We’re closing in fast on the Game of Thrones season 8 premiere, and many burning questions still abound. But why spend your time trying to predict what will happen in the final season when people on the internet have done it for you?
EW recently dug into a heap of exclusive data from the r/gameofthrones subreddit, Reddit’s central community for Thrones talk, including users’ predictions for which characters will make it out of season 8 alive. Other data categories featured the most-talked-about characters and “power couples” overall, and the most-discussed episode from each season. Some of the stats probably wouldn’t surprise you — the top three most-discussed characters were Jon Snow, Tyrion, and Daenerys — but we unearthed plenty of interesting tidbits. Read on for five key takeaways.
Stannis Baratheon is more popular than you might expect
Stannis hasn’t been around since the season 5 finale, when Brienne dispatched him, but he remains in the top 10 most-talked-about characters (albeit at number 10). That puts him ahead of characters who have a role to play in the final season, including the Hound, Theon Greyjoy, Ser Davos, and Sam. (You know, Sam… one of two people who knows Jon Snow’s true parentage?) None of those characters had their daughter burned at the stake, though. That’s a pretty reliable conversation-starter.
Viewers are very confident about some characters’ fates
Eighty-nine percent of polled Reddit users believe Cersei will die before the series’ end, while 82 percent believe Tyrion will make it out alive. It’s hard not to view this as wishful thinking. If there’s one thing Game of Thrones beat into its viewers’ heads (at least in the early days), it’s that the characters who live and die are usually in direct opposition to our hopes. But who’s to say? Tyrion is a survivor, after all. Meanwhile, users polled are far more split on Daenerys’ fate, with an even 50 percent believing she’ll meet her maker in season 8.
People haven’t given up on some ’ships
No. 1 among the most-discussed “power couples” is Jon Snow and Daenerys, naturally, but further down, the list includes some pairings from the show’s earlier days that viewers apparently still hope might blossom romantically. These include Daenerys and Ser Jorah Mormont, Brienne and Jaime, and, oddly, Arya and Gendry. (Like… what?) Then again, the list also features both Joffrey and Sansa and Ramsay and Sansa, so “most-discussed” may not imply wanting that couple to be together. (We hope.)
Season 1’s most-discussed episode is a head-scratcher (or head-scorcher)
From season 4 onward, the most-talked-about episodes are all season finales, and season 3’s is “The Rains of Castamere” —a.k.a. the Red Wedding episode. Nothing at all strange about that. And season 2’s most-discussed episode might surprise you — it’s episode 6, “The Old Gods and the New” — until you remember that’s The One With Daenerys Bellowing, “WHERE ARE MY DRAGONS?!?”
What’s truly shocking is season 1’s entry on this list: “A Golden Crown,” also episode 6 for that season. Apparently Viserys Targaryen’s gruesome demise generated more chatter than the jaw-dropping beheading of Ned Stark, which occurred in episode 9, “Baelor.”
People have tried to predict the number of times Jon Snow will say the word “night” in season 8
The average is 78. With the Night’s Watch, the Night King, and just plain ol’ night all to figure prominently in the final season, that might actually be lowballing it a bit.
Game of Thrones returns for its eighth and final season April 14.
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