Top 10 Scenes: Season 7 Edition

1. Rhaegar- Lyanna Jon-Dany
2. Ice dragon
3. Jaime and Olenna
4. Battle of Blackwater rush
5. Jon and Dany meeting
6. Euron's parade
7. Viserion's death
8. Euron attacks Yara
9. Tyrion and Jaime
10. Cersei and Ellaria

1. Jonerys Scenes - This would take up my entire Top Ten list if I named them all. I'll just break down the best here. My absolute favorite is the final scene between them, their expressions and the level of awe and love between them was incredible. I felt like they were in love and it was overwhelming in its intensity. When Jon pledges to her and the tenderness and vulnerability they shared. It was a new side to the characters we never saw before. We usually see them as leaders and the different forms that takes, but we haven't seen "Jon" or "Daenerys" since Ep. 1. It was wonderful to see them let down their walls. The Dragonpit Conversation was very simple, but full of meaning. I enjoyed them talking about House Targaryen and the set up for potential baby, but also just seeing how their relationship has evolved. He believed in her when he didn't before and he knows her now when he didn't before. It's been a beautiful road.
2. Rhaegar and Lyanna - When I read the leaks, the one thing I desperately wanted (technically two things, but that's below) was that they kept the "he loved her and she loved him" for both Rhaegar/Lyanna and Dany/Jon. It was wonderful to see them together and to actually have Rhaegar onscreen. This was the very first time we saw him and there was a subtle nobility about him, but he was a man outside of a legend. It was obvious he loved Lyanna and the small gestures drilled that home. While I'm sad we didn't see his face, the most important things were shown for me.
3. Theon and Jon - The other thing I desperately wanted to happen from the leaks was the conversation Jon and Theon shared. The line "You're a Greyjoy and a Stark" really just completed a long journey for Theon, who always felt like an outsider. I think that acceptance was what drove him to regain his strength and identity from Ramsay and himself. He really has changed and it's wonderful to see him find some happiness with himself.
4. The Loot Train Battle - Holy crap I cheered during this. It was amazing. The Dothrakhi blew my mind and just how epic Dany's army was. It lived up to the hype.
5. Naval Battle - Euron is a madman and I love him for it. He made the scene shine and I enjoyed every minute, even if Dany took a major hit.
6. Jaime Leaving Cersei - It was a long time coming, but it was delivered in a way that I wasn't happy for Jaime. I felt sorry for him. He lost the love he thought he cherished most. He realized she never loved him as he loved her. It was such a crushing blow, especially since he had been saying they were all each other had left. Now he feels so alone. But he also kept hold of the honor that has become to mean so much to him. He's really become this well rounded, tragic figure. I can't wait to see him in the North.
7. The Wall Tumbling Down - It lived up to expectations. I also enjoyed that it's hard to tell what that dragon fire was. It's more mystical than flame.
8. The Wight Hunt - Just all of it. I don't care about the logistics and the time jumps. All these actors together was amazing and it was intense during that final battle. I knew Tormund lived, but I was still screaming and afraid he would die.
9. Sister Reunion (The Real One) - Arya and Sansa on the battlements was extremely touching. They've buried the hatchet that they carried from Season 1 and are finally home. They are a pack again and it made me misty eyed.
10. Littlefinger's Death - The master manipulator, the man who could spot weaknesses, was brought down by his own. It was perfect.

1. Gravedigger - One of my favourites in the entire show. The feeling of the entire scene, the setting, acting - it had everything. It also had a feeling of the earlier seasons I don't think we saw anywhere else in Season 7, until the finale.
2. Fall of the Wall - Horrifying, epic, and certainly iconic. The soundtrack was a masterpiece, and seeing the whole Army of the Dead was truly breathtaking. Not to mention an ice dragon.
3. Field of Fire 2.0 - the first, and hopefully not the last, time we see the horror and dread dragons bring into the battlefield. Fire and blood indeed.
4. Theon and Jon - Theon finally had a proper confrontation with a member of House Stark and was forgiven.
5. Dany and the dragons saving Jon's party - while I greatly disliked the deus ex machina of this and the episode itself had tons of problems, the scene itself is one of my favourites.

