GAME OF THRONES: 9 Predictions For The Season 7 Finale, “The Dragon And The Wolf”

8. Jon And Daenerys Will Have … Relations

Seeing Jon Snow and Daenerys Targaryen finally meet this season is a moment Game of Thrones fans have been waiting years for and while their first meeting was definitely a season highlight, it’s been more fascinating to watch how their relationship has progressed since that point. Jon and Dany certainly seem like they would make for an awesome power couple: they both possess strong leadership skills, command large armies, and are attractive people to boot, but it’s also felt really weird rooting for them to get together given that it would technically be an incestuous relationship if they did (although, they don’t know that!).

Seeing whether or not the show would commit to yet another incestuous relationship has been part of the fun this season and after last week’s touching bedside scene — and episode director Alan Taylor’s sheepish “no comment” response to the question of whether the pair will consummate their relationship — it would appear that we are headed for a meeting of dragon and wolf between the sheets. Unfortunately, that post-coital bliss will probably be short-lived because …

Verdict: 1 Point

Pretty much right on the money with this one. Jon and Daenerys did indeed consummate their burgeoning romance with a brief, but steamy sex scene, which was humorously/awkwardly juxtaposed with a scene of Bran and Sam discussing how Jon Snow is really Aegon Targaryen, the legitimate son of Rhaegar and Targaryen and Lyanna Stark and thus, Dany’s nephew. Something tells me these lovebirds aren’t going to be jumping for joy when they find out that disturbing bit of information …

7. Jon Snow Will Finally Learn The Truth About His Parents

Considering the title of the finale is “The Dragon and the Wolf” and the fact that this season has been teasing the reveal at every possible opportunity, I’m 99.9% certain that Jon Snow will learn that he is actually Jon Targaryen, son of Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark and thus, the son of ice and fire. As for how he’ll find out, that remains to be seen but Bran has known the truth for a long time now, so it’s possible that he could be the one to let Jon in on the secret.

That being said, it feels more appropriate for it to be Sam. That scene with Gilly where she unwittingly discovers that Jon is the legitimate child of Rhaegar and Lyanna was no accident and even though Sam has yet to grasp the full meaning of that passage, he’s sure to before long. As for when Jon will find out, you just know it’s going to occur after he shares an intimate moment with Dany, since neither party would likely be very keen on hooking up if they were to discover they were related right beforehand.

Verdict: 0.25 Points

While we did get official confirmation that Jon Snow is the son of Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark — and even learned that his real name is Aegon Targaryen — the only people that know this information at the end of Season 7 are Bran Stark and Samwell Tarly. Jon is sure to learn the truth at some point during the final season but both he and Daenerys are still in the dark about why their relationship is actually incestuous at this point in time.

6. Cersei Agrees To An Alliance

One of the many issues I and many others had with the whole “capture a wight” plan is the idea that bringing a soldier of the dead before Cersei would do anything to convince her that she should drop everything and work with her enemies to defeat the White Walkers. Nevermind the fact that Cersei already has a wight of her own in the form of the zombified Ser Gregor Clegane, how does anyone on Daenerys’ side — Tyrion most of all — seriously believe that Cersei can be trusted at this point? Based on the short teaser released by HBO, we know that Cersei and Jaime meet with Daenerys and Jon in the Dragon Pit at King’s Landing to discuss the White Walker threat.

While it remains to be seen what the outcome of that meeting will be. I believe that it will end with Cersei actually agreeing to help fight the White Walkers, partly because she knows that if she doesn’t, Daenerys will likely just tell her dragons to burn her alive. However, with Cersei there’s always a catch and even though she’s going to make the appearance of playing ball, she’ll already be hard at work figuring out a way to stab her new “allies” in the back, which isn’t going to sit well with a certain someone …

Verdict: 1 Point

Cersei did in fact agree to an alliance with her enemies, pledging to send her armies north to help defeat the White Walkers and as expected, it was all a ruse, with Cersei later revealing to Jaime that she has no intention of helping in the fight and instead plans to bulk up her own army while her enemies are busy fighting a different war. Oh Cersei, you devious hellcat; never change.

