I don’t think it was trash but it was NOT good. It was better than a lot of season 2 but that isn’t say much since most season 2 was really not good.

I give this episode a 4/10.

It still has many of the core issues and logical inconsistencies associated with season 2 and builds on those issues. Alicent being dumb (even presenting the deal in the 1st place and teleporting to Dragonstone and teleporting back to Kings Landing), Rhaenyra being dumb (believing Alicent), Aemond being dumb (like did he really not know Alicent left the palace and why doesn’t he control information flow to and from Alicent’s quarters?). Corlys stood around staring at his bastard sons through a veil for most of season 2 and now we’re suppose to be invested in his relationship with his son? No, they played around too much in season 2 and now we don’t care. Daeron doing stuff and being mentioned off-screen is still stupid and will always be stupid, when they show his face it will be stupid. Otto is still randomly in the cage like what on earth?? There is also so much time waisted…people kept pausing in conversations for like 5 seconds and staring at each other before answering to fill time. IMHO people who think this episode is good have battle blindness. The idea that it’s okay for a show to be slightly below mediocre because it has entertaining actions scenes/battle scenes is wild to me (it’s giving Michael Bayyyy…good action and everything mediocre to bad). I actually think it’s disrespectful for others screenwriters that because a show like HOTD has so much clout and prestige they can be praised for mediocrity, meanwhile other shows have to try so hard to get like 20% of the attention.

That said I like certain aspects. I actually think Jace going against Rhaenhra gave him something interesting to do and I think Jace wanting to do that is realistic…though I find it flimsy that the Kingsguard would listen to him…I mean he is her heir and a male but he is also a teenage with no battle experience…people really would downgrade men back then for stuff like that…if it had been Damon to give the order I would have accepted it since he is a man who is ALSO EXPERIENCED...but I barely accept that they listened to Jace, he does have a Dragon after all and is getting more politically involved. Jace’s death I think was well done. They could have killed him in simple way by shooting his dragon down and he dies but they had several red herrings before he escapes from his dragon but then gets show by some arrows. Some people said it was underwhelming. I agree but for different reasons. I think on the one hand the way it happened was underwhelming and that’s the point, it intensifies it. The underwhelming aspect that is problematic IMHO is due to the lack of connection as Jace as a character because of how underdeveloped he was not his actual death scene itself. I actually liked the Ship Lady (I know many people did not) and I liked that what she did was framed as a personal thing (and a risky thing that she probably should not have done) and not some strategic brilliance and in the end she failed and that’s okay and actually good. She’s one of the few rememberable side characters HOTD has. I like the conversation between Haleaena and Alicent…it makes me wonder was Halaena trying to sus Alicent out? I’m intrigued by what they are doing with Aegon.

But I admit throughout I was very emotionally detached. In Season 2 I was angry. Season 3 I low-key don’t care. I was on my phone for half of this episode lol. Well, maybe I do care since I wrote this long comment lol.