Game of Thrones Season 8

[ImLawBoy]

Please point out to me previous times where Dany has killed innocents for no reason whatsoever. Since Season 1 she has always been the champion of the downtrodden. Now all of a sudden she decides to kill thousands of people for no apparent reason at all? It's not that we didn't expect Dany to go all fire-crazy this episode - the writers couldn't have been more obvious the last few episodes that it was going to happen - but the sudden turn of Dany from a leader for the people to the greatest mass murderer in Westeros was ridiculously abrupt. And it accomplished absolutely nothing.

She hadn't gone insane in Season 1.

Or in Seasons 2 - 7, apparently.

But now she goes insane in one episode. If I remember correctly, her father slowly went insane over years (decades?) and it wasn't until near the end of his rule that he started burning people. Even then, he burned people he thought were conspiring against him. Did Dany think all the people she torched were threats? It was just way too much, way too fast.

Again, agree on the too fast. But if you think they weren't spreading the seeds of potential madness since early on in the series, you weren't paying close enough attention. No, she wasn't harming innocents back then, but to your point madness doesn't come on instantly. It's a progression. They were planting seeds even with things like crucifying the masters way back when.

[msteelers]

Going back to Sopranos, there was a lot of grief over the ending initially because it wasn’t anything like the ending we were hoping to see. But over time, I think people have started looking back fondly on the ending. I’ve seen in multiple places where it’s ranked up with some of the best tv endings of all time. I certainly hated it live, but have grown to appreciate what it was trying to do.

I’m not saying GOT is going to go down as the greatest ending ever, but I do think that part of what is getting people upset is that the show isn’t ending at all the way they thought/hoped it would. I think that over time, when we look back and watch the show for what it is, and not what we want it to be, there will be a fonder memory of how it ends.

Unless it ends with fucking Gendry on the throne.

His dad reigned over one of the greatest eras in peace the kingdom has ever known. So, at this point there are worse options.

#TeamGendry

He's a blacksmith who's dad (who he never even knew) started a massive war to take over a kingdom because he was horny. He then proposed to Arya because she gave him some.

#TeamNotFuckingGendry

All true statements.

And he’s still not as bad as some other options.

[Grifman]

Regarding the effectiveness or lack of by the scorpions, it seems that the dragons alone are sitting ducks as they don't recognize the threat. It takes a rider (Dany) to help them avoid being hit. That makes sense to me.

[Combustible Lemur]

Please point out to me previous times where Dany has killed innocents for no reason whatsoever. Since Season 1 she has always been the champion of the downtrodden. Now all of a sudden she decides to kill thousands of people for no apparent reason at all? It's not that we didn't expect Dany to go all fire-crazy this episode - the writers couldn't have been more obvious the last few episodes that it was going to happen - but the sudden turn of Dany from a leader for the people to the greatest mass murderer in Westeros was ridiculously abrupt. And it accomplished absolutely nothing.

She hadn't gone insane in Season 1.

Or in Seasons 2 - 7, apparently.

But now she goes insane in one episode. If I remember correctly, her father slowly went insane over years (decades?) and it wasn't until near the end of his rule that he started burning people. Even then, he burned people he thought were conspiring against him. Did Dany think all the people she torched were threats? It was just way too much, way too fast.

This was my issue. They could have accomplished the same thing by focusing the dragon on troops and structures. Only killing civilians as collateral damage.
While at the same time, the invading armies sacking and razing could have continued to drive home the idea that invading armies rape and murder indiscriminately in most cases. That was probably the most impactful part of the episode for me. The uncorked mayhem of an exhausted army out for revenge.
Dany focusing on the enemy and not leading her own bloodthirsty people is specifically what he most intelligent followers feared. Particularly with the Dothraki. Jon losing control of the North men in the heat of battle is right on par with the whole series. The North people have always been savage. Ramseys, Mormonts, etc.

