Who Will Be 2,340th Person to Die on Thrones?

When Ned Stark was offed in the very first season of Game of Thrones, fans were shocked that the show would kill off, via decapitation, what was then perceived to be the main character. The reaction of Sean Bean, who played Stark, to his premature demise? "It was a quite funny day really," he tells the Washington Post. "I think at one point I was walking around with my head in my hands having a bit of a laugh." On the eve of Season 8 of the hit HBO show, premiering Sunday, the Post talks to other actors on the show who met similarly gruesome fates, just one of the many pieces hitting the internet as the show's final season draws closer. Read on for much more:

• USA Today catches current viewers up with a refresher, while the AP insists it's not too late for newcomers to join in, offering an overview of the general setting, the major families, and expectations for what may be coming down the pike.
• There have been 2,339 deaths (!) on the show to date, and it would be incomprehensible that Season 8 wouldn't offer a few more. For those who need a reminder, the Washington Post has an illustrated guide detailing how each ill-fated character met his/her/its demise.
• Confused about how Daenerys and Jon Snow are related? We're still trying to get a handle on it ourselves (we just get the feeling they shouldn't be making out), and so are many other viewers. The Wrap notes that question is among the show's most Googled. Check out what other queries have been weighing on fans' minds (and manifesting in internet searches), as well as the 25 biggest questions the show needs to answer, via Vulture.
• One of the most anticipated reveals that fans are hoping for: finding out who will take the Iron Throne. Greg Braxton makes the case for the Los Angeles Times that it's Bran Stark. Braxton contends Bran's "destiny" was foreshadowed right from the very first episode.

• Time breaks down the 10 most popular fan theories for the final season, complete with plausibility ratings. Coming in with a rather high ranking: the return of Melisandre, along with the possibility that Arya will kill her.
• We've gotten used to the show's epic battle scenes, so it seems logical to anticipate more of the same. But Mashable posits the series could end another way entirely: peacefully. "It will end with a sad song of ice and fire—finally in harmony after millennia of death and war between the two," writes Jess Joho, who puts forth some interesting thoughts on how the White Walkers play into it all.
• Speaking of White Walkers, a big name just dressed up like one. Watch CNN host Anderson Cooper's transformation here.
• Already going into withdrawal mode as the series wraps up? You're not alone. CNN talks to fans on how the show affected their lives, and how they're prepping for the end. One man's plan? To "weep into a big glass of whiskey."

(More Game of Thrones stories.)