Ah, Stannis Baratheon. We weren’t exactly disappointed when you lost your head, arranged the death of your family and then, uhh, literally lost your head on Game of Thrones - but you didn’t leave on the best of terms. Telling Brienne “Do your duty” sounds cool, sure, but the original script, dug up on Reddit, would have hit viewers squarely in the feels and provided Stannis with a more complete closure.
A Reddit user has pored over the script for the Game of Thrones season 5 finale and found a few extra lines that really punctuate the (emotional) pain Stannis was feeling in his final moments:
STANNIS: Do you believe in the life to come?
(Brienne nods)
STANNIS: I don't. But if I'm wrong, and you're right... tell Renly I'm sorry when you get there. I don't imagine I'll see him wherever I'm going. (beat) And my daughter. Tell her... tell her...
('Sorry' doesn't even begin to cover what he feels about Shireen. The thought of it brings tears to his eyes, and he's not going to die weeping in front of a woman he doesn't know. Stannis stares up at her.)
STANNIS: Go on, do your duty.
Compare that to the final cut of Stannis’ demise (pun absolutely intended) and it definitely adds an extra layer of emotional depth to one of Westeros’ most complex characters.
Prefer the final version of a stoic Stannis or do you wish you had seen Stannis the Mannis get all weepy in front of Brienne? Sound off in the comments!
Image: HBO
