Beware of spoilers for last week's episode!

In the last "Game of Thrones" episode, "Battle of the Bastards," we finally witnessed the climactic showdown between Jon Snow and Ramsay Bolton as their armies clashed together in a seemingly apocalyptic battle for Winterfell. Brilliantly shot, extremely well choreographed, it was the epic clash we were all waiting for.

But some of the most exciting parts of last week's episode were not so much the battle that took place (don't get me wrong, though, that was sick), but the rising power of the women in the series, and the normalization of them having this power. Specifically, I'm speaking about Sansa, Daenerys, and Yara Greyjoy. So, let's put aside the great battle that everyone's talking about, and focus in on the female power that appeared throughout the episode.

Six seasons of character development later, Sansa Stark has come out on top. Easily, the two best moments of the episode featured Sansa: when she sat upon a horse while the knights of the Vale stormed to the field, essentially ensuring her and Jon's victory over Ramsay, bringing her closer to returning home-- and her satisfied-- even smug-- smile as Ramsay's own dogs mauled him to death. In this episode, Sansa really became her own person-- the girl that in season 1 wanted desperately to marry and belong to a man transformed into a woman that took her life into her own hands-- and she slayed. It can even be theorized that Sansa is entering "the game" herself now. Sansa's keeping her cards close to her chest, and seems wary of trusting anyone-- even Jon. The secret letter to Petyr Baelish and the arrival of the knights of the Vale due to Sansa's interference was never revealed to Jon, her (maybe) half-brother. Sansa is a woman with her own connections now, and she seems to want to keep those connections to herself. She's making her own sacrifices and her own decisions without looking for the approval or disapproval of a man. Sansa is no longer giving anyone a chance to tell her no-- she's just doing.

Meanwhile, Daenerys has consistently been the image of female power throughout "Game of Thrones". Self-assured and ambitious, she has always been a contending power for the throne a sea of male candidates. However, it's not so much her "masculine" qualities that make her such a powerful figure, but rather how she utlizies her own femininity in her power. Every man on the show seeking the throne is a strong leader, ambitious, a good warrior and a strategist. But Daenerys stands out for having those qualities, but also compassion, understanding, and empathy. She is the Mother of Dragons, a title she holds very highly. A mother whose children are completely devoted. In part, her being a mother is what gives her a large portion of her power. She has continuously re-birthed and remade herself, stepping out of the fires naked and fierce, her nudity not being part of a sexual motivation, but a symbol of her power and willingness to change. It is that willingness to change in order to be better that makes her the leader that she is. It is her feminine qualities that make her stand out among the pack. Even her sexuality is something she takes as her own, and uses or doesn't use based on what she wants. Daenerys makes her own rules, but all the while listening to others. Though impulsive and stubborn, her qualities of being a woman is what makes her, arguably, the greatest contender for the Iron Throne.

Yara Greyjoy is an emerging powerful character this season. Her claim for Queen in recent episodes has served as an extremely pivotal moment throughout the series. As someone who didn't even know her name until recently, and referred to her as "Theon's Sister," Yara has proven herself to be a character to watch. And now I find her story more compelling than Theon's. A highlight of the last episode was the newly formed alliance between Yara and Daenerys, an alliance that was formed through understanding and respect and compassion. In a similar sense to Daenerys, Yara's womanly qualities are only helping her to succeed, probably much to the dismay of many men in the series. Yara is a woman who is very aware of who she is and what she's capable of, and that is something to be admired.

In a show where for seasons and seasons, we consistently see women be put down and held at a lower standard, to see these three women coming into their own as leaders and important figures has been a refreshing change. But it's also felt completely normal. A lot of what's important about the rise of women in power is the normalization of that power. Yara claiming to be Queen didn't feel weird, it felt just. Daenerys giving orders isn't out of place, it's exactly as it should be. Sansa executing her rapist in the way she wanted and utilizing her own connections how she wanted wasn't odd, it seemed right.

Women being in power, women being powerful, and women being leaders should not be something that seems wrong. It should be something that seems normal. It should be respected as much as any man being in power should be, and lately on Game of Thrones, it has been. These girls developing into figureheads and leaders never felt forced, it felt natural. And that's the most important part.