Warning: Spoilers ahead for "Game of Thrones" season seven, episode six "Beyond the Wall." 

Sunday night's episode of the hit HBO show "Game of Thrones" featured Jon Snow and his ragtag team — which included Gendry, the bastard son of Robert Baratheon who recently returned from a three-season absence — heading beyond the Wall on a mission to capture a wight to prove the dead and their White Walker creators are real.

But before the group of men faced off against the Night King's army, Jon ordered Gendry to race back towards Eastwatch to try and get word to Daenerys Targaryen that all of the men were as good as dead without some fire-breathing dragons as backup. 

Somehow, neither the distance nor the extreme blizzard conditions impeded his journey, and Gendry made it back to the Wall and was able to send a raven to Dragonstone so that Dany could swoop in and save our heroes just in the nick of time.

It was a little more than unbelievable, and many fans started making the same joke about Gendry being an incredible athlete, especially using comparisons to "Forrest Gump." 

Gendry has made it through the impossible before, having rowed his way to safety despite not knowing how to swim or row a boat back on season three. That rowboat journey and his mysterious whereabouts helped establish the character as a beloved meme.

Some fans couldn't help but compare Gendry's unbelievable ability to run a marathon through a blizzard to his surprise rowboat survival. 

Athleticism jokes aside, props to Gendry for being quick enough to save Jon and his warrior squad. We can only guess that he's going to have some more trials and tribulations to endure alongside Jon and his men in the war to come. 

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NOW WATCH: 6 details you might have missed on season 7 episode 5 of 'Game of Thrones'

Warning: There are major spoilers ahead for Sunday's "Game of Thrones."

While Jon, Tormund, and the rest of his dream team of magnificent seven were off battling wights in the North on Sunday's "Game of Thrones," Sansa and Arya had troubles of their own.

After Arya found an old scroll written by Sansa in season one asking her brother Robb to bend the knee to Joffrey Lannister, she accuses her sister of betraying their father and holds her responsible for his death. Viewers know Sansa was coerced into writing her letter by Cersei, but Arya's not convinced, and now she's fearing her sister could betray Jon as King in the North as well.

While Arya and Sansa bicker, the two sisters fail to realize that Littlefinger planted the letter to drive a wedge between them. It's also awfully convenient the all-seeing Bran wasn't around to break up the nonsensical fight and offer some clarity. (He's already seen through Littlefinger once this season.) 

Instead, things quickly went downhill from there. Toward the episode's end, Arya and Sansa's relationship becomes more strained after Sansa discovers several of her sister's faceless masks while searching for the scroll and inquires about them.

The two then share a bizarre exchange in which Arya tells her sister about her face collection and appears to threaten Sansa's life to take her place as the Lady of Winterfell. 

Here's their full, unsettling conversation:

Arya: Not what you're looking for?
Sansa: I have hundreds of men here at Winterfell, all loyal to me. 
Arya: They're not here now.
Sansa: What are these? 
Arya: My faces. 
Sansa: Where did you get them?
Arya: In Braavos, while i was training to be a Faceless Man.
Sansa: What does that mean?
Arya: Back in Braavos, before I got my first face, there was a game I used to play — The Game of Faces. It's simple. I ask you a question about yourself, and you try to make lies sound like the truth. If you fool me, you win. If I catch a lie, you lose. Let's play.
Sansa: I don't want to play. 
Arya: How do you feel about Jon being king? Is there someone else you think should rule the North instead of him?
Sansa: Those faces, what are they? 
Arya: You want to do the asking? Are you sure? The Game of Faces didn't turn out so well for the last person who asked me questions.
Sansa: Tell me what they are. 
Arya: We both wanted to be other people when we were younger. You wanted to be a Queen to sit next to a handsome young king on the Iron Throne. I wanted to be a knight, to pick up a sword like father and go off to battle. Neither of us got to be the other person, did we? The world doesn't just let girls decide what they're going to be. But I can now. With the faces, I can choose. I can become someone else — speak in their voice, live in their skin. I could even become you. I wonder what it would feel like, to wear those pretty dresses, to be the Lady of Winterfell. All I'd need to find out is your face. 

Arya says all of this before handing her sister a dagger and marching off. It's not clear whether she was being serious or was just trying to scare her sister and get in her head. 

Regardless, it worked. Sansa looked frightened and confused. Her eyes start to fill with tears as Arya described taking over the lives of other men and women.

The unsettling moment left viewers perplexed.

Fans couldn't understand why she wasn't acting more suspicious of Lord Baelish.

Other fans were disappointed in how the scenes between the Stark sisters have played out since they were reunited. 

Co-showrunner D.B. Weiss also said the scene was "creepy."

"Arya has this piece of very incriminating evidence against Sansa so she goes looking for it. She doesn't find it, but she finds a bag full of severed faces instead, which is creepy," said coshowrunner D.B. Weiss on HBO's "Inside the Episode" featurette. "As they get into the discussion about what these faces are, she starts to see Arya as a real, physical danger to her. Going into the final episode, I think Sansa is bringing a real fear about the idea that Arya might really want to murder her. It's a fear that Littlefinger expertly stokes."

Now that Brienne of Tarth is heading off to King's Landing, she's not around to protect Sansa in the event that Arya goes into assassin mode. Hopefully in the season's finale, the two sisters will band together and figure out Petyr Baelish's misdeeds. 

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NOW WATCH: A former HR exec who reviewed over 40,000 résumés says these 7 résumé mistakes annoy her

Warning: Spoilers ahead for "Game of Thrones" season seven, episode six, "Beyond the Wall."

The second-to-last episode of "Game of Thrones" season seven packed a lot of drama into its 70 minutes. From Daenerys and Jon turning up the heat to the Night King resurrecting Viserion, there were a lot of emotional and divisive moments. As usual, we've gathered all the smaller details that might have slipped through the cracks amidst the glorious dragonfire and sword fighting.

Keep reading for a look at the seven moments you might have missed.

SEE ALSO: All the biggest moments from this week's action-packed 'Game of Thrones'

The Hound pointed out a mountain shaped like an arrowhead he'd seen in a fire-vision.

On the premiere of season seven, Beric and Thoros told the Hound to look into the flames. When he did, he saw a vision of a mountain where the dead were marching past.

Turns out we'd already seen that location before, back on the sixth season.

Here's the other side of that same mountain as seen by Bran in season six.

We saw this same location when Bran had a vision of the Children of the Forest creating the Night King, as Redditor Smurph269 pointed out. There was a rock formation in a spiral pattern — the pattern the White Walkers now often repeat. 

It's interesting to think Jon and company might have been heading straight for an area beyond the Wall with immense ritualistic meaning. Perhaps the Night King even led them there on purpose somehow? Then again, it's also possible the "Game of Thrones" showrunners re-used a set in Iceland without realizing it.

When Jorah was trying to bolster Thoros' spirits, he mentioned a historic battle known to book readers.

