Welcome to Game of Thrones: MVP of the Week, a weekly feature in which we crown the character who stands out most during each episode of season eight. The MVP may have had the most kills, given the best monologue, or died the most heroic death. (Hey, we're just covering all our bases!)
I generally try to give the characters of Game of Thrones some leeway when it comes to the insanity of their choices because of the circumstances of their situation. They're dealing with dragons, red witches, and Night Kings, after all. Someone is bound to make a few mistakes along the way. But season eight's fourth episode, "The Last of the Starks," was beyond my comprehension. So many bad decisions are made and so many characters seem to forget themselves over the course of its 80 minutes.
I mean, yay for Jaime finally realizing that Brienne is all that and a bag of chips, but boo on him for hurting her after she opens up to him so vulnerably! Did Jon really leave Ghost behind after the direwolf fought for him in the Battle of Winterfell, without so much as a pet or a "Good boy?" And, finally, did Missandei really have to die in chains for the sake of "pushing" Daenerys into attacking King's Landing with no regrets? At this point, it's hard to justify calling any of these people an MVP.
So, in light of all the characters' (and showrunners') failure to make sense on Sunday night, I'm forced to give this week's award to the real star of episode four: the random coffee cup that makes an unexpected and unintended cameo during the celebration scene in Winterfell. No, it may not have any lines, but its presence speaks volumes.