Here’s what you need to know if you’re new to Game of Thrones, but want to join in on the final season.
For seven seasons, you’ve ignored the lure of “Game of Thrones.” The multiple awards didn’t draw you in. Your friends debating plot twists each Sunday on social media didn’t move you. The “Is Jon Snow really dead?” storyline wasn’t enough; not even the “Hold the door!” memes sparked enough interest.
But now, here you are, with the final season days away from kicking off, finally ready to delve in. Since you don’t have the time (or probably the stamina) to binge watch the past 67 episodes, here’s what you need to know to follow along with a modicum of understanding when the eighth season gets underway on HBO on Sunday.
“Game of Thrones” is a family affair, with several Great Houses that love, fight, plot and conspire for the Iron Throne, ultimate power in Westeros. (Some love a little more than normal — the twisted affair between siblings Jaime and Cersei Lannister, for example).
Three families at the heart of the story are:
The series began with Ned Stark, Warden of the North, at his home, Winterfell. He and his family — wife Catelyn; sons, Robb, Rickon and Bran; daughters Sansa and Arya; and oh yeah, the bastard, Jon Snow — are living relatively quietly until they receive a visit from Ned’s old friend Robert Baratheon, now the king. Reluctantly, Ned agrees to become the hand of the king, kind of a ceremonial vice president position, and travels south with some of his family. Things don’t go so well, he loses his head and the family is scattered.
Shamed by his origins, Jon Snow joins and soon becomes a leader of the Night’s Watch. Think of them as a combination of border patrol agents and celibate monks who stand guard at the Wall, which runs across the north of Westeros and kept out the Wildlings, a fierce nation that doesn’t recognize the kings and princes of Westeros.
