Game of Thrones Season 8

[UofCT]

IMO the show is not great anymore and hasn't been for at least the past season and a half at least. Just a collection of dumb plans failing and important characters getting stuck in the same impossible situation only to be saved at the last second last night. The Night King deserved to best these dummies. The hype of the episode was to great to contend with and I am slightly underwhelmed. Not bad by any stretch but not amazing.

In fairness to HBO, they met with George R Martin to discuss his vision as to how the series ends (confirmed by The Ringer). This is his story that HBO has told very well. It is not realistic to expect GOT to be A++ every episode/season but overall the whole story has been magnificent.

 

[Jbirdp5]

While at the gym this morning, I asked the weightlifting trainer what he thought of last night's episode. He said that he was in the process of rewatching it. He commented on the darkness of the background, then said that while reviewing on his tablet, the clarity was amazing as the picture was MUCH brighter. His idea is that when he gets home from work, he is going to adjust his television to maximum brightness mode. If it doesn't work, he will finish his rewatch on his tablet.

Maybe that’s true but if ya gotta play with ur settings that work for every other show is that practical, and I’ve already seen it maybe if they put out a disclaimer before airing the episode lol

 

[uconn_jack]

Funny how all the foreigners were sacrificed up front. Dothraki sent to their doom. Unsullied sent out in front of the fire trenches. Heck, even the Dragon's were out there.

Meanwhile all the Northerners retreated back inside the castle.

MWGA!

 

[ZooCougar]

I had no problem viewing the episode. Watched on an ordinary 4K tv.

 

[Drumguy]

I will never stop marveling how everyone turns into Sun Tzu when reviewing a television show because Jon Snow didn't deploy his troops the way Napolean would have.

Besides, the worst military mind in the history of television is the night king. He has 10,000 years to figure out how to kill a crippled kid, his army grows exponentially after every battle and he has the ability to conjure a winter storm that would kill every possible source of food for his enemy.

But after 10,000 years, he couldn't wait ten more minutes for his army to wipe out every single soul on the other side and he got killed by a middle-school girl.

That was a pretty entertaining 90-minutes of television.

The one thing that I read that I really agree with is that the show was just too dark. Literally, too dark. I turned the lights off, tilted the screen, etc. I get that it was filmed at night, but we still have to be able to see it.

Tactically also the Night King pulled a Santa Anna and should have just bypassed Winterfell on his way to conquer the world. Everyone in Winterfell would have frozen or starved and he could have just walked through the countryside - game over.

Then his minions just stand around in a circle singing kumbaya while he strolls up to Bran. It's always the delaying that gets ya.

I agree on the darkness, way too dark.

 

[Walker11]

I had no problem viewing the episode. Watched on an ordinary 4K tv.

I watched on a 2018 model budget brand 4k TV (coming highly recommended from The Wirecutter) and I couldn't see .

 

[Scalito]

I don't recall any indication that Melisandre was bringing anyone back. The conversation with Arya was more than just repeating Syrio Forel's words -- she basically told Arya what she meant when she last saw her 5 years prior; that she was going to kill the night king and, by extension, his army.

So is Arya the Prince That Was Promised?

 

[ZooCougar]

I watched on a 2018 model budget brand 4k TV (coming highly recommended from The Wirecutter) and I couldn't see .

Go with a wider aperture and a slower shutter speed.

 

[Walker11]

In fairness to HBO, they met with George R Martin to discuss his vision as to how the series ends (confirmed by The Ringer). This is his story that HBO has told very well. It is not realistic to expect GOT to be A++ every episode/season but overall the whole story has been magnificent.

It was A+++ for a solid 3 seasons though. It has been a B- for 2 seasons with a few amazing moments mixed in. I don't think Martin will finish everything but in the 1% chance he does, he is not going to be so afraid to kill major characters.

 

[UConnTrumbull]

I think there’s enough evidence to show that Jon is the worst hero in TV history

 

[intlzncster]

It was A+++ for a solid 3 seasons though. It has been a B- for 2 seasons with a few amazing moments mixed in. I don't think Martin will finish everything but in the 1% chance he does, he is not going to be so afraid to kill major characters.

I've said it in other threads, but I have great hope for this finishing the series after Martin carks it.

This AI is so good at writing that its creators won't let you use it

 

[intlzncster]

Part of the problem is the stream we are getting. HBO is streaming at 1080p I think and the video is compressed a couple of times before it shows up at your box.

Got to wait until the original source material comes out. Until then, mess with your TV settings.

 

[mauconnfan]

It was dark tough at times to see exactly what was going on. While you think about how Jamie and others are alive I don't think too much about it I mean there are dragons flying throughout the series so it's not like having them somehow just scratched is unusual. LOL

Great episode, actually think the war with Cersei will be even more appealing to the fans. So many ways Cersei can be finished, Jamie is almost too obvious since he's been stabbing her all along but maybe.

 

[Scalito]

Part of the problem is the stream we are getting. HBO is streaming at 1080p I think and the video is compressed a couple of times before it shows up at your box.

