In a groundbreaking development for the entertainment industry, streaming services have officially surpassed traditional cable and broadcast television in total viewership for the first time, according to Nielsen’s latest report.
This milestone, recorded in May, indicates a significant shift in how consumers engage with audiovisual content, reflecting the evolving landscape of media consumption.
Data from Nielsen’s monthly report, ‘The Gauge,’ reveals that streaming accounted for an impressive 44.8% of total TV viewership during the month.
Viewers Turn to Streaming: 44.8% of TV Consumption Now Online
This surge means that more viewers are turning to streaming platforms for their content needs instead of relying on conventional television methods. This trend highlights the growing preference for on-demand access to shows and movies, allowing viewers to customize their watching experiences.
The rise of streaming can be attributed to several factors, including the increasing availability of diverse content, the convenience of accessing shows and movies without the constraints of a cable subscription, and the proliferation of smart TVs and devices that facilitate easy streaming options.
As more viewers choose to prioritize streaming services, networks and content creators are likely to adapt their strategies to align with this audience shift.
Streaming Viewership Surpassed Cable and Broadcast Combined for the First Time Ever in May, Nielsen Finds https://t.co/QzZOWCX3OK
This transformative moment underscores not only a change in consumer habits but also potential implications for advertisers and content providers. As traditional ad revenue models face challenges, companies may need to pivot and explore new ways of reaching audiences in an increasingly digital-centric landscape.
With streaming now at the forefront of television viewing, stakeholders across the industry will undoubtedly pay close attention to these trends as they evolve.
As streaming continues to gain momentum, industry experts can speculate on the future of content creation and distribution, anticipating a further refinement of strategies tailored to this new paradigm in viewership.
With nearly 1.5 million signatures, it has gotten quite a bit of attention. However, these signatures will more than likely prove fruitless as HBO has shown zero-interest in reshooting the final season. Even the actors and actresses have spoken about how ridiculous they found the petition.
Recently, fans of the MCU have created a petition to change the fate of Tony Stark from “Avengers: Endgame.”With only about 40,000 signatures, and the vast majority of fans enjoying the film, fans can’t expect this petition to make a difference either.
Since even petitions that get loads of signatures don’t go anywhere, why do fans think they’ll make a difference? Well, it turns out that sometimes they work.
How Hey Arnold! got a new movie
Arnold, you’re a bold kid
Around 2009, fans of the Nickelodeon series “Hey Arnold!” started to petition to end the series how the creators intended.
Initially, “Hey Arnold!” was supposed to end with a movie about Arnold and his friends journeying to the jungle to uncover the truth about Arnold’s lost parents. Though production started, the project was scrapped, never to be heard from again.
However, fans created a petition that generated about 15,000 signatures for the writers to make “Hey Arnold: The Jungle Movie.” In response to the desire to bring back the show, Nickelodeon brought back the creator, Craig Bartlett, and made the movie.
So why did Arnold get a second chance while Daenerys is still cold and dead in the ashes of the city she incinerated? The answer to that might lie in the cost.
For the eighth season, each episode of “Game of Thrones” cost about $15 million. “Hey Arnold: The Jungle Movie” was not released in theaters. Also, since it was animated, it cost a lot less to make.
Another thing to point out is that “Hey Arnold!” was always meant to end with this movie. The only reason it didn’t happen was because it was canceled. The ending fans got from “Game of Thrones” was the ending the writers wanted to give. Clearly, there’s a big difference.
However, there might be more to the story.
Star Trek was saved by a letter-writing campaign
“I’ll never let go, Jack”
After an abysmal second season on NBC, it looked like “Star Trek” would not be returning. However, fans of the series started a letter-writing campaign to get a third season. After literally thousands of letters for fans were sent to NBC, the network realized the Nielsen ratings they were abiding by were not as reliable as they had hoped. As a result, NBC brought back “Trek” for a third season.
After more bad ratings in the third season, the series was canceled. However, since there were now enough episodes, the series entered syndication, where it became a pop culture phenomenon.
So why did “Star Trek” get another season, but “Game of Thrones” didn’t? In this particular instance, “Star Trek” had not been officially canceled, according to an article from StarTrek.com. “Game of Thrones” is officially over. Secondly, Trekkies were able to prove that the Nielsen Ratings were wrong. In fact, according to the same article, the ratings were faulty and doctored by employees at NBC to get the show canceled.
Sure there are loads of fans of “Game of Thrones” who have been bugging the creators of the show to redo the final season, saying that the writers were “incompetent.” However, they can’t prove that anything egregious went into the making of the final season. If they could, they MIGHT have a case.
Firefly: You might not get what you want, but you might get something
In 2002, Fox released “Firefly,” a sci-fi series that was canned after a single season in which a handful of episodes aired out of order. After it was canceled, fans of the series went ballistic. The show left a lasting impact, and fans still want to see it return.
To urge the production of more adventures, so-called Browncoats bought the series on DVD and shared the episodes with friends. The continued DVD sales and word-of-mouth campaign were better marketing than Fox ever managed. Remember, this was before Netflix pioneered the video streaming we take for granted today.
Thanks to the ongoing fanbase engagement, Fox continued the adventures with the 2005 feature film, “Serenity.”
Although we still don’t have a second season of “Firefly,” the love of the fans was what led to us getting the movie. Although fans might not get to bring Tony Stark back to life, or give Daenerys and Jon Snow the ending they deserve, a little persistence might result in something.
If a fanbase is really motivated, there’s also the Kickstarter route. In 2013, fans of “Veronica Mars” shattered records by contributing $2 million in 11 hours to bankroll a feature film. The movie ended up losing money, so maybe the network had the right idea in the first place.
Throwing the Hail Mary
In some cases, fans resorted to more creative methods of getting their favorite shows back. In some cases, fans mailed items related to the show to the studios. When “Jericho” was canceled, fans mailed peanuts. When “Roswell” was facing cancelation, fans mailed Tabasco sauce. After “Friday Night Lights” played its final game, the studio was sent lightbulbs and eye drops.
In each of these cases, the show was kept on the air. Whether or not the weirdest mail call ever was the reason why these shows stayed on the air, we don’t know. However, the studios very well might have kept the shows on just to keep the rest of their mail from getting saucy.
Just like “Game of Thrones,” fans didn’t get their reshoot. Also just like “Game of Thrones,” “How I Met Your Mother” ended on its own volition. The hit show received the ending that writers had wanted for better or worse.
So what can we learn from “How I Met Your Mother?”
As the Rolling Stones have said, you can’t always get what you want.
However, as they later clarified, if you try sometimes, you just might find you get what you need.
“How I Met Your Mother” did not give us the ending we wanted, but it did give us the ending the writers wanted.
The same goes for “Game of Thrones.” To be completely fair, although there might be endings that more people would like, there is no ending that EVERYONE would like.
Although many fans still dislike the finale of “How I Met Your Mother,” fans have grown to despise it less over the years.
Sure, a bad finale can sting. However, as the years go by, you might appreciate the finale for what it was.
Wrapping up
A petition and persistence can sometimes make all the difference. However, sometimes they’re a fool’s errand, and sometimes you need to think outside the box.
Maybe writing a petition is too bland. Maybe, if you really want HBO to remake the final season of “Game of Thrones,” you should mail them plastic dragons and bottles of wine.
A great beginning is hard, a great ending is nearly impossible. Why?
Credit: Helen Sloan/HBO
In the aftermath of “Game of Thrones,” fans found themselves in a familiar position, sifting through the events of a final episode, weighing whether they liked how it ended, considering whether the story as a whole was worth their time. Some of the greatest TV shows in history have stumbled horribly at the finish line, either due to fatigue, a lack of planning, or indecisiveness. While we’ve been treated to many wonderful shows, you can probably count the number of highly praised finales on one hand. Why is that?
Spoilers below…
The job of a finale
A proper finale needs to accomplish several critical tasks:
Answer any lingering important questions
Provide closure
Nod to the past
Hint to the future
Fit with the rest of the series
If a finale fails at any of those points, you can be sure the fanbase will revolt.
The best TV finales
If we’re lucky, we get one near-perfect finale per decade. “M*A*S*H” is often cited as a great ending. The comedy-drama series focused on the Korean War. Considering the frame of the war, the end of a conflict is a natural reason for our characters to part ways. Wars never end at a particular point in a character’s evolution – it’s always an abrupt and arbitrary development. The characters have a clear reason to say goodbye, bury the hatchet, or make amends. And because we know that all of these characters had lives before the war, we know they’re returning to those lives. They’ll be forever changed, but all of them will return to a version of their previous existence.
According to Joseph Campbell’s hero’s journey, we are all predisposed to anticipate that after a great battle, the hero returns home with something he or she gained, now prepared to share it with those who have not yet ventured forth for their own great battle. The hero becomes the mentor. The heroes of our stories become the leaders, and the next generation must step forward. That homecoming or return is often a tricky thing to pull off, so it’s often neglected or ignored. But it usually boils down to a simple rule: the end is in the beginning. At least one character must return to a familiar place, now changed by what has happened.
