3. Game of Thrones
Season after season HBO’s hit historical fantasy drama, Game of Thrones, dominates ratings and gives us something to talk about. No season is safe from the effects of a power-hungry, war-ravaged continent, but on this season, The Red Wedding episode was especially tragic. I can still remember the shock I felt when I witnessed the murder of Ned Stark (Sean Bean) back in season 1, and it hardly even compares to what I felt during the aforementioned episode (even though I read the spoilers beforehand).
Now having experienced the brutal slaying of Robb Stark (Richard Madden), his wife, his mother, and his unborn child/heir (seen in the video below), it appears the Stark line is virtually defeated – or at least a lot farther from the iron throne than in recent memory, considering the scattered state of the remaining family members. The biggest up and coming threat to Joffrey (Jack Gleeson) now is Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke), who is en-route to King’s Landing with an impressive army and actual dragons. Since the throne was usurped from her father by the Baratheons, who currently hold control of the seven kingdoms, she has just as much of a right to it as anyone – more than most actually.
Daenerys is a great example of a strong female character, and Game of Thrones boasts several, evening the gender playing field even in a historical context that would hope to minimize them. With so many strong characters across the board it shouldn’t be too difficult to fill the gaping whole left by Robb’s (who was my favorite character) death, but it will definitely be a game changer as word spreads of the news.