The First ‘Game Of Thrones’ Season 7 Photos Are Here

We’ve all been patiently waiting for news about the seventh, truncated season of HBO’s Game of Thrones and that patience has paid off. By the old gods and the new, behold more new photos than you can shake a Valyrian sword at! Something to hold us over until the premiere on July 16.

There is so much going in these images. Almost every character of substance is accounted for (though no photos of the dragons or the direwolves). Dany and her crew have landed at Dragonstone. Jon is still brooding. Sansa and Littlefinger are plotting and I’d bet a shiny groat that Lady Stark has plans for the man who sold her into marital slavery. Arya looks to still be hanging around the Freys, so I’d say she’s probably assuming the role of Lady Stoneheart from the novels. There’s even the return of everyone’s favorite noble, Lady Lyanna Mormont! She may or may not be talking to the Onion Knight and I hope she is because he needs someone to fill the Shireen-shaped hole in his heart left by Stannis and Melisandre (also not pictured).

North of the Wall, it’s down to Meera and Jon which just reminds us how much they’ve lost while fighting the war against the Night King (who is also MIA from the first round of imagery). Meanwhile in the far South, Gilly and Sam are hard at work uncovering the mysteries of life, the universe, and everything at the Citadel in Oldtown.

But my two favorite images have to be that of the Lannister twins on the Iron Throne and the photo of Tormund and Brienne. Get you a man that looks at you the way Tormund Giantsbane looks at Lady Tarth.