No one shed a tear when these characters bit the dust. Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most villainous characters in “Game of Thrones” and “House of the Dragon” who got what was coming to them.
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00:00They're loyal beasts.
00:01They were, now they're starving.
00:06Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the most villainous characters
00:10in Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon who got what was coming to them.
00:14Say that word again.
00:16And what?
00:16You'll kill your own father in the privy.
00:20Number 20.
00:21Meryn Trant.
00:22I can see I have my work cut out for me.
00:26You too, out.
00:28Cruel and arrogant, Ser Meryn Trant personifies what a Kingsguard knight should not be.
00:33He wields his power against the weak and helpless, reveling in wanton violence,
00:38and follows the sadistic orders of King Joffrey without question.
00:42It's no surprise that he gets himself on Arya's list after killing her instructor Syrio.
00:46She finally gets her revenge in the fifth season finale when she ambushes Trant in a brothel.
00:52As satisfying as his death is, it also has to be one of the most brutal in the show.
00:58Those gurgly screams are something else.
01:00You're no one.
01:03You're nothing.
01:05Number 19.
01:06The Waif.
01:07The Many-Faced God was promised a name.
01:10He must always receive what is his.
01:13One of the main antagonists of the fifth and sixth seasons,
01:16the Waif is a devoted acolyte of the Faceless Men who lives to torment Arya Stark.
01:21Ruthless and brutal, she is a professional assassin tasked with training Arya.
01:26But she resents the Stark girl and hopes to one day kill her.
01:30Unfortunately for the Waif, the pupil becomes the master.
01:34Arya survives the Waif's attempt on her life and lures her into a dark room,
01:39where, used to fighting without sight, Arya has the advantage.
01:43We don't see the kill itself, but we do see the aftermath in the Hall of Faces.
01:48Arya really does have a thing for eyes.
01:56Number 18.
01:58Gerald Bracken.
02:07This pompous suitor from House Bracken did not have a lot of screen time,
02:11but it was enough to make us instantly hate him.
02:14Gerald is at Storm's End, hoping to web the touring Rhaenyra Targaryen.
02:18He mocks his young rival, Willem Blackwood, amusing Rhaenyra.
02:22But like most people of his ilk,
02:24Gerald probably wasn't betting on his target fighting back.
02:28Little Willem unsheathes his sword and challenges Gerald to a duel,
02:32which he wins, stabbing Bracken in the guts.
02:35We were definitely rooting for Willem here,
02:37although we didn't quite expect that outcome.
02:44Number 17.
02:45Zaro Zoan Doxos.
02:52Basically the Qarth equivalent of Littlefinger,
02:55Zaro Zoan Doxos is an ambitious man concerned with little more than his own personal power.
03:01And if gaining power means manipulation, betrayal, and murder, then so be it.
03:06He hopes to use Daenerys to usurp the Thirteen and become the king of Qarth.
03:10His mistake lies in stealing her dragons.
03:14Needless to say, the Targaryen does not appreciate that very much,
03:18and after retrieving her babies,
03:20she storms Zaro's house and locks him inside an empty vault.
03:23It's a wonderfully symbolic death,
03:25the duplicitous Zaro dying inside of his own lie.
03:35Number 16.
03:36Craster.
03:45The Game of Thrones universe is rife with incest,
03:48and Craster is one of its biggest practitioners.
03:51A member of the Free Folk,
03:53Craster is known far and wide for marrying his own daughters
03:56and fathering more daughters with them.
03:58When they birth boys,
04:00Craster sacrifices his sons to the White Walkers,
04:03having long conceded defeat and hoping to ally himself to their cause.
04:07So when Night's Watchman Karl Tanner stabs Craster through the chin,
04:11we can't say we're surprised,
04:12even if Karl was just after Craster's winter stockpiles.
04:15Frankly, it was only a matter of time before someone snapped.
04:23Number 15.
04:24Ellaria Sand.
04:35Children are meant to be off-limits.
04:37It's one of those simple facts of life we all agree on.
04:40So while we felt bad for Ellaria Sand after her lover Oberyn was killed,
04:44her sympathy flew out the window
04:46once she murdered both Myrcella Baratheon and Trystane Martell.
04:50Hell-bent on revenge,
04:51Ellaria even kills Oberyn's older brother Durran,
04:54usurping power in Dorne.
04:56She's eventually captured alongside her daughter Tyene by Euron Greyjoy
05:00and sent to Cersei,
05:01the queen enacting an admittedly cruel act of revenge
05:05on the woman who killed her daughter.
05:07You do not mess with a mama bear,
05:09especially if that mama bear is Cersei Lannister.
05:12We all make our choices.
05:14You chose to murder my daughter.