Jorah and Thoros were both present at the Siege of Pyke — the final battle of Robert's Rebellion all those years ago. As Jorah said, Thoros was the first man through the walls, an act Jorah had taken for bravery but it turns out Thoros was black-out drunk. 

That battle was where Jorah earned his knighthood, and it was also the fight in which Theon Greyjoy's father, Balon, was defeated yet again. At the battle's end, Balon was forced to give Theon to Ned Stark as a ward, setting in motion the eventual betrayal of Theon to the Stark family.

The INSIDER Summary:

• Daryl wore a sweatshirt on season seven of "The Walking Dead" sporting the letter "A."
• It was never explained what the letter meant.
• According to episode commentary on season seven's Blu-ray, it means 'a------." Other similar sweatshirts worn by other prisoners have vulgar meanings, too.
• "Walking Dead" writer Angela Kang says the Saviors are just being juvenile.
• Austin Amelio, who plays Dwight on the series, previously told INSIDER he believed the "A" stood for a------.
• Kang also said there was originally a different idea for the jumpsuits, but showrunner Scott Gimple was afraid they would resemble ones from "Lost."

While fans are still wondering where Heath is on "The Walking Dead," they can rest assured that we finally have a concrete answer to one of the other season's biggest (and more minor) mysteries.

When Daryl was held prisoner at Negan's facility, he was forced to wear a sweatsuit brandished with the letter "A." As his time at the Sanctuary progressed, viewers saw other prisoners wearing sweatshirts with different letters on them. The letters were a detail never seen in the comics and, though fans had some guesses as to what the letters meant, the series never made their significance clear to show viewers. 

With season seven coming to Blu-ray August 22, INSIDER has been going through the show's features and deleted scenes. We finally have some more insight into what the letters mean and why the Savior workers and prisoners ended up wearing sweatsuits in the first place.

"Randomly, people ask me all the time if the 'A' stands for anything, and I was like it just means 'a------," said "Walking Dead" show writer Angela Kang on the episode commentary for "The Cell.""They're being juvenile. Like an a------ and an 'F' and 'S' for f---face and s---head."

Previously, Austin Amelio, who plays Dwight on the AMC series, told INSIDER in February he believed it stood for a------.

"Sorry, that episode was filmed about four months ago," said Amelio at the time of the letters on the Savior sweatshirts. "I can't quite answer that, but a------ and s---head seem to come to mind."

Norman Reedus, who plays Daryl, and joined Kang on the episode commentary, playfully added that he thought the letter "A" stood for the zodiac sign Aquarius. 

Originally, fans thought the letter was a scarlet letter of sorts, which isn't too far off from what the letter ends up standing for to the other Saviors who don't wish to have the same fate.

More interesting, Kang goes on to explain that the original idea for the outfits of the Savior workers was quite different, but showrunner Scott Gimple was worried they may look too similar to outfits from another popular show. 

"I think that originally we were going to use like a factory jumpsuit type of thing with Daryl and those other workers, but Scott thought it would look too much like 'Lost,'" said Kang.

On the ABC series, Dharma initiative workers wore plain brown jumpsuits with labels on them. 

Kang said she knew the Sanctuary prisoner outfits couldn't have strings, zippers, or anything that could be turned into a weapon and that's where the idea of the sweatsuit was born.

"The Walking Dead" season seven will be available on Blu-ray and DVD August 22.

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NOW WATCH: 6 details you might have missed on season 7 episode 5 of 'Game of Thrones'

Warning: There are spoilers ahead for "Game of Thrones."

The Night King acquired a powerful new weapon on "Game of Thrones" season seven when he resurrected one of Daenerys' dragons. So how will our human heroes be able to defeat the Night King and his White Walker lieutenants? We know of two surefire ways to kill the White Walkers (not to be confused with wights, as explained here). 

Jon Snow, Sam Tarly, and Meera reed have all managed to kill a White Walker using one of two methods — dragonglass blades or Valyrian steel. But that's not likely the only way to kill the magical beasts. With a war against the White Walkers on the horizon, here's a look at the three ways characters could take them down. 

Dragonglass

On the second season of "Game of Thrones," Sam Tarly killed a White Walker with a dragonglass dagger. He found a cache of these weapons at the Fist of the First Men, an ancient stronghold north of the Wall. Sam believes that the earliest men who lived in Westeros hid them there to use against White Walkers.

Dragonglass is simply another name for obsidian, or volcanic glass. Jon Snow mined an enormous amount of dragonglass while he was at Dragonstone, and has turned it into weapons. We saw characters like Jorah Mormont and Tormund Giantsbane fighting with them on the seventh season, though they were using it against the wights.

Valyrian Steel

On season five's "Hardhome," Jon learned that Valyrian steel also kills White Walkers. Longclaw, the sword gifted to him by former Lord Commander Mormont, is made from Valyrian steel. This special type of metal is rare in Westeros because it can only be forged using magic.

The name is derived from Valyria — the ancient stronghold for a now-dead civilization in Essos. Valyrian steel was forged in Valyria using dragonfire and spells. After the Doom struck Valyria, decimating the population and culture, and after dragons went temporarily extinct, there was no way for people to craft new Valyrian steel in Westero (though they can reforge existing blades).

Can dragons kill White Walkers? 

We haven't seen this theory tested on the show, but it makes sense to think dragon fire could kill a White Walker. Daenerys rode her dragons into the battle beyond the wall, but we didn't see her specifically roast any White Walkers, only hoards of wights.

Regular fire doesn't affect White Walkers — they literally walk right through it since they emanate a permanent chill. But since dragon fire is a required ingredient in Valyrian steel, and dragonglass literally has the word "dragon" in it, we believe a blast of flames from a dragon's mouth might do damage to these mysterious other-worldly creatures.

For more on the differences between White Walkers and wights, read our explainer here. 

The "Game of Thrones" season seven finale airs Sunday, August 27 at 9 p.m. EST.

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NOW WATCH: 6 details you might have missed on season 7 episode 6 of 'Game of Thrones'

Warning: Spoilers ahead for "Game of Thrones" season seven.

In "Beyond the Wall," fans learned several key new details about the White Walkers and wights. Most importantly, Jon and his dream team realized that killing a White Walker also destroyed the wights following it — which makes ultimately defeating the army of the dead much easier than previously assumed.

White Walkers (the sentient humanoid beings who were first created by the Children of the Forest) have the power to resurrect the dead and turn them into wights — zombies who do the White Walkers bidding. But as Jon figured out, killing a White Walker means any wight that it had "turned" will also fall. 

Then Beric Dondarrion took this one step further, and pointed out that the Night King likely created every White Walker, which means killing the Night King would create a domino-effect of death and destroy the whole army.  This is very much in the same vein as "Lord of the Rings"— once Frodo destroyed the ring and thereby Sauron, the rest of his army was rendered useless.

