[Spoilers for Game Of Thrones season 8, episode 4.]
Last night’s episode of Game Of Thrones wanted us to question the heroism of Daenerys Targaryen, a character long assumed to be one of the few truly virtuous people with a shot at ruling Westeros. Instead, Jon Snow was the one who ended up looking like an unstable monster when he unceremoniously ditched his direwolf buddy, Ghost, before riding off to war.
The scene, which was just one small part of Jon saying goodbye to a bunch of human characters (all less important than Ghost), might’ve come and gone too quickly for the show to wring real drama from it, but Twitter, which never lets a cute dog or cat go unnoticed, has been wallowing in misery ever since.
Because Jon—who should definitely be the next character to meet a gruesome end as punishment for his crimes—wouldn’t say goodbye with the level of respect owed to such a faithful companion, others have been doing it on behalf of the show.
There are many different reasons to be upset by what happened. Ghost, a giant albino wolf, is much cooler than stupid dragons and thus far more deserving of Thrones’ CGI budget; the send-off could at least have been tearfully protracted enough to serve as a fond farewell for a cast member beloved by any viewer with a soul; and, most of all, Jon should have been chastised for treating his supposed best bud like he’s disposable.
Sure, Jon leaving his wounded direwolf pal behind is meant to show him fully embracing his newly discovered Targaryen heritage at the expense of his Stark roots. That doesn’t mean he isn’t a total asshole, though.
Even worse, now that the show is dividing its characters’ loyalties between an increasingly authoritarian Daenerys and the kind of guy who does the medieval fantasy equivalent of throwing a stick into the woods and peeling out in his car, Game Of Thrones’ ending appears too grim to bear at all. The realm, it seems, will be ruled by either a tyrant or a bad wolf dad. Both are equally horrible prospects.
Send Great Job, Internet tips to [email protected]
120 Comments
I was also extremely upset they could at least have Jon giving Ghost a freaking hug or a “good dog” pat on the head. FFS are they that low in the CGI budget or whatever.
I would have been happy with the old tearful “Go on, get out of here” dog break up speech.
Honestly just a “you fought bravely and this isn’t your fight so go live happily in the north and do your thing i love you” would have been perfect and used no more money. I hate these showrunners lol
Just realized I actually hope Ghost kills Jon oh well lmao
exactly. like they couldn’t have even ‘white fang’-ed him?
Ghost is a real dog. The CGI is to make him bigger or when he’s in fights and whatnot. They could have had Jon pet the actual dog.
Yeah, I think this was a lack of imagination on the part of the director – or just not realizing how attached fans are to Ghost, and the wasted opportunity for something more emotional. You could have a static prop Ghost noggin to show the back of in a reverse shot facing Jon snow, while he at least gives a little scruff. Maybe they tried something and it just didn’t work in the editing room.Another possibility is that they’re purposefully playing up that Jon is becoming enamored with the idea of being royalty, and is losing touch with who his true family is. He couldn’t keep his mouth shut about being Aegon, not because he hates keeping secrets from family, but because he wants it. I don’t the show has really leaned into this narrative enough to make me think it’s intentional (to fit, he should have been more dismissive of Tormund, Sam and Gilly), but there are some hints of it.
Has it occured to you that maybe they’re having Jon do things to make him less sympathetic and likeable, because they don’t want him to look as good as Dany, or are going to kill him off? Which he deserves, imo, because he was mean to Ghost and a bad example to any asshole who just wants to dump their dog.
Whats really stupid is not only do they not realize how attached fans are to the wolf, they don’t seem to care that Jon is attached to the wolf. In the book and in the early seasons Jon and Ghost are pretty much inseparable.
Wait, he’s a REAL dog? Oh that makes this so much worse. I’ve always read about the CGI excuse and wondered why they didn’t just use a husky or some other dog that looks similar to a wolf. Or I assume they just use a domesticated trained wolf. I mean its a direwolf, an extent creature so you can take some liberties with its appearance. You can fix up a real dog to the point where its close enough. If they were worried about having to CGI Ghost’s size up, just have a shot zoomed in on Ghost’s face as Jon pats him.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/ghost-wolf-death-hoax-1.4130387Yup.
