Justice has a price.
Game of Thrones is a 2011-2019 fantasy television series created by David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, produced by HBO Entertainment, Television 360, Grok! Television, Generator Television, Startling Television, and Bighead Littlehead, and distributed by HBO. The fifth season is loosely based off of George R.R. Martin's 2005 novel, A Feast for Crows and his 2011 novel, A Dance with Dragons, although elements of his 1999 novel, A Storm of Swords, are also incorporated. It stars Peter Dinklage and Kit Harington.
"For the Watch." - Alliser Thorne
Plot
After the death of Tywin Lannister, Jaime and Cersei's powerful hold on King's Landing begins to fade. At the Wall, Jon Snow becomes Lord Commander of the Night's Watch and joins forces with Stannis Baratheon to try and unite his brothers with the wildlings. And, in Meereen, Jorah Mormont seeks his way back to Daenerys as she struggles to maintain power over Slaver's Bay.
The Sweet
Game of Thrones is an interesting show, because a lot of people have varying perspectives on when exactly the show fell off the rails. The first four seasons are pretty universally beloved, but the fifth season is where things began to get divisive.
I have been in the movie-sphere really since middle school, so I remember experiencing the downfall of Game of Thrones despite having no clue what the show was about. So, when I heard that season five was where the writing began to dip in quality, I braced myself.
But I think this is another really solid season of Game of Thrones. I can definitely see some of the flaws, and I think this was the weakest season of the show up to this point (I have finished the show, so that is not my final opinion), but I still think it's good.
What makes season five really pop is the payoff. Game of Thrones has always been about building a story arc very methodically and very slowly so that the payoff feels even more powerful. Season five is a good example of that. The first seven episodes are relatively slow, but once you get into the final three episodes, man, does it kick ass.
I think this was really one of the strongest seasons for Daenerys and Jorah, actually. I've always loved Dany and Jorah as characters, but I thought that their actual storylines were overshadowed by the plot in Westeros because they felt like such a subplot. In this season, we finally see Daenerys have some true connection to the other main characters. Sure, Barristan joined forces with Dany in season three, but having Tyrion and Varys travel to find her is so much more impactful. I also thought Jorah's desperation to win Daenerys's trust back was an emotional core that the earlier parts of their plot line lacked. I just thought it was a really solid and overlooked aspect of this season.
I also think that this continues the peak of Jon's storyline. Jon Snow has become pretty much my favorite character in TV after watching this show, and I think that is mainly because of seasons 3-6. I always love an underdog story, and Jon is the underdog of Game of Thrones. In seasons three and four, we see him torn between his love for Ygritte and sympathy for the wildlings and his loyalty to his Night's Watch brothers. That continues here as he becomes Lord Commander and tries to unite the wildlings and the Night's Watch. I love it when he comes into his own and you see the Ned Stark-esc honorable leader that he is. And his death was a gut-punch. Obviously I knew he was coming back, but I was horrified when he was betrayed and murdered. It was a great way to end this season on a massive cliffhanger.
I also feel like season five is one of the best seasons production-wise. The environments that we visit and the battle sequences feel epic. I think Meereen is one of the coolest-looking places that we've been to as we see this Egyptian-feeling environment with beautiful scenery and architecture. The battle with the White Walkers in Hardhome is one of the standout sequences of the entire series because of how awesome it looks and how epic it feels. Although the storyline kind of sucks, the House of Black and White is a very cool location. So I just like a lot of the expansive and expensive production design we got here.
I also think that season five really does a good job of giving the spotlight to some of our characters who were less prominent in the earlier seasons. I will talk about Sansa and Ramsay a bit in the negative, but as characters, we see them both start to emerge. Sansa reunites with Theon and really starts to become a more sinister, cynical version of herself that I really like. Theon begins his redemption arc. Ramsay emerges as a pure, unrestrained psychopath that outdoes Joffrey in how horrifying he is. The High Sparrow as a power-seizing religious zealot who has this unbreakable kind demeanor is another really interesting addition. And Davos gets to take a little bit more of the spotlight here as well as Stannis's life begins to fall apart.
The Sour
I think there are two major problems with this season.
The first is that it is a bit too dark. Game of Thrones has always been a dark show. The Red Wedding and Ned's death and Oberyn's death and other moments have been gory, graphic moments that are heart-breaking and incredibly dark. Those might be tough to process, but they don't feel like they've crossed a line. This season feels like it crosses a line. Ramsay raping Sansa on their wedding night and forcing Theon to watch is crossing the line. I think Shireen's death is actually a really good sequence but even that feels like crossing the line. Even times they don't cross the line feel unflinching and brutal, which can be a bit too much. Having Jaime reunite with Myrcella and be happy for the first time seemingly ever only for Myrcella to be poisoned is just cruel. The Walk of Shame, for as great a sequence as it is, is horrifying. It's just a very dark, bleak season, and that can get to be too much at times.
