Game of Thrones

[IrishLion]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Running theme this season is if you don't have dick you gonna act out of character. Stoic ass Brienne ugly cried. Dany went Mad Queen. Varys got caught slipping. Grey Worm slaughtered troops who surrendered</p>— Beyonce has an uncle named Larry Beyince. Bruh.... (@DragonflyJonez) <a href="https://twitter.com/DragonflyJonez/status/1127954625628389377?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2019</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Cersei walking past The Hound and The Mountain <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GameofThrones?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#GameofThrones</a> <a href="https://t.co/CAyCnBuUcT">pic.twitter.com/CAyCnBuUcT</a></p>— Shubhra D (@ShubhraDalakoti) <a href="https://twitter.com/ShubhraDalakoti/status/1127950776909717506?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2019</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Jon when he meets Dany next episode <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GOT?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#GOT</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GameOfThrones?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#GameOfThrones</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/DemThrones?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#DemThrones</a> <a href="https://t.co/JQkErYuqBT">pic.twitter.com/JQkErYuqBT</a></p>— Muzzy (@MuswenteBanda) <a href="https://twitter.com/MuswenteBanda/status/1127782331329204224?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2019</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Jon watching a CGI dragon destroy an entire city in detail while being told it wasn’t in the budget for him to pet Ghost <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GameofThrones?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#GameofThrones</a> <a href="https://t.co/jDuNVMTYvT">pic.twitter.com/jDuNVMTYvT</a></p>— Sabrina (@doshiiis) <a href="https://twitter.com/doshiiis/status/1127773400573915136?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2019</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Arya Stark tomorrow morning <a href="https://t.co/h5pOe0Rtnh">pic.twitter.com/h5pOe0Rtnh</a></p>— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) <a href="https://twitter.com/barstoolsports/status/1127760603513335808?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2019</a></blockquote>
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[Veritate Duce Progredi]

(if anyone cares)

The worst writing decision revolves around the NK and his army. The NK was used as a ploy by the writers to...
1) Geographically get Dany to Westeros
2) Set up Jon and Dany - Romance/Conflict

That's it. That was the whole "winter is coming"? - ok, lol

Ha ha, that's not the worst writing decision. It's one of many.

I was a show defender until the last 2-3 episodes. It's been trash. None of this stuff is justified.

Why hasn't Tyrion made a single clever military decision since assuming power? All he does is blunder.

Why did Dany rapidly descend? This should've started at least a season prior. She needed to conceal her pleasure at watching people burn. Or torched some people unnecessarily. Or something to foreshadow. Nothing.

Varys was the most cunning man in Westeros, then he just gives up and doesn't care about the realm which he served faithfully.

Arya is certain she wants to kill Cersei until Sandor tells her not to be like him then her last 5+ seasons are washed away and she's a changed woman. Honestly, this is the most palatable part of the show. I can at least suspend disbelief. Maybe amidst the chaos/wreckage, she could have a moment of clarity.

Cersie and Jamie - incestual Romeo and Juliet, drank the poison together and went into the darkness in warm embrace.

Qyburn's death was enjoyable. The suddenness was well done. Watching a dragon level an entire city & fleet was enjoyable to watch but again, none of it was organic.

 

[FightingIrishLover7]

Ha ha, that's not the worst writing decision. It's one of many.

I was a show defender until the last 2-3 episodes. It's been trash. None of this stuff is justified.

Why hasn't Tyrion made a single clever military decision since assuming power? All he does is blunder.

Why did Dany rapidly descend? This should've started at least a season prior. She needed to conceal her pleasure at watching people burn. Or torched some people unnecessarily. Or something to foreshadow. Nothing.

Varys was the most cunning man in Westeros, then he just gives up and doesn't care about the realm which he served faithfully.

Arya is certain she wants to kill Cersei until Sandor tells her not to be like him then her last 5+ seasons are washed away and she's a changed woman. Honestly, this is the most palatable part of the show. I can at least suspend disbelief. Maybe amidst the chaos/wreckage, she could have a moment of clarity.

Cersie and Jamie - incestual Romeo and Juliet, drank the poison together and went into the darkness in warm embrace.

