Game Of Thrones Season 8: 7 Ups And 3 Downs From 'The Bells'

3. Daenerys' Turn

Oh boy. Of all the many talking points coming out of this week's episode, this is definitely going to be not just the biggest, but the most divisive. Even just a cursory glance at social media will show you ample angry or unhappy viewers with what's happened to Daenerys Targaryen, who, as teased last week, breaks bad here.

Yes, there shift isn't PERFECTLY done. In an ideal world - one where, say, Seasons 7 and 8 span 20 episodes rather than 13 - there'd be much more room to give this development breathing space. It also would've been nice to have just another shot or two of Daenerys atop Drogon as she went blazing a trail of destruction.

At the same time, though, this is an exciting development, and one rooted in Daenerys' character. Dany has always struggled with her father's legacy, and rallied against the idea that she won't become him, and yet here we are, seeing her as the supposed Mad Queen. But there's a big difference between Aerys II and Daenerys. The Mad King was, well, just mad. Dany is not. She's someone who has spent her entire life longing for home, only to arrive and find she doesn't belong. Someone who has had very few people close to her - hence even defending her awful brother - and has now seen her best friends and children taken away. Someone who has believed in her destiny to rule, only to discover there is another - the man she loves, no less - with a better claim. Someone whose violent tendencies and predilections for burning have shown up on quite a few occasions across the series.

It might feel like it's happened out of nowhere, but the groundwork has been laid, and Emilia Clarke acts the hell out of it here. The idea of Dany as a figure of tragedy, consumed by loss, betrayal, and isolation, corrupted by power and destiny, is a powerful one, and it's what Thrones is seemingly (hopefully?) doing here.