No, the 'Bad Guys' Don't Always Win the Game of Thrones

One of the best aspects of Game of Thrones and the book series it's based on is how you never really know who could die.

Early on it was clear to both show fans and book readers that Martin's epic story wasn't going to follow the normal formulas we've come to expect from TV or fantasy novels.

Characters that would be the untouchable hero of any other story, not only lose their struggles but lose them hard.

The noble father, Ned Stark, gets decapitated. His hot blooded son Robb, an unmatched warrior, tries to avenge him. In the hands of a lesser author, the Young Wolf would get his justice. He would have hardships, he would face seemingly insurmountable odds, but he would win.

Not so in Westeros.

Instead, Robb's one-time allies turn on him. He, his mother and his army are slain at a wedding. His enemies triumph.

The 'good guys', those characters that act out of a sense of honor, altruism or who value the better angels of human nature, rarely seem to come out alive or on top in Martin's world. It's those self-interested characters willing or eager to kill, maim and betray anyone, that prevail.

Or so many fans believe.

I used to be in that camp. The camp of 'the worst characters always win'.

Now I think that's an oversimplification.

Yes, the characters we know and love (Ned, Robb, Jon, Tyrion) never seemed to truly get ahead.


They get shat on by the author but so do the characters we hate or love to hate.

The genius of the show and the books is not that the 'good guys' are doomed to fail simply because they do what they think is moral. It's that all the characters rise and fall based on the repercussions of their actions.

By the third book (and season) it seems that the Lannisters have won the Game of Thrones. The Machiavellian Tywin and his family have triumphed. Their rivals are dead or spent. They should be able to rest easy.

Yet just as they reach the height of their power, the Lannisters are brought low by the choices they've made.

King Joffrey's petulance and sadism gets him poisoned by The Queen of Thorns and Little Finger. Tywin, the seemingly unbeatable political juggernaut, is done in by the son who he mistreated for being a dwarf. Cersei, blinded by her fear of the Tyrells and her overconfidence, underestimates the High Sparrow and she is swept from power.

Then we have (maybe) the most hated families in the Seven Kingdoms: the Freys and the Boltons.

After murdering Robb and gaining the favor of the Lannisters, these two factions also seem to have made it. For almost three seasons (and two books) neither house seemed to face much in the way of justice for massacring so many.

Seeing Ramsay Bolton, possibly the most rabidly sadistic character ever created, continue to climb the ladder of success was especially infuriating.

Yet if the Starks' greatest weakness is their sense of nobility and honor, the Bolton's penchant for unrestrained fear and brutality is theirs.

The Red Wedding and Ramsay's bloody excesses, alienate the people the Bolton's are supposed to rule. In the show, Ramsay's abuse of Sansa drives her into an alliance with Jon Snow and they overthrow him. In the books, the Bolton's betrayal leads to a Great Conspiracy against them led by the Mandelrys.

The Freys don't fair much better. They are targets for the Brotherhood without Banners and don't have the respect of the people of the Riverlands. Both in the books and on the show, the Starks do get revenge (though they've gotten more of it in the show).

None of this means that characters like Jon will necessarily triumph when the last episode or the final book comes out. Martin has made it pretty clear the story will end on a bittersweet note.

What's also clear though, especially with Season 6 having wrapped up, is that being the cruelest, meanest, most conniving a-hole in the realm can be a handicap as well as an advantage.

You may get to the top but the one who wins power and stays in power strikes a balance between ruthlessness and compassion (cough, cough Daenerys).

Why Justin Trudeau is Canada's Robb Stark

Justin Trudeau and Robb Stark. One is the leader of a northern land steeped in magic and mystery, the other is a fictional character. ;)

Seriously though, there are actually a few similarities between the new Prime Minister of Canada and the Young Wolf of George RR Martin's fantasy epic.

(1) -They Each Rule a Large, Cold, Northern Land 

 

In the ASOIF universe, Robb Stark is declared King in the North after the death of his father. The North is almost as large as all the other Seven Kingdoms combined. Despite its size though it has a relatively small population compared to other southern regions like the Westerlands or the Reach. The harsh, cold climate along with large areas of untamed wilderness, makes living in many parts of the North difficult.

Trudeau, of course, is in charge of Canada. Like the North it's much larger than its southern neighbors (sorry America) but has about one tenth of the population of the United States. Much of its vast territory is still wilderness or beyond the arctic circle making the southernmost belt on the US border the most inhabited area of the country.

(2) -Their Countries Border a Dysfunctional, Divided Land to the South

 

 

 

Let's face it, the political scene in the States right now is dire (pun intended). Average Americans are more and more divided between conservative and liberal, Republican and Democrat. The rise of Trumpism hasn't helped heal any wounds or bridge the political divide. Canada's southern neighbor is getting more and more dysfunctional by the day as two competing visions of America become locked in an increasingly bitter and outraged struggle.

Westeros in the time of Robb Stark, is of course, divided between even more competing camps who violently struggle with one another in the War of the Five Kings. Some like the Lannisters and Baratheons fight for control of the Iron Throne. Others, like the Greyjoys and the Starks, just want o secede entirely from the Seven Kingdoms. Let's hope America never reaches that stage.

(3) -They Inherited a Political Dynasty From Their Fathers 

 

The Starks, one of the oldest noble families in Westeros, ruled the North as kings for generations before submitting themselves to the authority of the Targaryens. When Robb's father Ned Stark, is beheaded by King Joffery Baratheon, Robb (as firstborn son) inherits his father's title as Lord of the North. He then decides to lead his countrymen in a war of independence against the Iron Throne and hopefully avenge his father.

While Justin Trudeau is no Lord or King, he did inherit a family name and a political legacy from his father Pierre Trudeau. Regarded as one of the most influential PMs in Canadian history, Pierre Trudeau had a profound impact on his country during his time in office. Justin, Pierre's eldest son, stepped into his father's former office in no small part to his dad's name recognition.

(4) -They Are Idealistic -Perhaps to a Fault 

 

Now a disclaimer. A politician is a politician no matter what. Even the best of them put on an act of some kind when they are in public. Justin Trudeau is no exception. No one makes it very far in politics without being at least a little two faced.

With that said, the younger Trudeau's public persona is one of an idealistic and liberal reformer. He has created an extremely inclusive cabinet made up of many women and racial minorities. Many of his positions are similar to his father's.

Robb also inherits values from his own father, particularly a strong sense of personal honor. It's this drive to do the honorable thing which ultimately brings about is downfall when he marries Jeyne Westerling after sleeping with her.

Hopefully, Trudeau's own idealism doesn't lead him to any Red Weddingesque disasters. 

 

(5) -They Are Good With Animals