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Today, we continue our GoT countdown as we rank the 60th to the 51st best episode. While I'll still be critical of the episodes on this list, my harshness level should go down as we move up the ranking. As always, a spoiler warning is in effect for this list. Not much else to say, let's dive right into the next part of this list!
Photo: HBO
60. Dragonstone: Season 7, Episode 1
This episode kicks off with Arya killing the entire Frey house, which would have been cooler if we hadn't have seen her kill Walder during the season 6 finale. Outside of this, there are some solid scenes sprinkled throughout the episode, like the Brotherhood and the Hound finding the house where he stole silver from a man and his daughter, Jon taking charge as the King in the North, and Arya coming across a group of Lannister soldiers, one of which being Ed Sheeran. There are some scenes that feel like throwaways and filler, like Bran "proving" who he is by saying he saw Edd at the Fist of the First Men - which literally proves nothing, and Sam going through a gross montage of care at the Citadel. It's a decent start to season 7, but the show never really recovered after that.
59. No One: Season 6, Episode 8
This episodes irks me as somehow, Arya survives multiple stab wounds from the episode before, and then is able to run around and jump down from ledges during a chase without bleeding out. Tyrion also overestimates his wits and underestimates the masters as they come back for the slaves. Other than those two pieces of the episode, it's pretty solid overall. The Hound reunites with the Brotherhood, Brienne tries to persuade the Blackfish to give up Riverrun, and Dany returns to Mereen with Drogon and the Dothraki army. Minus two horrible sequences, this episode is a great lead up into the final two episodes of season 6.
58. The Red Woman: Season 6, Episode 1
Between the Night's Watch finding Jon Snow's dead body, Sansa and Reek running away from Ramsay's search party, and Jaime returning home to Cersei with Myrcella's corpse, this episode kicks off season 6 the right way. It coasts to the finish line, with Melisandre revealing she has been an old woman this whole time, using magic to keep herself young. We also see how Arya manages being completely blind, and Tyrion and Varys witness the fallout of Dany fleeing the city. I wish the scenes with Dany and the Dothraki were better, and Tyrion's dialogue wasn't reduced to jokes and stupidity, but overall it's an enjoyable start to a new season.
57. Blood of My Blood: Season 6, Episode 6
Similar to the the previous episode on this list, it's a decent one with some filler. Bran gets thrown into becoming the Three-Eyed Raven and sees everything, Margaery continues her mind games with the High Sparrow, and Daenerys reunites with Drogon. We do get another Braavosi play scene that is kind of bland, and the scenes in Horn Hill seem pretty boring in hindsight. We do see Benjen for the first time since season 1, as he saves Bran and Meera from some wights, and we learn he survived a White Walker attack by impaling himself with dragonglass. It's a good episode, but still left some substance to be desired.
56. The Door: Season 6, Episode 5
Is the infamous "Hold the Door" reveal one of the best scenes in the show? Of course, but it ends up meaning nothing in the long run. I will say, however, this is one of the last times in the show where a character meets an equal consequence for there actions. We also find out how the White Walkers came to be, and we see Dany forgive Jorah for his crimes in a heart wrenching scene. On the downside, we get introduced to Euron, arguably the worst character in the show in terms of portrayal and what he provides to the story, and we see the Braavosi play for the first time. It just feels like filler and added nothing substantial to the overall plot. This is a classic case of season 6 where some episodes have fantastic scenes, but the majority of the episode kind of feels messy.
55. Oathbreaker: Season 6, Episode 3
This episode is stocked with some great moments, like Jon coming back to life and executing those who betrayed him, most notably Alliser and Olly, Bran watching his father battle Ser Arthur Dayne, and Arya regaining her sight and starting her path to becoming no one. We also get reacquainted with Rickon and Osha, as Lord Umber captures them and brings them to Ramsay. Other than that, Tyrion is shown teaching drinking games to MIssandei and Grey Worm, rather than brainstorming on how to handle the masters, and we get some subpar scenes surrounding the High Sparrow and Tommen. It's not a bad episode by any means, but it's a common case of a season 6 episode leaving you wanting more substance.
Photo: HBO
54. The Broken Man: Season 6, Episode 7
The Hound survives! Sandor finds his way into a small village of worshipers, led by Ray, who ends up getting close with the Hound. Their interactions are intriguing, and Ray's death gives Sandor a new purpose. Margaery continues to fool the High Sparrow and hints to Olenna that she is still committed to the Tyrell family. Jon starts his recruiting efforts, Reek finds himself and becomes Theon again, and Jaime starts his siege on the Blackfish. This episode was doing great, until Arya somehow survives multiple stab wounds, then falling into a canal and walking all across town. Absolutely miraculous she didn't die this episode or the one after.
53. High Sparrow: Season 5, Episode 3
As the episode title implies, we meet the mastermind behind the initial downfall of the Lannister dynasty, the High Sparrow. His gentleness paired with seemingly innocent demeanor makes for a dangerous character, and he is exactly that throughout seasons 5 and 6. We also get a deeper look into Brienne as she tells the story of how Renly protected her and showed his true character, Tommen and Margaery get married, and Jorah abducts Tyrion while they're visiting Volantis. My one gripe with this episode is that Petyr makes a horrible gamble by giving Sansa away to the Boltons. He holds all the chips by keeping her around and would be better suited by taking Winterfell himself, since he has the Knights of the Vale to defend Winterfell for him. This would have effectively made him Warden of the North, especially if he ends up marrying Sansa.
52. Home: Season 6, Episode 2
This episode, we see Bran and company, as well as Rhaegal and Viserion, for the first time in a full season. Bran learns Hodor used to be able to talk, and Tyrion visits the catacombs to unchain the dragons. We get some solid conflict between Jaime and the High Sparrow, as he hints they could overthrow an empire. Ramsay also brings out his crazy side again, as he murders Roose, Walda, and her baby child so he has absolute claim to Winterfell. The episode ends with Melisandre bringing Jon back to life, and even though I think it's silly that her magic didn't work the first time she said it, it was sucha dope moment seeing Jon gasp for air and come back as the Prince Who Was Promised. Where some will think bringing him back to life was dumb, and even more so since his revival meant nothing to the overall story, I still think it's a good touch based on the principle that he should've been the one to end the Long Night.
51. Sons of the Harpy: Season 5, Episode 4
This episode starts to turn some plotlines on their heads. The Lannisters start to lose their grip on King's Landing, Dany starts to lose Mereen to the Sons of the Harpy, and Stannis realizes he needs to strike to Boltons before winter rolls in if he wants to win. The Tyrells also begin losing their power as Loras is captured by the Sparrows and Tommen fails to do anything about it. We learn more about Rhaegar through Sansa and Petyr, as well as Dany and Barristan, while also seeing Jaime and Bronn sneak into Dorne. The ending scene with Barristan fighting off as many Harpies as he can, even at his age, is a great piece of cinematography. The other scenes throughout the episode work well together, and it's a bright spot in a rather dull season.
Photo: HBO
Final Notes:
As we enter the top 50, don't be shocked if you see some episodes ranked lower than they usually are on a popular scale. There are some big episodes that have decent flaws that brought them down on my list, but are still good overall.
Join me next time as I rank the next 10 episodes from 50-41!
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