She didn't have to go genocidal Mad in order to by psychotic Mad.

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

[Grifman]

Here are my predictions for the last episode:

1) Tyrion goes on trial and uses the opportunity to make the case that Dany is no longer fit to rule as only Tryrion can. He is burned for all his troubles.
2) Either Arya or Jon (or both) kill Dany.
3) Jon, disgusted by everything, including his own actions/inactions, refuses any authority and goes beyond the wall to live with the Wildlings.
4) Arya seeks/finds love and peace with Gendry
5) Sansa is Warden/Queen of the North
6) Bran takes the Iron Throne as the only one who can "break the wheel" (even though he supposedly doesn't care for the affairs of men). Vegas surprisingly has him as the one with the best odds.

[McNutt]

Dany didn't use fear as a tactic earlier because she didn't have to. She held a legitimate right to the crown and was able to build an army to support it.

Now her army has been devastated and not only is her claim to the throne not true, word of the true heir has gone out. Without a huge army or a legitimate claim, the only way she is going to rule is through fear. Do you think the people of the North would support her over Jon if they knew he was the true heir?

Now throw in the fact that she is a Targaryen, has watched two of her three "children" die, and believes that her boyfriend is going to make a play for the crown, what she did is totally in line with her character.

[gameoverman]

I enjoyed a lot of this episode but really didn't like what they did with Jaime. They spent years developing that character only to flush it all down the toilet. I guess that works in so far as he was deeply involved with Cersei all along but it's oh so unsatisfying. It devalues his knighting of Brienne since it calls into question his sincerity in anything not related to Cersei. I feel cheated since I considered his character's story one of the more interesting parts of the show and it was all for nothing. I also feel semi-cheated in not seeing Cersei die, and die in a most horrible way. I would have accepted her escaping, because she does have animal cunning, but an offscreen death?!?! Bah humbug!

On the other hand, I have no problem with Dany flipping out. Look at it from her point of view. She's done so much for others. She gets to Westeros so that she can finally get something out of her efforts and what happens? She loses time, troops, and a dragon fighting for the ingrates in the north. She gets lousy advice from her council. She loses the people closest to her and is stuck with the people she has the least history with. Grey Worm could have been the exception but events caused him to be on the side of scorched earth policy so he wasn't going to be a calming influence. And worst of all, none of them seem to really care about her. At best it's like "Yeah you have a rightful claim I guess" but otherwise they don't seem to grasp the importance of it all to her. I think a part of her just thinks it's all over anyways, she will not be ruling in the way that she wanted if at all. So she lashes out.

Clegane bowl was actually much better than I thought it could be. The imagery of them facing off on the stairs might be the single most memorable shot in the entire show for me. I wouldn't mind having a painting of that.

[D.A.Lewis]

Call me team No Madness Here.

Yeah, Dany was clearly upset about a bunch of stuff and she might have been mad or rather angry. But Madness???? Did we see lunacy, distraction, depression, mania, hysteria, frenzy, psychosis, psychopathy, schizophrenia? But because of a few lines in earlier seasons or she refused to eat or Jons refusal to kiss her so she went mad???

I just aint havin it and same with a ton of other fans. I'm not saying that the story telling could not go that way, but they didn't put in the work to tell that story.

[Rumpy]

There are several factors at play here for Dany.
1. She comes from a family known for going mad. The apple might not be falling far from the tree

The thing is, she knows this, and she's been constantly keeping it in check. The show has repeatedly made sure we know she didn't want to be like them. All those acts from previous seasons, like freeing the slaves was hinting at wanting to be a different kinder ruler. I mean, sure, there are exceptions, but until recently she's never fully realized her threats. It had always been more about keeping everyone in check.

Now burning the city, that might be an act of desperation, but I'd always imagined that she was only going to have to use her dragons as a last resort. I guess her logic would be that if she can't have it, then none should. But in doing this, it paints her as no better than any of the others. One big part of her character arc throughout the show has been one of overcoming the hurdle of her past and becoming her own thing and having people accept her rule. That whole act of burning the city tears that all down.