I also think this season is a major transition from the previous seasons. The first four seasons are about the War of the Five Kings. Then Renly gets killed. Then Robb gets killed. Then Joffrey gets killed. And then Tywin gets killed (I know he's not one of the five kings but he's a major player in that). It feels like we are moving out of the war and into something else, and this season struggles with what to do next. There is no clear main plot. The King's Landing storyline feels like it takes a seat on the bench. Daenerys has never really been the main plot. The best argument you could make is the Wall or the Winterfell plot, but neither of those feel like a true main plot in the way that King's Landing has felt the past few seasons. So it struggles to have a clear identity, and you can feel that in the way it plays out.
I also feel like this season definitely has some of the most boring moments of the show thus far. I love Arya. She is one of my favorite characters. And, in the second season, I loved Jaqen. But the House of Black and White plot is so boring. It's basically just Arya sweeping the floor for an entire season. I also like the High Sparrow, but I think the whole religious zealot plot isn't that interesting as a whole. Also, like...the Sand Snakes? I feel like I don't even need to dive into why they are bad characters. They are just so ridiculous and their dialogue is just horrible. There are just a lot of moments where this season drags, and, in comparison to the other four seasons, that feels somewhat disappointing.
Finally, this season starts to have a problem that becomes a much bigger problem in the final two seasons of Game of Thrones; random things coming out of nowhere illogically. Throughout the first four seasons, Game of Thrones built out almost every aspect of its world with respect and care and detail. That starts to dwindle a bit in season five. The Sons of the Harpy are the biggest example I have in this season. They are just unexplained and come out of nowhere despite Dany having been in Meereen for a season already. They say the Slave Masters are behind them, but we don't really know who the Slave Masters are. It's just a strange plot line and is serves as an early red flag for the final two seasons of the show.
Final Thoughts and Score
I went into season five with cautious expectations. Season four was obviously great, but I had heard mixed things...and I was pleasantly surprised. This is another solid season of Game of Thrones.
I am going Savory here. Age range is 17+.
SWEET N' SOUR SCALE
Sweet (Great) Savory (Good) Sour (Bad) Moldy (Terrible)
"Game of Thrones"
Fun Factor: 8.5/10
Acting: 9.5/10
Story: 8/10 Characters: 9/10
Quality: 8.5/10
Created by David Benioff and D.B. Weiss
Rated TV-MA for strong bloody violence, language, explicit sexual content, frightening themes and images, thematic elements
Premiered on April 12, 2015
Episode runtime: 60 minutes
Peter Dinklage as Tyrion Lannister Kit Harington as Jon Snow
Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as Jaime Lannister
Emilia Clarke as Daenerys Targaryen
Lena Headey as Cersei Lannister
Sophie Turner as Sansa Stark
Maisie Williams as Arya Stark
Aidan Gillen as Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish
Natalie Dormer as Margaery Tyrell
Stephen Dillane as Stannis Baratheon
Liam Cunningham as Davos Seaworth
Carice van Houten as Melisandre
John Bradley as Samwell Tarly
Kristofer Hivju as Tormund Giantsbane
Hannah Murray as Gilly
Conleth Hill as Varys
Iain Glen as Jorah Mormont
Gwendoline Christie as Brienne of Tarth
Michiel Huisman as Daario Naharis
Nathalie Emmanuel as Missandei
Dean-Charles Chapman as Tommen Baratheon
Indira Varma as Ellaria Sand
Jerome Flynn as Bronn
Tom Wlaschiha as Jaqen H'ghar
Alfie Allen as Theon Greyjoy
Michael McElhatton as Roose Bolton
Iwan Rheon as Ramsay Bolton
Peter Vaughan as Maester Aemon Targaryen
Owen Teale as Alliser Thorne
Brenock O'Connor as Olly
Ciarán Hinds as Mance Rayder
Anton Lesser as Qyburn
Julian Glover as Grand Maester Pycelle
Finn Jones as Loras Tyrell
Diana Rigg as Olenna Tyrell
Eugene Simon as Lancel Lannister
Ian Beattie as Meryn Trant
Jonathan Pryce as The High Sparrow
Tara Fitzgerald as Selyse Florent
Kerry Ingram as Shireen Baratheon
Charlotte Hope as Myranda
Lino Facioli as Robin Arryn
Daniel Portman as Podrick Payne
Ian McElhinney as Barristan Selmy
Jacob Anderson as Grey Worm
Joel Fry as Hizdahr zo Loraq
Nell Tiger Free as Myrcella Baratheon
Alexander Siddig as Doran Martell
Toby Sebastian as Trystane Martell
Keisha Castle-Hughes as Obara Sand
Rosabell Laurenti Sellers as Tyene Sand
Jessica Henwick as Nymeria Sand
Richard Brake as The Night King
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