I agree that I think the episode itself was good, the development leading up to it was crap though.
I think in the finale Jon is going to go live in the north with the wildlings. I do really like the message the series is sending. Power corrupts. I do wish they had done about 4 seasons instead of the previous 14 episodes.
Doing 2 or 3 more seasons is what all the plot threads and the Battle for the Dawn required to do those storylines justice (plot lines not dropped or neutered in a rush to get that Star Wars check).
Thatâs not what we got. Apparently itâs crazy to think the worldwide fandom deserved better for their 9 years of devotion.
It was definitely rushed. Could have drawn it out more, but that wasnât in the budget I guess. Iâm still enjoying the show for the spectacle of it, but this season has felt like watching 2-3 seasons on fast forward. I donât get triggered by any of the convenient/predictable plot points or capricious twists, but can appreciate why âstudentsâ of the series could be.
I was on board with everything until last night. Characters built for eight seasons disposed of in a matter of minutes. Almost every character in the show hasnât lived up to their potential with the exception to Ayra.
The turn by Dany wouldâve been epic if properly set up. As everyone has noted, the rushed nature meant it was kind of bewildering as to why she would burn up a bunch of regular people, with only a mild criticism that they havenât risen up against Cersei on their own. The showrunners apparently said that she was ticked off when she saw the Red Keep and decided to make it personal. I donât really get how burning everyone up does this (Cersei doesnât give a crap about any of them so why not just fly straight to the Red Keep and level that first), but the real reason to do it is instilling enough fear to keep people in line. Dany has a line where she says essentially if the people wonât love her like Jon, then all she has left is fear. If she just burns up the armies and defenses, then I donât think the entire continent fears her in the same way. Unfortunately, the writers botched that point by rushing past it with no recognition and past the opportunity to show her development into a monster before unleashing her fury. It was an impressive spectacle at least.
I actually laughed when Harry Strickland got about 1-2 minutes of screen time that mostly involved him looking scared, running, and then dying. Apparently theyâd never seen Dothraki before despite where theyâre fromâŚwait, did the Dothraki survive the last battle? Apparently a lot of them did.
Killing Rhaegal with the scorpion (with two shots hitting their target!) last episode looks even dumber now. They had a lot more of them aimed at the dragon, ample time to get ready, and a closer shot, and they couldnât get a single hit?
The fight between Euron and Jaime was just dumb and unnecessary from start to finish. He just happens to appear at the moment Jaime is by the shore, stabs him twice but apparently misses anything vital for stair running, and finishes by boasting that he killed the Kingslayer that hardly anyone would boast about. Just have Euron die in the dragon fire, it at least adds to the power of the dragon.
If it wasnât for these and a few other ridiculously convenient plot points that took me out of the story, I think I wouldâve liked the episode. The shots of battle, dragon fire destroying the city, and some of the individual moments (Arya saying thanks to Sandor was nice) were well done.
EhâŚIâll watch the last episode just to see if Dany, AeJon, or both die, and then Iâll cancel my HBO.
I feel sorry for all the TV provider call center folks on duty from 10:30pm Sunday through that Monday. Hope they bring in extra people.
It may be better to be Feared than Loved, but Machiavelli also says itâs preferable to be both. I wish they had made it more of a situation where she âhad to destroy Kings Landing to save itâ. The way it went down doesnât make logical sense because she will be universally reviled when she could have been feared by stopping when the bells rang.
That being said I did enjoy parts of the episode, it was probably the strongest (with the possible exception of Ep 2 ) of the year.
The showrunners and HBO are going to say that the low review scores were inevitable because there was no way any ending would satisfy everyone. And to an extent, I agree.
But they are being disingenuous in pretending that a huge chunk of the blowback is not due to how rushed and half assed the story was, regardless of what people wanted to happen. That remains my biggest disappointment and frustration with the show. They treated far too many characters and plotlines like my son treats his chore list when there is something else he wants to do. Toss his clean clothes in the bottom of the closet, pull the bedspread over the clumped up sheets, and kick everything else under the bed.
DONE. Now give me that $tar War$ $$$$$MONEY$$$$$.
And they had 2 years to give us this mess.
This is a pure troll job I am sure, but it belongs on here anyway. Barristan Selmy says heâs already done:
GameSpot: George RR Martinâs Last Two Game Of Thrones Books Are Written, According To Actor.
I call bull shit. Bull effing shit. No matter how much I like the actor, this is trolling for attention.
If the finale doesnât go some big time explaining the three eyed raven stuff I will be forever confused
Entertainment Weekly News: George R.R. Martin slams âabsurdâ rumor about the final Game of Thrones books.
Somewhat cathartic. The actorsâ reactions are really telling.
I donât hate the show at all. I just hate what they did to it. Helps to know even some of the people who made it think so too.
And here is why D^2 rushed to finish GoT, confirmed: Gizmodo: Itâs Official: The First Star Wars Film After Rise of Skywalker Will Be From Game of Thronesâ Showrunners.
LULZ
Sorry these are just so good: