'Game of Thrones': An ode to Melisandre, the most misunderstood woman of Westeros
Battle of Winterfell, which was the primary focus of season 8 episode 3 of 'Game of Thrones,' saw many heroes rise to the occasion - among them, the most unlikely was Melissandre (Carice van Houten). The Red Woman has been called many names and has been accused of many crimes over the last eight seasons, and in all fairness, rightfully so. However, she is so much more than just the rumors about her - she is a survivor, a fighter and possibly the most important reason the army of the living endured long enough to survive the Long Night.
She lit the swords of the army of Dothrakis on fire - which did not amount to much - lit the trench on fire - which kept the army of the dead away from Winterfell for a while - and basically reminded Arya Stark (Maisie Williams) that she is the badass who is destined to kill the Night King (Vladimir Furdik). If it weren't for her, there is a very high possibility that the results of the war would have been different, but she rarely credits for her badassery.
And when the war was won, she walked into oblivion without so much as a look back at the world she is leaving behind, confirming she knew exactly who she was, what she was meant to be, and served her purpose until the very last seconds of her life.
She even spared Ser Davos (Liam Cunningham) - who vowed to kill her if he saw her again - the inconvenience of executing her, telling him she will not live to see the dawn after the war and keeping her promise. She removed the necklace that gave her eternal youth and walked into the snow.
In many ways, she was the most idealistic character on the show. She has sided with the wrong "heir to the throne" many times over, but every single time she served her god with unabashed faith and did whatever it took to get things done. She did not shy away from birthing a demon child, murdering an innocent one, or even resurrecting Jon Snow (Kit Harrington) from the dead. In fact, if you look back on the eight seasons, she always swooped in at the right moment, did her thing and vanished.
She always knew what her purpose was, even if she sided with the "wrong" people on many occasions. If she hadn't resurrected Jon Snow, there would be no unity in North. If she hadn't asked Arya the most pertinent question - "What do we say to the god of death?" - Arya wouldn't have found the right answer - "Not today."
Despite your opinions regarding the Red Woman, she proved her worth in 'The Long Night.' She not only proved that she was way more powerful than we gave her credit for, but she also saved the day for the living.
In our eyes, that is a hero!
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