In the first season, I didn’t think much of Sansa. However through out the second to fourth season, I realized how capable she is. She is incredibly resilient, going through one horror after another and is still capable of empathy and kindness. She is incredibly courageous, helping others (ex: Dontos/Margaery) even with the risk it entailed. She is forgiving, calming the Women at the Blackwater despite them laughing at her abuse. She is incredibly smart, knowing how to navigate the court like an expert, and hiding herself behind this fake love for Joffrey. She is an incredible manipulator, which showcased itself mostly at the Eyrie, but even in earlier seasons, she made small lies that went a long way for her. She is also very adaptable. She’s capable of changing the way she approaches things every time the political situation changes. Of course I could list things from later seasons but I personally think that her strongest seasons were from 2-4 because they taught me that there is real concrete strength in traditional femininity that is of the same value as the strength in traditional masculinity. That her crying, complaining or being put into a hostage situation doesn’t make her weak. It makes her human. I also think that vulnerability is another aspect of being strong and her being honest about her feelings and her fears to herself is proof of her strength. The fact that she was able to navigate life despite all these horrors is what made her BADASS. Sansa later on is cool and all but she’s just not the Sansa I fell in love with, rather more of what we stereotypically and lazily depict as being a “strong female character.” (colder, pessimist, killer). She is still my favorite character in the show though, so no disrespect there but what I love about her is that she is FEMININE and STRONG and that she is the perfect example of another way that we, as humans can be badass. I love how she still believes that even if the world isn’t good to her right now, that it can be in the future. I love how she spreads love, compassion, forgiveness and kindness around even to people who were horrible to her. I love how even the sight of her abuser dying was unsettling to her. I love how when she feels things, she feels them intensely. I love she would wear these soft lovely dresses. I love her how she loved to sing, dance, dress, play instruments, listen to romantic stories and write poetry. I’m so excited for book Sansa to continue being strong and badass, the way she always has been and the way she should have continued to be in the show.