The Spoils of War

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"The Spoils of War" is the fourth episode of the seventh season of Game of Thrones. It is the sixty-fourth episode of the series overall. It premiered on August 6, 2017. It was written by David Benioff & D.B. Weiss and directed by Matt Shakman.

Plot
Daenerys fights back. Jaime faces an unexpected situation. Arya comes home.

In the North
At Winterfell, Littlefinger meets with the recently-returned Bran Stark. Apparently hoping to exploit disunity among the Stark children, he tries to ingratiate himself with Bran as Bran is Ned Stark's last trueborn son and heir to Winterfell. Littlefinger gives Bran a gift - the very same Valyrian steel dagger, with a dragon-bone hilt, which a cutthroat tried to kill him with while he was in a coma right after he fell from one of Winterfell's towers (actually, was pushed). Bran is still emotionally detached, however, from all of his visions as the new Three-eyed raven. Bran is disinterested, only absent-mindedly asking who the dagger belonged to. With a wry look, Littlefinger responds that in a way that question started the entire War of the Five Kings - Bran's mother Catelyn Stark took the dagger south with her to King's Landing to try to find who it belonged to, convinced the Lannisters sent the cuthroat to kill Bran (and left it there in Ned's possession, from whom Littlefinger recovered it). Littlefinger tries to manipulate Bran by remarking on how much chaos he must have lived through to get back to Winterfell - but then Bran looks at Littlefinger and says "Chaos is a ladder" - quoting back Littlefinger's own words to him, which he said to Varys in King's Landing years before and which Bran couldn't possibly have been physically present to hear himself. Unnerved, Littlefinger takes his leave of Bran, calling him "Lord Stark", though again Bran insists he isn't going to be a lord now.

Meera Reed later comes in to Bran's chamber. Noticing his new wheelchair, he explains Maester Wolkan built it for him. She explains she came to tell him she's leaving and say goodbye; she promised to keep him safe, and now that he's back in Winterfell surrounded by his Stark forces he's as safe as anyone will be before the coming war. She explains that when the White Walkers arrive, she wants to be with her family, so she is heading back to the Neck to assist the Crannogmen. She says he doesn't need her in Winterfell anymore - to which he flatly says he doesn't, and with blank emotional affect simply says "Thank you". Meera grows angry that this is all he has to say, after everything they went through: Hodor and Summer and even her own brother Jojen died for Bran. He then says that he isn't really, anymore - isn't "Bran Stark" but the three-eyed raven. He "remembers" the events of Bran Stark's life but now "remembers" vast amounts of other accumulated memories from centuries upon centuries. Everything that once affected "Bran Stark" now seems distant and trivial to him. In horror, Meera cries out that he "died in that cave!" - Bran died when the previous three-eyed raven passed on all of the collective memories of generations of greenseers to him.

Meanwhile, Arya Stark finally returns to Winterfell - after leaving years before with her father, Sansa, and King Robert Baratheon's entourage, right after Bran's fall from the tower. Arya rides up to the gates and dismounts but the guards don't believe her when she says she is in fact Arya Stark, convinced that Arya has been dead for years. Arya asks that they send word to Maester Luwin and Rodrik Cassel, who can prove her identity (not knowing they are both dead). The guards brush off that no one by those names is there, so she asks for Jon, but they say he actually just left Winterfell. Arya asks who is in charge of Winterfell then, and they say "Lady Stark" (which Arya realizes is her sister). They try to brush her aside, but she dodges them with her assassin's reflexes, and insists that one way or another she's getting in. She explains to them that if she is Arya, they'll be in a lot of trouble for stopping her, and if she isn't, she won't last long in Winterfell anyway. Mildly concerned, they agree to at least let her in the courtyard but insist that she stay put while they send for Sansa so they can disprove her identity. As soon as they take their eyes off her, however, she slips away. The two guards go to inform Sansa and try to wave it aside as just some impostor, but she instantly realizes it must be Arya, and knows where she has gone.

Sansa finds Arya where she expected, in the crypts looking over their father Ned's grave. They are happy to see each other but so much has happened to both of them in the past few years that they are at first awkward, unsure of what to say. Arya asks if she has to call Sansa "Lady Stark" now, to which Sansa firmly insists "Yes" - and then laughs. They smile and hug, though still a bit unsure. Arya notes that Jon left her in charge and smiles when Sansa says that she hopes Jon will be back soon -  he will be so happy to see Arya, remembering how happy Jon was to see her when they were reunited. The reunited sisters then look sadly on their father's grave statue. Arya says it doesn't really look like him. Sansa acknowledges that everyone who really knew his face is dead. Arya points out they're not.

Arya then asks that everyone says Sansa killed Joffrey. She explains she actually didn't, though she wished she had. Arya remarks that he was always at the top of her "list". This confuses Sansa, and Arya explains that she'd been keeping a list of everyone she was going to kill - at which they both laugh. Finally Sansa asks how Arya got back, but she only says her road wasn't a pleasant one. Sansa says hers wasn't either. They hug again, earnestly and warmly. Sansa then informs Arya that Bran is home too.

Sansa brings Arya to Bran in the Godswood, where he is lost in thought by the Weirwood heart tree. Arya is saddened to see him so paralyzed. Still somewhat detached even at the sight of Arya, he says he isn't surprised she's alive because he saw her at the Crossroads. Arya is confused, and Sansa explains that Bran is having "visions" now. Bran says he thought Arya was going to King's Landing, and when Sansa asks why she would head there of all places, he again startles them both by saying it's because Cersei is on her list of names (which he can't possibly be aware of through normal means). Sansa asks who else is on her list, but she says most of them besides Cersei are actually dead already.

They then remark on the Valyrian steel dagger in his lap, and he explains that Littlefinger gave it to him, thinking he'd want it. Despite it being such a horrible keepsake that nearly killed him and indirectly set off a chain of events leading to his parents' deaths, he is still listless and disinterested in it. Arya is confused as to why a common cuthroat would have a rare, priceless blade of Valyrian steel. Bran matter-of-factly says that someone very wealthy wanted him dead, and gave it to the assassin. Sansa acknowledges she doesn't actually trust Littlefinger and he'd never give anyone anything unless expecting something in return.

