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  • The Gadfly: In his very first scene, Adipose Rex Robert accuses Ned of getting fat, to the amusement of both men.
  • Gallows Humor:
    • When Arya learns that yet another death has prevented yet another homecoming, she simply bursts into laughter.
    • The Hound acknowledges he's dead meat "unless there's a maester hiding behind that rock".
    • Tyrion and Jaime while the former is in prison accused of regicide.
  • Gambit Pileup: The eponymous game of thrones.
  • Gargle Blaster: The beverage Mance serves Jon in "The Children" is fermented milk, which makes Jon gag.
  • Gate Guardian: The Bloody Gate of the Vale has a permanent garrison currently commanded by Ser Donnel Waynwood.
  • Gaydar:
    • Jaime claims to have known Renly was a "tulip" since the moment he arrived at court.
    • Oberyn might need his checked since he seems flabbergasted that Varys the eunuch is asexual, though it works perfectly when he pursues Loras and Olyvar.
  • Generation Xerox: The Stark children have many similarities with their parents.
    • Like his father, Robb is a skilled tactician and compassionate leader who rebels against a king in the name of family.
    • Jon is a solemn, honorable, and levelheaded leader and skilled swordsman like Ned.
    • Sansa is a beautiful Proper Lady like her mother, but with her father's idealism, patience, and self-control.
    • Arya has her father's grim determination and sense of justice.
    • Like his father, Bran is a Reasonable Authority Figure with Nerves of Steel who befriends House Reed.
  • Gender Flip:
    • Bronn's betrothed Lollys is said to be a daughter of Lord Stokeworth rather than the elderly Lady Tanda Stokeworth of the novels.
    • Although not explicitly Adapted Out, the Dornish practice of absolute primogeniture regardless of gender has never been established in the television canon due to this trope. The character "Lord Blackmont" replaces Lady Larra Blackmont in "Two Swords", an offhand mention of Oberyn's mother (a ruling Princess in the novels) is replaced with mention of his father in "Mockingbird", and Prince Trystane is heir to Prince Doran Martell rather than Princess Arianne.
  • Gender Is No Object:
  • General Failure:
    • Rather than brokering his supreme naval power in the west into the wealth and land his people need by supporting one of the powerful factions, Balon Greyjoy decides to pay the iron price and conquer lands he cannot hope to hold. Only the faction he invades spares him a second thought and even they do not divert forces from their main campaign.
    • Balon was guilty of another of these when he rebelled against the Iron Throne nine years before the show's timeline begins. The rebellion was crushed within months, led to the death of Balon's two eldest sons, and his youngest son Theon being sent to Winterfell as a hostage. Theon calls him out on it when he returns to the Iron Islands in season 2.
    • Edmure Tully has a good eye for individual battles but fails to grasp larger strategies, such as when he defeats Gregor Clegane but in the process, drives him out of a trap Robb was preparing.
  • Genius Bruiser: Oberyn Martell is a fast and skilled warrior who also writes poetry and studied at the Citadel (where maesters are trained) until he got bored and left. In "Two Swords," he displays enough medical knowledge to describe why the man whose wrist he has pinned to the table will bleed to death if not attended quickly.
  • Genre-Busting: A lot of the subplots and character arcs occupy different genres in fantasy, historical, and adventure fiction.
  • Genre Deconstruction: Like its source material, the series is generally considered a deconstruction of High Fantasy.
  • Gentle Giant: Hodor, the gigantic, simple-minded servant who is scared of thunder and unable to defend himself unless he is controlled by Bran.
  • Get It Over With:
    • Ygritte urges Jon to hurry up with killing her in "The Old Gods and the New" because she's having trouble keeping her composure.
    • The black cells seem to have this effect:
      • Knowing a fair trial is out of the question, when Ned Stark learns a prisoner exchange is also out he tells Varys to slit his throat and be done with it.
      • Tyrion curses the person opening his cell with this in "The Children."
    • Stannis says this in so many words to Brienne. Understandable, as his crusade has failed, he'll now never be king, he's lost his family and has nothing at all left in life.
    • When Ellaria and Tyene are captured by Euron’s men, Ellaria tells them to kill her and Tyene, and then using this phrase verbatim. The men take them prisoner for Cersei instead, where things get a lot worse.
  • Get Out!:
    • Littlefinger is told this a number of times when he's perceived as the slimeball he is.
    • Cersei says this to the small council after Tyrion becomes Hand, to Tyrion after he arranges to send Myrcella away, and to Tyrion again when he threatens to turn her joy to ashes.
    • After she learns of Jorah Mormont's previous betrayal of her, Daenerys' words to him are an ice-cold, "Go... now."
  • The Ghost: Major characters are sometimes given this treatment to postpone their casting until the following season.
    • Stannis is frequently mentioned in Season 1 and is even Ned's candidate for the Succession Crisis despite never appearing until Season 2.
    • Ramsay besieges Winterfell in Season 2 without ever appearing. He later appears in Season 3.
  • Gilded Cage:
    • During her captivity, Sansa is granted all the luxuries befitting a highborn lady but remains confined to the Red Keep and completely at the mercy of her enemies. The Hound even takes to calling her "little bird" because of this.
    • Following his father's rebellion, Theon was taken as a hostage to his father's good behaviour. As such, he was raised among the Stark children but with the constant shadow of a possible execution hanging over the relationship.
  • Gilligan Cut: Played for Drama when the ironborn garrison of Moat Cailin are pleased by the prospect of safe conduct home, then we cut to their flayed corpses.
  • Girl on Girl Is Hot: Often subverted with Fan Disservice.
    • Littlefinger gives cold-blooded instruction to Roz and another of his whores on how to play this up in his famous sexposition scene where he explains his motives and method of operating.
    • Tyrion sends two prostitutes to Joffrey as a gift, but Joffrey is more interested in forcing one to brutally beat the other.
    • Myranda and Violet use this to sexually abuse Theon as a lead up to a horrific Groin Attack.
    • Later Ellaria Sand has one of Littlefinger's prostitutes go down on her.
  • Girls with Guns: Margaery plays upon this trope by feigning interest in Joffrey's crossbow to appeal to his fetish for violence.
  • Give Away the Bride:
    • In season 3, King Joffrey gives away Sansa Stark to his uncle Tyrion Lannister. Sansa is by that point a captive in King's Landing forced into an Arranged Marriage, and because both her father is dead (at Joffrey's hands, no less) and no other Stark members are in the capital, it falls to Joffrey as "father of the realm" to carry out this duty.
    • In Season 5, Theon Greyjoy gives away Sansa Stark. Subverted in that it's a sadistic game arranged by her betrothed, Ramsey Bolton. Theon was involved in the (apparent) deaths of the Starks during the War of the Five Kings, so he is the last person she wants to give her away.
  • Given Name Reveal: During his visions of the past with the Three-Eyed Raven, Bran learns that Hodor was named Wylis as a child.
  • Giving Someone the Pointer Finger:
    • Joffrey points his fingers at people to substantiate his pathetic threats during the small council meeting in "Mhysa".
    • Oberyn points accusingly at Lord Tywin while demanding of the Mountain, "Who gave you the order?!"
  • Glad-to-Be-Alive Sex: Bronn recommends this to Tyrion after his first kill. Tyrion eyes Catelyn Stark (the only woman for miles) and snarks, "I'm willing if she is."
  • Glass Weapon: The White Walkers can be killed with daggers made of dragonglass (obsidian, which is a volcanic glass).
  • Glorified Sperm Donor: Noblemen are expected to be this to their bastard children, who are commonly just left with their mothers or fostered by another family. That Ned and Oberyn avert this is considered remarkable, and even brings down the ire of Ned's wife.
  • The Glorious War of Sisterly Rivalry: Sansa and Arya Stark. Sansa is popular, courtly, and fashionable, but Thinks Like a Romance Novel. Arya lacks manners and polish, but is more Street Smart. You cannot leave them alone without both finding ways to hurt the other — and then feel sorry about it later. However, four seasons apart and many years of harsh life lessons leave both of them the wiser and they treasure each other properly when they are reunited. They do make use of their reputation of having hated each other as children to out-manipulate a plot-master.
  • Glory Days: Robert still lives for the days when he was a powerful and victorious warrior and his beloved Lyanna was still alive. His brother Renly eventually calls him out for glorifying the bloody civil war that ripped the continent apart.
  • Glowing Eyelights of Undeath: The White Walkers and their wights have eyes that glow a frosty blue.
  • God Is Evil: Davos accuses the Lord of Light of being evil when he lashes out at Melisandre. Assuming that her acts (including human sacrifices) are something that the Lord approves of, he may be right.
  • God Save Us from the Queen!:
    • Cersei is very unpleasant and petty person who shows a snobbish disdain and lack of consideration for the common people. Come Season 6 finale, Cersei truly becomes Queen (not the former king's wife, the actual Queen sitting on the Iron Throne), by murdering (nearly) all of her enemies in an elaborate Batman Gambit, and by killing several named and lots of unnamed characters via wildfire, and even her son is Driven to Suicide. Long may she reign.
    • Near the end of Season 8, Daenerys violent tendencies get the upper hand, causing her to burn King's Landing to the ground, killing tens of thousands of innocents and becoming as bad as her father the Mad King.
    • Lysa Arryn is the paranoid and neurotic Lady of the Vale.
  • Godzilla Threshold:
    • The reason the wildlings are banding together to attack the Seven Kingdoms for the first time in living memory is because there are fucking ice zombies coming for them.
    • In "The Children," Cersei informs Tywin that she is content to burn their House to the ground before she will let her son be taken from her.
    • Tyrion comes up with the wildfire trap to deploy against Stannis's forces since they far outnumber what King's Landing has, even though he knows it will kill thousands of invaders who have no way of defending themselves from it.
    • Invoked in so many words by Tywin when he justifies the Red Wedding to Tyrion as an action that, although it crossed the Moral Event Horizon, effectively ended a war and prevented many deaths that might otherwise have occurred without it, implicitly contrasting it with the wildfire Tyrion deployed, unsucessfully, which claimed thousands of lives until Tywin and the Lannister cavalry arrived.
    • At Melisandre's urging, Stannis is willing to sacrifice his own daughter to the Lord of Light to break the bad weather that keeps him from attacking Winterfell.
    • While Cersei has always shown a willingness to have people killed if it was necessary to serve her interests, the scale at which she did so with the Green Trial—killing just about every other major character who was in the King's Landing arc at the time, as well as many more unnamed ones, with a wildfire explosion that also destroyed the Sept of Baelor, significantly the only other major landmark of the King's Landing skyline besides the Red Keep—shows how drastically she saw the situation she was in.
    • In Season 7, Jon tells the assembled Lords of the North that the White Walker threat is so serious that women must be trained in combat as well. Becomes even more of one when you remember that the reason women aren't allowed to fight isn't just misogyny, but their ability to carry children as well as stay home and raise the ones too young to fight: Jon is risking the future of every family in the North because he knows all too well that they'll die for certain if he doesn't.
    • Subverted by Cersei, who tells Danaerys and Jon that she'll ally with them against the White Walkers, but reveals later to Jaime that she has no intention of actually doing so.
    • In "The Bells", Dany uses her remaining dragon to attack King's Landing, which she had previously said she wouldn't do because of the likely civilian casualties, because she's that desperate to win the war against Cersei as soon as possible after Missandei's execution, Rhaegar's death and Jorah's death have left her out with only Grey Worm as her longest-term confidant.
  • Go-Go Enslavement: Missandei dresses more conservatively once she enters Daenerys' service, implying that her earlier Fanservice wardrobe was due to this.
  • Going Commando: Theon pays Ros for one last look at whats under her skirt and she only has to raise it to show him.
  • Going Native:
    • Daenerys goes native among the Dothraki, though their Rape, Pillage, and Burn traditions still repulse her.
    • Sansa's hairstyle grows more elaborate during Season 1 as she adapts to life in the south.
    • Jon Snow pretends to go native when he joins the wildlings and gains a lot of insight into them in the process. Tormund Giantsbane even suggests Jon will never be a true "kneeler" again.
    • Mance Rayder grew up in the Night's Watch but eventually went native among the wildlings and rose to be their king.
    • Jaime snarks that Catelyn has become a real she-wolf (House Stark) rather than a fish (House Tully).
  • Gold Digger:
    • Jorah Mormont sold slaves to support his expensive wife, who left him when the money ran out.
    • Bronn marries Lollys Stokeworth for her claim, openly admitting to Tyrion that the elder sister who currently stands to inherit might suffer a riding accident.
  • Gold Makes Everything Shiny: The Lannisters favor golden ornamentation, but it's frequently mentioned that objects like Jaime's hand are the more practical gilded steel rather than solid gold.
  • Gold–Silver–Copper Standard: Westeros uses golden dragons, silver stags, and copper stars as currency.
  • Gondor Calls for Aid:
    • In response to his father's imprisonment and the Lannister invasion of the Riverlands, Robb Stark calls all the Stark bannermen to assemble for war.
    • Maester Aemon and Sam draft letters imploring all the factions of Westeros to help the Night's Watch stand against the White Walker's march on the Wall. Stannis answers.
    • Jon also sees letting the wildlings through the Wall as a step towards uniting so they can all fight the Walkers together.
  • Gone Horribly Right:
    • Dany struggles to convince Drogo to conquer the Seven Kingdoms for their son, but when Drogo finally agrees he basically plans to Rape, Pillage, and Burn the entire continent and Dany's later aversion to the same tactics used merely to pay for transport show that she has no taste for Dothraki warfare.
    • Cersei does everything in her power to ensure Joffrey sits the Iron Throne. Needless to say, most of Westeros has her to thank for the reign of King Joffrey.
    • The masters of Astapor created the Unsullied to be the best soldiers in the world and utterly loyal to whoever owns them. Then, Daenerys takes control of them and turns them on their former masters.
    • Littlefinger tutors Sansa in his political skills. She learns so well that she's able to destroy him with his own tools.
  • Good Angel, Bad Angel:
    • Davos and Melisandre constantly vie for influence over Stannis. It's even invoked visually in "Mhysa" when both are left in the background of a close-up of Stannis, one over each shoulder, with Melisandre in her rich red robes and Davos in his humble grey roughspun.
    • A similar shot was also used for Ned contemplating going south in "Winter is Coming," with Catelyn and Maester Luwin arguing the two ambiguous choices.
    • Maester Luwin and Dagmer are this for Theon in Season 2, and unfortunately Dagmer tends to win.
  • The Good Chancellor:
    • Ned Stark struggles constantly to get King Robert to do good, sensible, moral things and to mitigate the damage whenever his advice is ignored. He also tries to reduce the realm's debt and orders the execution of a band of psychopathic marauders led by Gregor Clegane.
    • Jon Arryn is generally agreed to have given the kingdom 17 good years, but even he struggled to rein in Robert's spending.
    • Tyrion serves as a much needed one to Joffrey during his brief but brilliant stint as acting Hand in Season 2. In no small part, the Lannister banner is sustained by his skill at administration and his ability to stare down Joffrey's cruelty, subvert Cersei's incompetence, and prepare the city for the inevitable siege. Varys even commends him as better than Ned Stark or Jon Arryn because he enjoys rather than disdains the game of thrones.
    • Tywin Lannister served as Hand to the Mad King for twenty stable and prosperous years, which ended almost immediately upon his dismissal. He takes up the position again in Season 3 and stabilizes the Lannister regime by cowing his sadistic grandson and his quarrelsome children.
    • Davos serves as this to Stannis Baratheon, which helps counterbalance the influence Melisandre has on him.
  • Good Cop/Bad Cop:
    • Cersei and the small council use this trope to manipulate Sansa, with Pycelle insisting that treason must be punished while the other councillors act firm but supportive.
    • Theon's temporary escape turns out to be a very twisted version of this, as the deception leads the target to give up information the interrogator would never have thought to ask about.
    • There is no hint of it being deliberate but during Littlefinger's interrogation in "The Mountain and the Viper," Lord Royce is relentless while Lady Waynwood remains reserved and polite.
  • Good Is Not Dumb: Ned Stark's decisions are often dismissed as just being Honor Before Reason, but there are often very good reasons for his choices.
    • He doesn't back Renly's bid for the throne, but replacing one false king with another would certainly require winning a war and Renly is a bureaucrat with no combat experience. Sure enough, Renly does nothing but divide the forces against the Lannisters.
    • He offers Cersei time to flee before he informs Robert of her infidelity, but as the lover of a notorious kingslayer and the daughter of one of the most powerful warlords in the realm, letting Robert bludgeon her and her children to death in a fit of rage isn't really an option either.
  • Good Is Not Nice: The world is black and grey partially because of this trope.
    • When Sandor Clegane accuses her of being too soft for wanting to spare the peddler they just robbed, Arya beats the recovering man unconscious again.
    • Brienne kills a rapist northman with a vindictive Groin Attack.
    • Jon Snow shows up his lowborn fellow recruits with his superior combat skills until Tyrion sets him straight by pointing out Jon's privileged upbringing to him, which makes Jon realize how rough the other recruits had it, resulting in Jon teaching them how to fight properly. In season 3, after a battle to the death with Orell, he kills him by literally twisting the knife as he tells Orell that he was right all along, he has always been loyal to the Night's Watch.