Also worth noting is that "Game of Thrones" just implied that dragonglass kills wights, too. Previously we only knew that fire killed wights, but Jon and his team were all using dragonglass daggers and axes against the skeletal foes. 

This bolsters the importance of Valyrian steel

We always knew Valyrian steel was one of the rare substances capable of killing White Walkers, and now that killing White Walkers means eliminating possibly dozens (if not hundreds) of wights, then these weapons just got even more valuable.

There are a finite number of Valryian blades in Westeros. Here's the short list of everyone who currently is in possession of one:

• Jon Snow — Longclaw
• Arya Stark — the Catspaw dagger
• Brienne of Tarth — Oathkeeper
• Jaime Lannister — Widow's Wail
• Sam Tarly — Heartsbane

Jon, Brienne, and Jaime will all be in King's Landing for the finale episode, while Arya and Sam are both presumably in the north (we're guessing Sam was heading back to Castle Black after his failed time in Oldtown). Will all five of these heroes get together in the eighth and final season to fight against the White Walkers? We hope so.

What we still don't know about the Night King

Even though this piece of information is great and all, there are still plenty of mysteries surrounding the Night King and the White Walkers. How exactly does their magic work? Why are they marching on the realm of the living now after thousands of years of hibernation? What do they want?

We know George R.R. Martin avoids writing pure black or white characters, which means the White Walkers must have some motivation other than destruction of all humanity ... right? 

It would be quite anti-climatic if all Jon (or even another hero wielding Valryian steel like Arya, Brienne, or Jaime) simply stabbed the Night King and ended the whole war without us ever understanding the underlying conflict.

The final season of "Game of Thrones" will hopefully reveal more depth to the stories of the White Walkers, and we have our fingers crossed that every Valyrian steel owner of Westeros fights for the side of the living in an epic showdown.

The "Game of Thrones" season seven finale airs Sunday, August 27 on HBO. In the meantime read our roundup of seven details you might have missed in "Beyond the Wall."

SEE ALSO: All the biggest moments from this week's action-packed 'Game of Thrones'

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NOW WATCH: 6 details you might have missed on season 7 episode 6 of 'Game of Thrones'

Warning: There are spoilers ahead for "Game of Thrones."

So much happened in Sunday's 71-minute episode of "Game of Thrones."

The majority of season seven, episode six "Beyond the Wall," focused on Jon and our heroes going up against the Night King and his wight army. Though most of Jon's team made it out unscathed, Dany lost her dragon Viserion to the army of the dead. Not only did we learn that the Night King has some incredible range with his throwing arm, but he also has giant chains lying around in the event he needs to drag an enormous dragon out of an ice lake!

We also saw the surprise return of Uncle Benjen (only to have him torn away from us moments later), Arya went hardcore creepster on her sister at Winterfell, and #Jonerys shippers got to see a few sparks fly between Jon and Daenerys. And let's not forget that Viserion is now a wight dragon.  

It was all a lot to take in. But which moments had fans talking the most?

Social-media monitoring platform Brandwatch found more than 162,000 "Thrones"-related mentions on Twitter while Sunday's episode aired on HBO and pinpointed the scenes that got the most people talking.

Here are the five most talked-about moments from the season's penultimate episode of "Game of Thrones":

SEE ALSO: All the biggest moments from this week's action-packed 'Game of Thrones'

5. Fans were distraught after Jon was dragged beneath the frozen lake.

9:57 p.m. ET — around 3,000 mentions

After Daenerys swooped in to save Jon, Tormund, the Hound, and company on the back of Drogon, Jon was moments away from getting on Drogon before he decided to play hero and fight off wights so his comrades could get to safety.

Before Jon could get back to Drogon, he noticed the Night King gearing up to take aim at another one of Dany's beloved dragons and told her to head off without him. In sacrificing himself, Jon got pulled into the frozen ice lake, and fans weren't sure what was going to happen to the lone wolf.

4. Viewers loved when Jon called Daenerys by her nickname.

10:06 p.m. ET — around 3,200 mentions

When Jon was brought safely aboard Daenery's ship, he woke to find her sitting by his side. He told the Queen he'd bend the knee to her but it was the moment when he referred to the Mother of Dragons as Dany that many fans swooned.  

Daenerys wasn't too crazy about Jon calling her "Dany" though, especially since that's what her brother called her. So Jon came up with one better and referred to her as his Queen.

3. Viewers were excited to see Uncle Benjen Stark pop up again to save Jon.

10:02 p.m. ET— around 3,3000 mentions

After he climbed out of the frozen lake, Jon had no strength left to take on the incoming wights. Just when things were looking bad, his Uncle Benjen came out of nowhere to save the day. 

Benjen only stuck around long enough to put Jon on his horse and send him back to the Wall before sacrificing himself to the wights. Fans were both excited for his return and dismayed to see it so shortlived, especially when they believed both men could have fit on that horse.

The INSIDER Summary:

• A woman named Tiffany appeared on an episode of "Botched" late last week.
• She claims to have undergone 13 plastic surgeries in a single year to look more like Ivanka Trump.
• Even the doctors on the show seemed stunned by her plastic surgery marathon.

A recent episode of "Botched"— E!'s TV series about plastic surgery gone wrong — featured a woman named Tiffany who's on an interesting quest. Over the course of a single year, she says, she's had 13 different plastic surgery procedures to help her look like Ivanka Trump, E! News reports.

"I was so pretty before, but I'm just more elegant now," Tiffany told "Botched" hosts Dr. Paul Nassif and Dr. Terry Dubrow, in a clip from the episode posted to YouTube,

 Both doctors are visibly stunned by Tiffany's efforts to transform her appearance. 

"I'm trying to figure out, why would you want to do that much of a transformation that quick?" Nassif asked. 

It seems that Tiffany also appeared on ABC's "Nightline" last year, as part of a feature on women seeking plastic surgery to emulate Ivanka Trump's look. (According to one doctor the show interviewed, it's actually a new trend.)

In that episode Tiffany told Nightline that she'd already had breast augmentation, a nose job, cheek injections, a "mini" eye lift, liposuction, and fat grafts added to her cheeks. 

The "Botched" hosts find out that Tiffany began getting plastic surgery about five months after her marriage ended. Dubrow suspects that the breakup might have something to do with her desire to rapidly change her looks.

But that might not be the case at all. And at the end of the day, Tiffany's body is hers to modify at her own risk — even if her choices seem a little ... extreme.

You can watch a brief recap of the episode right here:

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NOW WATCH: This mechanical arm could revolutionize surgery

Warning: There are spoilers ahead for "Game of Thrones." 

"Game of Thrones" fans were hoping we'd get to see some ice spiders Sunday night, but instead, viewers got a giant undead polar bear that ravaged Thoros of Myr. 

According to the series' showrunners, they've been trying to get that polar bear into the show for years, but were constantly told by the visual effects team that there was no way they could afford to do it.

