History Recap / GameOfThronesS5E10MothersMercy

* WomanInWhite: Subverted; the pristine white robe that Dany was wearing the last episode has turned pale blue from all the soot on Drogon's pad and most likely some heavy rain, considering the highlands he took her to.

** Fans have noted quite a few similarities to the ''StarWars'' franchise. The LukeIAmYourFather scene (with Myrcella giving the "I've always known" response that Leia did to Luke being her brother), Arya seeing her own face (Luke seeing his face on the Vader he fights on Dagobah), Gregor resurrected as a DarthVaderClone, and Theon killing Myranda like Vader did Palpatine.

** Jaime is finally able to admit to one of his children that he's their father, [[SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments and Myrcella reveals she already knows and is glad]]. And then she dies as a result of being [[DruggedLipstick secretly poisoned]] by Ellaria.

* DownerEnding: Where do we even begin? With the exception of Sam (who is sent to the Citadel, where he will protect Gilly from the threat of the White Walkers) and Tyrion (who ends up better than he was at the beginning of the season, as a ruler of Meereen), ALL the other characters receive a tragic ending on this season finale: Stannis is dead, Sansa and Theon jump off Winterfell's walls to an uncertain fate, Brienne misses her chance to rescue Sansa, Arya goes blind, Jaime witnesses his daughter die, Daenerys is imprisoned by the Dothraki, Cersei is publicly humiliated and yet remains without her power, Davos discovers that Shireen has died, Melisandre is devastated by his failure with Stannis, and Jon is betrayed and killed by his own men. .

Meanwhile, at '''Winterfell''', Sansa has finally managed to get into the tower and lights her candle. Unfortunately, Brienne of Tarth picks just that moment to look away as she learns from Pod that Stannis' army is approaching. On the hills outside the castle, Stannis draws his sword as he sees that the Boltons have rallied a large army against him, at least twice his number. He stands firm with only his most loyal or most fanatical followers. However, most of his army ends up routed into the woods. Meanwhile, Sansa sees that the bulk of the Bolton's army has left the castle and quickly gets out of the tower.

Finally, at '''Castle Black''', Ser Davos has arrived to ask for help from Jon Snow. However, the young Lord Commander is firm: the Night's Watch will ''not'' commit what little soldiers they have or any of the wildlings to Stannis' cause. The two argue until Melissandre arrives on horseback. The Red Woman says nothing as Davos asks about Stannis and the princess; her silence is all they need to know about what has happened to the campaign and Davos knows he's in even deeper trouble as the Iron Bank probably wants a cheeky word with him about that outstanding war-chest loan right about now.

** Roose Bolton is conspicuously absent while a decisive battle is fought on his doorstep. Could also double as Fridge Brilliance, since Roose was in favor of letting Stannis' army suffer through a protracted siege, thus risking none of his forces. And given how tired he seems to have been getting of Ramsay's pointless bloodlust (along with his wife having a bun in the oven), he may simply not have cared if BloodKnight Ramsay got himself killed in the fight.

** When Theon and Jeyne leap from the walls, Theon believes that if they survive the fall, they only have to make it a few hundred yards to Stannis' siege lines. In the show, Ramsay is already returning from slaughtering Stannis' men, leaving them nowhere to seek refuge. And Ramsay loves [[HuntingTheMostDangerousGame hunting]].

** In the books, Stannis rallies the northern third of the North to his cause while the Boltons take the rest, but while Stannis' allies are united by their duty to rescue "the [[UndyingLoyalty Ned's]] girl", the Boltons are surrounded by dubious allies who hate his Frey contingent so forcefully that Roose is forced to send them to battle Stannis rather than sitting safely behind his walls and risk them killing each other. In the show, Stannis marches his larger army south, but is weakened by the ravages of winter and FromBadToWorse until his forces are swept away by a unified army under the Boltons.

** In the books, Sam vehemently protests Jon's command that he become a maester -- Sam had tried in his youth but his father adamantly opposed to a Tarly wearing the maester's scholarly chains. Jon forces Gilly to [[SwitchedAtBirth swap]] her own son with Mance Rayder's to prevent Melisandre from burning Mance's son for his royal blood and he has Gilly's son raised under his protection, certain Gilly's son will be safe as Stannis would not allow Melisandre to harm Gilly's son since he lacks royal blood. In the show, because Mance's son has been AdaptedOut, Sam requests to become a maester and departs with Gilly and her son.
** The show omits Daenerys' VisionQuest in the Dothraki Sea. In the books, Daenerys accidentally poisons herself with berries, bringing on an irregular period (or possibly having a miscarrige, as she had been married to and sleeping with Hizdhar for some time) and delirious visions featuring Jorah, Viserys, and Quaithe urging her to become a true Targaryen and fulfill her destiny.

** We know that the "Hardhome" episode was heavily rewritten late in production to make it the action climax of the season -- but this resulted in several other plot holes which are incongruent with surrounding episodes. When Jon and the wildlings flee Hardhome, they left on ships by sea...then in the next episode, ''without explanation'', they are suddenly waiting at the north side of the Wall from Castle Black -- apparently to set up the big dramatic confrontation with Thorne (who eventually grudgingly lets them through)...even though Castle Black is ''in the middle of the continent''. Jon left for Hardhome by ship from Eastwatch, at the eastern end of the Wall, and if they were already on ship they could just ''sail to the southern side'' at Eastwatch. It's possible that these rewrites didn't fit together well. Even ignoring the novels, why would Thorne even let Jon through the Wall in the first place with the wildlings, if only to then kill Jon for letting the wildlings through? Like proverbially locking the stable door after the horse has already bolted.
** There is at least ''some'' possibility that Thorne and the others were finally pushed over the edge to kill Jon when Melisandre brought news to Castle Black that Stannis had been defeated by the Boltons -- and the episode just didn't show this because it wanted to maintain the element of surprise for viewers. Melisandre's return to the Wall is the only thing that changed between episodes 9 and 10, and it would still more or less fit that it happened because of the Boltons.

** After Jaime spends an entire Season trying to save Myrcella, she ends up dying anyway.

* AwLookTheyReallyDoLoveEachOther: A tragic example. As cold as their married life was, Stannis is visibly shocked and mournful (for his stoic standards, at least) when he sees Selyse's hanged corpse.
* BackFromTheDead: It's {{implied|Trope}} that the newest member of the Kingsguard is Gregor Clegane[[note]]supported by him being portrayed by Gregor's Season Four actor, Creator/HafthorJuliusBjornsson[[/note]] brought back to life by Qyburn's experiments. Then again, it's also a SubvertedTrope, as he never actually died, though he [[AndIMustScream did come close]]. In the novel, Qyburn presents the man as "Ser Robert Strong", a pseudonym which fools precisely no one, even if they don't understand how Clegane is still alive.

** Olly comes to Jon with news that his missing uncle Benjen has been sighted, but when he rushes out to the gathering of brothers all he finds is a sign that says "traitor." And then the black brothers draw their knives...
*** Taken to a meta-textual level by having Benjen appear prominently in the "Previously On" montage, building the audience's expectation of his return.

