The penultimate episode of Game of Thrones, “The Bells,” has set the internet aflame. Were its character beats earned? Did its deaths mean something? Where do we go from here? But one of the biggest questions comes from the episode’s closing moments. Here’s what those final minutes mean and how they reflect the character arc of the person who might just be the show’s main protagonist: Arya Stark. In the episode’s back half, Daenerys—grieving the loss of her beloved Missandei, and scorned by the betrayal of her once loyal followers—burns King’s Landing to ash, killing off several of our heroes and destroying any goodwill that might be left for her. We see much of the fallout of her tyranny at the ground level from the point of view of Arya, who runs through the rubble after abandoning her plot to kill Cersei. It’s a dizzying sequence, and director Miguel Sapochnik deserves as many awards as they can give him for the ruthless brutality he captures so devastatingly. Sticking with Arya was an especially smart choice, as it solidifies her role as the show’s version of Death: she who conquered the Night King must also be privy to the damning reality of unstoppable loss. In “The Bells,” the show also made her status as Death quite literal. After surviving the wrath of Dany’s dragon, she emerges from the ash, bloodied and covered in soot, and discovers a white horse, who has—like her—miraculously survived. She takes the mare by the reins and rides off as the episode closes. The “pale mare” is a Biblical reference How does the horse make Arya this story’s version of Death? In the Book of Revelation, the final book of the Bible, we meet the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse: four figures on different colored horses who each represent an aspect of the coming End of Days. The fourth horseman is Death, and he rides a “pale mare.” Here’s a translated excerpt from 6:7-8: When the Lamb broke the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature saying, “Come.” I looked, and behold, an ashen horse; and he who sat on it had the name Death; and Hades was following with him. Authority was given to them over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword and with famine and with pestilence and by the wild beasts of the earth. The Bible’s version of Death is commissioned by Jesus to use the judgment of God to kill with “sword, famine, pestilence and wild beasts” the people of Earth who deserve it. Arya has done exactly this for seasons now, ever since her training at the House of Black and White, where she learned assassination skills and developed her relationship with death and its ultimate power. She has, in the meantime, devoted her life to killing those who deserved it—namely, the Freys and the Night King. Other characters could represent the rest of the Horsemen The final scene’s choice to get literal with the Bible could mean that the entire final season is an allegory for the Book of Revelation. If Arya is Death, the other riders signifying the end could also have stand-ins on the show. For instance, Daenerys could serve as the White Horseman, who represents “conquest.” Cersei could be the Red Horseman, who represents “war.” and the Night King could be the Black Horseman, who represents “famine.” There are others that could be slotted into those roles, too, depending on your interpretation. Also of note: the Book of Revelation was written by John of Patmos—just like one could interpret Game of Thrones as being told from Jon’s point of view—and often makes reference of the Roman coin “denarius,” which is phonetically similar to “Daenerys.” What does this mean for the shows ending? It’s hard to say if the Biblical allusion is foreshadowing or merely a reflection of Arya’s character development and her role in the story. It could telegraph the final episode—perhaps Arya will kill Daenerys for her deeds—but it’s just as likely that it’s another layer of mythical storytelling. The Bible plays into plenty of fantasy fiction, but it doesn’t always influence the outcome. That said, we wouldn’t be surprised if the show is setting up a storyline where Arya rides off into the North with Jon, ready to protect Westeros from whatever invader—magical or human—will threaten it next. Images: HBO, Viktor Vasnetsov<doc-sep>With the Night King defeated and just two episodes till the endgame, Game of Thrones is firmly back to the question that once defined it – who will sit the Iron Throne? The major conflict is between the two queens, Daenerys and Cersei, with Jon Snow/Aegon Targaryen coming up on a wild card. But there’s still a