Yeah, they could have found the money. We have movies with talking Racoons and big giant purple grimace dudes. Jon could have petted a direwolf
Well actually a real wolf.
fuxsake, they coulda had him pet and ikea rug and had the foley add a few whimper fx … how goddamn hard is that?
Kit Harrington is so small they wouldn’t even need any camera trickery.
Not a dog, dude. Wolf.
Edit:
I was also extremely upset they could at least have Jon giving Ghost a freaking hug or a “good wolf” pat on the head. FFS are they that low in the CGI budget or whatever.
There you go. Still, he gave him a look and who knows if they didn’t bond off-screen anyway.
It was either this or death by Euron’s Magic Stealth Fleet.They clearly are contriving ways to get rid of as many of the CGI animals as they can. At least we still have Nymeria’s Wolf Army.
Shit, THAT’S where Ghost should end up. “Hi, room for another wolf here? Turns out Jon’s an incest-loving douchecanoe and I could use better company. Oooooh, is that mutton?”
I was not previously aware I could hate show Euron even more than I hate book Euron, but here we are.
How did they not have scouts ahead of the fleet? Euron literally was sitting behind a bend.
at least book euron had some magic-y stuff going on. this guy’s just a fuck wit.
Ghost gets ghosted. Couldn’t possibly have just let him stay at Winterfell, which is plenty northern-y for a wolf. This guy gets more douchey every week.
It’s not like he has TWO SIBLINGS AT WINTERFELL to take care of Ghost, jesus christ Jon
Both of whom lost their wolves, by the way, and would likely love to care for another.
All three of them lost their wolves.
I was kinda referring to the two siblings who are not confined to a wheelchair and could conceivably care for a direwolf, and, as humans and not Three-Eyed Ravens, could get some pleasure from it (this assumes, of course, that Jon did not know at this point that Arya was leaving Winterfell to go on her kill-Cersei field trip).
Bran is still hanging out with his dead dire wolf. He was playing fetch with him during the battle last episode.
Three siblings. Yeah, I get it, Bran isn’t Bran or whatever, but still… three.
No–two siblings. Arya’s left Winterfell.
And Arya’s direwolf (Nymeria) isn’t dead. She just ran off.
None of the other Starks have great track records taking care of their pets though.
yeah, but it’s not like Bran is gonna take Ghost out for long walks …
Ghost’s mother literally died to provide her litter a better life south of the Wall. Jon doesn’t think his pet prefers sleeping indoors, like every dog on the face of Earthos?
Ghost is a direwolf, not a domesticated dog.
Right???
‘Earthos’ made me chuckle.
For what it’s worth, my golden retriever actually likes sleeping outside if it’s above freezing. I have a condo and he’ll basically sleep on the balcony every night if I leave the door open.
Tormund said he was heading north of the wall after the winter storms. But winter lasts YEARS in that world.
I’m kinda excited to see Tormund attempting to pick up ladies at the dog park.
“HBO presents the following original series, Game of Bones.”
Nice double entendre.
You could say Ghost, (•_•) ( •_•)>⌐■-■ (⌐■_■)got Ghosted.YEEEEAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!
It has to be a function of budget and the apparently insane logistics involved in using Ghost. I guess its an absolute mess using that wolf.
Couldn’t they have just had Ghost die valiantly in episode 3 tho? Like why even bring him back just to be discarded? Jon sucks.
I don’t know. The writing is all over the place.
Because if they killed Ghost, then Tormond won’t send Jon a raven letting him know how Ghost ran away. Then Ghost “Incredible Journeys” Jon and follows him south, and MacGuffins him out of whatever impending battle happens, dying in *that* process.
TBH that better not happen. Jon doesn’t deserve Ghost. Ghost needs to go be his own direwolf.
I hope not. Jon really doesn’t deserve even a Six Million Dollar Man ending.
I gotta a bad feeling about Ghost going to that fun, wild open space up north … kinda like my old dogs always went to that fun, wild open farm up on the north part of the state. It was always too far for my parents to drive to let me see my old pups …
No one important could die in episode 3. Everyone had to stay alive so they could die in a much less satisfying way and for no reason.
