Game of Thrones "Winterfell" Review

After a year and a half of waiting since we last saw the Night King using the recently resurrected Viserion to blast the Wall into pieces, it was going to be impossible for the Season 8 premiere to live up to such a long wait, especially with all the hype surrounding this shortened final season. Despite that, while “Winterfell” doesn’t come out of the gate roaring, the episode offers enough great character moments, reunions and important developments to rise above the usual slow Game of Thrones opening.

For a series so defined by its sprawling, expansive narrative, nothing says more about the current state of the series than the current scope of the episode (perfectly captured in the newly updated opening credits), which happens almost entirely around Winterfell and Kings Landing. The series has contracted its story into something a little more cohesive, while still featuring enough characters within places to not feel like it’s gotten too small. While the Kings Landing side adds important elements like the introduction of Harry Strickland and the Golden Company (as well as swiftly closing the chapter on the needless side quest that was Theon saving his sister Yarah, which amounted to literally nothing), the real meat of the story lies in Winterfell.

This being the final season, of course it would be smart to expect callbacks to the beginning of the series, and we got that with so many parallels drawn between the arrival of Daenerys Targaryen to Winterfell to Robert Baratheon’s arrival back in the series premiere “Winter is Coming”. From music cues to the way it was shot, the parallels were anything but subtle. It was also a good way to bring pretty much every important character under the same roof, which allows for great reunions that have been longtime coming (Jon’s reunion with Bran and Arya were heartwarming moments).

However, bringing everything together is showing some cracks around the edges. With the endgame clearly being set up about this being a final battle with the Night King and his Army, there is a nagging sense that any conflict occurring at Winterfell other than the reveal of Jon Snow as Aegon Targaryen (which was a great scene courtesy of one of the better reunions of this episode between Jon and Sam), may feel a tad manufactured considering the bigger picture. While there is some legitimate concerns about the North having to bend the knee to a Targaryen when memories of the Mad King are still vivid, Jon Snow has always proven that he has nothing but the best intentions to protect not just the North but the entire realm. This just feels like a bit of a slight retread of some of the Northern conflicts from Seasons 6 and 7, which seem slightly unnecessary with bigger fish to fry.

With that said, the episode offered a couple of resounding moments, like Jon Snow learning to fly with Rhaegal in one of the more impressive effects sequence in the series, which adds salt to the wound to how the Aegon Targaryen reveal is just going to ruin this (seemingly blissful) romance. The reunions beside the Stark siblings offered plenty of great character moments, like when Samwell Tarly learned of his father and brother’s demise when he met Daenerys and the chilling final scene as Jaime Lannister faced Bran Stark (bringing things full circle with the season premiere and the big event that set so many things in motion). Brief as it was, the sequence with the dead Ned Umber stabbed in the wall with the severed arms was a chilling reminder of what awaits us in just a few episodes, once the Night King has arrived to Winterfell (which should be happening in the third episode).

Overall, there is a lot to like about the season premiere of Game of Thrones Season 8, even if it only mildly rises above the season premiere pack. Season premieres have rarely been the stand out moments from the series, so in that sense it still is business as usual. With that said, considering the long wait and the shortened season ahead, there's a nagging sense more could have happened with so little time left. But what’s there at least teases some real good stuff for what is to come in the final five weeks.

 

80%

★★★★

4/5 

Great

TV Scoring rubric:

★ : 1 point  ☆ : 0.5 points

★★★★★: Essential. Excellent episodes. Close to flawless. Transcends any minor flaws it may have. 

   ★★★★: Great/Highly recommended. Great episodes. Some flaws worth mentioning, but nothing to worry about.

      ★★★: Okay/Recommended. Good episodes. Contains things worth watching & experiencing, but flaws can hinder the experience.

         ★★: Caution/Questionable. Mediocre episodes. The flaws start to significantly hinder anything good the episode has.

             ★: Avoid. Bad episodes with nothing redeemable about them (some enjoyment as "so bad its good). Preferably don't waste your time.