'Game Of Thrones' Season 5: The 6 Best Moments Before Sunday's Finale [VIDEO]

“Game of Thrones” has been a bit of a downer this season. The Faith’s religious extremism, the Bolton’s brutality, and the White Walkers have combined to make for a rather cruel, miserable set of episodes. However, Season 5 of the HBO fantasy drama has not been without its triumphant moments! Fans have had plenty to cheer about ahead of Sunday's big finale.

Here are 6 of the best scenes from “Game of Thrones” Season 5:

1. Fans Meet The Sand Snakes

While the inclusion of Dorne in the Season 5 action has largely been underwhelming, anticipation had been high for the introduction of the region’s most interesting characters -- and the Sand Snakes did not disappoint. Obara (Keisha Castle-Hughes), Tyene (Rosabell Laurenti Sellers) and Nym (Jessica Henwick) Sand, the illegitimate daughters of Oberyn Martell (Pedro Pascal) made their debut in episode 4, torturing the ship captain who had smuggled Jaime Lannister (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau) into Dorne with a bull whip, a bucket and some scorpions. The Sand Snakes gave viewers a refreshingly powerful trio of female characters and left a lasting first impression.

2. Jon Snow Gets Elected Lord Commander

By no stretch of the imagination has Jon Snow (Kit Harrington) had an easy time during his five seasons in the Night’s Watch. Snow has been kidnapped, shot with arrows, and betrayed, while still finding time to fend off Mance Rayder’s army in the Battle of Castle Black. Well, all the hard work seemed to pay off when he was elected the new Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch in episode 2. That Master Aemon (Peter Vaughan) cast the deciding vote made it all the more sweet.

3. Tyrion Meets Daenerys

It took until episode 8, but what was possibly the most anticipated character meeting in the series arrived when Tyrion (Peter Dinklage) finally came before Daenerys (Emilia Clarke). The meeting became a de facto job interview, with Tyrion advising the Mother of Dragons on how to handle Jorah’s (Iain Glen) return to Mereen and making his case for why Daenerys should trust him. Of course, the smooth talking Tyrion passed the test and was seated by the side of the queen by episode 9.

4. Cersei Gets Her Just Desserts

After watching Cersei (Lena Headey) engineer the imprisonment of Margaery Tyrell (Natalie Dormer), it was a great moment for fans to see her finally get her comeuppance. The tables were turned on the manipulative former-queen when the High Sparrow (Jonathan Pryce) brought Loras Tyrell (Finn Jones) before the court to testify against Cersei for her own sins. As creepy as the Faith Militant can be, at least someone finally knocked Cersei down a peg.

5. Jon Snow Kills A White Walker

The White Walker raid on the Wildling camp was one of the most brutal scenes the show has ever shown. However, there was one triumphant moment amidst the carnage. Wielding his Valyrian steel sword, Jon Snow cut down one of the White Walker generals. In doing so he became the second person on the show to kill a White Walker and may have discovered the secret to defeating the looming enemy.

6. Dragons!

The most thrilling scene of the season, and, perhaps, even the series came at the end of the most recent episode 9. Cornered by the Sons of the Harpy, Daenerys and her entourage seemed to be doomed to certain death. However, just when all hope seemed lost, Drogon, one of Dany’s dragons, swooped in to save the day, eventually flying the queen to safety on his back. The power of Daenerys’ dragons has been hinted at through the whole series and the exciting scene finally delivered on that promise.

Watch the trailer for the Season 5 finale below: