Twenty months of waiting.
So many cryptic photos.
The trailer we watched endlessly.
Credit: HBO
The actors who gave such exciting yet vague teases.
Finally, the biggest show in the world is backand EW’s deep-dive recaps along with it.
In theGame of Thronesseason 8 opener, Arya reacts to things.
Sansa is totally unimpressed.
Daenerys looks like she’s itching to torch Winterfell.
And Jon gets bad news/much worse news in a stunning premiere full of epic grandeur and major confrontations.
Let’s dive straight in: The season starts with two surprises.
First, the credits.
You expected a tweak or two in the animated pop-up map for season 8.
But the changes just kept coming.
The Wall is broken.
Winter is “freezing' the titles across the map.
We goinsidethe crypts of Winterfell!
How many new Easter Eggs are in this?
It’s a major overhaul and quite cool.
The second surprise is otherwise how traditional the season opens.
Instead, we jump right into the arrival of Daenerys at Winterfell.
Arya sees the boy and smiles (perhaps she’s having the same memory we are?).
She’s eager to get a view of the man she thinks is her brother, Jon Snow.
She peers darkly at the arrival of The Hound.
She’s pleased by Gendry.
She’s delighted at the flying dragons.
I already want to watch a whole hour of just Arya reacting to things.
We get an epic shot revealing Jon and Dany, swaggering on their horses, a badass-sexy-lethal power couple.
Ice and fire, side by side.
The grubby commoners glare at Dany.
Don’t worry, she won’t force you to bathe and/or commit incest.
“I warned you, Northerners don’t trust outsiders,” Jon says.
Courtyard: Jon embraces Sansa and immediately asks where’s Arya.
“Lurking somewhere,” Sansa drolly replies, her eyes going to Dany who waits for attention nearby.
Then we get the meeting we’ve been eagerly awaiting.
Dany (formal, yet making-an-effort warm-ish): “Thank you for inviting us into your home.
The North is as beautiful as your brother claimed, as are you.”
That’s some icy Northern frost right there.
What are they all thinking?
Dany:Your father helped murder my father, the rightful king, then sent me into exile.
After years of heroic struggle, I’m back to reclaim my throne.
Instead, I marched up herewhere it’sfreezing, by the wayto try and secure your ungrateful butts.
Andthis isthe welcome I get?
Sansa:Your crazy father burned my grandfather and uncle alive.
We thought we got rid of your family, and now you’re back.
Also, your coat is totally bougie.
And shouldn’t you really update that three-headed dragon pin?
Jon:c’mon like each other.
I love you both.
Can’t you get along and just go braid each other’s hair or something?
The Night King is coming!
Oh for fk’s sake…
Bran:110010101001011000101010….
The Wall has fallen.
The dead march south.”
Dany looks at Bran like:Who the hell isthisguy?
And can he tell me what’s going on back in Meereen?
Has it fallen into chaos since I left?
It’s not like I care, but I am curious.
The Great Hall:We learn Sansa has called all the Northern Bannerman to Winterfell.
“I had a choice.
Keep my crown or protect the North.
I choose the North.”
Nobody in this show or watching this show actually believes him.
Pragmatic Sansa complains about having to feed Dany’s army and her dragons.
you might just feel the Mother of Dragon’s temperature rise at this.
How dare Sansa treat her children like a burden, after all she’s gone through to acquire them?
“What do dragons eat, anyway?”
Sansa asks, totally setting Dany up to fire back: “Whatever they want.”
Dany doesn’t need dragons to throw down a burn.
Jon is literally stuck between them, practically tugging at his collar.
Jon is rightly impressed she managed to keep Needle (“Have you ever used it?”
he asks, which drew a big laugh from the premiere screening crowd).
This is a rather neat way of re-introducing her character with a single word.
The loathsome Euron wants to bed Cersei, for a couple of reasons.
The second, as he states, is the guy wants to have sex with a queen.
You get the impression that for Euron, any queen will do.
Cersei resists, trying to keep Euron firmly in her “true friend to the crown”-zone.
But Euron throws down a combination of arrogant charm, pleas, and vague threats.
Cersei cannot afford to lose Euron’s support.
He’s the last useful ally she’s got.
NoticeSer Pounce is nowhere to be seen.
“The ginger?”
“That’s him.”
“Came back with his face burnt off.”
“He’s got no eyelids now.”
“How does he sleep with no eyelids?”
Not just any crossbow, but the same Tyrion used to kill their father Tywin on the loo.
“That fking family,” rightly groans Bronn.
No wonder Theon wants to return to the Starks.
