His Watch Has Ended: Jorah Mormont
Iain Glen as Jorah and Emilia Clarke as Daenerys in a Season 8 episode of Game of Thrones.
Game of Thrones has entered its final season and that means it’s time to take stock of the show as a whole. But rather than do a set of episode reviews, we decided to take a little inspiration from the books for our post-mortem. George R.R. Martin’s still unfinished series features chapters based on the point of view of its characters, so each of these posts will review their individual journeys in the show as they come to their end, whether peacefully or violently - this is Thrones, after all.
We’ll ask the same set of questions for each character, reflect on where they came from, where the events of the series took them, and where we leave them. How effective was the show’s approach to the character, and is their ending satisfying? What purpose did each character serve throughout the series?
If it isn’t already obvious, this is MEGA-SPOILER territory, so beware if you’re not fully caught up on the show.
See also from this series:
Melisandre
Theon Greyjoy
Night King
Lyanna Mormont
Where did he come from?
The perpetually humble Jorah (Iain Glen) is one of the most well-travelled characters on the show. As an exile from his Westerosi noble house, we’re first introduced to him at the wedding of Daenerys Targaryen and Khal Drogo, and from then on he follows wherever Daenerys leads. It’s clear he has unrequited feelings for her, but can’t act on them. He’s briefly banished by Dany when she discovers his past as a spy against her for the Lannisters, but eventually comes back into favour.
Where did the show take him?
Jorah spends much of his time going wherever Dany does, but spends big chunks of time on the show ferrying a banished Tyrion Lannister to Dany’s court, and is later infected with the disease known as greyscale. This affliction leads him to the Citadel, where he crosses paths with Samwell Tarly and is finally cured, allowing him to return to Dany’s service. Season 8 sees him accompany her to Winterfell for the big battle with the armies of the Night King.
Where does his story end?
A couple of exchanges in the first two episodes of the season foreshadow Jorah’s fate. First, Sam bestows his family sword on Jorah, and then Jorah gets into an argument with the current leader of Jorah’s former noble house, Lyanna. Jorah makes it clear that he’s not interested in taking over House Mormont from Lyanna, and tries to persuade her to remain in the Winterfell crypts, away from the battle. She refuses, but it becomes clear that Jorah’s arc is ending as his unfinished business in Westeros is complete. Jorah fights bravely in the battle, surviving until its final stages and getting a great moment of fighting back-to-back with Daenerys, but is ultimately overwhelmed by the wights and dies of his injuries.
Does the character redeem himself?
Arguably, Jorah hasn’t had much to redeem on the show in a while, as his loyal service to Daenerys long since outweighed his spying on her and prior to that, his banishment from Westeros for selling poachers into slavery. So by the time of his death, Jorah is a proven hero, but one whose time had come on the show.
Is his ending satisfying?
Nobody likes to see a favourite character die, but at least Jorah went out on his own terms, and after surviving plenty of close scrapes. The fact that he lived through a previously terminal disease and a number of intense battles (not the least of which was the mission to bring a wight out of the North to bring to King’s Landing). To see him fight alongside Dany was a nice nod to their long friendship, and proof that Dany wouldn’t be nearly as independent without him.
What role did this character player in the overall storytelling?
Jorah kept Daenerys safe from countless threats, so her survival to this point depends on him. In addition, he helped Tyrion get to his current role as Hand of the Queen, and allowed Sam to unlock his inner Maester at the Citadel, acting as a guinea pig for a barely proven greyscale treatment. Jorah's come in contact with many different corners of the world of Game of Thrones, so he’s definitely one of the key players, albeit one who never had much of a shot at holding power.
Best Moment on the Show
Jorah gets plenty of solid moments, but one I really liked was his time teaming up with other fan-favourite characters Jon, Tormund, and others to capture a wight. We get plenty of exchanges with characters we haven’t seen Jorah encounter yet, culminating in a conversation with Jon over who has the right to bear the sword Longclaw, which Jorah’s father gifted to Jon.