5. Jaime Will Turn His Back On Cersei

Although it’s kind of stalled out as of late, Jaime Lannister’s character arc remains one of Game of Thrones’ most complex and I think we’re due for a pivotal moment in the Kingslayer’s life during the finale. Jaime has stuck by his sister’s side all season long despite being conflicted about Cersei’s increasingly brutal tendencies, but I think after learning Cersei’s true plans for betraying Jon, Daenerys, Tyrion, and everyone else, Jaime will be ready to walk away from his sister for good.

Jaime is a deeply flawed person, but he ultimately doesn’t want to see people suffer and if he discovers that Cersei is going to undermine the coalition to stop the White Walkers with some sort of sadistic revenge plot — or if he discovers that Cersei made up her pregnancy to maintain his loyalty, which is likely — Jaime could be declaring for a different queen altogether … or even be forced to start calling himself the Queenslayer after plunging a knife into his sister’s back. Whatever happens, I don’t think Cersei will be able to count on Jaime’s allegiance anymore following the events of the finale and that’s an interesting place to take their relationship as we head into the final season.

Verdict: 1 Point

Jaime indeed bid his sister adieu and departed for parts unknown in the finale after discovering that Cersei has no desire to actually help fight the White Walkers. That being said, it all played out quite differently than I had imagined, with Cersei very nearly ordering Ser Gregor the Zombie Mountain to execute her brother on the spot. Much to my surprise, Cersei had the opportunity to kill both of her brothers in this episode and held back each time, which suggests that she really does value family above all. While I wasn’t correct in my guess that Jaime might actually kill Cersei, there’s still one season left for that to happen!

4. CleganeBowl Will Happen

Alright, maybe it’s a bit optimistic to think that we’re going to see the two Clegane brothers finally duke it out in an episode that already has a ton of heavy lifting to do in the story department, but there’s still a good chance that CleganeBowl will happen. It all hinges on where the Hound goes following his adventure north of the Wall. We know he doesn’t depart with Beric Dondarrion but we don’t actually see where he ends up after helping to load the captured wight onto one of Dany’s ships. Assuming that ol’ Sandor hitched a ride aboard the Dragon Queen’s ship, that likely means he’ll end up in the same place everyone else is going — King’s Landing — and thus right into conflict with his older brother.

Even if CleganeBowl doesn’t happen in the season finale, the two brothers have to meet again at some point, if only so we can hear the Hound comment that his zombified brother “looks like s–t.” Whatever happens, I’m sure fire will be involved in some way, as the Hound still needs to repay his brother for frying his face as a child (hey, Dany does have three, sorry, two dragons at her disposal…)

Verdict: 0.5 Points

We came so close, people! When the Hound walked up to his brother and started talking about how he’ll be the one to finally kill him, I thought for sure we were going to see CleganeBowl go down. Alas, it wasn’t meant to be … or at least, not yet. The Hound’s promise to kill his brother is a pretty clear indication that we’ll see these two feuding siblings duke it out eventually but I’m still sad that CleganeBowl was within our grasp and was just as quickly was snatched away. Why gotta play us like that, Game of Thrones?

3. Daenerys Will Suffer A Betrayal From Within Her Inner Circle

One of the central conflicts of this season has been this idea of whether or not Daenerys deserves to rule the Seven Kingdoms, or if she’s even fit to rule for that matter. It’s actually been one of the more complex and well-executed elements of this season, as the characters who follow Daenerys have repeatedly questioned her increasingly brutal methods and whether she will indeed “break the wheel” once she takes power. While Daenerys still appears to fall into the “heroic” camp, especially considering her function as a savior in the dramatic dragon rescue of “Beyond the Wall,” you don’t just introduce this idea of Dany being a potential tyrant and then routinely return to that theme without it paying dramatic dividends down the road.