Bran says that doesn't matter, because he doesn't even want it. Instead, Bran hands it to Arya and says she can have it - because it's "wasted on a cripple". Sansa looks down, dejected at how her brother considers his own physical state to be useless.

Sansa, Bran and Arya - three of the remaining Stark children - proceed back to Winterfell's castle courtyard together, with Arya pushing Bran in his wheelchair. Brienne of Tarth and Podrick Payne see them from afar, all three of Catelyn Stark's surviving children reunited. Pod says Catelyn would be proud of Brienne, but she chides that she did next to nothing. Pod says he disagrees with "my lady", and Brienne starts to correct him that she doesn't consider herself a "lady", but then stops halfway and just thanks him for the compliment.

Some time later, Brienne is going through a vigorous sword practice session with Podrick, knocking him down when he overextends himself. Impressed, Arya interrupts and says she'd like to spar with Brienne - the woman who beat the Hound in combat. Sansa and Littlefinger watch on silently from the walkway above. Brienne goes easy on her at first, but then Arya completely outmaneuvers Brienne using the Water Dance training she received from Syrio Forel, augmented by her training with the Faceless Men. Arya achieves many openings that would be a killing blow if she wanted them to be. Surprised that such a young girl is so skilled, Brienne stops holding back, leading to a grueling sparring session. Brienne actually manages to knock Needle out of Arya's hand but she simply switches to the Valyrian steel dagger she had in her belt. Arya uses her speed and agility to compensate for Brienne's strength and size to overwhelm her - until Brienne actually manages to bring her brute strength to bear on a fast moving target by landing a kick on Arya's chest that sends her falling down. Ultimately, they reach a stalemate, with each of them holding a blade at the others' throat. Arya takes her leave of Brienne, both mutually impressed, as Sansa looks down baffled at how her sister reached such a deadly skill level.

In King's Landing
In King's Landing, Queen Cersei Lannister is happy to learn of the gold taken in the Fall of Highgarden. The Lannister army at Highgarden is currently transporting the gold ahead to the capital, though it remains in the north of the Reach seizing grain supplies.

Cersei meets with Tycho Nestoris of the Iron Bank of Braavos in her atrium containing a large floor map of Westeros. Tycho is pleased that Cersei will use the captured gold to pay off the Iron Throne's massive debts to the bank, and he engages in open flattery by saying that she is as cunning at military strategy as her father Tywin was, if not more so.

Now that the Lannisters' old debts will be mostly paid off, and the Iron Bank's faith in them somewhat reassured by their recent military victories, Cersei wants to take out new loans to strengthen her position in the war, so she can finish securing control over the rest of the continent. They discuss that Cersei wants to use the money to hire foreign Sellsword companies to bolster the depleted Lannister military ranks. Specifically, she reveals that she has had Qyburn make overtures to hire the best and largest private mercenary army in all of the Free Cities: the Golden Company. Tycho assures her that the Iron Bank will be delighted to help her with these future endeavors- as soon as it receives the gold she is bringing them.

At Dragonstone
At Dragonstone, Jon Snow and Davos Seaworth wait to meet with Daenerys Targaryen. Davos remarks that Jon seems somewhat attracted to Daenerys, but though Jon says Daenerys has a good heart, he brushes Davos's observation aside, saying he doesn't have time for that as he has seen the Night King and his horde of the undead. Jon insist that they need to ally with Daenerys, because the North itself is largely depleted of soldiers after so many years of war (and the Red Wedding), so they only have maybe 10,000 soldiers or less left (to which Davos corrects "fewer").

When they encounter Missandei as they wait for her queen to arrive, she politely enquires why Jon's surname is "Snow" even though House Stark has ruled the North for centuries, and his father Ned and brother Robb both had the surname "Stark" but he doesn't. Jon and Davos explain to her the special system regional surnames used in Westeros for bastard children of the nobility. Missandei doesn't know what they mean, so they literally explain that Jon's parents weren't married. Davos asks if they have similar customs for bastards on Naath island where Missandei is from (off the coast of Sothoryos). Quizzically, Missandei explains that "Marriage" as such does not exist in Naath, so she finds the idea of a "bastard" to be quite an alien concept. Davos says that sounds liberating. Daenerys then arrives, and they head down to the beach. Missandei is worried about Grey Worm because they haven't heard any news from Casterly Rock yet. Daenerys asks what happened between her and Grey Worm, and Missandei wryly says "many things", smiling. Jon then leads Daenerys on a tour of the long-abandoned Valyrian dragonglass mine on the island (which Samwell Tarly sent him directions to). The mine is ancient, and was used by the First Men long before the Valyrians came to Dragonstone. But this is not why Jon asked Daenerys to come.

As they proceed deeper into the mines led by torchlight, Jon shows her cave paintings they discovered left behind by the Children of the Forest, filled with arcane magical symbols. Daenerys is stunned that the mythical Children stood where they are standing now, thousands upon thousands of years ago, long before mankind ever arrived in Westeros. Jon says this isn't exactly true, leading her into another chamber, this one filled with narrative drawings of the Children and the First Men. Daenerys wonders that the Children and First Men must have fought each other, but then he shows her ancient carvings of the White Walkers themselves, one of which Jon recognizes as an image of the Night King himself. Jon explains that the Children of the Forest and the First Men only managed to drive off the White Walkers the first time during the Long Night because they chose to join together to fight off their own extinction, and that is the choice between Jon and Daenerys now.

Jon still wants Daenerys to ally with him despite not submitting the North to her rule. He insists that the North won't accept a southern ruler again after everything that has happened to them. Daenerys urges that they will if their king does - if his point in showing her the cave drawings was that she should swallow her pride and ally with him because the White Walkers are such a world-ending threat, by the same token, the North should just submit to her, because their survival should be more important than their pride.

