History Recap / GameOfThronesS8E3TheLongNight

* BackForTheDead: Melisandre, who shows up to inspire the defenders, offers some helpful advice that assists them ing winning the day, and then passes away once the Night King is defeated.

* BigBrotherInstinct[=/=]BigSisterInstinct:

* DidntThinkThisThrough: The plan to hide the noncombatants in the crypts backfire; the dead rise and give chase to Sansa, Tyrion, and the others, along with slaughtering everyone else they come across.

* DyingMomentOfAwesome: Lyanna Mormont, who dies killing a Wight Giant as she is crushed.

* FlamingSword: Melisandre uses her magic to set the Dothraki swords on fire to be able to stand a chance against the Wights.

* FrontlineGeneral: Pretty much every named character from the nobility is this. The Night King also becomes this in contrast to the other White Walkers. While they are content to sit back and let the wights do the fighting, the Night King rides in on Viserion, fights both Jon and Dany, and eventually breaches Winterfell's Godswood to kill Bran personally.

* HeroicSecondWind: After Beric dies, Arya takes a moment to catch her breath. Melisandre finds her and reminds her what Syrio Forel told her once. This motives Arya to rejoin the fight.
* HollywoodTactics: Of the charging with light cavalry head on variety. Frontal light cavalry charges can work in real life if the enemy is easily demoralized and spread thin, but the Wights are not only FearlessUndead, they are also concentrated into one giant blob. The Dothraki are completely butchered as a result. Given the Horselords' proficiency with bows, they are better off ditching their horses and providing archery support in the walls.

** Drogon unleashes everything he has in his fire on the Night King. He seems to smirk when the fire dies down.

* UnspokenPlanGuarantee: All the detailed plans of the previous episode are completely obliterated; it turns out Bran's concerns about dragon-fire potentially doing nothing to the Night King were valid, the White Walkers curb-stomp the armies that are to HoldTheLine, and everyone forgot that the crypts had dead people in them.

* ZergRush: Once again the MO of the wights, who despite suffering horrendous losses from Winterfell's defenders manage to break their way into Winterfell by virtue of sheer numbers.

* BigBrotherInstinct: As soon as he's grounded and free of wights, Jon's first instinct is to run and protect Bran.
* BigSisterInstinct: Arya lands the killing blow on the Night King to rescue Bran.

* CharacterDeath: Dolorous Edd, Lyanna Mormont, Beric Dondarrion, Theon Greyjoy, and the Night King die in the battle. Every wight and White Walker die after the Night King is destroyed, including Viserion. Jorah and Melisandre die after. Missing-in-action, presumed dead in the initial charge, is Qhorro. Alys Karstark is also presumed dead, as she was with Theon in the Godswood defending Bran.

* {{Irony}}: Way back in Season 1, Bran was nearly killed by an assassin sent by Littlefinger with a Valyrian steel dagger. This dagger would have eliminated the future Three-Eyed Raven, which was what the Night King had set out to do, but instead it kills the being who had set out to kill the Three-Eyed Raven, meaning that Joffrey is technically responsible for the survival of House Stark.

* {{Irony}}: Way back in Season 1, Bran was nearly killed by an assassin sent by Joffrey with a Valyrian steel dagger. This dagger would have eliminated the future Three-Eyed Raven, which was what the Night King had set out to do, but instead it kills the being who had set out to kill the Three-Eyed Raven, meaning that Joffrey is technically responsible for the survival of House Stark.

* BackForTheDead: Melisandre, who shows up to inspire the defenders, offer some helpful advice that helps them win the day, and then pass away once the Night King is defeated.

* DidntThinkThisThrough: The plan to hide the noncombatants in the crypts backfire; the dead rise and give chase to Sansa, Tyrion and the others, along with slaughtering everyone else they come across.

* DyingMomentOfAwesome: Lyanna Mormont, who dies killing a wight Giant as she is crushed.

* EverybodysDeadDave: With Jorah and Lyanna's deaths, House Mormont is officially extinct.

** Lyanna Mormont sees herself up against a wight Giant who is smashing everyone around it. She responds by planting her feet, screaming at it, and then stabbing it in the eye when it picks her up and crushes her.

* {{Forgiveness}}: Arya has fully forgiven the Hound, shown when she saves him from a wight. Melisandre is on her list, but Arya listens to her MeaningfulEcho, takes it to heart, and goes to save Bran.
* FrontlineGeneral: Pretty much every named character from the nobility is this. The Night King also becomes this in contrast to the other White Walkers. While they are content to sit back and let the wights do the fighting, the Night King rides in on Viserion, fights both Jon and Dany, and eventually breaches Winterfell's godswood to kill Bran personally.

* MutualKill: Lyanna is crushed by a giant, but uses the last of her strength to stab him in the face with dragonglass before succubing him from her wounds.