Makes me think he may still have a role left to play in this. Maybe ripping the last dragons throat out when Dany goes all mad
It’s more of a mess if characters have to interact with him apparently. I’m not convinced it’s the last we’ll see of him if only because a part of me very much sees Jon surviving and just going off to live like a Wildling with his buddies and Ghost. Leave everyone to their throne and such, and just disappearing.
I think they’re making him less likeable so no one’s miffed he isn’t king gg thrones, or whatever. They arent exactly subtle, those writers. They’re trying to jack characters around to fit into their vision thats rolling out in only 6 episodes. I think your average viewer is more connected to the wolves, than they are the dragons, but whatevers.
maybe. i think jon will die, probably killing dany. but a close second is him pulling a mance.
is budget the same reason Dany showed up at the King’s Landing gate with what looked like same number of dudes as a Tuesday night bowling league? Damn … that was NOT intimidating in the least
In a deleted scene, Dany passive-aggressively reveals to Jon that it’s no big deal, but she’s actually allergic to dog hair, but of course he can keep Ghost around if he wants. Also, doesn’t he think his old cronies Sam and Tormund are holding him back?In the final episode, after the breakup, Jon will be reunited with them all in a moving montage set to Puddle of Mudd’s ‘She Hates Me’.
ummm…you know that is more or less the plot of this season, right? Jon’s going to bro out north of the wall (“You don’t know NADA , John bro!”) in a giant man-cave that’s a cave. Then Tormund gets on a dating show, and Sam starts selling sneakers, and they only ever refer to Gilly as “Sam’s Wife” for seven seasons and think it’s hilarious.
“No, no, no. You don’t understand Jon. I love your friends and would never want to come between you guys but this thing between us is new and maybe you just need a little space from them. Plus that Sam guy kinda keeps giving me a creepy look. And I love Ghost, he is such a good boy. But you know dragons and direwolves don’t get along and well we already have a dragon roost at the house but don’t really have a spot for that wolf crate.”
Jon: well, aktually Dany … seeing as how we lost an ice dragon and then ‘nother is fish food in Dragonstone Bay I think we got room from Ghost …
I kind of hope that after the breakup, Jon gets a new direwolf, grows a ponytail, goes north of the wall, buys a Trans-Am and always awkwardly shows up to the Castle Black parties even though he quit after they stabbed him.
Isn’t it obvious that this is setting up the thrilling conclusion to GoT? A scorned Ghost wanders off, angry, bitter, rejected. He eventually channels that fire and fury into a single-minded goal. He tracks down Nymeria’s wolf army, and after the humans have stupidly wasted their resources fighting each other, the wolves lay siege to Kings Landing, destroying everything in sight. After ripping Jon’s throat out in a heartbreaking scene, Ghost curls up in the Iron Throne. So begins the Age of the Wolf.
Ghost was Azor Ahai all along
This is 100% better than what I suspect the writers have cooked up.
Would sign off on this 100,000%
Me: Man, that Cersei, she’s so eeeevil.Jon: Raised him from a pup and he loves me more than life itself, but witches before bitches, amirite? (Is that how it goes? Anyway, fuck dogs. I’m gettin’ some kittay-kittay-kittay, if you know what I mean. *wink wink nudge nudge*)
Dany: KILL EVERYBODY I WANT THE THRONE
Me: Ohai Cersei, please win.
I can imagine this conversation:“Just a nod, really? People are going to be PISSED if Jon doesn’t at least oet his wolf as he leaves.”“Yeah, but that’s gonna cost us 50 grand for one shot.”“A nod it is.”
At least make it an emotional nod!
Throw us a (literal) damn bone!
Hell, for the first few episodes, it felt like Ghost was just this hallucination on the part of the audience. He’d be hanging out in a scene and NO ONE WOULD EVEN ACKNOWLEDGE HIS PRESENCE. No one on this show is good enough for Ghost.
counterpoint, this show wasn’t good enough for any of the direwolves.