Qyburn's death was enjoyable. The suddenness was well done. Watching a dragon level an entire city & fleet was enjoyable to watch but again, none of it was organic.

1) Tyrion blunders = he's been conflicted with his/her decisions (he also made a wise decision to try and overthrow her, imo)

2) DUDE - they've foreshadowed this like crazy - her theme has been FIRE from day 1... Tarly men? No?

3) Varys doesn't care? It was his last finale desperate move to try and save the kingdom he literally sacrificed himself...

4) Arya went there for Sandor, just as much as for herself. She knew is journey was ending and he released her free...

5) "not organic" - how does one organically burn a kingdom? - that's the most random complaint I've seen yet

 

[ACamp1900]

So is FightingIrishLover7 David or Marc???

 

[greyhammer90]

My few positives:

1) The dragon was actually what dragons should be in this universe. The ultimate trump card that you can rule a kingdom with. It was great to finally see a dragon be a dragon like what we've read/heard about. This was also the only time that I really felt like what I was watching wasn't "TV quality" CGI. It appeared naturalistic. Unfortunately, even this positive is hurt by the fact that the previous episode a dragon died by xXxX360n0scopeEuronxXxX and it was established that Dany couldn't just destroy the navy in her harbor because they had those guns. Internal consistency handwaved again.

2) I didn't mind the Arya in the street moments. An overarching theme of ASoIaF is that the poor are the ones who really suffer in war. I thought those scenes were less about Arya and more about getting a street view of the carnage (which is important if you're going to have Dany destroy her own city despite her entire characterization up to this point, oh whoops this is supposed to be a positive list).

3) Soundtrack is the standout thing of the season, though Rains of Castemere was used questionably IMO.

 

[IrishLion]

2) DUDE - they've foreshadowed this like crazy - her theme has been FIRE from day 1... Tarly men? No?

She had legit reasons to execute the Tarly men... they were enemies that refused to acknowledge her rule, and weren't going to be afforded the opportunity to return to Cersei. It was a "join or die" scenario, and wasn't unreasonable. It was a harsh but sound decision.

Her theme has been "fire," but as a means to break the chains and take her birthright. They didn't really give us any examples of her being truly cruel. It just kind of happened over the course of 1.5 episodes.

There should have been *some* foreshadowing that she would end up being like her father. They TOLD us it was possible a lot, but every decision she made was reasonable. Her downfall in the last episode didn't match 7 seasons of evidence... it only matched 1.5 episodes of evidence.

 

[FightingIrishLover7]

She had legit reasons to execute the Tarly men... they were enemies that refused to acknowledge her rule, and weren't going to be afforded the opportunity to return to Cersei. It was a "join or die" scenario, and wasn't unreasonable. It was a harsh but sound decision.

Her theme has been "fire," but as a means to break the chains and take her birthright. They didn't really give us any examples of her being truly cruel. It just kind of happened over the course of 1.5 episodes.

There should have been *some* foreshadowing that she would end up being like her father. They TOLD us it was possible a lot, but every decision she made was reasonable. Her downfall in the last episode didn't match 7 seasons of evidence... it only matched 1.5 episodes of evidence.

So, you would have liked something more obvious? The subtleness wasn't sufficient? You want to ruin the shock value of Dany (and her troops) attacking after the bell's chime?

(PS: She only broke full mad after Missandei's death and Jon's betrayal...so, kind of hard to show off her "full madness" before the preceding events causing it, happen...)

 

[greyhammer90]

She had legit reasons to execute the Tarly men... they were enemies that refused to acknowledge her rule, and weren't going to be afforded the opportunity to return to Cersei. It was a "join or die" scenario, and wasn't unreasonable. It was a harsh but sound decision.

Her theme has been "fire," but as a means to break the chains and take her birthright. They didn't really give us any examples of her being truly cruel. It just kind of happened over the course of 1.5 episodes.

There should have been *some* foreshadowing that she would end up being like her father. They TOLD us it was possible a lot, but every decision she made was reasonable. Her downfall in the last episode didn't match 7 seasons of evidence... it only matched 1.5 episodes of evidence.

