I was planning to write about every episode of Game of Thrones this season. I quickly realized I wasn’t going to be able to make that happen. I liked episode 2 fine, but after The Long Night I realized I didn’t have anything to add to the conversation about this show. It is hard for me to articulate, but plenty of other people have tried. This post on Mashable captures a lot of the same feelings I have had about the show over the last couple of seasons.
Game of Thrones Season 8 Episode 4 had all the hallmarks of classic Thrones — secrets revealed, a shocking twist, the death of a major character — but unlike the show’s previous success in delivering big moments, all of them fell flat in “The Last of the Starks.” The greater reveal of Jon’s true parentage to big players like Sansa, Arya, and Tyrion happened entirely offscreen, Euron’s dragon-killing scorpion shot came out of left field, and Missandei’s capture and execution did little besides make both Daenerys and the audience angry.
I’ve also been enjoying watching the YouTube videos by Alt Shift X. He had a particularly harsh review of The Long Night in which I agreed with a lot of his criticisms.
Overall I feel like the show is getting a lot of hate this year. It seems like everybody is just ready to get to the end. I go back and forth on whether the criticism is deserved or not. I still enjoy watching the show. I also enjoy listening the conversation that is happening all over the web, and in my office. I like the experience of having a show like Game of Thrones on television. At the same time it is completely clear that they are doing a terrible job sticking the landing. It is yet to be determined what kind of legacy Game of Thrones is going to have. Maybe JRRM had the right idea when he decided to just never end the damn thing.
➔ How ‘Game of Thrones’ forgot how to write a real twist
Filed Under: Game of Thrones, HBO, Television