“M*A*S*H” is also notable for a real shock turn for one of the main characters. Hawkeye Pierce suffers a nervous breakdown as he remembers the extraordinary step one woman took to prevent discovery and capture by the enemy.
A war between nation-states makes it easier to pull the plug than something like a battle between good and evil. One presumes that evil never rests. At the end of “Game of Thrones,” we’re meant to believe the decisions made will put an end to generations of conflict, yet the new king points out the necessity for a Master of War. So much for utopia.
Another finale cited as one of the best is “Newhart.” Sitcoms, by their nature, have less to do with continuity and more to do with simply making us laugh. Too many sitcom finales get bogged down with sentimentality, leading our characters to behave in ways they’ve previously never behaved. A sitcom usually only functions because of its characters’ lack of growth. We crave the reliability of their flaws.
“Newhart” wisely side-stepped this pitfall. The comedy focused on a man and his wife who operated a small inn in Vermont. In the final episode, a visiting Japanese tycoon buys out the entire town. Like “M*A*S*H,” the show’s framing device is eliminated, so it provides a natural opportunity for everyone to say goodbye. Also like “M*A*S*H,” the decision is taken out of the hands of the protagonists. That’s also crucial since the finality of the development removes any scenes of characters waffling about the decision. By using an external force to close the show, fans won’t find themselves second-guessing a character’s decision to leave. The decision was forced upon them.
“Newhart” transcended all other comedy finales with an audacious stunt. When Bob Newhart’s 1990 character is whacked in the head with a golf ball, he wakes up… on the set of his beloved 1970s sitcom, “The Bob Newhart Show.” He tells his wife from that show about the crazy dream he just had. It was subversive and meta and groundbreaking and satisfying all at the same time. And, importantly, it doesn’t negate what happened. Even if all those seasons were part of one crazy dream, they were still enjoyable. By reframing the entire series as a dream from another, similar character, it plays fair.
The best TV finale in recent memory is “The Shield.” The story of a rogue cop unfolds like a perfectly laid trap. All of the secrets in the series are laid bare, and everyone is shocked. Because that show always dealt in a wide grey area between right and wrong, the 2008 finale’s last shot is a perfect fulfillment of that promise. It’s concrete enough to hint to the future, but vague enough to allow the viewer to make their own conclusions.
The ending of “The Shield” is also notable because it followed a logical path. Shakespeare tells us that Romeo & Juliet are going to die right at the beginning of the story. He then weaves a story so compelling, you forget the promise made at the outset. Either that, or the dread informs your consumption of this story of young love. Telling the hell out of a story is more important that shocks or u-turns or deus ex machina or mind-blowing revelations. Shakespeare says, “Watch me kill these young lovers.” We watch anyway and it’s great. And no one feels ripped off when they die.
The most disappointing TV finales
“Lost” is an example of a show that rocketed out of the gates, then stumbled, and stumbled, and stumbled some more on its way to a much-reviled ending. Where did “Lost” get, well, lost?
That show made lots of promises to the audience. If you tell us that everything is happening for a reason, you should have that reason figured out before you launch your show.
Too often, showrunners promise an equation where 2+x=4. Part of the joy, then, is giving the audience enough clues so they can eventually discover that x=2. But this often ends up overcomplicating things. Instead of doling out x in small doses, we start adding other variables: red herrings and narrative dead ends that only exist to prolong the solution of the equation. So you end up with a final equation that looks like 2+0.1+z+3-2/5+∞=4? And you, the viewer, say, “This doesn’t add up to four at all!” The showrunners fire back, “It was never supposed to add up to four.” And you say, “Look at your first season! All you talked about was four!”
Supernatural shows often fall prey to this trap. Ditto for Stephen King novels. We are so intrigued by the possible reasons for the mystery, our imaginations fire off multiple solutions, each more satisfying than whatever we’re given. Was there really any way “Lost” could pay off a polar bear on a tropical island, the magic numbers 4, 8, 15, 16, 23 and 42, the smoke monster, and The Others abducting Walt because he was “special?” No. It was all nonsense. Fans worked furiously to find one solution to these riddles, but even the showrunners had no idea what they were doing. So the solution was that the characters were dead all along and they were just puttering around in purgatory and the island was somehow a container for evil. It’s just more nonsense.
If you have a supernatural story, the most important thing you have to do is establish a set of rules. Absent these rules, anything can happen for any reason at any time: people can come back from the dead, witches can birth smoke monsters (one time only, apparently), time travel is possible. The audience will swallow a lot as long as there are some boundaries involved. The moment you toss out the rules, your show falls apart.
“Lost” could never decide on its rules and drowned itself in a sea of false starts. Nearly the entire second season focused around the survivors from the tail section of the plane, and those characters did nothing to propel the overall story. If you can skip the majority of a season and the story doesn’t seem radically altered, that’s poor storytelling.
Another much-loathed finale was “The Sopranos.” When that show was at its best, it was a strange cross between violence, comedy, and psychiatry. When that show was at its worst, it was self-important (ugh, the dream sequences!), ponderous, and pretentious. The ending was the worst example of this. In a brazen, audacious move, the screen simply cut to black. Nearly every fan had the same reaction: “Did my cable just go out? That wasn’t the end, was it?”
To this day, people argue whether that means Tony Soprano was killed or the show picked that random moment to stop. When we rewatch it, we suspect the final scene is packed with mundane details because that’s the whole point of the show: as terrifying as mob life is, you still have moments of boredom, and you’ll be looking over your shoulder for the rest of your life. You might disagree with that assessment, but that does not mean that this finale was an artistic masterstroke. It means the show failed in its duty to elicit an intended emotion. It just copped out. “Here, you decide what happens,” is incredibly lazy. The easy fallback for the creator is, “Well, maybe you don’t understand it because you’re not sophisticated enough or you didn’t pick up on the clues that I did a terrible job supplying.” Nonsense.
To be clear, “The Sopranos” and “The Shield” both have ambiguous endings. But “The Shield” presents two clear timelines. “The Sopranos” presents infinite possibilities, each equally valid. Why not end the show 10 minutes earlier or 10 minutes later? If an abrupt ending is supposed to be the point, it could happen anytime. So why then? And what are you trying to say?
“Mad Men” is another prestigious TV series that fumbled its ending. That show was always at its best when it used the frame of the advertising agency to explore social dynamics. Because the main character hit the road, separating himself from that environment, we missed out on the crackling dialogue and character-driven tension that made the show sing. Don Draper’s disappearing act would be like buying a ticket to the NBA Finals, only to learn that Steph Curry has decided he’s going to skip the game to launch his career as a forensic pathologist. Steph might be a great forensic pathologist, but we just want to watch him jack up threes, preferably alongside his teammates.
“Seinfeld” is an example of a disastrous finale in the comedy genre. Instead of leaning on its observational strengths, the final episode felt more like a glorified clip show as they brought back dozens of guest stars, and finished with the four leads stuck in prison. What? That show picked a weird time to become introspective. Again, we were robbed of what made the show great – interactions between the four main characters. Also, the episode wasn’t particularly funny.
“Breaking Bad” is another series on TV’s Mount Rushmore, but the final episode had the unenviable task of coming on the heels of the third-to-last episode. “Ozymandias” is perhaps one of the most perfect hours of television ever filmed. It offered gut-wrenching payoffs to nearly every secret in the “Breaking Bad” universe. Walter White came in direct conflict with everyone he loved. So the last two episodes suffered by removing Walt from those characters. While the finale offered satisfying moments, we were starved for those rich moments of 1:1 interaction that made the series great. It also doesn’t help that a group of random Nazis can’t hold a candle to the series’ greatest villains. For that reason, something like Season 4’s “Face Off” finale against Gus Fring felt more satisfying.
Fans tend to love or hate the end of the “Battlestar Galactica” reboot. Again, it fell into the supernatural trap, not laying out the rules by which the show would play. If you’re willing to make some pretty big leaps of faith, the series plays out like a tone poem to evolution, both personal and biological. If you insist on answers, you’re not going to get them here. Because the show always dabbled in the mystical and unexplained, we liked the ending. (Baltar’s emotional breakdown was especially powerful.) In some cases, a show is better off shrugging its shoulders and acknowledging powers beyond its understanding, rather than trying to shoehorn an unsatisfactory explanation into the mix. (Remember, we like The Force, but nobody likes Midichlorians.)
“The Wire” is probably the greatest television show of all time. Season 4 is a peerless dramatic masterclass. But Season 5 featured an uncharacteristic logical leap required because the show had made its primary villain (Marlo Stanfield) too powerful to take down fair-and-square. “The Wire” had an incredible grasp of the big picture, but its low ratings meant HBO was reluctant to greenlight a Season 5. Had the showrunners known they’d only get five seasons, it’s likely they could have orchestrated a clean landing. Since they had no assurance beyond one final season (and a shortened one, at that), they took some narrative shortcuts that show nearly always avoided before the end.
