I am incredibly grateful to Game of Thrones for this adventure I have found myself sucked into for some years now. I am grateful for all the emotions it brought me since day one, bitter and sweet alike. I am grateful for all the laughs, all the tears, all the jokes and gags, every single bit of it, I really am grateful and appreciative of it all. It's been just... wonderful.
That said, I am feeling robbed and betrayed right about now. This ending is arguably one of the worst series finales in the history of television and trust me I realize how bold of a statement that is. The terrible violations the characters have suffered this season, the lack of proper resolution to many of the plots and narratives developed over seasons worth of buildup, the seeking of shock value at the expense of quality writing... that and much much more solidified this as an absolute disappointment of a finale, as opposed to the marvel wrap it could've given this cultural phenomenon.
This episode does have its positives, as always the score, acting and cinematography are perfectly performed but I just do not think it's nearly enough to compensate for how lackluster the writing has been, as much as I wish they did. Oh well, sad as it may be, I'll just hold on to the good stuff and hope that GRRM's book, once finished, will tackle the ending in a more coherent, more respectful and more meaningful way. It's been real y'all...
P.S: I'll leave this here lest some people jump me again. This comment is a representation of my own personal opinion, I am entitled to one just as all of you are. If you enjoyed this season and felt this finale delivered what you were looking for then more power to you mate, but that doesn't nullify my opinion nor does it make yours any valid. If you want to discuss or challenge my views, I'd be more than happy to engage you on that basis but if all you have to offer are petty remarks then please keep them to yourself.
"Send the dothraki first since they are barbarians"
"Dragons are our heavy artillery let's keep them flying in circles without doing NOTHING for say 2/3 of the battle. Even if they all stop before a flaming trench and sit there nearly aligned for tenths of minutes. We can not win the easy way this must be EPIC"
"It's a massive invasion of Savage, quick and merciless undead but we like to walk orderly and calmly in libraries"
"By the way, libraries are still dead silent while people are being ripped to shreds outside"
"Hey, look, Arya slipped past 4.000 undead and learned Rey's air saber trick"
"Every major character gets to live even after being surrounded by dead. (jorah and theon were already half dead - oh yeah, theon, seems Arya waited in the shadows while you were impalled too. Go team.".
Nothing... Literally nothing of any importance happened this episode.
This actually is an overall decent finale. The tense in Camina's fleet is good. The Rocinante battle is good. Naomi's rescue is good. The reveal on the end was also good. However there's one reason that makes the episode feels like a jumble of choppily edited scenes: everything involving Alex's death.
I don't take issue with it being sudden and abrupt, as many deaths are. But everyone feels really disconnected from that one incident that should have affected at least all the main casts. Alex just died, but Holden and Naomi spent their time to listen to Naomi's supposed farewell (and spent minutes on it). Amos was more eager to bring Peaches instead of mourning his close friend; even worse he was only informed about Alex's death off screen. For a fellow Martian and somebody who has spent quite a time with Alex, Bobbie seems largely unaffected at all. And Alex, well... The only tribute they gave to this incident is a plaque, which makes for some emotional moment, but that's it. Heck, that part where Holden talked to Naomi to rekindle the events almost feels like Holden breaking the fourth wall to explain to viewers due to how abrupt it is handled.
It almost feels like the event is not supposed to happen, and the showrunners edited in last minutes.
This season has been nothing but a Naomi season that leads to a reunion of Rocinante crew. That incident stuck like a sore thumb, making the supposedly joyful event with all crews gathering feels really emotionally detached. Not to mention that, barring the reveal at the end, most events still happen off screen. Just like most things that happened this season. We don't get to see the impact of something big happening.
So despite being an overall decent episode, this finale closes the relatively most mediocre season The Expanse has produced. I'd even say that the quality is even lower than Season 4. The first four episodes were nice, but it went downhill and stagnated really fast.
Bran: I can never be Lord of Winterfell, I can never be Lord of anything, I'm the Three-eyed Raven.
Also Bran: I'm the King.
You'd think a multi-million dollar show would have a better action sequence.What on earth was that scene where Ahsoka , Sabine and Ezra are dodging bullets from over 50 storm troopers , oh my god. That was sooo bad. Even I would have directed a better action sequence.
There is so much fury in Rosario Dawson's face while battling , but we can hardly see any of that in her fights and the result is embarrassingly cringe .
So we finished one complete season and we still haven't gotten a clue as to what Baylon Skoll's arc is? The actor has passed away , rest his soul , so I wonder what on earth would they do now .
The storm troopers usually have a zero plot armour in the movies , here they have been dialled down to -100.
And the director's idea to wrap up this garbage of a finale was to show a glimpse of Anakin in the end? Do you expect us to give a standing ovation for that?
