House Stark Pulls Through as the Ultimate MVP of the Game of Thrones Series Finale

Look, we all know I have firmly been on Team Sansa since day one. But you have to admit, one of the few moments of the finale that feels right is the secession of the North from the Seven Kingdoms. Ever since Sansa escaped King's Landing, she's had a singular goal in mind: returning to Winterfell and ensuring her family never falls into the clutches of the South again. And honestly, if it wasn't for Sansa, the Starks wouldn't even have Winterfell in the first place. So, as a young woman who was held prisoner, sold into marriage, and beaten as punishment for her brother's campaign as King in the North, it's beautifully poetic to see Sansa be the Stark who finally secures the North's true freedom. And she doesn't ask for it, she declares that the North will be independent, like bad b*tches do!

Sansa has been destined for queenship since the first moment she's on screen, and it's fitting that after being right about basically everything, she gets her well-deserved crown. She isn't able to keep her family close, but she does get to see them go off to live their best lives, which is almost as good. In the end, the delicate Stark pawn outlives everyone who ever doubted her and comes out on top. A queen at her finest.

It's the Summer of scamming, and Brandon I Stark is here to teach us his tricks! OK, so maybe Bran didn't know he was going to be king the whole time, but considering how rarely he actually tells anyone anything, it's not my fault that I'm suspicious. Somehow, the youngest Stark manages to wind up on the Iron Throne, and he still doesn't have to do a damn thing. Bran Stark is the millennial who baby boomers accuse us all of being, but with Three-Eyed Raven powers.

I'm still not sure exactly how Bran is going to work as the King of the Six Kingdoms when he doesn't even want to be a Lord of Winterfell and is obviously going to skip his duties to track down Drogon or just spy on everyone with his ravens, but I guess it doesn't really matter. It's the council that matters, right? Right . . .

Oh, Jon. When you compare the man in season eight's finale to the man just two seasons ago, it's like looking at two completely different characters. But there's one thing about both of them that stands true: Jon Snow just wants to be free. He's usually the man who will do the honourable thing for the greater good, and all it has really gotten him is more grief. He's been a commander, a king, and a warden of the north, but rarely has he been genuinely happy. By the time he kills Daenerys, he doesn't even know if he's doing the right thing or not.

Personally, I think Jon's ending is the most fitting one for him. All he's wanted since he was killed back in season five has been some peace and quiet. But there's always been another battle to fight, another evil to combat, another lover who turns out to be your aunt. Or maybe that just happens once. Regardless, as Tormund tells him in episode five, he has the blood of the true North in him. He's finally able to just be whoever the hell he decides to be, rather than dealing with all the politics that come along with his identity. Get your wild man on, Jon!

Talk about starting from the bottom! The Starks all have dismal beginnings to their journeys, but in the end, they survive their worst. They've truly seen the pitfalls of power, personally faced the most evil of evils, and come out the better for it. And they're also, like, one of the few Houses that consists of more than one sole member; how wild is that?! Anyway, three cheers to House Stark, rulers of the Seven Kingdoms combined!