'Game of Thrones' finale: Indian fans more shocked than surprised

The final episode of the fifth season of the hugely popular international medieval fantasy TV show “Game of Thrones” left several Indian fans shocked after Jon Snow, one of the main characters essayed by British actor Kit Harington, was killed. The final scene of the episode titled “Mother's Mercy” saw Snow's young protege, Olly, deliver the final blow using a dagger, with a lifeless Lord Commander left lying in the snow. Variety described it as "one of the most shocking TV moments of the year", and Indian fans can totally relate to the sentiment. "Is Jon Snow really dead," asked 24-year-old Sarika Mathur. Also, the number of deaths in the episode left fans in a state of shock. “Jon Snow's death put shivers down my spine,” Rahul Chauhan, another ardent fan of the fantasy drama, told. “This episode was something else entirely. It left me in a state of utter shock. There are too many unfinished stories and too many deaths. I thought the episode would be full of surprises rather than shocks, especially the death of Jon Snow,” said Kiran Randhawa, a fan who bunked office, to watch the finale, which aired in the US on Sunday. In India, the show is broadcast exclusively on HBO Defined. "The finale makes it evident that Benioff and Weiss are chatting their own course at scintillating and breakneck speeds," said Lavneesh Chauhan, a law student. There's also 27-year-old Divya Manhas, who quipped on Facebook: "Ekta Kapoor and her team of story writers should be hired to bring back Snow from the dead. And no not as a white walker." But Jon Snow isn't coming back, Harington told Entertainment Weekly. "I'm dead. I'm not coming back next season. I kind of knew it was coming. I didn't read 'A Dance with Dragons' (one of George RR Martin's novel on which the show is based), but I read the other books and I had heard this is what happens. So I had an inkling it should be this season. I didn't realise it would be the final shot of the season and that made it extra special." Twitter too was abuzz with reactions on the final episode. Srikar Gullapalli posted: "In my next life, make me anything but a #Stark child #GameofThrones #GameofThronesFinale (sic)", while a clearly disappointed Anil Pratap Singh shared: "The moment you start liking a character, it is dead #GameofThronesFinale." For Ipshita Sengupta, "Heartbroken is an understatement" was the mood upon watching the episode. A number of other characters also met their demise in the finale, including Stannis Baratheon, who was executed at the hands of Brienne of Tarth, just hours after his wife, Queen Selyse, hanged herself. It also featured a scene where Cersei Lannister, played by Lena Headey, was stripped naked after having her head shaven and marched through the streets in a public walk of shame after admitting she had slept with her cousin. Fans appreciated the actress' performance. “Cersei' walk of penance was some powerful and effortless acting,” Rahul Chauhan said of Headey's portrayal of the Queen Mother. “The walk of shame brings out the other side of Lena Headey's acting skills. It was an amazing depiction of how Cercie's pride, power and control were stripped off along with her clothes in a single blow,” Randhawa said. Lavneesh noted that "the subtle variation on her face and the use of her eyes to emote in such a captivating manner, in a scene full of such complexity reflects upon the calibre of this great actress". However shocked the fans may be after the season's finale, they're now awaiting season six of “Game of Thrones” with bated breath. (Source: IANS)