Game Of Thrones: 13 Things You Learn Rewatching Season 1

13. Jaime Is Truly AWFUL

Bran Stark Jaime
HBO

Jaime Lannister is one of Game of Thrones' most fascinating characters. His redemption arc moved a huge step forward in Season 7, when he finally decided to walk away from his sister/lover Cersei, instead going to join the fight in the North.

Indeed, Jaime's become such a complex individual, and increasingly heroic - or at least, someone you want to root for - over the years, it's easy to forget how it all started for him. In Season 1, there's not a great deal of that complexity there. Hints, maybe, in his relationship with Tyrion and idea of honour with fighting, but mostly he's an absolute dick.

Watching it back now, it's hard to believe they're the same character. For the first half of Season 1, Jaime is basically the main villain of the show: he antagonises all the good guys, pushes Bran from the window, fights with Ned, stabs Jory through the eye... not only does he look like Prince Charming from Shrek, but he's even more loathsome and downright despicable. It's a testament to George R.R. Martin, showrunners Dan Weiss and David Benioff (with the odd misstep), and above all the superb performance of Nikolaj Coster-Waldau that not only has Jaime been transformed, but to such an extent that you forget how truly bad he was in the first place.

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Contributor

NCTJ-qualified journalist. Most definitely not a racing driver. Drink too much tea; eat too much peanut butter; watch too much TV. Sadly only the latter paying off so far. A mix of wise-old man in a young man's body with a child-like wonder about him and a great otherworldly sensibility.