Game Of Thrones: 9 Most Mind-Bending Character Transformations

8. Samwell Tarly

How He First Appears Given that Sam was at first a lovable, hapless coward, if you stopped watching halfway through Season 1, you're in for a shock the next time you return to the show. He was the archetypical shoddy sidekick: vulnerable, loveable but useless in a fight. Unfailingly dependable and loyal, but with no self confidence. What He Becomes For a start, he's no longer afraid of the harsh realities played out beyond the wall. He still abhors violence but he's no longer reluctant to take a punch to the gut, or even risk his own life, if it means saving one of his friends. Not that he's now some brute who favours brawn over brains, just that he's far more comfortable in his own skin. What brought on this change? Well it probably had something to do with meeting Gilly. No longer is Sam just looking after himself. The additional responsibility of having a woman and a child to look after means he is more willing to take a beating and to stand up for his principles - even if he knows he's fighting a losing battle. At no time was this clearer than at the end of last season, when he stands up to the Night's Watch members who are attacking Gilly. It's impossible to imagine the Sam of previous seasons doing that. He's no longer a wimp, that's for certain.