Game of Thrones fans here?

[forgetful]

In the books, there is no Night King as we know him in the show.  He was a former Lord Commander of the Night's Watch from thousands of years ago.  He wasn't the first White Walker either.

Agreed. I think the prequel will link the two ideas. Where the Night King, was the first Lord Commander, and his 12 White Walkers, the 12 Lord Commanders before him.

If you'll notice they always have 12 White Walkers. The Night King in the books, was the 13th Lord Commander of the Night's watch.

[Hards Alumni]

Agreed. I think the prequel will link the two ideas. Where the Night King, was the first Lord Commander, and his 12 White Walkers, the 12 Lord Commanders before him.

If you'll notice they always have 12 White Walkers. The Night King in the books, was the 13th Lord Commander of the Night's watch.

Perhaps.  I was pretty sure the prequel dealt with Robert's Rebellion though... I know there are more *planned*, but isn't this the first one being made?

[forgetful]

Perhaps.  I was pretty sure the prequel dealt with Robert's Rebellion though... I know there are more *planned*, but isn't this the first one being made?

This was released by HBO awhile back as the synopsis for the first spinoff.

"Taking place thousands of years before the events of Game of Thrones, the series chronicles the world's descent from the golden Age of Heroes into its darkest hour. And only one thing is for sure: from the horrifying secrets of Westeros' history to the true origin of the white walkers, the mysteries of the East to the Starks of legend … it's not the story we think we know.”

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

Battle was visually pleasing. Darkness didn't bother me at all, added to it.

Would have liked more done with the crypts. So much potential there and we barely saw anything.

Lyanna Mormont is a bad ass.

Really surprised there wasn't more Jorah. They made a big deal out of him getting Heartsbane last episode and it didn't seem significant.

Liked that the knife meant kill Bran saved him, but other than that, highly disappointing way to end the Night King. Little drama, Arya flies out of nowhere, and we get zero answers about the why behind the White Walkers.

I think the main thing I struggle with is that the show has repeatedly emphasized that the war with the dead was the "real war." To have it end so quickly with three episodes to go goes against that emphasis.

[Galway Eagle]

it was good but it's definitely become another generic hollywood show. There should've been a lot more deaths in the episode. It was dark, I had to brighten my screen to watch but I get the realistic sense they were going for. Getting annoyed that they promised us all this direworlf action and we've so far seen two split second scenes. Also disappointed that not a single White Walker fought in the battle dispite having all the valyrian steel swords in one place to set those battles up.

Didn't mind the Arya killing the NK but sort've annoyed that they built up the whole lightbringer prophecy with stannis and just tossed it out the window for the actual battle. And on that topic why did Melissandre even head to Volantis? No Fiery Hand, not even the other two casted red priestesses?

Last complaint, the NK is supposed to be unbelievably badass, but we saw him move to fight once in the entire series. All his actions are as follows
1) Touches baby's forehead
2) Raises arms
3) Throws spear
4) Falls off dragon
5) Raises arms
6) Badass killing of Theon
7) Catch Arya

Just sort of underwhelming, for all we know now the NK was never a real threat himself beyond magic.

[tower912]

Nevertheless, she persisted. 


   That is how the night king dies?  Arya joking?

[jesmu84]

Good thread

https://twitter.com/brewcity77/status/1122702099689684994?s=19

[brewcity77]

So a few nice circular plot points that I noticed from last night...

1) Theon Greyjoy: Raised in Winterfell, left with the intent of finding aid for the Starks in their coming war. Instead, he returned to take the castle from Bran, left again, then returned to defend Bran & Winterfell from the Night King.

2) Jorah Mormont: Once he was sentenced & exiled by Ned Stark. That was the same Ned Stark that tried to talk Robert Baratheon out of killing Daenerys Targaryean. Mormont returns to Westeros, and specifically to Winterfell, then dies protecting Daenerys, as Ned tried to do, in Ned's home.

