Wednesday brought us the first actual footage from Game of Thrones's hugely-anticipated seventh season — and lets just say we're pretty bloody excited for Winter to arrive.
Anyone concerned that this penultimate run would be a dull set-up for the big fireworks conclusion in 2018 can breathe a sigh of relief: war isn't coming to the Seven Kingdoms any longer, it's here.
With the final Battle of Ice and Fire looming, let's take a look at seven key moments from Wednesday's trailer that point to shattered alliances, full-on invasions and the coming of the White Walkers:
1. What's Melisandre up to now?
At the mid-point in season six, life was looking pretty sweet for the Red Woman. She'd resurrected Jon Snow against all odds, and was confident she'd finally backed the right horse in the War to end all Wars. However, her alliance with Jon Snow fell apart rapidly when Ser Davos dropped the bombshell that Melisandre had burned Stannis's young daughter Shireen at the stake in a last-ditch gambit to help defeat the Boltons. As we all know, Stannis ended up on the receiving end of Brienne's sword anyway. Unfortunate that.
Jon Snow was understandably outraged at Melisandre's pure act of cruelty, and banished her from Winterfell on fear of death if she ever returned. Here, Melisandre is shown looking sorrowful on a cliff overlooking the seaside — signifying pretty plainly that she's a long way from Winterfell. But what's her next move?
Perhaps she'll try to use her mystical powers once more to win back Jon's trust somehow, or maybe she's on the lookout for another House of Westeros to align with? Cersei Lannister, for example, probably isn't the Prince That Was Promised, but maybe she's the Queen That Was Promised…
2. A deadly kiss?
Game of Thrones fans love to pair Yara Greyjoy (Gemma Whelan) with the ladies of Westeros, and, probably because who takes no shit from the bigger Houses making her a pretty badass catch.
However, we're slightly nervous about one trailer shot in which she appears to make out with Ellaria Sand (Indira Varma). On its face, that's not such a bad pairing — especially because Ellaria has probably been lonely ever since her beloved Red Viper was literally squashed by The Mountain.
But are Ellaria's motivations pure? We've seen the Sand Snakes use their poisonous lipstick to bring Jaime Lannister to his knees and even kill poor Myrcella Lannister. If Ellaria has laced those puckered lips of hers, it might be curtains for Yara. Knowing Game of Thrones that's more likely than a happy ending, especially if they happen to be at wedding...
3. Littlefinger's schemes
In the Battle of the Bastards, Littlefinger swooped in during Sansa's hour of need with Knights of the Vale to help her and half-brother Jon Snow win back control of Winterfell. True to form, he also immediately started tempting Sansa with the idea of being the sole ruler of her ancestral home. The tease.
Wednesday's trailer confirms that Littlefinger has yet to give up on his scheming. If you need proof of his manipulations, here's a shot of him actually lurking behind a corner suspiciously.
"Your father and brothers are gone, yet here you stand," Littlefinger creepily whispers to a conflicted Sansa. "[You're] the last, best hope against the coming storm." Flattery will get you nowhere sir — or maybe it will?
Actress Sophie Turner has hinted on more than one occasion that Sansa's animosity over not getting her share of credit for the victory in the Battle of the Bastards is growing. "I think she probably would like to be Queen of the North on her own, or again she probably just wants Jon to listen to her," Turner has said.
It's looking increasingly likely that Jon Snow's enemies aren't only mounting outside the walls of Winterfell.
4. The Imp and the Mother of Dragons get a new castle
A previous teaser nodded to Daenerys retaking the castle at Dragonstone, a fortress built by her House Targaryen prior to their fall in Robert's Rebellion. (Dany was, in fact, born there.) In this latest clip, we see both Dany's army and Tyrion arriving at a castle that very much resembles Dragonstone.
Not only would Dragonstone give Daenerys and her troops a permanent base to plan their assault on King's Landing, but establishing a new throne in her ancestral home gives the Mother of Dragons legitimacy too.
Whether she does take back Dragonstone or not, it's clear that Daenerys won't be staying in any one place this season. Coupled with shots of her army charging forth, Dany also confidently decrees: "I was born to rule the Seven Kingdoms. And I will!" With a gaggle of 747-sized dragons backing her play, is there any House capable of putting up much of a challenge?
5. Arya goes North
The few times we see Arya Stark (Maisie Williams), she's on her own braving the driving snow and oppressive cold. It's therefore conceivable that she may be travelling beyond The Wall, especially if she's received word that's where brother Bran (Isaac Hempstead Wright) resides. However, a trek back to her home of Winterfell seems much more likely.
Word travels slowly in the Seven Kingdoms (damn ravens), but word does travel. Arya hearing about half-brother Jon and sister Sansa's victory in the Battle of the Bastards eventually is inevitable, and there's little doubt she'd head straight for Winterfell in that case. Arya is even briefly shown when Cersei rants in the teaser about her "enemies to the North".
Consider also the hints that the Stark family cast members have been dropping in the off-season. For example, Sophie Turner revealed last December that there are "definitely a few reunions happening" in season seven. Add that tease to some potential on-set spoilers and a full-on Stark family reunion, and it doesn't seem so far-fetched.
Hopefully Arya and Bran will arrive in time to stop Sansa from double-crossing Jon.
6. War comes to King's Landing
This trailer kicks off with a defiant Cersei delivering one of her Cersei-est proclamations ever, telling Jaime: "Whatever stands in our way, we will defeat it! We're the last Lannisters. The last ones who count."
Reality check, Cersei – your brother Tyrion has actual dragons in his employ and they're coming your way. What's certain is that there is an army storming the gates of King's Landing in one of several action-packed battle scenes.
Whether it's the new Targaryen empire or the Starks knocking at her door this season, Cersei's plotting finds her without any true allies to rely on. A prior clip gave us the impression that she may try to align with the Night King, a decision that would make about as much sense as joining forces with the High Sparrow or blowing up the Great Sept of Baelor.
7. Davos's dire warning
The battle-weary Davos Seaworth (Liam Cunningham) has, at times, appeared to be the lone logical voice in all of Westeros over the last few seasons. Yes, he backed Jon Snow in waging war against the Boltons – but he's also stressed the importance of unity among the houses in the face of a war with the Night King and his undead army.
His brief line of dialogue in the trailer is perhaps his strongest pitch yet for bringing all of the Seven Kingdoms together.
"If we don't put aside our enmity and band together, we will die," Davos warns. "And then it doesn't matter whose skeleton sits on the Iron Throne." We're not shown exactly who he's speaking to, but we have a guess.
Earlier this year, some leaked production art (which you can see above) seemed to spoil a summit outside of a dragon pit attended by Jon Snow, Daenerys's Hand of the Queen Tyrion, Bronn (Jerome Flynn) and even a Lannister guard. This may well be where Davos pleads his case for unity in front of these competing factions. We only hope he's convincing…
Game of Thrones season seven begins on Sky Atlantic 17 July
