Yes she was devastated and shocked. That doesn't really equate to "fucking hates"
She hates it.Yes she was devastated and shocked. That doesn't really equate to "fucking hates"
Yes she was devastated and shocked. That doesn't really equate to "fucking hates"
What makes it seem like his "family is held hostage" exactly? I don't think he talks about Game of Thrones any differently than he talks about My Dinner With Herve in the same interview. Except of course he is avoiding giving any out spoilers, hence zipping up the mouth emote. Was he dishonest about his compliments about Liz Himelstein too? Though it's also a HBO produced film, so maybe he really fucking hates Elizabeth Himelstein and thinks her contributions were worthless, but just can't say it because they got his family."Best season ever!"
If you can't read between the lines in that interview or the one where Dinklage is praising D&D as writers while looking like his family are being held hostage off- camera I don't know what to tell you.
When the actor got the scripts for season 8, he didn't jump to the end to see if he survives like he usually does. "This is the first time ever that I didn't skip to the end," Dinklage told EW. "Why? I was probably terrified. We all feel we're the leads of our own show. As the seasons have gone on, we've all thought how it's going to end. Who's going to be alive? If you die, how do you die? Ten years we've been doing this and it can drive you mad, because [showrunners David Benioff and Dan Weiss] don't tell us and sometimes they change their mind."
Continued Dinklage: "I had all these ideas in my head and a version of one of them is how it ends up [for Tyrion]. David and Dan have a brilliant version of what I had. If I use any adjectives it will give it away. But I love how it ended up. And how it ends up for everybody. They had a beautiful gentle touch with some and a hard touch with others."
He then added, a bit forebodingly: "We're so used to the standard formula of bad guys dying and good guys living…What David and Dan have done with all this is beautiful, painful, and lovely. It takes the show somewhere that's dangerous and contemporary with what's going on in the world."
I mean they always described the ending as bittersweet, and that's exactly what it was.There's every indication that Emilia Clarke's pained expression on camera when asked what she thinks is genuine. Of course she hates it. She's been asked to play a character, and doing so well over a long period requires a certain amount of transfer of one's own traits to that of the character. She wanted to see her character thrive and overcome her weaknesses, but what she got in the script was doom. The writers took Daenerys to King's Landing and then damned her.
This has nothing to do with whether Season 8 is well written. A popular character with flaws may have a redemption arc in typical heroic fiction. Just not, it seems, in fiction written by George Martin. I'm a bit surprised that some viewers have yet to recognise this important distinction, after eight seasons of scheming and sudden death.
People judging the writing while simultaneously proposing that the Night King and Bran should've had a hokey conversation about the state of humanity.....despite literally zero inclination that the former even understands anything about humans but body language let alone the current version of English givenI wish Dany had killed the NK and died in the process. I had a similar idea like BDS's, Bran and NK have a conversation where they discuss the equilibrium of nature and humanity -- that it was time for the era of man to end so that the course of nature could be restored.
Jon eventually crowned king, and his first and last act is to make the seven Kingdoms free and independent. He has the throne destroyed and leaves.
He worked with what they gave him. The issue was the script.I have had my doubts about the acting quality of Dinklage but he absolutely murdered the last two episodes.
I mean they always described the ending as bittersweet, and that's exactly what it was.
People judging the writing while simultaneously proposing that the Night King and Bran should've had a hokey conversation about the state of humanity.....despite literally zero inclination that the former even understands anything about humans but body language let alone the current version of English given
- his age, (1000s of years..)
- isolation away from civilization (1000s of years as he had lackeys do work for him)
-white walker language literally sounds like ice cracking so why would Bran understand that let alone know how to respond
-The NK has never been shown doing anything but observing, threatening, and killing and that goes doubly so for his forces
What makes it seem like his "family is held hostage" exactly? I don't think he talks about Game of Thrones any differently than he talks about My Dinner With Herve in the same interview. Except of course he is avoiding giving any out spoilers, hence zipping up the mouth emote. Was he dishonest about his compliments about Liz Himelstein too? Though it's also a HBO produced film, so maybe he really fucking hates Elizabeth Himelstein and thinks her contributions were worthless, but just can't say it because they got his family.