05:17Number 14.
05:18The High Sparrow.
05:23Here's another character who underestimated Cersei Lannister.
05:26As the smallfolk suffer during the War of the Five Kings,
05:29the High Sparrow emerges as a powerful religious leader.
05:32While compassionate towards the smallfolk,
05:34he's also fanatical and cunning,
05:36re-establishing the dormant faith militant
05:38and ruling King's Landing with an iron fist.
05:42After he imprisons and humiliates the Queen Mother,
05:45well, you can only get one over on Cersei for so long.
05:48Set to go on trial in the Great Sept of Baelor,
05:51she instead uses the opportunity to ignite a cache of wildfire under the church,
05:55killing the High Sparrow and his followers.
05:58And he got off lucky,
06:00unlike Sept of Unella,
06:01whom Cersei imprisons in the dungeons.
06:03You're not going to die today.
06:08You're not going to die for quite a while.
06:11Number 13.
06:12Stannis Baratheon.
06:13I was there when he was murdered by a shadow with your face.
06:17Now, we have to admit that Stannis has a point.
06:20He is, after all, the rightful king,
06:22as Robert's children are not his own.
06:24He just goes about everything the wrong way,
06:27like having his younger brother Renly assassinated
06:29and burning his own child alive.
06:31Of course, he ends up reaping what he sowed.
06:34Much of his army deserts him after he burns Shireen,
06:37and then he naively storms Winterfell anyway.
06:40It's no surprise that he's handily defeated by the Boltons.
06:44Ultimately, Stannis is executed by Brienne,
06:47who's seeking revenge for the death of Renly.
06:49Sorry, buddy, but you deserved everything that came to you.
06:53I won't do you duty.
07:01Number 12.
07:02Cragas Drehar.
07:04I have ordered 10 ships and 2,000 men to set sail from King's Landing
07:08to join the effort in the Stepstone.
07:10Known as the Crabfeeder to his enemies,
07:13Cragas Drehar is the self-styled prince-admiral of the Triarchy,
07:17an alliance of free cities over in Essos.
07:19He gets the attention of Westeros
07:21when he blockades sea lanes in the Stepstones,
07:24plundering Westerosi ships and feeding their crews to the crabs.
07:27You know, it's not often that we side with Daemon,
07:30but in this case, we just can't help ourselves.
07:32The Targaryen prince storms the island of Bloodstone
07:35with the help of Laenor Velaryon astride Seasmoke
07:38and pursues the Crabfeeder into a cave.
07:41He then does his business with Dark Sister,
07:43and the results are grotesque.
07:45Still, the guy deserved it.
07:47It is instead my hope that this aid will deliver the victory
07:50that has thus far evaded us.
07:52Number 11.
07:53Gregor Clegane.
07:55Whether you know him as Ser Gregor, the Mountain,
07:57or essentially just a massive undead husk,
08:00Gregor Clegane was quite the brutal character.
08:03He was responsible for killing some of our favorite characters.
08:06Not only that, but he tormented his brother Sandor in their youth,
08:10a character we grew to appreciate as time drew on.
08:13You say your brother gave you that sword.
08:18My brother gave me this.
08:22It was just like you said a while back.
08:25Press me to the fire like I was a nice, juicy mutton chop.
08:29As the series wound down to a close,
08:31we knew Cleganebowl was coming,
08:33and in the penultimate episode,
08:35Sandor finally confronts his zombified brother.
08:38Hello, big brother.
08:39On the steps of the crumbling Red Keep,
08:41the two have a rough-and-tumble brawl for the ages.
08:45With Gregor proving extremely difficult to kill,
08:48Sandor makes sure they both go out in a blaze of glory.
08:56Let's just hope Gregor is actually dead for good.
09:00Number 10.
09:01Prasnis Monaclos.
09:03You may not know this slave trader by name,
09:05but we guarantee you you know his death.
09:08They fear nothing.
09:10Even the bravest man fear death.
09:21Operating in Astapor,
09:22Prasnis Monaclos was one of the most arrogant,
09:25disrespectful people in the known world,
09:28as if his profession wasn't bad enough.
09:30Over the course of three episodes,
09:32Prasnis negotiates with Daenerys Targaryen
09:35over the sale of his Unsullied army.
09:37Believing her to not speak Valyrian,
09:40Prasnis insults Daenerys to no end with his misogynistic tongue.
09:54Eventually, Daenerys agrees to trade Drogon for the Unsullied.
09:58However, Daenerys not only reveals she can speak Valyrian,
10:02but has Drogon roast the traitor on the spot
10:05before taking the army for herself.
10:17Let it be learned.
10:18This is what happens when you piss off the Queen of Dragons.
