What to Expect from Season 8 of Game of Thrones

And How to Stream It as Soon as It Airs

 

9.5/10 on IMDb.

9/10 on TV.com.

94% on Rotten Tomatoes.

What do these fabulous scores have in common?

They all belong to the hit drama Game of Thrones.

This spring, the cultural phenomenon is returning to our screens for an eighth and final season. And if the rumors are any true, it will be a TV experience like no other. With an ending to shatter all expectations.

In the words of the Dothraki, me nem nesa. Here’s what is it known.

Winter is finally coming

It’s been about a year and eight months since the Season 7 finale, and we’ve been anxiously waiting to discover the fate of the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros and who’ll get to sit atop the Iron Throne.

Here’s what the Game of Thrones trailers reveal about the highly anticipated final season:

Mark your calendars for Season 8 of Game of Thrones

The new season of GoT packs so much drama and action, that it’s rumored to be more like 6 movies than a TV show. And even the runtimes seem to confirm this.

Get ready to immerse yourself once again in the worlds of Westeros and Essos. These are the dates you should be saving for the final Game of Thrones episodes.

Episode
Date
Runtime
Episode 1
April 14, 2019
54 minutes
Episode 2
April 21, 2019
58 minutes
Episode 3
April 28, 2019
82 minutes
Episode 4
May 5, 2019
78 minutes
Episode 5
May 12, 2019
80 minutes
Episode 6
May 19, 2019
80 minutes

Each episode airs at 9:00 PM (ET/PT) on HBO.

How to watch Game of Thrones

If you want to rewatch Game of Thrones or if you’re new to the series, now’s the time to catch up on all the details.

To date, there are 7 fully transmitted seasons, with 67 episodes in total.

In light of recent revelations, it will be particularly impressive to hit replay on the second season.

It was shot right after Emilia Clarke survived severe brain surgery for an aneurysm and was in tremendous pain. You can read the remarkable story she penned for The New Yorker here.

To immerse yourself in the world of ASOIAF as soon as the new episodes are available on HBO in the States, you’ll need a VPN. So, we’ve put together this handy guide on how to watch Game of Thrones for you. Check it out also how our VPN can unblock all other streaming services and watch your favorite shows.

And, as always with this pop culture phenomenon, prepare to expect the unexpected.

A recap of Game of Thrones

It’s been almost 8 years since the TV adaptation of George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire series hit the screens.

The most recent seasons don’t follow the books, and A LOT has happened.

So, before we dive into more details, maybe take a moment and brush up on your GoT knowledge.

And be warned. From here on, the night is long and full of spoilers.

Deaths per season

When you play a game of thrones, you win or you die. And throughout the first seven seasons, thousands have met their end. Here’s a breakdown of exactly how many lives have been lost so far:

Season
Number of deaths
1
59
2
130
3
87
4
181
5
246
6
540
7
1096

The most lethal killer?

Could it be John Snow with his heroic efforts in the battle on the frozen lake? (S7, E6)

Nope.

What about Rhaegal, one of the dragons that accompanied John during that same battle, wiping out hordes of wight walkers?

Not quite.

The only character capable of topping Rhaegal’s impressive kill total of 171: Cersei Lannister.

I mean, killing 198 people in the explosion at the Great Sept of Baelor is pretty ruthless. (S6, E10)

What to look forward to in Season 8

In Season 8, everyone is in serious jeopardy. Winter is coming, the White Walkers are approaching, the throne is as coveted as ever, and everything could change in the blink of an eye.

But season 8 is also all about girl power.

Sansa has become a leader in her own right. We’ve seen her grow, take on challenges, and become the master of her own fate. Will she be the new Queen in the North?

via GIPHY

Arya seems to be on her own difficult path to transformation. She’s leaving behind her innocence, but she still has unfinished business. And will she end up with Gendry, as the clues seem to suggest?

