9 Bold Predictions for Game of Thrones season 8

Jerald Raymond Pierce

Photo Credit: HBO

We’re mere weeks away from the start of the final season of Game of Thrones. It’s about time we make some big predictions for how this whole thing will end.

I’m not Bran, I’m no three-eyed raven. I don’t worship the Lord of Light, so I can’t stare into the flames and see what’s going to happen on Game of Thrones.

But that didn’t stop me from drawing some three-eyed ravens on a piece of paper, setting that paper on fire and then staring into the flames of the burning three-eyed raven drawings. And, you know what? I saw something. I saw what the future holds for the final season of Game of Thrones.

Now, I’m here for you. To tell you what my flaming three-eyed raven gods have shown me for the future of this show.

I admit, I wasn’t wearing my glasses while I looked into the fire, so I could be wrong. Things were blurry. But hey, I know what I know. Here are some bold predictions for how Game of Thrones season 8 will go, including: who will live, who will die, who will win the Game of Thrones.

(Obviously, if you haven’t seen through season 7 of Game of Thrones, you should probably stop reading here.)

Game of Thrones spoilers include a Jamie and Brienne reunion. Image credit: HBO

1. Brienne’s friendship keeps Jamie from being killed on sight

Ok, I admit, this one is pretty tame. It’ll happen in the first episode. Jamie left King’s Landing at the end of last season headed North on his own. When he gets to Winterfell, no one is going to be willing to trust him, especially since he’s there without an army. They’ll be hard-pressed to trust that he’s really there to do the right thing and stand by his word since he’s been serving Cersei and Cersei has clearly betrayed their agreement.

Tyrion will argue for him. But, in the end, it’ll be Brienne’s word and her being able to convey how he’s treated and respected her that will convince Jon and Daenerys to let Jamie join their forces. It’ll take some effort, but he’ll be a key advisor against Cersei after he proves his worth against the White Walkers.

2. The war with the White Walkers will go very poorly

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Now, you want bold. Let me lay some things out for you.

Vladimir Furdik, the stuntman turned Night King, already let us know that the third episode of this upcoming season will feature “a battle that the creators intend to be the biggest in television history.” I have two thoughts on this. First, it’s not going to be a battle that the Northern forces win. At least not at first.

Here’s how I see things going down: There’s an initial battle somewhere between the wall and Winterfell. Since Jon and Daenerys won’t really have time to gather all of the Northern bannermen to fight, they go out with the dragons, Unsullied and Dothraki. (After all, it wouldn’t be the first time Jon Snow rode into battle with terrible odds.)

They’re easily overwhelmed. Unsullied and Dothraki all wiped out (or mostly wiped out) forcing Daenerys and Jon to retreat to Winterfell to regroup and replan. As they retreat, though, the Night King (in a move that will rival any scene in Game of Thrones history) will raise his arms and all of the Unsullied and all of the Dothraki will rise to join his fight.

Anyway, they retreat to Winterfell where, after debating a series of awful plans, they agree to let Arya try to disguise herself and get close enough to the Night King to kill him. We saw in season 7 that most, if not all, of the wights die if the Walker who raised them is killed.

Whether or not Arya is successful, the best chance to win is to take out the Night King. To do so, though, they will also need Cersei’s help.

The Night King on Game of Thrones / Image by Helen Sloan/HBO

3. Cersei will wind up playing little to no part in the war against the White Walkers

The second thought about this legendary war: Cersei isn’t going to help.

Or at least she’s not going to send her army. She’s committed to prepping herself and King’s Landing for the eventual attack on the throne. She’s not about to waste her shiny new mercenaries to fight some Night King. Plus, the fact that this massive battle takes place halfway through the season says, to me, that there are two enemies that need to be defeated and each will get half the season.

Cersei will have her time against the North and the dragons, but it’ll have to wait until the back half of the season.

That said, I do think the North fighters (really just meaning Jamie) wind up reaching out to her for her gigantic crossbow. Daenerys saw what it did to her dragon. Equip that with dragon glass and you have the one thing that will be able to take out the Night King’s dragon.

4. Who will die

Really all anyone wants from predictions for Game of Thrones are thoughts on what big names meet their end. Don’t worry, I have that for you.

You can say goodbye now to: Euron, Bran, Melisandre, Grey Worm, Cersei, Podrick, Tormund, the Hound, Missandei and Ser Jorah. More may die, but I feel confident we’ll be left without these few, at least.

Reasoning? Euron is going to be betrayed by Cersei. That’s pretty obvious. He’s a fool for trusting her. He’ll serve his purpose (you know, getting the Golden Company to Westeros) and she’ll leave him high and dry. She won’t kill him though. Theon will redeem himself by saving Yara. One of them will end Euron’s life and take back the Iron Islands. (This will be the South’s storyline while the North is fighting the White Walkers.)

Bran, after informing Jon of his lineage and true parentage, will have served his purpose (both cosmically and in terms of the plot). Melisandre has already predicted her death many times over. She knows she has a part to play, but she knows she has a death coming to her as well.

Podrick, Tormund and Ser Jorah. Fighters to the end, bound to die on the battlefield.

The Hound will die protecting Arya. As he dies, Arya will be at his side.

Why did I kill off Grey Worm and Missandei? Well…

5. Daenerys is left without allies

As I said, the battle with the White Walkers will not go well. When the dust settles, Daenerys will be left with no original allies. No Ser Jorah, no Missandei, no Grey Worm. This will force her to truly band together with Jon and Tyrion so she can finally take the Iron Throne.

