With the season premiere of Game of Thrones’ eighth and final season almost upon us, let’s take a look at what might be in store. Rather than doing one massive post with every character or countless individual posts, I decided to group them together into just a handful of posts. The groups I settled on are the Targaryens, the Starks, the Lannisters, and other notable characters. Once I’ve gone through all those, there will be one last post, with a summary of the major predictions, as well as any last points I may have overlooked.
This won’t be an in depth review of each character’s journey to season 8. I might touch on some bigger points, but will mainly focus on two things. One, will this character survive season 8? And two, what might this character’s season 8 story look like? The intent is to make these fairly quick and straightforward, just hitting on some of the major points.
As so many of these characters’ storylines will overlap, there will almost certainly be mention of other characters within these predictions. So you may need to do some back and forth as the posts come out to get the complete picture.
Before getting into these ill-fated predictions, I suppose I have to include a SPOILER WARNING. It should go without saying that you should not be reading this if you are not completely caught up, but better safe than sorry. Alright, let’s get to it.
Tyrion Lannister
Before diving into the predictions, let’s take a quick detour and revisit one of Thrones’ best scenes: Tyrion’s speech at his trial.
That scene is a master-class in acting and cemented Peter Dinklage’s status as an elite actor of our time (that was quite possibly confirmed well before this, so then this would have just been for good measure). Given Dinklage’s supreme talents, you would have to believe he has at least one or two scene-stealing moments left in this final run.
But what exactly does that final run look like? Tyrion was the hardest for me to pin down. There are countless ways I could see his season 8 story playing out. So let’s just start with the big one, and work backwards from there.
Does he survive? While I would not be surprised in any way at Tyrion’s death, yes, I believe Tyrion survives all the carnage and comes out alive on the other side.
But what does life on the other side look like? I’m leaning towards Tyrion remaining as Hand of the Queen to Daenerys. That’s where he is now, that’s where it makes the most sense for him stay, assuming his survival of course. Granted, that does feel a bit too neat and clean for a show like this, but I’m sticking with it.
While I’m going with that as my official prediction, what are some other possible fates for Tyrion? I could see him ending the series as Lord of Casterly Rock. Tyrion ruling over his family’s home would be a fitting end for the Lannister child who never really felt accepted as a “true” Lannister. It would be one final slap in the face to Tywin and Cersei.
Another theory I’ve seen, most notably by Josh Wigler of THR, predicts Tyrion as the 1,000 Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch. I disagree, but I still like the theory. It’s exactly the kind of outside-the-box thinking fitting for Game of Thrones.
Then there’s the lingering fact that Tyrion and Sansa are still married. While I have already predicted their marriage won’t last (though not due to death), Tyrion taking up that commitment and ruling the North with Sansa shouldn’t be out of the question. Even though it would likely not be either person’s preferred choice, they could agree to it as a sign of peace, finally settling the long-standing rivalry between their two houses.
Lastly, there is one final Tyrion theory to address. Could Tyrion be another Targaryen sibling? I won’t go into detail, but for those interested, you can read about this theory here. I’m firmly planting my flag in the “No” camp. Like many other possible reveals, there is not enough time to fully flesh this out. Yes, there are bread crumbs creating a small trail to this being true, but I just can’t see it.
Cersei Lannister
Let’s start again with clips of a couple great scenes. Okay, the first one may not be a “great” scene, but it is one of my favorites. The second is the opening of “The Winds of Winter.” I don’t need to remind you – but will anyway – that this scene culminates in the destruction the Great Sept of Baelor, one of many iconic moments in the show’s run.
On a personal level, I hate Cersei. She is one of my least favorite characters, and has been from the beginning. That being said, she is undeniably a great character, and thankfully so given how large of a role she has played and will continue to play up until her story ends. I have no idea where to go on specifics, but I foresee an epic descent into madness for Cersei. If she feels her end is near – be it her reign as queen, her life, or both – she is not going out without a bang. I don’t know what she could do as an encore to destroying the Great Sept, but I can’t wait to find out.
Does she survive? No. While I am quite confident in this prediction compared to others, it just might be the one I’m most worried about. I could absolutely see the show ending with Cersei still on the Iron Throne, after using the Golden Company to defeat the Targaryens and their allies, who have defeated the White Walkers, but were decimated in the process. But let’s not even go there.