To add to this, her entire characterization was that she was cruel in order to (1) Obtain the throne; (2) Protect poor people, particularly women and children. So when she snapped (for reasons) her act was to destroy the capital city she had just conquered and to burn all the poor people before the lords/ladies.

 

[BeauBenken]

Dany = always had her moral compass fixated on throne - blinded by power
Jon = never wanted power, just do the right thing
Varys = always conspiring, did him in finally
Tyrion = always wanted "the right ruler" - realized Dany is too much, led to his betrayal
Jorah = died defending his Queen
Euron = died chasing jerseys/pussy
Theon = died back "home"
Sandor = completed his redemption
Qyburn = killed by his Frankenstein
Cersei = only cares about her children/jaime..ultimate "cool customer" that finally breaks in terror in her moment of doom
Jaime = stupid, addicted to love, numerous poor decisions on Cersei's behalf - one finale Shakespearean relapse/downfall

In what way's have any of these "choices" for endings been unjustified? They've all be in the cards...Again, I would have played some differently, but this is a very justifiable ending.

(the REAL issues with the series has been the awful NK and Bran saga...garbage)

Let's start:
Dany - don't have a problem with though she went mad pretty quickly.
Jon - his story isn't over, but why he wasn't the one to kill the NK was meh. Now he has to kill Dany I suppose.
Varys - don't have a problem with although we don't get any background info on him and his only motivation is to help the realm. Wish we could have found out more about his motives.
Tyrion - he's been dumbed down and blinded by affection for his family...his brother we get, his sister no.
Jorah - character arc is good, but it does not make sense how he got out to Dany to die saving her or even how she became dragon-less.
Euron - LOL he does not even have true given motivations, his character story is nonexistent in the show. He could've been a much better character. He's just a bad guy who was supposed to be a main character and now he's dead. Cool.
Theon - redemption is good and his story is good enough.
Sandor - Cleganebowl. Nuff said.
Qyburn - Side character. Disposed of nicely but I could kinda care less.
Cersei - Ms. Willing To Do Anything Crazy Bitch does absolutely jack when her troops fall even though she has wildfire around the city. She has been shown to be merciless and a decent strategist herself and she has zero plans for if she is losing the battle at KL? Also kind of why her as a final big bad over the NK is stupid. (Though I guess Dany is the new big bad.) I just think her becoming and crying mess is supposed to make us care for her character, but we freaking hate her. She's evil. Stop trying to make us care about her.
Jaime - the arc becomes one of redemption and finally proving he cares about others (unlike his sister). He speaks about why he killed the Mad King (because he was going to kill the people of KL) and now he doesn't really care about the innocents. He returns to Winterfell after Cersei doesn't send her troops north because he still cares about those innocents. He expresses his love for another woman, Brienne. Annnnnd just kidding, he's still a Cersei love puppy slave. Yes, a relapse was possible (and a fine outcome if done well), but you yourself admitted they did nothing to show it.

Who are we missing?
Bran - what the hell is going on here? Nothing? Literally a backbone story just tossed out the window? (ba dum tss)
Samwell - riding off into the sunset I guess?
Bronn - waltzes into WF with a Lannister crossbow for fan service I guess and then just waltzes right back off likely never to be seen again
Greyworm - brainwashed killing machine, falls in love, love dies, returns to being killing machine...that checks out I suppose but who really cares
Sansa - story is still out but she seemed like more of an evil, scheming queen than Dany until the latest episode so it will be hard for us to like her...I guess that might be okay? We'll have to see.
Arya - killing machine with little human-like qualities until this last episode. She's been just super cheesy for sometime. Her only story was to kill people on her list. They're all dead now.
Brienne - gets knighted by Jaime which I think killed much of what she was supposed to learn over her story arc personally, fucks Jaime cause we're HBO, Jaime leaving reduces her from the baddest woman in the seven to a quivering, sobbing mess...so her story gets crapped on and what happens to her now? Anything?

People from any of the other kingdoms - just no longer in the show

 

[greyhammer90]

PS: She only broke full mad after Missandei's death and Jon's betrayal...so, kind of hard to show off her "full madness" before the preceding events causing it, happen...

Just to be clear, in your opinion it was her intention from the beginning of the battle to burn the entirety of Kings Landing and she just didn't tell anyone yet?