"What we had to go through to get the zombie polar bear was writing the zombie polar bear into every season of the show for about four seasons," said co-showrunner coshowrunner D.B. Weiss in a behind-the-scenes featurette released by HBO. 

However, Weiss said since Jon was going beyond the Wall, it allowed them to bring the bear into the fold. Plus, it probably helped that the entire season is a few episodes shorter than usual to afford adding in a massive undead bear. 

How they brought the undead polar bear to life on "Game of Thrones" 

An animated pre-visualization is created beforehand to give everyone an idea of what they want the scene to look like. 

While a ton of visual effects were used to make the polar bear's final majestic form, a lot of the initial ground work consisted of a man in a green unitard suit. 

Since the stuntman wouldn't be big enough on his own to fill in for the bear, he maneuvered a stand-in of the bear's head on set that was actually on fire.

If that wasn't enough, Thoros of Myr actor Paul Kaye was really there fending off the "bear" with his sword.

The stuntman didn't just stand there either. He also chased the cast around on set.

Wires were also used to swing men around to make it look like they were being pulled and dragged by the giant mammal.

Stuntmen were tossed around a lot. 

When Jorah went in for the kill, the setup was a little different. The "bear" was nothing more than some sort of makeshift table that was on fire.

As Thoros was being dragged away from the bear, you can see the different stages of what goes into the visual effects process.

Here's how the scene looks before and after visual effects are added:

You can watch the full breakdown of the frozen lake scene from Sunday's episode below:

SEE ALSO: Here's the difference between White Walkers and wights on 'Game of Thrones'

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NOW WATCH: All the nasty things inside a pimple — and why you should stop popping them

Warning: Spoilers ahead for the "Game of Thrones" season seven finale.

The first shortened "Game of Thrones" season is about to come to a close with the seventh and final episode airing Sunday, August 27, on HBO. In the teaser video released, we finally get a glimpse of all our favorite heroes congregating in King's Landing. We've broken down the trailer shot-by-shot to see what we can expect on the coming finale (which will be a record-breaking 81 minutes). 

Keep reading for a look at all the major reunions heading our way:

The episode opens with Grey Worm and the Unsullied standing in formation outside of King's Landing.

Jaime and Bronn look out at the Unsullied and the Dothraki armies. Even though Daenerys lost some allies, her forces still look formidable.

They look both impressed and concerned by Daenerys' show of force.

Warning: "Game of Thrones" spoilers ahead.

Leadership skills can really come in handy in Westeros, especially when dealing with fighting siblings, snowy hiking trips, and anti-dragon ice javelins.

A few weeks ago, we ranked the "Game of Thrones" characters based on their leadership abilities. So here's an update, based on all that's happened in this season so far.

A few notes: This list counts only characters who are still alive on the show, not in the books. So keep in mind that a bunch of people have died recently.

Also, this list takes into consideration only people who could be counted as "leaders"— some characters who aren't currently in leadership roles aren't on here, like Arya Stark, Jorah Mormont, or Sandor Clegane. The same goes for anyone who is basically out of commission at this point.

Lastly, this ranking looks into characters' track records but heavily favors things that happened this season. This list examines leadership ability, not overall power, importance, or title.

Here are the leaders of "Game of Thrones" that have survived the season so far, ranked from worst to best:

SEE ALSO: 6 effective leadership styles we can learn from 'Game of Thrones'

9. Petyr Baelish

Successful people aren't necessarily good leaders.

Just look at Littlefinger. He seems to be making some big moves within the dimly-lit halls of Winterfell, passing around knives, planting scrolls, and pitting the Stark girls against one another. So far, things seem to be going his way. Arya appears just about ready to add Sansa to her infamous list.

Lord Baelish doesn't have to demonstrate much in the way of leadership abilities — he prefers to fly solo. He is a chaotic force unto himself.

But, when it comes to the Starks, the lone wolf dies and the pack survives. We can only hope Littlefinger's solitary style will ultimately catch up with him. With winter ravaging the North and the army of the dead on the march, no one has time for his games anymore.

8. Brienne of Tarth

Brienne brought up some excellent points when Sansa chose to send her away this week. Namely, Littlefinger can't be trusted.

You can tell this valiant knight has the best interests of the Stark girls in mind. Plus, she's confident in her abilities to guide and protect Sansa and Arya. Keeping a strong warrior like Brienne around could dissuade some of Baelish's mind games — or potentially break up the seemingly looming fight between Arya and Sansa.

Hopefully Brienne will get more time to demonstrate her leadership smarts in the finale.

7. Cersei Lannister

Cersei's had a good season, so far.

Sure, Jaime's army got burned to a crisp, but it looks like her adversaries are currently more interested in ice zombie-related diplomacy than fighting at the moment. Cersei seems content to play along for now, which is a smart move. She's already eliminated several of herenemies, after all.

Now that Cersei is pregnant, she has even more of a motivation to fight for the future. And you can bet she has some tricks up her sleeves for the finale.

However, as Tyrion aptly pointed out, this Queen only rules through fear. That might be an effective short-term strategy, but her ruthless style is sure to burn her kingdom out in the long term. Her ruthlessness and penchant for torture haven't endeared her to many allies, outside of Qyburn and Jaime.

The INSIDER Summary: 

• "Judge Judy" viewers were surprised to see Amy Schumer in the audience of a recent episode.
• Many viewers took to Twitter to express their confusion over spotting the famous face in the audience. 
• Schumer confirmed on Instagram that she and sister attended the taping because they "love her."

Everyone is allowed to fangirl over their favorite star, but it’s even more fun when celebrities do it with iconic figures. The fact that Amy Schumer is a "Judge Judy" cheerleader is enough to send anyone into pop-culture nirvana, which is exactly what happened when Schumer appeared in the judge's courtroom as a guest star. Her appearance not only intrigued the internet but sent us all into a downright tizzy.

On Thursday’s episode of "Judge Judy," viewers with a keen eye spotted Schumer mugging for the camera in the background. While some fans were all about this crossover moment, a few viewers were a bit confused about why she was there.

The appearance shouldn’t have been too much of a surprise for any of us, though. Schumer dropped all of the clues we needed back in May, when she posted an Instagram video sitting in Judge Judy's seat and having a moment with Petri Hawkins-Byrd, the bailiff on the show.

Even though the taping happened late last spring, the episode just aired yesterday, and it’s a moment forever captured on social media. Even Schumer confirmed her participation in the taping.

“Hell yeah! You know I was in the audience on #judgejudy,” she wrote. “My sister and I sat in on the cases for the day because we love her!!!!!”

For that very reason, it’s hard not to love Schumer. She embraces her inner geek girl and shares it with all of us.  

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NOW WATCH: Judge Judy makes $47 million a year —here’s how she became one of the highest paid TV stars in the world

Warning: Spoilers ahead for "Game of Thrones" season seven, episode six, "Beyond the Wall."

As "Game of Thrones" wound down its penultimate season, veteran director Alan Taylor was back behind the camera for the epic dragon vs. Night King battle in "Beyond the Wall."

