Emily Guntharp
Contributing Writer
If you are like me and nearly every other person in this country (at least one who has not been living under a rock for the past six years), you probably watch—or have at least heard of—“Game of Thrones”. I assume if you are reading this, you are more than likely a fan of the show, and I hope you are just as obsessed with it as I am. If you haven’t seen Season 7 Episode 6, “Beyond the Wall”, stop reading now. *Spoilers Ahead*
Although this season only has seven episodes, rather than the ten that fans are used to getting, it has still been jam-packed with drama and excitement. The reunion of the Stark children, Daenerys unleashing dragon devastation on her enemies, and even the sad (yet epic) death speech given by Lady Olenna Tyrell have certainly not disappointed. But with only one episode left in the next to last season of the beloved show, there are so many questions and issues still at bay in the seven kingdoms.
We began last Sunday’s episode with our favorite group of brave, fur-covered men traveling through the North. They were in search of the Army of the Dead and discussing light-hearted topics, like bending the knee to the Dragon Queen and being brought back from death. Eventually the group stumbled upon a mountain from the vision that the Hound saw in the fire, which led us to believe that our men would soon be face-to-face with the Night King and the Army of the Dead. Meanwhile, back at Winterfell, Arya and Sansa reminisced about their deceased father, Ned Stark, before Arya began to lay blame on Sansa for her father’s murder. Arya then threatened her sister with the tale of her journey at the house of black and white, as well as her training to become a faceless assassin.
Back in the North and beyond the Wall, Jon Snow and his crew were met by a dead bear and soon saw the White Walker—who looks oddly similar to Dave Allen (see “Freaks and Geeks” guidance counselor). Unfortunately, the White Walker was not Dave Allen; therefore, it was not a pleasant encounter. Jon Snow’s squad was met by intense fighting that resulted in the capture of one wight who they planned to bring to Cersei. As they shoved a bag over the howling creature’s head, the group was met with the sound of a gazillion more creatures like him in the distance. Jon ordered Gendry to run back to Eastwatch and to send a raven to Daenerys to tell her what had happened.
The men in the North were then surrounded by the wights, but before too long, our favorite platinum blonde lady-boss showed up with her dragon children to save the day. Daenerys’ dragons were able to roast a bunch of the wights—but not before the Night King unsheathed a giant ice javelin in an attempt to kill the dragon, Viserion. The Night King hit the dragon, and Viserion caught fire, started bleeding, fell from the sky, and slipped beneath the ice as his mother watched in horror. Jon continued fighting off the Army of the Dead while Daenerys took off with the rest of the rugged army of misfits. Jon was then outnumbered, and it looked like his time was coming to an end. However, in yet another plot twist, Uncle Benjen Stark showed up out of nowhere and sacrificed himself so that Jon could ride back to Dragonstone, where he finally bended the knee to Daenerys (verbally—not physically—because he almost died, okay?).
In our final scene from the episode, the army of the dead channeled Jean Valjean’s opening scene in Les Miserables as they hauled Viserion, the dragon’s lifeless body, from the frozen lake. The night king then placed his icy hand on our beloved Viserion and the dragon’s eyes opened a soul-crushing shade of blue.
In the grand scheme of things, I truly think that this was one of the more exiting episodes of “Game of Thrones” from this season. However, with only one episode left, I also thought that there were still too many unanswered questions. This episode also worried me because typically “Game of Thrones” is all about killing off big name characters, and so far in this season we have yet to see that happen. All I can hope for—and I’m sure that it will—is that the season finale leaves my jaw on the floor. Shit is about to get real.