 

[FightingIrishLover7]

Additionally: for those that think that there wasn't enough foreshadowing for Dany breaking Mad...

Do you all forget the vision of ash falling on the destroyed throne room? I mean, only one person had a fire breathing dragon....

 

[IrishLion]

So, you would have liked something more obvious? The subtleness wasn't sufficient? You want to ruin the shock value of Dany (and her troops) attacking after the bell's chime?

(PS: She only broke full mad after Missandei's death and Jon's betrayal...so, kind of hard to show off her "full madness" before the preceding events causing it, happen...)

I'm not saying we need to see her as the Mad Queen earlier... I'm saying there should have been more evidence that she was capable of being the Mad Queen, other than everyone saying it.

Every decision she made over 7 seasons, even those that looked 'questionable' on the surface, had good reasons and were well-thought out.

I guess the crucifixions in Yunkai or Mereen or wherever that was were kind of that, but that's it... and even then, it was a response to the crucifixion of slave children.

The shock value would have been fine had they built that moment up to being a true coin flip, where there had been sufficient evidence both ways. But there wasn't sufficient evidence. Just the chance based on her family history.

That's good enough for some people, but her breaking in that moment didn't make sense. Even if you attribute it to Missendei and Jorah dying, there's no reason her breaking point should have been when she heard the bells chime. It should have been right when Missendei's head hit the ground, if they're going to visually represent the coin dropping on the side of "madness."

 

[FightingIrishLover7]

Just to be clear, in your opinion it was her intention from the beginning of the battle to burn the entirety of Kings Landing and she just didn't tell anyone yet?

Can't say either way.
What I do know is, she doesn't need to tell anyone.
She has a dragon...

(greyworm could have been in on it, but I think he was simply following his Queen, since he was also filled with personal rage)

 

[greyhammer90]

Can't say either way.

I mean, either she went mad when her handmaiden died or she didn't.

 

[greyhammer90]

Additionally: for those that think that there wasn't enough foreshadowing for Dany breaking Mad...

Do you all forget the vision of ash falling on the destroyed throne room? I mean, only one person had a fire breathing dragon....

Don't conflate people being upset with how it went down the last two episodes for people who thought it was impossible for Dany to go mad (were there any?).

Dany going mad - Yes. Foreshadowed to the point that this was an obvious potential ending.
Dany going mad seemingly at random and in a way that is in polar opposite to the type of cruelty she had previously shown - No.

 

[IrishLion]

I mean, either she went mad when her handmaiden died or she didn't.

Right? If that's the moment her brain broke, then there's no reason to show the "coin-flip" moment as when the bells start chiming.

Her brain broke when she realized that everything she wanted was at her fingertips... and that's fine! Especially if you want to show her falling to the side of "Mad Queen"... her brain can't compute having won things without bringing fire down upon Cersei.

But at least show us that she is willing to sacrifice thousands of innocents for no reason. They never showed that as a possibility previously, aside from her saying it in the throne room on Dragonstone before the battle... but even then, it was in the context of "if Cersei won't surrender."

 

[ACamp1900]

From reading through most of this, this is the vibe I get.

Season 8 TLR
Night King=Snoke
Dany= Anakin circa episode 3

 

[FightingIrishLover7]

Don't conflate people being upset with how it went down the last two episodes for people who thought it was impossible for Dany to go mad (were there any?).

Dany going mad - Yes. Foreshadowed to the point that this was an obvious potential ending.
Dany going mad seemingly at random and in a way that is in polar opposite to the type of cruelty she had previously shown - No.

But you can only break full mad once...

After the betrayal / Missandei's death - she snapped.
You asked me if she premeditated and decided to burn the city... Maybe, maybe not. She decided she was going hard - she could have conceivably decided mid battle to go full fire.

Her actions were 100 percent justified via preceding events. Why are people upset that it "escalated quickly"... of course it did. It had to.

 

[IrishLion]

What's this I'm reading about Gregor being undead or some such??

He was zombie Gregor.

Qyburn found a way to stop the poison from fully killing him, and found a way to maintain some form of muscle memory and brain function.

