Five things 'Game of Thrones' should give us in Season 6
"Game of Thrones" returns at 8 p.m. Sunday to HBO for its sixth season of blood, betrayal, bare skin, brilliant dialogue and - I hope - some righteous retribution.
Season 5 was tragic for all of Westeros' powerful families. Last year, fans were subjected to the rape of Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner), the blinding of sister Arya Stark (Maisie Williams) and the apparent death of their half-brother, Jon Snow (Kit Harington). Young Shireen Baratheon (Kerry Ingram) was burned at the stake by her parents - who are now also dead. The king's mother, Cersei Lannister (Lena Headey), was forced to walk naked through the streets of King's Landing by religious zealots. Her brother, Jaime (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau), spent all season trying to rescue daughter Myrcella (Nell Tiger Free) from Ellaria Sand (Indira Varma) only to watch her die on the journey home.
So it's time for showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss to give us some bloody satisfaction. Here's what I want from Season 6:
1. Sansa's sweet, sweet revenge. Ned Stark's eldest daughter has endured abuse at every turn, culminating in the horrific rape by second husband Ramsay Bolton (Iwan Rheon). Now she's on the run with brainwashed eunuch Theon Greyjoy (Alfie Allen), whom she believes killed her younger brothers. It's time to give Sansa a well-earned victory.
2. Cersei's sweet, sweet revenge. (Are you sensing a theme here?) The cunning, cutthroat Cersei has never been what you'd call an endearing character - but watching her get spit on and abused by the good people of King's Landing changed that. The Season 6 trailer shows Cersei telling her fanatical cousin Lancel (Eugene Simon) "I choose violence," and with an apparently resurrected Gregor Clegane (Hapfor Julius Bjornsson) at her side, violence there will surely be.
3. Daenerys Targaryen finally makes it to Westeros. The Mother of Dragons (Emilia Clarke) finally met Tyrion Lannister (Peter Dinklage) after four seasons of sometimes satisfying but rambling plot lines, and then Benioff and Weiss dumped her in the middle of nowhere without her dragons, surrounded by unfamiliar warriors. We do not need another year of Daenerys "doing nothing." It's time to put this major player on the board.
4. Brienne of Tarth back in hero mode. Gwendoline Christie's noble warrior spent most of Season 5 watching for a signal in a window, and her big moment in the finale - executing Stannis Baratheon (Stephen Dillane) - was abruptly cut short.
5. Lady Stoneheart. If you know George R.R. Martin's books, you've been waiting for this character for two seasons. If you don't, you're in for quite the surprise if she shows up.
• Sean Stangland is a Daily Herald multiplatform editor. You can follow him on Twitter at @SeanStanglandDH.