Arya Stark Winterfell Kill Explained, How It Worked - Refinery29

Skip navigation!ADVERTISEMENTStory from TV ShowsADVERTISEMENTStop Saying Arya Stark Isn't Worthy Of Her Battle Of Winterfell MomentAriana RomeroApril 29, 2019, 4:00 PM Photo: Courtesy of HBO.Warning: Major spoilers ahead for Game of Thrones’ “The Long Night.”Look, I will admit it. For a few years there, Arya Stark (Maisie Williams) was my least favorite Game of Thrones character. Although her murder school trip to Braavos started out as a fun adventure, it soured quickly. GoT is a show where fatal injuries matter — ask Jon Snow (Kit Harington). Getting repeatedly stabbed by the Waif (Faye Marsay) and tossed into dirty city water during season 6 should have killed Arya. Instead she was back to fighting shape an episode later. And, don’t get me started on her early season 7, deeply unhinged rivalry with big sister Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner).AdvertisementADVERTISEMENTBut none of that really matters now. Arya Stark killed the Night King (Vladimir Furdik). Arya “Stick ‘Em With The Pointy End” Stark saved humanity from endless night and the erasure of all memory by stabbing the Night King with the Valyrian steel catspaw dagger. She has officially cemented her place as one of television’s greatest characters of all time. Despite some unfortunate twists and turns, Winterfell’s youngest daughter deserves her big win.The most obvious reason we owe Arya endless “Long Night” respect comes down to her tireless performance fighting the Army of the Dead. She opens up the episode strong, urging Sansa to swallow her sense of duty and head into the crypts of Winterfell for her own safety. Like Tyrion Lannister (Peter Dinklage), Sansa is valuable for her political mind, not her fighting skills. Through a shocking amount of empathy, Arya saves her sister’s life and, likely, the future of House Stark. We’re a long way away from Arya threatening to wear Sansa’s face like a hat.

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Then, once the fighting begins, Arya revels in her unmatched fighting expertise, which is something she has studied for years like a ballerina destined for Lincoln Center. First, there was water dancing with Syrio Forel (Miltos Yerolemou) in season 1. Then she essentially took a brawling internship with Sandor “The Hound” Clegane (Rory McCann) and Brienne of Tarth (Gwendoline Christie). Then, of course, Arya finished her studies in Braavos at the House of Black and White, learning to give the gift of death from the greatest assassins of all time, the Faceless Men. In between all of this stabbing and stick-hitting, Arya even managed to sit at the feet of Tywin Lannister (Charles Dance), secretly learning strategy from one of Westeros’ greatest generals in history (remember that season long stop in Harrenhal?).AdvertisementADVERTISEMENTArya — who opened Thrones' integral final season, further signifying her importance — was literally made for killing the Night King. Not by destiny or some ancient prophecy — but by sheer relentless hard work. She proves as much during the “Long Night,” spending the Battle of Winterfell showing off each of the skills she obtained since her first fighting lesson in King's Landing. Jon and Daenerys Tagaryen (Emilia Clarke) dragon battle in the darkest scene known to man may have gotten all the hype, but Arya is the one who really put in work during the episode. She rolled over hordes of undead, jumped off of multiple roofs, and still kept going despite a very obvious concussion. She's the reason The Hound got back into the battle and saved lives.

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And, in Arya's most important move, she actually made it to the godswood to save big brother Bran Stark (Isaac Hempstead-Wright) and kill the Night King. Jon, Thrones’ alleged greatest hero, noticeably did not. Poor Dany, queen of Westeros, was stuck dragonless on the Winterfell field, watching her closest friend Jorah (Iain Glen) die.Arya’s big savior moment is a nice callback to two major GoT moments over the last eight seasons. The first is a nod towards Arya’s very first Thrones scene, where Bran fails to exhibit any archery skills in front of Stark patriarch Ned (Sean Bean). Arya, on the other hand, emerges to perfectly hit the mark Bran couldn’t. Now, 70 episodes later, Arya is showing off her fighting skills in the walls of Winterfell when Bran is unable. Then there’s the fact that Arya’s use of the catspaw dagger wraps up the lengthy journey of the weapon, which, Reddit points out, is a historic item. When we first saw it, it was used to nearly kill Bran Stark. With “Long Night,” Bran’s sibling uses it to save his life and the future of humanity.Again, all of this happened while Jon Snow played hide-and-seek with an ice dragon. No wonder Melissandre (Carice van Houten) predicted years ago that it would be Arya Stark who closed a certain strain of deadly blue eyes forever. AdvertisementADVERTISEMENT EntertainmentIs A Scandal Spinoff *Really* Happening? Tyriq Withers & K...A Scandal spin-off series may not be happening yet, and for now only exists in the imaginations of super fans missing the Shonda Rhimes’ show, but Kerry by Taryn FinleyEntertainmentEverything We Know About Forever Season 2Sometimes you discover a show and feel a cosmic connection to it. For me, that’s Netflix’s surprise hit series, Forever. And turns out, I’m not aby Giana LevyEntertainmentEverything We Know About XO, Kitty Season 3We’re returning to KISS! The much-anticipated third season of XO, Kitty is just around the corner, with the gang heading back to the Korean Independeby Rachel ChoyAdvertisementADVERTISEMENTBest of NetflixJisoo Says Blackpink Are Dying To Watch Her New Netflix Show B...Korean drama is having a moment. From Squid Game to Letterboxd’s highest-rated 2025 miniseries When Life Gives You Tangerines, there are millions by Rachel ChoyEntertainmentYerin Ha & Luke Thompson Break Down The Bridgerton Bathtub...Spoilers ahead. Bridgerton viewers have been eagerly awaiting the conclusion of Season 4, with book fans getting prepared for that bathtub scene (IYKYK). Aby Rachel ChoyEntertainmentCatherine O’Hara’s Actor Awards Win Reminds Us Why We Need To Cel...Chances are that if you know comedy, you know Catherine O’Hara. The Canadian actress and comedian built a decades-long career on bringing love, joy, — by Katherine SinghEntertainmentAfter Watching Love Is Blind Season 10, Maybe Loneliness I...One of the most popular topics of discussion on the internet is the “Male Loneliness Epidemic.” Many refer to it as the reason we have  by Dawnie JeffersonEntertainment“They’re Both Fucked Up”: Dove Cameron & Avan J...Spoilers ahead: There’s a moment in 56 Days when the show’s central con is revealed: Ciara (Dove Cameron) didn’t meet Oliver (Avan Jogia) by chance aby Kriti GuptaEntertainmentThe Pitt’s Shabana Azeez Says One Random Act Of Kind...When The Pitt’s Shabana Azeez talks about her career, she traces it back to a single, almost accidental moment of kindness that allowed her to folloby Alisa BittnerEntertainmentJust Announced: Kerry Washington & Elle Fanning Lead Apple TVR...In a sea of steamers, so-called TV slop, and endless options, Apple TV has quietly emerged as the service that provides quality over quantity. When other sby Kathleen Newman-B...EntertainmentIn Wonder Man Yahya Abdul-Mateen II Perfectly Captures The...Mere minutes into Wonder Man, I had to take a break from the series. Not because it wasn’t good — it’s great — but because I saw so much of myself by Kathleen Newman-B...EntertainmentKiernan Shipka Is All Grown Up And Ready To Redefine Herself With...In some ways, it’s felt like we’ve grown up alongside Kiernan Shipka. She had her first role as a baby on TV at just five months old on ER, befby Rachel ChoyAdvertisementADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENT