Game of Thrones 8 Finale: From Jon Snow to Brienne of Tarth, 9 Characters We Didn’t Expect to Survive Season 8 but They Did Anyway! (SPOILER ALERT)

Game of Thrones has now ended its Watch! The popular HBO show finished its glorious, ratings-conquering run with the finale episode airing on May 20. The last episode, just like the whole last season, was a mixed bag of sorts, story-telling-wise, but landed the emotional blow in the final moments. As Game of Thrones ties up most of the arcs of the surviving heroes, what was left us is to reminisce of how their journeys have been till now. Game of Thrones 8 Finale: From the Dragon Queen to Jon Snow – All the Characters Who Reached the Last Episode and What Happened to Them! (SPOILER ALERT).

For a show that strived on body-count, only one major death happened in the finale. However, the rest of the episodes in the season had some major casualties. If we have to take a stock of who all died this season (MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD), here they are -  Edd, Rhaegal, Ser Jorah Mormont, Lyanna Mormont, Beric Dondarrion, Melisandre, Missandei, Theon Greyjoy, The Night King, Varys, Jaime Lannister, Cersei Lannister, Euron Greyjoy, Harry Strickland, The Hound, The Mountain, Qyburn and Daenerys Targaryen.

And then there are some characters who were expected to not make by the end of the eighth and the final Game of Thrones season, and voila! They actually make it through till the very end! Here are 9 such characters who many betted on their mortality and yet God of Death gave them a pass!

Jon Snow

Okay, it was either Daenerys Targaryen or Jon Snow, who we expected to bite the dust by the end of GoT. Unfortunately for the Dragon Queen, the Death came to her door for being the Mad Queen and it was her lover/nephew who pierced the dagger in her heart to stop her future tyranny.

Brienne of Tarth

When Brienne was knighted by Jaime in episode 2, we thought, 'That's it! This is the peak for Brienne. Adios amigo!'. But not only did Brienne survive The Long Night battle, but she also had sex with Jaime in the episode after. Unfortunately, the show couldn't write a better arc for her after that, apart from being a grieving lover.

Bran Stark

The creepiest among the Stark siblings was expected to die at the hands of the Night King. Thanks to Arya Stark, he survived being another addition to The Night King's army and by the end of the finale, he also agreed to be the King of Westeros! This is a person who skipped the entire season 5, did nothing much but stare vacuously and make disconcerting revelations, and often said he has no interest for titles. Now, who would have thought that? Game of Thrones 8 Airs Finale Episode! Twitter Reacts With Memes and Jokes – Here Are the Best Ones.

Gendry

Gendry's stakes of dying rose high after Arya Stark managed to seduce him into having sex with her in episode 2. Knowing how the show loves to kill love stories (see Daenerys, Jaime and Missandei this season), we expected him to die during the Battle of Winterfell. Gendry managed to survive that, only to get his heart broken by Arya, after she rejects his marriage proposal. Like I said, before, Game of Thrones hates Love Stories (PS: Samwell Tarly is an exception).

Ser Davos Seaworth

Game of Thrones doesn't like well-meaning people having a long life, and Davos Seaworth is the best among them in the show. And yet, despite being a part of both Battle of Winterfell and King's Landing and not being a fighter per se, he managed to reach the very end. This illiterate former pirate has not only become the new Master of Ships for Westeros, but also become proficient in correcting people's Grammar.

Podrick Payne

Podrick Payne is an enigma that we are yet to unlock. This man is a faithful squire, can please any woman in bed (sometimes more than one at a time) and can sing beautifully. The fact that he manages to come out of the Battle of Winterfell alive also makes him a proficient warrior too!

Grey Worm

If there was any character you placed the biggest bets to be dead by the end of the third episode, it would have been Grey Worm. The man was walking around with 'Dead Meat' written on his bald pate, especially after talking to his girlfriend Missandei about visiting beaches after the War is over. Instead, both his girlfriend and his Queen are killed, but the leader of the Unsullied manages to survive, even if he had become a ruthless man in the end.

Yara Greyjoy

When her evil uncle, Euron Greyjoy, kidnapped her last season, we expect Yara to be the first on the casualty list in season 8. However, in the first episode itself, she was rescued by her brother Theon (who dies in the third episode). Yara then, surprisingly, stays out of action for the rest of the season only to return at the end, being a part of the Council of Lords overlooking Tyrion's trial.

Drogon

Like Daenerys, all her dragons were expected to die too. Viserion and Rhaegal did die. Drogon, the most aggressive of them all, managed to survive two battles and destroyed most of King's Landing in the process. Not just that, Drogon also had the most emotional moment in the climax when he mourns the death of the Mother of Dragons and burns the Iron Throne into a molten mess, before flying away with her corpse to lands unknown.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 20, 2019 03:19 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).