10 TV Shows That Gave Away Spoilers Immediately
3. Symbol-ism - Game Of Thrones
HBO's goliath hit Game of Thrones is about many things - loyalty, honour, boobs - but one of its main themes is family.
The great houses of Westeros all do horrible things to each other to secure their family's legacy. Each house has its own lore - a set of words, different coloured banners, different symbols...
These symbols (or sigils, if you want to be pedantic about this) play a very important part in telegraphing the plot of the show's first season.
In the debut episode of Game of Thrones, a hunting party led by Ned Stark come across a dead stag and a dead direwolf. This scene is ostensibly there to introduce the six direwolf puppies Stark gives to his children, but it's actually about way more that cute baby doggos.
The direwolf is the symbol of House Stark, whilst the stag represents House Baratheon. The two beasts lying dead together is an omen that the heads of those houses - Ned and Robert Baratheon respectively - will meet a similar gristly end.
A bit on the nose? Sure, but at least it made sense. Unlike certain other Game of Thrones moments...