As they exit the cave to the beach, they are joined by Varys and Tyrion with grave looks on their faces. They inform her that the Unsullied succeeded in capturing Casterly Rock...only to then reveal the disaster which just occurred at Highgarden as Tyrion's military strategy fell apart. Casterly Rock was only a feint and the Lannisters didn't bother defending it, in order to make a surprise attack south which sacked Highgarden. Daenerys is furious and barely controls her anger, as now all three of her major allies in Westeros are gone and all she has gained is a castle with no supplies. She blames Tyrion's cautious strategy for losing them Dorne, the Iron Islands (Yara's forces), and now the Reach. She accuses Tyrion of wanting to use a light hand against the Lannisters because they're his own people. Tyrion insists that they still have just enough ships left to at least shuttle the Dothraki from Dragonstone to the nearby mainland coast; even with the loss of all her other allies, her combined Unsullied/Dothraki forces are still the largest single army in Westeros. Daenerys fumes that her numbers won't be good for long if she can't feed them all, because Cersei just took all of the food stores from the Reach which they were depending on. Daenerys decides she has had enough of clever plans, and will use the Dothraki and her dragons in a direct assault to turn the tide of the war back in her favor. She desires to assault the Red Keep with all three of her dragons, intending to raze it to the ground with all her enemies inside it, but Jon argues against such a course of action when she asks him his opinion; by bringing dragons back to life and breaking the back of the slave trade, Daenerys has proven she might be capable of doing things differently...but if she uses her dragons in such a brutal manner, to "melt castles and burn cities", she will be no different than any of the more tyrannical of her Targaryen ancestors who came before her.

While they are on the beach, they see a lone ironborn ship approaching the island - a survivor of Yara Greyjoy's fleet. Theon Greyjoy himself and some of his men come to shore on a rowboat. As Theon disembarks, he is stunned to see Jon Snow and doesn't know what to say - he hasn't seen him since Jon before left Winterfell to join the Night's Watch at the start of the series, long before Theon's betrayal of Robb and the Winterfell garrison, and before Theon's imprisonment and torture by Ramsay Bolton. Jon is stunned for a moment as well. Theon walks up to Jon and asks him if Sansa is safe, prompting a furious Jon to angrily grab him by his coat and shake him. Jon tells Theon that what he did to save Sansa is the only reason that he isn't killing him and releases him. Visibly relieved, Theon informs them that Euron Greyjoy attacked their fleet and took Yara prisoner. He says he has returned to ask Daenerys's help in saving her, only for Jon to tell him that Daenerys is away.

In the Reach
At Highgarden, Jaime Lannister coordinates the soldiers loading up the spoils of war for transport: the sack of Highgarden allowed them to seize all of House Tyrell's substantial gold stores, which they send ahead to King's Landing first, before moving on to securing grain shipments. Jaime procures a large bag of gold coins and gives it to Bronn as payment for his services. Bronn, however, is annoyed that this isn't the full reward he was promised, which included a wife from the nobility and a castle. He then half-seriously asks why Jaime doesn't just grant him Highgarden, as they need someone to rule it. Jaime waves this aside by saying they don't actually intend to hold Highgarden for long: it would be difficult for Bronn of all people to rule over hostile territory, and the war isn't over yet, so at this point he thinks Bronn should be satisfied with a more movable big sack of gold than a castle he'll have trouble defending. Bronn, however, is not amused.

Some time later, Jaime's Lannister army has advanced much farther east along the Roseroad, in the northeast of the Reach. Lord Randyll Tarly comes to Jaime and says they should hurry to get all of their grain wagons over the Blackwater Rush to King's Landing on the northern side, as they will be vulnerable if their formation is caught on both sides of the river. Jaime agrees, but Randyll suggests flogging the stragglers to motivate them. Jaime urges that his soldiers fought well at Highgarden, however, and he should at least give them a fair warning first instead of launching right into the flogging. Jaime and Bronn then encounter Randyll's son Dickon Tarly again (Samwell's brother). Jaime asks what he thought of his first taste of battle, and he nervously claims it was glorious - only to then dejectedly admit that he was quite conflicted: House Tarly had been loyal vassals of the Tyrells for generations; he knew many of the men they killed, even hunted side by side with them. Jaime earnestly advises the young man that the guilt is not his but Olenna Tyrell's: she was the one who chose to side with Daenerys's foreign army against Queen Cersei, so it is truly Olenna's fault they died - Dickon wasn't involved with the decision making process on either side so he shouldn't dwell on it. Dickon then outright confesses that the aftermath was horrible, how all of the dead bodies stank - Bronn then playfully taunts that Dickon, a sheltered nobleman, finally found out that men void their bowels when they die.

The Lannister army and wagon train continue east across a small river near cliffs and hills (apparently near Tumbleton, see Notes). Jaime and Bronn are then surprised to hear what sounds like distant thunder, until they realize it must be approaching cavalry. Jaime and Randyll shout for their soldiers to form up, which they manage to do before the enemy crests over the horizon - a massive, 100,000 strong horde of Dothraki cavalry. Bronn insists that Jaime should just leave and ride ahead to King's Landing, but Jaime insists he will not abandon his men. Bronn bluntly tells him the Dothraki will swamp the Lannister lines and Jaime is too valuable as a commander to stay and fight, but Jaime insists that they have a chance if they hold.

At that moment, they hear a roar not heard on the battlefields of Westeros in over a century and a half, and look above the Dothraki horde to see a huge adult dragon heading straight for their lines - Drogon, ridden by Daenerys Targaryen herself.

Drogon outpaces the Dothraki, and at Daenerys's command "Dracarys!", he blasts a torrent of fire through the Lannister ranks in a straight line from front to back, punching a hole in their formation. The highly mobile Dothraki light cavalry immediately sweep through it and wheel around to catch those parts of the Lannister lines in an envelopment.

The Lannister-Tarly lines around Jaime and Randyll manage to rally under their leadership, however: the Dothraki charge into the Lannister lines head-on, but meet stiff resistance as their spear wall holds firm. Though they are outnumbered the Lannister soldiers are better armed heavy infantry, highly disciplined and battle-hardened veterans from years of war. Dothraki horse-archers let off shots before charging into their ranks, but highly trained Tarly archers return fire, doing as much if not more damage as the Dothraki wear less armor.