    • After her attempted hostage exchange fails, Catelyn Stark slits her captive's throat just because she said she would.
  • Good Is Not Soft: Despite being a loving husband and father, Ned Stark is among the most stoic, brave, and righteous lords in the realm.
  • The Good King: Deconstructed and subverted. Many characters aspire to be good kings, but playing the game of thrones always seems to force them into making dishonorable choices or putting them in a Morton's Fork where they cannot help but do bad things or cause bad things to happen. Cersei notes in "First of His Name" that Tommen has the potential to be the first of these in fifty years, and judging by his ideals of monarchy (holiness, justice, strength, and wisdom) she could well be right.
  • Good Old Ways:
    • The Starks still keep to the traditions of the First Men: strength, honor, justice, bravery, and faith in the old gods.
    • Inverted by the ironborn, such as Balon Greyjoy, who seek to return to the Old Way of reaving, raping, and enslaving.
    • Inverted by Ramsay Snow, who lauds himself as a man of tradition for bringing back the ancient art of Flaying Alive.
  • Good Samaritan: Davos the smuggler braved the waters of Shipbreaker Bay to deliver food to the starving men inside Storm's End. Their commander Stannis Baratheon knighted him for it.
  • Good Scars, Evil Scars:
    • Jon has some photogenic talon scars around his eyes, befitting his status as a sympathetic action hero.
    • The slash Tyrion receives across his face is downplayed from the source material both for practical reasons and to keep him looking sympathetic.
    • The Thenns are characterized by their bald heads and scary, ornamental scars that make them look Obviously Evil, which they are.
  • Good Versus Good:
    • Catelyn tries to avoid this by proposing that Stannis and Renly join forces against the Lannisters. Unfortunately, both brothers are unyielding in their quest to be king.
    • The fight between Brienne and the Hound is this, and all the more tragic for being brought on by their equal determination to protect the same person.
  • Go Out with a Smile: Ygritte dies in Jon's arms with a faint smile and one last utterance of her catch phrase. It's still visible on her face even as Jon lights her funeral pyre.
  • Gory Discretion Shot: Averted constantly and inverted in-universe, where characters like the Stark children are frequently forced to witness gruesome things they'd rather look away from. This helps increase the horror and drama when the trope it is played straight:
    • During Ned Stark's execution the camera cuts away for dramatic effect before any blood is visible.
    • It says a lot about how gruesome Ser Rodrik's execution must have been that we only see the executioner hacking before the head is kicked away.
    • Brienne's punitive Groin Attack (or possibly Ass Shove) on a northman rapist is left totally out of shot.
    • Grey Wind's death at the Red Wedding is conveyed by a shot of archers going up to his cage and shooting into it; we don't hear a sound.note 
    • The audience is spared the sight of Theon's dick-in-a-box, content with just his family's Reaction Shot.
    • Ramsay's victim Tansy in "The Lion and the Rose" receives a Sound-Only Death comprised of screams, snarls, and ripping sounds.
    • Ramsay's own death by hounds.
    • Zig-zagged with Jojen Reed's death. The wight stabbing him is plain to see, but the subsequent Mercy Kill focuses on the Reaction Shot. With his corpse destroyed by Leaf's fire bomb.
    • The Mountains gruesome killing of Oberyn, by crushing his head like a melon with his bare hands.
    • In the Season 5 finale, we're treated to a Smash Cut right before Brienne lands the fatal blow on Stannis.
  • Go to Your Room!:
    • Ned sends Arya to her room when she misbehaves in "Lord Snow". She's arguing with Sansa and is disrespectful to their Septa.
    • Tyrion notes with some amusement that Lord Tywin has managed to send the king of Westeros to bed without supper in "Mhysa".
  • Grammar Nazi:
    • Stannis Baratheon corrects Davos Seaworth on the usage of "less" versus "fewer" when Davos is talking about his own severed fingertips. It overlaps with Grammar Correction Gag since it was Stannis who cut them off. There's a Call-Back in the season 5 episode "Kill the Boy" where a Night's Watchman makes the same error and Stannis mutters the same correction to himself. There's another Call-Back in the season 7 episode "The Spoils of War" when Davos corrects Jon Snow.
    • Tyrion corrects Cersei's word usage several times. "Plots" and "schemes" are the same thing!
    • Tywin deduces that Arya is a highborn girl when she calls him "my lord" instead of "m'lord." She quickly covers by claiming her mother was a handmaiden who taught her to speak "proper... properly!"
  • Gratuitous Iambic Pentameter: Although probably unintentional, Daenerys concludes a banishment with a rhyming couplet:
    If you're found in Meereen past break of day,
    I'll have your head thrown into Slaver's Bay.
  • Gratuitous Rape: The show is rather famous for its Fanservice, but it's also infamous for its copious quantities of rape. Sometimes it transforms consenting scenes into rapes (Daenerys and Drogo's first time, or Jaime and Cersei in Breaker of Chains), or just throws in extra rapes for the hell of it.
  • Graying Morality: The series manages an inversion. Like the books it is based on it generally started out as a Grey-and-Grey Morality deconstruction of fantasy, showing that no character is really good or evil and war is a murky affair at best. With few exceptions there's not really any fighting for the greater good or justice, only dynastic interests. Over time, the main characters are forced to deal with purely evil villains, almost to the point where the series becomes closer to Black-and-White Morality. Many characters experience changes to their personalities to make them more clearly heroic or villainous, also adding the appearance of an Always Chaotic Evil faction that has been foreshadowed since the start of the show.
  • Gray-and-Grey Morality: While the morals of characters range from light grey to black , many characters are morally ambiguous. Sympathetic characters are often depicted on both sides of conflicts, such as Tyrion and Davos being on opposite sides of the Battle of Blackwater.
  • The Greatest Story Never Told:
    • When The Cavalry reaps all the credit for rescuing King's Landing, Tyrion (who was pivotal in holding off the attackers until they arrived) is left feeling unappreciated until Varys points out that some men will never forget.
    • Jaime Lannister never told anyone (except Brienne) that the real reason he killed his king was to prevent him from incinerating the entire city and killing half a million people out of spite.
  • Great Offscreen War: A few, including the Greyjoy Rebellion and the Targaryen Conquest, but the most important is the war seventeen years ago in which Robert Baratheon overthrew the Mad King and drove the last Targaryens into exile.
  • Greed: Zig-zagged with Locke, who refuses Jaime's attempt to bribe him but also refuses Brienne's ransom because it's not enough.
  • Greek Fire: Wildfire is a creepy green type of fire that never goes out and is used to destroy Stannis' fleet in the Battle of Blackwater. Later Cersei uses to blow up the Great Sept of Baelor, killing everyone in it.
  • Green-Eyed Monster:
    • Shae isn't happy to hear Tyrion was once a client of Ros, or that he (like all men) finds Sansa Stark attractive.
    • Jorah Mormont bristles whenever another man (particularly Daario) gets close to Daenerys.
    • Jon reveals in "Two Swords" that he always felt his half-brother Robb was more skilled than him at most things but he could never bring himself to hate him, as Jon loved him as his brother. Sam, in turn, confesses he feels this same way about Jon, who he loves as his best friend.
    • When Ramsay's floozy Myranda gets jealous of another girl, he helps her hunt and kill the offending girl with hounds and bows.
    • Cersei becomes a full-fledged Clingy Jealous Girl when confronting Brienne about her Fire Forged Friendship with Jaime.
  • Grim Up North: The North is colder, harsher, and less populated than the south. The lands of the wildlings beyond the Wall are even worse, and beyond that is the wintry abode of the White Walkers: the Lands of Always Winter.
  • Grin of Rage: * Sandor Clegane does this to Polliver in the fourth season premier when he starts to really get pissed off. After Polliver tries to trade a chicken for Arya with the Hound, Sandor just quietly stares at him for a moment, with a small crooked grin. Before this point, Sandor was content to avoid a fight with Polliver's men, but after Polliver revealed his intent to assault Arya, that smile pretty much confirmed that Sandor was going to rip them all apart.
  • Groin Attack:
    • Brienne drives her sword through the crotch of a murdering rapist northman in "Valar Morghulis."
    • Varys recalls that he was ritually castrated against his will by a sorcerer as a child.
    • In "The Bear and the Maiden Fair," Ramsay castrates Theon.
    • Melisandre puts a leech on Gendry's groin to extract his royal blood. When the leech is removed, he screams like mad.
    • To protect Sansa from further abuse, Tyrion threatens that if Joffrey does it again he will have to fuck his bride with a wooden cock.
    • In "Two Swords," the Hound parries one opponent's sword into another's groin. Screams ensue.
    • In "The Children", Brienne and the Hound kick each other in the groin during their Combat Breakdown.
    • An Ironborn tries it three times on Theon during an Asskicking Leads to Leadership brawl. Theon is able to No-Sell it because of his earlier experience with this trope.
  • Grumpy Old Man: Lord Rickard Karstark, especially after his son Torrhen's death.
  • The Guards Must Be Crazy:
    • The Eyrie's jailor Mord is so thick that even a Lannister struggles to bribe his way out.
      "Sometimes possession is an abstract concept..."
    • Jaime Lannister manages to escape by baiting the only guard by killing his cellmate.
    • Averted by Brienne, who insists on keeping the talking to a minimum and watching Jaime take a piss. She eventually makes the mistake of getting too close, but it takes weeks.
  • Guile Hero:
    • Tyrion definitely fights best with his mind.
    • Robb Stark is the military version. Massively outnumbered, he is forced to use masterful tactics and strategies to defeat his enemies. His successes move him into Young Conqueror territory until he is Out-Gambitted.
    • Arya Stark uses her wits to force a skilled assassin to help her escape Harrenhal.
    • Sansa Stark, as a glorified prisoner in King's Landing, is forced to lie and play nice in order to survive.
    • Davos Seaworth uses charisma, honesty, and diplomacy to bring allies to the cause of his king.
    • After losing his sword hand, Jaime is forced to rely on his wits and cunning to achieve his desires, such as playing on Steelshanks' sense of self-preservation to help him rescue Brienne.
  • Guilt-Free Extermination War: The "War for Dawn" and the "Long Night", which occurred thousands of years in the past, was fought between the King of the North and the White Walkers and their undead army. It ended in a defeat for the Walkers and forced them to retreat back to their arctic homeland, but they eventually return for another war against the living. There's literally no possibility of a truce and this war will only end when one side is completely obliterated, since the White Walkers are essentially a Living Weapon gone wrong and their only purpose is to kill every man, woman, and child.
  • Guilty Until Someone Else Is Guilty: Cersei is completely convinced that Tyrion poisoned Joffrey, her son. Once Olenna confesses to Jaime that she killed Joffrey and Jaime tells his sister, Cersei finally realizes Tyrion is innocent.
  • Gut Punch: The episodes "Baelor", "The Rains of Castamere", "The Mountain and the Viper", and "Mother's Mercy" all end with these. The second of these quickly gained a well-deserved reputation as one of the biggest gut punches in television history.
  • Guy Liner:
    • Khal Drogo and the other Dothraki men have lots of this.
    • The Yunkai'i envoy Razdahl mo Eraz has this, which is common in arid regions for coping with the bright sun.
    • Euron Greyjoy sports a little, but it doesn't seem to help him with the sun much.

    H 
  • Had to Be Sharp:
    • Northmen are of this opinion about their homeland. By the same token, the wildlings beyond the Wall see even the northmen as soft, pampered southerners because to them, anything south of the Wall is the south.
      Tormund: Down south, the air smells like pigshit.
      Jon: You've never been down south.
      Tormund: I've been to Winterfell.
      Jon: That's the North.
    • The Ironborn have a cultural superiority complex based on this: "Hard places breed hard men, and hard men rule the world."
  • Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold: Tommen and Myrcella are sweet, innocent children despite all the negative influences around them.
  • Hair-Trigger Temper:
    • Joffrey reacts with insane fury whenever some he sees as beneath him (and believes cannot fight back) acts in a way he considers out of line, such as other children not cowering before their prince, peasants pelting him with manure, or advisors pointing out the obvious flaws in his plans.
    • The Mountain's response to losing a tourney is to behead his mount and attack the winner before hundreds of witnesses. He also melted his little brother's face in a brazier for stealing one of his toys.
    • Oberyn Martell has one, but unleashes it in an atypically calm and collected way.
  • Hand-or-Object Underwear: Missandei covers herself with her arms when she catches Grey Worm watching her bathe in "The Mountain and the Viper".
  • Handsome Lech: Theon Greyjoy has a tendency to pursue any woman he thinks will have him, up to and including his sister, until he finds out.
  • Hands-On Approach:
    • Margaery prompts Joffrey to show her how to use a crossbow as a means of flirting with him.
    • Daario uses Daenerys' finger to point out the postern gate he means to use to infiltrate Yunkai.
  • Hand Wave: Jaime notes, "I never understood why some knights felt the need to carry two swords," as a handwave for why Brienne has a second sword to oppose him after he steals one. In the books, the sword came from his other escort Cleos Frey, who was Adapted Out.
  • Hangover Sensitivity: Tyrion winces when Shae slams down the breakfast tray the morning after his wedding.
  • Happily Married:
    • Ned and Catelyn Stark seem to be genuinely in love in a world where most marriages (including their own) are arranged for political reasons.
    • Khal Drogo and Daenerys also form a surprising bond.
    • Margaery and Tommen also count; they have a warm and congenial relationship, albeit manipulative on her side. It also strays into Questionable Consent territory because of his being a fourteen-year-old boy.
  • Happiness in Slavery:
    • Although they enjoy their new-found personal autonomy, the Unsullied seem to struggle with the idea of not serving anyone and continue to serve Daenerys in exactly the same capacity they would have if she hadn't freed them. Likewise, many freed slaves from Yunkai immediately hail her as their savior and enter her service.
    • After Dany abolishes slavery in Meereen, an elderly freedman petitions for permission to sell himself back to his old master, explaining that as a tutor he was well-treated and respected but now he's just a feeble old beggar in a Wretched Hive of unemployed freedmen. Disturbed, Daenerys grants him the right to sell himself back to his master, but only for one year, which Ser Barristan cautions will soon lead to Loophole Abuse. No one thinks of employment, rather than slavery (even temporary).
  • Harmful to Minors: So much, especially for the Starks.
    • Ten-year-old Bran Stark is defenestrated for witnessing some incestuous adultery in the first episode, which sets the tone for the rest of the series. He later loses his father and his home and sees his mentors Rodrik, Luwin, and Jojen killed.
    • Arya Stark's years as a constant witness to combat, murder, torture, and other war atrocities take a heavy toll on her morals and worldview. Finally, after being abused, abandoned, misled, or otherwise let down by nearly everyone she meets, she decides that the only person she can rely on in a Crapsack World is herself.
    • Sansa Stark endures years of physical, emotional, and sexual abuse and harassment, including nearly being gang raped by an angry mob. Even after her escape from King's Landing, she is subject to death threats and unsolicited sexual advances.
    • Rickon, the youngest Stark, sees nearly everyone and everything he's ever known killed, destroyed, or taken from him before he is sent away as a Noble Fugitive under the protection of barbarian fighting woman Osha.
  • Has a Type:
  • Hate Sink: In this world of Black-and-Grey Morality, the truly evil characters are made just to be hated:
    • Joffrey Baratheon is a psychopathic royal brat who spends so much time plumbing the depths of his sadism, usually at Tyrion or Sansa's expense, that hatred for him has taken on memetic proportions and even In-Universe the only person who values him is his own mother.
    • The snide and ill-tempered Walder Frey, who betrays and murders most of the Stark faction by violating Sacred Hospitality, which his backers are perfectly content to let him take the blame for and thereby become a In-Universe hate sink.
    • Pyschopatic Torture Technician Ramsay Snow is easily a frontrunner for the most depraved character in the series and manages to make a widely-disliked character sympathetic simply by victimizing him.
    • Ser Meryn Trant gives the viewers ample opportunity to hate him by beating and stripping Sansa, leaving to die in a riot because he wasn’t ordered by Joffrey to help her, to being a pedophile and a bad fighter. In short, he is the embodiment of what any knight, let alone a Kingsguard, should not be.
  • Hates Small Talk: Cersei has zero appreciation for the art of conversation.
    • Stannis doesn’t make any attempt to engage in talking about off topic subjects.
  • Have You Told Anyone Else?: Subtly alluded to when Ser Barristan keeps his hand on his sword while chivalrously forewarning Jorah Mormont of the damning evidence against him and specifically mentioning that he hasn't told anyone else yet.
  • Haunted Castle:
    • The Histories and Lore bonus material explains that Harrenhal has always had a sinister repute and that every family to hold it has met with misfortune. This holds mostly true even in the present day: Janos Slynt was banished and later executed, Locke had his neck broken by a Bran-controlled Hodor, Gregor Clegane was gravely wounded (it is unclear if the show's version was brought back from the dead as Ser Robert Strong apparently was or merely returned from the brink), Robb Stark, Tywin Lannister, and Roose Bolton were murdered, Littlefinger is eventually executed for all his myriad crimes by Arya at Sansa's order.