Edit: Here's his comments from Entertainment Weekly
Sorry but there is a clear difference in tone when he's talking about D&D. It's like D&D got Bran to warg into him so that he would say what he said about them.
I mean they always described the ending as bittersweet, and that's exactly what it was.
People are still caping for the show and writers?
They're awful, the show final season is awful. It retroactively ruins 4 brilliant seasons of entertainment as everything was pointless.
Ending was far from bittersweet, too.
Danaerys was done dirty.
One of THE main characters being killed after the tragedy of finally getting what she wanted but losing herself in the process is tragic. So while the ending is essentially the closest thing to a happily ever after, there's still the underlying feeling that Dany had a tragic ending. Jaime Lannister refused his redemption. Greyworm lost the love of his life and might even die due to disease based on where he's going, (coincidentally even if missandei hadn't died this would've always been an uncertain part of their future). Even the Starks are once again all separated despite spending so much time trying to reach each other. So even though they all moved up in the world, it's not what I would call a traditional happily ever after.
Uh season 7 is not indicative of the hokey writing all along. 7 and 8 are on par quality wise.Jon convinces Dany of the white walkers by showing her cave paintings drawn with crayon. "Hokey" isn't something new to the series.
Its crazy that we still need to make this argument. And even Dany not getting a happy ending is totally fine considering she was a mass murdering psychopath by the end of it, so her dying means nothing in terms of a happy ending. In fact Dany living would have been far more bitter and dark than had she died, which was a happy ending.
My thoughts exactly. I was either hoping for a miraculous turn around given the extra time or just to enjoy it continue crashing and burning but I went in expecting the same quality of writing as the past few seasons, that way I couldn't be disappointed and only surprised if they actually managed to turn the writing around.At least you acknowledge only the first 4 seasons were brilliant.
The show has been off the rails for the latter 4 seasons, outside of some good episodes here and there. I know it's the finale but I never expected to be completely satisfied after being disappointed for 3 years prior...
Calling people mad for seeing exactly whats there sure is a thing.
One of THE main characters being killed after the tragedy of finally getting what she wanted but losing herself in the process is tragic. So while the ending is essentially the closest thing to a happily ever after, there's still the underlying feeling that Dany had a tragic ending. Jaime Lannister refused his redemption. Greyworm lost the love of his life and might even die due to disease based on where he's going, (coincidentally even if missandei hadn't died this would've always been an uncertain part of their future). Even the Starks are once again all separated despite spending so much time trying to reach each other. So even though they all moved up in the world, it's not what I would call a traditional happily ever after.
Literally I struggle to think of another show with a happier ending in recent memory. I have to go back to Lost or something to find an ending thats this nice to all of the good guys, including most of the side characters. Calling this ending bitter sweet is absurd.Daenerys was a mass murdered so why would she get a happy ending at that point? Her fall is "tragic" but that's not exactly bittersweet. Everyone that remained a good guy got a happy ending. The Starks aren't together because they don't want to stay together in the North, but nothing prevents them from doing so. It's not even a, "I can never go home again." But more, "I can go home when I feel like it, but not right now."
Literally I struggle to think of another show with a happier ending in recent memory. I have to go back to Lost or something to find an ending thats this nice to all of the good guys, including most of the side characters. Calling this ending bitter sweet is absurd.
Let's be serious for a minute. Game of Thrones has never been a series where you could have serious expectations that a well loved, beautifully drawn character with great prospects would survive any given episode. It's not heroic fiction even if sometimes the presence of a dragon or a wizard might lead the unwary to think otherwise.
