Directed By: Matt Shakman / Written By: David Benioff & D. B. Weiss

Original Airdate: August 6, 2017

Following the extinction of House Tyrell and the deaths of her Dornish allies, Daenerys Targaryen takes matters into her own hands, against the advice of Tyrion Lannister and Jon Snow. Meanwhile, Theon Greyjoy has survived his uncle Euron’s attack and arrives on Dragonstone, much to the dismay of Jon as he is still bruised after Theon’s previous actions against House Stark. In King’s Landing, Cersei Lannister meets with the Iron Bank, promising their debts are to be paid as the entirety of gold was taken from Highgarden. Meanwhile, Arya Stark finally returns home to Winterfell and reunites with Sansa and Bran. As a worried Littlefinger watches from above, Arya later reunites with Brienne of Tarth and displays her superb fighting skills.

main cast

highgarden / king’s landing

In the Reach, Ser Jaime Lannister coordinates the soldiers loading up the spoils for transport after the Sack of Highgarden allowed them to seize House Tyrell's substantial gold stores, which they send ahead to King's Landing first, before moving on to securing grain shipments. Jaime procures a large bag of gold coins and gives it to Ser Bronn as payment for his services. Bronn, however, is annoyed that this isn't the full reward promised, which included a wife from nobility as well as a castle. He then half-seriously asks why Jaime doesn't just grant him Highgarden, as they need someone to rule it. Jaime waves this aside by saying they don't actually intend to hold Highgarden for long as it would be difficult for Bronn of all people to rule over hostile territory, and the war isn't over yet. He then instructs Bronn to assist Lord Randyll Tarly and Dickon Tarly in continuing to seize grain supplies in the northern Reach. Meanwhile, in King’s Landing, Queen Cersei Lannister again meets with the Iron Bank of Braavos representative, Tycho Nestoris, who is pleased that Cersei will use the captured gold to pay off the Iron Throne's massive debts to the bank. Now that the Lannisters' old debts will be mostly paid off, and the Iron Bank's faith in them somewhat reassured by their recent military victories, Cersei wants to take out new loans to strengthen her position in the war, so she can finish securing control over the rest of the continent. Tycho approves and assures Cersei that the Iron Bank will be delighted to help her with these future endeavors, once it receives the gold she is bringing them.

dragonstone

Meanwhile, at Dragonstone, after Queen Daenerys Targaryen speaks with Missandei, Jon Snow leads her on a tour of the long-abandoned Valyrian dragonglass mine that Samwell Tarly told him about. As they proceed into the mines, Jon shows her cave paintings they discovered left behind by the Children of the Forest, filled with arcane magical symbols. Jon then shows her ancient carvings of the wights themselves, one of which Jon recognizes as the Night King. Jon asks Daenerys to ally with him to defeat the Night King. Daenerys says that she will fight for him and the North after he bends the knee, insisting that if he does the North will follow. As they exit the cave to the beach, they are joined by Lord Varys and Tyrion Lannister, with grave looks on their faces. Tyrion informs that his military strategy and their forces have been compromised. Daenerys is furious and struggles to keep her temper, as now all three of her major allies in Westeros are gone, but her desire to assault the Red Keep with all three of her dragons, intending to raze it to the ground with all her enemies inside it. However, Jon argues against it when she asks him his opinion. He argues that by bringing dragons back to into the world and breaking the back of the slave trade, Daenerys has proven she might be capable of doing things differently. However, if she uses her dragons to "melt castles and burn cities," she will be no different from any of the more tyrannical of her Targaryen ancestors who came before her.

Later, while proceeding back to the castle, Ser Davos Seaworth insinuates Jon’s attraction to Daenerys but Jon brushes Davos' observation aside, saying he doesn't "have time for that.” Jon stresses that they need to ally with Daenerys, because the North itself is largely depleted of soldiers after so many years of war, so they only have maybe 10,000 soldiers or less remaining. They then run into Missandei, who politely enquires why Jon's surname is "Snow" even though House Stark has ruled the North for centuries, and his father Eddard and brother Robb both had the surname "Stark", while he doesn't. Jon explains that because his parents weren't married, he is bastard-born as a result and uses the regional surname reserved for highborn Northern bastards of nobility. Davos asks Missandei if they have similar customs for bastards on Naath. Missandei explains that "marriage" as such does not exist in her birthplace of Naath, so she finds the idea of a "bastard" to be quite an alien concept. Davos remarks that it sounds liberating. He then asks why she left, to which Missandei finally reveals that she was taken by slavers, to be freed only years later by Daenerys. When Davos suggests Missandei simply traded one master for another, she counters that she and all the freed slaves serve Daenerys because they choose to. Davos keeps pushing, asking what would happen if Missandei decided to return to Naath immediately. She responds that Daenerys would give her a ship and wish her good fortune. While they are still on the causeway, they see a lone Ironborn ship approaching the island, a survivor of Yara Greyjoy's fleet. Theon Greyjoy and some of his men come to shore on a rowboat. As Theon disembarks, he is stunned to see Jon, whom he had last seen leaving Winterfell to join the Night's Watch years ago. Since then, Theon had betrayed House Stark, a factor that nearly destroyed House Stark and contributed to the death Jon's half-brother, Rickon Stark. Jon is stunned for a moment as well. Theon walks up to Jon and asks him if Sansa Stark is alright. A furious Jon grabs Theon by his coat and shakes him, remembering Theon's past treachery. Jon tells Theon that what he did to save Sansa is the only reason that he is not killing him on the spot and releases him. Visibly relieved, Theon informs them that his uncle Euron Greyjoy attacked their fleet and took Yara prisoner. He says he has returned to ask Daenerys' help in saving her. Jon grudgingly tells him that Daenerys has just left.

