Boardsies Decide - Game of Thrones Greatest Character

Necro

Deleted User wrote: »

Thanks Necro. Tyrions not a bad winner. Definitely glad he bet Jamie. I wouldn't consider him the greatest character myself but definitely would have been in my top 5. Although in fairness to him he would have been in my top three until the last couple of seasons.

Interestingly neither of Tyrion or Jaime are actually in mine. I think a few people said it better than I could have but Tyrion's story in the show from Season 5 on really damages him as a character imo. The fact he sits as Hand of the King at the end to... ugh... Bran of all people just doesn't sit right with me at all given most of his... nuance is horrifically flawed all throughout the last two seasons.

Maybe the books will redeem him but I have absolutely no faith Martin will ever complete the series if I'm completely honest. Also if we remember back to the first time we get visions from Bran when they were still more or less following the book plots it foreshadows the ending which makes me think it was more or less exactly what Martin had in mind, though naturally it would be played out over a longer period in the books... most likely.



Anyways, fwiw here is my top 8 characters, as promised. A couple could change on any given day depending on my mood.


8. Jaime Lannister, The Kingslayer - I happen to agree with people that Jaime has some of the more interesting chapters in the books. I disliked the show using Bronn as the man to retrain Jaime as a fighter after the loss of his hand, it seems like they decided that Bronn was uber popular and it would make sense to chuck the two lads together.

Why Jaime isn't higher in this list is because of the unerring loyalty to Cersei. They try and portray him as a man struggling to regain his honour but being aligned with her directly contradicts that. A man of struggles sure, but with the many atrocities she commits it just to me seems foolish. Love is blind, blah blah blah. But it weakens him in my opinion, makes him selfish. Even the scenes where he looks at the Kingsguard book and laments his lack of history show his true intentions.

7. The Hound - I'll caveat this ranking by admitting it's almost entirely based on the series. For me I think The Hound's story is absolutely brilliant, though marred by once again the need to pander to the demand for 'Cleganebowl' which ended as a bit of a damp squib (if not supremely satisfying for Qyburn's death). The writers hand him some of the best lines in fairness and they're very well delivered.
I think he would actually be higher here if he, like some others (cough Podric and Tormund) had died in the battle against the Night King. It seemed like the perfect ending to a redemption story.

6. Varys - Another character who suffers from post-bookitis. Look, I'll level with you all, the politicking from the first few seasons are my favourite parts. Whilst I love the blood and guts and dragon attacks, it's King's Landing that keeps me captivated and Varys is a huge part of that. The scene between himself and Littlefinger is one of my favourites, and his back and forth with Tyrion throughout Season 2 also highlights.
Varys ultimate demise is awful, it's THE one part of the show I seriously hope Martin will alter in the books. It also keeps him lower on this list than he probably should be tbh.


5. Sansa Stark - I know some people have a problem with Sansa's chapters in the books but I have to disagree. I'm a huge fan of the politicking and Sansa's chapters probably show a different side to this.
If (like me) you break the show into two parts; Seasons 1 - 4 and Seasons 5 - 8 as book-loyal and book-departed, Sansa is by far the strongest character in the second part, with possibly the exception of Ramsay Bolton, who does not feature in this list.


4. Arya Stark - People will likely disagree but I think Arya is by far the most interesting character in the books. Being so different in comparison to her sister she is obviously looked on more favourably particularly in Seasons 1-4.
It's after this her character obviously suffers from lack of direction, both in the final book and the show. The reason she climbs higher here is that I think they redeem her somewhat in the last few seasons bar the Night King fiasco.
Her murder of Walder Frey is certainly a later season highlight for me at least, stripping away the many many dragon attacks.


3. Cersei Lannister - And as noted before re: Varys, that brings me to Cersei who is number 3 on my list. The politicking from the arrival of Ned in King's Landing until Tywin's demise is the strongest part of the show and the books imo. Cersei outwits nearly all of them at some point in time, proving her mettle at the top.
Post-book her character takes on a more tyrannical version, which I'm not sure is intentional as I see her as more of the scheming type than an outright monster ala Joffrey.
Anyways, the way she plays some of the main characters off each other and the consequences of this are definitely the most riveting chapters imo.



