Game Of Thrones Season 7: 10 Ups And 3 Downs From 'Beyond The Wall'

2. Benjen Ex Machina

"We'll speak when I return."

Those were the words Benjen said to Jon at the Wall, before he went off on the ranging mission that would ultimately cost him his life.

Benjen finally returns to Jon here, to save the day in almost the exact same way he did last year with Bran. And then, before more than a shocked "Uncle Benjen?!" can be uttered, they're parted again, and Benjen goes to what could be his final, proper death.

The dragons flying in to save the day could be seen as something of a deus ex machina, but at least they serve a real narrative purpose (one dies, Dany understands the real threat, we get the fight battle of ice and fire).

Benjen, however, appears out of absolutely nowhere and is gone almost just as quickly. There's no real meaning to it, except to save Jon (because obviously he was never going to die or get left there), but if you're going to do that, just have Rhaegal come down and save him - thus establishing a connection between Jon and the dragon named after his father, which could be very important later on - rather than this (barely-even-counts-as-a-) reunion.