Got to wait until the original source material comes out. Until then, mess with your TV settings.

Martin is such a big fat arrrsehole that he's already stated he will not allow someone else to finish the series should he die before it's done.

HBO is the series now. Just reconcile yourself to that.

 

[Scalito]

Great episode, actually think the war with Cersei will be even more appealing to the fans. So many ways Cersei can be finished, Jamie is almost too obvious since he's been stabbing her all along but maybe.

In the books, Littlefinger expressly tells Sansa that he needs to adjust his plans due to Queen Cersei's ineptness. The best player in the game couldn't fathom someone playing as poorly as she does. And she's really no better in the series even if she is a bitch.

Point being, how compelling is it to watch the side with dragons fight a woman so dumb she got marched naked through the streets of King's Landing? Satisfying to see her die? Sure. Compelling to see a loser lose to dragons? Meh.

 

[Deepster]

So is Arya the Prince That Was Promised?

I'm not a scholar on the Prince That Was Promised, but from what I recall I think the case can be made.

 

[Excalibur]

So is Arya the Prince That Was Promised?

I was talking with somebody about that today. The whole PTWP thing seems to have gone out the window.

 

[Jbirdp5]

Part of the problem is the stream we are getting. HBO is streaming at 1080p I think and the video is compressed a couple of times before it shows up at your box.

Got to wait until the original source material comes out. Until then, mess with your TV settings.

A friend of mine waits two minutes and starts it on hbo go, says the 4K is so much better on there

 

[Scalito]

I miss my Samsung plasma. Such deep blacks with it.

You’re spot on with the rest of your commentary. Arya must’ve used her faceless skills to get to him. There was that whoosh that one of the white walkers noticed as it ruffled his hair on the way by, not sure how she got such elevation though.

I was hoping Arya would remove Bran's face, stand up and out of Bran's wheelchair, and end things.

 

[Slasher]

A friend of mine waits two minutes and starts it on hbo go, says the 4K is so much better on there

It's not actually 4k though. HBO only pushes a max of 1080p unfortunately.

 

[crazyUCfan23]

Dumb charges are a theme in GOT:
1. John @ Battle of the Bastards
2. Dothraki last night
3. Theon charging Night King

jamie charging dragon

 

[Cheddie]

I will never stop marveling how everyone turns into Sun Tzu when reviewing a television show because Jon Snow didn't deploy his troops the way Napolean would have.

Besides, the worst military mind in the history of television is the night king. He has 10,000 years to figure out how to kill a crippled kid, his army grows exponentially after every battle and he has the ability to conjure a winter storm that would kill every possible source of food for his enemy.

But after 10,000 years, he couldn't wait ten more minutes for his army to wipe out every single soul on the other side and he got killed by a middle-school girl.

That was a pretty entertaining 90-minutes of television.

The one thing that I read that I really agree with is that the show was just too dark. Literally, too dark. I turned the lights off, tilted the screen, etc. I get that it was filmed at night, but we still have to be able to see it.

My wife complained about the clarity, but I thought it was a nice touch. Gave a truer sense of how chaotic and confusing the battle was for the living, and it amped up the anxiety of the situation.

 

[Cheddie]

My problem with the Dothraki wasn't the military strategy -- it was the result. Think about it. For an hour after their charge failed, we saw individual brave men and women on foot hold off the dead far in excess of their numbers. We saw Arya kill a White Walker. We saw baby Mormont kill a giant.

And yet we're supposed to believe that in a matter of seconds a few thousand mounted Dothraki were massacred by wights? Please. yes, at the end the Dothraki might have lost to overwhelming numbers, but given what we had actually seen in this and other battles the Dothraki would have cut through their lines slicing the dead left and right like the human cavalry killing infantry orgs in the Lord of the Rings movie.

It was beyond unrealistic. Even for a movie about dragons, the dead and dead dragons fighting.

Was also disappointed that there were no real plot developments and no one of any importance died.

Did you see how quickly the wights swarmed over the dragon? It was likely much worse for the Dothraki, as none of the Night's King zombies were yet "killed" by multiple blow torch passes of Dany's dragons.

 

[Cheddie]

Tactically also the Night King pulled a Santa Anna and should have just bypassed Winterfell on his way to conquer the world. Everyone in Winterfell would have frozen or starved and he could have just walked through the countryside - game over.

Then his minions just stand around in a circle singing kumbaya while he strolls up to Bran. It's always the delaying that gets ya.

I agree on the darkness, way too dark.

Supposedly killing Bran was one of his key objectives. It would wipe out the memory of the living and push humans towards darkness.

 

[Cheddie]

They could've very easily fixed it by having her drop down from the treetops. While all the chaos was going on she could've easily slipped in and climbed it. I'm interested to see if they care about explaining how she got that close to the Night's King unimpeded.

One explanation - her ability to take on other faces/appearances, like when she served Frey his last meal. Could she have taken the appearance of one of the White Walkers standing behind the Night's King?