Waiting can be tough. In the age of streaming and on demand media consumption, the notion of having to wait for the release of a new season of a television show or a film sequel to a major blockbuster has become a lackadaisical hardship for pop culture fiends. We mark our calendars and make release dates special events. We take the day off from work to line up at midnight for a new Star Wars film. We throw zombie-themed viewing parties for season premieres of The Walking Dead. We live this stuff. Release dates are (almost) as important as birthdays and holidays.

But unlike birthdays and holidays, releases of television shows, films, video games, and comics can be delayed. These delays are the plight of geeks around the globe. They are beyond our control and while they often just further build anticipation, they can also crush spirits. Image someone telling you your birthday moved from April to October one year due to production expenditure cuts and scheduling issues. You’d freak out, right? So why should we be okay with the final season of the massive culture phenomenon, Game of Thrones being delayed until 2019? We aren’t. But while we wait for winter to come, you can still enjoy some memes.

15 DRAGON EGG TOAST

Can we all agree that avocados are some of the most aesthetically bizarre fruits in the produce department. It’s right up there with passion fruit and pomegranates. While this isn’t the thesis of the meme above, it does play into it. It’s often reported that an early English name for avocados was “alligator too far removed from “dragon egg.” It almost makes us wonder if you conducted the right kind of blood magic ritual with avocado would it hatch a baby mythological reptile, or would you just be escorted out of Whole Foods by security. We may never know.

Really this meme is a fun little jab at the perceived obsession millennials have with the guacamole base foodstuff. The fact that actress Emilia Clarke, who portrays Daenerys Targaryen, is a millennial herself only adds another layer to an already surprisingly dense meme.

14 BOY TOYS

Daenerys Targaryen has had no shortage of suiters during the seven seasons of HBO’s Game of Thrones. From creepy slavers to noble knights, Danny has had slews of men (and some women) vying for her affection. However, only a few characters have made their way into the Mother of Dragons’ heart (and bed) thus far. Sorry for you luck, Ser Jorah.

The first would Dothraki leader, and Danny’s first husband, Khal Drogo, played by the always charismatic Jason Momoa (Justice League). Drogo is a hulky mountain of a man who is nothing more than a primeval id ready to do battle at any given notice, which is a good thing for the Dothraki. The most recent man to get past the Dragon Queen’s icy front would be Jon Snow, who is not as intimidating as Khal Drogo as you can see here.

13 NO ONE IS SAFE

Author George RR Martin has a bit of a notorious track record when it comes to maintaining the longevity of his characters. Now, this only stems from the first three entries of his epic fantasy series A Song of Ice and fire, which serves as the basis for Game of Thrones.

The third novel in the series, A Storm of Swords sees the deaths of more beloved characters than the rest of the entries surrounding it. But Martin takes it in stride. He seems to have a sense of humor about it. And even if we complain about someone getting the business end of a broadsword, the ever-growing threat for the characters we hold dear is exhilarating. We, as fans of the show and books, have been trained to not get too attached to anyone.

12 SER FRIEND ZONE

There are times where the titles in Game of Thrones gets a little ridiculous. Take Danny’s for instance: Daenerys of the House Targaryen, the First of Her Name, The Unburnt, Queen of the Andals, the Rhoynar and the First Men, Queen of Meereen, Khaleesi of the Great Grass Sea, Protector of the Realm, Lady Regnant of the Seven Kingdoms, Breaker of Chains and Mother of Dragons…it just doesn’t really roll off the tongue.

It is fun to wonder if other characters had long titles, what would they be? This meme really hits the nail on the head when it comes to Ser Jorah Mormont. Poor Ser Jorah has been so infatuated with Danny for six seasons, you almost feel bad for the guy if he wasn’t so “thirsty.”

11 DRINK UP, TYRION

Tyrion Lannister is probably most loveable character in Game of Thrones. When he isn’t dropping truth bombs on everyone around him, he’s usually partying in a brothel with a dozen glasses of wine sloshing around in his belly. Now, this isn’t to say Tyrion has a charmed life. Despite the regal family his comes from, this is quite the contrary.