** The Dothraki charge right at the Army of the death. All we see is that the fires of their ''arakhs'' go out, and the next we see is a few fleeing survivors and a few riderless horses scattered.

** Arya get caught in a death grip by the Night King; she stabs him, fully intending this. Fortunately, she lives.

* ArmchairGeneral: The White Walkers stay back and let the wights slaughter everyone in Winterfell. This is in contrast to the Night King, who is the [[FrontlineGeneral exact opposite.]]

* DidntThinkThisThrough: The plan to hide the noncombatants in the crypts backfire; the dead rise and give chase to Sansa, Tyrion and the others.

* FlamingSword: Melisandre uses her magic to turn several soldiers' blades on fire to be able to stand a chance against the Wights.

* TheWorfEffect: The Dothraki cavalry are the first onto the field and are [[CurbstompBattle completely wiped out]] in minutes.

* HollywoodTactics: Of the charging with light cavalry head on variety. Frontal light cavalry charges can work in real life if the enemy is easily demoralized and spread thin, but the Wights are not only fearless, they are also concentrated into one giant blob. The Dothraki are completely butchered as a result. Given the Horselords' proficiency with bows, they are better off ditching their horses and providing archery support in the walls.

* UnspokenPlanGuarantee: All the detailed plans of the previous episode go up in ice; it turns out Bran's concerns about dragon-fire potentially doing nothing to the Night King were valid, the White Walkers curb-stomp the armies that are HoldingTheLine, and everyone forgot that the crypts had dead people in them.

* CharacterDeath: Dolorous Edd, Lyanna Mormont, Beric Dondarrion, Theon Greyjoy, and the Night King die in the battle. Every wight and White Walker die after the Night King is destroyed, including Viserion. Jorah and Melisandre die after. Missing-in-action, presumed dead in the initial charge, is Qhorro.

* {{Irony}}: Way back in Season 1, Bran was nearly killed by an assassin with a Valyrian steel dagger. This dagger would have eliminated the future Three-Eyed Raven, which was what the Night King had set out to do, but instead it kills the being who had set out to kill the Three-Eyed Raven.

* CharacterDeath: Dolorous Edd, Lyanna Mormont, Beric Dondarrion, Theon Greyjoy, and the Night King die in the battle. Every wight and White Walker die after the Night King is destroyed, including Viserion. Jorah and Melisandre die after. Missing-in-action are Qhorro, Rhaegal, and Ghost.

* RealityEnsues: [[UnsafeHaven Hiding in the Winterfell crypts]] turns out to be the worst possible idea for facing a {{Necromancer}}, as the dead in said crypts are animated to fight.

* HeroicSacrifice: Jorah dies defending Daenerys from the wights. He survives to the end of the battle, but succumbs shortly after.

* DoubleMeaningTitle: The Long Night refers to both the actual length of the night ''and'' the fact that it's the second great battle for the dawn.

* NoSell: Drogon unleashes everything he has in his fire on the Night King. He seems to smirk when the fire dies down.

* TheWarSequence: The whole episode 83 straight minutes of action, with only a few breaks, and none for levity.

%%* CharacterDeath: Theon Greyjoy, Lyanna Mormont, Dolorous Edd, Melisandre, and the Night King die.

* TheWarSequence: The whole episode 83 straight minutes of action, with only a few breaks.

* ActionFilmQuietDramaScene: The scenes in the crypts are spent listening to the chaos above ground, with the various characters commenting on it. [[spoiler:Until the bodies in the crypts come alive.]]
* AndThenJohnWasAZombie: Courtesy of the Night King, every person who died defending Winterfell before he was cast off of Viserion is raised to try and kill everyone inside of it. [[spoiler:This includes Dolorous Edd and Lyanna.]]

* DyingMomentOfAwesome: [[spoiler:Lyanna Mormont, who dies killing a wight Giant as she is crushed.]]

** [[spoiler:Theon, facing down the Night King, charges him head on. The Night King simply breaks his spear and stabs him with the broken half.]]
** [[spoiler:With the battle ended, Melisandre calmly walks out of the city, drops her {{Glamour}}, and ages until she withers and fades away.]]

* TheWarSequence: The whole episode 83 straight minutes of action, with only a few breaks.
* WhatAnIdiot: Hiding in the crypts turned out to be the worst idea ever. Who'd have thought that hiding in a place full of dead people when fighting against an enemy who raises said dead would be a good plan?

* DyingMomentOfAwesome: [[spoiler:Lyanna Mormont, who dies killing a wight Giant.]]

* BackToBackBadasses: Brienne and Jaime fight back to back on the wall, while Jorah and Daenerys fight on the ground.
* DyingMomentOfAwesome: Lyanna Mormont fights a giant wight, stabbing it in the eye with a dragon glass dagger even as she is fatally crushed.

DyingMomentOfAwesome: Lyanna Mormont fights a giant wight, stabbing it in the eye with a dragon glass dagger even as she is fatally crushed.