TV Review: Game of Thrones Season 8 Episode 5 “The Bells”

<SPOILER WARNING>  Fair warning, if you have not watched Game of Thrones at all or have not watched through Game of Thrones Season 8 Episode 5.  There may be spoilers contained in this review.  Please go back and watch GoT before reading this if you don’t want to have anything spoiled <SPOILER WARNING>

So lets get this out of the way right up front; in what I think has been a disappointing season of Game of Thrones, I believe that this episode has been the most successful.  That does not mean that I believe in the direction that the show-runners have chosen to take the show and it certainly does not mean that the show was flawless.   That said, I want to examine this episode through three lenses; a writing lens, a fan lens and finally a directorial lens.  Why?  Put succinctly, it’s because this season has not yet had an episode that delivered on all three of those aspects.  While this episode came closest, it still has problems.

Let’s tackle the “easiest” lens first, the fan lens.   Game of Thrones has grown exponentially in popularity as its run has marched inexorably forward.  For the first four seasons of the show it was easy to mollify unhappy fans of the show with the moniker that the shows were “following the books”.  For every instance of rape, murder, abuse or just heinous immorality one could look back at the books and quiet complaints by pointing to the source material.  In point of fact, there were more complaints from those who wanted the series to be MORE like the books than the opposite point of view.  However, since the paths of the show and the books have diverged the demands put on the writers, as it concerns people’s favorite characters, has increased tenfold.  Suddenly, those writers were faced with a dilemma wherein fan expectations and the popularity of certain characters were crucial in keeping fan interest and, in my opinion, they have driven certain plot points.

In a prior episode of this season, Bronn treks to The North to give a lecture to Tyrion and Jaime on their duty towards him while delivering an explicit warning if they fail to keep their various promises.  In a curtailed season of six episodes the writers wasted approximately 10 valuable minutes on this character and, for the life of me, the only explanation I have for it is that he is popular and thus they wanted him to make an appearance.

On the other hand, fans of all stripes have been rooting for the infamous “Clegane Bowl” for years and the writers paid the fans off this episode with a final battle between the two brothers.  “Clegane Bowl” was set against an epic backdrop and what it lacked in “out and out” action, was made up for by drama and irony as the The Hound realized the futility of his position.  His bitter laughter was a spit in the face at the horrors that life laid before him, those horrors personified in the figure of his undying brother.  You could hear him say “fuck it” in his mind as he tackled Gregor and tumbled into hell with the person he hated most in the world.

I’m going to save the most controversial, and probably most debated lens for last.  So let’s tackle directing.  All in all, I would say this season has been largely successful in the directing department.  There have been technical problems, most notably the dark nature of Episode 3.  But, by and large the directors have been on point and have gotten good performances out of their actors.  This episode was no exception.  Putting aside the actual material for a moment, the cinematic work and the framing of dialogue in this episode was fantastic.  Two moments, both involving Jaime Lannister, take center stage in this regard.

The first of these moments is the meeting between Jaime and Tyrion.  Hearkening back to moments in previous seasons, the softly lit encounter between the two brothers was somber in it’s tone and the finality of this last meeting between the two was evident.  The actors, who have regularly been fantastic together on screen, delivered a touching final reunion.  The heartfelt love that Tyrion has for his older brother is evident and in character for a character who has been devoted to his brother from Episode 1 of the series.  For all of Jaime’s flaws, Tyrion has always looked to Jaime as his savior, his brother, and the man he would like to be.  Tyrion is a man who feels he has run his course and so, in freeing Jaime, he hopes he has provided his brother with some chance for happiness in a world he sees spinning into madness.  In a bitter twist of ironic justice, that chance for happiness will be snatched away from Jaime.

The second of these moments is the meeting between Jaime and Cersei.  For most of the episode, and indeed this season, Cersei has worn a sneer of indifference.  Looking out upon a world that fears and loathes her, Cersei has retreated into herself and armored her self with the arrogant Machiavellian sneer so often exhibited by her father.  (Go look at the pictures, it is striking)  When Jaime finds her in the crumbling Red Keep she is standing on her map of Westeros.  The map cracks and the building is falling down around her.  Her world is literally falling apart.  In this moment of ultimate tragedy she see what has always been most important to her, Jaime and the family she had with him.  Their relationship, while distasteful, is genuine.  In that poignant moment the determined Jaime has found his sister/love and Cersei realizes what the height of her ambition and Jaime’s foolishness has cost them.

So all of that brings us to writing.  In private I’ve been quite critical of the writers for several seasons and I’ve remained so this season.  I haven’t agreed with their decisions in many cases and in some instances I think their writing has been downright lazy.  However, this is not my story.  For better or for worse this story belongs to Dan and Dave and all we can ask from writers is that they remain true to their vision and have consistency in their writing.  That said, this episode, once again, has moments of incredibly inconsistent writing, plot holes and wasted opportunities.  It also has some moments that reach for greatness but fall short.  I intend to tackle one moment of each instance.