The Lannister army gives as good as it takes for a time, but their enemy has the advantage of weight in numbers, and the tide turns slowly against them. For a moment it looks like Jaime might at least be able to force the Dothraki to a standstill - but then Daenerys wheels out of the air again, devastating the Lannister formations. No longer trying to punch verticle holes through their lines, she switches to flanking the Lannister ranks, burning a vast horizontal swath of men from left to right. Men are flash-burned into nothing but ash which crumbles upon the touch. Men are cooked alive in their own superheated armor as they struggled to rip it off.

Nonetheless, Jaime manages to rally his remaining forces a second time, desperately taking command of a group of surviving Lannister and Tarly archers and directing them to concentrate their fire at the dragon: Drogon might not be vulnerable to common arrow fire, but his rider is. If they can manage to kill Daenerys herself, who has risked appearing in open battle, the entire war could end in a day, no matter their losses. Daenerys sees the attack coming, however, and banks Drogon up so the arrow volley harmlessly bounces off the armored scales on his belly. He then blasts the archer formations with fire. Jaime avoids the flames and is surrounded by enemies, but he manages to carve a path through the Dothraki with his Valyrian steel sword Widow's Wail to try to reach safety. He nearly gets attacked by a Dothraki from behind at one point, but Dickon Tarly kills the Dothraki first, saving him.

Even then all is not lost - Jaime also commanded Bronn to reach Qyburn's anti-dragon scorpion-bolt launcher, which they took with them in the wagon train for just this scenario (as Jaime cannot fire it one-handed). Bronn fights his way back, killing several Dothraki until one cuts off his horse's leg and sends him sprawling, losing his large bag of gold in the process. Bronn continues to fight his way back on foot, chased by the Dothraki warrior, who follows him into the wagon he was looking for - just in time to stare down the business-end of the loaded scorpion, which Bronn fires into him, flinging him twenty feet and pinning his corpse to another wagon. Bronn slowly manages to reload the scorpion (which is meant to be crewed by a team of men), spots the dragon in the distance, and fires -- but misses. Daenerys is startled by the scorpion-bolt flying a few feet from her head, scans the battlefield, and spots Bronn on the scorpion as he reloads.

Daenerys then leads Drogon on a direct charge across the battlefield at Bronn on the scorpion launcher, who waits for her to approach close enough that he hopefully won't miss but before she is right on top of him. He fires the bolt...which buries itself in Drogon's right shoulder. The mighty dragon lets out an awful screech and collapses helplessly into free-fall from hundreds of feet in the air.

The surviving Lannister soldiers cheer, only for Daenerys to manage to break Drogon out of his fall right before they hit the ground, which would have killed them both. The now enraged dragon hovers for a moment, and angrily sends a fire-blast at the scorpion, destroying it a matter of seconds after Bronn narrowly jumps out of the way to safety.

The dragon's armored scales are so tough that the scorpion bolt only managed to cause superficial damage. Nonetheless the flesh wound grounds him, and he howls in pain and fury, destroying any masses of enemy soldiers that get near him. Daenerys sets him down and dismounts to try and pull the scorpion bolt out.

By this point, the devastation caused by the dragon and the sheer number of Dothraki have totally overwhelmed the Lannister lines, and with the scorpion destroyed, their last hope is gone and the battle turns into an utter rout and massacre. Tyrion Lannister views the battle from the distance of a nearby hill, along with the Dothraki commander Qhono, who quips that Tyrion's people can't fight. Tyrion looks gravely on the battlefield, realizing that these are in fact his own countrymen from the Westerlands and House Lannister being massacred. Many burning and dying men rush to the river to try to extinguish the flames.

Jaime, however, sees that Daenerys is grounded and immobilized, and realizes he still has one chance; if he can kill Daenerys, even now, he can end her invasion. Jaime grabs a spear and charges his horse across the flaming battlefield to make a death-run for Daenerys as she tends to her dragon. Tyrion swears under his breath, calling his brother a "fucking idiot", angry that he's going to get himself killed.

Just as Jaime is nearly on top of Daenerys, however, Drogon notices him amidst the chaos of the battle; shielding Daenerys behind his head, the dragon lets out a blast of flame, but Bronn rushes over to tackle Jaime out of the way, saving him from certain death. They both fall into the river, where Jaime is weighed down by his armor, and sinks beneath the waters, in danger of drowning.

First

 * Koner

Deaths

 * Numerous unnamed Lannister soldiers.
 * Numerous unnamed Dothraki warriors.

Cast
Starring
 * Peter Dinklage as Tyrion Lannister
 * Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as Ser Jaime Lannister
 * Lena Headey as Queen Cersei Lannister
 * Emilia Clarke as Queen Daenerys Targaryen
 * Kit Harington as King Jon Snow
 * Aidan Gillen as Lord Petyr Baelish
 * Liam Cunningham as Ser Davos Seaworth
 * Sophie Turner as Princess Sansa Stark
 * Maisie Williams as Princess Arya Stark
 * Nathalie Emmanuel as Missandei
 * Conleth Hill as Varys
 * Jerome Flynn as Ser Bronn
 * Alfie Allen as Prince Theon Greyjoy
 * Gwendoline Christie as Lady Brienne of Tarth
 * Isaac Hempstead-Wright as Bran Stark

Guest Starring
 * James Faulkner as Lord Randyll Tarly
 * Tom Hopper as Dickon Tarly
 * Ellie Kendrick as Meera Reed
 * Mark Gatiss as Tycho Nestoris
 * Brendan Cowell as Harrag
 * Daniel Portman as Podrick Payne
 * Danny Kirrane as Stark soldier
 * Joseph Quinn as Koner
 * Staz Nair as Qhono
 * Breige Roche as
 * Eamon Keenan as Stark soldier

Cast notes

 * 15 of 22 starring cast members appear in this episode.
 * Starring cast members Carice van Houten (Melisandre), John Bradley (Samwell Tarly), Hannah Murray (Gilly), Kristofer Hivju (Tormund Giantsbane), Rory McCann (Sandor Clegane), Iain Glen (Jorah Mormont), and Joe Dempsie (Gendry) are not credited and do not appear in this episode.