The issue with “The Wire’s” finale isn’t what happened to the characters. All of them got fitting ends. It’s the path that got them there that was so frustrating. In that way, it shares some DNA with “Game of Thrones” – you know how great that show can be, so it’s frustrating to see it underachieve in the finale.
How to ask for a movie or TV show to be added to Netflix
In the case of “Game of Thrones,” we watched the quality degrade as soon as the show surpassed its source novels. With most of these shows, the lack of a defined endpoint means that the showrunners have no idea how to pace the series. Just look at “The Walking Dead.” AMC has apparently commanded that it run forever. So the writers need to come up with juuuust enough threat to keep its viewers intrigued, but not the full-tilt narrative violence that a successful zombie story requires. If you can’t kill important characters in a zombie show, why even have zombies on your show? Writers are forced to saddle characters with plot armor so they don’t jeopardize the longevity of the series.
In an age of streaming, it would be great to see Netflix, Amazon, or HBO make a multi-season order and stick to it. If creators know they have 70 hours to tell a story, that allows them to build the story correctly. As it stands, showrunners might be building toward a three-act structure, only to be told they’ll have to wrap up in two acts… or extend to seven. Guessing at your story structure is an impossible feat, and only leads to the messes we’ve seen so far.
An alternative is to follow the sitcom model and make every story stand on its own. “Black Mirror” follows an anthology model to great effect. The first season of “True Detective” was great because the story was constructed in eight chapters with a definitive end. But fans crave the mythology and character growth that comes with a sustained series, told over several years.
Yes, it’s true that stories can evolve in the telling. Jesse was supposed to die at the end of the first season of “Breaking Bad,” but the showrunners were so taken by Aaron Paul’s performance, they changed course. But you should have a destination in mind before you pull out of the garage. Detours are fine as long as the scenery is worthwhile, but you always need to be driving to the end.
Of all the murderous, scheming psychopaths, who was the most evil character in Westeros?
It’s hard to call any character on “Game of Thrones” an outright villain. Most characters are difficult to pin down as good or evil, because those two extremes are often a matter of perspective. Heroic characters often commit less than heroic deeds, and plenty of villainous characters have sympathetic moments. With that said, there are some characters that are unmistakably evil, the villains you just love to hate. Here are our top 10 villains on “Game of Thrones.”
Much about the man known as The High Sparrow remains a mystery. He purported that he was the son of a cobbler that eventually rose to the upper echelons of society, delving into the depths of extravagance and debauchery. Eventually, he renounced his lavish ways in favor of a higher calling, and became the humble leader of a particularly zealous sect within the Faith of the Seven.
Cersei Lannister seized on his growing popularity and made him an ally in her political war against the increasingly powerful Tyrell family. Unfortunately for Cersei, the Sparrow eventually turned on her as well. Though hidden behind his pious facade, the Sparrow was a cunning and ambitious man willing to do anything to gain power, coming alarmingly close to becoming the true ruler behind The Iron Throne. Fortunately, Cersei outmaneuvered him and he met his end in the fiery explosion at the Sept of Baelor.
There’s not much to like about Walder Frey. A lecherous old man with a habit of taking exceedingly young wives, he was known for a spiteful streak. The Lord Frey had a chip on his shoulder, which stemmed from the fact that he didn’t believe his house got the recognition it deserved. Vicious towards anyone he perceived as not giving him the proper respect, Lord Walder’s ambitions eventually took a turn for the worse.
After Robb Stark renounced his arranged marriage to one of Frey’s daughters in favor of another woman, the furious Lord Walder secretly allied himself with the Lannisters. Along with Roose Bolton, he orchestrated the ruthless slaughter of Robb and his armies while he hosted them at his castle. This infamous event, known as the Red Wedding, would eventually be Walder Frey’s downfall. After training as an assassin in Braavos, Arya Stark returned to murder the entire Frey clan, even serving up a pie containing bits his dead sons to Lord Walder before slitting his throat.
8. The Mountain
Image courtesy HBO
Ser Gregor Clegane, also known as The Mountain, was known throughout Westeros for his sadism and brutality. During Robert’s Rebellion, The Mountain participated in the sacking of King’s Landing, during which he raped and murdered Princess Elia Martell before murdering her two infant children.
Aside from these heinous crimes, Ser Gregor held no love for his brother, Sandor Clegane. As children, Gregor shoved Sandor’s face into a fire after he discovered Sandor had stolen one of his toys. This led to The Hound’s hideous burn scars and fear of fire.
The Mountain’s other acts of cruelty are numerous: he beheaded his horse in public after losing a joust, ordered the executions of hundreds of prisoners at Harrenhal, and gouged out Prince Oberyn Martell’s eyes in a duel before crushing his skull with his bare hands. Though nearly dying in the fight, former Maester Qyburn turned The Mountain into a hideous undead abomination. Eventually, The Hound and The Mountain faced each other during Daenerys Targaryen’s sacking of King’s Landing, and the two killed each other in the ensuing fight.
7. Euron Greyjoy
Image courtesy HBO
Euron Greyjoy boasted an ego larger than his fleet of ships. An impressive naval commander in his own right, Euron let his prowess in battle go to his head, and he harbored delusions of being the human incarnation of the Ironborn’s Drowned God. After killing his brother Balon, Euron crowned himself King of the Iron Islands, but he didn’t stop there.
After agreeing to an alliance with Queen Cersei, Euron aimed to seduce her and become the King of all of Westeros. He fought viciously in battle, bringing an end to the Dornish Sand Snakes in a variety of gruesome ways and taking his niece Yara hostage while gleefully mocking his nephew Theon. He’s also responsible for the absurd bullseye murder of Daenerys’ dragon Rhaegal.
Eventually, he encountered Jaime Lannister during Daenerys’s sacking of King’s Landing, and the two inflicted several near-fatal wounds on each other before Jaime finally got the upper hand and drove a sword through Euron’s chest. Not one to die without acknowledging his own accomplishments, Euron died with a smile on his face while congratulating himself for fatally wounding The Kingslayer.
6. Littlefinger
Image courtesy HBO
Subtle, manipulative, and devious, Petyr Baelish was not a man to be trusted. A former childhood friend of Catelyn Stark, Baelish rose to become a man of importance in the King’s Landing. Known as Littlefinger, he played the political game with skill and cunning.
His first and perhaps most infamous act of treachery was the betrayal of Ned Stark to the Lannisters, eventually resulting in Lord Stark’s beheading. His machinations also led, if indirectly, to the War of the Five Kings.
Meanwhile, he also harbored hopes of seducing Catelyn, and later, her daughter Sansa. At the same time, he married Catelyn’s sister Lysa Arryn before murdering her and becoming Lord of the Vale.
Eventually, his scheming ways came back to bite him. After devising a plot to pit Sansa and Arya Stark against each other, he soon found that the two sisters had been the ones plotting against him all along. After being sentenced to death by Sansa, Arya summarily slit his throat and he died in a pool of blood.
Roose Bolton, like Littlefinger, was skilled at hiding his true nature. A Northern lord and bannerman to House Stark, Lord Bolton was one of Robb Stark’s most trusted advisors in his war against the Lannisters. However, Bolton had been long planning to betray the Starks and seize power for himself. Along with the Freys and the Lannisters, he orchestrated the slaughter of Robb and his forces at The Twins after secretly freeing the imprisoned Jaime Lannister.
In exchange for his alliance with the Lannisters, Lord Tywin named Roose Bolton as Warden of the North and rewarded him with dominion over Winterfell. Arguably a genuine sociopath, Roose’s calm and almost pleasant demeanor masked a man who delights in torture, violence, and preserved his own self-interest above all else. Ironically, Bolton was eventually betrayed by his own son, who stabbed him to death in the same manner that Roose did to Robb Stark.
4. Tywin Lannister
Image courtesy HBO
Lord Tywin Lannister was the feared and respected head of the noble House Lannister. First rising to power after wiping out a rival family at Castamere, Lord Tywin returned his house to prominence after it was nearly brought to an ignoble end at the hands of his father. Valuing his family and reputation above all else, Tywin used his keen political and tactical mind to ensure that Lannister interests always came out on top.
Initially serving as Hand to the Mad King Aerys Targaryen, Tywin eventually betrayed the King in support of Robert Baratheon’s rebellion. Meanwhile, he maneuvered Lannister interests into the true position of power behind the Iron Throne. Though not particularly cruel or sadistic, Lord Tywin was not above using any means necessary to pursue his goals. Verbally abusive and contemptuous towards his son Tyrion, Tywin eventually died an undignified death at Tyrion’s hand. He expired while using the toilet after Tyrion shot him through the chest with a crossbow.
The bastard son of Roose Bolton, Ramsay Bolton was proof that the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. Arguably more vicious and sadistic than his father, Ramsay took particular pleasure in violence and torture, both physical and psychological. After capturing Winterfell, Ramsay took Theon Greyjoy hostage and systematically abused and broke him down to become the obedient servant known as Reek.