It left his body dead, but usable, and obviously still physically imposing. The Hound was doing major damage, but it wasn't even registering.

Even a shot to the brain didn't seem to kill him. Only burning and totally destroying him would do the trick.

 

[FightingIrishLover7]

Side theory:

Dany (while on the wall looking at the Red Keep) could have realized that the Red Keep symbolizes ultimate tyranny and wanted to destroy it and it's kingdom to "start fresh" by breaking the wheel...

Not happening, but that could be a "false justification" that went through her head.

 

[FDNYIrish1]

Thought it was a pretty cool episode visually. Other than that I’m curious how the finale plays out. They definitely set up a Jon Snow vs Grey Worm battle. Maybe something with the dragon not roasting Snow because of his background. Definitely a rushed ending but they’ve done some wild battle scenes.

 

[IrishLion]

Thought it was a pretty cool episode visually. Other than that I’m curious how the finale plays out. They definitely set up a Jon Snow vs Grey Worm battle. Maybe something with the dragon not roasting Snow because of his background. Definitely a rushed ending but they’ve done some wild battle scenes.

Can we get the logistics of trying to contain a quickly-spreading fire in King's Landing?

Is dragon fire typically hotter than regular fire?

 

[Veritate Duce Progredi]

1) Tyrion blunders = he's been conflicted with his/her decisions (he also made a wise decision to try and overthrow her, imo)

2) DUDE - they've foreshadowed this like crazy - her theme has been FIRE from day 1... Tarly men? No?

3) Varys doesn't care? It was his last finale desperate move to try and save the kingdom he literally sacrificed himself...

4) Arya went there for Sandor, just as much as for herself. She knew is journey was ending and he released her free...

5) "not organic" - how does one organically burn a kingdom? - that's the most random complaint I've seen yet

1. Tyrion's been conflicted and that's why he hasn't made a single clever move in any of the battles since being named hand of the queen?

2. Burning the Tarly men was justice. They wouldn't bend the knee and she demanded that from the captured forces. If they would've shown her taking unnecessary delight or a flash of excitement by her eyes widening, anything to just give us a glimpse of "this is more than justice", then I would've agreed. It needed to be a gradual but systematic decline.

3. He did sacrifice himself so he must've believed everyone else around the queen would rule justly in his absence. Odd move but we can potentially give a pass on this one. Maybe he was too tired from all of his maneuvering.

4. Meh. She did not go for Sandor, she went for herself. He offered one more chance to reconsider and helped her realize she wasn't the same as he was. I believe this is the smallest grievance so we don't have to fight this one.

5. Sorry, I should've clarified. All of the character development decisions haven't been organic. It wasn't a logical progression from Khaleesi, queen of the people -> torched Tarly's for rejecting her queenship -> burn an entire city that was surrendering because she has sadz/madz

 

[greyhammer90]

But you can only break full mad once...

After the betrayal / Missandei's death - she snapped.
You asked me if she premeditated and decided to burn the city... Maybe, maybe not. She decided she was going hard - she could have conceivably decided mid battle to go full fire.

Her actions were 100 percent justified via preceding events. Why are people upset that it "escalated quickly"... of course it did. It had to.

You keep saying you can only break full mad once like it's some sort of trump card. She either went mad like Aerys, or she is just power-hungry and cruel for the sake of it.

Went Mad:

There is basically no evidence in the show that she went crazy like Aerys. She wasn't about to lose everything she had worked for (actually the opposite), she wasn't hearing voices for months beforehand, and she wasn't killing random people needlessly (covered previously by me and Lion, but all her killings were "justified" in a tyrant logic way and plenty of other very sane Lords, including Robert and Tywin would have done the same). Yes, she had lost a dragon and her handmaiden, but again appeared perfectly sane and rational in scenes that followed. She developed a battle plan with her advisors, agreed to spare the city if peace could be made, and followed the plan until the bells. This is not a mentally weak person continuously screaming "Burn Them All!" in an empty throne room as his sanity finally snaps.

