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Game of Thrones: Season 8[1] is the eighth and final season of Game of Thrones. It consists of six episodes. It premiered with "Winterfell" on April 14, 2019 on HBO, and concluded with "The Iron Throne" on May 19, 2019. It is based on The Winds of Winter and A Dream of Spring, the forthcoming sixth and seventh novels of A Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R. Martin.

Premise[]

The final season of HBO's smash-hit, Emmy Award-winning Best Drama Series Game of Thrones - an epic story of duplicity and treachery, nobility and honor … and clash between the living and the dead.[1]

Overview[]

Breached wall s7 finale

The Wall has been breached and a second Long Night is poised to descend upon Westeros.

The Dragon and the Wolf Cersei

Cersei Lannister plots with Euron Greyjoy to hire the Golden Company, a sellsword company from Essos, to eliminate her enemies in the Last War.

Game-of-thrones-season-finale-stillsjaime

A man of honor, Jaime Lannister rides north to provide support to the living in the Great War.

Stormborn Dany's Council

In the Last War, Daenerys Targaryen's allies diminish with every engagement.

707 Theon Greyjoy 2

Compelled to rescue his sister from his uncle Euron, Theon Greyjoy rallies the remaining ironborn still loyal to Yara Greyjoy.

The Dragon and the Wolf Jon

Jon Snow presents a wight at the Dragonpit Summit in an effort to convince those in doubt of their existence and imminent threat.

Jon enters danys chambers s7 ep7

Unaware of their familial ties, Jon and Daenerys consummate their relationship en route to Winterfell.

Execution of petyr s7

Held accountable for the deaths of Jon and Lysa Arryn, as well as the War of the Five Kings, Petyr Baelish is executed by Arya Stark on the order of Sansa Stark.

Rhaegar and Lyanna 707

Bran Stark witnesses Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark's secret wedding ceremony.

"The Long Night is coming, and the dead come with it."
Jon Snow[src]

After eight thousand years of standing between the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros and the lands beyond, the inevitable has finally happened - the Wall has been breached: Mounted on the reanimated corpse of Daenerys Targaryen's dragon Viserion, the Night King has blasted through the ancient fortification and obliterated the castle of Eastwatch-by-the-Sea. The army of the dead, now numbering over 100,000 wights as well as the White Walkers, is heading straight towards the North, bringing a winter that will become another Long Night, one which may last forever.

Unfortunately, the political and military strife within the Seven Kingdoms is not yet over. Though the War of the Five Kings is long ended, control of the Iron Throne is still being contested. In King's Landing, despite having proven herself a less than ideal ruler, Queen Cersei Lannister is determined to stay on the Iron Throne at any cost. Allying herself with Euron Greyjoy and Randyll Tarly, Cersei's armies won several victories against the invading forces of Daenerys Targaryen, and have sacked the Tyrell stronghold of Highgarden in order to pay off the crown's debts to the Iron Bank of Braavos. Despite the larger threat to the realm, Cersei is content with allowing the army of the dead to devastate the North in order to rid her of her enemies before focusing on the threat herself. Tyrion Lannister tried once again to convince his sister to put aside her enmities and unite with Daenerys against the army of the dead, but his pleas fell on deaf ears. Although she promised a military alliance with the dragon queen, Cersei instead brokered a backroom deal: with Euron's help and the financial backing of the Iron Bank, she hired the Golden Company, the most powerful mercenary army in Essos, to destroy all of her enemies at once and solidify Lannister rule over Westeros. For Jaime Lannister, who has stood by his sister all their lives, this is the last straw; disgusted at Cersei's willingness to allow the realm to perish if it means that she can retain her crown, he abandoned her and is now heading north to honor the pledge he made to fight against the enemy facing them all.