    • The Nightfort, where Bran and company pass the Wall, is supposedly haunted by the Rat Cook, who violated Sacred Hospitality.
  • Hazy-Feel Turn: The Tyrells join with the Lannisters to defeat Stannis Baratheon and keep King Joffrey on the throne.
  • Headbutt of Love: Dany and Drogo do this in the House of the Undying, presumably because kissing him would risk sinking too far into the fantasy.
  • Head Crushing: Gregor Clegane kills Oberyn Martell in their duel by crushing the man's head like a grape in his bare hands
  • Heal It With Fire: Fire and hot irons are a common disinfection method, which gets discussed when noted pyrophobe Sandor Clegane begins to suffer an infection because he refused this treatment.
  • Hearing Voices: Renly describes Aerys II as doing this, though he himself is far to young to know first-hand.
  • Heartbroken Badass: Robb and Jon both suffer this after their lovers die before their eyes.
  • Heart Is an Awesome Power: Think being fire-proof isn't much of a superpower? Wait until you see the epic ways Daenerys uses it.
  • Heart Is Where the Home Is: Inverted and Played for Drama. Robb breaks his betrothal to one of Walder Frey's Westerosi daughters to marry Volantene-born Talisa Maegyr. This doesn't end well; Walder is furious at Robb for breaking their pact, some of Robb's bannermen disparage Talisa as a "foreign whore" and it all culminates in both Robb and Talisa being murdered by the Freys at the Red Wedding.
  • The Hedonist:
    • King Robert lives for the immediate gratification of food, drink, whores, and combat.
    • Oberyn Martell spends most of his leisure time in King's Landing sampling the delights of the best brothel.
  • Heel–Face Door-Slam: Believing he has caught a break from the universe deservedly shitting on him, Theon confesses and laments the wrongs he committed during the previous season, setting him up for possible redemption, only for the entire escape to be revealed as a sham and the torture to be intensified.
  • Heel–Faith Turn: Although he was already a priest, Thoros of Myr did not believe his own religion and spent his time drinking and whoring. Then his prayers resurrected Beric Dondarrion. Unfortunately, his newfound belief leads him to sell Gendry to Melisandre because he is convinced it is his god's will.
    • During his brief appearance in Season 6, Brother Ray seems to have undergone this, based on his own account of his past as an amoral knight who followed orders no matter how horrific they were.
  • Heir Club for Men: All the noble families seen thus far practice male-preferential primogeniture: the eldest living son inherits, but a daughter can make do if there are no sons. However, according to Septa Mordane, the Iron Throne can only go to the closest male relative. In spite of this, Stannis names his daughter Shireen (his only child) as his heir.
  • He Knows Too Much:
    • The series kicks off with the Starks receiving a letter stating that Jon Arryn was murdered which they decide was due to this trope.
    • Bran is defenestrated for seeing too much, even if he doesn't completely understand what he saw.
    • Dontos Hollard receives a crossbow bolt because he cannot be trusted with a secret.
  • Held Gaze:
  • Hell-Bent for Leather: Tywin and Jaime wear black and grey leather Badass Leather Longcoats.
  • Hellhole Prison:
    • The Eyrie has cells with sloping floors and a massive drop instead of a fourth wall.
    • The Black Cells beneath the Red Keep are so called because they seldom see the light of even a torch.
    • During his captivity, Jaime Lannister is kept chained to a post in a roofless pen without so much as a pail to shit in. He later points this out to his brother, Tyrion, whose cell is rather spacious and comfortable by comparison.
  • Hell Is That Noise: Theon is tormented by incessant horn blowing on multiple occasions.
  • Helmets Are Hardly Heroic: Despite the prevalence of armour in the setting, helmets are typically only worn by extras to help viewers identify important characters, see them emote, and hear what they're saying. George R.R. Martin comments on this trope at some length in his DVD Commentary for "Blackwater", since he took pains to avert the trope in the novels and describes himself as a long-time advocate of "put on your helmet, knights." Notable examples include:
    • Brienne wears her helmet for her Samus Is a Girl introduction and during Renly's parley with Stannis, but never again. The impressive new armour she receives in Season 4 even lacks a helmet completely.
    • Tyrion dons a helmet to lead a counterattack on the Blackwater (though he fights with his visor open) and only removes it when he thinks they've won, which turns out to be a mistake when he is wounded in the face during a counterattack.
    • Janos Slynt wears the helmet of a Gold Cloak to remind the audience of his position, but his lacks the chainmail face-covering and is generally carried under his arm if he has any important dialogue. Once he's established as a lord, he ditches it completely.
    • Grey Worm is introduced wearing the same helmet as the other Unsullied, but has not worn one since.
    • Tyrion urges Oberyn to wear a helmet before his duel in "The Mountain and the Viper," but Oberyn dismisses this, preferring to stay mobile, vigilant, and able to shout a lot. One of his first moves is also to knock off his opponent's helm.
    • Of note, the costume designers said that they did try to include helmets, hats, and hooded cloaks for characters early on, with the probably predictable result of it being nearly impossible to tell characters apart in the filmed result, especially in wide shots. This was especially bad for the Night's Watch, since they were all uniformly wearing black. Leaving out head coverings is apparently simply a necessary medium adaptation.
  • The Help Helping Themselves: When Cersei was nine, she had her guards beat a servant girl (who was also nine) until she lost an eye for the crime of stealing a necklace. Tyrion is notably disgusted by this.
  • Here There Were Dragons: The Targaryens once ruled Westeros from the backs of their dragons, but by the start of the series dragons have been extinct for over a century. Their skulls are kept as heirlooms, their bones are used in things like dagger hilts, and their fossilized eggs are priceless curiosities. That is until Daenerys hatches three dragons at the end of Season 1.
  • The Hero: In a series infamous for its moral ambiguity, there are several characters such as Davos, Ned, and Brienne who are genuinely heroic, and a few who, though a bit more cynical, fit the mold for classic fantasy heroes.
    • Robb Stark is noble, kind, and a natural leader who fights for independence and justice.
    • Daenerys Targaryen is intelligent, kind, charismatic, and a natural leader who fights for the freedom of the oppressed, though her treatment of those she views as evil can be harsh to say the least.
    • Stannis Baratheon serves as a deconstruction. He is just, dutiful, and the rightful heir to the Baratheon dynasty, but his staunch commitment to duty and utter lack of charisma make him cold at best and villainous at worst. Despite apparently being The Chosen One, he commands the smallest faction, which drives him to assassinate his younger brother and submit to Melisandre's Toxic Friend Influence.
    • Lord Beric Dondarrion, leader of the Brotherhood Without Banners is a subversion. One of the most altruistic characters in the show, he fights for the smallfolk by killing and stealing from the armies occupying in the Riverlands, but he is also willing to do anything in service his cause and his new god, including holding Arya Stark for ransom and betraying Gendry to Melisandre.
    • Jon Snow emerges as perhaps the straightest example after some serious Character Development. After serving under Jeor Mormont, Qhorin Halfhand, and the wildlings, he emerges as a skilled warrior, a natural leader, and a dutiful man committed to his vows with a strong moral code and sense of justice that earns the admiration of his fellow brothers.
    • One more tricky example is Margaery Tyrell. While she is very ambitious and willing to use others to get her means, she is also a genuinely good person that cares about the smallfolk and her family. She becomes the main protagonist in King's Landing in seasons 5 and 6, with Cersei and later the High Sparrow as her antagonists.
  • The Hero Dies:
    • Robb Stark, son of Lord Eddard Stark, meets his end in the third season. Unlike the source novels, where Robb is only a significant secondary character, the show gives him considerably more exposure and screentime, putting him in the top five central characters of a wide ensemble series, and making his death that much more unexpected and tragic.
    • Done first with Ned Stark himself, who was the central character for the bulk of the first season before being killed in the penultimate episode.
    • By Season 5, Jon Snow is pretty much the Big Good of the series, and the closest thing to The Hero that it has. He is murdered at the end of the season by a few of his own Night's Watch Brothers (lead by his Arch-Enemy Ser Alliser Thorne) in a mutiny, though ultimately his death is one of the very few in the series that does not stick, as he is revived by Melisandre in early Season 6.
    • By season 6, done again with Margaery Tyrell, which served the last 4 seasons (especially seasons 5 and 6, after Sansa and Tyrion left the city) as the protagonist in the King's Landing storyline, against Cersei Lannister, and the High Sparrow. The show spends 4 seasons building the feud between her and Cersei, and the entire season building up her secret plan to thrawt the High Sparrow, only for her to be killed abruptly by wildfire in Cersei's final scheme (and because of the High Sparrow's stupidity), resulting in Cersei finally winning.
  • Heroes Love Dogs: The direwolf is the sigil of House Stark and each member of the newest generation (Robb, Jon, Sansa, Arya, Bran and Rickon) receive one as a pet.
  • Heroes Prefer Swords: Most combatant characters wield swords whether they are heroic or not, but heroes Ned, Jon, Arya, and Brienne all play it straight with their swords Ice, Longclaw, Needle, and Oathkeeper. Meanwhile, Joffrey invokes this trope as propaganda by wearing elaborate swords even though he constantly runs from combat. Averted by Heroic Bastard Gendry, who prefers hammers.
  • Heroic Ambidexterity: At the Battle of Winterfell, Arya Stark seemingly fails to ambush the Night King, as he grabs her in a choke hold just as she is about to lunge at him. Just as the Night King seems to have her at his mercy, Arya drops her Valyrian steel knife to her other (lowered) hand, which she then uses to thrust the blade into his belly.
  • Heroic Bastard: Jon Snow and Gendry. Averted for Jon Snow in Season 7 when he is revealed to be the hidden trueborn child of Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark.
  • Heroic BSoD:
    • Catelyn Stark has one after her son Bran's fall and another when her son Robb is killed in front of her, after which she kills her hostage by reflex and just stares into nothing until her own throat is cut.
    • When Ned Stark realizes he's compromised his honour for nothing and his daughters will have to witness his execution. When he sees Arya has gone, he calms down some to Face Death with Dignity.
    • Sansa suffers one during her father's execution and another after the Red Wedding.
    • Robb has one after his wife and unborn child are killed before his eyes. .
    • After losing his hand, Jaime completely shuts down, attempts to make his captors kill him, and refuses to eat until Brienne snaps him out of it.
    • Daenerys has one when a shepherd presents her with the burnt bones of his daughter.
    • Tyrion suffers one after finding Shae in Tywin's bed.
    • Cersei suffers a villainous version when Daenerys attacks King's Landing on Drogon. She watches from the Red Keep in a daze and has to be persuaded by Qyburn to try to flee.
  • Heroic Sacrifice:
    • In "The Pointy End," after urging Sansa to flee, Septa Mordane confronts the bloody swords of their attackers with forced tranquility. Unfortunately, they are only delayed momentarily.
    • Syrio Forel defends Arya and holds off the attackers long enough for her to make good her escape.
    • Theon assures Robb that the two thousand men he sent to their death on the Green Fork was this, but Robb is still uncomfortable with it.
    • Yoren refuses to surrender any of his charges and goes down fighting for them.
    • Grenn and his chosen men die defending the tunnel through the Wall against the giant Mag the Mighty.
    • In "Hardhome":Thenn warrior Loboda, having earlier spurned Jon's offer of alliance, faces off against a White Walker to give Jon time to retrieve valuable dragonglass from the burning hut. But despite Lobada's sacrifice, Jon fails to get the dragonglass and only survives the battle because of his Valyrian Steel sword, Longclaw.
    • In "The Door," Summer, Leaf and Hodor all die to save Bran from the attacking wights.
  • Heroic Second Wind: Brienne gets one during her fight in "The Children."
  • Heroic Seductress:
    • Margaery Tyrell is sexy and she knows it, and she uses it to keep Joffrey from being too cruel.
    • Shae counts to some extent, being Tyrion's main emotional support.
    • Ros is skilled at using sex to get information, which she feeds to Varys, who uses it to keep Sansa away from Littlefinger.
    • Of Dany's many achievements, convincing an enemy to assassinate his co-commanders and join his forces with hers simply by being the sexiest woman he's ever met is pretty close to this. That she did it completely unintionally makes it more or less impressive, depending on your point of view.
  • Hero with Bad Publicity:
    • Quite a number of people consider themselves to be this, notably Jaime, Tyrion, and Stannis.
    • "The Door" reveals that Ned Stark is remembered (or at least lampooned) as a boorish yokel rather than a noble martyr.
  • Hero-Worshipper:
    • The depth of Alton Lannister's admiration for Jaime is apparent in his every word.
    • Jaime himself has nothing but awe and respect for Barristan Selmy, "an artist who only paints with red". This is not reciprocated by Selmy, who despises Jaime.
  • Heterosexual Life-Partners: Ned and Robert, Jon and Sam, Stannis and Davos.
  • He Who Fights Monsters:
    • In his youth, Robert Baratheon led a rebellion to depose the cruel and paranoid Mad King Aerys II, but as king he resorts to increasingly unsettling means to keep his own dynasty on the throne.
    • Daenerys believes so firmly in Slavery Is a Special Kind of Evil that she views any punishment she inflicts on the slave masters as justice.
    • Daenerys always was a bit too eager to resort to violence, even though her targets deserved it. Near the end of Season 8, her violent tendencies get out of control, causing her to burn King's Landing to the ground, killing tens of thousands of innocents and becoming as bad as her father.
  • Hidden Agenda Villain: The Night's King. He's leading a seemingly invincible army from the freezing and unknown Land of Always Winter after the failure of his first campaign millennia ago. For what? Simple conquest? Eradication of the human race? Fleeing something even worse? No one knows, and he's not telling anytime soon. We eventually are told his goal is to kill everyone and usher in a time of eternal night. What would happen after that is unclear though.
  • Hidden Depths:
    • People often dismiss Robert as a drunken fool, but in his moments of clarity Robert shows great insight into the growing factionalism within his realm and how a Dothraki invasion would put him in a Morton's Fork.
    • Khal Drogo is a brutal barbarian chieftain of a Proud Warrior Race who doesn't appear to have a concept of consent, but he's also capable of love and tenderness and has a fiercely protective streak.
    • Despite being a timid squire and then vain lackey, Lancel Lannister holds his own in battle and even after taking an arrow in the chest wants to escort Joffrey back to the city walls to hearten the wavering troops.
    • Yara Greyjoy shows genuine concern for Theon when trying to convince him to abandon Winterfell before it drags him to his doom.
    • Stannis proves himself a lead-from-the-front badass in "Blackwater."
    • Despite his jerkass exterior, Jaime is genuinely distraught by being so hated and is actually rather accepting of others in unconventional relationships.
    • Ros is dismissed by most as just a regular prostitute, but she is actually very perceptive and intelligent and can even read. By Season 3, both Varys and Littlefinger employ her as an aide and spy.
    • The only time in the series that Ramsay comes across as remotely human is when he mourns Myranda, talking to her corpse. Granted, as he says, she was probably the only other person he ever knew who shared his taste for sadism and depravity, and committing her body to his dogs like so many of his other victims may seem as if he hasn't been affected by her death ... but that might well have been exactly what she would have wanted him to do.
  • High-Class Call Girl: Ros is the go-to prostitute for highborn men in Winterfell and later works her way up to the Red Keep.
  • High-Pressure Blood: Gory scenes, particularly those meant to be shocking or horrific, commonly feature this. The Slashed Throats during the Red Wedding and Oberyn Martell's Your Head Asplode are notable examples.
  • High Turnover Rate: The Small Council and the office of Hand in particular become this during the series after nearly two decades of relative stability.
  • Hilariously Abusive Childhood: Joffrey getting slapped is a Running Gag for the first two seasons. It drops off as he matures and his insanity grows more dangerous.
  • Hired Help as Family:
    • The Starks are a major noble house in Westeros and their ancestors were Kings in the North. Their house has the best attitude in taking care of their common folks, fulfilling their Noblesse Oblige, and they feel strong attachment to their servants both from other noble houses or mere commoners.
      • All the Stark children love and respect Maester Luwin who is their teacher and acts like an adviser to Lord Stark. When Lord and Lady Stark leave Winterfell, he's shown to particularly care for 'little lords' Bran and Rickon and he acts like their parental substitute.
      • Osha is a captured woman of the Free Folk, grateful that her life has been spared and she's made work in Winterfell. She becomes extremely fond and very protective of the youngest two boys, Bran and Rickon. She says that Bran means the world to her, and Measter Luwin pleads with her to take care of them and protect them when they have to flee their home.
      • Hodor is a kindhearted simpleton who has served his whole life to the Starks and is extremely loyal. Despite his simple mind, he's one of the most trustworthy person taking care of the young Starks. The elder generation — Lord Eddard Stark — was shown to appreciate him and thinking of him as their peer, though Hodor's nan disapproved and told the noble siblings that he's no lord.