So Cersei’s dead. But by whose hand? Well, that would be her dear brother/lover Jaime. Just as he killed the Mad King for the good of the realm, so too will he kill the Mad Queen for the good of the realm.
Cersei’s Baby?
Yes, there’s a mystery baby subplot! I’ve gone back and forth on whether or not I believe Cersei is actually pregnant. She has time and again proven to be quite manipulative, and lying to Jaime about being pregnant with his child could have been an effective way to get Jaime to remain at her side. Then there is the prophecy of Maggy the Frog to consider.
Maggy the Frog prophesied that Cersei would have three children, all of whom would die. As we know, Joffrey, Myrcella, and Tommen are all dead. So a fourth child would contradict the prophesy. If you accept the prophesy as truth, then that leaves one of four possible outcomes. One, Cersei is not pregnant. Two, she is pregnant but will die before able to give birth. Three, she is pregnant but will suffer a miscarriage. Or four, Cersei is pregnant but dies during childbirth.
The fourth seems the least likely. If Cersei is to die, how anti-climactic would it be to have it be during childbirth? Pass. And I think we can safely discard the miscarriage possibility. Every plot, every story in this final season needs to serve a strong, specific purpose. I think either of the first two would further Cersei’s story more effectively than a miscarriage would. That being said, a miscarriage could be the straw that breaks the camels back, leading Cersei to commit an atrocity of a new level, even for her. Regardless, I’m inclined to believe she is pregnant but will die before the baby is born.
Remember when I said Jaime would be the one to kill Cersei? Yep, that makes this even more tragic. Jaime will have to murder his sister, knowing she is pregnant with his child. Jaime has had a fantastic arc, and is one of the more interesting characters in a show with no shortage of interesting characters. But this just lays the tragedy on thick, and feels very befitting for the end of Jaime’s story.
Jaime Lannister
Might as well continue the theme and go 3/3 and start with another great scene from a Lannister.
There are some big questions surrounding Jaime as we enter season 8. We last saw him leaving for Winterfell. You know who else is in Winterfell? Bran. You remember who Jaime pushed out of a window at the end of the series premiere? That would also be Bran. There has to be some sort of reckoning for Jaime. What exactly that will be, I honestly have no idea. Jaime is a valuable ally for multiple reasons, so they can’t (well they can, so maybe shouldn’t?) kill or imprison him. At least not until the Night King and Cersei have been dealt with.
Then there’s Jaime’s reunion with Brienne. These two have been through the ringer, with a sort of will they or won’t they element to their relationship. I don’t see them being together in a relationship sense, but I don’t think a great scene or two between them is out of the question.
Assuming the fight against the Night King does indeed end before the fight against Cersei, a large remaining question will be how Jaime and Cersei’s relationship progresses from there. Jaime left for Winterfell because he made a promise to fight for the living. But once that’s done? Would he go back to serving at Cersei’s side? I don’t think it’s a forgone conclusion, but I would say no. Even if he wanted to, Cersei is not exactly a forgiving person.
Does he survive? Yes. But it’s not going to be a happy ending.
As I already predicted for Cersei, Jaime will be the one to kill Cersei. He began the series as the Kingslayer; he will end the series as the Queenslayer. Not only that, but in murdering Cersei, he will also effectively be murdering his own child. Just the sort of dark, twisted act Thrones loves. And this actually goes back to Maggy the Frog again, and the Valonqar Theory. First, it’s fair to point out that the show did not address this particular theory. In the books, Maggy the Frog tells Cersei, “And when your tears have drowned you, the valonqar shall wrap his hands about your pale white throat and choke the life from you.”
In High Valaryian, “valonqar” means little brother. Many book readers – and those who have not but are still familiar with this particular part – initially assumed that would mean Tyrion. But Jaime is also a younger brother, as it has been pointed out that Cersei was born first. So Jaime also fits into the prophesy just as well as Tyrion does. And if Cersei is suspecting Tyrion, it could leave her susceptible to an attack from Jaime.
As for Jaime’s ultimate ending, I don’t think we’ll get a firm statement there. Yes, becoming Lord of Casterly Rock would be in the cards. But think of all the tragedy associated with his family. If given a choice, would he really choose to go back home, where those memories would be constant? I don’t think so. And joining the Night’s Watch is also an option. But for Jaime and his specific arc, having an undefined ending just feels right.
