Game of Thrones Season 8 Episode 5: The Hound Vs the Mountain aka Cleganebowl - The Poetic Tragedy of Sandor Clegane's Fate (SPOILER ALERT!)

Game of Throne's Season 8 Episode 5 left me with a heavy heart. It marked the demise of my favourite GOT character, Sandor Clegane Aka the Hound played by Scottish actor Rory McCann. The only respite is that he died doing what he wanted -- killing his older brother Gregor Clegane or the Mountain. Yet The Hound's death itself doesn't come as a surprise. A tragic, nihilistic character with nothing much but vengeance to live for, he was undoubtedly marked for death. But it's the sheer poetry in Sandor Clegane's death that makes one smile through the heartbreak. The Hound met his end in two of his greatest enemies -- his brother and fire. Game Of Thrones Season 8 Episode 5: The Hound Vs Mountain Showdown, Fans Hope to Witness #Cleganebowl Above Everything Else. 

When we were introduced to Sandor Clegane in season 1, we saw a gruff man with a visible scar on the right side of his face. We knew right away that there's an interesting story behind the scar and we weren't wrong. The Hound himself reveals to Arya Stark that the mark is a result of Gregor pushing his face into the fire when he was a child, because he dared to take his brother's toy. Game of Thrones 8 Episode 5 Recap: From the Rise of the Mad Queen to Major Deaths, Everything That Happened in ‘The Last War’ (SPOILER ALERT).

The scarring wasn't just skin deep. It left the Hound with a life-long hatred for his brother and fear of fire or pyrophobia. Throughout the seasons, there were many instances when the otherwise brave knight turned tail at the sight of fire. Game Of Thrones Season 8 Episode 6 Promo: Daenerys Targaryen Walks Proudly in the Aftermath of King's Landing Battle in the Series Finale (Watch Video). 

At the Battle of the Blackwater, when the Lannister army used wildfire to push back Stannis and his fleet, Sandor famously threw down his sword and declared, "Fuck the King!" We see that again albeit momentarily in season 3, when Beric Dondarrion ignited his sword while duelling with the Hound. In season 7, his PTSD resurfaced while he faced an undead bear.

The Hound Fears Fire at Blackwater Bay (Watch Video):

But something change in season 8. In The Long Night, we saw a determined Sandor charging to save Arya even as he got momentarily paralysed by the fire around. And in episode 5 of season 8, he fought both his greatest adversaries.

The Hound Saves Arya from the Wights (Watch Video)

Even as the Red Keep crumbled around him and dragon fire burned, a determined Sandor plunged the sword again and again into The Mountain. However, when the sword failed to kill the already "dead" Ser Gregor, he resorted to doing what we never thought he would.

Virtually unkillable, the Mountain was vulnerable only to fire. Somewhere the Hound must have thought as he smirked, "That makes the two of us, brother."

Already wounded and nearly blinded Oberyn Martell style, The Hound charged with a kamikaze-ish rage at his brother, plummeting from the Red Keep into the fire. The heroism in the Hound's death is only made more glorious when he used fire, one of his adversaries, to kill the other. With a series of ungratifying demises this season, the Mountain's death is the only one which is remotely satisfying.

As someone who has rooted for The Hound from the very beginning, I am happy knowing he died fighting his fears. His victory, however bittersweet, it was every bit heroic and poetic. And in the end, one can't help but thank the writers who did not write off such a magnificent and layered character with an undignified death. From fire to fire, the scowl-faced Hound's journey was a great one.

Goodbye, Sandor Clegane. My heart is heavy, but full.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 13, 2019 09:56 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).