** Brienne seems absolutely set on beheading a wounded Stannis, his death is heavily implied but not shown as we cut away on her sword swing.

** Myrcella is [[KissOfDeath poisoned]] by Ellaria with [[DruggedLipstick 'The Long Farewell']] and collapses in Jaime's arms not even a league offshore from the coast of Dorne as they're returning home. Turn that ship around, Kingslayer!
** Daenerys, with Drogon asleep and healing in his lair, is surrounded by a massive mounted horde of Dothraki screamers, possibly the remnants of her deceased husband's ''khalasar''. Let's hope they recognise her as a khaleesi, otherwise...

* CallBack

** Arya uses the face of the little girl who she [[MercyKill mercy killed]] earlier in the Season.
*** In a scene where the Hound's assessment of Ser Meryn Trant's combat prowess is proven true.
** Jon gets news that someone spotted Benjen Stark, who went missing way back in Season One.

* CantKillYouStillNeedYou: Myranda points out to Sansa that until Ramsay impregnates her, she will be kept alive. But once she gives birth to a few heirs, Ramsay will do away with her...slowly.

** The corkscrew Sansa filched in ''The Gift'' is used to pick the lock on her bedchamber.

* CliffHanger: This episode was an avalanche of [[CliffHanger cliff hangers]]. With the exception of Cersei's, Sam's, and (to a lesser extent) Dany's court, all other storylines ended in one:
** Brienne raised her sword and sentenced Stannis. Scene changed, no conclusion.
** Myrcella was shown bleeding from her nose and collapsing. Scene changed, no conclusion.
** Daenerys was shown surrounded by a khalasar, possibly her own. Scene changed, no conclusion.
** Sansa and [[HeroicWillpower The]][[FightingFromTheInside on]] jumped off the wall of Winterfell to ... See you next Season.
** Arya was blinded. Made this scene literal FadeToBlack.
** Jon was stabbed repeatedly and shown bleeding in the snow. And that was the last scene of the Season. (This is also the cliffhanger of ''A Dance with Dragons''.)
* ClothingDamage: Dany, although not to the same extent as in the books, has torn strips from her gown and wraps them around her hands, probably because her palms are chafed from Drogon's scales.

'''Male pleb:''' I'm a Lannister! ''Suck me off''!

** Tyrion officially takes over Barristan's role as the ''de facto'' ruler of Meereen during Daenerys' absence, while Missandei, Greyworm, and Varys take the place of the novels' military junta (most notably Skahaz the Shavepate) and Jorah and Daario go in search of Daenerys in place of her DemotedToExtra bloodriders.

* CurbStompBattle: Stannis' remaining forces are annihilated by the Bolton army.

** Stannis' army is defeated by the Boltons, and Stannis himself is executed by Brienne. The sacrifice of Shireen was for nothing, and Mellisandre's powers prove to be far less effective than she thought.

* DidntSeeThatComing: Melisandre when told half of Stannis' army has deserted.
* DirtyCoward:

** Meryn Trant is one taken UpToEleven when he makes no attempt to fight back against Arya Stark stabbing him repeatedly despite being a knight but he has no problem beating little girls a third his size.

* DueToTheDead: Stannis has Selyse's body taken down from the tree, but it's implied that [[SubvertedTrope he doesn't have enough time to give her a proper burial.]]

** Jon Snow as well -- Sam has been sent away and Stannis' army has been wiped out, so the mutineers don't miss their opportunity. Even Jon's own steward is one of the conspirators.

* ExtremeMeleeRevenge: Arya gives Trant TheGlomp of Death, puts out his eyes and bloodily stabs him several times in the chest. After that he can only moan in pain, giving Arya time for some EvilGloating of her own.
* FaceDeathWithDignity:

** One wonders how thousands of men and horses left Stannis' camp in the middle of the night without anybody noticing, or how Stannis somehow doesn't notice the missing troops until somebody tells him. King Stannis must be one heavy sleeper.

* FullFrontalAssault: Aside from the usual insults several commoners flash in front of Cersei. The Faith Militant is not amused, with Cersei's escort beating those who get too close.

* HeadbuttingHeroes: Tyrion and Jorah have a very outspoken clash; Jorah is wary about the presence of a Lannister, distrusts the new guy and is still bitter about the role played by Tyrion when he was exiled a second time. Tyrion for his part remarks that Jorah should promise not to kill him in his sleep and reminds that he's not to blame for Jorah's crimes.

** After Stannis' sacrifice, the snow begins to melt which clears the way for Winterfell. But then he's told that half his army abandoned him. And things quickly go downhill from there.
** Jon hears that someone has news of [[WhatHappenedToTheMouse his missing uncle, Benjen]] and immediately rushes out to see him... only to find out that his black brothers have betrayed him.

** Jaime finds that his daughter not only knows he is her true father but she's actually happy about it. She then collapses unconcious in his arms.

** In a single episode, Stannis finds out that half his army has deserted him overnight, that his wife has committed suicide, that Melisandre has abandoned him and then he comes on the receiving end of the single most one-sided CurbStompBattle in the show, lacking even Mance Rayder's excuse of being in the middle of parley with Jon Snow. To top it all, he then gets killed by Brienne in the name of Renly, who she calls "the rightful King" despite Stannis basing his entire campaign on being the only contender with a legitimate legal claim.

* {{Hypocrite}}: The Night Watch brothers who labeled Jon as a traitor. Then proceeded to murder their own Lord Commander.

* IdiotBall: The High Sparrow grabs this both in the novel and here. Sure, he may have the support of the common folk, and Cersei's publicly humiliation demonstrated that The Faith treats everyone the same, but he ''allows her to return to her home'', where she has access to money, troops loyal to her, and is totally safe from him unless she chooses to return.

** Brienne comes calling, and Stannis' kinslaying finally catches up to him.

* KarmaHoudini: Melisandre burned Shireen alive -- prompting the desertion of over half of Stannis's army -- drove Selyse to suicide and falsely made Stannis believe he could become king against all odds. Naturally, she flees the scene and ends up the sole person to make it back to Castle Black alive.

** Of all the things they could have said in order to lure him out to his death, did the mutineers really had to lie to Jon about his uncle being alive? [[VisualPun Talk about twisting the knife]].

* KickThemWhileTheyAreDown: Cersei is subjected to one, all the way from the Great Sept to the Red Keep. By the end, she's filthy and her feet are bleeding.
** Brienne executes Stannis while the latter is wounded, unarmed, and in no position whatsoever to fight back or resist. She also calls Renly the rightful king when Stannis came ahead of Renly in succession.

* MutualDisadvantage: The blizzard had this effect on both the Bolton and Baratheon forces, albeit moreso for the latter. Once the snow clears and Stannis can advance his troops, the Boltons do just the same with their cavalry.

