Arya Stark (Maisie Williams) quickly became a fan favorite on Game of Thrones. The younger daughter of Ned (Sean Bean) and Catelyn Stark (Michelle Fairley), Arya never expressed as much interest in becoming a "lady" as her older sister, Sansa (Sophie Turner). After her older half brother, Jon Snow (Kit Harington), gifts her with her own sword, which she names Needle, Ned hires Syrio Forel (Miltos Yerolemou) to serve as Arya's "dancing master," teaching her how to fight with the weapon and setting her on a new path.
Arya's journey throughout the series takes her all throughout Westeros, even across the Narrow Sea to Braavos. She has become famous for her "kill list," which she would recite to herself every night, reminding her of those who have wronged her. These five victims make for some of Arya's most satisfying and coolest kills in the entire show, some of whom aren't even named on her iconic list.
5. Walder Frey
Walder Frey (David Bradley) had been sitting pretty ever since the infamous Red Wedding, where he, along with Roose Bolton (Michael McElhatton) and Tywin Lannister (Charles Dance), orchestrated the massacre of Robb Stark (Richard Madden) and his forces. Later, after the death of Brynden "The Blackfish" Tully (Clive Russell), all members of the once noble House Tully are either dead or imprisoned, allowing Walder to reign over the Riverlands uncontested.
As Walder celebrates the Blackfish's defeat, a serving girl brings him some pies. When he asks where his sons are, she ominously responds that they are right here. At this moment, Arya reveals that she had been using her newly acquired face shifting abilities to pose as a serving girl, and that she'd killed Walder's sons, cooked them into a pie, and fed them to him. She then slits his throat, avenging the Red Wedding at long last.
4. Polliver
Polliver (Andy Kellegher), a Lannister man-at-arms, had been a staple of Arya's kill list ever since season 2. When the Lannister soldiers attack Arya and her travel companions on their way to the Wall, Polliver steals Needle. After seeing that one of Arya's friends, Lommy Greenhands (Eros Vlahos), has been injured, he casually sticks Needle through his throat, killing him to avoid having to deal with traveling with a wounded prisoner.
Arya encounters Polliver once again in season 4, during her travels with Sandor "The Hound" Clegane (Rory McCann). He does not recognize her this time around, and after a fight breaks out, Arya takes back Needle and kills him with it. As icing on the cake, Arya repeats the exact same phrases that Polliver used when taking Needle and killing Lommy, with Polliver only recognizing his former dialogue in his last moments.
3. Meryn Trant
While training to be a Faceless Man in Braavos, Arya encounters her old enemy, Ser Meryn Trant (Ian Beattie), a member of the Kingsguard who killed her dancing master, Syrio Forel. Arya follows Meryn into a Braavosi brothel, discovering his fondness for abusing young girls. Arya then abandons the mission the Faceless Men have sent her on in order to pose as one of Meryn's victims, only to reveal herself and brutally kill him.
Unfortunately, Meryn's death resulted in some harsh consequences for Arya. After Jaqen H'ghar (Tom Wlaschiha) discovers that she abandoned her mission to seek personal vengeance, he determines that she is not ready to abandon Arya Stark and become a Faceless assassin. Arya then magically loses her sight as punishment for defying the Many Faced God.
2. House Frey
As previously described, Arya kills Walder Frey in the season 6 finale, "The Winds of Winter." As such, many fans were confused to see David Bradley back for the opening of season 7, "Dragonstone." Bradley kicks off the season reprising his role as Walder, presiding over a feast for all the members of House Frey who helped orchestrate the Red Wedding.
However, as Walder addresses his family, it becomes clear that something is amiss. As the rest of the Freys begin to choke on their wine, Arya unmasks herself, revealing that she had stolen Walder's face in order to pose as him to poison and decimate his house, sparing only his young wife, Kitty Frey (Lucy Hayes), who was not involved in the Red Wedding. As of this moment, Arya has killed all of the Red Wedding's last surviving perpetrators, allowing her brother and mother to finally rest in peace.
1. The Night King
Arya's biggest kill takes place during the Battle of Winterfell. As the Night King (Vladimir Furdik), the leader of the undead forces, prepares to kill Bran (Isaac Hempstead-Wright), Arya jumps from the shadows towards him. Although he grabs her by the throat, she drops her dagger, catching it in her other hand, and stabs the Night King, killing him and the rest of the wights and white walkers he brought to life, all while using the same move she first demonstrated while sparring against Brienne of Tarth (Gwendoline Christie).
While this scene proved to be controversial among fans, many of whom hoped Jon Snow would be the one to take out the Night King, it ultimately makes sense that Arya would deliver the killing blow against a manifestation of a death God given the trajectory of her story. It would have been nice to see a fight between Jon, or anyone, and the Night King before Arya kills him, or for the undead to have a larger impact before his demise, but the collective sigh of relief among viewers worldwide when Arya landed the killing blow remains unmatched. Out of Arya's many kills on Game of Thrones, her final showdown against the undead stands out as her best.
For more from the world of Westeros, make sure to stream House of the Dragon season 3 on HBO Max.
Add us as a preferred source on Google