Meanwhile, Ramsay delighted in using his pack of trained hunting dogs to go on human hunts in the forests around the castle, and committed countless other heinous acts all the while. After murdering his father, raping his unwilling bride Sansa, and taking control of the north, he faced down Jon Snow in battle after summarily executing his younger brother Rickon. After being defeated, he was sentenced to death. Imprisoned in Winterfell’s kennels, Sansa Stark watched on as he was torn to shreds by his own hounds.
2. The Night King
Image courtesy HBO
The mysterious Night King was created hundreds of years ago to be a living weapon. Before his transformation, The Night King was once a member of The Night’s Watch before being captured by the Children of the Forest. Fearing extinction at the hands of The First Men, the Children created the Night King to fight back. Unfortunately, The Night King soon proved uncontrollable.
Biding his time over hundreds of years, The Night King retreated north, raising an army of White Walkers and undead in the lands beyond The Wall. Soon enough, however, The Night King marched south with his armies, threatening to wipe out all human life and bring about an eternal winter. The Night King and his armies were eventually halted in one final battle at Winterfell, where his forces were defeated by a ragtag army led by Jon Snow and Daenerys Targaryen. The Night King himself was killed with a Valyrian steel dagger wielded by none other than Arya Stark.
1. Joffrey Baratheon
Image courtesy HBO
Worse than the Night King? Hear us out.
Spiteful, cruel, and petulant, Joffrey Baratheon was crowned king after the untimely death of his father Robert. One of Joffrey’s first acts as king was to order the beheading of Ned Stark, and the acts of cruelty only got worse from there. The secret child of Cersei and Jaime Lannister, Cersei did nothing to curb her son’s nature. She watched as he abused his fiance Sansa Stark, ran rampant over the royal court, and cruelly participated in the killing of a hired prostitute.
As a King, Joffrey held no love for his subjects, and barely hid the fact that he actually despised the smallfolk that he ruled over. After casting Sansa aside, Joffrey was betrothed to Margaery Tyrell. Unfortunately for him, Margaery was aware of Joffrey’s cruel nature, and along with her grandmother Olenna, poisoned the young king at his wedding feast. Joffrey will forever hold a spot as the most widely hated character in the history of Game of Thrones.
Was there anyone we missed? Let us know in the comments, and check back with Softonic for the latest Game of Thrones news and recaps.
Now that we’ve closed the book on Westeros, what should you binge now?
After 8 years and 8 seasons, it’s finally time to say goodbye to “Game of Thrones.” HBO’s hit series is finally over, and for many people, that’s going to mean that’s going to leave a pretty significant void to fill. Though the “Game of Thrones” might be over, there are still plenty of shows out there that can scratch that itch and help cure those post-“Thrones” blues.
5 shows to watch after Game of Thrones
5. The Borgias
Image courtesy Showtime
If you loved the parts of Game of Thrones set among the scheming nobles and politicians of King’s Landing, “The Borgias” might be the show for you. It follows the titular Borgia family and their ascent to power in Renaissance-era Italy, and it isn’t an easy journey. Schemes, murders, conspiracies, and romance follow, and the Borgias need to stay together if they hope to stay one step ahead of their enemies. Jeremy Irons helms the cast as family patriarch Rodrigo Borgia, an intelligent and cunning power-player that we think would give Tywin Lannister a run for his money. Unlike “Game of Thrones,” however, The Borgias is based on the real-life Borgia family, so many events portrayed on the show actually happened in history.
If the sweeping, epic battles like the showdown between Jon Snow and Ramsay Bolton are more your thing, you might want to check out “Vikings.” Based on a real historical hero, the series follows Ragnar Lothbrok on a journey from young warrior to leader of the Viking tribes. It’s a journey that reminds us a bit of Jon Snow’s plotlines, and aside from that, the show has a distinctly Northern flavor that brings to mind the stories set north of the Wall with the Wildling camps. There’s also, of course, more than enough combat and swordplay to satisfy even the most bloodthirsty “Thrones” fan.
“Peaky Blinders” is set in the criminal underworld of 1920s England, where the Shelby gang fights to maintain their place among the vicious rival gangs. Tommy Shelby, the gang’s leader, is a cold and calculating war veteran that leads his gang with his cunning mind and ruthlessness. Peaky Blinders strikes the same balance as “Thrones,” using strong characters to service intricate plotlines and high stakes. There are also a few “Thrones” actors in the cast; fans will recognize Aiden Gillen, who played Littlefinger, appearing as gangster and hitman Aberama Gold.
The characters of “Black Sails” make Euron Greyjoy look like an amateur. Set during the Golden Age of Piracy, the show is actually supposed to be a prequel to the famed Robert Louis Stevenson novel “Treasure Island.” The series blends real historical figures like pirates Charles Vane and Anne Bonny with fictional swashbucklers like Long John Silver. There is, of course, plenty of action, scheming, and even a touch of the supernatural. The plot and storylines are incredibly intricate, and reminiscent of the earlier seasons of “Thrones” where the interplay between characters and their motivations was at the forefront.
How better to mark the ending of one HBO series than by starting another?
“Westworld” takes all the best parts of the “Game of Thrones” formula and gives them a shiny new paint job. In the future, wealthy patrons can pay to attend the Westworld theme park, which is essentially a real-life videogame populated by life-like AI. While guests enjoy their Wild West inspired fun, it soon becomes apparent that something sinister is going on behind the scenes. Like “Thrones,” the story rotates between several simultaneous plotlines and characters that will leave you on the edge of your seat. The cast is also impeccable, with particularly noteworthy performances from Evan Rachel Wood, Anthony Hopkins, and Ed Harris as the villainous Man in Black. Take note, “Thrones” fans: it might be time to swap your swords for a six-shooter.
So here we are, friends. The end of the road. Eight seasons and 73 episodes have led us to this. Let’s be clear: the showrunners had a near-impossible task in front of them. With so many beloved characters still in play, there’s hardly a way to conclude the story in a way that would please all the fans. And this show didn’t become popular by giving the audience what it wants.
So did the finale do what it needed to do? We suppose so. Nearly every storyline got wrapped up in a bow. It was perhaps too clean an ending, considering the messiness of Westeros. A concrete ending like this is probably more crowd-pleasing than something more open-ended. And this ending was significantly happier than we would expect, given the general tone of the show. Had George R.R. Martin been at the helm, we’d expect a smattering of happiness juxtaposed with a staggering amount of grief and misfortune for nearly everyone. This cruel, misogynistic, hateful world isn’t going to change overnight because there’s a new king. Martin was a realist. The men behind the HBO series are significantly more optimistic.
Let’s dig into the episode to see what worked, what went sideways, and how all the puzzle pieces came together.
Game of Thrones Series Finale recap/review
We begin with Tyrion Lannister walking through the ashes of King’s Landing. He’s intent on finding Jaime and Cersei. Jonathan Freeman, the director of photography, really outdid himself on this episode. You could almost watch the episode with the sound off and the story would still work.
Tyrion walks past a bell – a reminder of the surrender ignored.
Tyrion walks over the Westeros map, now covered in rubble.
Jaime died with his hand around Cersei.
Tyrion mourns his brother and sister.
While Tyrion discovers Cersei and Jaime’s fate, Jon confronts Grey Worm about the Unsullied’s zero-tolerance policy toward Lannister troops drawing breath. Grey Worm says he’s just following orders.
Jon and Grey Worm square off.
“We killed all the main villains, so I’ll need to fill in this week.”
Jon continues on to find Daenerys about to address a monstrous gathering of Dothraki and Unsullied. We need to pause a moment to mention how reckless this season has been with the size of these forces. The Dothraki seemed all but extinguished in the battle against the Night King until they showed up in force in the last episode. The army standing with Dany during Missandei’s execution was significantly smaller than the one she addressed in the King’s Landing courtyard. Maybe next time, put a Post-it note with the numbers of surviving troops on the corner of your computer screen when you’re writing your complicated fantasy epic.
Anyway, Daenerys appears in front of her army and we get the coolest shot of the season as Drogon’s wings unfurl behind her:
Dragon queen
Daenerys gives off a real psycho dictator vibe during this speech. She shouts about breaking the wheel and bringing her brand of freedom to every man, woman, and child, whether they want it or not. Tyrion recognizes Daenerys for what she is, and he discards his Hand of the Queen pin.
“I’d like to deliver my two weeks’ notice.”
“Take this man to HR so we can process his termination paperwork.”
Dany is understandably furious, so she orders Tyrion taken into custody. Jon watches this all go down with a lump in his throat. Arya emerges from the shadows to alert Jon that Dany is a stone-cold killer, as if watching King’s Landing immolate wasn’t his first clue.
Jon visits Tyrion in his cell. Tyrion expects to be executed but tries his hand at convincing Jon to take out Daenerys. Like his Uncle Ned, Jon is a hardheaded and loyal man. He swore a vow to follow Dany, and those Stark vows are not easily broken. But Tyrion continues his plea, leaning on all of Jon’s weak spots – as a battle commander, as a leader, as a former member of the Night’s Watch, and as a brother, Jon knows Daenerys is dangerous.