Taylor last worked on the series for the notable final two episodes of season one — "Baelor" and "Fire and Blood"— in which Ned Stark was beheaded and Daenerys lost Khal Drogo and her unborn son, only to birth three dragons from a magical pyre. 

INSIDER spoke with Taylor about returning to the series for another huge chapter and what George R.R. Martin told him all those years ago about Jon and Daenerys. 

Kim Renfro: Thank you for taking the time to talk, I'm sure it's been a busy day for you post-episode airing and all.

Alan Taylor: Yeah, that's one thing that's changed since I was last involved with the show — it's gotten bigger in so many ways. The last time I was doing it no one was dying to talk to me directly the day after. But it's become a phenomenon in the meantime so it's cool that people have so much appetite for it.

Renfro: Your work season one seems to neatly thread into "Beyond the Wall." Daenerys was looking after Drogo and she lost her human child in episode nine, and now she's lost her dragon-child. Can you walk me through how you wove those themes into this new episode?

Taylor: It's nice that you caught all that. Personally it was really satisfying because I've been away for such a long time. So it was nice to come back and speak to my previous storytelling with some things you're mentioning — Dany is falling in love again and Dany loses a child again. 

Also I love that I got a scene with Arya and Sansa talking to each other and both reliving that day when their father died in front of them. I was there that day with them when they were little kids, it was a delight to come back now that they've grown so much as actors and characters and things have darkened.

We've all been through hell and now we're back and picking up the story, so it was a real pleasure to share the history that they were drawing on when they were having these scenes. And also I was there when we gave birth to the dragons in the first season, and now here to have one of them die, it felt like a nice circle being closed.

Renfro: I read in a Deadline interview that George R.R. Martin was on set with you back in that first season, when these ideas that were just small seeds. Now that they've grown into massive storylines, what is it like thinking back to that?

Taylor: Well, every once in awhile you get a glimpse of the scale he was working at. One of the big satisfying moments was when we discovered Hodor's name and how he got it. I was thinking, "Oh my God this character has been around for six seasons and this is just paying off now with the set up back then."

So it's true — all of the characters have such big arcs and he's got them so mapped out in his head that the story is functioning moment to moment but also in these grand story gestures over several seasons, and that's what makes it so rich.

We were in Malta shooting episode ten of the first season, and the show wasn't a big deal yet and we weren't being very secretive because nobody cared yet, and [Martin] just sort of mentioned in passing, "Oh well it's all about Dany and Jon Snow" and at the time I thought, "Really? I thought it was about Sean Bean and Robb Stark?"

But he knew from the very beginning where he was driving and now we're starting to see that come to fruition. We know that it's circling tighter and tighter on Dany and Jon and their partnership is starting to form, you know, "fire and ice."

Renfro: Do you know if he was specific back then about them becoming romantically involved, since that's really only just become "official" in this latest season seven episode?

Taylor: I think it's become more official but it's been coming for awhile, so much so that it's not only starting to happen but Tyrion sees it coming enough that he's making fun of her for it. He can see what's brewing.

I can't say much more about what [Martin] said about where we're going with Dany and Jon because that leaps ahead into the next season, but to me the revelation was that, at the time, we had a hundred characters and yet he knew it's about these two.

So in my episode we get to take a big step forward in that Jon is no longer competing with her — he was willing to bow down and recognize her as queen. That's a huge step. And also they're holding hands, and the look that she gives him in that scene where she almost swoons and draws back ... it's pretty clear where this is headed, but it's not there yet.

Renfro: Another thing I was wondering if you could give us clarity on was the terminology of what just happened to Viserion. Some people are calling him an "ice dragon" now, others say "wight dragon." Was there a word for his new state you used on set?

Taylor: [Laughter] No, it's funny, we just had to take him up to the moment where he reanimates and opens his eye. It's the next episode's problem to decide what to call him. 

I do know how he behaves later on, and I know some things about what happens with him. Some pretty big things are approaching. They now have this weapon and the game changes very fast, as you'll see.

Renfro: Right — director Matt Shakman, who did "Spoils of War," told me the dragons were like an atomic bomb.

Taylor: Yeah that's the shorthand we used, too. The Night King now has nuclear capabilities — so all the battle plans all the chronologies and expectations are shifted now. But I don't actually have a name for [Viserion], I'll have to defer to the internet.

Renfro: Another thing people are obsessing over is this weird moment with Jon Snow's sword, Longclaw, where people thought the eyes of the wolf "opened" right before Jon came out of the water.

Taylor: That is so funny, somebody else mentioned that to me and I haven't got a clue what they're talking about. So either this sword is magic and it's doing stuff on its own or something happened. I'm going to have to go back and watch that moment close up and in slow motion to see what's going on there. I can say that there was no intention for that to be the case.

Renfro: I'll tell you my theory — I'm assuming that it was cold on set or in the simulated ice lake, and I thought that the pommel of Longclaw is just slightly frosted over and then Jon comes out of the water and splashes the sword which washes away any sort of frosty residue.

Taylor: That sounds very likely because there was a lot of conversation about frost because he climbs out of the water and collapses on the ice and there's a slight time cut, so when we see him staggering to shore he's frosted up and not wet anymore because everything freezes that fast.

So I know there was discussion about starting to show that process, and so they probably amped it up and used whatever they could to show the shift. So I think that's a very good theory and I'm gonna go with that one until I look at it more closely and see if I can figure out what's going on. But I spoke to somebody earlier and he was convinced it was a really loaded symbolic moment of Longclaw.

[Editor's note: We believe Taylor is referring to The Hollywood Reporter's Josh Wigler. You can read Wigler's interview with Taylor and thoughts on Longclaw here.]

Renfro: I'm on the opposite end of the spectrum with this one.

Taylor: I'm with you. But what's great is that people are analyzing everything with such detail. It's good people are pouring so much attention into it — sometimes it blows up in our face. Like there's a heated conversation about how fast ravens can fly now because of the story in my episode. Sometimes it's not comfortable to have people analyzing things too closely, but it's cool that they want to.

Renfro: Does that surprise you that people are taking the realism of this fantasy story this seriously?

Taylor: I think it's great. We have lizards as big as 747s who can blow fire but the fact that [fans] still want it to be believable and real is great. That means they're expecting that, which means they've had a diet of that and it means the show is basically achieving that. And so if they want to get out their maps of Westeros and a protractor and measure the speed of a raven and fight about it, then that's good.

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Every year, there are multiple shows that stick out among the rest.

Whether it's revolutionary television series like "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" or shows that leave long-lasting legacies like "Friends" or "Seinfeld," there's been decades of unforgettable TV.

Using Nielsen ratings, award nominations, and cultural impact, we picked the best show that debuted every year since 1967. Some of these legendary shows got bad ratings at first, but the shows managed to stick around anyway. 

See the best TV show that came out the year you were born below.