winterfell

At Winterfell, Lord Petyr Baelish, meets with Bran Stark in hopes to exploit disunity among the Stark children for his own gain. He tries to ingratiate himself with Bran and offers him a gift: the very same Valyrian steel dagger that a cutthroat once tried to kill him with while he was in a coma. However, Bran is still emotionally detached from all of his visions and is genuinely uninterested in the gift. He only absentmindedly asks Baelish who the dagger belonged to. With a wry look, Littlefinger responds that, in a way, this is the question which started the entire War of the Five Kings. Baelish then tries to manipulate Bran by remarking on how much chaos he must have lived through to get back to Winterfell. In response, Bran looks at Baelish and says, "Chaos is a ladder," something Littlefinger once said to Lord Varys years ago. Something which Bran couldn't possibly have been physically present to hear. Visibly unnerved, Lord Baelish is then startled by Meera Reed, who enters Bran’s chambers. After Baelish exits, Meera informs Bran that she has come to say farewell now that he has been returned home safely. Without any emotion, Bran simply thanks her for her help. Meera then becomes irate that this is all he has to say after everything they went through. Bran responds by saying that he isn't really "Bran Stark" anymore. Before solemnly departing, Meera cries that Bran died in the Three-Eyed Raven’s cave.

Meanwhile, Arya Stark finally returns to her home of Winterfell, however, the guards don't believe her when she identifies herself. They are convinced that Arya has been dead for years. She then asks that they send word to Maester Luwin and Ser Rodrik Cassel, who can prove her identity, unaware that they both have perished at several years ago. Arya then asks for her brother Jon, but they assert that he recently left, so Arya enquires who is currently in charge. The guards respond, "Lady Stark," who Arya realizes must be her sister Sansa, whom she assumed had perished years ago in King’s Landing. The guards attempt to brush her aside, but she dodges them with the reflex of an assassin and explains to them that if she is Arya they'll be in a lot of trouble for stopping her. Mildly concerned, they agree to at least let her in the courtyard, but insist that she stay put while they send for Sansa so they can disprove her identity. As soon as they take their eyes off her, however, she slips away. When Sansa is informed of her younger sister’s arrival, she finds Arya exactly where she had expected her to be, in the family crypts beneath the castle looking over their father Eddard’s grave. The sisters are happy to see each other, however, so much has happened to the both of them in the past few years that they are awkwardly unsure of what to say to one another. Arya asks Sansa if she has to call her "Lady Stark" now, to which Sansa firmly insists "Yes" - and then laughs. They then share an emotional embrace, though Arya still remains hesitant. Arya then notes that Jon left Sansa in charge as her sister vocalizes her hope for Jon to return soon, as he will be elated to reunite with Arya. The sisters then look sadly on their father's statue as Arya comments that it doesn't really look like him. Sansa acknowledges that everyone who really knew his face has died. However, Arya points out that they're not, as she then asks if Sansa killed Joffrey Baratheon. Sansa explains that she didn't, though she wishes she had. Arya remarks that he was always at the top of her list. This confuses Sansa, and Arya explains that she'd been keeping a list of everyone she was going to kill - at which they both laugh. Finally, Sansa asks how Arya returned to Winterfell, but she only says her road wasn't a pleasant one. Sansa insists that hers wasn't either. They warmly hug again as Sansa then informs Arya that her younger brother Bran has also returned. Arya is elated, but her smile fades when Sansa does not mention her youngest brother Rickon. She realizes that Rickon is dead, later to find out that he perished during the battle for Winterfell against House Bolton.

Afterwards, Sansa immediately escorts Arya to visit her brother Bran in the godswood, where he is lost in thought as he sits by the weirwood tree. Arya is saddened to see him paralyzed, recalling his fall from the tower when she had initially left Winterfell. Somewhat detached even at the sight of his sister, Bran informs Arya that he isn't surprised she's alive because he saw her at the Crossroads Inn. Arya is confused, as Sansa then explains that Bran is having "visions" now. He tells Arya that he assumed she was going to King's Landing, and when Sansa asks why she would head there of all places, he again startles Arya with the knowledge that Cersei is on her kill list. Something which he couldn’t possibly have known. Sansa asks Arya who else is on her list, as she informs that most of them besides Cersei are actually dead already. The siblings then discuss the Valyrian steel dagger in Bran’s lap, and he explains that Littlefinger gave it to him, thinking he'd want it. Bran holds no interest in keeping the dagger that was once used in an attempt to kill him years ago, which then indirectly set off a chain of events, ultimately leading to their parents' deaths. Arya is confused as to why a common cutthroat would have had a rare, priceless blade of  Valyrian steel. Bran matter-of-factly asserts that someone very wealthy once wanted him dead, and gave it to the assassin. Bran adds that it doesn't matter now, handing it to Arya, saying she can have it because it's "wasted on a cripple."