“We backed the wrong horse, amigo.”
With a heavy heart, Jon heads off to confront his queen. Again, the cinematography here is phenomenal.
“I don’t see your name on the list.”
Daenerys is overjoyed to have reached the Iron Throne. Instead of sitting on it, she merely touches it. She’s been chasing this metal chair for years. Now it’s hers.
“My preciousssss.”
Jon arrives to poop in the punch bowl, reminding Dany of the whole “million corpses just outside the window” thing. Daenerys tries changing the subject. Sure, tons of innocent people died, but from now on, everything should be fine. Jon is rattled by Daenerys’ moral certainty. What if their subjects don’t agree with the queen’s rules? “They don’t get to decide,” Daenerys says.
“You are my queen,” Jon says, “now and always.” They kiss. And while they’re kissing, Jon shoves a dagger through Daenerys’ heart.
“Aunt Dany, what big ambitions you have…”
“Is that a knife in my ribcage or are you happy to see me?”
“I should’ve stayed with Daario.”
“Better hide this body before Drogon shows up…”
This moment was entirely predictable, but both Kit Harrington and Emilia Clarke were fantastic in this scene. The biggest issue is that we haven’t seen this version of Daenerys in a long time. This season has put the character through some rushed and confusing developments, not the least of which was her Mad Queen turn in the last episode. Even within this episode, Dany was in full foam-spitting dictator mode atop the steps. And then, in the throne room, she becomes hopeful and innocent and naive. Daenerys has always worked best when we’ve seen at least some vulnerability. When she’s been screaming platitudes to crowds of people, she’s been harder to see as human. So do we mourn our idealistic queen? Or do we cheer the death of a dictator? Both, somehow? It’s clear this is intended to be a sad moment, which would be easier to swallow if we erased our memories of the previous episode.
As Jon surveys his lover’s corpse, Drogon appears. He considers roasting Jon, then turns his fire on the Iron Throne itself. The coveted metal chair liquifies.
“M-mom?”
“Not cool, Aegon.”
“I wish to lodge a formal complaint.”
“F yo chair.”
Drogon nudges Dany’s body, then picks it up and flies away. It’s the last we’ll see of the mighty beast.
“I’ll be playing the role of Bambi tonight.”
Several days, weeks, or months (?) later, Tyrion is brought to the dragon pits to face the leaders of Westeros. Grey Worm is understandably pretty irritated at the death of his queen. Now, the assembled leaders have to decide who will rule. Edmure Tully, last seen convincing Riverrun to surrender to the Lannisters, nominates himself. Sansa shuts down his campaign speech in a hurry. Sam suggests democracy and gets laughed off the stage. Sam is also sitting next to a plastic water bottle in this scene. You’re a trainwreck, Samwell! Pull it together!
Tyrion has an idea: What about Bran? If stories can unite a people, Bran has a great story, he argues. Not to mention, Bran has access to all of Westeros’ memories. He’s a walking encyclopedia. Shockingly, everyone agrees Bran should be king. All except Sansa, who pulls a last-minute bid for northern independence and gets it.
“I’ve got a terrible idea. Hear me out.”
While this scene is supposed to be a powerful statement about the will of the people, breaking the wheel and all that, it’s the worst moment in the episode. Let’s break down why…
Start with the attendees. In many cases, we have no idea who these people are. There’s the nameless Prince of Dorne, Yara Greyjoy, Edmure Tully, Sansa Stark, Gendry, and Robin Arryn. That’s fine. They’re the leaders of great houses. What’s weird are some of the other attendees – Sam shouldn’t be there since House Tarly isn’t a big deal and he renounced his title when he joined the Night’s Watch. Brienne comes from the Sapphire Isle, but is House Tarth suddenly important? Davos even admits he has no idea why he might get a vote on this thing. Yohn Royce serves Robin Arryn, so why does he get a vote? Arya has no claim to House Stark, so her attendance doesn’t make sense. There are also some lords we’ve never met before, so that lessens the impact of their attendance. In reality, this assembled group seems super-random, and not technically empowered to choose a king.
L to R: Nobody, Yara, Unknown Dornish Prince
L to R: Robin Arryn, Yohn Royce, Some Nobody
“Did you guys know my mom killed my dad and framed the Lannisters which kicked off this whole thing and then my stepdad killed my mom and I could go for some breast milk right now?”
We’ll also examine Tyrion’s argument. Bran has a great story, sure. But what about virtually everyone else? Jon came back from the dead, which is more impressive than falling out of a tower. Sansa has survived calamity that would have crushed most other people. Arya saved the entire world by stabbing the Night King. Pretty compelling story there. Sam also has a great story – rejected by his father, he’s the first man alive to kill a White Walker. Gendry has a claim to the Iron Throne by virtue of his bloodline, and his story is also great: the king’s bastard who survived a purge, armed the humans against the Army of the Dead, and became Lord of Storm’s End. Tyrion also has a fantastic story as the unwanted son of a great house, the hero of the Battle of the Blackwater, and the man who negotiated a truce that saved humanity at Winterfell.
“We unanimously sign off on this totally random plan.”
Ever since Bran went all Three-Eyed Raven, he’s become an insufferable, personality-free bore. He can travel through time, which you’d think would be a useful narrative tool, but that’s been completely discarded since the revelation of Jon’s true lineage. And he can warg into some people and animals, which, again, you would think would be useful from a storytelling sense. But that talent has been useless since the “hold the door” moment. During the battle for Winterfell, he warged into some ravens and did nothing. It’s just odd, like if you saw a Superman movie that was only about Clark Kent trying to write a front page story for the Daily Planet without any of that flying or heat vision or bulletproof nonsense. Bran has been a wasted character, so choosing him as king feels weird.
Arya cannot wait to sail away from her boring brother.
This moment also doesn’t ring particularly true to the series. The Greyjoys are notoriously independent, so after Sansa pulled her move, you’d think Yara would want a piece of that. Instead, Yara votes for Bran as her king. Remember, the Starks defeated the Greyjoys years ago, which was why Theon was serving at Winterfell. And, as Yara points out, she pledged to follow Daenerys. Supporting the “brother” of her queen’s assassin seems like an odd move.
Game of Thrones: Winter is Coming (official browser game)
Tyrion also asserts that Bran is a great choice because he can’t have children, which means the lords and ladies of Westeros would have to elect a new king or queen upon his death. But the next king or queen could easily have heirs. Regardless of the offspring, is there another vote upon the next king/queen’s death? If so, isn’t that an awesome incentive to kill the king/queen – to generate a new vote? All of these people just agreed to a new form of government without thinking through the ramifications.
All hail Bland the Broken, second of his name, king of the Andals and the first men, haver of powers he never uses anymore.
This scene could have been an opportunity to show Westeros descending into chaos. “Game of Thrones” has always been about greed and self-interest above the greater good. To see these proud leaders giving up autonomy to pick the weird mostly mute kid who claims to have magic powers doesn’t ring true. In fact, the most “Game of Thrones” twist here would be for everyone to realize that Daenerys, fearsome as she was, was the only one who could have united the seven kingdoms. Perhaps this handful of leaders can convince their people that Bran is a just and worthy king. Perhaps…
Tyrion visits Jon to deliver the news: he’s got to go back to the Night’s Watch. The Unsullied will allow Jon to live, so long as he’s stuck with a life sentence at Castle Black.
“I’m going where now?”
Jon prepares to take the long journey north. He passes Grey Worm, who is about to set sail for Missandei’s home of Naath.
“Maybe Missandei had a twin sister.”
Jon shares some emotional farewells with his “siblings.” Jon’s goodbye with Arya is the biggest tear-jerker. He asks if she still has Needle. She does, of course. Arya says she plans to sail west of Westeros – beyond the edge of all the maps.
“Bye, fam.”
“I’m really Jaqen H’ghar wearing Arya’s face, but I’ll miss you, Jon Snow.”
“Bran, you are weird as hell. Good luck with everything.”
Brienne picks up a quill and opens the book about the Captains of the Kingsguard. She finishes Jaime’s story. He died “protecting his queen.” Never mind that the Jaime-Brienne sex scene added absolutely nothing to this show. Their relationship peaked when he knighted her. That, alone, would have been reason enough for Brienne to finish Jaime’s story with honor. Let’s all agree the sex scene never happened. It didn’t impact anything, so it might as well have been a horrible dream.
Who lives, who dies, who tells your story?
In the small council chamber, Tyrion prepares for their first meeting. Bronn shows up as the new Lord of Highgarden and Master of Coin. (Since he wasn’t at the vote, Highgarden must have been stuck with whatever the other lords decided.) Also, Bronn seems like a terrible choice for Master of Coin, but whatever. Lord Davos is now Master of Ships. Brienne appears to be Captain of the Kingsguard. Sam has become the Grand Maester. He shares “A Song of Ice and Fire” with Tyrion. Apparently, the Lannister got left out of Archmaester Ebrose’s epic history of the wars after Robert’s death.