1967: "The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour"

Plot summary: "The Smothers Brothers host a comedy variety show that became notorious for its topical satirical humor."

The show was canceled in 1969 after CBS accused them of breach of contract. They sued and won a settlement of more than $900,000.

What critics have said: "But for the new generation coming of age in the late 1960s, 'The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour' represented their view of the world, the only place on American prime-time TV where George Harrison would pop in unannounced to provide moral support for the brothers' righteous struggle."— The New York Times

Source: Nielsen

1968: "Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In"

Plot summary: "The original rapid fire sketch comedy show."

What critics have said: "Whatever else it is — and at one time or another 'Laugh-In' is hilarious, brash, flat, peppery, irreverent, satirical, repetitious, risqué, topical and in borderline taste — it is primarily and always fast, fast, fast! And in this it is contemporary. It's attuned to the times. It's hectic, electric; McLuhanism applied."— The New York Times Magazine

Source: Nielsen

1969: "The Brady Bunch"

Plot summary: "The misadventures of a large family united when one widowed and one divorced [this was never actually confirmed onscreen] people married."

What critics have said: It was actually panned by critics, but according to the Museum of Broadcast Communications, "The program stands as one of the most important sitcoms of American 1970s television programming, spawning numerous other series on all three major networks, as well as records, lunch boxes, a cookbook, and even a stage show and feature film."

Warning: Spoilers ahead for "Game of Thrones" season seven, episode six, "Beyond the Wall."

Any "Game of Thrones" fans knows Daenerys Targaryen is the Mother of Dragons, but what the series hasn't made clear is exactly why she believes they are the only children she will have in her lifetime. For that, we turn to George R.R. Martin's "A Song of Ice and Fire" and an ominous warning given to Daenerys.

In season seven's penultimate episode, "Beyond the Wall," there were multiple references to Daenerys' supposed infertility and the prospect of both Daenerys and Jon having children in the future.

"The dragons are my children," Daenerys told Jon during their romantic boat scene. "They're the only children I'll ever have — do you understand?"

Tyrion also discussed the problem of Daenerys' lineage with her. "How do we ensure your vision endures? After you break the wheel how do we make sure it stays broken?" he asked. "You say you can't have children, but there are other ways of choosing a successor."

And lastly, Jorah Mormont brought up the idea of Jon Snow having kids when Jon tried to return Longclaw to Jorah. "May it serve you well, and your children after you," Jorah told Jon, refusing the Valyrian steel blade.

All the chatter about children and lineage in an episode when Jon and Daenerys finally seemed to open up to each other about their growing affections does not seem coincidental. What if Jon and Daenerys have a child together (yes, even though they are aunt and nephew)? Is that even possible? 

Daenerys believes she's infertile because of Mirri Maz Duur

Everything goes horribly wrong for Daenerys in the first book and season when her first husband, Khal Drogo, is dying from an infected wound. She asks a maegi (a woman of Essos who practices blood magic) name Mirri Maz Duur to save him at whatever cost.

"Only death can pay for life," Duur tells Daenerys. 

Daenerys agrees, thinking Duur only meant to kill Drogo's horse as a sacrifice. But after Daeneys leaves the tent and hears Duur chanting, her unborn child Rhaego begins kicking in her womb and she starts feeling sharp pains. Daenerys eventually collapsed from the pain as Jorah brought her back into the tent, and when she wakes up she's told Rhaego was dead when she gave birth to him. 

Daenerys then asks to see Drogo, to see what she "bought with her son's life." Jorah reveals to Daenerys that Drogo is now effectively in a vegetative state — alive but unable to see, speak, or move on his own.

"This is not life," Daenerys tells Duur. "When will he be as he was?"

"When the sun rises in the west and sets in the east," Duur said on the show. "When the seas go dry and the mountains blow in the wind, like leaves."

However, "Game of Thrones" omitted a significant portion of Duur's warning. Here's what she said in the books:

When the sun rises in the west and sets in the east
When the seas go dry and mountains blow in the wind like leaves
When your womb quickens again and you bear a living child
Then he will return, and not before.

In the books, Daenerys frequently thinks back to this "prophecy" from Duur, and believes the maegi was telling the truth about her never bearing a living child again, just as Khal Drogo would never return to her.

Though the show omitted that line from Duur, Daenerys still repeated the idea in later seasons. On the second season, when the warlocks of Qarth stole her dragons, Daenerys and Jorah spoke about leaving them behind.

"They have my dragons — a mother does not flee without her children," Daenerys said.

"They're not your children," Jorah told her. "I know they call you the Mother of Dragons and I know you love them but you didn't grow them in your womb and they didn't suckle at your breast."

(Oddly enough, Martin did write that the dragons nursed from Daenerys when they were first born and she emerged naked from the fire of Drogo's pyre: "The cream-and-gold dragon was suckling at her left breast, the green-and-bronze at her right.")

"They are my children," Daenerys told Jorah. "And they are the only children I will ever have."

Emilia Clarke, who plays Daenerys, also spoke toward this point in a season two behind-the-scenes interview. "In her eyes they really are her children," Clarke said. "Dany knows this is it — this is the only family she has."

Book readers believe Daenerys has a miscarriage in the fifth book

As several discussions on the "A Song of Ice and Fire" subreddit have explored, it's possible that Daenerys got pregnant again in the fifth book, "A Dance With Dragons," but then had a miscarriage. In her final chapter of the last published book, Daenerys experiences severe cramps and bleeding while she's wandering in the Dothraki sea.

"She was bleeding, but it was only woman's blood," Martin wrote. "The moon is still a crescent, though. How can that be? She tried to remember the last time she had bled. The last full moon? The one before? The one before that? No, it cannot have been so long as that."

If we assume this was meant to be showing Daenerys miscarrying, it means she can still get pregnant — but we don't know if she can carry a living child to term. 

The show omitted this small detail entirely, but they did include a scene with Daenerys and Khal Moro on the sixth season where this "prophecy" comes up again.

"I will not lie with you, and I will bear no children for you, or anyone else," Daenerys told Moro. "Not until the sun rises in the west, and sets in the east."

What does all this talk of infertility mean for her future?

As Tyrion pointed out, there's little point in Daenerys conquering Westeros only to have her legacy die with her. She needs an heir, and even though there are more democratic methods of choosing a successor it would be more in line with the Targaryen history if she bore a legitimate child. 

Which brings us to Jon Snow — or should we say Jon Targaryen? If the episode five truth bomb dropped by Gilly bears out, that means Rhaegar Targaryen, Daenerys' older brother, annulled his marriage to Elia Martell and married Lyanna Stark before she gave birth to Jon. For a explanation of who Prince Rhaegar was and what motivated his choices, read our breakdown here.

Incestuous marriages have been a part of Targaryen culture for centuries, a practice meant to keep their bloodline and connection with dragons strong. If Jon and Daenerys marry and conceive a child, that would be the best possible way for the Targaryen dynasty to carry on — even if the idea skeeves out modern viewers of the show (or maybe Jon and Daenerys themselves).

