Game of Thrones season 8: Is Qyburn going to play a major part in defeating the White Walkers?

'I could really do things with this...'

Game of Thrones season 7 episode 7's incredibly engrossing Dragonpit summit was full of intriguing moments, exchanges and looks, so much so that a potentially key one got a little overlooked.

I'm talking about Qyburn holding the severed hand of the captured wight, which was originally intended to have more emphasis, as the leaked original outline for the episode details:

'The demonstration has the desired effect on Cersei, shaking her in a way few things can. Everyone else who has never seen one of these things is shocked as well - except for Qyburn, who picks up the still-moving hand and beholds it with fascination.'

It makes total sense for Qyburn to be enchanted by The Hound's prisoner, as the maverick maester is quite obsessed with experimenting on the dead. He even possesses a skill not dissimilar from the Night King - albeit it way more rudimentary - bringing The Mountain back from the point of death so he could live on as an apparently mute, emotionless, cold-blooded killer.

Qyburn actor Anton Lesser said of his character's unique response to the rabid wight: "That's where his head is, you know, the world could end in five minutes, but he is absolutely focused on: 'I have never seen this before, this is amazing I could really do things with this.'"

Given the revelation that killing a White Walker kills the wights that it brought back, knowledge is going to be key in defeating the dead and Qyburn could be instrumental.

The problem, however, is that he is sworn to Cersei who has shown herself to have no interest in helping with the northern threat. But hey, if Jaime, her lover and brother, can jump ship...