(Record scratch) “You’re probably wondering how we got here.”
King Bran arrives at the small council meeting to note that they’re still shy one Master of Whispers, one Master of War, and one Master of Laws. Uh, isn’t Bran’s election supposed to end war? And why does the Three-Eyed Raven need a Master of Whispers. Have we seen any Masters of Laws in this entire show before now? What is happening? Doesn’t “King Bran” sound like a cereal aimed at constipated people?
Oh, Podrick is a knight now. So that’s nice.
“Podrick also votes for the brothels to be rebuilt.”
As the Small Council begins their meeting, the topic rolls around to brothels. Tyrion once again begins his joke about entering a brothel with a honeycomb and a jackass. This is the third time we’ve heard the beginning of the joke. We’ve never heard the punchline. It’s a nice callback for longtime fans.
As the camera pulls back from the Small Council, we see the map of Westeros with a big crack down the middle. Again, the director of photography doing some heavy metaphorical lifting.
From King’s Landing, we cut between the remaining Stark siblings. Sansa is crowned Queen in the North – a fitting end for the iron-willed woman.
“Yasss qween.”
Arya is aboard a custom-made Stark ship, headed for parts unknown.
“I did nothing since killing the Night King, but thanks for watching!”
Jon is back at Castle Black, where he reunites with Tormund and finally pets Ghost. (Fans have been waiting forever for that moment.)
(Jon turns to the camera and says, “Happy now?”)
Instead of manning the Wall, Jon and all the wildlings open the gate and head north. The last shot of the series shows Jon and the freefolk disappearing into the woods.
The End.
So did this episode work? At times, yes. At times, no. You can’t fault the actors. They were uniformly good. The cinematography and music and special effects were top notch. The script had some moments of brilliance, but more than a few head-scratchers. If the story ends with Jon headed north as an exile, Daenerys dead, Sansa as the Queen in the North, and Arya off to adventure, we buy all of that.
The choice of Bland the Broken as king is a real weird development. If he was always the choice, you’d think they would have invested more time on his scenes. He basically has superpowers, but the show doesn’t seem to care. Also, didn’t he turn down his claim on Winterfell because he had Three-Eyed Ravening to do? But his schedule cleared up in time for him to rule the Six Kingdoms?
You know Bran is a bad choice because his own sisters don’t even bother with a goodbye scene to him. There’s no, “Gee, Mom and Dad would be so thrilled to see you on the throne,” or, “Rule well, little brother.” They make a big deal about Jon’s departure, but the Stark girls bounced out of King’s Landing without so much as an “atta boy” for their broken brother.
Yes, of these three stories, Bran’s seems the most interesting.
It seems clear that other than the dragons, David Benioff and D.B. Weiss didn’t care for the mystical elements of George R.R. Martin’s world. Characters would be alarmed by the White Walkers one episode, then forget about them for eight straight episodes in favor of mortal matters. The fact that an army of the dead was dispatched with three episodes remaining was incredibly anticlimactic.
The pacing of this entire season was a mess. Virtually nothing happened in the first episode. The second episode was a gem of a character study. The third episode was a nonsensical battle with some awesome visuals often obscured by darkness. The fourth episode showed all our characters being dumb for the sake of plot contrivance. The fifth episode was a one-note slog. And the finale tried to make up for wasting the Night King and Cersei by putting all its chips on the Dany-Jon murder kiss.
“Why did you just ask me to look at the rabbits?”
On the first watch through, this episode seemed fine enough. The Bran choice really stuck out as odd, but the images, music, and the performances really elevated the story. Upon a rewatch, however, it feels like the showrunners were gasping for air, having used up all their energy in an earlier sprint. This might be a good episode for most shows on television, but for an epic series like “Game of Thrones,” the story did not meet or surpass its previous highs. It felt like fan fiction.
Ramsay Bolton once told Theon, “If you think this has a happy ending, you haven’t been paying attention.” Well, we ended up with a mostly happy ending. So maybe Benioff and Weiss weren’t paying attention to their previous work.
We will miss “Game of Thrones.” At its best, it was unlike anything on television. And even in its worst moments, we kept rooting for those old thrills to return. And now our watch is ended.
From the somber world of ‘Bojack Horseman’ to the comedic setting of ‘Family Guy’ these shows are NOT for kids.
Many Americans believe animation belongs to the “kids” category, which is a shame; some quality television falls under this description! Some shows are wildly different from the kiddie cartoons you might find on Cartoon Network or Nickelodeon. Passing it off as a childish cartoon is a great way to miss a few of the greatest TV shows.
There are excellent shows that are intended for kids but have great value for older audiences (we’re looking at you, “Adventure Time” ). However, we want to highlight a few titles made specifically for the grownups. Most are admittedly comedic, but all are extremely entertaining.
They are our…
Top 10 animated shows for adults
The classics
Archer
This is the best show about the worst people ever.
In real life, we don’t want to meet Sterling Archer or any of the other characters in this show. In fact, we wouldn’t want to be anywhere near their spy agency. They’re the most bungling, addle-brained group of covert operatives ever to see the light of day and God help anyone who gets involved in their antics.
Luckily, this makes them hilarious to watch!
Family Guy
“It seems today that all you see is violence and movies and sex on TV, but where are those good old fashioned values on which we used to rely? Lucky there’s a family guy!”
“Family Guy” follows the Griffin family through insane adventures. It’s a sitcom gone wrong, featuring Peter as the inappropriate but well-intentioned father, Lois as the “average” stay-at-home mom, Chris, the teenage son, Brian as the talking dog, Meg as the character everyone else loves to hate, and Stewie as the ridiculously intelligent and villainous prodigy baby.
Together, they might manage to not burn down the neighborhood.
Futurama
“Futurama” stars Fry who gets stuck in a cryogenic chamber in the year 2000 and falls asleep for 1,000 years. When he wakes up, it’s the future!
As you might expect, one thing leads to another and he falls in love with a one-eyed alien named Leela and befriends an alcoholic, kleptomaniac robot named Bender.
Together, they find jobs at Planet Express, a delivery company owned by Fry’s distant nephew, Professor Farnsworth. They begin a journey that may actually end with them making deliveries once in a while. But more often than not, they’ll barely escape from insane journeys with their lives intact!
Subsequently, the creator Matt Groening also made “The Simpsons” and “Disenchantment,” the latter quite recently. We recommend all of them, but include “Futurama” because it’s our personal favorite!
By anyone’s reckoning, though, “Futurama” created some of the best memes:
Samurai Jack
When you’re done palling around through the comedies, stop by “Samurai Jack” for a welcome change of pace.
Jack receives a sword that can defeat the demon Aku, a powerful being that simply embodies evil. Aku sends him forward in time to a dystopian future because hey, why not put off killing the samurai with a magical sword?
Hey, demons procrastinate, too.
In the future, Jack begins his quest to return to his own time and defeat Aku. This results in a back-and-forth battle that nearly sees victory for each side time and time again.
Look, “Samurai Jack” isn’t necessarily for adults. It’s rated TV-Y7, and was made by the same person that made “Dexter’s Laboratory” and “Powerpuff Girls.” However, “Samurai Jack” never captured that older younger audience as much as it captured older viewers.
Think “My Little Pony,” but with demons and samurai.
South Park
“Come on down to South Park and meet some friends of mine!”
Namely, meet Stan Marsh as the middle-class lead, Kyle Broflovski as a neurotic stereotype, Eric Cartman as the overweight sociopath, and Kenny McCormick as the lower-class kid all the others ignore. Kenny also dies in pretty much every episode.
Oh, trust us, this show gets controversial. The rumors are true.
If you’ve ever wanted a hilarious show that goes where no show was willing to go before, this show is for you. The things they “get away with” will leave you stunned.
Up-and-coming shows
Bob’s Bugers
A family that makes burgers together: it’s a simple concept that gets big laughs.
Bob and Linda Belcher try to hold their family-owned joint together, but they have a lot to handle. They have their awkward outcast daughter Tina, friendly but difficult son Gene, and highly intelligent and manipulative youngest child, Louise.
Interesting fact: their pilot episode broke viewership records. Of course, with a name like “Human Flesh,” who wouldn’t want to give it a try?
Bojack Horseman
Picture this: a world where humans and talking animals live together in harmony. Or…at least in the average-day American discord.
This Netflix-exclusive is the world of Bojack Horseman. Years ago, he was the famous leading actor of the hit TV series “Horsin’ Around.” Now, he’s another burnout celebrity living off his former glory while slowly ruining his life with substance abuse.
The show feels like a comedy for a while, but as time goes on, there are increasingly introspective moments. These moments go into the nature of depression, purpose, and family. The fun never leaves, but we should note that fans love this show for more than just the laughs.
Castlevania
OH YEAH!
Long ago, a series of 8-bit, side-scrolling games took us on an adventure to kill Dracula. We loyally followed…again and again and again!