The most likely candidates right now would be Tyrion and Varys, as the pair have repeatedly taken issue with Dany’s methods throughout the season but I’d still lean toward Varys being the one who ultimately commits a betrayal. If Varys truly believes that Daenerys cannot be made to listen and will do whatever she wants regardless of what others think, perhaps he will decide to serve another leader more “fit” to rule. Hey, I hear that Jon Snow guy listens to reason and also has a better claim to the Iron Throne than even Daenerys. Hmm …

Verdict: 0 Points

If anyone betrayed Daenerys, I sure didn’t see it. That being said, Tyrion’s lingering presence outside Dany’s room as she bangs her nephew (it just sounds worse the more you say it, doesn’t it?) could indicate that he’s contemplating a betrayal of some sort … or maybe he’s just sad that the Dragon Queen chose the King in the North over him. Every male character on this show seems to be in love with Daenerys, so it wouldn’t be much of a stretch to assume that Tyrion has fallen for her too. We’ll just have to wait for the final season to find out what’s really going on here.

2. A Greyjoy Will Die

Murderous pirate Euron Greyjoy has been absent for a few episodes now but as indicated by the fleet of Greyjoy ships docked in King’s Landing in the teaser, he’s sure to make an appearance in the finale. From what we know of Euron so far, he’ll likely try and be front and center for the big meeting between Jon, Daenerys, Cersei and, well, pretty much every important character who isn’t in Winterfell right now.While Cersei will at the very least pretend to play ball with Jon and Dany’s requests for an armistice, being a violent jerk is Euron’s overriding personality trait, so it’s hard to imagine him just standing idly by while other people make plans without him.

Given that he still has Yara as his prisoner (assuming he hasn’t killed her yet) and the fact that Theon appears a couple of times in the teaser, this conflict could come to a head in the finale and is sure to make neither Theon or Euron willing participants in any talks of negotiations. At least one of the Greyjoys is going to die in the finale and considering he’s kind of outlived his narrative function at this point, I’m leaning on it being Euron who meets the Drowned God.

Verdict: 0 Points

Wow, was did I ever miss the mark with this one. While the season did end with Theon convincing a ragtag group of Greyjoy men to help him rescue Yara (literally not having any balls will do wonders for you in a fight, apparently), no Greyjoy actually died. In fact, we didn’t even see Yara on-screen, so it’s possible that she’s already dead. This conflict is far from over but hey, at least we got a meaningful scene between Theon and Jon in which the latter forgives the former for betraying the Starks all those years ago. The redemption tale of Theon Greyjoy continues …

1. The Night King Will Get Through The Wall

The Night King scored a major victory in last week’s episode by killing Viserion and subsequently resurrecting him as an ice dragon, which will surely prove to be a valuable asset in the war to come. After what felt like a long time of stalling, the White Walker plot accelerated dramatically in “Beyond the Wall” and I don’t see that momentum slowing down in the season finale. The war between the living and dead has arrived and the Night King is going to make the first move by either flying Viserion over the Wall or using his new dragon to break the massive structure altogether. I’m still not sure on the logistics given that it isn’t even clear at this point whether Viserion will spew fire or ice at this point, but I’d be truly shocked if the finale doesn’t end with the White Walkers making it south of the Wall.

Verdict: 1 Point

As predicted, the Night King wasted no time in putting his new dragon to work, using the mighty beast to literally melt a gigantic hole in the Wall to allow his army safe passage. From what I could tell, wight-Viserion spews blue fire and not ice, which is probably even more terrifying since it means his fire is theoretically more powerful than Drogon or Rhaegal’s. Tormund and Beric Dondarrion were both on-hand to witness this epic display of power and it’s unclear if either of them survived the attack.

Basically, Westeros looks pretty screwed right now.

Final Results: 

5.5/9

Overall, I think I did a decent job with these predictions. I was wrong about CleganeBowl happening but it was at least teased, no Greyjoys died and Daenerys was not betrayed from within (at least, not that we know of), but I did accurately predict some of the biggest moments, such as Jon and Daenerys hooking up and the Night King getting through the Wall. To be fair, most of the predictions I got right were story beats we pretty much  all knew were coming but perhaps that’s a comment on Game of Thrones simply becoming more predictable as it goes along (not that that’s necessarily a bad thing, as many of these big moments were still quite effective). Stay tuned for my Season 8 predictions, which I’m sure will be much less accurate than anything I wrote about here.

Nick Steinberg (@Nick_Steinberg)