* MythologyGag: "Well, there's no food. At the very least you could hunt us some supper." A hungry Dany bemoans of her child as he snores, in the book he ''does'' share one of his kills with his mother, just before the Dothraki arrive.
* NegatedMomentOfAwesome: Stannis is certainly going to lose the battle but it looks like he's at least going to get a cool LastStand. The music builds up, and after a brief pause; [[DefiantToTheEnd Stannis draws his sword]] and his army prepares to fight. We don't even get to see the battle and it's clear that it was a complete CurbStompBattle.
* NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished: Sadly, Jon continues the Stark tradition of this. After saving the wildlings from certain death, he gets killed for it by his own men.
** A rather dark version of a "good deed" but Arya kills a sadistic murdering pedophile and saves the little girls Trant was whipping and planning to rape, only to be blinded by the Faceless Men as a punishment. Given the number of things other characters have got away with, it's clear the Starks really can't catch a break.

* OurHeroIsDead: The Season ends with Jon bleeding lifelessly in the snow.

* PerfectlyArrangedMarriage: Discussed by Jaime, who is bewildered that Myrcella's and Trystane's political betrothal being a perfectly happy one.
* PetTheDog: Qyburn is the first in the Red Keep (including Pycelle and Cersei's Uncle Kevan) to cloak Cersei and comforts her. Then he gives her hope by providing her with a new protector, Ser Robert Strong.
* PleaseDontLeaveMe: When Jaqen poisons himself, Arya cries out, "No! You can't die!" Cruelly subverted when it's shown a man was never Jaqen H'ghar in the first place.
* PragmaticAdaptation: Daenerys' diarrhea and other squicky health problems brought on by poisonous berries in the wilderness are AdaptedOut, both for time and because the former is PlayedForLaughs on television so often that {{Narm}} would be inevitable.[[note]]Many similar instances have also been excised: Ned in the black cells, Tyrion slipping Cersei a laxative, Tyrion himself in the field hospital after the Blackwater, Davos suffering dysentery when stranded, and Tywin's averting of NoDeadBodyPoops to name a few. Only Jaime, as Robb's prisoner, claims that he was covered in his own filth for nearly a year.[[/note]] It's worth noting, however, that the early and heavy onset of her period in the books prompts Dany to realize it may have been more than a month since her last one, a hint that she may not be as barren as she believed herself to be after Mirri Maz Duur's ritual. While the show removes a lot of this, it still has Dany describe her dragons as "the only children I will ever have," in Season 2.
** Cersei's tresses are not shaved- only cut short. Her eyebrows and pubic hair are left alone. In the books, all of her hair was shaved off.
* PrecisionFStrike: Perhaps never more literally applied than during Cersei's walk of shame where people shout the F-word at her (among other obscenities) is shown to hit just as hard as the rotten vegetables and other matter physically thrown at her.

** Even after the events of the last episode, Dany is still having trouble controlling her dragon. Mostly because Drogon is tired from the flight and busy licking the wounds he took in Daznak's Pit.

** Ellaria [[KissOfDeath kills]] Myrcella, even though Myrcella is an innocent child, had no role in Oberyn's death whatsoever, knows how likely killing Myrcella will start a war, and does so in defiance of a prince who is almost certainly going to attempt to kill her now.

* RuleOfSymbolism

** Melisandre very suddenly abandons Stannis' side and rides for Castle Black. She doesn't explain why to either Davos or Jon Snow.
** [[FreezeFrameBonus Attentive viewers will notice]] that when the Bolton forces attack, the rear of Stannis' army actually [[http://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/1298345462530819755.gif runs away in the other direction]].

* ShooTheDog: Sam, Gilly and Little Sam head to Oldtown, so Sam can become a maester. Their timing could NOT have been better.

** Stannis' missions to win the throne and save the world end in dismal failure. In pursuit of this goal, he has sacrificed his younger brother, his fleet, his army, his self-respect, his daughter, his wife, his Red Woman and (this episode) his life; in return, he achieved... almost nothing. He couldn't even capture Winterfell. The worst part is that, aside from Melisandre, literally ''no one'' actually wanted him to be king--not even Stannis himself.

* TemptingFate: After Stannis finds out that half his army abandoned him, another messenger comes with bad news. He tells him to speak since there couldn't be any news worse than mutiny. Turned out his queen committed suicide. And Melisandre abandoned him too.

* TravellingAtTheSpeedOfPlot: Melisandre returned to Castle Black pretty quickly, whether its because her HumanSacrifice cooled down and cleared the path or not, no one knows.

** After Jon put aside their differences and appointed Thorne as First Ranger, he led a mutiny against him.

* WhamEpisode: ... Let's count the ways. Stannis fights his battle and loses, with Brienne finally avenging Renly. Theon breaks his Reek persona, kills Myranda, and escapes Winterfell with Sansa. Tyrion is placed in charge of Meereen, and Varys finally returns. Dany is captured by the Dothraki. Arya finally kills Ser Meryn Trant, but disappoints a man and thus goes blind. Cersei is released, but forced to walk through the city naked, and the Mountain returns. Jon Snow is betrayed by a faction of the Night's Watch and stabbed to death.

** Jaime was finally able to admit to one of his children that he was their father, [[SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments and Myrcella reveals she already knows and is glad.]] And then she dies as a result of being [[DruggedLipstick secretly poisoned]] by Ellaria.

Soon after, Stannis is somehow still alive and manages to fight off a pair of Bolton soldiers who are mopping up. However, his injuries prove severe and he collapses at a tree. It's here where he's found by Brienne of Tarth, who promptly executes him in the name of "King" Renly. Thus ends the war of Stannis Baratheon, the false prophet.

** Roose Bolton is conspicuously absent while a decisive battle is fought on his doorstep. Could also double as FridgeBrilliance, since Roose was in favor of letting Stannis' army suffer through a protracted siege, thus risking none of his forces. And given how tired he seems to have been getting of Ramsay's pointless bloodlust (along with his wife having a bun in the oven), he may simply not have cared if BloodKnight Ramsay got himself killed in the fight.

** Roose Bolton is conspicuously absent while a decisive battle is fought on his doorstep.
** Two of Jon's remaining allies, Tormund and Edd, are conveniently not present at Castle Black when the mutiny occurs. While Tormund is presumably leading his people to the Gift, Edd is simply not there.

** Though he might be sterner than his literary counterpart (though he has his moments even in the books), Doran Martell has yet to show any signs of being TheChessmaster he is in the books.

** The show omits Daenerys' VisionQuest in the Dothraki Sea. In the books, Daenerys accidentally poisons herself with berries, bringing on an irregular period and delirious visions featuring Jorah, Viserys, and Quaithe urging her to become a true Targaryen and fulfill her destiny.
** Sansa and Theon's escape together is a spur-of-the-moment decision in the show, whereas in the books Jeyne Poole's rescue is a long-term plot orchestrated by Melisandre, Jon, Abel the Bard, and six spearwives which Theon finds himself caught up in.

