Dragonstone

Season 7, episode 1. The Hound and Beric Dondarrion are aligned - both wonder why they are still alive, Beric talks Hound into looking into the fire to see what he can see. Cersei is trying to find allies - Jaime is there to help her. Arya pays a visit to all the Freys to remind them "The North Remembers". Daenerys, Tyrion and their fleet arrive in Westeros. Sam and Gilly are adapting to their new life in Oldtown - Sam discovers a Stannis must have been correct. The Night King is making his way south.

9/10

This episode largely serves to remind viewers where each of the protagonists are and where they hope to go. In the opening scene we see that Arya's revenge against the Freys didn't end with the killing of Walder. Meanwhile her brother Brandon reaches The Wall, warning of the approaching threat while their siblings Jon and Sansa disagree on how to proceed after the defeat on Ramsey Bolton and his forces. Back in King's Landing Cersei, now the Queen, is seeking new allies for the coming fight against Daenerys's forces as well as against the Armies of the North and the Sand Sisters to the south. Elsewhere Sam is trying to find a source of dragon glass and Daenerys finally returns to Westeros.

I really enjoyed this episode; it started well with Arya making it abundantly clear that she has lots of people to kill. It then proceeds to remind us what other characters are up to while setting things up for future episodes. The tension between Sansa and Jon hints at possible problems to come and the meeting between Cersei and Euron Greyjoy suggests the possibility of an interesting alliance. Apart from the opening scene there is little in the way of violence; even that involved poison rather than action; that didn't bother me though as the more talky elements served to remind me of the various characters after some time away from the series. I know some people weren't keen with having singer Ed Sheeran appear as a Lannister soldier but it didn't bother me; if I hadn't heard about his appearance before watching I doubt I'd have thought anything of it. As expected the cast are all on fine form and the effects are impressive. Overall a long season opener that immediately brought me back into the story after a gap of almost two years.

Game of Thrones is finally on its seventh season now. And we finally have the endgame in sight for the story. This episode does admittedly fall short of the previous two OUTSTANDING episodes from season six, but we still want to see where Daenerys, Tyrion, Jon Snow and The Hound end up by the time the story is all wrapped-up come season eight.

This was a good episode to start on, but I'm mighty curious to see where this will all go to. Will Tyrion survive? Will Daenerys actually take back her long-lost home of Kings Landing? And will The Hound confront his brother The Mountain? I hope the latter happens; that will be a fight to remember.

Anyway, Game of Thrones is still on the air and still leaving an impact on us.

The premiere of Season 7 of "Game of Thrones" was damned good … enough for me to give it a 9 out of 10. (You know you're enjoying a TV show when you are riveted to the screen.)

The dialogue and character development for this show is always first-rate, and the acting often is. Last night was no exception — the exchange between Littlefinger (Aidan Gillen) and Sansa Stark (Sophie Turner), for example, was priceless.

The glimpse of The Night King's wight army, however brief, should please any horror fan. I watch a lot of horror movies, and I'm a tough fan to please. Yet I am still surprised at how this fantasy show continues to succeed in scaring me. It's impressive. If the leaked script for Season 7 is accurate, then the bad guys in the final episode ought to be damned frightening.

I will reiterate a very minor longstanding quibble that I have had with "Game of Thrones" as someone who has not read the books. This story seems to attach tremendous dramatic emphasis to the movement and arrival of groups of people. I do understand the need for this, and its appeal — the logistics are part of George R.R. Martin's world- building, and they bring detail and a sense of realism. There are times, however, when I feel like Daenerys' defining character trait is that she … goes places. (Look! Now her army is here!)

I won't say much more for fear of spoilers — this is a show where even mentioning a character's name can suggest a chapter in his or her character arc. (I will say that I loved the opening segment, even if I was understandably puzzled at first.)

This is great TV.

HBO continues to be the home of fantasy and action combined with thought- provoking drama. GoT Season 7 premieres with all the depth of Season 6's finale. Without spoiling the fun, "Dragonstone" doesn't just pick up where "Winds of Winter" left off, it amps up the intensity and brings a promise of another great season of GoT.

Most of our favorites get plenty of airtime, difficult considering the breadth of the series. As befitting a season premiere, we're given some surprising twists, reintroduced to some we've missed, and left ready for the next episode. In between, time flies... although the dragons wait a bit before appearing. But when they do appear, the title becomes both appropriate and poignant. The lack of deep dialogue provides a perfect background for the setting.

Couple of tips - wait for that snack, make sure you watch from the start (before the credits) until the end. Pay attention to small talk and detail, and remember that we're off the books now... for the most part, DB and DW have the reins with GRRM providing oversight!

Waiting for "Stormborn"...