Very very disappointing
4/10
What in the actual f*ck.
I'm a reasonable man, I realize I've been crapping on D&D even more than usual this season but I really do have to give them props for doing exactly what they set out to do. They hoped to subvert our expectations and they did just wonderfully in that regards.
We expected all of that buildup over the years to actually amount to something that at the very least passes for a presentable series finale but instead, we got an incoherent, steaming pile of shit. Expectations subverted!
We expected all of that character development to actually result in a beautiful pay-off that respects the journey of self-discovery each and every one of our beloved characters went through to get to where they are now but instead, we got a painful, disrespectful cycle of character regression. Expectations subverted!
We expected the final season of this show to keep us at the edge of our seats with thrilling writing that didn't subvert our expectations for the sake of subverting our expectations via low-quality shock value-seeking writing, but to introduce plot twists that make sense within the overall narrative of the story but instead, we got CW-level predictable, cringe material. Expectations subverted!
I get it. I really do. GRRM let them down by not getting the books ready in time and so they had to improvise away from his influence, but this? This? For a long while, Game of Thrones lived up to the slogan of its parent network, it wasn't just TV, it was something different, something unique and now to have to see it come to this... it's nothing short of disappointing.
On the bright side though, at least this episode didn't suck completely. The acting, score and cinematography were all on point, so I guess it's nice that I didn't walk out of it having appreciated absolutely nothing about it.
So why do I even bother anymore? I honestly could not tell you, though it's probably a mixture of masochism and a faint sliver of hope that they won't flush our collective investment into this series down the drain by the end of it, just one more episode dammit.
What was this, Disney’s Game of Thrones? All these seasons of build-up... and we get this? How many characters of importance died?
I’m disappointed.
OK, so you want to tell me that the Russians went to invade Norway by using a giant armada consisting of hundreds of ships that are driven by bucket wheels for some reason. They also have landing crafs D-Day-style.. ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME???
Please, History Channel, it's time do delete that "History" part from your brand name.
Finally something actually happened after they dragged the season for absolutely nothing.
After four mediocre episodes in a row with three of them being filler, this episode is decent enough. Those previous episodes serve no actual purpose other than waiting for the plot to trigger itself by that call.
The dialogues in this episode could be better and so could the way the scenes are cut, especially for the first half. People seem too eager to join The Mando in his quest for the sake of moving the story. However the last 5-10 the minutes is quite watchable with enough tense. The brute killing in the last scene seems to suggest they're going with the "evil Empire" cliche, but I wish they could do better than that next episode.
It seems like the story just started to be set in motion and we will be left with more questions as Season 1 ends, which unfortunately seems to be Disney+ business model: just make cute Baby Yoda stuff for moms and Star Wars reference for dads, figure things out later in Season 2.
On positive notes, it's nice that they attempt to do more world-building like shocktroopers having signature tattoo, each Imperial province having their own insignia, and the Imperial warlord trying to convince people that the world is better with colonialism.
I love this show but I can't help but notice, in the Minerva vs. herself fight sequence, they kept focusing on her heels when there were multiple shots that the actress and/or the stunt double/s are wearing flats. :))
"iF yOu ThInK tHiS hAs A hApPy eNDinG, yOu hAvEn'T beEN pAyInG aTteNtIOn"
Literally everyone except Daenerys got a happy clean ending.
This episode and this season as a whole have been a complete and utter disaster. the decline of storytelling quality from the last seasons is shocking. The show is barely recognizable at this point.
A character who wasn't a contender for the throne ended up on it even though they have done absolutely nothing this whole season, had lots of potential to make for a very interesting role but was ignored and swept aside then suddenly elected king.
Daenerys's character being completely butchered as she was turned from someone who never showed the slightest disregard to innocents' safety to someone who commits mass genocide and shows no remorse afterwards, all in the span of 2 episodes.
So many character arcs were neglected or wrapped up poorly. Jon being reduced to a secondary character with a combination of three sentences of dialogue, Jaime's development being thrown out the window, Cersei barely doing anything and then getting killed by bricks, Tyrion, the master tactician, turning to a gossiping idiot then getting promoted after he quits his job (seriously?)
So many plot points were discarded or turned out insignificant. Azor Ahai, Jon's lineage, The Lord of Light, Cersei's prophecy...etc
The whole White Walkers storyline being eliminated in one episode, then the whole Iron Throne storyline being eliminated as well in the end (FFS)
So much shit not making the slightest bit of sense. Dany's army multiplying, Arya's impenetrable plot armor, The North getting the independence while the Iron Islands didn't when they were the first ones to demand it, Drogon not killing Jon after he killed Daenerys, hell, the Dothraki and the Unsullied not killing Jon after he killed Daenerys, The point of the Night's Watch now that the WW are gone. Tyrion being in chains and holding up a presidential vote over who would run the 6 republics. HBO c'mon man.
