This structural storytelling era of the show lasted through the seasons when it was based on the novels by George R. In fact, the souring of Game of Thrones exposes a fundamental shortcoming of our storytelling culture in general: we don’t really know how to tell sociological stories.Īt its best, GOT was a beast as rare as a friendly dragon in King’s Landing: it was sociological and institutional storytelling in a medium dominated by the psychological and the individual. It’s not that these are incorrect, but they’re just superficial shifts.
The show did indeed take a turn for the worse, but the reasons for that downturn go way deeper than the usual suspects that have been identified (new and inferior writers, shortened season, too many plot holes). Indeed, most of the reviews and fan discussions seem to be pondering where the acclaimed series went wrong, with many theories on exactly why it went downhill. Judging by the fan and critic reaction though, it seems that a substantial portion of those millions are loathing the season. More than 17 million people watched the season’s opening. Game of Thrones, in its eighth and final season, is as big as television gets these days.