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Every Episode of ‘Game of Thrones’ Ranked

When you rank the episodes of Game of Thrones, you win or you die.
Game Of Thrones Episodes Ranked
By  · Published on March 24th, 2019

60. The Red Woman (Season 6, Episode 1)

They could’ve brought Jon Snow back in this episode. I’m just saying. The big problem with the season 6 premiere is that it wallows in the same misery that plagued much of season 5, providing ample reminder that the previous season was a real downer. On the side of wins, Sansa and Theon are rescued from the Bolton Hound Brigade by Brienne (and to a lesser extent, Pod). Bonus points for adding to the mythology around Melisandre and her necklace, but in context, those bonus points are later taken back when the fact that the titular Red Woman is super old is ultimately never explored further.


59. Breaker of Chains (Season 4, Episode 3)

Sorry Game of Thrones, that Cersei and Jaime scene didn’t do it for me, and I’m not alone. Unlike “Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken,” which was a culmination of bad decisions, the “let me rape you next to our son’s rotting corpse” scene was directly adapted from the books. Only, the show’s reading is a little off. What was a consensual — albeit messed up — situation got turned into some dark incestuous assault. Not great, even by Lannister standards. Daenerys does hurl barrels full of broken chains at Meereen (a little on the nose, but still fun), but it’s overshadowed by the show’s bungling of what comes after Joffrey’s death. All made further ironic by Sam’s decision to move Gilly into a brothel to keep her safe. That logic is — what do they call it? — problematic.


58. Valar Dohaeris (Season 3, Episode 1)

“Valor Dohaeris” is another tough transitional episode, this time opening what would become one of the show’s two most explosive seasons. It provides an introduction to several great characters — Giants, Mance Rayder, Tormund Giantsbane, Maester Qyburn and Missandei — but it also does a lot of walking and talking the Westerosi way. Like Robb Stark’s army, audiences went into this episode tired and hungry, and all we got was a few nights stay at Harrenhal.


57. The Night Lands (Season 2, Episode 2)

“The Night Lands” is what I like to call “The Crisis of Confidence” episode. Ros doesn’t want to be a prostitute anymore; Theon isn’t sure he wants to be loyal to Rob anymore; Daenerys wonders if she’s led her khalasar to certain doom, and Sam meets Gilly and begins thinking about breaking some of Craster’s big rules. The only memorable thing was — and this goes for many episodes — the final shot. “What the hell is Craster doing with that baby? Oh, hell no.” Oh, hell yes.


56. First of His Name (Season 4, Episode 5)

If it hadn’t been for the fiery battle at Craster’s Keep and the near-miss of Bran seeing Jon Snow for the last time, “First of His Name” would have been a complete waste of Michelle MacLaren’s directorial talent. Otherwise, it’s mostly just Podrick annoying Brienne and Sansa eating lemon cakes with her creepy aunt. It’s also the episode in which Daenerys almost decides to ditch Meereen and sail to Westeros, leading thousands of fan voices to scream “do it!” only to be disappointed.


55. Sons of the Harpy (Season 5, Episode 4)

“Sons of the Harpy” ends with a shock, but one that perplexed many book readers. How can the show kill of Ser Barristan Selmy so early in the season? They did, and while it worked out just fine, it was a weird example of the show going for the shock value in spite of its source material. Sometimes this works, sometimes it fails miserably. This episode falls somewhere in the middle. The two most important things that happen here are that Melisandre shows an interest in Jon Snow, and Sansa learns some history about her aunt, Lyanna from Littlefinger. Both of those things feel like they might be important later.


54. Dragonstone (Season 7, Episode 1)

The season 7 premiere is bookended nicely by two scenes that reach way back into the past — two journeys coming to fruition, in a way. The opening is Arya Stark’s revenge upon House Frey. They won’t soon forget that one in the Riverlands. Nor will fans of Daenerys Targaryen forget the last few minutes of the episode, in which The Mother of Dragons finally returns to her ancestral home, the great Targaryen castle after which this episode is named. The gooey middle of the episode is a frantic relay race trying to catch up with storylines left battered by seasons five and six. It’s a lot of table-setting, a little bit of Ed Sheeran, and Bran being weird. It’s fine.


53. The Kingsroad (Season 1, Episode 2)

“The Kingsroad” is a middling episode about the life and death of Sansa’s dire wolf (and the stable boy, I guess). But it gets moved up the list for delivering the single most GIF-able moment of the entire show, in which Tyrion smacks Prince Joffrey. It’s pretty glorious. Brilliant enough to overshadow the moment in which Ned tells Jon Snow that the next time they see each other, they’ll talk about Jon’s mother. That’s some cold-blooded foreshadowing, right there.


52. The House of Black and White (Season 5, Episode 2)

We spend most of “The House of Black and White,” another poorly ranked second episode, sitting outside the titular Non-denominational Murder Church with Arya. It’s an episode all about rejection. The kindly man rejects Arya; Stannis is denied help by the 10-year old in charge of House Mormont, and Sansa Stark rebukes Brienne’s offer of protection. It ends with a beautiful piece of visual effects work when Daenerys is visited by her child Drogon, who just stopped home to drop off some laundry. Typical teenager.


51. Blood of My Blood (Season 6, Episode 6)

Midseason episodes Game of Thrones come in two different varieties. There are piece-moving episodes and there are tire-kicking episodes. The latter applies to “Blood of My Blood,” an episode in which we get check-ins with the likes of Bran, Arya, Walder Frey, and Team Silly (Sam and Gilly). Beyond the late night theft of a Valyrian steel sword, not a lot happens that can later be seen as more than idle scene-chewing.


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Neil Miller is the persistently-bearded Publisher of Film School Rejects, Nonfics, and One Perfect Shot. He's also the Executive Producer of the One Perfect Shot TV show (currently streaming on HBO Max) and the co-host of Trial By Content on The Ringer Podcast Network. He can be found on Twitter here: @rejects (He/Him)