In Defense of the Last Seasons of Game of Thrones

Yes, I Liked Season 8

I'm addicted to good Game of Thrones reaction videos. There's the Red Wedding with the inevitable “I'm never watching this show again” declaration (followed shortly by the next episode), seeing who recognizes Varys as one of the conspirators Arya overhears, the Ed Shereen cameo and the inevitable fight over the ending. Comments always blow up when the heroic liberator suddenly starts burning up innocent people. Did these people never hear of Stalin, Mao or Pol Pot? Or listened to the season one character who outright told Daenerys that her great revolution was built on murder and rape? You know that woman that Daenerys burned alive?

Either way, I loved the last seasons for many reasons including:

It Fucking Ends

I'm sympathetic to George R.R. Martin. He's obviously dealing with either imposter syndrome, stage fright or writer's block. When no one read the books, he cranked them out one after another. He even seemed to be coming to the conclusion with the third book until 100 pages before the end with the dragons and Others still far away from the main action.

He followed it up with two books that were essentially table setting to the concluding chapters. A Feast for Crows is a beautiful elegiac book about the costs of war and unintended consequences. Had I read it without the fifth book on my shelf, I would have been pissed. No Tyrion. No Dany. No Jon. Chapters dedicated to the fucking Dornish? Who the fuck cares about Dorne? Apparently Martin had a time jump planned. Then came Dance of the Dragons and a promise of a sixth book. Then he wrote Dunk and Egg stories. People loved them too. So he stopped writing Dunk and Egg and went with histories of Westeros. And they were great. HOTD show runners better not cut out Nettles. They already cut out Mushroom because they believe in Little People quotas. You had Tyrion. That's it. No more actors under 4 feet in the Game of Thrones universe.

So he stopped writing the histories. He will definitely write his fucking blog where he talks about football and his movie theater and calls his fans assholes. Because we all fucking hate that blog.

In a world where Lance Reddick works out every day and still dies at 60, Martin is living on borrowed time and he's dicking around. Even those who found Neil Gaiman's tedious “George R.R. Martin is not your bitch” essay smart have lost patience. Who is going to finish these books when George dies? Sanderson is too Mormon.

At least with the show, it's over. Dany burned up King's Landing. The Others came and died. Jon proved that he knew nothing. Oh sure, not everything was perfect. How many times did Jon have to say “She is the queen” before he just fucking killed her already? Still, it's over. We aren't still waiting for the ending.

Brienne and Tormund: The Best Love Story

Credit Kristofer Hivju as Tormund deciding to hit on Brienne In the books, every Brienne chapter has Brienne saying that she's ugly and that she knows that she's ugly and no one could ever love her. Having Tormund not only fall for her but also have such a ridiculous flirting technique that he never has a chance is a delightful comedy in a series full of terror and mass murder. The man really thought his story about nursing on a giant was going to impress her. Maybe “who shit in my pants?” isn't a great pickup line. Truly a love story for the ages.

Sansa, Queen of the North

Game of Thrones audiences are torn between people who hate Sansa for telling Tyrion about Jon and viewers who were paying attention. Sansa was never going to bend the knee. Daenerys was never going to let the North go. Why shouldn't Sansa use whatever she can to avoid a war? Because her dumb brother made her promise? Sansa's character arc from spoiled girl to queen is truly epic, especially when she outsmarts Littlefinger. Definitely her show story is better than in the books where she's endlessly wandering around the Riverlands.

No Lady Stoneheart

In the books, Resurrected Catlyn is a scary evil creature, wreaking havoc throughout the realm as the de facto leader of the Brotherhood without Banners. She would have been a drag on the show. There are certain things that need to stay and be left out and adding another monster to the show when GRRM has yet to give her a satisfying narrative would just drag everything out.

Tyrion Keeps his Nose

I don't agree with every Tyrion choice. Shae actually falling in love with him to the point of jealousy makes her final betrayal confusing. Learning about his first wife's innocence would have made his patricide more powerful. On the other hand, he's not on a boat for three seasons asking where the whores go. He actually reaches Daenerys. Even better, he isn't walking around without a nose after season 2. That would have been way too distracting.

Ian McShane brings back the Hound

Readers know that the Hound is alive because a septa just tells his entire story to Brienne while a very big guy digs a hole behind him. The Septa claims that the Hound told him everything with his dying breath, but it's not a “dying breath” story. In the show, we get Ian McShane as a fucking septa building a community based on repentance and helping people. Not only is he a perfect foil to the Hound's surly grief, but he also nicely contrasts with Jonathan Pryce's High Sparrow. He only lasts one episode, but it's a great episode.

There's so much more. Regardless, the show ended on a high note and the whiners who wanted Jon and Dany happily married and ruling Westeros together really should watch properties that give them what they want. May I suggest Moana 2? It's in theaters. And very mediocre.

If you need a writer, feel free to

As far as Reaction Videos go, The Habibi Brothers just started season 3

97Til is almost finished with season 8, but they are fun to watch.

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