Samwell Tarly

Samwell Tarly arrives at the Wall a disgraced lordling, fat and frightened, hopeless with a sword and mocked by nearly everyone in black. He hates violence, loves books, and just wants to survive the day without being hit. He is not built for the Night's Watch, and he knows it.

John Bradley plays cowardice without making it contemptible, so every small act of nerve lands like something enormous. The show trusts a fat, bookish boy to matter as much as any warrior, and Bradley's stammering warmth makes Sam the character you root for hardest precisely because he never stops being afraid.