The 30 most heartwarming moments on Game of Thrones

8. Jaime risks his life to save Brienne (“The Bear and the Maiden Fair”)

SARAH: In Season 3’s “The Bear and the Maiden Fair,” the maiden in question is Brienne of Tarth, with whom Jaime spent a significant amount of time traveling before they were captured by Roose Bolton’s men and held at Harrenhal. Despite a rocky start, a mutual understanding has blossomed between the two by the time Roose decides to send Jaime back to King’s Landing with a posse of armed protectors. Brienne isn’t so lucky, and is detained at the pleasure of Bolton’s vile lickspittle, Locke. When Jaime learns that Brienne will not be ransomed to her father, he decides to turn back and bring her with him, arriving just in time to save her from certain death at the hands of Locke’s bear. Most people would be happy with a cat for a pet. This guy was certainly compensating for something.

For a long time, Jaime’s main priority was his twin sister, Cersei—there was a time when there was nothing Jaime wouldn’t do to satisfy her. When he was interned in Robb Stark’s camp, for example he cheerfully murdered his own cousin for the chance to escape back to her—to keep Cersei waiting was an almost treasonous offense. But when Jaime decided to rescue Brienne, he did with the knowledge that he was keeping Cersei waiting. Brienne momentarily knocked Cersei off the top of Jaime’s list of priorities, which nobody had ever done before.

Caring about other people isn’t really Jaime’s thing, but Brienne has clearly broken through his barriers. He hasn’t had much opportunity to interact with any woman but his sister, and while he knows that Cersei is vindictive, selfish and emotionally abusive, he has allowed himself to be chided and controlled by her his entire life. Then suddenly, he finds himself in close quarters with Cersei’s polar opposite. Brienne is loyal, honorable and kind, everything Cersei isn’t, and everything that Jaime must have once aspired to be. From the way he broods over the White Book, we can assume that he wanted to be the hero at some point in his life. No wonder Brienne got under his skin.

Jaime’s rescue of Brienne was the first time we saw him truly play the part of the hero. He jumped into the bear pit to save her with no plan, no rich daddy to bail him out and no weapon to defend himself. Was it a smart move? Not really, but it revealed to us that Jaime has it in him to do the right thing, which is something that Brienne now sees, even if Cersei doesn’t.