      • All the boys and tomboy Arya are shown to love and respect Ser Rodrik Cassel who taught them how to fight and use weapons. When Theon Greyjoy takes over their castle and wants to execute Rodrik, both youngest Stark boys have a major freak-out and plead with Theon to spare him.
      • Sansa Stark is the eldest daughter who is fond of Septa Mordane, her governess and tutor. Her septa is so loyal she gives up her life for Sansa.
      • Arya, the younger daughter, absolutely hero-worships her 'dancing master' Syrio Forel, a sword master hired to teach her fight properly. He gives up his life protecting her, and she swears revenge on his killers.
    • Princess Shireen, a daughter of King Stannis Baratheon, loves her father's Hand, Ser Davos Seaworth the Onion Knight. His position at court is very high (second after the King) but he was originally a pirate so other noble lords sneer at him. Not so sweet little princess Shireen. She teaches him how to read during his imprisonment, sneaking books to the jail and keeping him company. She's a lonely and sickly girl, separated from other people because she has a disfigured face. Her father is distant and busy with politics and the war, while her mother clearly resents Shireen, projecting on the girl her own disappointment with the failure to produce a son and heir. Davos however loves her as if she was his own child.
    • Missandei is a freed slave who becomes Queen Daenerys's handmaiden and then her closest adviser and personal friend. Since Daenerys has no other family member (that she knows of) alive, they're like sisters. Daenerys has other loyal servants who are quite close to her but her relationship with Missandei is special.
  • Hiss Before Fleeing: Ser Barristan meets Daenerys Targaryen in Astapor in Slaver's Bay and saves her from an assassination attempt by a member of the Warlocks of Qarth, preventing a venomous manticore (a scorpion-like creature) from harming her. The Warlock, disguised as a child, who gave Dany a ball with the manticore, hisses at them and runs away.
  • Historical Fantasy: Played with; while the setting is clearly fictional, Westeros and its history are pretty clearly inspired by real events in British history.
    • The First Men appear to be a kind of composite of the Celts and the Romans. They're the "native" people if you don't count the Children of the Forest, akin to how the Celts are perceived in Britain, while they built the most famous wall in Westeros, as the Romans did in Britain with Hadrian's wall.
    • The Andals are quite clearly based on the Anglo-Saxons. For example, they brought the "common tongue" to Westeros, as the Anglo-Saxons brought the ancestor of the English language to Britain, and they politically and culturally dominated much of the south of the continent to the point where "Andal" became shorthand for an inhabitant of Westeros even if some groups, like the Northerners, largely descended from the first men.
    • The Targaryens largely seem to be based on the Normans, with Aegon providing a close match for William the Conqueror, although the history of their Valyrian ancestors, the rulers of a once-great empire now fallen, appears to be inspired by the Romans.
    • The seven kingdoms of Westeros have strong similarities to the Anglo-Saxon heptarchy.
    • It's well-known in the fandom that the conflicts that set up the series are largely based on the Wars of the Roses, fought between the houses of York (Stark) and Lancaster (Lannister).
  • History Repeats:
    • Jon Snow points out that multiple times in the past Wildings have raised an army under a chosen King Beyond The Wall, in attempt to make their way south past the wall. They always crumbled when face with a proper army though, due to their lack of organized cooperation and military discipline. Jon's insistence that they will meet the same fate despite their passion and numbers is flippantly dismissed. Completing the cycle, Stannis utterly crushes the Wildling Army with a surprise cavalry attack.
    • Maegor I Targaryen - Maegor the Cruel - torched the Sept of Remembrance while riding Balerion the Black Dread to fight the Faith Militant. Cersei torched the Great Sept of Baelor with wildfire (that Maegor backed the Alchemists' Guild on) to fight the Faith Militant. Cersei's costume change is black, with a silver pattern that almost looks like scales. Also, the anti-dragon ballista was tested upon Balerion's skull.
  • Hit-and-Run Tactics: Bronn and Oberyn both use this tactic against heavily armoured opponents during their respective duels.
  • Hitler Cam: When Cersei approaches Gregor Clegane to be her champion, the camera is kept at a very low angle to make Gregor tower over her even more.
  • Hobbes Was Right: Like the medieval societies it is based on, Westeros is very prone to violent upheaval in the absence of strong, unified authority.
  • Hoist by His Own Petard:
    • Khal Drogo allows Mago to wound him to show off how impervious he is to pain, but it gets infected and eventually causes his untimely demise.
    • Maester Cressen shares poisoned wine with Melisandre in an attempt to free Stannis from her influence. Instead, Melisandre's magic protects her while Cressen falls dead.
    • The Good Masters of Astapor train their Unsullied slave soldiers to be robotically loyal Super Soldiers, then sell them to a woman who hates slavery.
    • When Cersei reveals the Tyrell plot to marry Sansa Stark to Loras Tyrell, Tywin responds by arranging for Loras to marry Cersei against her wishes.
    • Cersei installs the High Sparrow as High Septon and reinstates the Faith Militant so they can arrest Margaery. Unfortunately for Cersei, once Littlefinger and Olenna make sure that the High Sparrow learns of Cersei's own crimes, he arrests her as well.
    • Ramsay Bolton is ultimately killed by his own hounds who he loves to use on his victims and before his battle with Jon snow, he had intentionally been starving so he could feed his enemies to them.
    • Euron kills two of the Sand Snakes with their own weapons.
    • Littlefinger is executed with the dagger he lied about to start the War of the Five Kings. Furthermore, he taught Sansa how to play the Game of Thrones and she uses those methods against him in the Season 7 finale.
  • Hold Your Hippogriffs: Usually averted, but Tyrion does claim, "If I had a gold dragon for every time..."
  • Hollywood Atheist:
    • Jaime seems to hold no faith for the Old Gods nor the New and seems to be disdainful of religious people, if his exchange with Catelyn is an indication. He even uses the old 'Problem of Evil' issue.
    Jaime: If your gods are real, and if they're just, why is the world so full of injustice?
    • Averted with Davos. Growing up in Flea Bottom and being told of some new "true god" in each new port he docked in made him consider that gods were something people made up to give themselves hope. This is in clear contrast to the Book canon, where Davos is the odd man out in Stannis's court not because he is an atheist, rather because he remains a firm believer in The Seven. Meanwhile, Thoros of Myr believed the gods were just something made up to scare children into being good. Thoros came to believe again after his prayer raised a man from the dead, while Davos is more reluctant, though Stannis argues it would make no sense to disbelieve after what he's now seen Melisandre do. By season 6 he's come to conclude that the Lord does exist and is occasionally even helpful, but that he and his religion are evil.
  • Hollywood Genetics: A plot point in the series, despite being set in a world with no knowledge of genetics. All three "Baratheon" children all have blonde hair and green eyes like their mother, Cersei, despite the fact that their father, Robert Baratheon, has very dark brown (described as black) hair and eyes. While this in itself is possible, Ned reads through a book detailing Baratheon lineage and discovers that every dark-haired Baratheon male has always sired dark-haired children even if their mother was blonde. This would make it a lot less likely that Robert would be carrying recessive genes for blonde hair. Even without knowledge of genetics, this arouses suspicion, and is what leads Ned to the conclusion that Cersei's children are actually bastards born out of incest with her dirty blond-haired brother Jamie.
  • Hollywood Healing: Although many characters avert the trope by suffering from limps, illnesses, and infections after injuries, Jon Snow plays it very straight. He is just a little stiff after nearly dying of three arrow wounds in the previous episode (albeit a season finale). He also receives a nasty leg wound in "First of His Name" that disappears by the next episode and shrugs off a head vs. anvil confrontation in "The Watchers on the Wall" that should have shattered his skull.
  • Hollywood Tactics: While strategy, surprise, terrain, tactics, discipline, and training all play a role, there are examples of this trope:
    • During both Neil Marshall's battle episodes, Arrows on Fire are used solely so the audience can see them, sometimes without even being lit.
    • The Dothraki are said to be undefeatable on open ground in early seasons. In the books, this is because they are all mounted archers, but the show reduces their use of bows to only a small percentage of their force. When we see them in battle in "Spoils of War," they only attempt to shoot arrows after their unarmored and sword-wielding vanguard smashes into the spear and shield wall of their heavily armored opponents. Apparently, a protracted sequence of hit-and-run arrow volleys preceding the main battle was deemed too tedious to film and watch.
    • A good explanation for the problems of some of the show's tactics, especially the Dothraki fighting style ("Horses are not battering rams") can be found here
    • The Dothraki archers we do see stand up in their saddles to shoot, which seems to be nothing more than an opportunity for stuntmen to show off that they can.
    • In "The Long Night", the Dothraki charge the Army of the Dead head on for really no good reason. They don't have the numbers to overwhelm the dead and they don't have the armor to survive a protracted close quarters battle in case their charge loses momentum. They also make no attempt to use their superior mobility as light cavalry to outmaneuver and flank the undead forces or commence hit and run attacks. All their charge achieves is getting the entire Dothraki horde killed in the first ten minutes of the battle and completely wasting manpower that could have been used actually defending Winterfell.
      • Beyond that, the defense of Winterfell in general is almost entirely wrong. Mangonels and trebuchets are emplaced out in the open, rather than inside the castle walls as they should be, with predictable results. The army's general deployment throws away every advantage the defenders could possibly exploit given that they have a damn castle to fight with. Thousands of infantry who should, in a sensible battle plan, be manning the walls or held in reserve behind them to respond to the inevitable breach are instead left exposed on the open field—again, with predictable results. Defensive fortifications like the burning ditch full of spikes are used as a second-line measure after the men in front have already taken severe casualties, rather than placing them intelligently to attrit the Night King's army and force it into a choke point. Even with his undead legion, the Night King would never have had a chance of winning against a properly-defended Winterfell castle; in fact, a properly-executed defense would have allowed Jon and Danaerys to win with a significantly smaller force.
  • Holy City: The Dothraki view their only city, Vaes Dothrak, this way.
  • Holy Ground: The Dothraki are forbidden to carry blades or shed blood within Vaes Dothrak. Of course, there are loopholes.
  • Homoerotic Subtext: Ramsay invokes a nightmarish version of this with Reek, particularly when he goes so far as to gently bathe him while asking, "Do you love me, Reek?"
  • Honest Advisor: Ned and Davos both tell their kings what they need to hear, not what they want to hear.
  • Honey Trap:
    • Osha uses her femininity to put one of the ironborn off his guard.
      • Subverted when she tries this again on Ramsay. Because Theon had told him about it under Ramsay's torture, he's fully aware of what she's trying to do and lets her start coming on to him so he can get ''her'' in a vulnerable position and kill her.
    • Melisandre uses this to get away with restraining Gendry.
  • Honor Before Reason:
    • Ned Stark is bound by his honor to do what he sees as right regardless of the consequences, such as acknowledging his bastard son, opposing assassination, punishing atrocities regardless of the ramifications, and rejecting underhanded plans to further his own power. It takes a threat to his daughter's life to make him compromise.
    • Despite having the weakest faction, Stannis Baratheon refuses to consider peace or alliance with anyone he considers a usurper, even before he learns the true power of his ally Melisandre.
    • The subjects of Oathbreaking and Sacred Hospitality tend to give otherwise pragmatic characters a fit of this. Jaime Lannister is widely reviled as "the Kingslayer" for killing his king even by rebels who sought to execute that king and Tyrion takes exception to slaughtering thousands at a wedding rather than in battle (or a surprise wildfire explosion).
    • When Daenerys is hesitant to buy an army of slave soldiers, Ser Jorah reminds her of her brother's fate: "Rhaegar fought honorably, Rhaegar fought nobly, and Rhaegar died."
    • The ironborn commander Ralf Kenning refuses Reek's offer of safe conduct in exchange for surrender, though perhaps he guessed Ramsay's intention to flay them anyway.
    • Ser Barristan Selmy grants a suspected traitor the benefit of a warning before turning him over to his monarch for punishment, setting himself up for Have You Told Anyone Else?, though he shows his caution by keeping his sword at the ready.
    • House Arryn's words are "As High As Honor" and the lords and knights of the Vale often adhere to honorable ideas of trial-by-combat and importance of birth and blood. In fact, Eddard Stark's sense of honor is more Arryn than Stark, having been fostered at the Eyrie by Jon Arryn.
  • Hookers and Blow: Or in Tyrion Lannister's case, Hookers and WINE.
  • Hope Crusher: Ramsay Snow deliberately creates Hope Spots because he knows shattering the illusion of hope is far more devastating than providing no hope at all. This can be as simple as pouring out water in front of a thirsty man or as complex as feigning help only to lead the victim back to more torture.
  • Hope Spot: Notoriously.
    • Viserys has a villainous one in "A Golden Crown."
    • Ned Stark is set to resign to the Night's Watch, then Joffrey has him executed.
    • Renly offers an alliance that could "end this war in a fortnight." Not thirty seconds later, he's stabbed through the heart.
    • During a counterattack, Tyrion and his men rout the crew of a battering ram and raise a cheer, only to find more enemies charging them.
    • Locke stops threatening his captive with Eye Scream only to inflict another punishment.
    • Robb is set to receive reinforcements, is expecting his first child, has reconciled with his mother, and is about to be reunited with his little sister Arya when he is betrayed and butchered along with his wife, his mother, and nearly all his bannermen.
    • Sansa finally escapes, only to find herself in the hands of Littlefinger.
    • Prince Oberyn is on the verge of winning a trial by combat when his opponent trips him and crushes his skull.
    • In the midst of battle, Ygritte hesitates to kill Jon Snow and The Big Damn Kiss seems imminent until an arrow sprouts from Ygritte's chest.
    • Ramsay Snow deliberately creates these situations to torment his victims, most notably in Season 3.
      • And in Season 6, he lets Jon think he will be reunited with Rickon, to the point of deliberately missing with the first two arrows he fires at the latter. His third arrow, meant to hit, still misses. But the fourth one finds its mark.note 
    • Yara Greyjoy's rescue party finds her brother, only for Theon to reject and bite her. Then Ramsay arrives with reinforcements and forces her to retreat.
    • Brienne of Tarth finds the object her quest and things appear to be going well, until the Hound notices the Lannister lion on her sword and instigates a very nasty deathmatch.
  • Horrifying the Horror: Melisandre, who regularly practices Human Sacrifice and Blood Magic, is visibly shaken by the darkness and death she sees when she looks into Arya's eyes.
  • The Horde: Mance Rayder's wilding army is bearing down on the Wall in an attempt to escape the White Walkers.
  • Hordes from the East: The Dothraki are an extremely numerous race of equestrian nomads (loosely based on the Mongols) who threaten the Free Cities of western Essos from time to time. Daenerys is initially married to the Dothraki chieftain Khal Drogo to win his support for her brother's bid to retake Westeros.
  • Horrible Judge of Character:
    • In spite of all his other mistakes, Eddard Stark could have succeeded if he had not trusted one particular person. This comes partially from his wife's equally horrible misjudgement of the same character because he was her Unlucky Childhood Friend. But of course, unlike the audience, neither of them were privy to his Sexposition Info Dump on his motivations.
    • Sansa is this at first toward Cersei and Joffrey, but eventually becomes disillusioned. However, she is also one of the few people who always seems uncomfortable around Littlefinger and sees the inner good in the Hound.
    • Catelyn fails to see Tyrion as the Token Good Teammate of House Lannister at least partially because she completely trusts Littlefinger, which is an even greater mistake. She's absolutely right about Theon though.
    • Grand Maester Pycelle invokes this trope for any eavesdroppers in "Fire and Blood" when he describes Joffrey as the most promising king he's served. He also did this in the backstory when he advised Aerys II to open the gates for his true master's Cavalry Betrayal.
  • Hospital Hottie: Talisa is a medieval version.
  • Hot-Blooded:
    • Cersei takes everything personally and responds with streams of barbed remarks and petty revenge.
    • Catelyn Stark's Mama Bear instincts often override her sense of reason and lead her to brash actions that work against her family in the long run, such as her impromptu capture of Tyrion and her release of Jaime.
    • Arya gets very openly angry about things she disagrees with in early seasons, but she later learns to restrain it to Tranquil Fury.
    • "Ours is the Fury" are the words of House Baratheon, and all the scions of that House are very headstrong and passionate about things that don't go their way.
    • Oberyn is enraged and ready to fight at the slightest insult even if he does remain calm and collected on the outside.
  • Hot Consort:
    • Margaery to Renly, though Incompatible Orientation means she's completely wasted on him. Actress Natalie Dormer even provides the page image via her role as Anne Boleyn in The Tudors.
    • Sultry and sexually-adventurous Ellaria Sand is Oberyn Martell's wife in all but name.
  • Hotter and Sexier: The books have plenty of sexual content of their own, but this is HBO, after all. Several characters are a lot sexier than their book counterparts.
    • Margaery Tyrell and Tyene Sand are specifically noted for looking pure, innocent, and virginal, whereas the show makes them prime sources of Fanservice.
    • As a consequence of Age Lift, Sansa and Missandei get this as well. Sansa starts wearing a black dress with a plunging neckline and Missandei gets a nude scene. In the books they're both still just kids.
    • Melisandre is considered sexy in the books, but in an off-putting way and we don't actually get much fanservice from her. In the show she's conventionally attractive and quicker to take her clothes off.
  • How Much More Can He Take?: The brutal battle between Brienne and Sandor is so savage it becomes this for awhile. Then one of them gains an advantage and a No-Holds-Barred Beatdown ensues.
  • Huge Guy, Tiny Girl: Khal Drogo and Daenerys.
  • Hulk Speak: Mord, Lysa Arryn's jailer.
    Mord: "Dwarf man making noise!"
  • Humanoid Abomination: The White Walkers and Melisandre's Living Shadow assassin.
  • Human Pincushion: Tormund Giantsbane after the Battle of Castle Black.
  • Human Sacrifice:
    • The rebirth of dragons may be tied to Daenerys having Mirri Maz Duur burned alive, since only death may pay for life.
    • Subverted when Melisandre restrains Gendry after comparing blood magic to slaughtering a lamb. Instead, she only draws some blood for a smaller ritual since Davos has persuaded Stannis to demand proof before consenting. He later escapes with Davos's help before more can be done to him.
    • In the sixth season, Stannis consents to having his own daughter sacrificed, so they can life the winter storm that's stopping their march on Winterfell. His wife later killed herself in remorse over suggesting it.
  • Humans Are Bastards: Like the novels the show is based on and as the many other tropes here show, this trope is on display constantly. In each and every episode it's a guarantee that characters will wreak suffering, misery and destruction to attain power and personal gain. This behavior is undeniably one of major reasons why the Game of Thrones world is in shambles.
  • Humiliation Conga:
    • The Kangaroo Court in "The Laws of Gods and Men" is this for the defendant.
    • Grand Maester Pycelle is constantly abused by both Tyrion and Cersei. By "The Children" he is banished from his own laboratory by Cersei in favor of Qyburn.
    • It's been a long, long, nonstop conga line for Cersei lately. Ever since the Season 4 finale, nothing has gone her way.
  • Hunting the Most Dangerous Game: Ramsay Snow hunts a girl and she's also pursued by his dogs in "The Lion and the Rose". His Call-Back about win conditions implies that his victim has zero chance.
  • Hunting the Rogue: In the third season, a number of Night's Watch brothers commit mutiny at Craster's Keep, murdering Lord Commander Jeor Mormont and Craster, chasing out any loyalists, and setting up the place as their base in the Lands Beyond The Wall, where they can eat, drink, and fuck to their hearts' content. Ser Alliser Thorne and Ser Janos Slynt, acting commanders of the Night's Watch until a new election can be held, allow Jon Snow to take a band of men to slaughter them all for vengeance and to deny Mance Rayder any intel from them.
  • Hurricane of Euphemisms: Tyrion's "confession" to Lysa Arryn in "A Golden Crown".
    Tyrion: "When I was twelve, I milked my eel into a pot of turtle stew. I flogged the one-eyed snake, I skinned my sausage, I made the bald man cry, into the turtle stew!"
  • Hyper-Awareness:
    • Tywin sees through Arya's Sweet Polly Oliver disguise in a matter of seconds and later deduces from tiny clues that she is a highborn girl from the North.
    • Tyrion accurately forecasts the imminent riot in "The Old Gods and the New" and takes steps to get Joffrey's heir and brother Tommen to safety before it sparks.
    • Quaithe the shadowbinder (a.k.a. the masked woman in Qarth) shows her omniscience by knowing Jorah is behind her without seeing him.
  • Hyper-Competent Sidekick:
    • Ned, as Hand of the King, is this to Robert.
    • Stannis is very capable himself, but Davos acquires him ships via Salladhor Saan and courts the Iron Bank on Stannis' behalf.
    • Daenerys recognizes the polyglot slave Missandei as this to her master Kraznyz.
  • Hypocrite:
    • Tywin Lannister constantly preaches the importance of family while psychologically abusing his children, presses his children into political marriages while never remarrying himself, and condemning Tyrion for his whoring while secretly bedding them himself.
    • Cersei defends her incest with Jaime as true love but starts bedding their cousin when he goes to war, resents Margaery for trying to be a power behind the throne like her, and insults Ellaria Sand for being a bastard even though her own children are secretly illegitimate.
    • Joffrey scorns his brother Tommen for crying during Myrcella's farewell, conveniently forgetting he was on the verge of tears at Robert's deathbed and that he was weeping for his life when Arya had him at swordpoint.
    • Balon Greyjoy abuses his son for growing up among the Starks even though it was his failure that made Theon a hostage in the first place. He also resents Ned and Robert for defeating him and taking his son, even though the Old Way he so cherishes encourages taking from those weaker than you.
    • A fairly minor example, but the Blackfish chides Edmure for calling Robb "nephew" rather than the style due to a king, whilst himself referring to Edmure as "nephew" rather than the style due to a Lord Paramount.
    • Janos Slynt justifies his betrayal of Ned Stark by saying the man tried to bribe him. Tyrion notes that the only mistake there was not realizing Janos had already been bought.
    • Walder Frey speaks of his glorious victory and how his enemies crumbled before him, which annoys Jaime to the point where he asks how many battles Frey had personally partaken in. Not only does Frey dodge the question, but he then questions Jaime's personal combat prowess. This of course makes The Kingslayer even angrier.
    • The general attitude by most people towards Jaime for killing the Mad King can be seen as this (especially once we learn Jaime's side of the story), and Jaime certainly views it as this, since the people who seem to hate Jaime the most for his Kingslaying are those who would have certainly killed the King themselves if they'd had the chance. This is even subtly Lampshaded with Brienne as she stops calling him "Kingslayer" almost completely once she learns what really happened.
  • Hypocrite Has a Point:
    • During their travels from King's Landing to the North, Arya and the Hound benefit from the hospitality of a single farmer and his one daughter. After they leave the house in the morning, Arya discovers that the Hound, who had earlier told him that he would never stoop to theft, has taken the farmer's silver stash, and calls him out on this. He responds that the farmer and his daughter are too weak to protect themselves adequately and will both be dead by winter. Later developments in the series suggest this is a sound assessment, though stealing from them probably didn't help (and he feels guilty nonetheless on finding their bodies).
    • Joffrey is a Dirty Coward himself, but he's not wrong when he accuses Tywin of being one during Robert's Rebellion by staying out of the war until it was all but decided. Judging by Tywin's reaction, he may be completely correct.
  • Hypocritical Heartwarming: Deconstructed by Tywin, who refuses to tolerate anyone mocking or harming his despised son Tyrion in public only because in doing so they defy the authority of House Lannister.
    "He's a Lannister! He may be the lowest of the Lannisters, but he's one of us. And everyday that he remains a prisoner, the less our name commands respect."
  • Hypocritical Humor: King Robert greets Ned Stark by sternly declaring that Ned has gotten fat since they last met. Ned just nods to the king's noticeable gut and they laugh it off, showing how close they are.
  • Hypothetical Fight Debate: "Garden of Bones" opens with two redshirt guards having a humorous debate regarding who is the best knight in the realm as a Fandom Nod to debates fans of both A Song of Ice and Fire and Game of Thrones have had.

    I 
  • I Am X, Son of Y: A standard introduction among the Dothraki and Mountain Clans. Particularly noteworthy are Drogo son of Bharbo, Shagga son of Dolf, Timett son of Timett, Chella daughter of Cheyk, and Bronn son of "...you wouldn't know him." Culture-savvy Tyrion names himself "Tyrion, son of Tywin" when negotiating with Shagga.
  • I Call It "Vera":
    • The ancestral greatsword of House Stark is called "Ice".
    • Arya's sword "Needle".
    • Jon Snow receives the sword "Longclaw" after saving Lord Commander Mormont's life.
    • Boisterous Weakling Joffrey chooses pompous names like "Hearteater" and "Widow's Wail" for his swords.
    • Brienne names the sword Jaime gives her "Oathkeeper."
    • The Hound disapproves of this practice.
      Arya: Lots of people name their swords.
      Sandor: Lots of cunts.
  • I Can Explain:
    • Jorah Mormont attempts to explain and make excuses for his actions, but his queen refuses to accept any of them.
    • Littlefinger tries this when Sansa charges him with treason. It's wasted breath.
  • I Cannot Self-Terminate:
    • Maester Luwin asks Osha for a Mercy Kill and she obliges.
    • Theon's torture culminates in him pleading for death, which his tormentor has no intention of granting.
    • Having lost his knife in the fight that breaks him, The Hound is forced to beg his companion for a Mercy Kill, which she refuses to grant.note 
  • An Ice Person: The White Walkers can generate cold intense enough to shatter swords and extinguish fires; they also appear to use ice for construction and weapon-making.
  • I Choose to Stay:
    • In "Two Swords," Jaime outright refuses Tywin's command that he accept a release from the Kingsguard to become Lord Paramount of the Westerlands.
    • In "First of His Name," Daenerys chooses to remain in Slaver's Bay to deal with the chaos her campaign has wrought.
  • Iconic Sequel Character:
    • Stannis Baratheon, Davos Seaworth, Melisandre, Brienne of Tarth, Eddison Tollett, Gilly, Margaery Tyrell, Ygritte, Podrick Payne, Balon Greyjoy, Yara Greyjoy, Rickard Karstark, Talissa Maegyr/Stark and Roose Bolton were all introduced during Season 2. Jaqen H'ghar was also officially introduced this season, though it is heavily implied that the one who appears later in Season 5 is a different character using the same face.
    • Missandei, Olenna Tyrell, Grey Worm, Mance Rayder, Tormund Giantsbane, Daario Naharis, Qyburn, Orell, Thoros of Myr, Locke, Edmure Tully, Brynden "Blackfish" Tully, Shireen Baratheon, Jojen Reed, Meera Reed, and Ramsay Snow/Bolton were all introduced during Season 3. Selyse Baratheon is also officially introduced in this season after a cameo at the Season 2 premiere (played by a different actress).
    • Oberyn Martell, the Three-Eyed Raven, Mace Tyrell, Tycho Nestoris, Leaf, Olly, Ellaria Sand and the Night's King were all introduced during Season 4.
    • Doran Martell, Areo Hotah, the Waif, the Sand Snakes, Wun-Wun and the High Sparrow were all introduced during Season 5.
    • Euron Greyjoy, Lyanna Stark, and Lyanna Mormont were introduced during Season 6. In Lyanna Stark's case, she was mentioned several times before but this was the first time she actually appears (albeit in a flashback).
  • Iconic Sequel Song: Like the books, "The Rains of Castamere" is not introduced in the first season, which covers A Game of Thrones. Unlike the books, "The Rains of Castamere" is first introduced in Season 2, which covers A Clash of Kings rather than A Storm of Swords.The other famous piece of music, the best-selling instrumental "Light of the Seven" didn't show up until the finale of Season 6, quickly becoming a Bootstrapped Theme Tune used in alteration with the theme tune.
  • Icy Blue Eyes:
    • Roose Bolton has a set of these to match his dispassionate personality. He also shares them with his son Ramsay.
    • Sansa eyes go from innocent to icy toward the end of Season 4.
    • The White Walkers all feature these, bonus for being icy beings and glowing. Wights resurrected by them also gain blue eyes. Overlaps with Creepy Blue Eyes.
    • Unlike his book counterpart, Stannis on the show has gray eyes, which reflect his cold and strong-willed personality.
  • I Die Free: Daenerys is going for something like this when she orders the slave collars removed from the crucified children.
  • Idiot Ball:
    • The Astapori sell their entire elite slave army to Dany in "And Now His Watch Is Ended". They were likely blinded by the prospect of dragons, who have a history of defeating substantial armies.
    • Tormund insists on killing the horse trader they capture in "The Rains of Castamere" to maintain secrecy, but simply ignores Orell's report of shouting rather than send a few men to check out the mill where Bran and company are hiding.
    • To protect Gilly from rape at the hands of Castle Black's garrison, Sam hides her in the very brothel where the men of the garrison go to have sex and puts her directly in the path of the known party of wildling marauders looking to kill a few black brothers there.
    • Littlefinger's plan to elude justice for Lysa's murder is uncharacteristicly shaky so Sansa can prove her growing worth by helping him.From the books... 
    • Ramsay looking at Jon Snow literally dripping with blood after he killed Rickon and waxed nostalgic about raping Sansa and saying one-on-one combat sounds like a swell idea.
    • Every character in Seasons 7 and 8, especially Littlefinger, Tyrion, Daenerys, and Varys… but especially Tyrion.
  • I Don't Like the Sound of That Place: The Dreadfort, Dragonstone, Slaver's Bay, the Red Waste, the Garden of Bones, and the House of the Undying. The Night's Watch has a tradition of this with names like Castle Black, the Shadow Tower, the Nightfort, and Eastwatch-by-the-Sea.
  • I Drank WHAT?!: Jaime begs water from his captors, who let him gulp down half a container before telling him it's horse piss. Cue Vomit Indiscretion Shot.
  • I Gave My Word: "I said I would take you to King's Landing, and that's what I'm going to do."
  • The Igor: Reek is this to Ramsay, complete with stooping gait and low-bent head.
  • If I Do Not Return: Tyrion asks Shae to weep for him if he's killed in the Battle of the Green Fork. She responds by asking how he would know if she did.
  • If I Had a Nickel...:
    Tyrion: If I had a gold dragon for every time I heard that joke, I'd be richer than you are.
    Littlefinger: But you are richer than I am.
    Tyrion: (beat) Good point.
  • If I Wanted You Dead...: When Daario invades her bath, Daenerys' first question is why he didn't kill her straight off if that was his purpose.
  • If You Ever Do Anything to Hurt Her...: After Loras unhappily offers his sister as a bride to Joffrey in "Valar Morghulis," he then stands protectively behind Margaery and stares defiantly in Joffrey's direction. The boy-king is only paying attention to Margaery at this point, so he doesn't get the message, but Loras is warning Joffrey that he had better not harm his sister.
  • If You're So Evil, Eat This Kitten!: The wildlings demand that Jon Snow kill the horse trader they've captured in "The Rains of Castamere". He can't do it, thus proving he's a Fake Defector.
  • Ignored Epiphany: Balon is clearly shaken by but completely disregards Theon's argument that everything Balon resents is his own fault.
  • I Have No Son!:
    • Samwell Tarly was forced to join the Night's Watch by a father who felt this way.
    • Balon Greyjoy writes Theon off the family tree the day he receives his cock in the mail.
    • Tywin disowns both his sons. Jaime when he refuses to leave the Kingsguard and Tyrion with his dying breath.
    • You can see the sibling version of this trope happen in Daenerys' eyes the moment Viserys threatens her unborn child.
  • I Have You Now, My Pretty: Karl Tanner treats Meera like this.
  • I Have Your Wife:
    • Theon is kept as a ward/hostage at Winterfell for a decade to prevent his father Balon from rebelling against the Iron Throne again. This is a completely acceptable part of Westerosi society, though it probably helps that he wasn't exactly tortured but rather raised as a normal child.
    • Sansa and Jaime counteract each other's value for this trope. Neither side will harm their prisoner for fear of the consequences to their loved one. That doesn’t stop Joffrey from having his guards beat Sansa, and once they get Jaime back...
    • Catelyn Stark thinks this is the case with Arya as well as Sansa. It's one of the reasons she's so paranoid about giving Jaime back: they've got one hostage to the Lannister's two, meaning that even if either Arya or Sansa died, they still couldn't afford to hurt Jaime and risk the life of the other sister.
    • Cersei takes Ros (mistaking her for his mistress) as hostage in "The Prince of Winterfell" to mollify her fears that Tyrion is plotting a Uriah Gambit for Joffrey in the coming battle.
    • Jaime threatens to have the wife and son Edmure has never seen catapulted into Riverrun to get him to cooperate with his plan to get the castle to surrender.
  • I Just Want to Be You: There are subtle hints that this is Cersei's Freudian Excuse for her incest with her twin Jaime. She frequently discusses what she would do if she were in Jaime's position, laments that she was born a woman and treated differently than him, and favours metallic accoutrements that simulate armour.
    • Played with by Arya after Sansa discovers her collection of faces, when she wonders aloud what it would be like to be the Lady of Winterfell, suggesting she could easily kill Sansa and pretend to be her.
  • I Kiss Your Hand: Walder Frey greets Catelyn with the kind you would expect from a Dirty Old Man like him.
  • I Let Gwen Stacy Die:
    • Barristan Selmy takes his failure to protect King Robert quite hard, despite being directly ordered to stand aside.
    • There was absolutely nothing Brienne could do to defend her beloved king against Melisandre's black magic, but she nevertheless feels horrible that she couldn't save him.
  • I Lied:
    • Reek delivers the promise of safe conduct to the ironborn garrison at Moat Cailin if they surrender. Unfortunately, Ramsay is a man of tradition.
    "You didn't think I was going to let them go, did you?"
    • After a successful truce and partial alliance is reached between Cersei and Danaerys, Cersei later casually reveals to Jaime that it was all bullshit and she has no intention of honoring any kind of agreement at all with her, despite what she said.
  • I'll Pretend I Didn't Hear That: Robb's decision to do this after one of his bannermen gets carried away with his boisterousness results in Defeat Means Friendship.
