Yahoo News How the Game of Thrones finale brought HBO's epic to a close
Note: contains spoilers for Game of Thrones last ever episode – do not read before you've seen it!
Our watch has ended.
After eight seasons, 73 episodes, and 178,000(-ish) deaths, Game of Thrones took its last bow tonight, capping off a record-breaking, controversial final season with a 95-minute series ender.
So how did the show's last ever outing, written and directed by showrunners David Benioff and Dan 'DB' Weiss, wrap things up?
(Warning: this is your last chance to dip out before we get into serious SPOILER territory – only proceed if you've already seen the episode!)
Related: Why Game of Thrones' final season was so rushed
The episode begins with Tyrion, Jon and Davos walking silently through a ravaged King’s Landing, or what remains of it – it's still burning, littered with corpses.
On Daenerys's orders, Grey Worm is executing remaining Lannister troops and refuses to stand down when Jon attempts to intervene. Meanwhile, Tyrion explores the ruins and eventually uncovers Jaime and Cersei's corpses, breaking down upon finding his siblings.
Daenerys delivers an address to her assembled hordes of Dothraki and Unsullied. The war is not over, she tells them, pledging to “break the wheel” across the entire world. Furious, though, and how she "slaughtered a city", Tyrion resigns as her Hand and is led away by two Unsullied, shooting Jon a meaningful look as he departs.
Related: Game of Thrones fan petition asking for HBO to remake season 8 hits 1 million signatures
Jon later visits the captive Tyrion, who warns him that Dany is not "done fighting" yet and that she'll kill anyone who stands in the way of her idea of “paradise”. Tyrion warns Jon that Sansa will never bow to Daenerys, and may pay the price for it. "She doesn’t get to choose," Jon insists. “No, but you do," Tyrion retorts. "And you have to choose now!”
In an all-but-destroyed throne room, Dany approaches the Iron Throne as ash rains down. Jon arrives to confront her over her recent actions, and to beg her to show mercy to Tyrion and the surviving Lannister forces. Daenerys refuses, but insists she is a force for good.
"What about everyone else, all the other people that think they know what’s good?” asks Jon. “They don’t get to choose," Dany replies, echoing his earlier words.
The pair embrace, with Jon vowing that Daenerys will be his queen, "now and always" – but then, he stabs her in the chest! Daenerys slumps, dying in Jon's arms. Drogon arrives, but rather than toasting Jon as you might expect, the dragon uses his fiery breath to melt down the Iron Throne, before scooping up Dany's body and flying away.
Related: Here's how each of Game of Thrones' stars have reacted to the show's final season
Some time later, a still captive Tyrion is brought by Grey Worm to face representatives from all the Great Houses – Bran, Sansa, Arya, Brienne, Davos, Yara Greyjoy, Samwell, Gendry, a new Prince of Dorne and more of the Seven Kingdom's great and good. (Even Robin Arryn shows up!)
They face a future without a leader. Though Samwell makes a plea for democracy – allowing the people to elect a leader – his pitch is shot down. Instead, Tyrion suggests that from now on, "rulers will not be born, they will be chosen" by the lords and ladies of Westeros.
The first to rule? Tyrion suggests Bran – the perfect leader, since he holds all of human history inside his head. The assembled leaders all back Bran, with the exception of Sansa, who declares that the North will secede and become independent again.
The Seven Kingdoms become Six, with Tyrion made Bran's Hand, despite his protests "He’s made many terrible mistakes," Bran insists. "He’s going to spend the rest of his life fixing them.”
We earn a commission for products purchased through some links in this article.
Tyrion's first act is to visit an imprisoned Jon to inform him of his fate – he's to be sent back to the Night's Watch, never to marry and never to have children. Before he returns to the Wall, Jon bids an emotional farewell to Sansa, Arya and (King) Bran.
Brienne amends Jaime Lannister's entry in the history books, to cover his noble(-ish) final days and detail how he "died protecting his Queen", while, led by Tyrion, a small council composing of himself, Brienne, Bronn, Davos and Samwell (now a Grand Maester) begin the business of politicking. (Oh, and Sam has co-authored a chronicle of Westeros's recent history, titled A Song of Ice and Fire.)
Jon returns to the Wall, where he's greeted by Tormund... and Ghost! He gives his beloved pet a good old nuzzle and Ghost licks his master's face. (Happy now?)
The series then ends where it began, with the Stark children. Sansa is crowned Queen in the North, Arya sails off to explore the great unknown and Jon leads the Wildings away from the Wall and into the land beyond...
Game of Thrones season 8 airs on HBO in the US and Sky Atlantic and NOW TV in the UK. Tune in to Digital Spy's Game of Thrones livestreams on Monday evenings, straight after each episode, on Instagram and Facebook.
Want up-to-the-minute entertainment news and features? Just hit 'Like' on our Digital Spy Facebook page and 'Follow' on our @digitalspy Instagram and Twitter account.
('You Might Also Like',)
