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what-do-1000-swords-look-like · 2 years

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I am getting back into my Jonsa feels, man. Hardcore.

In the very same episode that Dany saves Jon beyond The Wall and he bends the knee you have these back to back sequences:

1) Jon & Jorah:

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Here, the convo starts where Jon talks about serving with Jorah's father. He then offers Longclaw back to Jorah, who politely declines and offers the sword back to Jon, telling him "May it serve you well. And your children after you."

Important things to note:

"Were you with him at the end?" "I was a prisoner of the Wildlings." - interesting turn of phrase there Jon (makes me think of 8x05-8x06 btw) -- "I hate that he died that way." (again, this makes me think of 8x06)

"My father was the most honorable man I ever met. He was good all the way through. And then he died on the executioner's block." "Your father wanted to execute me." "I heard." (this makes me think of Dany telling Jon the same thing about Ned in 7x03)

"He changed the pommel from a bear to a wolf but it's still Longclaw." -- this is part of a subtle setup for the Targaryen reveal imho, but also showing us that regardless, he's still the same man he was before he knew that info or ever went to Dragonstone -> which is proven by the next thing Jon says: "Lord Commander Mormont never thought you would come back to Westeros. But you did come back. It's been in your family for centuries. It's only right for you to have it." (this makes me think of Dany and her birthright, no one thought she'd come to Westeros even after they heard she was alive and amassing strength across the sea & then it makes me think of Jon's claim to the IT and "I told you. I don't want it" that he says to Dany in 8x04 vs Dany's "I was born to rule" said to Jon in 7x03)

"He gave it to you." "I'm not his son." "I shamed my house. I broke my father's heart. I forfeited the right to claim this sword." -> while this isn't an exact word-for-word about Dany (especially since she doesn't technically shame her house or break her father's heart though she definitely took it further than Aegon or Aerys ever did), especially with how Jon's story in the series ends, it still can be linked to that whole rival claim to the IT scenario between her and Jon & even minutely to Jon's bending the knee & giving the North away - either way, the really important theme here is family, Targaryen, Stark, Mormont, etc. Jon is being given a family heirloom, a legacy, that he feels he didn't earn and has no right to, but is being entrusted with it. Sounds familiar to what he will give up in the end of the episode, doesn't it?

And that comes into play with the next part, where Jorah then tells Jon to keep it and mentions the children. Something Jorah absolutely does not need to mention here. He could have left it at "May it serve you well" but they purposely threw in this extra line. Because then they show us how Jon reacts to it. And what do we get? A deep breath, as if he feels the very weight of the decision he has to make. You know where else we see that deep breath?

Later on in the same episode, after he's bent the knee and Dany has left his room. This isn't something he wanted to do, but the line Jorah said is driven home. There won't be any children in the future (his or anyone else's) if the Night King is not defeated. And after he saw Dany and her dragons in action, he made the difficult decision to give her what she wanted so he could get her, her two remaining dragons, and her armies up North. And while they are missing Viserion in this equation now, Jaime said it himself in 7x05: "We've seen what one dragon can do. Imagine three." And we indeed see the dent Drogon and Rhaegal make in 8x03 as well as the destruction Drogon alone causes in 8x05. This scene in 7x06 may have read that Jon realizes he is starting to have feelings for her but that is not why he bent the knee. Nor is it because he feels guilty over Viserion. He wasn't responsible for himself being Beyond the Wall; Dany herself was. Which is why, besides her obvious feelings for him, she flies to save him.

2) Sansa & Arya:

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The very next scene is at Winterfell, Arya standing on the scaffold and watching the courtyard below as it snows, reminiscing. Sansa joins her and Arya begins to tell her of a memory of Ned clapping for her as she discreetly shot arrows with Bran's bow. I often wondered why Arya chose this particular memory to regale Sansa with besides the obvious mention of Ned (and the upcoming banding together to kill Littlefinger & "the pack survives" moment) & how it relates to the Robb scroll. But now it makes sense.

"Father used to watch us from up here. He wouldn't say much. You probably don't remember. You were inside knitting at the time." "I remember." -- The chasm between Arya and Sansa is at its greatest length, worse than when they were younger and used to fight. They don't know who the other is at this moment, and after all they have been through on their own separate journeys, they're not sure they can trust each other. Arya is sus that Sansa is the same ol' Sansa while Sansa is not sure she can trust Arya to not put her in danger. (this is brought home by the lines "Anger makes people do unfortunate things." "Fear makes people do unfortunate things." - because it shows clearly what the motivating emotion is for each sister in this particular episode)

