All the Insane Things That Have Happened in Game of Thrones' Penultimate Episodes

Oh, to go back to the days before Ned Stark was beheaded. When Joffrey gave the order to Ser Ilyn Payne to bring him Ned’s head, Westeros suddenly became a much darker place. As the chaotic final moments of Ned’s life played out at the Sept of Baelor, viewers were forced to reconcile themselves with the fact that in the world of Thrones, heroes die, villains triumph and no character — no matter how beloved by fans — is safe.

Other significant events included Robb achieving his (arguably) greatest victory of the war by capturing Jaime, Jon receiving his Valyrian steel sword Longclaw as a gift from Lord Commander Mormont and Daenerys foolishly choosing to try and save the injured Khal Drogo with blood magic — a decision that cost her their unborn baby’s life.

In Thrones‘ first capsule episode, viewers got to see the conflict between two factions of the War of the Five Kings come to a fiery head, as Stannis’s forces attempted to wrest control of King’s Landing from the Lannisters in the Battle of the Blackwater. From the wildfire explosion to Tyrion’s betrayal to the Hound’s declaration of, “F—k the King,” the skirmish was indeed an epic one, only ending when Tywin arrived in the knick of time to save the city.

Another decidedly tragic moment in the Stark family saga, the Red Wedding saw the murder of King in the North Robb, his pregnant wife Talisa, his mother Catelyn, his direwolf Grey Wind and the majority of his army while his sister Arya watched helplessly as the massacre occurred around her. The North remembers…and so do the fans.

Elsewhere, Jon finally showed Ygritte and the Wildings his true colors, Bran warged into Hodor for the first time and Daenerys seized control of Yunkai with the help of her newest subject, Daario Naharis.

As the Night’s Watch made its stand against the invading Wilding army in the Battle of Castle Black, Jon emerged as a true leader among his fellow men. Unfortunately, his victory at the Wall cost him the girl he loved, as Ygritte was shot in the back by Olly while she aimed an arrow at Jon.

Ygritte’s death was the culmination of the inner battle between love and honor that has plagued Jon since he learned of his family’s war with the Lannisters back in season one, and seemed to show that — as long as he was a member of the Night’s Watch — he would always choose honor. As we now know, Jon’s commitment to doing the right thing would lead to his murder at the hands of his sworn brothers, ultimately freeing him from his oath and allowing him to take up the Stark cause.

In one of the biggest “holy sh—t” moments of the series to date, a desperate Stannis allowed Melisandre to burn his daughter Shireen at the stake as a sacrifice to the Lord of Light, a move that quickly cost him not only the war, but his own life.

Luckily — before every viewer could turn their TV off in horror — the scene segued into the action-packed reopening of the fighting pits of Meereen, a sequence that featured a long-awaited demonstration of the power of full-grown dragons. After wreaking havoc on the Sons of the Harpy, Drogon allowed Daenerys to climb on his back and ride him for the first time as he flew up and away from the city.

With the fate of the North hanging in the balance, the Stark forces took on the Boltons for control of Winterfell in a gruesome battle sequence that saw Jon at the center of the action. But just when it seemed like all may be lost, it was Sansa who rode in with the Knights of the Vale to save the day. The episode culminated in the sadistic Ramsay finally getting his just desserts — being fed to the bloodthirsty hounds he had set loose on so many others as Sansa watched.

Jon, Tormund, Jorah, Gendry, Beric, Thoros and the Hound’s quest to capture a wight beyond the Wall quickly falls apart when they end up stranded on a rock in the middle of a frozen lake surrounded by the army of the dead. Luckily, thanks to Gendry’s speedy return to Eastwatch-by-the-Sea, they’re able to get word to Daenerys in time for her to fly her dragons north and rescue them. But Viserion’s death and Jon’s plunge into the icy water put a major damper on the day. Jon, of course, makes it back to the Wall after being saved by Benjen. Viserion, on the other hand, is reanimated as a wight dragon under the Night King’s control in one of the season’s most shocking twists.

Meanwhile, at Winterfell, the building tension between the Stark sisters comes to a head when Arya threatens to add Sansa’s face to her collection and take her place as the Lady of Winterfell in order to ensure she doesn’t betray Jon.

In Game of Thrones‘ final penultimate episode, Daenerys made the full transition to Mad Queen by ruthlessly burning down King’s Landing with all of the city’s people still inside its walls. She also allowed the Unsullied and Dothraki to go on a killing spree of innocent civilians, much to Jon and Tyrion’s horror.

After being freed by Tyrion, Jaime desperately tried to find a way into the Red Keep to reunite with Cersei. But he got a bit sidetracked when he was attacked by Euron Greyjoy. Jaime ultimately managed to come out on top in the fight but was mortally wounded in the midst of the scrap. Nonetheless, he still managed to find his sister and and the two Lannister twins died together as the Red Keep crumbled around them.

Speaking of siblings dying together, Sandor “The Hound” Clegane and Gregor “The Mountain” Clegane finally faced off in the death match fans had preemptively dubbed “Cleganebowl.” The brutal clash ended with the Hound tackling the Mountain through the crumbling Red Keep wall to send them both to their deaths.

Meanwhile, Arya was on a mission to simply make it out of the city alive after the Hound convinced her to save herself rather than go after Cersei. But by the time Daenerys was done, a traumatized Arya was left alone in the ruins of the capital surveying the carnage with a horrified look on her face. Luckily, a lone white horse showed up just in time to spirit her away from the destruction as the episode came to a close.