Season 8, episode 5 was an even bigger battle than the one at Winterfell.
The end is here on Game of Thrones.
Just one episode of the epic HBO series remains, as its penultimate episode aired on Sunday. With the Battle of Winterfell behind our favorite characters, the fight has officially shifted to the one for the Iron Throne -- and it's a bloody one.
During a recent interview on Jimmy Kimmel Live, star Emilia Clarke said that what was ahead at King's Landing -- especially after the killing of Rhaegal and Cersei's execution of Missandei -- would be even "bigger."
"[The next episodes] are going to be mental," Clarke teased. "Episode five is bigger. Episode five is Ahhhh. I mean, four and five and six, they're all insane, but… Find the biggest TV you can."
Sunday's episode kicked off with Varys' death by dragon fire, and Dany's rage proved to cause the endpoint for several other characters. Euron, Jaime, Cersei, The Hound, The Mountain and Qyburn are all presumed dead by the end of the 80-minute episode.
ET was live blogging season eight, episode five -- scroll down for minute-by-minute updates!
Next week...
There's much to glean from the promo, except for who's alive. We have Tyrion, Arya, a couple Dothraki and Dany... we'll see the aftermath of her actions next week.
Arya's Alive
Jaime and Cersei may have died (we think they did... right?), but Arya's still alive.
She stands up amid the rubble and ash, in dismay of the death and destruction around her. A new name on her list, perhaps?
Down the corridor is a white horse (really?), which appears to be Arya's way out.
She hops on its back and rides away -- hopefully North.
Jaime and Cersei Attempt Their Getaway
It's unclear if Arya survived Drogon's last breath, but elsewhere, Jaime and Cersei are attempting their getaway.
Beneath the castle, however, Jamie's escape plan has been blocked by rubble. "I want our baby to live... please don't let me die. I don't want to die!" Cersei cries.
"Look at me!" Jaime yells. "Nothing else matters. Nothing else matters. Only us."
The castle crumbles, seeming killing the siblings-turned-lovers.
Arya Takes Control
Dany continues to send Drogon through a rage of fire through the city. We see Arya, badly bleeding and covered in dust, but she's alive -- for now.
Running through the city, Arya finds Nora again, and begs her to keep moving. "If you stay here, you'll die. Follow me!"
"F**king Die!"
"F**king die!" the Hound screams, stabbing his brother but not seeming to hurt him at all.
The Mountain goes for his signature move -- poking the Hound's eyes out from his head, but The Hound manages to stab him in the face. He laughs in satisfaction, but knows the fight isn't over. Even with a dagger in his brain, the Mountain continues to fight -- until the Hound tackles him off the side of the building, plunging them both to their deaths.
Arya Gets Crushed
Arya is running through the streets of the Red Keep, and the death and destruction surrounding her is starting to have an impact.
Breathing heavily through the dust of the crumbling city, she struggles to escape the maze of death and burned bodies. Arya runs for a safe place to hide but falls.
The scene switches between Arya being crushed and The Hound's fight with his brother. A woman named Nora helps Arya up, but they get separated by the panicked crowd.
The Mountain Is Straight-Up Ugly
... but he's a pretty good fighter.
Clegane Bowl continues as the brothers fight it out. The Hound drives a sword through his brother's stomach, but he barely flinches. The Mountain pulls out the sword and heads towards his brother.
Reunited
Cersei stumbles away to find a badly wounded Jaime, and the two share a heartfelt embrace.
They sob through their reunion in the courtyard, the last place they saw each other. "You're hurt," she notices.
"It doesn't matter," he says.
"You're bleeding," Cersei cries, as they help each other away from the crumbling city.
Clegane Bowl?
King's Landing begins to crumble all around Cersei -- and on top of her. The pregnant queen, her Hand and the Mountain are all that's left on a staircase to nowhere.
"Hello, Big Brother," The Hound taunts his brother, with his blood red eyeballs getting a very interesting close-up.
Despite the queen's pleas, The Mountain charges towards his brother. He no longer listens to her, and CLEGANE BOWL IS HERE.
Arya and The Hound Part Ways
"Go home girl. The fire will get her or maybe the Dothraki, or maybe the dragon will get her," the Hound tells Arya, who insists she needs to kill Cersei despite it all.
