Game of Thrones Season 8 Episode 5 Review: We Can See The Bittersweet End Nearing, The Bells Are Indeed Ringing

It’s carnage, both in King’s Landing and in our hearts as the bittersweet end that everyone was talking about is finally looming in the horizon. Varys is dead, Euron is dead, Sandor and Gregor Clegane are dead, Jaime and Cersei are dead, Jon and Dany’s love is dead and the city of King Landing has become the land of the dead.

The episode starts on a tragic note as Lord Varys, who has been a fan favorite from Season 1 is executed, or rather burned by dragon fire on the orders of Daenerys on the accusation of treason. At this point, everyone who has the slightest suspicion about Daenerys’ right to the Iron Throne is committing treason in her eyes. The moment we hear Varys speaking to Jon Snow about him being a better choice for the throne as Tyrion looked over them, we knew Varys’ end was near.

This episode was solely dedicated to confirming the growing notion that Daenerys has inherited her father’s qualities and is slowly becoming the Mad Queen. Daenerys is the Mad Queen now and she proves that by ‘burning them all’. Despite the King’s Landing surrendering after Tyrion’s many efforts, Daenerys literally burns the city and the Red Keep to the ground doing exactly what Tyrion and Varys were worried she would do, become the Queen the Ashes. Dany fulfills her vision of House of the Undying, just that what we thought was snow that was falling from the open sky in the throne room of the Red Keep, but it was ashes that were falling from the battered roof of the majestic palace that Daenerys completely destroys with her one dragon.

The makers have tried to bring all the best parts from all the great scenes of the show. There is the sense of claustrophobia from the Battle of Bastards as Arya and Jaime try to push through the maddening crowd of King’s Landing trying to get inside the gates of the Red Keep. The city of King’s Landing burning as Cersei stands in the balcony reminded of the day when she blew up the grand Sept of Baelor.

In this episode filled with blood and tears, it is the Lannister siblings that bring some human qualities to it. Jaime and Tyrion sharing a pure moment reflecting their brotherly love and Jaime finally proving the Valanquar theory by convincing Cersei to surrender to her end along with him were the scenes where heartbreak was at its worst. The life in the show has indeed come to a full circle.

As Arya almost rises from the ashes like Phoenix, shushes a scared horse and rides off with a purpose gleaming in her battered eyes, we know perhaps what is going to happen. It is the end of everything, everyone ever held dear, it is truly the end of the show. Curtains are just about to fall and we do not know if we want to see the end.