'Game of Thrones' has proved love is not everyone's cup of tea, especially when you are perfect with war and bloodshed
'Game of Thrones' is at its base a show extremely well-made. It has remained almost true to the original source, George R.R.Martin's 'A Song of Ice and Fire', with a few variations here and there. While on one hand, the show is celebrated for its raw execution of violence and power, on the other hand, it has given us some of the most cringe-worthy romantic scenes on television. Even when Season 8 arrived and we finally saw Jon Snow (Kit Harington) ride a dragon, we couldn't help but feel a little uncomfortable at his romance with Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke) right before the Great War.
The couples on the show have more often than not served a purpose far bigger than just a whirlwind romance in the story, and most of the times the so-called love between the characters were nothing less than negotiations. While some couples managed to gain our attention because of their offbeat romance, others who were a little more inclined to the intimate gestures quickly repelled the audience making them never want to see love on screen again. As we have already mentioned, watching the King in the North and the Mother of Dragons romance their way into a battlefield made us shrug and maybe, that is why 'Game of Thrones' should keep its hands off romantic scenes as much as it should get itself warmly wrapped in violence and bloodshed.
The cringe fest began when Tommen (Dean-Charles Chapman), the youngest son of Cersei and Jaime Lannister, took Margaery Tyrell's (Natalie Dormer) hand in marriage. Although for Margaery it was just another way of fitting her butt into the Queen's seat until she got the throne, Tommen was completely head-over-heels for an adult woman who actually took away his flower. In a similar way, Cersei's sudden hooking up with cousin Lancel (Eugene Simon) left us on the verge of shutting our eyes and hoping it would all get over very soon. Cersei's incestuous relationship with Jaime has surprisingly touched our heart due to its faithful portrayal, on the other hand, her thirst for the Lannister male flesh became awkward to watch when she suddenly went to bed with Lancel. Unfortunately, Lancel was one of the first victims in Cersei's grand scheme to burn down the sept.
Following the similar misfitting showcase of love, it was equally unsettling to watch Ramsay Bolton (Iwan Rheon) claim love over a dead body. Although he and Myranda (Charlotte Hope), the kennel master's daughter were a match made in heaven for their undivided love for gore and violence, Ramsay's last words to her, "Your pain will be paid for a thousand times over. I wish you could be here to watch" were an absolute mismatch to the character. Thankfully within a fraction of a second, he returns to his blood-thirsty self, when Ramsay coldly ordered for her remains to be fed to the hounds as he did not want to waste "good meat".
However, none of these can perhaps surpass Melisandre's (Carice van Houten) obsession with Stannis Baratheon (Stephen Dillane), whom she had initially imagined to be the rightful heir to the Iron Throne. Their relationship was nothing less than incessant acts of adultery caused under the watchful realization of Stannis' wife, Selyse (Sarah MacKeever), who quietly stood aside as her husband devoted himself to the Red Woman. Melisandre and Stannis ultimately share an intimate physical moment and as we know the consequence of it was poor Renly Baratheon (Gethin Anthony) being killed by a strange shadow which was supposed to be the love child of Stannis and Melisandre.
Although Season 8 started off with yet another portrayal of love in the time of warfare, as we saw Jon and Daenerys flying away with Drogon and Rhaegal, we are hopeful that the King in the North will perhaps retreat now that he knows he has been sleeping with his aunt. Moreover, their relationship seems a little unstable as Daenerys cannot get over the fact that she is the "Queen" which she never fails to mention to Jon. In such unequal circumstances no love can ever thrive and yet, it will be interesting to watch where their love ends once the truth about Jon's parentage reaches the Mother of Dragons. 'Game of Thrones' Season 8 Episode 2 returns to HBO on April 21.