    "My lord father taught me it was death to bare steel against your liege lord... Doubtless, the Greatjon only meant to cut my meat for me."
  • I'll Take That as a Compliment: Tyrion has turned this into a way of living, and encourages others to do so by... well, insulting them.
    • In Winter is Coming
      Tyrion: You're Ned Stark's bastard, aren't you?... Did I offend you? Sorry. You are the bastard, though.
      Jon: Lord Eddard Stark is my father...
      Tyrion: And Lady Stark is not your mother. Making you... the bastard. Let me give you some advice, bastard: never forget what you are. The rest of the world will not. Wear it like armor, and it can never be used to hurt you.
      Jon: What the hell do you know about being a bastard?
      Tyrion: All dwarfs are bastards in their fathers' eyes.
    • In "Cripples, Bastards and Broken Things"—
      Tyrion: With the right horse and saddle even a cripple can ride.
      Bran: I'm not a cripple!
      Tyrion: Then I'm not a dwarf! My father will rejoice to hear it.
    • He brings the hill tribes so under his sway that "The Halfman" and "Little Lion" become something of Affectionate Nicknames for him. The former is even used as a Battle Cry.
  • I'm a Humanitarian:
    • While camped at the Nightfort, Bran tells the story of a Night's Watch cook who tricked his king into eating his own son.
    • Subverted in "Mhysa" when Ramsay relishes in eating a long piece of meat in front of the man whose cock he severed in a previous episode. The victim draws the obvious conclusion and few would doubt Ramsay is psychopathic enough to devour a man's penis in front of him, but Ramsay feigns shock at the idea and confirms its just pork sausage.
    • Played straight with the Thenns who meet up with Tormund and Ygritte in "Two Swords" and proceed to roast a human forearm.
    • Biter makes the mistake of taking a bite out of the Hound in "Mockingbird".
    • Walder Frey (unknowingly) eats his 2 sons in a pie. He doesn't live long enough to express adequate shock.
  • I'm a Man; I Can't Help It: This is Gendry's explanation for why he let Melisandre have her way with him, and Davos admits he can sympathize.
  • Immigrant Patriotism: Varys is a Lysene immigrant who professes to be the only man who truly serves the Kingdom itself rather than money, power, or any particular faction. His secret meeting with Daenerys' patron Illyrio in "The Wolf and the Lion" makes the truth of this somewhat ambiguous.
  • Imminent Danger Clue:
    • From the series' very first scene, it is established that any time characters in wintry conditions beyond the Wall note a sudden sharp drop in the already cold temperature, a White Walker or Walkers is/are very close.
    • Davos seeing the glowing green wildfire trail in the water next to an unmanned Lannister ship and realizing just why it doesn't seem like King's Landing is putting up a fight.
    • Catelyn notices three in "The Rains of Castamere." First, someone closes the doors, then the musicians strike up a Musical Spoiler whose key and content are inappropriate to the setting. The final, threat-confirming clue is the reveal that Roose Bolton is wearing armour under his clothes.
    • Likewise, Margaery begins to realize something's amiss in "The Winds of Winter" when she notices that neither Cersei nor Tommen have yet arrived for Cersei's trial, and since the outcome is likely a foregone conclusion and Cersei knows this something's up.
  • The Immodest Orgasm: In "First of His Name," Lysa proudly declares that she plans to scream while making love to her new husband and she certainly delivers.
  • Impaled with Extreme Prejudice:
    • Ser Mandon Moore receives a spear through the head courtesy of Podrick in "Blackwater."
    • Dagmer jabs Maester Luwin in the guts with a spear for no other reason than to shut him up.
    • Jon Snow runs Longclaw right through Othor's wight, Qhorin Halfhand, Orell the warg, and Karl Tanner.
    • Ygritte, Ramsay, and Oberyn all do this to their victims in "The Mountain and the Viper."
    • During "The Watchers on the Wall," one black brother is unlucky enough to be hit with an arrow the size of a ballista bolt. The giant who shot him is later impaled by an actual ballista bolt.
  • Impartial Purpose-Driven Faction:
    • The Night's Watch exists solely to defend the realms of men from its enemies beyond the Wall and all members are required to leave behind old debts, feuds, loves, and allegiances. In practice, of course, this is easier said than done.
    • The Maesters of the Citadel are assigned to a particular location after taking their vows and are bound to serve and advise whoever controls that location, regardless of which faction controls it.
    • The Iron Bank of Braavos doesn't care who occupies the Iron Throne or any other position. Their only concern is who owes them, how much they owe, and whether they make their payments on time. Failure to do so may result in a sudden increase in rival claimants who take their debts more seriously.
  • Imperiled in Pregnancy:
    • Daenerys is imperiled multiple times during her pregnancy, first by her brother, which completely breaks their tenuous familial bond and later by a wine merchant who seeks to poison her.
    • Talisa is stabbed multiple times in the belly during the Red Wedding, leading to the death of both her and her child.
  • Implied Death Threat:
    • Ned and Cersei trade them in "Cripples, Bastards, and Broken Things"
    Cersei: You're just a soldier, aren't you? You take your orders and you carry on. I suppose it makes sense. Your older brother was trained to lead and you were trained to follow.
    Lord Eddard: I was also trained to kill my enemies, your Grace.
    Cersei: As was I.
    • Varys and Littlefinger exchange subtle threats of incriminating evidence in "The Wolf and the Lion."
    • After Joffrey calls him a monster, Tyrion replies, "Monsters are dangerous, and right now kings are dying like flies."
    • The credo "A Lannister always pays his debts" is occasionally used as one.
  • Important Haircut:
    • Dothraki warriors sever their braids when defeated in combat. We don't see the ritual take place, but in the case of Drogo its absence proclaims his prowess.
    • Yoren cuts Arya's hair to enable her to pass for a Night's Watch recruit, which marks the beginning of a drastic change in her life.
    • Cersei's hair is cropped for her walk of shame, after which she never lets it return to its previous length and she starts becoming one of the series' primary villains.
  • Impoverished Patrician:
    • Viserys and Daenerys Targaryen have grown up as this, moving from city to city and benefactor to benefactor, always fearing betrayal and assassination. The stress of it may have contributed to Viserys' madness.
    • It is revealed in Season 4 that the Lannister's gold mines ran dry years ago, leaving them a limited time before they become this. Once they take Highgarden, the other relevant source of gold in the area, this ceases to be a problem.
  • Improbable Aiming Skills: Basically any time a bow is used in combat or training. If someone has poor accuracy, expect them to immediately be shown up by someone more in line with this trope.
    • Arya's Establishing Character Moment is hitting an archery butt from twice the range of her brother Bran. Justified in season 7 when we learned she had previously practiced on her own with Bran's bow.
    • Anguy the Archer can angle a shot perfectly to drop straight down at a target a few feet away.
    • After Edmure misses his first two shots, his uncle Blackfish takes over igniting Lord Hoster's funeral boat and even though its almost out of sight he's so confident he doesn't even wait to see the arrow land.
    • Tormund claims he's seen Ygritte split a rabbit's eyeball with an arrow at 200 yards.
    • Daario kills a charging horse by throwing a knife into its eye.
    • Ramsay during "Battle of the Bastards" seems to be deliberately missing Rickon as the boy runs toward his brother Jon and Jon races forward to save him. Then Ramsay hits Rickon from halfway across the battlefield, just before Jon can reach him, all as part of his plan.
    • Euron Greyjoy's scorpions score three direct hits on Rhaegal in the space of a few seconds as it is flying through the air thousands of feet above them. Every other time they are used, they are pretty inaccurate.
  • Improvised Lockpick: Sansa steals a corkscrew in "The Gift" and uses it to pick the lock on her bedchamber in the Season 5 finale "Mother's Mercy".
  • Improvised Weapon:
    • After losing Longclaw in "The Watchers on the Wall," Jon Snow uses a chain and then a hammer from the castle smithy in his fight with Styr.
    • When the wildlings invade Castle Black's kitchens, the stewards inside hold them off with pots, furniture, and a large meat cleaver.
    • Not knowing the battle is over, when Gilly hears someone at her door she defends herself and her baby with the first weapon that comes to hand: a hunk of ham.
    • During their Combat Breakdown in "The Children," Brienne bashes her opponent in the head with a rock over and over and over.
  • Inadequate Inheritor:
    • Sam ended up in the Night's Watch because his father considered him this.
    • Lord Tywin views Tyrion as a celestial condemnation and openly tells his youngest son that lawful heir or not, neither gods nor men will make him heir to Casterly Rock.
    • This is Renly's justification for attempting to take the throne instead of Stannis or Joffrey.
    • Stannis considers Renly, who has never fought for anything, an inadequate inheritor for their ancestral home of Storm's End, which Stannis withstood The Siege to hold.
    • Tywin is an undisputed master of the game of thrones but he is getting older and none of his children or grandchildren are perceived as his equal (though Tyrion probably is). Davos uses this argument to persuade the Iron Bank allow Stannis a small loan just to hedge their bets.
  • Inappropriate Hunger:
    • The Tickler casually munches on some fruit while overseeing brutal torture.
    • Sandor threatens a group of Lannister soldiers by drinking their ale and demanding their chicken. After fighting them, he rides away chomping on chicken.
    • Oberyn casually drinks and snacks before his duel with Gregor. Tyrion is quite alarmed by the drinking, but Oberyn states that he always drinks before he fights.
  • Incompatible Orientation:
    • Completely unaware of his sexuality, Sansa is charmed by Ser Loras Tyrell during the Tourney of the Hand and is ecstatic when they are secretly betrothed. For his part, Loras is awkward and formal with Sansa but seems to genuinely want to give her a better life.
    • Renly is unable to consummate his marriage to Margaery in spite of her accommodating efforts.
    • Brienne has a serious crush on Renly, though she acknowledges that he "liked men."
  • Incorruptible Pure Pureness: The Tyrells work hard to appear this way to the smallfolk in King's Landing.
  • Incredibly Lame Fun:
    • The idiot Orson Lannister and his pastime of squishing bugs.
    • Daario and Grey Worm's contest of holding swords on outstretched arms qualifies, too. One can understand Worm and his limited (if any) grasp on the concept of fun. But Daario?
  • Incurable Cough of Death:
    • King Joffrey suffers one when poisoned.
    • Played With when Jon Snow suffers a serious coughing fit after downing a Gargle Blaster offered by Mance Rayder.
  • Individuality Is Illegal: The Unsullied have been trained all their lives to obey any command by their owners and to lack any personal desires. To reinforce this they are renamed after vermin (Grey Worm, Black Rat, etc.) and refer to themselves as "this one" rather than "I."
  • Indy Ploy: Tyrion in particular is a master of these, particularly his escape from the Eyrie and his convincing Cersei that she indeed has his mistress captive even though she has captured Ros instead of Shae.
  • I Need a Freaking Drink:
    • Tyrion often needs one (or perhaps a dozen) to deal with stressful situations like his wedding.
    • Although reluctant to drink at first, Sansa takes a big one when Cersei elaborates on the inevitable rape that comes with the sack of a city.
    • During the Battle of Blackwater, the Hound returns from a sortie shouting, "Someone, bring me a drink... Fuck the water. Bring me wine!"
  • Ineffectual Sympathetic Villain: Lancel Lannister is perhaps the dimmest of the Lannisters, and despite his Jerkass tendencies, it's hard not to feel sorry for him considering how Robert treats him ... and then how Cersei treats him. Hell, how everyone treats him.
  • I Never: Tyrion, Bronn, and Shae play a similar game where they ask each other questions about their pasts. Despite his confidence that he will win, Tyrion ends up revealing more than his companions.
  • I Never Told You My Name: Jaqen H'ghar refers to Arya by her full name as he departs, though she has never told him.
  • Inferiority Superiority Complex: Theon's arrogance has a lot to do with coping with being constantly reminded of his glorified prisoner status.
  • Informed Attractiveness: Many actors are as attractive as they are painted, but the show still goes out of its way to make sure you know just how pretty they are.
    • Sansa, Daenerys, Cersei, and Margaery are frequently referred to as the most beautiful women in the known world.
    • Loras, Jon Snow, and Renly are commonly described as desirable, pretty, and handsome.
    • We're shown through various characters' expressions that Edmure's bride Roslin is much more attractive than the rest of the Frey girls.
  • Informed Attribute:
    • For all the references and implication of his badassery, Barristan Selmy's only onscreen combat is a Stab the Scorpion moment in "Valar Dohaeris," up until Season 5.
    • The ironborn are heavily implied to be a grizzled culture of badass pirates and sea raiders, but almost none of it is depicted on screen Even Yara Greyjoy and her super-elite rescue party are put to flight by a few castle guards, a shirtless maniac, and his hounds. until Season 7.
  • The Ingenue: Sansa shows the effects of a Crapsack World on this type of character.
  • In Harm's Way: Robert's eagerness to ride in the Tourney of the Hand shows that he prefers the thrill of combat to his duties as king.
  • In It for Life: Service in the Night's Watch, Kingsguard, Faith of the Seven, or the Maesters of the Citadel is lifelong.
  • Injured Self-Drag: Subverted by Lancel Lannister in the Season 6 finale. After being fatally stabbed in a dark corridor and starting to bleed out, he opts not to crawl somewhere he can potentially be found and saved, but instead toward an eerie green glow off in the distance. As he gets closer, he recognizes it as a Wildfire bomb and hustles toward it with the intent to put out the candles that serve as the bomb's fuse with his spit. Unfortunately, he is moments too late to snuff it out and the candles burn down just before he is able to spit out the wicks. Thus, he perishes by immolation, rather than his stab wound.
  • In Medias Res: Nearly everything that happens in the series has its roots in the events of the twenty years prior to the beginning of the series.
  • Innocent Bigot: Talisa recalls never questioning living in slave-dependent Volantis until a slave committed a hanging offense to save her brother.
  • Innocent Blue Eyes: Sansa has these for the first three seasons. During Season 4, they transition into Icy Blue Eyes. Gendry has some (having inherited the classic Baratheon blue eyes and black hair), and they're particuarly played up after he's taken by Melisandre and being used as a pawn by Stannis.
  • Innocuously Important Episode: Ser Willem Frey’s wedding, held at an unknown point in the past. Alton Lannister squired for Jaime during the tournament at the wedding, and a peasant who remembers Jaime there rats him out to Roose Bolton’s outriders led by Locke.
  • Insane Equals Violent: Joffrey and Ramsay.
  • In-Series Nickname:
    • Sandor "the Hound" Clegane, Ser Gregor "the Mountain" Clegane, Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish, Varys "the Spider", Tyrion "the Imp"/"Halfman" Lannister, Ser Loras "the Knight of Flowers" Tyrell, Ser Jaime "the Kingslayer" Lannister, Ser Davos "the Onion Knight" Seaworth, Lady Melisandre "the Red Woman", Tormund "Giantsbane", Ser Brynden "the Blackfish" Tully, Robb "the Young Wolf" Stark, Jon "the Greatjon" Umber, Oberyn "the Red Viper" Martell, Jojen "the Little Grandpa" Reed, Jon "the White Wolf" Snow, Daenarys "the Unburnt, Mother of Dragons, Breaker of Chains, Stormborn" Targaryen.
    • Brynden Tully even claims, "People have been calling me 'Blackfish' for so long they don't remember my real name."
  • Insignia Rip-Off Ritual:
    • Ned rips off his insignia pin when he resigns as Hand of the King in protest to an assassination plot.
    • Barristan removes his white cloak and tosses his sword at Joffrey's feet when resigning the Kingsguard.
    • Tyrion removes and throws away his Hand-of-the-Queen pin in the series finale in protest after Daenerys and Drogon incinerate all of King's Landing.
  • Insistent Terminology:
    • Joffrey feels the need to remind everyone he is king. Tywin points out that a true leader would never feel such a need.
    • Davos constantly has to explain he was a smuggler, not a pirate, though he admits the only difference was that he trafficked in pirated cargo without stealing it himself.
    • "Reek, Reek, I'm Reek." Brain-washed Theon Greyjoy doesn't want to be called by his old name and insists others use the derogatory name that his torturer chose for him.
  • Inspirational Martyr: Despite his failure, Ned Stark is widely remembered as a paragon of justice and honor undone by a Crapsack World.
  • Instant Messenger Pigeon: Ravens are used to send urgent messages, and the "instant" part is handwaved by an implied Dashed Plotline.
  • Instant Seduction: It doesn't take long for Loras to be seduced by Olyvar. Justified, since Olyvar is an experienced sex worker and his target hasn't been physically intimate with anyone in quite awhile.
  • Insult of Endearment: "You know nothing, Jon Snow," becomes this for Ygritte.
  • Intangible Time Travel: Bran's visions with the Three-Eyed Raven.
  • Interclass Romance
    • Tyrion and Shae. Deconstructed when Shae points out the complications of a lord and a prostitute having a long-term relationship. When Tyrion is forced to marry a woman closer to his social status, Shae becomes increasingly jealous. After Tyrion finally decides to send her away, she betrays him at his trial.