* BackFromTheDead: It's {{implied|Trope}} that the newest member of the Kingsguard is Gregor Clegane[[note]]supported by him being portrayed by Gregor's Season Four actor, Creator/HafthorJuliusBjornsson[[/note]] brought back to life by Qyburn's experiments. Then again, it's also a SubvertedTrope, as he never actually died, though he [[AndIMustScream did come close]].

** Myrcella is [[KissOfDeath poisoned]] by Ellaria with [[DruggedLipstick 'the long farewell']] and collapses in Jaime's arms not even a league offshore from the coast of Dorne as they're returning home. Turn that ship around, Kingslayer!

** Cersei's walk of shame is meant to do this, and by the time she reaches the Red Keep it seems to have worked, leaving her weak and weeping. However, as soon as Qyburn reveals his creation, [[SubvertedTrope her tears disappear]] and she already looks to be plotting her revenge. She hasn't changed, she's just gotten a whole lot angrier.

* CantKillYouStillNeedYou: Myranda points out to Sansa that until Ramsay impregnates her, she will be kept alive. But once she gives birth to a few heirs, Ramsay will do her away slowly.

* DeathByAdaptation: Selyse, Meryn Trant, and Myrcella are alive in the source material for the season, the fourth and fifth books.

* DirtyCoward: As soon as it becomes evident that Stannis won't be winning his battle, Melisandre promptly flees the camp.

Back in '''Dorne''', Team Jaime is returning to King's Landing. Ellaria gives Myrcella a full kiss on the lips, which is pretty hot. Bronn also says goodbye to the Sand Snakes. On the ship, Jaime and Myrcella have a moment, which culminates in her already knowing that he's actually her father. However, she's happy. She has a wonderful boyfriend and she finally acknowledges her true father. Things couldn't be better!

In the dark cells beneath '''The Great Sept of Baelor''', Cersei goes to confess her crimes. She says that her affair with Lancel is true, but nothing else. Yeah, that totally won't bite her in the ass later. The High Sparrow believes that this confession is enough for a respite, and allows her to return to the Red Keep until her trial by battle. That is, by way of her walk of atonement. Stripped of every article of clothing and her long hair cut short, Cersei is marched through the streets of King's Landing with an honour guard of the Faith Militant and Septa Unella, who rings a bell while repeating, "Shame. Shame. Shame." As they go, the city's smallfolk get more and more unruly, shouting every insult they can think of that they've been bottling-up for years to say to their cruel and distant monarch, throwing rotten fruits and vegetables at her. By the time she reaches the gates of the Red Keep, Cersei Lannister, Queen Mother, and the proud lioness of Casterly Rock, is bloody and covered in all manner of filth.

Night falls at the Wall. Jon looks through his raven scrolls, no doubt depressed over being the most hated man in the Night's Watch, that Stannis is dead, and, [[AllThereInTheManual according to the script]], none of the minor Northern houses are able to send recruits to help the Watch. He clearly hopes there's no way this day can get any worse. Suddenly, Jon's door bursts open, and Olly brings him the one thing in Westeros that's rarer than gold, morality, or Valyrian steel: good news. One of the wildlings says he knows Jon's Uncle Benjen, and says he's still alive! The young Lord Commander hurries out of his office into the courtyard to see his uncle, where Ser Alliser says that Benjen was last seen at Hardhome (the place that was just overrun by the White Walkers). It could be a lie, or it could be the truth; they'll need to find out. Jon is taken to a gathering of Night's Watchmen near the wildling, and he makes his way through the crowd to find...

...[[WhamShot a cross marked with the word "TRAITOR."]] Jon turns around to find each one of his own men glaring at him with utter contempt.

** The Night's Watch mutineers are motivated solely by racism in the show instead of the book's multi-layered motivations that are intended to depict a difficult and complicated set of situations. In the books, while many of Jon's officers are pissed by Jon's efforts to ally with and save the wildlings, they do not turn on him at these points. Along with their dissatisfaction over the wildlings, they are concerned Jon is providing too much aid to Stannis and fear the Iron Throne will retaliate against the Night's Watch in response. Bowen Marsh (one of the mutineers) is worried that the Watch does not have sufficient resources to support everyone Jon wants to shelter on the Wall through winter. While Jon is trying to prepare the defense of the realm and fulfill his duties as a neutral Lord Commander, he also finds himself struggling with the Night Watch's political neutrality and his urge to ScrewTheRulesImDoingWhatsRight, ultimately deciding on the latter (helping Alys Karstark escape her {{Evil Uncle}}s by negotiating a marriage that will help her retake her home, trying to save a girl he believes is his little sister Arya from {{sadist}} Ramsay Bolton, supporting Stannis over the Boltons). These decisions interfere with the affairs of the realm, resulting in disaster when Jon receives the Pink Letter from Ramsay Bolton. It is not until after Jon announces his intention to march south and confront Ramsay, openly compromising the Watch's neutrality, that a faction of Jon's officers turn on him in mutiny. Furthermore, the mutineers do not taunt him with a "traitor" sign in the books -- they ''all'' feel remorseful, not just Olly the CanonForeigner, and do not want to stab Jon but feel he has forced their hand.

** Cersei's walk of shame. At least in prison her humiliation was confined to happening in front of only a few individuals.

** Jaime finds that his daughter not only knows of her true father, but is accepting of it. She then collapses in his arms.

** Brienne murders Stannis for killing Renly, calling Renly the rightful King. However Renly was clearly a usurper and intended to kill Stannis, who had more right to the throne then him.

* KarmaHoudini: Melisandre burned Shireen alive -- prompting the desertion of over half of Stannis's army -- drove Selyse to suicide and falsely made Stannis believe he could become king against all odds. Naturally she flees the scene and ends up the sole person to make it back to Castle Black alive.

** Brienne executes Stannis while the latter is wounded, unarmed, and in no position whatsoever to fight back or resist. She even performs the indignity of saying Renly was the rightful King, when he was clearly a traitor.

** Jaime repeats his "You can't choose the one you love" justification that he used with Brienne, to Myrcella in regard to his {{Twincest}}.
** Brienne tells Stannis, "I don't serve the Boltons", as per the "I don't serve the Starks" response she gave to Jaime.

Night falls at the Wall. Jon looks through his raven scrolls, no doubt depressed at being the most hated man in the Night's Watch, the fact that Stannis is dead, and that, [[AllThereInTheManual according to the script]], none of the minor Northern houses are able to send fresh recruits. He clearly hopes there's no way this day can get any worse. Suddenly, his door bursts open, and Olly brings him the one thing in Westeros that's rarer than gold, morality, or Valyrian steel: good news. One of the wildlings says he knows his Uncle Benjen, and says he's still alive! The young Lord Commander hurries out of his office into the courtyard to see his uncle, where Ser Alliser says that Benjen was last seen at Hardhome (the place that was just overrun by the White Walkers). It could be a lie, or it could be the truth; they'll need to find out. Jon is taken to a gathering of Night's Watchmen near the wildling, and makes his way through the crowd to find...

