The 4 best (and 3 worst) character arcs in Game of Thrones

Worst Game of Thrones character arcs: Cersei Lannister

Hot take incoming: while I do really like Cersei Lannister as a character, I just don’t think her arc in Game of Thrones is as strong as it could be. She’s a villain through and through, and while I can empathize with her to a degree, the only change she goes through is just turning into a worse person. To me, that’s not all that interesting.

From the start of the show, Cersei is a force to be reckoned with. She’s bitter because she was forced to marry Robert Baratheon when the real object of her affection is her twin brother Jaime, and she feels slighted by her family because she isn’t taken seriously on account of her being a woman. She’s faced with societal expectations she doesn’t believe are fair and she’s angry. And I certainly can’t fault her for that.

But Cersei doesn’t know how to use the power she does have. She makes silly choices, like allowing her son Joffrey to do whatever he wants, and it takes her a while to learn how to play the game. She definitely gets smarter throughout the show, but her cruel behavior only worsens once she loses all of her children.

I really do feel bad for Cersei at different points of the show, and she has so many great scenes, for instance when she tells her father the truth about her and Jaime, and her walk of atonement. Her storyline is an essential part of the show and it’s usually very entertaining. But she doesn’t undergo much of a transformation like some of the other characters do.

Best Game of Thrones character arcs: Bran Stark

Time to go off on my “why does everyone hate Bran?” rant. No, I won’t do that, but I will say that Bran Stark is one of my favorite characters and I absolutely love his training with the Three-Eyed Raven and the powerful force that he becomes. Do I think the decision to crown him king in the end was satisfying? Eh, not really. But that doesn’t take away from the excellent arc he has throughout the show.

The second-youngest Stark sibling, Bran grows up at Winterfell looking up to his older brothers. Similar to Sansa, he dreams of great things, but all of that comes crashing down when he’s pushed out of a tower by Jaime Lannister and becomes paralyzed. He’s frustrated by his new reality but is able to escape through his dreams, where he can become a wolf running through the woods. After meeting Jojen and Meera Reed, Bran discovers he’s a warg, meaning he can possess and control animals. As he explores these powers, it becomes evident he can do way more than just that.

A common criticism of Bran’s storyline is that it mostly deals with events from the past while big battles and other significant things are going on in the present day. But as someone who’s really interested in the lore of this show, his scenes are so enjoyable to me. And I love how we get to watch him go from an innocent child to an all-knowing, magical being.

Some might say Bran’s character arc is boring. I say it’s awesome.