"Finally, I hit the bullseye. It could've been the twentieth shot or the fiftieth, I don't remember. But I hit the bullseye. And I heard this." *slow claps* "I looked up and he's standing right here, smiling down at me. I knew what I was doing was against the rules. But he was smiling, so, I knew it wasn't wrong. The rules were wrong. I was doing what I was meant to be doing and he knew it." -- to me, this absolutely isn't just about Arya and what she became or a pleasant memory for her to indulge in, it plays into not only what Jon does by the end of the episode, but also is a bit on point for Sansa as well (for what happens in 7x07 and later on in 8x04) -> Jon doesn't want to "manipulate" someone "kindly", he thinks that everyone should want to help stop the Night King since it will affect the future of the whole world, especially this woman who says she is born to rule Westeros, who says she wants to help people, and has "made impossible things happen". He refuses to bend the knee because like he tells Dany in 7x04 "My people will never accept a Southern ruler." But Dany believes it is Jon's pride standing in the way of giving her what she wants and even says as much, which is reiterated by Tormund in this very episode. But we know it's not Jon's pride that stops him; it's the trust the North has put in him to lead them & he takes that very seriously. And based on what Kit said around the time of 8x01's production, Jon knows Sansa won't be happy about this development either and he fully expects her resistance. So Jon has to break the rules in order to do the right thing. The rules aka keeping something hidden from the audience in season 8 as he goes about his business aka not bending the knee to Dany right away despite her claim to the IT -> there has not been a Queen of the North for some time, if ever (sorry idr if this was mentioned in the books or not), and by her becoming Queen it essentially "breaks the rules", when in the beginning of the series the only way for her to become Queen was by marrying Joffrey. And while yes, Ned's line of "someone brave and gentle and strong" was meant for a future husband of Sansa's, it can also be applied to herself.

Here's how it relates to Jonsa: Ned. Ned is the connecting link here (and truthfully, has been since their reunion in season 6). This is why all of the Ned/Cat parallels & callbacks. Jon & Dany were essentially two sides of the same coin, going through similar journeys and meeting towards the end before going in other (but somewhat similar directions). Jon & Sansa have always been paralleled but they are not two sides of the same coin, their stories actually gel together even before they reunited and continue to do so in the last seasons that seems to show them as one. Working together, facing the same direction, and having the same goals: family, Winterfell, the North. And talking about these parallels, if Sansa learned to play the game and fools the so-called Master of the Game in this very season, you can bet that Jon used his learning experience being undercover in the Wildlings and is using it for something. "Everything before the word but is horseshit." And then to Dany: "I would kneel but--" Again, it all comes back to Ned for Jon and Sansa this season. Which then leads to the decision Jon is forced to make in 8x06 which is all Ned-related as well.

Then, as the scene continues, Arya confronts Sansa about the scroll and she says: "They forced me to do it." "Did they?" "You don't know what it was like." "I would've let them kill me before I betrayed my family." It's no coincidence that this is the scroll Arya has found this episode, that it has to do with the Lannisters and Ned, and that this scene is happening between the two sisters, in the very same episode Jon has to make this decision that weighs on him so heavily. Jon and Sansa are being paralleled yet again this episode. Because the show is trying to tell us that Jon is about to be in a similar situation that Sansa had once found herself in, that Dany is no different to the Lannisters (though we eventually find out she is more deadly and way more powerful with her dragon's rage and her destiny in mind). That Sansa is actually right to be worried in 8x04 and that when she sees even Tyrion is afraid of her, she is scared for Jon. This is cemented by Sansa's line of: "They told me it was the only way to save Father." & then Arya: "I remember you standing on that platform with Joffrey and Cersei when they dragged Father to the block."

(Tyrion is there with them btw and ironically, this is Varys' execution for being a traitor; Drogon is in place of Ser Ilyn Payne)

(Tyrion is here too, as is Drogon & Grey Worm who are both suspicious of Jon at this point; Tyrion is arrested as a traitor & jailed)

"I was there standing in the crowd by Baelor's statue."

"Did you come running to the rescue? Did you fight off the Lannisters and save Father?" "I wanted to."

And the scroll that Arya reads to Sansa: ""Robb, I write to you with a heavy heart. Our good king Robert is dead, killed from wounds he took in a boar hunt. Father has been charged with treason. He conspired with Robert’s brothers against my beloved Joffrey and tried to steal his throne. The Lannisters are treating me very well and provide me with every comfort. I beg you: come to King’s Landing, swear fealty to King Joffrey and prevent any strife between the great houses of Lannister and Stark." (Robb, who Jon is also paralleled to at times, who Sansa takes up the mantle from and parallels herself & the 2nd wolf in her crown is meant to represent as per Michele Clapton)

It not only sounds eerily similar to what Tyrion wrote to Jon in 7x02 (though tbf it's way more subtle and is in typical Dany rhetoric fashion) but also the message that Jon is constantly repeating to anyone who will listen: "She is our queen." "She's not her father." "She will make a good queen. For all of us." Because this is what he was told many times in many different ways before he bent the knee to Dany. What he knows Sansa and the North need to hear.

"I didn't betray him. I didn't betray Robb. I didn't betray our entire family for my beloved Joffrey." Jon who is seen in Ned's and Robb's gear; Sansa who is angry with Jon for bending the knee & asks him point blank "Did you bend the knee to save the North or because you love her?" -> "Do you have any faith in me at all?" - Jon

3) Jon & Tormund:

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Then we get the random convos but that actually aren't that random.

