After bothering with life or death questions about Jon Snow for a year, the new season of Game of Thrones has finally returned, airing on HBO on Sunday and on Sky Atlantic on Monday. So, what better way to embrace the return of the Sand Snakes et al than by getting you to tell us what you think? We asked fans of the show to watch, and review the it. Here’s your verdict.
Jenny McCann, 41, Inverness
Rating: 5 out of 5 - “shocks and stuns even the toughest of fans”
The credits open and I am heartened to see Kit Harrington’s name. Perhaps this means that Jon Snow is alive after all. Sadly, no, he really is dead and the producers leave us in no doubt. Sir Davos enters and takes on the role of the audience, visibly shocked and horrified to see blood staining our noble protagonist’s luscious locks. I suspect he is to take the place of Jon Snow as our hero and I for one am delighted by this. I hope he survives long enough.
At Winterfell, Theon/Reek is redeeming himself by helping the hapless Sansa to escape. It’s a touching moment when Brienne of Tarth arrives to save them all and Sansa realises that she has been backing the wrong horse all along in the obsequious Littlefinger.
This encapsulates everything that Game of Thrones is good at – a heavy dose of violence, a good moral message and a touching moment all in one scene.
The ultimate shock comes from Melisandre, the Red Woman, who is so beautiful that men fall at her feet, yet on removing her locket, her beauty fades away and she is left old. Has she lost her faith and removed her locket to die? This is a sucker punch of a shock for the viewers and I’m delighted that Game of Thrones still has the power to unsettle our preconceptions in this way.
Danee Liz, 30, Manila
Rating 4.5 out of 5 - “it’s girl power in Game of Thrones”
In this episode women are not depicted as victims of circumstance but human beings who rise up. All throughout the episode we witness either women taking control or being praised by men. We see Ramsay Bolton look upon Myranda’s corpse and describe her as “fierce.” What’s more, without Sansa Stark, his claim to Winterfell is threatened by another woman: Lady Walder and her unborn child.
The Bolton men catch up with Sansa and Theon Greyjoy in the snow-covered forest outside of Winterfell, but it is Brienne of Tarth who saves them all by brutally slaying the Bolton contingent. So far things are looking up for women of Game of Thrones.
Katie Church, 33, Nottingham
Rating 4 out of 5: ‘Melisandre gives us the biggest shock’
Games of Thrones is possibly the most hotly anticipated television show return of the year, sorry The Walking Dead. As the epic title sequence rolls open we are pulled back to the fate of Jon Snow, Lord commander of the night’s watch. As the howls of Snow’s Direwolf echo around the compound of Castle Black we see him lying bloodied in the snow. He is dead and from that moment I am hooked again.
The episode does its job in refreshing our minds of the stories for the majority of the main characters but it’s disappointingly in that we only see each for five to 10 minutes. It’s the name sake of the episode, The Red Woman, Melisandre, who gives the biggest lead in to what hopes to be a dramatic twist. She brings the biggest shocker as the episode ends when we see the witch’s true self. A full to the brim fantastic episode.
Jon Stapley, 26, London
Rating 4 out of 5: ‘it’s a setup episode, putting pieces in place’
It’s been too long since I saw someone get a spear through the face – Game of Thrones, welcome back. In 50 minutes that are busy, pacey and surprisingly funny (if at times frustrating) season six’s premiere makes me optimistic about the next nine weeks.
It’s a setup episode, putting pieces in place – only one storyline is visited more than once, and not a lot technically happens. Emblematic of this is the final scene, which while intriguing, doesn’t particularly raise the stakes or change the game. Indeed this scene may elicit anger and annoyance more than anything, as the episode bows out with several key questions (including that big one) still unanswered.
However, this has all the ingredients of great Game of Thrones – the performances are sublime, the dialogue sings, and when it ends you have fewer names to remember than when it started. It gives you confidence that when resolutions come, it will be worth the wait.
Khulani Nyathi, 22, Surrey
Rating 4 out of 5: ‘this could be the most controversial season’
The first episode was solid and should be taken for what it is, story progression. First, lets get the obvious out the way: the dialogue with the Dornish sand snakes was questionable; Doran and Tristane Martell’s deaths were premature (a waste of good actors); and I don’t believe Doran’s bodyguard got killed with a butter knife. Also Jorah and Daario found a ring in the middle of a field? Doubt it. Another gripe came from the scene where Golum Melisandre took her necklace off and reverted back to her catfish self despite her being previously shown without it in season four episode seven. Despite those minor issues, however, it was a solid set up for what I think will be the most controversial season in regards to spoilers and plot holes.
Giulia Rotstein, 21, Rio de Janeiro
Rating 3 out of 5: ‘much was left unresolved’
After last year’s finale with the cliffhanger about Jon Snow’s death, Game Of Thrones returns with a great episode, including brutal deaths and a major revelation about one important character: the Red Woman. Nevertheless, did the episode give everything that fans were expecting?
From my perspective it was just a teaser on what this current season will give us in the future. The episode tried to mention all the plots that were left unsolved last season. However, it turned out that the episode was a little bit superficial, a variety of storylines were explored, but not in great detail.
Regardless of that, the episode had a highlight: the clash of Sansa, Theon. The scene was a blast; it was full of emotions and all the actors were marvellous. Back to The Wall, we had the shocking revelation about Melisandre’s age and the power of that red stone, which it seems preserves her youth. Furthermore, it seems Jon Snow is really still dead, but for how long?
Emma Davies, 27, Bath
Rating 3 out of 5: ‘there was a lot of hopping about’
Wait, what? So he’s still ...? Easily the biggest surprise from this episode was what didn’t happen, rather than what did. With Jon Snow’s presumed resurrection at the hands of slinky fire lady Melisandre disappointingly absent, the revelation that the Red Woman is actually more hag than head-turner once she removes her necklace turned out to be the hour’s one curveball.
Poor, beleaguered Sansa finally tucking herself under Brienne of Tarth’s protective wing upon her rescue from the wilds outside Winterfell offered a genuine “yes” moment. The scale of certain scenes – particularly a Dothraki khalasar – was impressive, but the emphasis here was much more on breadth than depth. Meereen burning, Ser Davos and a ragtag gang of allies planning to avenge Snow, the Sand Snakes taking out the ruling men of Dorne. It was a lot of hopping about, with not enough time to set up much real tension on any thread.
Overall, this felt more like a mid-season episode than a bombastic season opener. But with the weight of a year of everyone spent wildly theorising over that cliffhanger, could anything have lived up to expectations?