3) Sandor Clegane, "The Hound": Scarred by fire, once froze up at the Battle King's Landing. This time, when he sees Arya facing the thing that Clegane fears, he steps up to save the girl that once robbed him and left him for dead.

4) Melisandre: She told us she would die in Westeros. In the final battle for Light, she was the one to reveal Arya as Azor Ahai reborn by asking "what do we say to death?", bringing full circle what Syrio Forel, who was from Essos like Melisandre, said to Arya in S1. Then, as promised, Melisandre died.

5) Littlefinger's Dagger: The Valyrian Steel dagger that was once intended to kill Bran Stark in S1 was used to save him. Instead of killing a Stark, it was wielded by a Stark to kill the Night King. The final lesson from Lord Baelish.

6) Arya Stark: The girl from Winterfell traveled to Essos to train, where the Lord of Light is worshiped. Then she fulfilled the Azor Ahai prophecy while coming home. Not only that, but to start the show, Bran was supposed to be a knight and Arya was supposed to grow to be a lady. Those tables turned at the end of the Battle of Winterfell as Arya was the warrior that protected Bran.

[MU82]

So a few nice circular plot points that I noticed from last night...

1) Theon Greyjoy: Raised in Winterfell, left with the intent of finding aid for the Starks in their coming war. Instead, he returned to take the castle from Bran, left again, then returned to defend Bran & Winterfell from the Night King.

2) Jorah Mormont: Once he was sentenced & exiled by Ned Stark. That was the same Ned Stark that tried to talk Robert Baratheon out of killing Daenerys Targaryean. Mormont returns to Westeros, and specifically to Winterfell, then dies protecting Daenerys, as Ned tried to do, in Ned's home.

3) Sandor Clegane, "The Hound": Scarred by fire, once froze up at the Battle King's Landing. This time, when he sees Arya facing the thing that Clegane fears, he steps up to save the girl that once robbed him and left him for dead.

4) Melisandre: She told us she would die in Westeros. In the final battle for Light, she was the one to reveal Arya as Azor Ahai reborn by asking "what do we say to death?", bringing full circle what Syrio Forel, who was from Essos like Melisandre, said to Arya in S1. Then, as promised, Melisandre died.

5) Littlefinger's Dagger: The Valyrian Steel dagger that was once intended to kill Bran Stark in S1 was used to save him. Instead of killing a Stark, it was wielded by a Stark to kill the Night King. The final lesson from Lord Baelish.

6) Arya Stark: The girl from Winterfell traveled to Essos to train, where the Lord of Light is worshiped. Then she fulfilled the Azor Ahai prophecy while coming home. Not only that, but to start the show, Bran was supposed to be a knight and Arya was supposed to grow to be a lady. Those tables turned at the end of the Battle of Winterfell as Arya was the warrior that protected Bran.

Great stuff, brewski.

I thoroughly enjoyed the episode. Yes, there were some holes, and my wife and I were commenting as we watched -- one of the fun things about an episode with little dialogue is that we could have fun providing our own -- but we were highly entertained. And that's why I watch shows like this, to be entertained. I haven't read the books, and I probably never will, so I don't need the show to "live up to" anything Martin might have said or envisioned. I just need to be entertained by good actors presenting a story I enjoy. Mission accomplished.

[tower912]

Dialogue is overrated.    That scene between Sansa and Tyrion was really good.   

[Pakuni]

it was good but it's definitely become another generic hollywood show. There should've been a lot more deaths in the episode. It was dark, I had to brighten my screen to watch but I get the realistic sense they were going for. Getting annoyed that they promised us all this direworlf action and we've so far seen two split second scenes. Also disappointed that not a single White Walker fought in the battle dispite having all the valyrian steel swords in one place to set those battles up.

Didn't mind the Arya killing the NK but sort've annoyed that they built up the whole lightbringer prophecy with stannis and just tossed it out the window for the actual battle. And on that topic why did Melissandre even head to Volantis? No Fiery Hand, not even the other two casted red priestesses?

