Fans of the show are quick to tell you that one of the many reasons HBO’s Game Of Thrones remains such an enticing watch is the fact that you never know how or when a character is going to die. Starting with the first season’s sudden decapitation of principal character Ned Stark, the series took a cue from George R.R. Martin’s series of books and let it be known that no one (with the exception of a few characters with fairly bulletproof plot armor) is safe. But, in a recent Reddit post, one fan noticed a pattern that’s emerged in many of the show’s major deaths that could offer some insight as to how the remaining characters will eventually bite the bullet.
- Ned Stark used his greatsword Ice to behead the Night’s Watchman; he was beheaded with his own sword.
- Joffrey gave the command to execute Ned; he was killed in a way that took away his ability to speak. (I reached pretty far for this one, I’ll admit)
- Tywin ordered the Red Wedding, where numerous Stark men were killed by crossbow-wielding musicians; he was killed by a crossbow.
- Roose Bolton killed Robb Stark with a knife to the heart; he was killed by a knife to the heart.
- Walder Frey ordered Catelyn Stark’s throat cut at the end of the Red Wedding; he had his throat cut by Arya.
- Ramsay Bolton was fond of feeding people to his hounds; he was fed to his own hounds.
- The Sand Snakes were each killed in a way that mirrored their own style: Nymeria was strangled by her own whip, Obara was impaled with her own spear, and Tyene was killed by her favorite poison.
- Olenna Tyrell killed Joffrey with poison; she was executed with poison.
- Littlefinger betrayed Ned Stark by putting a knife to his throat, and the Valyrian Catspaw Dagger was used in the attempt to have Bran Stark assassinated, which he intentionally blamed on the Lannisters, sparking the Lannister-Stark conflict. He was executed by having his throat cut by the Valyrian Catspaw Dagger.
Not convinced? Here’s a few more from the comments section.
- Jon killing his Night’s Watch brother Qhorin Halfhand; he was later killed by his Night’s Watch brothers.
- Ygritte killed many people with arrows; she was killed with an arrow.
- Polliver killed What The Fuck Salami with Needle through the throat; Arya killed Polliver in the same fashion.
- Lysa Arryn loved throwing people through the Moon Door; she was shoved through the Moon Door.
- The One True King Stannis the Mannis killed his brother by way of his female assistant; he was later killed by his brother’s female assistant.
- Lastly, Tywin gave Tyrion shit his entire life, literally making him in charge of all the sewers of Casterly Rock; Tyrion killed him on the shitter.
While the original author of the post admits to reaching for a few of these connections, it’s hard to argue that there is a certain amount of poetic justice being dispensed in Westeros. If Arya has got any sense, she’ll be checking over her shoulder for Faceless Men. Daenerys had better steer clear of any evil dragons that may be heading south at this very moment. And Cersei should… well, Cersei should just avoid everything and everyone until the series is over.