Of course, "Game of Thrones" fans need to wait and see if Jon and Daenerys take their hand-holding affections to the next level, and even then we might come to realize Daenerys has been right all along about her barren status.

Plus none of this will matter if the Night King's army decimates the realm and destroys the world of men to the point where those left standing barely have the human race to rule over, let alone a kingdom. But that's a discussion for another time.

The "Game of Thrones" season seven finale airs Sunday, August 27.

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Warning: Spoilers ahead for "Game of Thrones," including speculation of future events.

Daenerys Targaryen and Jon Snow — the two heroic protagonists of HBO's epic "Game of Thrones"— went from uncertain allies to holding hands and making serious eyes at each other in Sunday's episode.

Alan Taylor, the episode's director, told INSIDER more about what that vulnerable scene meant for Jon and Daenerys (including how she's "falling in love again") and how George R.R. Martin said the story was about these two all along.

Taylor directed the final two episodes of the first "Game of Thrones" season, and he said Martin was a bit more open about the series back then.

"[Martin] just sort of mentioned in passing, 'Oh well it's all about Dany and Jon Snow,'" Taylor said. "And at the time I thought, 'Really? I thought it was about Sean Bean and Robb Stark?'"

"But [Martin] knew from the very beginning where he was driving and now we're starting to see that come to fruition," Taylor said. "We know that it's circling tighter and tighter on Dany and Jon and their partnership is starting to form, you know, 'fire and ice.'"

When asked if Martin had been specific about Daenerys and Jon being romantically involved, Taylor didn't elaborate.

"I can't say much more about what [Martin] said about where we're going with Dany and Jon because that leaps ahead into the next season," Taylor said. "But to me the revelation was that, at the time, we had a hundred characters and yet he knew it's about these two."

In Taylor's latest episode, "Beyond the Wall," Daenerys and Jon held hands as they each mourned the loss of Viserion. Jon also called Daenerys "Dany"— a nickname only used in the show by her now-dead brother Viserys. 

"In my episode we get to take a big step forward in that Jon is no longer competing with her — he was willing to bow down and recognize her as queen," Taylor said. "That's a huge step. And also they're holding hands, and the look that she gives him in that scene where she almost swoons and draws back ... it's pretty clear where this is headed, but it's not there yet."

We'll have to wait for the season seven finale to see if this love continues heating up, or will it be tempered by the revelation of Daenerys and Jon actually being aunt and nephew?

For more insights from Taylor, including his thoughts on a fan theory about Longclaw, read our full interview here.

SEE ALSO: Every 'Game of Thrones' romantic relationship, ranked from worst to best

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NOW WATCH: How 'Game of Thrones' filmed the epic battle beyond the wall

Warning: spoilers for "Game of Thrones" season seven, all the way up to the most recent episode, "Eastwatch." Read at your own risk. 

Westeros is a brutal place, and you're pretty much considered lucky if you don't die in an incredibly brutal fashion.

With even more deaths happening in season seven, we looked back on all the most brutal deaths the show has pulled off so far, so you can fondly remember some very painful memories of lovable characters gone too soon. And so you can relive some of the most satisfying deaths of the worst villains the show has to offer. 

Here are the most gruesome and violent deaths on "Game of Thrones":

SEE ALSO: Every 'Game of Thrones' romantic relationship, ranked from worst to best

24. Shae

Despite the fact that she sleeps with his dad and testifies against him in trial, Tyrion still loves her a little. 

Time of death: Season 4, episode 10, "The Children"

Cause of death: Tyrion strangled her upon discovering that she was sleeping with his father, Tywin.

23. The High Septon, Margery Tyrell, Mace Tyrell, Loras Tyrell, Kevan Lannister, Lancel Lannister

According to an alchemist Tyrion talks to in season two, wildfire "burns so hot, it melts wood, stone, even steel! And of course: flesh. The substance burns so hot it melts flesh like tallow."

Wildfire also becomes more potent as it ages. The wildfire Cersei used was placed there by the Mad King over 20 years ago, so it was extremely dangerous. The deaths at the Destruction of the Great Sept of Baelor were quick, but they certainly weren't painless. 

Time of deaths: Season 6, episode 10, "The Winds of Winter"

Cause of deaths: Burned alive in Cersei's wildfire explosion at the Sept of Baelor.

22. Jory Cassel

If it involves an eyeball in any way, it's gruesome. 

Time of death: Season 1, episode 5, "The Wolf and the Lion"

Cause of death: Jaime Lannister stabbed him in the eye. 

Warning: Spoilers ahead for "Game of Thrones" season seven, episode six, "Beyond the Wall."

The latest "Game of Thrones" battle delivered epic zombie action and the first-ever battle between Daenerys' dragons and the White Walkers. "Beyond the Wall" ended with the devastating reveal that the Night King now has his own super weapon —  an undead dragon.

But the episode's director, Alan Taylor, told INSIDER that he knows some fans have been critical of the smaller details in the show. For example, some people are confused about the amount of time that passed between Gendry's run to the Wall and Daenerys' arrival at the froze lake. And how fast can ravens fly, anyway?

"What's great is that people are analyzing everything with such detail," Taylor said. "It's good people are pouring so much attention into it — but sometimes it blows up in our face. Like there's a heated conversation about how fast ravens can fly now because of the story in my episode. Sometimes it's not comfortable to have people analyzing things too closely, but it's cool that they want to."

When asked if it surprised him that some people expect realism from this epic fantasy story, Taylor said: "I think it's great."

"We have lizards as big as 747s who can blow fire but the fact that [fans] still want it to be believable and real is great," Taylor said. "That means they're expecting it, which means they've had a diet of that and it means the show is basically achieving that. And so if they want to get out their maps of Westeros and a protractor and measure the speed of a raven and fight about it, then that's good."

Read more insights from Taylor, including what George R.R. Martin told him about Jon and Daenerys, in our full interview with the "Game of Thrones" director.

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SEE ALSO: 'Game of Thrones' director reveals what George R.R. Martin told him about Jon and Daenerys years ago

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The INSIDER Summary:

• It's pretty clear after Sunday's episode of "Game of Thrones" that time doesn't make much sense on the show.
• Gendry somehow raced back to Eastwatch, had a raven delivered to Dragonstone, and Dany came flying in with her dragons to save Jon and crew in what felt like no time.
• Viewers have no idea how much time passed in these scenes and how long Jon and the others were at a standstill with the White Walkers.
• The show likes skipping over the boring parts, but it has become more noticeable in season seven as the story lines come together more and more.
• It may not even be worth it to get bogged down in distance and time traveled. It's more fun to watch dragons fly around Westeros than it is to watch characters traveling across a giant map for weeks on end.