From her base at Dragonstone, Daenerys and her Westerosi allies - armies from Dorne, the Iron Islands, and the Reach - attempted to retake the Iron Throne and restore her family dynasty. Unfortunately, all of her plans went disastrously wrong: one of her key allies, Olenna Tyrell, has been killed, having been given the mercy of a peaceful death after the Lannisters sacked Highgarden. Yara Greyjoy, Ellaria Sand, and Tyene Sand were taken hostage by Euron Greyjoy, who single-handedly murdered Obara Sand and Nymeria Sand in a spectacular engagement by Euron's forces. Ellaria was tortured by Cersei Lannister in retaliation for the murder of Cersei's young daughter Myrcella Baratheon, committed by Ellaria in revenge for the Lannister-backed death of Prince Oberyn Martell. Cersei poisoned Tyene and forced a chained Ellaria to watch while her daughter died a slow death. Meanwhile, Yara Greyjoy remained the prisoner of her uncle Euron. Yara's younger brother, Theon, rallied the few remaining ironborn loyalists in an attempt to rescue her, after winning them over in a fight with Harrag, Yara's last captain.

Frustrated by her losses, Daenerys decided to ambush the combined Lannister and Tarly forces with her Dothraki horde and one of her dragons. Although she succeeded in winning this battle, she recklessly burned the wagons of grain en route to the capital, which she needed to feed her own forces. After the battle, Daenerys gave the remaining Lannister and Tarly soldiers a choice: bend the knee to her and join in her goal to make "the world a better place than we found it" - or death. Lord Randyll Tarly and his son Dickon chose death and stated their refusal to bend the knee to Daenerys, who they viewed as a "foreign invader". Daenerys accepted their choice and, having stated her refusal to put men in chains when Tyrion urged imprisonment instead, executed Randyll and Dickon Tarly via dragonfire. This alarmed Tyrion and Varys, who remembered the actions of Daenerys's father and discussed her decision to burn the Tarlys. Tyrion stated that Daenerys is not her father and never will be with the right counsel. Varys responds Tyrion must find a way to make her listen.

In the North, Jon Snow, chosen as King in the North by his compatriots, sought out an alliance with Daenerys; not to help her seize the Iron Throne, but to aid him in the coming war against the army of the dead: the Great War. Through the combined efforts of Daenerys's remaining allies - as well as the Brotherhood Without Banners - Jon captured a wight and presented it before Cersei (who, up until then, thought they and the White Walkers were just stories) in order to prove their existence and return, though Daenerys lost Viserion in the process. During their alliance, Jon and Daenerys developed a romantic attraction and consummated their relationship. This may put their future operations in jeopardy, especially in light of their biological connection of which they are still unaware.

At Winterfell, the North saw the return of two Stark siblings who were believed to be dead - Arya Stark, who killed the remaining men of House Frey in revenge for the Red Wedding, and Bran Stark, who has now become the Three-Eyed Raven. Despite the schemes of Petyr Baelish to drive the Starks apart and seize power in his own bid to take the Iron Throne, Baelish was exposed as the true architect of the deaths of Jon Arryn and Lysa Arryn, and the War of the Five Kings, which saw the deaths of countless innocent people for a false cause. He was executed for his crimes on the order of Sansa Stark, bringing an end to his schemes once and for all.

Through his power of the Sight, Bran previously discovered that his believed half-brother Jon Snow was, in fact, the son of Rhaegar Targaryen and Lyanna Stark. However, this revelation was only part of the truth. When Samwell Tarly decided to leave his studies at the Citadel in Oldtown and go to Winterfell to return to Jon's side, Sam told Bran that Rhaegar had his marriage to Elia Martell annulled by the High Septon so he could marry Lyanna Stark. Bran confirmed their wedding via the Sight and discovered that Jon was born Aegon Targaryen, named by Lyanna. This means that not only is Jon legitimate but, as revealed by Bran, Jon is the true heir to the Targaryen dynasty, and an heir to the Iron Throne ahead of Daenerys herself, which may or may not have consequences for their newly formed alliance.