I've no interest in the Star Wars films, but you can't say Season 8 of Game of Thrones came from nowhere. The series has its massacres and its unexpected outcomes, as people who are fans of Kat Stark and Oberyn and Tywin will be well aware. Characters aren't always what you expect. You've got a fellow who commits attempted murder in the first episode and rapes his sister over the body of their son in another, but he has many admirable qualities. If some viewers expected Game of Thrones to end up like the Peter Jackson Lord of the Rings or the David Lynch Dune, they weren't paying attention.
For the umpteenth time, who survives isn't the issue. Who wins the throne isn't the issue. How their character is written and their actions leading up to their death is the issue. This incredibly zoomed out, hypothetical view of the show is not useful for discussion. "This isn't your standard trope-filled high fantasy" is the start of a discussion, not the end of it. Writers need to write things in a way that makes people believe in what they are writing. Even if it's not a happy ending, it should be satisfying because it feels as though it couldn't have gone any other way. Good writing isn't just a series of "and then, and then, and then"sLet's be serious for a minute. Game of Thrones has never been a series where you could have serious expectations that a well loved, beautifully drawn character with great prospects would survive any given episode. It's not heroic fiction even if sometimes the presence of a dragon or a wizard might lead the unwary to think otherwise.
I've no interest in the Star Wars films, but you can't say Season 8 of Game of Thrones came from nowhere. The series has its massacres and its unexpected outcomes, as people who are fans of Kat Stark and Oberyn and Tywin will be well aware. Characters aren't always what you expect. You've got a fellow who commits attempted murder in the first episode and rapes his sister over the body of their son in another, but he has many admirable qualities. If some viewers expected Game of Thrones to end up like the Peter Jackson Lord of the Rings or the David Lynch Dune, they weren't paying attention.
lmao*Repeatedly argues about a season of television he hasn't actually seen yet*
"Guys can we get serious already?"
Now this is the bitter ending.I figured it out, the ending is bittersweet because the acting and music are really good but the writing is really bad.
Its only true because when you think about it Bran really is an evil mofo.They really needed to go all in on evil Bran. And hinting the WW were back.
Thats the thing, this ending is essentially lord of the rings. I havent seen anyone complain about the ending not being happy enough. Like I havent seen a single post arguing that they didnt like it because it was too dark or sad.For the umpteenth time, who survives isn't the issue. Who wins the throne isn't the issue. How their character is written and their actions leading up to their death is the issue. This incredibly zoomed out, hypothetical view of the show is not useful for discussion. "This isn't your standard trope-filled high fantasy" is the start of a discussion, not the end of it. Writers need to write things in a way that makes people believe in what they are writing. Even if it's not a happy ending, it should be satisfying because it feels as though it couldn't have gone any other way. Good writing isn't just a series of "and then, and then, and then"s
As for the bolded: That's the thing. They almost always are what you expect (in the source material and what's adapted from it). The surprises and twists come from the characters acting in character, and that coming into contact with the larger machinations, plot, and other characters acting in character.
You're talking about the people complaining as if they are upset because the ending was too complicated and morally complex for them. It wasn't, and you saying "did they expect lord of the rings?" shows you still don't understand the issues people have with the later seasons, and the last one in particular. Besides, if people expected lord of the rings, D&D certainly ripped off enough from Jackson's Return of the King in the last episode to make them wonder.
Oh and let's also talk about the fact that Bran isn't Bran. They're a person with Bran's face and body, but the bright eyed little boy who had dreams of being a knight is no longer there. He has no desires. He just does what he thinks will lead to the best outcome. Dany was a mass murderer but Jon still very clearly loved her and didn't wanna kill her despite what she had become. You lay out the events, and even though all the Starks got what they want, the lead up to it cost a shit ton.Daenerys was a mass murdered so why would she get a happy ending at that point? Her fall is "tragic" but that's not exactly bittersweet. Everyone that remained a good guy got a happy ending. The Starks aren't together because they don't want to stay together in the North, but nothing prevents them from doing so. It's not even a, "I can never go home again." But more, "I can go home when I feel like it, but not right now."
