Sometimes while watching Game of Thrones, it feels like the good guys never win. Despite happening seasons ago, the Red Wedding is still fresh in every viewer's mind, a never-ending reminder that things almost never go according to plan in the cutthroat world of Westeros.

The good guys die. The bad guys win.

But season six proved that doesn't always have to be the case. The latest season of HBO's hit show featured more crowd-pleasing moments than any season before it, delivering payoff after payoff. Many of those payoffs had been years in the making, with two of them having origins in the very first episode of the show's first season.

Spoilers for Game of Thrones season six below!

Jon Snow is a great example of how different season six feels from previous seasons. For starters, he starts the season dead. By the end of it, he's the new King in the North, dubbed the "White Wolf" by his bannermen.

Seeing Jon accepted as a true-blooded Stark is something fans have always dreamt of seeing, and it's all possible because Jon helped overthrow the most hated man in the entire show: Ramsay Bolton.

For multiple seasons Ramsay has served as the new "Joffrey," the one character that is universally despised and hated by all. He's a comic book villain, an evil man who delights in evil deeds and is always scheming against the show's cast of characters.

Fans have wanted nothing more than to see Ramsay's head on a pike for several seasons now, but while that didn't exactly happen, Ramsay's death at the hands of Sansa and his own starved dogs made for a more satisfying end than fans could have ever hoped for.

The death of Ramsay and the ascension of Jon was just one of many stand-up-and-cheer moments from the show this season. The other comes in the form of Arya.

Since season one, when she witnessed the death of her father, Arya has silently pledged to avenge her family against all those who betrayed them. That list of names has slowly become shorter as the seasons have gone on, but now Arya finally has the skills to assassinate nearly any enemy who stands in her way.

The season six finale at long last sees Arya, now with the powers of a Faceless Man, begin to extract her vengeance by returning to Westeros. First stop? The Twins, home of house Frey. There she not only slits Walder Frey's throat, but also chops up his sons and cooks them in a pie. Guess revenge isn't a dish best served cold.

Once again, Arya returning to Westeros and avenging her family is something the show has promised since the beginning, and it's finally coming to fruition.

It's a similar scenario with Daenerys. Sailing across the sea to take back the seven kingdoms has been her goal since season one, and now, after numerous pit stops and distractions that had some fans wondering if she would ever actually set sail, it's really happening. The season's final shot is that of dragons and a massive fleet of ship sailing toward Westeros. Better yet, Tyrion is her hand of the king. Another fan favorite character has finally found purpose in life.

No season of the show prior has ever delivered on so many promises. The death of the show's main villain? Check. The acceptance for one of the show's most prominent heroes? Check. Arya's revenge? Check. The start of Dany's long-promised conquest? Check.

These are the moments fans have waited years for, and Game of Thrones delivered all three in one season almost back-to-back. In many ways it feels like the calm before the storm. The show's heroes are all, finally, in a good place. But winter has finally arrived, and there will be many wars, and many deaths, to come in the few remaining seasons of the show.

There's no telling what all the show has in store for viewers next year, but it's going to be tough to beat this season.