The Red Sowing

Remember how terrifying JAWS was without even seeing the monster much at all? This penultimate episode said "screw that method, we're showing the monsters in all their glory." And boy were the dragons epic. Bravo to the FX and sound design crew, this should win them the Emmy. The scene in the ale house, setting up Ulf as a potential dragon rider, was a bit cheesy, but otherwise the episode packed in a lot of tension and action. My only complaint is that they've kept Daemon in limbo for the entire season, almost as if they weren't sure what to do with him. The ending shot was pure chills.

My fear, as in most seasons of these epic tales, is that we've peaked at the penultimate episode and the finale will let us down a bit.

This is TV with Capital Letters. From start to finisth. The dragons steal the episode, the CGI is formidable and the worldbuilding is quite believable. I use to think the best episodes of GoT will be never comparable to any other tv series in days to come, but this show is making me wonder if that will remain true. Beside that, Emma D Arcy is just wonderful as Olivia Cooke is too. Even when action is absent in the screen, the shakesperean vibe of the dialogs conveys depth and fleshness of the characters. Keep watching this show, it deserves our best attention, the world of GoT is safe and sound by now, thanks MAX.

If you were on the fence about watching this show, I think this episode is worth each moment of buildup. While many have suggested this season is too slow, I have throughly enjoyed the thoughtful writing and in-depth character study season 2 has offered through 7 episodes. Ryan Condal has proven his love of the source material through incredibly thoughtful show running and overall attention to detail. At its best, Game of thrones at still had some rough moments and forced jokes. The humor from Hot D is consistently derived from unique or spectacular situations, and the way characters face them, rather than crude jokes. Glad to see HBO using my $$$ better than me.

After some completely forgettable episodes, reminiscent of the worst moments of GOT, we are relieved to watch a good episode.

I still consider the season weak, with a lot of delay and little evolution. However, we finally got a head start on the Daemon madness. We saw dragons being claimed. And small character expansions that will be important in the Dance of Dragons.

My only criticism of this episode is the need to show Alicent, which is completely irrelevant. And Daemon's visions, which no one can stand to watch anymore.

Finally, a solid episode, with a great soundtrack, insanely good CGI and finally a movement for this season. 9/10.

If you've been following GoT since 2011, you'll recognize the slow storytelling and progression of the story. I still don't understand the people who see a lot of filler episodes in Season 2 of HotD. Yes, it may be told slowly. But that's what the GoT universe has always been about. I have the feeling that the loud critics here only know Seasons 7-8 and S1 of HotD. Don't get me wrong: I also see a few weak points in this season. Nevertheless, HotD is still one of the best that the series world has to offer and I especially don't understand the people who constantly give it 0-4 stars. What do you expect??? A dragon fight every week? That gets boring quickly. You need the slow storytelling so that there can be special episodes like E4 or the last minutes of E7. I understood that a long time ago. But apparently there are enough people who don't understand that.