1. Field of Fire 2.0
2. Cersei and Tyrion
3. Sandor Clegane, The Gravedigger
4. Littlefinger's Downfall
5. The Wall Falling at Eastwatch
6. Dany saving The Fellowship of the Wight
7. Sansa and Arya on the battlements
8. Jaime and Olenna
9. Jon and Dany's First Meeting
10. Arya reuniting with Nymeria

Long-ass post incoming, so beware. I couldn't limit myself to only ten, so I went with a Top 3 from each episode, sending Season 7 off with the proper 21-gun salute that it deserves (plus one extra for the road).

Keep in mind that I haven't rewatched the season in full yet, so this is just off the top of my head.

Dragonstone

1. The Gravedigger – Quiet. Contemplative. Gorgeously written, shot and performed. The conversation between Beric and Sandor and the eerie vision in the flames are part of a perfect prelude, but it’s the image of Sandor and Thoros digging graves in the snow for a nameless man and his daughter that provides this sequence with its visual beauty and emotional power.

2. Daenerys Arrives on Dragonstone – The soaring triumphant score. The emotions on Dany’s face as she approaches the shore and touches the sands of home after a lifetime in exile. The sweeping, stunning shots of the castle. I teared up, I won’t lie. There was no dialogue until the end, and none was needed.

3. Jon Pardons Alys Karstark and Ned Umber – I loved seeing Jon in full King in the North mode, and realizing just how good at this he can be. The scene got overshadowed by the debate over whether Jon or Sansa was right in their approach, but I love it for Jon’s speech and for the grateful, relieved smiles on Alys and Ned’s faces when they are accepted back into the Northern fold.

Stormborn

1. Euron Attacks Yara and Theon’s Fleet –The shot of Euron descending on the corvus, screaming like a mad beserker and cackling as he starts cutting people down, cemented him as a worthy villain. He had talked the talk before, but here he walked the walk.

2. Arya Reunites with Nymeria – “That’s not you.” What a wonderful callback to one of Ned and Arya’s most moving encounters. Acting against air, Maisie Williams carried this scene beautifully.

3. Dany Challenges Varys – A necessary scene, and a great showcase for Conleth Hill. I loved seeing the Spider thrown off his normally impeccable game, but rallying to make his case in convincing fashion. A true servant of the realm indeed.

The Queen’s Justice

1. Jon Snow Meets Daenerys Targaryen – I love that they gave this monumental encounter – arguably the most anticipated in the entire show – its full time to breathe with a ten-minute sequence. Jon and Dany don’t give one another an inch, and and their clash of personalities and values here makes their latter alliance and burgeoning romance all the more effective.

2. Olenna Tyrell Gets the Last Word – One of Dame Diana Rigg’s very best scenes. The way that she turns the tables on Jaime is masterful, and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau’s silent acting as he realizes that she’s telling the truth is a perfect complement to Olenna’s final twist of the knife.

3. Cersei Takes Her Revenge on Ellaria and Tyene – Perhaps the single best acted scene of the entire season. Lena Headey was in her element, and Indira Varma was phenomenal, even sans dialogue.

The Spoils of War

1. The Field of Fire – There are too many phenomenal moments to separate them all out, so I’ll just list a few: Jaime and Bronn’s reaction when Drogon screams and emerges from the clouds. The shot of the Dothraki charging through a wall of fire. Jaime watching his soldiers being turned to ash. Bronn facing down Dany and Drogon with Qyburn’s scorpion. Jaime’s mad, heroic, desperate charge. One of the finest and most thrilling battle sequence this show has ever produced.

2. Jon and Daenerys in the Dragonglass Cave – This is the moment that the romance between Jon and Dany reached another level. The intimate setting, the gentle touches and heated looks, the soft score evoking reservation and longing. This is how you convey attraction between two characters.

3. Arya Spars With Brienne – This scene was spirited, expertly choreographed, and perfectly suited for the characters. Above all, the word I’d use for it is “delightful”.

