Game of Thrones Season 8 Episode 3 The Long Night

Game of Thrones (2011-2019)
Season 8 - 6 episodes (2019)

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Created by: David Benioff, D.B. Weiss
Starring: Emilia Clarke, Peter Dinklage, Kit Harington, Sophie Turner, Lena Headey, Maisie Williams, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau,  Gwendoline Christie 

Plot: 
HBO's fantasy drama series adapted from George R.R. Martin's book series A Song of Ice and Fire follows the civil war of kings and usurpers in Westeros who wish to sit on the throne. The ticking clock signaling the end are the undead White Walkers descending from the North. The scale and scope of the story is staggering, fully realized with a large ensemble cast.

This is the final season of the series, though HBO is planning a prequel series.

Review: Episode 3 - The Long Night
Episode two teased the battle of Winterfell that didn't come, but I bet it's in this episodes. Bran will be used as bait to lure the Night King into a trap, but will destroying him destroy every white walker? That seems a bit easy, but from a show standpoint Daenerys and Cersei still have to face off so I get the show wants that moment and needs to remove that hurdle, but one fall and they all fall seems underwhelming.

We got a great moment with Brienne, Jamie, and others. It's a payoff the show has been building since season one. I expect more of those this season.

Jon admitted to Daenerys that he's Aegon Targaryen. She doesn't like that much.

We're half way through the final season. Three episodes left, and this episode is a full hour and a half.

This episode is a beast in so many ways, but man what an episode. It's intense, wild, and I loved it. While it's visually dark, much darker than anything you'd usually see, it creates a mood. It puts you in the moment. Admittedly the pictures in this post do it a disservice. While dark, it didn't inhibit my understanding. Also the music and music queues in this episode are really strong. My only concern now is, can the rest of the season live up to this episode?

We start with Samwell as he receives dragon glass dagger. The troops are arming for battle, and the music is ominous. This is doing a great job of setting the stage. They're staring into the darkness, waiting... waiting...

Melisandre rides up. What's she been doing? She's casting some kind of spell that sets the soldiers blades on fire. Again, from where did she come? I'm sure she's an emissary of the Lord of Light and required to show up, but still. Davos isn't happy to see her but Melisandre assures him she'll die before Dawn. Davos wants to kill her for killing Shireen, Stannis Barantheon's daughter.

Melisandre shared a moment with Arya back in the day, basically predicting Arya's faceless men phase. Arya added her to the list.

If you're going to fight white walkers, the presiding theory is to light your

The Dothraki charge ahead blades ablaze and at least one of them sees a giant or something huge. The rest of Winterfell can't make out what's happening in the distance, but the flaming swords are extinguished one by one rather quickly. Then a few Dothraki and Jorah return. Though none of them had dragon glass. Seems like a big mistake using blades that won't kill the undead. What was the point of them heading out first? Just fodder?

Jon and Daenerys prior to dragon riding.

The white walkers are a tidal wave until Daenerys' dragon cuts through them. Jon somehow thinks he can sneak right up on the Night King while riding a dragon, but then a cold mist obscures all sight and Jon loses him.

Arya sends Sansa to the crypt, handing her a dragon glass dagger. Sansa doesn't know how to use it and Arya tells her to stick them with the pointy end. Jon gave Arya that same advice back in the first season.

That's a horde of white walkers.

Team Winterfell is just smashing zombies left and right and it seems endless. especially with the mist. The good dragons can't see.

A retreat is inevitable and the Unsullied are left protecting that retreat. They're outnumbered and outgunned as it is. The episode does a great job of capturing the insanity and bewilderment. We know just enough of what's going on, and that's not much.

Melisandre working the magic. The Lord of Light had some players in this battle.

A moat of fire for the castle.

The plan was to retreat all along it seems, They had retractable bridges over trenches that Daeneryes was going to light with her dragon, but then her dragon can't see in the mist and is lost flying in circles. Arrows aren't enough, and no soldier can't reach the trench with a torch. That's why Melisandre is here, to bring the fire.

Tyrion in the crypt

We get a break in the battle by going to the crypt. Tyrion opines he wish he could see so he could make a difference. After all, he was instrumental in the Battle of Blackwater. Sansa drops some truth, if they could make a difference they wouldn't be in the crypt.

Bran is here to tell everyone they're exactly where they need to be. He saves Theon from an awkward apology. Then he wargs into a bird. I forgot he could even do that. We see through Bran the Night King riding a dragon. He lifts his hand and one by one walkers begin jumping on the trench. It's going to be a bridge of bodies. Smart move. It's also proof that the Night King has some kind of telekinetic control over the walkers.