I can’t really argue with that conclusion.
And then the dragon that i nominally his dies in an inexplicable sneak attack. Suffice to say that the kingdom-ruling capabilities of both Jon and Dany don’t look great given how badly they take care of their magical pets.
I feel like Ghost should have been bigger. Nymeria was way bigger than Ghost, or so it seemed.
Lucky he’s going with Tormund then; Ghost’ll go through a hell of a growth spurt once he gets hooked up with a decent supply of giant’s milk.
The show has always had issues with depicting the direwolves. You can read about the real wolves who used to travel then didn’t and the actors who traveled to them and then didn’t, the attempts at CGI, etc. The production complications definitely seem to have impacted the the writing of the characters. That aside, they never had the same importance nor were ever really implied to be as large or powerful as they are in the books.
In that screen cap above I’m pretty sure he was in front of miniature props, which were meant to make him look bigger (and that this is also why he was alone in the frame). The show alternates between a real dog and a CGI model depending on what they can get away with. When he’s CGI he tends to be a giant, as intended. When he’s a real pup, he can only be so big, and they’re using camera tricks to try to make him look bigger.
They’ve never used CGI models for the direwolves in this show. They’re always real, trained wolves filmed against greenscreen and then transported to the scene in enlarged size.
Ghost was the runt of the litter. They didn’t even see him at first and Jon wasn’t going to get a wolf until he found him.
Ghost was the runt of the litter so it wouldn’t be surprising if he’s not Nymeria-sized.
Ghost was the runt of the litter though, he may very well have always been the smallest of them
I was gonna say the same. Ghost just looks like a regular sized dog there?
Ghost was the runt of the litter.
After all the treats he brought Jon, too: https://a.loudgif.com/2WwYUy0
It wasn’t great of him sending Ghost in with the stupidly doomed light cavalry frontal night assault either.
Jon: My new apartment doesn’t allow pets so…
he just threw away Ghost like yesterday’s garbage, but now the show has more money for CGI Dragons……………oh wait…….
Direwolf, not dog. No domestication. No training. May not like being touched all that much. As example a hug is not a sign of affection to a dog, despite what people believe. It’s a sign of dominance. And Jon doesn’t see Ghost as a pet.
he doesn’t see him as a pet but how does that obviate all emotion on jon’s part?
Jon hates the mutt obviously. He’s not sending the wolf beyond the wall to be safe and free to do as it pleases. He’s just tired of forcing other people to take care the beast. That’s the point. It wasn’t just poor planning by the show. It’s because Jon hasn’t liked or wanted much to do with the damn animal. Look back throughout the series he’s always leaving Ghost behind or locked up. It’s why fans are always asking where Ghost is. Jon hates Ghost. That’s why he wouldn’t hug the doggy bye bye.
Jon is pretty shitty at everything, speaking of Mary Sues.
Yeah I’d be lying if I said that didn’t make me so angry that I am considering blowing off the last two episodes of this rapidly worsening show. Partly because Ghost was in my personal top 10 of remaining characters I wanted to see live, and partially because I feel like Tormond leaving and Ghost leaving is due to lazy writing. Ghost has been an afterthought for quite a while now. Not to mention Jon Snow has been insanely loyal to a fault this entire show and now he’s going to blow off his probably closest pal who saved his life on more than one occasion? Riiiiiight, totally out of character for a guy that didn’t take what he always wanted (title of Jon Stark) out of loyalty to the Watch.On that note, I don’t believe Ghost actually listens to Jon, he’s a Dire Wolf. When things get dire, he wolfs. What’s to stop him from heading South? Tormund isn’t going to chase him through the woods or something. I weep for what this show has become and what it could have been if the writers weren’t garbage.
I dunno. Pretty clear GOT is scrambling to set up that “Han comes back to save the day” moment with Ghost with 2 episodes to go. It would be the go-to cliche to deploy at this point.