10:22Number 9.
10:23Alicer Thorne and Olly.
10:25To be fair,
10:26Alicer Thorne and Olly are not the only ones who get punished for their crimes,
10:30but they're the two who drew our ire the most for very different reasons.
10:34We should have sealed the tunnel while we had the chance,
10:37like you suggested.
10:41It was a difficult decision either way, sir.
10:46Do you know what leadership means, Lord Snow?
10:49Alicer, for his part, was always a crotchety old cow,
10:52constantly a thorn in everyone's sides.
10:55Olly, on the other hand, is a character who should have had a better head on his shoulders,
10:59but ultimately got pulled astray.
11:01For the Watch.
11:15In the season 5 finale,
11:17several men of the Night's Watch ambush their Lord Commander Jon Snow
11:21for his controversial leadership decisions,
11:23and do him in for the Watch.
11:26Thankfully, Jon comes back to life
11:28and makes sure his first order of business is returning the favor.
11:38They knew what the punishment for treason was.
11:41Number 8.
11:42Blood and Cheese.
11:51We've seen our share of despicable villains throughout the franchise,
11:54but few stoop so low as Blood and Cheese.
11:58Blood is a gold cloak in the City Watch,
12:00and Cheese is a local ratcatcher,
12:02both of whom are hired by Daemon to kill Aemond Targaryen.
12:06Unable to find him in the Red Keep,
12:08they settle for young Jaehaerys.
12:10This is one of the most haunting scenes in either show,
12:13maybe even in the history of television,
12:15as the two psychopaths commit the unspeakable.
12:18Both are eventually killed by Aegon in retaliation,
12:22and we have to say,
12:23we do not feel the least bit bad about it.
12:34Number 7.
12:35Joffrey Baratheon.
12:37For a little over three seasons,
12:39no Game of Thrones character infuriated us quite like Joffrey Baratheon.
12:44-"One word and I'll hit you again."
12:46-"I'm telling mother!"
12:48While he started off as nothing but a brat,
12:50everything was exacerbated when he inherited the throne.
12:53He constantly took to sadistically tormenting those beneath him,
12:57and even needlessly had killed ostensible series lead Ned Stark.
13:01-"So long as I'm your king,
13:04treason shall never go unpunished.
13:07Sir Illyn,
13:10bring me his head!"
13:11Honestly,
13:12his comeuppance probably should have come a whole lot sooner,
13:14but boy was it gratifying when it did.
13:17During the wedding feast for his union to Margaery Tyrell,
13:20Joffrey is poisoned and starts convulsing in front of everyone.
13:24It's not long before the boy king's face turns different colors
13:27and he takes his last breath.
13:37So that's why it's called the Purple Wedding.
13:40Number 6.
13:41Walder Frey.
13:42Speaking of horrifying weddings,
13:44Walder Frey executed perhaps the most grisly ambush in Game of Thrones history.
13:49At the union between Edmure Tully and one of his many daughters,
13:53Walder capped off the night by having slain Robb and Catelyn Stark,
13:57in addition to the former's pregnant wife Talisa.
13:59-"Let him go and I swear we will forget this!
14:02I swear it by the All-Gods and you!
14:04We will take no vengeance!"
14:06-"You already swore me one oath right here in my castle.
14:10You swore by all the gods your son would marry my daughter!"
14:13This monster had to go,
14:15and thankfully his time came a few seasons later.
14:18-"You're not one of mine, are you?"
14:20-"No, my lord."
14:22-"Didn't think so.
14:25Too pretty."
14:28Arya Stark, disguising herself as one of his serving girls,
14:31has Walder inadvertently consume his murderous sons she's baked into a pie.
14:36Arya then reveals herself,
14:38making sure the Elder Frey knows what goes around comes around.
14:42-"My name is Arya Stark. I want you to know that
14:46the last thing you're ever going to see is a Stark smiling down at you as you die."
14:52She then swiftly avenges her fallen mother and brother with one swift blade.
14:57Number 5.
14:58Lysa Arryn.
15:00When you have a character who callously has people thrown out a moon door
15:03to their precipitous demises,
15:05you gotta know that character's going out the same way.
15:08-"You want to trial my lord Lannister? Very well.
15:13My son will listen to whatever you have to say, and you will hear his judgment.
15:18Then you will leave, by one door or the other."
15:22Throughout her life, Lysa grew up in envy of her sister Catelyn,
15:26particularly with how the latter earned the affections of their companion Peter Baelish,
15:30also known as Littlefinger.
15:32Lysa eventually grew to be a spiteful and callous woman.
15:35Even when fate would seemingly bring her and Littlefinger together.
15:39-"Look down! Look down! Look down! Look down!"