General

 * The episode title is a reference to the spoils seized following the Fall of Highgarden.
 * The Oldtown and Sandor Clegane storylines do not appear in this episode. Arya Stark returns to Winterfell, her storyline merging back in with that one.
 * In a post-episode interview after "Stormborn", writer Bryan Cogman stated that the way the producers conceptualized Season 7, after so many other seasons split amongst half a dozen disparate storylines, is that it is centered around three "axis" points, or sets of characters: King's Landing, Dragonstone, and Winterfell, plus a side-adventure with Samwell at Oldtown. King's Landing includes Jaime when he's in the Reach, Yara Greyjoy was part of the Dragonstone storyline even in her battle on the Narrow Sea, etc. The key point is that they used to conceptualize of it as the "Arya storyline", the "Stannis storyline", etc. In Season 7, Arya doesn't reach Winterfell in this episode, but it's broadly titled as part of the "Winterfell" storyline more than the "Arya storyline" at this point, as it merges back in with that.
 * Both Cersei and Missandei refer to the eastern continent across the Narrow Sea from Westeros by name as "Essos", making this only the sixth episode to do so in nearly seven full TV seasons (after "Stormborn" two episodes ago). Essos is so large that people usually refer to major regions of it, such as "the Free Cities" or "Slaver's Bay".

In the North

 * The Valyrian steel dagger from Season 1 returns, which the Catspaw assassin tried to kill Bran with ("The Kingsroad"). Catelyn brought it south to King's Landing to try to find its owner, then left it with Ned, and it was last seen on Ned's desk in the Tower of the Hand when Littlefinger was idly eying it while discussing that Cersei's children were all actually bastards of incest. Littlefinger betrayed Ned in the throne room soon afterwards, and the dagger was never seen again in the TV show - presumably, Littlefinger just picked it up again from Ned's chambers, given that it is a very valuable blade.
 * The dagger originally belonged to Littlefinger, but he lost it in a bet on a joust. He deliberately tells Catelyn that he lost it to Tyrion, in order to turn the Starks and Lannisters against each other; that was the purpose he hoped to achieve by making Lysa write her sister about Jon Arryn's death, falsely blaming the Lannisters. In the books, Catelyn finds out too late that Littlefinger lied - he lost it to Robert.
 * In the books, during the brawl in the throne room, Littlefinger snatches the dagger from Ned and holds it to his throat. In the show he acts the same, but it is not clear which dagger it is.
 * Bran refuses to accept the dagger for the same reason Jaime refuses to accept Oathkeeper in the books - a cripple has no use for such weapon. Bran's rejection is rather stoic, while Jaime reacted furiously, thinking it was a cruel jape of his father.
 * Actor John Bradley-West (Samwell Tarly) explained in interviews that in the Season 7 premiere, when Sam is reading a book, he was specifically instructed to linger on a detailed sketch of the Valyrian steel dagger - as this was apparently intended to remind the audience about it. Given that there are less than 200 surviving Valyrian steel blades in Westeros it isn't unusual that there might be a codex somewhere containing a listing of all of them.
 * As of this episode, the current list of named characters in the TV series who possess Valyrian steel weapons, which are capable of killing White Walkers, are:
 * Jon Snow - wielding Longclaw
 * Samwell Tarly - wielding Heartsbane
 * Jaime Lannister - wielding Widow's Wail (forged from Ned's sword Ice)
 * Brienne of Tarth - wielding Oathkeeper (forged from Ned's sword Ice)
 * Arya Stark - wielding the Valyrian steel dagger
 * Bran Stark quotes back the phrase "Chaos is a ladder" to Littlefinger, which he used in a speech he gave to Varys in Season 3's "The Climb", explaining that he doesn't have one vast plan like Varys does, so much as he stirs up trouble then seizes on the opportunities the resulting chaos creates.
 * Littlefinger tries to manipulate Bran against Jon by addressing him as "Lord Stark", but Bran repeats that he isn't going to be a lord of anything.
 * Bran explains that Maester Wolkan built him his new wheelchair so he can get around (as opposed to when he was a small boy who had Hodor to carry him around in a saddle). Meera didn't know what it was: wheelchairs are uncommon but now unknown in Westeros. Apparently they are only occasionally used by members of the nobility who lose their mobility and can afford them (and not to have to perform manual labor, etc.). Doran Martell also had a wheelchair in Season 5 (it's unclear if they re-used the prop). In the books, it is explained in more detail that Doran has a "wheeled chair" that his maester constructed so he can get around despite his crippled feet. Presumably, as trained healers who serve the nobility, maesters would have some straining or knowledge in how to make such wheelchairs.
 * Arya Stark returns to Winterfell for the first time since leaving in the second episode of Season 1. She doesn't know that Maester Luwin and Rodrik Cassel are dead, because they were both killed in Season 2 - after she fled King's Landing and was on the run in the Riverlands, out of communication with wider events in Westeros.
 * The two guards a the gates of Winterfell not believing Arya when she says she lives in the castle is a callback to Season 1, when she slipped out of the Red Keep in King's Landing through the secret tunnels, then tried to come back in through the front gate, but the guards didn't know her so they didn't believe her when she said she lived in the castle.
 * Arya switches to a Stark-style costume after returning to Winterfell.
 * The last time that Maisie Williams (Arya) and Sophie Turner (Sansa) had a scene together was in Season 1 episode 6 "A Golden Crown", when Ned Stark is warning them that they have to leave soon, Sansa protests her love for Joffrey, but then Arya says that Joffrey is nothing like King Robert - inadvertently spurring Ned to check back in the lineage book, and realizing that Joffrey isn't really Robert's son. They were in the same episode once again after that in episode 9 "Baelor" when Ned was executed, but they were never on-screen at the same time (Sansa was up with Cersei, Joffrey, and Ned on the steps of the Great Sept, while Arya was hiding below in the crowd of commoners).
 * Meera reminds Bran that her brother, Summer and Hodor died for him ("The Children", "The Door").
 * Arya recalls hearing that Joffrey died, and was sorry she did not kill him herself ("Mockingbird").
 * Arya states that Brienne defeated the Hound ("The Children").
 * Sansa believes that Jon will be much more pleased to meet Arya than her. Indeed, in the novels Jon was closer to Arya more than any of the Stark children, and vice versa.
 * This may also be a meta-narrative joke: Sansa remarks on how happy Jon was to see her, and he'll be even happier to see Arya. The TV production team has often remarked on how they considered non-verbal emoting of desperate joy that Kit/Jon and Sophie/Sansa had when they reunited to be one of the top highlights out of all of Season 6.
 * With Arya's return, all the surviving Starks have returned to Winterfell (though Jon left again before the other two arrived).
 * It's brought up that Sansa is being called "Lady Stark" now as the ranking Stark left to rule Winterfell. This brings up an issue about formal titles: when a new royal dynasty is created, either through civil war or an independence movement, the siblings of the new monarch have sometimes assumed the titles of "Prince" or "Princess", but at other times not. When Robert Baratheon seized the Iron Throne, his younger brothers Stannis and Renly explicitly did not assume the title "Prince". After Robb Stark declared himself King in the North, however, in both books and TV series, his younger brothers Bran and Rickon assumed the title "Prince". Bran should still be a "Prince" now that their independence movement has been revived again. Sansa and Arya technically gained the title "Princess", but both weren't in a position to claim it in book/Season 2: Sansa was a prisoner of the Lannisters who refused to acknowledge Robb's legitimacy as a rebel, while Arya was on the run in the Riverlands and hiding her identity. Presumably, all three of them should be using the titles "Prince" or "Princess" now, but it hasn't come up in dialogue so far this season.
 * Arya brings up her kill list, that Cersei is on it, but most of the rest are dead by now (in the TV version). At this point, the only people who seem to be left on it are actually Cersei Lannister, Gregor Clegane, and Ilyn Payne. She briefly put some of the Brotherhood Without Banners and Melisandre on it in Season 3 for taking Gendry (which doesn't happen in the novels), but she later dropped them from it by Season 4 (probably because others had done worse, and after all, Gendry came to no lasting harm). She actually never put Littlefinger on the list, in the books or TV series, because she was never aware of how directly involved he was in the betrayal of her father. Meanwhile, the TV series has at times left Ilyn Payne off the list, probably due to concerns that he will not reappear (his actor developed terminal pancreatic cancer in Season 2, but then near-miraculously recovered after experimental surgery).
 * As of the current books (plus a sample chapter from the next), four people remain on Arya's kill list: Dunsen (one of the Mountain's men), Cersei, Ilyn Payne, and Meryn Trant (the TV show condensed this, the man she kills in Braavos in the books is another of the Mountain's men, called Raff the Sweetling).
 * Arya's sparring match with Brienne mirrors both Arya's brief sparring with Sandor Clegane in Season 4, and Brienne's tournament melee duel with Loras Tyrell in Season 2 - also, for that matter, Oberyn Martell's duel with Gregor Clegane in Season 4, Jorah Mormont versus the Dothraki bloodrider Qotho in Season 1, and also a somewhat meta-example in Season 5 when Daario Naharis is watching the gladiatorial games in the fighting pits of Meereen and remarks on the contrasting fighting styles of when a large fighter with brute strength is faced by a smaller but faster and more agile opponent. In most of these cases, the larger fighter eventually wins as soon as they have one opportunity to bring their full strength to bear. Arya used water dance moves to move around the slow but armored Sandor, who ultimately pinned her sword against his armor then punched her (not out of malice but to teach her the point that armor may slow a man down, but for a reason). Similarly, Jorah wore heavy armor against the unarmored Qotho, who was faster, but ultimately pinned Qotho's arakh against his armor, then killed him with a single sword strike. Brienne herself fought the highly skilled Loras Tyrell - by no means small but relative to her huge size - and finished their match by simply tackling him to the ground with brute force. In the gladiator arena, Daario said he thought it was interesting when the smaller but faster fighter was able to outmaneuver a larger man, though admittedly that only happens about one times out of ten - at which, as if on cue, the larger gladiator decapitated the smaller and faster one with a single swing of his sword. In this episode, Arya outmaneuvers Brienne with speed and agility (and lands what could have been killing blows if she wanted them to be) much as she did Sandor, until Brienne - much like Sandor did, and in her own match with Loras - brought her greater brute force to bear with a heavy kick.
 * The contrast between speed and raw power is an issue brought up to an extent in the battle scene in this episode: the Dothraki cavalry are highly mobile but lightly armored, while the badly outnumbered Lannister heavy infantry perform reasonably well against them for a time, until the Dothraki start outflanking them (and then Daenerys brings her own brute force to bear by attacking their lines with a dragon).

