The greatest and most discussed love triangle on Game of Thrones is not between Sir Jorah, Jon Snow, and Daenerys Targaryen, but instead between Jaime Lannister, Brienne of Tarth, and Tormund Giantsbane.
Fans of the series actively voice their opinions on who is a better match for the Knight of House Tarth. Some people swear it’s Jaime while others are sure it’s Tormund. Who is the better man for Brienne?
TEAM JAIME: THEIR LOVE FOR EACH OTHER WAS MUTUAL
This is an important factor to consider when comparing Brienne’s relationship with Jaime to her “relationship” with Tormund. Yet as much as we love Tormund and as much as we believe he would be great for Brienne, there really isn’t a bond between Brienne and Tormund because his love for her is completely one-sided.
Yet with Jaime and Brienne, their feelings of affection for one another seem to be mutual. Throughout the love triangle, we never get the sense that Brienne and Tormund have mutual feelings for each other (although let’s be honest, we would’ve loved that).
TEAM TORMUND: HE TREATED HER BETTER THAN JAIME EVER COULD
See Tormund’s wildling outfit? Did you know that it is made out of boyfriend material? That’s right. Tormund Giantsbane would make the best boyfriend arguably out of anyone on the entire Game of Thrones series. Sorry, Jon Snow! What makes Tormund so great is the fact that he wears his heart on his sleeve and he only has eyes for one woman: Brienne. While Jaime is a player who feels entitled to lots of women, Tormund would gladly give up his soul for Brienne and no one else. We think that definitely deserves some consideration and we have to give the points to Tormund for this one.
TEAM JAIME: THEY CAN BE HONEST WITH EACH OTHER
If you think about it, Jaime and Brienne are constantly pretending to be people that they are not. Brienne puts on a tough face for the world and refuses to let her emotions show, except for when she is with Jaime. Jaime is also constantly pretending to be this brave hero when the truth is, he is simply human like everyone else. He only exposes this relatable human side of himself when he is with family, and when he is with Brienne.
He respects her enough to be honest with her, and it’s no easy task to gain the respect of a Lannister. We especially see this in season 3 episode 5 when they bathe together and expose all of their truths. In relationships, it’s so essential to be with a person who you’re comfortable opening up to, and nobody does this better than Jaime and Brienne.
TEAM TORMUND: HE SAW HER BEAUTY WHEN NO ONE ELSE COULD
On Game of Thrones Brienne gives a beautiful monologue addressing the bullying she has experienced while growing up from men who saw her as “ugly.” They made fun of her for being so tall and masculine, and she began to buy into all their taunts. Tormund, on the other hand, sees all of those “negative” traits about her appearance as drop-dead gorgeous. He loves the way she looks and she is his dream woman who he would give his whole life to. Their relationship proves that there is a person for everyone, and the things you might be most insecure about will be traits that the right person for you will love the most about you. Now that’s just beautiful.
TEAM JAIME: BRIENNE AND JAIME HAVE INCREDIBLE CHEMISTRY
We can’t lie. Jaime and Brienne have chemistry so strong, they could put just about any other couple on the show to shame. These two started off as rivals, then slowly as time went on they became friends. Throughout the whole process, they realized their deep attraction, and eventually, their unconditional love for one another. If that doesn’t sound like a romantic comedy to you, we don’t know what will. Props to the actors for creating so much heat between these two that we need to fan ourselves whenever they’re on screen together.
TEAM TORMUND: HE WOULD’VE GIVEN UP ANYTHING FOR BRIENNE
We have no doubts that Tormund would die for Brienne even though they have never properly met. If that’s not an act of sheer romance, we’re not sure what is. Tormund looks after Brienne and wants the best for her despite the fact that she has never given him anything in return. He is totally willing to admire her from afar if that’s all she’s comfortable with, and even if Brienne doesn’t end up choosing Tormund as her match, we still have no doubt that he would continue to do anything at all for her. That is how deep his love for Brienne is.
TEAM JAIME: BRIENNE AND JAIME STARTED OFF AS FRIENDS
On Game of Thrones, the majority of relationships are created out of arranged marriages where the man and woman don’t have much of a say over who they’re wed to. Often it is done for political reasons as opposed to love, but at times there are exceptions on the HBO series. Yet in most of these relationships, the love between two characters begins the moment they lay eyes on each other without the characters really getting the chance to get to know each other as people. Jaime and Brienne, on the other hand, started off as friends and then became lovers after falling for each others personalities rather than simply falling for superficial traits like physical appearance which eventually fades with age. In order for a relationship to last a lifetime, there must be an emotional bond rather than just a physical bond, and because these two started out as friends, there is definitely an emotional connection.
TEAM TORMUND: TORMUND WAS A TRUE ROMANTIC
If we are to choose who the bigger romantic is between Jaime and Tormund, we would most certainly choose Tormund. This wildling doesn’t fall for just anyone, and once he has chosen his person, he sticks by her side until the very end. Tormund fights for the people he loves, while Jaime has left Brienne heartbroken and betrayed after he left her all alone in the dark. Tormund would never even think of leaving Brienne like that because he is a hopeless romantic who wants to shower Brienne with the love she deserves.
TEAM JAIME: TORMUND’S LOVE FOR BRIENNE WAS MOSTLY DONE OUT OF COMIC RELIEF
Although there were some genuinely sweet moments between the two, the majority of the romantic scenes between Tormund and Brienne were done purely out of comic relief for the show. This was especially the case in the final season when things got so dark that there had to be an element of humor involved in order to even things out.
Most of this humor was derived from Tormund trying to impress Brienne. With Jaime and Brienne, on the other hand, nothing about their romance was supposed to be funny. It was instead a passionate and heartbreaking romance that left us aching inside.
TEAM TORMUND: BRIENNE WAS HIS ONE TRUE LOVE
At the end of the day, Cersei was the love of Jaime’s life. Not Brienne. As much as we wish this was not the case and as much as we craved for Jaime and Brienne to be together forever, Jaime and Cersei were inseparable. Tormund never loved anyone else but Brienne. There were no other women on his list. Just Brienne. It seemed as if she was the love of his life, and we still secretly hope these two found each other in the end and lived happily ever after while having a ton of “monster babies” together.