Cruel for the sake of it:

So what we have left is that she's cruel and power-hungry for the sake of it. And she is. This has been established over and over again. But the issue is that this cruelty is not in-line with the type of cruelty that she has previously shown. Dany is overly cruel to two types of people: People who deny her what she wants, and people in power who hurt those without power. The second is a negative because Dany has the sophistication of a 16 year old girl and doesn't understand her coming in and obliterating cultures on her child-like understanding of what is "right" and "just" often has disastrous consequences for the very people she's trying to save. She's kind of the poster-child for "the road to hell is paved with good intentions." You know what makes no sense for her to do in either case? Burning all of Kings Landing with everyone inside after it gives you what you want with very little losses on your side.

 

[wizards8507]

Can we get the logistics of trying to contain a quickly-spreading fire in King's Landing?



Is dragon fire typically hotter than regular fire?

Not only that, but why were stone buildings collapsing and crashing as if they were being bombarded with heavy artillery? The Targ army didn't have any siege weapons to speak of and I don't think dragonfire would have had such a percussive effect.

Also, where the hell did all those Dothraki and Unsullied come from?

Also, where the hell is literally every other non-Lannister-non-Stark Noble house in this whole thing? The world has been so EMPTY for two or three whole seasons. Who occupies which castles?

 

[ACamp1900]

Not only that, but why were stone buildings collapsing and crashing as if they were being bombarded with heavy artillery?

I saw a couple clips and,... this.

If the dragons are that powerful shouldn't this whole thing have been over a long time ago??

 

[notredomer23]

Can we get the logistics of trying to contain a quickly-spreading fire in King's Landing?

Is dragon fire typically hotter than regular fire?

Yes. Dragon Fire is supposed to melt stone. See Harrenhal. It's also supposed to turn flesh and bone directly to ash, something they got wrong this episode, but got right in season 7.

 

[wizards8507]

 

[IrishLion]

Not only that, but why were stone buildings collapsing and crashing as if they were being bombarded with heavy artillery? The Targ army didn't have any siege weapons to speak of and I don't think dragonfire would have had such a percussive effect.

Didn't mind that... heat from Drogon's maw, and the air pressure of the hot hot fire itself, could conceivable destroy brick-and-mortar constructs, especially when paired with Drogon's flying speed. That's a lot of air pressure being super-heated and hitting static targets on broad-side basis.

Also, where the hell did all those Dothraki and Unsullied come from?

Super secret reserve forces.

Also, where the hell is literally every other non-Lannister-non-Stark Noble house in this whole thing? The world has been so EMPTY for two or three whole seasons. Who occupies which castles?

I assume hiding in their castles and holdfasts, licking their wounds and waiting to see how things shake out.

I'd do a whole breakdown of where everyone could realistically be, but it would take time.

Basically, the only houses that have no reason to be unaccounted for are those from the riverlands.

 

[IrishLax]

Shut down the discussion thread boys. Everything can be answered with "It's not your show." #weliveinasociety

The most absurd thing is that the first 4 (6?) seasons of this show proved definitively that people have no issue being shocked/subverted/whatever as long as there is narrative control, there aren't plot holes or logic flaws or other plausibility issues with the scene, and the scene is consistent with things that have been previously established in the show.

Nobody had issues with the Red Wedding because it made sense. Nobody had issues with Arya murdering the fuck out of all the Freys because -- even though that scene was a show invention -- it made a ton of sense. And on and on. If Sansa had come out and been wearing Walder Frey's face people would've had a problem with it.

A classic (but minor) example of this was Dany "forgetting" about the Iron Fleet -- despite them discussing it in literally the previous scene -- and then coming back this episode to roast 100% of their ships makes no sense. Does that ruin the show? No, but it's lazy and bad writing. You start adding up dozens of moments like this and the show goes from A+... to really good with some issues... to "this is almost unrecognizable". Same way the West Wing went from amazing to kind of garbage losing Sorkin, Game of Thrones has gotten realllllllly loose over the past two seasons. I was hopeful Season 7 was going to be the one with the issues as they were "rushing" to the payoff in Season 8... instead, this is a clusterfuck focused on set pieces instead of what actually made the show popular.

Episode 2 was by far the best episode of this season and it's because it went back to being Game of Thrones. I've been vocal that I think people are overly critical of the show, but this is now 3 in a row of the show going progressively off the rails and I have zero hope that the finale is going to fix it.