Does it matter that the "Game of Thrones" timeline makes absolutely no sense? We’re long past the point of arguing that time within the world of the show actually works, but if you are a person who cares about this sort of thing — if a disregard for how fast fictional bodies could reasonably move around a fictional map was ever going to disrupt your ability to enjoy dragon battles — then Sunday’s episode is the one that finally tipped you over the edge.

In "Beyond the Wall," Jon realizes his merry band of wight hunters are in the midst of an ambush, so he orders Gendry to run back to the Wall and send a raven to Dany. Gendry sprints off, arriving back at Eastwatch sometime during the night. The raven is dispatched and flies nearly half the length of Westeros down to Dragonstone. Daenerys gets the raven’s message sometime during the day, and then hops on a dragon and flies up North to save Jon and his men.

You can do the math any way you want, but we have almost no idea how much time passes between these scenes. The distance from Eastwatch to Dragonstone is very fuzzy. The ravens aren’t necessarily real-world birds, so who knows how fast they can fly. We can’t even begin to guess how fast a dragon can travel. And who knows how long Jon and his men were huddled together on that ice island. Was it a few hours? A day? Do we even know for sure if there are 24 hours in a Westerosi day?

You could strain for explanations to justify how "Beyond the Wall" makes sense, concluding that a raven can fly 1,000 miles in a single night. You could also throw up your hands, concluding that it’s impossible and the story is now somehow broken. Or you could just say, "It’s a story! None of it’s real, but it sure was cool when the dragons showed up!"

"Game of Thrones" has a long history of skipping the boring bits, and season seven leans into this tendency more than ever. We’ve seen episodes that find Jaime Lannister instantly leaping from King’s Landing to Highgarden, and Jon bopping around between Winterfell and Dragonstone like they’re next-door neighbors, as armies depart and arrive at their destinations with remarkable alacrity. These events are obviously impossible, but it’s also hard to blame the show for deploying them. George R.R. Martin himself has said that the characters’ stories don’t need to take place in lock step with one another, so why not cut straight to the fun parts where everyone meets up and the story actually happens?

And yet, there’s a similarly long history of "Game of Thrones" fans caring a great deal about things like distances and travel speeds and whether the chronology makes sense. The end of season six sparked a wave of discussions on this point, to the tune of "wait, how much time has passed so far on this show?" and "why would you want to watch Arya on a boat for four episodes?" We can look up maps of where all the characters have been; we can ponder distances traveled. There is a bounty of speculation, information, and discussion waiting if you want to dive into it.

The time cuts in "Beyond the Wall" are noticeable enough that they definitively answer the question of whether GOT’s timeline makes any sense. It does not. So we come around again to the bigger question: How much does it matter? Why care about something as mundane and boring as distances and travel times in a world where there’s magic and giant wolves and red priestesses and whatever the hell Bran is? So what if "Game of Thrones" sacrifices plausibility for efficiency?

One reason people obsess about this sort of thing is that the realities of travel time and distances and grueling cross-country treks fit into the dubiously useful category of "relatability." These characters’ lives are already unimaginably distant from our own, with their magical swords and fire-breathing dragons and majestic winter coats. If what you care about is putting yourself in their shoes, those shoes are harder to imagine when they can bend space and time itself.

There’s an even bigger issue with scrapping the commonplace logic that it takes a long time to get to faraway places: Without firm rules about time and geography, suddenly everything becomes possible. The pressures that create obstacles for our beloved and reviled characters no longer feel all that hard to overcome. The strategic cost of sending Jon Snow beyond the Wall to collect a wight would be massive if he were taking himself out of the diplomatic game for episodes on end, and his near-death moment in the ambush would be similarly colossal. Instead, we’re left with … you know, the battle is cool! The dragons are cool! But it doesn’t feel all that astonishing or impressive when Dany saves them, because apparently flying across the continent is just a thing someone can do without any further explanation.

This is the real problem with abandoning incontrovertible rules for space and time, even in a made-up universe like the one in "Game of Thrones." Once your audience notices the fictional world is fickle, the seams of the whole thing become visible. Once you’ve seen behind the curtain of how the story works, you look at each event in the narrative for what it really is (a decision made to push the story forward) rather than what you’d like it to be (the story as a story, the end).

"Game of Thrones" has been much stronger at building a wholly inhabited world in other ways, especially in terms of character. I have a sense of who Sansa is, who she was at the beginning of the series, and how her character has changed in concert with the events that’ve taken place in her life. I know Arya and I know the things that drive her. When "Game of Thrones" tells me that Sansa and Arya don’t trust one another, I believe that the situation is a real problem for them both. But it’s very hard to get excited about how imminent this White Walker threat is, since they’ve been marching ceaselessly for who knows how long and still haven’t gotten to the dang Wall. It’s too easy to see that delay for what it actually is: a writers room making the choice that it’s not yet time for the White Walkers to get where they’re going.

Of course, GOT’s bonkers timeline doesn’t need to interrupt anyone’s enjoyment of the series. It’s certainly more fun to watch dragons swoop in and save the day (or fall out of the sky in a dramatic death that is somehow both icy and fiery) than it is to watch people trudge around a map forever. But if it does bother you, there’s a good reason. You’re being pulled out of an otherwise immersive experience; you can see the wheels turning inside the narrative mechanism; you can recognize that someone adjusted the story to prioritize quickness over plodding realism.

The time jumps on "Game of Thrones" are like a slightly too obvious trick in an otherwise impressive magic show. If you can see how that one trick works, does it ruin the rest of the performance? Can you still love the magic even after you see the artifice? A "yes" answer makes sense, but a "no" answer is reasonable, too. And if your answer boils down to "I don’t care, just gimme some dragons!" then I’m happy for you, too. After all, it was a pretty great battle.

SEE ALSO: 'Game of Thrones' director reveals what George R.R. Martin told him about Jon and Daenerys years ago

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You might have to take a long nap or have a giant cup of coffee (or both) before watching the season-seven finale of "Game of Thrones" on Sunday. The finale episode of the beloved HBO series' penultimate season, called "The Dragon and the Wolf", will be a record-breaking 79 minutes and 43 seconds long. 

The sixth episode of the season, "Beyond the Wall" was 71 minutes long.

This isn't the first time "Game of Thrones" has done long episodes, but "The Dragon and the Wolf" will be the longest. The season-six finale, "The Winds of Winter," was 68 minutes long and at that point it was the longest episode in the show's history. The creators packed a lot of death (and other things) into that one, so who knows what's in store this Sunday when all of our heroes meet Cersei in King's Landing. 

A lot can happen with an extra eight minutes and 43 seconds on any TV show, especially "Game of Thrones." We're hoping for 8 minutes and 43 seconds of the Stark children stabbing Littlefinger with his dagger, but it will probably just be Cersei arguing with people before killing them.

"The Dragon and the Wolf" airs on HBO Sunday night at 9pm Eastern. 

SEE ALSO: The 9 biggest questions after this week's 'Game of Thrones'

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