Game of Thrones VIII

[Game_Breaker]

Or make it a 8-10 episode season

Long night could’ve been stretched across 2 episodes or something

 

[adamkungl]

Theorising season 8 style

Rhaegal is not dead.
Season 6 showed you can get stabbed multiple times and fall in water and not die.
Dragon just needs a good bandage and some herbal tea.
Genius foreshadowing wow #epic

 

[Parra Pride]

Or make it a 8-10 episode season

Long night could’ve been stretched across 2 episodes or something

The episode itself wasn’t that much shorter than if it was just stretched across two regular length episodes though.

Theorising season 8 style

Rhaegal is not dead.
Season 6 showed you can get stabbed multiple times and fall in water and not die.
Dragon just needs a good bandage and some herbal tea.
Genius foreshadowing wow #epic

The one thing I could see potentially salvaging something here is the whole Bran is the NK thing, and he Wargs the dead Rhaegal. I’m doubtful of that though.

 

[Apey]

I dont think any of it was rushed rather its just bad writing. The last thing id want is more episodes for them to prove this. If HBO wanted another episode in there I'd wager they'd just fill out the extra time with dick jokes, shipping or major characters doing more uncharacteristic things.

 

[Tommy Smith]

Regarding the decline of the show, when Tywin was killed I distinctly recall saying to myself and others that the show was only going to go downhill from here.

It just felt like he was just at the true epicentre of it all. I mean, what a f**king awesome bad ass villain played to perfection by a great, great actor.

He was the only one that died who felt irreplaceable. And I kinda feel as though that's been proven true.

In the aftermath of his death the show dragged like a bitch for two seasons with the Cersei/High Sparrow power struggle whilst Arya was off in Bravos just kinda scrubbing floors and Dany squatted in Mereen.

And then, suddenly... BAM! It's like someone at HBO said, "well we now gotta wrap this up in 13 episodes guys so let's just up the pace from a meandering crawl to a completely unexpected and unappreciated rush job".

 

[Apey]

It just felt like he was just at the true epicentre of it all. I mean, what a f**king awesome bad ass villain played to perfection by a great, great actor.

In the aftermath of his death the show dragged like a bitch for two seasons with the Cersei/High Sparrow power struggle whilst Arya was off in Bravos just kinda scrubbing floors and Dany squatted in Mereen.

Probably the best character and actor of the series. Afaik though the books drag on with this too. A lot of Arya's story in Braavos and Daenerys in Mereen was boring as shit though.

 

[Game_Breaker]

Here's my theory

Dany turns on Jon when he tries to stop her burning KL. She calls on Drogon to burn his ass, she yells "Dracarys" to execute him but he refuses to burn Jon

 

[Timbo]

Here's my theory

Dany turns on Jon when he tries to stop her burning KL. She calls on Drogon to burn his ass, she yells "Dracarys" to execute him but he refuses to burn Jon

Or Jon walks out of the flames, unscathed.

 

[Parra Pride]

Or Jon walks out of the flames, unscathed.

Jon was burnt grabbing Mormonts lantern way back in season one or two. I wouldn’t put it past then to retcon that with the Targaryen reveal, but until then it’s already established that he doesn’t have any kind of resistance to fire.

 

[Timbo]

Jon was burnt grabbing Mormonts lantern way back in season one or two. I wouldn’t put it past then to retcon that with the Targaryen reveal, but until then it’s already established that he doesn’t have any kind of resistance to fire.

This season hasn't exactly been thorough when it comes to writing.

 

[Shaun Hewitt]

Regarding the decline of the show, when Tywin was killed I distinctly recall saying to myself and others that the show was only going to go downhill from here.

It just felt like he was just at the true epicentre of it all. I mean, what a f**king awesome bad ass villain played to perfection by a great, great actor.

He was the only one that died who felt irreplaceable. And I kinda feel as though that's been proven true.

In the aftermath of his death the show dragged like a bitch for two seasons with the Cersei/High Sparrow power struggle whilst Arya was off in Bravos just kinda scrubbing floors and Dany squatted in Mereen.

And then, suddenly... BAM! It's like someone at HBO said, "well we now gotta wrap this up in 13 episodes guys so let's just up the pace from a meandering crawl to a completely unexpected and unappreciated rush job".

I never thought it like that.
BUT...I do think you are right. It seems like since that moment, it all wet downhill from there.

I can't say I'm particularly amazed or impressed by this season and it took them 2 years to do!

 

[BennyV]

Season 8 definitely needed to be extended across 2 full, 10 episode seasons in order to do the end of the story any sort of justice.

 

[adamkungl]

Season 8 definitely needed to be extended across 2 full, 10 episode seasons in order to do the end of the story any sort of justice.

Sadly I don't think the answer is giving them 14 more episodes to hack together implausible scenarios and explain them in behind the scenes specials

 

[BennyV]

Sadly I don't think the answer is giving them 14 more episodes to hack together implausible scenarios and explain them in behind the scenes specials

Rubbish story telling aside, additional time to build the story properly would have made a huge difference. Eg, Dany doesn’t get attacked on the way to Dragonstone, if they had to kill Rhaegal/kidnap Missandei they could do it plausibly. They could put some effort into giving reason for Arya to kill the NK and fill out some of the story around Bran/NK and give it some more purpose. Maybe set up Daario coming to his queens aid or build up some story around what the people of Kings Landing really feel about Cersei. A lot of the niggly bullshit wouldn’t be as much of an issue and they’d have time to prepare some actual story and reasoning for the outcomes.