Tyrion has faced tons of prejudice and rejection for the people who are closest to him. He’s undergone great heartbreaks which have influenced him to do some heinous (albeit justified) acts of violence against loved ones. He’s been maimed in battle, traded as a slave, and almost eaten by dragons. The guys can barely catch a break. But despite all this, he keeps his mind sharp, his tongue sharper, and his spirits high. Certainly the booze helps.

10 THE THINGS WE DO FOR LOVE

The series premiere of Game of Thrones is a bit of a mixed bag, tonally speaking (seriously, go back and rewatch it; it’s a total mess), but the only thing it had going for it was shock value. In that first episode, audiences were introduced to The Others (who would not return for quite some time). They were show the horrors of an arranged marriage. And worst of all, they learned about Ser Jaime Lannister’s relationship with his twin sister, Queen Cersei.

Now if it wasn’t bad enough that Jaime was overly affectionate with his sister, to cover up his transgressions, he pushed Brann Stark out of a tower window, causing him to become paralyzed. It was a truly despicable act that, at the time, seemed unredeemable. But now, we’re cool with Jaime. Time really does heal all wounds…except for Brann’s. He still can’t walk.

9 SUICIDE SQUAD

One of the coolest images from season seven of Game of Thrones happened at the end of episode five. It’s a wide shot of Jon, Ser Jorah, The Hound, and several other salty characters about to head north of The Wall to retrieve proof of the army of the dead. This scene was the wallpaper for computer monitors across the globe for weeks after the episode aired.

It’s also a far more compelling version of a suicide mission being carried out by an eclectic cast of characters than the DCEU film Suicide Squad was. Which is a shame. Suicide Squad featured a killer clown lady, an assassin, a woman wielding a soul-eating sword, and a crocodile man. There’s no reason a show featuring a bunch of British guys with beards of varying quality should have pulled it off better, but here we are.

8 CHOICES

Emilia Clarke has given tons of meme fodder in her portrayal of Daenerys Targaryen. Part of this is due to her extremely emotive face. And while this is something all actors should be able to utilize in their craft, it is something that The Dragon Queen-actress excels at. Seriously, Clarke can speak volumes with just her eyebrows.

But there has been some complaints regarding her characterization within certain circles of fans. Their argument is that Danny’s actions on the show do not expand beyond the four choices in this meme. Now, early on, this might have been true, but the character has developed over the course of seven seasons. These days Danny threatens people and then burns everyone! See? That’s what we call character growth.

7 HOLD THE DOOR

The quote Hodor, “Hodor.” The lovable dullard, and loyal servant the Stark Family, Hodor is a fan favorite. Much like Chewbacca in Star Wars, we fell in love with a character who we could not verbally understand or connect with. But when Hodor was in trouble, we felt his fear. When he was worried about Brann, we felt his pain. This is certainly due to the talents of Northern Irish DJ turned actor, Kristian Nairn.

Nairn gave the sweet, simple giant of a man the humanity the character needed for us to latch on to. And because of this, Hodor’s final appearance in the show was both awe-inspiring and heartbreaking. Hodor really did have one job, and he did it, sacrificing himself for those he loved. Perhaps Hodor knew how this was going to go, but didn’t have the mental facilities to tell us.

6 I DON'T LIKE MONDAYS (OR THIS GUY)

We can all agree that King Joffrey Baratheon is one of the worst people who ever ruled Westeros. Sure he didn’t set people on fire at random, but man, was he awful. Joffrey was despised in the novels early on by fans, and Jack Gleeson’s amazing snide and loathsome portrayal of the character took the character far beyond the nastiness that was on page.

And while Monday doesn’t have Sean Bean decapitated (maybe it will in a future film), it is certainly the worst day of the week. No one wants to get up after a nice long weekend. And no one wants to be ruled by a tyrannical, spoiled, prepubescent twerp with a penchant for sadism and mocking his would-be queen. At least you can coffee to cope with Mondays. So that’s a plus.