Why would we need a hint that WW are back?They really needed to go all in on evil Bran. And hinting the WW were back.
Oh and let's also talk about the fact that Bran isn't Bran. They're a person with Bran's face and body, but the bright eyed little boy who had dreams of being a knight is no longer there. He has no desires. He just does what he thinks will lead to the best outcome. Dany was a mass murderer but Jon still very clearly loved her and didn't wanna kill her despite what she had become. You lay out the events, and even though all the Starks got what they want, the lead up to it cost a shit ton.
Why would we need a hint that WW are back?
He elevates the script.I have had my doubts about the acting quality of Dinklage but he absolutely murdered the last two episodes.
Oh and let's also talk about the fact that Bran isn't Bran. They're a person with Bran's face and body, but the bright eyed little boy who had dreams of being a knight is no longer there. He has no desires. He just does what he thinks will lead to the best outcome. Dany was a mass murderer but Jon still very clearly loved her and didn't wanna kill her despite what she had become. You lay out the events, and even though all the Starks got what they want, the lead up to it cost a shit ton.
Why would we need a hint that WW are back?
So basically yet another fan theory.....There was a rumor we were discussing for a while in the leak thread that apparently Bran has a vision and sees "there must always be a Night King" (obvious Warcraft copy) which is partly why Jon goes to the Wall. That also put some of us further down the rabbit hole and were wondering if Drogon would take Danys body beyond the Wall (House of Undying vision) to become the Night Queen.
Bran doesn't want the throne, he literally says as much during the scene where they decide he should be king. But he's the 3ER and as no emotion whatsoever. And Bran absolutely still had emotion and desires before becoming the 3ER what're you talking about? He couldn't become a knight ofc but that doesn't mean him becoming the 3ER didn't drastically change him.That's not a bittersweet "ending," that's what Bran has been since the start of the show and he's been the 3ER for three seasons. Again, not an ending. That's like saying the ending is "bittersweet" because Ned Stark's head got chopped off. Also, it's hard to speak about Bran not "being there" or having "desires" when the show has no idea at any given moment what Bran can feel or wants.
Okay, here we go. I thought about making this a separate thread but I think people are sick of my GoT threads by now so I didn't.
I decided to do a complete rewrite of the ending of the series, including the entire eighth season. However, I believe that many of the problems with the eighth season and the ending of the series began with season 7, episode 5, in which the enormously stupid "wight hunt" idea is proposed. This idea is not only full of bizarre plotholes but also sets into motion serious problems with both the White Walker and Iron Throne storylines that make them impossible to resolve in a satisfying way in season 8. As a result, I also redid the last three episodes of season 7 to remove this storyline and make a few other changes. I constrained myself to following the general principle of the events that were shown onscreen and to only having six episodes in season 8. This is only a rewrite of season 8 and the last half of season 7; all other events in the series happened exactly the same way, for better or for worse, up until season 7, episode 5.
I should note this is a super rough outline. Like, I typed it up in 90 minutes tops. It's not meant to be clean and I'm not even 80% satisfied with it, but I think people would enjoy this ending a lot more than what we got. If you've got suggestions on how to tighten it up or how to address some of the problems I noted in the FAQ section, let me know.
This is the outline:
Season 7, Episode 5
At Winterfell, Arya finds a copy of the letter Lysa Arryn wrote informing them of her husband's death. Jon suggests that Dany bring her dragons north over the Wall to try burning the White Walkers and the Night King. Dany reluctantly agrees, despite her advisors urging her that this is extremely dangerous. Because there is no assembling of the Avengers, this means that yes, Gendry is never re-introduced. He never stops rowing and is not important to the endgame. The Hound, Beric, and Thoros simply show up at Winterfell to help fight the dead; they never make a stop at Eastwatch. Dany teaches Jon how to ride Rhaegal. At Oldtown, Sam reads about the prophecy of Azor Ahai and how he is fated to defeat the White Walkers.