      Shae: I'm your whore. And when you are tired of fucking me, I will be nothing.
    • Oberyn and Ellaria are one of the happier couples on the show, but can't get married because he's a prince and she's a bastard. She's however his official paramour and can hang out with him at court.
    • Queen Daenerys and slave-turned-mercenary Daario. He courts her and wants to be her lover. She eventually beds him, but doesn't want to marry him because she needs to have a politically advantageous match with someone from her conquered lands.
    • Gendry and Arya are a case where he believes any potential relationship is over before it's even begun for this very reason, although Arya disagrees.
      Arya: I can be your family.
      Gendry: You wouldn't be my family, you'd be m'lady.
  • Intergenerational Friendship: Between Princess Shireen (a small, sweet child) and Ser Davos Seaworth (a seasoned smuggler elevated to Lord and Hand of the King at her father's court).
  • Internal Reveal: Gendry finally learns his father's identity in "The Bear and the Maiden Fair". He's King Robert's bastard son. Viewers know this from back in season one when Ned investigated Jon Arryn's death and his interest in him.
  • Interrogated for Nothing:
    • The Tickler asks Gendry the same questions as the other prisoners ("Is there gold in the village? Where is the Brotherhood?") even though he is not from the village and has never heard of the Brotherhood.
    • Theon tells lies, half-truths, and then the truth to appease his tormentors, but they soon admit they are just torturing him because they enjoy it.
  • Interrupted Intimacy:
    • Played for Laughs when Jaime walks in on Tyrion in a brothel to tell him to hurry up and sends in more prostitutes to hurry him up.
    • Bran's discovery at the end of "Winter Is Coming" has horrific and long-reaching consequences.
    • Tyrion and Bronn burst in to confront Pycelle at his most vulnerable in "What Is Dead May Never Die."
    • Bronn is extremely reluctant to answer Tyrion's summons in "Valar Dohaeris."
    • Season 4 makes a Running Gag of people interrupting Prince Oberyn during his bisexual orgies in a brothel.
  • ...In That Order: When the Mountain is accused with, "You raped her! You murdered her! You killed her children!" his response is, "I killed her children. Then I raped her. Then I smashed her head in..."
  • In the Back:
    • Jaime Lannister made his Bodyguard Betrayal of Mad King Aerys twice as dishonorable this way, though he later clarifies that it was only because Aerys tried to run. Even Ned Stark, whose father and brother were murdered by Aerys, likes to rub it in Jaime's face.
    • Lord Commander Mormont is mortally wounded this way by one of his own disgruntled men.
    • Ralf Kenning gets an axe to the head for refusing to surrender.
    • In Bran's flashback, he learns that his father didn't actually defeat Ser Arthur Dayne; his partner in that fight, after killing the other Kingsguard, killed Arthur this way to save Ned.
  • In the Blood: True to its medievalesque setting, this is how characters perceive genetics.
    • The Targaryen dynasty has always walked a fine line between brilliance and madness, a trait they cannot shake because of their tradition of incest to keep the "blood of the dragon" pure, which is also believed to be important to their Royalty Superpower of connecting with dragons.
    • Sansa Stark faces accusations of "traitor's blood" because of the actions of her father and brother.
    • As an armorer's apprentice, Gendry has inherited both his father's hair and his affinity for hammers.
    • The Boltons of the Dreadfort have had enough Sadists and Torture Technicians in their bloodline to put a flayed man on their banners.
  • In the Hood:
    • Barristan Selmy hides his identity with one while shadowing Daenerys in "Valar Morghulis."
    • Sansa is encouraged to do this to hide her distinctive red hair in "First of His Name."
  • Intimate Hair Brushing:
    • Lady Catelyn Stark is seen brushing her eldest daughter Sansa's hair, signifying the love and bond between them.
    • In "King's Road", Sansa sees several noble ladies from court talking, smiling, laughing and having a good time together. One of them is braiding another's hair.
    • Irri, a young Dothraki woman who is Daenerys's handmaiden and serves the new Khaleesi, braids her hair. While doing it, she discovers than Dany is pregnant.
    • Daenerys is combing and lovingly fixing her husband Khal Drogo's long hair when they talk about invading Westeros and taking back the Iron Throne that belonged to her now fallen House Targaryen. Dothraki men take pride in their hair and braided topknots. Whenever they lose a battle, they must cut their braids as a sign of defeat and for the world to see their shame.
    • Tyrion arranges for his secret lover Shae to become Lady Sansa's handmaiden. Shae is a former prostitute who doesn't know what it entails, and Sansa (who is held hostage in King's Landing) is exasperated with her. Sansa lashes out that she shouldn't have to teach her how to do her job but moments later asks Shae to brush her hair. Sansa is very lonely and desperate to have a companion. For Sansa, hair-brushing is an act of affection and intimacy which reminds her of her mother and she gradually warms up to Shae.
    • Missandei is a freed slave and Queen Daenerys's trusted adviser and handmaiden. Daenerys herself is seen fixing Missandei's hair when the two young women talk about Deanerys's general Grey Worm and his romantic interest in Missandei.
  • Intimidation Demonstration:
    • Karl Tanner slices 'n dices the air with his twin daggers while advancing on Jon Snow.
    • Ser Arthur Dayne and the other Kingsguard wave their swords before fighting Ned and his men during Bran's flashback.
  • In Vino Veritas: After drinking heavily during his wedding, Tyrion struggles more than usual to contain his contempt for Joffrey and Lord Tywin.
  • I Owe You My Life:
    • Ser Loras Tyrell says this word-for-word after the Hound saves him during the Tourney of the Hand and forfeits the championship (and 40,000 gold dragons in prize money) to him in gratitude.
    • Jaqen H'ghar offers to kill three people for Arya in exchange for saving his life as well as Rorge and Biter.
    • Ser Dontos Hollard pleads this to Sansa in "Two Swords."
  • Ironic Echo:
    • In "Winter Is Coming," Ned Stark establishes what sort of man he is by sentencing and beheading an outlaw himself, eschewing an executioner, as Northern custom dictates. In "Baelor," he is beheaded by an executioner with his own sword.
    • In "The Wolf and the Lion," Robert raves to Ned that the only thing keeping the realm together is "Fear and blood!" which is dangerously close to the "Fire and Blood" motto of the Targaryens they fought so hard to overthrow.
    • In "Valar Morghulis," Pycelle tosses a coin to the now-powerless Tyrion and echoes his line, "For your trouble."
    • In "The Bear and the Maiden Fair," Jaime offers a sarcastic platitude to Roose Bolton: "Tell Robb Stark I'm sorry I couldn't make his uncle's wedding. The Lannisters send their regards." In "The Rains of Castamere", Roose uses this line as a Pre-Mortem One-Liner before sticking a knife in Robb's heart.
    • In "Second Sons," when his new wife asks what will happen if she never wants to bed him, Tyrion gives a bitter smile and says, "And so my watch begins,"—a clear riff on the creed of the celibate Night's Watch.
    • In "Two Swords," Arya recites back to Polliver exactly what he said before killing Lommy Greenhands before killing him in the same way.
    • The Frey men-at-arms chant their victim's battle cry as they parade his desecrated body around in “Mhysa”.
    • Arya pulls off one of the shortest lags between original line and echo as she looks for passage out of Braavos from a Westerosi trader in "Blood of My Blood"
      Trader: Yes, I'm from Westeros. What do you care?
      Arya: (slapping a sack of coins in front of him) When do you leave?
      Trader: Where did you steal those?
      Arya: What do you care?
    • In "The Winds of Winter", Cersei wakes up the imprisoned Septa Unella by pouring wine all over her face and repeating "Confess", just as Unella did to her when she was the one imprisoned. Then she doubles down by chanting "Shame", as Unella did while walking behind her on the shame walk, while The Mountain slowly rapes and murders the septa.
    • In "The Queen's Justice", Cersei kisses the imprisoned Tyrene with the same fatal contact poison Ellaria had used to kill Myrcella with two seasons earlier, and then lampshades this by pointing it out to Ellaria.
      • Also in that episode, Jaime gives Olenna the chance to avoid execution by drinking a glass of poisoned wine, exactly the way she and Littlefinger had conspired to kill Joffrey in Season 4. Subverted in that Jaime only learns it was she who killed his son after she drinks the wine.
    • In "The Dragon and the Wolf", before sentencing Littlefinger to death at Arya's hands, Sansa repeats to him the beginning of his speech earlier in the episode about how he determines who is plotting against him by whether their actions and statements align with their worst possible motivations.
  • Ironic Hell: The notorious sadist and psychopath Gregor Clegane is being kept alive by Mad Doctor Qyburn.
  • Ironic Nickname:
    • Jon Snow is mockingly dubbed "Lord Snow" by Ser Alliser Thorne because he is a highborn bastard son of a lord raised with a young lord's upbringing. Jon's title as "Lord Snow" is no longer an ironic nickname when he's elected Lord Commander in Season 5.
    • Brienne recalls how lordlings sarcastically dubbed her "Brienne the Beauty" because they found her unattractive.
    • Jorah Mormont is known as "Jorah the Andal" in Essos, which is an unintentional example, since while the Andals are the dominant ethnic group of Westeros, Jorah is a Northerner and would have little Andal ancestry.
  • Irony:
    • Davos accepted knighthood to give his son Matthos a better life, but serving Stannis eventually led to Matthos being killed in action.
    • Even though she is Queen in the North, Talisa admits she doesn't even know where Winterfell is.
    • In Season 1 Sansa is enamored with Prince Joffrey and believes he's her Knight In Shining Armour, while Arya is disgusted by the whole set up. In Season 2 and 3, Sansa is kept prisoner and relentlessly abused by Joffrey who isn't Robert's son after all, while Arya's closest friend is Robert's actual son who mutually protects her and has more knightly qualities in his little finger than Joffrey does in his whole body.
    • The cowardly Bookworm Samwell Tarly becomes the first man in thousands of years to kill a White Walker.
    • The irony of Melisandre speaking out in favour of sparing Davos makes Stannis laugh.
    • After Drogon roasts a little girl, Daenerys decides to chain up her other two dragons in the dark. Whatever happened to "A dragon is not a slave," and being the "Breaker of Chains"?
    • Cersei notes smugly that Qyburn, the Mad Scientist working on undead abominations in the Red Keep's cellars, smells better than the respectable Grand Maester Pycelle.
    • The Sand Snakes each wield a signature weapon, which Euron uses to brutally murder them both with; Obara has her own spear brought apart off her back and is impaled with either end while Nymeria is strangled with her whip.
    • In Season 2, Bronn admits that he's "not clear on all the rules" about money, to the point that Tyrion has to explain to him the basics on how a loan works. When all is said and done, he ends up as Master of Coin, in charge of the entire kingdom's finances and debts.
  • Irrevocable Order: When King Robert tries to rescind his assassination order on Daenerys, Varys laments that "those birds have flown. The girl is likely dead already."
  • I Shall Taunt You:
    • Oznak zo Pahl, the champion of Meereen, taunts Daenerys' army by haranguing them and pissing at them. To damage the morale of the defenders, she permits Daario to engage him.
    • Oberyn's You Killed My Sister rant during his duel is used this way, though it is also useful for creating a spectacle since Oberyn wants the world to know.
    • To get the Mercy Kill he desires, The Hound resorts to pressing his companion's Berserk Button to get a revenge-kill.
  • I Should Have Been Better: In "The Dance of Dragons," Jon laments that his mission to Hardhome was a failure because he did not save enough people. Sam consoles him by pointing out all the people he did save.
  • Is That a Threat?:
    Tyrion: The Mad King did as he liked. Has your Uncle Jaime ever told you what happened to him?
    Ser Meryn: No one threatens His Grace in the presence of the Kingsguard!
    Tyrion: I am not threatening the King, ser, I am educating my nephew. Bronn, the next time Ser Meryn speaks, kill him. That was a threat. See the difference?
  • I Take Offense to That Last One:
    • "'Dwarf?' Oh, you should have stopped at 'Imp.'"
    • "Do I look like a fucking Umber to you?!"
  • It Amused Me: Deconstructed with the dispassionate Roose Bolton, who carefully considers the ramifications of his every word and action to maximize gain, but will be a total Troll if he can get away with it. He later chides both his son and Locke not for torturing prisoners but for torturing valuable prisoners.
  • "It" Is Dehumanizing: Reek is constantly referred to as a "pet" and a "creature."
  • It May Help You on Your Quest: The iron coin Jaqen H'ghar gives to Arya. She uses it to barter passage across the narrow sea in "The Children."
  • I Told You So:
    • Littlefinger's Wham Line, "I did warn you not to trust me..." in "You Win Or You Die."
    • When he sees the wildling army in "The Watchers on the Wall," Ser Alliser Thorne tells Jon to go ahead and say this, but Jon lets it pass.
  • It's All About Me:
    • Cersei considers her tribulations while living lavishly in the Red Keep far worse than Jaime's imprisonment and maiming, believes Joffrey's assassination was motivated solely to hurt her, and sees only the opportunity to see Tyrion dead instead of the dangerous consequences for her realm, her dynasty, and her daughter when Oberyn Martell is killed.
    • Viserys Targaryen treats everyone like his subjects and thinks everything should go his way.
    • Renly Baratheon, though charming, is self-centered enough to declare himself king just because he thinks he'd be good at it, even though he has few tangible accomplishments and knows it will very likely mean killing his own brother.
    • Robb Stark chooses love over his political responsibilities and suffers for it.
    • Karl Tanner could not overstate his own importance worse if he tried.
    • In a broader sense, most nobles don't spare a thought for the thousands of smallfolk affected by their decisions. Jorah Mormont notes that the feeling is somewhat reciprocal:
      The common people pray for rain, health, and a summer that never ends. They don't care what games the high lords play.
  • It's All My Fault: Catelyn feels her family is being punished because she broke a Bargain with Heaven to love Jon Snow as her own.
  • It's Personal: This is Oberyn Martell's motivation for fighting the Mountain.
  • It's the Journey That Counts: Littlefinger believes in a villainous version of this: chaos is a ladder, and the climb is all there is.
  • It Was a Gift: A number of swords are given this treatment:
    • Jon Snow has a small rapier specially made as a parting gift for his little sister Arya, which becomes the only part of her old life she retains by the end of the season.
    • Jon gets one himself after saving the life of Lord Commander Mormont. In gratitude, the Lord Commander has his Ancestral Weapon Longclaw remade and presents it to Jon.
    • Brienne receives Oathkeeper and a new set of armor as a gift from Jaime Lannister.
  • It Was Here, I Swear!: In the prologue of Season 1, Will leads his fellow rangers to a circular array of wildling corpses, only to find they've all disappeared. We soon find out they got up and walked away.
  • I Was Beaten by a Girl: The Hound has a morbid chuckle at the realization he's been killed by a woman.
    • Played with by Bronn's conversation with the Sand Snakes across the cell aisle. He says his code would normally prevent him from fighting a woman; Tyrene responds that every man they defeat always says that.
  • I Was Quite a Looker:
    • Lady Olenna regales Margaery with how she seduced her future husband away from his betrothed, claiming she was "very, very, good." This doubles as an Actor Allusion for anyone who's seen Dianna Rigg in The Avengers (1960s) or On Her Majesty's Secret Service.
    • Although he doesn't call himself attractive, Maester Aemon states that, as a Targaryen prince, the ladies of Westeros couldn't get enough of him and one seriously tempted him.
  • I Will Punish Your Friend for Your Failure: This happens in "The Kingsroad" when Cersei orders Sansa's direwolf, Lady, to be killed for what Arya's wolf, Nymeria, did to Joffrey.

    J 
  • Jabba Table Manners:
    • Joffrey shows the most unkingly manners imaginable at his wedding.
    • Arya and Sandor look nothing like a highborn girl and a Kingsguard when they guest with a farmer in the Riverlands.
  • Jerkass: Too many to name.
  • Jerkass Gods:
    • Cersei quotes her father as saying, "Gods have no mercy. That's why they're gods."
    • Tyrion is of a similar, though more humorous, opinion: "The Lord of Light wants his enemies burnt. The Drowned God wants them drowned. Why are all the gods such vicious cunts? Where is the god of tits and wine?"
  • Jerkass Has a Point: Has its own page.
  • Jerk with a Heart of Gold: There are many unpleasant characters featured in the story, but they are not without redeeming qualities. Plus, there are far worse people than them.
  • Join or Die:
    • One of the recruitment methods of the Night's Watch is offering an alternative to prisoners facing a death sentence.
    • Qhorin Halfhand hints to Jon that they will both die unless Jon invokes this with the wildlings.
    • Danaerys makes this offer to the defeated Tarly and Lannister survivors. Some take it, then Lord Tarly and his son refuse, and are incinerated into small piles of ash, whereupon all the rest bend the knee to her.
  • Jousting Lance: The Mountain kills Ser Hugh of the Vale with one, which may have been intentional. Or just because he felt like it. He is later said to have done the same to Lord Beric Dondarrion.
  • Judge, Jury, and Executioner: The Starks maintain the belief of the First Men that the man who passes the sentence should swing the sword as a safeguard against tyrants ordering executions arbitrarily.