In King's Landing

 * The Golden Company is a major subplot from the later books in the A Song of Ice and Fire series, up until now thought abandoned by the TV series. Apparently it will now appear in some condensed form. Their subplot is filled with major spoilers for the books, which will not be repeated in this article.
 * The Golden Company actually was introduced previously in the live-action TV continuity, twice before, both back in Season 4: after Joffrey died, in "Breaker of Chains" Davos thought this meant Stannis should make a renewed offensive against the Lannisters, but he scoffed that he had no substantial army left to make such an offensive with. Davos then suggested that they could then try to hire sellsword armies from the Free Cities, such as the Golden Company, but Stannis equally dismissed that he also didn't have any gold left to hire such expensive mercenaries with. In "Mockingbird", Jorah Mormont remarked to Daenerys that he doesn't trust Daario Naharis because he is a sellsword, but Daenerys counters that Jorah himself fought in sellsword companies before entering the service of her brother Viserys, including some time in which he served in the Golden Company. That hasn't been specifically mentioned in the books, though Jorah did generally say that he drifted between various sellsword companies for several years after he first fled into exile from Westeros.
 * As Davos said in Season 4, the Golden Company is the best and largest sellsword company in the Free Cities, with 10,000 well-equipped and highly trained men - essentially a moderately sized private army for hire. In the books, it is specified that the Golden Company currently consists of about 1,000 cavalry, 1,000 archers, and 8,000 infantry. About 50 of their archers are Summer Islanders, whose people are considered the best archers in the known world (who wield great bows made of Goldenheart wood) - the overall commander of all 1,000 archers is actually also a Summer Islander, named Balaq. On top of this, the Golden Company prominently fields a number of formidable war elephants.
 * In the books, the Golden Company have their own motto of sorts: "Our word is good as gold". Their war-cry, however, is "Beneath the gold, the bitter steel!" in reference to their founder, a Blackfyre general called "Bittersteel" (Aegor Rivers, one of Aegon IV's Great Bastards). They have an excellent reputation and will always honor a contract once signed. They were founded by losing soldiers from the Blackfyre Rebellion who fled into exile in the Free Cities, augmented over the generations by other sellswords, exiles, etc.
 * The books have never mentioned the Golden Company being directly hired by the Iron Bank - though of course, people have often taken out loans from the bank to in turn pay them. Their contracts go both ways, however: once, Qohor refused to honor a contract it had made with them, so in response the Golden Company turned on them and sacked the city.
 * Cersei clearly states in dialogue, for those only going by the TV series, that Westeros is "a continent", not just a country or a large island. Casual viewers sometimes mistake that it is a Britain-sized island. George R.R. Martin has stated that his inspiration was essentially to make a fantasy-British Isles...upscaled to roughly the size of a continent like South America.
 * Tycho Nestoris says that Cersei is proving to be as cunning of a politician and military strategist as her father Tywin. She actually isn't, but this isn't a major invention of the TV series - his words aren't at face value, he's blatantly just trying to flatter Cersei with excessive praise (similarly, in prior episodes, he complimented her on destroying the Faith Militant as religious fanatics, but she realized he didn't remotely care about that, he'd lend money to religious fanatics so long as they pay him back).