Season 7, Episode 6
The Sansa/Littlefinger scenes play out the same way, with Arya "confronting" Sansa over the letter she wrote under duress in King's Landing. Cersei receives a letter from Jon about the White Walkers and throws it out. Jaime is bothered by her lack of concern, noting that whatever Jon might be, he is Ned Stark's son, a respected leader of the Night's Watch, and not a liar who makes up wild stories. Jon and Dany fly beyond the Wall with the dragons. They find some ancient White Walker stuff relating to the Children of the Forest and their origin, indicating that the White Walkers have a legitimate culture and society and aren't just mindless monsters. They attempt to carpet bomb the Night King but find that dragonfire has no effect on him. The Night King nails Viserion and kills him. Jon and Dany retreat.
Season 7, Episode 7
Dany is unnerved by the power of the White Walkers and tells Jon she needs to take the throne so that she can use the unified forces of Westeros to fight them; Jon says there's no time. Sam arrives at Winterfell and tells them about Azor Ahai; Bran informs them that Jon is Rhaegar and Lyanna's son and the heir to the throne. Dany becomes even more bothered while Jon insists he doesn't care about the throne and just wants the White Walkers gone. Jon calls a peace meeting with Cersei, who refuses to attend; she sends Jaime instead. Jaime arrives in Winterfell and hears them out. He agrees that the White Walkers sound like a serious threat but unfortunately Cersei has ordered him not to make peace under any circumstances. Dany allows Jaime to return to King's Landing unharmed, and he is impressed by the mercy they've shown him. With Cersei refusing to help fight, Dany insists she must unite Westeros before anything can be done about the White Walkers. She and Jon part on rocky terms. Dany heads south and masses her forces to attack King's Landing, while Jon and the others prepare to defend Winterfell. Sansa and Arya spring a trap on Littlefinger, revealing that they compared notes; Sansa told Arya that Lysa poisoned Jon Arryn, meaning the entire war was a ruse by Littlefinger, and he is executed. The Night King breaches the Wall.
Season 8, Episode 1
Theon rescues Yara and they go their separate ways, as in the show. The defenders of Winterfell prepare for the battle. Dany musters her forces outside King's Landing. Varys infiltrates the city to collect his little birds and overthrow Qyburn. Tyrion warns Dany that a battle with the dragons could severely damage the city and that Cersei will let everyone die before she surrenders, but Dany is naive and believes Cersei will be rational.
Season 8, Episode 2
The battle of Winterfell occurs. The White Walkers completely overrun the forces of the North. Many are killed. Theon dies holding off the Night King; Beric and Thoros are also killed, but not before reminding the Hound that the Lord still has a purpose for him. A full-scale retreat is ordered and everyone flees south. The White Walkers move slow and take their time killing people, so they don't give chase. During the battle, the Night King and Bran have a greensight conversation. The Night King, in his first and only lines of dialogue, explains that he is headed south to end a cycle of magic that has lasted for ten thousand years: the song of ice and fire, the eternal conflict between Azor Ahai and himself that will only end when both are dead. Winterfell is badly destroyed. Dany gets word of what happened and feels guilty that she wasn't there to help. Bran tells Jon that he is Azor Ahai because he is the son of ice and fire and therefore the war will only end when both he and the Night King die together.