  • Jumped at the Call: Jon Snow is very eager to join the Night's Watch despite his uncle's advice to wait a while longer. Later, he jumps at the chance to join Qhorin Halfhand's ranging.
  • Jumping Off the Slippery Slope:
    • Joffrey, who up to that point has really only been a Royal Brat with a temper, orders Ned Stark executed in spite of all reason.
    • Theon condones the murder of two innocent boys.
    • Lord Karstark, merely a grumbling dissenter among Robb's men until that point, murders two innocent Lannister children in their beds.
  • Jump Scare: Biter attacks the Hound out of nowhere in "Mockingbird."
  • Just a Flesh Wound: Arya gets shanked several times in the abdomen, yet only needs some bandaging by an amateur healer and apparently a few days of bed rest to be fit enough to perform feats of acrobatics. Though her wounds reopen in the process, she doesn't seem to be hindered or even a little shaky until she starts bleeding again.
  • Just a Kid: Tywin Lannister dismisses Robb Stark as this, believing a taste of battle will send him running back to Winterfell. Even Robb's father is concerned. They are proved oh so wrong when Robb destroys half the Lannister forces and captures Jaime Lannister. Ironically, the Reynes of Castamere once thought the same of Tywin.
  • Just Desserts: In season 6 Ramsay Bolton is eaten alive by his own hounds after spending many seasons engaging in torture, warfare, and rape. This is especially karmic because he had trained his hounds to eat various people he hunted down or otherwise wanted to dispose of.
  • Just Following Orders:
    • The Hound uses this as justification for killing Mycah the butcher's boy.
    • Janos Slynt also uses it to explain his participation in the purge in "The North Remembers".
    • Brother Ray implies he was this kind of knight.
  • Just Giving Orders: Near the end of Robert's Rebellion, Tywin Lannister and his Westerlands army joined the rebels at the eleventh hour and sacked King's Landing. Tywin ordered Ser Gregor Clegane to kill the Targaryen children to eliminate competing claims to the throne, but Gregor extrapolated this to mean he had license to kill Queen Elia Martell as well, though not before raping her. When Elia's brother Oberyn confronts him about this years later, Tywin "categorically" denies any involvement with her death and blames it squarely on Gregor. He actually made the opposite critique of his son Tyrion earlier.
    Tywin: When soldiers lack discipline, the fault lies with their commander!
  • Just in Time:
    • The Hound saving Sansa from Attempted Rape.
    • Played for Laughs when Jaqen kills Amory Lorch seconds before he can reveal incriminating information about Arya.
  • "Just Joking" Justification:
    • After threatening to Groin Attack Joffrey, Tyrion engages in some Self-Deprecation in an attempt to pass it off as a bad joke. Nobody is fooled, but its enough of a face-saver to defuse the situation.
    • Cersei attempts to use this on Joffrey's behalf in "Mhysa," but he presses on heedlessly.
  • Just Like Robin Hood:
    • The Brotherhood Without Banners is a band of outlaws who fight the nobility on behalf of the smallfolk and features pretty clear expies of the Merry Men such as a revered leader Shrouded in Myth, an alcoholic Badass Preacher, and an archer. They're far from clear-cut heroes though.
    • Jaime also occasionally mentions fighting against the outlaws of the Kingswood Brotherhood when he was young.
  • Just the First Citizen: The obvious leader of the ruling council of Qarth refers to himself as "simply a trader of spices." Everyone else just calls him "the Spice King".

    K 
  • Kangaroo Court:
    • Tyrion resorts to trial by combat to avoid one in the Eyrie.
    • A rare heroic example occurs when Ned hears accusations that Gregor Clegane committed heinous crimes in the Riverlands. Despite only identifying Clegane by reputation via a vague description, Ned immediately sentences him to death in absentia and dispatches men to execute him without hearing any sort of defense or counter-witnesses. The fact that all the accusations prove true later softens any blow to Ned's character.
    • Tyrion's trial for regicide in "The Laws of Gods and Men" is one. The witnesses give blatantly false or highly misleading testimony and the defendant cannot question the witnesses without leave. In private during a recess, Tywin admits that the trial is a sham and the verdict is a forgone conclusion.
    • Petyr Baelish's trial in the season seven finale also is another heroic example as far as the Stark siblings go. All the evidence against the accused is based either on visions from Bran, which would likely be inadmissible in any form of reasonable legal system. Or testimony from Sansa, who has already perjured herself to the lords and ladies of the Vale and is therefore an unreliable witness. No other objective witnesses are brought forward. Although much like the example featuring Ned Stark above, the accused is in fact guilty and Sansa and her siblings suffer no consequences for it.
  • Karmic Death:
    • King Robert decides his hunting accident was divine retribution for plotting to assassinate a pregnant girl.
    • Viserys is killed when his pleas for his main Kick the Dog victim to speak out and spare his life go unanswered.
    • Arya gives Polliver an identical death to one of his victims, complete with Ironic Echo.
    • King Joffrey falls victim to someone who decided his constant sadism was a ticking time bomb.
    • Daenerys crucifies 163 masters in the exact same pose as the slave children they crucified.
    • Zig-Zagged when Bran kills Locke, the man who crippled the man who crippled him.
      • And again when Ramsay kills his father who two seasons earlier had killed his wife's brothernote 
    • Karl Tanner mocks Jon for fighting "with honor," then is fittingly stabbed In the Back twice: first by a woman he previously abused, then mortally by Jon.
    • Rast is eventually killed by the very direwolf he once taunted.
    • Lysa Arryn is thrown from a mountain moments after threatening someone with just that.
    • Ygritte is shot in the back by the son of a man she shot in the back.
    • Tywin Lannister is murdered by the one man he has always wanted dead.
    • Janos Slynt is executed by the son of the man whom he had betrayed, and with a blade of Valyrian steel as a bonus.
    • Roose Bolton is killed when he is betrayed by Ramsay, somebody he thought he could trust, just like how he had originally betrayed Robb. And for bonus points, is killed in exactly the same manner.
    • One of Ramsay's favourite methods of disposing of those who stand in his way is to feed them alive to his ravenous mastiffs. Take a guess at how he ends up.
    • Walder Frey, the last conspirator of the Red Wedding, has his throat slit by Arya Stark, just as her mother had been killed.
    • Littlefinger is executed by the Stark sisters for the crimes he commited against their family. Arya uses the catspaw dagger to slit his throat. Not only had Littlefinger used that dagger to create conflict between the Lannister and Stark families, he had held the dagger to Ned Stark's throat.
  • Keystone Army: Any wights raised by a White Walker will "die" again if that Walker is destroyed. Since the Night King is responsible for creating all the other Walkers (as well as most of the wights; the ones he didn't create are created by Walkers the King created anyway - it all comes down to him), the entire Army of the Dead falls down or disintegrates when Arya kills him.
  • Kicking Ass in All Her Finery: Deconstructed when Brienne is forced to fight a bear in just a dress, which offers no protection. She holds her own as well as anyone but is obviously fighting a losing battle, especially being armed with only a wooden sword.
  • Kick the Dog:
    • Cersei orders Sansa's direwolf killed in retribution for Arya's direwolf attacking Joffrey because Arya's has disappeared.
    • Joffrey kicks the dog in virtually every scene in which he appears, including during his wedding in "The Lion and the Rose."
      Tyrion: Killed a few puppies today?
    • King Robert likes to do his whoring while his brother-in-law Jaime is on duty, which Jaime believes is deliberate insult.
    • Polliver's Establishing Character Moment is stabbing a wounded child in the throat rather than carry him.
    • Lord Tywin constantly zigzags between this and Pet the Dog when it comes to his sons, often within the same scene. For example, he grants Tyrion powerful offices and an advantageous marriage despite constantly denying his claim to Casterly Rock and berating him for being a drunken lecher, and manages to gift Jaime a priceless Valyrian sword and disown him in the same scene.
    • The Great Masters of Meereen crucify 163 slave children to deter Daenerys' march on their city, which only hardens her resolve.
    • Dagmer casually spears Maester Luwin just For the Evulz.
    • The Hound throws away any goodwill he earned from Arya by robbing the kindly and generous farmer who took them in.
    • Just in case you thought the wildlings were nice people, Ygritte shoots a man in the throat in front of his son in "Breaker of Chains", then Styr of the Thenns relishes in terrorizing the boy with how he's going to eat both his parents.
  • Kids Are Cruel:
    • Joffrey is The Caligula.
    • Arya is a sympathetic character and still fairly heroic, but also a cold-blooded killer.
    • Robin Arryn has an unhealthy fondness for seeing people and objects thrown off a mountain.
  • Killed Mid-Sentence: It's not an audible sentence, but Ned Stark is clearly in the midst of a prayer when the blade descends.
    • A random villager is also killed mid sentence when Ygritte shoots him right in the head with an arrow during a wildling raid.
      No one boils a potato better than your mom, she's got-
  • Killed Off for Real: Pyat Pree, the warlock of Qarth. He escaped death once before due to his duplication magic, but when Dany's dragons burn him alive he remains dead.
  • Kill It with Fire:
    • This seems to be the only way to get rid of the wights.
    • Basically the modus operandi of House Targaryen. Aegon I and his sisters used dragons to conquer six of the Seven Kingdoms, which included melting the castle of Harrenhal. Joffrey also speaks of Aerion "Brighflame" Targaryen who died from drinking wildfire and fire was Mad King Aerys' favoured execution method. His daughter Daenerys uses fire to kill Mirri Maz Duur, Pyat Pree, and Kraznys mo Nakloz and many other slavers of Astapor. She tops it off in Season 8 by incinerating the entirety of King's Landing.
    • In "Blackwater" Tyrion uses wildfire to kill half of Stannis' entire fleet!
      • Just as his sister uses it to rid herself of the Faith Militant and its leader, the daughter-in-law she detests and her brother, at the end of Season 6.
    • The Night's Watch uses flaming barrels of oil to kill several wildlings and drive off the mammoth at their gate in "The Watchers on the Wall."
  • Kill Me Now, or Forever Stay Your Hand:
    • The Hound invites Arya to take a swing at his head with a rock, but if she fails he will break both her hands. Answer Cut to a sulking Arya riding on the Hound's horse.
    • Tywin Lannister orders his guards to leave him alone with Hot-Blooded Oberyn Martell, who is genre savvy enough to know he will not survive the attempt.
    • In the Season 7 finale, both Tyrion and Jamie pull this on Cersei.
  • Kill the Cutie: Shireen, one of the most pure, innocent and good characters in the show is brutally executed by fire in "The Dance of Dragons.}
  • Kill the Ones You Love:
    • Daenerys is forced to smother Drogo when she is unable to revive him from his comatose state in "Fire and Blood."
    • Meera puts her brother, Jojen out of his misery in "The Children."
  • Kindhearted Cat Lover: Tommen Baratheon has a cat named Ser Pounce.
  • King Incognito: Mance Rayder when he first meets Jon Snow.
  • King of Beasts: House Lannister's sigil is a lion and they use Animal Stereotypes as dynastic propaganda.
    Tywin: A lion does not concern himself with the opinions of a sheep.
  • Kingmaker Scenario: House Tyrell serves as this by supporting the Lannisters in the War of the Five Kings.
  • King Bob the Nth: King Robert Baratheon, the First of His Name, actually. Most prospective kings also use this style, even if they are the first of their name. "First of His Name" is even the title of Season 4's fifth episode.
  • Kingpin in His Gym: The Mountain makes his Season 4 debut sparring against practically unarmed convicts with his massive broadsword.
  • Kissing Cousins:
    • After Jaime goes off to war, Cersei starts getting her incest fix with her cousin Lancel. While cousin relationships are not uncommon in Westeros (Cersei's parents, for instance), this establishes Cersei's disturbing habit of shaking the family tree for a bed partner. According to the books, this is because Lancel physically resembles a young Jaime. In Season 2, Tyrion uses this knowledge to blackmail Lancel into spying on Cersei, as neither Jaime or Joffrey would be happy with Lancel's affections toward her.
    • Tywin and his wife Joanna were first cousins.
    • Sansa's maternal aunt, Lysa Arryn tells her right after accusing her of sleeping with Littlefinger, that she can marry her son, Robin
    • Daenerys and Jon have sex unaware that they are in fact aunt and nephew.
  • Kitchen Chase: During the climatic battle in Season 4, several wildlings burst into the mess hall of Castle Black, where they're handily butchered by the Nights Watch cooks. Special mention goes to a cook who hits a wildling in the face with a pot of boiling water, then bashes his skull in with the same pot, and another (whom astute book readers will recognize as Three-Fingered Hobb) who hacks a guy to death with a giant cleaver!
  • Klingon Promotion:
    • Daario Naharis kills his captains to take control of the Second Sons.
    • House Bolton and House Frey betray their liege lords to seize their former titles.
  • The Klutz: Jaime, thanks to instinctively reaching for things with his golden hand. Most characters politely pretend not to notice.
  • Kneel Before Frodo:
    • All the lords of the North bow before Robb to acclaim him King in the North.
    • When Daenerys hatches her dragons for the first time, Jorah, along with all the other surviving members of Khal Drogo's khalasar, are so awed that they bow before her.
    • This happens to Daenerys again in Season 6 when she sets ablaze the central meeting hut in Vaes Dothrak, which kills all the other khals. She emerges from the burning hut as the lone survivor, and, once again, everyone in Vaes Dothrak bows before her.
    • And again in Season 7, after Drogon reduces Randyll and Rickon Tarly to small piles of ash for refusing to bend the knee to her, all the remaining Lannister prisoners bow to her.
  • Kneel Before Zod:
    • In "You Win Or You Die," Cersei offers Ned a chance to submit without prejudice if he kneels, which both his honour and his leg wound prevent.
    • At his wedding, King Joffrey demands his uncle Tyrion kneel before him.
    • Stannis demands that Mance Rayder kneel before him in submission, but is refused.
  • Knight in Shining Armor:
    • Jaime Lannister looks exactly like this, but is actually a Blood Knight reviled as The Oathbreaker. As his physical state degrades, however, he actually starts trying to live up to the trope.
    • Loras Tyrell also looks the part and, apart from some Combat Pragmatism, comes closer to acting like it. Unfortunately for his non-yaoi Fangirls, he's gay.
    • Barristan Selmy arguably fits this trope the best, and is presented as something of a paragon of a by-gone age.
    • Brienne of Tarth plays the trope quite straight despite being denied knighthood because of her gender, though her actual armour in Season 4 is black.
    • Sandor Clegane so despises this trope that he refuses knighthood even when he joins the previously knights-only order of the Kingsguard.
    • The loyal Stark retainer Rodrik Cassel is a strong, loyal, and honorable badass and one of the few official knights in the North.
  • Knight in Sour Armor: Brienne and Loras become this after Renly is slain. It's even shown symbolically with the latter, as the Knight of Flowers' once spotless suit of armor is now somewhat tarnished.
  • The Knights Who Say "Squee!": Renowned warrior Jaime Lannister admits on multiple occasions to idolize Living Legend Ser Barristan Selmy.
  • Knight Templar:
    • Stannis Baratheon was already a very uncompromising man before he came under the influence of an even worse example named Melisandre.
    • Daenerys shows a tendency toward this in Season 4 that her advisers find disquieting.
  • Knowledge Broker: This is Varys' job as Master of Whisperers, and he's terrifyingly good at it. If for whatever reason a character does not go to Varys, they go to Littlefinger.
  • Know-Nothing Know-It-All: Ygritte has shades of this. Although she knows much about her own people and constantly teases Jon that he knows nothing, she herself mistakes a windmill for a great castle and seems completely ignorant of the wildlings' previous failed invasions.
  • Know When to Fold 'Em: When characters fail to do this, it never ends well.
    • In "The Laws of Gods and Men," Yara Greyjoy aborts her mission to rescue Theon when she realizes how utterly broken he is, saying her brother is "dead."
    • In "The Children," Mance surrenders when Stannis' army arrives at the Wall. He knows he can't beat Stannis' forces, and he doesn't want to see his people slaughtered.
    • In the History and Lore segments, House Tyrell is said to have risen to power in the wake of Aegon's Conquest by agreeing to surrender. They also agreed to surrender without a fight after the sack of King's Landing at the end of Robert's Rebellion. The King in the North Torrhen Stark did likewise to spare his army the same fate as the combined Lannister/Gardener army at the Field of Fire, which had 4000 men burned alive by Aegon's dragons. Henceforth Torrhen was known as the king who knelt.
  • Kubrick Stare:
    • Sansa shows her new-found hate for Joffrey with one in "Fire and Blood."
    • Tyrion gives a fantastic one while threatening Joffrey in "Second Sons" and another to Tywin in "The Laws of Gods and Men."
    • Dany keeps an impassive expression throughout Master Kraznys' string of insults because she's pretending not to speak his language, but the last time he calls her a bitch, she gives him one of these when he's not looking. Kraznys' horrible flame-y death ensues shortly after.
  • Kukris Are Kool: Bronn has one strapped to the small of his back, which he puts to good use on occasion.

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