[coopasonic]

There are several factors at play here for Dany.
1. She comes from a family known for going mad. The apple might not be falling far from the tree

The thing is, she knows this, and she's been constantly keeping it in check.

I don't think you get to forestall insanity with willpower.

[McNutt]

She had been pushed to the brink and couldn't continue being the person she wanted to be, but rather the person she was born to be. She's just like Jaime in that regard. He wanted to be a good person, but he couldn't run from Cersei.

Should we have had more development for Dany to show her slipping into madness? That would have been nice, maybe. If the turn is all too predictable it's not going to give you the same reaction. I liked that she just snapped.

[D.A.Lewis]

[ImLawBoy]

Call me team No Madness Here.

Yeah, Dany was clearly upset about a bunch of stuff and she might have been mad or rather angry. But Madness???? Did we see lunacy, distraction, depression, mania, hysteria, frenzy, psychosis, psychopathy, schizophrenia? But because of a few lines in earlier seasons or she refused to eat or Jons refusal to kiss her so she went mad???

No, we saw the steps toward madness. We didn't actually see the madness until she flipped and went mad. And it's more than a few lines in earlier seasons - just look at her reaction to her brother's death in season 1:

This has been long brewing.

I just aint havin it and same with a ton of other fans. I'm not saying that the story telling could not go that way, but they didn't put in the work to tell that story.

Not to be rude, but I don't really give a crap about what "a ton of other fans" think. I care about what you and others on the forum think, though, so that's why I'm engaging with you. And I'm OK with you thinking they didn't put it the work to tell that story. I've said a few times that I agree that they rushed things this season and that it did the storytelling a major disservice. Her final descent into madness was way too rushed. My point has always been that this is completely within character for Dany and the series has been leading to this for quite some time (season one, I'd say).

[Exodor]

Don't be shocked by Daenerys — her King's Landing turn was very much earned

Daenerys is the same person she's been from the beginning of the show, a woman motivated by a desire for revenge and a thwarted sense of entitlement. This is the woman who thrilled to hear Drogo announce he would "take my Khalasar west to where the world ends" to "rape their women, take their children as slaves and bring their broken gods back to Vaes Dothrak."

This is the same woman who swore to the leaders of Qarth that, "when my dragons are grown, we will take back what was stolen from me and destroy those who have wronged me! We will lay waste to armies and burn cities to the ground! "

Daenerys being motivated by a violent desire for vengeance for perceived wrongs against her and a sense of entitlement to the throne is nothing new.

[ImLawBoy]

There are several factors at play here for Dany.
1. She comes from a family known for going mad. The apple might not be falling far from the tree

The thing is, she knows this, and she's been constantly keeping it in check. The show has repeatedly made sure we know she didn't want to be like them. All those acts from previous seasons, like freeing the slaves was hinting at wanting to be a different kinder ruler. I mean, sure, there are exceptions, but until recently she's never fully realized her threats. It had always been more about keeping everyone in check.

Now burning the city, that might be an act of desperation, but I'd always imagined that she was only going to have to use her dragons as a last resort. I guess her logic would be that if she can't have it, then none should. But in doing this, it paints her as no better than any of the others. One big part of her character arc throughout the show has been one of overcoming the hurdle of her past and becoming her own thing and having people accept her rule. That whole act of burning the city tears that all down.

Well that's kind of the point, I think, and goes back to my earlier postings about breaking convention. A more conventional narrative might have had her overcoming her potential madness. GoT is non-conventional, and that's part of what makes her snapping effective.

[D.A.Lewis]

Should we have had more development for Dany to show her slipping into madness? That would have been nice, maybe. If the turn is all too predictable it's not going to give you the same reaction. I liked that she just snapped.