Last complaint, the NK is supposed to be unbelievably badass, but we saw him move to fight once in the entire series. All his actions are as follows
1) Touches baby's forehead
2) Raises arms
3) Throws spear
4) Falls off dragon
5) Raises arms
6) Badass killing of Theon
7) Catch Arya

Just sort of underwhelming, for all we know now the NK was never a real threat himself beyond magic.

Raising a massive army of the undead to do your bidding is sort of badass.

[swoopem]

It’s a very small detail but I didn’t understand how when the dead were standing in front of the fire barricades before they broke threw, why the archers weren’t picking them off. That would have been a shooting gallery. They waited till they got threw to shoot their arrows 

[Coleman]

Hmm....not sure about this episode. 

It was so dark and difficult to see what was going on much of the time.  Seemed a little to easy there at the end after the complete ass kicking for 99% of the episode.

I will be curious to see what the fans think.

I'm with you.

The episode was incredibly frustrating. 80 minutes of not being able to tell what was going on.

It ended the way we wanted, but I'm a little disappointed in how we got there.

[Coleman]

I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree, because while I was watching it I wasn't thinking, "This is inexplicably bad storytelling."

I was.

There's ways to set mood and environment, while still making it watchable. This was a rare miss by GoT. Not in the story itself but in the way it was portrayed.

[Coleman]

How does she get past the wights to pull of the assassination?  I have no problem with her as the killer, but the how part seemed cheap and unsatisfyingly easy.

Agree agree agree +1000

The only possible way I can think of is if she wore the face of a wight, but they gave no hint of that happening.

[tower912]

She used her encyclopedic knowledge of Winterfell to avoid the army of wights.     Also, a common story telling device in a situation like this is for them to explain it briefly in the next episode.   

[MU82]

Raising a massive army of the undead to do your bidding is sort of badass.

Also, he took the full brunt of Dany's dragon's fire and didn't even have to brush himself off!

And he was able to sense that Arya was upon him; he stopped her and got her to drop the knife.

Little did he know that Arya had the same kind of hand-to-eye coordination as MJ in his prime (think change-of-hands reverse vs Lakers in '91 Finals!), and she caught the knife with her other hand to finish him off.

[Hards Alumni]

https://www.theringer.com/game-of-thrones/2019/4/29/18522174/r-i-p-night-king-we-wish-we-learned-your-secrets

[Cheeks]

Night King security as Ayra approaches




Viewing party......eruption


https://twitter.com/kitneka/status/1122857108762873859

[brewcity77]

I'm not sure the Night King story is done. His role is done, but I think we may learn that Bran was controlling, or at least communicating with, the Night King during the battle. Once the Iron Throne is settled, I think Bran will go back north of the Wall to become the new Night King, albeit to rest for years until his army is strong enough to march south.

[Pakuni]

Agree agree agree +1000

The only possible way I can think of is if she wore the face of a wight, but they gave no hint of that happening.

Well, they spent an entire season showing her being trained as an elite assassin capable to slipping past any defense to kill an intended target. Should we be so surprised the slipped past some distracted wights?

[CreightonWarrior]

nm

[Galway Eagle]

Raising a massive army of the undead to do your bidding is sort of badass.

I agree but if you can't fight yourself you're essentially Cersei. I thought he'd be slightly more epic

[Pakuni]

I'm not sure the Night King story is done. His role is done, but I think we may learn that Bran was controlling, or at least communicating with, the Night King during the battle. Once the Iron Throne is settled, I think Bran will go back north of the Wall to become the new Night King, albeit to rest for years until his army is strong enough to march south.

I may be proven wrong, but I'd never bought the "Bran is the Night King" theory, and I'm buying it even less after last night's episode.
Also, given that the Night King was created involuntarily by the Children of the Forest, is the theory that Bran will go sacrifice himself to the Children (if any remain)? Why would he do that?

[brewcity77]

I may be proven wrong, but I'd never bought the "Bran is the Night King" theory, and I'm buying it even less after last night's episode.

The problem is we are then led to believe Bran spent the entire battle controlling a few ravens. That seems unlikely when he could've been doing so much more.