Hi, its been a while. Thinking a lot about the final season of Game of Thrones and End Game, the final Avengers movie (as if I had to tell you). Have you noticed the similarities between these two? The final episodes of two big budget blockbuster productions that are basically the same but the audience responded with remarkably opposite reactions. What gives?
There seems to be preordained method of handling the final episodes of a long running series, either TV or the movies. Probably radio serials also if anyone can remember back that far. The finale has to satisfy the loyal viewers who have been patiently (?) awaiting the resolution of the hanging threads. The viewers who have been watching for years, devoting their time, money and emotions into the series, deserve to have a finale that displays the characteristics that have kept them watching. I feel that Games of Thrones season 8 and Avengers: End Game both failed to deliver.
They failed for the same reason. They failed to follow the pacing and innovation that distinguished them in the previous installments. And yet END GAME got rave reviews and GOT finale was panned voraciously. I don't understand.
Games of Thrones Season 8 was a yawner compared to Season 7. To end the series with the plot holes and the bad acting is a insult to George R R Martin's tremendous novels and an insult to the audience. Plot holes in GOT are nothing new. There are many instances when you must suspend belief in order to enjoy the story. I noticed this was true once the series moved beyond the novels that George R R Martin wrote and became increasingly true in Seasons 6 and 7. Remember the heroes stuck on the ice and surrounded by the dead and being rescued by a lady on a dragon who was half a continent away just the day before?
One thing that GOT did very well during its run is give the audience interesting moments. Remember the dead dragon being pulled from the ice? Then melting the wall? Intense. Moments to remember. Those moments are what kept me coming back.
I did not appreciate their handling of Tyrion who became what his father always thought he was, a loser. He was my favorite character until he became Hand of the Queen. Most of the decisions he made as Hand of the Queen were bad and his final one, to give the throne to Bran, was the worst, the most inexplicable. Bran turned around and made Tyrion Hand of the King to allow him to make amends for his failures. Hopefully for Westeros Tyrion is a failure only as a "wartime consigliere" and will do better in peace time.
However, I digress. Back to Season 8. The biggest disappointment for me in Season 8 was the manner that the strong female characters were depicted. Sansa mostly stood around and looked disapproving. Arya killed the Night King and got laid and tracked Cersei to kill her but that was the end of her usefulness. Then there was Dani, poor misguided Dani, apparently misunderstood with an undiagnosed killer tendencies that no one realized was a problem until it was too late. And Cersei who deserved so much more air time due to her status as "most evil villain". She dies in the arms of her lover, her brother, who left his new lover to try to save his sister. At least Brianne had two nights with the man of her dreams before he left her for his sister.
Season 8 did give us several amazing moments even it required you to ignore the plot holes. Melisandra lighting the swords of the Dothraki and the fires on the swords going out so quickly when they fought the dead = chilling. Arya jumping on the Night King and plunging the knife = surprising. Jon facing the anguished dragon after he killed Dani = suspenseful. I really like the episode before the Battle of Winterfell when the heroes were preparing for the battle, how each person chose to spend what they thought was the last night of their life. This episode was well written and acted and brought into focus the relationships between the characters.
The writers have the right, the duty, to write the story they want to tell. The readers or viewers must decide if they want to continue to be involved if they do not agree with the direction that the writers take the story. My overall feeling for the GOT finale is that I am glad I watched it and enjoyed many moments but feel that it fell short in the logic department and that reduced my enjoyment. Even fantasy needs to have a toe hold on reality.
Avengers End Game, so sad. People were crying in the theater and I did not understand why. It was just an emotional nod to the characters and does not qualify as a legitimate end to such a spectacular series of movies. It was like watching an episode of the "Waltons" in space. For those of you too young to know about the TV show the "Waltons" it concerns a farm family in a small town and everyone loves everyone and the Mom and Dad always understand their kids' problems and none of the kids talk back or hit their siblings. Thor beheading Thanos was the most surprising thing in the movie. Everything else was expected because it follows the script for a finale movie right up to and including the scene at the funeral where each group of heroes gets a moment on screen. Thank you, heroes, for saving us once again and here you are, proud and strong and bonded to each other so if we need you again you will answer the call.
"Infinity War" is one of my favorite movies. Having a small person play the character of a huge blacksmith and having the small person be Peter Dinklage was inspired. Spiderman was endearing, I was so sad when he disappeared and I felt so bad for Ironman. All the characters contributed to the overall feel of the movie, too many to list individually and you know who they all are. Not a misstep or bad scene. A movie I could see and have seen over and over. I saw END GAME once and that was enough. I need to see it again as my expectations were apparently way too high. I may find some redeeming qualities if I see it again and do not expect much.
Was anyone else upset about the way that Thor was depicted? He was my main hero until I saw him drunk and giving up his throne to - fly away with the Guardians of the Galaxy? Really? Its Peter's ship and Peter hates Thor so why is Thor on Peter's ship? I am not feeling a bromance building.
This should tell you something about my reaction to END GAME. I thought the best scene was when Gamora was told that she was in a relationship with Peter after she decked him. Hilarious and totally understandable.
Pepper Potts in an Ironman suit and out there fighting? And brought to our attention when the girls got their chance to battle someone (I forgot who) as a team?
Then you have the final finale scene where everyone goes their separate ways, similar to the final scene for GOT. A little comedy to lighten the emotional trauma of saying goodbye to these characters who have become so important to you over the years. You want to know that their future, for the ones that survived, will be roses and sunshine. How else could you possibly walk away?
How about walking away with a question mark? Someone lurking in the background who you know will cause problems. Some indication that all is not well for our heroes. Do you remember that last scene in "Serenity"? Where a piece of the ship flies off when they take off? That was a great ending.
These are my thoughts on the subject. You probably disagree, at least for End Game. Have a great day and write a comment if you care to.