I submit that it would have been far more intriguing if we could have actually witnessed Dany battling her inner demons and wondering will she or wont she go mad instead of some Bizarro Deus Ex Machina to complete her evil transformation.

[coopasonic]

I submit that it would have been far more intriguing if we could have actually witnessed Dany battling her inner demons and wondering will she or wont she go mad instead of some Bizarro Deus Ex Machina to complete her evil transformation.

We saw it raging at the post Battle of Winterfell celebration, at the interactions with Jon, Tyrion and Varys and other moments as well in the past few episodes.

[Rumpy]

There are several factors at play here for Dany.
1. She comes from a family known for going mad. The apple might not be falling far from the tree

The thing is, she knows this, and she's been constantly keeping it in check.

I don't think you get to forestall insanity with willpower.

No, you're right. It's possibly in this case she wasn't even aware she was falling into madness. I still think she was trying to distance herself from what her father had done. But maybe it's hereditary? *shrug* That would make it even sadder. Knowing your family's history and not being able to overcome it.

[noxiousdog]

Please point out to me previous times where Dany has killed innocents for no reason whatsoever. Since Season 1 she has always been the champion of the downtrodden. Now all of a sudden she decides to kill thousands of people for no apparent reason at all? It's not that we didn't expect Dany to go all fire-crazy this episode - the writers couldn't have been more obvious the last few episodes that it was going to happen - but the sudden turn of Dany from a leader for the people to the greatest mass murderer in Westeros was ridiculously abrupt. And it accomplished absolutely nothing.

She hadn't gone insane in Season 1.

Or in Seasons 2 - 7, apparently.

But now she goes insane in one episode. If I remember correctly, her father slowly went insane over years (decades?) and it wasn't until near the end of his rule that he started burning people. Even then, he burned people he thought were conspiring against him. Did Dany think all the people she torched were threats? It was just way too much, way too fast.

And they were conspiring against him. Robert Baratheon's war was based on a lie. He only burned indiscriminately once it was unwinnable.

[Blackhawk]

I'm a 'liked.' I didn't love it, but I didn't hate it.

Dany: Dany just let Superman live because he said 'Martha.' It was something that happened for a legitimate reason, but it was ham-fisted and poorly communicated to the audience. She absolutely has been on the edge for a while, at least in my opinion. Throughout her storyline we saw the same thing: She has a soft spot for those she personally views as innocents, but is completely cold and heartless to those who cross her. She has been burning people who cross her alive for many, many seasons, only showing mercy when her advisors manage to sow doubt in her.

Losing her first 'child' unbalanced her, all done to bring King's Landing into the fold. Losing her friend and advisor pushed her even further, lost (perhaps in her mind) because King's Landing didn't march with her. They betrayed her. Then she lost her other 'child', then she lost her only other friend, both at the hand's of the armies of King's Landing. Cersei crossed her. King's Landing crossed her. Fire and blood. Burn their cities. It was never about fear. She achieved her fear, and she stopped. She parked Drogon on top of a tower and watched and waited for phase 2. When the bells rang, though, that's when she snapped. Go back and watch her reaction. A surrender meant that she wouldn't be able to have her revenge against the people that had crossed her, again and again, taken her children, taken her friends. For all that, all she'd get was to roast one pesky queen.

Her father took decades to go insane. He didn't have massive, unbalancing moments of trauma like she did. I have no issue with her going mad. I think the hints have been there. This is something I think I'm going to enjoy watching for when I watch the series again. The problem is, they didn't communicate it well enough. The reaction they needed was, "Wow, we should have seen that coming!", but instead they got us having to piece it together.

Jaime: We had Theon, a true fall-and-redemption story. Jaime was the stupidest of the Lannisters. He was always somebody's bitch. Always. He was weak. With him, we saw that he had a good heart, that he wanted the best, and that he tried to redeem himself, but in the end the temptation was just too much, and he failed. On another show he'd be a druggy who fell in love and tried to clean himself up. But when the girl dies, he implodes, and the last scene is him lying dead, a needle in his arm. His story isn't a redemption, it is a tragedy based on human weakness, and I'm OK with that.

