The episode, all others, contain both good and bad elements. So I will start with the good.
The series have been brilliant when it comes to the cinematography, and this episode is no exception. Visually, the episode is stunning, and there can be no complaints about the acting either. However, as usual, D. Weiss and D. Benioff will do something, stupid, unrealistic, simply to try to add shock value. It's overused, and it's getting pretty dumb.
Let's start with something very basic. The war council. While there's nothing wrong with the scene, in fact the concept of having a war council is great, the fact that Davos knows how Stannis was, and is able to give Jon a good strategic advise on something Stannis didn't do, even though he supposedly was one, if not the, greatest battle commanders in Westeros, is just stupid. (Terribly sorry for that overly long sentence)
In great soap-series fashion, Rickon avoids (or Ramsey purposely misses) every arrow, until he's just an arms length away from Jon. Very cheesy, but OK. The entirety of the Bolton hosts archers then start firing volleys at a Jon, now charging towards the Bolton army, yet for all their arrows they somehow only manage to kill his horse. OK, fine, I'll let that one slide as well. Now however, the Bolton cavalry will charge at Jon, only for him to be saved by his own cavalry just in time! Ugh. Jon somehow survives in the middle of two cavalry hosts, at the same time as the Bolton archers slaughters both hosts.
Let's skip ahead. Jon's army is now trapped between a wall of dead bodies and the Bolton army. What? It seems as Benioff and Weiss tried to replicate that famous wall scene from 300, and it is just plain bad. It gets even worse when The Vale comes to the rescue, and Benioff and Weiss have once again tried to replicate a famous movie scene, in Lord of the rings this time. The Bolton army is just plowed down by heavy cavalry, that doesn't seem to lose pace even though they just literally run down enemy soldiers, which are all pikemen, just to make it worse.
Skip ahead some more, Snow and his remaining force, apparently not a single Knight of the Vale decided to help, storm the gates of Winterfell, and rush in with bows and arrows? Not only that, but they somehow defeat the already stationary archers inside the castle??? Now it's of course time for the epic showdown between the bastards. In which Ramsey tries to shoot Jon with several arrows, although it's quite clear for him that Jon defends against the arrows with his shield....
Otherwise, great episode, would still rate it an 8.
The series have been brilliant when it comes to the cinematography, and this episode is no exception. Visually, the episode is stunning, and there can be no complaints about the acting either. However, as usual, D. Weiss and D. Benioff will do something, stupid, unrealistic, simply to try to add shock value. It's overused, and it's getting pretty dumb.
Let's start with something very basic. The war council. While there's nothing wrong with the scene, in fact the concept of having a war council is great, the fact that Davos knows how Stannis was, and is able to give Jon a good strategic advise on something Stannis didn't do, even though he supposedly was one, if not the, greatest battle commanders in Westeros, is just stupid. (Terribly sorry for that overly long sentence)
In great soap-series fashion, Rickon avoids (or Ramsey purposely misses) every arrow, until he's just an arms length away from Jon. Very cheesy, but OK. The entirety of the Bolton hosts archers then start firing volleys at a Jon, now charging towards the Bolton army, yet for all their arrows they somehow only manage to kill his horse. OK, fine, I'll let that one slide as well. Now however, the Bolton cavalry will charge at Jon, only for him to be saved by his own cavalry just in time! Ugh. Jon somehow survives in the middle of two cavalry hosts, at the same time as the Bolton archers slaughters both hosts.
Let's skip ahead. Jon's army is now trapped between a wall of dead bodies and the Bolton army. What? It seems as Benioff and Weiss tried to replicate that famous wall scene from 300, and it is just plain bad. It gets even worse when The Vale comes to the rescue, and Benioff and Weiss have once again tried to replicate a famous movie scene, in Lord of the rings this time. The Bolton army is just plowed down by heavy cavalry, that doesn't seem to lose pace even though they just literally run down enemy soldiers, which are all pikemen, just to make it worse.
Skip ahead some more, Snow and his remaining force, apparently not a single Knight of the Vale decided to help, storm the gates of Winterfell, and rush in with bows and arrows? Not only that, but they somehow defeat the already stationary archers inside the castle??? Now it's of course time for the epic showdown between the bastards. In which Ramsey tries to shoot Jon with several arrows, although it's quite clear for him that Jon defends against the arrows with his shield....
Otherwise, great episode, would still rate it an 8.