Jamie and Brienne on the Winterfell castle walls fighting the good fight.

The walkers have no problem forming a dead body pyramid and scaling the wall. That makes it easier to fight, but there are just so many of them that Winterfell gets overrun.

Samwell has been bailed out twice, I'm getting tired of that.

Lyanna Mormont is stone cold. It's easy to like her, thirteen going on forty. She gets rocked by a backhand from a giant and that doesn't slow her down. She gets up and charges. The giant easily grabs her and begins crushing her, but then on the brink of death Lyanna stabs the giant in it's only good eye. She's a character that had very little screen time but made a huge impact. It's fitting she gets to go out bringing down a giant.

Arya in the castle trying to stay alive.

Arya enters beast mode. She needs a spin off. Then she looks death into the face, managing to live for at least a few more minutes. She ends up in a library where walkers are shambling around. Who knows what they're doing. It's intense, but what's the point? She can't fend them off as she's hurting. The episode is stacking the odds against her. She's grossly outnumbered. I'm guessing the Hound will come into play. He and Arya have a bond.

The Hound's fear of fire comes up in a big way. Is he done for this episode? Beric is urging him to fight, and he's not having it. Just a note, I'm not sure anyone of note has been killed which is a surprise with the bloodbath this has been.

Beric and the Hound stumble across Arya. Beric doesn't make it, the Hound pulling Arya away. The Lord of Light brought him back many times for a purpose. as Melisandre tells Arya, "That purpose has been served."

"Not today." We say to the god of death. Arya runs off, but to where? This episode is intense!

Daenerys has been surprisingly ineffective. We've got three dragons above the mist and the blue flame from the dead dragon looks fierce.

The Night King silently laughing on the inside.

We get a dragon fight with the Night King and Jon riding. Daenerys steps in while dragon riding to shut that down. The Night King is knocked off the dragon and Daenerys finishes him off with her dragon. How about that. Is that the end of the Night King? Jon is going to confirm and to his, mine, and everyone else's surprise dragon fire doesn't do a single thing to the Night King.

Jon's going to attack him because why not. What else can he do in a field alone with him? The Night King motions, bring it. Except that motion really means all the dead bodies in this field get up and defend me. Jon isn't going to kill the Night King right now. All those dead bodies are getting up. Their friends, allies, and countrymen are rising from the grave. It's round 2.

Sansa and Tyrion in the crypt.

Back in the crypt... yes a crypt... where all the non fighters are holed up to stay safe, those dead bodies in the crypt are getting up. Are we going to see Ned Stark?
We're two thirds in to this episode. Are we going to see the conclusion of this battle? What is going to turn the tide? Will the tide turn?
Everyone in the crypt is dying. Sansa and Tyrion together vow to fight.

Theon and crew are loosing arrows to protect Bran. If Theon dies it will be a good death, but what is Bran up to? Theon makes a hero's stand and dies a hero's death.

Daenerys and Jorah on the battlefield, outnumbered.

Daenerys saves Jon and lands and her dragon is swarmed. That's just brutal to see the dragon go down like that. Why land? Shouldn't the dragon's skin be thick enough to resist daggers? Daenerys is thrown off and of course Jorah is there.

Jon is on his way to Bran and saves Sam. Quit saving him. It's just raining bodies literally. I'm going to need a full episode to decompress and tally who's dead and alive after this. I'm glad I get a week in between episodes. I need it after this episode.

The Night King's hype crew on their way to see Bran.

I'm not sure the tide will turn. This might just be a grave yard. If it is, what do the other three episodes matter? The only thing that can turn this is Bran. That's my call, but can he?
Is this episode going to be titled "Everyone Dies."

Arya leaps

The Night King loses

OH MY GOSH. From out of nowhere... Stunning. On the brink of death, and this episode even called it. We were told what would happen and we didn't even know. WOW.

Destroy the Night King and all his minions die. I thought that would be cheap, but this episode works it where that ending felt earned. Kudos. Arya kills the Night King.  I'm loading this episode again.

Everyone in the episode is as stunned as I am when the walkers all fall down. What one liner will Bran utter? Apparently he's saving that for the next episode.

How can the finale top this? Melisandre drops her magic necklace and finally dies of old age. This was her purpose? I don't get it, but it's a great visual to end this episode on.