Episodes[]

No. Image Title Air date Viewers
1.[9] Thrones S08E01 "Winterfell"[9] April 14, 2019[3] 11.76[citation needed]
Season 8 Premiere. Arriving at Winterfell, Jon and Daenerys struggle to unite a divided North.[1]
2.[10] Thrones S08E02 "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms"[10] April 21, 2019[3] 10.29[citation needed]
Jaime argues his case before a skeptical audience.[1]
3.[11] Thrones S08E03 "The Long Night"[11] April 28, 2019[3] 12.02[citation needed]
Arya looks to prove her worth as a fighter.[1]
4.[13] Thrones S08E04 "The Last of the Starks"[13] May 5, 2019[3] 11.80[citation needed]
In the wake of a costly victory, Jon and Daenerys look to the south as Tyrion eyes a compromise that could save countless lives.[1]
5.[14] Thrones S08E05 "The Bells"[14] May 12, 2019[3] 12.48[citation needed]
Daenerys and Cersei weigh their options as an epic conflict looms at King's Landing.[1]
6.[12] Thrones S08E06 "The Iron Throne"[12] May 19, 2019[3] 13.60[citation needed]
Series finale. The fate of the Seven Kingdoms is at stake as the final chapter of Game of Thrones is written.[1]

Cast[]

Main page: Game of Thrones: Season 8/Cast

Starring[]

Guest starring[]

Crew[]

Producers[]

Writers[]

Directors[]

Production[]

Pre-production[]

For a time in January 2017, Season 8 renewal was put on indefinite hold, due to a disagreement between HBO and the showrunners over the number of episodes it would contain. While originally Benioff and Weiss stated they intended 7 episodes for Season 7 and 6 for Season 8, apparently there was some internal pushback that they should make more than six episodes (whether for story reasons or purely business/budget reasons is unclear).[19] At their SXSW panel on March 12, 2017, Benioff and Weiss announced that Season 8 will consist of the originally planned six episodes. No new writers will be introduced: Dave Hill will write the first episode, Bryan Cogman the second episode, then Benioff and Weiss will divide up the remaining four. George R.R. Martin will not be returning to script another episode.

On September 26, 2017, the directors for Season 8 were confirmed: the first five episodes will be divided up between returning directors David Nutter and Miguel Sapochnik. Fabian Wagner, Sapochnik's director of photography, confirmed he is working on episodes 3 and 5, leaving episodes 1, 2 and 4 for Nutter. David Benioff & D.B. Weiss will themselves direct the series finale, as they have worked as directors on several episodes in prior TV seasons.[20][21]

Filming[]

Filming officially began on October 23, 2017[22], and ended on July 6, 2018.

In Northern Ireland, production began in October 2017. Interior shooting returned to the show's headquarters, the Paint Hall Studios in Belfast as well as Linen Mill Studios in Banbridge. Meanwhile, intensive location shooting has taken place at the Winterfell set in Moneyglass. Throughout 2018, extensive shooting took place at a Magheramorne green screen set, which was used to re-create King's Landing.[23] Filming also took place at the Cushendun caves, standing in for Dragonstone cave first seen in season 7.[24]

By January 2018, production crews had moved to Iceland for location filming commencing in February.[25]

Production also returned to Dubrovnik, Croatia, in February 2018, with supposedly brief shooting scheduled at multiple locations, including Fort Lovrijenac, the Pile Bay[26], Minceta Tower[27] and Bokar Fortress[28].

In May 2018, production returned to Spain. Shooting commenced in Seville to shoot Dragonpit scenes in Itálica, with many cast members present for the week-long shoot, said to be similar to its large setpiece in the seventh season.[29]

Episode runtimes[]

The first episode of the season has a runtime of 54 minutes, the second episode has a runtime of 58 minutes, the third episode has a runtime of 82 minutes, the fourth and fifth episodes have a runtime of 78 minutes each, and the sixth and final episode has a runtime of 79 minutes.