chance for something completely unexpected to happen. We are talking about Sansa and Tyrion. Both of them are smart, capable leaders, with a sure grasp of King’s Landing politics. Also, there has always been a crop of theories that claimed this outcome. Let’s examine the reasons why this could happen. The War of the Roses George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire series (on which Game of Thrones is based) is a loosely adapted version of a real intergenerational war that tore through Britain in the 12th century – the War of the Roses. Even the names of the Noble families involved that war – Lancasters and Yorks – are similar to the conflicts of Game of Thrones (Lannisters, Starks). Now, that war was ultimately resolved with a marriage between one Lancaster and one York. We know the show follows Martin’s guidelines about crucial plot points. It is possible that Martin plans to end the Ice and Fire saga with the marriage of a Lannister and a Stark. Who better from either family than Sansa and Tyrion? Sansa and Tyrion’s renewed chemistry Sansa and Tyrion’s first marriage was totally against their wishes. But Tyrion was the only man who never hurt Sansa even when he had every opportunity. They even developed a respectful friendship before parting at Joffrey’s wedding. Sansa too has acknowledged Tyrion’s kindness many times. Some sparks were evident between them in the crypts during the battle of Winterfell. Tyrion remarked maybe they should have stayed married, and kissed her hand when they feared certain death. Also, he seems to be the only man Sansa trusts beyond political equations, and that is the lot coming from the super-cynical Lady of Winterfell. Here is a relationship based on mutual respect rather than physical desire or romantic love – just what you need in a good royal couple. Growth-centric story arcs Sansa has grown exponentially through the seasons. She survived exceptional adversity and cruelty that can turn people insane (as it did for Theon) and came out stronger. She has been making all the right decisions for a long time even in the face of Littlefinger’s manipulations. She has a brilliant grasp of people’s characters, understands deception from a mile, and is a competent ruler who always keeps the welfare and needs of her people in mind. Tyrion has been proved to be a competent ruler in the early seasons as well. He may have failed one too many times in advising Dany, but that is mainly because his priority always has been to avoid bloodshed and all-out war. Both Tyrion and Sansa’s outlook is genuinely pro-people, not just saviour or hero complex. Now compare this to the other possible rulers. Daenerys started off with a dream to break the wheel and “free the world from tyrants” but is swiftly descending to megalomania and madness. Her obsession with the throne and her tendency to burn down her detractors are not signs of a good ruler. Cersei may be a war mastermind but no one would call her a good ruler. She has made it repeatedly clear that she does not care about the people and would not think twice about using them as human shields as she is doing at the moment. Jon Snow is the best claimant right now, as the lawful son of Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark. He is a war hero and loved by all, also has prophecy-backings. But he has repeatedly proven himself to be politically naive and is disinterested in being King. Significantly, the animal connected to his Stark roots (direwolf Ghost) is gone, and the animal connected to his Targaryen roots (Rhaegal) is dead. This may foreshadow his death or injury in the coming episodes. What are the odds? Neither Sansa nor Tyrion has the necessary bloodline to ascend the throne. But Martin’s narrative has always been openly critical of the feudal structure of Westeros, so it makes sense for him to champion the unlikely but more suitable people for the throne. Sophie Turner, Joe Dempsie, Kit Harington all have promised a totally unexpected and divisive ending for Game of Thrones. But would having Jon, Cersei, or Daenerys on the thrones really be unexpected? Thought not. So is the time for the Imp and the Ice Queen finally come? Only two weeks until we know!