Season 8, Episode 3
Dany attacks King's Landing. Cersei's forces are easily destroyed and Dany takes the perimeter of the city quickly. Cersei's forces seemingly surrender. Suddenly, Euron's fleet engages and kills Rhaegal. The surrender was a trap. Dany gets pissed and flies in on Drogon, mowing down Lannister soldiers in the streets. As soon as her fire hits the street, massive chunks of the city begin to explode in green flame. A horrified Jaime realizes that Cersei knew about Aerys' wildfire caches and deliberately provoked Dany into setting them off. Cersei tells Jaime that she knows there's no way to win and she would rather burn the whole city down than allow a "younger and more beautiful queen" to sit the throne with her evil imp brother at her side. Jaime realizes she's nuts and, as the city explodes around them, kills her to prevent her from setting off a wildfire cache in the Red Keep. Cersei fatally wounds Jaime during the struggle. Among the casualties of the explosions are Grey Worm and Varys, who were in the streets. Dany lands in the Red Keep, the only part of the city untouched by destruction, and sits on the throne -- having finally won, but at a terrible cost. Only one thing survives the explosions: the undead husk of Gregor Clegane, who wanders off into the horizon, no longer having any purpose in life.
Season 8, Episode 4
Dany's first visitor as queen of the ashes is an envoy from Jon, who informs her that the White Walkers are devastating the North and that Jon's ragtag forces have retreated to the God's Eye on the Trident. Dany knows that she must try to redeem her actions by helping end the war for the dawn. She travels to the God's Eye and meets Jon and they confess their feelings. Arya reunites with Nymeria and her wolfpack. The Hound hears rumors of a massive mountain of a man wandering the Riverlands, indiscriminately killing anything in his way. He expresses that he is done with vengeance and has no desire to go after him. Jon tells Dany about Azor Ahai and how he thinks he is fated to die alongside the Night King to end the cycle of ice and fire.
Season 8, Episode 5
The White Walker army arrives at the God's Eye and the final battle begins. The armies of all houses fight alongside each other against the dead. Nymeria's wolfpack shows up. The Mountain wanders in (maybe attracted by the control of the Night King) and the Hound attempts to kill him. He ignites his blade in flames courtesy of R'hllor. The magic fire is enough to put an end to his brother. The Valyrian steel-wielders each fight the White Walkers. Jorah is killed by a White Walker and as he dies, he tells Dany that he has always believed she would be the queen since he saw her "reborn in salt and smoke, waking dragons from stone." Dany has a realization. Jon says goodbye to Dany so that he can fight the Night King, but Dany has a different idea. She tells Jon that she is Azor Ahai and that he totally misunderstood the White Walkers. Bran speculates that this is correct, that the White Walkers are profane creations of the Children and that they have been forced to engage in warfare against humanity for years because of the magical enchantments put on them by the Children. The Night King broke free thousands of years ago and is the only one who is sentient enough to understand that the only way to break the enchantment is for the cycle of ice and fire to end with his own death and the death of Azor Ahai.
Jon says this is all stupid, he doesn't want to be king after she dies, and refuses to stand down, so Dany stabs him. He falls down injured and unable to stop her from leaving. Dany tells him that he doesn't have to be a king or a lord commander or a bastard; after tonight, he is free to be anything he wants. Then she heads out to confront the Night King. They approach each other and some kind of ritual thing occurs where they are engulfed in ice and fire. The Night King returns to human form and collapses; all the wights return to bones. Dany falls dead as well. Drogon, the last vestige of the ancient magic, picks her body up and flies away. Bran says Drogon will live out his days as the last dragon. The White Walkers, free of their magic, return beyond the Wall to their civilization.
Season 8, Episode 6
A great council is convened to decide who rules Westeros now. Some factions support Jon as the rightful heir, while others view him as the ally of the mad queen who blew up King's Landing. There is much debate among the different factions. Sansa tries to make the North independent. Eventually, Tyrion suggests that Bran would be a good king while they try to rebuild the realm; after he dies, the council can reconvene and choose another ruler. Some people are not enormously fond of this idea, especially Dorne and the Iron Islands, and they vote against Bran, but their votes are overruled by the rest of the assembled lords. Bran becomes king and picks Tyrion as his Hand. The North is still part of the Seven Kingdoms as Sansa is satisfied by Bran's selection. Dorne and the Iron Islands begin plotting for a possible war of independence. Arya departs to explore the world, Sansa becomes Warden of the North. Jon decides to return north and rejoin the Night's Watch. Their new mission is not to defend the realms of men from the White Walkers, but to try and understand them. He and Tormund set out with a party to find the White Walker civilization and try to begin a new connection with them.