15:42-"Lysa!"
15:43At one point, she threatens to throw Sansa Stark out the moon door for something she didn't do.
15:49Littlefinger, wretch though he is,
15:51cajoles Lysa before sending her to the very fate she doomed so many others to.
16:02Number 4.
16:03Viserys Targaryen.
16:05-"I want what I came for. I want the crown he promised me.
16:11He bought you, but he never paid for you."
16:13The third of his name, not to mention the worst of his name,
16:16Viserys Targaryen sought to reclaim the Iron Throne.
16:20Sure, a lot of people on Game of Thrones do,
16:22but few do it with quite as much indignation and disrespect for the people helping him.
16:28Indeed, with them coming from the same background, Daenerys should be his greatest ally,
16:32but Viserys only sees her as a pawn to be used to trade up for power.
16:37-"I need you to be perfect today.
16:41Can you do that for me?
16:46You don't want to awake the dragon, do you?"
16:48Viserys gives away Daenerys's hand in marriage to Khal Drogo in exchange for an army,
16:53but he doesn't count on them falling in love.
16:55When Viserys grows impatient,
16:57Drogo makes sure he gets his crown right then and there,
17:00in the form of molten gold.
17:03-"Crown for king."
17:11Number 3.
17:12Littlefinger
17:13-"You stand accused of murder.
17:15You stand accused of treason.
17:18How do you answer these charges?
17:23Lord Baelish."
17:24Having plotted and schemed for his entire life,
17:27Littlefinger had more coming to him than anyone.
17:30Seriously, even though Littlefinger's reach exceeds his grasp,
17:33he essentially instigates a great portion of the show's events,
17:37and by proxy, a great amount of misery.
17:39-"I did warn you not to trust me."
17:41By orchestrating the murder of Jon Arryn,
17:44Littlefinger had a great ripple effect on Westeros.
17:47But thankfully, that ripple turned into a tsunami and eventually swallowed him whole.
17:52-"None of you knows the truth.
17:53You held a knife to his throat.
18:00You said,
18:01I did warn you not to trust me."
18:03After manipulating Sansa and Arya against each other,
18:06Littlefinger learns they were in turn manipulating him.
18:10Littlefinger finally losing at his own game.
18:12His many atrocities are brought to light
18:15before the vengeful daughters of the woman he loved see to his downfall.
18:19-"Thank you for all your many lessons, Lord Baelish.
18:24I will never forget them."
18:28Number 2.
18:29Tywin Lannister.
18:31Though we admire Tywin's political savvy and no-nonsense nature,
18:34he's still a real son of a bitch.
18:36-"All my life, you've wanted me dead."
18:44-"Yes, but you refused to die.
18:47I respect that, even admire it."
18:51Much like Gregor Clegane,
18:53Tywin meets his end at the hands of a family member he severely mistreated.
18:57Indeed, he all but disowned his son Tyrion simply for being a dwarf.
19:01-"You're not on trial for being a dwarf."
19:04-"Oh, yes I am.
19:06I've been on trial for that my entire life."
19:10After Tyrion is wrongfully put on trial for Joffrey's murder,
19:13he's released by the only relative who's ever shown compassion to him, Jaime.
19:18Tyrion then seizes the opportunity to get back at his oppressors,
19:22starting with his former flame, Shae, whom Tywin turned against him.
19:26Then, catching Tywin in a compromising position,
19:28Tyrion makes sure his father pays for his insolence.
19:32-"You're no son of mine."
19:34-"I am your son.
19:36I have always been your son."
19:41The sins of the father came back to bite him.
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20:01Number 1.
20:02Ramsay Bolton
20:03-"Our time together is about to come to an end.
20:09That's all right."
20:11Seriously, is there a more despised character on Game of Thrones?
20:14Though born a bastard and into a low station in life,
20:18Ramsay deserved none of it due to his sadistic and cruel ways.
20:22-"You'll always be my firstborn."
20:25-"Thank you for saying that.
20:28It means a great deal to me."
20:34Sure, he put an end to his father Roose Bolton,
20:36another character who had it coming,
20:38but Ramsay's crimes against humanity have no parallel.
20:41He does unspeakable things to numerous characters,
20:44including feeding people to his pack of dogs.
20:47-"He's your brother."
20:48-"I prefer being an only child."
20:59In a true display of karmic justice,
21:02Ramsay is captured and detained following the Battle of the Bastards.
21:05His unwilling wife Sansa makes sure he pays dearly,
21:09letting loose on him the very hounds he used to bring about so much death.
21:15Which death did you find the most satisfying?
21:17Let us know in the comments below.
21:19-"I, Brienne of Tarth, sentence you to die."
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