17 of the Most Satisfying Deaths That Ever Happened on Game of Thrones

"When you play the game of thrones, you win or you die. There is no middle ground."

Cersei Lannister says those faithful words during the first season of Game of Thrones, and truer phrases have never been spoken. Throughout the show's eight seasons, there have been plenty of tragic moments, some so traumatic that we'll never be able to recover. With so many of our favorite characters meeting their ends in the series's final season, sometimes it's nice to think about the deaths that were truly well-deserved. So in that vein, we thought it would be nice to look back at all the totally warranted, totally satisfying deaths we've seen to date, in no particular order!

01
Viserys Targaryen
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Viserys Targaryen

What a great way to start this list, right? It's safe to say we were all tired of Daenerys's brother from the get-go, so this molten-gold death is the jackpot we really needed.

02
Lysa Arryn
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Lysa Arryn

After worrying about the infamous moon door for the better part of a season, there was no one we'd rather see go through it. You might say we were over the moon.

03
Tywin Lannister
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Tywin Lannister

Listen, it's not that we particularly hated Tywin Lannister; he's fine. But the way he constantly bullies and belittles Tyrion made this murder extra sweet. He's on the toilet, for heaven's sake!

04
The Waif
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The Waif

The only reason this one's not higher on the list is because we don't actually see how everything goes down. Even so, after watching the waif torture Arya for much of seasons five and six, it's fun to see their literal face-off — as in Arya cuts that face off and puts it right in the Hall of Faces.

05
Lancel Lannister
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Lancel Lannister

As a follower of the Seven, Lancel has been on our bad side for quite some time now. To make it worse, he's generally just been kind of insufferable as a member of the Faith Militant. He's fired.

06
Craster
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Craster

It's not hard to get a bad taste in your mouth from this wildling. He marries his daughters and incestuously fathers more daughters with them. We'd be four, five seconds from wildin' too, if you catch our drift.

08
Myranda
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Myranda

Before we were graciously gifted with the death of Ramsay Bolton, we got to witness the murder of his sadistic lover, Myranda. Guess she finally hits rock bottom.

09
Meryn Trant
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Meryn Trant

This guy is one of the few characters Arya has managed to cross off her kill list all by herself. Looks like she really takes that "eye for an eye" thing to heart, you feel? (Because, like, she stabs his eyes a lot.)

10
Stannis Baratheon
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Stannis Baratheon

Stannis was never a noble hero in our hearts, but the real turning point is when he burns his daughter Shireen at the stake as a sacrifice to the Lord of Light. One might say we'd been burnt one too many times at that point.

11
The High Sparrow
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The High Sparrow

We've been banking on Cersei's revenge all season long, and her explosive plan certainly doesn't disappoint.

12
Walder Frey
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Walder Frey

This death has been years in the making, and it couldn't be more beautifully orchestrated. When you consider how Walder Frey has killed much of Arya's family, the fact that she feeds him the remains of his sons is like literally giving him a taste of his own medicine.

13
Joffrey Baratheon
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Joffrey Baratheon

Joffrey Baratheon is the quintessential trash monster on Game of Thrones. He's impossible to tolerate, he's whiny, he's mean, and he's so many other things. Now he's dead too, holler!

14
Petyr Baelish
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Petyr Baelish

Whew, we were waiting for this one. Littlefinger's schemes and lies finally catch up with him when the Stark siblings are finally back together. The three put all the clues together and Littlefinger on trial. Sansa grants the sentence and Arya acts on her command. Later, loser!

15
Ramsay Bolton
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Ramsay Bolton

No other death on Game of Thrones has tasted this good, especially if you ask Ramsay's very hungry hounds.

16
Euron Greyjoy
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Euron Greyjoy

Euron Greyjoy is kind of the worst. He's cocky, crude, and viciously savage. Admittedly, he does have some of the funnier lines in the series, but that's only because we can never believe someone is actually saying them. The discount Jack Sparrow meets his maker after battling it out with Jaime on the shore of King's Landing. Despite getting a few good licks in, Jaime is the one with the last laugh when he impales Euron through the chest. The former king of the Iron Islands dies laughing, crying that he's the man who "killed Jaime Lannister." It's actually a bunch of bricks, but as long as he's happy!

17
Qyburn
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Qyburn

The mad scientist is taken out by his own terrifying creation — the Mountain — in a split second. It doesn't last long, but it still manages to be satisfying seeing how his brain (which has contributed to many tragic events throughout the series) explodes all over the castle floor.

18
The Mountain
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The Mountain

Cleganebowl finally happens and it takes both brothers out! After ensuring that Arya doesn't carry out her long-awaited revenge by killing Cersei, Sandor takes out his zombiefied big brother as the Red Keep crumbles around them. He realizes that regular maiming won't cut it when the Mountain swats at a whole dagger in the eye, so he tackles him, sending them both crashing off a ledge and into the fiery rubble of King's Landing far, far below. Just like he's always wanted.

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This is the part where we all walk away with our new signature Sansa smirks.