The Most Insane Things That Happened on Game of Thrones This Season

Game of Thrones continues to be one of the best and most talked-about shows on TV, thanks in large part to its fearlessness in shocking its viewers. Ever since season one showcased the beheading of one of its lead characters, we've learned to expect the unexpected — and to prepare ourselves for some of the most jaw-dropping, gory, and mind-blowing scenes on the small screen. This season has featured a Purple Wedding, a controversial sex scene, that horrifying duel between Oberyn Martell and The Mountain, and the finale's murdery surprises, so it's time to go over the craziest moments of the season!

Arya Kills Again
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Arya Kills Again

By this season, we knew Arya was pretty serious about her kill list, but it's still eye-opening when she kills Polliver and takes back her sword, Needle. The most chilling part of the murder is how she repeats back what he had said when he killed her friend. She's got a flair for the dramatic, this girl.

Reek Is Revealed
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Reek Is Revealed

Last season was tough on Theon Greyjoy; he was captured and tortured by Ramsay Snow (ahem, Bolton), ultimately losing his penis. But the worse loss may be his identity: when we are reacquainted with Theon in season four, he's a shell of a person, calling himself Reek and completely loyal to his captor.

The Baby White Walker
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The Baby White Walker

So that's what Craster was doing with those babies. Last season we just thought the terrible old man was leaving his male sons to die in the elements, but it turns out he really was sacrificing them — to the White Walkers. How crazy is it when the baby's eyes turn an unnatural shade of blue? Shiver.

Joffrey Gets Killed
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Joffrey Gets Killed

Justice is finally served this season when Joffrey gets poisoned at his own wedding. The young tyrant had just finished humiliating his uncle Tyrion when he chokes and dies immediately, leaving everyone to point fingers.

Tyrion Is Accused of Murdering Joffrey
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Tyrion Is Accused of Murdering Joffrey

. . . And Cersei's finger swiftly points at Tyrion. Sure, he had motive, but we knew he wouldn't do it. Still, his father Tywin is more than happy to see him seized and imprisoned for the rest of the season.

Baelish's Murder Plot
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Baelish's Murder Plot

Sansa is immediately spirited away after Joffrey's death, and we find out by whom: Baelish, who arranged for Sansa's necklace to hold the poison.

Surprise: Lady Olenna Did It
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Surprise: Lady Olenna Did It

However, Baelish is just a pawn, and we find out that it was Lady Olenna Tyrell who had Joffrey killed. Let's call it grandmotherly love since she didn't want to see Margaery married to such a monster.

Jaime Rapes Cersei
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Jaime Rapes Cersei

Cersei is reviled for many of her actions, and we had totally started to come around to Jaime — but when he rapes Cersei, his sister, next to Joffrey, their dead child, this show really broke new barriers. Horrible on so many different levels, we really had to reevaluate how we feel about Jaime.

Hodor Is Forced to Kill
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Hodor Is Forced to Kill

OK, it's out of necessity that Bran goes into Hodor's body and kills Locke to save Bran and his friends, but it's so heartbreaking when Hodor gets control of himself and sees what he's been forced to do.

This Butt
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This Butt

We still don't know for sure what happened between Daenerys and Daario when he spends the night (if we were cheated out of a sex scene between these two, I will riot), but the one thing we do get to see is truly glorious: his butt. Daenerys's face says it all.

Baelish's Role in Jon Arryn's Death Is Revealed
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Baelish's Role in Jon Arryn's Death Is Revealed

Littlefinger has had a hand in a lot of schemes, but his wife, Lysa, widow of Jon Arryn, conveniently reveals his biggest scheme of all. It was Baelish who had convinced Lysa to poison her own husband, effectively setting into motion everything that happens in season one — and the series, pretty much.

Baelish Murders Lysa
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Baelish Murders Lysa

Man, Lysa was annoying, and was maybe about to kill Sansa, but it is way harsh to get tossed out of your own moon door like a rag doll.

Tyrion Demands a Trial by Combat
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Tyrion Demands a Trial by Combat

Stuck in a prison cell, Tyrion doesn't have as much of a chance to make an impact — until his own trial. After his former love, Shae, testifies against him, he's emboldened enough to say he wants a trial by combat. Brave, but this is before he finds out The Mountain is involved.

The Wildling Massacre of Mole's Town
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The Wildling Massacre of Mole's Town

Jon Snow has been assembling his army for good reason — because Mance Rayder's is coming, and they are brutal. This is proven when we see them attack Mole's Town, slaughtering everyone in their wake (except, thankfully, Gilly and her baby, whom Ygritte spares).

Jorah Mormont's Betrayal Is Revealed
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Jorah Mormont's Betrayal Is Revealed

Daenerys's most trusted confidant Jorah Mormont becomes her primary enemy when she finds out that he had been spying on her for Varys — at least when he met her. Though it seems his allegiance is firmly for her now, Daenerys harshly exiles him. I get it, but it's a little heartbreaking, right?

The Battle of the Red Viper and The Mountain
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The Battle of the Red Viper and The Mountain

We were so looking forward to this battle — Oberyn Martell bravely agrees to be Tyrion's champion in order to get his revenge on The Mountain for what he had done to his family. It even looks like Oberyn is the winner — but he screws up right when he's about to win. The Mountain gets the better of Oberyn and crushes his head in one of the goriest scenes on this show ever. Oh, and Tyrion is sentenced to death too. Lose-lose.

Ygritte Dies
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Ygritte Dies

As Ramsay Snow once said, "if you think this has a happy ending, you haven't been paying attention." Such is the case for Jon and Ygritte during the Battle of Castle Black. The woman who once shoots her lover full of arrows is determined to finish the job, but when she has a perfect, clear shot, she can't do it. But there's no reunion kiss; a young archer instead shoots her, and she dies in Jon's arms as they promise to stay in their cave for eternity.

This Giant
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This Giant

Yeah, we'd seen giants before, but not like this. Not only are the Wall and Castle Black being destroyed by an army of men, giants and a woolly mammoth are also part of the arsenal, and they are big, unfriendly, and ready to kill.

The Wight Attack
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The Wight Attack

What in the heck even are these things? These skeleton-zombie beasts known as Wights are related to White Walkers, but with far less flesh, more speed, and more murderous tendencies. They attack Bran's little traveling group on the way to the three-eyed raven and, in the process, kill Jojen Reed. Apparently magic staves them off, but how long until we see them again? Shudder.

Brienne Bites The Hound's Ear Off
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Brienne Bites The Hound's Ear Off

I really thought that The Mountain vs. The Red Viper would be the battle of the season, but Brienne's swordfight with The Hound may be the most epic fight after all. It starts civilly, with swords, but quickly devolves into a fistfight with crotch-kicking, rock-bashing, and yes, Brienne's Mike Tyson moment. She even spits the ear out! I'm not even mad, I'm impressed.

Tyrion Kills Shae and Tywin
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Tyrion Kills Shae and Tywin

What an emotional roller coaster. I was all set for the death of Tyrion after Oberyn's loss at the trial-by-combat, but a last-minute miracle happens when Jaime sets him free. Rather than just running off with Varys, though, he takes a detour to his father's chambers. Surprise, surprise: his former love Shae is there, and the two have their final lover's quarrel. With Shae dead, he moves on to Tywin, who's on the toilet and, shall we say, a sitting duck. There are some final words about what a crappy father Tywin is, and then boom: patricide by crossbow. Sometimes Game of Thrones does deliver its own kind of justice.