<doc-sep>This Sunday, Game of Thrones realized the dreams and nightmares of dedicated viewers. Boasting more armies than imagined after the Night King’s defeat, not to mention Drogon, a mega-ton bomber with multidirectional capabilities, Daenerys Targaryen descended upon King’s Landing in full force. By the end of “The Bells,” The Battle of King’s Landing had detonated literal explosions of wildfire and many of the characters’ hopes for a peaceful ending. But in true Game of Thrones fashion, a lingering prophecy has many viewers looking past the brutal encounter to the final episode of the series, and anticipating that further hell might break loose. The prevailing question: could Arya kill Daenerys? Could the “green eyes” prophecy come true? [Ed. note: this post contains major spoilers for Game of Thrones season 8, episode 5, “The Bells.”] A week ago, many assumed Arya, on her way to King’s Landing, was destined to slay Cersei. After all, the malicious queen was on the Stark girl’s kill list and, after the mighty flex of killing the Night King, few imagined a battalion of troops, a couple of scorpions, and some stashed-away wildfire could keep Arya from completing her mission. Plus, the assassination was written in the stars: “I see a darkness in you,” Melisandre tells Arya when they cross paths in season 3. “And in that darkness, eyes staring at me: Brown eyes, blue eyes, green eyes — eyes you’ll shut forever. We will meet again.” Thrones fans did the math. Arya picked off Walder Frey, who orchestrated the death of her family during the infamous Red Wedding with his beady brown eyes. In season 8, she eliminated the blue-eyed Night King from the game. This was all going in an obvious direction, according to fans: Arya would, be it through stealth or the sneaky stealing of Jaime’s face, stare directly into Cersei’s green eyes and end the queen’s life. But Arya didn’t kill Cersei. What happened instead should give Thrones fans a little perspective. As the Stark girl ran through the streets of King’s Landing, finally being a true hero for the victims of Daenerys’ attack, Cersei fled to the Red Keep’s cavernous basement, along with her brother and lover, Jaime, who fought is way back into her arms in hopes of escaping completely. That didn’t happen; the rubble was too high, the devastation too relentless. Cersei and Jaime found themselves trapped underground, and though each had a rap sheet long enough to fill a Citadel scroll, the pair got something of a happy ending. They would die, but in each other’s arms, professing their love. Cersei’s death upended two major prophecies: the theories for Arya’s green eyes assassination and her own prediction from the past. When she was a young girl, Cersei met a woods witch named Maggy the Frog who told her that she would only have three children, which until “The Bells,” was put in question due to an impending pregnancy. Turns out Maggy was right, and Game of Thrones’ internal prophetic language turned out to be true. What didn’t stick was a second prediction found only in A Feast for Crows, the fourth book in the series: “The valonqar shall wrap his hands about your pale throat and choke the life from you,” Maggy said. Valonqar being the High Valyrian word for “little brother,” many assumed that either Jaime or Tyrion (but probably Jaime, since he abandoned their romance earlier in the series) would be behind Cersei’s death. The queen’s actual demise puts a spin on this, as Jaime grasps Cersei’s neck out love just as the ceiling caves in. Game of Thrones has drawn a line between adapted storylines and context expanded by book details — the latter not necessarily enveloping the former. Those wondering if Arya could become “Azor Ahai,” a legendary hero prophesied to return in a new, shiny form (and, in theory, as one of our existing heroes), should note that the name “Azor Ahai” has never been mentioned in the show proper, even as characters hustle to discover who may be “The Prince Who Was Promised.” The green eyes prophecy holds a little more weight because Melisandre actually pronounced, albeitly in cryptic poetry, what could come to pass. But just as Varys’ death was predicted by Melisandre (in the broadest strokes) to occur on Westerosi ground, and came to pass in “The Bells” after he was discovered by Dany to have conspired against the Targaryen effort, creators D.B. Weiss and David Benioff seem to lean towards more poetic fulfillment of prophecies. Varys’ death-by-dragonfire didn’t so much recall Melisandre’s foreboding message than his own origin story. During his youth, a sorcerer removed his genitals and sacrificed them in a fiery ritual. In the end, the the eunuch’s remaining body was also delivered to the inferno. Melisandre has a track record, so there’s reason to spend the next week scanning every close-up shot of Daenerys to determine whether or not her eyes are green enough for prophecy fulfillment. The speculation is out there, and mostly logical — the new queen’s