First Ranger Ser Aliser Thorne is the first dagger to slide into Jon's belly. "For the Watch." First Builder Othell Yarwyck gives Jon the second shank. "For the Watch." First Steward Bowen Marsh is the third fuck-head to step up with a knife to the guts. "For the Watch." A fourth and fifth brother decide to not be left out and have a go as well. "For the Watch." Bleeding out and on his knees, Jon is brought to tears when Olly approaches him. With clear sadness, but remembering his parents were killed by wildlings, Olly makes the sixth and final stab to Jon's heart.

** The Night's Watch mutineers are motivated solely by racism in the show instead of the book's multi-layered motivations that are intended to depict a difficult and complicated set of situations. In the books, while many of Jon's officers are pissed by Jon's efforts to ally with and save the wildlings, they do not turn on him at these points. Along with their dissatisfaction over the wildlings, they are concerned Jon is providing too much aid to Stannis and fear the Iron Throne will retaliate against the Night's Watch in response. Bowen Marsh (one of the mutineers) is worried that the Watch does not have sufficient resources to support everyone Jon wants to shelter on the Wall through winter. While Jon is trying to prepare the defense of the realm and fulfill his duties as Lord Commander, he is also driven by an urge to "set the world to rights" and finds himself meddling in the affairs of the realm beyond his capacity as Lord Commander (helping Alys Karstark escape her {{Evil Uncle}}s by negotiating a marriage that will help her retake her home, trying to save a girl he believes is his little sister Arya from Ramsay Bolton, supporting Stannis over the Boltons), which results in disaster when Jon receives the Pink Letter from Ramsay Bolton. It is not until after Jon announces his intention to march south and confront Ramsay, effectively compromising the Watch's neutrality, that a faction of Jon's officers turn on him in mutiny. Furthermore, the mutineers do not taunt him with a "traitor" sign in the books -- they ''all'' feel remorseful, not just Olly the CanonForeigner, and do not want to stab Jon but feel he has forced their hand.

** Two of Jon's remaining allies, Tormund and Edd, are conveniently not present at Castle Black. While Tormund is presumably leading his people to the Gift, Edd is simply not there.

** The Night's Watch mutineers are motivated solely by racism in the show instead of multi-layered motivations that are intended to depict a difficult and complicated set of situations. In the books, the mutineers experience a build-up of reasons over the course of the novel, which include their feeling that Jon is helping Stannis too much, concern over needed resources, and the radical reforms Jon implements in the interest of the moral good, such as his efforts to save the wildlings from the Others. While Jon is driven by an urge to right moral wrongs, the mutineers are concerned about the Watch's neutrality to the realm's conflicts and though the mutineers are prejudiced against the wildlings and do not agree with Jon's humanitarian motivations for saving them, they do not turn on him at this point. Bowen Marsh (one of the mutineers) is also worried that the Watch does not have sufficient resources to support everyone Jon wants to shelter on the Wall and is not made aware that Jon has arranged a loan to pay for adequate supplies. The straw that breaks the camel's back is when Jon receives [[{{sadist}} Ramsay's]] threatening letter and announces his intention to march south and confront Ramsay, which compromises the Watch's neutrality. Furthermore, the mutineers do not taunt him with a "traitor" sign in the books -- they ''all'' feel remorseful, not just Olly the CanonForeigner, and do not want to stab Jon but feel he has forced their hand.

Meanwhile, Ramsay is finishing off the last of the Baratheon men. As he prepares to leave, he spots a critically wounded soldier crawling. With an evil smirk, Ramsay walks up to him and the man cries, "I surrender! I surrender!" and Ramsay accepts the surrender... and stabs him with his sword to no one's surprise. Ramsay takes pleasure in killing him.

Back at Winterfell, Sansa reaches the outer battlement when she's found by Myranda and Reek; Ramsay is out partaking in the clean-up of Stannis' army, acting like he's done all the work. Myranda threatens to torture Sansa and upon describing how Ramsay has "such plans for [Sansa]," proves to be too much for Reek to endure. He picks Myranda up and tosses her off the battlements, letting her face hit the cobbles sixty feet below. He still has a ways to go, but part of Theon is back. Upon hearing Ramsay's hunting horn, and the sound of the gates opening, Sansa and Theon jump, hand in hand, over the outer walls to land on the hopefully cushioning thick snow-bank below.

* BackFromTheDead: It's {{implied|Trope}} that the newest member of the Kingsguard is Gregor Clegane[[note]]supported by him being portrayed by Gregor's Season Four actor, Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson[[/note]] brought back to life by Qyburn's experiments. Then again, it's also a SubvertedTrope, as he never actually died, though he [[AndIMustScream did come close]].

Somewhere past '''Long Lake''', the snows are melting. Melisandre gives us a knowing smile; her magic has worked and the road to Winterfell is now open. However, Stannis isn't celebrating. Mel feeds him more codswallop about the Lord of Light but he's a bit cranky after murdering his daughter. Worse? He pretty much gets told he's the worst father of the century through the actions of his men, as half of his forces packed up and left during the night, taking all their horses with them. Oopsie-daisies, looks like Mel's tea leaves were fucking wrong. Who would have thunk it? Stannis gets lectured some more about corporate-social responsibility, and Selyse has decided to jump off the face of the world. Stannis sarcastically asks his remaining men how this day could get any worse... Big mistake: because that's when he learns that Melisandre, clearly now seeing the writing on the wall, has also done a runner.

Across the Narrow Sea, in '''Braavos''', Ser Meryn Trant is still in the brothel, getting in the zone. He's found his happy place, getting off being a sadistic pedo to not one but ''three'' lucky applicants. The smallest fair-haired girl proves a tougher nut to crack, and he has the others leave. After amping up his beating -- the girl makes a gesture across her face as she's on her knees... Surprise, mothafucka! It's Arya! She quickly stabs his eyes out, gags the fool and when he tries to fight back, shivs him a good half-dozen times in the chest to make him behave. After bringing him to his knees, she prays to the Many-faced-God alongside him, describing who she is all while gloating how he probably doesn't remember. With a slow, sure drawing of her knife across his throat, she brings an end to what was technically the first name on her list.

In the dark cells beneath '''The Great Sept of Baelor''', Cersei goes to confess her crimes. She says that her affair with Lancel is true, but nothing else. Yeah, that totally won't bite her in the ass later... The High Sparrow believes that this confession is enough for a respite, and allows her to return to the Red Keep until her trial by battle. That is, by way of her walk of atonement. Stripped of every article of clothing and her long hair cut short, Cersei is marched through the streets of King's Landing with an honour guard of the Faith Militant and Septa Unella, who rings a bell while repeating, "Shame. Shame. Shame." As they go, the city's smallfolk get more and more unruly, shouting every insult they can think of that they've been bottling-up for years to say to their cruel and distant monarch, throwing rotten fruits and vegetables at her. By the time she reaches the gates of the Red Keep, Cersei Lannister, Queen Mother, and the proud lioness of Casterly Rock, is bloody and covered in all manner of filth.

