The day the Mountain crushed the Viper

"Turns out, far too much has been written about great men and not nearly enough about morons. Doesn't seem right." — Tyrion Lannister, "Game of Thrones"

There have been a lot of big moments in "Game of Thrones." There have been a lot of strong episodes, big plot twists, and jaw-dropping moments. But I think last night's episode might have been one of the most shocking, unexpected, and dark roller coaster rides in the history of the show.

So here are some takeaways from the episode. With only two episodes left in the season, who knows where we're going. SPOILERS ahead.

1. Sansa Stark has gone to the dark side. Her tearful recounting of the death of her aunt was compelling and believable, even though I saw what actually happened and knew she was telling tales. She is every bit the liar Littlefinger is, maybe better. It seems that years of torture, doom, and gloom have turned Sansa from a naively sweet girl into someone who knows how to use all her skills to play the game. And, after last night, it seems she's playing to win.

2. The war at the Wall — which looks to be next week's ninth episode of the season (traditionally a troubling episode number) — looks to be pretty epic. The Night's Watch will face a giant, determined army. I fear bad things coming for Jon Snow and his brothers in black.

3. Ramsey Bolton needs to go. With Joffrey dead, Ramsey is officially the worse of the characters on the show. Last night did nothing but confirm that.

4. Daenerys is going to regret sending Jorah away. Sure, he lied to her and spied on her at the beginning, but Jorah is her most honest advisor. He, of all of them, seems to have her best interests at heart, and he's the only one that has been with her since the beginning. Last night, her reaction seemed a little harsh and a little misguided. How can you send Jorah away for, at one time, being a spy while keeping Barristan close by when he loyally served Robert Baratheon to the end? Seems like a mistake.

5. If this is the end for Tyrion, and it seems like it might be, this is the Emmy reel for Peter Dinklage. There has been no finer performer in the show this season than Dinklage, who has dominated in his scenes. Last night was no exception. His scene opposite Nikolaj Coster-Waldau was one of the best moments of the episodes. (I stay behind in the books so the show remains a surprise as it airs, so I don't know if this is the end for Tyrion).

6. The battle between the Red Viper and the Mountain lived up to its billing, and was completely shocking. What a range of emotions. When it looked like the Viper had pulled it off, instead he got too confident, made a mistake, and lost his head. Well, to be more accurate it was crushed, but it was still a shocking, violent, and crushing ending to the episode. I think the look on Tyrion's face to close the episode pretty much said it all.

7. This was one of the darkest episodes of the show, which is saying something for a show that's gotten progressively darker. There aren't many heroes in this world, and the ones that exist — in addition to being deeply flawed — often don't survive long. The two most popular shows on cable, it seems, are "Game of Thrones" and "The Walking Dead." Both shows frequently see main characters, heroic characters, killed in sudden, gruesome ways. And both shows seem to paint a somewhat dim view of humanity and our future prospects. I can't help but wonder what that says out about our society.