A new Game of Thrones teaser trailer is out – what does it reveal about the final season
of Thrones?
We see the Painted Table on Dragonstone – a big map of Westeros.
There’s a direwolf representing the Starks; a dragon, for the Targaryens; and a lion,
for the Lannisters.
These are the three main houses left in Season 8.
Last season’s teaser showed a more complex political situation, with Houses Baratheon,
Tyrell and Greyjoy entangled with the others.
But now the Baratheons Tyrells and Martells are all dead, and the politics of Game of
Thrones is simpler than it’s ever been.
This final season is less about politics, and more about ice and fire.
An icy fog sweeps across Westeros, symbolising the white walkers and their army of the dead.
It covers the north, freezing the Stark direwolf – maybe hinting that Winterfell will fall
to the walkers.
The Targaryen dragon freezes, like how Daenerys’ dragon Viserion is now controlled by the Night
King.
In the south, the Lannister lion burns, which might hint at the deaths of Cersei and Jaime.
Some speculate that Cersei will die in a fire – that just like she blew up that Sept,
she might burn down the whole city of King’s Landing . And in the books, the Lannister
twins believe that they will die together .
In the middle of Westeros, ice and fire clash – representing a battle between the living
and the dead.
This happens on the map near the river Trident – just as Daenerys dreams in Book 3 . But
if the walkers get that far south, they could have millions of dead northerners in their
army – this war for the dawn will be on an apocalyptic scale.
Amidst the ice and fire, this black crystal stuff appears, which might represent dragonglass
– the obsidian that kills white walkers.
And the dragonglass seems to take the shape of like a wall across Westeros.
In Season 7, there’s a book that says that dragonfire can be used to reshape dragonglass
to build things . So maybe Daenerys and her dragons will shape dragonglass to build a
Wall, and make the walkers pay for it.
Or maybe this is just a cool visual effect.
Either way, this represents a truly epic battle – the song of ice and fire that the book
series is named for.
But is this really how Game of Thrones will end?
After seven seasons of human drama and intricate politics, will the end be a fantasy battle
where the good guys beat the bad guys?
The series creators have said it’ll be more complex than that . And there is some dark
strange stuff in the prophesies and lore of Thrones.
Like, legend says that the last time the white walkers attacked, they were defeated by a
hero who sacrificed his beloved wife – so maybe Jon will kill Daenerys?
And there are hints of cooperation and even marriage between humans and white walkers
– maybe Westeros will make a deal with the walkers, maybe Jon will become the new Night
King – maybe that’s what the frozen direwolf means.
There are lots of possibilities.
So the final season of Thrones won’t have much time for politics or minor-characters
or travel times making sense.
It’ll be more fire and ice and CGI.
But there are still big shocks and revelations to come.
Mysteries will be uncovered, Cleganes will Bowl, and characters we love will die – cause
the story has nothing to lose now.
This is what it’s been building up to.
There are just six episodes left.
We’ll be covering lots of Thrones content from now to the finale, so check out our videos,
and subscribe, and click the bell.
During Season 8, we’ll do a video for each episode, as well as weekly livestreams for
Patrons.
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This artwork is by Ertaç Altınöz – he’s got heaps of great speculative Thrones art,
go check him out.
Thanks to Patrons Tracy Winans, Dylan J. Roebuck, Zackary Bain, Abhishek Rao, Anthony Macedo,
Brodie Plourde, and MellyWolf.
Cheers.