He walks out, leaving Arya behind. "Sandor," she calls. "Thank you."
Another One Gone
"You fought well for a cripple," Euron says, as Jaime reaches for his sword and finishes Euron off. "Another king for you."
"I got you!" Euron yells out as blood pours from his mouth and Jaime struggles to walk away. "I'm the man who killed Jaime Lannister."
It's Not Safe Here
The duel intensifies -- fast, as Euron shoves a sword into Jaime's stomach.
Cersei, meanwhile, gets emotional as things come to an end. "The Red keep is the safest place in the city," Cersei naively tells her Hand. She's crying softly as she realizes that her plan has failed.
Jaime Reaches the Boat
Jaime reaches his getaway boat -- but Euron's here too (this guy keeps on survivin').
"Kingslayer!" he calls out, challenging Jaime to a duel. "If you kill another king before you die, they'll sing about you forever."
"I f**ked the queen," Euron teases, prompting Jaime to lash out.
Panic Sets In
Dany lights up King's Landing, and now Jon is forced to fight too. Things get brutal as Dany's army takes no prisoners.
Jon is in a state of disbelief watching the horror and violence around him. He's now starting to realize that Dany is not who he thought she was.
Uh Oh...
Through tears of frustration, Dany soars on Drogon's back and pushes him toward Cersei's tower. Drogon's fire sets the city ablaze and Tyrion watches in horror.
The Lannister army freaks out, and Grey Worm charges. The citizens' surrender means nothing to the Dragon Queen.
"Get back!" Jon yells, struggling to stop Dany's army from making things worse. Grey Worm, however, is in a cloud of rage, ready to kill everything and anything in his path.
Laying Down Swords
With that, the Lannister army lays down their swords in a sign of defeat and surrender. "Ring the bells!" people shout from inside the city.
Atop Drogon, Dany hears the citizens cries, and Cersei stares down that bell. After what felt like 10 million years, the bell starts ringing. Jon sighs in relief, but Dany doesn't look ready to give up the fight.
Face-Off
Cersei's confident that the Red Keep will not fall -- but that remains to be seen.
Grey Worm, Jon and Ser Davos lead the charge through King's Landing and come face-to-face with a band of Lannister soldiers. Tyrion eyes the bell (trying to signal the city's surrender).
Battle's Here
Grey Worm steps forward as a giant wave of fire burns up the Golden Company from behind.
Seizing the opportunity, the Nothern armies, Unsullied soldiers and Dothraki run forward, with Harry Strickland swiftly taken by Grey Worm's spear.
Drogon flies above, burning King's Landing, with the Lannister soldiers picked off one by one. Cersei watches as Drogon's flames start to burn away the edges of her city.
"All we need is one good shot," she tells her hand, who reveals that they don't have any more arrows to kill Dany's dragon or Euron to shoot that arrow, for that matter.
Fire!
Over on the Iron Fleet, Eron Greyjoy waits to see if Dany will be flying on Drogon's back -- and they're here with FIYAAAAAHHHH.
With the arrows at the ready, the Iron Fleet begins to shoot at Drogon, but it's clear that Dany is ready this time. She unleashes hellfire and swiftly burns the ships to ashes as Euron narrowly misses the blaze.
Annnnnd this scene would have been a hell of a lot more satisfying if it had happened last week!
Cersei Smirks
Cersei looks out of the window to King's Landing, the exact same spot where she once watched the Sept of Baelor burn with Wildfire.
Panic erupts outside the city, as people struggle to escape the fight that's coming. Arya and The Hound manage to slip in, but not Jamie.
About to Begin
The soldiers of the Golden Company stand waiting for command, while Harry Strickland takes the lead on horseback.
Jon, Tyrion and Ser Davos stand on higher ground, preparing for what comes next. The Northern army stand with their makeshift armor and small ranks ready to lay their lives down for Jon's queen.
The Next Morning
The city prepares for the attack, with The Hound and Arya among them -- and heading towards you-know-who.
Also in the city is Jaime, who's hooded but with his golden hand, presumably making his way to the same place.