Cersei: Rocks fell, she died. Blech. Not satisfying at all, save that she didn't go out infamously, which would have at least annoyed her.

Ballistae: Surprise attack, coming in from the side, fling low so that they never had a clear line of sight. I was fine with that. What I was not fine with was the fact that the fleet was arrayed to defend toward the walls, and the walls were set to defend toward the fleet. When she took multiple passes against the fleet, the walls just sat there for two or three minutes when they would have had a clear shot. Shrug.

Arya: She realized she was becoming something she used to hate. Her humanity won out over her vengeance. She's the anti-Dany. Again, though, that wasn't well-communicated. Also, My Little War Pony. WTF?

Cleganery: Eh. I never felt like they really set up that conflict all that well in the show. They hated each other. They worked side by side. Now they need to kill each other so badly it's the only thing in the world that matters? There were bits of it there, but I never 'felt' it.

Tony: I hated the ending to the Sopranos the first time I saw it. Then I read up on what it actually meant and watched it again, and realized it was perfect.

[msteelers]

I thought this was an interesting post on Reddit.

Spoiled because of length.

Spoiler:

The Mad Queen descent was rushed, but I've seen a lot of people all over the Internet make fun of the bells and at Daenerys' mind breaking at the point of surrender but it made sense and was set up earlier in the episode.

Season 1 to 7 showed up a Daenerys that rose from the very lowest of lows to the height of power. In Season 1 and 2, we see Daenerys realize that without power, no one will respect her or take her claim seriously. She’s told repeatedly that she’s nothing without an army, and she’s nothing without ships. She gains those. We cheer for her.

When Daenerys leaves Essos, she thinks she can rule through compassion and be loved by the people once she gets rid of Cersei. She had her armies. She had dragons. She had powerful allies in Westeros. She had the strongest claim to the throne and finally had the chance to take King’s Landing.

Season 7 and Season 8 was about losing that power. First, her powerful allies are stripped away one by one. Olenna, Elliria, Yara. Tyrion mismanages them as Hand of the Queen and makes horrible tactical mistakes.

In S08E01, Daenerys realizes she doesn’t have the love of the people. In Essos, she broke their chains and earned their devotion and became their Mysha. She freed them from their oppressive masters and they were grateful to her and made her their queen. In the North, Sansa and Jon had already broken their chains. They defeated Ramsay. Sansa and Jon, as Starks, have earned their loyalty for a lifetime. Daenerys is faced with a smallfolk — her subjects — that don’t love her. It’s a harsh realization for her.

In S08E02, she loses her claim. Jon tells her his true identity, and suddenly she’s not the only Targaryen in the world. Even moreso, Jon’s claim is stronger. He’s a natural leader. She’s immediately threatened by his confession, and is shaken by it.

In S08E03, she loses Jorah. He was there for her since the beginning. He was devoted to her not because of her power, not because of her dragons, but because he loved her. He never would’ve betrayed her and she trusted him fully. He’s essentially been her rock through all her hardship. And then he dies protecting her.

In S08E04, she loses her second child, and Missandei. One by one, everyone she held close that was devoted to her and her alone was taken from her. Her dragons were a symbol of her power; with only one left, she was beginning to get desperate. Her only advisor from Essos was Grey Worm, and he was a soldier.

In S08E05, she loses Varys, Tyrion, and Jon. Through betrayal, no less. Jon betrays her by telling Sansa, and Sansa tells Tyrion, who tells Varys. Varys openly conspires against her and (presumably) tries to poison her and turn Jon against her. She kills him without a trial, without asking for his last words, and without a second thought. At that point, she’s on the brink.

