he’s accepted the admonishment he just received from Lady Lyanna Mormont. In the north’s darkest hour, House Manderly stood idly by while Roose Bolton took Winterfell from the true king and they did the same when Ned Stark’s son — bastard or not — came calling for help to retake it.

So in his moment of shame, Lord Manderly admits his guilt and then realizes that he should have pledged his fealty all along. Now it’s time to make up for that mistake.

“Lady Mormont speaks harshly and truly. My son died for Robb Stark — the young wolf. And I didn’t think we’d find another king in my lifetime. I didn’t commit my men to your cause because I didn’t want more Manderly’s to die for nothing. But I was wrong. Jon Snow avenged the Red Wedding. He is the White Wolf. The king in the North!”

~ Wyman Manderly

Everyone in the room stands to their feet, swords high in the air, chanting “the king in the north” just like season two when Robb Stark took his rightful place as the new Lord of Winterfell after the death of his father Ned. Things didn’t end too well for Robb and Jon Snow might want to remember how he got here in the first place. To his left sat his sister Sansa, who was the real catalyst in this entire chain of events. She warned Robb about Ramsay. She orchestrated the troops to arrive that saved Jon’s life at the Battle of the Bastards. She even decided to turn down an offer to become queen beside Petyr Baelish in order for Jon to enjoy this moment.

So as he stands before his people as the new King in the North, Sansa looks to her right and spots Lord Baelish sitting hunkered down by himself. He’s not standing and he’s certainly not chanting and it doesn’t appear he’s on board with the new King in the North.

Is Sansa looking at Baelish because she knows what he’s capable of doing and she’s worried that she may have unwittingly made another enemy for her brother? Or is it possible that Sansa is realizing that she should be the one sitting front and center with a room full of houses screaming her name and chanting the queen in the north?

Either way, the drama at Winterfell didn’t end just because Ramsay Bolton was defeated. The Stark family has a lot to discuss in the coming months as they prepare for the invasion coming from beyond the wall and Jon Snow may eventually have to answer for his own bastard’s blood.

Because he may be a Stark but now there’s proof that he’s not Ned’s son….

The Promise

North of the Wall, Bran Stark and Meera Reed have finally reached the end of their journey with his uncle Benjen. Bran and Meera have to travel through the Wall to make it back to Westeros to warn them about the oncoming war with the White Walkers. Unfortunately because the Wall has been blessed by magic, Benjen can’t travel through with them because he’s technically dead.

That’s one interesting point to remember going forward as well — the Wall has been blessed by magic so only living people can travel over it. That may be an interesting plot development when it’s finally time for the Night King to bring his army south — perhaps the Wall is coming down?

Anyways, Benjen bids farewell to his nephew as he rides back into the wild and before they leave, Bran has one last mission he wants to complete. Now that Bran is the Three-Eyed Raven, he has a lot to do and knowledge is power so he touches the weirwood tree and once again travels back 20 some odd years ago to the Tower of Joy in the mountains of Dorne.

There Bran sees his father Ned Stark running up stairs to find his sister Lyanna. Inside the room — a mystery that has vexed readers for years — we find Lyanna Stark laying in a bed, covered in blood. It’s clear that she’s just given birth but Lyanna was bleeding out afterwards and despite her brother’s best intentions to save her life, it was already too late.

Lyanna leans over and whisper’s something in Ned’s ear. The first part, we can’t hear, but this is the second part:

“If Robert finds out, he’ll kill him. You know he will. You have to protect him. Promise me, Ned. Promise me.”

~ Lyanna Stark

Robert is Robert Baratheon — who was promised to marry Lyanna Stark before she was “kidnapped” by Rhaegar Targaryen. The rumors have persisted ever since that Rhaegar and Lyanna were actually in love and that she ran away with him, but that action forced Robert Baratheon to react and that meant waging war against the Targaryen’s. Robert eventually killed Rhaegar in battle before taking the Iron Throne away from his father, the “Mad King” Aerys II Targaryen.

Lyanna died that day in the Tower of Joy but before she expired, her nurse maid handed a baby over to Ned. The baby was Jon Snow. And now we know beyond a shadow of a doubt that Jon Snow is actually the son of Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark.

He is the last dragon and the white wolf.

The Library

One small side story that took place this week in a moment of comic relief in an otherwise serious episode was Samwell finally arriving at the Citadel where he will begin his training as the new maester for the Night’s Watch. Sadly despite all the knowledge that has traveled around the world at this point, the Citadel had never been informed that Jeor Mormont had been killed or that Jon Snow was the new Lord Commander. Of course Sam is still joyously obvious to the fact that his best friend Jon Snow was murdered, resurrected and then abandoned his post as Lord Commander, but those are just minor details.

Regardless, Sam is officially a member of the Citadel where he’s shown into the library where he can begin his studies. Fairly certain, Samwell was fully erect once he walked into that room full of books because it was the biggest library anyone had ever seen. He’s got a lot of reading to do.

The Mad Queen

Back in King’s Landing, Jamie Lannister arrives home after spending weeks in the Riverlands and the first thing he spots is the smoldering rubble where the Great Sept of Baelor once stood.

He rides back into the city and makes it to the Red Keep just as a coronation is underway. King Tommen is dead and there must be a new ruler in his place. So there stands Cersei in her finest black gown, Qyburn by her side as he now wears the pin as the Hand of the Queen and in his hands is a crown.