A Touching Moment
"Your queen will execute you for this!" Jaime warns.
"Seems like a fair trade," Tyrion solemnly says. "If it weren't for you, I never would have survived my childhood... You were the only one who didn't treat me like a monster. You were all I had."
Tears are flowing, and the brothers are crying -- this is where they'll part ways.
Tyrion Finds Jaime
"How did they find you?" Tyrion asks his brother, who silently lifts his arm as an answer. "You're going back to her, to die with her... she's going to die, unless you can convince her to change her course of action."
"Difficult to do from here," Jaime points out, prompting Tyrion to hold up a key.
"The child is the reason she'll never give an inch," Jaime says, pointing out that the worst things Cersei has done, she's done for her kids.
"Start a new life," Tyrion begs, giving Jaime an escape plan and a secret boat to Pentos.
The Battle Draws Near
Tyrion and Jon have joined the Northern armies as they get ready to attack the capitol -- and Tyrion asks Ser Davos for a favor. "I'm not going to like this favor, am I?" Davos asks.
Arya and the Hound, meanwhile, have reached the group.
"I'm Arya Stark. I'm gong to kill Queen Cersei," she tells a soldier, determined to cross another name off her list.
"Think about it. She kills Cersei, the war's over," the Hound reasons to the soldier blocking their path.
Planning a Bloodbath
"Mercy is our strength," Dany tells Tyrion as he begs her to grant mercy over the thousands of children who will die if she attacks King's Landing with the Targaryen's signature "fire and blood" wrath. "Ready the unsullied!"
"Wait for me outside the city. You'll know when it's time," Dany instructs Grey Worm.
Before their meeting is through, Dany reveals that Jaime was on his way to Cersei -- and that "the next time you fail me, will be the last time you fail me."
An Icy Confrontation
Dany and Jon are together for the first time since she found out he told Arya and Sansa the truth -- and she's not happy.
"She betrayed your trust. She killed Varys as much as I did. This is a victory for her," Dany says. "I don't have love here, I only have fear."
"I love you," Jon insists. "And you will always be my queen."
"Is that all I am to you? Your queen?" Dany asks, leaning in for a passionate kiss, before Jon pulls away. "All right then, let it be fear."
Missing Missandei
Dany, clearly still distraught, hands Grey Worm Missandei's former collar that she wore when she was a slave. He casually tosses it into the fire.
Varys Is Arrested -- and Killed.
Grey Worm approaches Varys and puts him in chains, escorting him down to the beach. He's being arrested for treason against Dany.
"I hope I'm wrong," Varys tells Tyrion, who admits to turning on him. "Goodbye, old friend."
Varys is fulfilling the prophecy that the Red Woman said to him in season seven -- he had to die on the shores of Westeros.
He's then sentenced to die by (what else?) Drogon's fire. With a sharp inhale, Drogon unleashed his fiery rage and carries out his mother's death sentence. The question remains -- who was Varys writing the truth about Jon to?
Tyrion Throws Varys Under the Bus
"Someone has betrayed me," Dany tells Tyrion, guessing that Varys knows the truth about Jon's identity.
"You learned from Sansa, and she learned from Jon, though I begged him not to tell her," Dany hisses, scolding Tyrion for telling Varys.
"Doesn't matter now," she says, clearly feeling emotionally manipulated and physically torn.
Jon Heads to King's Landing
Jon is on his way to King's Landing, and upon his arrival at Dragonstone, Varys reveals he's worried. Dany hasn't accepted any food and things aren't looking great.
"We both know what she's about to do," Varys says, before insisting that all he wants is the "right ruler on the Iron Throne."
"I don't want it," Jon replies.
"You will rule wisely and well, while she--" Varys begins.
"She... is my queen," Jon coldly replies, walking away.
Varys Is Putting Pen to Paper
Looks like Jon's secret won't stay a secret for very long. The episode opens with Varys writing that Jon is the "true heir to the Iron Throne" -- but who is he going to send that paper to?
An Interesting Lead In
Instead of a typical "here's what happened" to set us up for this week's episode, we get a look inside Dany's head the many voices she's hearing as she prepares to exact her revenge on Cersei.
Game of Thrones airs Sundays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on HBO.
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