"Gingers are beautiful. We are kissed by fire." - while Tormund is indeed a ginger, interesting that this comes up in conversation literally after the past two scenes being back to back; & of course the whole lucky kissed-by-fire bit comes up again but is contrasted by the dialogue partner being Sandor who does not have any positive view of fire and for good reason

"Did you trip into the fire as a baby?" "I didn't trip, I was pushed." - to me, this makes me think of two things: 1) kissed by fire is lucky -> red -> Sansa & burned -> pain -> Dany; 2) Jon has grown up a Stark his whole life & wanted to be a Stark, he didn't choose to have the Targaryen background that he does & I think this is part of what he struggles with so much, right up to 8x06

"I have a beauty waiting for me back at Winterfell. If I ever get back there."

Again, why is this line being thrown in there? In order to introduce Brienne into the convo, it could have been said another way but no they purposely chose this wording to be in this scene after those other 2 & I firmly believe this is in relation to Sansa because Jon is hoping to get back to Winterfell for the battle but there is no guarantee thanks to this mission and of course Dany's imprisonment before that.

"I want to make babies with her." "How did a mad fucker like you live this long?" "I'm good at killing people." - this makes me immediately think of 7x03: Dany - "We all enjoy what we're good at." Jon - "I don't."

4) Jon & Beric:

(same video above)

"You don't look much like him." "Who's that?" "Your father." - again, we come back to Ned. Not only because we get the whole Targaryen reveal soon (which is cemented by "I guess you favor your mother") but also because of the choice Jon will have to make next season which echoes Ned's and once more comes back to Sansa.

"We both serve the same Lord." "I serve the North." - once again, we are told point blank who Jon really serves which should make the audience suspicious when he does a sudden 180 at the end of the episode, especially when he uses the "but"

"We're soldiers. We have to know what we're fighting for. I'm not fighting for some man or woman I barely know so they can sit on a throne made of swords." "So who are you fighting for?" "Life. Death is the enemy. The first and the last." "But we all die." "The enemy always wins and we still need to fight him. That's all I know. You and I won't find much joy while we're here. But we can keep others alive. We can defend those who can't defend themselves." "I am the shield that guards the realms of men." "Maybe we don't need to understand anymore than that. Maybe that's enough." "Aye. Maybe that's enough." - this immediately brings me back to 7x03 with "No offense, Your Grace, but I don't know you." & Missandei's "We didn't choose her because she's the daughter of some king we never knew." (7x04) -> this whole dialogue right here between Jon & Beric shows exactly the choice Jon made. It was always about the Night King for him. Just like with the wildlings, he did what he had to do. That doesn't mean he didn't come to care for Dany in some way, especially when he found out she was his last remaining family on the Targaryen side (I'm remembering Aemon's words "no family to guide her or protect her"), but he didn't bend the knee because he loved her or started to have feelings for her or because he felt guilt over Viserion or because he genuinely believed Dany would be a good queen. He did it to save the North and protect the world, to be that shield once more. That's what it was about for him. And that's why he's so bothered by the possibility of Sansa not having any faith left in him, by Lyanna Mormont's ripping him a new one. This is why that deleted scene where Jon was slightly amused at the North's chilly reception of Dany.

And then of course, "You and I won't find much joy while we're here."

(and in this scene, notice how he does the same deep breath from 7x06, the same burden on his shoulders but this time in the form of his banishment to the Wall after having to make the decision he did earlier in the episode)

"But we can keep others alive."

"We can defend those who can't defend themselves."

(not to say that Sansa couldn't defend herself but against Dany/Drogon, the Unsullied, and the Dothraki - that wouldn't have been good odds to put it lightly. - also the beautiful thing about this season for these two: not only does Sansa save Jon in 6x09 but she does what she couldn't do in 1x10, she tries to save Jon (aka Ned) & in a way does (though he still gets banished, but this was the option Ned wasn't allowed though he chose it) but she 'broke the rules' aka told his secret in order to protect him, did a dishonorable thing which is her telling the secret despite her promise, and wanted to save him which she goes to KL to do which we see in the Dragon Pit scene in 8x06 & hear about from Tyrion in the later jail scene). And in season 1, Sansa told Ned's secret for selfish reasons. Here, she did it for the right reasons, even if Jon "can't forgive her" just yet for it. (though the hug scene shows us that he's not angry enough to not say goodbye to her before he's gone) In this aspect of the series, for these two on this front, it really did come full circle.

And as cheesy as it sounds, I like to think of Ned somewhere slow clapping and smiling, because they all worked together and the pack survived the winter that came. Jon was smarter than Ned and Robb; he listened. And Sansa saved herself from "Joffrey/the Lannisters" in the form of Jon as well as Ned; she learned.

#jonsa #jonsa meta #jon x sansa #got #game of thrones #gotposts #yep i'm back on my jonsa bullshit #and i am loving it #metaposts #jonsaposts

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