The eight-season run of Game of Thrones had its ups and downs, but the general consensus is that the show could have concluded a lot more comprehensively - and without so many loose ends - than it did. Several storylines were culled without providing closure, which naturally infuriated audiences who had been invested in them.
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That said, of those characters who survived until the end, nobody can be considered to have officially won the Game of Thrones, not even Bran, whose royal role is more a burden than a privilege. The one thing that can be said, however, is that each of them had a send-off befitting the trajectory of their character arcs.
Updated by Lauren Turner on September 4, 2022: Game of Thrones is a wildly popular fantasy television show, and with the new release of the prequel series, House of the Dragon, new fans and longtime fans alike will want to know more about prevalent characters from the world of Westeros. We've revamped this list with even more information.
Daenerys' death leads to a power vacuum, but it implicates the only under-contender to the throne in her murder, worsening the situation. Therefore, the Great Council convenes to discuss the next steps, which is where Tyrion suggests that it would be in everyone's best interest to crown Bran Stark as the king.
The young man calmly acknowledges his being there for a reason, and Bran willingly accedes to the throne of the Six Kingdoms. Bran's humbler beginnings are in stark contrast with his final fate.
Jaime rushes back to King's Landing, where he is caught by Daenerys' army; Tyrion intervenes, saving his brother and offering him a single route to freedom along with their sister. Jaime fights and defeats Euron Greyjoy on the way to Cersei, but neither of them is able to flee due to the dragon-fire being launched all around them.
Cersei begins to weep and Jaime comforts her, their last two acts before the ceiling falls on them. In a morbidly sweet scene later, Tyrion discovers his siblings together in death, as they were in life.
Jon's crime against Daenerys is tantamount to regicide, a form of unforgivable treason that naturally carries the highest penalties. Thankfully, Tyrion manages to calm everyone down, commuting his sentence to exile: back to the Wall and Castle Black.
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Jon leaves his brother and sisters with encouraging words, and journeys to the icy North. Interestingly, Jon then proceeds to travel beyond the Wall and into unknown territory with Giantsbane and a group of free folk - now that there is no Night King to cause problems anymore.
Theon Greyjoy's redemption arc is quite heartbreaking, but viewers aren't upset to see him die as much as they are proud of how far he's come. He protects Bran in the Godswood, rebuffing the Wights as best he can. Unfortunately, the Night King's presence means that Theon has two choices: run away or die trying, and he goes for the honorable one.
The Night King spears Theon with his own weapon, leaving him to bleed out in the snow. Interestingly, Theon's sacrifice is what slows the villain down a few precious seconds, allowing for Arya's timely arrival.
Arya's stealth and elementary last-second tactic save the day, ending the horrible threat of the Night King. She leaps out of the shadows and stabs the Night King with her Valyrian steel dagger. Following this, she observes Daenerys' descent into rabid brutality with total bewilderment.
Arya ultimately tells her siblings that she plans to journey beyond Westeros, venturing into an unmapped region of the globe out of adventurous curiosity. Arya then directs a ship of her own deep into the west, disappearing over the horizon.
Daenerys rationalizes her extermination protocols over and over again, refusing to believe that showing mercy would have helped in any way. Jon is devastated to see her ruthlessness on full display, admitting that he has no choice but to take matters into his own hands.
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Jon tells Daenerys that she will remain his queen, and stabs her in the chest with a hidden blade. Drogon is the first to realize that his "mother" is dead, but the dragon doesn't kill Jon, presumably because of the latter's Targaryen parentage. The dragon does, however, melt the Iron Throne into an iron puddle before flying away with Daenerys' corpse.
To literally nobody's surprise, Tyrion becomes the Hand of the King once again, helping create the Small Council on behalf of Bran. He selects Brienne, Bronn, Samwell, and Davos to fill the positions of Lord Commander, Master of Coin, Grand Maester, and Master of Ships, respectively.
Tyrion helps plan the rebuilding process for survivors of the King's Landing massacre, starting a long road to reconstruction. Most importantly, though, he is officially the Lord of Casterly Rock, a privilege that he had never dreamed would ever be his.
Jorah and his soldiers fight bravely at the Battle of Winterfell, felling wights left and right until he sees Daenerys collapse. He instantly goes to her side, becoming a living shield and eventually giving his life in service to his queen.
Jorah's death is meaningful in that he gets to see the White Walkers destroyed before he passes away. Always loyal and dedicated to Daenerys, Jorah is sacrifices himself peacefully, happy in the knowledge that he could keep Daenerys safe from harm one last time.
Davos Seaworth, who is also known as the Onion Knight, is one of the first on the scene of Daenerys' rampage, helping injured citizens escape the queen's pointless wrath. After Jon kills Dany, Davos attempts to soothe the conflict taking place between the Starks and various factions.
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When Bran is elected king, however, he offers Davos the role of Master of Ships, which requires him to refurbish and restore the navy of King's Landing. It's a job that combines administration skills with martial strategy, something Seaworth is innately good at.
In the beginning of Game of Thrones, Sansa Stark is a naiive young girl. Throughout the series, her cleverness develops and she becomes politcally adept. Sansa hears and welcomes the proposal to make Bran the ruler of Westeros. However, she insists that the North be freed from central control, as was once promised to Ned Stark.
Bran obviously concurs with his sister's assessment of the situation, which is that Northerners would stand behind House Stark no matter what the Crown demands. He permits the secession, and thus Sansa's ascension to queen, who begins ruling her now expanded territory from Winterfell.
NEXT: 10 Actors You Didn't Realize Were In Game Of Thrones & Harry Potter