Advisors Tyrion, Varys, and Ser Davos are on the ramparts.
Davos thinks Jon and Dany should marry and unite the Starks and Targaryens.
The trio also contemplates their usefulness in the face of the young lovers' passions and gets all existential.
“Nothing lasts.”
Varys is the only character who can out-brood Jon Snow.
Meanwhile, Dany is concerned about Sansa’s obvious disrespect.
“Your sister doesn’t like me,” she tells Jon.
“She doesn’tknowyou,” Jon assures as if they’re on aBachelorhometown date.
“I am her queen,” Dany bristles.
Jon and Dany go out to check on her dragons after hearing they’re not eating enough.
They don’t like the North either.
Dany tells her boyfriend to mount up, and he’s understandably anxious.
“What if he doesn’t want me to?”
I love that Jon wants to get clear dragon consent.
“You’ve completely ruined horses for me,” Jon says afterward as they stop for a break.
They notice a dark cave nearby.
“We could stay 1,000 years,” Dany notes wistfully.
“No one would find us.”
The duo begin making out and Jon hilariously is distracted by a Drogon gawking at them.
(Once again Dragon is probably thinking:Girl, you know he’s your nephew, right?
Not that we judge).
Do they always smell like this?
Can’t it breathe more fire?").
“I’m telling you it doesn’t matter who holds what title,” Jon insists.
“Without her we don’t stand a chance … She’ll be a good queen.
She’s not her father.”
Sansa shoots back: “Did you bend the knee to save the North?
Or because you love her?”
Privately thinks Dany:This Winterfell meeting, at least, should go swimmingly!
Sam awkwardly notes he could use a pardon for borrowing a few books from the Citadel.
He leaves that bit out, but you know it’s racing around in his mind like a squirrel.
She can’t even tell poor Sam she’s sorry, because being queen means standing by your decisions.
Sam takes this pretty wellwhy, he never liked his jerk father much anyway.
But at least he’s still got his cool brother Dickon, right?…Right?
Hey Sam: Is there anybody else you care about that you want to mention to Dany right now?
Go for three out of three?
Last Hearth: Remember that Lord Umber moppet who popped up in the Great Hall at the beginning?
Here Tormunhaving survived The Wall collapseis with Dolorous Edd and Beric Dondarrion at Last Hearth.
This is a location just south of Castle Black (and far north of Winterfell).
Beric lights up his sword, because that’s what Beric does.
I bet Beric does this when just hanging out in pubs.
The trio are wary as everything is barren and spooky.
They discover little Lord Umber chopped into one of those spirals the White Walkers love to leave behind.
Suddenly the dead little lordscreams(the premiere audience jumped) and the trio of heroes set him ablaze.
Jon is thrilled to see his good buddy, just as Dany was happy to greet Sam earlier.
Nobody is making anything easy on Sam.
He gives Jon the big news: “You’rethe true heir to the Iron Throne.”
And how does Jon react?
Joner, Aegonis …pissed.
Jon doesn’t want the Iron Throne.
He never wanted it.
Now that’s all been ripped from him, including a father figure who means so much.
And hold up … um, just one thing here.
And Sam shoots back: “It’s the truth.
You gave up your crown to stash your people.
Would she do the same?”
Because we don’t think Dany would give up her crown, do we?
That’s some next-level writing.
So is Jon going to tell Dany?
If he does, how’s she going to take it?
Even scarier: How would Sansa take it?
Scariest: How would Lyanna Mormont take it?
Courtyard: A hooded figure comes through the castle gates and dismounts.
Here’s Jaime Lannister, looking pleased to have arrived undetected and spots
A young man in a wheelchair.
Why’s he staring at me?
Again: Oh st.
Overall this hour set the table for the rest of the season while also having a few major moments.
So many dramatic hooks put in place for the rest of the season.
More thoughts about the episode in the podcast coming Monday.
Also an explainer: WhyJon has a better claimthan Daenerys.
Premierewriter Dave Hill breaks down all the big moments.
Watch the promo for season 8 episode 2 and the new opening credits online.
Lena Headey discusses her initial reluctanceto have Cersei sleep with Euron.
And Nikolaj Coster-Waldau revealswhat Jaime is thinking when he sees Bran.
Also: We’re doing aGame of Thronesseason 8 gift giveaway!
Each week during the season we’re giving away three bundle packs of multiple goodies from theHBO Store.
This week: Bundles of four Daenerys items.
Just answer a trivia question that will be in the recap.
This week’s question is an easy one: What ranger did Jon have to kill beyond the wall?
Note: While the first episode was screened in advance, the remaining episodes will not be.