Home video[]

Season 8 Blu-ray and DVD box sets were released on December 3, 2019. They are available from Amazon.com, which prices the Blu-ray set at $44.99 and the DVD set at $34.95.

Features on the DVD release include:

The Blu-ray release with Digital Copy includes all of the features on the DVD set, plus:

  • A digital copy of the entire season
  • Game of Thrones: Reunion Special: A reunion show shot live in Belfast with the cast, both past and present, hosted by Conan O'Brien and available exclusively on these complete series collections. The reunion special is assembled in segments focused on Houses Lannister, Stark, and Targaryen and concludes with the key players all onstage for their final reflections on the years they shared in Westeros and Essos.

In the books[]

Main page: Differences in adaptation/Game of Thrones: Season 8

All the plotlines of this season are far ahead of the point the novels reached; a few scenes of it are based on scenes from the novels.

Gallery[]

Videos[]

ForTheThrone[]

Trailers[]

Inside Game of Thrones[]

World Premiere[]

The Cast Remembers[]

Behind the scenes[]

Reunion[]

Images[]

Posters[]

Screenshots[]

Promotional stills[]

Advertising[]

References[]

  1. 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 Game of Thrones: Season 8. HBO. Retrieved February 25, 2023.
  2. 2.0 2.1 Game of Thrones. HBO. Retrieved February 22, 2023.
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 GAME OF THRONES (HBO). The Futon Critic. Retrieved February 23, 2023.
  4. Game of Thrones: The Complete Eighth Season (2019).
  5. Dan Selcke (November 25, 2019). New History and Lore videos explore Maegor the Cruel, the Blackfyre rebellion, and more. Winter is Coming. Retrieved December 15, 2023.
  6. 6.00 6.01 6.02 6.03 6.04 6.05 6.06 6.07 6.08 6.09 6.10 6.11 6.12 6.13 6.14 6.15 6.16 6.17 6.18 6.19 6.20 6.21 6.22 6.23 6.24 6.25 6.26 6.27 6.28 6.29 6.30 Game of Thrones: Season 8, Episode 1: "Winterfell" (2019).
  7. Game of Thrones: Season 8, Episode 3: "The Long Night" (2019).
  8. Game of Thrones: Season 8, Episode 2: "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms" (2019).
  9. 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 Winterfell. HBO. Retrieved February 22, 2023.
  10. 10.0 10.1 10.2 A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. HBO. Retrieved February 22, 2023.
  11. 11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 11.4 The Long Night. HBO. Retrieved February 22, 2023.
  12. 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 The Iron Throne. HBO. Retrieved February 22, 2023.
  13. 13.0 13.1 The Last of the Starks. HBO. Retrieved February 22, 2023.
  14. 14.0 14.1 The Bells. HBO. Retrieved February 22, 2023.
  15. Game of Thrones panel at SXSW provides insight into show, seasons 7 and 8 details
  16. [1]
  17. [2]
  18. [3]
  19. indeterminate hold
  20. [4]
  21. http://watchersonthewall.com/miguel-sapochnik-directing-two-season-8-episodes-dp-fabian-wagner-confirms/
  22. [5]
  23. [6]
  24. [7]
  25. [8]
  26. [9]
  27. [10]
  28. [11]
  29. [12]

Notes[]

  1. In "Winter Is Coming," which takes place in 298 AC, Sansa Stark tells Cersei Lannister that she is 13 years old and Bran Stark tells Jaime Lannister that he is 10 years old. Arya Stark was born between Sansa and Bran, making her either 11 or 12 in Season 1. The rest of the Stark children have been aged up by 2 years from their book ages, so it can be assumed that she is 11 in Season 1. Arya is 18 in Season 8 according to HBO, which means at least 7 years occur in the span of the series; therefore, each season of Game of Thrones must roughly correspond to a year in-universe, placing the events of Season 8 in 305 AC.

External links[]


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