First the bad, The Golden Company.  Alright, I understand the concept of plot devices and, given what has occurred in previous seasons of Game of Thrones, Cersei needed an army to fight on her side when her foes inexorably marched on King’s Landing.  I want to preface these next statements with this proviso, there is one more episode left for the writers to potentially tie up some of these threads.  With that out of the way, The Golden Company are supposed to be this legendary mercenary group from Essos made possible with the money of the Iron Bank of Bravos.  The Iron Bank has been the spectre lurking in the background for the entire series.  However, like the other spectre, The White Walkers, it appears that the Iron Bank will be given short shrift and instead will disappear into obscurity as they wail over their lost money.  Since the first season of Game of Thrones, The Iron Bank has been the institution with which you do not fuck and they have made investments in both Stannis Baratheon and Cersei Lannister hoping to secure a stable Westeros.  Thus enters The Golden Company, the baddest asses this side of the Dothraki.  The availability of this mercenary company was provided by The Iron Bank with the intention of having Cersei win the war.  All of this should have led to an epic battle, pitting two elite forces against each other.  Instead, Daenerys wipes out not only The Golden Company but the Iron Fleet with hardly a thought.  The same scorpions that shot one of her dragons out of the sky the previous episode couldn’t come close to hitting her and, indeed, she destroyed what appeared to be over a hundred of these weapons of war with nary a scratch.  The Golden Company?  They were decimated by a blast of dragon fire and then ran, cut down in their cowardice.  The entire battle for King’s Landing lasted seven minutes.  You read that right, time it for yourself.  If this was the writers intention why bring them in in the first place?  It seems that they aren’t going to do anything else with the Iron Bank and surely a peasant army or a motley group of troops from various minor houses could have served just as much.  Why waste the screen time and money on something so obviously wasted?

On the flip side is Dany‘s “Mad Queen” turn.  I will say this now, I was not a fan of this back when the seeds were being planted way back in season 4.  Her crusade to free the slaves of Slavers Bay, although noble, laid bare Dany‘s fatal flaw or flaws as it were.

First, Dany truly believes she is destined to be a force for good in the world, a “cause du destin” to borrow the phrase.  While her goals are laudable, history is replete with bloody tyrants who feel justified in their actions because they are serving a greater good or higher purpose.  The more committed the figure the more atrocious the actions.  While I’m not comparing Daenerys Targaryen to these figures directly; historical figures like Pol Pot, Stalin, Hitler, Mao and Torquemada do share this personality trait.

Second, is her unshakable belief that she is entitled to The Iron Throne.  Ironically, she shares this flaw with her brother Viserys.  This sense of entitlement poisons her heart little by little.  Every time any person or event threatens this pillar of her personality she is forced to recast that event or person in a negative light.  Anything or anyone that is an obstacle in retaking the throne is a threat to be eliminated.  A lot of people who are fond of Dany have refused to see this side of her but it has been there for quite some time.  Dany professes that she wants to liberate the people of Westeros but, if she was being honest with herself, this concern is secondary to what she really wants; to procure her birth right.  That is why she is so threatened by Jon’s lineage.  She feels she deserves the Iron Throne.  The revelation that she has a nephew, a nephew that has a better claim to the throne than she does (in line of succession this has nothing to do with patriarchy) reveals her nature.  This is evidenced in her reaction in the Crypts of Winterfell.  While I believe that Dany loves Jon, I also believe that her last effort to rekindle their relationship in this episode was an attempt to control Jon and thus secure the throne.  When this fails, Daenerys has no qualms in going a different direction to secure power as she states calmly, “Let it be fear then.”

All of this brings us to that climatic moment wherein Dany completes her fall and decides to torch King’s Landing.  This scene, acted superbly by Emilia Clarke, sums up seasons of writing for Daenerys and, in my opinion, is some of the best writing done this season.  As the bells ring out and the people clamor for mercy Dany is offered a choice.  She can choose mercy, temperance and restraint as she seeks to become the Queen of the Seven Kingdoms, or she can choose fear.  As evidenced above she has already stated which path she prefers, she chooses fear.  The inner conflict on her face is the last vestige of Dany‘s humanity and sanity melting away.  Like all tyrants she has moments in her mind which she feels will justify any action and so she steels herself for the coming slaughter by revisiting each of these moments in her head.  You can see the rage building in her with each moment she recounts.  With her cup running over with hate she spurs Drogon from his perch and the rest, as they say, is history.  This was, indeed, fine writing.  It is not the direction I would have taken but, as I stated previously, I’m not the one writing the show.

So where does that leave us if you’ve managed to read this rather long review.  I have to say this episode is a mixed bag but the best of the season by far.  I’ll break down my score below but overall I would give this episode a 3.5 of 5 stars.

Writing – 2.5 of 5 Stars
Cinematography -  4 of 5 Stars
Directing – 3.5 of 5 Stars
Acting 4 of 5 Stars