Game Of Thrones: 10 Most Satisfying Moments
8. Jaime Goes Back For Brienne ('The Bear And The Maiden Fair')
Just as Game of Thrones' creators enjoy crushing fans' spirits, they enjoy toying with our judgments, as well. To that end, several established relationships and characterizations by which fans have sworn turn out to be wrong (or at the very least, incomplete) as the show progresses.
Case in point, the story of Jaime Lannister. Famous as both a kingslayer and a sisterlover, Jaime is about the vilest of the show's characters in the early seasons - until he's humanized via a friendship with Brienne of Tarth.
When Jaime learns that Brienne's safety is in jeopardy at Harrenhal, he makes a frantic return to the castle. Once there, he finds Brienne forced to fight an enraged bear with a wooden sword. Jaime dives into the fray and helps her escape.
Jaime's rescue of Brienne is a turning point for the character (or would have been, had the showrunners not inexplicably added a rape scene between him and Cersei to season four) - for the first time on the show, he acts out of pure friendship and compassion, two qualities fans didn't even know he had. It may not be a full-fledged redemption, but it's something.
To this day, the relationship between Jaime and Brienne is complicated, the full extent of their feelings for one another unexplored. Still, when Brienne brings that selflessness out of Jaime in season three, it's clear that she's made him a better person. Viewers can't help but be grateful.