Without her so-called “foreign” allies, Daenerys will unite the three most powerful houses in Westeros. Targaryen, Stark (or “Stark,” considering Jon’s true lineage) and Lannister will, finally, not be at war. That image and message, devoid of the stupid “but she sides with foreigners” complaint that Cersei wants to embed in peoples’ heads, will unite the seven kingdoms behind Daenerys.

Kit Harington as Jon Snow and Emilia Clarke as Daenerys Targaryen on Game of Thrones (Credit: Helen Sloan/HBO)

6. Daenerys is pregnant with Jon Snow’s child

Yes, Daenerys is pregnant. From a storytelling perspective, there are very few reasons for the show to talk as much about Daenerys’ ability to bear children as they did in season 7. One of the most obvious reasons is that she will, despite her previous thoughts, become pregnant.

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This, of course, also sets up Daenerys and Cersei against each other nicely by putting both of their houses’ lineage on the line. (Setting aside the fact that Jon, Tyrion, and Jamie could still potentially father. It’s symbolism, people.)

Then there’s the fact that the Targaryen’s have been inbreeding for hundreds of years, which resulted in recent generations of Targaryens going mad. Daenerys tries so hard to distance herself from how awful her father was, having her just happen to become pregnant with her relative (and potentially ensuring future mad kings) would be the kind of backhanded win of which this show is capable.

7. Daenerys will win the Iron Throne

Now, you’re probably thinking, “wait, if the Unsullied and Dothraki get wiped out, will Daenerys still have enough people to fight Cersei’s mercenary army?”

Let me answer that in a confusing way: She will and she won’t.

She and the dragons with the North’s forces will be enough to sort of fight the Golden Company. But that won’t be the plan. You don’t beat Cersei with brute force, you have to outsmart her. And that’s what Tyrion and Jamie will scheme to finally do.

While Jon and Daenerys lead the ground forces from the North, the Greyjoy siblings will lead an attack on the walls of King’s Landing from the water. This time, with Tyrion (who knows the strengths and weaknesses from his battle with Stannis) and Jamie (who, you know, is a brilliant military mind and knows the Red Keep as well as anyone) on the attacking side, the siege from the water will work, allowing Jamie and Arya to get inside of the Red Keep.

Jamie will make it to Cersei first and will beg her to give in and bend the knee.

Meanwhile, Arya will take out the Mountain, a major name on her kill list. But when she gets to Jamie and Cersei, Jamie won’t let her finish her list off by killing Cersei. Jamie will imprison Cersei to be judged by Daenerys.

Kit Harington as Jon Snow and Lena Headey as Cersei Lannister on Game of Thrones (Credit for all: Helen Sloan/HBO)

8. Cersei will be beheaded, Jon will swing the sword

Cersei will have to face Daenerys for a litany of crimes. Daenerys, because of her respect for Jon Snow and the pain Cersei has caused his family, will defer to him. Jon, facing the hatred he feels for her and pressure from his sisters (while still considering the feelings of Jamie and Tyrion, who he now considers friends and allies), will sentence Cersei to death for her crimes.

I’m on the fence, but I believe Jamie will be able to convince Jon to let Cersei have the baby before she is killed. (That is, depending on how much time passes during other parts of the season. The baby may have already come by the time the North is able to fight her and capture King’s Landing.)

Jon will allow Jamie to keep the child. Jon isn’t one to punish innocents for the crimes of their parents.

Then, like his father and brother before him, Jon will swing the sword to behead Cersei, executing the sentence he has given.

9. The North will remain in the hands of a Stark, peace will reign

So, where will we stand when all this is over.

Daenerys and Jon, despite the incest thing, will marry, with Daenerys ruling over the seven kingdoms.

Daenerys will fill out her small council with Tyrion (Hand), Varys (Master of Whisperers), Brienne (Lord Commander of the Kingsguard), and Sam (Maester).

How does Brienne wind up Lord Commander? It’s offered to Jamie, but Jamie turns it down in favor of taking his new child back to Casterly Rock and ruling over it as the lord there. (Bronn goes with him, by the way. Still waiting on that castle.) Then, the next logical choice, in the minds of Jon and Sansa especially, is Brienne. It’s a fitting accomplishment for her and the perfect way to tie up her character arc.

Sam’s appointment won’t go down well with the other Maesters, but Jon will make sure it happens. Cersei already broke the “have a real Maester” idea down, laying the groundwork for Sam and his family to join Daenerys’ council.

That leaves Sansa and Arya. They will return to Winterfell. Sansa will rule as Ward of the North and will be the Lady of Winterfell.

I’m on the fence about Arya. Arya may stay by her sister’s side, leading the Northern army when necessary and being Sansa’s enforcer. Or she may accept an assignment at the Wall, taking over as Lord Commander and seeing a complete overhaul of the Wall’s history and a rededication to making sure the wall is manned and trained properly. Or, you know, Arya may just disappear and go about her own thing. She’s a mystery.

Well, that’s all I’ve got. What do you think? How far off am I? Season 8 is coming soon. Be sure to put all of your Game of Thrones predictions below.

Jerald Raymond Pierce

Jerald Raymond Pierce is a writer and journalist whose work has appeared in American Theatre magazine, the Seattle Times, the Charleston Post and Courier and the Syracuse Post-Standard. He has his BFA in Acting from Ohio University and MA in Arts Journalism from Syracuse University.