eyes look kinda sorta green. But seeing how the few predictions have played out on the show, there may be a simpler answer to why Dany qualifies for the target. When the Mother of Dragons unleashed her hell upon King’s Landing, she inadvertently ignited a reserve of wildfire. The napalm-esque solution rained even more fire on the innocent people of the city, a reminder of why wildfire is a symbol associated with “mad” kings and queens of the past, including Dany’s own father, Aerys II Targaryen. Director Miguel Sapochnik makes an unsettling decision in the way he frames the onslaught. Midway through the episode, we see Dany eye the Red Keep, take a deep breath, then proceed to destroy the interior rings of the city. We do not return to her face to see her reaction to what she’s done. Instead, Sapochnik remains on Jon Snow, Arya, Cersei, Jaime, and the Cleganebowl, ground-level narratives that live under the dragon’s shadow.<doc-sep>Arya Stark is seeing red as she gallops towards Daenerys Targaryen at the end of Game of Thrones Season 8, Episode 5. While it wasn’t planned as such in the books, Dany’s green eyes in the HBO adaptation means she might be the fulfillment of Arya’s prophecy, as told by Melisandre, which means the “Mad Queen” could be Arya’s next target. The parting shot in this week’s episode is also proof death is coming to Dany. Spoilers for HBO’s Game of Thrones ahead. How Not to Make a Mad Queen With the series finale of Game of Thrones next week, fans are doubtful showrunners D.B. Weiss and David Benioff will stick the landing of their eight-year fantasy saga. And to be honest, things aren’t looking pretty. “The Bells,” the series’ penultimate episode, had Daenerys turn heel — that’s pro wrestling carny talk for “become the bad guy” — when she refused to acknowledge the city’s bells of surrender. She then sets fire to King’s Landing, burning the place and its innocent people to an ashy crisp. Subscribe for free to Multiverse and get Game of Thrones coverage delivered to your inbox the night the episode airs. While anyone who’s been paying attention will argue this was Dany’s darkest side bubbling to the surface, the problem is that Dany has always acted out of logic and tactics. This, whatever it was, ain’t that. "Dany, you're not yourself. Eat a Snickers." HBO Before “The Bells,” Daenerys only ever exercised her wrath against those she felt deserved it, and only then, after careful deliberation. Burning King’s Landing — the people she intended to rule over — is a foolhardy way of getting what she wanted. The entire scene makes Dany out to be uncharacteristically prone to emotion despite spending the last seven seasons maturing into the exact opposite. It’s not Dany being the Mad Queen that perturbs viewers like myself; it’s that the journey to the moment was clearly, and terribly, short. Instead of another season or even just a half season to let Daenerys grow into that place where she felt like she had no choice but to burn King’s Landing (and we couldn’t argue against it), the show just darted straight for the finishing line in the clumsiest way possible. The subsequent moments of misery and devastation just felt gross instead of heartbreakingly inevitable like it should have actually felt. There is a compelling argument that the series, and by extension author George R. R. Martin, has long set up Daenerys Targaryen (First of Her Name, Breaker of Chains, Haver of Nice Hair, etc.) to be the show’s true big bad. The Night King, spooky as he was, was not the endgame for Game of Thrones but rather the bridge to get us to where Martin wanted us all along. (I do think we were robbed of one good table conversation between the Night King and Jon Snow, à la Batman and Joker or Pacino and de Niro in Heat, but that’s what happens when you’ve also got to budget for dragons, I guess.) And where is it Martin wants us? Dany, at the receiving end of Arya’s blades. In "The Long Night," Melisandre promised Arya's prophecy is not yet fulfilled, but that it soon would be. HBO Why Arya’s “Green Eyes” Prophecy Matters By now, Game of Thrones fans know about Melisandre’s prophecy. In Season 3, and again this season during the Battle of Winterfell (“The Long Night”), Melisandre told Arya that she has yet to “shut forever” eyes of blue and green. When Arya first heard the prophecy, Melisandre said, “I see a darkness in you. And in that darkness, eyes staring back at me: brown eyes, blue eyes, green eyes. Eyes you’ll shut forever. We will meet again.” Most of this came true. In Season 6, Arya killed Walder Frey (he had brown eyes) as revenge