"Why doesn't Dany go mad? Why doesn't Jon stab her?"
I said I followed the general principle of the events onscreen, but the way Dany's story ends is obviously very different. But before you dismiss me as a deranged Dany stan, I wanted to note that there still seems to be significant confusion over what exactly D&D knew about GRRM's ending. Namely, the thing that's going to be keeping people up at night the next few years is "What was the third "Holy shit" moment GRRM told them about?"
People have been trying to work Dany's madness, burning of King's Landing, or death as the third "Holy shit" moment, but…I don't think any of them work. After all, Dany's madness is supposedly "super obvious," "heavily foreshadowed," and "the obvious end to her character," so why would that be such a surprise to D&D when GRRM tells them? It's not. Nor is King's Landing getting blown up much of a surprise either; we already know there's a Chekov's Gun cache of wildfire buried under the city and it's just a matter of who sets it off. Finally, Jon killing Dany is also something that has been widely theorized for years, usually as part of an Azor Ahai/Nissa Nissa prophecy, so being told that by GRRM is not a particularly shocking thing either.
No, I think the answer is a lot simpler: the third "Holy shit" moment is Bran becoming king. D&D said the third moment happens "at the very end" of the story, and Bran being king was a generally obscure theory within the fandom, something that only really starts to make sense in hindsight like the best of GRRM's plot twists.
I did try to match the season 8 events more closely; for example, I tried to come up with a way for Jon to stab Dany as part of the Azor Ahai prophecy, but nothing really made sense. The idea that Jon just sticks his sword into Dany and it lights on fire and he starts wrecking White Walkers is too Hollywood for GRRM. This is why I fell back on the theory of Dany as Azor Ahai.
"If you're so smart, how come D&D didn't just do this instead?"
I think D&D have two fundamental misunderstandings or issues with ASOIAF. I think they have little interest in the supernatural aspects of the story like the White Walkers, and I think they value violent resolutions to character arcs instead of peaceful ones. One of GRRM's central ideas when he created this series was to deconstruct Lord of the Rings, and one specific example he provided was "What does Aragorn do with the baby orcs?" I don't think it's a coincidence that we are introduced to a baby White Walker. The White Walkers are a real culture. They're not mindless weapons of war. They are the deconstruction of Tolkien's orcs, monsters created as weapons who could have a real civilization if they were freed from the magic that created them.
I think that GRRM told D&D a bunch of complex magical and mythological stuff about the White Walkers and how they're defeated, and D&D yawned and fell asleep. The show has never been interested in any of this. So they decided, at some point, to create a more bog-standard Hollywood ending where the White Walkers are just a generic bad guy force that gets taken out by a single blow. But they also knew this wasn't a good, climactic ending to the series, so they swapped this battle with the King's Landing siege. "It's called Game of Thrones, after all, and we need to end the series with the game of thrones." But now they have a serious problem with Dany's character arc, which is deeply tied to this proposed ending with the White Walkers. Now they need to come up with a completely different explanation for why she blows up King's Landing and how she dies. So they consult their ninth grade history textbook, quickly pull an "absolute power corrupts absolutely" message out of their asses, and throw it in there.
I think that D&D were also unattracted to the idea of a peaceful resolution to the series' main conflict. The idea that the White Walker battle is resolved in a peaceful way, with the White Walkers returning north to their own civilization, is something they felt the audience would find anticlimactic. They've spent seven seasons training the audience to love bloodlust and war. The only way they can end it all is with more bloodlust and more war. So the Night King gets stabbed, King's Landing goes boom, Dany gets shanked, and then everything ends happily. This is not GRRM's way.
"Where's the Scouring of the Shire?"
