Spoilers for Game of Thrones, season 7 below!!
Last night’s epic Game of Thrones finale proved that the show runners really know what the f*** they’re doing. So far this season has had fans confused by pacing, in awe of how fast people can travel by boats and running all of a sudden, and watching in amazement as dragons destroy everything.
The the 90 minute finale came and made it all make sense. Everything in the series built up to that episode. And among the fan service and epic scale, was this little moment showing that the GoT filmmakers are some of the best storytellers in the business.
Reddit user Ownageman247 pointed out the beautiful symmetry between these two Jaime Lannister scenes:
Jaime arriving at King’s Landing as fire envelops the Great Sept:
Jaime leaving King’s Landing as snow begins to fall:
Fire. Ice. Song of. You get it.
“Out of all the characters,” wrote one Redditor, “I think his growth has been portrayed the best.”
These scenes, small as they are, really show how far Jaime has come in his series arc. It’s also an excellent visual metaphor for his relationship with Cersei. Coming back to King’s Landing to see the Sept on fire was clearly a big red flag signifying that times might be changing, and having snow fall on the kingdom signifies that things are really different now. There’s no going back. Winter is here.
It’s also, as fans have pointed out, a beautifully subtle nod to Jaime severing ties with Cersei in the book:
Qyburn’s words were terse and to the point, Cersei’s fevered and fervent. Come at once, she said. Help me. Save me. I need you now as I have never needed you before. I love you. I love you. I love you. Come at once.
Vyman was hovering by the door, waiting, and Jaime sensed that Peck was watching too. “Does my lord wish to answer?” the maester asked, after a long silence.
A snowflake landed on the letter. As it melted, the ink began to blur. Jaime rolled the parchment up again, as tight as one hand would allow, and handed it to Peck. “No,” he said. “Put this in the fire.”
It only took Jaime seven seasons, several dead kids, and a major act of terrorism to realize that his sister might not be the best life partner in the world, but that’s okay. Love makes you do strange things.