5 CAN'T KEEP 'EM DOWN

Bran Stark has been scrutinized by fans as being boring and almost inconsequential to the overall story of Game of Thrones. But in recent seasons, this has not been the case. Bran seems to be intrinsic to the fate of Westeros in big, big way. No matter the relevance to the character’s overall impact we can all agree, Bran doesn’t let his disability get in his way. He uses the tools that are afforded to him (i.e. Hodor, that weird wooden sled thing, etc.) to get around.

Losing the use of his legs didn’t mean the end for Bran. Nor should it. But as admirable as his tenacity is, the return of another legless character is even more impressive. Darth Maul was cut in half at the end of The Phantom Menace. And when Maul didn’t have a Hodor, he got some robot legs, which is…similar?

4 PINCUSHION

Remember Rickon Stark, the youngest son of Ned and Cetelyn Stark? We didn’t either until he was delivered to everyone’s favorite psychopath, Ramsey Bolton in season six. Rickon had been on the run with the Wilding Osha for the last couple of seasons and he was very much out of sight; out of mind.

Sadly, his reintroduction was cut short in the penultimate episode of season six. He is marched out to meet his brother/cousin Jon Snow by Ramsey, but is treated as target practice. There are tons of memes making light of the fact that Rickon should have swerved when running away from Ramsay’s arrows, but the funniest one is this. Sean Bean, who played Ned Stark in the show, is no stranger to getting killed on screen. But one of the most iconic deaths he’s seen was as Boromir in Fellowship of the Ring. Dude became a pincushion.

3 "WELL....I'M NOT WITH HER, YET"

Who says a medieval fantasy drama about dirty politics, war, and an army of undead marching to push the world to the precipice of oblivion can’t be funny? One of the facets Game of Thrones excels at is its wonderful sense of humor. No matter how dire the situation, be sure there will be a character to yank a chuckle out of the audience. Sometimes it’s a joke about how utterly horrible everything is. And sometimes it’s a snarky quip or astute observation (usually about how utterly horrible everything is).

One the best sources of comic relief in the show comes from the infatuation the Wildling leader Tormund Giantsbane has with Brienne of Tarth. He leering gaze and suggesting smiles bounce off Brienne like a rubber ball smacking against her armor. She wants nothing to with Tormund, but his puppy dog obsession with her is both hilarious and endearing.

2 DON'T POKE THE BEAR

There are no shortages of tough-as-nails characters in Game of Thrones. From anti-heroes like The Hound and Bronn to literal (and figurative) monsters like Wun-Wun and Gregor Clegane, dangerous characters not to be trifled with are abound in Westeros. But rarely has a character captured fans’ attention like the preteen ruler Lyanna Mormont.

This exchange between Ramsay and Jon Snow is a play on the back and forth between Tony Stark and Loki in Marvel’s The Avengers. It’s also absolutely true. Up and coming actress Bella Ramsey portrays Lyanna with a level of steely ferocity that even the more grizzled of characters on the show have trouble pulling off from time to time. She is a force to be reckoned with, a character who won’t let her age or gender define the quality of her leadership. In short: she rules.

1 DUMB FISH

Poor Edmure Tully. Is there a goofier lord in all of Game of Thrones? The guy is the quintessential mindless royal architype. He knows his name is important and relies on it so heavily it gets him captured by two Houses. First by the Freys and later by the Lannisters.

But despite his imprisonment, which is still going on in the show as far as we know, Edmure is arguably one of the luckiest characters we’ve met. During the infamous event known as The Red Wedding, Edmure was spirited away before the bloodshed begins. Which is nice seeing as how it was his wedding. Edmure isn’t dangerous enough to be a threat to the opposing Houses, and he’s too valuable to simply kill and cast aside. Edmure occupies this strange grey area where he’s more of a bargaining chip than a character. Gotta feel bad for the guy.