In its later seasons, the show started relying on heavy-handed historical references to do the difficult work of character-building.
George R. R. Martin insists that the final entries in his fantasy series are still coming—even though HBO has finished telling his story first.
Game of Thrones, which always commented on the social effects of disability, ended by selling its final twist as inspirational.
Dany. Sansa. Bran. Why did the show that used to be so interested in emotion come, in the end, to mistrust it?
Three Atlantic writers discuss the HBO epic’s divisive series finale, which tries to break the wheel one last time.
Goodbye, dragon show.
A scholar of classical warfare sees real-world parallels to the Dragon Queen’s rain of fire in the penultimate episode of Game of Thrones.
How the show’s characterization of the Lannister lioness flattened into spiritless villainy
Three Atlantic staffers discuss “The Bells,” the bloody and fiery penultimate entry of the series.
The heroes on the show talk about saving common lives. The show itself has been cavalier with such lives.
Sorry, Dany: Jon Snow, it turns out, is just the kind of guy you’d want to have a beer—or at least a glass of Dornish wine—with.
Three Atlantic staffers discuss “The Last of the Starks,” which explored the fallout from last week’s epic battle and previewed a big showdown.
The show has always had a unique take on the supernatural, with the Red Woman as its unpredictable avatar.
The much-awaited, epic Battle of Winterfell aired, and three Atlantic staffers discuss what its dramatic conclusion might mean for the show’s last episodes.
The composer Ramin Djawadi approached the solemn tune from “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms” as Elton John would a set of lyrics.
The HBO series has served up plenty of meaningful love affairs over its run. But the show’s central couple hasn’t risen to the same standard.
Three Atlantic staffers discuss “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms,” the second episode of Season 8.
Once thought of as the cleverest man in Westeros, the Lannister carried a record of misjudgments and an air of malaise in the Season 8 premiere.
And in the process, he—and the show that has shaped him—reckons once again with the totalizing power of lies.
Three Atlantic staffers discuss “Winterfell,” the first episode of Season 8.