Some time later, Brienne of Tarth is sparring with her squire Podrick Payne in the courtyard. An intrigued Arya interrupts the pair and asserts that she'd like to spar with Brienne, the woman who beat Sandor Clegane in combat. Sansa and Lord Baelish watch silently from the walkway above. Brienne goes easy on her at first, but Arya completely outmaneuvers the statuesque woman using a combination of her Water Dance and Faceless Men training. Surprised that such a young girl is so skilled, Brienne stops holding back, leading to a more grueling sparring session. Brienne eventually manages to knock Arya's sword out of her hand, but she simply switches to brandishing the Valyrian steel dagger she had in her belt. Arya uses her speed and agility to compensate for Brienne's strength and size to overwhelm her. Ultimately, they reach a stalemate, with each of them holding a blade at the others' throat. Brienne asks Arya who taught her to fight like that, and she simply responds, "no one". Arya takes her leave of Brienne, both mutually impressed by each other. From above, Sansa and Littlefinger are both baffled by Arya’s lethal skill-level. As Sansa leaves the gallery, Arya and Baelish then stare at each other suspiciously for a lingering moment.

the goldroad

Some time later, the Lannister and Tarly armies have advanced much farther north along the Goldroad and have reached Blackwater Rush. Lord Randyll Tarly comes to Ser Jaime and insists that they should hurry to get all of their grain wagons over the river to King's Landing, as they will be vulnerable if their formation is caught on both sides of the river. Jaime agrees, but Randyll suggests flogging the stragglers to motivate them. Jaime urges that his soldiers fought well at Highgarden, however, and he should at least give them a fair warning first instead of launching right into the flogging. Jaime and Bronn then encounter Lord Randyll's son, Dickon Tarly. Jaime asks what he thought of his first taste of battle, and Dickon nervously claims it was glorious, only to then dejectedly admit that he was quite conflicted provided that his house acted as vassals to House Tyrell for generations. As they prepare to continue east, Jaime and Bronn are surprised to hear what sounds like distant thunder until they realize it must be approaching cavalry. Jaime and Randyll then shout for their soldiers to form up, which they manage to do before the enemy crests over the horizon: a massive, one-hundred-throusand-strong horde of Dothraki cavalry, armed to the teeth and baying for blood. Bronn advises that Jaime ride ahead to King's Landing, but Jaime insists he will not abandon his men. Above the approaching Dothraki, they then witness Drogon soaring straight for their lines and ridden by Daenerys Targaryen herself. The Lannister army holds their line for a time, but their enemy has the advantage of weight in numbers, and the tide turns slowly against them. For a moment it looks like Jaime might at least be able to force the Dothraki to a standstill - but then Daenerys devastates the Lannister formations with dragon fire. Nonetheless, Jaime desperately takes command of a group of archers, directing them to concentrate their fire on Daenerys. However, Daenerys sees the attack coming and banks her dragon upwards so the arrow volley harmlessly bounces off his armored scales. Drogon then blasts the archer formations with fire. Jaime avoids the flames and manages to carve a path through the Dothraki horde with his sword. As it cannot be fired with one hand, Jaime then commands Bronn to reach Qyburn's anti-dragon scorpion. Bronn then launches the scorpion but it’s a misfire. Daenerys is startled by the scorpion-bolt flying a few feet from her head and spots Bronn on the scorpion as he reloads. Bronn eventually manages to shoot Drogon in the shoulder, but the scorpion is destroyed immediately after by dragonfire. To Jaime's disadvantage, the dragon's scales are so tough that the scorpion bolt only managed to cause superficial damage. Nonetheless, the flesh wound grounds the dragon, as Drogon howls in pain. Daenerys then dismounts in attempt to pull the scorpion bolt out. Jaime, however, sees that Daenerys is grounded and immobilized, realizing he still has one chance to end her invasion indefinitely. Jaime grabs a spear and charges his horse across the flaming battlefield to make a death-run for Daenerys as she tends to Drogon. His brother Tyrion, who arrived with the Dothraki warriors and is watching the battle from a safe distance, swears under his breath, calling his brother a "fucking idiot” when concerned that Jaime’s going to get himself killed. Just as Jaime nearly reaches Daenerys with his spear, Drogon notices him amidst the chaos of the battle. Shielding Daenerys behind his head, the dragon lets out a blast of flame. However, Bronn rushes over to tackle Jaime out of the way, saving him from a fiery death. They both fall into the river, where Jaime is then weighed down by his armor. He slowly begins to sink underwater, in danger of drowning.

*Episode descriptions from GOT Wiki