Game of Thrones Review: The Long Night (Season 8 Episode 3)
On Game of Thrones Season 8 Episode 3, “The Long Night,” pits the living against the Night King and his Army of the Dead and the living is a good mix of the inevitable and the unpredictable.
Rewatching “The Long Night” after learning the final outcome, it seems obvious It would be Arya who conquers death. From the moment she locks eyes with Melisandre, we know Arya is either doomed or destined for greatness.
Arya’s a skilled assassin but not a battle-tested warrior. She operates with disguises and in shadows. When Melisandre first predicts Arya will be a killer, we assume she means Arya’s list.
Dragon fights and massive battle scenes aside, “The Long Night” is a love letter to underdogs. All of the major characters on Game of Thrones undergo a metamorphosis of one type of another, but Arya’s is arguably the most dramatic.
When she hands Sansa a dagger and instructs her older sister to “Stick them with the pointy end,” we’re reminded it’s not so long ago Arya was just a little girl with dreams of sword fighting.
“The Long Night” delivers on multiple fronts. It’s the most ambitious of all of Game of Thrones‘ battle sequences. The sheer magnitude of participants is jaw dropping. Blackwater, Hardhome, Castle Black. and the Battle of the Bastards are all skewed heavily in one side’s favor, but never have the odds been so bleak as during the Battle of Winterfell.
In the midst of the absolute worst of the carnage, it is hard to fathom anyone can survive. But aside from a small handful of mortalities (most of which fans see coming), every principal emerges safe and sound. That’s the only real downfall of “The Long Night.”
We’re prepared to say goodbye to some of these characters. They’ve found redemption or resolution, or they’ve simply been lucky for far too long. When Eddard Stark loses his head, viewers learn nobody is safe, and Game of Thrones continues to follow that formula until seasons 7 and 8.
One might argue that as the series’ popularity skyrockets, the showrunners are more willing to engage in fan service by not killing off too many good guys. Or, in the very least, waiting to give them more unanticipated or expected exits.
In the end, we don’t really know how Jaime, Brienne, Ser Davos, Podrick, and the like survive because a few well-executed shifts in perspective have us following Theon, Arya, or Sansa’s viewpoint instead. “The Long Night’s” jaw- dropping special effects actually pale in comparison to Arya trying to navigate the Great Hall, dodging wights.
Tension hangs so thickly in the air, and despite the chaos surrounding the space, it is so quiet that we can hear the chattering of the undead predators, and the heavy breathing of their prey. This feels more like a standalone horror movie than a small sliver of a huge action sequence.
Or we’re in the crypts with Sansa and Tyrion which is eerily reminiscent of Cersei gathering all the ladies of the castle together during the Battle of the Blackwater. Tyrion, Sansa, and Varys all yield considerable power, but when it comes to physical combat, they’re as vulnerable as the weakest women and children in their midst.
Sansa: It’s the most heroic thing we can do now … look the truth in the face.
Sansa and Tyrion aren’t the only powerful characters rendered impotent in one way or another. The shock and fear are visible on the faces of seasoned killers Grey Worm and The Hound. Once Dany is thrown off Drogon, she’s unable to defend herself without the chivalrous Jorah.
But the tenacious Lyanna Mormont literally takes down a giant. There’s a deja vu quality to this scene as well. The last time a giant burst through the doors of Winterfell, it was during the Battle of the Bastards.
Fans undoubtedly believed it would be Jon who Theon emerges as a somewhat formidable opponent to the legions of wights, threatening to overtake Bran.
Undoubtedly, many fans predicted this to be the final showdown between Jon and the Night King, this isn’t the first time a Stark sister emerges as a hero on the battlefield. The Battle of the Bastards is as good as lost until Sansa arrives with reinforcements.
So while those with brute strength and skill with a sword have their part to play, as do the massive dragons, the Dothraki, and the Unsullied, “The Long Night’s” best moments are seen through the eyes of those like the rest of us, and the reminder that size doesn’t matter.
What did you think of this episode of Game of Thrones? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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Game of Thrones airs Sundays at 9/8c on HBO.
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Jennifer Lind-Westbrook
Jennifer has been working as a freelance writer for six years, contributing to BuddyTV, Screen Rant, TVRage, Hidden Remote, Gossip On This, and PopMatters. She prefers binge-watching old episodes of The Office (British and American versions) to long walks on the beach. She's still holding out hope that Happy Endings will get a revival.