‘Game of Thrones’ Recap: Episode 7 and Remaining Questions

Aegon is Jon, Jon is Aegon, Jon is a Targaryen!

By
Chandler
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2

One of the things that has made Game Of Thrones such a pop culture phenomenon is the
vastness of the universe in which the story is set. From the mythology of GOT to the incredible number of characters, there has been so much for viewers and readers to explore and enjoy. While GOT has its main characters – Daenerys, Jon, Tyrion, and Arya are probably on everyone’s shortlist for characters that will likely survive until the very end – the story has not focused on one character the way that the Harry Potter franchise or The Lord of the Rings did to a large extent. However, Season 7 and its finale, “The Dragon and the Wolf,” have once and for all shown us that the central character of this great narrative is none other than Jon Snow, or Aegon Targaryen if we want to use his birth name.

Terms like “a song of ice and fire” and “the prince who was promised” are ambiguous enough that lengthy theories have been put forth as to who these guiding principles for the series could be referring to. Is the fire Daenerys and the ice Jon? Is the fire the humans and the ice the final boss White Walkers? Could Daenerys or even Jaime be the “prince who was promised” to save the world? The show has given us many clues along the way as to who the central and lead character is, but this became abundantly clear when GOT spent a season sprinkling in references to Jon’s true lineage. All those breadcrumbs led to a giant bakery when we got to see Rhaegar and Lyanna officially get married in one
of Bran’s visions. While “The Dragon and the Wolf” could easily refer to the uniting of the Stark and Targaryen houses in both the past and present, the fact is that “The Dragon and the Wolf” is one person, and that’s the presumed bastard son of Ned Stark.

Jon’s status as a central character is what made it unlikely that the show was really killing him off at the end of Season 5. The whole narrative of GOT simply did not make sense if Jon Snow was dispatched similar to his father and half-brother – sorry, uncle and cousin. Jon was the main ‘point-of-view’ character at and north of the Wall and was the show’s strongest link to the real threat in Westeros. Jon’s story arc would have made no sense for him to die, betrayed by those who should have been loyal to him because he couldn’t read the situation around him, much like Ned and Robb.

Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark wed
Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark wed in secret

Instead, the show predictably brought him back in order to make him a messianic figure who could possibly bring all of humanity together to fight the real enemy. Since Jon was resurrected in Season 6, the show has continuously built on Jon’s importance to the story and placed him both at the center of Robert’s Rebellion and now the Great War. “The Dragon and the Wolf” had some incredible set pieces – albeit ones built upon shaky foundations – and chiefly amongst them was establishing Jon’s status as the true-born son of Rhaegar Targaryen and not a bastard as everyone thought. Even his tryst with Daenerys on the ship was shown in context of who Jon truly was, not merely the connection between Daenerys and Jon.

What all this means for the final season of GOT will be incredibly interesting. Is Jon destined to give his life again for the cause he believes in? Will he and Daenerys stop the White Walkers and eventually depose Cersei so they can sit together as King and Queen? One of the tenets of Game of Thrones and A Song of Ice and Fire has been to eschew typical literature or fantasy tropes such as the “great hero” or “good guy.” The show and books are at their best when characters are given full range to show that they are not two-dimensional figures in black and white.

White Walker Army ready and waiting
The White Walker army marches on Westeros

However, it seems likely that the end of GOT will involve Jon coming out on top and being the hero that saves the world as the embodiment of ice and fire. Some may reject this simple premise, but after seven seasons, it seems like a fitting end for someone mocked as “Lord Snow.” Especially if we get to see Jon ride the dragon Rhaegal into a final battle for good and evil. It should be fun to see if GOT gives the people (or maybe just me) what they want.