“I now proclaim Cersei of the House Lannister, first of her name, queen of the Andals and the First men, protector of the Seven Kingdoms. Long may she reign.”

~ Qyburn

Cersei has the crown placed upon her head and she sits down in the Iron Throne. A queen in her castle and now Cersei rules. Jamie looks down at her with equal parts of curiosity and possibly fear as he sees his sister now sitting in the ultimate position of power.

For all of Cersei’s misgivings, the one thing she always had to anchor her psyche was the love of her children. As Jamie described a couple of weeks back, Cersei was such a devoted mother that she would burn entire cities to the ground to protect them. In a manner of speaking, Cersei did burn something to the ground while attempting to protect her son at the same time. Unfortunately, Cersei couldn’t stop Tommen from jumping to his own death and now she’s alone left only with her power.

If Cersei wasn’t mad before, she’s definitely teetering on lunacy now. All hail the mad queen may she burn them all.

A Dynasty Reborn in Fire and Blood

In Meereen, Daenerys is packing her ships and preparing for a voyage back to Westeros. She hasn’t stepped foot on her home soil, but Daenerys has always dreamed of traveling there to reclaim the throne that was taken from her family many, many years ago.

Before she can begin the trip, Daenerys first has to handle some final business in Meereen — namely telling Daario Naharis that he must remain behind with his company of Second Sons where they will keep the queen’s justice in a place she has now dubbed “The Bay of Dragons” (it can’t be called Slaver’s Bay any longer for obvious reasons).

She explains to Daario that to assume her role as queen, she has to be prepared to make sacrifices and one of those will likely be taking a husband at some point to unite the Seven Kingdoms behind her. In that way, Daario will only be a distraction to her new job as queen so she orders him to stay behind.

Back in the grand throne room inside the pyramid, Daenerys admits that leaving Daario behind was all Tyrion’s idea but it was the right call to make. Tyrion has been a wise advisor since the day he showed up in Meereen and even when Daenerys was flown out of the city on her dragon and gone for who knows how long, he never abandoned her or turned against her. Tyrion was loyal and for that Daenerys knows he can always be trusted.

Now it’s time for the two of them to begin the journey across the Narrow Sea where they will land in Westeros and her conquest to conquer the Seven Kingdoms can begin.

“You have your armies. You have your ships. You have your dragons. Everything you have ever wanted since you were old enough to want anything. It’s all yours for the taking. Are you afraid? Good. You’re in the great game now and the great game is terrifying.”

~ Tyrion

Tyrion then explains to Daenerys how he’s always been told to believe in one thing or another his entire life, but he never really took it to heart. Tyrion was told to believe in his family, yet they always let him down. He was told to believe in the Gods, but they never answered his prayers. Finally, Tyrion found something he could believe in and her name is Daenerys Targaryen.

And for his loyalty and his belief, Daenerys rewards Tyrion with a great honor.

Tyrion: “I believe in you. It’s embarrassing really. I’d swear you my sword, but I don’t actually own a sword.”

Daenerys: “It’s your counsel I need.”

Tyrion: “It’s yours. Now and always.”

Daenerys: “Good. I had something made for you. I’m not sure if it’s right. Tyrion Lannister — I name you Hand of the Queen.”

Back in Dorne — finally — we catch up with Ellaria Sand and her daughters, who are currently sitting down with Lady Olenna Tyrell, who is now dressed head to toe in black. News travels fast and it didn’t take Lady Olenna long to find out that Cersei incinerated her entire bloodline from her son to her grandson to her granddaughter. Lady Olenna isn’t worried about rescuing House Tyrell from extinction because Cersei already saw to her family no longer producing a legitimate heir.

So Ellaria Sand offers her something better — revenge.

Ellaria Sand: “I chose the wrong words. It is not survival I offer. It is your heart’s desire.”

Lady Olenna: “And what is my heart’s desire?”

Ellaria Sand: “Vengeance. Justice.”

Varys: “Fire and blood.”

Out from the shadows steps Lord Varys — who had traveled from Meereen several weeks ago in an attempt to gain allies for his queen. Back then, I wagered that Varys was going to team up with the families in Dorne because if anyone hates the Lannisters more than the Targaryens, it’s the Martell family. The Lannisters butchered Elia Martell and her children. The Lannisters killed Oberyn Martell in a trial by combat. And now the Martells are ready to exact revenge by teaming up with Daenerys Targaryen and her conqurering army from the east.

To end the episode, we see a fleet of ships crashing through the waves of the ocean with the lead vessel adorned with a gigantic dragon’s head. In the sky above the navy flies Drogon and his brothers Rhaegal and Viserion. Dozens upon dozens of ships speed through the water, each one flying a Targaryen flag over the mast.

And in the main ship stands Daenerys Targaryen — flanked on one side by the Hand of the Queen Tyrion Lannister and her close confidant and translator Missandei. Behind the queen stands Lord Varys with Grey Worm standing guard along with a garrison of Unsullied. Each ship carries hundreds of Dothraki warriors and the horses they will ride on once the ships land in Westeros. Several hundred miles away at the southern most tip of Westeros sits an army filled with the finest fighting Dornishmen, all ready to serve their new ruler.

Queen Daenerys Targaryen is coming home and she’s bringing the largest army the world has ever known with her and she is going to take what is hers with fire and blood.

Let the world beware.

Game of Thrones will return with a brand new season in 2017.