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Originally Posted by romdom
I would argue that Jaime is a good guy, just shackled by his duty to his house and love for cersei. For example, in season 1 when he didn't kill Ned because one of his men stabbed him in the leg from behind("it wouldn't have been clean"). Contrasted with young Ned killing the sword of the morning after being stabbed in the back.
He swore to catelyn he would never take up arms against Tully or stark, and he held true to that, albeit with some over the top threats (pun intended, booooom). He saved Tyrion from death, He had that touching moment with myrcella before she died, he loves brienne and admires her deeply for her honor.
The only real times I can think of where his dark side shone through were when he pushed bran ( for duty to his house and love for cersei) and that time he raped cersei on his sons corpse (out of desire and terrible directing). I guess you could see some darkness in his conversation with edmure, but that was a means to an end. He has made a metamorphosis from the kingslayer to golden hand, he respects knightly oaths, named his valyrian sword oathkeeper and gave it to brienne.
More than anything they've castrated him and made him look like cerseis cuckold bitch, with the way she treats him, and him being too in love to see what an awful person she is.
He has committed many more noble and good acts, than he has dark or evil acts since he began his personal restoration with brienne. If he were ever able to shower cersei and remove that shackle I think his characters redemption would be complete.
I think that initially, they were trying to show Jamie as spoiled and self-centered. The best example is the way he talks down to Jon Snow in Episode 1 (or maybe 2). The other example is when he kills his cousin in order to escape. It's perhaps a smart move in that Jamie's much more valuable to the Lannister cause than his cousin, but I think it's meant to show that Jamie doesn't even really value the lives of his kin (other than Cersei, Tyrion, and his kids).
I think the intent of the writers to show how he went from a good kid, to a self-centered man (with the start of this when he did the right thing and killed the Mad King to save lives, but yet instead was branded as the Kings Slayer), and then achieved redemption after losing his hand.