** The Night's Watch mutineers are motivated solely by racism in the show, instead of multi-layered motivations over the course of book five which present different perspectives. In the books, the mutineers experience a build-up of reasons, which include their feeling that Jon is helping Stannis too much and the radical reforms he implements in the interest of the moral good, such as his efforts to save the wildlings from the Others. While Jon is driven by an urge to right moral wrongs, the mutineers are worried about needed supplies and the Watch's neutrality to the realm's conflicts. Though the mutineers are prejudiced against the wildlings and do not agree with Jon's humanitarian motivations for saving them, Bowen Marsh (one of the mutineers) is also worried that the Watch does not have sufficient resources to support everyone Jon wants to shelter on the Wall and is not made aware that Jon has arranged a loan to pay for adequate supplies. The straw that breaks the camel's back is when Jon receives Ramsay's threatening letter and announces his intention to march south and confront Ramsay. Furthermore, the mutineers do not taunt him with a "traitor" sign in the books and ''all'' feel remorseful, not just Olly the CanonForeigner, believing Jon has forced their hands.

** This is the motivation behind Selyse's suicide.

Meanwhile, at '''Winterfell''', Sansa has finally managed to get into the tower and lights her candle. Unfortunately, Brienne of Tarth picks just that moment to look away as she learns from Pod that Stannis' army is approaching. On the hills outside the castle, Stannis draws his sword as he sees that the Boltons have rallied a large army against him, at least twice his number. He stands firm with only his most loyal or most fanatical followers. Alas, most of his army ends up routed into the woods. Meanwhile, Sansa sees that the bulk of the Bolton's army has left the castle and quickly gets out of the tower.

Soon after, Stannis is somehow still alive and manages to fight off a pair of Bolton soldiers who are mopping up. However, his injuries prove severe and he collapses at a tree. It's there that he's found by Brienne of Tarth, who promptly executes him in the name of "King" Renly. Thus ends the war of Stannis Baratheon, the false prophet.

Across the Narrow Sea, in '''Braavos''', Ser Meryn Trant is still in the brothel, getting in the zone. He's found his happy place, getting off being a sadistic pedo to not one but ''three'' lucky applicants. The smallest fair-haired girl proves a tougher nut to crack, and he has the others leave. After amping up his beating -- the girl makes a gesture across her face as she's on her knees... Surprise Mothafucka! It's Arya! She quickly stabs his eyes out, gags the fool and when he tries to fight back shivs him a good half-dozen times in the chest to make him behave. After bringing him to his knees, she prays to the Many-faced-God alongside him, describing who she is all while gloating how he probably doesn't remember. With a slow, sure drawing of her knife across his throat, she brings an end to what was technically the first name on her list.

** When Theon and Jeyne leap from the walls, Theon believes that if they survive the fall they only have to make it a few hundred yards to Stannis' siege lines. In the show, Ramsay is already returning from slaughtering Stannis' men, leaving them nowhere to seek refuge. And Ramsay loves [[HuntingTheMostDangerousGame hunting]].
** Ghost is not around when Jon is attacked: he's been locked up keep him from attacking the boar of a wildling warg.
** Edd has been assigned to Long Barrow, where the wildling spearwives are gathered. Jon deliberately sent his friends away as part of his "kill the boy" process.

** The Night's Watch mutineers are motivated solely by racism in the show, instead of multi-layered motivations over the course of book five which present different perspectives. In the books, the mutineers experience a build-up of reasons, which include their feeling that Jon is helping Stannis too much and the radical reforms he implements in the interest of the moral good, such as his efforts to save the wildlings from the Others. While Jon is driven by an urge to right moral wrongs, the mutineers are worried the Watch's neutrality to the realm's conflicts. Though the mutineers are prejudiced against the wildlings and do not agree with Jon's humanitarian motivations for saving them, Bowen Marsh (one of the mutineers) in particular is also worried that the Watch does not have sufficient resources to support everyone Jon wants to shelter on the Wall and is not made aware that Jon has arranged a loan to pay for adequate supplies. The straw that breaks the camel's back is when Jon receives Ramsay's threatening letter and announces his intention to march south and confront Ramsay. Furthermore, the mutineers do not taunt him with a "traitor" sign in the books and ''all'' feel remorseful, not just Olly the CanonForeigner, believing Jon has forced their hands.

** In the books, Stannis starts his northern campaign as the clear underdog and grows his strength by rallying the mountain clans as well as the Glovers, half the Umbers and some other northmen opposed to the Boltons and, despite his hardships, confidently awaits battle on ground of his choosing as the blizzard begins to abate. In the show, he starts out with the larger army, loses most of it to deprivation and desertion, and gets ambushed in an open field by the very army he came to fight.

* AgonyOfTheFeet: The fact that Cersei's feet are filthy and bleeding profusely by the end of her walk of shame is highlighted by shots of them before and after the ordeal.

** Immediately after Myrcella has told Jaime that she knows he is her father, and that she is happy about the fact, she dies of poisoning in Jaime's arms.

** Stannis tells Brienne, "Go on, do your duty," as she takes revenge for Renly's murder. In order to kill Stannis, Brienne has [[TheOathbreaker neglected her oath]] to Catelyn and Jaime to protect Sansa--which was even how the sword she's using got the name "Oathkeeper"!
*** This one is actually arguable; Brienne's oath to Catelyn has a ''specific exemption'' about it not holding her back from seeking vengeance on Stannis, and Sansa had technically released her from it in any case.

* PrecisionFStrike: Perhaps never more literally applied than during Cersei's walk of shame where people shouting the F-word at her (among other obscenities) is shown to hit just as hard as the rotten vegetables and other matter physically thrown at her.

** Ellaria kills Myrcella, even though she had no role in Oberyn's death whatsoever, knowing full well the likelihood of it causing a war, and defiance of a prince who is almost certainly going to attempt to kill her now.

In the dark cells beneath '''The Great Sept of Baelor''', Cersei goes to confess her crimes. She says that her affair with Lancel is true, but nothing else. Yeah, that totally won't bite her in the ass later... The High Sparrow believes that this confession is enough for a respite, and allows her to return to the Red Keep until her trial by battle. That is, by way of her walk of atonement. Stripped of every article of clothing and her long hair cut short, Cersei is marched through the streets of King's Landing with an honour guard of the Faith Militant and Septa Unella, who rings a bell while repeating "Shame. Shame. Shame." As they go, the low-born get more and more unruly, shouting every insult they can think of that they've been bottling-up for years to say to their cruel and distant monarch, throwing rotten fruits and vegetables at her. By the time she reaches the gates of the Red Keep, Cersei Lannister, Queen Mother, and the proud lioness of Casterly Rock, is bloody and covered in all manner of filth.

