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Tag Archives: Game of Thrones Season 8
Game of Thrones Melts “The Iron Throne” and Viewers’ Hopes in Its Series Finale
King’s Landing is in cinders. Tyrion Lannister, Jon Snow, and Daenerys Targaryen survey their work, responding with shock, horror, and triumph as befits where each of them stands. Now the three of them, in their own way, must decide what the future looks like, and what part they might play in it. In its final hour, Game of Thrones wallows in the aftermath of its fullest and final culling of those who stood between “The Iron Throne” and its biggest contenders.
Game of Thrones Proves that War Is Hell But Endings Are Even Harder in “The Bells”
The prelude to the final battle simmers at Dragonstone. Daenerys Targaryen bears the weight of her grief, having lost everyone close to her and sensing betrayal in everyone left. She’s ready to take King’s Landing, to rule by fear where love falters, and to accomplish all of this by any means necessary. But before the march to war, Tyrion tries to quell his queen’s rage, hoping to allow her to enact her long-awaited conquest while urging her to let the innocent go free when the day is won.
Game of Thrones Gets Mad and Throws One Hell of a Party in “The Last of the Starks”
The good guys (so far as there are any good guys in Game of Thrones) are licking their wounds and burying their dead after the Battle of Winterfell. But after a time to mourn, there’s also a time to celebrate, and to start thinking about what tomorrow looks like, now that there is a tomorrow to think about. The first half of “The Last of the Starks” builds that festive atmosphere, one that lets our heroes bask and joke and revel in the afterglow of their victory, before whatever comes next.
Game of Thrones Slays the Stakes Amidst the Darkness of “The Long Night”
It’s the battle you’ve been waiting for over the past eight years. The White Walkers are bearing down on Winterfell; the coalition of the willing in Westeros has girded themselves for war, and a battle to end all battles is in the offing. Almost everyone we know and care about is hunkered down in the North, as the combat en masse begins and a murky, grueling, near-wordless siege of our heroes’ homeland begins.
Game of Thrones Enjoys the Last Gasps of Life Before War with “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms”
It’s the night before the Battle of Winterfell, as the last few stragglers gather in the Starks’ castle before the White Walkers descend. “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms” picks up where the season premiere left off, offering plenty of long-awaited reunions, closing the loop on a few longstanding relationships, and giving the audience one last chance to simply hang out with these characters before the game-changing fireworks begin and the casualties start piling up.
Posted in Game of Thrones
Tagged Episode Reviews, Game of Thrones S08E02, Game of Thrones Season 8
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Game of Thrones Picks Up the Pieces and Forges New Destinies in “Winterfell”
Game of Thrones goes back to where it all began, mirroring the series’ first episode with a royal procession into the heart of Winterfell. With that reintroduction, the show is slowly but surely assembling almost all of its major characters in one place to prepare for battle against the White Walkers. But before that can happen, these strange bedfellows have to decide who to follow, who has the right to rule them (not to mention, the temperament), and who, if anyone, they’re willing to fight and die for.
Posted in Game of Thrones
Tagged Episode Reviews, Game of Thrones S08E01, Game of Thrones Season 8
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The Case for the White Walkers Winning the Game of Thrones
Predictions are a fool’s game, particularly for a show as resolutely shocking and twist-heavy as Game of Thrones. But discussions of what a show ought to do, how it might pay tribute to everything it’s shown to the series’ devotees to the point of its final season, and reach a conclusion as earned as it is satisfying, is a separate matter. As the countdown to the show’s final season and its conclusion begins in earnest, both of which have been met with no shortage of speculation, the answer to that question becomes as clear as it is startling upon realization. The White Walkers should win.
Posted in Game of Thrones, Television
Tagged Essays, Game of Thrones Season 8, White
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