Game of Thrones Season 7 Recap: Everything You Need to Know

Just in case you don’t have time re-watch seven seasons of Game of Thrones before the upcoming premiere—it’s only 67 episodes; what’s wrong with you?—we here at Vanity Fair will be recapping every single season of the show to make sure key events are fresh in your mind. Since this is a rather daunting undertaking—it’s 67 episodes; what do you expect of us?!—we’ve boiled each season down to the essential arc of each surviving main character set to do battle in Season 8.

If you feel a little more ambitious, there’s an extra-credit section below with additional information that could be good to remember when the series returns. (Just because a character has died, for instance, that doesn’t mean they’re unimportant!) For a more in-depth look at some of the key episodes of Game of Thrones, you can dive into Vanity Fair’s list of the 15 most essential episodes of Game of Thrones to re-watch before the final season. But for now, here’s Season 7.

You can catch up with other recaps here:

Previously on Game of Thrones Season 6.

Previously on Game of Thrones Season 5.

Previously on Game of Thrones Season 4.

Previously on Game of Thrones Season 3.

Previously on Game of Thrones Season 2.

Previously on Game of Thrones Season 1.

Essential Information

Cersei Lannister, Queen of Westeros, went to war against Daenerys Targaryen—who invaded Westeros from the East—and had her Hand, Qyburn, build a weapon (known as a ballista) that could take down a dragon. She agreed to marry the repulsively evil Euron Greyjoy after he demolished the Targaryen fleet and brought her the Dornish women (Ellaria and Tyene) who were responsible for her daughter Myrcella’s death. Cersei found out she was pregnant (yes, really) with her brother Jaime’s child. She saw her first zombie (i.e., a wight), struck some kind of deal with her brother Tyrion, and promised to help fight the army of the undead—but secretly decided to go to war with the King in the North, Jon Snow, and the Dragon Queen, Daenerys, anyway, and sent Euron to fetch a massive army of mercenaries known as the Golden Company.

Jaime Lannister, Her Twin Brother, went to war against the enemies of House Lannister, which included recruiting House Tarly and eliminating House Tyrell (R.I.P., Olenna). He was attacked by Targaryen forces, rode down a dragon, and was forever changed by what he saw there. He was pleased Cersei was pregnant, shocked the she agreed to marry Euron Greyjoy, shocked that she spoke so callously of their dead son Tommen, and shocked again when not even the sight of zombies could convince her not to go to war with Daenerys and Jon. Basically, he acted like he was new to Cersei’s villainy. Jaime then left his sister-lover for good and rode north to help House Targaryen and House Stark fight the army of the dead.

Tyrion Lannister, Her Other Brother, gave Daenerys some very bad advice about how to invade Westeros, partly out of the conflict he felt going to war with his own siblings. He helped broker an alliance between King in the North Jon Snow and his queen, Daenerys Targaryen. He was frightened to see his brother, Jaime, go to battle with his queen, and was shocked to see her burn some of her enemies alive. He begged Daenerys not to go on a rescue mission to save Jon Snow, negotiated a deal with his sister, Cersei, to get help in the war against the undead after he noticed that Cersei appeared to be pregnant again (yes, really!). Tyrion also looked on with jealousy (yep, really) when Jon and Daenerys consummated their season-long flirtation on the boat ride to Winterfell.