Precious Roy wrote:
All of these successful cable series (Mad Men, Breaking Bad, Sopranos, etc.) have lame final seasons because the entire series is about the tension between the main character and what seems like their inevitable fate. The shows are interesting because of that tension. When the shows finally move to the resolution of that tension, it is always a big let down. GoT is especially difficult because there isn't a central character. Instead, there is an ensemble of characters and story lines all related to the central plot line of who will ascend to the throne. GoT only has 8 episodes to resolve what happens to Arya, Sansa, Cersei &Jamie, John Snow and Dany. But it also has to deal with lots of secondary characters too, like Tyrion, Grey Worm, Greyjoy, Brienne, etc. GoT's solution is to just pick off the secondary characters on each episode while the main characters have huge battles. That has been a bit of a mess.
This is a great analysis. Also explains why GRRM has struggled to finish the books. It's an impossible task. D&D have done the best they could as two men only equipped to write high school book reports. The visuals, directing, and acting have all been great. Dany's fall is fantastic. It's what someone would have hoped for out of the Star Wars prequels.