I think people take GRRM's appreciation of the Scouring of the Shire too literally. The point of the Scouring is not that "a big battle happens at the end of the book," it's that "life goes on after war, and we are all forever touched by it in some way." The conflict for the Iron Throne is over, the White Walker threat has been ended, but life goes on as normal. There is a political vacuum in Westeros, one not easily filled by a ten minute scene of people voting on Bran to be king. Everything doesn't just wrap up nicely with a little bow on top. Jon is traumatized by the loss of Dany, several kingdoms are on the verge of open rebellion, and a mysterious new culture that nobody understands is now a player in Westeros. Things are not the same as they were before.
"How do these events play out in the books?"
I think Aegon is on the throne when Dany shows up, and that Cersei is a captive. The general events of the King's Landing battle will play out the same way, with Jaime, Cersei, and Aegon all dying. The books are so far behind the show and so complicated that it's hard to predict where characters like Euron end up in all this.
"Dany goes nuts, you idiot. Her Targaryen madness gene kicks in and she kills everybody and then Jon stabs her, you moron. Get over it."
Maybe. We'll see in twenty years.
Yes she was devastated and shocked. That doesn't really equate to "fucking hates"
I don't know if Peter Dinklage likes or hates the ending, but I'd wager it is the latter.
Watching an intelligent character you've played over several seasons turn into a mouth piece for the show writers so they can push a last minute hack job of an ending probably doesn't leave a good taste, even if you've become hand of the king.
So basically yet another fan theory.....
Bran doesn't want the throne, he literally says as much during the scene where they decide he should be king. But he's the 3ER and as no emotion whatsoever. And Bran absolutely still had emotion and desires before becoming the 3ER what're you talking about? He couldn't become a knight ofc but that doesn't mean him becoming the 3ER didn't drastically change him.
You're talking about the people complaining as if they are upset because the ending was too complicated and morally complex for them.
Yes she was devastated and shocked. That doesn't really equate to "fucking hates"
It was tied up with a bow at the end. They needed to get Daenerys out of the way, so they suddenly cranked her characters traits up from a 5 to 11 between two episodes, then Jon killed her, her dragon left, and all the Starks got what they wanted while everyone else in the story lost all agency or motivation and voted for the Starks to win Most Popular and Tyrion to win Most Smartest. It was fan fiction level. Plain and simple.My feeling is not so much that it's perceived as too morally complex, but that a certain pattern of character development and plot arc is demanded here and found wanting.
After years of viewers ruefully commenting on George Martin's reputation for killing their favourite characters, it looks as if quite a few people have decided it all should have been tied up with a bow at the end. I've only read the episode plot summaries on Wikipedia, so obviously I could be missing something subtle but vital, but from the outside what we got looks like a reasonable extrapolation from earlier seasons.
It was tied up with a bow at the end. They needed to get Daenerys out of the way, so they suddenly cranked her characters traits up from a 5 to 11 between two episodes, then Jon killed her, her dragon left, and all the Starks got what they wanted while everyone else in the story lost all agency or motivation and voted for the Starks to win Most Popular and Tyrion to win Most Smartest. It was fan fiction level. Plan and simple.
So there is a long behind the scenes documentary tonight in the same time slot?
It was tied up with a bow at the end. They needed to get Daenerys out of the way, so they suddenly cranked her characters traits up from a 5 to 11 between two episodes, then Jon killed her, her dragon left, and all the Starks got what they wanted while everyone else in the story lost all agency or motivation and voted for the Starks to win Most Popular and Tyrion to win Most Smartest. It was fan fiction level. Plan and simple.
It was tied up with a bow at the end. They needed to get Daenerys out of the way, so they suddenly cranked her characters traits up from a 5 to 11 between two episodes, then Jon killed her, her dragon left, and all the Starks got what they wanted while everyone else in the story lost all agency or motivation and voted for the Starks to win Most Popular and Tyrion to win Most Smartest. It was fan fiction level. Plan and simple.