And Jon goes to her, and she seeks one last bit of comfort from him. She tells him that people love him, and that’s something she’ll never have.
”Far more people in Westeros love you than love me. I don’t have love here. I only have fear.”

He counters by saying that he loves her, and that she’ll always be his queen. But when they kiss, Daenerys realizes that he’ll never truly love her again. And so, she says: "Alright then. Let it be fear"

When the bells ring, Daenerys realizes that while the city has surrendered she’ll never be secure as queen as long as the people don’t truly, irrevocably fear her. She will never be loved by them. She has lost everything she has gained and every friend she’s made, and she’s completely alone. King’s Landing becomes a symbol of everything she’s ever been through — her brother selling her like a brood mare, Drogo's death, being ridiculed and laughed at from Pentos to Slaver's Bay to Mereen, being threatened at every turn, losing her dragons, losing her loved ones. She’s on her dragon, she’s alone, she feels powerless, and she’s angry.

So what does she do when feels powerless? She reminds them all that she is still powerful. The people will never love her, so they will fear her.

It's not a perfect analysis, but I think it drives home the fact that this is something they've been working to from the beginning.

[gameoverman]

I think a key to Dany's actions is the difference between her being in a foreign land and her being at home. When she was freeing people, the 'breaker of chains', she was helping people who weren't her people. They didn't owe her anything, had no obligation to her. She could take it or leave it, their bending the knee to her.

In Westeros, from her point of view, it's an entirely different situation. These people are her subjects. There's an expectation there that once they see the dragon/s then all doubt about her claim is erased. At that point you bend the knee or you are her enemy. It's the 'with us or against us' approach to leadership, which we've seen in the real world, it's so common. This does not make killing innocent civilians right, but it explains why rulers might do it and I don't see why she should be immune to that. One thing we've seen on this show is powerful people doing some hardcore things to get their way. Dany was a different type for a long time but Cersei went out of her way to push Dany's buttons at precisely the worst time to do that.

[morlac]

Don't forget the Fire. The mountain can't be killed without so the Hound will over come his fear and burn them both up. "Come Brother, let us embrace at last." Hound grabs Mt. in big bear hug, que green Fireball and close scene.

Hmm. Got that one pretty good

[Jaymann]

Another missed opportunity: When Cersei slowly walked past the Hound, he could have turned and casually beheaded her with a backhand stroke. Then you could have Jamie find her severed head and fall to his knees in lamentation.

[Alefroth]

How did Jaime even get to Cersei? He had two wounds that would have been mortal for just about anyone else.

Suddenly the scorpions become stormtroopers?

[gameoverman]

I figured the Hound was all about killing his brother. I doubt he even saw Cersei figuratively speaking. No distraction would be enough to, um, distract him then.

[McNutt]

Yep, he didn't care about her at that moment.

[ImLawBoy]

How did Jaime even get to Cersei? He had two wounds that would have been mortal for just about anyone else.

I think he must have had some quick healing potions stored away or something.

Suddenly the scorpions become stormtroopers?

My take:

2) What happened to the scorpions? Last episode they were magical heat seeking missile firers and this episode they were beyond useless.

In the last episode they were waiting in ambush and knew where the dragons were coming from, so they we're already aiming in the general area. Still, they only managed 3 dragon hits, I think. This time Dany had the advantage and used the cumbersome nature of the scorpions to move around and take them out.

[Rumpy]

[
No, we saw the steps toward madness. We didn't actually see the madness until she flipped and went mad. And it's more than a few lines in earlier seasons - just look at her reaction to her brother's death in season 1:

Thing is, at that point, I think Drogo still had a firm grip on her. The thing done to her brother is as much Drogo as it is her. And besides, her brother was pretty much asking for it.

[Grifman]

And it's more than a few lines in earlier seasons - just look at her reaction to her brother's death in season 1:

This has been long brewing.

