WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for the Game of Thrones Season 8 premiere, "Winterfell."
No one in Game of Thrones has exactly had an easy time of it. Even the easiest journeys have included countless murders and unspeakable violence. But few characters in the world of Westeros have been forced to contend with as many complications as Sansa Stark.
But what doesn't kill you, makes you stronger, and the premiere of Season 8 reintroduced Sansa Stark as one of the most brilliant players in the titular Game of Thrones. She's able to see through allies and accurately predict enemies to an almost frightening degree. Sansa has become the low-key MVP of the entire conflict, and could be the key to uniting (or splintering) the armies of man.
It's important to remember that Sansa didn't always stand out as such. Jon's more simplistic view of his sister comes from past experiences and doesn't take into account all of the troubles Sansa has had to contend with. This has included being betrothed to Joffrey even after he had her father executed, almost being sexually assaulted repeatedly by various parties, being accused of murdering Joffrey and forced into hiding before eventually being sold off to Ramsay Bolton (who actually did sexually assault her). It's been a rough couple of years when the best period of your adolescence was arguably being forced into marriage with a man decades older than you.
But her experiences have made Sansa thick-skinned and hard to faze. She has observed power players in their elements and learned from them, even the ones she hates. Cersei, Ramsay and Littlefinger all taught her how to play the Game of Thrones, and she managed to straight up outplay two of them to their deaths. She is prepared for anything, especially a foreign queen that her brother has been hooking up with.
This tact is on display in the season premiere, with Sansa coldly seeing through Daenerys' attempts at flattery. She's not here to befriend Daenerys, or even strictly to work with her. When Daenerys tries to cite the strength of her armies as cause for celebration, Sansa is the one quick to remind her (and by extension, the rest of the North) that Winterfell is not prepared to feed the "greatest army in history." It's a pragmatic approach to the coming wars with the White Walkers, and may pale in comparison to that ever approaching threat. It's a reality they're going to have to face at some point or another.
But Sansa isn't just laying verbal smackdowns onto the Mother of Dragons. Her conversation with Tyrion is decidedly more civil, but still punctuated by a greater understanding. She immediately sees through the lies Cersei told Tyrion, and points out his own apparent failings as a diplomat and leader. She admits that she used to look at Tyrion and see the most intelligent man in Westeros, but now she can observe the plans of others and pick them apart in a matter of moments. She's outpaced him (and pretty much everyone) mentally, to the point where even her once aggressive sister Arya admits that Sansa has become the most intelligent person she knows.
Even her final argument with Jon reinforces just how determined and intelligent Sansa has become, reflecting her role as the perhaps the most capable and worthwhile person to serve as the commander of humanity. She reminds him of the role he should be playing as the King in the North, trying to keep him from acting too emotional in his role as a leader. She asks him if he truly bent the knee and relinquished his throne for the good of the North, or because he's fallen in love with his new queen. Sansa has become so intelligent that she can see through the lies that others tell themselves.
Even Daenerys intended intimidation in saying dragons "eat whatever they want" was met with a pointed and cold look from Sansa. Unlike almost everyone else who Daenerys has had to contend with, Sansa doesn't underestimate her, but isn't willing to bend for her either. It proves Sansa has become a very skilled and dangerous player in the Game of Thrones, and is a good indicator that she's not taking anyone's nonsense anymore.
If the North is going to fight alongside Daenerys or turn on her forces, it'll most likely be at the behest of the Lady of Winterfell, not the supposed King in the North. If you try to flatter or intimidate her, all it does is steel her resolve. Sansa is here to play the game for keeps in Season 8, and we couldn't be more excited.
Season 8 of Game of Thrones airs Sundays on HBO. The drama stars Peter Dinklage as Tyrion Lannister, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as Jaime Lannister, Lena Headey as Cersei Lannister, Emilia Clarke as Daenerys Targaryen, Sophie Turner as Sansa Stark, Maisie Williams as Arya Stark and Kit Harington as Jon Snow.