for the Red Wedding. She then shut the “blue eyes” of the Night King when she thrusted her Valyrian dagger into his ribs. That leaves green eyes. For the last two weeks since “The Long Night,” fans suspected Arya would kill Cersei, who has green eyes. Makes sense! But then Cersei died with Jaime in King’s Landing (another giant mess we’re not going to get into right now), leaving Arya’s prophecy painfully unfulfilled. Except maybe it’s not. In the books, Daenerys has vivid purple eyes, but actress Emilia Clarke has green eyes. Because Martin’s last two books have yet to be published, it’s unknown what will become of this green/purple eyes business. But for the show, it all matches up perfectly to let Arya be involved, in some way, in the death of the (new) Mad Queen. And yeah, on a pale horse Arya rides. In a show riddled with opaque symbolism, at least this one is crystal clear. Game of Thrones will air Sunday, May 19 at 9 p.m. Eastern on HBO.<doc-sep>
Spoiler alert! The following contains details from “Game of Thrones” Season 8 Episode 5, "The Bells." There may only be one episode of "Game of Thrones" left, but that won't stop fans of the HBO fantasy series from coming up with one last theory about how it all will end. Fans of "Thrones," and the "Song of Ice and Fire" books it's based on, have long relished in dissecting scenes and dialogue, looking for clues about the endgame. Sometimes they've been very right (Jon is indeed Rhaegar and Lyanna's son) and sometimes they've been very wrong (no, Bran was not the Night King). After Sunday's penultimate episode, it didn't seem like there was much left to predict (there wasn't much left of King's Landing, either), but the final scene has raised the eyebrows of anyone who is up on the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Arya was in King's Landing this episode to take revenge on Cersei, but after Dany starts destroying the city, the Hound convinces Arya to forget about vengeance and save herself instead, and she runs. After inexplicably surviving debris falling on her and fiery attacks from Drogon, Arya is left on the ash-filled streets of King's Landing among the dead bodies of people she tried to save, and she sees a white horse, who has also survived and found her. She rides the horse out of the city, seemingly with the intent to avenge those who died there. More:'Game of Thrones' recap: The series just burned itself to the ground On a show like "Thrones," a horse is not just a horse. The steed might be an allusion to the Book of Revelations in the Bible: "And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on it was Death." The ending of the episode seems to imply that Arya is now Death, and she's coming for Dany. As we handily were reminded earlier this season, Arya has a long history with death. In Season 1 she got her mantra from Syrio Forel: "What do we say to the god of death? Not today." Arya almost died a few times after fleeing King's Landing at the end of Season 1, and killed freely even before she became an assassin. In Episode 3 of this season, she killed the embodiment of death, the Night King. Trying to escape King's Landing, she is confronted by pointless, graphic and devastating death. She couldn't say "not today." She only could desperately try to survive. And now she's appears to be bringing death to the woman who caused all that pain. More:Those shocking deaths from 'Game of Thrones' King's Landing battle, ranked The theory that Arya will kill Dany in next week's finale is further supported by Melisandre's prophecy about Arya from Season 3. Melisandre saw a future where Arya killed people with brown eyes, blue eyes and green eyes, and Arya has already killed the first two: Walder Frey, the architect of the Red Wedding, had brown eyes; The Night King had blue eyes. And Dany has green eyes. As likely as this theory seems, the episode also set up the possibility that Jon, who was as horrified by his lover/aunt's actions in the battle as anyone else, will kill Dany to save the Seven Kingdoms from her tyrannical rule. Or, perhaps in one more celebration of nihilism, Dany will survive to terrorize Westeros for years. Or something even more senseless and out of character will happen, just like it did in "The Bells." The thing about "Thrones" at this late hour is that it's barreling ahead toward a pre-determined ending and throwing out plot, character and logic to try to get there quickly. So as much that beautiful pale horse seemed like a symbol of impending death, it could also just be one more far too convenient plot device left hanging around the episode.