As Game of Thrones moves into its final three episodes, the show is knocking out plot points at a frantic pace, moving the pieces into play for the final battle, no matter what it takes to get there. The result is a show that’s less thoughtful, less believable, and a lot more focused on spectacle.
(Warning, majorspoilers below: If you’re not caught up on Game of Thrones season 8, episode 4, you really shouldn’t read further.)
To start, let’s look at the latest appearance of Euron Greyjoy, whose job — aside from filling the Wild Card Villain role once occupied by Ramsay and Joffrey — seems to be making the conflict between Daenerys and Cersei “distressingly even” as Varys points out in the war council. Euron has demonstrated an uncanny ability to ambush fleets at sea, having popped out of thin air to trounce Dany’s navy in the last season.
Despite that crushing defeat, Daenerys and her advisors seem to have learned nothing, as Euron does it again in The Last of the Starks, his ballista-equipped fleet emerging from behind a rock to shoot down one of Daenerys’ dragons.
