All 8 Game of Thrones season finales, ranked from worst to best

Between the dragons, the knights and all that betrayal, Game of Thrones has earned its reputation as one of the greatest TV shows, ever. Some of the biggest twists came in the season finale, which regularly popped our eyeballs right out of our skulls. Although there was one finale that didn’t go down well with fans, a lot of them are the stuff of legend.

So from the birth of Daenerys Targaryen’s dragons to the crowning of King Bran the Broken, we look back at the Game of Thrones season finales and rank them from “worst” to “best,” using our own mysterious criteria. Let’s dive in.

8) Season 8: “The Iron Throne”

Alright, let’s just go ahead and rip the bandaid off right at the top. Ahhhh, the pain!  Ok, we’re fine now.

No surprise here, the last hurrah of Game of Thrones wasn’t quite the dragon’s roar we expected. The series tripped and tumbled through its final season and crashed right into a controversial ending that doesn’t make much sense.

From the baffling coronation of Bran Stark to the tragic takedown of Daenerys Targaryen by none other than Jon Snow, everything felt rushed, as if events were happening without taking much of what happened over the previous seven seasons into account. It most definitely wasn’t the grand sendoff we’d hoped for.

7) Season 3: “Mhysa”

The season 3 finale, “Mhysa,” might not be the top-dog finale, but it didn’t send fans into a rage spiral, so it has a serious leg up on “The Iron Throne.”

This episode aired directly after the Red Wedding, and topping that is like trying to scale the Wall with your bare hands. “Mhysa” follows up that momentous event pretty nicely, confirming that Tywin Lannister was the puppet master behind the massacre.

“Mhysa” also spotlights Daenerys, our favorite dragon mama. In this episode, the freed slaves of Yunkai call her “Mhysa,” which means “mother” in Ghiscari. And boy, did she embrace that title. Our Dany ends the season gathering power and preparing to conquer.