At Dragonstone

 * Jon's argument that Daenerys should not burn King's Landing is ironic since Daenerys refused to burn the city after Ellaria Sand insisted that such an attack would end the war. Tyrion and Jon used the argument that burning the city would remind the Smallfolk of Aerys II Targaryen ("Dragonstone").
 * The issue of the dragonglass mine under Dragonstone island came up in prior episodes: Stannis told Samwell there was dragonglass on the island back in Season 5, making it unclear why Samwell's discovery in Oldtown's records was such a big revelation. Reading screenshots of the books Samwell was looking at, however, appear to explain the discrepancy: there is a long-abandoned main dragonglass mine on the island, used by the ancient Valyrians and by the First Men before that, which even the Valyrians considered the largest concentration of dragonglass in the known world - literally a mountain of it, beneath the island. Apparently, the explanation is that Stannis and Davos knew that dragonglass can be found on the volcanic island, just as loose rocks here and there, but even they never knew just how much dragonglass was truly there - the mine was forgotten for generations.
 * The symbols that Jon and Daenerys see among the cave paintings are actually based on ones previously seen in the TV series. The White Walkers arrange corpses in these symbolic patterns, and the flashbacks to their creation in Season 6 revealed that they are actually magical runes originally used by the Children of the Forest. The Weirwood tree where the Children of the Forest created the first White Walker (the Night King) was surrounded by a spiral pattern of stone monoliths. The spiral had seven spokes, spinning counterclockwise, and is seen on the cave wall. Also seen is a diamond shape bisected by a vertical line going through its top and bottom corners - this symbol was how the wildling corpses were arranged in the very first episode of Season 1.
 * As the cave carvings that Jon and Daenerys see in the dragonglass cave depict events from the Long Night, they must be at least 8,000 years old.
 * The novels actually do contain descriptions of the Children of the Forest leaving behind cave carvings. Specifically, this occurred in a preview chapter for the unreleased sixth novel, in which Arianne Martell (main POV narrator for Dorne, cut entirely from the TV show) and her companions discover some while they are taking shelter in a cave in the Mistwood of the Stormlands, while heading north. The books do not, however, contain descriptions of what these cave caring actually look like.
 * Missandei says that "We don't have marriage in Naath, so the concept of a bastard doesn't exist". This is an invention of the TV series, or seems to be - actually, nothing has been said in the novels about the societal patterns on Naath, one way or the other. So few characters appear from there (basically just Missandei) that no married people have ever been mentioned. It is possible that the TV series is conflating Naath with the Summer Islands, which neighbor it to the west, and which have a very "sex positive" society - but the Summer Islanders are described as having "marriage": characters are described as marrying - Chatana Qo, a warrior-princess, managed to unify the isles several thousand years ago, but this unification did not last long because while she was a good military leader, she "wed unwisely", leading to a political breakup. Not much is known about marriage in the Summer Isles - it's possible that they practice polygamy, or perhaps monogamy, but with sex outside of marriage common (like the Dornish paramours, or, frankly, like Robert Baratheon). There also isn't any information from The World of Ice and Fire sourcebook describing marriage on Naath - whether it exists or not. Patterns of Gender and Sexuality on Naath are still unrevealed.
 * What little is known of Naath is that its people are utter pacifists, due to their religious beliefs, and they will not resort to violence even to defend their persons from bodily harm. Their religion also forbids them from harming any living thing, to the point that they will not eat the flesh of any animal and are strict vegetarians. Other than that, Naath used to be a major hub of the silk-producing industry, due to having a climate well-suited for insect life, but frequent slaver raids in the past few centuries have destroyed much of it.
 * Other regions of the world, such as even the Free Cities, do not have a special system of surnames for bastard children, singling them out for shame (while still elevating them above commoners). It makes sense that Missandei, as just a foreigner in general to Westeros, would find this concept quite alien.
 * The point when Davos corrects Jon that he has "less" than 10,000 men left in the North, not "fewer" than 10,000 men, is of course a reference to how Stannis Baratheon used to correct the grammar of Davos (and anyone else) when they said "less" but the appropriate term was "fewer" ("Garden of Bones", "Kill the Boy").
 * The TV series appears to be abruptly wrapping up several subplots, without a full explanation: Daenerys laments that all of her allies have been destroyed: Dorne, the Iron Islands (Yara), and the Reach. Yara's fleet was destroyed so this isn't an issue. The TV series largely glossed over how the Reach was subdued, given their large army and resources, even if Jaime managed to make a decapitation strike against Highgarden itself. Dorne, meanwhile, has simply no explanation: Ellaria and the Sand Snakes were attacked while on a fleet heading to Dorne to pick up the Dornish armies. Dorne's armies were thus not destroyed along with Yara's fleet. Dorne hasn't been blooded in the past years of war at all (similar to the Vale), so its armies should be at full strength. It is unknown who is even ruling Dorne at this point. Assuredly, Dorne's armies continue to "exist" despite the fact that Ellaria is captured. On top of this, the TV show already mentioned that there are five younger Sand Snakes, all of them daughters of Oberyn Martell, who could potentially claim rule. The TV series might never provide an answer for this.
 * Davos Seaworth remarks that Jon appears attracted to Daenerys. Though Jon does not deny it, he brushes it off, claiming that they have bigger concerns. Of note, Jon has had no romantic relationships since the death of Ygritte in the fourth season; when accosted sexually by Melisandre in the fifth season, he rejects her advances, citing his love for Ygritte despite her death. If Jon is attracted to Daenerys, it remains to be seen how he will act on it, if he will pursue a marriage-alliance with her or will keep his distance out of respect for Ygritte.
 * Jon Snow and Theon Greyjoy come face to face for the first time since the events of the first season. Though they shared few scenes together, it was established in the television series that Jon and Theon had something of a friendly rivalry, given that they were both in the care of House Stark but considered outsiders, Jon being Ned Stark's (alleged) bastard and Theon his ward, while both treated by Ned as if they were his own children. In the second and sixth seasons, after betraying the Starks for his own family, Theon refuses to join the Night's Watch due to fear that Jon will kill him for his actions. In this episode, Theon meets Jon at last and is visibly uncomfortable around him, and Jon indeed brings up the idea of killing Theon, but shows him mercy because he helped save Sansa from Ramsay Bolton. It is no indication, however, that Jon will ever forgive Theon for betraying Robb and the North.