2. Tywin Lannister - This placing is mostly fueled by just how much I loved his portrayal by Charles Dance. Someone already mentioned when voting they felt he was the most perfectly cast character ever and I completely agree. The scene where he is introduced where he is cutting up the boar and Jaime waffles on about X Y and Z and he responds curtly but with purpose set the scene for one of the most memorable characters.
He's not without his flaws either, his refusal to accept that Tyrion is exactly what he should strive for in a son simply based on his physical appearance is ultimately the reason for his downfall.
He steals almost every scene he is in, his interactions with Arya give us an insight into his background, his appearance as Cersei is about to poison herself, Tommen and Myrcella... I could go on. Just a character that exudes fear and commands respect, whilst being a total bastard at the same time.



1. Ned Stark - This may have been obvious from an earlier post I made when Ned was knocked out by Joffrey (le sigh).

But if you think about it, and I mean really break it down - Ned had the most complete and perfect story of all the characters, despite his early exit.

His greatest strength - his honour - was also his greatest weakness and proved to be his undoing. His death was the catalyst for the war of the Five Kings, and actions he took - or deigned against taking - had far reaching consequences that shaped the entire series/books.
It's easy to enjoy the humour of Tyrion and his scheming but ultimately the show in particular made him incredibly flawed and indeed imo the show could have gone on perfectly fine had Tyrion died at the end of Season 4.

Anyways, I didn't expect him to win. Even the Top 10 best characters on channels such as Sky Atlantic criminally under-rate his overall impact on the entire show. But he's my favourite, for both his journey and his ultimate end.

Also Starring LeVar Burton

Pretty solid list Necro. Wouldn't be too dissimilar to my own. My Top 5 would be...

5. Davos Seaworth ; I do think a lot of my love for the character has to do with Liam Cunningham in the role
4. Cersei Lannister ; Lena Headey's performance definitely bumps the character up a few spots
3. Varys ; he was the best at politicking, and the show done him dirty
2. Sansa Stark ; Queen of the North. I did hate her in the very beginning, but my favourite overall arc
1. Jaime Lannister ; still can't believe he only lost by one vote. So close, yet so far

My general top 5 would be -

5. The Hound - Like Jaime, someone whose story I enjoyed following to the end. OK the ending was meh, but throughout the show, while The Hound was on my screen I was engrossed. We saw great character development and he had his share of genuinely funny moments. Love his time travelling with Arya.

4. Cersei - Nobody played the Game of Thrones like her. She had everybody on strings. I loved her when she was scheming but didn't care too much for her when she morphed into a despot in latter seasons. Standing in a window for what felt like centuries really spoiled her.

3. Arya - Unlike a lot of people, I quite liked Arya killing the Night King, I didn't like how it happened but I was quite happy she was the one to do it. She definitely had a great journey both outward and within. I almost saw her as a younger sister, which I think is quite an achievement for a show to get that sort of connection with an audience. I can't recall it happening to me before, certainly not to this degree anyway. So much so that it kinda felt weird watching when herself and Gendry were having a gallop. Her sailing off into the horizon was the perfect ending for her. I wouldn't be against having her own spin-off such is my curiosity.

2. Ned Stark - I pretty much agree with Necro above. It was a short stint but there was a lot packed into it.

1. Jaime Lannister - I've pretty much covered this in my reasoning for votes. I don't think anybody had as turbulent a journey. A constant battle between doing the right thing and his love of Cersei led to a compelling journey.

seligehgit

1. Tywin Lannister
2. Cersei Lannister
3. Tyrion Lannister
4. Arya Stark
5. Littlefinger
6. Jamie Lannister
7. Ramsay Bolton
8. The Hound

Not too much love for the north or Essos.:D

Necro

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