Game Of Thrones Season 8 Premiere: 8 Ups And 3 Downs From 'Winterfell'

1. Some Season 7 Issues Linger

That Theon/Yara sequence is indicative of a larger problem with the Season 8 premiere, which is that some of the broader problems with Season 7 do still linger. Namely, that the showrunners seem in such a hurry, and aren't taking their time with some of these moments that they once would've done.

Theon/Yara stands out, but even in scenes that do still work - Jon riding a dragon, the parentage reveal - and ones that don't as much (such as Cersei sleeping with Euron), it all feels like it's happening just a bit too quickly. It's true there are other matters to contend with, because it's the army of the dead that's so important right now, and there are only six episodes left. It remains to be seen whether having just six episodes will work or not, but what should help, and isn't the case here, is the length of them.

Episodes 3-6 will all be roughly 80 minutes, whereas this is just 54 minutes long, which is standard length for a Game of Thrones episode. You could argue they might use that time more wisely - the dragon riding sequence does go on, but then it should be allowed to because there should be enough time. In an already truncated season, and with so many BIG things to pack in here, it definitely could and should have been allowed to breathe a little more.