Even at 80 minutes in length, Sunday’s Game of Thrones finale zipped along at breakneck speed. And that’s really been the story of season 7 ever since “Dragonstone” aired back in July.
Unlike previous instalments of HBO’s fantasy flagship, the penultimate season of Thrones stretched for only seven episodes in total, resulting in an accelerated story that reached its conclusion when the Night King, armed with an undead dragon and countless Wights, laid siege to Eastwatch.
But this breathless pace raised some serious questions, too; How did Jamie and Bronn swim while dressed in armor? Why did the Winterfell storyline feel so contrived and bloated? And perhaps most pressing of all, how did Westeros’ power players manage to travel such great distances in a relatively short period of time? Alas, beyond some fun fan theories, it’s unlikely that we’ll ever get concrete answers to those burning questions, but John Bradley (Samwell Tarly) has reflected on one of season 7’s game-changing moments.
Per IndieWire (via Screen Rant), the Game of Thrones stalwart admitted that Sam was guilty of stealing Gilly’s thunder. During their time in the Citadel, they stumbled upon what is arguably one of the biggest twists of season 7: Lyanna Stark and Rhaegar Targaryen were married in secret, meaning that Jon Snow is actually Aegon Targaryen, the rightful heir to the Iron Throne.
As Thrones fans will know all too well, it was Gilly who stumbled upon that vital piece of text, only for Sam to take the credit upon landing in Winterfell.
It’s true that Gilly completely by accident planted the seed of that information into Sam’s mind. He can almost subconsciously absorb it because he’s become so efficient at processing information. He can kind of feel even if he’s not aware of it at the time. He’ll store it in the back of his brain when it’s needed most.
Perhaps this has more to do with season 7’s accelerated pace? After all, the fact that this reveal was layered over Jon and Dany’s love scene meant timing was key, so it’s not all that surprising that Sam didn’t waste any time in cutting to the chase. Still, spare a thought for poor Gilly.
With filming due to commence in October, Game of Thrones returns with its eighth and final season sometime in 2019.