In the Reach

 * The Battle of Tumbleton has seen the conclusion of both sides losing needed allies ever since the beginning of Daenerys Targaryen's invasion of Westeros.
 * House Martell and House Tyrell have been destroyed and the replacement leaders have not appeared. Daenrys has lost the Iron Fleet. Her Unsullied are trapped at Casterly Rock and must march back.
 * The gold that Cersei Lannister needed to repay Tycho Nestoris has been safely delivered to King's Landing, but the combined army of House Lannister and House Tarly has been decimated, with all the food supplies they obtained. Euron Greyjoy controls Cersei's navy and Cersei knows the Euron must not be trusted.
 * The tactics used by the Dothraki are a combination of the Battle of Qohor and the Field of Crows. The Dothraki directly charge the heavy infantry, but use encirclement tactics to exploit the Lannister's weak points.
 * Bronn reminds Jaime the reward he promised him long ago ("The House of Black and White").
 * With the Lannister army decimated, Tyrion may be able to win Bronn's loyalty as Cersei Lannister and Jaime Lannister have delayed giving him the "larger castle". While Jaime's reason was valid, The Reach can easily revolt, Bronn was openly dismayed by the additional delay ("Mockingbird").
 * Dickon tells Bronn and Jaime that was his first battle. In the novels, Randyll Tarly is among the Tyrell vassals that march in Renly Baratheon's army, and Dickon accompanies him as a squire. Later, Randyll participates three battles - the Blackwater, Duskendale and Maidenpool (the latter two were omitted from the show); it is not mentioned whether Dickon also participated in those battles, or any battle.
 * It is the second time, following "Stormborn", Jaime calls Dickon by the wrong name.
 * It is the second time Drogon is injured, though not severely, following "The Dance of Dragons".
 * The battle between Drogon and the combined forces of House Lannister and the Reach is reminiscent of the Field of Fire, a pivotal and highly devastating battle during Aegon's Conquest in which House Targaryen defeated Houses Lannister of the Westerlands and Gardener of the Reach using dragons, ending the Gardener line and making the Lannisters bend the knee to Aegon I.
 * It would have been more effective for Daenrys to use Drogon, Rhaegal, and Viserion for the battle. In "Battle of the Bastards (episode)", she used all 3 dragons during the Second Siege of Meereen.
 * Jamie's botched attempt to kill Daenerys mirrors Jamie's slaying of Daenerys' father, the Mad King Aerys; although the set up, circumstances and location are different, the reasoning Jamie had for trying to kill Daenerys is very much similar to his reasoning for slaying Aerys: Jamie stabbed King Aerys in the back, recalling his last words "Burn them all!" as well as his infamy for burning his enemies alive. Above all, Jamie's main reason for killing Aerys was due to the Wildfire plot, which Jamie spoke about to Brienne ("Kissed by Fire") in Season 3, that would have killed the entire population of King's Landing of half a million people. During this episode, Jamie witnessed Drogon burn his soldiers upon the battlefield - which mirrors the Field of Fire, a pivotal battle that ended the War of Conquest - and Daenarys attempted to help Drogon on the ground after the dragon was injured. Jamie then charged upon horseback in an attempt to slay Daenarys the same way he killed her father by coming at her from behind and thrusting his weapon in her back, thus potentially end the war and save his men from further devastation as well as King's Landing from a future assault. Ultimately, Jamie sought to kill the Mad King's daughter for quite literally burning her enemies alive; if he had succeeded, Jamie would perhaps be the first and only person to be called both a Kingslayer and Queenslayer.
 * Though Tyrion has effectively turned against his family and sided with Daenerys, it is obvious that he still holds a degree of familial loyalty for Jaime, as it was Jaime who freed him from the dungeons of the Red Keep, enabling him to escape Westeros before being executed for murdering Joffrey (which was done by Olenna Tyrell). In the novels, Jaime actually confessed his role in the annulment of Tyrion's marriage to Tysha, for which Tyrion swore revenge on Tywin, Cerse and Jaime, vowing to kill all three of them for (he murdered Tywin moments later) a lifetime of misery; in A Dance with Dragons, Tyrion is intent on killing both Cersei and Jaime, but begins to have second thoughts about Jaime halfway through the book, slowly accepting that Jaime was forced to do what he did by Tywin and was truly the only member of his family who ever loved him, which was why he freed him from the dungeon. In this episode, Tyrion spots Jaime on the battlefield and silently begs Jaime to flee for his life, confirming that despite Tyrion working against his family, he does not want his brother to die (it is highly likely that he is indifferent towards Cersei dying, as Cersei effectively used Joffrey's death as an excuse to try and have him killed instead of trying to find the real culprits).

In the books
[This section will be updated with comparisons after the sixth novel is released.]