8 Things Game Of Thrones Season 8 Actually Did Well
1. Episode 2
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, the second episode of Season 8, ranks among the best episodes in all of Game of Thrones. The episode follows the army of the living, preparing for the battle against the dead. It's fifty glorious minutes of characters we've known and loved for years accepting their fates.
The episode has incredible moments throughout, such as Tormund's hilarious story about how he got the name "Giantsbane," Sam giving Jorah his family's ancestral sword and redeeming him in the eyes of his father, Arya losing her virginity to Gendry, Theon finally returning to Sansa's side, and, of course, Jamie knighting Brienne. Each moment feels well earned, paying off seasons' worth of character development far more satisfyingly than the finale.
The episode also built up the threat of the White Walkers. The characters believe they will fall to the army of the dead, and spending an entire episode focusing on that belief made the enemy feel even scarier. The week in between A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms and The Long Night felt like hell for Game of Thrones fans, as they worried which of their favourite characters were about to die.
Despite the plot twists, intrigue, and battles, Game of Thrones' true strength was its cast. A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms acts as a love letter to those characters, who, even if they survive, have no more than five remaining appearances.
Plus, who among us didn't love Podrick's song, both the original and the Florence and the Machine cover that graced the ending credits?