Game Of Thrones: 12 Ups And 4 Downs From Season 6

4. Jon's Back...And King In The North

Aka the worst lie ever told.

When Jon Snow was killed in the Season 5 finale, no one believed he would be staying dead. When Kit Harington and everyone else involved in the show spent the next nine months repeatedly stating that Jon is dead, no one was buying it. The question was when he'd return, not if.

The resurrection was perfectly timed. Had they brought him back in the season premiere, then it would've lost a lot of dramatic weight. If they'd waited until later in the season, they would've just been dragging it out, and thus delaying the other storylines. By having him come back at the end of the second episode, by which time they'd had a good amount of setup for it to happen, and then exploring it properly in the third instalment, they ensured they could give it the time necessary, make it impactful, but then still propel the other storylines forward.

That other storyline was, of course, the build-up to the Battle of the Bastards. Along the way we had a Stark family reunion, Jon leaving the Night's Watch, and a recruitment mission around the North, before the battle itself took place. The action itself was frenetic, with some incredible work from director Miguel Sapochnik. It was thrilling, yet also gritty, throwing us right into the midst of the action, almost suffocatingly so at times. Jon using Ramsay's face as a punching bag was the icing on the cake.

After that, in the season finale, came Lyanna Mormont's big speech, and Jon Snow was proclaimed King in the North. Few moments on TV can make you stand and shout along with the show, but chants of 'KING IN THE NORTH' is certainly one of them. For Jon, it was the conclusion of his resurrection arc, but also a moment of validation. The bastard son of Ned Stark (or so he thinks), he's always been the most like his apparent father, yet regarded as an outsider. Now he's found acceptance among his own people, and truly belongs as a Stark in all but name.