Okay, I just watched “Oathbreaker.” Here are my highly subjective, personal thoughts and feelings after viewing the episode. I’m avoiding social media comments and reviews until I finish, so my initial gut reactions aren’t influenced by other responses.
First of all, the episode was good. It didn’t have the impact of “Home,” but that’s fine, not every installment is going to be as perfect or come as front-loaded with high drama as that one. Sam and Gilly made their Season 6 debut, and every storyline moved forward, even if some of it felt a bit dry and by-the-numbers; a number of sequences felt a lot like promises of what is to come. Other sequences, like the one at the Tower of Joy, delivered long-awaited answers. I give the episode a solid Game of Thrones grade of B.
The impressions I list below are my all my own musings, and over time I may rethink how I feel about things. I believe that I can support some of these points on an intellectual/logical level while others are just emotional responses which may be less defensible in the cold light of day…but they’re as immediate and honest as I can make them. I offer up five Valyrian Steel (Best) Moments and five Flea Bottom Brown (Worst) moments for your consideration: