SPOILER ALERT
We’re not quite done with the sixth season of Game of Thrones, but already we have enough dead to fill a cemetery. Who have we said goodbye to? Let’s take a look:
The bad guys
Ramsay Bolton
No one’s going to miss the show’s most sadistic and one-note villain, who was killed by his own bloodthirsty hounds. Sansa got the last laugh — or at least the last smirk.
Olly and Alliser Thorne
The insurgents with the two most smug grins were punished for their parts in murdering Jon Snow. They were hanged by order of the Lord Commander.
Roose Bolton
Stabbed to death by his own son. Couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy.
The Waif
The show’s relentless murderess found herself on the wrong side of Arya’s Needle. Her bloody, eyeless mug is now prominently displayed in the Hall of Faces.
Khal Moro and two of the Great Masters
Here’s a newsflash for all the arrogant men in Westeros and Essos who think they’re in charge: You’re not. The bottom line is no dude should ever underestimate Daenerys Targaryen, or they might end up burned to a crisp, like Khal Moro, or handily executed by Grey Worm.
Smalljon Umber
Smalljon was the guy who decapitated Shaggydog and sold out Rickon Stark and Osha to the Boltons. He got his, though. Tormund bit into Smalljon’s throat during the Battle of Winterfell, then stabbed him in the face. Nothing so disgusting has ever been so gratifying.
The good guys (and direwolf)
Rickon Stark
At least one Stark has to die each season, and this season it was Rickon. If only he hadn’t run in a straight line, maybe he could have avoided getting shot through the heart by Ramsay Bolton’s arrow. Even Art Parkinson, who portrayed Rickon on the show, wished his character was a savvier sprinter.
Hodor
No one has quite recovered from this one — both because it was tragic and because it was one of those confounding plot twists that gives people a headache. Hodor was such a sweet big lug, and we finally found out how he got his name — Hold the door! — while he was sacrificing himself to save Bran and Meera from wights.
Osha
Osha was strategic right to the end. She never showed fear and tried to seduce Ramsay while sneakily reaching for his knife. Alas, she wasn’t as quick as her adversary.
Wun Wun
He put up a good fight during Bastard Bowl. Even when he was shot full of arrows, he did what he could to break through the phalanx of Bolton fighters, and he used his last ounces of energy to break down the door at Winterfell. He would have no doubt died anyway, but that last arrow to the eye courtesy of Ramsay, was a step too far.
The Three-Eyed Raven
Being trapped in the trunk of a tree is no way to live. It also makes escape difficult when the Night’s King pays you a visit.
The Children of the Forest
It was sad that these eco-friendly beings were massacred by White Walkers, but considering the first inhabitants of Westeros invented wights themselves, maybe their demise was also kind of appropriate.
Shaggydog
Another direwolf down. This one killed by the Umbers.
The Blackfish
At least we assume he died. He didn’t seem like he would go down without a fight once Jaime and the Frey army breached the walls of Riverrun. But when you don’t see something happen, it makes you wonder ...
Lady Crane
Once she did what she needed to do to move the plot along — make Arya realise she’s not a heartless killer — the Waif took out the talented actress.
Brother Ray
For all the hubbub over Ian McShane’s arrival on Game of Thrones, that was an awfully fast H and G. He and his flock of peaceniks were taken out by some rogue members of the Brotherhood Without Banners. Harmonious communes have no place in such a cut-throat world.
The guy who is neither bad nor good
Balon Greyjoy
How do we feel about Balon? He wasn’t much of a dad, but maybe an okay ruler ...? In any case, he was better than his brother, Euron, who threw Balon off a bridge.
The harmless guys
Walda and her newborn son
This was a painful one: Fed to Ramsay’s dogs.
The ... who cares?
Trystane Martell, Doran Martell and Areo Hotah
The Sand Snakes are in charge of Dorne now. Can we finally just pretend that subplot never happened?
All this leaves one question: Who will die in the season finale. We’ve had some big deaths this season, but none as major as, say, Ned Stark or Jon Snow, Joffrey Baratheon or Tywin Lannister. Here are some guesses for what heartbreak or comeuppance the final episode might deliver (with some possible spoilery-theorising, so reader beware).
Tommen Baratheon
It’s prophesied, after all, so it’ll happen eventually. And there’s no time like the present, when he’s made a very powerful enemy: his own mother.
Cersei Lannister
Here’s where things get very theory-centric. A vocal crowd of fans believes that, now that Cersei can’t have a battle by combat, she is going to burn King’s Landing to the ground with all the wildfire under the city. If that happens, we’re looking at mass casualties, which could also include Margery, Lancel, Loras, the Sparrow, Qyburn and the Mountain — assuming the undead can die.
Ser Davos or Melisandre
Last episode set us up for a showdown when Davos found Shireen’s figurine on a pyre. He’s pieced together how Stannis’ daughter died, and he’s going to confront the Red Woman about it. If someone’s going to die, our money’s on Davos. He’s just too good-hearted a character. Lovable people like that never last long.