We’re eagerly waiting to find out.

via GIPHY

Oh, and Arya’s reunion with Jon Snow is guaranteed to be a real tear-jerker, since they’ve spent so much time apart.

via GIPHY

Cersei, as usual, is trapped in a web of her own making. Will she be queen after the snow melts? Or will Jaime have finally had enough and kill her, as some theories speculate?

via GIPHY

Finally, in this season, Brienne is treated like an equal. But what will her final faith be? Will she discover love for Tormund or stick with Jaime?

via GIPHY

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Missandei and Grey Worm finally accept their love for each other. But with all the impending doom, we can’t even know if they will survive.

via GIPHY

Tyrion seems to be trying to figure out who he really is in a storm of negotiations. Will Season 8 be the moment when we’ll have to say goodbye to our favorite Lannister sibling?

via GIPHY

And speaking of Lannister brothers, it seems like Jaime will finally decide to do what he believes is right.

via GIPHY

Keeping it in the realm of family, it looks like we’re also going to be getting a Clegane reunion. It’s time they square each other up and face their demons.

via GIPHY

As everyone seems to be coming together, tensions are high, and plot twists are to be expected. But by the beginning of this summer, we’ll know how it all ends.

via GIPHY

All eyes on Jon Snow & Dany

Remember that scene of Jon Snow and Dany making sweet, sweet love? Well, in Season 8, it will be the cause of a lot of torment.

The problem?

Incest.

Eh, but what’s a little incest in a show where even weddings involve stabbing?

Jon’s world will be turned upside down, as he’ll find out that yes, he’s a bastard; but he’s the bastard son of Prince Rhaegar Targaryen. The same one who’s Dany’s older brother.

Dany is Jon’s aunt.

To Jon, the news will be like a sledgehammer. Even though the world looked like it was about to end, he was finally in love and knew who he was.

But things are also complicated for Dany. She’s been working her entire life to get to the throne, knowing it’s hers. Now, she has to deal with the news that her nephew-lover is actually the rightful heir.

Here’s what D.B. Weiss, one of the show creators, said about this to TV Insider:

From a dramatic standpoint, [the truth about Dany and Jon] makes things interesting, because the story is no longer about who Jon’s parents are. It’s about what happens when Jon finds out.

Talk about a plot twist!

A battle like TV has never seen before

One of the most popular episodes of GoT is “Battle of the Bastards” in Seasons 6. It’s when Jon and Sansa face Ramsay Bolton on the fields of Winterfell.

The battle is one of the most impressive scenes in television. The 20-minute segment took 25 days to shoot.

But now, we’ve been promised something even bigger, with more impressive special effects and the highest level of quality.

The biggest battle of Game of Thrones will occur in Season 8, Episode 3.

Humans will finally face the White Walkers and living dragons will get a whiff of a dead dragon.

To get a feel of just how big this is going to be, you should know the inevitable clash took 55 nights to shoot in Belfast.

55!

And since this happens in the middle of the season, it leaves us with Episodes 4, 5, and 6 to tie loose ends in the story.

Anything could happen in Season 8

You’re going to need therapy. I think just the show ending is going to send all of the world into professional help

The cast of the show has been particularly tight-lipped about the final installment of the show.

Gwendoline Christie, aka Brienne of Tarth, warned us things will be intense.

And here’s Kit Harington beating around the season finale’s bush:

So, as you emotionally prepare yourself for the potential death of your favorite character, maybe keep in mind something Littlefinger once told Sansa: Everyone is your enemy. Everyone is your friend. Live that way and nothing will surprise you.

Keep up with the Game of Thrones cast

If you want to peek some more behind the scenes of GoT, the best way to do it is by turning to social media.

You’ll be in for treats just like this one:

Here are some of the social media accounts of the cast you should be following:

Actor
Twitter
Instagram
Carice van Houten
Jack Gleeson
Nope 🙁
Jerome Flynn
Nope 🙁
Nathalie Emmanuel
Nikolaj Coster-Waldau
Sibel Kekilli
Nope 🙁
Sophie Turner

If you’re after some of the people behind the show, here they are:

Name
Role
Twitter
David J. Peterson
Linguist for conlangs
D.B. Weiss
Producer
George R.R. Martin
Writer
Jane Espenson
Writer
Ramin Djawadi
Main composer

Bend the knee and support them all.

 

If you’ve been busy theory-crafting, give me your take on the final season of Game of Thrones in the comments section below. 👇

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