My guess is, they’ve tried doing character interactions with these direwolves and it just looks bananas-level ridiculous every time. And not in a “hopping on a dragon” kind of ridiculous, where we all immediately turn our brain off because we know dragons aren’t real. It has to be more of an uncanny valley thing, where we are simply so used to dogs being in our world that to see anyone physically interact with a large one simply looks ridiculous.Or no one gave a shit? Insert Starbucks joke here
Real direwolves were only 25% larger than grey wolves. 150lbs approx. And they’ve already had the characters standing next to them. They’re just greedy fucks who want to keep as much money for themselves, as possible.
cmon, it wasn’t even a real wolf, friggin animal lovers…
.
Found the sociopath.
found a person who calls pets ‘fur babies’.
Jon Snow is a flipping dweeb.
Ghost waiting for Jon to come get him…
Anyone complaining about this scene just shows that they’ve never had a dog in their lives, including you Reid McCarter, and you’ve certainly never had to say goodbye to it. Because every dog owner will know how painful it is to say goodbye to your furry companion. His action was not him being an asshole, it was him being too scared to experience the sadness of saying goodbye. It’s a perfect human thing to want to avod pain. Stop complaining about this already, ffs.
Don’t worry. Jon will be back up north soon.
Stop projecting. Ghost is a wolf, a fantastical ‘direwolf,’ even. He’s not your “doggo” or “pupper” or whatever else you are projecting so very hard onto the television screen. And all the domesticating has done to the other direwolves (again, not dogs) is led to their demise. Nymeria- goes back to the wild. Lives, has direwolf pups. If anything, it’s good that Jon is letting his WILD direwolf (again, not a dog) go back to the wilderness, where, presumably based on the lore of direwolves (and what he have seen via Nymeria), is the most appropriate place for him to survive and live out his days.
from what i’ve read, the anger isn’t so much that ghost is going north. the anger is in HOW ghost ends up going north. direwolves are different than dogs but that doesn’t mean jon isn’t still human. people are complaining because jon seems utterly indifferent to ghost going with the wildlings.
He seemed resigned. He’s not a weepy sort. And he may have said goodbye off-screen. Amazed this has gotten this much coverage. I blame binge-watching. Ghost hasn’t played an actual role in years.
That “wild” wolf was at his damn heel for seven seasons you heartless Kryptonian.
“Daenerys Targaryen, a character long assumed to be one of the few truly virtuous people with a shot at ruling Westeros” those who think she’s virtuous have some type of cognitive deficit. she’s been shown to be not that over, and over and over again.
How are the wildlings going to feed themselves going north when there is no food supply? I would think that anything to eat was wiped out by the Night King. In any event, Jon disposing of Ghost was just cruel and stupid. He better reconsider quick before the wildlings eat Ghost.
Mayne Jon just didn’t recognize him because he went from being about 7′ tall to merely “big dog” sized in his time offscreen. (Ahem)
Ghost: “You’re dead to me. Again.”
THIS is what good Wolf Parents look like.
Writer: So here Jon says an emotional goodbye to Ghost by-
HBO: TITS TITS!!!Writer: Umm…I’m sorry?HBO: MORE TITS!!! MORE TITS!!! Writer: But tits wouldn’t fit-HBO: Cut it then and then throw in some TITS!!! Writer: Jon sort of nods at Ghost and leavesHBO: Better.
much as i’m a ghostie, i have to admit i love the name “shaggydog” more. and of course, ser pounce.
Oh man if the last episode ended with Ser Pounce and Ghost sharing the throne, I would die happy
Unpopular opinion, but I think that this will somehow end up working out better for Ghost and Jon when things are eventually sorted out. I just sense that this dickish move won’t be left as is and that Ghost was just sort of given away to never be seen again. Unless Jon goes total heel, this won’t stand and I think that it was only a plot development to wring out more emotions, especially seeing how beloved dogs/wolves are. I’m betting that it will be a very good reunion and that it will all make sense before the final credits roll. And if I’m wrong, then screw Jon for dumping his loyal pal, but I’m not jumping onto the dog/wolfpile of hate for this…yet.
I’ve always found it odd how every “GoT in X minutes” recap starts with Ned Stark finding a dead direwolf and giving her puppies to each of his children. Looking back, the direwolves have been as essential to the plot as the Sand Snakes, if not less.