Overall the pacing was too fast and inconsistent, the ending was rushed, anti-climactic and nonsensical. This couldn't have ended in a worse way. Kudos to D&D!
Should we pretend this season never happened?
This is the episode Emilia Clarke said about that we should see on the biggest TV one has? I don't see what's so special about it, really.
Daenerys just said to Jon that he should not tell anyone about his true parentage just so he doesn't get the throne, not because it would ruin their relationship.&How could she not see the Iron Fleet from such altitude, by the way? lol
This was disappointing and frustrating episode, unfortunately.
I don't like Sansa - of course she would betray her brother's (ok, cousin's) trust and blab his secret to everyone - but now I don't like Daenerys either. Damn, would she sit down and wait for her army to heal and recuperate? She's gotten increasingly ruthless in the past couple of seasons. It would indeed be a decent strategy if Jon and Daenerys would marry and just rule together, but I don't think that's going to happen now. They killed off Rhaegal, so that's gotta foreshadow something - that there will only be one Targaryen left standing at the end of the series.
Also, poor Ghost. Leaving him to the North definitely signalled Jon's gradual departure from the Stark family and gradual acceptance of his Targaryen heritage. So sad to see him react to Jon like that.
"Everyone! Remain calm! The Crypts are perfectly SAFE!!!!! I repeat, the CRYPTS ARE SAFE!!"
[8.4/10] I feel like this episode isn't going to please most people. The critical crowd is going to be annoyed at it for indulging in fan service at times and wrapping a lot of character relationships too quickly. The more casual fan crowd is going to be upset that this episode was full of yakking and sparse on action or narrative momentum. But honestly, I really liked this one. I have to imagine that the next four super-sized episodes are going to be filled to the gils with action and high drama and excitement. In the prelude to that, it's really nice to get a series of quiet moments to reflect on where everyone has been to get to this point, and the uncertainty of the future, amid the other grace notes that "The Rightful Queen" provides.
Those are the two big ideas at the center of the episode. On the one hand, you have this sense of everyone both assuming that they're doomed but worrying about what the future holds. More than one character declares that they're all dead. And yet at the same time, you have Dany and others worrying about who might have a claim to the Iron Throne or some slice of the Seven Kingdoms. You have Tyrion and others worrying about who might become (or remain) Hand to the Queen. And you have everyone from Misandei to Sansa thinking about what the world looks like when this battle is over. There's the sense of an inevitable, mortal threat, but also of concern for where things stand after they've picked up the pieces.
But there's also a sense of marking how long the journey has been to reach this point and how much everyone has changed along it. Arya is grown, with her own skills, directness, and desires that mark a sharp contrast from the aspirational little girl who went with her father to King's Landing. Jaime and Tyrion are both much different men since they were "The Golden Lion" and "The Imp" who previously set foot in Winterfell ("the perils of self-betterment"). Hell, even the likes of Podrick has become a capable warrior (and classy singer to boot.) There's a boatload of taking stock in this episode, of remembering where everyone's been and the distance between here and there.
What's more, there's tons of nice little moments. Lyanna Mormont gets a nice scene with Jorah, Gilly gets a little time to shine, and Edd gets a chance to reunite with his Night's Watch brethren. That's all on top of Tyrion's little gathering by the fire, which makes the most of the hang out vibe this episode summons when the time is right.
All-in-all, this feels like one of those Game of Thrones episodes we'll remember beyond the bigger clashes and contretemps the series usually has in store. It's a slower episode, but one that deepens our understanding of where these characters at psychologically and developmentally after nearly eight seasons, and lets us wonder about what the future holds right alongside them.
Netflix is on drugs if they cancel this great show. Like I heard they have planned.
What is the point in these ships even having weapons systems? The star destroyer couldn't even shoot a super basic defenceless ship out of the sky! It has been utterly infuriating watching the action sequences in this show.
"I will do what I must" made me cringe. It was like bad fan fiction. The fight wasn't great, though it was definitely better than the fight back in episode 3 of the show.
Reva might just be the most pathetic force user of all time. How the hell did a couple of random farmers hold their own against her? Again, the action in this show has been consistently dreadful - just straight-up bad decisions by the writing team, and laughably poor choreography. Also, she literally just took a lightsaber to the gut hours ago and was left for dead, yet now she suddenly appears absolutely fine walking around on Tattoine? WHAT IS THIS SHOW?
Glad we got the Qui-Gon cameo at the end though.
FedEx containers? Syfy are you serious?!