With what little strength she has left, Cersei makes it into the keep, safe behind the high walls and Lannister soldiers. She's immediately covered with a blanket by Qyburn as Hand of the King Kevan Lannister and Grand Maester Pycelle look on in both shame and barely-concealed glee respectively. Only Qyburn shows her sympathy, saying he needs to take a look at her cut feet. They are soon joined by a set of heavy footsteps. Cersei looks up as Qyburn introduces the newest member of the Kingsguard: an enormous seven-foot muscle-bound giant of a man covered in gold armour and a full-face helm. The outcast maester says that this knight has taken a holy vow of silence and will not rest or falter until all of Tommen's enemies are dead. Cersei's humility is quickly forgotten as she dreams of the vengeance to come...

...[[WhamShot a cross marked with the word "TRAITOR."]] Jon turns around to find each one of his own men glaring at him with utter contempt and revulsion.

First Ranger Ser Aliser Thorne is the first dagger to slide into Jon's belly. "For the Watch." First Builder Othell Yarwyck gives Jon the second shank. "For the Watch." First Steward Bowen Marsh is the third fuck-head to step up with a knife to the guts. "For the Watch." A fourth and fifth brother decide to not be left out and have a go as well. "For the Watch." Bleeding out and on his knees, Jon is brought to tears when Olly approaches him. With clear sadness, but out of a desire to avenge his fallen parents, Olly makes the sixth and final stab to Jon's heart.

* AdaptationalVillainy: The Night's Watch mutineers are motivated solely by racism instead of their more genuine reasons from the book like Jon's secret interference on the events at Winterfell and (most crucially) his intent to march south to attack the Boltons, which were adapted out. Furthermore, they do not taunt him with a "traitor" sign in the books and ''all'' feel remorseful, not just Olly the CanonForeigner, believing Jon has forced their hands. Alliser Thorne is also a particular case since he is far away and uninvolved in the attack in the novels.

** In the books, Sam vehemently protests Jon's command that he become a maester -- Sam had tried in his youth but his father adamantly opposed to a Tarly wearing the maester's scholarly chains. Jon forces Gilly to [[SwitchedAtBirth swap]] her own son with Mance Rayder's to prevent Melisandre from burning Mance's son for his royal blood and has Gilly's son raised under his protection, as Stannis would not allow Melisandre to harm Gilly's son since he lacks royal blood. Since Mance's son has been AdaptedOut, Sam requests to become a maester and departs with Gilly and her son.

* AdaptationInducedPlotHole: The heavy adaptation distillation surrounding Jon Snow's death in the TV version introduces major plot holes. In the novels, the older Watch officers barely tolerate letting the wildlings through the Wall but they don't openly turn on Jon at this point. Instead, they turn against him when Ramsay Bolton sends a threatening letter to the Wall and Jon announces his decision to ride south and confront Ramsay, compromising the Watch's neutrality. Even the TV series has repeatedly emphasized that the Watch takes vows very seriously and mutiny is unthinkable, at least among the core officers. Consider the series of events in the TV series: Thorne lets Jon take all of the wildlings through the Wall...and ''then'' stabs Jon, when nothing is to be gained now that the wildlings are already through? Why didn't he just bar the gates to Jon and the wildlings in the ''immediately preceding'' episode? Now he has to deal with angry wildlings south of the Wall who feel that Jon saved them.

** Myrcella is poisoned by Ellaria with 'the long farewell' and collapses in Jaime's arms not even a league offshore from the coast of Dorne as they're returning home. Turn that ship around, Kingslayer!

** Jon is viciously gutted and stabbed in the heart by his own sworn brothers and although his physical death is absolutely confirmed there are several possibilities for BackFromTheDead and enough lingering mysteries for many fans to [[LikeYouWouldReallyDoIt refuse to believe]] that Jon's song actually ends here, despite the undignified or anti-climactic ends suffered by other prominent characters.

** Jon hears that someone has news of [[WhatHappenedToTheMouse his missing uncle, Benjen]]...only to find out that his black brothers have betrayed him.

** Myrcella gets poisoned and collapses in her father's arms.

* ClothingDamage: Dany, although not to the same extent as in the books, has torn strips from her gown and wrapped them round her hands, probably because her palms are chafed from Drogon's scales.

* DarthVaderClone: The ressurected Gregor Clegane, a massive knight [[WeCanRebuildHim transformed]] by Qyburn's experiments who now wears the armor and cloak of the Kingsguard, complete with a [[CoolHelmet face-concealing helmet]] and VaderBreath.

* DruggedLipstick: Ellaria poisons Myrcella by kissing her goodbye.

** Oberyn finally gets avenged in a way he would have loathed. Ellaria murders an innocent girl for her late lover, who died trying to avenge, among others, an innocent girl. Bonus points since Myrcella was to become Oberyn's niece in-law.

* KillTheCutie: Princess Myrcella is a beatiful sweet-hearted girl who has just had a bonding scene with her uncle/father. Of course she dies in the exact same scene.
* KissOfDeath: How Ellaria poisons Myrcella.

** Jaime was finally able to admit to one of his children that he was their father, [[SugarWiki/HeartwarmingMoments and Myrcella was receptive of it.]] And then she dies of being poisoned.

* YouTalkTooMuch: This time it's Daario who lampshades Tyrion's best and most annoying quality.

Meanwhile, at '''Winterfell''', Sansa has finally managed to get into the tower and lights her candle. Unfortunately, Brienne of Tarth picks just that moment to look away as she learns from Pod that Stannis' army is approaching. On the hills outside the castle, Stannis draws his sword as he sees that the Boltons have rallied a large army against him, at least twice his number. He stands firm with only his most loyal or most fanatical followers; alas, most of his army gets routed into the woods. Sansa, meanwhile, sees that the bulk of the Bolton's army has left the castle, and quickly gets out of the tower.

Soon after, Stannis is somehow still alive, and manages to fight off a pair of Bolton soldiers who are mopping up. However, his injuries prove severe and he collapses at a tree. It's there that he's found by Brienne of Tarth, who promptly executes him in the name of "King" Renly. Thus ends the war of Stannis Baratheon, the false prophet.

Meanwhile Ramsay is finishing off the last of the Baratheon men. As he prepares to leave, he spots a critically wounded soldier crawling. With an evil smirk, Ramsay walks up to him and the man cries "I surrender! I surrender" and Ramsay accepts the surrender... to no one's suprise stabs him with his sword. Ramsay takes pleasure in killing him.

Back at Winterfell, Sansa reaches the outer battlement when she's found by Myranda and Reek; Ramsay is out partaking in the clean-up of Stannis' army, acting like he's done all the work. The psychotic common girl threatens to torture Sansa, and upon describing how Ramsay has "such plans for her," proves to be too much for Reek to endure. He picks her up and tosses her off the battlements, letting her face hit the cobbles sixty feet below. He still has a ways to go, but part of Theon is back. Upon hearing Ramsay's hunting horn, and the sound of the gates opening, Sansa and Theon jump, hand in hand, over the outer walls to land on the hopefully cushioning thick snow-bank below.