There could also be plenty more action to give. I would have loved to see Yara Greyjoy take back the iron islands, or the army of the dead wipe the f**k out of Last Hearth. Maybe Dany/Jon execute Lord Glover for abandoning them. Stuff like that.

Was mentioned in another forum that GRRM wanted 13 seasons, while the producers wanted 7. They settled on 8. Not nearly enough time to properly wrap everything up, even accounting for the actual end to the story.

 

[adamkungl]

Rubbish story telling aside, additional time to build the story properly would have made a huge difference. Eg, Dany doesn’t get attacked on the way to Dragonstone, if they had to kill Rhaegal/kidnap Missandei they could do it plausibly.

The issue isn't one of time.
The writers deliberately sacrifice common sense and plausibility purely to shock the audience. It's cheap and lazy and usually not even quicker.

Rhaegal example.
Dany's navy, after being ambushed 2 times previously, is aware of a potential attack, because they aren't complete morons.
Euron's fleet is hiding behind an island or headland or whatever.
It allows them to get the jump, but Dany spots them from the air before they get a cheap shot away, because air visibility is obviously f**king superior to sea level visibility.
A short naval battle ensues. Much the same result, the upgraded weaponry tears them to pieces.
All our favourite characters abandon ship. They don't show a 400kg mast falling on a swimming Tyrion with a fade to black, because baiting the audience with death scenarios that have zero consequences is cheap and dumb.
Dany is forced to attack the well armed ships to allow her friends and remaining troops to escape.
Rhaegal gets shot down in the attack. Dany flees on Drogon while Missande is picked up by Euron.

 

[SpaceMonkey]

Regarding the decline of the show, when Tywin was killed I distinctly recall saying to myself and others that the show was only going to go downhill from here.

It just felt like he was just at the true epicentre of it all. I mean, what a f**king awesome bad ass villain played to perfection by a great, great actor.

He was the only one that died who felt irreplaceable. And I kinda feel as though that's been proven true.

In the aftermath of his death the show dragged like a bitch for two seasons with the Cersei/High Sparrow power struggle whilst Arya was off in Bravos just kinda scrubbing floors and Dany squatted in Mereen.

And then, suddenly... BAM! It's like someone at HBO said, "well we now gotta wrap this up in 13 episodes guys so let's just up the pace from a meandering crawl to a completely unexpected and unappreciated rush job".

The only other character who was in Tywin’s league was Roose Bolton and the show criminally underused him by focusing on the one-dimensional Ramsay.

 

[Swarzey]

Pretty much how I feel about the show at this point. Ever since the show passed the books they've had a slow and steady decline in the quality of the writing, save for a handful of scenes like the Battle of the Bastards. The budget and scale of the production can only do so much. A lack of time IS a problem but also a consequence of pretty poor pacing over season 6 and 7.

I wish that f**ker already had Winds of Winter done and was working on A Dream of Spring. Invested in the franchise far too much for the show to be the only ending to have.

 

[Timbo]

The issue isn't one of time.
The writers deliberately sacrifice common sense and plausibility purely to shock the audience. It's cheap and lazy and usually not even quicker.

Rhaegal example.
Dany's navy, after being ambushed 2 times previously, is aware of a potential attack, because they aren't complete morons.
Euron's fleet is hiding behind an island or headland or whatever.
It allows them to get the jump, but Dany spots them from the air before they get a cheap shot away, because air visibility is obviously f**king superior to sea level visibility.
A short naval battle ensues. Much the same result, the upgraded weaponry tears them to pieces.
All our favourite characters abandon ship. They don't show a 400kg mast falling on a swimming Tyrion with a fade to black, because baiting the audience with death scenarios that have zero consequences is cheap and dumb.
Dany is forced to attack the well armed ships to allow her friends and remaining troops to escape.
Rhaegal gets shot down in the attack. Dany flees on Drogon while Missande is picked up by Euron.

Wow, that's must better.

If only the screenwriters had given themselves extra time between series seven and eight so they could have found four-fifths of a second to work this one out.

 

[adamkungl]

Wow, that's must better.

If only the screenwriters had given themselves extra time between series seven and eight so they could have found four-fifths of a second to work this one out.

I'm not trying to pretend I could do a better job or anything, just don't take the piss out of the audience for cheap twists ffs

 

[adamkungl]

Example 2

Missandei isn't captured.
Missandei does her job and approaches KL as Dany's chief of whatever. Because it's a really stupid idea having Tyrion approach Cersei, and the suspension of disbelief required to accept that Cersei wouldn't kill him on the spot is ridiculous.
Scene carries on as before. Negotiations are not productive.
Missandei turns and is shot down by Euron for lolz. There is an obvious parallel to Joffrey beheading Ned in s1.
Dany is enraged.

Same scene, same emotional result, no stupid improbabilities. Tyrion is obviously written to approach because of the emotional dynamic between he and Cersei. But the audience is asked to swallow a big load of wtf to accept he walks away from this scenario unscathed.