Maybe it’s going to be an issue in the next episode, but Mando left his jet pack on the hillside, and never retrieved it. If he had, he would have been able to get to Grogu in time.
Vikings turning into a WTHITH series wasn't what I expected when I first started watching it back when season 1 just came out. What does WTHITH stand for you wonder? Why The Hell Is This Happening
Why the hell is Lageartha dying in such a weird, uninteresting way that just leaves me thinking "wait, what, why"
Why the hell is there a plot involving Ivar's dead wife that is now ressurected and SOMEHOW ended up in Ukraine and SOMEHOW she met prince Oleg and told him all about Ivar and if it's not actually Freydis then it makes no sense and is unbelievably stupid
Why the hell does the Flatnose guy that Edge plays suddenly does a complete 180 and saves Bjorn when his goal all along was to kill him
Why the hell does the guy that saves Bjorn that looks like he's 45 say that he's too young to remember Ragnar
Why the hell there isn't a single character from season 1 alive anymore (and played by the same actor)
Why the hell there hasn't been one scene involving King Alfred this season
Why
Fuck me I'm glad that this is the final season. Let it rest already.
Man, what a poor episode, lackluster after lackluster. If this is the culmination of the time and interest myself and others have invested into Game of Thrones all of these years, then it is truly unfortunate and disappointing if not almost bordering on an insult.
Such a shame that this will be the legacy of a series that once took the world by storm with its brilliant storytelling and exhilarating plot twists, hardly recognizable anymore when it parades around in a pathetic shell of its former self.
I can't say I'm excited nor even interested in the remaining episodes, at least not when this season has taught me time and again to lower my expectations as much as possible, but I hope they will at least respect what this series once was and offer a conclusion worthy of its story. sigh
This is an absolute failure on all fronts and the fact it is so highly rated disturbs me. Easily the worst episode of this show, and this has singlehandedly destroyed any remaining faith I had for the rest of this series. What a disgrace.
November? Wtf. Just call it season 6.
I don't see why they'd obey her, she had no way to force them...
Gosh, the writing for this show is so utterly dreadful.
Vesemir says "It feels like bullsh*t now" and it is an apt summary of this episode. It had totally nothing to do with the plot of Sapkowski's novels, which the show is allegedly based upon. Instead of taking the events from the book and transferring them to the screen, the showrunners decided to tell their own story about the witcher. If only it was a good story like it is the case with the games, but no, they had to invent some awful plot with the ancient evil witch Voleth whom nobody ever heard about in the novels, who posseses Ciri so that she turns wicked and starts murdering witchers and teleporting monsters from other sphere to Kaer Morhen so that they could kill more witchers. Vesemir and other witchers want to kill the possessed Ciri but Geralt believes he may help her come back and free herself from the possession. Meanwhile, the real Ciri is in a sort of vision of Cintra where she is happy and both her parents are alive, a vision supposedly created by the witch Voleth so that she can continue to possess Ciri's body as Ciri does not want to come back to the real world. Yennefer sacrifices her life to save Ciri and become a new vessel for the witch, but after Ciri is freed from possession, she uses her magic to teleport the witch back to her world, where she apparently possesses the wild hunt. Back at Kaer Morhen, it appears that Yennefer regained her magic because she was ready to die for Ciri -> this is how the showrunners solve problems which would not have existed at all had they stuck to the source material. It is nice that Geralt, Yennefer and Ciri are now a small patchwork family and the mage and the witcher would work together to protect Ciri, as it should have been the case from the beginning, without any this evil!Yennefer plot twist. Another small plus of the episode is that Phillipa is finally shown, she looks good with her clothing including some owl elements. Francesca went evil and started to kill children with her magic, later the elves captured Istredd who told them about Ciri's elder blood to save his life. So many political factions are now looking for Ciri. Meve is shown in the council of the Brotherhood with the kings and she suggests that Ciri is better dead than alive, Tissaia and others plan to capture and kill her, which I don't think was the case in the books, since in one of the volumes Ciri goes with Yennefer to become a student of Aretuza, so the sorceresses were not definitely intending to hunt and kill her like it is suggested in the show. And at the very end of the episode, the showrunners decided to reveal the identity of the emperor Emhyr, something that is not explained in the books until the last volume! I have no idea what they intended to achieve by doing that, spoiling the books for the viewers who have not read them yet. Ciri herself as well as Geralt and Yennefer learn about Ciri's father at the end of the last volume in the saga, in a very emotional scene which would never be possible to be shown in the series due to the stupid decisions of the showrunners.
No matter how we feel about allegations against Cas, no writers should ever do this to a character. It's extremely shitty to simply abandon his character arc instead of concluding it.
