GAME OF THRONES “The Wars to Come” Review

Has the wait been worth it? Or is this premiere just the calm before the storm? Read on to find out.

The official description from HBO:

Season 5 Premiere. Cersei and Jaime adjust to a world without Tywin. Varys reveals a conspiracy to Tyrion. Dany faces a new threat to her rule. Jon is caught between two kings.

Winter is back… or should I say coming (still). Either way, this statement can only mean one thing. Game of Thrones is back! Being one of, if not, the hottest shows on television, fans have certainly been eager for this return. Yes, many will still be pining over The Walking Dead’s season finale, or jubilant following Marvel’s Daredevil coming to Netflix, but I’m sure all that will be on the back burner to this. Having built into one of the most intense stories ever to grace the small screen, there has been a lot of questions surrounding this season, with certain news leaving readers of the books speculating as well.

Things have certainly changed since the start of season four (spoilers ahead for viewers yet to catch up). Not only have we seen the death of the young king, Joffrey Baratheon, but we’ve also seen the wildlings taken down a notch by the Nights Watch, and Tywin Lannister killed by his unwanted dwarf son, Tyrion. This has all lead to one of the most eventful episodes story wise, as though “The Wars to Come” isn’t the most exciting of episodes, it’s certainly eventful. It is however the way that showrunners David Benioff & D. B. Weiss balance these multiple narratives that really impressed, with their script having a fluid transition period between. Despite this, it did very much feel like a teaser for things to come, and though that was naturally always going to be the case, it prevents it from being one of the shows better entries.

Usually whenever I watch Game of Thrones, there’s one thing that goes through my mind: boy Peter Dinklage (Tyrion Lannister) is this show’s best actor. Though that isn’t proven the contrary in “The Wars to Come”, it isn’t quite as prominent. That isn’t to say that he doesn’t impress, more that he’s on equal footing to everyone else featured in this episode. Alongside Dinklage, the more notable actors have to be Kit Harington (Jon Snow) and Emilia Clarke (Daenerys Targaryen), as though they too don’t give their most memorable performances, they stand out a little more than the rest, with the former as ever giving a strong, caring attitude towards others (without being too naive), and the latter showing what it’s like to be seen as a ruler outside a true kingdom. The remaining side cast also do a solid job throughout, with each member helping things to flow smoothly.

Game of Thrones is most definitely back, as though “The Wars to Come” may not be one of the best episodes from the show so far, it definitely does a lot to build upon the story going forward. It also has some shocking moments for viewers, as though not to the extent of certain deaths, it will most certainly will have tongues wagging.