Game of Thrones: Most heartbreaking deaths up until season 8
Season 6
Game of Thrones’ sixth season is full of brutal character deaths, from the conflict beyond the wall to the Battle of the Bastards to Cersei’s plan to blow up the Sept of Baelor. Many fan favorites gave their lives during season 6, and we’re still not over it. (Spoiler alert: Ramsay Bolton isn’t one of the deaths we’re still mourning.)
Hodor
Hodor’s final moments rival Shireen’s as the most heartbreaking of the entire series, and it’s not just because he bravely sacrifices himself to help Bran and Meera get away from the Night King. In this scene, fans also come to understand why Hodor is only capable of saying the one word, and it’s mostly because of Bran’s time-traveling abilities. In the end, Hodor’s entire life has been leading up to this one moment—his last moment—and the poor guy seriously deserved better than that.
Summer
It wasn’t enough that the showrunners traumatized fans with Hodor’s death during “The Door.” They also had to kill off yet another direwolf, with Summer buying Bran and Meera time to run from the wights.
Rickon Stark
Fans knew Rickon’s days were numbered when he fell into the hands of Ramsay Bolton, but it probably would have been less painful if Ramsay had just killed Rickon on the spot. Instead, he allows Rickon to get so close to reuniting with his brother, only to put an arrow in his heart before Jon’s eyes. It’s probably the most brutal part of “Battle of the Bastards,” and we still hate Ramsay for it.
Osha
When Osha first appeared during season 1, no one realized how much she’d come to care for the younger Stark siblings over the course of the show. She gave her life attempting to protect Rickon from Ramsay Bolton, and she might have succeeded in saving him had he not already known her plan: the same one she used on Theon.
Margaery Tyrell
Margaery Tyrell was one of Game of Thrones’ more clever characters, and she never resorted to cruelty in order to get the things she wanted. Instead, Margaery charmed everyone she met—viewers included—and that made it so much harder to accept that she was a casualty in Cersei’s mad plan to blow up the Sept of Baelor. What’s worse is that Margaery’s death could have been prevented had so many smaller moments in the series gone differently.
Loras Tyrell
Loras Tyrell’s storyline during seasons 5 and 6 was difficult to swallow, and it’s hard to say what hurt more: watching the High Sparrow break him or realizing that he wouldn’t get a chance to reclaim his own life. Thanks to Cersei, all of the Tyrells perished too soon, and it’s a shame that Loras’ final days were spent in the company of cruel zealots.
Tommen Baratheon
Most fans were done with Tommen’s reign by the time he died, but that doesn’t mean watching him leap from a tower wasn’t upsetting. In the end, Tommen was a young boy with far too much power and not enough experience wielding it, and it’s a shame that needed to lead to his death.