Game of Thrones Review: The Last of the Starks (Season 8 Episode 4)
On Game of Thrones Season 8 Episode 4, “The Last of the Starks,” Jon becomes the last best hope for the realm as Dany looks destined to follow in daddy’s footsteps.
“The Last of the Starks” pretty clearly points the way as to who will end up on the Iron Throne and why, and it’s a disappointing revelation. The episode also promises that minor characters who manage to survive the Battle of Winterfell are poised to meet even grimmer fates.
Let’s start by saying that Daenerys is getting screwed over. She sacrifices the bulk of her army, her closest friend and advisor, and one of her dragons to save Jon Snow, the Free Folk, and most of the Northerners. What thanks does she get? One lousy toast at a feast.
The hits keep coming for Dany as she finds her allies dwindling and paranoia begins to take over. Tyrion looks too chummy with his brother while Jon holds court among a throng of admirers
Jon gets all the credit for the Battle of Winterfell victory. This should please fans who think Arya killing the Night King is a betrayal given Jon’s, many sacrifices. As if anticipating the backlash, Arya’s accomplishment is downplayed pretty heavily. Her big moment is turning down a marriage proposal from one befuddled and apparently p***ywhipped Gendry.
There’s no way Arya is going to succeed putting an end to the Night King and Cersei Lannister, but she’s likely to die trying. Where else is there for Arya to go? Her blood lust is reserved for either the victims of the recent undead genocide, or those who wrong her family. There aren’t many of the latter left.
All Dany wants is for her Jon to keep his true identity a secret and let her take the Iron Throne. Jon swears he doesn’t want to claim his birthright anyway, so what’s the big deal? Well, maybe because Jon does want to rule after all.
Why else would he tell (sorry, let Bran tell) Sansa and Arya — both of whom dislike Dany — he’s not a Stark but the rightful king of the Seven Kingdoms? While Jon may be honest and loyal, he’s also ambitious, but this quality often coincides with a sense of duty, tempering any less than honorable intentions.
This conveniently disguises the fact that Jon’s rise to power isn’t entirely about destiny. He’s had his eye on a bigger prize since he became Lord Commander Mormont’s steward. But the need to keep Jon a reluctant hero means Dany’s entire character arc gets dumped into the nearest chamber pot.
Dany’s ill-equipped to thrive in Westeros. This is a possibility that’s loomed over her for the majority of the series. As has the possibility that she’s inherited her family’s infamously nasty disposition which has always been kept in check by men (Jorah, Tyrion. Ser Barristan Selmy, Dario, and Jon).
Daenerys resorts to pleading and begging, leaving her fate up to a man’s whims. This is a side we’ve never seen of her, even in the most dire of circumstances. Then she becomes unyielding and demanding while Jon is accommodating and placating with the exception of doing the one thing he knows will blow up in his face.
As Daenerys takes hit after hit, she becomes less concerned about any collateral damage resulting from her war with Cersei. She’s like a child whose tantrums escalate as each of her favorite toys are taken from her.
As usual, as goes the power, there goes Varys. Now that there’s a more attractive contender in the mix, he’s quick to switch his allegiance. Maybe the biggest insult is that one of his pro-Jon arguments is that he’s a man.
Varys’ reasoning does contain one major flaw: he says himself Jon is weaker than Daenerys. They can’t rule together because Jon’s likely to bend to her will. If Varys believes this, why would he want to throw his weight behind Jon?
If you’re going to be sexist, at least be consistent about it.
Jon is obviously not coming back to Winterfell. Those heartfelt goodbyes to his compatriots foreshadow either his death, or his coronation.
Reducing Daenerys to a raving lunatic atop a fire-breathing dragon is hopefully not the way this all plays out. But it sure feels like the quickest, easiest way to get Jon to where fans undoubtedly want to see him in the end.
Game of Thrones will be remembered for many things, but it’s real legacy may be there is no such thing as a happy ending. Or maybe it’s that the promised prince is just overthrowing one pissed-off queen.
What did you think of this episode of Game of Thrones? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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Game of Thrones airs Sundays at 9/8c on HBO.
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Jennifer Lind-Westbrook
Jennifer has been working as a freelance writer for six years, contributing to BuddyTV, Screen Rant, TVRage, Hidden Remote, Gossip On This, and PopMatters. She prefers binge-watching old episodes of The Office (British and American versions) to long walks on the beach. She's still holding out hope that Happy Endings will get a revival.
2 comments
“Jon gets all the credit for the Battle of Winterfell victory.”
He doesn’t. That’s just a drunk Tormund hyping a battle buddy up, a guy he’s come to respect. Toasts by Tormund and Dany are made to Dany and Arya (respectively) for their efforts in the Battle for Winterfell.
“Why else would he tell (sorry, let Bran tell) Sansa and Arya — both of whom dislike Dany — he’s not a Stark but the rightful king of the Seven Kingdoms?”
They’re Jon’s family and and this is information that impacts their family; it clears their father of the biggest stain on his honour, a sin Ned never committed against Catelyn. Jon doesn’t tell Arya and Sansa because it reveals him as the heir, he tells them because they believe he is the bastard son of Ned Stark and when they are giving him assurances based on that, something Jon knows to be false, Jon feels he must be honest about his true identity with the only family he has ever known for this whole life. With this revelation comes the fact that Ned never cheated on Catelyn, he never betrayed their marital vow, it explains why Ned would never send Jon away despite it paining Catelyn, it reveals he had the best reasons in the world for bringing Jon home with him and claiming he was his bastard son to protect him.
“While Jon may be honest and loyal, he’s also ambitious, but this quality often coincides with a sense of duty, tempering any less than honorable intentions.”
Jon’s ambition and desire to lead died with his isolating, miserable, burdensome, and ultimately fatal experience as Lord Commander. Jon did dream of leading and being a hero in the beginning, yeah – until he experienced the reality of these roles and saw for himself how brutal, conflicting, and painful they are. Jon has also said he never wanted to be King in the North multiple times as well. I have no idea why he’d tell Sansa and Arya because he wants the throne when he and other characters (as well as the cast and showrunners) have repeatedly refuted that claim.
“If Varys believes this, why would he want to throw his weight behind Jon?”
Perhaps because Varys can more easily bend Jon than Dany to what he wants.
“Maybe the biggest insult is that one of his pro-Jon arguments is that he’s a man. ”
Varys uses Jon’s gender because he’s right that the nobility of Westeros would be more willing to accept a man – these are medieval times in which man over woman preferences were a reality, unfortunately. He’s not supporting Jon because he’s a man, he’s supporting Jon because of what he’s seen of his character but recognizes Jon’s gender will make him more appealing to the medieval Westeros nobility.
what fans are you talking about? literally everyone i know dislikes Jon Snow, and not petting good-boy Ghost didn’t make him any more likeable (although personally i think that’s a dumb complaint)
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