I normally don't review individual episodes of TV, however this one felt so cinematic that it seems a worthy inclusion, plus I wanted the chance to counter some of the fan complaints I keep seeing mentioned in the 1 star reviews.
VISUALS: Yes the episode was dark. Go look up compression, and how many people were watching this episode live and you might understand why the quality was subpar for many people's first viewing. Go back and rewatch the episode, and you'll see how spectacular the visuals were. Definitely some of the best of the series, up there with Battle of the Bastards. All the credit goes to Miguel Sapochnik who understands how to shoot big battle sequences better than any working director.
PLOT ARMOR: Yes there were very few "big" character deaths in this episode, excluding the two season 1 characters and fan favorite who died. Did it feel like plot armor? Maybe a little, but that seems besides the point of the episode. People who are ripping this episode to pieces because Brienne and Jaime didn't die don't seem to understand that there will be main characters who don't die horrific deaths by the end of the show. Plus the show isn't over yet so you don't know that a character is going to live in the end. Stop demanding that your favorite character die or else Cersei will win, and no one wants that.
TWIST ENDING: And now we've come to the big twist ending. Probably the biggest complaint I've seen people have with the episode. Was it unexpected? Yes. Did it ruin the 7 seasons that came before it? Hell no. From the very beginning, Game of Thrones has been about subverting expectations, and that's exactly what David Benioff and D.B. Weiss did by having Arya kill the Night King. The conclusion to this story is easily the most anticipated and heavily speculated aspect of the season and possibly of the whole show, so there was no way the show runners would be able to satisfy everyone. Just because your theory about who the Night King was and who would kill him didn't come true doesn't make the ending bad. People like Game of Thrones for its realism, and nothing seems more real to me than subverting the "chosen one" trope that we were all expecting to play out with Jon Snow. If you don't think Arya earned killing the big bad, go rewatch the whole show and you'll see how much training and character development she has gone through to get her to a point where she is one of the deadliest people in Westeros.
In general, I LOVE this episode. It's not my favorite from the whole series, but it's definitely a top 10 and maybe even a top 5. To address the title of my review, I'm worried the division amongst fans about this episode will lead to it being "Last Jedied" where people insist that their fan theories were better than what they got so they set the internet on fire. Please be nice to each other and have a civil debate, it's what the Night King would have wanted.
VISUALS: Yes the episode was dark. Go look up compression, and how many people were watching this episode live and you might understand why the quality was subpar for many people's first viewing. Go back and rewatch the episode, and you'll see how spectacular the visuals were. Definitely some of the best of the series, up there with Battle of the Bastards. All the credit goes to Miguel Sapochnik who understands how to shoot big battle sequences better than any working director.
PLOT ARMOR: Yes there were very few "big" character deaths in this episode, excluding the two season 1 characters and fan favorite who died. Did it feel like plot armor? Maybe a little, but that seems besides the point of the episode. People who are ripping this episode to pieces because Brienne and Jaime didn't die don't seem to understand that there will be main characters who don't die horrific deaths by the end of the show. Plus the show isn't over yet so you don't know that a character is going to live in the end. Stop demanding that your favorite character die or else Cersei will win, and no one wants that.
TWIST ENDING: And now we've come to the big twist ending. Probably the biggest complaint I've seen people have with the episode. Was it unexpected? Yes. Did it ruin the 7 seasons that came before it? Hell no. From the very beginning, Game of Thrones has been about subverting expectations, and that's exactly what David Benioff and D.B. Weiss did by having Arya kill the Night King. The conclusion to this story is easily the most anticipated and heavily speculated aspect of the season and possibly of the whole show, so there was no way the show runners would be able to satisfy everyone. Just because your theory about who the Night King was and who would kill him didn't come true doesn't make the ending bad. People like Game of Thrones for its realism, and nothing seems more real to me than subverting the "chosen one" trope that we were all expecting to play out with Jon Snow. If you don't think Arya earned killing the big bad, go rewatch the whole show and you'll see how much training and character development she has gone through to get her to a point where she is one of the deadliest people in Westeros.
In general, I LOVE this episode. It's not my favorite from the whole series, but it's definitely a top 10 and maybe even a top 5. To address the title of my review, I'm worried the division amongst fans about this episode will lead to it being "Last Jedied" where people insist that their fan theories were better than what they got so they set the internet on fire. Please be nice to each other and have a civil debate, it's what the Night King would have wanted.