Scrolls from a Raven

Quick Messages On Scenes from “The Dragon and the Wolf” and More

  • It was unlikely that Cersei’s trap would be sprung so overtly with Jon, Tyrion, and Co. standing alone in the Dragonpit waiting for Cersei to arrive, but it was incredibly intense. The steps that led all of the show’s main characters (aside from big boss Nighty north of the Wall) to come together in King’s Landing were incredibly stupid, but it was great television to see them face off after seven years of conflict. The sheer weight of the history of the show made it quite a spectacle even if it was predictable that Cersei couldn’t care less about the White Walkers and would use the situation to help only herself. I have to imagine the divide that Cersei’s insular focus created between her and Jaime will ultimately lead to Jaime killing Cersei in a tragic and fitting end to their story.
  • Did anyone actually believe that Euron was tucking his tail and running back to the Iron Islands? Okay, good. I got worried there for a second.
  • Whether we would see Rhaegar Targaryen in the show was a pretty big question, and it was really cool to see him finally make an appearance. However, it’s hard to understand how Rhaegar could let the whole kingdom, including Lyanna’s family, think he had kidnapped her when it led to a massive civil war. It’s safe to assume the Starks would have been pretty pissed at the already-married prince whisking one of their family members off to a secret wedding when she was supposed to be wed to someone else, but it would have prevented Lord Rickard Stark and Ned’s brother Brandon from getting roasted alive by the Mad King after Rhaegar and Lyanna went missing and the Starks demanded her return. Robert and the Dornish would have been incensed about Rhaegar and Lyanna’s marriage, but it’s doubtful a civil war would have broken out if only two kingdoms were angry at the crown, especially two kingdoms in the Stormlands and Dorne that had no love for each other. Instead, Rhaegar’s secrecy led the Starks to challenging the crown, to Aerys Targaryen killing two of the main members of the Stark family, and then to the Vale, Stormlands, and Riverlands joining in the rebellion. Had Rhaegar and Lyanna simply told the Starks the truth about their relationship, it’s likely that the Targaryen family wouldn’t have been deposed and nearly extinguished. But then we also wouldn’t have gotten a show to obsess about for a decade.
  • Speaking of Rhaegar, how weird is it that he named another one of his sons Aegon Targaryen? Who was this guy? George Foreman with all his kids named George or Georgina? Not a lot of love by Rhaegar for his kids with Elia Martell.
  • Tyrion’s reaction to Jon and Daenerys going to the Sybaris suite on Daenerys’s ship was pretty curious. Some have interpreted it as Tyrion being jealous because he’s in love with Daenerys, but Tyrion has to know he has zero shot. I know others like Captain Friend Zone a.k.a. Jorah Mormont, have pined after Daenerys anyway despite having no chance of being with her, but it seems out of character for Tyrion to fall into the same pattern when he’s the ultimate realist. I think he’s more concerned with Daenerys and Jon’s feelings for each other taking precedence for the mission at hand – saving the world and breaking the wheel – but we’ll know for sure if Tyrion and Jorah start hanging out and complaining about the brooding pretty boy from Winterfell. I’m sure they’ll both be real glad to hear that Jon’s actually Daenerys’s nephew and will suggest that maybe she should find a guy to sleep with that’s, you know, not related to her.
  • Looks like it’s going to be a long boat ride for Daenerys and Jon. Reports are circulating Season 8 probably won’t air until 2019.

Contributed By: Scott Chandler

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2 COMMENTS

  1. Great read and thoughts on GoT and it’s potential outcomes. Are you familiar with the theory of Jaime fulfilling the Azor Ahai prophecy? That’s by far my favorite fan theory. Looking forward to perusing the rest of the site!

    • Thanks for the response! Really glad you liked the article. I am familiar with the theory about Jaime being the Prince Who Was Promised and becoming the new version of Azor Ahai, but it seems like one of those theories like “Tyrion is really a Targaryen” that has some possibility but won’t end up being true. GRRM has laid a lot of clues throughout his books to intrigue readers, and the show has done similar things. But sometimes the clues are just red herrings. I get that Jaime could be “born of salt and smoke” after the battle on the Blackwater Rush and that his hand could be the substitute for Lightbringer by tempering it through killing Cersei, who’s the closest thing to a wife he’ll ever have. But it just seems like a stretch. I truly think Jon is the main character of the show and will end up fulfilling the Prince Who Was Promised story as close as it can be followed. I don’t think we’ll get a literally reproduction of the PWWP or Azor Ahai legends, but Jon is probably going to fit that as well as anyone in the show or books will. Plus, I think Jaime already has a prophecy lined up for him, and that’s to be the valonqar that ends up killing Cersei to avoid her from destroying the realm. Thanks again for reading and enjoy the rest of the site!

      -Scott

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