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The Internet Reacts to “Game of Thrones” Season 5 Finale with Shock, Tears and Outrage

Again, fans declare they’re done with the series, won’t tune in for season 6 after this very unwelcome twist

Jun 15, 2015 10:37 GMT  ·  By
George R.R. Martin, author of “Song of Ice and Fire,” on which “Game of Thrones” is based
   George R.R. Martin, author of “Song of Ice and Fire,” on which “Game of Thrones” is based

It’s not a “Game of Thrones” viewing night if we don’t get at least a few thousand tweets and comments on dedicated forums about how author George R.R. Martin, who penned the novels on which the series is based, is the worst person to have ever walked the earth.

Last night, the HBO series wrapped season 5 with the episode “Mother’s Mercy,” which unleashed a new avalanche of nasty and outraged comments from fans, who simply can’t handle the death of yet another one of their favorite characters.

Yup, here we go again.

*Please be advised that this post contains major spoilers, so if you’re yet to see season 5 finale “Mother’s Mercy,” it would be best if you stopped reading right now.*

One more major death, plenty of outrage

Last night’s episode saw the death of several characters, including Stannis Baratheon’s, but it was Jon Snow’s apparent demise at the hand of his own protégé Olly that really wrecked fans.

First of all, he was a regular from Season 1 and he had shown signs of becoming more than just another black cloak on The Wall. Fans were hoping to find out who his mother was, having long decided that he was not Ned Stark’s son and, as such, that he had as much claim to the Iron Throne as Daenerys Targaryen.

They were even hoping he might get to sit on it one day, despite having taken his vows and renounced all “mortal” pleasures.

Secondly, Jon Snow was meant to protect the realm and fight off the White Walkers, first through his alliance with the Wildlings, secondly (hopefully) through an alliance with Daenerys and her dragons. After all, what’s best to defeat the cold and the dark than a fire-breathing dragon?

Jon Snow was the champion the fans were rooting for, and the final scene in the season left them thinking he would not come back for the 6th season.

Kit Harington, the actor playing Jon “you know nothing” Snow, says that, as far as he knows, he is dead and gone and would not reprise his role for more episodes, neither as Jon nor as his consciousness. That last part is meant to infirm one popular theory that Snow would later warg into his direwolf Ghost, before Melisandre could bring his dead body back to life.

The fans aren’t happy

The show left no room for that either, so no wonder the fans are angry.

“Game of Thrones,” much like the novels on which it’s based, seems to follow no convention we’ve become so accustomed to on a scripted program. As Harington says, “Thrones” treats drama as real life, in the sense that, in real life, the good guy doesn’t always get the kingdom and the girl.

He may die in the process.

Available below are some samples of what fans are saying on Twitter after the shocking episode. Many of them admit they’re too shocked to think, while others announce they have switched alliances and are now rooting for the White Walkers because, clearly, favorites die too quickly in this universe.

Many fans are also too upset to consider tuning in for season 6, convinced as they are that Jon Snow is dead for good.

Only a handful are praising Martin and the show for taking such risks with the narrative.

Did you catch the finale? If so, what did you think of Jon Snow’s death? Are you among those fans who will not come back next year for the 6th season? Drop us a line with your thoughts in the comments below.