Is This the Best They Can Do???

Published May 6, 2019 · Updated July 6, 2022

Hello Guys,

I don’t understand. Is it me? Why do I have a monumental distaste for this final season? I haven’t had this distaste for any other season.

I was willing to forgive the downright amateur military strategy of The Battle of Winterfell but I’m beginning to see a pattern: HBO is finishing weak. The final season of GOT is suffering from a plot device that I despise just a little less than time travel and that is forced, bad decision making just for the sake of it.

The leaders of the armies in the north make every military mistake possible but still pull out the win against a bazillion undead. Then, when she is told “hey we need a breather” Danaerys just ignores it. Huh? Her forces were DECIMATED on the heels of terrible strategy so her answer is: more terrible strategy. Forced.

Ok, well at least they’re going to do some recon on their plan right? You know, to make sure they know where Huron’s fleet is; or the Lannister and Golden Co. armies..right? I mean, we don’t want to lose another dragon; better actually think past our noses this time. Nope. Let’s just guess and hope for the best bc without forcing the worst decisions EVER we couldn’t then force a dragon death followed by the drama of Danaerys losing the confidence of everyone and seemingly losing her shit. Good thing Missandei swam right over to Huron’s fleet so we could get to see her get Ned Stark’d which would inflame team Targaryen to make more bad decisions. Not forced at all.

Speaking of losing faith, what the shit did Varys think was going to happen??? He spent how many years conspiring to put her on the throne. How did he think that would happen? With a fireside chat between Danaerys and whatever Lannister was in charge at the time? He had a big, if not the biggest, role in making this war happen and now he’s all “Ohhhh no, people can’t die, let’s kill her!.” That is simply forcing drama to make her seem bad and it’s awful story telling. It’s war. And often times in war, when a populace is complicit in the rule of tyrant by apathy or otherwise, those people get dead.

And finally, Jon is obviously a simpleton and learned nothing from his headless father. Ned underestimated the political turmoil and danger of not keeping his mouth shut. After everything Jon has seen he doesn’t know that yapping to his sisters, even after Dany lays the consequences out for him, is a giant mistake. He truly knows nothing. What does that give us?…essentially season 1. We’ve come all this way to see repeated, obvious stupid decisions and forced drama over would-be monarchs while Varys & Co. scheme and Jaime Lannister gives a monologue about how he loves his evil sis.

So far the highlight of the season has been the episode where everyone just sat around talking and I hate that I think that.

All the best,

Matthew M. Colson

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