Critics have mixed feelings about how ‘Game of Thrones’ ended

Game of Thrones has ended and the reviews have been pouring in about how the biggest series on television wrapped things up.

While many agree that most of the final season was a rocky, unpleasant road to go down, reactions to the series finale have been mixed. Some critics walked away unsatisfied, others had a handful of emotions, and a few felt content with how things wrapped up given the lead up to the end.

With almost nine years of build-up and a tremendous amount of anticipation, it’s obviously hard not to have a strong reaction to something like this. And boy are some of these reactions…strong.

Here’s what critics thought of the Game of Thrones finale.

Disappointingly dry

Laura Prudom, IGN:

“For the most part, the finale felt oddly flat. For a show I’ve invested countless hours in, both professionally and as a fan of Martin’s books, I figured I’d at least tear up about the prospect of saying goodbye to these characters. But as I discussed in last week’s review, that’s the problem with expectation versus reality, and since Game of Thrones is potentially the last true ‘watercooler’ show that will succeed in gathering such a vocal weekly global audience all discussing and analyzing and obsessing about it in real-time, it was inevitable it could never completely satisfy those of us who have been madly theorizing about it for years.”

“The finale felt oddly flat”

“And while the episode was beautifully directed and shot by Benioff and Weiss (the visual of Daenerys with Drogon’s wings outstretched behind her may be the most indelible image in the show’s history, while the moment when Drogon melted the Iron Throne was the only scene in the episode to truly give me chills) it felt like too many other episodes have this season, like boxes were being checked off, rather than allowing moments and character choices to develop organically.”

Just plain bad

Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic:

“The penultimate episode of Game of Thrones gave us one of the most dramatic reversals in TV history, with the once-good queen going genocidal. The finale gave us yet another historic reversal, in that this drama turned into a sitcom. Not a slick HBO sitcom either, but a cheapo network affair, or maybe even a webisode of outtakes from one. Tonally odd, logically strained, and emotionally thin, “The Iron Throne” felt like the first draft of a finale. …”

“Thrones has been shaky quality-wise for some time now, but surely the show would be competent enough to hinge the finale around the mystery of Dany’s decision.”

“Nope.”

Lenika Cruz, The Atlantic:

“Before I get into this episode, I need to acknowledge how unfortunate it is that Tyrion decided to give the new ruler of the Six Kingdoms a name as horrifyingly ableist as Bran the Broken. You could, of course, argue that the moniker was intended as a reclamation of a slur or as a poignant callback to Season 1’s ‘Cripples, Bastards, and Broken Things,’ when Tyrion and Bran first bonded. But given the ‘parade of oofs’ this finale provided—including the troubling optics of Dany’s big speech—it’s hard to make excuses for the show. …”

“It’s hard to make excuses for the show”

“I can’t be the only one who was let down, and at a loss for a larger takeaway, after seeing a high-stakes contest between two ambitious female rulers devolve after both became unhinged and got themselves killed. After all the intense discussion about gender politics that Thrones has spurred and after seeing characters like Sansa, Brienne, Cersei, Daenerys, and Yara reshape the patriarchal structures of Westeros, we’ve ended up with a male ruler (who once said ‘I will never be lord of anything’) installed on the charismatic recommendation of another man and served by a small council composed almost entirely of … men.”

Iffy ending

Zoe Delahunty-Light, Gamesradar+:

The Game of Thrones ending did as much as it could to tie up one of the biggest pop culture phenomena of the 21st century, but with so little time to do so, it was always going to feel slightly… meh. Almost all the decisions make sense (Bran being king could have done with a bit more explaining, especially considering Sansa’s suitability to rule) and having some characters come full circle feels right, but it did come across as rushed. And a little too happy, to be perfectly honest. 

Brian Lowry, CNN:

“The selection of Bran (Isaac Hempstead Wright) to lead the kingdom seemed appropriate, with Tyrion citing his inability to father heirs as an advantage, noting — as the show has amply demonstrated — that ‘the sons of kings can be cruel and stupid.’ That’s as close to a meritocracy as Westeros will ever get.”

“Similarly, the producers offered hopeful endings for the other Starks, with Sansa (Sophie Turner) maintaining her region’s independence, and Arya (Maisie Williams) and Jon both riding into futures that at least carried possibilities.”

“Anything much more definitive than that probably would have felt forced, although this wasn’t the sort of closure that provided a genuine sense the story’s over. …”

“It’s too bad that the show couldn’t completely stick the landing. But when you fly that high, a few wobbles are perhaps inevitable.”

A satisfying conclusion

Lucy Mangan, The Guardian:

“There’s no doubt this season has been a rushed business. It has wasted opportunities, squandered goodwill and failed to do justice to its characters or its actors. But the finale just about delivered. It was true to the series’ overall subject – war, and the pity of war – and, after doing a lot of wrong to several protagonists last week, did right by those left standing. Whether the million signatories to the petition to remake the entire final season, or the majority of the estimated 45 million around the world due to watch the last episode, will agree – who knows. When you play the Game of Thrones, you win or you die. Overall, I think, it won.”