Eastwatch

1. Jon Touches Drogon as Dany Looks On – This scene was allowed to build perfectly. Jon’s fear giving way to wonder. Dany’s curiosity giving way to fascination. And the CGI on Drogon is some of the show’ best. The underlying truth of Jon’s true lineage lends this scene incredible symbolic power, and of course, it draws Jon and Dany even closer.

2. Jaime Learns That Cersei is Pregnant –Jaime’s face when he realizes that he’ll have another opportunity to be a father is one of Nikolaj’s very finest moments. Twisted though it may be, Jaime and Cersei are the longest-running and most consequential romantic relationship on the show, and that comes across here. It’s remarkable how sweet this moment comes across as, even though Cersei is plotting treachery and warning Jaime never to betray her again. With their break coming, this is their last intimate moment before things change forever.

3. The Magnificent Seven Head Beyond the Wall – Thrilling and badass, this moment would have fit in any classic western or samurai film. It spawned some damn fine memes as well.

Beyond the Wall

1. Daenerys and Her Dragons Arrive to Save Jon – My favorite moment of the entire season, and one of my favorite moments of the entire series. When Dany soared in over Jon’s head, her dragons breathing torrents of fire as Ramin Djawadi’s epic score swelled in triumph … I legitimately stood up, pumped my fist, and screamed. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve watched that scene. Even with the tragedy of Viserion’s death falling soon after, it remains stirring and triumphant. Dragons and White Walkers. Fire and Ice. It’s a promise seven years in the making, fulfilled at last. It’s epic fantasy at its very finest.

2. Beric and Jon Talk About Resurrection and How “Death is the Enemy” – This scene could serve as a thesis statement for the entire series. Ever since Jon returned to life, he’s been questioning why he deserves this gift – if one can even call it a gift. Beric, who has been wrestling with those exact same questions, helps him to understand that he’s not supposed to know – in fact, he can’t know. That’s an impossibly hard thing for Jon to hear. But they come to understand that they can still serve the side of the light. They can still help more than they’ve harmed. They can still be “the shield that guards the realms of men.” I fucking love it.

3. Daenerys and Jon Share an Intimate Moment – Tender and romantic, and beautifully acted by Kit and Emilia (I think it’s the best scene that Emilia has ever done). The emotions underlying this scene were almost unspeakably intense.

The Dragon and the Wolf

1. Jon and Daenerys Consummate Their Love – "He loved her. And she loved him." The promise of the destined, desperate, passionate romance between the story's two main players comes true here. The moment when they stop their love-making to stare into each other's eyes says more than words ever could about just how madly, deeply, and completely they’ve fallen for one another. Trouble may be looming in the form of Jon’s true parentage, but the connection that was forged here is not something that’s ease to break. Consequences be damned, this is the great love story of this series.

2. Tyrion and Cersei’s Conversation – Separately, Peter and Lena are onscreen dynamite. Together, they almost defy superlatives. I could have watched this scene for hours.

3. Arya and Sansa Reminisce About Ned and How “The Lone Wolf Dies, but the Pack Survives” – The Winterfell storyline worked far better for me than it did for some, which made the payoff all the sweeter. It was great to two sisters united, in a mirror image of Jon and Sansa’s scene from the Season 6 finale, but the thing that truly got me was the beautifully underplayed, whispered exchange at the end. “I miss him.”/”Me too.”

Bonus: The Night King and Viserion Take Down the Wall. The entire series was building to this moment. Replete with epic and terrifying visuals of the Ice Dragon unleashed, and supported by Ramin Djawadi’s superb score, it lived up to the hype. Bring on Season 8!

Wow, what's left to say? Jared pretty much covered it.

This season was filled with moments that were the best I've ever seen on television, cable or network. HBO opened the pocketbook and the production value is spectacular. The arcs some of our characters have been through, the losses suffered, amazing all of it.

Gravedigger, Winter Came for House Frey, Starks returning to Winterfell, Field of Fire, Boatsex, the Death of Littlefinger, Cersei and her brothers, Viserion!, and the Magnificent 7 Beyond the Wall are just a few reasons I will be revising this season for a long time to come.

I can agree with that. I just happen to love how that scene came together. It set the tone for the entire season and the turns to come.