Back at the House of Black and White, she returns the face of the mercy-killed girl she used. However, it's then that she's found by Jaqen H'ghar and the Waif, and they are ''not'' pleased. For taking a life that wasn't hers to take, Jaqen holds up a vial of poison to Arya's face... and gets emotional, suddenly drinking it himself, collapsing to the floor. As Arya screams in anguish for the death of her friend, the Waif takes Jaqen's face, reminding her that he was never said man; he was no one at all. Arya is still someone, and not ready to be no one. And when someone is not no one, using the masks can be fatal. It's then that Arya begins suffering hallucinations before her eyes turn milky white; she's now completely blind.

Night falls at the Wall. Jon looks through his raven scrolls, no doubt depressed at being the most hated man in the Night's Watch, the fact that Stannis is dead, and that, [[AllThereInTheManual according to the script]], none of the minor Northern houses are able to send fresh recruits. He clearly hopes there's no way this day can get any worse. Suddenly, his door bursts open, and Olly brings him the one thing in Westeros that's rarer than gold, morality, or Valyrian steel: good news. One of the wildlings says he knows his Uncle Benjen, and says he's still alive! The young Lord Commander hurries out of his office into the courtyard, where Ser Alliser says that Benjen was last seen at Hardhome (the place that was just overrun by the White Walkers). It could be a lie, or it could be the truth; they'll need to find out. Jon is lead to a gathering of black brothers near the wildling, and makes his way through the crowd to find...

** Roose Bolton is conspicuously absent as a decisive battle is fought on his doorstep.

** In the books, Stannis rallies the northern third of the North to his cause while the Boltons take the rest, but while Stannis' allies are united by their duty to rescue "the [[UndyingLoyalty Ned's]] girl", the Boltons are surrounded by dubious allies who hate his Frey contingent so forcefully that Roose is forced to send them to battle Stannis rather than sitting safe behind his walls and risk them killing each other. In the show, Stannis marches his larger army south, but is weakened by the ravages of winter and FromBadToWorse until his forces are swept away by a unified army under the Boltons.

** In the books, Sam vehemently protests Jon's command that he become a maester - he had tried in his youth but his father adamantly opposed to a Tarly wearing chains - and Jon forces Gilly to [[SwitchedAtBirth swap]] her own son for Mance Rayder's to prevent Melisandre from burning him for his royal blood. Since Mance's son has been AdaptedOut, Sam requests to become a maester and departs with Gilly and her son.

** In the show, Jon is lured into an ambush by those who disapprove of letting wildlings into the realm. In the books, Jon receives a letter from Ramsay calling him out on his role in Ramsay's bride's escape and demanding his bride and "his Reek" back under threat of attacking Castle Black, which Jon responds to by rallying an army of wildlings to preemptively march with him against the Boltons. The mutineers see this as open violation of his vows to take no part in the wars of the Seven Kingdoms.
* AdaptationInducedPlotHole: The heavy adaptation distillation surrounding Jon Snow's death in the TV version introduces major plot holes. In the novels, the older Watch officers barely tolerate letting the wildlings through the Wall but they don't openly turn on Jon because of it. Instead they turn against him when Ramsay Bolton sends a threatening letter to the Wall, and Jon decides to break his basic vow of political neutrality to fight him (though Jon points out that Ramsay can't legally threaten to kill a man of the Watch like that, so it's Ramsay that broke the neutrality, not him). Even the TV series has repeatedly emphasized that the Watch takes vows very seriously and mutiny is unthinkable, at least among the core officers. Consider the series of events in the TV series: Thorne lets Jon take all of the wildlings through the Wall...and ''then'' stabs Jon, when nothing is to be gained now that the wildlings are already through? Why didn't he just bar the gates to Jon and the wildlings in the ''immediately preceding'' episode? Now he has to deal with angry wildlings south of the Wall who feel that Jon saved them.
** We know that the "Hardhome" episode was heavily rewritten late in production to make it the action climax of the season - but this resulted in several other plot holes which are incongruent with surrounding episodes. When Jon and the wildlings fled Hardhome, they left on ships by sea...then in the next episode, ''without explanation'', they are suddenly waiting at the north side of the Wall from Castle Black - apparently to set up the big dramatic confrontation with Thorne (who eventually grudgingly lets them through)...even though Castle Black is ''in the middle of the continent''. Jon left for Hardhome by ship from Eastwatch, at the eastern end of the Wall, and if they were already on ship they could just ''sail to the southern side'' at Eastwatch. It's possible that these rewrites didn't fit together well. Even ignoring the novels, why would Thorne even let Jon through the Wall in the first place with the wildlings, if only to then kill Jon for letting he wildlings through? Like proverbially locking the stable door after the horse has already bolted.
** There is at least ''some'' possibility that Thorne and the others were finally pushed over the edge to kill Jon when Melisandre brought news to Castle Black that Stannis had been defeated by the Boltons - and the episode just didn't show this because it wanted to maintain the element of surprise for viewers. Melisandre's return to the Wall is the only thing that changed between episodes 9 and 10, and it would still more or less fit that it happened because of the Boltons.

-->'''Whore:''' I've had ''half'' as many cocks as the queen!
-->'''Male Pleb:''' I'm a Lannister! ''Suck me off''!

** Meryn Trant finally gets what's coming to him from Arya Stark, the student of the sword master he killed and the sister of the princess he abused. In Syrio Forel's home town of Braavos, no less.

* KarmaHoudini: Melisandre burned Shireen alive - prompting the desertion of over half of Stannis's army - drove Selyse to suicide and falsely made Stannis believe he could become king against all odds. Naturally she flees the scene and ends up the sole person to make it back to Castle Black alive.

** A minor case in Brienne calling Renly the rightful King - even though not even Renly considered himself "rightful" save for MightMakesRight - as she prepares to kill Stannis, considering Stannis was trying to take the throne because by law he was the rightful King and Renly was a traitor.

* DarkestHour: Almost all the major characters we've been following

** Stannis' army is defeated by the Boltons, and Stannis himself is executed by Brienne. The sacrifice of Shireen turned was for nothing, and Mellisandre's powers prove to be far less effective than she thought.
** Daenerys is without any protection while a horde of Dothraki captures her.
** Arya broke the rules of the Faceless Men and goes blind as a result.

** The only protagonists to end the episode on any kind of positive note are Tyrion, who gets to put his knowledge of politics in practice, Brienne, who has her revenge on the murder of Renly, and Sam and Gilly, who can finally be together as Sam is sent to study as a Maester.

* KarmaHoundi: Melisandre burned Shireen alive (which is implied to have triggered the desertion of over half the army), drove Selyse to suicide and falsely made Stannis believe he could become king against all odds, flees before the battle and is the sole person to make it back to Castle Black alive.

* Meryn Trant is one taken UpToEleven when he makes no attempt to fight back against Arya Stark stabbing him repeatedly despite being a knight but he has no problem beating little girls a third his size.