Dude, her brother sold her into sexual slavery to a bunch of barbarians, threatened her a number of times, and in this very scene threatened to cut her child out of her. Her reaction seems entirely appropriate to me in the greater scheme of things, and given what she has gone through. I don't think this supports you at all.

[Jaymann]

Yep, he didn't care about her at that moment.

No, but he knew Arya wanted her dead, and he could further taunt The Mountain, "Look, you couldn't even protect the Queen."

[Grifman]

These people are her subjects. There's an expectation there that once they see the dragon/s then all doubt about her claim is erased. At that point you bend the knee or you are her enemy.

They had been defeated, they were terrified of her dragon (she had virtually single handedly taken the city), they surrendered, they had bent the knee, she had accomplished her goal. Having surrendered, they were now her subjects. Then she decides to slaughter them.

[McNutt]

Yes, because she's crazy.

[Isgrimnur]

Jon Snow doesn't know not to stick his ....

[Jaymann]

A better use of Euron would have been:

Jamie manages to flee the castle with Cersei, then they run into Euron at the boat. Cersei can't resist taunting him that it is not his baby. In a rage Euron kills Cersei, then Jamie kills Euron. Just when you thought they might escape...

[ImLawBoy]

And it's more than a few lines in earlier seasons - just look at her reaction to her brother's death in season 1:

This has been long brewing.

Dude, her brother sold her into sexual slavery to a bunch of barbarians, threatened her a number of times, and in this very scene threatened to cut her child out of her. Her reaction seems entirely appropriate to me in the greater scheme of things, and given what she has gone through. I don't think this supports you at all.

You mean he did a lot of bad stuff to her that might make her want revenge? And she watched that vengeance slowly play out in a gruesome manner without so much as flinching. I think that might indicate that someone has some sociopathic tendencies and is cool with violent revenge.

Keep in mind, this is her first little step on the trail toward violent madness. Sure, you can find justifications for it. You can also find justifications for her crucifying the Merenese masters or lighting up the slavers who sold her the unsullied. It's not like Ron Howard was going to voice over and tell us that this is a potential sign that Dany may go crazy. It was subtle, especially in the early going when we were supposed to be falling in love with her.

[MHS]

Arya: She realized she was becoming something she used to hate. Her humanity won out over her vengeance. She's the anti-Dany. Again, though, that wasn't well-communicated. Also, My Little War Pony. WTF?

I think it was some sort of ham-handed reference to Arya as Death and leaving that behind, death riding a pale horse and all. But I could be looking too hard for metaphor where there wasn't any intended.

[McNutt]

Was she dead and this was all part of her afterlife? It was very out of place and there has to be a specific reason for it.

[Smoove_B]

Arya: She realized she was becoming something she used to hate. Her humanity won out over her vengeance. She's the anti-Dany. Again, though, that wasn't well-communicated. Also, My Little War Pony. WTF?

Arya is riding out on a pale horse, likely going to look for Dany I'd think. She is death.

EDIT: Scooped by a few minutes. BAM

Was she dead and this was all part of her afterlife? It was very out of place and there has to be a specific reason for it.

The short feature after the episode aired indicated they selected Arya for a specific reason - she's a fan/writer favorite and they wanted to show the horrors of the dragon attack, seen through the eyes of the people experiencing it on the ground. Basically, they thought if they just had random people burning and dying it woudn't have as much weight as to watch Arya experience it for/with us.

[D.A.Lewis]

And it's more than a few lines in earlier seasons - just look at her reaction to her brother's death in season 1:

This has been long brewing.

Dude, her brother sold her into sexual slavery to a bunch of barbarians, threatened her a number of times, and in this very scene threatened to cut her child out of her. Her reaction seems entirely appropriate to me in the greater scheme of things, and given what she has gone through. I don't think this supports you at all.

And steal one of the eggs to fund his army. I don't think anyone felt sorry for her brother. And in the context of the story telling it seemed her behavior was rational not foreboding of some future madness.