The games started with Simon Belmont, but this new TV show begins with the story of Trevor Belmont, the last of his family name. He spends his days drinking and fighting in taverns until the world comes crashing down after the Church of Walachia kills Dracula’s human wife for allegedly practicing witchcraft. The once-benevolent vampire lord sets out on a quest to destroy all humans and begins (as one does) by summoning an army from Hell.
Slowly but surely, others come to Trevor’s side to join the fight against Dracula: Sypha, a nomadic mage, and Alucard, the [spoilers] son of Dracula. Their battle will be legendary!
Also, props to Simon and Richter Belmont for getting into Super Smash Bros!
One Punch Man
What if a hero was too powerful? What if they were truly OP?
Saitama can beat every bad guy with one punch, but bad guys aren’t his problem. He’s become so powerful nothing in life can catch his interest. Even when powerful monsters appear with greater frequency, he finds himself unmatched.
If you’ve ever wanted to watch a godlike hero with arguably more power than Superman struggle through life’s daily challenges while occasionally wrecking a villain with no trouble, watch this show. If you like action, watch this show. If you like comedy or anime or character development or musings on dreams, motivation, and inner fulfillment, watch One Punch Man!
Let’s just get this out of the way: we understand that a lot of the fanbase has ruined “Rick and Morty.” However, you shouldn’t let a few bad apples spoil the bunch, no matter how annoying they are:
If you haven’t heard of it yet, this show follows the hyper-intelligent, dimension-hopping outlaw Rick Sanchez and his awkward grandson, Morty Smith. Together, they go on adventures that occasionally end in the Earth’s invasion, destruction, or their own deaths.
Yeah, they get themselves into some pickles.
The toxic fanbase shouldn’t dissuade you from watching this show. The political commentary mixed with the action and comedy make for a fun experience.
Make movies and TV family-friendly with this site.
VidAngel‘s creators developed an intuitive website the allows you to filter content from movies and TV shows. Don’t care for profanity? Sickened by gory violence? You have the power to take that all out!
Before the lawsuit, you could pay around $20 for a title (we had “Deadpool” for a while, which was great) and remove the parts you found distasteful or didn’t want your kids to see (no, we weren’t watching “Deadpool” with the kids). You could keep the movie or return it for $18 in credit, basically a two-dollar rental of the best shows, clean and filtered!
So, what does VidAngel look like post-lawsuit? How does it work, and is it worth the new $10 subscription cost? That’s what we’re going to discuss!
The new VidAngel
Front Page
Head to the VidAngel site. When you begin your subscription, you’ll see something like the picture above. Welcome to the main screen!
As you can see, the layout looks different. Partially, this comes from changes over time, but a few points bear mentioning.
Scroll through the categories to search by class. VidAngel still retains many of the trappings of a streaming service, which means they’ve added some VidAngel exclusive shows:
Aside from this, you’re dealing with your average streaming service until you step into your first video. Let’s say that’s “Happy Death Day 2U”…
Signing Into Services
Before hopping into a video that requires another streaming platform, you must first sign into that account. In this case, for “Happy Death Day 2U,” that’s AmazonVideo.
Attempting to connect your account leads to this screen:
Grab the code (here, it’s covered in red) and head over to Amazon. When you sign in, enter the code where specified and wait 15 seconds!
Once you’re finished, the show is ready to watch!
Filters
As always with VidAngel, the filters can be chosen individually for each movie, as seen above. You can see how many filters are in effect in comparison with the total, check the altered runtime, and see a visual representation of what parts went missing.
However, there’s a nice addition to all this.
At the top of the main page, next to the “Categories” and “My Library” buttons, you’ll find “Default Filters”. Hit this button.
Here, you can engage filters for every video you watch! If you really don’t like hearing the F-bomb, take it out completely. As you can see above, there are even options to remove all opening credits and closing credits! (Along with an anti-Jar Jar Binks option that prequel fans may enjoy).
If you know exactly what you don’t want to see or hear, this tool makes VidAngel a great choice: you’ll never have to worry about changing a thing. In fact, you’ll have all your favorite shows across multiple streaming services readily available in one place.
Wrapping Up
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A new trailer for “Watchmen” is here with many new masked faces.
Looking for something to keep you busy after “Game of Thrones” is over? HBO just dropped their new trailer for their upcoming “Watchmen” series. Take a look.
So basically… huh?
Perhaps you’ve read the classic graphic novel series or seen the 2009 Zack Snyder film, but we’re looking at something entirely different here. We can see many familiar sights, but the images are twisted from the source material.
In the biggest change, instead of one Rorschach, there are dozens of fans or followers in his mask. Perhaps these guys are fans of the original hellraiser? Showrunner Damon Lindelof posted on Instagram that this is not a sequel, nor is it a direct adaptation of the beloved graphic novels. Instead, this series is set in the “Watchmen” world. Beyond that, it’s anybody’s guess what we’ll see.
The cast includes Regina King, Jeremy Irons, Don Johnson, Tim Blake Nelson, Louis Gossett Jr., Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Adelaide Clemens, Andrew Howard, Tom Mison, Frances Fisher, Jacob Ming-Trent, Sara Vickers, Dylan Schombing, Lily Rose Smith, and Adelynn Spoon.
The series misfires with its third-to-last episode, “The Last of the Starks.”
“We may have defeated them, but we still have us to contend with.”
Tyrion hits the nail on the head. In the first two episodes of this final season, Daenerys showed a strange preoccupation, not with the encroaching army of near-invincible undead, but with what would happen on the slim chance they survived. Because we knew it would be hard to fill three episodes if everyone at Winterfell died, we anticipated our heroes would survive at great cost. They really only lost a handful of second-stringers.
Unlike Episode 2, which provided a smattering of well-earned world’s-gonna-end fan service, Episode 4 had the unenviable duty of providing a little post-battle housekeeping and setting up the conflict that will rule over the final two episodes. The result is an uneven mess as the once-unified heroes choose new allegiances before the finale.
“Hope you brought marshmallows.”
The episode begins with a mass funeral at Winterfell. Daenerys says goodbye to Jorah, Arya says goodbye to Beric, Sam says goodbye to Edd, Jon says goodbye to Lyanna, and Sansa bids farewell to Theon, even placing a Stark pin on his corpse. It’s one more nice touch for the surrogate Stark, a man who never found acceptance until returning to the family he once betrayed.
“What is dead may never die.”
After the funeral, the survivors head indoors to party it up. They did defeat an ancient evil, after all. This is the most smiles we can remember on this show since the first episode. Throughout the great hall, the survivors are laughing, drinking, and hooking up.
Gendry faces a tense moment when Dany calls him out for being a Baratheon – a member of the family who overthrew hers. In a rare moment of magnanimity, Daenerys actually awards Gendry the title of Lord of Storm’s End.
Gendry reacts like his name was called in class and he’d been doodling.
Excited by this news, Gendry hunts down Arya and proposes marriage. She shoots him down. A girl has no plans to marry. Is this the last we’ll see of Gendry?
“You can actually pinpoint the second when his heart gets ripped in half.”
Back in the great hall, Dany surveys the room and realizes she’s in trouble. The Lannister brothers are laughing it up with Brienne. Tormund and the Wildlings sing Jon’s praises. Sansa shoots an arched eyebrow a the dragon queen. Dany is alone. This Iron Throne plan may not be as easy as she thought.
When you realize you’re not sitting at the popular table in the lunch room.
Jaime, Brienne, Podrick, and Tyrion play the drinking game that originated back in Season 1. Tyrion makes a guess. If he’s right, the other person drinks. If he’s wrong, he drinks. Tyrion guesses Brienne is a virgin. She stands up and leaves abruptly. Jaime follows after her. Poor Tormund is heartbroken.
Games are fun!
Poor Tormund.
In Brienne’s room, Jaime makes his move. The rival-friend-lovers consummate their relationship. What can we say? Jaime likes blondes. It does seem odd that a woman so concerned with oaths would be willing to bed a man without being married first. Maybe staring death in the face has softened her resolve. This scene feels out of sync with the rest of the series. “Game of Thrones” has never been about what we want to happen. For Brienne, being knighted would be a bigger deal than losing her virginity. Brienne reached her apex when Jaime touched her on the shoulder with that sword. If she survived “The Long Night” just to make love to Jaime and watch him leave, that’s a really strange choice.
Smoke ’em if you got ’em.
Seems everyone in Winterfell is ready to blow off some sexual steam because some women approach Podrick and The Hound. Podrick is down to mingle, but The Hound will have none of it. As The Hound chases away his potential paramour, Sansa comes over and sits down. If you look in the background of this scene, Podrick swings in to catch the rejected girl and head off for a threesome.
Podrick negotiates a three-way in the background.
The Hound uses his old nickname for Sansa, saying that if the “little bird” would have left King’s Landing with him during the Battle of the Blackwater, she wouldn’t have had to endure Littlefinger or Ramsay. Sansa replies, “Without Littlefinger, Ramsay, and the rest, I would have stayed a little bird.”
Indeed, this show spends a lot of time on the idea of the teachers and (sometimes unwilling) students: Jon is the sum total of what he learned from Ned, Jeor, and Mance. Arya is the result of her father, Syrio, Jaqen, Tywin, The Hound, and the Waif. Sansa is Sansa because of her mother, Cersei, Littlefinger, and Ramsay. Bran is, well, the Three-Eyed Raven.
Who will kill Cersei? Who will sit on the Iron Throne?
Perhaps Dany’s problem is that her mentors were all seriously flawed. Her brother, Viserys, was a monster. Khal Drogo may have brought her strength, but their marriage began with rape. After that, all her advisors were her subjects, unable to wield true influence. She frequently ignored counsel from Jorah, Ser Barristan, Daario, Missandei, and Tyrion. In this episode, she continues ignoring good advice in favor of a single-minded sprint to the Iron Throne.
Daenerys visits Jon in his room and pleads with him not to reveal the truth of his parentage. Jon bends the knee to reaffirm his allegiance, but Dany sees what’s going down. Jon already has the hearts of the northerners. If his heritage were revealed, Dany would lose at least half the kingdom. Since Jon is Jon, he is unable to lie, and refuses to promise to keep his bloodline a secret.
See the knee-bending? It’s bent. We cool?
The next day, the survivors plan their assault on King’s Landing. It appears half of the army is dead, while Cersei’s army has grown – the Golden Company has arrived, courtesy of Euron Greyjoy’s fleet. On the plus side, Yara retook the Iron Islands and the new prince of Dorne will align with Dany. Jon and Davos will take the northern army south, Dany will take the remaining Dothraki and Unsullied and sail to Dragonstone. (This is the first time we’ve learned that any Dothraki survived the idiotic charge of last week’s episode.) Jaime plans to stay put in Winterfell. This is the military equivalent of walking into a haunted house and splitting up to find the ghosts.
“We need to talk.”
At the end of this meeting, the Stark girls corner Jon. In the Godswood, Jon spills the beans. The secret is out. Jon is a Targaryen and a Stark. To paraphrase Ben Franklin, three people can keep a secret as long as two of them are dead. The Stark girls are very much alive, and it doesn’t take long for Sansa to tell Tyrion.
Bronn somehow strolls into a room with Jaime and Tyrion and demands Highgarden in exchange for not killing the Lannister boys. Then he strolls off, one more convenient dangling plot thread that should come back over the next two weeks.
Riverrun x 2 = Highgarden
Jon saddles up and prepares to say goodbye to Winterfell. He shares a hug with Gilly, discovering she’s pregnant. Sam blushes and hugs his best friend.
Tormund also dishes out a hug and tells Jon he plans on taking the remaining Wildlings back to Castle Black.
In a moment that is driving fans crazy, Jon asks Tormund to take Ghost with him. Jon doesn’t even give Ghost a hug or anything! After some early-season direwolf displays of power, the show totally turned its back on the savage pups. Ghost should have been a huge asset in last week’s battle, but he was AWOL after the first charge. Ghost could be a great force in a King’s Landing battle. But sure, send him north. What a weird choice.
Jon bids farewell to his friends and the direwolf who absolutely should have had more screen time.
Some other heroes are headed off on their own. As The Hound rides from Winterfell, he’s joined by his old traveling partner, Arya. Both killers have unfinished business in King’s Landing.
Hunting party.
Jaime also takes his leave. Despite Brienne’s pleas, Jaime rejects her and says he needs to return to Cersei. It’s unclear whether he’s leaving because he loves Cersei or because he intends to kill her… or something else. Brienne is heartbroken.
“But our perfunctory fan-service romance just began earlier this episode!”
As Varys and Tyrion sail for Dragonstone, they kick around the information that Jon is the true heir to the throne. Varys correctly intuits that this knowledge won’t stay secret for long, and the people will swing behind Jon. Tyrion holds out allegiance for Daenerys. Yes, it would be easiest if Dany became the queen, but Varys understands that the course of the realm doesn’t always work that way. The two friends even float the idea that Jon and Dany could get married. Even that would be too easy. Dany comes from a family of inbreeders, but Jon was raised in the north, where such things are frowned upon.
In a total headscratcher of a scene, Dany and her dragons are ambushed by Euron Greyjoy’s fleet. Somehow Euron managed a direct hit on Rhaegal with his first shot from a giant crossbow mounted on a ship that’s bobbing up and down on the water. A second bolt clips Rhaegal’s wing. A third stabs him through the neck. Rhaegal plunges under the water, presumably dead. (It’s weird that Dany couldn’t see the ships from her vantage point in the sky, but whatever.) Euron’s fleet fires a few more bolts at Dany, then destroys her fleet.
Rhaegal survived The Long Night for this.
Euron captures Missandei and, somehow, Dany’s team knows this. (You’d think there would be a lot of confusion after a giant naval battle, and they’d be unsure if she drowned or was killed or captured.) You’d also have to imagine all the aquaphobic Dothraki and their horses drowned in the “poison water,” but the episode doesn’t even bother showing this.
“Can I still go back to the beaches of Naath with Grey Worm?”
Euron and Cersei share a moment of victory. Cersei lets Euron believe her baby is his. They discuss their strategy against Daenerys: they’ll pack the Red Keep with innocent people to use as human shields.
Varys and Tyrion chat again. Although they both suspect Jon would be the better ruler (a reluctant one), Tyrion seems like he’s going to stick with Dany. Varys, on the other hand, prepares ready to cast his lot with Jon. It looks like a happy ending won’t be in the cards.
When you use a cheat code to get to the boss battle without leveling up first.
Furious about the loss of Rhaegal and the kidnapping of Missandei, a badly overmatched Daenerys marches to King’s Landing. In the one great scene of the episode, Tyrion steps forward to try to convince his sister to surrender peacefully. It’s a tense standoff that shares some DNA with the end of “The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.” Tyrion looks at Cersei, who looks at Dany, who looks at Missandei, who looks at Grey Worm. This thing could go either way.
“Hi. We’re the bad guys.”
Hand & Hand
Despite Tyrion’s best efforts, and an appeal to her motherly instincts, Cersei appears ready for war. She asks Missandei if she has any final words. “Dracarys,” Missandei says. (That’s basically the same thing the Mad King said in his final words: “Burn them all.”) The Mountain swings his sword. Missandei dies. Tyrion is crestfallen. Grey Worm is shattered. Cersei smiles. Dany is pissed. The screen fades to black.
“I hope Grey Worm got refundable tickets to Naath.”
The best seasons of this series offered episodes that nudged the season-long arcs forward while providing thrilling moments of action or betrayal each week. Think of something like Arya serving as Tywin’s cupbearer. That not only provided exposition about the battles around Westeros, it made us wonder whether Tywin would come to discover Arya’s true identity. It was tense and playful and smart and there was no way of knowing how it would end. In the latter seasons, and in this truncated final run, “Game of Thrones” has become an exceptionally claustrophobic series. Epsidode 1 was merely a place-setting. Episode 2 was a wonderful character tapestry. Episode 3 was all battle. Episode 4 was more place-setting. The patience and pace have been replaced with your typical third-act-of-an-action-movie speed.
Compare this season’s offerings to an episode like Season 2’s “Blackwater.” Although that episode contained plenty of action with the Battle of Blackwater Bay, it also provided lots of character development: Joffrey proved he was a chicken, Cersei threatened Sansa while spiraling into fear that almost led her to poison Tommen, Tyrion stepped up to lead the army, The Mountain decided he would rather risk death than fight for Joffrey, and Tyrion was slashed in the face by one of the Kingsguard. Since the show has outpaced the books, it seems like the writers have forgotten how to walk and chew gum at the same time.
Game of Thrones: Winter is Coming (official browser game)
Before Winterfell, the last time Brienne saw Jaime, he was sacking Riverrun and allowing her escape. This season, Jaime arrived at Winterfell, supplicated himself, broke tradition by knighting Brienne, fought alongside her, then bedded her and left her. That would be like Oberyn arriving in King’s Landing, declaring he would fight for Tyrion, and getting his head smushed all in the same episode.
“Game of Thrones” has been so good when showing its characters thinking, plotting, and discovering. Now, they all seem to be bumping into each other because they can’t see more than three inches in front of their faces. We want to see traps laid, traps thwarted, and traps sprung. The series has appeared to have moved from chess to Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots, and that’s a shame. Here’s hoping the final two episodes can return the show to its former glory.
This is the best show about the worst people ever.
“It seems today that all you see is violence and movies and sex on TV, but where are those good old fashioned values on which we used to rely? Lucky there’s a family guy!”
“Futurama” stars Fry who gets stuck in a cryogenic chamber in the year 2000 and falls asleep for 1,000 years. When he wakes up, it’s the future!
When you’re done palling around through the comedies, stop by “Samurai Jack” for a welcome change of pace.
